TIme Off

"Run slowly, run daily, drink moderately and don't eat like a pig."
~Dr. Ernest van Aaken

I’ve taken quite some time off of blogging, I’m not exactly sure why…

I’m still running and am looking forward to the Disney Marathon in just a few weeks. I was hoping to put together a winter challenge for many of you to take part in, sorry if some of you were hoping for that.

Recently I proposed to my beautiful girlfriend and we are now starting to plan a wedding, I may look for some support during these times from those of you who have recently done this.

Hope you’re all still running, despite the cold weather. I really do hope to get back into the blogging soon. For a long time I was getting so much out of it and the inspiration I was finding from your entries was amazing.

Have a merry Christmas and I’ll see you all on in blogger land in the New Year, make it a good one.

Run Hard

Not Ashamed

"You were born to run. Maybe not that fast, maybe not that far, maybe not as efficiently as others. But to get up and move, to fire up that entire energy-producing, oxygen-delivering, bone-strengthening process we call running."
~Florence Grffith Joyner and Jon Hanc, Running For Dummies

Not a lot to report for the week. Many of you have been talking about the weather and how it’s turned freezing cold the past few days. Well let me go ahead and jump on that wagon.

Yesterday I had planned to go out and run 6-8 miles in the morning, it didn’t happen. I woke up at 5:30 to take the dog out but turned the Weather Channel on first, I was surprised to se it was a wintery 27 degrees out there. My morning running buddy was on board for skipping it so it made the decision that much easier.

Personally I welcome the colder weather. It wasn’t all that long ago that I woke up to 85 degrees with 90% humidity. I’d go out for an easy 5 miles and be blistering hot and dehydrated by mile 2. But below freezing is a bit too cold. It would be nice to keep the 40 degree mornings with no wind.

Since the morning run was canceled I thought why not do some track work after practice. It was no doubt warmer but it was getting dark. I was in the weight room with a couple guys that wanted to lift before heading home. It’s good to see that kind of dedication to push it just a little more after practice is over.

Then one of our cross country stars came in. She’ll be competing in the Foot Locker Championship later this month and told me she wanted to get on the track for a good run but wasn’t sure what to do. I told her to run four 400’s at a good strong pace, and since I wanted to do some track work I figured I’d run them too.

I’m not ashamed to say it, I got my assed kicked. I couldn’t even run all 4, went out too fast on the first lap and still got smoked. Good news is I came up with two conclusions, the first is I need to do much more track work if I think I can get faster and second I shouldn’t be out trying to prove something against really fast high school kids, my time has come and gone.

What you have all been waiting for… Movember update:

The fundraising efforts have reached the $520,000 mark and with ongoing support the $1 Million mark is not far off. If you’d like to donate, even if it’s a $1, feel free to visit http://us.movember.com/donate/donate-search.php and type in my registration number 1791366.

The stache is still struggling, but I’m sticking with it. I’ll be meeting my girlfriends extended family next week for Thanksgiving and yes, this ridiculous thing will be on my face.

Have a great rest of the week runners.

Run Hard

Tagged

"You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through." ~Rosalynn Carter

I have been tagged by one of my favorite bloggers M*J*C… thanks yo! I apologize for my slacking.

The rules are list 6 things you value and 6 things you don’t. Then pass it on to 6 people. So I just realized its 666… who the hell thought of this little game? Anyway, here it goes.

What I value:
Friends and Family
Physical Activity
Human Rights
Loyalty
Ethics
Environment

What I don’t value:
Liars
The Green Bay Packers
War
Close mindedness
Dreaming
Staying still

Tagged:
I don’t know who’s been tagged and who hasn’t so here you go…
Bobbi
Flyers 26
D10
Erin Leigh
Felice
Marci

It was a pretty nice weekend here in NC. Saturday was supposed to be a pretty wet and crappy day, and although it started out that way it ended up being pretty nice. I was scheduled to run 10-13 in the morning with the Galloway group but when I woke up and looked outside I noticed the ground was very wet. Maybe it’s just me but the idea of running on wet leaves and big puddles doesn’t sound all that enjoyable.

