Circle Swimming

Lisa and I had our first experience at the Avalon Community Pool. They basically have one lap lane set up which separates the shallow end from the deep end. As we got into the pool there was this hugely cranky woman saying that she was waiting to swim in the lap lane next (there was a very slow guy in there by himself). I asked her if we could circle swim and she said she didn't think this guy knew how to do it and she didn't think that's how they did it here. Lisa and I were beginning to realize that this lady just wanted something to complain about, so the next time the guy came around, we asked if he would share the lane. Of course he was willing, so we all hopped in. Four people in a lane is a little much, but I knew that once we got going, the slow guy would head out. He was really just in there because I think he was bored of playing with his kids. Then we just had cranky lady to deal with. Luckily, Lisa could smoke her, so we (by we, I mean Lisa) showed her what was up and we generally had a good workout. Occassionally, you get kids crossing through the lane to get back and forth between the shallow and deep ends, but the lifeguards were good at blowing the whistle on them and it worked out pretty well. For an outdoor community pool at $1 admission, I think its worth it!

Two little fishies

Megan and I met up at the Avonworth Pool tonight (well I was VERY late but she was very patient). It was $1 since we were there after six and they had one lane reserved for lap swimming. We were very happy with that but were stunned by the woman who had sat there for 10 minutes and was very angry that we just expected to get in the lane before her! She was pretty condescending - especially to the guy who was currently swimming in trunks with no goggles - she just assumed that he was uninformed and quite stupid and wouldn't know how to circle swim...well, it made me feel better that I was able to not only pass her quickly but even lap her - I think she actually helped me stay focused and swim faster. I lost count of my laps quickly since I was busy maneuvering around her and other random kids who got stuck in the lap lane positioned between the main pool and the deep end. We got at least a solid 35 minute swim in - which I'm going to estimate to be between 1000 and 1200 meters. I'm planning on going every Wednesday and I might even go on Mondays if the weather is hot enough...

Top Three Things

The top three things from our run on Saturday amidst the humidity and heat:

1. Seeing the REI building come into view (which meant the end was in sight)
2. Cold smoothies from Caribou Coffee
3. The Greyhound bus station (a bathroom break and water stop...ah, the air conditioning felt great...and despite our sweaty presentation, I don't think we were the smelliest people in the building)

4. (This was not discussed w/ Lisa, so its not official, but I am adding it on...) The fountain at the Southside Works - you may have only seen children playing in it, but Lisa and I stepped in, feeling no shame!

This run brought back many Chicago memories!

Summer is Here!

....with a vengeance. Last week it was in the low 70s with a humidity level in the 20s. All of the sudden it was 90 and HUMID yesterday. My car thermometer said 95 when I left my client and dropped to 89 when I got home at 6:30.
Even so, the sun made it impossible to stay inside (it has been raining for a few days) and I went out for a nice run. I forced myself to do it slowly and I went through the park where there might have been a 5-10 degree temperature drop (I love trees!). Since I did loops through the park I was able to pass a water fountain every fifteen minutes. I was happy that I was out for 55 minutes - no idea of the mileage - I would like to say 5.5 but who knows - it was slow.
Also, part of the purpose of the run was to use my new GPS watch for the first time. Well, I need more practice since I shut it off before the first minute was over! Oops! Maybe I can get it to work on Saturday.
I am PUMPED for Yoga after our runs!


P.S. Very excited that we are motivated to write about our runs again!

It was a sweaty one!

Only a two mile easy run w/ Fresca, but I was drenched in sweat by the end of it! It is hot out there (and this was at 5:45 a.m.)!

Saw an article on the Runner's World website about the upcoming track and field Olympic trials - check it out!

GOTR Sighting

During tax season, it became sort of a ritual if I was working later than I should and Geoff was not home during the evening then I had earned enough self-pity to get Eat 'n Park take out. Well that was the case tonight as I went to work sick and ended up staying until 7. But much to my surprise and delight, I saw Autumn and her family in the checkout line! She was almost as perky as usual as she had just had some sort of shot related to dental work. It so reminded me how fantastic those girls are!

