Friday Spotlight: Jeade-en
##[Note: Today's Spotlight runner has a busy/unique schedule. I'd like to apologize in advance as he may not be able to respond to your questions immediately. He's informed me that he will do what he can to get to your comments in a timely manner as soon as he can. Thanks!]
Today's featured runner is truly one of a kind and has a ton of passion for the things he does. Not only in running but in the free time that he has as well. Yet another recognizable name when browsing r/running, he's always in and out doing what he can to help other runners and add to this subreddit. I had to keep it local when I nominated this week's Spotlight runner so in typical Hoosier fashion let's get started. Here it is folks this week's highlighted athlete.../u/Jeade-en!
Let's roll...
###The Runner:
First Name?
Doug
Age?
39
Where are you from?
Franklin, IN
Occupation?
Software Engineer
###Running Q&A's:
What are your PR’s?
- 5K - 20:20
- 5 Mile - 38:16
- 10K - 55:03 (Only 10K I've ever run, and it's a pretty soft PR. Raced it on vacation on about 3 hours sleep at high elevation)
- Half - 1:39:33
- Marathon - 3:39:45
What is your distance PR?
26.2. Though, a friend and I once did what we've called an Ultra Half Marathon. We did a half, and totally forgot where the car was parked, so we wondered a couple extra miles around downtown until we finally found it.
What’s your highest recorded weekly mileage?
56 miles...but, I'm hoping to finish the current Super Week north of 60.
What’s your comfy pace?
Around 9:00/mile in this summer of murderous humidity. In more normal temps, more like 8:20 - 8:30.
How long have you been running?
A little over 10 years consistently.
Tell us why you began running?
I had been a warm-weather runner for a few years in my 20's. I would start up in the Spring, do well over the Summer and Fall, and then totally quit when it got cold. One year, I bought a treadmill, and ran on it in my basement exclusively over the Winter...and I was amazed at how well I was running when I didn't take 4 months off. Fortunately, the next Winter, I came to my senses and realized treadmills are made from the essence of evil, and I just ran outdoors...been going ever since.
Most memorable running moment?
I can't seem to pick just one, so this will be a little long #sorrynotsorry
- My first marathon was the Air Force Marathon in 2008. If you've never been there, they do an absolutely mesmorizing flyover to start the race. I don't know what kind of jet it was, but some fantastic figher jet flew over the top of the pack of us waiting at the race start, and it felt like it nearly stopped, then tipped upwards, roared the engines and shot nearly vertical. It was absolutely amazing to see...so amazing, in fact, that my Dad yelled at me from the sidelines to get my attention. I was staring at the jet as the race had literally started around me...runners were going around me as best they could, and I was standing there like an idiot staring upwards.
- I've done the Bourbon Chase 200 mile relay with a group of friends for the past 3 years, and year 4 will be in October. It's seriously the most fun running thing I do. My first year, I had a nearly magical night run. It was around 2 or so in the morning, I had been awake for almost 20 hours at that point, I'm running down the shoulder of some random highway in Kentucky...and I was flying. There was a full moon, wind was dead still, and it was bordering on too cold for shorts, but not quite. I came in about 5 minutes ahead of schedule on a 6 mile run...it was one of those pure runs where it hardly feels like your feet touch the ground..
- A few years ago, I decided to try back to back half marathons as something new and challenging. So, I signed up and ran the Indianapolis Mini Marathon on Saturday, and the Flying Pig Half in Cincinnati on Sunday. I very clearly remember waiting for the Mini to start, I looked up and saw helicopters covering the event, and everything got sorta quiet in my head, and I just had this overwhelming "what the hell am I doing?" feeling roll over me, and I just laughed...like a sort of mad cackle. Then it was over, and I ran both races and did pretty well...I've done it a couple times now. But that moment is perfectly clear in my mind.