A few hours later I woke up, took the dog for a walk, and noticed the clouds breaking up. I figured this would be a great time to get a few miles in, knowing that logging 10-13 alone was doubtful, (I’ve really gotten spoiled running with a group). I thought if I could get 5 in that would be good, 6 would be better but I’d see how I felt. The run must have been going pretty well, I ended up logging a little over 7 miles at an 8:54 pace.

The last couple of days I’ve noticed a change in my attitude with running. I knew there wasn’t going to be much time to sit and enjoy the completion of my first marathon but I had no idea I would end up getting as motivated and I seem to be about running my next one.

The Disney World Marathon is about a month and a half away, and after running a 4:16:56 on a very hilly course I have a very strong feeling I can break that 4 hour mark on a flat course in Orlando. It’s going to take some work, and somewhere along the way I’ve been inspired to put forth that extra effort.

My week ahead:
Mon. 5-6 miles, chest/back/abs workout
Tues. Morning cycling class,
Wed. Moring 6 miles, arms/shoulders/abs workout
Thur. Track workout (4x200m, 2x400m, 1x800m, 2x400m, 3x200m, 2x100m)
Fri. OFF
Sat. 10-13 miles Galloway Group

Adding some gym workouts and some speed training on the track should really help out with my sub 4 hour goal. I should have a week 2 Movember update for you tomorrow, but let me just tell you in advance it’s not looking good.

Run Hard

Mo Bro

"It all comes down to having a dream. You have to know why you head out the door every day to run. Your purpose will motivate you in every mile you train."

~Brian Diemer, three-time Olympian steeplechaser and 1984 bronze medalist

There were a lot of people who commented on my last post, MO-vember. Many of you had asked for updates, so here it is…

It’s been a week now and as you can see I grow facial hair like a 12 year old. There’s roughly 4 weeks left so hopefully it’ll get better. For now it’s just ridiculous, but after all it’s for charity. I’m sure there are those of you who have done worse things for a good cause. I’ll post a new picture weekly so you can see the progress.

I want to say thank you to Jen at swimming, biking and running stories for her donation. I really appreciate it, every bit helps.

Well last week was my recovery week so there was no running at all. Saturday was scheduled to be a 10 miler with the Galloway group, but when I opened the door to head out there was a monsoon, so no running for me. Sunday I went out for a short run before football came on and logged 5 miles. I’d like to get out today but it doesn’t look promising.

Week ahead-
Wednesday: 6:30 a.m. 6-8 mile lake run
Thursday: OFF
Friday: OFF
Saturday: 10-13 mile group run

On a personal note I have some good news to report. I’ve been looking to get into coaching for a long time, and now I will be. I took a position at one of the local high schools as an assistant track coach. I was wicked excited to get the job and I really hope it’s a sign of great things to come.

Hope you’re having a good week.

Run Hard

MO-vember

"Do right. Do your best. Treat others as you want to be treated."
~Lou Holtz

I usually don't do this kind of thing... (but I might start, Ctrl C and Ctrl V is a great way to publish a post) but I heard about this from a fellow runner and thought that it was an excellent cause. I have joined and became part of the the Movember event.

The Movember event creates awareness around men's health issues and raises funds for carefully selected beneficiary partners in each country that are also charitable organizations, with a focus on prostate cancer. Since its inception as a formal charity in 2004, Movember has raised over $29 million (USD) globally and is continuously working to increase awareness of prostate cancer within the community and change the attitude men have about their health.

What is Movember?

Movember (the month formerly known as November) is a charity event held during November each year. At the start of Movember guys register with a clean shaven face. The Movember participants, known as Mo Bros, then have the remainder of the month to grow and groom their Mo (Australian slang for moustache), raising money and awareness along the way for men's health and the fight against prostate cancer. The answer is yes, I am growing a moustache.

The Challenge:

Men have thrived on challenges throughout history. The challenge to discover new lands, climb higher mountains and solve seemingly impossible tasks. It is now evident men need to unite and embrace a new challenge - to improve their collective health. However we look at it, men are far less healthy than women.

The average life expectancy for men is five years less than women (for Caucasians) and seven years less for African American men compared to African American women. Men access health services less than women, thereby denying themselves the chance for prevention and early detection of common diseases.

Why is This?

