Priest Busted for Running Naked at School Track

Amber, I know you sweat a lot, but whatever you do - keep your clothes on! (Oh, what you hear on DVE in the morning...)

FREDERICK, COLO—A Catholic priest who said that he sweats too much if he wears clothes when he’s jogging may be permanently defrocked as he is facing indecent exposure charges after allegedly running naked at a high school track.

The Rev. Robert Whipkey, 53, was arrested by police on June 22 about 4:30 a.m. after an off-duty cop saw him walking home naked. When the cop shone his flashlight on Whipkey, the priest reportedly covered himself with material that he was carrying. The Archdiocese of Denver has suspended Whipkey pending the disposition of the case. If Whipkey is convicted of the misdemeanor charge, he would have to register as a sex offender. Leadership councils at the three Catholic parishes he serves near Denver have met to discuss his future in the church.
He told police he knew what he did was wrong but he didn’t think anyone would be around at that time of the day to see him. He was ordained in 1983 and serves three Catholic parishes near Denver. A diocese spokesman said that there had been no complaints or allegations concerning Whipkey regarding sexual abuse. 8-09-07

Running in a Winter Wonderland

There was a fresh layer of snow this morning and glittery snow falling down as I was running...much more preferable in December than my last post!

Melikalikimaka

Felt like I was running in Hawaii last night with the warm breeze blowing through Ben Avon. We set a record high temperature of 66 yesterday, according to DVE.

I found it!

So I shouldn't be allowed to write on the blog since I can barely remember the last time I ran...BUT I finally started my Christmas shopping tonight and I walked into Target. There displayed right in front of my eyes was our favorite sports bra in RED with the black trim. It's the same one that I saw on some girl in Chicago and was very jealous! So now I have a little more motivation to get out of the house...

Sweating it off without doing a thing

I am a bit under the weather, but its just the sniffles, nothing major. I was going to attempt swimming tonight, though I couldn't remember the adage about whether you could exercise when you had symptoms above the neck. (You can - I just looked it up. If symptoms are above the neck - nasal, headache, etc. - you can still exercise, just slow it down. Below the neck - take the day off.) Even if it would have been okay, I wasn't sure how the breathing thing would work while swimming. If I'm stuffed up, can I still breath when I come up for air? Well, I used the excuse that I forgot my goggles (I think I actually lost them.) and nixed the swimming idea. I had read some things recently about the benefits of saunas and I had brought a book with me to do some leisurely reading, so I jumped right in. Its really quite awful - you sweat just sitting there - not a comfortable feeling for me. I think I'd rather run three miles. Apparently 15-20 minutes in the sauna burns 300 calories, which is equivalent to the calories burned in a one hour brisk walk.

My Fortune Cookie

My fortune cookie at lunch yesterday read, "Winners are those that forget they're in the race. They just love to run."

Turkey Trot

So...Turns out the course for the Turkey Trot is pretty fun! I am only reporting on second-hand information since (Long story short) I didn't end up running it after all due to baby duty and lots of family sleeping in the house at the time. It takes you over the Clemente bridge, past PNC, the Science Center, by the river, etc.

Grant, Rebecca, and Ruth all said it was lots of fun, and not to mention the crazy warm weather (63 degrees!) it was a great day to run. Too bad Miles didn't have the opportunity to make his first race debut, but soon. I promise.

Maybe if anyone is around next year we can plan on it!

Brings Back XC Memories

Nathan and I ran on the cross country course at Carlisle High School, which is also the course that Dickinson College uses, so I've run there a few times for races. It was cold and windy out on the course, but fun to run in the grass, which I hardly ever do anymore!

No Run Tonight

I was optimistic and packed running clothes for while I am staying out of town tonight (I'm starting to get the busy season vibe and its not even Thanksgiving yet), but alas, I don't think its going to happen. With visions of a long to-do list tonight, I think my eyes will be glued to the computer and I'll be frantically trying to get work done before the partner comes out tomorrow. Darn!

Saturday morning run

My wife made me get up and run with her this morning. It was a nice morning for a run. But, more importantly, I wore my Daisy Crazy shirt for the first time. Thanks to Lisa for helping me show my pride in style.

Thursday Rainy Run

Once again, I had to drag myself out of bed this morning to fit in one weekday run. Unfoturnately for me, the mild 50s and 60s that had been present all week had been replaced by a 41 degree rain. I set out planning to run to Forbes Avenue and back through the park...but since I could barely see the rivers and lakes at my feet on the lit streets, I decided that the dark rainy park was a bad idea. So I flipped around and went the flattest route possible past the Kane's...
As much as I'm slacking off due to no training program, I really enjoy having no set requirements. I wanted to do 30 minutes (so that I wouldn't have to rush for work...) but ended up doing an easy 40. Glad that I still have some level of endurance.

Megan and I are planning a reunion run on Saturday - nothing special, just the first time since Columbus!

D's Expanding

I forgot to mention the new Regent Square tenant that I discovered on my run yesterday. Yep - it's D's! They now also occupy the bakery and from the sign it looks like it will be a deli/sweet shop. Sounds good to me!

Sweetie Sweetie, the former bakery in Regent Square, has now moved into the corner shop right by my house. The stuff is good, but the selection is currently limited and somewhat overpriced (probably to help pay off the significant tax lien from the state....)

Happy eating one way or another!

I did it!

So I have had a tremendous internal struggle since the marathons are over to get up and run in the morning. It was especially bad this week as the wake up temps were in the low thirties. Well I knew that when I woke up an hour before I was supposed to get up, that I really had no choice. I'm bummed that I've lost most of my endurance and speed in two quicks weeks but I need have a delightful run as the sun was coming up - about 40 minutes in total. I would love to get a run in up in New Hampshire this weekend - but I don't forsee it fitting in to the driving schedule!
The worst part is we're not going to be around for the Steelers/Browns Game! (I guess it's better that Geoff lose in privacy...)

Casting My First Vote in the Ben Avon Precinct

Since I wasn't completely sure of where we were supposed to vote and how long the polls were open, I figured I would pose as a runner so that I wouldn't look like a fool wandering around like a first timer. Today was my first ear band & gloves run of the winter season! I also wore my Precip jacket - initally to break the wind, but by the end of the run it was drizzling (I could tell it really WANTED to snow!), so it was much appreciated. I found the polling place - the campaign signs out front helped - and fulfilled my civic duty, then it was off to finish the rest of the run.

Weird thing that happened - A guy pulled up next to me asking for directions to Washington, PA.

Its a Small World on the Web

Wow - Lisa, can't believe you saw my posts. [I am the only fool who accidentally posted mine twice...whoops.] Yeah, obviously we were up to try to catch it as well...very disappointing. I truly gave up and never got to see any of it. They had the highlights on NBC at 2 this afternoon, so I recorded that and just finished watching it. It was so amazing how well Ryan Hall finished. One of those runners who makes it look super easy. Considering it was a loop, I was surprised that there weren't more people there. I really think we should try to go to Boston!

Also - they have highlights of the NYC marathon tomorrow at 3 pm. Switch between that and football?

Men's Trials a Bust

I stayed up late with the Schreibers last night and set my alarm to catch the start of the Men's Marathon Trials. Much to my frustration (and everyone else's around the world), the streaming wasn't working due to too much traffic. I was reading through the angry bloggers when I happened across these comments:

Doesn't work for me in the US w/ a non-Mac computer either...guess I'm going to head out an enjoy a morning run instead.
MTroxell 11/03/07

Can't watch from my non-Mac computer in the US either. My husband and I are watching replays of old badminton matches...exciting. I think I'm headed out for a morning run.
MTroxell 11/03/07


Could it be true? Do I know this person??? Well, glad that you at least got your own run in. I hope mine will happen this afternoon in between laundry and a nap!


*********************

So, I finally connected in time to see the last ten miles. So dramatic! We definitely need to go see the women in person!

By Popular Demand

Just in case any of you thought I skipped the Chicago Marathon finish line extravaganza to go relax in a spa - here is proof that I actually spent some time in the famous County Hospital. And note that the medal only came off of my neck during the chest x-ray....

