Distance running. If you feel good, don't worry, that will pass.

I was reading about the 100 top science stories of 2009 and there was many about vaccines. The article on a diarrhea vaccine brought this thought to my attention. The article said how there was currently 1.5 million people suffering from diarrhea or 1.5 mil that die annually, cannot remember, but the majority being in developing countries. Well what would those countries do with 1.5 mil more children?!? There are already food shortages and over population in these areas. Many people there are already dieing of so many other things I do not believe increasing the population when there are already food shortages is such a good diea. Yes, saving lives is good. However I could not help but think that it would just be giving these people the chance to die a slow painful death from something else.

Wed was just an amazing run. Felt strong the entire time, and had racing on my mind. Sometimes the feeling would get so powerful and I would find myself within the race. I feel a shiver go down my spine and across my shoulders and all I want to do is drop the hammer but I know I have to hold pace to continue the remainder of the run.

I have noticed lately a difference in how my head and upper body position effects my running. This is only possible when running up on the track when I can see every single lap pace. If I lower my head and eyes and stare only a few feet in front of my body I feel smoother and like I am moving at a pretty good clip. However when I check my pace it is generally slower then when running with my head up looking forward. I feel better with my head down, it feels like I am literally falling forward. Probably because when looking down I see the ground going past quickly. Very much like if you were to look out your side window when in a car and staring at the ground to your side. When I go and lift my head or eyes again, without consciously thinking about it my pace increases. Sometimes I think seeing other runners in front of me may have something to do with it. Maybe it's something with my body position. Or of course a combo of the two.

One of the common excuses for allowing the consumption of junk during the holidays is, well, because it is the holidays. But I believe that eating all this sugary fake food does nothing but reinforce the habit during the rest of the year. Diet soda is another example of this. True, by itself diet soda does not contain sugar. However it has that same taste of the oh so addictive substance and when you drink pop it gives you that amazing feeling so much akin to the first few inhalations of a cigarette to a smoker who missed their first break.

Speaking of soda I saw a man letting his two year old sip out of his Pepsi bottle at Walmart. I gave him the most "omfg are you kidding me you discust me" look I could, without being to obvious.

Here is an interesting thought. This came up a while ago when I was discussing the addition of a barefoot division at a race, along the same lines as age groups. First I said how I looked at age groups as a way of separating older runners from the runners in their prime, to equalize the placings. By making a BF catagory I believed it showed that they were at a disadvantage to regular runners, such as 60 year olds are at a disadvantage to 30 year olds. However thinking about it more, are shoes the disadvantage, being more like wheel chairs for the handicap? Are runners all disabled and incapable of running without the crutches(shoes)?

Such as a person with an amputated leg cannot run without a prosthetic leg, most runners cannot run without shoes.

It's ironic that the modern motion control shoe may be causing more injuries that would otherwise be prevented.

A good comparison I have read is how shoe companies promote their product like baby formula companies did a few decades ago. They told everyone formula was superior to breast milk, gave it away in hospitals and clinics. People started replacing breast milk with formula, and infants paid the price. Unfortunately society has not fully realized that runners are paying the price wearing motion control moon boots. It is turning around though. Look at the slowtwitch forums. Triathletes are the most tech savy athletes out there, and you can even see a movement to more minimal shoes there.

A friend wanted me to comment on Muscle Milk...

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 2 scoops (75.0 g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 350 Calories from Fat 162

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 18.0g 28%

Saturated Fat 8.0g 40%

Cholesterol 5mg 2%

Sodium 200mg 8%

Total Carbohydrates 12.0g 4%

Sugars 6.0g

Protein 32.0g

As you can see it has sodium to replace what was lost through sweat. Lots of protein, plenty of sugar, and holy saturated fat! My ideal recovery shake that I like to eat as soon as possible after a workout is some whey protein and a banana blended up into some 100% fruit juice. My current media is the amazing apple juice Walmart has. Muscle milk is manufactured to be a recovery drink for lifters mainly.

It is important to note that no supplements are regulated by the FDA or any governing body. I talk a bit about this here. If it can be helped I would always opt for real food rather than some food like substance.

