The day started out cool and never really got hot. But my stride was just sluggish from the start and never got better. I’ll call this walk 10.15.
I won’t say that it was difficult; it really wasn’t until that final steep hill.
I wonder if I’ve gained weight. The weird thing is that pull ups have improved quite a bit and that is inconsistent with weight gain.
Peoria Chiefs: they were down 2-0 early before a 4 run 4’th put the Chiefs up 4-2. But the Cubs got two of their own in the 5’th and it remained tied going into the 8’th. A new closer appeared to struggle, but in the end he kept the Cubs scoreless throughout a tense 9’th and 10’th…he even survived an errant throw made on a ground ball.
Then with 2 out on the 10’th, Cho slammed the ball off of the center right wall to drive in the winning run.
Runner scores. Encarnacion singles, then 2 more score!!
I watched the Chiefs dismantle the Cubs this week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Tuesday: the Chiefs lead 3-1 going into the bottom of the 8’th and then had a 9 running inning to win 12-1.
Wednesday: 10 -2 victor starting off with a 4-0 first inning.
Thursday: Harry and Vickie were there and the Chiefs won a closer game 5-2
Illinois 52 Western Illinois 3
The Illini drew a very good crowd (56000+) given that the opponent was a bad FCS team (Western Illinois)
Aside from an opening mini drive that made it from their 25 to the Illini 42, it was all Illinois..save one “almost TD pass” in the second half. It was 31-0 at the half and ended 52-3. The reserve quarterback came in half way through the 4’th.
We didn’t learn that much; Duke will be a much better test. Interestingly enough, I saw Navy win its opener against VMI by a 52-7 score in a very similar game (28-0 at the half, with 3 Navy quarterbacks getting to play)
A few years ago, I was at a Chiefs game. A pop foul came my way and an age peer (60s) was standing just behind me, to my right. He reached out his hand and snatched the ball out of the air.
I looked at him wide-eyed and said “you must have played.” He got a “happy/sad” look on his face and admitted that, at one time in his life, he was a A league minor league player; he now had an office job related to baseball.
And yes, to play A level minor league baseball, you have to be better than the vast majority of college players, who in turn are better than the vast majority of high school players, who I think are pretty good.
But only about 10 percent of those that I watch at Chiefs games will become a Major League player. Just being excellent won’t get you there.
And that reminds me of these two threads posts:
Here is a 28:00 10000 meter, 1:48 800 meter runner who works at McDonalds to finance his training. Yes, he could run for some college teams and get financial assistance for his education. But his times need to be something like 27:20 or 1:43 to even sniff earning a living through his running.
And that is what it is like. An average engineer can make a nice living, as can, say, an average accountant. But even an elite athlete can peak out before the “earn your living at it” level.
I still like recording a bit of what is going on, mainly so I can see where I was.
First baseball: I saw the Chiefs on Wednesday and Thursday. The Wednesday game: the highly touted starter didn’t last past the first inning, giving up 3 runs. But the Timberrattlers got only 1 more and the Chiefs opened it up with 3 in the 3’rd and 3 in the 6’th to win 6-4. They got 11 hits in all; very fun game. There was a good crowd too as it was “Faith and Family” night. No, it wasn’t the crowds of 10 years ago (when that night sold out) but 3501 took up half of the stadium seats. That was perhaps the largest non July 3’rd-July 4’th Wednesday crowd of recent memory.
Thursday: can we talk about Wednesday again? The Rattlers bombed the Chiefs for 5 runs in the second and ended up crushing the Chiefs 9-0 behind 10 hits. Though the on the field action may have been boring, the umpire stuff was wild. The home plate umpire ejected the Rattler’s manager for arguing a batter’s pitch clock violation strike, ejected the Chief’s bench coach for arguing the same thing..and, well, the ball 9 was a CALLED third strike which even made the Chiefs crowd gasp.
You have to have a sense of humor. In the 9’th, the Chiefs sent a catcher up to finish the inning: he gave up 1 hit and no runs. Fans joked that he was our best reliever.
