Running with Armadillos, Skunks, Kanyes & Humans!

I’m tired, kids. Gone over 500 miles the past 2-3 months getting ready for the Chicago Marathon. That’s a lot of 3:45-4:00 am wake-up alarms. The good news is that I still haven’t missed a single day of training. That, and I’m relatively healthy – no major injuries to report – just the odd aches and pains and colds and coughs. It’s going relatively well, all things considered, if you must know, I do declare, but I digress.

The past weekend saw our 2nd 20 miler of the training plan.

If we make funny faces, it’ll mask our pain.

Oh, that reminds me, in August we ran 198 miles. And yeah, I thought about running an extra two, but then I unthought about it.

So close to the double century mark. Oh well, there’s always next month.

Back to last week – One nice surprise was the rare “short” weekday run – Only a 5k! That’s a far cry from the 12 miles scheduled we ran just 7 days richard prior. Decided to do it on the track – just a few pre-sun 800’s amongst friends.

It was dark. Used a flash. My shoes glowed.

And is it just me, or are there a lot more varmints out and about lately? On the track there was a skunk…a SKUNK…On.The.Track!!!!

There’s also been some coyotes, frogs, bobcats, bunnies, more skunks, and some giant roly poly bugs…

Happy to report we outran the armadillo. And we were sure to cautiously approach the dangerous HS XC team behind us – oh how I hate them with their short shorts, long hair & zero body fat.

Not sure what’s going on…are they all foraging for winter sustenance? Do I need to do the same? Should I start hoarding choco-sprinkle donuts like these smelly critters…?

Strange beasts indeed.

Oh, and did I mention the snakes? Indiana Jones would hate it up in hurrah..

It’s totes real.

That pic above is courtesy of Thursday Night Social Run – as always, things got crazy with TNSR. There is so much going on below, that I don’t even…

Da Fu?

There’s been some more runs and funs, but I’ll get to that, like later, or whatever, no big whoop. For now, I gotta go lay down, put my feet up and watch the new episode of Drunk History. Hasta luego, playas!

How bout you? Been seeing any critters on your runs? Armadillos – cute or dangerous? If you were an animal, what would you be?

-Scott

Runners – Be SAFE! I’m Not Kitten Around!

Chicago Marathon training is going swimmingly runningly! In the midst of a 55 mile week, with a 20 miler long run this weekend. Things have been going almost purrfectly…almost…..

You guys, you gotta be careful out there…Or should I say “Be catful”? The other day at the TNSR Social Run, things got a little hair-bally…

I couldn’t remember if you’re supposed to play dead, or flail your limbs like a fool when a giant cat is stalking you.

As runners, we all know that you always have to be smart – know your surroundings, watch your back, run with others, carry pepper spray, etc….But this day I completely forgot to bring along my catnip. And it didn’t help much to fake a catnap…

Nope, playing dead doesn’t work either.

If you feel really threatened on a run, it’s also a good idea to keep an eye out for a hiding place. I thought the lake would be good, but unfortunately some of these gi-cats were amphibious…

Luckily a couple run buds pulled me from ole crazy eyes there.

When all else fails, it’s best to have at least one person around that you can run faster than so they can be the fall guy…it’s all about self preservation at this point.

Oh snap! I’m in the back of the pack! That’s trouble cause just like with humans, the cute ones are the most dangerous.

One thing I always do when I feel threatened is to face the threatener. Be less of a passive target that way…

Come on, Kitty! Put up your paws! Let throw down like Bobby Flay!

More often than not doe, being calm and level headed can go a long way in deflating a dicey situation. That’s what helped us patch things up with our kitty kitty meow meow head friends…

I still don’t trust ole yellow eyes back there.

In the end, errbody was safe and feline fine!

And I hope all of y’all are being safe out there…and if you’re not, then start right MEOW!

How bout yous? Any safe running tips? Did I miss any cat puns? Have you heard of any radiation laced mice that these cats might be eating?

PS. Once again I gotta thank @sojomy for the pictures – he’s always there to capture the moment! Big shout out! That’s him taming the tabby…

Yeeehaww

And if y’all are ever in North Texas on a Thursday evening, you gotta come to TNSR…fo real doe! To see the rest of the pics, check out the TNSR Facebook Page and give it a Like.

The Mankini Run, Greek Tacos & Dinorappers!

Quick update on the Chicago Marathon training. The beats by dre goes on. And things may be getting weird…

Ladies love the mankini.

What had happened was we got a Christmas in in July miracle! A “cool front” came through Texas over the weekend. So instead of being triple digits, we were just in the upper 90’s!!! It made the 16 mile group run somewhat pleasant!

Thankfully no mankinis were worn on the run.

