Wednesday, February 27, 2013

RAIN & SLUSH... & A BEAVER!
3.2 Mile Walk at Five Rivers EEC
Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

GOOD NEWS... BAD NEWS...
Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Got word tonight that this weekend's Big River Half Marathon in RI is being postponed due to the amount of snow still on the trails (a sad thought, given how little snow we have here!) Having lost three days to being sick, I can really use the time I would have spent travelling to grade exams...

Unofrtunately, the race has been rescheduled to 3/30, when there are already two other races I was trying to choose between - the Mt Penn Mudfest in PA and the Shenipset Old School Trail Half Marathon in CT. Sigh.

JMH
DARN BEAR...
Tuesday, February 26, 2013

... whatever this bug was, it bit and held on for a bit. Ended up going home early yesterday and spent most of my time until mid-day today in bed - which seems to have done the trick. This afternoon I was able to eat without feeling like I might throw up, and the mild fever I was running seems to have passed as well. Now I just have to wait for my digestion and energy levels to get back to normal... but that beats being unable to stay awake for more than a couple hours at a time.

JMH

Sunday, February 24, 2013

AND SOME DAYS THE BEAR GETS YOU...
Sunday, February 24, 2013

Woke up with a headache, slight chills, and a feeling in my stomach that warned me to very careful about what I ate and drank, unless I wanted to see it a second time around. My guess is a mild case of food poisoning. So no long run, no long walk, no bike ride and so far no grading the large stack of papers I brought home on Friday... nothing but a day spent mostly asleep in bed in hopes that lots of rest will give my body the strength to kick out whatever it is that has its teeth in me.

JMH
Weekly Activity Summary
2/17/2013 - 2/23/2013

running - 0 mi
riding  - 0 mi
walking/hiking (2x) - 4.2 mi
snowshoe (2x) - 13.2 mi
XC ski - 0 mi
outdoor activity 4/7 days

JMH

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #12
Moby Dick 7.5mi Snowshoe Race
Saturday, February 23, 2013

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 44.9 mi, 12 hr 52 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NH, NY, VT

Friday, February 22, 2013

SO LONG JUNO... HELLO THUNDERBIRD!
Friday, February 22, 2013














A few weeks ago I spent far too much time over three days trying to retrieve my e-mail archive after Juno crashed and somehow corrupted the database. While I was researching possible methods of retrieving my mail, I also came across a fairly detailed description of how another longtime Juno user (I've been on Juno since sometime around the mid-1990's) finally grew frustrated with the glitches in the Juno software and switched his Juno account over to Thunderbird. (And yes, when my version crashed, it did exactly what he describes - put 45000+ e-mails in one folder.)

On and off I've been organizing my recovered Juno mail into folders, deleting a lot of stuff I'll never need to look at again - and tonight I took the giant step and ported everything over to Thunderbird. After a few stutters and stumbles - mission accomplished, and in the end it was even easier than described (probably due to improvements to Thunderbird in the 3+ years since the article was written.) Now all that's left is to transfer my address book (a minor task) and tweak Thunderbird so it's doing things the way I want it too, or as close as I can get.

After all this time, it's more than a bit strange to not be using the Juno software anymore. In the end, though, I think I'm going to find that a good thing.


JMH
A Snowshoe Race Cancelled Due To... Too Much Snow????
Friday, February 22, 2013

Well... that's what it looked like originally, when the forecast called for about a foot of snow in Hawley between Saturday night and Sunday morning. Good for snowshoeing, bad for parking at the SCA Americorps HQ that we get to use for the Moody Spring and Hallockville races.

While the forecast is now for a lot less snow, Sunday's race is still cancelled - MA DCR pulled the permit, on the grounds that they don't have anyone to plow the parking lot Sunday morning.

While I'm not particularly fond of the Hallockville Orchard race (it's mostly on snowmobile trail) I will still miss the chance to spend some time with my friends over in the forest in West Hawley. On the plus side - I can stay closer to home and get my backside out for a long run instead.

