So after the Guppy Gallop I continued running 2 – 3 times a week, once with our Wednesday night running group along the beach and another couple of runs each week to try to keep fit and improve upon my time. I didn’t have a firm plan for my next race but didn’t think I would be waiting 12 months, I had never ran more than 1 race in a year. Several members of the group run races on a regular basis so they were always talking about their next race so I knew it would just be a matter of time. I had to travel to California 3 times for my work, once to Texas and a vacation back to England so I took my running shoes with me, running in the mountains or the hills of San Fran was very different than the beach and I really enjoyed the change of scenery. However either during every trip or immediately upon returning the same calf pain would attack me, similar to the pain when I started running after my hip replacement. I would be a mile or two into the run and then a sharp pain in the back center of my calf would attack me, I don’t think it was a cramp but my muscle would be solid and very tender where the pain was. Each time it would take about a week to recover and start running again, I did try wearing compression socks on the flight but that didn’t appear to make any difference. The only time since then I’ve flown and not experienced the same was later that year when I would stand up and walk about the plane as much as possible, so maybe that’s the trick.
On July 9th, 2012 I then joined another running group, the Monday Night Interval Running Group, which was a much bigger group of about 50 runners that would run fast intervals of different lengths each week. It was good to run with a much fast group and add a different type of workout to my schedule. The week after my sister came over from England wither her husband and their youngest 2 children David and Jennifer, the same two that had beat me a little over 15 months ago at the 2011 Guppy Gallop. I took a week’s vacation and we went down to Sanibel Island in Florida and stopped in a condo along the beach, would I have my revenge this year. The first day we went for a run along the beach in the morning, 4 miles at just over 8 min/mile pace, the second day we went out for a 6 mile run but it was mid-afternoon in almost 90 degree heat, and they could not keep up, advantage Florida living. We went for several more runs along the beach and on each occasion I was a little stronger and faster than them so I felt great that a year later I had improved so much.
Still no plans on a next race but now I was running 3 – 4 times a week with one longer run of 6 miles and the others of 3 – 4 miles. On Friday August 3rd driving home from work I decided to race that evening in the Clearwater Beach Series 5K, this was the last in the series of 3 but a few others from the Indian Rocks Beach running club were running and I decided to join them. As I lined up under the pier I recognized several other runners from the Monday night group so I knew this would be a faster more competitive race. We set of at a 5 min pace which I quickly backed off from down to 6 minutes but I knew this was not sustainable, and after a minute had to slow down to a 7 minute pace. I wasn’t feeling great and breathing heavy having to push myself hard and I don’t think I was even a mile into the race. The second mile was 7:34 and really hard watching people pass me, although I felt fitter coming into the race than in April when I ran 21:07 I was struggling. The third mile was 7:17 and I kicked in at the end for a 5:26 .1 mile with a total time of 22:12, over a minute slower. Was it that I wasn’t mentally prepared, had I not eaten properly during the day or did I just go out to fast or all 3. I was disappointed, although I was still the fastest from our IRB group most of the Monday group had beaten me, the only positive was that I had now run a second race within a year now wanted to run another to improve on this time.
2 weeks later I had my chance to redeem myself at the St Pete Beach Series race and this time we had about 10 from the IRB group running and I was more prepared. I started the race and Olesiya, the top female runner from our group, was right on my heels. She had really been my inspiration since she joined the club in late April, she was a lot fitter than me and around my speed. Twice I had started our Wednesday night beach run and got to the 3 mile turnaround first only to have to slow or stop for a rest and she would catch me up and sail past me. After the second time I knew I had to push myself harder and train better to keep up with her. So back to the race, we ran the first mile in 6:46 and actually felt pretty good, still started a little too fast but wasn’t hurting as bad as 2 weeks earlier. We ran the second mile in 7:11 and she was still right next to me, so I had to try to push a little harder to get some space and picked up the speed. I finished the third mile in 7:06 and was about 15 yards ahead of her when I opened up for the final push and accelerated to beat her by 25 yards or more in a time of 21:26, still off the Guppy Gallop time but I felt much better about this race.
The next race our IRB club was running was the Run for the Fish 5K in Walsingham Park on September 15th, although I was going on vacation that day I had to do it and I’m so glad I did for several reasons. Here’s what I wrote in my Garmin activity post “Ran with 15 others from IRB running club. Not a great run, felt very tired & breathing heavy from about half mile. Olesiya overtook me around half mile mark, I took over pace at 1 mile as she slowed down. At 2 mile pace I waived her past me as I was done and about ready to give up. She was still in sprint distance just before the 3 mile mark so I went for it and managed to beat her by 4 seconds, would never had made it if it wasn’t for her. Best time this year 20:55. Then left to Marco Island after a nice breakfast.” 
There were 2 other significant moments at that race that later would take my running to the next level. I had become Facebook friends with Ray through the Monday night group although I had never met him yet, he organized the Head Over Heels Running Group, I knew he was going to be there with Mary who he was training. I recognized him from his picture before the race and he was with Mary so I went over to introduce myself, he was very nice and invited me to run with them any time which I said I would do when I returned from my vacation. Another person I met at the race was Albert, he was more than 10 years my senior but had beaten me by over a minute. I went over to congratulate him and asked how long he had been running, he told me he only started about 10 years ago when he was 55 and was now running an average of 65 miles a week, at this time I was running about 15 miles a week. I said to myself this is a man I can respect and he was going to be my next goal, to beat Albert. It wasn’t long before I had that opportunity as we lined up in another race about a month later and I will write more about that next week.