It started at 5:30 am at a WRRC member’s house (thanks John!) for the final Run My Hood run. I had never run in this area before and the route took us on a long hike and bike trail that I really enjoyed. But 16 miles later it was over, and the non-running fun began. Pool Party, hey hey!

Party like it’s 8:30 am (cause it is)!

Funny how your brain works after waking up at 4 am to run for over two hours. You sometimes do silly things. Meh, oh well. Good times.

And if you know me, you know my love of tacos post-run. Well this week was no different. But this time it was Greek tacos!

Gyro, taco, same difference.

As for the rest of the week, the runs have been going very well. I’m very pleased. And this weeks TNSR didn’t even have any dinosaur attacks! But one did join us for the run. We were all very pleased.

Rapasoraus. Photo cred @sojomy

And so it goes. And there you go. A quick update for your face’s eyes to look at.

How bout you? Get a break in the weather at all? Do you like Greek tacos? Be honest, is that mankini a good cut/color for me?

More updates to come in a day or so!!!

-Scott

Running With Dinosaurs, I’m Punny & My Shorts Are Soaked With Something!

Things are really picking up in the Chicago Marathon training world. And it was made even more challenging because during one run, some dinosaurs had escaped from the zoo!

The pterodactyls were using the restroom when they snuck up, but I couldn’t hear them because the pee is silent. Is that joke funny, or am I getting carried away here?

This was at the always fun Thursday Night Social Run. It was just unfortunate that the dinos were everywurrrr!

After this run I was definitely dino-sore.

Though it got a little hairy scaley, in the end we all made up.

The tyrannosaurus is cool, but I prefer his smarter cousin, the thesaurus.

Big shout out to @sojomy for the pictures!!! If you want to see all of them, just check out the TNSR FACEBOOK PAGE. And give em a ‘like’ why don’t ya?

Other than that, I’ve been sticking to the training plan. Mileage is ramping up. The Texas summer is hot. But I’m hanging in there. Here’s last week’s weekday runs…

Kid and Playground.

Give me all the food!

I’ve got the whole sun in my hands. The whole sun in my hands…

I’m either wringing sweat or urine out of my shorts.

That was a hawt one! Fo realz…I’m not lion.

As you can see, I’m pretty regular with updating MY INSTAGRAM. I’m also trying to keep up on MY TWEETER. Check them out if you want to stay more up to date. Or don’t, no big whoop.

Stay tuned for more updates, selfies and puns!!!

How bout you? Every been chased by something scary? Did I miss any pun opportunities…or are they oppuntunities? Do you ever play cards in the jungle?…If they’re not a lion, they’re a cheetah…amiright?

-Scott

Sun Runs, I’m Sir Mix-A-Lot & A Whole Lotta Bull!

Things around here have been crazy whack funky! So bizzy I’m dizzy! But I’ve managed to keep my Chicago Marathon training on point. All it takes is a 4 am alarm…oy!

The sunrise and I like to cuddle. I’ll be honest, it burns a little.

I’ve been trying to mix up my runs by changing locations frequently. It helps to have the new scenery, of that there is no diggity, no doubt!

Sunrise, I eat you! Unless of course you can melt all those gnats off my neck…Then I only nibble you.

And when you change locales, you also change the cool things you get to see.

Did you hear about the cow that was artificially inseminated? It’s true, no bull!

Besides mixing up the locales, I’ve also mixed things up by going to various group social runs. That does wonders!

Before the run, 96 degrees…Kanye and Taylor look thrilled.

Besides helping my runs go by fast (literally), the other runners also always like to replenish our carbs and swap run stories afterward.

After the run…Kanye and Taylor had to bail. Some of us wore shades to hide our glowing cat eyes…some didn’t.

This is true at the sunrise hour as well.

This morning run was in 98% humidity with a dew point at 74. The staff literally had to mop the floor under our table when we got up to leave!

I feel very lucky to have so many runner friends and so many run groups that I can join up with on any given day. It really does help the running!!

More morning social miles – all smiles!

So there’s a quick visual update. Sawwy I’ve been so bad about blogging recently, but like I said, it’s been crazy whack funky around here! Hopefully it will get a bit more chill soon! That would be on fleek! (I hope I’m using all the slang correctly)

How bout you? Mixing up your runs at all? Got any other bovine jokes? Been on fleek lately?

-Scott

Running with Taylor Swift, A Real Life Monster, & Don’t Ask About My Job!!!

Chicago Marathon training is in full swing! It’s early still, but so far so good. It’s nice to finally have a plan instead of just running random daily miles. I’ve been running a lot with friends and I think I have a pretty solid base heading into the real dillyo.

A highlight of the week was our TNSR celebrity social run…

Josh didn’t photoshop anything here. It’s all legit. Kanye and Taylor set the pace.

