Run the Bird! Part two...

The next morning we got up and walked down to the race start line right before the race. I needed to use the restroom from the very beginning, but being so close to the start of the race I would have to wait. The race started at exactly 7 a.m., which, is something they purport being known for. The very start of the race was down hill slightly and them some flat terrain on a highway. The worst was yet to come. The website claimed two particularly challenging hills on the course. Throughout, I noticed many rolling hills I would consider significant. One hill of particular notation was "Heart Beat Hill." As soon as I got to the start of this hill, at about mile 17, I decided it best to walk the worst of it. From there the rolling hills continually pounded on my legs and toward the end with about 4 or 5 miles left my right quad started to cramp and every so often I had to walk until it went back to normal. Unlike my training runs I also notice my upper back getting tight and I am guessing this is from leaning on the hills. One of the nicest things I have seen at a race was the GU they had here. Not just GU, but the presentation of cutting the tops off before handing to the runners was a great idea and whoever thought of this deserves many thanks.

One of my best memories in the race was at a water stop. Usually as runners pass through a water stop they yell out whether they want water or sports drink. In one particular instance I yelled out "Cold Beer," to which one of the laughing volunteers responded "Jello Shots."

By the end of the race, I felt like I was dead and glad to be finished. In the end I had a new marathon PR by over an hour and finished in 4:19:34. Of course, I have to be fair and explain that my last PR and first marathon was Chicago in 2007 when they canceled it because of the heat.

After the race, we walked back to the hotel to take showers. After the showers we drove over toward Second Sole to pick up our free shoes. En route, we stopped at a national burrito chain for lunch. As stated, we picked up our shoes. I was impressed that they had size 13 shoes quite ready and the store also marked all merchandise down quite a bit. After getting our shoes we went back to the hotel and crashed until dinner. For dinner we went to the Ohio Brewing Company and tried some of their brews. The beer wasn't overly exciting, but I will admit I can be a beer snob sometimes. After this we went back to the hotel for the night and the next day drove back.

Overall, it was a blast. I would recommend this race to anyone and Runner's World got it correct including it in the top 10 marathons.

Run the Bird! Part one...

I guess it is about time for me to discuss my latest marathon in Akron, OH. In preparation I ran as many hills as I could find in this "flat as a pancake" town. This proved somewhat for naught, but a good time was had.

We drove out on Friday, September 26th and within 8 hours or so we made the trip. It was quite uneventful except for the constant sightings of corn and soybeans. Upon arrival we checked into our rooms and made the block trek to packet pick-up. They had a blue tape line to follow around the expo to eventually get to t-shirt pickup. The only real "hitch" in the entire weekend happened here. The friends I was with happened to talk to the right person and get there packets right away. I on the other hand talked to someone else and they told me to go back out to find my bib number. I had to fight back through the people to get my number. When I got back I realized another person utilized a name/bib listing for locating bib numbers. Then, we walked through the expo and eventually came upon the shirts where they were more than willing to let participants try on the shirts for size.

Once we retrieved our shirts and packets, we went out to eat at Luigi's, a local Italian eatery. The food wasn't overly exciting, but it definitely sufficed for our carbohydrate loading needs. Upon finishing dinner, we went back to our rooms and crashed for the night after getting things together for the following morning.

Running in Indy...

Indianapolis is a not a bad place for a business trip. Of course, it is made better when a little research is done and a good place to run is found in the heart of the city; I happened to find just that. Not far from downtown is the IUPUI campus with the Indianapolis Zoo directly across the river. Right next to the campus is a pathway that runs close to the river. I was able to find an approximate five mile route and there were a few things that I remember in particular about my two runs.

On my first run, I was just trying to navigate the course and make sure I did not get lost. The lost part was mostly on the way out, but on the way back I was rewarded with an exceptional view of downtown in the early morning. The vantage point that seemed to have the best view was near a place called West Side Bait & Tackle.* The other thing I remember from this run is that staying on that side of the river and trying to run between the river and the Indy Zoo is not a good idea. I kept going and eventually found that the trail was no longer lit and there was a closed gate in the way.** The most unnerving part though was the mephitic smell of animal urine. I took these many cues as a hint that I should not be there and promptly turned around to cross the closest bridge and went directly back to the hotel.

The second run was along the same route, but this time it was raining a little and I took my time to venture away from the first running route. This new area was a display of outdoor art work. The first thing was a mini power-line structures and then was a Chinese take-out box that was five feet tall. Both were oddly sized in comparison to their normal size. Next, was a scoop truck model that was put on it's back end with the scoop pointing in the air and last was a small metal structure called the "Bridge of Friendship." The plaque stated it was for two people to sit upon facing opposite directions, therefore, to gain the intended vantage point I climbed the three foot structure and began to ponder my thoughts. After a few moments I remembered I was out for a run and got back to the hotel shortly thereafter.

Both runs served their purpose in adding mileage for marathon training, but it is easy see that the first one was awkward and just added to my training. Alternatively, the second run was easier and proved to provide insight that can be brought out by contemplating art in any form. I am not sure when I will be traveling for business again, but this experience was enough to convince me to make the extra effort to find a route instead of resigning to the hotel's treadmill.


*While writing this I did a search to ensure I had the correct title of the store and happened upon this video from inside the store starring "Fat Boy Dan" a self proclaimed redneck fisherman. Admittedly, I did not watch the whole thing.

**Apparently, just because a route appears passable on www.mapmyrun.com doesn't mean that it is in fact passable.

Currently...Life...Thoughts...My own...

These past few weeks have been quite interesting for me. As most people in my life know I, with the help of others, have persuaded another part of the company I work for to pay me more for my time and meager thoughts. That alone was the excitement for the weekend, a couple of weekends ago. Along with this comes a trip to a major city about three hours away for their annual meeting. This trip begins tomorrow morning promptly at 7 a.m. in a passenger van and lasts four days until it ends the way it started in a passenger van. It will be my first real company sponsored travel and meeting, as such, I am a little nervous about how things will go. Moreover, I will be traveling with people whom I haven't met, but for an hour during the initial interview. I will need to be a sponge and take it all in while building relationships with people, which, I have never met or even interacted with over the phone.

The second big thing in my life currently is the progression of marathon training. Until this past weekend I had completed a twenty mile run and a nineteen mile run. I added to these long runs with another twenty mile run on Sunday. Now the hardest part of marathon training is here. I can run long. I can run hard. But tell me not to run as long or as hard and it will make me ready for race day which is three weeks away and I get jittery. Yes; Gen will enjoy the extra time I have at home, but less running means I will wake in the middle of the night for no apparent reason other than I have a surplus of energy. Energy that is not necessarily productive. This restlessness will put me on edge. The whole time I will know my drug is out there, but I can't have it. I will miss the high. Some may think it is weird, but I enjoy waking up the morning after a long run, feeling sore, stumbling down the stairs to turn on the coffee maker. It is nice to not only know I have done something, but to wake up and feel it makes the pain ever so inviting.

Counting down to my last day and counting down to marathon day have become one in the same. I have my last day in my current job on Thursday, drive to Akron, OH for the marathon on Friday, run the marathon on Saturday, drive back on Sunday, and start my new job on the following Monday. Two beginnings and endings rolled into one weekend. Talk about emotions running high. Wish me luck...I will need it.