Saucony Spring 2010

Just took a look at the Spring collection from Saucony. No major suprises which is always a good thing. Saucony is like a silent assassin, not really noticed but does a great job. Their shoes may not be flashy or make anyone real excited but man they always work well. Great fit, great ride and almost never a defect. What more does one need.

The Grid Sinister will be replaced by the Grid Getgo. Nice shoe for a small niche group of runners. It is now softer but still with great transition and power transfer.

No changes to the Progrid Ride 2 other then more color options. The Ride 2 just came out and so far this thing is a home run. Softer then the last version while still fitting great.

There will be a new ProGrid Guide 3 in February 2010. This is a real important update for Saucony as the Guide has been slowly chipping into the lead of the Asics GT series. With Asics having major availability issues right now more people are trying different brands and the Guide is a winner. The Guide 3 will be a little softer and just slightly more stable. The current Guide 2 is working great so these minor changes shouldn't hurt anything.

Hurricane and Omni just get color updates, not real exciting there.

Kids will get a super cool Grid Xodus trail shoe. Now they can play in the dirt with some sweet trail shoes. With Saucony being owned by Stride Rite, they know how to make some great kids running shoes.

The fun stuff.

Grid Fastwitch 4 (pictured on a messy desk). Just a new upper on the same midsole/outsole. The current version fits and feels great so this minor update is a good thing. This is one fast road flat and the new colors and graphics are awesome.

For spikes the Crescent and Velocity just get new very nice color updates while the Endorphin MD and LD get reworked. According to Saucony the plate on the Endorphins is the same as this year but it looks like some of the toe spring is taken out of the plate which I think is a good thing. The 2009 plate has a very abrupt toe spring that looks to be placed just a little too far back.

The Endorphin MD should be a winner next spring. Great upper update and the women's has a very nice yet subtle hot pink plaid detail.

There were no updates to any of the trail shoes. I was hoping for a new color in the Xodus as that shoe rocks but really color doesn't matter. The Razor will remain the same and I can't wait for this thing to come out in a few months. This is a monster, take no prisoners trail shoe. 3/4 upper height, built in gaiter, eVent bootie and tons of traction.

That's it. Nothing major for any of the most important shoes and that is a good thing. Consistent good shoes is how you build a brand and that is what Saucony is delivering for 2010.

I must be getting old

This weekend nearly killed me. I swear when I was younger this would have been a breeze but now, man it hurts.

We had 5 races to work over three days and this morning I woke up sore.

Friday 6/05/2009 9:30 am - 9:00 pm

Busy day in the store with packet pick up for two races and the East End mile at night. Had to work out on the floor most of the day as we were hopping with customers. Greg worked the race as I headed out to Mendon Ponds Park to run our trail course and lay out the markers for the race in the morning.

Saturday 6/06/2009 5:30 am - 1:00 pm and 3:30 pm - 9:00 pm

PowerBar Trail Race in the am. Help set up the finish area and then run the course to make sure the markers are still there. Ran the 4.5 mile race as it is the 11th year of this race I started and I had yet gotten to run it. Post race take it all down and head home at 1:00.

Back at the store at 3:30 to head out to Pittsford to set up the transition area and finish line area for the Pittsford triathlon. Nearly 360 registered so that's a lot of equipment to move and set up.

Greg spent the entire day timing the Empire State Cycling Championships at Powder Mills Park. He'll time day two all day Sunday at Seneca Park.

Sunday 6/07/2009 4:30 am - 3:00 pm

Pittsford Triathlon. Long day but a very well done race. This was our first year working with the town on their race and they did a great job. Timing went smooth, Ellen kept the athletes pumped announcing all day and a few of the Buffalo Bills raced. Long tough day but hey it's what we do.

Monday morning - Sore as hell. My shoulders hurt from carrying all the cones to mark the trail course. My back is tight from loading and unloading all the bike racks. My knee has been acting up on me and after these three days it is really screaming. On top of that my head has been pounding for 2 straight days.

As my grandmother always said, "It's hell getting old". Overall I've gotta be pleased though. We provided services to 4 races (1 run, 2 bike and 1 tri) and produced a 5th (run) all over three days. Everybody appears to have had a great time and was pleased with the job we did. At least we haven't received any pissed off emails yet today and those usually come pretty quick when someone isn't happy.

Both our store staff and race crews worked really hard this weekend. They should be proud of the job they did under a lot of pressure. Now we just all have to get some sleep.

Brooks 2010

I just took a look at the spring 2010 line of footwear from Brooks. Some very cool stuff.

