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Very important disclaimer

Please be advised that the contents of this blog are opinions only (my opinion, the opinions of my family and the opinions of anyone else directly or indirectly involed in this blog). This is not an accredited training blog, nor is it an accredited anything blog. If you (and you) do anything that this blog says, or don't do anything that this site says not to do, and you get injured, sick or killed, you cannot blame me or my family or blame anyone else directly or indirectly involved in this blog. By reading anything on this blog (including this message) you are saying that you are a person who makes thier own choices in life and does not hold the writer of this blog, the writers family or any one else that may be directly or indirectly involved in the production or writing of this blog, responsible for your stupid and irresponsible behaviors, injuries, sicknesses or deaths. With that said, please enjoy my fun blog.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

What should my Barefoot name be?

Help me out here. I feel like I should have a descriptive moniker, but feel weird about nicknaming myself.

  • Barefoot Neil
  • Barefoot Neil Zee
  • Barefoot Neil Z
  • Barefoot Zee
  • Nudefoot Neil
  • Coolkid Barefoot
  • footbare’n Neil

So? Maybe you can think of something else.

Friday, July 30, 2010

Golf in my 5’s and a Contest Winner!

So I did something I never thought I would do. Something that is so far out of my comfort zone, out of the pocket, really. I just went for it.

I golfed in my Vff KSO’s today. You see, that is so far away from myself, because I am a “proper’ snob. I need it to be the right way, or don’t do it. I have a pair of Black and White Soft Spike Foot Joy golf shoes, in traditional Saddle Shoe design, that I would be lost without on the course. I have seen guys out there in Teva type golf sandles and thought, you are NUTS! Blasphemy! How dare you insult the game that way. HEY YOU! Yeah you, the guy without the collared shirt! Get off the course you infidel! I am different now. Barefoot’n has changed me. I am zen in minimalist shoes.

Anyway. Barefootness has softened me. And I have to say… golfing in the 5’s was … awesome. I mean …like… wow. I could feel the ground, it helped on the greens as I could feel the softness, the slope of the greens and I think it caused me to swing easier (which, everyone says you should do) as I didn’t have the spikes to anchor me to the ground.

It was my first round of the year, and it started out early, but not too early… Here is my Dad, digging around his bag getting me some tees. He is my tee pimp.

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Nanton Golf Course is probably my 2nd Favourite Golf Course in Alberta. Good rates, small town friendly and an incredibly well maintained and challenging golf course.

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Kurtis – I’m not sure you can count that high.

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So, on the 11th hole, I hit a shot from 180 yards out. It was a 4 iron that was tracking to the center of the green. It hit the green and JUST STOPPED. no hop. no roll. put the VCR on pause, it just stopped! We all kind of looked at each other. Man did that look freaky weird! Here it is on the green. before I pulled it out of the hole I asked the guys, ‘do you think it’ll make a sound when I pull it out? Hey Titleist? how about a running sponsorship? hehe.

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Golfing with my Vibrams…I shot my best round in a few years! I shot 81, 3 over on the back nine alone!! *WoOt*IMG_6045 IMG_6046

So I had my first contest! It went well. Someone is going to win a very nice shirt. Who will it be?

Congrats to: Barefoot Angie B! Thanks for playing! Her husband is an MMA fighter! How frickin cool is that?

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email me nzeller at shaw dot ca with your particulars so I can send you your shirt. S-M-L-XL, they do size on the small side.

For +1 entry I asked you for your favourite blogger who wasn’t me, here are the terrific results.

Definitely have a good look at each of these. I enjoyed reading all of them! I especially love Krupickas blog, so.much.running.

Stay tuned for some news on my sponsorships and another giveaway! For the CANADIAN followers of this blog too!! WooT! My pet peeve from most of the blontests by the Mercan bloggers I follow, is I can’t enter cause I’m north of the medicine line. My complaints have been heard and we look to take care of our own! So if you know some Canooks who want a chance at some good stuff, then send’em over here!

And running sponsors, Jump on the train! it’s about to leave the station!!! WoooOOOOWOOOOooooOOOOOT!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Barefoot update, 1 month!!!

I was running around the neighbourhood tonight and I remembered it was a month since I started running barefoot!

What have I learned.

  • Barefoot Josh is da Bomb. He is my Yoda. He is the single reason I started being BFcurious.
  • Run with your head looking up higher than you think is appropriate.
  • I will take cuts, abrasions and bruises everytime over ITBS, PF, Runners Knee, Sciatica… Everyday!
  • Tonight, I learned that running in the dusk, approaching dark, is not the preferred time of day for Barefoot runners.
  • Do you understand… what I mean in the above comment?
  • Like, running in the dark is hard to see stuff to avoid… Right?
  • My feet are excellent running coaches, and unlike other coaches, I listen to them.
  • My barefoot injuries have been in order of incident
    • Stepped on a rock in a spray park running after Andrew
    • Stepped on and got a tiny cut by a broken christmas light (yeah I never take them down and a few were busted in the big storm on Monday)
    • Stepped on a rock in the dark tonight walking back to the house.
  • None of those injuries were while running.