It’s always good to have other folks around to help push you on the run…and to mess with your otherwise perfect running photo…

Guess they thought I needed two sets of bunny ears.

Another fun group run this past week was with the WRRC and their “Run My Hood” series. This time it was a run around some East Dallas neighborhoods, followed by another fun pool party!

I actually ran 10 miles – the gps was acting up.

There’s something about jumping in a pool after a sweaty humid Texas summer run. I need to get a pool, or more friends with pools, or figure out a way to sneak into my neighbor’s yard.

And I don’t know if you can tell this or not, but whenever a camera makes an appearance, I am instantly drawn to it…even if the subjects didn’t necessarily want me to be in it. Cause in my head, if you want to improve your pics, just add Scott! 😉

Photobombsaway! #notcreepy

So the training is going well so far. And other than that, this little monster had a birthday…

Don’t let the cute smile fool ya, she can single-handedly destroy an entire house.

And at her school, they gave her a father’s day questionnaire. After reading her answers, I feel like she doesn’t know me at all!

If any narks are reading this, please ignore her answer to what my job is. (click the photo to enlarge)

So things are good, things are good. Oh yeah, and so are TACOS!!!!

I like to eat in front of a mirror to make it look like there’s more tacos.

So there ya have it. BOOM! On to more!

How bout you? You’re not a nark, are ya? Who likes mirror eating? Will you invite me to your pool?

-Scott

Rock the Block 10k Recap – Running in Soup & Winning Medals!

I did just run the Rock the Block 10k over the Memorial Day weekend. It was a tough day, but good news is that I was still able to manage my way to a medal!

I wish in college I had learned how to make a proper collage.

As I mentioned in my preview, I was not looking forward to running this race course. I’d run it before and wasn’t a huge fan. Well, be careful what you wish for. Due to all the crazy stormy floody weather we’ve been having in Texas, the course was part underwater. But rather than cancel, the organizers scrambled to get a new certified course.

Look closely folks, the 10k is a two lap course.

First off, kudos to the race for not cancelling, and finding an alternate route. But unfortunately the new route was a 5k distance that we had to run twice. There’s nothing more demoralizing than crossing the finish line and realizing you’re only halfway done. And on the 2nd lap of the race, we hit all the people still trying to finish the 5k. That meant a lot of weaving and missing out on tangents. Throw in a few hills and 180 degree turns, and it was a bit challenging.

Before the race with two normal sized friends and a miniature sized one.

The weather was also a factor. 97% humidity. Ugh. It was like running through pea green soup. Legs felt heavy and when the breeze was at our backs, it was hard to breathe. I saw one guy puking about a mile in. And through a middle section of the race it started to rain on us which made the roads a bit slick.

That all said, I was able to push through and finish 3rd in my age group and 14th overall!

Official stats.

I was hoping to break my PR of 46:00 that I set one year ago, but it wasn’t meant to be. I finished in 46:32, or 7:29 per mile. And I was proud of myself for actually rocking a negative split (I lost those stats doe).

I’ll get you next time, two guys I don’t know!

Not only that, but my peeps from WRRC and TNSR also received age group awards!

Bringing home da bling.

So despite the tough conditions, we had a great time. And they raised a lot of fundage for a good cause.

And best of all, we all went for breakfast tacos after the race!

Racing, medals & tacos…I’ll take it anytime!

How bout you? Race this weekend? Your tips for humidity running? It’s been so long, can anyone tell me what the sun looks like?

-Scott

Race Discount for YOU, Check My Flow, & It’s (hopefully) Race Day!

It’s been a good week of runs for me, I think even Kanye would agree…

Josh is excellent at photoshop.

A TNSR run is always fun.

Trying a new running form.

Tho the day before’s run on the track was whack.

The clouds and the noises they made were scary, but I got the run dun before they cried on me.

But the day before that was pretty phat.

A baby run and a papa run.

OK, that’s enough freestylin. I gotta focus on this weekend – RACE TIME! Well, I hope. My last two races have been cancelled due to massive Texas storms. And as I write this it is storming again. Hopefully it will clear up before the race.

I was lucky enough to get a free entry to this race – Rock the Block 10k. That said, I’m dreading it a little. I ran this race last year and wasn’t a fan of the course.

Last year’s poster. The route hasn’t changed. Who likes an out and back – I mean, honestly?

But at least I know what to expect since I’m familiar with the route.

And we’re off! -Photo from Dallasnews.com

And hopefully the rain clouds will help keep it kewl this year – last year it was friggin hawt!!!! But I still ran a PR (with a horrible positive split) of 46:00.

Just a bit sweaty at the end.

I’m going for a negative split and another PR, so come back in a couple days for the recap!!!