Brooks has been a leader in being a "green" company. From recycled boxes to their BioMoGo midsoles to now the Green Silence. This is one cool racing flat.

75% post consumer recycled shoe materials.
100% recycled packaging
100% pc recycled shoe laces
Water based glues
Soy based dyes
50% less parts to the shoe

Oh and it is one fast and light racing shoe. 6.9 ounces of red and yellow fury. Now you can run fast and help save the planet. Very cool

Saw the new Defyance 3 and Adrenaline GTS 10. Both very nice updates. Nothing major needed to be fixed since these are already great shoes. Many other models got color updates but that's boring to write about

For the Track geeks they will have a new distance spike, The Wire. Nice new Pebax plate, mesh upper and 4.8 ounces. Neon yellow doesn't hurt either. Their old Z series of spikes always fit and performed great but sales never matched how good of spike they were. Hopefully with The Wire that will change as this is a very nice spike and deserves to win some races.

The Cascadia 5 gets a few minor updates but this shoe will continue to rock the trails as it always works well and it looks great with some aggressive coloring.

The big launch will be on 1/01/2010 with the Glycerin 8. This shoe will feature a new technology called Brooks DNA. Very cool stuff.

The cushioning in the shoe will react to the amount of force placed on the foot. Are you a lightweight, the shoe will be super soft underfoot. Maybe have a few extra pounds on you, no problem, the Brooks DNA will react to the increased forces and adjust to keep you protected. Like I said very cool stuff.

Brooks has been leading the pack for running companies for a bit now and Spring 2010 should help them stay out front.

I'll see Saucony tomorrow and Pearl Izumi is sending me some prototypes to test out. Should be fun stuff.

It's June

And in the run specialty industry that means two things.

1. New shoes from the fall collections are starting to trickle in.

2. Vendor sales reps are coming out and showing the spring 2010 product lines

The New Puma Vectana will be in any day. I'm real excited by this one as it is a whole new direction for Puma. Wider fit, traditional midsole heights, and a real nice feel.

Asics will be launching the new Gel 3010. This is a huge improvement over the previous version as it will fit better, feel softer and have a better overall ride.

We already received the new Saucony Ride's and Omni's. No major changes but just little tweaks that needed to be done.

In regards to Spring 2010 no major surprises yet, which is a good thing. After being in the industry for 16 + years I don't very often see anything that really surprises me or makes me excited. Typically if something catches me by surprise it is that a good company really screwed things up and so far so good.

Took a look at Mizuno 2010 yesterday and no major changes to what is a solid line of shoes. They did decide to drop their price point track spikes but that doesn't really matter as they never sold very well.

They cleaned up the fit on a few models (women's Inspire in photo) by making just minor fixes. Overall they didn't need to do much as their shoes have been performing real well for the last few seasons.

This morning my time was spent with New Balance for some early release (11/1) 2010 shoes. The biggy being the 769 update, the 760. I've written before about all the updates they made to the 769 (PL-1 last) to make it a much better performing shoe. With the 760 they just went in and cleaned a few things up. The fit should still be great, the ride enhanced with a bit more cush under foot and a little more flexible up front.

They also will have the new 1064 and 905. Both pretty nice updates but nothing that made me say wow. Of course they also will have the 1906 at $200.00, that made me say wow since no one really needs a $200 shoe.

That's it for now. Saucony will be in next week showing me what they've got new. Let's hope nothing to drastic.

Course Recon

Nice early autumn trail run this morning. Cool, crisp, 48 degree fresh air, a few friends and our dogs out covering 10 or so miles. Of course it is the end of May so it should have been much warmer, effing global warming.

The mission today was to make sure that what I thought in my head would be a cool course for the third stage of the DC Stage Race was in fact a good course.

All I gotta say is train on hills this summer. Lots of hills. The course was just as I thought. Hilly early, moderate in the middle and then more hills near the end. I think it flows great and will be an awesome test for everyone that enters.

My hope come November is that a runner who is a few minutes down on the GC goes for it from the gun on the third stage and forcing the leaders to make a decision, go with them early or hope they die and come back. This is going to be fun.

If you like trails and want to try a challenge this fall like no other out there, save the dates of November 14th and 15th for the Fleet Feet Sports Dirt Cheap Stage Race.

The Stick

Such a simple device but man I love this thing.

I actually remember when it first came out and a bunch of Kenyan runners came to the US and lived on the inventors floor and raced all over as Team Stick. Low budget but it got the product some good exposure.

The Stick is made of plastic and you use it to massage your legs, back, neck, or other sore spots. It has some flex and man you can get in deep if you choose to.