JMH

Thursday, February 21, 2013

There's Just Something About a Good Map...
Thursday, February 21, 2013

Monday, February 18, 2013

SO THAT'S WHERE THE DUCKIES ARE HANGING OUT...
3 Mile Walk at Five Rivers EEC
Monday, February 18, 2013

Sunday, February 17, 2013

COLD & WINDY
Sunday, February 17, 2013

I really wanted to go back out and take down the markings for the Moody Spring course today - mainly because it would have given me a longer snowshoe than I ever done before (I think my current max is somewhere around 9.5 miles) and I really need to be building distance if I want to have any hope of making it to the finish of the Big Island Marathon in a month... exactly a month... OK, I feel ill now.

But today started out cold - about 10-15 degrees colder than yesterday - and turned very, very windy. Cold I don't mind. Cold and windy, on the other hand, can literally be a killer combo. Today it was bad enough that I couldn't even convince myself to stop anywhere on the way home to go for a walk, on a wonderfully sunny day.

As I sit here and listen to the wind howl outside, I'm pretty sure I made the right decision.

JMH
Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #11
Moody Spring 5.7mi Snowshoe Race
Sunday, February 17, 2013

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 37.4 mi, 10 hr 12 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NH, NY, VT
Weekly Activity Summary
2/10/2013 - 2/16/2013

running - 0 mi
riding  - 0 mi
walking/hiking (6x) - 7.8 mi
snowshoe (2x) - 7.1 mi
XC ski (1x) - 4.5 mi
outdoor activity 5/7 days

JMH

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #10
Kingman Farm Moonlight 3.4mi Snowshoe Race
Saturday, February 16, 2013

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 31.7 mi, 8 hr 29 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NH, NY, VT
0.7 Mile Walk at the Great Bay Discovery Center
Saturday, February 16, 2013
0.8 Mile Walk at Odiorne State Park
Saturday, February 16, 2013
1 Mile Walk at Moore State Park
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #9
Moore State Park 3.7mi Snowshoe Race
Saturday, February 16, 2013

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 28.3 mi, 7 hr 39 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NY, VT

Friday, February 15, 2013

Off to MA & NH for a Snowshoe Triple Weekend
Friday, February 15, 2013

Thursday, February 14, 2013

1.4 Mile Walk at Buckingham Lake
Thursday, February 14, 2013

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

1.6 Mile Walk at Ann Lee Pond
Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Monday, February 11, 2013

2.3 Mile Walk at the Crossings of Colonie
Monday, February 11, 2013

Sunday, February 10, 2013

A GORGEOUS WINTER DAY!
4.5 Mile XC Ski in the Albany Pine Bush
Sunday, February 10, 2013
E-Mail Up and Running Again...
Sunday, February 10, 2013

... but the Juno software's days at Turtle HQ may be seriously numbered. I'm checking out other options for an e-mail client to access my Juno account... right now Thunderbird is looking like the most attractive option, especially since I've found on-line instructions for performing most of the transfer.

JMH
Weekly Activity Summary
2/3/2013 - 2/9/2013

running (1x) - 5.3 mi
riding  - 0 mi
walking/hiking (3x) - 7.6 mi
snowshoe (2x) - 9.5 mi
XC ski - 0 mi
outdoor activity 5/7 days

JMH

Saturday, February 09, 2013

CAMP SARATOGA REVISITED
4.5 Mile Snowshoe at the Wilton Wildlife Preserve
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #8
Camp Saratoga 5mi Snowshoe Race
Saturday, February 9, 2013

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 24.6 mi, 6 hr 37 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NY, VT

Friday, February 08, 2013

SNOW, SNOW, SNOW...
No Brrr-Lingame 10mi for the Turtle
Friday, February 8, 2013
A SNOWY EVENING
4.8 Mile Walk to Buckingham Lake and Back
Friday, February 8, 2013

