20 at 20

That's 20 miles and 20 degrees, respectively, although in this case the data are interchangeable.

This weekend I continued my training towards the Umstead 100 Mile Endurance Run on 27 March, near Raleigh, NC.  According to my super duper training plan, I planned and executed a 20 miler.

Although it was chilly, the wind was minimal, and more out of the SW rather than the NW, so I was able to scope out some different roads from my house that I typically run on in the winter.  The Appalachian Trail and C&O Canal towpath are off-limits due to snowpack. 

I first did the Pig Farm 10 miler, passing by the house at the end of that loop, then headed west across US Rt 11 and circled around for another 10 miles.  Roads today were typically like this:

Felt pretty decent all the way and enjoyed the run immensely.

Cat Blogging: The Male Butterscotch Cat

The bride maintains that the male butterscotch (orange) cat has the sweetest personality and disposition of any cat.

When Sammy lays there with his paws crossed, I have no doubt of it. Sammy is getting old, 14+ now, and is about deaf.  Possibly as a result he meows really loud these days.  But he is a real buddy.

French Scientist Calculates Pi to Record Number of Digits

For you us geeks out there, this is exciting news (seriously).

This article was sent to me by a mathematician friend.  To sum up:

A French computer scientist claims to have calculated Pi to nearly 2.7 trillion decimal places, a new record made even more impressive because he did it on a personal computer.

I'm sort of fascinated that I'm reading about it in theTehran Times.  Perhaps they are interested in science in addition to their collateral Axis of Evil duties.

Super-Duper Umstead Training Plan

Second major snowfall in 4 days hit us here in the Keystone State Tuesday night into Wednesday. So on top of the 24” over the weekend we’re seeing an additional 14” or so.


This puts a bit of a cramp into my training for the Umstead 100 Mile Endurance Run in Raleigh, NC on 27 March. Specifically, I will unable to do any runs on the Appalachian Trail or along the C&O Canal towpath due to snow cover, which I doubt will melt anytime soon. So I’ll be a road runner for the next 40-something days.

Looking to the near term, things should be normal enough over the weekend to resume my planned training schedule.

The secret, super-duper plan for my remaining long weekend runs (please don’t share this with anyone under pain of death!):

13 Feb: 20 miles (6 weeks to go)

20 Feb: 10 miles (5 weeks to go)

27 Feb: 30 miles (4 weeks to go)

6 Mar:   10 miles (3 weeks to go)

13 Mar: 15 miles (2 weeks to go)

20 Mar: 10 miles (1 week to go)

27 Mar: 100 (race day)

Lance Cpl. Michael L. Freeman

This post is dedicated to Lance Cpl. Michael L. Freeman, Fayetteville, PA, a local man who was killed in action in Afghanistan on 1 Feb 2010.  Photo is from The Public Opinion newspaper.  There is no connection to UltraRunning.

Please take the time to read the story. What strikes me is its ordinariness, a low-key, unremarkable story about a young man who died in service to his country. Lance Cpl. Freeman was neither rich nor famous, and likely no one outside of his immediate circle of friends and family will remember his name, say, some 10 years hence. You could probably substitute the name of many of the other U.S. Afghanistan war dead (nearly 1000 now), men and women from small towns all over America, and the story might read just about the same--a likeable young person who is now gone forever.

Lance Cpl. Freeman leaves a young widow; children (perhaps) who will now never be; and other loved ones, all who are struggling to find meaning in his death.

I did not know Lance Cpl. Freeman, but I mourn his loss. Moreover, I mourn the loss of many more like him who will die over the ensuing months and years as we perpetuate a seemingly endless war with no clear end in sight. Shattered lives here and a shattered country over there, with the common denominator that violence is the last resort of the incompetent.

Perhaps I am naïve, but I do speak from the knowledge base of decades of work for the Defense Department.  And I say as I have said here before, as I hold Mister Tristan on my lap, by God, we can do better than this. We have to do better than this.

Ghosts--Seriously (Part 1 of 3)

First off, let me preface this post by saying that I pride myself on being a rational thinker, a skeptic of things paranormal. I don’t honestly think ghosts are involved here, but one particular tombstone has me scratching my head. 

Check out the dark stone along the road, on the right side of the photo.