Fall Frolick

After an overly crazy last week and a pathetically sick weekend, I realized that 9 days after the half marathon, I had yet to exercise. period. that stinks. after months of training, am I willing to throw it all away!?!?!? Well, I didn't do a whole lot. But I was able to dash out for a quick three miles before it got dark. I was shocked at how cold it became once the sun was no longer direct. I dashed through Swisshelm Park and down into Frick Park where the leaves were holding on to the glorious colors of fall. It was a nice run, but reminded me that I definitely need to invest in a head lamp so I'm currently looking into lightweight options that will actually stay on my head. I'm not sure if I'll really like the headlamp since I don't even like wearing a hat, but we'll work on it.

60 Years of Marriage Earns One Night of Luxury [at the Palmer House Hilton]

In 1947, Larry and Mariam Orenstein honeymooned at Chicago's posh Palmer House hotel. They could never afford the current asking price for the hotel penthouse — $1,600 a night — but thanks to a long-standing hotel policy and their original 1947 receipt, the couple just celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in the Palmer penthouse for $10...

Listen to their story.

Katie & Brian Set Their Wedding Date

Katie Troxell and Brian finally set their wedding date - no races to be planned the weekend of October 11, 2008!

[I had to do some weird math on figuring out how October 11 was a Saturday...Lisa got married on a Saturday, October 7 in 2006, so this year, October 6 was a Saturday. Next year, October 4 is a Saturday (its a leap year)...which means that October 11 is also a Saturday...]

Jessie Finishes the Frankfurt Marathon

Jessie Akpan finished the Frankfurt Marathon in 3:54:59! I couldn't tell much else about the race as most of the site was in German.

Columbus Photos

After the race - Lisa and Megan in their foil, posing with the lifesize picture of Lisa.

The National Guard Reserve brass band which was set up right near the finish line for extra support!

(I could only do really small pictures because I took them directly from the photos my mom posted on Snapfish.)

That 70's Jogging Craze

Just noticed that both the Chicago Marathon AND the Great Race celebrated their 30th anniversaries this year. Must of have been the jogging craze of the 70's that got these races up and going!

Volunteering at Boston & Other Olympic Time Trial Info

Amber - to fill you in - we are considering going to the Women's Olympic Time Trials in Boston and then volunteering to help with the actual Boston Marathon the next day. Would you be interested?

I found out that applications for volunteers aren't accepted until January 2008, so I have a reminder for us to look into it then.

For the Men's Time Trials in NYC, the Today show will broadcast the start, (7:35 am on EST) then stream the remainder of the race on its website nbcsports.com. You would think they might also want to broadcast the ending, but hey...brunch at the Troxells?

Bummer

Hood to Coast is already full. They typically fill up on the same day that registration opens. I won't go into the details, but there are pretty specific rules as to how to submit the registration, etc. I just called the office to see if they were truly full and they are. We're going to have to look to the 2009 race and have everything pulled together by mid-October next year.

2 Cool Websites Spotted in Columbus

Notakenyan.com - 4 big dudes from Columbus started this running club...I either saw two of them or saw the same guy twice, but this was a funny one!

Team413.org - I've often seen Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." quoted on shirts in marathons, but have never seen a website attached. The group seems to be quite organized and shirts have been worn at races in all 50 states.

We Qualified!

We qualified! Granted its not for anything all that spectacular - a seeded position in the Kentucky Derby Festival mini Marathon - but it was a great race and we got well under our goal time of 1:52. Pictures to come...

Pre-race Meal at D's

Enjoyed a hot dog, fries, beer and a Dum-Dum at D's tonight. Ready to run the Columbus 1/2 Marathon in 46 hours!

Another hot one?

Per correspondence from the Columbus Marathon: "It's looking like it will be a nice weather day – even a little on the warm side with a low of 47 and a high of 72. No matter the weather conditions, the Nationwide Better Health Columbus Marathon and ½ Marathon is equipped to provide more than enough fluids for our participants." We'll see!

I say our strategy is to run fast and be done before it hits 65 degrees!

Call Me CRAZY!

Yes, please call me very crazy. Two days after a disastrous run and trip to the ER, I am still strongly considering doing the Columbus Marathon. It might be the masochistic attitude of all runners or the hope for redemption for a reasonable marathon time. Hal Higdon has a very easy two-week program that I am going to stick with - and if I only do the half marathon (which I have gotten approval for at least that) I will have maintained my level of fitness.

Wed - 2 miles
Thurs - 3 miles
Sat - 6 miles
Sun - 1-2 hours of running/cross training/ resting - whatever the body needs most
Tue - 4 miles
Wed - 2 miles
Sat - 2 miles

Listen to the NPR report on the Marathon

NPR report

Picts from the Chicago Fun Run

Before the race...and before the heat of the day was upon us
Pacing tatoos!

The G-spot in the Runner Reunite area. Didn't actually work out as the designated reunion spot.

We were planning on having a nice finishing picture in front of the fountain, but instead, we just got the matching GOTR t-shirts.

$20 Worth of Popsicles

Wow - lots of angry people posting comments on the marathon forum and the Trib articles. I'm glad we were in the group of faster runners that had access to supplies throughout the whole race.

Best part of the race was seeing a bicycle ice cream stand and salivating over the thought of having a popsicle. Lisa quickly reminded me, "That's what emergency cash is for!" So we raced up to the vendor and bought $20 worth of popsicles and handed them out to the overheated runners beside us. That took our minds off of the heat and sluggish legs for probably a whole mile!

Final Track Workout

Tonight I really wanted Amber to be here and doing our workout so that I could experience her overjoyous reaction to the last track workout before the marathon. Nonetheless, Megan and I met up at Avonworth HS to do 6x400 - the quickest and easiest workout yet. My how I love the taper. Megan ran off to dinner and I am off to some arts and crafts - as if I needed to add anything to my schedule - when am I going to pack again????

Tuesday Morning

It was a 7 miler for me this morning. It was a nice morning, very cool. Ryan ran with me for about 2.5 miles, then I finished it up on my own. I passed a girl on the bike trail that had the same under armor top as me, in hot pink (same as mine). It was kind of comical.

The day for me today was pretty annoying. I had to run many errands. I had to get my car inspected and it passed the SMOG test. Surprisingly. Tomorrow I hope to get plates at the DMV. That place is repulsive.

I hope you two are doing well!

Sat. 10 Miler

Saturday was the designated long run day for the weekend jaunt. Ryan actually ran with me for this one. I think I was a little phobic about him pushing the pace, but he really didn't, which was nice. We were fine. I tried the Espresso Love gu. It was yummy! Although I must have some kind of lactic reaction because I had so much phlegm in my throat afterward. Nasty. We saw the typical boaters, fishers, and farmers. Tomato season is still here! They continue to harvest them and therefore we see tomatoes all over the road from flying out of the truck. And they start to smell...

I'm getting stoked for the marathon, or as stoked as I can be. It will be awesome to see you all!!!

Beating the Mayor

Completely forgot to mention in my posting about the Great Race that we beat Luke Ravenstahl. After our initial observation of him at Run Around the Square, we thought we would have no problem beating him and even challenged Geoff to try to beat the mayor. But he brought his A-game for the Great Race, nearly squeaking by us. We will let everyone know that he got to fire the gun and then actually start a mere 10 seconds after the clock started, while our differential between chip and clock was more like 4 1/2 minutes.

Chip time for Great Race: Lisa 45:57, Megan 48:00, Luke 49:21
Clock time for Great Race: Luke 49:31, Lisa 50:33, Megan 52:36
Time for Run Around the Square: Lisa 24:19, Megan 24:56, Amber 25:56, Luke 29:18

Luke should get a round of applause for his first 10k completion, though!

Gold Member Status

While making renovations to the Silver Member locker room we have to use the gold member locker room...darn :-) Code is 513...they don't have that posted anywhere - you have to go ask.

The Great Race

10k results - should be noted that Lisa and I had substantially higher clock times than those other finishers around us...this represents our elite football moves when it comes to starting at the back of the pack. [Next year we'll start closer to the actual start line.]

5k results

Injury reports - on the televised news this morning they made it sound like loads of people had dropped due to the heat. This report is a little more tame and while it was sunny on the Boulevard, I, personally, think that it was a fantastic day for a run!