I am so grateful to have found my inner (and outer) barefootery.

Tonight I went out and ran a 6x400m interval run, ran up to a 4:45/km pace in the last interval. Felt fantastic. here are my feet after tonights run. The circular bit the left foot is the remnants of the blister I got 30 days ago. All good now! there is a mark in the center of my right foot as I stepped on a rock in the dark. yep.

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  • Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 61.2km *WooT* (38 miles to you Mercans)
  • VFF mileage since July 7th : 11.8km
  • Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

I haven’t ran in shoes since that race on July 1st!

My parting question to you is:

When you are all alone in your house, and you are naked, like after a shower, and you drop something or need to pick something up – Do you bend from the knees or bend from the waist?

I’m not going to tell you how I did it today or how it made me feel.

Goodnight!

Mile 26.2, yep it’s the end.

I am pretty spent. I will be happy to go back to present day blogging. There may be a tale or two regaled from the past, but for the most part, I will talk about the now… man.

So, I told my running story and the story of my banning from the running room store. Did you enjoy it? did it make you cringe? Were you nervous, tense? Did you laugh ever? If you weren’t along for the ride, you can see the whole story at The Other Blog. You will need to ask me to see it, but I won’t say no, so ask! I did learn some stuff on this crazy month long journey.

  • People follow daily bloggers, I knew that though

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  • I found out that readership is highest in the middle of the week, runners are out racing or drinking on the weekend, right?

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  • I found out that readers love conflict

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  • I found out that if you link it, they will follow!

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So I have crossed the finish line of this blog Marathon, along with Anthony, who finished just about a whole day ahead of me, which would happen in real life running too. Thanks for bringing me along AC. So now what?

I think I will talk lots about the following stuff:

  • Barefoot Running (obviously, will be a big part of this blog)
  • Stuff about the club
  • My quest for utter and total sponsorship domination
  • Races! I Love Racing!
  • Police Takedowns
  • I will steal stuff from other peoples blogs and post it here if I am short on time.

I won’t revisit any of the stuff that I puked onto these pages over the last 26 days. No point. Time to move on and to try and create a little cool and interesting piece of the internets. I may or may not blog daily. If I blog daily, I will. If I don’t, I won’t. huh?

I have my first 10k Barefoot race coming up on Aug 8. Sounds like fun don’t it?

Thanks for following along. If you want some REALLY good odds to win something,  tomorrow is the deadline for the contest for a ‘Cool Kids’ technical shirt and as always running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Thanks! I have a super amount of fun doing this, and having my followers, followeds, commenters, lurkers and stalkers makes it all worthwhile!

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Mile 25.2 My decision…

…is to take all the  stuff down. Running Room was all over the blog today and to be honest I got all freaked out.

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I just don’t want to deal with the man. Honestly, they are the ones who look the stupidest in this whole thing. I Know what my intentions were during the whole issue (sincere), but I have no desire to deal with the Retail Juggernaut again. As my header states, these are my opinions! and you can’t sue for your opinions. I shouldn’t be worried about this crap. I stated a while ago that I didn’t want to embarrass anyone, and I still don’t.

I published a new private blog, that has every word I wrote up until today, that is sitting there for anyone who wants to read it. by invite only though. There won’t be much more going in there, so if you read it already, it’s not going to be too interesting.

It is  at www.neilsprivateblog.blogspot.com I called it “The other blog”. Email me and say “I want to see the other blog” and I will send you an invite. Many many people have read it so far on this blog(at least 10’s of people!), and they seemed to have liked the read, so by all means, let me know if you do to want to read it.

While writing it, it was entertaining for me for a while, I’d like to think I can move on in life and provide and entertaining blog on my failings as a runner, and various other failings, so I will continue to write about the stuff I screw-up, accidentally witness and/or cause.

For the newest ‘cool kids’ The Gist of the whole thing is:

I tried to provide an experience in a running clinic (as a pacer) at The Running Room Ltd., to match the amazing experience that I received as a new runner a few months earlier. They did not like my honest efforts, so they deemed the right course of action for their company to ask me to refrain from attending or shopping there, effectively banning me. I cried in my pudding for a few days, then said Eff it and moved on. I started my own running club and have had great fun since.

The thought that The Running Room was pouring over my blog made it not fun anymore. I got a gut pain and a headache, and so I made the decision to wipe any of the horsechecker details from my super fun and encouragement laden funblog (fblog, if you will)

Here is my final argument (as per Jamoosh)

Running Room, you have a company to run. Leave me alone to live my life outside of your sweaty bosom. You don’t need me and I don’t need you, please just go away. You kicked me out. If you want to lure runners back there, just do a better job. simple.

