Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 5K

Keep Kids Alive Drive 25 5K was race #15 and was the last race of the first quarter (wall street lingo) of Bob's 50 @ 50. At this pace, I will run 60 races but won't, but it does give me a little room for rest during the summer months if I want.


This was the inaugural for this race and drew close to 250 runners which is a great number for a first time race and this was with an overcast rainy morning.

Briana Jackucewicz, along with Morgan Clark, Nicole Lupo, Courtney Joline, Travey Vill and Chelsea Hancock were the co-race directors. They are all seniors at Colt's Neck High School and put this race on as a Service Learning Project which is a requirement for all seniors. Their goal besides putting on a great race was to raise awareness within the community the importance of safe driving where kids are playing.


I ran with Taugh Lynch today. He ran a solid 21:39 and was first in his age group and I ran a 19:58 which was good for 2nd in my age group and 20th overall. I was extremely happy to break 20 minutes again but wasn't sure if I could do it today. I ran an 8 mile training run yesterday so I was happy my legs responded. My splits were 6:24 (HR 150), 6:35 (HR 161), 6:18 (HR 164) and I really pushed it the last mile. I am thinking I can go 19:25 before the years is out.

Next week I have another 5K in New Hope. I don't mind running the 5K's but like the longer distances. They don't put me in oxygen debt as much.

I have only 5 races scheduled for April, but one is my first relay which I am looking forward to. Taugh, Dale Hoth, John Liptak and Ken White will be joining me at the Jersey Shore relay marathon.

Only One Hill

John Liptak, Taugh Lynch & I found out this afternoon that we were accepted into the Mt Washington Road Race. We had to enter a lottery to see if we would get in. I think this is a bit of - be careful what you wish for, because now we have to seriously train for this race. For those of you not familiar with this event, it is a 7.6 mile run up the toll road of the highest point in the northeast with an average of an 11.5 incline. As race director Bob Teschek would say, "it's only one hill".This will be my signature race during Bob's 50 @ 50 and I thank John and Taugh for coming along for the ride. Taugh and I tossed around the idea of running this race about 5 years ago but decided against it. Now that we are 5 years older it seemed to make sense now. Not sure why. John loves running trail races and last year he ran the Bear Mountain trail run so this wasn't too much of a stretch for him. This race always intrigued me because I have always wanted to hike Mt Washington and I love running, so I figured to just combine the two. Taugh and I have been training in hopes that we would get accepted. We would meet at the NYSC gym on Wall street, crank up the treadmill to an incline of 11.5 and just start running. Our speed is only 4.5 so we are just plodding along but you really can't go any faster unless you want your heart to pop out of your chest. So the hard work begins and I just have to stay injury free. Take a look at some of the pics from past years.

Shamrock 1/2 Marathon

My third 1/2 marathon of the year turned out to be my best time ever at the distance. I ran a chip time of 1:31:33 on an absolutely perfect day for a race. I beat my best time by almost 4 minutes while finishing 6th in my age group out of 201. I was determined to run 7's the whole way hoping to hold that pace till the finish. After starting out with a 7:37 first mile, I ran right around 6:55's for most of the race except for the last mile where I pushed it for a 6:46 for an average pace of just shy of 7. (see splits below) There were close to 6,000 runners for the half marathon and once again it finished up on the boardwalk. I didn't partake in the beers this time around because I was heading home shortly after the race. Amy Frostick who is the race coordinator for the Shamrock Sportsfest weekend did a great job. It was a runner's dream with all the different races and the venue was perfect. Virginia Beach was not crowded so it was easy to get around and all the businesses catered to the runners. I would recommend this race weekend to anyone who loves running.

Today was race #14 and it was the sixth state I have run in this year. (NY, NJ, LA, PA, DE, VA) If all goes well, I will be in a few more before the year is out. On my way home I stopped by the University of Delaware to have lunch with my daughter Leigh. Next week I am running a 5K in Colt's Neck, NJ. Please consider joining me.

splits & heart rate

1 - 7:37 (133) 9 - 6:58 (147)

2 - 7:01 (147) 10 - 7:07 (146)

3 - 6:52 (148) 11 - 6:51 (146)

4 - 6:55 (147) 12 - 7:00 (147)

5 - 7:01 (148) 13 - 6:46 (152)

6 - 6:55 (149) .1 - .45 (158)

7 - 6:57 (148)

8 - 6:58 (148)

Shamrock 8K - Virginia Beach

I was up at 6:15am to get ready for the first of two races this weekend. The 8am start was no problem since my hotel was just a few blocks away. I ran easy (39:06) but I was dying to kick it into gear, but knew I needed to save myself for tomorrow's 1/2. Over 7,000 runners finished the 8K and the start was packed with excited runners. Many of them dressed in green. The post race party was on the beach under a huge tent where you could find the Irish Stew, Yuengling and the band. I couldn't believe I was drinking beer before 9am but by 10am I had 4 Yuenglings. The band was excellent and I met up with the RVRR runners. Mike Dixon, Kyle Spencer, Mike Anis, Bill Hulbert, Lianne Price & Brandis Kemp. Each runner received a few drink tickets which allowed you to get a free beer. The runners who weren't interested in drinking that early dropped their tickets on our table. When they did that, the RVRR gave them a group hug. We met many folks as they dropped their tickets off. Everyone was having a great time. This is a race that you need to do if you feel like traveling. Great atmosphere and great people. The Irish Stew was great as well. I will try to get some rest tonight, but only if I don't try to keep up with the rest of the RVRR runners.