The book, Paleo Diet for Athletes talks a great deal about recovery and eating around nutrition.

Thursday Walmart closed at 8 on christmas eve. I worked 10.5 hours that day so obviously did not get a chance to run before work. However afterwards it was 12 below with wind gusting up to 28mph. So obviously I had to go run! I only did four but it was awesome. I told someone it was at my easy peasy "sing black eyed peas out loud while all alone running down main street during a blizzard" pace.

You know those arctic explorers you always see in movies with the beard covered in ice about to discover the ancient alien artifact. (transformers, the day the earth stood still, and alien vs predator if I remember correctly) That was me. Except I was running, which is much cooler than discovering an ancient alien artifact. My fingers lost feeling for the first half when I spent most of the time running into the wind. I even stuck them in my mouth and bit down, not feeling a whole lot. However as soon as I turned to a tailwind and was sheltered by houses and buildings more the feeling came back within a few miles.

I hate holidays for the main reason that the Wellness Center closes. I do two things in life. Homework, and run. I have no homework with it being Winter Break so must run, and it's really tough to do so when it's below zero and has snowed a foot in the last two days with another 10 inches to come.

During the next semester I would like to do a bit of studying at the Wellness Center. Bring a book or my notes with me and so some light reading after my workout. Jump on a bike and spend a half hour burning a few extra calories and getting some reading done. Can't hurt to try I suppose.

I was chatting with a coworker and he mentioned how he used to do marathons back in high school. "Oh yeah! Which ones?" I asked. "oh, some 5k's and 10k's" he replies.....I tell him that a marathon is 26.2 miles. He goes on to say how a 5k is a marathon to him. That is like calling a Ford Explorer a Lamborghin....even though it obviously is not. I have just never realized before that some people actually do not know a marathon is 26.2 miles.

Well I am out at Rapid City for a week with Desi before she leaves for school in Mexico until June. I may not run until I get back on the 4th but I am super excited to start a new training diary!

Later all! Thanks so much for reading :)

The Surgeon General gave me permission to smoke you

Here is an update on how the Vibrams are holding up at 750 miles. My right has two small holes as you can see from the below photo.

This is interesting because the bottom of the left VFF has noticably more tread/traction compared to the right.
As you can tell by looking at the second and third toe, the left still has that groove on the second and if you were holding it in your hand you would be able to just see it on the third as well. However on the right they are long gone. I am going to guess I am pushing off just slightly more with my right foot.

Here are the same holes 250 miles ago, at the 500 mile mark.
Here is a photo of the seam separation that many KSO models have gotten. Hopefully soon I can get around to sewing this up. Odd how the right has no separation.
On ebay I just won a pair of these Vibram Classics. I like the look of the classic model much more than the closed top of the KSO so decided to go with these.

I have noticed this before. But if I mention to someone that I ran 26 miles last night or whenever just for the heck of it, once in a while they reply with an almost angry or irritated tone. Justin told me that if I am going to be going that far I should be doing races. Lets see, I have probably done the marathon distance or more at least 6 or 7 times, but have never done an official marathon. Maybe it bothers some people that I can just go and hammer out 26 miles for the fun of it. Jon Kephart and I were talking about the Brookings Marathon and he said something about it being his first and I said it would be mine too. His reaction was full of shock. He could not believe that I have done the distance so many times yet never actually done a marathon.

Monday was a great workout. I did 7 miles at an average pace of 6:40. The main set consisted of five miles rotating 1/3 mile at 7:12 pace and 2/3 mile at 6:00 pace then a warm up and cool down. Felt strong, it was a good run. My calves hurt a bit afterwards though, it has to be the treadmill doing it.

During this run I noticed that going at the slower speed hurt far more than the fast speed. The 10mph intervals obviously stressed my cardiovascular system a great deal, but the legs did not hurt. However whenever I slowed to the 7:12 recovery my legs did not really like it. It seems they can keep up a 6:00 pace for ever, but my lungs get tired out faster. I do not know if I am spending more time on the ground or not landing and taking off as fast but I was much more uncomfortable at the slower speed. Just need to keep running faster I guess :)

Tuesday I ran to my MicroBiology exam and ran to the Wellness Center after that, did 4 and ran back home for 5 on the day. Did them at a 7:12 pace, which was easy. Never was a looking at my speed and telling myself to run faster or slower. I simply ran at a comfortable speed, and that happens to be my hopeful pace for the May marathon.

