Do I Have What It Takes?

The idea of self discipline generally, and do I possess it specifically, has been bouncing around in my head over the last 2-3 weeks…basically since I’ve started training for the Chicago marathon in October.

As I sat and looked back at how things were; what I did right, what I could do better, what did I need to completely overhaul, leading up to Grandma’s Marathon I kept asking myself do I really have the self discipline I need to train successfully for this 26.2 mile race on October 12.

My schedule is about to get busy again as fall sports return and classes start shortly after. I haven’t had the best results dragging my sorry ass out of bed this summer, and do I expect a giant switch to be flipped come August 13th that will magically make getting up at 6 a.m. (or earlier) to run and exercise easy in addition to putting in 10+ hour days?

So I began to debate self discipline in my head. Do I have it? Better yet what is it really? What can I do to increase it?

Maybe I am self disciplined and events of real life have gotten me off track and in a funk (no nothing horrible has happened like a death in the family or the loss of a friend – just normal things like spending most of the month of June traveling and spending most of a week in July in Cincinnati with family and friends) and I just need a bit of a kick in the pants to get myself back on track.

Then I started asking myself what that kick in the pants might be…and I came back to self discipline.

Chicken? Egg?

I’ve gotten some ideas, some new things to try. I’ll let you know how I do.

Right now, I need to go cook dinner.

How Many Does It Take?

Question: How many trips to Home Depot does it take for a new kitchen faucet to properly installed?

Answer: Three, but only two were really needed, and that doesn't include the trip about a month ago when the faucet itself was purchased. It also doesn't take into account the trip tomorrow to return the items purchased (and not needed) during trip three today.

At least three hours after starting the project it was done, and the new faucet does look good.

Back To Normalcy

Only a few weeks left in the summer, well at least my part of the summer where I get June & July off from work. Just back from a visit to Ohio - spent Saturday night with friends in Toledo and then made our way to my family in Cincy on Sunday.

Returned to the great state of Michigan yesterday.

Now just have to get a few things accomplished before it's time to punch the ol' time clock again in a few weeks.

Commemorating

To mark recent accomplishments.

Yellow one is for Madison Half Marathon.
Orange one is for Grandma's Marathon.

Music

a band from Grand Rapids...waiting for this song to be available for purchase. Enjoy.

Once More With Feeling...

Ever wish life, as an adult was like it was when you were a kid? Ever wish for a do-over? Or wish you could yell “car” and everything you were doing would be put on hold for a second or two until it was safe again?

Kind of how I’ve been feeling since mid-April. Thanks to a hectic spring sports season, the end of the school year, training for my first marathon, traveling to see some friends (and run a half marathon with ‘em), traveling to see family, family health issues, friends struggling with life changing issues, dealing with my own issues I just wanted to call “time-out” for about 3-4 days and just hide from the world.

Then I ran Grandma’s Marathon. Things are different now. I came out of that weekend with a whole different perspective on everything that had been weighing me down. I realized as I ran the last 1.2 miles that day that I can deal with anything if I focus and push forward. Focus and determination, and support from the people that love and care about you (another thing I realized that day – I’ve got a lot of people that care about me, some where there physically for me that day, others there in spirit) will empower you and help you accomplish your goals.

Friends are still dealing with serious issues in their lives, as I’m sure I will again at some point, and I hope that I can be like T and the rest of the 30s gang* that were there for me on June 21: screaming my head off cheering them on as they battle to cross the finish line, and even if the friend can’t hear me they will know I’m right there with them.

*the next time someone rolls their eyes, gives me the “oh-my-god-friends-from-the-internet-is-creepy” look, or says they aren’t real when I mention these people I may come unglued. Just because they don’t live down the street from me doesn’t mean they aren’t real friends for fuck’s sake. Some of them are as much a part of my life as the friends who give me those looks.

Bigger version of the photo that is on my profile now. T took this Sunday during our walk along the lakewalk in Duluth.

Coming Clean

I have an announcement to make:

I am a nerd. (Big shock to some of you reading this, I'm sure.)

I collected comic books, and not for any future monetary value, until I graduated high school. I quote Star Wars at the drop of the hat - and you'd be amazed at how philosophical it can be. I watch a lot of educational television.

So why the revelation? Because I'm about to use The Incredible Hulk as a jumping off point for a blog post.

T and I went to see it on Friday. Good movie I thought (much better than The Hulk a few years ago), Ed Norton was good, and believable, and the character development was nice. Character development...that's what I wanted to talk about, and hopefully to do so without spoiling the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.

Everyone probably knows the premise of the character Bruce Banner/The Hulk, if from nothing else our generation grew up watching it on CBS on Friday nights. Banner is doing everything he can to rid himself of his alter ego, and this holds true in the current movie.

He's trying to rid himself of his inner demon that is fueled by anger/rage...sounds like quite a few people I know in real life, including me.

Due to circumstances that happen during the film, Banner undergoes a fundamental change in his philosophy of how to deal with the creature by the end of the movie...instead of trying to rid himself of that part of him he attempts to control it.

We all have aspects of our personality that we aren't necessarily proud of (I know I do) and maybe instead of trying to bury them or ignore them in hopes they won't ever surface we should confront them and try to control them. Acknowledge they exist, that we all aren't perfect, and then work on controlling those parts that tend to get us in trouble.

So yeah...I'm a nerd.

Oh, and I did something for the first time in 7+ years this weekend. Needed a clean start, a do-over, if you will after dealing with some things in the last month or two...so I shaved. Clean. Goatee is gone (it's coming back...as quick as it will grow). No, I'm not posting a picture, so don't ask.

Incredible Really

Christmas 2006 I gave T a Nike Imara watch. She really liked it.

June 2007 the band on it broke - and like all Nike watches if that happens it needs to be repaired by Nike. Find the service center to mail it to, send the receipt showing we'd had it less than six months, etc, and then put it in the mail.

June 23, 2008 we arrive back from Duluth, MN. There is a box waiting for us between the doors. I open it...much to my surprise it's T's watch.

On the invoice showing it was a warranty issue it says:
Turnaround Time: 366 days.

Grandma's Marathon 2008 - Report From a First-timer

Just want to start out by saying a blanket "Thank You" to everyone who PMed, emailed, texted, posted good luck wishes in the days leading up to Saturday. It meant a lot to me before I got the starting line and it really made a difference around mile 22.

Words of Caution:
1) Try not to travel around the country in the 10 days preceding your first marathon. Being in Seattle and St. Louis right before may not have been the best move on my part.

2) No matter if you charged it the night before, check your garmin before you leave the hotel room (especially if you're leaving the key there) to make sure it some how didn't get turned on during the night and drained the battery.

Pre-Race:
Had an interesting time getting to the airport in St. Louis - still pissed at the shuttle company that despite two phone calls as we were waiting still didn't show up. $35 cab ride.

BigGahoona was waiting for us at the airport and we made it to Pizza Luce for lunch with PacerChris, Brandy, Runnin-from-the-law (and her two kids), JenRuns (and MrJenRuns), and baggio16.

Quick stop by the expo, light dinner and we were asleep early (somehow I managed to screw up the alarm clock - it went off as scheduled but it the time got set an hour ahead, so we were all up an hour early rookie mistake)

Race Day:
Waiting on the shuttle I realize that some how my garmin batter is low. I left the key in the room since I wasn't checking a bag (Tonya had all of our stuff since she would be waiting for me at the finish) so I was screwed. I hoped it would have enough to at least make it part of the day with the gps turned off.

Make it to the start, meet up with Pacer and Baggs. The look of panic on Baggs' face when I tell him about my garmin was priceless...think he said something like "that would freak me out". Flick a little grief towards Pacer's guy Linus who is shivering under a blanket (he was pacing the 4:00 group so he would at least be easy to find before the start) and then make my way to the line.

Cool flyover by the F-16s.

Turn on my garmin, turn off the gps and keep my fingers crossed. Damn thing is dead before the race even starts. Within 30 seconds of crossing the line Linus and the 4:00 group are gone. No idea how fast I was going, but as we crossed the first mile marker someone said "wow, that's a fast first mile for the 4:00 group - 8:37". I tried to run easy but easier said then done when I had no feedback as to how fast I was going. I did manage to notice that as I crossed the mat I was about 3:00 behind the actual start.

First clock is at 5 miles. I looked at the pace band and was about 3 minutes ahead of the goal pace. Time to slow down a bit. Except I slowed down too much.

Crossed the half in 2:03. Not to bad Felt okay...for another 3-4 miles or so.

About then is when it really got hot/humid. I didn't drink ultima (more on that later) soon enough and could feel myself starting to slow down.

Walked about .3 or so of mile 17.

Made our way back towards town. About mile 20 or so is when Cranegirl joined me running (she stayed on the sidewalk) and holy shite was that a pick-me-up. Saw Sage right before I started up Lemon Drop Hill.