Top finishers article

Swimming with a Sailfish

When I initially started swimming this morning the pool was so empty that I had my own lane, plus there was even a completely open lane! I was happy. Then it happened. The first person came in where it was necessary to double up. Why pick me? I knew this guy was a fast swimmer before he even got into the pool - had that swimmer body - broad shoulders and the European style trunks that are just slightly more modest than a Speedo. He jumped in and quickly did down and back before I even got one length in. Oh and did I mention that he scared me because he was underwater for so long (half the length of the pool) before he popped up out of the murky water (the Y is having problems with the cloudiness of the water)? Well according to Rob & Clare's Travel Almanac, as well as verification with a few other sources, the fastest fish in the world is a sailfish. Apparently this dude was raised by a pack of them.

Schenley Oval

Tonight was my first experience running at the Schenley Oval since back in the ole days of running cross country for the CMU Invitational. (Note - Nathan lived in Pgh at the time when I ran there when we were seniors and he was late to the race and missed my finish. He tried to play it off that he had seen me finish, but he made it just in time to see Deb and that was it.) Anyhow - a bit of an intimidating experience there - lots of good runner and also lots of people in general. Almost like being at the airport with all of the people-watching!

Clear Sky

Today was a 5 miler. It wasn't overly exciting. It is really chilly in the morning and the sky is so clear. It's really pretty. We hung a right on the bike trail this morning and ran out about 2 miles, then came back. I left Ryan at the entry of the complex and then I headed into the residential area. It's crazy to look at some of these homes. They all look the same, or they rotate from one style then another style, then back to the first style. It's kind of weird. There are a LOT of homes for sale and a lot of foreclosures. Obviously people got into situations that they couldn't afford.

The marathon is coming up so quickly! It will be here in no time. :) Have a good day!

Hills? On a Long Run?

Its been so long since we've done hills on a long run, that Lisa and I had almost forgotten what it was like! Hills on a tempo run are so much different than on a long run after you've already gone 9 or 10 miles...interesting! Anyhow - it was a great run and my Sunday felt completely open since we got the run in Saturday a.m.

Searching for Diablo

Today was our 14-miler. We headed out around 7am, due to late night bowling with Ryan's co-workers (which was surprisingly fun). Ryan was equipped on the bike, I had my new fluorescent green shorts on, and we were off. To the marina we went via the bike trail/gravel farm land path. Everyone we saw greeted us with smiles and hellos, which I'm finding to be quite typical. On our way back, we saw the same guy that tripped with his dog earlier in the week! It was crazy, we were trying to figure out if it was him, and then the second he gave us that knowing look of "I've seen you around here before", it was validated. At least he didn't look too harmed from his accident. One couple we passed made a comment about how lucky I was to have a personal trainer. Ha! It was comical. I tried a different goo, one of the "gu" brands and it was fantastic! I was surprised. I might need to add them into the rotation. Overall it was an overcast day. We weren't blessed with seeing the sun shine on Mt. Diablo in the distance as we were last week. But at least I didn't add too much to my arm crease tans. Hideous.

I hope you two have/had a good run! It will be so good to see you both in just two weeks. :) I'm looking forward to it. Maybe I'll have a job by then! Wonders never cease.

Roundabout

This morning was my 6 miler. Ryan ran 3.5 and I finished on my own. It is starting to be very dark in the morning, and quite cool. The days are getting shorter, as summer flies away. We ran on the bike trail. We saw this man (kind of a big guy) running with his dog. Somehow the dog or the leash got in the way and the guy tripped! It was so sad! I bolted up to see if he was ok, I think he was just mainly embarrassed. He was wearing one of those knee braces and kind of fell pretty hard on it. I hope he's ok. After the bike trail I ran in some residential neighborhoods. Did you know that they have roundabouts for sidewalks? I'm not quite sure of the purpose, but they had plants in the middle of it. I guess it was overly necessary to plant them right there, forcing a roundabout to be created. Interesting. That was pretty much all of the exciting news from my run.

So cute, there are little boys on those scooter things outside the window. He just waved to his mom, cute.

Hopefully your weather in PA is treating you well!

Solo swimming downtown/Track workout with the hubby

Well, I absolutely agree. Swimming is probably my favorite workout after a long run; probably a lot having to do with the no impact. I think that there were more lifeguards and instructors than swimmers yesterday, shocking for diving in just after 5 pm. In the process of banging out a quick 800m, I almost died -swam too fast to breathe and inhaled a ton of water in the deepest part of the pool. After having a loud coughing spell, I moved on, avoiding eye contact with the guard.

Much to my surprise, Geoff asked if he could run with me this morning. So we set out down McClure to Commercial where I had clocked out a half mile loop around the block. It was fun to have someone run with me this morning and Geoff did pretty well even though complaining about being really out of shape - I think he might be getting nervous about running the 10k!

Megan - nice Chicago detail on the blogs - very technologically savvy!

Future Olympic Swimmer

No...I'm not talking about myself. I swam at the Baierl YMCA tonight and there was a dad there who was obsessively coaching his 8 year old (my best guess) to be a star swimmer. It was intense. Some of the comments I overheard were: "You have to shoot out like a torpedo from the wall." "No freestyle kick. We're working on breaststroke." "OK, 5 more times and then you're done." I wanted to tell the dad to just let him go play Marco Polo with the rest of the kids.

Swimming felt fantastic after the 20 mile run. It felt good to just shake everything out!

8 Mile Road

Well well...so my 20 miler started on Saturday morning at precisely 6am. Ryan was equipped with biker shorts (under his baggy shorts) and a full water bottle. I was weighted down with my three goos (which stands for ooz and are repulsive). Ryan mapped out our route on Thursday, and we drove it Friday. Parts of it were gated off, so we didn't get to literally see the whole course. It started off in a nice residential neighborhood, then we headed into farm land, wrapped around water, and returned on the same road we started on. There were acres and acres of corn on one side and tomatoes on the other. We headed straight out until the road forked at this marina and then we ran on the path which was right next to the waterway. It was really cool, beautiful and literally cool. It was abstolutely ideal running weather.

We noticed this time as we encountered the first fence that it had a no trespassing sign. We still hopped the fence. Why didn't we think about this last night, who knows. We continued on, past this scary home with gnarly dogs...where I picked up my pace even though I didn't feel like it, just to escape the scariness. Then we encountered another fence, this one looked electric. Ryan tested it out and it was cool, so we hopped it, lliterally. Then I noticed the ground I was running on was covered in sheep poo!! GROSS!! We continued trekking. Another electric fence, same as before and we jumped it. ANOTHER electric fence, and we jumped the non active electirc gate. Then a farm guy drove up to us and said, "This is private property and you really shouldn't be out here". Ryan handled it and the guy was really cool. I was getting a little bratty at this point. It was about the 13 mile mark. Ryan was very helpful with the water bottle and trying to keep my spirits up, which usually meant pure silence. We finally finished running by the water and headed back on 8 Mile Road, what we started out on. Sometimes the out and pack situations are helpful, but this wasn't. I couldn't see very much in the distance and it all just looked so far ahead. Ryan continued to remind me, only 40 minutes left. We somehow made it in a little under 3. I was so happy to have completed that one!

Once we returned to the apartment, I started to not feel very good and Ryan had stepped into the bathroom. My eyes started getting cloudy and it felt all dark and everything sounded hollow. I thought I was going down. I hollered to Ryan that I wasn't feeling very good...at ALL and he raced in with a towel and shoved a lemonade at me. I sat down, drank, and was brought back to life. :) It really wasn't that dramatic, but it was very odd. I hadn't felt that way after running before. I must have just had a really low blood sugar level.

That was my big 20 miler! So glad the next time we're running in the 2X's, will be in CHICAGO and I'll be with you two!!! :)

Oh-funny side note, I had a tan line on each arm where my arms creased from being at a 90 degree angle for so long. Sad. Not too noticeable though. :)

Let the Taper Begin!

Megan and I met at the trailhead at 6am this morning. It was pitch black and easily the COLDEST run we've had in a long time. It took until mile 4 for it to become light enough to know for sure that I could see my breath in the chilly 40 degree weather. The trail was slow this morning, probably due to very cold joints. Not a lot was seen in the first ten miles but on the way back we saw three deer right on the trail and a whole gang of TIT members. We are both a little stiff but pleased with the finish at just over three hours. I can't believe all the hard runs are over!!

In honor of our first long run without Amber - Megan ran in capris & Lisa blew more snot rockets than you can imagine!