Part of the answer is a lack of awareness about the very real health issues faced by males. Also contributing to the problem is an attitude of having to be tough "real men" and men's reluctance to see a doctor about an illness or to go for regular medical check ups. The aim of Movember is to change this attitude, make men's health fun by putting the Mo (moustache) back on the face of fashion and in the process raise some serious funds for key men's health issues.

How to Help:

It's easy to help, you can go to http://us.movember.com/donate/index.php click donate to an individual and put in my Registration Number: 1791366. Anything you can give will help, and I appreciate it.

All donations made will go directly to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, which will use the funds for high-impact research to find better treatments and a cure for prostate cancer. The Prostate Cancer Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Thanks guys, Run Hard

Just Some Classic Mo's:

2008 City of Oaks Marathon Race Report

"One thing about racing is that it hurts. You better accept that from the beginning or you're not going anywhere."

~Bob Kennedy, U.S. 5000 record holder

It’s hard to believe that it’s over. For months I’ve been training almost religiously, doing speed work, hill work, mile repeats, adding distance to the long runs dieting and cross training. There were good days when I could go out and run miles around an 8 min pace and there were days when I couldn’t even find the motivation to put my running shoes on.

All that said, on November 2, 2008 my 30th birthday, at 7:00 a.m. I took off running the 2nd annual City of Oaks Marathon in Raleigh, NC.

Miles 1-5:
My goal from the beginning was to go out and follow my Galloway training program doing the 6:1 run/walk method. I was not going to let myself get caught up in the marathon excitement and go out too fast.

The first walk break came up faster then I had expected, but I took it. I navigated to the right side of the course where I and two others (Heidi and Bethany) started walking. We got some odd looks and even some comments from friends, “walking already?” But it would not influence my decision. I simply said, “Don’t worry, we’ll be there at the finish line to congratulate you when you finally get there.”

Heidi was feeling warmed up and took off, she was doing the half and felt that she could pick up the pace. Bethany and I told her good luck and she was gone.

We passed the capital building around mile 3.5 but I was still on some unfamiliar ground. I tried to keep my focus off of the race and distract myself with the scenery. I knew I would be familiar with the course once I got to mile 5 and I could begin to settle into a groove. There were a few Saturdays where the group trained around that area so I figured I had an advantage.

Right around here Matt, who had passed us during our first walk break, caught back up to us. “You guys are easy to see but a bitch to catch,” he said. I figured he was still ahead of us but apparently we passed him right after our first walk break… who would’ve thought. We got to talking about football and some of the upcoming games, which took my mind off the race.

Another Galloway member, Kim, also found us and was giving us a race report. She’s running the Richmond Marathon this weekend so she was just meeting folks on the course to see how they were and if we needed anything. She told us that Heidi was running at about an 8:20 pace and killing it… Great job.

Miles 6-10:
These were the pre-hill miles, where we run away from the downtown area and into the country. At this point one of two things could happen, you can either settle into a perfect pace and go with it or get caught up in the flatter roads and pick up the pace. I chose to stick with the game plan, keep it at a steady pace and prepare for the hills.

I noticed between miles 8-9 I was getting passed by a lot of people. It was a straight away mile so folks must have chosen to pick up the pace not realizing the hills to come. We took a turn up onto Blue Ridge and I saw a group of 4 people with a mini Pabst Blue Ribbon keg handing out beer, my eyes got really big seeing the beer but I ran right buy it. I said to Matt, “I can’t believe I just past up free beer.”

At about 8.5 the turn around came for the half marathon. “I feel like a pansy only doing the half now,” Matt said. “You are a pansy… but good luck to you the rest of the way.” I said back and new it was time to focus because the hills were just around a couple more corners. Bethany must had found a good pace because she started taking off at this point.

Meegs was at mile 10 to hand me some bottles to replace my empty ones in the fuel belt. I saw her from a distance, took my arm warmers off and grabbed my two empty bottles. I said to her “I just need two,” she yelled out “just drop those,” she handed me two bottles and I was off never having to break my pace.

A voice from the back said, “Now that’s the way to do it there.” I couldn’t agree more.