Made it up Lemon Drop Hill, but my quads were cramping. Had to stop and stretch a few times. Walked a bit. Made it to mile 25 and it took every ounce of will I had left in me, but there was no f*cking way I was walking from that point in. Ran every single step of the way that last 1.2 miles.

Crossed the line - had no idea that all of the 30s were screaming for me from the bleachers as I crossed the line, that's how focused I was to just make it across the line.

I learned a lot about myself Saturday...still processing some of it.

Was my goal too ambitious? Maybe, but I'd decided Saturday morning that I was going to hang with the 4:00 group as long as I could, but realized that 4:15 was probably where I should have been.

Was I prepared? Yeah, but I still neglected some things: I'm never going into a race like this with an unknown...this one was ultima...that stuff sucks. I'll take my own Gatorade with me next time (think this is a big reason why I started cramping)

I'm going to make sure I have some way of timing myself.

All in all I couldn't be happier about Saturday...I'm not making excuses, but with everything that day held I did the best I could do.

Thanks to all of the 30s, whether you ran or not Saturday, for being there (on the course or in spirit) for me.

On to Chicago.

Marathoner

4:39:41

Not what I hoped for, but with everything that was today I'll take it. More later.

Moment Has Arrived

Less than 24 hours to go...

Interesting trip getting here today - just a little pissed at the shuttle company in St. Louis - but everything is ready to go for tomorrow.

Hopefully I'll have a chance to post how I did at some point tomorrow.

Next...

Off to St. Louis today.

Get to see some friends (some who we haven't seen since our wedding) and hopefully learn a few things...

Not Much Time

Trip to Seattle - check.

Had a great time, and honestly it is probably a good thing that T and I were only able to be there for four days. Being back in that region of the country just pulled on my soul (or what's left of it) and made me want to move back. On Saturday T and I were dispatched to get beer for her Mom's party. On the 15 minute drive to the store we were both caught up in how much we'd been able to put out of our minds while living in Michigan: drive thru coffee/espresso, great diversity in restaurants, mountains, etc, etc.

We started talking about it, and truthfully we are where we are for at least the next 4-5 years minimum. But that didn't stop us from agreeing that when a change of location happens we want that location to be westward.

Now I need to get my ass in gear and get ready for the trip to St. Louis.

Four days and counting.

Perspective...

From www.dictionary.com:

Strength - moral power, firmness, or courage
Courage - the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear*; bravery

*to me, maybe it should read despite fear

I think we all strive for in life and all that it holds for us, especially those times that make us scratch our heads and say "Why the fuck is this happening to me..."

I've always been hesistant to go into details about other people on here, but I even if she never reads this I owe her enough to put this out there.

I've always had a wonderful example of those two definitions in my life and as she battles a horrible disease for the second time I need to let everyone know that she personifies strength and courage to me.

In May 2004 the Livestrong Foundation's "Livestrong" bracelet made it's debut. I bought one and put it on the week they came out (nice thing about having a Nike store in Eugene) in honor of her battle with cancer. I still have it on today.

I've run a Race For The Cure with a sign on my back in her honor.

I've donated to a friend who completed the Three Day Walk.

I've donated to a friend raising money for Team in Training.

Here lately as life has thrown me a few curveballs I've been thinking about her struggle more and more and I just want to say thank you Mom, for inspiring me. You will be with me every step of the way on June 21.

Busy, Busy, Busy

To answers Nettie's question in her comment to my last post...hell yeah I'm nervous!

Especially considering the upcoming 11 days:
Thursday T and I leave for Seattle.
Friday we get to have dinner with two friends from Kickrunners - looking forward to meeting Dave and seeing Maureen again.
Saturday we help T's Mom celebrate her new Master's degree.
Sunday we fly home.
- yeah, that's right...a weekend in Seattle.
Monday we reorganize/repack.
Tuesday I leave for St. Louis to attend the NATA's Annual Meeting and Clinical Symposium (that's a continuing education event and a chance to see some friends that we haven't seen in awhile)
Wednesday T joins me (she has to give a final on Tuesday) in St. Louis.
Thursday is more of St. Louis and edumacating ourselves.
Friday we fly to Duluth.
Saturday I run the race (and T runs her 2nd HM!!!!)

So if you add it up - out of the next 11 days I will sleep in my own bed exactly four nights. Lucky me.

Reward

Last summer a friend gave me an idea to help keep myself (and T) motivated to run. T and I started an exercise reward program. We each have our own criteria (number of runs per month, or number of speed workouts, etc) as to what we need to do for the reward, and usually we pick our own reward. Been doing this almost a full year...and it's a nice feeling to go to the store and by that month's reward knowing that you've earned it.

For May, T turned the tables on me a bit. She knew I had a big month of running planned as it was the last 6-7 weeks before the marathon so she decided to give me a bigger carrot to encourage me. With my run Saturday I met the criteria to get these:



Thanks for the encouragement love.

Decisions...

The selfish thing? The right thing?

Either way you have to be willing to live with the consequences.

I've been told I did the right thing. Maybe if I keep hearing that enough I will eventually believe it.

And I'm living with the consequence.

Friends, Part IV

This topic is probably a bit different than my previous rants/diatribes on the subject of friends, but I have to get this out of my head before it explodes....

The hardest thing to do is to watch a friend struggle. To watch them do things that you know are destructive in nature and be helpless to intervene.

To try and intervene and you risk losing the friendship...

What do you do?

The selfish thing? The right thing?

Why does life have to be so fucking hard.

Inching Closer

Big week for T and I.

Friday we're leaving for Madison, Wisconsin, and the Madison Marathon/HM/Marathon Relay/Quarter Marathon. Yep, we're both running on Sunday. I'm running the half (pretty much as a training run, but I'm hoping to help a good friend cross the finish line in under 2 hours as well) and T is also running, but what she's running is for her to tell, not me.

Should be a fun weekend - huge meet-up of the 30s from Kickrunners and we'll have the opportunity to see some people again, and to meet some new folks. What better way to spend Memorial Day than with a bunch of your imaginary friends?

As you can tell by the log over on the right, I ran 21 miles yesterday. 21 miles. That's a lot of miles. First time I've run that long and I believe I have at least one more long run of that length prior to Grandma's (which as you can tell is about a month away - holy shit! Just one month?!?!). Still feeling good about my chances of meeting my goal on June 21. More on what that goal is when we get a bit closer.

Erin - loving the blog!

Training Does Pay Off?!?

The 5/3 River Bank Run 25k is a Grand Rapids institution, celebrating its 31st anniversary this year. Starting this year they added a 10k race to the 25k, 5k run, and 5k walk that were already on the schedule and since 10k is probably my favorite distance to race I was really excited to see the addition, especially since I could use the 10k as a quality workout and a barometer to see how my training for Grandma’s is going.

Over the last few weeks my quality runs indicated that I was probably going to really destroy my current 10k PR (58:09 set in 2006 at the Butte to Butte 10k in Eugene) but I didn’t want to be over confident because the last time I ran a 10k in July (heat, humidity, hilly course) I didn’t fair as well as I would have liked.

After reading Greg McMillan’s column in the latest Running Times I set two goals for my self based on my training of late: an A goal of 50:38 (8:10 pace) and a B goal of 51:30 (8:19 pace)– basically my A goal was what I would hope for if conditions were right and I felt good, etc on race day, the B goal a fall back that would still require me to really push it. Anything slower than 51:30 would mean I’d had a bad race.

Conditions for the race couldn’t have been any better: temp was in the low 40s F, course was relatively flat (okay sorry Nettie and Bard, I totally forgot about the hills in the last two miles), course was covered for a great portion so I wouldn’t have to worry about the sun bearing down, all in all ideal conditions to go for my A goal.

Splits:
Mile 1: 7:54 – I started my watch a bit early so this one may have been off a bit, but I got out to a good start, not a huge field and having the whole width of the streets helped me not be boxed in at the start.

Mile 2: 8:02 – still feeling pretty good, and this part of the course I’d run before so I knew what to expect.

Mile 3: 8:07 – nearly got trampled by someone darting in front of me trying to get to the water at the aid station, but managed to stay on pace and at this point I was pretty sure that my A goal was in reach.

Mile 4: 8:12 – started to tire a bit and this is where the first hill showed up, but I managed to pass people on the way up and the way down (thanks for that goes to my route I run on Leonard St. near the house, lots of hills) so I was still feeling pretty good.

Mile 5: 8:13 – course flattened back out a bit and I settled back into a grove and tried to make up some time before the last hilly part just past the 6-mile mark. Still feeling pretty good, and I started thinking about if I’d have enough energy left in me for a kick at the end.

Mile 6: 8:15 – holding steady. Honestly just trying to hang on until the end at this point. Luckily there was a bit of downhill that I could use right before the turns toward the finish for a bit of a boost.