Wednesday I was just a regular run. Nothing special, as running goes. However an odd thing did happen. I did one mile up on the track and my right IT band starting to hurt. This is the direction around the circle I try to avoid since I lean into the turn and believe it stretches my IT band. So I did a mile and it starts to hurt. I leave the track and finish the run on a treadmill, no pain at all. Odd how that works.

Friday I hammered out 11 at an easy 8 minute pace. Usually I try to stay at least with 7:12 or 7:30 miles minimum. However this day I just felt like sitting in and doing a nice easy run. The first five miles felt a bit awkward, and it was not until around starting mile 6 that I really got into the run. It is funny how sometimes I will not feel totally comfortable, and all of a sudden, "oh, this feels ok :)"

I have been curious and this came up at the Barefoot Forums, so I decided to do a little comparison between track, treadmill, and heart rate

1 Mile on the track at 7:00 = 153 bpm

1 Mile on the Woodway at 7:00 = 158 bpm

1 Mile on another treadmill at 7:00 pace = 153 bpm

Looking at that the Woodway was way off. Even the perceived exertion was much higher on that compared to the other two miles I did. This surprises me because the Woodway should be the most accurate machine in the building. The perceived exertion on the other treadmill was pretty constant with the track. I am not fully sure how to explain this. I would like to test the accuracy of the treadmills. This is done my simply knowing the track length and putting a piece of bright tape on a section. Then you put it at a mph and count how many times the tape comes around in so much time. Also the other treadmill tested is in a completely open area where the Woodway has a lower ceiling and a glass wall in front of it, looking down on the basketball courts. This could account for less air movement and me heating up faster perhaps.

The year is almost up, time to look at 2010 I suppose. Hopefully I have finally found what I need to run successfully.

My 2010 goals are as follows:

-Boston Qualification

-Complete Ironman

-Race a 50miler or finish 100 miler

-Run Injury Free

--And in turn, hit 3000 miles.

3,000 may be a lofty goal but if I can remain injury free I do not doubt I can do it. I will get 1400 this year and that is with taking about 3 months purely off from running, and a few other short periods off. That included almost the entire summer which would have been where the majority of my miles would have taken place.

Oh and you should check out the "About Me" section I added at the top right, under Navigation.

Thanks so much for reading, catch you on the flip side!

First barefoot run in -4 degrees, new 5kPR, and a marathon for the heck of it. What are your workouts like?

Ran barefoot for the first time, got a new 5k personal record, ran another marathon for the heck of it, and the Vibrams hit 700 miles

Monday I only ran four miles. I did not plan on doing anything too long and four is usually my go to for a short "run a few just to get a run in" run. These are usually supposed to be easier runs also, but they never end up being so. I ran the half mile to the Wellness Center in my Brooks and got up on the track. Threw the Vibrams on and went to it. Up on the track I was not purposely pushing the pace, just running comfortably at 6:45 minute miles. Sometime during this mile I decided to go a bit faster for the second mile and really drop the hammer for the last 1.1 miles. My previous best is 19:19 and this day I did 28 laps in exactly 19:19, but if I account for the last lap being longer than .1 it actually puts my 5k time at 19:15. Pretty good for running solo and not even trying to PR :)

It was the weekend before I believe when I decided I should HTFU and at some point run back home from the Wellness Center barefoot. So after the 5k up on the track I decided to just pick the coldest day and do it then, which happened to be that day. It was 8 degrees with a wind chill of -4.