Since I have messed up calves with tons of knots I've taken to using the 17" Stick before every run. I work the device over the muscles and get the knots to loosen up and to get blood flowing. What a difference it makes.

Post run I like to use it again to help with recovery and work out any tender spots. I'll work the calves, thighs, hamstrings and around the front of my shins.

Here's some more info direct from The Stick

General Tips for Use

Keep muscles relaxed during rollout
Use on skin or through light clothing.
The Stick is waterproof and designed to bend without fear of breaking.
It is not necessary to hurt the muscle in order to help the muscle.
Most effective when used before, during and after periods of activity.
For pin-point rollout, slide hands onto spindles.
Excessive use may cause muscle soreness.

General Instructions

A typical warm-up for healthy muscle tissue is about 20 progressively deeper passes over each muscle group (about 30 seconds per area).
Discomfort or pain is experienced when the spindles locate a bump or tender knot in the muscle - this is known as a trigger point.
Muscles containing trigger points are often weak, stiff and sore. They are frequently tight, easily tire and often hurt.
Muscles containing chronic trigger points need 20 additional passes over the involved area, and may require attention several times daily.

So if you want to improve performance and have a nice mini massage at your instant disposal check out The Stick, You won't be dissapointed

1, 2, 3

That would be the race the team just did. The Highland Forest 1, 2, 3 in Syracuse. 7 of us from the Salomon - Fleet Feet Sports Endurance Team headed east last weekend and took on a tough course.

1 did the 10 mile, 5 of us did the 20 mile and Kim did the 30 miler as prep for her upcoming 100 mile race. I'm not in shape to go so far but figured it would be a good day. This is a very low key event in one of my favorite parks in upstate NY. We actually produced an off road duathlon there a bunch of years back. Lots of nice trails and lots of hills.

I took the first loop fairly easy but at times ran a little faster then I should have. I knew that would bite me in the ass at some point. I also knew I'd run out of steam sooner or later but I needed the long day to test my hydration and nutrition which is a weak spot of mine.

Half way through lap one Mark M caught up with me and we started running together along with a few other runners. It was nice to be able to talk a bit and try and ignore the hills. And since Mark is one of my Lab Rats I like to see how he responds to things out on the course. I'll pick up the pace for a bit and see what he does, 9 out of 10 times he'll go too fast and pay for it later. I still like making others break.

We headed out for lap two and I knew it was gonna hurt. A little before half way into lap two Mark started to suffer and I was trying to run with a few other runners. I made it to 16 miles before my legs said no more up hills and my ankle said no more down hills. Oh well I'll have to go easy/death march from here. I was just hoping Mark (or Laura for that matter) didn't catch me.

Moral of the story.
1. If you go long train for it and it will be much easier
2. If you don't train be ready to suffer.
3. If you try and keep up with someone early be ready to sac up later when it really hurts

Overall the team did great. Second overall in the 10 mile, all of us feeling fairly good in the 20 mile and Kim doing great in the 30 mile while taking 5 minutes off her time from last year.

Not a bad way to spend a few hours with friends.

The things in my head

We are launching another new event and it is gonna be crazy. Be there in year one and you'll be telling your grand kids about it in the future.

Fleet Feet Sports Dirt Cheap Stage Race presented by Salomon

When: November 14th and 15th
Where: Mendon Ponds Park
What: A trail running stage race

Stage # 1 - Add-en-on TT
11/14/2009
9:00 am
3 mile time trial. 1 runner at a time against the clock. Tough hilly course

Stage # 2 - Devils Bathtub
11/14/2009
1:00 pm
5 - 6 mile trail run. Should be similar to Dirt Cheap # 1 with some modification

Stage # 3 - The Queens Stage
11/15/2009
9:00 am
10 - 12 mile trail run. New course taking in a lot of the park

Winner is the person with the fastest combined time for all three stages. Go for a stage win or for the General Classification (that's bike talk for the overall)

The leader after each stage will be be presented with a GC leaders jersey to be worn during the next stage. Yellow for the men in honor of Le Tour de France and pink for the ladies in honor of the Giro d' Italia.

Race Head Quarters will be Stewart Lodge but races 1 and 2 will start and finish in different locations. Hang out at the lodge between stages and enjoy some light food, drink and relax for the next stage. Awards after each stage at Stewart lodge.

Stage three will start and finish at Stewart lodge and GC awards will be done after the race at the lodge.

Being a Fleet Feet Sports Cheap Adventure means that entry fee's will be great$12.00 for any one stage or $25.00 for all three. Food each day, Chip timing for all three and shirts for those that FINISH the stage race. There will be plenty of other cool stuff as well.