Other than that, the fine folks at Spartan Race have sent me a discount code to share with you:

They do these obstacle races all over the USA (and I think internationally too), and they have different distances you can choose from…

But hurry up and use the code MEMORIAL because I believe it expires pretty soon!

So there ya go, kiddo. A week that was pretty on fleek. And now I best be goin cause my rhyme is done flowin.

How bout you? Running this holiday (US) weekend? Ever run a Spartan Race…or going to? Do you have any race predictions?

-Scott

Beer Mile Race Recap – Someone Puked

The latest TNSR Beer Mile came and went. And I’m happy to report it went much better than my previous attempt.

Everyone is all smiles before the race…that would change.

I wouldn’t set a PR this day, but I still had a decent time, and I didn’t blow chunks – that’s always a win in the Beer Mile. Not everyone there could say the same thing. A few people in the pictures in this blog vomited. I won’t say who, but maybe you can take guesses.

At least one smiley clean shaven person in this pic puked.

If you’ve never done the Beer Mile, what happens is you pound a beer, sprint a quarter mile – then repeat until you drink 4 beers and run one mile total.

We were so official this year – bibs, timers, and we were provided with Mich Ultra beers.

What makes it tough is all the carbonation bubbling up in your belly. Well, that and 48 ounces of liquid sloshing around as you try to sprint 400’s. If you can’t get some burps out, then you’re in trouble. I’m happy to report that I burped each lap!!!

Someone in this pic may or may not have puked.

And even though I didn’t PR, I did come in 4th place overall – just missing out on the podium.

The official results.

Looking back, I think a couple things helped me out this year – Like I said, I worked really hard to make sure I burped. But also, I chose to drink warm beers instead of cold – tasted nasty, but had less carbonation. <taps head> “Not just a hat rack.”

Thanks for another great event, TNSR!

And after the race they had food grillin, music blastin & fun havin. I even made a 6 second video about it…

All in all a good time was had by all – even the folks who hurled.

Kanye was upset at his race results…or maybe because he puked.

Luckily these Beer Mile races don’t happen too often – they really do hurt. But I did have a great time and look forward to the next one!

How bout you? Would you ever want to do a Beer Mile? Have you ever? Any guesses as to the pukers?

-Scott

Runnning in Yellow, Beer Mile, & Belch Prayers

What up, playas? Beachy keen, I hope. I’ve been bad about the blog recently. Just so flippin busy all the time. But here’s what’s been goin down…

I’ve been running, natch.

I drew a line for you, oh what a thing to do, and it was all yellow. Yes, it’s nike+, add me: piratebobcat

I’m still in pre-training mode for Chicago Marathon, so that just means trying to keep the mileage at a decent number to try and stay fit and healthy.

And you know that thing runners do when they finish a run and look at their gps and realize they’re a little short of the next mile and so they run circles around the block until it clicks over? Yeah, well the other day I was a qtr  mile short and so I ran laps around a giant fountain. The people eating nearby thought I was nuts.

Me and my fountain training partner. Yes, it’s instagram, add me: piratebobcat

And if you’re familiar with me, then you know how I love me some tacos. Well get this – a new Torchy’s opened up near one of my go to running spots. So the little group I was with had to go there post-run…natch!

I make bunny ears look good. Yes, it’s snapchat, add me: piratebobcat

And here’s some exciting news: I’ve signed up for a couple races!!! And the best part, both of them are free! One is a 10k that I’ll post about another time. But the other is this week – the annual TNSR Beer Mile!

The happy group last year pre-race.

I think this is the 3rd or 4th year for this unofficial race. But it’s raised a few eyebrows as it’s gone on. And this year it will raise a few more because TNSR will be providing MichUltra, race bibs, etc. Getting closer to official!

If you’ve never done a beer mile – here’s what happens.

1-Drink a beer

2-Sprint a quarter mile

3-Repeat until you reach 4 beers/1 mile total.

I’ve done the TNSR beer mile twice. It’s a VERY tough thing to try to do. Last year I felt like death during the race – it was awful.

Sloshing to the finish. I think my face/posture sums it up.

The first time I did it, I came in 2nd place overall. I felt much better during that race. The difference – I was able to burp out all the carbonation along the way. I really really hope this year’s experience is more like that one. Please, pray for burps for me!!

A trophy, yay!

Come back soon for the race recap!!!

Until then, I’m proud to be giving out a few more blogger shout outs to the latest dope individuals who contributed to my Chicago Marathon Charity Fundraiser. Thanks so much to: Running Wild, Run to Race, & Darlin’ Rae  I promise I’ll get on your thank you pics/videos soon!

I’m overwhelmed by everyone’s generosity. I really am. Thanks so much! If anyone else wants to donate, you can do so HERE.

How bout you? Ever run a beer mile? Ever run circles to make the next mile click over? Will you pray for burps?

-Scott