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Replacing an Oil Pan Gasket Without Disconnecting the Transmission!

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Our 2004 Malibu LT had a slow oil leak. Over the Fourth of July, it progressed to a small puddle of oil in the driveway. It took some time to investigate the cause and a little courage to turn some bolts, but now the car is leak-free. Here’s a recap of what I did. The car was leaking on the front of the engine, which in this car means the passenger side. Observing the area by the crankshaft was difficult because the splash shield is a two-part component. Upon inspection, the front seal looked like it was leaking. I cleaned it up and the boss around the seal, and put the liner back in place. Cleaned front seal and boss. Almost immediately, the car started leaking again. A week later, when I re-inspected the front seal, it was clean, as was the boss. I thought it could be the oil pan gasket, the timing cover gasket, or the oil filter adapter gasket. I cleaned the area around the oil p
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Using Energy Gels for Hard Efforts

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Fueling Whilst Running: It’s Not Limited to Long Runs I usually take fuel in the form of gels for long runs. I typically consume gels during (not before) runs that take me more than an hour and a half. In addition, I will take a gel before the race starts for half-marathons and marathons. Last Saturday, I had a 5K time trial scheduled as part of my training plan. After completing my warmup, which consisted of a 1-mile jog and four strides, I decided to consume a gel. Many factors worked in my favor that day. The weekly mileage was reduced like a cut-back week, and the weather was much cooler. I dialed in my time trial pace from my last attempt (8:20/mi.) and let it rip. I had negative splits and a 2024 PB! I was 5.5 seconds away from a true PB. I averaged 8:09/mi and ran 5K in 25:31. I am still determining how much the gel contributed to my physical performance and whether or not there was a psychological advantage. On Monday, 10x 1/4 Mile Intervals were on my schedule. This workout in
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Summer Running Tips

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This summer feels much warmer than last summer. I want to share my not-so-earth-shattering tips for running in the summer. Run Early On these hotter days, I try to get my runs in earlier. The added benefit is that if you run early, your run for the day is already accounted for. Run Late Sometimes, due to other commitments, I can’t run early. I break out the headlamp, and I run late. The run early and run late combination can lead to some interesting phenomena. A couple of weeks ago, my late run was on the day people put their trash out for pickup. My early run was the next morning, and the trash cans were still out there for pickup. This also highlights that some of the runs feel like doubles since there are less than 12 hours between the runs. Keep Easy, Easy On the days I need to run during the heat, I remind myself to take my easy days, easy. If I have a speed workout scheduled for the day, I run the warmup, any recovery periods, and cool downs easy. Leapfrog Towards the Shade As it
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I Wish I Would Have [BLANK]!

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I had two thoughts as I prepared this blog post.  I wish I would have run earlier! Yesterday morning, I went out for a run to beat the afternoon heat. Although I woke up around 7 a.m., I started my run at 9:30 a.m. Part of my hesitation was the lack of desire to run eight quarter-mile intervals at my 5K pace. Of course, once I was out there, I had no problem completing them and was happy with my progress. However, at 9:45 a.m., the sun broke through the clouds. It was not unbearable, but if I started earlier, I could have done the bulk of my workout with partly cloudy skies. I wish I would have started my 10K training sooner! I was looking at my statistics in Garmin Connect and saw that I logged 36.5 miles for the past seven days (July 9-15). The last time I had a volume of miles almost that high was in late April/early May, and those weeks topped out at 33 miles. As I wrapped up my 5K training, I was in a no man’s land regarding a disciplined training plan for about a month and the la
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Back at It

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I have lots of thoughts floating around in my head. The TLDR is that I am ready to work for a 10K PB. As I mentioned in my post two weeks ago, Motivation Factors and Running , I need more than a loose plan to get me out the door. With the recent heat wave, chasing a 5K PB was insufficient motivation. I even lost the motivation to post a blog last week. Two weeks ago, I ran twice for a total of 14 miles. Last week, I ran six times for a total of 25 miles.  I have lost fitness, and I know I have lost the desire to run a fast 5K. I reflected on what I have accomplished. I set a 2024 PB in the 5K with a time of 26:02. I missed my goal of running faster than my 25:25 PB. However, I did get faster because I started with a 26:41 5K in the middle of the training block. When I set my goals for the year, I said that if I did not hit my 5K goal in the first block, there would be a chance in my 10K training block. Let’s see what happens. My last 10K PB was in 2
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Motivation Factors and Running

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When it comes to training, I like to check boxes. I like using an app like Run With Hal, where I can mark my progress in the app. I am currently doing a 30 Day Ab Challenge that uses an app, and I have been good at getting each workout done. Once, I followed a five-week Carlsbad 5000 training program printed on a paper calendar. I checked off the days after each workout. My weekly plan (not in this order) is two base runs, two pace workouts, one long run, one recovery run, and one rest day. I have done so much work faster and slower than my 5K pace that I feel I need more work at my 5K pace. However, it’s not in an app to track, and for some reason, putting it on a calendar isn’t helping. With the app, I would find a way to complete the workout. Without it, I find myself making excuses, such as needing more recovery or saying it’s too hot out when I have time to run. I have been making progress with my 5K time, so I should stay on the current course before I jump to 10K training, but I
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New Strategy and Learning About Virtual Partner

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I wasn’t happy with my 5K time trials and decided to do more workouts closer to my 5K goal pace last week. The first workout was set for 25 seconds slower than my 5K pace, and the second was set for 20 seconds slower. The end results were two of my fastest 5K runs in 2024. I haven’t hit an all-time personal record, but I have been chipping away at breaking 25:25 and getting closer to my sub-25-minute goal. During my second workout, I decided to use the Virtual Partner feature on my Garmin Forerunner 620. My 5K was set up as a workout in my watch with three one-mile repeats and a 0.13-mile run. (I set an extra 0.02 miles to pay the Strava tax.) I set the virtual partner to 8:25/mile. The Virtual Partner display has two metrics: Time Ahead and Average Pace. I assumed that the time ahead was for the entire run. I completed my first mile and was 8 seconds ahead of pace. I looked at the watch in the middle of the second mile, and my pace was 8 seconds ahead. I assumed that I needed to maint
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