So there I am after the 5k, standing outside in my Brooks. Waiting for the Garmin to pick up a satellite and searching for Linkin Park on my Ipod Shuffle. Finally I find Bleed it Out and the Garmin picks up a signal. Frack, now the shoes have to come off....I remove the ST4's and put them into my draw string bag that I bring with me to the WC to hold my heart rate monitor, phone, wallet, GU, etc. Not wanting to stand there any longer I take off. There were two options for the route. Sidewalks would take longer but I would have to go through less snow. Or go right over the grass and through the snow, but less actual distance and time running. I went with the latter, if I am going to HTFU and run barefoot when it is four below I might as well get the full experience. As I was running I did see one guy, as I passed him I yelled out "LOST A BET!" I did the half mile home at just over 6 minute pace. "Faster I run the faster I get home" I kept telling myself. This was really super ironic, but the image of people walking on hot coals came to mind during the run! I figured if people can do that I can spend 3 minutes running over zero degree ice and snow. Which I did.

This has been bothering me lately but I have been getting these really weird calf pains. It started very slowly a week ago. In the same spot I would, once in a while, get a stabbing pain on on the outside of my right calf muscle. Not sure what triggered the pain while I was running. The first run it only happened once, then each run it would happen maybe two or three times. It seemed much worse on the treadmill. Also looking back that machine is really the only change I have made to my training that I could think of to trigger a new pain. Monday I had the stabbing feeling a few times, so figured the timing was good to take the week off to focus on school. The odd thing was for two days the pain got worse each day. I would simply be sitting and get a throbbing pain in a couple isolated spots on my right calf. What really bothered me was it was also happening on my left calf as well, similar areas on the outside of my calf above my ankle. Luckily Thursday and Friday there was no pain at all so I figured I would be good to run on Friday.

So Friday rolls around. It was ok not running for three full days. Too much school work to be done with finals being the next week. I had a presentation on Wed discussing the position of the American Dietetic Association on Dietary Fat. Thur I had a presentation on our independent project for Food Science. Mine was on sensory analysis of muffins with different fat substitutions. We did a control using regular shortening, and then two other recipes. One had apple sauce instead of the shortening and the other had a homemade fruit puree. After that I had a presentation on Maple Syrup Urine Disease plus a 7 page paper to go with it. Also various other assignments had to be worked on. I decided it best to just take the week off, all the school stuff ending up going very well by the way.

Monday I had a couple classes and ran to the Wellness Center sometime between 1:30 and 2:00. I ran up on the track, not really knowing how far I felt like running. I have said it before but me not knowing how far I am going often results in 26.2 mile runs at 4 in the morning or double marathons on treadmills. So I am just going along at an easy pace, averaging 48 second laps. Now it has been a while since I have ran and I could not remember if my Boston qualification pace was 48 second laps or 50 second laps. I thought it was 48 second laps but it just seemed to be a really easy pace I was going at. FYI it is 48 second laps, which comes to a 7:12 pace per mile, or a 3:10 marathon. Just faster per mile faster then I need to run for Boston. Anyway after about 9 or so miles up on the track my right IT band will usually start to twinge. I have found that if I supinate more with that inside foot while turning it makes the IT twinge go away. I did that and finished mile 12. I went down stairs and did one more mile on a treadmill. At least I know it is obviously the track doing it because I can hop on a treadmill or run outside with no pain. Finished the mile and ran home. 14 miles at a 7:12 pace.

This has happened once before with this same runner. A few Fridays ago I went and ran at this time, and he got on the track when I was like 8 or whatever miles into my run. He paced off me for probably three miles. 6:36ish miles and he stuck right with me, seems to be a good runner. However last time on his final lap he passes me and sprints it. I was waiting for it and when he came around me at speed I stuck right with him for the entire lap. He was done but I kept on running and finished my 14.

I then ate and went to Cottonwood to do some homework. I was feeling surprisingly awesome and told myself if I finished my Assessment in Nutrition extra credit I could leave the coffee shop at 8pm and go run some more. Everything got done and I ran from my house shortly after 8. At this point I was obviously shooting for the marathon, and the second run was much slower as expected.

