20th Annual Riddle Run

Rumors are spreading that Mr. Riddle will be back directing his "Riddle Run" 28-mile fun run on January 26. This is the 20th annual running of this fine event. According to the Riddler, here are the details:

RiddleRun20

• Course: 1-7 loops of an easy 4 mile grass/dirt path....for 4 to 28 miles.
• When: 8am on Jan 26, 2019.
• Where: Buffalo Trace trails at Lake of the Woods, Crowley Road trail head.
• Cost: $0.00
• Qualifications: You must be a fun person and not someone who takes yourself too seriously.
• Awards: $1 million dollars if you break the time of the fastest marathon of all time 2 hours 25 sec...PLUS my wife is making her chocolate cream-filled cupcakes for anyone who completes one 4 mile loop.
• Course Records: Female - 4:18, Male - 3:39 (for the full 28 miles).
• Weather: It's been as low as -65 wind chill and +55 degrees.

I have done all 19 past Riddle Run events. It truly is an "event" to be experienced. I'll be there for #20. All are welcome to join in on the fun. Can't beat the price! Of course, there is no official aid so you need to bring your own food/drink. 

2019 Running Goals

You can't move forward into a new year without goals. So, here are my 2019 running goals. Five biggies to motivate me throughout the new year. In case you missed it, here was my summary of how well I did with my 2018 goals: "Did I Meet My 2018 Running Goals?"

My goals that I'd like to achieve before the end of 2019:

1. Run more than 1,500 miles.
2. Complete at least 24 long runs (10+ miles).
3. Don't take more than 2 consecutive days off from running.
4. Complete at least 2 ultra-marathons (longer than 26.2 miles).
5. Have one run longer than 36.56 miles.

Look familiar? They are my exact goals from 2018. I failed at every single one of them. Need to make things right! More miles, more long runs, less days off, a couple of ultras, and at least one run of 36.56+ miles. Why such an odd and specific number? That's the distance where I dropped out of Tunnel Hill 50 miler in 2017. Not this year! I will go back to Tunnel Hill and crush that race. Whoops...I'm getting ahead of myself...race goals for 2019 are coming soon. 

Did I Meet My 2018 Running Goals?

Alright, we've made it through another year and it's time to review last year's running goals. I already reviewed my racing results (not very good) and my overall running statistics (also not good), but what about my actual goals for 2018? I posted my 5 goals on January 4, 2018 on this blog. Let's see how I did...one goal at a time!

Goal #1. Run more than 1,500 miles.
I ran 1,138 miles in 2018. That is less than 1,500 miles. Failure. No real excuse either. I was basically injury-free and healthy most of the year. I think my ready-made excuse was that I was trying to run fast and set half-marathon PRs. In my mind, that doesn't take lots of miles. Wrong. I needed a stronger aerobic base to carry me through a fast half-marathon. Live and learn.

Goal #2. Complete at least 24 long runs (10+ miles).
I had 13 runs that were 10 miles or longer. Sad. That's much less than 24! Failure. My bad. No excuses. Even training for half-marathons instead of marathons or ultras, I should have gotten in a lot of 10-12 mile runs. I didn't.

Goal #3. Don't take more than 2 consecutive days off from running.
My longest break was 7 days. That's longer than 2 days. Failure. I was sick in June and that is why I took the extra days off. Some kind of stomach issue. It lingered. I count that as a 1/2 good excuse. So far I am 0 for 3 on my goals.

Goal #4. Complete at least 2 ultra-marathons (>26.2 miles).
I ran a total of zero ultramarathons in 2018. That's certainly less than two! Failure. It's been a long time since I went an entire year without doing at least one ultra. But that's what happened in 2018. I'll knock off a few in 2019.

Goal #5. Have one run longer than 36.56 miles.
My longest run was 13.2 miles (during a half-marathon race). That seems shorter than 36.56 miles. Failure. Again. Yikes! So I failed at all 5 of my running goals. Not a good year. I have a strong belief that 2019 will be better. Much better. New running goals coming soon to a blog near you.

Summary of My 2018 Running

Happy New Year!

Before I can post racing and running goals for 2019, I need to look back on 2018 and see how that year of running concluded. I already reviewed my 2018 racing--that did not go well. How about my overall running statistics for the year?

	2017	2018	Improve?
Count:	266 runs	236 runs	X
Distance:	1,376.42 mi	1,137.76 mi	X
Max Distance:	32.79 mi	13.17 mi	X
Avg Distance:	5.17 mi	4.82 mi	X
Time:	215:45:13 h:m:s	175:48:00 h:m:s	X
Avg Speed:	9:23 min/mi	9:07 min/mi	✓
Avg HR:	134 bpm	133 bpm	?
Elevation Gain:	52,867 ft	40,846 ft	X
Avg Cadence	161 spm	164 spm	✓
Longest Streak:	27 days	16 days	X
Longest Break:	3 days	7 days	X

Compared to 2017, 2018 did not go very well. I'm embarrassed that my longest run was 13 miles. Sad for an ultrarunner. First year in a long time that I did not run an ultra. Oh well. I improved my average pace and running cadence (those go together), but everything else was worse! Racing was mediocre and overall running was blah. On the positive side, I only had one minor running injury (knee from fall at Lake Mingo trail race) and one illness (nasty stomach thing in the summer). I finished the year strong and look forward to a great 2019. Should be easy to beat these 2018 stats. Right?