We will have courses finalized shortly and entry forms will be up within the next month at www.yellowjacketracing.com and online at active.com

This event has been in my head for 3 years or so. I finally found the layout and time of year that should work well. The courses will each be unique and challenging. The park has the amenities we need and the event can act as an end of the season trail party during the best time of year to run trails.

Wonder what else is bouncing around in my head.

This is gonna be fun!

When Life gets in the way

It's been a bit since I wrote any product reviews or articles but I plan to change that. The reason for the lapse has been that little thing called daily life.

Our busy race season has kicked off and we are working on events every weekend. The trucks and trailer and have been traveling around producing races and helping others make their events better. We'll be working on over 100 races this year, crazy growth again this year, should be interesting. We've added timers and support crews to try and keep things going smooth.

The store has been very busy. Even with the not so great economy and less then warm spring we've been pleased with the growth we've experienced. Plans are in the works for a bunch of new programs and events so stay tuned.

Corporate Challenge is coming up next week and that is always a busy time for us. Ellen is the volunteer coordinator, I work on the finish line crew and we provide shirts for 20 different companies. I swear I spend all day for a week straight doing nothing but CC shirts. Crazy but the teams get some great technical shirts at a really fair price

Lab Rats v1.5 is kicking off, late but starting. I'm working with 4 runners and hope to keep them improving and reaching their goals. I've got some seriously nasty workouts planned for them. It's actually tougher having the smaller group as each one will get a custom program.

Ellen and I managed to sneak away for three days to Florida to visit most of her family. I was not ready for 95 degree heat that's for sure. Also got to have dinner with Erik and Stacey, the owners of Fleet Feet Sports Orlando, which is always fun.

I got to watch a few high school track meets since we sponsor three local invitationals. We had a booth at each and got to talk with a lot of kids. Saw a few good races as well.

I've even been running a bit since I decided to register for a 50k in Tahoe in July. Not my smartest move but I've done dumber things. A few friends and teammates had already registered so I decided to jump into it. Unfortunately the race was sold out but lucky for me Fleet Feet Sports Carson City is a sponsor and pulled a few strings. It's good to know people. In the very least it will be nice to get away with Ellen for a few days out west.

So there you have it. My big excuse on why I haven't been writing. Two companies that are growing fast, tons of events, a little bit of travel, and a few days a week of running. I think I'm getting things under control so you'll be seeing a lot more reviews and stories. I've got new shoes to write about, a new event that we are starting, more fun runs and training programs fro mthe store and more adventures with the Salomon Fleet Feet Sports Endurance Team.

I'll see you out there

My new team

Back in January I was having an email converstaion with the marketing guys at Salomon. They wanted to work with us on our Dirt Cheap Trail Series again and I pitched them an even bigger plan. They would get the Dirt Cheap Series along with our two other trail events and would also be the title sponsor of a new Trail racing team that I wanted to put together.

For the last few years I've wanted to build a race team that was about running off road. Of course I needed the right partners in this project and had to build it with the right mix of people. Once Salomon came on board I went about building the team. My goal was to be able to offer up support to the team members while promoting the "trail lifestyle"

To me the Trail and outdoor lifestyle is something we should all strive to have. It isn't just about racing and going fast. It is about being outdoors, enjoying nature and having fun with friends. There is nothing I enjoy more then heading out into the woods and exploring. I don't need to know how far I may go or how hard it may be, I just like to be out there exploring. It really is what I did as a kid all the time.

So now all I had to do was find 11 other people that thought the same way I do. Lucky for me most of my friends have the same idea of fun. I knew K-Robb would be up for it along with his wife Anne. I sent an early recruitment note to two friends hoping that they would be interested, their response was "hell yeh"

So I had 4 plus me. K-Robb and I came up with a short list of potential members and I sent out letters offering support. We filled out 11 spots and I had one to fill. I decided to offer it up to the general public. I posted a note with my concept and waited for the emails to come in. I worked through the dozens of resumes and chose the 12th member.

After reading how so many others wanted to be part of it I decided to add 5 more members that we'll finance on our own and we now have a team of 17. Pretty cool.

My goal with this project is to promote my vision of the outdoor lifestyle. I want to get more people outside running and having fun. I want them to head to the woods and explore a little. Now I have 16 other people helping me spread this vision.

Rochester is going to be known as a trail town. The team will be out running the trails, racing the trails, and getting others out there with us. We'll be hosting races, developing new ones. We'll be hosting trail maintainence days where we get the running community to help maintain the trails we love to run. We'll be offering up guidence and support to new trail runners. This is going to be fun.

