It Was a Dark and Stormy Run (sort of)

So I am travelling for work and I am in Fayetteville, Arkansas. We are leaving the hotel by 7am this morning, so I had to get up earlier than normal for my run. I got up around 4:3o, and was on the road by 4:45. I ran a total of 6.51 miles through dark, winding, hilly streets. I love running on unknown paths and the sense of discovery during a run in a new place.

I am glad I brought my flashlight, I seriously only saw like 6 streetlights the whole way. It was a nice run, and I am sort of glad I got it in early because yesterday it was 104 degrees here and today is supposed to be hot as well. This morning felt nice, though, with a little bit of a breeze, and throughout the whole run there were lightning flashes in the sky. I couldn't tell how far away the flashes were, or if they were getting closer, but it never did rain. I did cut the run about 1/2 mile short though when I saw something that looked like this picture:

QUESTION: Do you train through pain?

I am still dealing with what I believe to be plantars fasciitis in my left foot. From what I've read it can take months to fully go away. The pain is most severe in the morning or when first getting up froma chair. I am taking it easy on my runs, and my foot doesn't bother me too much after about 2 miles, especially if I've taken some ibuprofen. My question for all you experienced runners out there, who have dealt with such an injury, is--should I continue to train despite the pain? Or should I lay off it altogether for a few weeks? I would appreciate any advice you have. Thanks.

Running into the Garage...

A week or so I posted this blog about watching a runner in the Dean Karnazes DVD Ultramarathon Man run into a telephone pole...I was watching it with my son and we kept rewinding and watching it over and over....well my son must have still had that image in his mind because a couple of days ago, randomly, he recreated the event in our driveway...

Giveaway:

Running necklace - http://ericarunning.blogspot.com/2009/07/feature-friday-gifts-for-runnerscom.html

Fast Food Feed Bag

This is funny. You're welcome.

TGIF Foto Friday

Look close at this picture. This boy has his eyes closed.

This is a pic we took this past weekend at our July 4th festivities...the park here had all kinds of kids games, inflatables, a magician, horseshoe tournament, etc, etc...and, a very good face painter....my kids got dragons on their faces (which looked great) but I thought this kid's face painting was great....

edit: if you like free stuff, check out this giveaway by Mission to Another Marathon

and Nikes and Poytails has a giveaway here too

Running with a Light

This morning I got up earlier than normal, about 4:30am, took a few ibuprofen and went for an 8 mile run. I took it at a slow, comfortable pace and it was a great run. A light drizzle started during my last mile that felt very refreshing.

It was very dark (obviously) at that time of day, so I decided to try running with a flashlight. I had my water bottle in one hand and a flashlight in the other. At first I didn't think I'd like having something in both hands, but I got used to it and it wasn't so bad. I have a small LED flashlight that puts out a good amount of light for its size. It's small enough that if I don't need it or want to use it, I can stick it in my pocket. I aimed the beam about 10-12 feet out in front of me and I really liked having the path in front of me lit. I've run in the dark many times and stepped on rocks, cracks in the road, sticks, etc...

Do any of you run with flashlights or headlamps? I've been looking at some headlamps but after today's run, I think I might prefer the low beam versus a high beam coming from my head. Plus, I like to wear visors when I run, and I haven't seen any good clip on headlamps (although I'm sure they are out there). The ones I've seen all have elastic bands. I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts on this subject.

Awesome July 4th Weekend w/ Pics

We had an amazing 4th of July. The weather was absolutely perfect and we packed it with a day full of family stuff. Here is a recap:

We started the day with our town's 4th of July parade. My kids walked away with TONS of candy, and we saw some fun things, including Santa on a motorcycle:

Ho-ho-ho...where are the reindeer?

My son excited and acting goofy before the parade even started.

After the parade, we went and bought some fireworks for later that evening, and then we went to two farm and art markets, where, among other things, I got my wife a bouquet of fresh picked flowers in a vase for $5. It was a steal, they were beautiful.

We spent the afternoon forcing the kids to rest (knowing they'd be up late) and preparing for our annual block party. Our street is blocked off, so no cars can drive through, and the kids have a blast riding their bikes up and down the street. There were tons of cookouts going on, and people shooting off fireworks all over the place. We had about 5 or 6 houses that combined for our cookout, and it was awesome food. Grilled hot links, wings, homemade salsa...we were eating and snacking all night. Food, fireworks, and friends. It doesn't get any better. The fire department brought a big truck over and set up a "shower" for the kids to play in. Here are just a few pics:

Some of the neighbors mulling around.


The fire department hooked a hose up to the end of an extended ladder and had this shower going for 30 minutes or so. The kids LOVED it.

As it got dark, we settled back and watched some of our neighbors shoot off their BIG fireworks. Our town allows the big stuff, and we have several neighbors that literally spend thousands of dollars on fireworks. (what recession?) They put on quite a show.

We stuck to firecrackers and sparklers and let our neighbors spend their money on the big stuff.

Our neighbors were shooting stuff off until past midnight. It was great, but eventually we had to get the kids to bed, so we went inside. We had to sleep in the basement because the fireworks were too loud upstairs.

None of our fireworks pics turned out from the block party, but here is one my wife took a couple nights earlier at another fireworks show we went to, where I had the best seats I've ever had for a fireworks show.

I hope everyone else had a fun and safe holiday.

Running Update

I ran 4 miles yesterday, and 3 miles today. I'm still taking it at a slow pace while my foot continues to heal, and I am trying to focus more on striking mid-foot instead of heel first. It is taking some practice. We've had absolutely gorgeous running weather lately.

Mid-Afternoon Distraction...

Family Pictures
This is the coolest...this family takes a picture of themselves once a year for over 30 years...the children are the coolest...check it out here

Speaking of family pictures, check out this cactus family:



You can find more crazy family pictures here, if you're bored.

Other Stuff

I got my Asics Gel Kayanos yesterday, compliments of Happy Runner and Strands, thank you very much! They look awesome, and I can't wait to try them out.

Tall Mom on the Run is having a giveaway for a cool necklace....and also, chicrunner is having a giveaway, check them out.

Still getting up early and doing walk/jogs while my foot heals up. I don't think I'm going to do the 4th of July Firecracker Run as originally planned, but we will be hitting our town's annual 4th of July parade!