Shamrock Expo

I made it to VA Beach in 6 hours today, arriving at 6pm. I headed over to the expo at the convention center at 7:30 to pick up my numbers to both races. It was crowded but very orderly and the T-shirts are top notch. They also lots of vendors there offering everything from runners jewelry to GU. I tried and bought a can of Verve which promises to replace what I lose after running. Dan was a very effective sales woman. We will see. Grabbed a bite at Murphy's Bar, then headed to the Ocean Sands.

Virginia is for Runners- Races #13 & 14

I am looking forward to races 13 & 14 this weekend in Virginia. Virginia Beach is hosting a huge race weekend dubbed the Shamrock Sportsfest which includes a 5 mile, 1/2 marathon and full marathon. I am doing the 5 mile run on Saturday then the 1/2 marathon on Sunday. My family was suppose to join me but my older son has his baseball fantasy draft and Michael has a Sunday soccer game so alone I go. I am hooking up with a few Raritan Valley Road Runner club members when down there and I'll make some new friends as well. I plan to run the 5 mile race easy and go hard on Sunday. Weather looks to be perfect for both days.

Kelly's Logan House 5K

I hit double digits in races today with #10 in Wilmington Delaware. The 10th annual Kelly's Logan House 5K enjoyed perfect weather for a run. It had to be at least 70 degrees and the sun was out which was a nice switch from this past Monday. This was the first race the whole family would be participating including one of Leigh's friends (Kathy) from the University of Delaware. Bobby and I ran, Leigh and Kathy ran/walked and Michael and Ro walked the course. Bobby finished with a time of 26:46 and I ran a 20:31 while the rest of the group was over 35 minutes. I thought Delaware was flat so I was in for a real surprise when after a slight downhill start, we began to climb a 600 meter hill. It didn't end there as we had more hills to deal with in Rockford Park. I think we finally started downhill at the 1 3/4 mile mark. The fast downhill finish was nice. I placed 2nd in my age group and was about 20 seconds behind the first 50 year old guy. He passed me on the second climb at mile 1 and I thought I might catch him on the flat or downhill portion but i was wrong. The post race party was held at Kelly's which included pizza, pretzels and a free beer. The awards took a while as the guy in charge was doing his stand up act with every runner. He was funny, but we wanted to get going. I had a great time running with the family look forward to another race with them soon. Next up is a pair of St Patty's runs next weekend. Come join me, I am sure there will be beer afterwards and lots of stories.

Morristown St. Patty's 5K

19:53 - Under 20 for a 5K for the first time in years. I ran solo today as I couldn't persuade anyone to join me. That's ok, there will be a big crowd tomorrow at the KDM 3 mile run in Sea Bright. Over 1200 runners showed up for this race. I planned to go hard from the start, but I heard about this hill at mile 2 so I was thinking maybe I should pull back. After going thru the first mile in 6:24, I thought, just keep pushing. When I hit this hill, I felt like I wasn't even moving, but I was passing people. Mile 3 was all downhill so that made up for mile two. I didn't finish in the top ten in my age group of 50-59 which is amazing. Hey folks, people are out there keeping in shape. Maybe you should also. Invest in yourself.

Keith D McHeffey 3 Mile Run

This is my first post to my new Blog. Today was race 12, Keith D McHeffey 3 mile run in Sea Bright, NJ. I have been doing this race for the last 8 years. I consider it the unofficial start of the Jersey Shore racing season. Bob's 50 @ 50 had the biggest turnout of runners to date. Taugh Lynch was there with his wife Durie along with Ceceilia the youngest of their six children. Taugh pushed Ceceilia in the jogging stroller through the crowd. Taugh is one of my closest running friends going back to our Bankers Trust days. Brennan Davis, Jim Dengler (24:55), his wife Anne (25:02)and daughter MaryKate (24:55) were also there. Brennan & Jim I know from my Securities Lending days. The "Total Package", Tom Ryan (28:24) was also there. Tommy and I worked together at BT and DB. Senator" Ken Vercammen also joined me although he didn't run due to a nagging hamstring injury, but he did bike to the start from his home in South Brunswick. My two special friends Katie (45:36) & Sean Brady (32:55) joined me as well. Our daughters are best friends and it was great to see them enjoy the day. Weather was supposed to be 57 and sunny but we saw none of that today. Although there was no wind, it remained chilly. It was perfect for running but not for drinking at the outdoor patio at the Mad Hatter which was down the road from the finish. I (26:35) paced Durie who was hoping to break 24 minutes but we finished just north of 26 minutes. Once again this course wasn't accurate, but it wasn't about racing today, more about getting together. Well, 12 races down and only 38 to go. My body is holding up well and I am looking forward to another double next weekend in Virginia Beach. I am hoping to meet up with some runners from the Raritan Valley Road Runners Club. It should be fun. Until next time, get out there and get that heart pumping.