Wharf to Wharf 2019 results

The official 47th anniversary Wharf to Wharf poster, titled “Wharf To Wharf: A Wild Ride”, by artist Russell Brutsche with concept design by Robin Lerios

Here’s a quick and dirty preliminary report of how I did yesterday running the Wharf to Wharf 2019 in Santa Cruz where I still am.  I composed this using my iPhone which is hard for me to do.  Later this week, I’ll post an expanded version with additional comments.

Wharf to Wharf 2019 - 6.0 miles in 53:34 official results. According to my Garmin Forerunner 35, I ran 6.07 miles in 53:37. There was lots of first mile traffic so I did a bunch of zig zagging to pass other runners and this apparently added 0.07 mile to the distance.

Here is a snapshot of my official results from the Wharf to Wharf 2019 website:

And here is a mile by mile pace report courtesy of my Garmin Forerunner 35:

More in a couple days but for now, these are my Wharf to Wharf 2019 results.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Santa Cruz bound

Today Pierini Fitness is in Santa Cruz where he’ll be until Monday, the day after this Sunday’s Wharf to Wharf 2019 fun run. 

Since his last training report, Pierini Fitness has continued training hard and is now officially, in the tapering time zone. 

The hard work has been done, he feels well-prepared and does expect to meet his goal of completing the six miles at an average 9-minute mile pace.

Next Monday, he’ll give his sports fans an official report of how he did with all the statistical detail he enjoys but that may bore you to death. 

Manage the middle-aged man fort while Pierini Fitness is away Santa Cruz bound.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Last long training run for Wharf to Wharf 2019

Last Friday I was in Santa Cruz on business and had an opportunity to take in a long afternoon run.  It likely was the last long training run before my upcoming 6-miler fun run this Sunday, the Wharf to Wharf 2019.

While the rest of the country was sizzling and sweating with an unpleasant combination of record-high temperatures and high humidity, Pierini Fitness was enjoying a meandering 8-mile steady-state run from the west side of Santa Cruz to beach-view running path along West Cliff Drive.  The run was a loop of four miles out and four miles back with a mid-afternoon temperature of 64F degrees.

For the middle-aged man data geeks, my 8-mile run took 1:24:12 to complete which is a 10:31 mile pace. 

According to my Garmin Forerunner 35, my average heart rate during this run was 139 beats per minute or approximately 77 percent of my maximum heart rate.  My highest heart rate during this run was 149 beats per minute or 83 percent of my maximum heart rate.  I burned 1,073 calories during this 84-minute run and worked up a big sweat and giant appetite. 

What a difference a 25F degree cooler temperature, an ocean breeze and pleasant scenery makes on my workout heart rate.

Here’s what my mile split times were:

Afterwards, I drank lots of water and ate big but, apparently, not enough because the following day, I woke up hungry as a bear.  So, it was necessary that I front-load my daily food fueling with about a 1,500 calories early lunch.  This tamed my hunger beast by early Saturday afternoon, and it has been quiet since then.  I took the rest of the weekend off so today is the beginning of one of three remaining running workouts as I taper and tweak my conditioning for hopefully what will be a fun run and a decent time.  My goal is to complete the 6-mile course in 54 minutes or a 9-minute mile pace.

And this, Pierini Fitness sports fans is your Monday morning middle-aged man executive briefing of my last long training run getting ready for Wharf to Wharf 2019.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Always welcome are the great works of St. Augustine

Pierini Fitness fired Facebook over five years ago and shared the news with his sports fans here:  I fired Facebook.

Now Facebook has been doing lots of firing and its latest victim is a peace-loving quote by St. Augustine of Hippo, a 5^th century Catholic theologian, philosopher who’s also titled Doctor of the Church.

Apparently, the powers to be at Facebook have proclaimed that a quote of St. Augustine is “hate speech” and doesn’t belong on the Facebook website.  This “hate speech” quote is as follows:

“Let us never assume that if we live good lives we will be without sin; our lives should be praised only when we continue to beg for pardon. But men are hopeless creatures, and the less they concentrate on their own sins, the more interested they become in the sins of others. They seek to criticize, not to correct. Unable to excuse themselves, they are ready to accuse others.”

What a great message; it’s hard to see the “hate” in it.  It’s the dear Saint’s own version of the biblical verse – Matthew 7:3 – “"Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?”

Think about it for a moment and then ask yourself, as Pierini Fitness has asked himself, how often do we point the finger at someone else while failing to realize when doing so there are more fingers pointing back at us?

In the politically-polarized world in which we now live, dominated by a vast and boundless social media cyberspace, it’s easier than ever to shout out the most snarky malarkey possible, anonymously and safely in the comfort of our padlocked and secure homes and receive kudos from others who are doing the same.

What is the same?

That which St. Augustine writes about that Facebook has labeled hate speech: “But men are hopeless creatures, and the less they concentrate on their own sins, the more interested they become in the sins of others.”

Pierini Fitness has written about St. Augustine and his great works a time or two and finds the dear Saint’s teachings and writings align with his middle-aged man reflections about living and dying, gracefully-aging and trying to live a good and honest life.

Therefore, here at Pierini Fitness, always welcome are the great works of St.  Augustine.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum