Bill and Cathy McArthur Spring/Summer/Fall 2011: 2
Monday, May 30, was Memorial Day. Bill was up at 4:00 AM to get ready for the Highway One Pictures 5K in Dewey Beach. He left at about 6:30 AM for the drive to Dewey Beach and parked at the Rusty Rudder. He did 20 repititions of 85 pounds in the Pump N Run event. He registered for the race after the bench presses. The morning got quiet warm and humid by the 8:00 AM race time. Bill had a pretty good 5K run @ 8:12 min/mile average with a 8:01 minute first mile. He came in second place in the 70+ age group by 27 seconds. After Bill got home, we tried to lay low because of the traffic on Route 1. We grilled burgers for dinner.
Tuesday, Bill went to Angler's Marina in Lewes to sign up for kayak storage and use of the boat ramp for a cost of $200 for the season. Bill went out for a paddle to the put-in on Oyster Rocks Road. It was a beautiful day. After returning home for lunch, Bill went to Home Depot to get a chain and a lock for the kayak. He went back to Angler's Marina and chained the kayak to a jack for a big boat. We had left-over quiche for dinner. Later, we picked up three of Cathy's former colleagues, Jenn, Shelley, and Margaret, at the ferry terminal. We gave them a brief tour of Lewes on the way home. We served dessert with a lot of good conversation.
Wednesday, Bill decided to rest his legs instead of running. He went to Home Depot and bought a tarp and then drove to Angler's Marina to wrap the kayak in the tarp with bungees. We all drove to the beach in Cape Henlopen State Park. We walked down the boardwalk to look at the beach and ocean. Then we walked to the Great Dune and climbed a nearby watch tower. We walked back to the XTerra and drove to the Fishing Pier and walked out to the end. We drove to Rehoboth Beach and ate lunch at Greene Turtle. Afterward, we walked the boardwalk. Next, we drove to Starbucks for Bill and the Midway Outlets for the women. Bill joined the women in the kitchen store. We returned home and had a great grilled swordfish dinner. After dinner, we dropped the three visitors at the ferry terminal for their trip back home to New Jersey.
Thursday, Bill headed out early for a 40 mile bike ride @ 16.7 mph average. Cathy went to two exercise classes. Bill waited for the cable guy until Cathy came home. We had lunch and then Bill headed out for a second leg of 40 miles @ 15.8 mph in a gusty wind. We had a nice tapas meal at Cafe Azafran in Lewes. Later, we viewed "Blue State", which was pretty lame.
Friday, Cathy went to her exercise classes. Bill cleaned his bike. Joe and Maria Link arrived by bicycle around 4:30 PM. They had taken the ferry from Cape May. We hadn't seen each other since the fall, so we had a good reunion with lots of conversation. We enjoyed a good pre-race pasta dinner and lots more conversation afterward. Everyone went to bed fairly early.
Saturday morning, Bill arose at 4:00 AM to get ready for a 10K race. Joe joined him at around 5:00 AM. They left the house at 6:15 AM and drove the VW with the top down to Cape Henlopen High School for the Race for the Ribbon. Joe chose to do the 5K. It was a cool, but sunny morning, nice for running. Joe ran his 5K in 20:13 and won his age group. Bill ran his 10K in 53:53 and won his age group by default. Cathy and Maria joined the guys for the after race festivities. We headed home for lunch on the back porch. Joe, Maria, and Bill took naps. We all walked to Grotto Pizza where Joe and Maria treated us to a pizza dinner. We all headed to bed early again.
Sunday, Bill was up at 4:00 AM again and Joe at 4:30 AM. They left the house at 6:15 AM and drove the VW with the top down to Wilmington Avenue in Rehoboth Beach for the Dos Locos 5K. Joe ran in 19:42 and won his age group. Bill ran in 25:03 and won his age group. Bill was very happy to run an average of 7:59 min/mile on his GPS. Cathy and Maria joined us for the post-race festivities at Dos Locos. After the awards ceremony, we hustled to get Joe and Maria on the 11:15 AM ferry back to Cape May. Cathy and Bill went to Super Fresh for supplies and Super Cuts for haircuts. We had a late lunch and chilled out during the afternoon. We had quinoa and a frozen meal for dinner. We viewed "The Next 3 Days" - very unbelievable plot details, Cathy only watched half of it before giving up.
Monday, June 6, Cathy went to her exercise classes. Bill got his bike on the rack and drove to Dave's Road Bikes in Dover. Dave checked and tuned the bike. He gave Bill a clinic on changing a flat while he put a new tire and tube on the back wheel. The bike had about 2300 miles on it. Dave also measured Bill's feet and put cleats on his new carbon shoes. Finally, Dave gave Bill a Bento Box for his top tube to carry gels or Clif Bars or other stuff. Bill headed home for a late lunch. Then he went out for a 20 mile ride with the new shoes. It was breezy and he felt good about the 17.8 mph average speed for the ride. We grilled out for dinner and viewed "Stone" - somewhat lame with a good cast, Cathy only watched half of it.