In the bottom of the 9’th, the Chiefs managed to load the bases and those still left (crowd was sparse to begin with and most had left) were chanting for the Chiefs to score. Didn’t happen.
The highlight was Richardson getting brushed back (for the second time) with some chin music…stepping up and ripping a double anyway.
That’s probably the most fun 9-0 loss that I’ve ever endured.
Other personal stuff: reading more Bond novels (finished 3 Morse ones). The main characters are complete horn-dogs! And if “colonialism” is a deal breaker for you, ..well…don’t read these books.
Workouts: Thursday: very irritated and it was hot and gross. 1:37:55 for my usual 10k (15:48) Friday: slow 2 mile walk and weights. Pull ups went very well: 10, 10, 10 (ok 8) 2 penalty reps, 6, 6, 5, 5 (mixed grip for the final 2 sets, chin grip for the sets of 6) bench: 18 x 134 (wanted 20), 3 sets of 7 x 150 high incline: 10 x 94, 5 x 110, 5 x 100
Saturday: slept in due to getting in late from A Few Good Men (the play) low handle: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 225 4 inch: 10 x 244 Then a slow 2 mile walk.
Note: I’ve signed up for the Quad Cities Half marathon and will do it, provided the Illinois vs USC game is NOT a Saturday night game. Given the current night TV Big Ten schedule, I don’t expect it to be.
Things are going along ok, and then comes the call “I’ve been in an accident…” Ok, this time the medical stuff, aside from a dreary trip to the emergency room, went ok (for B: I was at home when the accident happened)
Now the details…ugh.
Monday: no walk due to a lot of time at the car dealership. Yes, new vehicle (a boring old person’s vehicle)
weights: 7,6, 7, 6, 7, 5, 5 pull ups bench: 10 x 134, 5 x 160, 4 x 160, 4 x 160, 5 x 160 high incline: 10 x 94, 6 x 105, 5 x 110
Tuesday: 7.15 mile walk: 5 mile course with a special 2 mile loop: it is the go up Cornstalk the old way but then turn left to go further up, go down the hill then around the bottom of the hill along the lower loop course. I added a loop around the median. 1:51:52 for 15:39 (slow today)
Wednesday: 2 mile walk afterward (slightly more) with weights Pull ups were easier: 10, 10, 10, 7, 6, 5, 5 (all overhand)
bench: 10 x 134 incline: 5 x 134, 5 x 134, 5 x 134, 1 x 155 (missed this the last time) high incline: 10 x 94, 6 x 105, 5 x 110 trap bar: low 10 x 134, 10 x 184 4 inch: 10 x 228
Chiefs: they lost to the Rattlers 5-3; the second batter hit a towering home run that went OVER the left field berm. It was 3-3 though before errors doomed the Chiefs, including an errant throw home. But the final Chiefs pitcher was spectacular and..in the bottom of the 9’th with 2 out, runners on 1st and 2nd, one of the better hit a shot to right field that I thought would tie the game: spectacular catch to end the game.
Well, I’ll start with the workouts first: Thursday: 6.3 miles (Bradley Park out and back plus a lower loop plus going out to Bradley ave) in 1:37:44 (15:31) 86 F, 69 percent humidity.
Friday: upper body weights plus a 2.2 mile walk at just under 17 minutes per mile. The weights:
pull ups: 5 sets of 6, 10 (almost), 2 sets of 6 (mixed grip), set of 3 penalty reps bench: 10 x 134 incline bench: 3 sets of 5 x 134 curls: 3 sets of 10 dumbbell shoulder: 3 sets of 10 x 40 (supported)
Saturday: thunderstorms so I did trap bar and straight bar deadlifts plus a 2 mile walk (break in the rain) straight bar (small bar) 10 x 105, 10 x 149, 10 x 193 Trap bar low 10 x 224 trap bar 6 inch: 10 x 260
Sunday: started just after 9 am. 84 F, 80 percent humidity. There was some cloud cover. To Bradley Park, out and back, then two loops where I did the upper park loop with a double back on the “middle” road, down to the start of Cornstalk, then along the bottom of the hill to the Bridge and up to Dog Park hill, one lower loop, one mini loop. Garmin got 10.15 miles; “course correction got 10.51 so we’ll call it 10.3 in 2:49:08, or 16:25. I did NOT go fast, and my stepson’s friend got a photo of me. No, my support knee was not straight.