- From what I know of him, I've always liked Bart Yasso. I was running in the Chicago Marathon last year, and scanning the crowd for my family, and I saw Bart. He was leaning on the rail in with the regular crowd, not doing anything official, but he was clapping and cheering for anyone and everyone. I pointed straight at him and caught his eye, and he pointed right back, and then clapped and cheered and yelled for me until I was past him. I like to think of myself as front of the mid-pack, but I'm nothing special as a runner. It's not like he was watching for elites and then left...he was out on his own time cheering and supporting regular runners like me. It was a very cool moment.
Do you have a running mantra?
I don't know if it's a mantra, but I like the concept of Relentless Consistency. I try to apply that idea to everything running-wise. Do the right things for your training, and do them relentlessly. If it's workout day, hit it hard, if it's time to foam roll in the evening, don't skip it, if it's recovery run day, make sure it's nice and easy, if you feel an injury starting, don't be stupid, take care of it. Be consistent. Be relentless in your consistency.
What time of day do you prefer to run?
Morning is the only answer...all you other people are doing it wrong.
Any big races coming up?
My first ultra! Tunnel Hill 50 mile in November. I've said for many years that I wanted to do a 50 mile race before I turned 40. I'm going to miss that deadline, but only by a couple weeks. It's my 40th birthday present to myself.
What are your short-term running goals?
3:30 marathon and 20 minute 5K. I think I'm relatively close on both of those. Also, finish that 50 miler without incurring actual death.
What are your long-term running goals?
- Boston Qualifier.
- Boston Qualifier that's fast enough that I can run Boston.
What’s one piece of running advice you’d give to the younger version of yourself?
Slow down, dumbass. I was a classic race-your-training kind of runner for a long time...too long. If I wasn't running fast, then I didn't think I was improving.
What is something you need to work on to become a better runner?
Two things come to mind. First, I have real trouble getting into a consistent pre-hab routine (not very Relentlessly Consistent of me, I'm a work in progress). I will start a routine, do well for a few months...then I'll miss a day for some random reason, then two days, then all the sudden a month has gone by. Second thing is diet. I tend to eat what I want and run it off, and it's about 50/50 healthy meals vs not very healthy meals. So could be worse, but could be better. Diet is hard for me, though, because I have IBS, and trigger foods for me include lots of vegetables and leafy greens. So, easy healthy choices, like a big salad for lunch, is not an option for me...my stomach can't handle it.
What is your current shoe choice?
New Balance 1260v5. The v6 just came out, but I opted to stick with v5 again because it was a bit cheaper. I often think about trying other shoes, but have never pulled the trigger.
Trail? Road? Track? Or Treadmill?
Road. I will do speedwork on occasion on the track at the local college, and there's also an indoor track in town I use on the rare occasions it's unsafe to be outdoors. I would like to try some trail running, but that also involves driving to trails...and I really, really like just opening my door and running. Treadmills? Don't speak to me of Treadmills.
What is your ideal running weather?
About 45 degrees, light breeze, and overcast. Although, warm and rainy is quickly becoming a favorite time to run as well.
Do you have any social media accounts you’d like to share? [Facebook, Strava, Twitter]
###Just For Fun:
What’s your spirit animal?
Somebody brought up Ron Swanson as a spirit animal in comments a couple weeks ago, and that's a very tempting answer to steal. I don't have an awe-inspiring answer coming to mind, but I keep coming back to dog for a few reasons.
- I generally believe people have good intentions.
- I will trust and respect you until you give me a reason not to
- Once lost, my trust and respect is hard to earn back.
- I can stay in one room for hours relaxing and be perfectly happy
- I can also go to a party and hang out with tons of people and be perfectly happy
- I like treats
What hobbies and interests do you have besides running?
My main hobby is restoring our 1902 Victorian home with my wife. She and I get into quite a lot of projects, and while we're not fast, we do good work. If you want to get into our restoration life, my wife runs a pretty successful blog about it at VivaciousVictorian.com. Go check it out! Outside of that, I collect and restore cast iron cookware. I do most of my cooking in pieces that are 100 years old or more. Also, I've been playing trombone for close to 30 years. My opportunities to play now are mostly in volunteering with my wife's students (she's a high school band director)...so I don't play nearly as much as I did in school, but I still do get to play on a semi-regular basis. One of these days we'd like to get involved in a community band, and there are some good ones around here...we just haven't found the time yet.