Also, all you have to do to for a chance to win an awesome running shirt is go here, go to the bottom and comment as requested! Contest ends July 30. AND! running product makers, Please sponsor me! forget is coffee shops, I’m taken!

What am I doing? geezwhiz. I am trying to build a readership, trying to lure sponsors and trying to run a club, that preaches fun and fitness, and here I am complaining and whining and just being a child. I am done with this stuff. I need to be more like the awesome run bloggers on the left don’t I? Do yourself a favour and go read the blogs I have listed and the blogs that follow this blog. If you are short of inspiration or motivation, once you get through those, you’ll want to run right now! Some of them will have you laughing out loud!

 

I got a Sponsor!

Good Earth Coffeehouse and Bakery in Cranston is sponsoring my first barefoot race on Aug 8th. *WoOT* Have you ever been to a Good Earth? If you get a chance to get there for lunch (and you have a couple days before you need to sleep again) try a Large Iced Mocha with an Extra “Long shot”. Red Bull eat your heart out! Yum! Take the time to go see Thelma and ask for a Barefoot Mocha! If you see me at the Rock the House Run, ask me about my barefootery, and ask me for a Good Earth Cafe coupon!

Cranston Market Good Earth is at:

356 Cranston Road SE
Calgary, AB
Non-smoking. Patio. Wheelchair access. Free Wireless.
Open Monday - Friday 6:30 am to 10:00 pm, Saturday 6:30 am to 9:00 pm and Sunday 8:00 am to 8:00 pm. 403-457-1997

Also, all you have to do to for a chance to win an awesome running shirt is go here, go to the bottom and comment as requested! Contest ends July 30. AND! running product makers, Please sponsor me! forget is coffee shops, I’m taken!

Christopher McDougall agrees with me.

http://chrismcdougall.com/blog/2010/07/worlds-best-barefoot-coach/

Remember, um… just a couple days ago?

http://becauseallthecoolkidsaredoingit.blogspot.com/2010/07/mile-21-barefoot-update-and-my-last.html

What?

If you need to know, just ask me for permission. I will show you.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Mile 24.2… too tired

Figured tonight is the .2 night as I am wiped. Only 2 miles to go. What do you want to know?

I ran 6k barefoot. Feels fantastic. No blisters, hot spots, still a bit stiff, but nothing compared to 2 weeks ago. My Blue VFF KSOs split a seam on the big toe, took them back to Fitter1 and they refunded me my money in full. Went to MEC and picked up a black pair of KSOs for $10.00 cheaper. In stock, most sizes, 2 colors to choose from. Sweet.

  • Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 56.2km *WooT*
  • VFF mileage since July 7th : 11.8km
  • Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

Hey, all you have to do to for a chance to win an awesome running shirt is go here, go to the bottom and comment as requested! Contest ends July 30.

running product makers, Please sponsor me!

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Monday, July 26, 2010

Mile 24, Holy Shmoly!

that was the scariest storm I have ever seen. I am standing out on the deck and all of a sudden the wind whips up and the freakiest clouds come flying over the houses. The clouds are moving a hundred miles an hour North to South AND straight up! wow! I went in the house, told Traci and Andrew to get to the basement and ran up stairs to get the cat. I got everyone settled and then went back up to watch! I went out to the camper to get the big flashlight, back downstairs and was amazed at how hard the hail was hitting the basement windows (that are below grade). By the time I got upstairs, the wind had shifted 180 degrees and was BLOWING! wow.

The hail spared no plant. Poor Traci is so sad. Mostly because of the Ligularia that was a day or so away from blooming, is now in tatters, stems broken in half and the blooms stripped of any new flower buds. dang.

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It was over in about 4 minutes, but thankfully the plants were the only loss. A few clicks east of here was reported funnel clouds and an even bigger storm.

I couldn’t get a good contrast on the video phone, but just notice how fast the clouds are flying by.

See how you can just barely see the house across the path. then when the hail lets up it is there.

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NOT a ticker tape parade here… potpourri anyone?

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Running product makers, Sponsor me! Oh, and GU Rocks… just sayin…

9k VFF/Barefoot…

Ran 9k on Sunday morning. Out for 4.5k in VFFs, and 4.5k back barefoot. I feel so unreal good when I am out running. I am suffering a bit today. Just general soreness in my lower legs. Muscles that haven’t been used in a LONG time. My stupidity yesterday is I wore the VFFs to a family outing at a heritage village park, and walked around on them for 5 hours. I should have flipped over to my Birkenstocks for the afternoon, I know I would be feeling sooo much better today. Resting these naked dogs is very important these days. The 3 days in a row last week was quite a test too, but I passed with minimal discomfort.

Running in the VFFs yesterday, I was worried about the blister I got from them on my first longish run in them. No issue. In fact all the blisters I got at the start of Bf-ing have since healed and there are no new ones to report. sweet. Issue though, the seam on the top of my left big toe in the VFF has split open. Do I just sew it myself or call in the 1 year warranty?

Ok!

  • Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 50.2km *WooT*
  • VFF mileage since July 7th : 11.8km
  • Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

Hey, all you have to do to win an awesome running shirt is go here, go to the bottom and comment as requested! Contest ends July 30.

AND remember, only YOU can sponsor me. running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Mile 23, Ok we have a club, now what?

Plan a race! yeah, because there is not enough shit going on in our lives. Thank god for my wife. More on that in a mile or 2.

I just planned some runs, and people came! The club had started. Sure there were planned runs that I would sit and wait, and no one would show up. So I would go home and carry on with my day.

If you schedule it, they will run.

I did, and they did! Thanks team! I don’t take the time in this blog enough for the following: Thank you to my darling wife Traci for being my everything support and my biggest fan! She puts up with all this non-bacon-making BS that I tend to get myself wrapped up in, and she is the wonder bra to my sometimes sagging emotional bosom. Thanks babe!

Oh, Obviously I had this blog for a while, and I called it “cool kids’ for short and that just stood out as the obvious name. We tried on some others for size:

  • Banned, a run club for criminals
  • South Calgary Runners: we’re not North
  • Running Porch
  • Rocket Science Runners: It’s just running
  • Dog Gone it, People Like me (running)
  • What the Eff did I do to get here
  • Caring too much on the run.
  • Eff it, just run. Club.

So www.coolkidsrunclub.com was born. There is also the Facebook Page and the Newsletters. Yeah I got nothin’ but time on my hands now. So now you know why I NEED the sponsors! Come on people, I can help you sell your merch! Running product makers, Sponsor me!

Don’t forget the contest. These shirts kind of rock, super soft and ridiculously cool!

Oh, perspective moment of the day. Our little guy just turned 3 on Saturday. What an amazing ride that’s been! That’s Right, those are FOL Tighty Whities! He is fully potty trained! SHaZAM!! *wOOt*

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Saturday, July 24, 2010

A Contest!

Contest: *WOoT* I am giving away a Zorrel Technical Running Shirt, Emblazoned with the coolest logo in Running. You can be a Cool Kid! Follow my blog, +1 entry (make sure and post in comments that you do or do now!), Post on your blog, +1 entry (make sure and post in comments that you did, with a link). Tell me in comments who your favorite blogger is (who isn’t me), +1 Entry. Contest deadline is July 30th, the winner will be announced on July 31st! Good Luck! Sizes available are S-M-L-XL.

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Hey! Running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Friday, July 23, 2010

Mile 21, Barefoot Update and my last Shod Race…

… Man, I think I am forgetting something… whatever…

So the results came out for the High River Canada Day Run on July 1st.

HR results 

I finished 19th out of 125 runners, and was the fastest runner over 170lbs. No really. The people who finished ahead of me were all VERY skinny twerps. Also, the people with a letter next to them were running as teams, therefore they were not in the 5k per se and so I actually placed in the top 10. *WoOt* This race was the last time I have ran in regular shoes. It was my first 5k race, so now I have my benchmark in 5k 25:34, 10k 55:30, 15k 1:26:00, 21.1k 1:58:30. I hope to beat each of these running barefoot over the next couple of years.

I mentioned that I am 240lbs right now. In the High River race, I am serious when I say I was at least 70lbs heavier than the heaviest person that finished in front of me. how fast could I run at 190lbs? What is the calculation for that?

… there is something else I wanted to say… Jeez, what was it?

Tomorrow is my Boy’s 3rd Birthday. He is almost faster than me already. He is going to be very vey fast. right now he is 3’7” tall and weighs 32lbs. He need rocks in his pockets when its windy out, but when conditions are right, he is SUPER quick. His form is perfect. Hands low and relaxed, upright posture, and short, light quick steps. He also stretches like gumby.

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What was it? man its right on the tip of my keyboard… ah well.

So I am going for a slow 9k on Sunday, my longest run to date for my fledgling barefoot career. I am excited because I had an amazing 5k pace run yesterday, and it was because I saw this video. I think this video kind of rocks. It does a very good job of explaining how and why barefoot is much better. AND it explains barefoot technique with some drills, that well… drill the idea of very tall posture into you! Nice work Terra Plana Vivo Shoe Company!

Learning the Skill of Barefoot Running from Terra Plana on Vimeo.

I am freaking out… I know I am forgetting something.

OH Yeah! … I cut my lawn today wearing my KSOs. I couldn’t bear the thought of my sneakers again.

That’s it. Seeya’ll later… And remember, running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Present Day, Barefoot Update…

Tempo run, Warm up 10mins, 6:30/km, middle 10 mins, 5:15/km, cooldown 10min.

Total 4.7km, 30 minutes:

Feel: Good when going fast, left foot was slapping down a bit, couldn’t adjust to make it quiet, tried a few different postures, knees bent, but couldn’t get the slapping sound to go away, at the end of fast 10, took a 30 second detour onto crushed brick pathway, instantly was smoother with a completely different foot placement. Came back onto paved path and no more slapping. cool.

•Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 40.5km
•VFF mileage since July 7th : 7.3km
•Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

Barefoot in the news: Kenyan Alice Nawowuna wins bronze in 5000m at IAAF World Junior Championships. http://www.iaaf.org/WJC10/news/kind=108/newsid=57558.html

running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Mile 15, a brief memoirs interlude for a police takedown…

So, last evening this guy pulls into the campground in this little lowrider pick-up truck, sets up camp, then walks around carrying a lacrosse stick and a golf ball. Unfortunately I mistook him for a friendly doofus and engaged him in conversation.

Me: You have a golf ball and a Lacrosse stick.

Him: Yeah, I lost my ball in the river, and I found this one. I also lost my other stick so I have to play with myself now. (his words)

Me: uh, you can buy those you know.

Him: Yeah, but the stores around here are all really small and lacrosse isn’t very popular around here except for the pro team, a few minor teams and a junior league.

Me: uh, yeah. Just in Calgary tho, there is a SportChek.

Him: Hey yeah, we have those where I come from.

Me: uh, yeah go there.

Him: I never go there. they are our competition.

Me: Uh, ok, have a nice night. *avert eyes*

Nan and Poppop were here for supper with us, and when I came back into the site, I told them I didn’t like this guy, that he creeped me out.

We watched him most of the evening. He would take his shirt off and sit in the truck for a while, then get out and walk around the campground some more just wandering and staring at stuff. He walked past our site at one point and Rizzo our pug FREAKED out at him. Rizzo normally could care less about people, but this guy, she hated!

Fastforward to noon today. Andrew and I are at the playground and the guy come tearing down the access road in his truck, and to a small parking lot near the campground. I wanted to go tell the guy to slow the hell down, but before I could even start in that direction the cops had come into the campground with 2 cruisers and blocked off his access out.

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The guy pulls up right in front of the cars and just sits there. One of the cops starts to get out and all of a sudden the guy backs up and goes around the parking lot 4 or 5 times then parks in front of the cop cars again. He then jumps out of the car and hops the fence and goes into the campground office. I was worried for the workers, as this place is staffed by the nicest volunteers and they were now potentially hostages.

One of the cops goes up to the door and peeks inside, with one hand on his holster. That was the point I said “Let’s go Andrew”, scooped him up and headed back to the Trailer. I put Andrew in the Trailer, told Traci there is a Takedown happening and then grabbed my Camera.

Really, do you think I WOULDN’T want to take pictures of this?

Anyroad, I don’t know how the guy got out of the office, but here he comes with the coppers hot on his tail. He is hooting and hollering, yelling noooo nooooo noooo! you can’t get me!!!!!

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I don’t see the actual tackle (or submission) but I get around the corner to see the guy face down, shirtless in the gravel, Ouch.

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They get him all cuffed up and march him back to the cop cars and as he passes by us he is chanting, ‘hup 2-3-4, hup 2-3-4’.

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Kinda made me laugh by then. Once they get him back to the cop cars he is back to resisting. They ask him nicely to get in the car, but he won’t, and stands fast.

All of a sudden he starts yelling  “OOOOOUUUCCCCCHHHHHHHH” “OOOOUUUUUUCCCCCCHHHHH” at the top of his lungs, so apparently the cop got the cue that this was the time to take care of business, and (I think) buckled his knees, as he sort of dropped and folded up into the car.

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Once that was done, the cops started looking through his truck and his campsite, as the guy told them his Methadone was in there.

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In talking with the cop afterwards, this guy spent the night in jail last night, then when he got out, he was recklessly driving all over the place so they followed him here. He is a Heroine addict from BC apparently.

And this is how nice the people who work here are. They refunded his next two nights and gave the money to the cops to give to the guy.

Oh yeah, always trust the instincts of a dog.

Update: The guy checked in to the campground as John Smith, and he jokingly asked the lady in the office “Have the cops been looking for me?” uh… haha? Our villain was wanted on assault and drug charges back in his home, so he truly was on the run. Also in the news: the Okotoks police were quite busy this day, as they shot a guy dead in the evening in this quite little bedroom community, ending a domestic dispute call.

And, running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

First Barefoot Speed Workout…

It went well. I have sore calves, again not crippling. I got back to the campground we are staying at and walked right into the river that runs at about 55f. fixed me right up! I also got a small blister where I got a big one last week on my left foot. Thank you Mr. Foot, you are an excellent teacher.

We ran 5x400m intervals with a 1k warmup and cooldown. I was concerned about speeding up while barefoot, so I wore the VFFs for the first 3 repeats then took them off for the last 2. It was an interesting feeling, going faster, but I enjoyed it. I looked at my shoes today on the way out and got a feeling of disdain toward them. I remember the knee pain and soreness that I got in my shoes and I think that I can never go back. It kind of makes me sad a little, as I have an incredibly long way to go barefoot.