Finish: 50:35 – saw Tonya about 100 yards from the finish and could hear her cheering me on. Crossed the line (my garmin had 50:32) and tried to stay upright.

50:35. So I beat my A goal by 3 seconds, and smashed the living hell out of my PR, which was 58:39. That’s not a typo – I took 8:04 off my 10k PR. Two years ago, hell last July, I would have never thought that would be possible. It’s nice to see personal evidence that all the time spent out there running has started to pay off. This really gives me hope that I’m going to do okay in Duluth.

The question now is can I continue to lower (not by this much!) my PRs over the next few years and what kind of goal to set for myself after the marathon.

Race Day

Tomorrow I'm running a 10k here in Grand Rapids, and then T and I are hosting our house warming party...and the amazing thing? We actually have friends coming!!

Details on the race and pics from the soiree coming this weekend.

Question

To: Organizers of Grandma's Marathon
From: KP

RE: Racecourse Performance Drink Choice

Why does a marathon of Grandma's stature choose to have a beverage like Ultima Replenisher? After trying it yesterday to see what it tastes like (nothing, and I even mixed it stronger than the package directions and used the flavor they will be using in Duluth) and how it sits on my stomach have decided that it's horrible and I'm now considering carrying a water bottle with me that I can put Gatorade in for the race.

Did Gatorade piss you off years ago? Ultima isn't a local Duluth company - at least according to their website, so maybe one of the board of directors is a major share holder?

Seriously I'm interested in how an elite race doesn't have Gatorade the industry leader in performance beverages.

Six Word Memoir Fun & Games

First time I've ever been tagged so I guess I have to play along. Thanks to Cindi here goes:

Hard work pays off, run long.

Since I'm supposed to tag five more people to continue the game Frankie, Kris, Maureen, Mary, and Elizabeth y'all are up.

Thanks...

some people won't understand this post, but will in due time

To everyone who has offered an encouraging word this week, it has been much appreciated.

Thank you.

KP

Sunday

Two great things happened today:

1) It's official. I'm a homeowner. It truly sank in today. Bought a lawnmower.

2) I ran with T today. 10 miles. Her first time running double digits (and she did it under 2 hours). Really proud of her.

Not Bad

16 miles today in 2:46:59.

I didn't die, in fact actually felt pretty good.

So maybe my outlook for June 21 isn't as bleak as it was last weekend, but I'm sure that will change again.

Holy...

I just realized something. 60 days. Two months from today I'm running my first marathon. Starting to freak out a bit, especially after the craptastic run I had yesterday.

I was scheduled to do a long run of 16 miles with 12 of those miles being at my marathon pace (right around 9:00/mile). I thought everything was gonna go well, I had water, sunsreened myself up since I knew I'd be out there for awhile, ate a little something, even took some clif shot blocks with me.

What I failed to factor is was the following:
- I didn't start until almost 11 am
- I didn't realize that it was already 70F
- I failed to take enough water for how hot it was
- I neglected to put my phone in my camelbak

I finally pulled the plug on my run at 12 miles - I finished 10 of the 12 at pace (managed a 9:09 so not horrible) but I'd run out of water and I'd stopped sweating (my face was crusted with salt at that point). Thing is, I was 2 miles from home and had to walk it.

By the time I made it home I looked like warmed over shit. Felt nauseous. Drank some fluids, ate a little something once my stomach calmed down, and proceeded to lay in the floor under a fleece blanket. Finally took about an hour nap. When I woke up I felt like I'd been up all night drinking.

Needless to say, today is an off day.

I gotta do better or else I'm gonna get my ass handed to me in Duluth.

When You Least Expect It...

I had an interesting exchange with the AD yesterday. He'd just returned from the NAIA AD meeting and he'd run into the AD at the school were I was at for my first job out of grad school.

Mind you I was there from 1997-1999, a total of 18 months almost 10 full years ago:

AD: I ran into your guy "X" and he told me to tell you hello.
Me: Really, how is he?
AD: Doing good, he told me that they've got a new athletic trainer this year and that if he really thought about it, you were probably the best athletic trainer we had.

I was a bit shocked to say the least. I'm not sure if that means I did a great job or if all the people (who knows how many) that followed me were crappy.

I'm taking it as a compliment.

Stuck in My Head...

This song has been stuck in my head (in a good way) for a few weeks now.

"Until The End" Breaking Benjamin

Chorus strikes me...

Why give up?
Why give in?
It's not enough
It never is
So I will go on until the end

This is quickly becoming my mantra for my marathon training...I'm going to go on until the end.

Recommendations

I have two recommendations for you, one book and one movie.

The book: Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert

I honestly don’t know where to start with this one. It’s a great book, insightful and poignant as we get a glimpse into a year in the author’s life as she makes drastic changes in her life. I’m especially fond of the part of the book that takes place in India. I’ve recommended this book to a few friends and they have agreed with me that it is a very special book.

The movie: Once

WOW! Watched that last night…I was told it was a great movie after it was already in our netflix queue but man o’ man I had no idea is was that good! The soundtrack is pretty impressive as well!

Success?

Inertia -

1. inertness, esp. with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness

March is finally gone. Normally I'm a big fan of March - March Madness, my parents birthdays, and let's not forget St. Patrick's Day - but this year with the house and everything else March seemed like a black hole that I wouldn't be able to escape.

So, starting yesterday with the arrival of April it was a chance to wipe the slate clean and get back on track. My goal this week is to get up and run in the morning. Yesterday it even worked out that I was able to put in a few miles with T.

Then today hit.

I. Did. Not. Want. To. Get. Out. Of. Bed. I managed to get up and get the coffee going to help T get out the door (she teaches early on Mondays and Wednesdays) but after she left I fired up the computer to make sure my workout was entered in my garmin and could feel the motivation to run slowly draining away.

Lazy-self: Damn that coffee smells good, you know you could have a cup and run this afternoon
Me: no, I won't have time
Lazy-self: come on, you can feel your stomach growling! Let's eat breakfast.
Me: No. I need to run

So I forced myself out of the chair to get ready for my run. I wasn't happy starting out on my run, but I was really glad I did it.

The nice thing about inertia? Every time you over come it, it's easier to beat the next time.

Wow.

2773.

That's the number of visits to this blog in the last year (the cluster map at the bottom reset on 3/29 while we were in Texas).

Wow.

Is what I put on here really that interesting?

It will be nice to watch the dots reappear on the map as people drop by though.

Listening

As you can probably tell from previous posts (mentioned being out of my routine) plus the running log/stats over on the right, I've been in a funk lately.

The month of March has been a bit overwhelming - moving, unpacking, the state of flux my life is in due to the weather and spring sports, etc - well, it all sort of came to a head on Friday.

Just felt off, like I couldn't accomplish anything, struggled to find the energy to care about not accomplishing anything.

Then I did something important.

You see, I am lucky to have people in my life that care about me. I heard the same advice from a few of them: start small, make a to-do-list of things I could accomplish that would put me back on the right path.

Turns out these are intelligent people. I just had to be smart enough listen to 'em.

You know who you are. Thanks.

Who Do I Run For?

During the last two years I’ve become an avid listener to the podcast Phedippidations. Produced by a middle aged, middle of the pack, slightly asthmatic runner (his words, not mine) in Massachusetts this podcast for runners of all levels has become a constant companion on my long runs.

Today on my run I listened to episode #135 entitled “Who Do You Run For?” and as I traversed the streets of Grand Rapids this Easter morning I began to think about that exact question. After spending the rest of the day completing tasks around the house I thought I’d blog about my answers. So here goes:

T – I run for my wife. I want to do to whatever I can to make sure my days on this planet are plentiful, but that’s not it. I run because she inspires me. Her own running impresses me to no end, because it isn’t easy for her. She battles her own body – asthma – on every run but she doesn’t quit. If she can push through that kind of thing to make the progress she has in the last year, then I surely can get my lazy ass out of bed and get my miles in. Thanks love for everything and then some.

My mom – because she can’t. My mom is battling, successfully at the moment, cancer for the second time. I wish I possessed even a fraction of the strength she faces her disease with. If she can deal with that, then I can among other things, quit bitching about the hills where we live now.

Friends – you know who you are, whether in the virtual world or not, all you encourage me no matter what your level of expertise.

Finally, I run for myself. It gives me a sense of control in my often-chaotic life. It reduces stress, it’s made me healthier (one of these days I’m going to find a picture of me from the summer of 2000), and most importantly it’s provided me a sense of community. I’ve mentioned the forum before (links over to the right) but it truly is a community of love and support. I run for myself because I want to be the best version of me I can.

Question?

I'll be the first person to admit that I'm not that religious, so I'm turning to anyone else out there in the blogosphere to answer me this question:

I know how Easter Sunday is chosen each year, it's the first Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox...which on the surface smacks of a Pagan type holiday/festival celebrating the return of the growing season to me...but if we are commemorating the death of Jesus Christ why isn't it celebrated the same day every year?