Salomon - Fleet Feet Sports Endurance Team

Boots - Director Sportif, Completed Course de Templier in France

K-Robb Ganey - Team Captain, also completed Templier

Anne Esposito - Completed Templier

Alan Powers - 50k completed this year and at least 2 more booked for the year

Laura Church - Multiple Trail Marathons and doesn't want to go much longer (Lab Rat)

Mark Monachino - Learning to go long on dirt (Lab Rat)

Dennis Stearns - Will go longer then he should at times, Ultra vet

Jim Roche - Vows to stay shorter then 15 miles but I bet will be going long soon enough

Chet Jozefski - Will do just about anything. Has completed many ultras

Andrew Baxter - The kid of the team. Has done a marathon on snowshoes (FF Employee)

Kim Rapp - Ultra vet that loves 100 milers (FF Employee)

Krista Englert - New to the game but very much up for the challenge

Dave Sek - The non kid of the team (aka the old dude), Ultra Vet many times over

Karen Kryder - Just completed her first ultra and is signed up for the next one already

Jim McLaughlin - Ironman Triathlete and outdoor enthusiast

Beth Deciantis - Olympic Trials Marathon Qualifier, learning to love the trails

Holly Kuzmiak - Giving the dirt a try after winning Snow Cheap Series

And I can't forget the canine team

Sazerac (Church-Powers) - Our guide out on the trails that finds some great routes for us

Bart (just Bart, kinda like Sting or Madonna) - My over ambitious Aussie that will run all day

Charley (Esposito-Ganey) - The best behaved blonde on four legs

Brandi (Roche) - Learning as she goes. Has been rescued once already on the trails

So if you see any of the red armada (Salomon has hooked us up with some great gear) out on the trails say hello and join them for an adventure

Lab Rat v1.0 Project complete

A little over 3 months ago I put a call out for runners that might want to join me in some fun. I had decided to get back into doing some coaching just for fun and to see what kind of results I could get out of some people using my "method" of training.

Those that signed on had no clue as to what I would have them do or how hard it may be. Eight runners signed up and paid their fee (12 cans of Red Bull) and started training. We started in the dead of winter and now will finish up as spring is upon us.

Those that stuck with it and did the training like I laid it out saw some great improvements. Times came down and PR's were set. Some PR's were crushed by crazy amounts. Like 6 minutes over 5 miles crazy. Man that was fun to see.

Honestly I knew that they would all end up running faster but I really had hoped they just might learn a few more things along the way. I spent time trying to go over how to race smarter. I wanted them to learn a thing or two about themselves in the process. I think I succeeded on both counts there and that is one reason v1.0 has come to a close.

I was out running yesterday and two of my Rats were with me. One of them had set a 5k pr the day before and she was talking about the race to the other Rat. As I listened I loved that she was discussing the tactics she used to race smart and not just talking about running fast. Lesson learned there.

In regards to them learning about themselves I'll let the words of one of my Rats say it. This is an email he sent me after a great race. His subject was "becoming enlightened"

You know, it's funny when we started this Lab Rat thing.
I knew that I would probably get in way better condition than I was in, and I figured that I'd be logging a lot more miles.
Was hoping to get faster, but wasn't counting on it.
I thought that I would learn some things and consider some things about running that I hadn't previously.
Figured I'd be pushed way beyond my comfort level, which I like.
And all of those things have happened. Man have they.
The part I didn't understand and couldn't figure what would happen was in the mental part of the training.
Didn't know what you meant, or how I could get tougher in the head, partly because I've always considered myself to be extremely mentally tough.
It's sort of what's got me to where I am in business ('cause it sure as hell wasn't talent or good looks!).
But I didn't know what I'd get out of this training.
Sure, I'm running way better, and enjoying the crazy workouts and pushing myself way harder than I ever thought I would.
But I think I'm starting to understanding a big part of the mental game and how it applies to me. Sort of came to me over the weekend while I was running.
Over the past few years I've run in a lot of races. All distances, all times of the day and night, sometimes a few on the same day.
But what I've come to realize is that even though I was in races, very rarely if ever did I truly "race" them. Never really pushed myself.
And now I actually believe that I had a fear of racing.
I was never confident and/or knowledgeable in my ability, my endurance, my speed, or my being able to actually finish a race.
In short, I was afraid to try hard and to push because of the fear of failure.
That's really started to change for me.
Now, I'm really getting to understand myself and what I can do.
I'm beginning to really feel free to test my limits, and am enjoying doing it.
Beginning to understand what I can do and how long I can do it, beginning to have the confidence to push myself like I thought I never could.
I find that I really don't care about failing (or puking, or getting passed by poodles), it's all about knowing myself.
And damn that's really, really cool for an old fart like me who thought everything like this was way in the past.
Sure I've had great improvement in my race times (with a lot more to come) and all of that, but it's the knowing and understanding of myself that has really been enlightening.
And that understanding feels really good, especially after such a hard week like last week, and will hopefully allow me to progress even more.
This has been an awesome winter of training and running that I could have never done on my own.
Man I really appreciate being part of this.