Also, we booked our flights today (finally!) so we now are officially going to Chicago. We arrive in Chi-town close to noon on Friday and are flying out around 8pm Sunday night. ADJ - make sure that you get a booklet in the mail about the marathon. You need it to pickup your packet!

Cazadero "Highway"

While not the most ideal running terrain, I opted to do the 8 mile tempo right out the front door of Trestle Cabin on Cazadero Highway. I put the highway in quotations above because I wouldn't necessarily classify the road as a highway. As I was running, I contemplated what the AAA people use as their basis for putting a road on a map. My reasoning brought me to the conclusion that it has something to do with the post offices. If a town is large enough to have a post office, a road must go to it. That is the case with Cazadero Highway - not a major road at all, but there is a post office at the end of it. The cabin is 6 miles up the road and the post office is about 6.5, so I first ran to the post office and then came back in front of the cabin and did 3.5 miles before I turned around and came back. While the cars go fairly quickly (speed limit is 35, but I don't think most follow that) my best estimate is that there was an average of less than 5 cars per mile that actually passed me, so all in all a successful run in not getting hit by a car, which leads me to my next comment:

I want to state for the record that I do not believe it is a good idea for either of you (especially Amber might get the itch for this dream) to have the goal of cycling on Highway 1. It seems to be somewhat of a pilgrimage for some people, as we saw many cyclists loaded down with gear for a long trek. Its not that I don't think you could do it from a physcial perspective - I'm quite sure you could. But from a getting hit by a car perspective, I am not so confident. We almost wiped out at least a dozen cyclists. The road is just not made for two cars and one bicycle at the same time. In many places it is, in fact, barely made for two cars. So, that's my thoughts on that.

PS - Crosstraining this week consisted of canoeing, hiking and golfing. Not extremely cardivascular, but hey, I was on vacation.

Fall is here.

After running in Cancun proved difficult (90 degrees and severe humidity even at 8am) and resulted in a little more cross training than running I set out last night back at home for the 8 mile tempo. Even though it was 77 degrees it felt much cooler as the humidity was down near 40%. It is very obvious that fall has arrived very very quickly. The run started out slow and stiff but somehow the half bag of snickers I devoured during the hellish afternoon of tax returns gave me extra energy as I began running unofficial negative splits. Even though I finished my distance at the gas station, I opted to run up Braddock to my house (needless to say I slowed down a little).

The weather looks promising for our 20 miler on Sunday: Sunny, low humidity and 50-70 degrees depending on time of run. I would be ok with either morning or afternoon - although we do have a Steeler game at 1:00. If we do have a themed meal, it'd be very easy this time with some buffalo chicken wings....

Also, terrible breaking news: the Pittsburgh Marathon has been postponed to 2009 due to lack of time to plan appropriately. I had trouble finding a news article link to post here but several people have seen it on various news venues.

New Look for Crazy Daisies

Nathan was tired of the old dots template and requested an upgrade. Stay tuned for other updates that tech-savy husand wants me to implement!

Pacific Mist

I haven't quite figured out the climate here. The weatherman has been way off on his weather predictions. Its been cold where he told me it would be warm and its been warm where he told me it would be cold. This morning I headed out for the speed workout (luckily it was 2 minutes fast, 2 minutes recovery, so no track needed) and after only 5 minutes of running I was soaked from sweat? mist? seaspray? Who knows...

The Mendocino Headlands State Park was only a 3 minute jog from our bed & breakfast and virtually my whole planned route had a good view of the Pacific since we are somewhat on a peninsula that juts out into the ocean. There was less than a mile that could be run in the park, but the small town streets of Mendocino were just as fun to run on. Mendocino is an interesting place - a mix of modern and olde time. They call it a New England style village, which makes me feel more like I'm in Maine than Northern California. The town does not have a water system, so each house has to have its own water tank. Many sit above the house, I presume so they can use gravity to get some kind of pressure? While its quaint and well-maintained (and, of course, an upscale touristy spot...) there are still the standard hippie/homeless wanderers that populate all of California.

On my second loop I must have transformed into someone who looked like a knowledgable local and another runner asked me for directions back to town. It would be really hard to get lost here, but I was happy to oblige and told him "turn right on Lansing." All in all, a fantastic run!

Big Sun Rising

Today was an early morning run on the bike trail that runs behind our apartment. It is kind of sketchy to go by myself when it's dark outside, so Ryan went with me. We ran 4 miles at tempo pace...meaning I wanted to cut my arms off because it was slightly painful. Thanks Ryan for the push...yuck. We separated ways after 4 and I did the last 2 on my own, which required a down and back sort of loop. On the way back, I looked up in the sky and there was this beautiful, gynormous sun! It was crazy! And huge and beautiful burnt orange. It was beautiful. All in all, the run was ok. Lis, you know how when we did tempos, one of us may get annoyed because we're not feeling too good but we rarely speak it out loud. When I run fast with Ryan, I start to complain and he's like, isn't this supposed to be your tempo? Yikes...um, yes...but it's not comfortable. The moral of the story, I complain more when I run with Ryan than I would with either of you two. I don't know how that makes sense, or if it only makes sense to me. Whatever. :) It is sunny and warm outside right now and I'm about to venture out to Safeway to get some ingredients for dinner. Megan, I'm thinking I might make those yummy chocolate truffle cookies that Tressa made. They look yummy! I miss you both. :)

Running Under the Redwoods

Nathan came into town with me this morning and camped out at a coffee shop with wifi and I headed up a nice road with a bike path berm to the Armstrong Redwood Preserve. I was on the road for about 2.5 miles and then in the preserve itself for about 5 miles. When I started at about 8 am it was only 47 degrees! The thing about the redwoods is that they are so tall and suck up all of the sunlight way at the top, so that even in midday you're running underneath them and it feels like dawn or dusk. It really only gets "warm" here from about noon - 3 pm.

Breaking in the new shoes

I broke down and got a new pair of shoes before the marathon. Today was the day to break them in. I was planning on doing my normal tempo route, but I saw what looked like a fire that was probably burning down all of Neville Island and I swore I heard firetrucks way off in the distance. As I headed down to 65, I saw a very bright flickering light and lots of smoke. By the time I got down there, I realized that it was just the normal eternal flame at the upstream side of the island...maybe a bit higher than normal and the smoke was nothing too abnormal either. I guess it was just a typical day for Neville Island. I was then punished for my curiousity by having to run back UP from 65.

Running at the Shore

Since I did my 18 miles before the weekend, I got to enjoy a short 6 mile tempo run while I was at the Shore. I figured I'd get it out of the way first thing Saturday morning so I didn't have to worry about it the rest of the week. I headed out before most people were out of bed in the morning and it was still cool enough to be an enjoyable temperature. I headed towards the beach and then ran along the boardwalk until it ended and then ran on the street. As I was coming back, the rest of the clan was just headed to WaWa to get coffee, so I cut my run a bit short to join them. I then guzzled a bottle of water and then enjoyed cooling off on the beach with a coffee! Ah...the life.

Jessie was disappointed that I didn't wake her up to run on Saturday, so the next morning I ended up doing a little more with her as well. She was supposed to do 12, so I just did the first 4 with her and then headed home. She is training for the Frankfurt, Germany marathon which is at the end of October. She also has a really cool GPS watch which tells you exactly how far you run and the average pace you run at. You can even upload it on the computer to have it map out what you ran, but Jessie has not done that yet.

Spinning again

So after the crappy workout last night I set my alarm hoping that I could crawl out of bed... Fortunately, Geoff had to get up at 4:30 for a fire drill for the nightshift so I was somewhat awake when the alarm went off. Emery, of course, was shocked to see me for the second time in two weeks. And I have to say that he has improved immensely. He still doesn't have rythym on the jumps but he has a much better concept of working out TO the music and it not just being background noise. Gerry (Jerry???) was shocked and excited to see me for the first time in months but did ask where Amber was. I didn't have the heart to tell him that you had moved to CA permanently - he did premise it that you just might stay!

Track workout?

Well tonight was supposed to be 10x400 so I headed up to Schenley for the first time. I love the trail (approx 3/4 mile) around the fields that allowed me to loop it twice for my warmup. My actual workout didn't go nearly as well as my leg was entirely too tight to do very many laps. I guess I needed to stretch a whole lot more than I did in the last few days. I came home and did about 40 minutes of stretching and am going to bed early so I actually get up for spinning in the am.