Miles 11-20
These were the miles that we trained for, the hilliest part of the course. My knees started hurting at this point but all I could do was suck it up and keep going. We got onto Ebenezer Church Rd. for miles 11-14 which were all up hill. I had heard about these hills but because it’s such a busy road we weren’t able to train here… wish we had.

These were some of the biggest hills I’d ever seen, and it was like they never ended. Once you made a turn and thought, ok maybe we’ll level out a bit… wrong. Turn after turn all there were was more hills. It was brutal.

I did notice a lot of those folks that passed me around mile 8 were falling back, guess they didn’t realize how hard the hills were. Bethany was still going strong and all I wanted to do was keep her in sight, that didn’t last too long. Before I knew it she was gone and I was alone.

Mile 14 came and so did the biggest hill ever. Both knees were starting to hurt but I knew Umpstead Park was just a mile ahead and I’d be back on familiar ground where we trained and could put my mind at ease. Once in Umpstead we were on what felt like kitty litter and my knees, although sore, felt better. We would be here for the next three miles and although it was still up hill, it was nothing like what we just went through.

We were out of Umpstead at around mile 19 and had one last big hill to go up. But I had trained on this hill over and over so I was ready to kick its ass and that put a smile on my face. I had heard some people up ahead talking about pace and goals so I thought I’d ask where they were as far as time. She said her goal was 4:30 but was on pace for 4:10. I wished her luck fell back and took my walk break. I was on a good pace and happy.

Miles 20-26.2
I realized I had used a lot of my fluid getting through the hills and had hoped to see Meegs at mile 20 to reload. I knew it was unlikely and it was, she was gone and I was almost on empty. I started taking water and Gatorade from the water stops just to save my stuff for the end.

Right before mile 22 I saw the Pabst Blue Ribbon table and figured it would be a disgrace to my German-Irish background to pass it up twice. The lady saw my shirt and offered me a birthday beer. There was no way I was about to say no.

Mile 22-23 was the same straightaway as mile 8-9 but because of the hills, and my walk breaks, all the people that had once passed me were now going down. My quads started to feel a bit tight so I added an extra min to a couple walk breaks but knew I could afford it.

It was also right around here I saw what looked to be Bethany in the distance, but figured there was no way she was killing it. I got closer and realized it was her, I ran by and asked if she was ok. She shook her in pain but knew it was just pain and she’d be ok after a couple walks. Before I knew it I looked to my left and she was right back with me.

I could tell she was in some pain but I told her we’re still on a good pace and can easily break our goals if we just keep going. We kept up conversation and continued with our 6:1’s and kept going.

We headed back downtown and closer to NC State campus. I was back to unfamiliar ground but luckily Bethany knew the area and how many of the rolling hills we had left. She started a countdown with three but I swear it felt like so much more. There was even a couple time I asked if this was a hill, she responded with a simple “No.”

A little after mile 25 Jackie showed up and said we were doing great and only had 3 more turns, till the finish. My right hamstring felt like someone was pulling on it and lighting it on fire, I took an early walk break but Bethany urged me to keep going that we only had a mile to go.

My watched peeped for a walk break but we both shook it off, saying lets keep going. We took the last turn and noticed the crowd was getting bigger and we could see the puma fence and the finish banner. I picked up the pace and yelled out “come on! Keep it going!”

We ran like what felt to be a sprint to the end Bethany’s fiancé was on the course clapping telling her to keep up it up. We took it all the way through the finish and ran through at an unofficial time of 4:17:41. It wasn’t till later that night I looked up the official results and saw that we tied at an official time of 4:16:56. It was a great race on a very challenging course. My legs felt like jello at the end and I really wanted to just relax. However it was my 30th birthday and I had to go celebrate and watch the Chicago Bears take care of the Detroit Lions.
Overall it was no doubt one of the best, if not the best birthdays ever. My plan is to take this week off and start back with a 10-13 mile run on Saturday with the group. There’s no time to get to relaxed, I’M GOING TO DISNEY WORLD! Next stop is the Walt Disney World Marathon, January 11, 2009.

Thanks again to all my blogger friends that wished me luck and sent out good vibes, I really did appreciate it.

Run Hard

Marathoner

Yes, I am a Marathoner. I finished today in an unofficial time of 4:17, I should have a race report out soon. Thanks again for all the support.