First Race Report Of The Year

This was the second year in a row for me running this race. This is one of the first races of the spring-like season here in Grand Rapids - approx 32F at the start and snow still on the ground in places isn't spring. Last year I had some issues with the race:

1) I was still recovering from a leg injury and hadn't been running very well or consistently.

2) There were so many people in this race and due to the course bottlenecking thanks to a couple of sharp turns in the first half mile it took almost the first mile to get in a rhythm. Plus this was the race I passed walkers, not being taking a walk break, after the first mile.

This year they split the race into two separate races, a men's and a women's race. This completely eradicated concern #2 from above.

My goal for the day was to use the race as a workout in my training for my first marathon. This week's quality workout was supposed to be 4x1200m at I pace (about 8:20/mile) so that was the pace I was hoping to maintain.

Mile 1: 8:09 felt pretty good, small slight hill in this mile plus the course turned sharply twice. Managed to make it without hitting any ice.

Mile 2: 8:22 this mile is pretty much a steady climb. Not a huge hill, but just steady. Felt pretty good at this point. I could tell I was working, but I was doing okay.

Mile 3: 8:01 downhill for the most part so I tried to let the hill carry me a bit. I got a shout of encouragement from the cross country coach at the college with about a half mile to go.

Finish: 25:23 which is a 25 second PR.

All in all I felt good at the end. Yeah, I could have pushed it a bit more, but for that day and what I was trying to accomplish (the workout) I feel it was a pretty damn good day. The PR is just a bonus.

First Of The New Year

Race that is, 5k tomorrow. I'll post to let all three of you reading how it goes. T is also running.

House is coming along, slowly. Unpacking is not easy when you both have to work all day like normal people. Hopefully we will get a lot accomplished this weekend.

All I got now.

That's All?!?!?!

100 days until the marathon. Holy shit. Might feel a bit better if the house hadn't gotten so in the way of my training.

Also wish I'd hear about the hotel. Starting to get a bit nervous that we won't have any place to stay.

Return To Normal?

Can someone please tell me when things will be back to normal? Please?

See, I'm a creature of habit - just ask T - I like routines, but between all of the house stuff, moving, unpacking, spring sports schedules being a we-hope-so-proposition at best, and daylight savings time I can't seem to find any traction.

Speaking of daylight savings time let me say the following: I'm not entirely against the idea, but I am against it starting this early in March! Sunrise isn't until after 8 am again here in Michigan!

I think that is a big part of why I'm having such a hard time getting up and running in the morning.

How many more weeks/days until the school year ends?

House Update

Yesterday was moving day. Counted it up the other night, since I met T in 2000, we have moved five times - with two of those moves being across country. God I hate moving.

However, we are in the house. Here are some before/after pics of what we did to the place before we moved in yesterday. More pics will follow once we have the time to arrange the furniture.

Playing Catch-up

Sorry folks about not updating more frequently, but life seems to think my schedule is something to toy with these days. Between trying to get the house ready to move in - made significant progress with the painting this weekend and hopefully, hopefully some of the new flooring will be put in at the end of this week, trying to train for a marathon (more on that front later), and T's attempt at becoming a stunt driver I've been run ragged.

Yes, T is okay, but she did hit some ice and roll the Explorer. She couldn't have been going too fast though since there wasn't much damage to it. Biggest thing was the engine getting screwed up because the car was upside down. It was fun getting the voicemail from the 911 people.

I think I might actually be crazy. You can see the countdown over there on the right counting down the days, hours, minutes until Grandma's Marathon. Well, Friday after I nailed down some schedule stuff for the fall I registered for the Chicago Marathon as well. That's right. I registered for my second 26.2 mile event before I complete the first, hence the crazy part.

Gotta run. More later.

Last Week

Many things have happened here in the great city of Grand Rapids:

1) We continue to have the living hell beaten out of us by Ol' Man Winter
2) We in fact closed on the house, so we have officially been home owners since Friday
3) We have purchased new floors to replace the less than ideal floors in the house - well, just the floors on the first floor. Upstairs is fine.
4) The new computer kicks ass.
5) Marathon training - had a pretty good week on that front. Ran 33 miles, and that includes missing a run on Saturday because of work and house related stuff. I've been over 30 miles every week but one this year. The treadmill has been a run-saver.

This week (week of the 11th) is my last week of basebuilding. Starting next week I get to add in some speed workouts. Fun.

It's Official

Well, it was official about 4:30 pm on Friday that is...we're the proud owners of a home now.

Did a bit of work there on Saturday after the game I had to cover, and then proceeded to get snowed/wind chilled in on Sunday...we have exactly one month until we have to move in, so the next few weeks will be busy.

Also, wanted to post this...thanks to the Federal government for returning the interest free loan we gave them in 2007, it was put to good use.



Yeah, you're seeing that correctly, and no I'm not some sort of underground hacker. Two computers. Yes, the one in the middle is a brand spanking new iMac.

Countdown

If all goes according to plan, in approximately 4 hours or so T and I will be home owners.

What A Beautiful Sight...

The gourmet market/beer store that we frequent ran a 10% off all beer last Saturday.

We stocked up, as evident in this picture of the beer fridge.

That's all that would fit in there right now. There is more being held in reserve.

House Pictures

If you are interested in seeing pictures of the house we are buying - closing tentatively scheduled for Friday, then go to T's blog. Here is the link to the post.

Numbers

January is behind us, so let's look back at the highlights of the month (in no particular order):

- visited a few open houses
- found a house to buy
- started that whole proces (I know, I know...I promised pictures, I just haven't really had the time. This weekend.)
- ran 23 out of the 31 days in the month, which actually worked out to 23 out of 26 scheduled runs. The treadmill has been huge in that department.
- totaled 122 miles for the month and I'm only 5.7 miles off pace to reach my goal of 1500 miles for the year. Missing those three days last week is what did it to me.

Anything else? Nope, not really.

Back later to talk about goals for February.

Motivation

Three weeks in and I'm just now posting this today. I'd intended to post this back when I started but life got in the way - speaking of life, still in a holding pattern on the house, appraisal was last week, new furnace is being installed tomorrow, and we're hoping that we might be able to close on Thursday.

Whenever I need a little bit of a kick in the ass to get my run in all I need to do is just look up above the computer:

It keeps me on track, and this past week I needed it. Only logged 14 miles thanks to a mishap at work (I'll spare you all the details) that prevented me from running for a few days. All better now so I'm hoping for a better week this week.

Phase I, Week #4, Jan 28-Feb 3
Monday - 5 miles
Tuesday - 6 miles
Wednesday - OFF
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 5 miles
Saturday - 10 miles
Sunday - 6 miles
Total: 37

Still basebuilding, but this week I am supposed to add in some strides at the end of 2-3 runs. The weather is supposed to be a bit better this week and I'm hoping I might be able to get outside at least once or twice this week.

In My Haste...

I forgot to add one part to the previous post about friends...I was busy and distracted here at work, so I want to add it now:

We should be thankful for our friends in life, and we should be willing to tell them what they mean to us. Even if that means we tell them that we love them...especially if it means we tell them we love them.

Friends, Part III

A recent post by a friend on kickrunners has prompted some thinking here on my part about friends and friendships again, hence the "Part III" above.

Friendships flow and ebb over time, you meet new friends that fill holes in your life (whether you knew that hole was there or not) or that take the place of a friendship that has changed. Friends and friendships are dynamic basically.

During a discussion with the aforementioned friend I made the comment that while the duration of the friendship shouldn't be overlooked entirely, the intensity of the friendship - what that person means to you - is pretty important as well. At least to me it is...I have been friends with people going on 15 years now and they mean a lot to me, but at the same time some of those friendships have ebbed due to circumstances beyond anyone's control, and in the last two years or so I've made new friends that mean the world to me.

I guess what I'm saying is that I've realized every friendship is different and we shouldn't try and compare one to another.

I just feel fortunate at this point in my life that I have people that are willing to stand up and say to the world that they are my friend.

Long day yesterday prevented me from posting this like normal on Sunday night, but hey, we have lots to do in order to be ready to make some changes on this house we're buying and we spent Sunday out shopping/pricing!

Last week was a pretty good week of running, and most of that I owe to having the treadmill. It hasn't been safe to run outside for about four days, and this week doesn't look promising either.

Plan for this week (week #3):
Monday - 5 miles
Tuesday - 6 miles
Wednesday - Off
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 5 miles
Saturday - 10 miles
Sunday - 6 miles
Total planned: 37 miles

Now the only thing I need to do? Find DVDs to watch while running on the treadmill.

Submission

Offered submited on the house. Waiting patiently to hear something...anything...did I mention I'm a bit freaked out?