ADJ's last run in the Burgh

Amber and I set out for the Montour Trail this morning, getting there just as the sun was splattering the horizen with color. It was a chilly morning, in the low 50s. We could actually see our breath. Shockingly, we kept our t-shirts on - for the first 1 1/2 miles. The 18 miles was good and strong. We got a little out of hand clocking some of the later miles with 8:10 or 8:16 but were able to finish in 2:37.09 (including stops), crushing our expected time of 2:45. There is absolutely nothing wrong with negative splits! The people on the trail were super friendly, only a few ignored us, oblivious to the world. Looking forward to Oct 7th when we can all be reunited again!

14 + 4 = 18

The plan was to do a solo 18 miler on Thursday night since I'm headed out of town for the Labor Day weekend. Nathan graciously volunteered to ride a bike alongside me. Since we didn't get started until about 6:45, I knew that we were going to quickly approach darkness...and we did. As I was running, I was formulating a plan for how to get this all done and wondering how late into the night I was really going to have to run. We ended up finding the 7-mile marker (there's no 7 on it, just a post, but timing was about right so I'm almost sure that its correct) which is right before the train tunnel. We ran through the train tunnel and then headed back. It was dusk at this point and the last 4 miles were in pitch black. At first, I think this makes you run faster, as you race to try to make it back before dark. But then it settles in that that is not possible and its a little disheartening. Also, the bug population decides to have a party right around dusk...the frogs also like to come out then. After we plunged into complete darkness they kind of went away, but that was after I had already had a full dinner of them, consumed both through my mouth and nose. Nathan decided the evening was "fun, except for the pain in the ass." I chugged a Gatorade back at the car and then we headed back to Ben Avon where Nathan prepped dinner and I did another 4 miles under the streetlights of town. The good thing about going late at night is that you get to go to bed when you're done!

Transferable Skills

I always knew that running had many life benefits that could be seen and used for other aspects of life. For example - time management, tenacity, mental toughness. Never did I think that my inability to maintain coordination (i.e. staying on my feet when I run) would reveal that child birth might not at all be so bad for me since I have developed a strong pain tolerance. (Thanks for that observation Megan!). I was proud that I was tearless after tripping on about a two inch raise in the sidewalk after trying to scare away the pigeon in my way while still sprinting after Amber. No clothes were damaged but I did survive with only three major strawberry wounds and a very stiff shoulder. Thankfully it was right around mile twelve of thirteen so Megan and I called it quits! Perfect for picture day of our last group run!

RATSq

http://www.runhigh.com/2007%20Results/2007%20Results%20A/R082507AB.html

After approximately a 7 minute, 10 minute, 7 minute split, I crossed the finish line and enjoyed the loads of goodies (or at least free trials...some were not so good) that were waiting for us. Beautiful day and a fun race in good company!

BYOT (Bring Your Own Towel)

Had a great afternoon swimming experience at the Baierl Y, except for the fact that I did not bring my own towel. Ended up using 6 washcloth-sized workout rags. They did offer me a towel from the lost and found, but I figured that the chances that it was clean were probably .1-.5%. I will know for next time!

Montour Trail

I didn't realize this, but the Montour Trail actually starts in Corapolis...not too far from my house. Would you guys want to start there and head to about the Imperial point and then turnaround and come back? Any of the access points seem fairly easy to get to, so if there was a particular section you wanted to do, I'm fine with that. I'd even be willing to push back the start time till 6 am, if you wanted to.

http://www.montourtrail.org/maps/access.html#Coraopolis

We'll pass four water fountains and toilets (really 8 since we're doing out and back)!

Pgh Trib article and random chatter

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_521085.html

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=2058267

Trashcan Hurdles

Thursday mornings I meet up with the trashmen in Avalon and they have always left a string of trashcans in the middle of the sidewalks, so typically the 4th mile (or so) of my tempo run has some hurdles thrown into it...quite fun...I wonder if anyone is ever watching?

[Wish those big thunderstorms would have come through while I was running. They started right when I was ready to head out the door to work, so I decided to wait it out and get some things done from home instead of getting soaked on my way in. Alright...its off to the office now.]

100 Degree Range at the CMU Track: Running Hot & Cold

During yesterday's track workout (2 x (4 x 400)), I was pondering the fact that I may have now run on the CMU track in a whole range of 100 degrees. I looked back in the archives of the Crazy Daisies to see if I could find the temps for some of our frigid runs when we were training for the Nashville Marathon. If yesterday was 97 (which I don't think it actually was) and if January of 2005 was -3, I have it in the bag. I don't know that I really have the 100 degree range if you go by actual temps, but if you go with the "feels like temp" (ie windchill or taking humidity into consideration), I most definitely have it!

Here is a fun photo of a guy who ran barefoot on flowing lava...luckily he also had snow right next to him! This is on Mount Etna, Europe's largest active volcano located on the Italian island of Sicily.

PITTSBURGH MARATHON

I think I've found the two most important guys involved with the Pgh marathon and I've corresponded with BOTH of them over the past two days. They are just as excited about a potential marathon as we are.

I originally e-mailed Tom Rooney who has historically been responsive to any of my inquiries. He passed along Kevin Smith's contact info, who is the owner of Elite Runners in Robinson and said he would probably be able to fill me in.

I just got off the phone with Kevin and he is pumped up. There was just a meeting with the city this morning and he said he spoke with "the most credible person in the city" who said, "if he was a betting man (which he's not), he would bet on a spring 2008 Pittsburgh marathon."

At this point, the conversation is still very high level, though things will have to move quickly to happen in time. Kevin has begun initial planning for the course and he indicated that they will need 2,600 volunteers for water stops alone, with probably 4,000 total volunteers needed. He will be planning the expo beforehand and they are also trying to get approval for a half marathon leading up to the event. Tom's group is more in charge of lining up the sponsors for the event; he is a Rooney after all, so he knows the important people.

The best thing for us to do is sign up for Kevin's newsletter at eliterunners.com. He promised that he will send out an e-mail to everyone and then be screaming the news all over the city the moment he finds out its official.

I also know that I called at the right time on the right day because he warned me that if I attempted to print any of this he would deny that he spoke with me since its not official yet. Maybe I should make our blog non-public until its official...

RUN4IT

Quite ironic that we saw a car with that license plate on it pulled over by police on Grant Street. We had a decent 13-miler on Saturday morning. It was muggy and all of us were feeling it by the end, but afterwards we treated ourselves to breakfast, a quick shopping spree at AE and yoga in Tunnel Park, so we were feeling relaxed by the end of the morning!

No Cruise Control

While Lisa was experiencing the hot, hot, hot outside, I was experiencing it inside a car en route to Philly. I'm hardly ever able to use cruise control on the turnpike because of all the trucks and curves and construction and I rarely use it after dark (which was about half of the drive), so needless to say my right leg is going to be strong...or at least sore and cramped. We'll see how the drive back tomorrow goes.

Feeling hot, Hot, HOT

My tempo run was anything but dark as I decided to run home from work today. I don't think that it was much about 80 degrees but it was starting to get really humid and I could feel the heat from the sun and asphalt radiating intensely. I didn't realize until I was forced to stop at CMU for some water that I hadn't had any sort of shade up until that point. My hands were swollen at least twice the normal size and my skin was all blotchy. So, I believe wisely, took a short break watching some frat boys run some football plays. My run was also slow, as I had large hills most of the way on top of the nasty temps. I'm glad I fit it in though and the run home is definitely doable - I'll just pay more attention to the weather next time. The funny thing was that I could tell it was going to rain mid-afternoon as my knee started to swell - I thought that was only supposed to happen to old people!?!?!

A Dark and Slow Tempo Run

Headed out the door at 5 am this morning...right when my neighbors were also walking out their door. Not exactly sure what THEY were up to, but maybe they were thinking the same about me. (I am nearly positive it wasn't the same activity as my previous neighbor on the Southside.) I ran down the main street in Ben Avon, through Avalon to Bellevue. Its all the same street, though changes names multiple times. I turned around at the Melders and then made my way down to Ohio River Boulevard to come back in different scenery. I wasn't feeling especially good (mostly just wanted to be back in bed), so it was a bit of a slow run and I cut it a little short, though I still think I got in about 7 miles.