Thursday, February 07, 2013

A BIT SHORTER THAN PLANNED...
5.3 Mile Run on the Mohawk Hudson Bike Path
Thursday, February 7, 2013

Tuesday, February 05, 2013

OVERCOMING INERTIA
2 Mile Walk Around the Pine Hills Neighborhood
Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Sunday, February 03, 2013

One Advantage to the Stupor Bowl...
Sunday, February 3, 2013

Nope, not a football fan. Couldn't care less about the Super Bowl (though I would like to see the Ravens win... just because ravens are incredibly cool and intelligent birds. Sadly, I doubt being incredibly cool and intelligent is an advantage in football.) Some folks are incredulous when they hear that not only have I never watched the Super Bowl, but I never intend to. Even if it means I miss a slew of clever, cutesy, $8 million a minute commercials. Oh, the horror, the horror...

BUT - I did appreciate the reduced traffic on the Thruway when I drove back to Albany this evening. Guess there was a plus to a big chunk of the US population being glued to their humongous-screen TVs this evening.

UPDATE - Looks like someone else thinks the same way I do... here's an article with lots of info about ravens.
JMH
GEESE, DUCKS, SWANS, & AN EAGLE
A Brief Visit to Lock CS-1
Sunday, February 3, 2013
HUNGRY BIRDIES...
0.8 Mile Walk at Mendon Ponds Park
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Weekly Activity Summary
1/27/2013 - 2/2/2013

running (3x) - 29.2 mi
riding  - 0 mi
walking/hiking - 0 mi
snowshoe (1x) - 5.0 mi
XC ski - 0 mi
outdoor activity 3/7 days

JMH

Saturday, February 02, 2013

Season of the SnōShū 2013 - Race #7
Cast A Shadow 6 Hr Trail Race
Saturday, February 2, 2013

The brief version:

I completed seven loops, each just under 2.3 miles according to my Garmin, for a total of 16.0 miles. The loops were fairly flat (some slight elevation gains and losses, though as time went on they seemed more and more significant) so I'd expect the GPS readings to be pretty accurate.

Didn't make it to six hours... finished loop 7 at 4 hr 32 min, having walked much of the way (and "shuffled" the parts that I "ran".) Legs were definitely feeling shot, right foot was aching pretty much constantly (walking aggravates it more than running) and I was pretty sure if I did another loop I'd be walking the whole thing. Ciuld I have done it? Sure. Would it have been miserable and extended my recovery time by a day or two? Yup. So good sense won out over stupid obstinance and I bailed at a little over 4 1/2 hours.

Despite stopping well before the time limit, I would count this as a success. I was out there for 16 miles, with no breaks longer than about 5 minutes or so. My longest day since early November was last Sunday, when I did 11.5 miles split between a snowshoe race in the morning and a run in the afternoon. My longest run since early November was somewhere around 8 miles. So today was a significant step up from where I've been for the past 2 1/2 months.

Would I do it again? Surprisingly, yes. I never found myself bored with the trail (exhausted and tired of running/walking/shuffling, yes, but not bored) which was my main concern. I would definitely like to do this as a snowshoe event, and I'd like to do it again as a trail event when I'm in better shape and can go longer/further.

It also helps that the Goose Adventure Racing folks (Mort, Tim, and their happy crew of volunteers) are incredibly supportive and a lot of fun... really the western NY version of the best parts of our snowshoeing/trail running crew around here.

The longer version:

May show up in the not-too-distance future, especially if I do a write up for Snonews...

JMH

2013 Event Totals
Run 16.0 mi 4 hr 32 min
Bike 0 mi, 0 min
Snowshoe 19.6 mi, 5 hr 12 min
Kayak 0 mi, 0 min

states visited: MA, NY, VT

Friday, February 01, 2013

5.7 Mile Run in the Albany Pine Bush
Friday, February 1, 2013