We're hitting the home stretch of our EMT class. We were actually supposed to finish this past Monday. However, the weather really messed up our schedule. In order to meet the minimum number of ours, we're meeting a few more times next week. The big damper from this hiccup is that it will be several more weeks before I am able to take the State Exam to become a certified EMT-Basic. For me, that's not too problematic; while I'm eager to volunteer or work part-time, I'm not actively pursuing any leads. However, several other students in our class are applying to jobs in Durham, and those prospects could be in jeopardy if they aren't able to become certified in time. For myself, I'll do my best to get into the earliest test date that I can get, barring any work conflicts.
Unlike most of the other students, I will probably try to take the National Registry Exam. As you probably assume, it's the national certification that is used/accepted in essentially every state (minus North Carolina and three others). Why take the national exam? There aren't many practical reasons: I would feel 99% sure that I'll be staying in NC, and so the national certification isn't necessary. But I think it is easy additional skill set. If there is a slight chance I leave NC, I already have the widely accepted certification. And I think on any resume, a national-level certification could potentially out-shine a state certification. The continuing education requirements are higher (same number of hours, but in only 2 years vs 4), which encourages me to maintain a higher level of professional development.
I am also almost down to one month until the Umstead 100. I'm feeling good about my training. Shamefully, I have abandoned most of my speed sessions. I never liked speed work to begin with. And as I've said before, since Mountain Masochist, I've been consistently several seconds per mile faster. I think further trying to "drop the hammer" could be more harmful than good. Seriously, I've had to do more to force myself to SLOW DOWN every so often, rather than speed up.
Just of few more weeks of serious training. Well, I mean, this is one weekend long run, a recovery week, and then a last build/ON week. Then I start to taper. I may modify my taper a bit at the two week-out point. In the past I've had a 4 hour Sat/3 hour Sun. Except last year at Umstead when I was extremely sick and didn't run AT ALL. I don't think that was ideal, but I don't think it hurt. And given how solid my training has been thus far, it might be worth it lower the training volume even more to be particularly well-rested.
I want to try to find some way to include cool articles or blogs I find. I discontinued my Tumblr account, but I think it could be usual for this (the old, but unused list should still be on the right side of this blog.).
Soundtrack:
"Girls of Summer" - The Ataris (cover)
"All of the Memories" - The Classic Crime
Friday, February 28, 2014
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Snow Ice Ride Along
***2/14 UPDATE***
The roads are a bit worse this morning. Yesterday it was wet and slushy. This morning there was that paper thin ice where I busted my ass twice. I had to run on the pot-marked sidewalks which is worse than running through sand.
*** ***
A not-too-bad few days.
My weekend long run was 35 miles. It felt pretty good, without really any issues. I was testing out some new hydration systems. Normally I just wear my Nathan vest; this holds a relatively large bladder, and pockets on the front where I store most of my gels and bars. This weekend I ran with a minimalist vest and a handheld water bottle. Overall, there wasn't anything fantastic or horrible about the change. However, I think it's a good idea to try out new systems or equipment. If something just does NOT flow, then you'll know not to use it. Or if it works out, then if something goes wrong with your go-to-gear then you're confident and familiar with your back ups.
Sunday was a fun day. I did a ride along with the Cary Area EMS. It was a 0700-1900 shift with a truck off of High House. When we got a call right at 0730, I got excited that it was going to be an eventful day. Unfortunately, like my last ride along three or four years ago, we only ended up with two calls all day. Nevertheless, after going through most of my EMT class, I felt better prepared to notice how the paramedics worked (patient assessment, secondary assessments, treatment), and ask pertinent questions. I think it will do me good to do more ride alongs as necessary and possible. Since Sunday, I've definitely felt more motivated and committed to excelling in my class and this field. Depending on how things go at work, I'm going to try to work out volunteering with a local unit.
And of course, this week (and right now), we've some CRAZY weather. Tuesday there were some false-alarm flurries. Wake Tech cancelled class; this was frustrating because it causes a huge hassle to reschedule the hours we're required to have. However, midday Wednesday, things really hit the fan. We hustled early and closed up work around noon. I wasn't paying attention, and was awed to see how much it was snowing around 2:00. It just kept on coming, and eventually turned over to sleet/freezing rain. I'll leave it to you to see all the pictures on the internet of the gridlocks.
Personally, stuff like this REALLY makes me wish I was better prepared to be a contributing member to help people. I don't know if I'm just ill-equipped or just too timid to "jump in," but sometimes I really think I could be doing a lot more to be a good citizen.
I GOT that chance this morning! I was out for a run (OK, so Thursdays are off (from running) days. But I just HAD to get out in this stuff!). I came across some guys stuck getting out onto Chapel Hill Road from a side street. Helped them push on out. They were lucky. Over the rest of the run, I saw about 5-6 cars abandoned around the NW Cary area I live.
Still making my way through my next read. This week is also a recovery week. Normally this just means fewer miles. However, I also made a conscious effort to run slower. Ever since MMTR, I've been about 15-20 seconds per mile faster. This is great. But in the past, even after 2-3 months, when I think I'm safe from blowing up, I do blow up and struggle for several weeks. So now, I'm intentionally taking a week to slow down my pace and hopefully keep a full charge.