Big News

T and I may found a house today. We're going to put an offer in on it.

I am totally freaking out.

That is all.

One Down, Twenty-three To Go

End of the running week for me. I stuck to the schedule this week and ran six days this week for a total of 33.6 miles. Even managed to get outside for all but two of those runs (and those were partly due to laziness). Felt good.

This week the schedule is pretty much the same:

Monday - 5 miles
Tuesday - 6 miles
Wednesday - OFF
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 5 miles
Saturday - 9 miles
Sunday - 4 miles

I might end up switching Saturday/Sunday depending on how early I want to get up since I have a home game to cover on Saturday afternoon.

So far, so good. But, then again it's only week two.

Something To Think About....

You want to do something nice for you wife or girlfriend what do you do? You buy them flowers. There isn’t a woman alive whose face won’t break out into a big smile when you walk through the door with flowers for her. She might think you’ve done something wrong and are trying to make up for it, but even then there will be a split second where she smiles!

The problem is this though…what’s the guy equivalent to flowers?

After much introspection and thought on the subject I do believe T has solved the problem. The guy equivalent is beer. Beer you say? Yes, beer. But not ordinary mass produced American lagers that you find at the corner mega-mart, but good beer that is produced by smaller breweries, full of flavor and color, and that might cost more than the average lite beer because of the things I just listed.

I came home the other night from work – just an ordinary day, nothing spectacular. T met me at the dining room table like she always does, with a big smile on her face and told me she had something for me, guy flowers, and handed me a bottle of Stone Brewery’s Ruination IPA, a very lovely beer.

So this act of kindness from her cemented two things for me:
1) Beer = guy flowers
2) T is the greatest

24...

Twenty-four weeks, or 165 days, and counting...counting towards what you ask? Well, let me tell you: I started training for my first, hopefully of many, marathon today and race day is 24 weeks, or 165 days, away.

Yeah, yeah, I know - the counter over there ----> counting down to when registration opens will be replaced with one counting down to race day, but only after I register.

And yeah, I'm a bit nervous/excited about the prospects of this whole thing.

First of 2008

First book read in 2008: The Alchemist

I just finished reading The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and I have been digesting it for a day or two now. The book talks about how “the universe conspires in helping you achieve it.” - It being your destiny or Personal Legend.

I’ve always believed that in life things work out the way they are supposed to…for example, in my own personal time on this planet:

My first job out of grad school was not the best job; it was in an out of the way place and the school was located in a very, very small, rural town. There was no healthy social life to speak of…I’ve often referred to it as the longest 18 months of my life. However, if I hadn’t met some of my coworkers there I would not have been in the position to transition to my second job.

My second job was much better personally and professionally, but the key event of my tenure there was a trip to Nashville that some of us took in late August, 2000. That was the night that I met T.

Call it fate, destiny, or life conspiring to get me where I needed to be I truly believe that the events of October, 1997, through July, 1999, put in motion a series of events that placed meeting T in my path. I won’t go so far as to say it was fate we ended up together – it took too much work on my part to convince her to continue to go out with me!

I remind myself of this when I find myself questioning “why did I do this?” Why did I take that job in Oregon where I had to drive 52 miles one way to work? Because by taking that job I was able to impress the AD at the high school and then he helped me get the job in Eugene.

Things work out like they are supposed to.

The book also talks about omens, and paying attention to them. I’ve been thinking about that and in all honesty, that is the part I’m still digesting. More on that later.

Now The Hard Stuff Starts

Made it through the week. I had six runs scheduled, and I completed the plan for the week. 28.3 miles for a total. I even managed to make it outside to run twice.

However, this past week really wasn't directed at anything more than getting me ready for the upcoming week...Week 1 of marathon training!

Schedule for the week of Jan 7, 2007:
Monday - 5 miles
Tuesday - 6 miles
Wednesday - Off
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 5 miles
Saturday - 8 miles
Sunday - 4 miles

Ask And You Shall Receive

Sometime in November I sent out an email to 20 or so friends - some people I know from professional interaction, some personal, some I've only met on the internet, but all friends - and asked them to recommend books for me to read. Any genre of the person's choosing, just books they enjoyed and thought someone else should read. A few of them asked me to send them the list when it was compiled, so here is that compiled list, in no particular order.

Lovely Bones
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Three Cups of Tea
The Enders Game Series (recommended by three people)
The House of Sand and Fog
Skinny Dip (recommended by three people, one of whom said anything by Hiaassen)
Lonesome Dove
The Stand
The Winds of War
War and Remembrance
A Walk In The Woods
Magical Thinking
Naked (recommended by two people, and one said anything by Sedaris)
Water For Elephants
Duel in the Sun
The Bridge of Sighs
Friday Night Lights
Wittgenstein's Poker
1421: The Year China Discovered The World
The Boys From Brazil
Freakonomics
Congo
Angels & Demons
Rendezvous With Rama
A Brief History of Time
What is the What?
The Sparrow
Tigana

I've read some of the books on the list, and while I may not read all of them there are certainly some that I will definitely read.

For everyone who responded thanks...for those of you who didn't (one in particular) it isn't too late!

Accountability

I'm posting this here so that anyone who reads this on a regular basis will help me stay the course as I train for the marathon in June. If you don't see the run over on the right in the log let me have it.

Here is this week's schedule:

Tuesday - ran 4 miles
Wednesday - OFF
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 5 miles
Saturday - 4 miles
Sunday - 7 miles

All are supposed to be easy, or base building, runs. From the looks of the weather all of them might be on the treadmill.

The Year That Was...

Jan – 83 miles
A new year and new goals to go along with it. I started something new in 2007, running on the 1st. I managed to get some quality runs in despite there being snow on the ground. The goal of 1000 miles seemed obtainable, and my goal race of the Flying Pig Marathon was just five months away.


Feb – 68 miles (151 for 2007)
The month where the wheels came off. At the start of the month we got dumped on by huge amounts of snow – so much snow we didn’t see the grass until mid-March – and while running one day in that snow, and the ice that resulted, I slipped and strained my calf. The resulting drop-off in miles set me back in my training for the Pig.


March – 62 miles (213 for 2007)
It took some getting used to running in the winter – cold, no big deal; snow/ice, totally sucks. I ran a 5k, the Irish Jig, and finished over a minute slower than the last 5k I ran in October. Between the leg issue, the snow, and getting used to my work schedule during the spring I really started to have doubts about the Flying Pig and reaching my goal of 1000 miles.


April – 62 miles (275 for 2007)
T started on the couch-to-5k plan popularized by a formerly great website (damn you active.com!) and as a means to work my way back to running more with my injury I started running some of her runs with her. I realized at this point the Flying Pig probably wasn’t the wisest decision on my part: my two longest runs to date were 12 miles in January, and 11 miles in March. I could probably still run the full marathon, but I wouldn’t enjoy it and would probably end up injured. So, after much deliberation and advice from some friends I switched to the half marathon in Cincy. The leg did start to respond and I started to run easier.


May – 100 miles (375 for 2007)
Finally arrived at my goal race, the HM at the Flying Pig. We had a great time meeting some of the 30s and I got to run my second HM. Let me tell you, running for more than two hours is much easier when there are people you know with you every step of the way (so thanks again Ann, Kathleen, and Joe). My finishing time was a new PR (barely) but on a much harder course as compared to Grand Rapids. I finished the month on an upswing: running was easy again and I ran more miles in a month than ever before.


June – 97 miles (472 for 2007)
T and I ran a 5k the first weekend of June, again my time was slow, but then it was a hot, humid day, so not a great performance on my part. After this race though I decided that the Grand Rapids HM was the goal race for the fall (again) and that if I wanted to do better than I did in Cincy, I needed to take my training seriously. So, take my training seriously I did. I was using Marathon Plan A from Daniels’ Running Formula and I slowed down and actually ran easy runs to build my base up. The rest of the month went great…right up to the point when we left for California/Taiwan.


July – 103 miles (575 for 2007)
T and I spent the first week of July in Taipei, Taiwan, at a conference she presented at, and as a result my training took a bit of a backseat. For starters, it was ungodly hot/humid there and running outside was not likely due to both the weather and traffic. Second, I was supposed to start adding in some speed work – again, not likely. So I managed two runs while we were there, but I wouldn’t trade the trip for anything! After we got back I hit my stride. Runs were easier and I was putting in some pretty good mileage. I ran a 10k at the end of the month, broke an hour, but every race isn’t going to be a PR.


Aug – 148 miles (723 for 2007)
My best month of running for the year. Despite it being the most hectic, due to preseason practices, etc at work, I managed to run 24 days during the month and managed to have some great quality tempo/interval workouts as well. Everything just sort of fell into place training wise.