Damn, I am really bad at what I do (in terms of sports/fitness)
Baseball:
Well, I caught games on Wednesday, (solo), Thursday (Lynn), Saturday (Tracy), Sunday (solo)
The opponent was the West Michigan Whitecaps, who lead the Eastern Division. And yes, they are good.
Wednesday’s game: a rout. The Whitecaps got out of a 9-0 lead and cruised to 9-4 win. Few were there due to the heat.
Thursday: The Whitecaps got out to a 5-0 lead after 2, and I thought “this one is over.” But the Whitecaps would not score again, and the Chiefs rallied with 3 in the 3’rd and again in the 5’th and then got some insurance to win 9-5. That might have been the finest game of the season: Arias threw two shut out innings to close.
Saturday: we got there late to see the Chiefs lose 8-3 on a game that was postponed due to lightning on Friday. The 3 runs cam in the 9th.
Then came the second 7 inning game. The starter for the Chiefs struggled just a bit in the first but only gave up 1 run. Then he was on fire for the next 4 innings. On the other hand, the Whitecaps starter was fire for the first 4 and then wilted in the 5’th. The Chiefs rocked the starter for 4 runs in the 5’th and picked up 2 more in the 6’th to breeze 6-1 in what was their best game to day, surpassing Thursday’s win.
Sunday: this one was a sloppy game: 5 errors between the two teams, plus several “not on the score sheet” errors. But this also featured some spectacular plays too (unassisted double play by the Whitecaps first baseman off of a line drive, a running catch in deep right center). It was 5-1 Whitecaps going into the 6’th when the Chiefs rallied to tie the game. But the Whitecaps came back with 2 (off of a big home run to left center) in the 7’th, and the Chiefs made up 1. But they could get no closer. Very entertaining game though.
Note: some of the Chiefs officials appeared to be confused at the company I kept. Barbara was scheduled to go both on Thursday and Saturday, but did not feel up to it. She made Tuesday’s game though.
Pat visited us for a couple of days. This meant Chiefs, walks and photos.
Tuesday: I did 5 miles on my own; it was one of my better workouts on the course, even though it was 79 F, 85 percent humidity.
Then I went out for 3.4 miles slow with Pat; I drug her to St. Mary’s Cemetery in West Peoria. We went up the big hill. Pat was interested in the Bishop Sheen headstones.
I am not sure what the above is.
Later, it was Chiefs baseball time. Once again: the Chiefs lead 5-2 going into the 5’th, when they put in a struggling relief pitcher, who gave up 3 hits (one home run) and 3 runs. BUT..one of the runners reached the base on an error and, when there was 1 out, a very close call denied a double play, leading to a run. So the pitcher, despite the 3 hits, really could be blamed for one of the runs.
The Whitecaps got a run in the top of the 8’th and that was enough to win 6-5.
We got a visit from a cute Westie.
Today, I drug Pat up 3 hills in Bradley Park. It was only 2.4 miles
Afterward, weights: Pull ups: 5 sets of 6 (felt ok) Chin ups: 4 sets of 5 Bench: 10 x 134, 9 x 150, 7 x 150, 7 x 150 Deadlift: low: 10 x 150, 10 x 200, 6 inch: 10 x 260 high incline: 10 x 94, 5 x 105, 5 x 105
Later: we visited the cathedral and the Sheen museum.
First: I did an easy 4 mile walk at 17:30 mpm around the neighborhood.
Now about the Chiefs: Friday: this was a double header. The Chiefs lost a tightly contested contest 4-3. Barbara was with me for that one. Second one: Barbara went home, but Linda, Vickie and Harry were there. The game got a late start due to *potential* thunderstorms which didn’t materialize, and ended after the top of the 6’th due to a thunderstorm which DID materialize in a big way. Final was 6-5.
