Gordo Running

 It's been a busy few weeks since I wrote my last post  about the state parks we've been visiting.  Well, we did it again.  I wanted to roll up our trip to Jordan Lake with an update on the Csapo Family 5k and a shortened write up from our in-person 5k.  So, let's get to it. We hit up state park #5, Jordan Lake, a few weeks ago.  Just a bit outside of Raleigh, the man-made Jordan Lake is the 7th largest lake in the state.  Upon its several inlets, the state park includes several campgrounds, boat launches, and recreation areas.  We wanted a 2-3 mile trail so we went with the red trail at Vista Point.  Many of the other trails were either different distances or accessible only to campers.  The red trail has an inauspicious beginning as it's located kind of near a rentable pavilion.  It took us a minute to find it as there wasn't much of a trailhead sign.  Furthermore, it is a path through the woods, not quite the obviously delin...

 And, we're live! Today (April 4th) marks the first day of the 2nd annual Csapo family virtual 5k.  Haven't quite locked down an official name.  We're looking at getting some shirts made up this year so I guess we should do that.   Here's the write up from last year .  We have 5 fewer people this year, but the numbers worked out so we could have teams of 5 again.  Another change is that Amy is running and Mila's not locked in her mom's house for 3 months solid.  So, she'll be one of our saunterers. Some sauntering "practice" the other day when it was 45 and windy out So, I'll do my best to keep the website  and this blog updated with teams and results as well as my reactions and everyone's pictures. I threw the team draw up here: My reaction on seeing last year's #1 runner and #1 saunterer on the same team Mila and I went out for a run/walk this morning and she was able to record her time.  (my better time came during yesterday's ru...

 It's been almost a year since my last post  and what a year 2020 has been.  It would be an understatement to write that it's been eventful but that's what I'm going with.  There are a multitude of reasons that I haven't written, but more than a few that bring me back to the keyboard.  Not the least of which is a package my grandma (paternal) sent me the other day.  My grandpa (maternal) was an editor and columnist for the Flint Journal for many years.  He passed away when I was just a couple years old, so my best way of getting to know him has been through the saved columns.  A while back someone in the family (there are many suspects to choose from if you know the McHale family) got the idea to put together a sort of "greatest hits" collection of his columns and turn it into a book.  I've owned a copy for years now and have read through it more than a couple times.  That's how I've come to know Grandpa Terry and even my mom, aunts, and...

This weekend was the Habitat for San Angelo Humanity Bunny Run.  The race normally takes place around Easter (that's how it got its name), but was postponed twice due to bad weather.  So, instead of a starting temp in the 50s, we were in the upper 70s.  The double reschedule also seemingly affected the attendance, with maybe 25-40 runners at the start.  The course is a San Angelo favorite, going around Santa Fe park and following the riverwalk Kid's Kingdom  (photo credit: Discover San Angelo) up to Central High school.  The 10k course followed the riverwalk under the 306/67 loop before heading back to the start/finish line at Kid's Kingdom (a local playground). Since I've been mostly out of commission for the past six weeks,  I really just wanted to see what I could do for a 5k.  The training program I semi-randomly picked  is saying I should be under 24 minutes if I'm trying to shoot for sub 22.  Right now, my goal is to see if ...

And just like that, the 2019 Shannon Trail Series has come to a close.  I'm sure Dennis is relieved.  Let's give it up for him though, he did a fantastic job on this year's series.  Sure, I was the co-race director, but Dennis put a majority of the work in.  If you're one of those people that likes to get the "whole story" my write up from race #1 is here , race #2 is here , and last year's series wrap up is here. (photo credit: Jammie Preiser) Our previous race was January 26th, so the runners had 3 weeks to rest up heading into this one.  As with all of our trail races, we spent a couple weeks out on the course on our normal Tuesday night runs.  We had to be careful not to mark the course too early as Kent said that the longhorns will sometimes eat the tape right off the tree. Tuesday night course marking crew.  I think Kent was explaining tape to us (photo credit: Jammie Preiser) Two of my former students came out w/us a few times....