So that concludes the Lab Rat Project v1.0. I hope they all enjoyed it. I know they should be proud of how hard they worked. I hope they all realize that they can accomplish so much more. I've simply taught them a few things that they can now take and apply to their running and their everyday life.

Now to figure out what v1.5 will be and who the next victims are.

What a Month

So it has been almost the entire month since I've written anything. That's the kind of month it has been.

We are getting ready for the busy part of our events season to begin. It will slow down again in December so we have been trying to get as many things done and organized in advance. We will be producing or providing services for 100 races this year. We have had to turn down nearly a dozen events this year that wanted to work with us. Sucks for us but we can only be in so many places at once.

The store has been crazy busy. Track and Field is starting and we have nearly 200 people in our No Boundaries Learn to Run program. It is cool that so many people want to get out there and get fit. We've run this program since we opened the store almost 5 years ago as we've always believed that it is our job to get more people out there running and walking. It is the least we can do when we make our living in this industry.

Even with how busy we've been I've actually begun to find time to run a bit more. Still not as much as I need to but I'm getting out there. I'm still testing a lot of shoes and I'm sure there will be more on the way to test.

I'll be making a few more post in the very near future about some of the other things that are going on like the Lab Rat program, product test results, the new Salomon - Fleet Feet Sports Endurance Team and a 50k ultra that I was dumb enough to sign up for.

Gotta keep busy, right?

A new chance to play

Beach Cheap Aquathlon Series

That's right Fleet Feet Sports Cheap Adventures is going multisport

3 races in 3 months

Place: Durand Eastman Beach
Time: 6:30 pm
Fourth Thursday of each month

6/25 1k swim, 5k run
7/23 2.5k run, 1k swim, 2.5k run
8/27 1k swim, 5k run

Swims will take place in Lake Ontario and the runs will be half beach run, half bike path.

Post race will include plenty of food and drink.

Whats better then a nice workout followed by a party at the beach at sunset?

Better hit the pool.

Registration information will be up very soon at www.yellowjacketracing.com

This should be interesting

The Lab Rats are alive

So late last year I announced the creation of the Fleet Feet Lab Rats Program. This is a small group of runners that I am personally coaching in exchange for a stash of Red Bull.

My plan was to work them hard and to make them stronger runners. They had no idea what I was going to do or if it would work but so far they are all still alive and training hard.

I'm real excited that so far it appears they are all taking to the training real well. Some are running faster then they ever have and others are getting there. Every two weeks I have been sending them their workouts and they have been diving right in and doing them. In the very least I am sure they are all getting mentally stronger.

While they are doing some pretty hard workouts I think the reason most of them are getting stronger is that I am actually making them take easy days out there. I find that too many runners are always running too fast. This makes their easy days too hard and then their hard days are not hard enough. Essentially all their runs are the same. With the Lab Rats when they have to run easy they run easy, and when they have to run hard they can run real hard.

Pretty simple really, you might want to try it.

Here's a little sample of a Lab Rat week.

2/16
OFF
Or 40 minutes easy (70/75% of Max Heart rate) nice easy run after Sundays long run

2/17
FF Hills w/ a new twist
Run to the hills, Do the complete “Y” as normal (up at 85% down easy. For the next one go at 80% up the hill and then continue all the way around the res. at 80% then down the other hill and then up to the top at 85%. Now jog down nice and slow and do another normal “Y”. Then do the complete around the res loop like before. Run back to the store nice and easy. Kinda confusing so if you need clarification let me know This ended up being really pretty hard

Or 10:00 up, 10 x 2:00 at 85% w/ 1:00 recovery between each, then 5 x 1:00 at 90%, 10:00 down fairly tough option but not as bad as above

2/18
10:00 up, Snow Cheap plus after finishing 6 x 1:15 at 85 – 90 % ON THE GRASS, 10 down
Or 10:00 up, 20:00 at 85%, 2:00 @ 90%, 2:00 easy, 5:00 @ 85%, 2:00 @ 90%, 2:00 easy, 2:00 @ 90%, 10:00 down Snow Cheap was about 2.5 miles long on tough trails and then the 6x made for a fun but hard night. The second option workout was tougher. Back to back hard days is never easy either way