There was a girl who I see at Cottonwood often, walking on a treadmill upstairs and after I was a few miles into my second run she started up on the track as well. She eventually caught up to me and passed by. She was running a bit faster then I would have by myself so I used her as a pacer. I was on the outside and she was on the inside lane so at every corner I would fall a bit behind but catch up on the straights, yo yoing for the three or four miles she ran. She seemed fine with it since I am sure she recognized me and could have pretended to tie a shoe or jumped off the track for a second and let me keep running. The moment I dread whenever I am using someone as a rabbit, she took off and sprinted her final lap. They always do. After she left I tried to keep my pace up but knew it would inevitably slow. I finished running at a distance where the run home would put me at 26.2 miles. Perfect :)

With no purpose or goal or preparation or nutrition plan my marathon was done at a 7:50 minute per mile pace. Like I said the first 14 were at 7:12 so the last half was obviously much slower. For the first run I had a GU at the beginning and drank water once in a while throughout. I had half a serving of my recovery powder and a couple tuna fish sandwiches afterwards. Before the second run I had a GU, halfway through I went and bought some gummy fruit chews, and drank water throughout. Not a nutrition plan I would recommend even to an enemy. Amazingly, only about 15 minutes total or 37 seconds per mile slower then my Boston qualification time for the marathon. I am supremely confident I could have finished the entire 26.2 at Boston pace if I would have done it all in one shot.

There are usually plenty of hotties up running on the track, and I love staring at their shoes when I come up on them from behind. I even stair at guy's shoes and running form and how their foot lands all the time. Cannot get enough of it. I see three types of form when up on the track.

One is the heel strikers. This just looks utterly painful to me now that I have gotten way past that.

Second is the forefoot or midfoot runners. Most of the time they land much too far forward on their foot and bounce up and down. This results in wasted energy that could be better utilized in forward motion. The excessive bounces also puts a great deal of stress on the calves and is just as bad as heel striking. I made this same mistake when I first began running.

And every once in a while I see solid form. The ticket is minimal bounce and the foot striking the ground under the center of the runner's gravity, not in front.

Then there is one guy who holds his shoulders way up, keeps his arms stiff, and looks like he is trying to defecate a pine cone.

Saturday's recovery run was a ride on the struggle bus. I planned on only doing a few miles. Not a workout but just something to get the legs moving. I could have ran forever but the entire three miles was just really uncomfortable and I could never get into the groove. I had little pains all throughout my feet during the run. It felt good to get running but it felt very nice to finish up too!

Sunday I felt great again, really almost totally recovered! I ran 8 miles at 7:09 pace on a treadmill since I was not really in the mood for the track after the 205 laps on Friday. Also I used the new Woodway. I have described it as feeling like running on clouds, it's fantastic. The running surface is rubber slabs instead of a thin rubber belt.

These are the real deal. The best thing is it allows for both ascents and descents for hill training. I can practice going up hills on any treadmill but going down is a different story. Having skill descending will come in handy during any marathons or the ultra out in the Black Hills.

My urine is also still a pretty nice fluorescent yellow a day and a half after the marathon. That is to be expected I suppose since my fluid intake was pretty low on Friday during the 26 miles and today I was sweating like a small nun during penguin hunting season while doing the 8.

As of writing this the Vibrams are at....shoot well I do not have my training journal with me. Something like 713 miles. It seems like the two small holes in the bottom are not growing much, likely because I am not running on roads anymore. And if I am the concrete or asphalt is covered with snow. I have not looked at the two sew up jobs I did lately but since doing the first one I have barely been tightening the straps. Just enough to keep the shoe on and from being noticeably loose.

Lastly is has recently come to my attention that I have surpassed my speeds from last school year before my injury and two month hiatus from running. I was just telling Barb about a month ago how it would be a struggle to break even 20 in a 5k, now here this week I set a new PR. My half marathon distance training runs are being done at a pace of about 7:30 at the slowest, and that is a pretty comfortable speed. Now with Saturday's run I am sure I have surpassed all my previous distance and speed records. (Aside from the double marathon on the treadmill) I did the first 14 at a 7:12 pace and did the entire 26.2 at 7:50, and that was with a three hour break in the middle which did nothing but make the last 12.2 really slow and uncomfortable.

Things are looking good for a Boston qualification. Maybe I can even break 3 hours? I have 6 months to train for the marathon still. All I am shooting for is Boston as of right now, sub 3 may still remain in the back of my mind though...

