Turkey Trot

On Thanksgiving, I did the local Turkey Trot 5K race.  It was very crowded, and I started out way in the back, near some dogs and strollers.  It was a beautiful day for a run, and the course is mostly through town but ends on the trail.  The trail section goes down a steep spur to get onto the main trail.  That was the most dangerous part of the race - the spur was leaf-covered, so you couldn't see what roots or rocks may have been underfoot.

But I persevered, and ended up coming in 2nd in my age group.   I had no idea I would have placed  though, so I ended up leaving before the awards.  Found out afterwards by looking at the results on-line.   My friend Ann did the race with me, and she came in before I did.  Afterwards, we came back to my house for some breakfast and coffee.

Mocha J. got lots of petting that morning.  Ann likes to sit on the floor with her and stroke her.  Mocha loves that! 

Today's run on the trail was kind of hard.  I took one walk break up a steep hill near the end.  It was good running weather, and ended up being warmer than I thought it would be.  I could have worn shorts!

Cold Run

Well, it has finally gotten cold here.  Today it was 34 degrees for my run.  My pace is now usually over a 10 minute mile when I run.  My goal for the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving is to do the 5K in under 30 minutes.   I'm looking forward to running with a crowd!

I realized yesterday when I was foam rolling, that I have some very sore and tight areas.  Maybe if I work on loosening and stretching them, my speed will improve a little.  I will give it a try!

Mocha was still in bed when I got home from running.  She was so cozy and warm in her bed - I guess sleep beats  needing to pee and eat for her.  But she did get up eventually, and we took our walk.  Saw Dexter, and Mocha was very good.  She didn't focus on him much, and her attention came right back to me when I asked her to "look".

Dog Park!

On Sunday, Dave took Mocha to the dog park!  Not for her to go in, but to watch, and see dogs playing.  We hoped this would help her understand that dogs can be nice to each other, and can play and have fun together!

Dave and Mocha were there quite a while.  He said they sat near the entrance, watching dogs play.  Mocha even got to meet a few dogs through the fence, nose to nose.  Dave was very happy with Mocha's behavior.  She only started to growl a couple of times, and he was able to give her a verbal correction right away, and get her attention back on him.

In the neighborhood, she saw Cooper recently, and we took a walk with him and his dad.  She also saw Maddie recently.  These are two dogs that she is mostly good with, since she has had quite a bit of exposure to them.

On the running front - yesterday I did an early morning run with Ann.   Felt pretty good, and did not have to take a walk break.   The weather was good for a run - 40 degrees and not windy.  Later in the day the temp climbed to 70!

Weekend

A beautiful, though slightly windy, day.  Went to the trail with Ann.  Had a very difficult run.  I ran out of energy, and took 3 walk breaks after the turnaround.  The 3rd walk break was pretty long.   When Ann was finished, she ran back to meet me, and I ran to the end.  My goal now is to do lower body weights today, and continue to do lower body weights after every other run.  I hope that will give me more stamina, due to strengthening my legs.

Mocha had a busy week.  A couple days ago, we saw Cooper on our walk.  We stopped to chat, and Mocha was very good.  Then on the way back, we saw him again.  He gave her a play bow (giving her another chance to be friends).  Mocha doesn't "get" playing with dogs, though, and she growled and started toward him after the play bow.  I am practicing with her at home to get her used to what a play bow looks like.  Will that translate to when dogs do it?  We will see.

Most days this week, we also went to the trail for a mid-day or afternoon short walk.  She likes the car ride to get there as much as the destination!

Walk on the Trail

I ran yesterday, after having given myself 2 days off since the last run.  After the race in Ocean City, I was not running well on Monday and Wednesday - felt really tired and slow.  So instead of running again on Friday, I waited until yesterday to run again. 

I went to the trail with Ann, and had a pretty good run.  I did take one walk break, but in general, I felt better than I had on my previous 2 runs.

Today, I went to the trail with Ann & Megan, and I walked while they ran.  It is a beautiful day, and I enjoyed the walk.  My chorus music was going through my head the whole time.   I'm going to skip running tomorrow, and get back on track with Ann's schedule for Tuesday.

"Life is a shipwreck, but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats." -Voltaire

Mocha J. did not want to eat her breakfast today!  I don't know why... maybe because there's some tasty cat food on the porch waiting for the stray cat to find it.

She seems to feel okay otherwise - hope she will eat soon.

Cat Trackin'

Exciting day yesterday - there was a stray cat around.  I saw it on our deck, and tried to get it to come to me so I could see if it had tags.  No luck there - it ran away before I could get anywhere near it.  When Dave went to the animal shelter yesterday, he was going to bring home a cat trap, but they had been loaned out already.

Anyway, next time Mocha went out, you could tell she smelled the cat.  She led me all around the house, several times, paying close attention to the space under the deck and around the shed.  She is definitely a good tracking dog - but maybe a little scary for cats!

The second time we went out, I think I saw the cat running towards the house next door.  Mocha didn't see it, but still obviously could smell everywhere it had been.  She led me all around again with her nose to the ground.

On Dave's birthday, she helped him open a card from her...

Hope the cat found its home!

Race Weekend

This weekend was the annual Seaside race in Ocean City.  It was Mocha's first race experience.  We went to Ocean City on Thursday, and Mocha came with us.  We rented a house that was dog-friendly.  As we experienced in her previous trip, Mocha is a good traveler.  She likes rest stops with food:

She got to see the ocean again:

And the race went well!  I won first place in my (new) age group.   My pace was slightly faster than my last neighborhood run.

After the race, we had breakfast at Dough Roller, and then headed home.

Rainy Day - last Wednesday

We haven't had much rain lately, but today - lots of rain!  I managed to get my run in between periods of rain.  It was in the 60s and very humid.  I did a different run today - and ran faster than I have in quite a while.  I took 2 days off since my last run, since I was feeling tired.  So far, I think it helped.  I'm going to do that one more time before my next race.

Mocha and I had a rainy walk.  She doesn't seem to mind the rain too much.  She likes getting dried when we get home, but since her fur is so dense, it takes a while for her to be completely dry.  I used a towel and got off as much water as I could, and then she licked herself like a cat (maybe that helps her dry, or she just likes to drink from her fur!).

Since our morning walk, the girl has stayed in bed like a sensible dog.  No use being up and about on a day like this - bed is so cozy on a cloudy, rainy day.