I am comforted by the fact I am very happy in the VFFs. If anything went sideways with the Barefoot thingy(like winter), I feel like I could employ some Injiniji socks with the KSO’s and I would be right as rain forever. That makes me very happy because I know I will be a better runner no matter what.

•Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 25.8km
•VFF mileage since July 7th : 7.3km
•Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

I know I am probably ahead of the curve a bit for starting out, I have read all the advice and technique stuff about going REALLY slow, but remember I have been studying this method for over 6 months. I had been secretly practicing the art of short strides and forefoot landing and running smooth (in my shoes) the only thing I was missing was the feedback to tell me if I was close or had no idea. I think I was close, I just needed to get to a point where I could run free, shoeless. The new training program seemed like the perfect place.

Speaking of the training program, I had the group out for their first speed workout and these are a couple of the comments I have read tonight.

Jim said: Some of you were lucky that you were not available for the Wednesday night run, because now I know what interval training means.  For the next interval training session, I’ll wear a suit and make sure that the route ends at McInnis & Holloway(funeral home).  This way, I can save on shipping and handling charges.  Neil has told us that those of us who survived the intervals will be better… someday.  The next Wednesday (July 21st) at Sikome will be a tempo run, which I’m told can be challenging (unless you already have had teenagers).

Tammy replied: Hahaha! Like I said, I need to try and NOT get a babysitter for next Wednesday. I don't see tempo being any easier. See you Sunday! Thanks Neil. As much as it's torture, it's what I need.

Nice. My work is done here.

Also, Tomorrow will be Mile 13 and I will get back to the task at hand: Recounting my running memoirs… Weeks 1 to 3 of the new Half Marathon Clinic last October. Are you ready to get back to the story?

And, running product makers, Please sponsor me!

Sponsorship request

Hi advertisers and running related product suppliers.

Here is my list of ‘consumable’ items that I wish to receive sponsorships. My ultimate goal is to be the most sponsored recreational runner around. I run 10ish races a year, have my own run club and write this here blogger deal.
Here are the details of what you can expect when you sign me on as your athlete.

  1. I am very loud. Can be heard over jet engines and crying babies in most situations
  2. I will give your stuff away at an alarming rate.
  3. I will crash parties of people I don't know and make them love your stuff.
  4. My family always buys stuff I tell them too.
  5. I can sit in a booth for minutes at a time.
  6. My wife calls me a 'handshaker' as I am always striking up conversations with people I don't know, and making friends with them.
  7. I blog, therefore I should be sponsored. Why, just this month my followers count has gone up by 2 3 people!
  8. Kids and dogs LOVE me.
  9. I am a GREAT before picture.
Sales pitch over, here is my list of available sponsorship openings...
  • Cash. If you give me cash I will run for you. I will love you.
  • Tigram TenToes (r), a pair of the awesome gloved shoes..., Sponsored as of July 15th, 2010
  • Vibram Five Fingers, all types
  • Gu. I love the Gu. Use it on all runs over 1 hour. I drink it and I gel it.
  • HEED. I tried it, I liked it. Gu and and Heed, you guys battle it out for my devotion.
  • Groceries. It takes a lot of time and energy to eat well. I will eat well if you give me the expensive organic greens and other shit that is good for you.
  • Annuity funds, RRSP, RESP, IRA, Mortgage payments. nuff said.
  • Cash. See above. Also, for the right amount of cash, I'll call out, by name in this blog, all the people who crossed me in the last year or two.
  • Apparel. I love technical gear. Love it. Hats, bandanas, shirts, shorts, I'll try anything you send me and I will post a real review of the stuff.
  • Shoes. well…
  • Sunglasses. I like Oakley, but I'll wear whatever you send me.
  • GPS devices. I LOVE technology.
  • Music. I don’t run with it, but if you sent me some, I would.
  • Backpacks, Hydration systems, fuel belts, ID stuff and any other awesome ‘attachments’ you can think of.
  • Jenny Craig can come calling. I can’t afford her otherwise. 35lbs shed aught to give me the chance at a 1:40 half. During my recovery after that half I’ll go on live TV and beat the shit out of George Kastanza if JC sponsors me.
  • Kestrel, Cervelo, Felt, Blue, Ridley, Colnago, or Ceepco bikes. Don’t care, i’ll take whatever you give me. I will train for Triathlon in your name.
  • Cash sponsor for all of the above for 3 years, I will get a tattoo of your choosing on my ass and I will show to anyone who asks.
  • Vacation Tour operators. I will run in all the places you send me and tell everyone about it.
  • A coach. That would be amazing!!! I promise coach, i'll do you proud!
  • A nurtitionist. F-U Jenny Craig. I got a nutritionist!... er... sorry Ms Craig. I still love you, if you sponsor me. unless I get a nutritionist, then F-U!
I think that’s all, I'll update this list as my needs change and the couriers arrive... any day now.

