Checking in with some Odds and Ends

So Pirate Runners...How is your summer going? Hopefully you're having lots of nice runs.
I've come across a few things I feel worthy of sharing, so here we go.

Rain
First off..I woke to rain again today (as I'm sure you have too recently) and limited time to run. I have to say at first I considered waiting till later in the day to run, but also knew that my chances of running decreased if I didn't do it right then. I went ahead and drug myself out the door and hit the roads for one of my favorite five mile loops. The thing is..once I got going it was actually really nice to run in the rain and I was reminded of a few things worth sharing.

1) the rain always looks worse than it is from inside...once you're out there it usually isn't bad.
2) don't listen to weather forcasters too much..they tend to make things sound worse than they are..just check the radar before heading out and don't go if you see red or know lighteneing may be coming. If all you see a field of green on the radar then get out and enjoy the variety it adds to your run.
3) wear a visor or thin hat with a brim.. it keeps the water out of your face/eyes.
4) dress for the rain ..remember you will warm up - so only wear what you would wear if 20 degrees cooler.. nylon/ synthetic stuff is better to wear than cotton as it won't hold as much water.
5) jump in puddles at some point along the way
6) remember cars may not be able to see you well or expect to see runners so take extra precaution along streets.
7) Post run- get changed and dry quickly if temps are cool. Don't forget to stretch. If it's warm, stretching in a light rain is kind of fun and your neighbors will think your nuts.
8) Also, post run- pull the insoles out of your shoes and stuff them with newspaper so they will be dry by the next days run....DON'T put them in the dryer.
SO next time it's raining (but not thunderstorms) get out and enjoy a the opportunity for a memorable run.

Wednesday Runs
The wednesday runs have been going well. Although, I would expect a team that really wants to make the most of the summer to have better attendance than I have seen thus far. I realize many have family trips and camps planned, but also know that teams that run well together- run together. OOOH.. I guess that may have sounded like a lecture..I meant to say.. I hope to see more of you out this wednesday. By the way....we will run in rain.. but not storms.

Running Drills
At the mini camp and during the season we often do form work by way of a few running form drills. The drills we do most often are listed in your log book. I would recommend finding a grassy field and doing these drills at least once a week to help develop good technique and efficiency. Drills should be done after warming up (or after your run) and also include a few striders. Running times magazine has a web page with a great video demonstrating many of the same drills we do plus a few others. Drills do need to be done correctly to be effective and if you are new to these then maybe wait till the season starts and you have more direction. Regardless it's worth checking out the video. Just click here
A few notes about the video:
- I know it is a "masters" video and has "old people" but they are really fast and you can learn from us old people sometimes.
- pay attention to the drills we normally do : school yard skip, high knee skip, high knees, and butt kicks
- For our purposes, I'd skip the other drills...but be careful if you decide to try them.
- follow the drills up with a few striders or a strider between each drill as they demonstrate in the video.

That does it for now.. Enjoy the summer and your runs and don't forget to record your runs in the log book. I'll be posting some inspirational running videos soon, so so stay tuned.