Sept – 126 (849 for 2007)
I continued to run well, easy runs were getting easier and the quality workouts weren’t kicking my ass nearly as much – even though the workouts were just as tough. It was about this time of the year that I really started to get optimistic about doing well in the HM in Oct.


Oct – 105 miles (954)
Racing month was upon me. Towards the end of September T and I decided to run a 5k that a friend’s running store was sponsoring. I figured it would be a nice way to break up the monotony of the usual runs and as a way to gauge how I might do later in the month in the HM. I set a new PR and realized that 25 minutes for a 5k might actually be possible. Then I obliterated my HM PR by almost 18 minutes at the end of the month.


Nov – 84 miles (1038 for 2007)
Despite the superb performance in the HM, I just had a lot of trouble with my mojo during November. I did manage to help T to a new PR in a 10k on Thanksgiving Day and I met my goal of 1000 miles for the year. Besides that, not a lot of anything went on this month.


Dec – 84 miles (1122 total miles for 2007)
A continuation of November. I struggled to find motivation, plus the crappy winter weather started a bit earlier this year. On the positive, we bought a treadmill so I won’t have the “it’s icy outside” excuse anymore as I look towards my goal race for 2008. I ran 443 more miles in 2007 than I did in 2006. I stayed healthy for the most part. I set a new PR for a 5k and HM. All in all, I would say it was a pretty good year.

Christmas

Just now getting caught up after the family visit over Christmas. I wanted to post pics of two things:


1) Even though it technically wasn't a Christmas gift, here is the latest item T and I splurged on. Pay no attention to the circa 1970's paneling in the finished basement of the apartment please.


2) The very cool new red iPod I received for Christmas. T got eveyone to chip in to help defray the cost (and to keep her from going over our predetermined limit). Have all the music I currently have in iTunes and it is only half full. Busy downloading/importing as we speak.

Now, I need to get back to work on my end 'o the year post.

Announcement

Attention Everyone:

It has been brought to my attention by more than one person that I have been neglecting this blog. One person went so far to ask me if I'd abandoned it. Sheesh. You get a bit busy and find you are having trouble putting thoughts together and they think you've given up!? Just kidding.

I sort of fell off posting here after the HM in October and seemed to lose my motivation for running, as you probably noticed from the lack of runs being listed on the right over there. I can say that I've managed to find my running-mojo again! Today was the 6th day in a row that I've run and I've logged 15.5 miles this week (starting Monday)...and that is good considering what I have in store for myself.

You're probably asking yourself "What the hell is he talking about?" I've signed up to run the HM in Madison, WI on Memorial Day weekend, but that's not my goal race for 2008...no, that would be a different race that has to do with the counter over there. In less than a month registration will open for Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, MN, and after that point I'll be locked into making my marathon debut (or be out the $$ for the registration) on June 21.

So I need to get my ass out there and run so I'll be prepared.

Wow, Look At The Time!

Life has really sucked me in these last few weeks. However, free time is upon me at the end of this week.

Will be back then.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

Sticking with the current template - at least for the time being, but I did change some of the elements and stuff on here.

Added a countdown details to follow - and it will be interesting to see if anyone can correctly guess what it is counting down to...

Commemoration

Three half marathons, three stars.

Yes, the one in the center is pink. Pink for the Flying Pig in May.

Yes, I'm crazy.

1,000 and counting

I started running in 2003 in order to shed a few pounds for our wedding. I drove around Albany, Oregon, where we lived in the car and plotted some routes. I ran a couple of miles here, a couple of miles there, but nothing really consistent. Wedding came and passed. We moved to Eugene, Oregon, later that summer and you can't help but be caught up in the running vibe of Tracktown, USA, so I kept at it. I really didn't start taking it serious (logging miles, having a training plan, etc) until I decided to run the Butte to Butte 10k on July 4, 2004. I know I bought new shoes right after it and logged just over 70 miles the rest of that year. That's right 70 miles in six months.

My running started to take off in 2005...I ran a few more races, ran the Butte to Butte again that summer, this time with T. I started to feel better; I had a training plan and running gadgets. I logged 350 miles in 2005.

I set a goal for myself, and I think T's reaction was one of utter surprise - to run 600 miles in 2006. I planned on running a couple of 10ks, ran some 5ks, started to think about running a half marathon in 2006. Things were going great, right up until the point when we moved across the country. Running seemed to take a back seat to real life, plus trying to get used to running in the heat and humidity of August was a challenge. I'd signed up for the half marathon in Grand Rapids in October. I was woefully undertrained, but went through with it. I liked the experience enough to keep at it. Finished the year with 679 miles, so I accomplished my goal.

2007 I set a new goal. 1000 miles. 321 miles more than I ran in all of 2006. T thought I was crazy again. Started off the year with an injury due to running on the ice/snow. Had to change my plans and only run the half marathon at the Flying Pig in May (which turned out to be the best thing), met some of the great 30s group I call friends. Decided after the Pig that if I was going to meet my goal and have some success with the absurd pastime I need to really focus. I've run more races this year, setting personal records, met more of the 30s, logged more miles.

Why the rambling recap? Today I met my goal for 2007. 1001 miles as of today.

I've met my goal, so it's time for a new one…the goal is now 1200 for 2007. I’ll let you know what the goal is for 2008 in a few weeks. A hint though – 26.2.

Today Is A Great Day...

Today was a great day. All around. Being surrounded by friends and T only made it better.

Last year I ran this race as my first ever HM and did ok all things considered (you can read about it here). In May I ran the HM at the Flying Pig and did pretty decent considering the course, etc (you can read about it here). After the Pig I realized that if I was going to do any better I would have to really dedicate myself and put in the miles/work necessary.

So I did. After the race in Cincy I increased the amount of miles I was running – I’ve been over 100 miles each month since May – and I made the effort to be consistent with doing the quality speed work that the training plan called for. This was my goal race all summer. Today it all paid off.

The weather couldn’t have been better – very cool at the start (34F) with little to no wind to speak of and after sunrise there wasn’t a cloud to be seen for most of the race. I was fortunate to have friendly faces around me at the start to ease the nervousness – one of T’s colleagues and one of the 30s from Kickrunner.com who traveled from out of state to run the race. I had kept my goal for today pretty close – I’d talked about it with 3 or 4 people – because I didn’t want to put it out there and be disappointed if it didn’t happen. My goal was to break 2 hours, my PR being 2:14:52 in Cincy.

We started off pretty easy – first race ever that I didn’t pass someone walking the race in the first 2 miles, which was very nice – and the pace felt good. It was still dark enough that I was having trouble reading my garmin with my sunglasses on. First mile: 9:01

Just past the first mile marker we were merged on to the bike path – pretty crowded and I almost made the jump back into the street just because I felt really boxed in and could feel myself slowing down, but we made a turn, past a water station and things thinned out nicely. Mile 2: 9:09

Fell into a pretty easy pace – having a friend alongside made a HUGE difference. It’s one thing to have snippets of conversations with other runners, but to actually carry on a conversation with a friend – priceless. The miles started clicking by fast enough that I actually looked over and said “these miles are going by pretty quick!” Mile 3: 9:02, Mile 4: 8:54, Mile 5: 8:52

We entered Millennium Park and I felt pretty good. Saw two people I knew – T’s colleague who was running the relay with her, and one of the physician’s covering the event that I work with. Nice to hear my name from familiar voices at this point. Mile 6: 8:45

Out of the park and downhill back to the bike trail. Looked at my friend and said “we might see T, so keep an eye out for her” – sure enough just before mile 8 we saw her! She was looking great. Mile 7: 8:53, Mile 8: 8:48, Mile 9: 9:02

Started to feel the effort in my legs a bit at this point…started thinking about other people I’ve interacted with on the Kickrunner and some of the experiences they’ve had here lately. Some of their words/mantras started bouncing around my head as I passed mile 10 right at 1:29:xx – so I knew that unless something really bad happened I would be able to make my goal. Mile 10: 9:04

Turned a corner, passed a water station and got separated from my friend (after she crossed the finish line I found her and she said she walked that water stop) and kept going. 3.1 miles to go. I tried to keep up with the people in front of me, letting them pull me along for a bit. Mile 11: 8:57

Back towards town. Keep my feet moving. Don’t lose sight of the people in front of me. Mile 12: 8:45

One mile and change to go. Don’t stop now. Gave it everything I have. Passed the Mile 13 marker, 8:25, and powered on to the finish line.

The most beautiful sight was the clock at the finish – it read 1:59:30 – so I new no matter what I’d exceeded my goal of finishing in 2 hours because it took me at least 2 minutes, or so, to cross the finish line.

Total time: 1:57:08. I took 17:49 off of my previous PR.

So:
Thank you Maria – I got comfortable being uncomfortable.
Thank you Dom – TCM didn’t provide it for you, so share in my PR today.
Thank you Maureen, Lori, and a few others – for keeping my goal a secret.

Today was a great day.

What?