Watermain Break: a Good Day to Go to the Y for a Shower

It was our second morning in the new house and we woke up to no water. After this winter of frozen pipes, I knew what not having water was like, but I also knew that there was no possible way they could be frozen. My next (rational) thought was that somehow they had turned it off when they came to check up on things on Friday during the Lorence move, but that wouldn't have really made sense since they knew that we were moving IN the same day the Lorences were moving OUT. I was headed to the Y and it was too early to get ahold of the water company anyhow, so we figured we'd deal with it when I got back. (Gave me a good excuse to stop at La Prima for coffee on the way home!) As I was headed to the Y, I came across 4 water trucks, a multitude of flashing lights and flares and a LOT of water on Ohio River Boulevard. My sleuth-like mind pieced together that probably NOBODY had water and this was verified by a DEP officer directing traffic who confirmed that there was a watermain break. A rustfree shower at the Y was much enjoyed and by the time I got home the water was back on, just quite nasty.

Tennis Anyone?

Geoff and I set out for the best variation of cross training that I've had in a long time. We played tennis for forever this afternoon and even though I hadn't played in two years, I hadn't lost it completely! Now if only I could serve....

Friday Long Run

It was almost a pleasure to roll out of bed at 4:30 this morning. Temps were in the upper 50s, but even more exciting was the joy of running with Megan AND Amber again for the first time in forever. We also hit some of our old running stomping grounds (Shadyside corner to 5th downtown and back up the massive hill {could we qualify it as a mountain?} through the 'lovely' neighborhoods along Penn Ave. The pace was fast for 12 miles but I must say that it was one of the more favorable runs in recent history.

Girl Outruns Barge!

Yes it is true - I outran a barge from the Ingram Barge fleet! Today was my last tempo run with the starting point of 50 Magdalena Street and I headed down to the Riverfront Trail (as always). Once I crossed Hot Metal Street, I saw a barge ahead and thought that it might be possible for me to catch up to it. Just as I was about to reach my turnaround point, I passed it. Despite my best efforts at running some fast splits, they were still some of my slowest since we've started training (must be that humidity outside today).

Six Times Past the Dead Squirrel

They're still doing work on the track at CMU, so we headed to our favorite block in Shadyside to do our 6 x 1k repeats. Who knows how accurate we were with the distance, but I think a 1k might be my favorite repeat interval.

Morning Tempo

The morning tempo (in honor of the Bday party) almost didn't happen as I rolled out of bed on less than five hours sleep. Fortunately, it's Geoff's week off and he rolled out with me. The 2/3/2 run was delightful on the cool, bright morning. Geoff turned around after the first couple miles and I moved on to actually do 8 since I decided to not end on the same loose gravel trail that I usually take. I headed up commercial ave regretting that soon thereafter. It gives me inspiration to switch back to morning runs again, as long as the husband doesn't keep me up so late...

Tough "Track" Course

Megan and I attempted to meet at the CMU track for our 3 mile repeats but it was still under construction. We ended up heading to our new favorite half mile loop around the block surrounding Shadyside Pres. The whole purpose of the workout is to train the body to continue to go fast under fatigue. We did ok, but we have a lot of work to do to stay consistent the whole workout. Mile splits: 7:26, 7:30 and 7:47 (ouch!). Thank goodness the rain has come today to cool things down for our tempo run.

Future Runner

A future runner for sure - look at those long legs!

The Father-in-Law Route

We are in Carlisle this weekend for Nathan's cousin's wedding, so I gave my father-in-law a heads up that I was going to need a 12 mile route. We sat down on Friday night when we got in to go over my two options. I had a country option or a town option. He also offered to pump up the tires on Maggie's bike so that Nathan could ride with me! I ended up going with the country route since it was a simple triangle and only required me to remember two turns. I started out pretty early because I knew there was a high of ninety predicted for the day. It was a beautiful run, kind of reminded me of running at Grove City in cow pastures and cornfields. Nathan ended up playing tennis with his dad (instead of riding Maggie's bike with me) and then met me for about the last mile and a half and finished with me.

Long Run Successful

So I started out for my 12 mile run thinking that I'd just extend the last 10 miler from my house. There happened to be very little the same other than the starting point, running through Frick Park and the cemetary (but different trails/paths). I didn't make it out of the house til almost 9 so it definitely was killer hot (I have a nice watch tan to show off). I inadvertantly passed by a waterfountain every half hour. I couldn't have planned it better if I tried. Unfortunately, to avoid going up the double hill of Wightman from Wilkins, I took Beeler until it came out at the CMU track (sucky! I then realized that I would be forced to run up that hideous section of Forbes). Another point of interest. They have resurfaced the CMU track - I believe that it is going to be black now unless they are putting another layer on (it looked to be back at normal level). We'll see if they have lines on it and we can use it by Tuesday or else we have to find a new place to run this week. Overall, a good run. I should have brought a gel pack for mid run as my joints were very tired for the last couple miles. Excited for everyone to stop being on vacation so we can do some joint runs again.

All I Need to Know I Learned from my Massage Therapist

My muscles were so tight the other day, that I broke down and decided to go get a full body massage before we headed out of town for the weekend. A few tips I learned:

• I am not drinking enough water. Jay continued on to tell me that if you don't get enough water, your body becomes like a stagnat pond instead of a flowing river. He also gave me a good rule of thumb of how much water you should drink. He said to take your body weight divided by two and that is how many ounces you should drink. This works out basically to the 64 ounces I've always heard (8 glasses of 8 ounces a day), but the same equation would indicate Nathan needs to drink more than that!
• I also need to have more magnesium...need to do some research on where exactly I get this, but I need to get it. One thing he mentioned is to take baths with epsom salt...apparently epsom salt has magnesium in it.
• Along with the magnesium and water tips, he told me that drinking coffee mitigates any of the good effects of drinking water and consuming magnesium. Maaayyybe I will consider limiting my coffee intake, but definitely not giving it up entirely.

I liked the guy a lot...will consider going back to him. He does housecalls too, which is a little weird, but super convenient.

HUMID Tempo

Well for a day filled with rain, it was pretty ironic that last night's run was sunny, hot and humid (until of course I stepped on my porch as it started to pour). The 5 mile run was actually very nice as I did a portion of our last 10 mile loop. I need to start finding routes that do not end on massive hills - I guess that means I have to start doing them backwards...But again, Frick Park saved me from the heat and the busy-ness of cars.

An Infinite Number of Pigeons, 6 Rabbits, 5 Miles, 3 Other Runners and a Very Successful Tempo Run

You can sing that to the tune of the 12 Days of Christmas. A humid run after last night's massive thunderstorm, but successful!

Brentwood Firecracker 5k & Parade

Alright, just had to post the picture of my hair in flight on the run.
Here is a link to the results: http://www.runhigh.com/2007%20Results/2007%20Results%20A/R070407AB.html








Here's the picture of the crew that was there for the parade: Erika, Amber, Lisa, Mike, Geoff, Nathan, Pat, Alexandra, Olivia and Trish. We have no clue who the two old people are in the front.

Spinning on the Roof

A fun surprise this morning - spinning was on the roof. I was jealous of the sunrise yoga the other day, but was not going to jump into the class simply because it happened to be on the roof. The spinners got the same treatment today! No one, including Emery, knew it was happening, but it was great! It was a perfect cool morning for it and it was great to have some fresh air. Emery wants to continue it in the future, so keep your eyes open for it!

Another long-sleeved shirt run!

Can you believe it - two long-sleeved shirt Saturday runs in a row in June? This nice weather on weekends is absolutely amazing! I did an alteration of our "9-mile" 4 bridge route as my 11-miler on Saturday.

My husband happened to wake up about the time early-risers in Reykjavik (the capital of Iceland) get up. I figure they are about two time zones east of us. I can't figure out any other country who might be in that time zone - potentially the Bermuda Triangle? I guess there is a large gap between normal cities we've all heard of - NYC compared to London is 5 hours difference...who is in that void? Anyhow - I got an early start on the run and then had a whole Saturday ahead of me!

Scorching Sprints

We set out at 8 pm to avoid the mid-day heat wave. It didn't seem to have much of an effect as it only seemed to cool down on our last lap. And I guess I wouldn't really call our running sprints (12x400s ranging from 1:36-1:48) we still finished and managed to sidestep all the flying softballs around us....hey maybe the removal of the top layer of track slowed us down...oh well, here's to 12 more track workouts ahead of us!