Thanks for this link Happy Dan…

W.O.W. 8/16/09 and my “Dirty Dozen for Black Swan Avoidance”.

Posted by Doug McGuff

I thought I would lead into this week’s WOW with a little blog post about how to avoid negative Black Swans from the perspective an emergency physician. A Black Swan is a term coined by Nassim Taleb that describes an unpredictable event whose effect is greatly disproportionate to its cause. While the things I list certainly seem unpredictable to the victim in question, they are actually quite recurrent to the emergency physician who cares for such events. As such, they may not meet Dr. Taleb’s definition of a Black Swan…but I think many Black Swans only appear unpredictable because of a blindness that can be removed when viewed from a different perspective. But since I am offering exercise and dietary advice to prolong human life, I thought I might offer some advice to help prevent you from offing yourself prematurely. Here goes.

1. Drive the biggest vehicle you can afford to drive. Your greatest risk of death comes from a motor vehicle accident. Despite all the data from the government on crash test safety, I can say unequivocally that in a 2-car accident, the person in the larger car always fairs better. Force=Mass x Acceleration. The vehicle with larger mass imparts the greater force. Also, purchase the newest large vehicle that you can afford. Crumple zones in newer cars can expand deceleration time from 30 milliseconds to 90 milliseconds which decreases deceleration forces by a factor of 3. I am not a believer in global warming or man’s contribution to it, but if you are and you want to do your part by driving a Smart Car or a Prius you should be commended for potentially standing by your convictions with your life. Also, if your midlife crisis plans include a motorcycle or sports car, realize that you might resolve your midlife crisis by avoiding old age all together. It goes without saying to wear your seatbelts, and you should be engulfed by as many air bags as possible. If we were truly rational about risk, all seat belts would be 5-point restraints and we would wear helmets while driving.
2. Never get on a 4-wheeler ATV. These are the most dangerous vehicle that I know of. ATV’s have produced more quadriplegics than anything else I have seen.
3. Do not road cycle or jog on public roads/roadsides. This is self-evident.
4. Do not fly a plane or helicopter unless you are a full-time professional pilot. If you are a doctor, lawyer, actor, athlete, stockbroker or other well-to-do professional do not get a pilot’s license. Expertise in one area of life does not transfer to piloting, often with fatal results.
5. If you are walking down a sidewalk and are approaching a group of loud and apparently intoxicated males, cross to the other side of the street immediately. If anyone tries to start a fight with you, the first step should be “choke them with heel dust”.
6. If your gas grill won’t start….walk away. Never throw gas (or other accelerant) on a fire.
7. Never dive into a pool or body of water (except in a pool diving area marked 9 feet or deeper after you have checked in out feet-first).
8. Never get on a ladder to clean your gutters, or on your roof to hang Christmas lights. Do not cut down trees with a chainsaw. I have seen too many middle age males (with a bug up their ass to get something done) die from these activities. In general, any house or lawn work that you can hire for an amount equal to or less than your own hourly wage is money well spent.
9. If you are retirement age and plan on moving to a new home…think twice. The stress pushes many seniors over the edge. If you do, buy an existing house. I have lost count of the number of retirees that have died of heart attacks while going through the stress of custom-building their retirement dream home.
10. If anyone tries to force you into your car or car trunk at gun point, don’t cooperate. Fight and scream all you can even if you risk getting shot in the parking lot. If you get in the car, you will most likely die (or worse).
11. If you are in any personal or professional relationship that exhausts you or otherwise causes your recurrent distress, then end the relationship immediately.
12. Don’t play the lottery…you might win. Any unearned wealth, or wealth that is disproportionate to the objective value you provide will destroy you. Lottery winners and Sports/Movie stars share a common bond of disproportionate rates of depression, addiction, and suicide.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Barefoot WHAT? Barefoot Awesome!!!

Man, I had an amazing run tonight. like 43f outside, raining and 5.08km barefoot. I wore my VFFs to the meeting place and a new lady says "are you really going to run in those?" "nope" was my reply and I took them off.

Questions fielded during and after the run,

How are your feet?.. fine! how are yours?
How do rocks feel when you run on them?..I try to avoid rocks because if I step on them it hurts, so it reminds me to not step on them.
How did that mud feel when you ran through it?.. muddy.
Are you nuts?.. probably.
People are really staring at you, doesn't that bug?.. how little you know about me. stick around long enough and you'll see that I believe that sometimes not caring is a good thing!

no blisters tonight, not tired, no general soreness. I can feel my calves, but not as much as last week. I purposely haven't run since last Wed, so I could be ready for the start of our half training program today.

•Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 23.7km
•VFF mileage since July 7th : 3.3km
•Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

All good stuff!

