2011 Year In Review

2011 marks the first year I've kept a training log consistently through the whole annum, so--I actually have something to review! It's been a really strong year for me, with several PRs at shorter distances and one win to my credit. Longer distances continued to be problematic, with the Vermont City Marathon being--at least relative to the sky-high expectations I had for it--a bit of a low point.

2011 In Numbers
Races:        11
PRs:            4 (13.1M, 4 Mile, 5K, 10K)
Miles Run:   2110
Shoe Pairs:  4?
Prize Money+Gift Certificates: $125


2011 in Races

Derry 16M. First race of the year. What I remember most vividly is how cold it was when I walked down to my car at 6am that morning--right around 0F. Bonked hard at mile 14 and somehow toughed out the last 2 miles, which is about the only time I've ever beaten the bonk over any distance.

At the time I was thinking "never again", but the memory must have faded because here I am, all signed up with Derry just three weeks away!

Derry Boston Prep            1-23-11        43/657            16M        1:49:30        6:51






Old Fashioned 10M A mediocre effort. Training had been very challenging (my logs including such entries as (*** treacherous w/ snowmelt!) (imagine black diamonds in place of asterisks), and (more snow, sheesh!) --after two consecutive missed days.

Foxboro Old Fashioned 10M        2-20-11        47/521            10M        1:03:22        6:20

Hyannis Half Marathon. Conditions were...interesting. Rain alternating with snow alternating with more rain. Frigid puddles  on the streets. I had almost forgotten this was a PR. It surprised me because I hadn't had good training (quality or volume) over the winter. My old record was pretty soft though (set on the hilly Applefest course). A good day to not be doing a full marathon, as one of my teammates did.

Hyannis Half Marathon                   2-27-11        47/2683                 13.1            1:23:20         6:22    

Blue Hills Foxtrot 10M Man, I love this race. It was a beautiful spring day in the woods, the way it always is that time of year. I led the 1st 3 miles, but then somebody slipped by on the Breakneck Ledge trail descent. Complacently settled in for 2nd. Where's the competitive fire, Woodruff?

Blue Hills Fox Trot 10M            4-10-11        2/139            10M        1:07:27        6:45

Keybank Vermont City Marathon It started off so well (don't they all!). But then the clouds cleared off, the cursed daystar leered down at us, and the temps shot up into the 80s. by mile 18 I was cooked, wobbly-legged and sick. It was a long hike to the finish. I had plenty of time to reflect on how I suck at marathons. I'm pretty sure that lady in the picture kicked my ass.

KBVCM (keybank marathon)        5-29-11        287/2668        26.2        3:29:51        8:00

Highland Sky 40M. My first Ultra! A race I am proud simply to have finished. This run had so many good things going for it--beautiful scenery, views, blooming mountain laurel, falls, and highland meadows; awesome, incredibly helpful volunteers, and a similarly great field (you have a chance to do some chattin' in an ultra marathon). What a great 7 hours. The last 2+ hours...well, that got a little rough. But I'm over it! Looking forward to doing this race again in 2012!

Highland Sky 40M            6-18-11        62/178            41M        9:18:16        really slow

Bridgton 4 on the 4th My traditional 4th of July race. Also my first race as a 30-year-old. Existential shock! Calamity! Wait, no, I'm still here--all good.

Bridgton 4 on the 4th            7-4-11        19/1850            4M        23:24        5:51

Summer Slump. Tired with racing for a bit. Motivation to log heavy miles plummeting. Achilles hurting. Summer slump, err...break! Hiked with friends. Did a two day solo on the Monadnock-Sunapee trail. Still doing routine maintenance runs, but otherwise nothing to report.












Houghton's Pond Trail Race My first race back after Achilles pain made me take 10 solid days off running. That sucked. This was mainly just a reference-point. I lacked the endurance to effectively race at 10K distance, especially over hills.

Houghton's Pond 10K (trail)        10-2-11        9/228            10K        39:18        6:20

Canton Fall Classic 10K  The freak snowstorm that cancelled the Bills Pizzeria 5K also postponed the CFC, so I decided to hop in. At first I was exhilarated about winning it, but on reflection, it's hard to take it seriously. Let's just refer to the Race Highlights, shall we? 

"Woodruff's winning time was the slowest for men in the race's history. The men's field was greatly affected by the reschedule. The new date conflicted with a New England Championship meet where several expected competitors ran for their clubs"

Consider me deflated.

Canton Fall Classic 10K            11-6-11        1/188            10K        36:06        5:48

Norwood Turkey Trot 4M: A great race and PR day for me. Last year I had a dream of breaking up HFC's top 5, and this year I did! A warm day for November--everyone was in shorts and singlets.

Norwood Turkey Trot            11-20-11    9/612            4M        21:56        5:29












GNRCYO 5K: This was the last race of what I think of as my Fall Season. I really wanted to cap it strongly with a PR--and I did! There's really nothing with quite the same short-lived savor as setting a PR. It's sublimely delicious--for about 5 seconds. Then you start thinking, "hmm, maybe I can do 16:30".

GNRCYO 5K                12-3-11        3/144            5K        16:49        5:24