2/19
OFF
Or 50 minutes easy (70-75% of Max HR) Recovery

2/20
45 – 60 minutes easy (70-75% of Max HR) Recovery

2/21
Meet me at FF for an 8 am surprise run. Bring you’re A game. Don’t be late They have no idea what they are in for on this one
OR 10:00 up, 10:00 @ 80%, 10:00 @ 85%, 5:00 @ 90%ish. 5:00 rest, 10:00 @ 85%, 5:00 @ 90%ish, 2:00 @ all out, 10:00 down This option is pretty nasty but we'll see which option ends up tougher

2/22
90 – 120 minute easy long run (70/75% of max) Nice easy long run

So there you go, a sample of a tough week. Run real hard, run real easy, take some days off if needed. Not rocket science but too many runners appear to mess it up.

Good luck

Testing Update

So I've been logging the miles (not that many) and trying the different shoes I wrote about earlier. First impressions are pretty good which is a good thing.

Puma Vectana - This is the Puma stability shoe that will be coming out this summer. It has a totally new last and fit which should be a very good thing. I've only got a couple of runs on them but they have a real nice ride. Stability is right where it should be, cushioning is more then enough and the fit is what they said it will be, wider then their old fit. I actually got a small hot spot on my first met head on my foot and that is a good thing for this test as I have a real narrow foot so these should be too wide for my foot and they are. This will be a shoe to watch once it comes out.

Pearl Izumi Pace 3 - Just arrived in store and I've got a few good runs on my pair that I got early. They updated the forefoot and it feels great. They needed to increase the amount of cushioning up front so the shoe doesn't "bottom out" so fast. They nailed it on this one, great fit and now a really great ride. Now I just hope they don't run into inventory issues like they did last year. The downside to this update is the $20 price increase. I think PI got hit harder then most by the economy and the rising cost of sourcing products. If you liked the old Pace you'll love these.

Nike Equalon 3 - Update of their high end stability shoe. Very nice ride and plenty of stability. Great Nike fit and with the increased cushioning it feels nice and soft. I think this version is finally worth the cost as the previous ones just didn't quite do it for me.

New Balance 769 - built on their new PL- 1 last which is great for my foot. Much narrower, less volume and a great heel and mid foot. I took these for a nice 8 miler the other day and they have a very nice ride. Smooth transition from heel to toe off with plenty of stability and cushioning.

I have not had a chance to test the Ecco's just yet as I don't think my calves can handle the low to the ground midsole and very minimal heel to forefoot drop.

The adidas adiStar Salvation will be getting a few miles very shortly and Vibram has sent me a pair of their 5 fingers to test out as well. I better up the mileage if I want to get all the testing done. Luckily I have at least 3 other guys here at the shop that also wear size 10.5 so I think I'll start passing the shoes around for testing.

I guess I better keep training so I can keep testing. Tough job but someone has to do it :)

It's test time

If I was still in school I'd be nervous right about now. Actually I wouldn't be as I never really worried too much about how I did. Of course the testing I have coming up should be fun.

Last month I started testing a shoe from a new brand called End. Very nice shoe and I'll keep logging some miles on it. It is a little wide for my foot but man is it light. I wore it for a 10k race the other week and also for some snowshoeing and it feels really nice. Much better then when I wore it in Houston last month which tells me that it was me not the shoes.

I also got my hands on some new Nike and Pearl Izumi shoes to test out. The Nikes should perform well as I think they've really got it right this time on this model. The Pearls will rock. The Pace has been our best seller from them and this imnproved version fixes many issues that I had with them.

This week, adidas, Mizuno, Ecco and Puma sent me pairs to test. When it rains it pours I guess.

The Nike, Pearls and Mizunos are models that we have in stock or are arriving very shortly. The adidas is a model that they really want me to stock. These are all updates of proven shoes so I won't need to spend too much time in them but it will be good to log a few miles in some new models.

The Ecco is really interesting but as I've mentioned before these things are not cheap. The model I'll be testing will retail for around $180 and they have another model at $220. They have a very cool new concept on how to build a shoe but that price is scary. I'll see if they are really worth it. In the very least they look super cool, as long as you like funky Euro styling.

The model I am most eager to test is the new Puma Vectana that will be coming out this summer. Not many people think of Puma as a running brand but they make some really nice shoes that work very well. What excites me about this new one is that it will work for way more people then their old models.

Puma has worked well for very narrow feet that need a low to the ground feel. The new stuff will be much more traditional. Wider forefoot, more midsole height and what at first try on is a great fit and feel. I plan to get some miles on this one asap and if it works like I think it will this will be a shoe to watch in the near future.

