Team Clatterbuck

Well I’m making slow strides, literally. After giving my knee a break for many weeks, I’m easing back into running, accompanied with LOTS of stretching. I’m starting out on the treadmill which is pretty boring but I’m up to 3 miles. When I get to 5 comfortably then I’ll start road running again. I’m just about due for a new pair of running shoes, and I think I’m going back to Brooks. My Saucony Stabils are just a little too stiff for me. They leave my ankles and shins a little sore, but my New Balance 1221s don’t provide enough support for over-pronation.

I put some pictures up here from the Xterra 5k Scramble at Boordy Vineyards. Of course the pictures don’t even begin to tell the story of how hot it was. About an hour after the race I thought I had cooled down some, so I changed back into my street clothes and grabbed the camera. Of course shortly afterwards that shirt was soaked also. It was a fun race, and my knee feels fine today, so I plan to start stepping up the training slowly. I want to start running with the Fells Point Runners on Tuesday evenings at the harbor, assuming my work schedule allows it. Hopefully I can get some more biking in too.

Today will be my first race since the half marathon in May. I’m nervous because I know I’m not as fast as I was 3 months ago. I plan to really take this one easy and see how my knee handles it. Worst case I stop running until January to give it time to completely heal, and then begin gradually training up for the St Patrick’s Day 5k (always my first race of the season). Best case I find out my knee is doing great, and I am able to train up to the Baltimore half marathon in October. It’ll be on roads rather than trails so it’ll be easier on the tendons.
And either way, there’ll be great wine there for after the race. The refreshments really are the most important part of the race after all.

I picked up my race packet at lunch time for the Boordy 5k. I’ve been popping anti-inflammatorys like candy, and icing as much as possible. We’ll see how it goes. I ran two miles Tuesday night at around a 9:00 pace without too much knee trouble, so hopefully my knee is recovering.
Not much else going on right now. I’m hoping to start having time for some evening bike rides once I get through this current project, so next week should be a good week.