Another thought I have had recently is about the ultra I plan on doing. I am thinking about either racing the 50 miles or simply completing the 100. Looking at last year's results, if I were to run 10 minute miles for 50 miles that would have put me finishing 23 minutes before the second place finisher. In 9 months that may very well be do-able. Something to think about...

That is it for the week. Finals is up next! No classes, getting some extra shifts in at work, and hopefully lots of running. What's not to love? Have a great week everyone!

My fast apologizes for making your fast look like apple sauce.

Someone once said "You will never, ever, feel worse after a run than before." and during my Monday night run that was never more true. I was at Cottonwood from 5 to 9 and if there was a bed near by I could have been asleep in five minutes, even with three small cups of coffee in me. Jenna and I were running after that, and I REALLY did not want to. I however knew once I got out onto the road, all would be well.

We ended up doing 5.5 together. I miss running with her five days a week like we did during the summer and early on in the school year. It was a bit cold and my fingers were non functional when I got back home. Through some clumsy effort I managed to get my Ipod on, grabbed my rent, and ran to the Wellness Center. There I did a few miles up on the track just before they closed shop. After that I ran to drop rent off and back to home. 8.5 miles total, it felt good.

Wed was 13 up on the track. I ran to Micro and from there to the WC so had 14 total for the day. Getting ready for the run, the fact that I would pretty much be stuck inside for the next few months really hit me. My short 4 mile recovery runs, or even the longer 9 mile tempo runs are no big deal up on the track or on a dreadmil. But when it comes to anything up to or past 10 miles my IT band acts up. 13 miles is 117 laps, 468 corners, and about 8,775 steps with each foot. The IT tract may twinge for the rest of the night when walking or a bit tomorrow. However running it will be fine. When I ran home after the 13 there was no problem.

Quick word of advice. If attacked by someone with a gun, RUN! Go in a zigzag pattern if you think about it. They will only hit you 1 in 25 times, and odds are they will not get a vital organ if the attacker does happen to hit you. I am also a pretty fast runner, so I like those odds.

It was awesome. There are two other people whom I know at SDSU that train in Vibrams, and they were both at the Wellness Center at the same time as me. Both are pretty cool guys as well, the little I have talked to them. Nice to see others representing.

I kind of enjoy my reputation. Shannon told me her male friend asked her if I was the guy that ran a lot. Two other times that evening I got comments about my running. One was a girl asking about the Vibrams and answered her questions. The Ok I really enjoy my reputation :)

On Thursday I caught two grade school aged brothers stealing YuGiOh! cards in the bathroom at Walmart. There was a bunch of wrappers in the garbage and the kids were out walking around with cards in their hands. Later we saw them go back into the bathroom and I followed, finding them together in a stall. Obviously opening the card wrappers. We called a manager up front and he ripped into them. I could not help but grin, it was just funny. However at the same time I felt horrible. Their obese mother rolled up in her motorized cart. They obviously were living at a low socioeconomic level. One kid was pretty quite while the other was hyperventilating, crying, and repeating "I don't shop lift" over and over again. The mom continued to shop and came through the checkouts a half hour later, with the kid still crying and repeating that he does not shoplift. It ended up being about $50 in cards after they were done.

Lately with the cold weather it seems neckbeards are becoming more popular. That may be the wrong word, they will never be popular but are worn by people. I am sure you are familiar with the growth, but if not, exhibit A:

These are often grown by overweight people attempting to cover up double or triple chins to make it appear like they have a neck. Also it is common among dungeon and dragon players. The more unkept and pronounced your neckbeard, the higher your level.

However let it be known, that neckbeards, are never under any circumstances, cool. People complement nice beards all the time. People never, compliment neck beards. There is a reason for this.

I like all of the songs on my Itunes, except when I am listening to them on my Ipod Shuffle. When walking back from class or during a run I only like 1 in 10 or 1 in 5 if it's a good day.

I ended the week with an six on Friday, six on Sat, and 4 on Sunday. My right calf has been aching these past few days. I am wondering if it is not from the treadmill. I have been inside more lately but it has only been in the last last week or maybe two that I have been on that machine more. I should probably just harden the fuck up and run outside more. I have been running to and from the Wellness Center but would like to do more. I will have to upgrade my gloves though.