Tuesday, Bill left early and launched at 7:22 AM for a 12.8 mile, 3:21 paddle around Cape Henlopen Point. There was a pesky wind blowing, but it was a beautiful trip with Brown Pelicans, American Oystercatchers, and Dolphins as part of the scenery. This was the first time Bill had paddled in the Atlantic Ocean since the fall. Cathy went to the gym for a couple of classes and stopped at Super Fresh on the way back. We had tortellini for dinner. We viewed "Too Big to Fail" - disgusting what greed can bring.
Wednesday, we walked 5 miles on the Lewes/Rehoboth Trail. After lunch, we brought the tandem kayak to Angler's Marina. We saw J.B. Walsh, the marina's owner, who changed our contract so that we could keep both kayaks there for the same cost. We did a nice 8.2 mile paddle on the canal toward Rehoboth Beach. It was very hot and the greenheads were active. Later, we met John and Diane Hartnett for dinner at Big Fish. Cathy had soft-shelled crabs. Bill had blackened tuna on top of linguini. We viewed some episodes of "30 Rock".
Thursday, the temperature at our house reached 101 degrees, with a heat index of 107. Bill got an early start on his bike ride:
Got an early 6:00 AM start and did my 100 miles. 97 degrees when I finished around 1:10 PM. Both inner thighs cramped on last 10 miles. 1st 40 miles @ 16.4 mph, 2nd 40 miles @ 15.9 mph, last 20 miles @ 15.5 mph.
His hydration and fueling plan was:
For each 40 and 20 mile leg, 40 oz. of G2 with 12 oz. mixed with 2 pacs of GU Roctane. I ate 2 Clif bars between legs and ate 2 more GU pacs before the last 20 miles. I also started the morning with 20 oz of G2. So, I had a total of 160 oz of G2, 8 GU Roctanes, and 4 Clif bars. I wonder if I incurred an electrolyte debt from the kayak paddle yesterday afternoon, although I drank 40 oz of G2.
He realized that he should have drunk more G2 during his pit stops and maybe carried a couple more bottles of G2 in a carrier behind his seat. His calves cramped as he was resting after the ride. He ate a half teaspoon of salt and continued to drink G2. He took a bit of a nap as he rested. We had quiche for dinner and viewed "True Grit" - great movie.
Friday, after some overnight T-storms, was a bit cooler and drier. Cathy went to her exercise classes. Bill got the XTerra ready for the trip, did some packing, loaded his bike, and got himself ready to go. We ate lunch when Cathy returned. We were on the road at about 1:00 PM, heading for Glen Mills. We stopped at Borders once we got in the area. We hung out there for a while and then drove to Alex and Phil's home. Phil picked up the packets for the Mud Run on his way home from work.
Saturday morning, Bill arose before 6:00 AM and drove to WaWa for a couple of bagels and a big cup of coffee. There was a mass of T-storms that passed by slightly to the north. We all got ready for the Mud Run. Bill had decided to wear Under Armour, old aerbobics tights, Skins leggings over his socks, tri shorts, Under Armour sleeveless compression top, and old running shoes. It turned out to be the perfect outfit for the event. Bill, Phil, and Alex were in the 9:30 AM wave on two seperate teams. After some preliminary photos, we figured out how to be on the front line of the wave. The first leg was a 1.8 mile run on mostly grassy hills and fields. Then the obstacles started. Bill generally had no problem with obstacles unless they challenged his lack of flexibility in his hips. We all did get muddy! Bill, Phil, Nikki, and another on the ATT team finished in 1:34 without really trying to make it a race. The running distance was about 10K. Afterward, the muddy ones rinsed off in a couple of fire hoses and then went different places to change clothing. Bill changed in the car. We all hung around for a while after the event to eat, drink, and enjoy the comeraderie and music. When we returned, Cathy and Bill went out shopping. Later, the kids went in the pool. Bill did some life guarding while doing a couple of crossword puzzles. We had a cookout, joined by Nikki.
Sunday, Bill was up before 6:00 AM to get his breakfast at WaWa. It had rained pretty hard overnight. We got on the road about 8:00 AM, heading for Williamsburg, VA. We headed for the Williamsburg Visitors Center and got our Bounce Passes. Then we took the shuttle to the Governor's Palace and met Katie, Tom, Rachel, and Eric. We walked around doing some touring before heading to Greensprings Resort and our two bedroom condo. We settled in and then Bill and Tom went to the store and picked up take-out Italian dinners. We were off to bed early.
Bill and Cathy