Monday, November 25, 2013

GoRun3 reviews

Skechers GoRun 3 has been released for a couple of weeks. I will try to keep the blog updated with reviews as they come in. As my Hamstring is still very sore/tight my own review has to wait a few weeks. First impression is very promising!

Believe in the Run
http://www.believeintherun.com/index.php/2013/11/23/skechers-gorun-3-review/

Happy Feet
http://happiefeet.blogspot.com/2013/11/skechers-gorun-3-initial-review.html

RunRepeat
http://runrepeat.com/skechers-gorun

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Running in the dark

Winter time has arrived which means shorter days of daylight. For most of us runner it means that you have to run in the dark. In Northern New Jersey where I do most of my runs, I do not have any shoulders on the road, no street lights and a lot of "crazy" drivers. My experience is that most of the drivers don't really respect you as a runner, to busy paying attention to their cell phone texting/talking or Seniors who are to old to drive their Cadillac's . This apply to any running on the roads, not just in the dark. So when I run in the dark, I try to make myself as visible as possible. Of course the rule number 1 is to run on the right side of the road, facing the traffic, again this apply to any running on roads. You wanna see the traffic and get an understanding if they actually see you and respect you. Numerous time I have been forced to take a dive in the ditch because of reasons mentioned above.


So when I get out for my night runs I wanna try to make myself as visible as possible. If I look like a Christmas tree in the end, fine, as long as it does not interfere with my running.

From top I wear a headlamp, I add a red light in the back. I have had great success with my Princeton Tec Fuel, perfect amount of light and its lightweight. In the back I have a small signal light from Petzl.

Upper body: Most jackets have some kind of reflective & illumination features but as my main "source" of reflective & illumination, I wear a Amphipod Xinglet Reflective Wear. This "vest" gives you lot of freedom and does not interfere with your running. This "vest" also provides 360 degree reflectivity.



Legs and arms: Again most of today's tights and jackets comes with some sort of reflective illumination feature. For the legs and arms I add reflective bands from Nathan, they are easy to put on and stays in place while you are running. Adding this to the parts that moves more gives you extra visibility and drivers will see you faster.

Shoes: Most brands today have added reflectiv illumination features to their shoe lines. If not most of today's shoes have some spots in the back of the shoe or in the front. Here are some options:
We have been using shoes from Skechers and the Nite Owl series. The Nite Owl series is GoRun2 ( review here) and GoRun Ride2 (review here)  with added photoluminescent technology. We have now tested the shoes for several of runs and walks ( with our dog Tess) and I have to say this technology really works. After only a few hours "charging" the shoes they glow for your entire run or walk. An the glow is sharp! Downside can be if you forget to put the shoes out before your run, it wont work. The shoes need light and to be charged to "lid" up. I have my shoes out 24/7 so its not an issue for me, but if you keep your Nite Owls in the closet, you need to remember to get them out a few hours before your run.



I never rely on one source of reflective & illumination gear. The Nite owls or any other products in this blog should not be your single source of light, reflection or illumination. Use them together in order to stay safe on the roads.  There are many other ways you can make yourself visible on your run, these are just the equipment I use at the moment. You can find lights and leds for every single piece of your body if you wish. Find the way that works for your running, your gear and environment.  As mentioned before I get a little bit paranoid when running in the dark and I wanna make sure the drivers sees me ahead of time. I might look like a Christmas tree when I'm running at night, but that is OK as long as it keeps me safe!

"Disclosure of Material Connection: I receive Running shoes from Skechers Performance Division as part of their Skecher Performance Division brand ambassador program. I was not required to write a positive review. All other brands mentioned in this blog was bought by myself. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Sore Hammie....