Excitement/nervousness is starting to build...look at the counter over there.

Into The Wild

First read the book for the first time in 2003 (I think) after reading Krakauer’s Into Thin Air. Krakauer is one of my favorite authors; own all of his books, so maybe this opinion is biased. You decide.

The story has been well publicized over the years since the book’s release so I don’t think I need to be too cautious about revealing elements of the plot. The movie is very true to the book in all aspects: the pacing, the way the story is told, and Krakauer was even hired as a consultant on the film to ensure accuracy.

The idea of leaving the trappings of society behind is intriguing, but actually abandoning society as McCandless did is beyond my comprehension. Even prior to his hike into the wild of Alaska he was living his life by his own rules – something that many of us long to do. However in his quest to live his own way he alienated himself from the people who cared the most for him; his sister, his parents, and the friends he acquired along his journey. The distance to which he kept his friends away probably is what boggles my mind the most. I understand his desire to escape the parents he felt betrayed him, but to put walls around himself with friends I don’t understand. I’ve mentioned in previous posts my thoughts of friends being the family we get to choose in life…maybe it’s just my way of looking at things, but the people I choose to let into my life are the ones that I hold the most dear (Sorry family – I hold you guys in a special place, I just didn’t get a say in the matter of who you are.) His willingness to walk away from those relationships in pursuit of his own fulfillment, I just don’t get.

Emile Hirsch did a wonderful job portraying McCandless…his charm, his intelligence, his loneliness. Truthfully that is the only way to describe the way McCandless spends his last weeks, days, hours…truly alone. The most moving scene in the movie is when McCandless has reached the point in Alaska that he’s ready to return to the real world only to be faced with the cold, hard reality that returning to the life he knew is impossible. The resignation of being stranded sinks in and while he faces the reality of what is to come with dignity, it is truly, truly sad and moving to watch him approach his final hours.

From the book “Into The Wild” and notes that McCandless made in the book “Doctor Zchivago”:

Next to “And so it turned out that only a life similar to the life of those around us, merging with it without a ripple, is genuine life, and that an unshared happiness is not happiness…And this was most vexing of all,” he noted, “HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED.”

It is tempting to regard this latter notation as further evidence that McCandless’s long, lonely sabbatical had changed him in some significant way. It can be interpreted to mean that he was ready, perhaps, to shed a little of the armor he wore around his heart, that upon returning to civilization, he intended to abandon the life of solitary vagabond, stop running so hard from intimacy, and become a member of the human community. But we will never know, because Doctor Zchivago was the last book Chris McCandless would ever read.

Less than three weeks after making those notes Chris McCandless was dead. Dead from boldness. Dead from ignorance. Dead from the direct consequences of decisions he made. Yes, he died alone, apart from everyone who cared for and loved him, but I feel, at least, he died at peace.

The note he makes in "Doctor Zchivago" – “HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED” struck me to the core and has been lingering in the back of my mind since I walked out of the theater Friday night. Do I share my happiness? If not, why not? That has been the thought this great story has left me with, and I’m not sure I have an answer yet.

Not Much Time Left...

See the counter over on the right? Yep, only 6 days until the HM. Starting to get a bit nervous and excited.

Words

Everyone knows the old adage of “actions speak louder than words” and at times I couldn’t agree more with it. But, if we only go by actions we might miss something very special.

Words have power, both good and bad – but I’m focusing on the good with this, words can illicit wonderful things in us. Words can be in the form of long handwritten letters to loved ones, small notes left in a loved ones lunch box, or even in the modern age emails. Words can be spoken face to face.

All forms have importance.

Words have importance. Words can come from people far away and impact your life when you least expect it, and when you need it most. Words can be whispered into your ear so no one else can hear causing that smile to spread across your face.

Words have power. Words should be respected and used frequently. We should share our words with the people that matter to us.

Completion

The process I began on Aug 29 came to completion this past Wednesday night. It isn't exactly what I thought it would be when I started, but I think it couldn't be any better. Thank you Jay.


The Beginning


The End

Conversations At The Bar

After a productive morning of racing followed by me baking myself during a soccer game T and I decided that we deserved a reward and headed to the New Holland Brewery for a few drinks and some food.

We were lucky enough to get seats at the bar in that lull between the afternoon and evening crowds. Always see interesting people when we are there. Yesterday it was an alumni gathering for the college in the town and a wedding party – complete with bride and groom still all dressed up. Sitting at the bar you’re privilege to conversations that you don’t always here sitting at a table, such as this one:

Guy at bar: I really don’t like anything you serve here. Do you have something that tastes like a Rolling Rock?
Bartender: not really, but the closest thing would be a Zoomer

Or this one:

Guy at bar: Can I get a Corona?
Bartender: No, we only sell beer that we brew.

Both times my jaw almost hit the bar! I mean, come on – how do you walk into a place that has New Holland Brewing over the front door and not get the message that you are in a microbrewery?

I think T and I were the most taken back by the guy asking for the Corona, because you should have seen the look of disappointment on his face because he was forced to drink something brewed on premises.

I remember those times – back in college when I thought Miller Lite was the greatest thing ever bottled. Drank only to get drunk. I don’t think I truly appreciated the differences in beer until I was 25.

Another conversation from the bar:

Woman at bar: I don’t really like strong, hoppy flavored beers…what do you have that I might like.
Bartender: You could try the Harvest Ale, or we have our seasonal pumpkin ale.

See the difference is the last person at least had an education about beer, new what she liked and disliked in a beer. Which person at the bar do I want to be like…the woman. Which person at the bar do you want to be like?

The Greatest 5k Ever - yes, that's the name of the race

This race had been brought to my attention by the manager of the New Balance store (she’s the partner of one of T’s colleagues) and it looked like it would fit perfectly in my schedule: three weeks out from my half-marathon and it happened to fall on a Saturday when I didn’t have any events to cover at work (I did end up having to work but everything worked out in the end).

This was the first race I’ve run that had a 10 a.m. start. It was a nice change of pace but was part of the problem of me having to hurry to work afterwards – I had to skip the hot meal they were providing! The race was held in a park along the Grand River that is used for cross country races by some local high school and the college I work for, and when I found out the location I was wondering if it would be on the paved paths or not. The course map on the website wasn’t the most helpful – it was hand drawn and then scanned looked like. When we got there you could see the course was set up as an out-back/out-back type on the paved paths.

T ran this race as well and we were both running this for our own time so as we were standing at the start waiting for the horn/gun I think we both were a little nervous – ok, I know I was nervous. See the thing is the last race I ran, a 10k in July, I wasn’t pleased with my performance. This race though I had hopes of setting a new PR prior to finishing up the training for the HM in three weeks. After a few words of encouragement the horn sounded and we were off.

I started out near the back so the first quarter mile or so I was getting into a rhythm and passing some people. It wasn’t until about a half mile into the race that I looked down at my garmin: 7:45 pace. WTF? – that’s what I thought to myself. I kept going, passed the one mile marker: 7:56 for mile one. NO way can I keep this up.

Just after the first mile we turned around and headed back to the start/finish – I was still passing people, and I started to find a pace that I thought I could maintain. I could start to feel the heat (why is it above 80F in October?) taking a toll on me as I neared the two mile marker: 8:27 for mile two. Ok, this is the pace I had as a goal, or close enough.

I passed the start finish line and headed out for the other out/back just as kid maybe 12-13 was finishing. Always nice to see the younger kids taking part in this absurd pastime. Here is where I started to struggle. Less than a mile to go, I just want to hold on to the pace as best as I can and finish. Make the last turn and head to the finish with about a half mile to go. Just as I’m approaching the finish I see T – she looks like she’s going strong. I push to the finish and can see the race clock. Even though I know my chip time will be less the clock shows that this is a PR for me. Cross the line, stop my garmin.

Finish time by my garmin: 25:47
Chiptime: 25:48

I took 63 seconds off of my PR. I feel pretty good going into the HM in three weeks. T (she has her own story to tell) and I celebrated with some good beer after the soccer game. All in all a good day.

Here we go again...

Life. Busy. More later.

Well...

The tattoo on my leg is almost finished. Just small details to fill in two weeks from now.

After it heals a bit and the colors look like they are supposed to, sometime this weekend, I will post a picture.

Review, What's Ahead

Last week completed all scheduled runs on my training schedule. Only caveat is that Saturday's run instead of being 5 miles was only 3.6 miles because T and I ran on the trails in a local park that pretty much wore us out.

Week Ahead:
Monday 4 miles easy
Tuesday OFF
Wednesday 4 miles easy
Thursday 8 miles (one hour easy + 3x5 min tempo + 15 min easy) *may switch Wed/Thurs since I finish my tattoo on Wed
Friday OFF
Saturday 5 miles (most likely with T)
Sunday 15 miles (2 miles E + 2x5 min tempo + 10 min easy + 2x5 mint tempo + 2 miles easy - good thing I can program that into my garmin)

I'm still feeling pretty good about how my training is going this time around, just hope things continue to go well.