Gloves...I just read a review on a good pair of gloves that I thought was very well prices....one sec, where did I see that..

...

The Sugoi Firewall. 35 dollars from most places. I would like to find a good winter glove that does not have a wrist on it, since I find I usually roll mine up anyway. Getting one without that option is unlikely though.

So my madre y padre took me to Pizza Ranch today after I got off work. It was nice talking with them for the hour or so we were there. I realized during during the chat that I would not object to Desi as strongly if she were to bring up transferring back to SDSU. I always tell her to just finish out at Black Hills State U. She was here for her first year but it would just be easier to stay there. However I have been reeaalllyy missing her lately and it has been tough.

She will be in Mexico going to school near Veracruz next semester. She may not have a phone to use but there is always Skype dates :) That will be really hard not being able to see her in person for over two months before and after I go and visit. We found tickets are about 725 dollars to Veracruz. Yeah not cheap but it will be worth it. I have never even flown before, so spending a week in Mexico is going to be amazing.

There was someone else at the Wellness Center Sunday night in Vibrams. I always see him and his wife at WC or once in a while at Walmart. I think they are in the bio department, very outdoorsy. Cool people. He had on a pair of Classics, which I think I will get once mine are done.

Lets end the post with a review of my new sunglasses :) They are awesome by the way!

So I have worn many sunglasses in my time, most notably the Oakley M-Frames, and Rudy Project Sport Mask. Recently I came across a fantastic opportunity and purchased a pair of Rudy Project Ketyums.

The Ketyums differ from the above two in a number of ways. The M-Frames have the best shaped lenses I have ever worn. They flow smooth across your face and past your eyes. The Sportmasks had minimal frame and what it did have was carbon fibre, so they were excessively light. The Ketyums are made of a metalic alloy, making them heavier then both other pairs. This does give them a much more sturdy feeling then most glasses you will wear.

What puts these apart from Tifosi, Oakley, and even other Rudy Project glasses I have worn is their adjust ability. Rudys may be the most adjustable frames out there, but these even put the Sportsmask to shame. The M-Frames I wore lacked pretty much all give. The nose piece was one piece that could not shape to your fit. The frame did not flex much at all, so the size it was was the size it was. The Rudy Project Syleros I have worn had Rudy's rubber coated temple tips and ergonose nose pads with proprietary spring hinges. These can be moved closer or spread apart, or up and down to fit any face. The Sportmask had a similar nose piece. Being a super light frame, the Sportsmask would also spread a bit to fit a wider head. The Ketyums have the great nose piece for adjustability there, but also it much more comfortable around your head as well. The Ketyums have spring loaded temples built into the frame. This makes for putting them on and forgetting about them when wearing super easy.

The first picture is obviously where the frame normally sits. The second picture is how spread the hinges can open. If they sit on your head past the normal point, they slightly grip above your ears a bit. The frame also flexes a small amount above the eyes, allowing for some give when putting them on.

These retail at $274.99 which is obviously a disadvantage. Most people would never pay more then 30 for a pair of sunglasses. However when you get to triathletes and cyclists, whom can be quite obsessive gear junkies, nice sunglasses are not so out of the question. I got a deal on these, being a college student there was no way way I could pull off the retail price.

Anyone can argue over sunglasses and the companies, and which is superior. However there is no argument that Rudy's replacement warranty is one of the best in the business. For a minimal 20 dollars you can send in your old lenses and they will replace them for life. That includes scratches or anything. There is also a three year frame replacement policy at half retail I believe. Oakley does not even touch that with their replacement policy. Oakley has a one year replacement on eyewear if purchased from an authorized dealer. Scratched lenses however are not covered, but you can purchase replacements starting at $40.

Honestly I would not recommend these to people simply because of the price. Luckily most of the features can be found in less expensive Rudy Project eyewear. Nearly all of their pairs have amazing adjustability on the nose piece, which is what truly sets the brand apart. Check them out at e-rudy.com

Thanks so much for reading!