Chocolate Runner’s Blog

Posted By Jon on August 30, 2010

Today I have a rest day scheduled.  I was really needing one too.  My legs are made of lead and they are damn sore too.

Unfortunately, I forgot that Boy Scouts is starting up again and that means committee meetings.  I resigned from the old troop’s committee, but I’m still on the one for the new troop.  I’m fine with this, but it does cut into my running schedule.

The first meeting is tomorrow night, which means I needed to run tonight and then rest tomorrow.  So, either I run after the meeting (very late!), or I miss a run, or I shift all the runs down the week and run on a Friday, missing another rest day.  I have New Haven on Monday and I was hoping for the luxury of 3 rest days before the race.

And I decided I’m racing New Haven.  There.  I said it.  I was always saying it was just another run during training, but I know darn well that I will be racing it once I get the number on my chest (its like that mask that Jim Carey wore in The Mask).  So, I’m just openly admitting it so I don’t have to live the racing lie any more.

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Posted By Jon on August 29, 2010

I had 13 miles on the schedule today.  This is a “step back” week, where the mileage drops down a bit, to keep my legs from crashing.  To be honest, they have been feeling a little dead lately, and today’s run was no exception.

I planned out a modification of my 18 mile loop, by adding in a shortcut that brought it down to about 13 miles.  I think it was about a quarter mile over, but I moved the starting spot and planned to have a long cool down walk.  It should go ok.

Sadly, it did not.

I kept my pace ok and tried to keep in mind that I needed to hold it around 9:00 and not try to go faster, especially at the start.  I tend to go out fast and hurt at the end.  There were some more of the same long hills on this run, so it got a little tiring near the halfway point.  The temps were in the 70′s, and with the sun it made for a hot run.

The real problem came when I hit my shortcut.  It wasn’t there.  I turned to go into the road where I needed to cut through, and found the pavement ended about 20 yards into a corn field.  I think 50 years ago there was a dirt road that stretched along the edge of someone’s field, but it had long since overgrown.  Checking Google’s satellite view, I can see where the road was before, but its clearly not there now.

I was long past the halfway mark, so I trudged onward and ended up adding over a mile to my run.  Now, a mile is not a lot, but for a day where I was already tired and trying to keep the run light, it sucked big time.  I stopped at my 13 miles and walked for a while, then jogged a little and walked some more.  My hips were really sore near the end.  I’m happy tomorrow is a rest day.

mile 1: 8:46
mile 2: 8:46
mile 3: 8:46
mile 4: 8:55
mile 5: 8:50
mile 6: 9:05
mile 7: 8:41
mile 8: 8:47
mile 9: 9:04
mile 10: 9:13
mile 11: 8:52
mile 12: 8:48
mile 13: 8:45

Overall I had an 8:52 pace which is a little faster than it should have been.  I shouldn’t be running faster than my target pace, if my legs feel awful like that.  I can actually go 9:20 and still be in my target range.  I think I just don’t have a good feel for what 9:00/mile  feels like.

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Posted By Jon on August 27, 2010

I had a lovely week in Cape Cod.  We drove 7 hours in bumper to bumper traffic (3 extra hours of fun), to enjoy the high winds and rain for three days straight.  The eastern part of the state got nearly 5 inches of rain, and we got to sit in the motel room and pout.  Next year I’m staying home.

I did get to go run on the Cape Cod Rail Trail.

The train that used to run the length of the cape, disappeared long ago, so the track space was made into a running path, which is similar to the trolley running path that is here at home.  With one exception.  The cape rail trail runs over 20 miles long, so you can get any long run in that you need, and pretty much cover cyling too.

The trail is mostly flat, with an occasional slight incline.  Nicely paved, with some road crossings, but here in MA, the cars are supposed to stop when you step off the curb.  I never tested it by just running headlong into traffic, but the cars did slow down when I stopped at the crossings.  I took the pictures above on the day we left, which turned out to be just lovely.  Of course.

I got some very good runs in during the rain and wind.  A few hardy runners out there but mostly it was clear running the whole way.  The flat path made for faster running than I should have done, but I figured if it was flat, there wasn’t much harm is going faster because it all evened out in the end:

5 miles, 8:11/mile
8 miles, 7:47/mile
5 miles, 8:22/mile

I made a visit to Stage Stop Candy in Dennisport.  They had these tiny little chocolates that they labeled as “trifles” although I thought a trifle was something different.