Typical Sunday

Alarm goes off at 7 a.m.

Out the door at 7:57 a.m. for your 14 mile long run - which by the way felt incredible. Great morning for a run, temp was still in the 40s when I started. Never seemed to struggle like I have in the past trying to go that type of distance.

This afternoon: grading, visiting Open Houses - yep, we're starting that process and it has me scared shitless.

Good Stuff...Good Stuff

Tonight’s run might have been the best run I’ve had in months. Felt completely effortless. At one point I looked down at my garmin and saw I was running at a 9:55/mile pace. Did a double take because that number surprised me so much! Last week I was struggling to maintain 10:30/minle pace. Heart rate was right where it is supposed to be. Effortless, that’s the only way I can describe it.

It wasn’t only great in that aspect but whether it was the time of day, or I had a better day at work, or what, but it was just one of those runs that felt good mentally.

A few weeks back we did a CD exchange amongst the 30s on Kickrunners. One of the group took it upon herself to organize a blind exchange. I spent quite a bit of time working on the CD I sent, and received a very positive response from the person I sent it to. I listened to it tonight as a playlist on my iPod. The songs have specific meaning to me and as I was listening to them random good thoughts kept popping in/out of my mind such as:

I’m glad Beaker enjoyed the CD.
I wonder what song she liked the most.
I wonder what song she didn’t like.
This song reminds me of T and our wedding - matron of honor quoted the lyrics in her toast.
Ooooh, this song brings back junior year of college.
Listened to this CD on the way to New Orleans in grad school.
Is that a dead animal on the sidewalk? Yes it is, and not freshly dead.
I see a white mailbox and it reminds me of something McTortle posted.
Little kids playing in the yard – remember what that was like.
Beautiful sunset.

The five miles went by in a blink. I almost went an extra mile just because it felt that good to be out there doing tonight. Tonight was one of those runs that reminds me why I do this…I’m sure that will be beaten out of me tomorrow with the tempo workout.

You’re not going to start chanting are you?

One of my favorite movies is "Point Break". I saw it in the theater at least 2-3 times when it came out (I was still in high school), watched it countless times in college thanks to one of my fellow Evans Scholars also enjoying the movie as much as I do. I know it’s cheesy as hell, but get a few beers in ya…

There is a scene where Bodhi (Patrick Swayze) the surf-guru-zen-master-bank-robber is discussing surfing with the impressionable young FBI agent Utah (Keanu Reeves) after a fight on the beach that Bodhi intervened on Utah’s behalf. In this scene the two are discussing the group the altercation was with and surfing:

Utah
What's their program?

Bodhi
Brains are wired wrong, they're into bad shit.

Utah
Like what? Illegal shit?

Bodhi
Maybe, I don't know. That's not what I'm talking about. They only live to get radical. They don't understand the sea, so they'll never get the spiritual side of it.

Utah
You're not gonna start chanting or anything, are ya?!

Bodhi
(laughs) I might!

Utah
This is me.

Bodhi
So, uh, you still haven't figured out what riding waves is all about, have you? It's a state of mind. It's that place where you lose yourself and find yourself. You don't know it yet, but you've got it.

That’s what running is for me, that place where I lose myself and I find myself.

I’ve tried to break myself of the habit of always taking my iPod with me on runs to give myself some time to think and I’ve actually enjoyed that time to myself. It’s given me time to think of things to post here on this blog, time to mull over problems/issues in my life, and time to just zone out as if my run was a meditative exercise.

Do I expect everyone to feel this way? No. I know that some people will never feel that way about running. To some it will always be a dreaded activity that they must do in order to maintain weight, to some it will always be about beating the person next to them in the race, and to some it will be an activity to be avoided at all costs.

From “Without Limits” one of the movies about the life of Steve Prefontaine, part of a speech Bill Bowerman gives the track team:

Running, one might say...is basically an absurd pastime upon which to be exhausting ourselves. But if you can find meaning in the kind of running you have to do to stay on this team chances are you can find meaning in another absurd pastime: Life.

So maybe I’m just trying to find meaning in this absurd pastime…and maybe I’m hoping someone else will as well. It is nice when someone does share the viewpoint I do on this absurd pastime. You know who you are.

And yeah, I just might start chanting.

The Week Ahead

Wow, am I glad this past week is gone. Worst week of running I've had in months. All week I just felt unmotivated, tired, and struggled to get myself out the door to get my runs in. Only ran 21 miles last week.

Thing is I think I know what the issues are:
not getting consistent good sleep
not eating properly and hydrating well throughout the day

Go back a month ago when I was cruising through workouts I was taking care of both of those, last week not so much.

So here it is, the upcoming week's training schedule. I'm hoping that by posting it here all three of you who read this will help keep me honest if you don't see that days run shown over in the right hand column.

Monday - 5 miles easy
Tuesday - off
Wednesday - 5 miles easy
Thursday - 9 miles quality workout: 2x(10 min easy + 15 min tempo pace)+ 2 miles easy
Friday - off
Saturday - 5 miles easy, most likely with T
Sunday - 2.5 hour long run which will be about 14 miles or so

I'm starting the last six weeks of my training plan, the amount of miles per week is decreasing and I'm cutting some of the workouts down to keep myself in line with the amount of miles I'm supposed to be running (note: I'm using a marathon schedule so I'm decreasing the quality workouts in this last six week phase).

Now I just need to eat better and actually drink some water throughout the day.

Can You Tell Me How To Get...

T had this on her blog...did the "test" about 3 weeks ago or so and I'm just now getting around to posting it. It lets you know what Sesame Street character you are:

You scored 89% Organization, 53% abstract, and 76% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables.

First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean.

Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type.

Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself.

You are very organized, both concrete and abstract, and more extroverted.

Here is why are you Big Bird.

You are both very organized. You almost always know where your belongings are and you prefer things neat. You may even enjoy cleaning and find it therapeutic. Big Bird is never sloppy and always under control... pretty good for a 6 year old bird living without a family.

You both are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract thinkers. Big Bird can be quite dreamy at times and has no problem using his imagination. At the same time he is also practical and can be methodical in his search for answers to questions. You have a good balance in your life. You know when to be logical at times, but you also aren't afraid to explore your dreams and desires... within limits of course.

You are both extroverts. Big Bird gets along with everyone. He makes friends easily and always has a positive attitude. You definitely enjoy the company of others, and you don't have problems meeting new people... in fact you probably look forward to it. You are willing to take charge when necessary or work as part of a team.

Interesting Question...

T and I were walking out of Costco today on our normal Sunday grocery run when I noticed a disply for cabinets, carpet, tires, and caskets. Yes, you read that right, caskets.

My only question is this: do you have to buy caskets in packs of 4 or 5 like everything else in the store?

Accomplishment

They come in all shapes and sizes. They happen at work and in our personal life. They can be something as simple as being told "nice dinner" after fixing a meal for a loved one, or as major as a promotion at work (and the accompanying raise).

I think the ones that matter most are the accomplishments that are personal in nature - dropping that clothing size, starting an exercise program, finishing that race you signed up for, completing that project around the house.

I've had some in my life recently...some were mine, some were T's, some were friends'.

Just wanted to say a hearty "Well Done" to all of them.

Mug Club

No, it's not some sort of Harry Potter fan club.

T and I spent Saturday doing some shopping in Holland, MI. Some time at the outlet mall and then in downtown Holland before setting up shop at the New Holland Brewing Company.




Enjoyed a nice IPA, one of the ones that is brewed on-site and in small batches. Very tasty.



New Holland has a Mug Club. $40 per person to join, one year membership. Get some great discounts on beer, some great discounts on growlers, discounted admission to some of their events, and they have events that are for the Mug Club members only. We inquired about joining. Bartender tells us there is a waiting list of 34 people and memberships expire at the end of the month and if they aren't renewed then the membership is available and that most likely we're looking at a 3-4 month wait and would we want to go ahead and get on the waiting list. We tell him yes...a guy next to us at the bar (Mug Club member himself) says, "you can always say no later!"

Bartender disappears...comes back about 1 minute later and tells us that if we want to join/pay today there are availalbe slots. Hell Yeah! Sign us up!

T is member #304
I'm member #310

We get our own personalized mug.

September 2nd

Important date for T and I. September 2, 2000, was our first date. It was a Saturday night, I was in Nashville with a friend to see Miami beat Vanderbilt.

Met T for drinks in downtown Nashville afterwards.

Rest is history.

August Recap

Here are the numbers:

For each week of August (including the two partial weeks) the number of miles I ran -
39
18
35
39
43

For the month I ran 148 miles. New record. Old record was July 2007 when I ran 103 miles.

Consistency is paying off.