Tech Tech
A few new things going on. Since about 2 months of going to LifeChurch, I started serving at different positions in the church. I first started out on the Set-up/Tear-down crew. I still serve on the crew. I really enjoy all the people I work with. Setting up the church takes anywhere from an 1hour to 2, depending on the size of the crew. We've now built up a fairly well trained crew which can set up fairly quickly. I mostly work on the Experience Room which is the main worship room.
After working on the ST crew for a few months, I joined the Host team. On the Host team I mostly worked in parking. It was a greeting position which basically welcomed people with a smile and waving in the parking lot. Now more recently I was talking with the Worship Pastor, Justin Cowell, asking him if there positions open on the Tech Team. Audio and Video. He noted a position running the video and I was super glad to accept the opportunity.
Today was my first day working with the video. It was challenging, but one of the best positions I've served in yet. The hardest part is just getting all the transitions straight.... well.... not really hard, but paying attention to make sure you get them. I'm hoping to work with another Techy next week to gain more knowledge of the video.
Also I've stepped up to a new laptop. It's so far been a treat. I'm really glad I wet with the MB Pro. I've had to learn my way around the new updated programs, but for the most part it's been a smooth transition.
Back in January, I was getting into my car after work and twisted something in my left knee. Pain just shot through and it knocked the wind out of me. For the past few weeks, I've just been easy on my knee and had to take some Ibuprofen to ease the pain. For the past two weeks I've been taking a supplement called Move Free. It's got 4 main ingredients to help lubricate and ease joint pain. My knee feels much better now. That in the combination with a visit to my Chiropractor. Last Wednesday I went to see him and he torqued my leg.... Loud pop, followed by a quick shot of pain. Now It's feeling pretty great. I ran on it a few weeks ago and I made it less than a mile. I was going to try this weekend, but I think I'll wait til tomorrow. Bicycling hasn't been a problem though.
If all goes well, I'm considering doing a 100K in October. There is a run the taturs are putting on which consists of a 50K, 100K, and 100 mile runs. I'm not ready for a 100 miler, but I figure the 100K is doable. That's about it. I've got some thinks to work on so .... yeah that's about it.
Laters
Ceej:)
Labels: laptop, LifeChurch, race, Runs
Apple got me too
I know I've been complaining a lot, but here is another one. I recently broke my 2nd generation Ishuffle. The charger component broke and I tried to smash it back onto the device which I guess messed up the Ipod. It wouldn't charge. So in lieu of going to try and get it fixed I decided to by a new 4th generation Ishuffle.
So I get my new Ipod, plug it in, and it notes that the Ipod requires Itunes 10 to work. Okay.... so i DL Itunes 10 and what next.... Itunes 10 requires Mac OS X 10.5 to work. Which is saying I need to upgrade to Leopard or rather Snow Leopard. So now I need to pay $129 bucks for my $49 device to work. Okay, but wait whoops I also need 1GB of memory (minimum) and 12GB of Hard Drive space to run Snow Leopard. I have neither. Grrrrrrr!!!!! Memory upgrade $100 and I only have a 40 GB hard drive.
So my $49 Ishuffle is really a $278 plus Ishuffle. I betting it's close to the most expensive Ishuffle anyone has ever bought. I'm kind of considering just getting a new laptop or a mac mini as a new desktop computer. Ideas???
Sigh.....
Ceej:(
Labels: apple, ipod, ishuffle, macbook
Freaking Fleet Feet
So I needed some new shoes and I decided.... well... I'll just go to Fleet Feet and pick up my tried and true tested Asics Cumulus size 10 width 4E.
Background Info
Fleet Feet is the only running store that carries width running shoes. No other place does. They state.... "Not too many people need them so we don't carry them."So I either buy them from Fleet Feet or order them online. Well I've got some runs coming up and I need to break in some shoes. So I figured, I don't like Fleet Feet, but I need shoes asap. I go there and a dude standing up front is like.....
Dude: "Can I help you?"
CJ: "Yes, I need some new shoes. The Asics Cumulus in a size 10 4E."
Dude: "Okay, let me see what we have."
He comes out with a pair of shoes, shows me the size info on the side, and I am like "alright".
More background info
Fleet Feet, along with most running stores, allow the customers to try on and run in a pair of shoes to see if they are comfortable.SO. I get home and find out I've been bamboozeled with a pair of previously ran in shoes. They have dirt wear on the bottom. "Grrrrrrrrrr" Freaking Fleet Feet jacked me again. Dude, I said new shoes. Not shoes that some other potentially athletes foot goober ran in. You disappoint me Fleet Feet. I will plan better in the future and you will not have my business.
FFF
Ceej :[
Labels: asics, cumulus, fleet feet, running, sales, shoes, store
My new ride!!!
My bicycle finally arrived a few days ago. I picked it up on Friday at Bicycles of Tulsa. It is a 2011 Giant Revel1 mountain bike. Lots of great features.... I'm not familiar with all of them yet. I went to 4 shops in the Tulsa area and one in Owasso. Price wise the Giant gave out the most bang for the buck. I looked at Specialized and Cannondale models too. They were more expensive with the same features. When I first went to Bicycles of Tulsa they said a Large would be my size, but the 4 others I went to said I should go with a Medium.... so majority rule. I was more comfortable on a Medium too. Great service at all the shops with lots of friendly people.