Its hard to tell from the image, but they are about half an inch in diameter and look like the outer chocolate shell is molded.  They each had some kind of confectioner’s paint sprayed on the very top, with a few sprinkles.  The filling is a soft, tart fruit flavor.  Just wonderful!  The smell in the box was a bit odd though.  I’m not sure if it was just the mixture of flavors all together like that.  Still, I really liked them.

During the rain, we spent a lot of time at the mall and I even went to the movies.  I had a chance to see “Inception”, which was mega awesome, although it left me with strange questioning feeling about reality, much like The Matrix did.  The special effects were fabulous and I like the intricate plot and plots within plots.  Nice!

I don’t like Leonardo Dicaprio, because I think his head is just too big.  Something happened to him between “What’s eating Gilbert Grape” and this movie.  He looks odd.  Ellen Page was interesting, yet pointless in this movie.  I think they just wanted to throw in some cute young babe to balance out “Mol” who was bouncing around in Leo’s head.  I was thinking Sandra Bullock would have been better in that spot.  And Michael Caine?  I like him, but why was he in this movie?  Was he backstage walking around when they happened to be shooting?

Rest day tomorrow and then 13 miles on Sunday.  We have a neighborhood block party on Sunday and I may go out on Dad’s boat tomorrow.  Finally some nice weather to enjoy.

Category: Just chocolate, Mindless musings, Running | 2 Comments »
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Posted By Jon on August 25, 2010

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Posted By Jon on August 23, 2010

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Posted By Jon on August 22, 2010

I had a very rainy run this morning.  Out the door promptly at 8 am, and rain kept up the whole time.  A little drizzly at times and an out right downpour for a while.  I was happy I brought my hat to keep it out of my eyes.

I did a big loop from my house, so it was handy to not have to drive anywhere to start this one.  I mapped it out at mapmyrun.com first, but didn’t print out a map this time.  The route was fairly simple and I only hesitated once near the end, because I couldn’t remember that one of the roads dead-ended.

The early morning run was very nice because everyone else was home sleeping.  I had very few cars, although the 3 mile stretch on the county road was a little bit busy.  I really appreciate the cars that move over half a lane so I’m not running right past their side mirrors.  The idiots that still hug the shoulder can kiss my butt and I hope they crash into big pointy trees.

This route had some long rolling hills, a few shorter steeper ones, and some flats.  A nice combination.  The very steep ones near the end kinda helped keep the workout harder.  I didn’t want this to be a flat 18 miles, but I didn’t want to too crazy.

The training plan said 8:30-9:30 pace, so I was targeting a 9:00 pace:

mile 1: 8:49
mile 2: 9:01
mile 3: 8:56
mile 4: 8:56
mile 5: 8:59
mile 6: 8:53
mile 7: 9:05
mile 8: 9:13 (getting tired? – this area was really flat!)
mile 9: 9:00
mile 10: 9:03
mile 11: 8:59
mile 12: 8:39
mile 13: 9:20 (trying to figure out which direction to run)
mile 14: 8:43 (figured it out!)
mile 15: 8:57
mile 16: 9:10 (little steep hills)
mile 17: 8:54
mile 18: 8:48

So the overall time was 2:41:32, with an average pace of 8:58/mile.  Very happy with that time.  :)

Ok, time to go shower and dry off.  Hope you all are having a good running weekend.

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Posted By Jon on August 19, 2010

Dear HP,

Please stop shipping your DVD drives with Nero software.  It sucks.  Apparently, it was written by mindless bloated retards while they drank vodka from old paint cans in their mothers’ basements.

I feel I may need to throw your worthless DVD drive in the trash, just so that I can buy a Sony DVD drive, which is sold with real software and not the useless crap you are peddling.

I hope all your hard drives crash, your children run away from home, and your septic systems back up into your bedrooms and drown you in your sleep.

Sincerely,

Jon (was) in Michigan

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Posted By Jon on August 17, 2010

I had just 5 miles tonight, but it was a really good run.  Cool night air, no clouds.  I ran at what felt like an easy pace, but still working at it.  Sweat without pain.

5,01 miles, 41:41, 8:19/mile.