My Favorite Run...Quite Possibly EVER

Our Sunday morning 10 mile run was fantastically perfect. The weather was cool and was (gasp) not humid. We had the perfect mix of neighborhood streets, Frick Park, cemetery trails and of course, a few hills. The Starbucks on Shady and Forbes was a perfect stopping point for a bathroom/water break and while there we saw Marissa's grandparents. They had also just run up Forbes and were enjoying their break there as well. I felt great for this run (maybe due to choking down a GU before beginning...awful, but I suppose it might help) and definitely want to do it again at some point.

Welcome Summer!

So on the longest day of the year, I finally made it out of bed for an early morning run. I decided to run through the cemetery that we're running through on Sunday since I've never done that before. It was so delightful as the mist was lifting and the deer were caught bounding past the headstones. I have to admit that the graveyard probably slowed down the tempo portion as I was reading the headstones and grouping families together. I forgot that Frick Park is always 5-10 degrees cooler as I ended my run racing down the hill, skin turning red from both exertion and being so cold! Oh yeah, I made a reststop by the frick nature center. Nicest porta poties ever. Obviously used for kid camps as there were laminated stars on the walls and hanging from the ceiling (not to mention a step stool). I'm going to have to clock this route. I hit 62 minutes at the BP, longer than expected. Good run but excited for some company.

The Smoking Goat is No Longer

First off - did you guys know that there is a Crazy Mocha in Gateway 1? I have seen the van out front a few times, but thought that they just did catering somewhere in this area. In fact, they've been open since January 2007! (Shows how much I'm actually in the office.)

But also, I asked if the Gateway 1 facility is smoking and she said actually, none of their locations are now. After the first try on implementing a smoking ban (that was repealed the next day) they became non-smoking because they figured at some point it was going to pass anyways.

According to the girl behind the counter, the Ellsworth Avenue location is better for atmosphere, but Gateway 1 has better drinks since she makes them!

Ten Miler

http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/pa/pittsburgh/511007993

Sorry - having issues making a hyperlink....

Possible route for Sunday's run...the loop at the end can be extended or shortened according to the time left...especially because the trail part is less than acurate.

9 Mile Run for This Saturday

http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/pa/pittsburgh/488887471

What do you think of this route? We will park down near where the Steelers practice, near the UPMC Sports Facility. It only comes to 8.6 miles, but we can continue on down the trail a bit or add on in a few different places.

Full Spinning Room

FYI - I was planning on spinning last night during the 5:30 - 7:00 session and the room was completely full at 5:45. I ended up lifting instead. Probably not the cross training the FIRST program has in mind, but that's what I ended up doing.

First Long Run Followed by Brunch

Amber, Lisa and I did our first long run of the Chicago marathon training on Saturday. I had certainly forgotten how hilly our beloved Beechwood route is. But I kept thinking about brunch to follow and we had such gorgeous weather that you had to enjoy the run.

After the grueling run, we reconvened, added Deborah to the mix and enjoyed quiche, blueberry muffins and yogurt w/ fresh fruit...oh yeah and lots of good girl talk (the boys enjoyed 9 holes at North Park).

Late run provides relief on suicide mission

In hindsight, I was very glad that I didn't feel well when I got home from work to run 6 miles in the blistering (though dry) heat. I was feeling much better and pumped by 8 o'clock after the temps had dropped at least 10 degrees. Now my only urgency was getting back for the Cavs tip-off. Sixty-three minutes later I dragged myself up the front steps after the hardest run I've done in a long time (and I would still say I'm pretty out of shape). So the goal was two miles easy, two miles hard, two miles easy. Let's just say that my second hard mile was the entire length of S Dallas. You know, that ridiculous hill that we used to pretend was Bunker Hill...Yikes. Well in the long run, I'll be in really good shape and be able to not collapse in the run around the square - but today when I had my four major hills, I just wanted to die. I also want to add that I LOVE Frick Park - it's the only way that I can tolerate evening runs.

Ok - half time is long over - GO CAVS!

P.S. I ordered the patriotic sweatbands today and they've already shipped! AND it was a wholesale company so they required a company name - of course I used "Crazy Daisies"

The Courier Beats the Train

I was informed by my secretary yesterday that I needed to stop in the office in the evening to pick up some partner changes to a report that needed to be incorporated out at the client I was to be at today...I forgot. Though I had my route mapped out as to how I was going to do my mid-distance workout, I figured I could very easily alter that and run downtown to the office, pick up the 45 page report and run back home with it. (Since I was running 6 miles, I did not want to try to get in there pre-7am to park out front and the whole Arts Fest thing has it all a little messed up anyhow.) I headed down the hill to take the Riverfront Trail down to the Smithfield Bridge and for the second run in a row, I've come across a train bearing down the tracks. Lisa heard my story about last time - the bars started coming down and bells started ringing right when I was on the tracks. This time, the bells and bar drop started while I was still a block away. I was dumb and thought I could beat it, so I sped up and made it across the tracks, but then for the rest of the run I'm envisioning getting hit by a train. I have never actually tripped while running (like some of us have), but I would hate for the first time to be on train tracks while a train is headed my way. I think I'm done trying to beat trains!

New Blog to watch

Check it out:

http://www.nickanddebondrasik.blogspot.com/

Not exciting yet, but give it some time.

LET'S GET READY TO RUN!

The marathon training season officially kicks off today. We are just 124 days away from our largest marathon yet. Can't wait to keep up blog-wise and meet you guys on the weekends!

And - I am seriously considering doing Columbus Oct 28. It's much lower key than the marine corp (hopefully meaning that I can wait a little bit to sign up) and it's only $65. Think about it.

GOTR 5k

Lisa and Amber smile for the camera as they race by.








Megan tries to keep up with Marissa and Katie.

GOTR Banquet

Coaches Megan, CJ, Lisa, Erica and Amber

We handed out superlatives and a certificate to each girl, a pink boa and an inspirational compilation running CD. Of course, we had lots of KFC, as always!

GOTR Community Project

Mollie has got a serious necklace in progress. Our Community Project was making gift bags filled with homemade jewelry and fun supplies to be given to kids who are staying at the Ronald McDonald house.

Girls on the Run is SO much FUN!

GOTR Mock 5k

And they're off!

FIRST Training Program

http://www.furman.edu/first/2006%20marathon%20training-first%20marathon.pdf

Looks like we need to start June 3 to get in an 18 week training program!

No Sweat Trail Run

I think even Amber wouldn't produce a sweat in this dry Arizona air! I went for a run this afternoon in South Mountain Park. Our resort is right at the tip of this massive park, so I grabbed a trail map and headed out. The weather has been surprisingly chilly today. Nothing Pittsburgh like, I mean there are still plenty of blue-lipped kids swimming in the pool, just not sane adults like yesterday when it was hot. With the cloud cover (some say its actually smog), an afternoon run was totally feasible. I was thinking I needed to do it early in the morning before it got too hot, but not true. I like the cacti!

The Story of GU

Came across this ad in Trail Runner magazine on our flight out to Phoenix. Thought you gals might like it:

There's a girl who loves to run
100 miles, for her, is just fun
She needed nutrition
Which came to fruition
When her dad, a doctor, made bars...the first ones.

But the bars made the girl's stomach mad
She got sick, cried, told her dad
Knowing just what to do
In his lab he made GU
Changing food-on-the-go forever, not a fad.

Now the girl and thousands more
Eat GU, the fuel they adore
Running for miles
With big happy smiles
Finishing races, with no muscles sore.

A huge thanks to Dr. Vaughan and Laura D.
Without them, where would we be?
Sick on the trail
To no more avail
With GU we reach the line, where we all want to be.

New Shoes

Finally connected with the guy at Athlete's Foot to go in and get a new pair of shoes. He also informed me that he will be getting in a computer system that analyzes your running and tells you what types of things you need in a shoe. He is on a pilot program, so it should be coming in within the next week or two and then he will have it for two months. Thought I'd let you guys know, if you are interested.

Moraine State Park

I've been working up in New Castle this week, so I thought on a gorgeous spring Friday afternoon, I'd hit up the trails after work. It was beautiful! I picked a spot to park along the bike trail and wandered through some swampy forest and eventually came out to the lakefront.