The cemetery here, the larger one of two close by my home, is big enough to have a couple of paved lanes thru it. I frequently run thru this cemetery, and as a matter of respect, I always take off my hat, and if there are visitors present, I detour and don't run past them.

Here is the dark tombstone, centered and a bit closer.

Finally, right up close, with my JFK 50 Miler ball cap on top to give you an idea as to scale.

The tombstone is about chest-high. That is, it's chest-high today. I've not measured the stone with a tape but I have the feeling that its height changes. Much like, say, when you see your adolescent niece or nephew after not having seen them for 6 months or a year, you KNOW without actually measuring them that they have grown. They are taller than before.

Same with this tombstone. After a hiatus of some weeks or a couple months without running through the cemetery, when I do, I know that the Statler tombstone is taller than it was before. The first time I saw this phenomenon, I literally stopped in my tracks.  Can I prove it? Of course not, but it is taller, just as in the niece/nephew example above.

It's not menacing or spooky, just more of an observation.

I have a couple other ghostly anecdotes from my local runs that I'll post soon.

Fans of Internet Privacy

Maybe this doesn't bother you, but I think that fans of Internet privacy should probably be alarmed. Via Just an Earthbound Misfit, citing this article, we hear that the FBI is pressing Internet service providers to record which Web sites customers visit and retain those logs for two years.

The ostensible reason given by the authorities seems unassailable--law enforcement believes such records could help it in investigations of child pornography and other serious crimes.  And as the Misfit says,

If you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear.

But to me, given the documented mission creep of NSA's surveillance activities of our telephone communications, I think there is something to fear.  It's the creeping loss of our privacy, just a little slice at a time, with very reasonable-sounding good justifications....a big swipe at the baddies with an incidental backhand glancing blow at the rest of us, that only stings for a second and then fades away.   Don't worry, you're not in favor of child pornography, are you?  This information will never be used for any other purposes, just trust us professional law enforcers to do the right thing.

Trouble is, I just don’t trust these folks.

Personal experience with people convinced that if you have nothing to hide, what are you afraid of?:

One of my most chilling experiences with "the authorities" came when I was working for the Army in the late 1990s. As a result of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) decisions, the DOD Polygraph Institute was relocating to Fort Jackson, SC. My role was to make sure that their new building at Fort Jackson was properly equipped for data and voice.

On my first visit there, I got "the tour" so I'd know more about their mission, to be better able to understand their telecommunications requirements, and to ensure that their infrastructure and capabilities were sized appropriately. The PR guy I was working with gave me their standard unclassified briefing on their mission and various projects, but what I recall vividly was his repeating of the word "deception."

His agency's methods and research (including but not limited to polygraphs) were devoted to sniffing out deception....and this, obviously, was good for the good guys and bad for the bad guys. I came away feeling--no, I came away knowing--that this guy was convinced that he was one of the good guys, everybody else had something to hide, and by God, he'd root out deception and come away with THE TRUTH (presumably in support of the other two legs of the triad, Justice and The American Way).

Being in the presence of such a coldly analytical and quietly fanatical acolyte was eerie and I could not get out of there fast enough.  By the way, I vowed then and there that I NEVER would permit myself to be polygraphed, even if by so refusing I would likely cast a strong suspicion of guilt upon myself.

The parallel with the Internet Privacy issue is this: if you are in pursuit of THE TRUTH, that is good; ergo, your methods must be right. The end justifies the means.

And that's why I don't trust these folks.

Where I Run: The Aftermath of the Storm

Went for an 11 miler today in brilliant sunshine with a deep blue winter sky. This in stark contrast to the 24” of snow that dropped Friday-Saturday. Here are some of the shots I took and some comments.

Note the next-to-last photo for a relevant UltraRunning tip about gaiters.



First off, the view at the top of my driveway.

 

 Next, heading up the hill on the west side of US RT 11.

Heading towards the replacement bridge. 

 

 Construction equipment at the bridge.

 

I wonder if this should read "Potable Ice"?

 

The bridge....not sure when it's supposed to be opened....maybe June?

A little bit of snow and 3 feet of rushing water do not deter the 4-wheel crowd.

Gaiters and trail shoes with an aggressive tread (these are my Vasques) are perfect for snow running.

The one-lane underpass just before reaching home and Mister Tristan.