I was really surprised when I looked at my Forerunner.  I was expecting a 9 minute pace or higher.  Even two days after the 17 miles (and the horrid migraine it gave me), the legs felt damn fresh.

I finally feel like I’m really running again.

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Posted By Jon on August 15, 2010

I had 17 miles this morning on the schedule, and had planned to leave by 7 am.  I was out the door by 8:30, not quite on time.

65F and cloudy skies with a little breeze made for a nice run.  The humidity was a little high and it just started to rain when I was finishing, but still very good weather.

I passed a vegetable stand around mile 10, and saw the guy putting out a fresh quart of tomatoes.  Heading back at mile 16 I saw they were still there, and made a mental note to use my “emergency” $5 in my fuel belt to buy them on the way home in the car.

My hips were aching a bit near the end, and I was happy to spot my starting point right where I left it.  On a previous run, I had taken a wrong turn and ended up adding two miles to the run.  I had a nice 1/2 mile walk to cool down on this run.

2:39:21, 17.03 miles, 9:21 pace.  A lot faster than I had expected, but I’m happy it was at the higher end of my training pace.

I tried using V8 juice in my water bottles.  I diluted it in half with water and filled the other bottle with diluted gatorade.  I like the V-8 better for electrolyte replacement.  One can (11.5 ounces) has 600 mg of sodium, 670 mg of potassium, 3 grams of fibers, 3 grams of protein, and 11 g of sugars, all with only 70 calories.

I have to say that even though it was diluted, the V8 juice wasn’t very “thirst quenching”.  But I didn’t get stomach cramps or feel nauseous from it, which it what I was checking for.  I may bring gatorade and V8 for the race, and then drink water from the course.

I hope every out there had a good weekend.

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Posted By Jon on August 14, 2010

I spent last weekend in Vermont, visiting with friends.  I had a nice 11 mile long run on some back roads.  They were a little hillier than I’m used to so I was happy to have the shorter long run this week.  9:53 pace.   Still on track.

I ran 4 on Tuesday (7:33, very flat, too fast), 4 miles Thursday (10:30, slower), and then 8 miles last night.  Last night I ran the 8 at the park in Grafton again.   It has some nice hill sections, especially long gradual ones, which I think are overall better.  There’s a nice steep one on a back dirt road behind the park too.  The entrance to the park is a gradual hill that stretches almost a full mile.  So, some nice hill stuff in there.   An 8:50 pace, which is right where I need to be for a race pace run.  Hopefully Hartford is not as hilly as the park, or I will be cooked.

Since I was near Burlington last weekend, I stopped by the Lake Champlain Chocolates factory.

Tours are during the week, so nothing was running, but it was cool to see how it was all set up.  I took some pictures, but nothing was running, so you need to use your imagination.

This is a picture of their enrober.  And enrober is used to coat the chocolates.  It operates like a chocolate car wash.  The candy rides along the belt and chocolate is poured over the top.

They need some cooling time for the tempered chocolate to harden, and then they are pulled off and boxed/packaged.  I think the small chocolate-covered conveyor portion in the foreground is a “bottomer” which coats the bottom of the chocolates.  The enrober is larger machine farther down the belt.

Here is a closer shot of the enrober and their magnetic tumbler (cylindrical thing with all the knobs coming off of it).

The tumbler is used to mold hollow chocolate.  The knobs are electromagnets and they hold a metal end of a mold, which is filled with chocolate.  They tumbler spins and the knobs rotate the molds like a giant crazy spinning octopus, keeping the chocolate spread evenly inside the molds while the chocolate cools.

I bought some of their truffles, which were fabulous.  I tried the traditional milk and dark, but I also tried a champagne truffle and an Aztec truffle.  The Aztec was one their organic truffles and had dark chocolate with cayenne, cinnamon, and lime.  The cayenne was very subdued so it was a very subtle burn at the end.  Very nice!

I also bought a small bar of their milk chocolate with almonds and sea salt.  Seems to be a popular flavor these days.  I liked this bar, and the sea salt wasn’t crazy overpowering.  I don’t care for almonds much, so I’d like to see another bar like this one, with just chocolate.

I’d like to go back during the week and see if I can get some action pictures of things running.  I did check their “careers” section, but sadly they are not hiring chemists at this time.  :(

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