Soundtrack:
"Currents" by Eisley
"In Shallow Seas" by Emery
The roads are a bit worse this morning. Yesterday it was wet and slushy. This morning there was that paper thin ice where I busted my ass twice. I had to run on the pot-marked sidewalks which is worse than running through sand.
*** ***
A not-too-bad few days.
My weekend long run was 35 miles. It felt pretty good, without really any issues. I was testing out some new hydration systems. Normally I just wear my Nathan vest; this holds a relatively large bladder, and pockets on the front where I store most of my gels and bars. This weekend I ran with a minimalist vest and a handheld water bottle. Overall, there wasn't anything fantastic or horrible about the change. However, I think it's a good idea to try out new systems or equipment. If something just does NOT flow, then you'll know not to use it. Or if it works out, then if something goes wrong with your go-to-gear then you're confident and familiar with your back ups.
Sunday was a fun day. I did a ride along with the Cary Area EMS. It was a 0700-1900 shift with a truck off of High House. When we got a call right at 0730, I got excited that it was going to be an eventful day. Unfortunately, like my last ride along three or four years ago, we only ended up with two calls all day. Nevertheless, after going through most of my EMT class, I felt better prepared to notice how the paramedics worked (patient assessment, secondary assessments, treatment), and ask pertinent questions. I think it will do me good to do more ride alongs as necessary and possible. Since Sunday, I've definitely felt more motivated and committed to excelling in my class and this field. Depending on how things go at work, I'm going to try to work out volunteering with a local unit.
And of course, this week (and right now), we've some CRAZY weather. Tuesday there were some false-alarm flurries. Wake Tech cancelled class; this was frustrating because it causes a huge hassle to reschedule the hours we're required to have. However, midday Wednesday, things really hit the fan. We hustled early and closed up work around noon. I wasn't paying attention, and was awed to see how much it was snowing around 2:00. It just kept on coming, and eventually turned over to sleet/freezing rain. I'll leave it to you to see all the pictures on the internet of the gridlocks.
Personally, stuff like this REALLY makes me wish I was better prepared to be a contributing member to help people. I don't know if I'm just ill-equipped or just too timid to "jump in," but sometimes I really think I could be doing a lot more to be a good citizen.
I GOT that chance this morning! I was out for a run (OK, so Thursdays are off (from running) days. But I just HAD to get out in this stuff!). I came across some guys stuck getting out onto Chapel Hill Road from a side street. Helped them push on out. They were lucky. Over the rest of the run, I saw about 5-6 cars abandoned around the NW Cary area I live.
Still making my way through my next read. This week is also a recovery week. Normally this just means fewer miles. However, I also made a conscious effort to run slower. Ever since MMTR, I've been about 15-20 seconds per mile faster. This is great. But in the past, even after 2-3 months, when I think I'm safe from blowing up, I do blow up and struggle for several weeks. So now, I'm intentionally taking a week to slow down my pace and hopefully keep a full charge.
Soundtrack:
"Currents" by Eisley
"In Shallow Seas" by Emery
Saturday, February 1, 2014
So Others May Live
My next read was a book called So Others May Live by Martha LaGuardia-Kotite and Tom Ridge. The book offers a collection of stories about Coast Guard rescue swimmers (technically known today as Aviation Survival Technicians (ASTs)). So Others May Live is the motto ascribed to them, taken from a quote given by a member of the US Lifesaving Service back before it became part of the Coast Guard. I REALLY enjoyed this book. When I was first looking into joining the Coast Guard, my ultimate goal was helicopter rescue. Obviously that path has diverged quite a bit. But taking an EMT class, looking into fire and rescue stuff, it's clear that I'm still itching to do this. I'm getting near the end of my class, and I'm not sure whether the medical side or the rescue/response is where I want to concentrate, but I AM going down those roads. Ironically, though I'm on the last leg of my Coast Guard IRR commitment, I can't honestly rule out pursuing that again.
Book to come? Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond.
After a few weeks easy, it's back to the grindstone. Another 30 miles today. The trails were still pretty snowy and icy from our frigid weather earlier this week. The day after (Wednesday) was kind of a tough run. I didn't do my hill repeats, but the run was still crazy tough. The rest of the week wasn't so bad, just cold. My hands still get crazy cold, though I've been wearing some hefty-feeling ski gloves.
All the weather put work on hold. For some reason, it's kinda hard to clean pools when it's snowing. I totally understand that, but it isn't that great for the whole making a living thing.
Soundtrack:
"Dark Horse" by Katy Perry - Sorry, but I heard it on the radio before my run, and it was the ONLY song to get stuck in my head the WHOLE 5 HOURS
"Heavy" by Collective Soul
Book to come? Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond.
After a few weeks easy, it's back to the grindstone. Another 30 miles today. The trails were still pretty snowy and icy from our frigid weather earlier this week. The day after (Wednesday) was kind of a tough run. I didn't do my hill repeats, but the run was still crazy tough. The rest of the week wasn't so bad, just cold. My hands still get crazy cold, though I've been wearing some hefty-feeling ski gloves.
All the weather put work on hold. For some reason, it's kinda hard to clean pools when it's snowing. I totally understand that, but it isn't that great for the whole making a living thing.
Soundtrack:
"Dark Horse" by Katy Perry - Sorry, but I heard it on the radio before my run, and it was the ONLY song to get stuck in my head the WHOLE 5 HOURS
"Heavy" by Collective Soul
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