So for the last couple of days I have been off running. Last Thursday I had mile repeats X 4 scheduled. I have been feeling a bit tired after the Steamtown marathon but nothing really off. After the 8 mile Chilli trail run, my Hamstrings were beat up, but again I didnt think it was anything to worry about. The hamstrings has been a bit tight since the trail race, but I wanted to keep the momentum and not loose to much training before I hit my Boston training again.
So after a warm up with our dog Tess, I started up my intervals. The plan was to keep half marathon pace, around 6:10. First repeat went well and I kept the pace good. About 4 min in to the second repeat, my right hamstring tighten up fast, I did not even have time to stop then BOOM. I almost fell. It was like a cut straight in to my right hamstring. I knew immediately that this was not good and started to walk. I have been icing a bit now after but 4 days later I can still feel some tightness.

Well needed rest in Vermont


This week will most likely be a complete rest week from running. Im going to try some biking and core exercise to keep legs going.....

Learning by doing! Listen to your body, my hamstrings were clearly not happy and rested after the Marathon and Trail run.....

Thursday, November 7, 2013

NYC Marathon Momentum

By far this was not Meb Keflezighi best NYC Marathon. But instead of call it a day when his body screamed NO, Meb continued and finished in 2:23:47. He stopped, walked and then continued in a "slower pace".

These videos describes it all and why I think he his #1 marathoner!

 http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/250963-New-York-City-Marathon-2013/video/723689-Emotional-Meb-Keflezighi-after-NYC-Marathon-2013

 http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/250963-New-York-City-Marathon-2013/video/723682-Meb-Keflezighi-body-shut-down-from-lack-of-training-in-NYC-Marathon-2013-full-interview



 Lot of great things are happening for Skechers Performance Divisin right now, Meb signed a new contract with Skechers Performance Division after NYC Marathon

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/skechers-performance-division-extends-multi-135500426.html

And Skechers Performance Division wins "Brand of the Year Honor" from Footwear News!
http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20131106-909214.html

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/skechers-performance-receives-brand-of-the-year-honor-from-footwear-news-2013-11-06?reflink=MW_news_stmp

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

NYC Marathon Expo

As I was not running the NYC Marathon this year I had the pleasure to representing Skechers Performance Division, Friday and Saturday. The best part of this is of course meeting and connect with  runners from all over the world. The best meeting was the guy from LA who had been at the LAX airport with his daughter at the same time as last Fridays shooting took place and had to leave all their luggage behind, including all his running gear. We laced him up with the brand new GoRun3 has we did not have the Bionic Ride at the expo. Lawrence Miller from the Valley was the runner and he successfully finished the Marathon in 3:57:36.





Also I had the pleasure to meet the  Skechers Performance Division, including Kurt Stockbridge. Walking with Kurt at the Expo talking Shoe geek stuff and showing him whats "New" and what runners are taking about on the forums was a blast.

At the Booth, Skechers had the brand new GoRun3 and GoSpeed2. Both in the NYC limited edition black and gold. Both have the same platform with brand new uppers. GoRun3 also got a new "extra" sock liner so you can pop it up to 8mm with some extra cushioning Reviews are coming soon.

The expo itself was kind of an disappointment. I feel most of the companies did not come there in good shape.  For an example:

Adidas did not have the brand new Adios Boost, very disappointing. They had as display but you could not buy it.....

Mizuno usually have the new Rider at the NYC expo, not this year. Instead they put all their guns on the New Creation and Prophecy ($210!!!!!!!) Of course its always a pleasure to network and talk running with Seth Hasty from Mizuno!

New Balance had the new RC 1400 v.2. Good looking shoe, I hope they firmed up the heel a bit. Crazy amount of overlays in the front, could possible cause hot spots....

Asics, I didnt even bother.....What a Zoo! I peeked in just to confirm that they did not have the new HyperSpeed6

Newton, checked out the the Energy and the new trail shoe Boco AT. Really enjoyed how Kurt looked at the Newton sales rep after analyzing the BOCO AT and said...."how could you release this shoe"

Saucony, nothing new really that caught my attention. The Kinvara had got the ViziGlo upper....

Really looking forward to see the Boston expo in April. To me that is the number one expo in USA, open for public.