Blisters healed, hamstring better

The hamstring tenderness slowed me considerably in Mobile at First Light. I finished in 6:15, and that was a struggle. But it was a fun time because I saw so many wonderful friends there. The after-race good is always so nice there, too. The only negative is the 8-hour drive home.

The next week at Warner Robins' Museum of Flight, the hamstring was better and I fought to make the 6-hour time limit. Made it in about 5:53, 1st in age group. Later, I found that they don't really enforce the time limit; people were coming in long after I finished. If I had known that in the beginning, I might have slowed a bit just to baby the hamstring.

This past week, I was in Ocala again, for the Ocala Marathon. I met great friends at the expo on Saturday, and we had a good time there. The next day, the hamstring was much better and I managed a 5:37. Good for 2nd in age group. The best part was that my pace was fastest during the last 6 miles. Don't know why, but I felt a surge of energy during those last miles. It felt good. For the second year, the age group awards were beautifully decorated horse statues. One of the nicest age group awards I've ever gotten.

This week is Callaway Gardens, GA. This will be #94, still working toward 100 on April 2. Again, I'm meeting good friends, who will surely make the event more fun.

Savage Seven Report, First Light

I've had blisters on my toes for years. Usually they are minor annoyances, but not painful enough to stop me from running. On day 1 of the Savage Seven, I felt a minor pain under my right heel, and thought I had a pebble in my shoe. After two attempts to remove it, I took off my sock and discovered a small blister. After the run, I stopped at a drugstore and bought blister pads and tape for the next day.

Day 2: After a couple of hours, I realized that the small blister was getting worse. By the end of that day, I not only had a large blister, covering nearly the entire heel, but now I had a severe pain in my left knee from compensating. I decided to rest for a day.

Day 4: Determined to finish at least one more run, I used copious amounts of tape, lubricant, pain reliever, and Advil. Didn't help. I limped the last two hours, in pain but unwilling to stop. After I finally finished, I knew I WAS finished. I realized the blisters and the knee needed more than a day to heal.

I stayed around for my comrades who were continuing, and it was a distinct honor to see five friends complete the seventh day in a row on Saturday, Jan. 1. They are, in age order, youngest to oldest, Johnny Spriggs, Cheryl Murdock, Frank Bartocci, Jim Simpson, and Jean Evansmore.

The week-long experience was so rich that we've decided the event should be repeated. Cheryl agreed to plan the event in Pensacola for 2011, and I agreed to do it in Orlando in 2012. Wish us luck!