Mers suggested I should go with more of an urban or hybrid bike. However, I'm not going to commute with this like he did with his bike in Chicago. It's going to be my scoot around town and trail riding bike. I can't wait to go test it out on Turkey Mountain in Tulsa. I still need a helmet (full face) before I do that though. I'm all about the safety. I may get a pair of MTB specific shoes too. Today when I was riding around I slipped forward off the pedals and almost greeted the handlebars with my face..... Right at an intersection too. I tried to play it off. I'm not sure if anyone saw it or worse recorded it. I'm gonna get a little jumpseat for Say. Plus it's an okay size for Mel so she can go with me on some of my runs. Win, win, win.
Right now, I'm working on figuring out the gearing on the bike and practicing some sweet jumps and wheelies. Cause you gotta get that stuff down before you hit the trails. I've also found a few Duathalons that are Mountain bike/run races. Those look like a HOOT! I'll try and hit one of those up next year. The closest one I've seen is in Arkansas. Hopefully, I'll put up some sweet wheelie pics in the future.
GIANT!
Ceej!
Labels: giant, mountain bike, mtb, revel1
It's Official!!!
I finished my first Ultra marathon today. A 50 miler.... actually 51.5 miles. Time 11h 21min 01sec. I wasn't really shooting for a particular time, but just to finish the overall thing. My partner was looking for a 10 hour finish which was totally in reach at the beginning, but things don't always go the same at the beginning as at the end.
Pre race meetingThe start of the race was at midnight. We had a pre-race meeting where the officials went over some of the rules and stated (I forget what his actual words were but something like) "You'll have thoughts of quitting around miles 30 and 40, but don't let your mind tell you your out". They then showed us the medal for finishing and the prize for not.... a handshake. Melissa took a couple pictures and then we were off.
Miles 1-10I totally felt great. We were running in a large pack for a while. It was pretty humid though. I think my tech shirt was soaked after a couple miles. Kind of passing and getting passed by the same people as we put our running strategy into play (Run 2 Walk 1). Actually for a while we were running 20 min and walking 10 cause we didn't realize they had mile markers out. It was just too many people and dark. A headlamp was mandatory for the first lap of the race. It was fun to see all the people sort of glowing with the reflective material they were wearing. I used it more on the backside of the course. The first side of the course was flat and fast. When we hit mile 5 a brutal hill began. The hill lasted through most of the mile and there was a full on food station just before mile 6. Mile 6 was then all downhill through 7. Then the course became flat and fast again.
Miles 11-20For these miles we ran back the way we came. So instead of continuous running circles you ran the next loop backwards. I'm not sure of the purpose behind this other than to mix the hills up a little. Through these miles we realized there were mile markers and started our Run 2 Walk 1 technique. We still were also passing and getting passed by the same people.... still playing the cat and mouse game. I'm drinking a ton of gatorade and water, eating salty foods, even pouring some salt on my hands and licking it off. Salt keeps your electrolytes up which keeps you from cramping.... potassium and magnesium are also a big part of that. I still didn't take any Ibprofen yet. I wanted to wait til the next loop.
Miles 21-30Before we left the aid station on the next opposite loop, I hit up some magnesium, salt, and more gatorade. I think I also grabbed a bagel which I ate about two bite before tossing it on the trail while we were taking off. It was just a litte too chewy and heavy. A little past mile 21 there is a wooden bridge on the loop. There was a nice breeze going which felt amazing. Legs were kinda getting heavy toward the end of this loop and some people we started to not see anymore passing us. The hills were more punishing this round too. Also at this point the trail was lighting up with more n00b runners. They were giving us a lot of encouragement thought so it was all good.
Miles 31-40By the end of this loop my feet were shot. Toes felt like they were rubbing up against my shoes and blisters were forming. I brought a change of shoes, socks, and running shirt and they were due. I also hit some Ibprofen before I left. I'm not gonna lie it was painful getting going on this loop. We switched to a Run1 Walk 1 on this loop and were still pulling off 10 min mile runs and 13 min walks. At the end of the loop I could tell I was on the verge of a nasty crap in my quad and hamstring. We were pretty much set in the pack at this point. No passing was going on at this point. Survival mode was in play.
Miles 41-To Glory!!!I made sure to hit up some salt, magnesium, and I had a drink one of my friends gave me to try "Squincher" which is supposed to have double the electrolytes and potassium of gatorade. I also gave Melissa a two hour warning for finish time. For the most part of this lap we were walking. Still punching out 13 to 14 minute walk miles though. My pinky toes were killing me and that's what was really keeping me from running. It seems pansy, but the pinky toe is a brutal one to have being smashed repeatedly. Trust me! On the first mile back we encounter some older women who had a super powerwalk going on. I made sure they knew they'd be tripped if they came on me....jk. Most people at this point were walking or running so slow they might as well have been walking. We ran when we could throughout this loop. The real sucky thing was it started to rain and squishy shoes are not fun.
Eventually one guy came up on us and passed. His run though was about as fast as our powerwalk. On the HORRIBLE hill we caught him and started chatting with him. This was his 36th Ultra. He noted he'd had some problems holding down food through it. When we got up the hill, we grabbed some food and took off. He took off a little before us and was gone in flash. I didn't even see where he was he took off so fast. At the mile 6 marker another person passed us. It was this asian dude who was totally sandbagging it the whole race. He ran right by us. We kept our powerwalk on and pressed forward. Two more people passed us near the end. One I called "Hulk" cause of his green shirt. The other was Arnold Begay. He's done the Badwater Ultramarathon in 2009. Watch the documentary "Running on the Sun" to see what this event is all about. We passed one guy around mile 48. I text Melissa about a mile out noting our color clothes and what to be looking for. We jogged it in at the end of the run.... STRONG FINISH!!!! I'll post more finish picture on FB. I didn't get any video of it though.
Glory!
Ceej:)
Labels: events, marathon, midnight madness 50 miler, ok, running, tulsa, ultramarathon