Saturday, July 10, 2010

As advertised…

… The Vibram Five Finger KSO’s do an excellent job as water walkers… here they are hang drying, they are not in the water in this picture…

IMG_4634

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

BF Addendum, mile 5

Dear readers:

Love, love the VFF’s. I ran a very pleasant 3.3k in them, working on things like cadence and hip rotations. I actually had one of our other runners time me so I could count cadence. 165 strides. Hmm… need to be 180. ok, goals are good. At the turn around point, I took the VFF’s off. This was planned. The cadence thing must’ve tweaked something for me as I was able to run another 2.5k’s very comfortably nek’dfooted (most comfortable BF run yet). I also noticed that the more my cadence sped up, the faster I needed to run (does that make sense?) It was no more or less strain on the feet, but I may have been running too slow to start.

I have heard that you can pound yourself into the ground by running below your capabilities, but I didn’t think that would apply to barefoot. For the last 300m or so, I quasi-sped up, but less than a sprint. It was really really nice. Instead of my feet feeling hot and abraded they actually felt like they were cooling down.

Full disclosure, my calves are pretty sore. Not debilitating, but normal sore and the bottoms of my feet are tender for a couple hours after the run.

Otherwise, I am having a super-duper A-ok time running barefoot.

  • Barefoot mileage since June 29th : 18.6km
  • VFF mileage since July 7th : 3.3km
  • Shoe mileage since SOBF (start of barefoot): 5km (25:30 5k race PR on July 1st)

We start a brand new 12week training program on Tuesday for a half marathon on Oct 2nd. My goal is to run the half… barefoot.

good luck to me.

Sincerely,

Proud of the use of the word “Abraded”

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

BF, present day…

Dear readers,

as an addendum to mile 4, I ran 5km barefoot today. I went full naked footed 2 weeks ago, have now ran over 10 miles bf and I feel great. I do get blisters though. My right foot had one on my big toe last week, but tonight I think I solved it’s issue, but at the expense of the lower outside center of my left foot. My feet seem to have the durability in the ankles, calves, overall strength etc… to run barefoot, I just gotta figure out the soul of my souls. I assume that is the feedback we so desire, and we will make changes to not get blisters.

I read a bunch of the beginner stuff on the Running Barefoot site, and the one thing that struck me was how you lift your toes, just ever so much before touching down to pre-tension the skin underneath so that the skin isn’t forced to stretch out under your weight once it’s on the ground. This should in theory eliminate the hot spots. I musta been concentrating on the right foot as it’s where the problem was last week. Now I can figure out the left!

I am considering the VFF’s. so I can run back to back days while bringing up my mileage and not rip the soles off my feet. Is that ok…? I won’t be thought of as a weenie will I?

signed,

curiously barefoot.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

My first blog of 26.2 in a row…

Anthony is writing 26.2 blogs in a row and I told him I'd tag along.

Here is a link to his first one

 

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Well, that first mile was tough… hope it gets easier the farther I get into this thing… I need a nap now.

Friday, July 2, 2010

My first 5k…

High River Canada Day Run. Gawd that was hard work. (sidenote: I ran it shod). I was 2k in to the run and I was already wanting it done. I think in longer runs you have more time to decide if you are going to kick it into a higher gear, or settle for an easier pace. Today I was running scared! I had no idea what to expect, except I knew it was going to be hard based on what I figured I should be able to do. I have ran 3k at 5min/km as a pb in training, so i figured, let’s go all out and attempt a 5k at the same pace. Almost did it too. 6 seconds per/km off goal… too bad.

I set my Garmin to show 4 info fields.

  1. Time
  2. distance
  3. current pace
  4. average pace

The average pace is the one you want to watch if you are attempting a set goal time. You’ll know what you are supposed to maintain but if your average pace is at or above your set goal, then you better keep your current pace below the average that is showing. If not, you end up running out of race course to get it back. Once you get over, it is SOOOO hard to get it back under, especially in a short race. I had been following an older guy for most of the race and he just kept plugging away, not giving up a second, so I made him my goal. I pulled along side him with 1k to go, we ran stride for stride for 800m, gently increasing the pace (testosterone, obviously) to see who was going to give, and with 150m left I said ‘POUNd it!’ old guy and I sprinted away from him. I wasn’t going to be chicked by a 50-59 age grouper dude.

25:30 was my time. I am pretty happy. I now have all my benchmarks for shod running. (honestly, I could give 2 hoots about the marathon distance.)

  • 25:30 -5k
  • 55:30 -10k
  • 1:26:00 -15k (I ran the first 15k of my last half in less, but is probably why I sucked out for the 21.1time)
  • 1:58:32 -21.1k

I will give myself 2 years to at least match these times as a barefoot runner. I do have winter to think about, and what to do about running barefoot and what minimalist shoes I should think about, and the ‘setback’ it will cause. I am personally thinking about Mukluks.

Now if this sets off a trend of mercan bf’ers using Mukluks to carry on their bf running in colder climates, I would like stake my claim to the idea. I started the trend. me. If you need some, I will sell you some. see me.

Ps. I am pretty sure I won the Clydesdale division today. everyone ahead of me were skinny twerps.