Spring Showers Lead to Downpours

Headed out the door this morning on a misty spring morning and just as I was marveling about how absolutely perfect the temperature and amount of precipitation was, it started to downpour! Oh well, I like the rain, it just made it a bit chillier than I expected. Its turned out to be an absolutely dismal grey day!

You Tube - Treadmill video - MUST SEE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv5zWaTEVkI

Next time we coreograph a dance at the Y, we should consider using the treadmills!

Sunday morning run in the snow

Since I can't honestly remember the last time I went for a run, I consider it a big accomplishment to get out of bed this morning and head out into the cold. I do love running in the snow, so it was enticing to get out there admist the fresh dusting. Nathan joined me and we did a pretty short run, but if felt so good!

Small Success...

So - after MANY weeks of not running I got pretty sick of the switch back and forth between the eliptical and spinning and decided to go for a run. How could I not? The warm air was calling my name yesterday so I braved the slushy track by my house and knocked out 3 miles. Not fast, but hey, I've got an extra 12 or so pounds strapped around the middle. Boy did that feel good!
Plus, I'm sick of listening to all the people who say you can't do anything tooo vigorous when you're pregnant. PSHAW.

Ultra Sahara Marathon

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/news/story?id=2772368&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines

[seriously, never in our lifetime...]

[Snowy/Icy] Hill Training

Alright - my running the past week has purely been comprised of running (normally in full work garb, though I change into hiking boots) between my house and wherever my car might happen to be parked. I've been experimenting with some different routes. One up on St. Leo, just a short run to Gregory, or the long haul out to 18th!

Geriatric Gym

I am not going to stop until I come back home....

So I got to the gym this morning at six, right as it opened. It is relatively nice for a hotel gym - as in the equipment is actually NOT broken. Within ten minutes, all six machines were being used and there was a line. The best part was that everyone else was at least 50 years older than me! It was funny. So I did some biking and then left to let the old folks have a seat...
Miss you guys!

Fabulous Find (Yes, I am a Nerd)

So I went for my six mile jog this morning in the constant but relatively light rain while it was just 55 degrees. ( I know that I am not getting ANY sympathy from you guys.) I had misestimated how long my loop was and instead of five miles I ended up with six and a half! And of course I had to use the facilities so I tried to go into another section of the resort to no avail. And last night at dinner we had a long conversation about alligators and how they are everywhere and jump out of the canals and lakes. So there was no way I was going to find a secluded bush....BUT I did find a middle school that had a lovely rubberized track for the speed work on thursday. It was kinda dark but there were several other runners so I'm totally down!

Frost Bite

Well, so I decided to go for a run this morning, even though it was -2. But I figured that Lisa and I did it a few years ago, I have a balaklava, it's for extreme temperatures! So, I whipped it all out, put on my running tights, layered on my shirts and a jacket, put on my coat and mittens, and even a hat on top of the balaklava. AND goggles (like cool looking ski ones). So, I was bundled. I hustled out there and started moving. Then I remembered why we hated he balaklavas, you feel like you're going to die because you can't breathe out of your mouth and whenever you do it's a constant freeze/burning feeling with each inhalation and exhalation. I was out for about 30 minutes. When I came back in, I stretched did my usual crunches/pushups then jumped in the shower. I noticed that my legs were kind of tingly, but figured it was a-ok. I got out of the shower and my legs were all itchy. I started scratching to realize that there were huge rashes all over my calves and thighs. Very gross and puffy red. I put on some lotion and they just kept itching, which I refrained from scratching. I don't know if it was heat/cold rash or frost bite (probably not), but it was horrible. It is gone now, but still. I thought I would share with you my running horrors. I miss running with you all!! Take care.

Rainy Run

Wow. Look at the alliteration....Two blogs in a row...
So this morning, I drove to Ft. Lauderdale Beach for my now annual Sunday morning run. It was cloudy and raining but 65 degrees. After dashing a half mile down the beach to the bathhouse for a pit stop, I was warm enough to actually enjoy the rest of the 8 mile run. Aside from the strong wind gusts and the lack of being able to lay in the sun afterwards, the run was nice (slow but nice) and gave me hope that I could actually run long distances again...Since I had extra time in the day, I went to the pool/jacuzzi. It was incredible. No one was there due to the rain and it was really warm. I swear the pool was at least 90 degrees, if not 95. (The Y's pool is about 84 as a frame of reference). The length of the pool was probably about 40 meters so I did at least a quarter mile if not a half. To top off my overly productive day I spent the next two hours getting my facial and massage. I think we all need to pamper ourselves more often. Miss you guys!

Muggy Morning

So I did my 4 miles a couple days ago...and I guess based on my extreme out of shape-ness my HM goal time should be about 2 hours. So I get up at five this morning to do my 800s and it is already 72 degrees. Once I leave the building, I get slammed by a wall of humidity...yuck...yesterday was perfect and it wasn't a running day (65 degrees at wake up time). So my 800 splits: 3:51, 3:52, 3:58, 3:55....The last two everyone decided to leave for work so I was totally dodging cars. I felt like a slug even with being somewhat consistent. I can't wait to be in shape again...and more excitingly - have people to run with.

Sneaker Revelation

Alright - I swore I would never do it, but I wore sneakers from the Y to the office today. I always made fun of those people (sorry, Lisa, I think you do it sometimes), but once you do it...geez...I don't know if I can ever go back. It was so glorious and so quick of a walk without clomping in heels amidst the salt & ice and under the heavy load of gym gear, computer, massive purse, lunch, breakfast...you get the point.

Thanks to the Y again for providing a hot shower when our pipes are frozen!

Jessie Akpan - Miami Marathon

http://ing.activeresult.com/miami/?event=&posted_p=t&refresh=300&bib_list=&bib=&last_name=akpan&first_names=j&x=19&y=6
Congrats to Jessie! [I'm 99% sure its her first marathon.]

Snowy Sunday

So fortunately, Megan and I actually got out of bed to meet each other, otherwise neither of us w0uld have run. The schedule called for a six mile run this morning - and we were close at 5 1/2...but might I add that we did about four hills on Beechwood and then went up Murray...so the extra hill work makes up for the shorter distance....Very excited to get back into running!

Fresh Snow in East Stroudsburg

Amber and I had a fresh snowfall to make tracks in on Thursday morning. Friday morning was single digits and no run for us...

Happy [belated] Anniversary

We forgot to celebrate the one year anniversary of Crazy Daisies on January 12th! We're back to a cycle of running we've already done - Hermitage, East Stroudsburg...and the much warmer - Florida - for Lisa! I have to say Hermitage was comprised more of a week straight of desserts after every dinner and no running at all. I took running attire to run on the treadmill, but somehow debits and credits enticed me away from the Comfort Inn exercise room. East Stroudsburg has already been more productive than that, though not up to our previous year's standards. Amber and I are looking at a low of eight degrees tomorrow morning for our scheduled 5:30 a.m. run.

Half Marathon Training

Alright, Lisa and I have it scheduled in - "Just a Short Run" 1/2 marathon on March 31. We're just in time to start a 10 week program. Technically we should have started Tuesday this week, but we'll just have to work extra hard. Here is the schedule I'd like to follow:

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,sss6-238-244--9369-7-1X2X3X4X5X6X7-8,00.html

This is the 3 day a week schedule we used similar to the marathon plan for Nashville.

What do you say?

Oh The Hills

Amber and I set out this fine chilly morning (19 degrees-ouch) in matching red shirts and black tights....cute...we did the traditional Beechwood loop (mini-version - only going to Murray) and actually did it in 40 minutes...I'm somewhat impressed due to our lack of consistent running and our fear of the Beechwood hill....but we survived and were actually smiling when we finished - or was that just our faces frozen in place!?!?!

Did you actually run?

Yes, everyone, that is the question that Geoff asked me as I walked in the door at 9:05 this morning. Megan and I met for a cold and rainy run through our old stomping grounds of Shadyside. We did seem to cut it short but we were both satisfied to have gotten out of bed to face the inclement weather!

FitLinxx

All logged in and set under the FitLinxx system! I lifted for the first time in many moons and was really sore the next day(s).

The Post-Prenup Run

Lisa and I enjoyed an early (well, actually kind of late by our running standards, but I haven't been as insane about getting up at ass-o'clock - Nathan's phrase - in the morning to run) Sunday morning run on the ole Prenup Route! It was a chilly one!

The Prenup Run

A fantastic start to an amazing day!