Monday, February 9, 2009

Race Report: Ice Capades

The Frostbite Prediction Run was Saturday, held in the same location as last year -- and even the same distance (that's 5-K, Vanilla). And just like last year, despite the significantly warmer weather (hello, shorts), the race course was covered in snow, ice and slush.

A prediction run is where the winner is the person who comes closest guessing his finish time. Last year, I knew the guy who won; he nailed his prediction exactly. He was 15 seconds off this year, and didn't even crack the top 20. That's how close you have to be.

During the race, no timing devices are allowed. That means no watches, no Garmins, no heart rate monitors, no GPS devices, no sun dials and no music players. You techno geeks would be screwed.

As you can guess, your splits are not called out. The race organizers even covered up the one side of the clock so that you couldn't see the time until after you crossed the finish. So unless you can calculate your pace by looking at the position of the sun, you have to go by feel.

Last week, I predicted 27:40. That meant I had to run comparatively slow for a 5-K. The ice was almost a blessing because it slowed me down. And thankfully, I forgot to bring my YakTrax. Despite all that, I was still 50 seconds too fast. However, that is my closest prediction yet.

Catching Up
After being sick this week and not being able to run, I had no mileage until Friday, when I ran three miles to knock off the rust. I ran the race Saturday. And then, Sunday I ran a 10-miler, my first double-digit mileage of the year. Sixteen miles in three days? No sweat.

Beerwine
This weekend, I tried Dogfish Head's Red & White, a Belgian-style wheat beer fermented with Pinot Noir juice. It has what Bud Light would call "drinkability," but what would Bud Light know about that?

The Red & White has a very fruity undertone, as you might expect from a beer brewed with orange peel and wine grape juice, but at 10 percent ABV it also has punch. I would love to have it again, but it's a tad costly (as most limited brews are). I paid $12.99 for a 750 ml bottle.

13 comments:

Ian said...

I didn't think it was possible to run without a watch of some sort.

tfh said...

Hmm. Next year you should consider counting the seconds and minutes in your head (and on your fingers).

Unknown said...

That sounds like a good time. I participated in an event that I'm sure you would have enjoyed this past weekend.

Sun Runner said...

My God, man, you're moving up in the world! Your Dogfish Head ran $0.51/ounce, a 46-cent improvement over that Baltika stuff. Break out the half-naked models!

FYI, if you can, try Dogfish's Palo Santo Marron. YUM.

Oh yeah, their Indian Brown Ale is also quite tasty.

I trust you will have your shorts at the ready for tomorrow's balmy 60-degree temperatures...

Ms. V. said...

That's sounds like a great race.

We did the Davis 5K, and when we were parking, this guy was doing a Viper Snot Rocket.

He didn't have a beard, so I knew it wasn't you.

C said...

You ran 16 miles in three days? Thanks for making me feel even more lazy. How about you go get sick again? You seem to have made a habit of it anyway.

Spike said...

Glad to hear you are feeling better, sorry the course wasn't icy enough to slow you down 50 seconds.

Aileen said...

My running clubs does two of those races per year and the prize is usually a Chipotle burrito. I've won it twice because, well, food is a great motivator. Especially the free kind.

Nitmos said...

That was a long way to go just so you could tell us that you're even faster than you thought you would be.

Braggart.

Jess said...

That sounds like a cool idea for a race; I've never heard of a race like that. Of course, I would hate not running with a Garmin or iPod, but one race without them wouldn't kill me.

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure I could run without a watch. I'm pretty sure running without would be like running barefoot or something.

I'll have to try the Red and White. I agree with Sarah that the Palo Santo Marron is awesome! I won two cases of it last year and it is definitely one of top five favorite beers.

X-Country2 said...

What an interesting race. I rarely run with a watch these days, but the lack of music would kill me.

The Laminator said...

What an interesting idea! I would so sick at this as I never know how fast I'm running especially in a race.