The good thing is that I need to get running so I can get in shape for an upcoming trail race and knowing that I have all these models to test out will force me to get out the door.

If you see me out there feel free to ask me about the shoes on my feet as they will be in test mode. If by chance you wear a 10.5 mens stabilty I just might let you take them for a spin.

compression sleeves

After running an ultra in France back in the fall of 2007 I started searching out brands of compression socks and sleeves. You see about 30% of the field at Cours de Templier were wearing Booster Compression socks. So I first searched for Booster but they don't sell them in the US and they are crazy expensive.

I had heard of Zensah and they quickly sent me out a pair to test. I've been wearing that pair for a year both while running and while sleeping after hard efforts. Needless to say I like them.

So why compression sleeves. Well first of all I've had calf issues for a few years. While running in them the compression helps to reduce vibration and to help with blood flow. Both of those things have been very good for my legs.

The other reason is that I haven't been training all that much but when I do I most likely will do too much (like yesterday when I ran a half marathon on snowshoes) In these cases I will leave the sleeves on after finishing and then wear them all night while I sleep. I've found this to drastically reduce soreness the next day.

Why Zensah calf sleeves. Well I like how they work. I've tested both sleeves and socks from many brands and chose to stock these cause they just plain work. Other brands lacked compression. Some were way over priced. Compression socks can be nice but I like having the option of wearing my own socks (Balega or Darn Tough)

So after testing a half dozen brands and styles I found that the Zensah calf sleeves performed best and were at a reasonable price.

If you have calf issues or would like to speed up your recovery I'd highly suggest giving them a try. In the very least you'll gain Euro trail runner style points.

Now go outside and play

A week of learning

As I last posted I just spent a few days at a conference in Irving, TX. One of the days was spent attending a trade show from the industry and the rest was spent in lectures and meetings. Not always exciting but you do learn a lot.

Here are a few highlights in no real order

• Met the CEO of New Balance. It isn't every day that you get to meet a guy that runs a billion dollar company.
• I think the changes Pearl Izumi has made to there shoes will be very good. I spent a little time talking with their run team (Chuck, Geoff, Bob) and we are all on the same page for once.
• Ecco has made a really cool niche shoe (pictured above), that I will be testing shortly. The down side is I don't think it is the best time for a brand to launch a $200+ shoe.
• Spent some time talking with JD Denton from Fleet Feet Davis. Many runners know JD as the Shoe Guy from Running Times magazine. I learn something everytime I talk with him and I'm glad I can call him anytime I need to.
• I was curious why Zoot hadn't sent their top team leaders as they usually do. Then it was anounced on Thursday that Zoot was sold to K2, so that makes sense. It will be nice for them to have some good money behind them.
• Testing a new brand on a tired foot on a concrete path is rough on the feet. Standing all day at a trade show is worse.
• I also tested the new Saucony Guide. Very nice ride but it may be the narrowest Saucony since the Procyon. That may be an issue for some long time Saucony wearers.
• Spent some good time talking with VP's and line managers from many companies. It is always good to be able to talk higher up the food chain then the ocal rep. We are lucky that we have gotten to know many of the people that have a lot of influence inthe industry.
• Saucony has made one hell of a winter/mud trail shoe for next fall. Based on a great current shoe but with an added waterproof gaiter. This thing will rock.
• adidas is really trying to become a relevant running company again. I think it is always important that the big players take our channel seriously.
• We had a fashion show on Monday that was a lot of fun. Some companies know how to do it right.
• Sat in on a talk from the head of buying for Nike Stores. She had some very smart ways to do buying that they have just developed and we will be using for fall '09.
• Go to Texas in the winter and you would think it would be warm. Wrong, sub 30 in the am for the runs.

I'm sure I learned more but that's it for now.

Conference update

I'm down in Dallas (Irving to be accurate) getting ready for a few days of meetings. I'll try to post a bit as I'll have a few meetings with different industry types (Nike, Saucony, Brooks, etc) and I'll be spending the week testing a new shoe from a new brand.

Last night was a nice group dinner compliments of adidas. Carrie Tollefson, the 2004 Olympic Trials 1500 champion, joined us and gave a little talk. After dinner a 2008 Olympian stopped by but I forgot his name.

It was great to catch up with some old friends. Most interesting was talking with Shawn and Kim Fenty about the upcoming Inaugaration. They own the Wash. DC Fleet Feet Sports and Shawn's brother is the Mayor of the city. They plan to close the shop for the day as they are just a few miles from the White House and spend it at home watching on TV.

I'll update later after my first run in the new shoes.

Live FIT.