Do you have any hidden talents?
Does championship level sweating count? My personal record is losing 10lbs on a 10 mile run. Also, I can fall asleep almost the minute my head hits the pillow...it's truly a gift.
Biggest pet peeve?
Probably the biggest would be inconsiderate drivers. I really hate people who realize they're in the wrong lane, and then block everything up while they try to find their way over at the last second. How about instead of inconveniencing EVERYONE, you just inconvenience yourself by going forward and finding a place to turn around? But, in general, when you're behind the wheel, drive as if there are also other people on the road and you don't hate them.
Also, I kinda can't stand the word Adulting. I get it, sometimes the mundane reality of being an adult sucks, but that word just grates on me.
Dream job! What would it be?
My wife and I have talked about this, and we would love to be able to rescue old houses for a living. I would say flip houses, but that comes with the wrong connotation. We want to take old houses that are in dis-repair, and restore them to their glory days, and then sell and move on to the next house. We're not talking about builder-grade things you see now, but actually building (or re-building) them like they used to.
Favorite Quote or Poem?
"Running is ultimately about the 'freedom of the hills', the ability to move through the land the way God intended, and enjoying the experience" -- Unknown
"If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?" -- John Wooden
What is your biggest character flaw?
I have a surprisingly poor short term memory, and it can be very frustrating. Somebody can ask me to do something, and 5 minutes later, it's 50/50 whether I remember it or not. It's not uncommon for me to walk into a room to do something and not remember what I was going to do. Also, my limit for lists seems to be 3. If I have a shopping list of 3 things, I'm good to remember it...if you give me 4 things, I'll forget 2 of them. I will know I had 2 other things to buy, but no idea what they are.
What songs have you been listening to recently?
I'm old school, and still tend to do albums instead of songs...so looking at spotify history, here's what's been on recently:
- Hamilton (and we're going to see it in Chicago around Thanksgiving!)
- Phish - Rift
- Reefer Madness
- Forrest Gump Soundtrack (stupid running jokes aside, it's a quality soundtrack)
What are some of your favorite non-running subreddits?
I don't venture out much, but lurk sometimes in r/castiron, r/wicked_edge, and r/Breadit. Also, shout out to r/RunningWithDogs. Not super active, but is extremely helpful if you're looking to take your dog training with you...mine's been running with me for about 8-9 months now.
###One Last Question:
What is the origin of your username?
Jeade'en was the name of one of Rand al'Thor's horses from the Wheel of Time series. I always liked the name, and it came to mind while I was thinking of a username. I chose to use a dash instead of an apostrophe because I'm a software engineer. And while I have to assume reddit is smart enough to sanitize their data, I will not, on principal, do anything to be a part of a Bobby Tables incident.
I know I seem to say this with just about every Spotlight but even more so this time around I related to a ton of things that Jeade-en said and does. I feel like he might be the older version of me who's just not gotten into ultras yet (but soon enough). I really appreciate Jeade-en taking the time out of his busy schedule to share a bit about who he is and what makes him tick. What a cool dude! I really admire his passion for restoring his home to it's original glory and I hope one day I can do the same thing. I'll see you at Tunnel Hill man! Here's to you u/Jeade-en!
#As usual please tag u/Jeade-en's username when asking him a question in this thread!
If you don't the running Gods will give you incurable shin splints for the rest of your life and you'll die a sad lonely wanna-be hobbyjogger.
If I see that you've failed to tag him after asking him a question, I'll try my best to respond to your question by tagging him myself. So be aware. Tagging his username alerts him that his attention is needed. This way, he doesn't have to sift through all of the comments one by one, which can be a rather daunting task when there is a lot of traffic to the thread. Please don't forget that all of our Friday Spotlight athletes may need time to respond to your comments and questions so give them some time to reply.
####Thanks for reading everyone!!!
Previously Featured Spotlight Runners:
Posted Aug 19, 2016, 12:44 PM UTC · edited