Saturday: this one wasn’t really close. The Chiefs bullpen did deliver 5 consecutive shut out innings but they were already down 5-0 and it ended 5-2. Tracy and Barbara were there. This game saw one ejection (batter arguing a bad strike call)
Sunday: here is the kicker. Chiefs start out 8-0 after 3. Starting pitcher tires after 4 innings and gives up 3 runs. In the 7’th the bull pen gives up 2 more, then…argh..3 more in the 8’th. Horror show.
So, now it is 10-8 in the top of the bottom of the 10’th. 2 out, runners on first and third. Clutch hitter at the plate (grand slam, game winning double, multiple hits with runners on base). So what do you do? You…steal and get thrown out. OMG.
This last loss was the most frustrating one in a long time.
To recap the week: 6 losses in a row. Leads of 5-0, 3-0 and 8-0 blown. ARGH!!!
Note: this was a chippy series. In one game, the Kernels pitching coach was tossed. In another game, a Kernel player was tossed. In today’s game, a Chiefs player was tossed (arguing about a shift?) and in the 10’th, a Kernels player and a Chiefs player started to square off due to a contested play at the plate.
Yesterday: usual 10k course 1:32:31; somewhat slower than Tuesday but still 14:5x ish, with the final 2 miles being done at 14:10.
Today: weights and an easy 2.2 mile walk: pull ups: 9 sets of 6 (4 chin up, 5 pull up) bench: 10 x 134, 3 sets of 6 x 155 high incline: 10 x 94, 6 x 105, 3 x 110, 4 x 105
Chiefs: the Chiefs lost 10-5 on Wednesday after leading 5-0. Thursday: they lost 9-4 after leading 3-0 after 1..and after 4. The 5’th inning: Kernels got 7 hits and a walk to lead 6-3 and it only got worse. The final run was a spectacular blast to left field in the 9’th inning. It is rare to see a wooden bat home run clear the white fence.
First, let’s talk about the Chiefs game last night: the Chiefs won it in 10: 3-2. We got the expected pitcher’s duel with the Cubs starting a AAA pitcher on rehab and the Chiefs throwing Lin, a top Cardinals prospect.
So, it was 2-2 going into the 10’th; the Chiefs did loads the bases in the 8’th inning with 0 outs but failed to score.
This was perhaps the best non-education day crowd of the season.
As much as I enjoyed the 21-2 game the day before, from a baseball fan’s viewpoint, this game was better. It was better played and there was plenty of drama.
5K
Well, this was a personal worst. But, oddly enough, I am ok with it. I’ve done no fast walking in a very long time; the miles are there but the speed isn’t. And it was gross: 79 F with 72 percent humidity.
The first mile was the expected zoo, given that I started at the back of the pack (where I belonged) and had the expected “moms with strollers”, “leashed dogs” and “parents with kids.” Lest you think that I am putting on airs, I’ll point out that many of these types were either beating me or at least staying with me. Aside from parents with their kids, there weren’t any, uh, “athletic bodies” around me, save a few older runners. One I thought: “wow, she is attractive for such an old lady..” and it turns out that I’ll be her age in a couple of months! No, there were no gazelles or active athletes in my part of the world.
The start WAS crowded and when it finally thinned out a bit, the better runners were on their way back. I was right at 12 minutes at mile 1 and probably should have stayed there. But I tried to pick it up at the turn around. I did; mile 2 was 11:45 (big whoop) and I could feel the heat getting to me. So, I eased up; mile 3 was 13:15 and I just didn’t care that much about my time at that point. I just wanted to finish without getting sick and with the ability to walk it back home.
After sitting for a while, I walked it back home.
total: 2.3 at 17:06 to get there, the 5k, 2.3 at 19:54 (I was tired) to get home.
What I am missing: I should have a “short but with some speed” day every week. This was this week’s session.
Life of an old goat 