Wondergirl 5k

It was a wet and rainy day, but lots of fun!  All of our girls finished in under an hour and we were proud of them!

Local marathon gets sponsors, to return next May

As written in the Post-Gazette:

Monday, May 19, 2008
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The newly named Dick's Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon is set for May 3, 2009, the result of a sponsorship deal announced by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato this morning.
The arrangement with Dick's, details of which were not immediately disclosed, brings back the 26.2-mile race after a six-year hiatus. The course is not yet final. But it is expected to start in front of the City-County Building, Downtown, pass through the North Side, South Side, Oakland, Shadyside, Point Breeze, Homewood, East Liberty, Bloomfield, Highland Park and the Strip District before finishing in the renovated Point State Park.
A half-marathon will be sponsored by Respironics, a firm that specializes in sleep and respiratory products.
UPMC Sports Medicine will be the medical sponsor, providing support for runners along the course and training seminars throughout the year.
UMPC formerly was the lead sponsor.

Dare To Be Brave

Katie started writing on this card "Dear..." but she misspelled it as "Dare," so we had to come up with a way to reword it:

The Gettysburg Address

As the girls were making their cards for soldiers, Autumn and Taylor burst into reciting the Gettysburg Address. Not sure what spurred it, but they were good! Autumn particularly spouted it out very quickly! Here are some pictures:

GOTR Community Service Project

Finally, the girls have chosen the "Make Cards for US Soldiers" as their Community Service project. This is always on the list to vote for, but has yet to make it until this year (I'm thinking maybe Molly wasn't there on Wednesday...she's not a huge fan of the war - I'm hoping we don't have to screen out too many of the cards). I think it is such a great idea and fits well into our session when we don't have a ton of time to plan for something. I was actually doing a little prep with getting supplies together and made a sample card. Check it out:

Together Again!

Lisa and I got together for a misty morning run this morning. We figure our last run together was probably the Columbus half marathon, so good to have a partner again! We both admitted to being much more inspired to run (i.e. not stop half way up a hill) when we're with someone else.

Afterwards, we enjoyed breakfast at Dozen in Lawrenceville with Debo and Emily. Our plan was to go right after our workout and be one of those cool runners who looks beautiful and trendy sitting there eating breakfast. Geoff let us in on the secret that those "runners" who look beautiful and trendy eating breakfast, haven't actually RUN...they have probably just walked their kid around the block or something.

From there, I headed over to Trizilla to check out bikes. Now, I know how to ride a bike and since I've been spinning for quite awhile now, I feel like I can do this, but I forgot about the fact that an actual bike is WAY different than a stationery one - requires balance for one thing. So when the guy said, "Do you want to take it for a spin in the parking lot?" I said, "Sure." And immediately then thought, "Oh shoot...when was the last time I was actually on a bike with two wheels that doesn't stay in one place?" I managed to not make a complete fool of myself, but I think once I get into the biking thing that I will need to purely stick to paved trails with no chance of encounters with cars until I get the hang of it again.

XTraining - Outdoor Swimming

This is more for my own reference, but if anyone else get some benefit out of it, great! Here are the outdoor swimming options for the summer:

Avonworth Community Pool - $6, after 5 pm $3
Citipools - $4 (Here is a listing of all the parks, those w/ a swimming pool are marked in the "SP" column)
YMCA - I think $10/visit. (I'm going to cancel my membership for the summer. Too nice to workout inside!)

I'm not sure how any of these options will be for actual lap swimming, but I'm going to explore and figure out what works.

Other outdoor workout option (other than running) for the summer:
Breathe Outside at Southside Works - $5/class

Pittsburgh Marathon 2009?

In the wake of marathon excitement (attending Boston last week and signing up for Marine Corps this week), I thought I would check in again on the status of a potential 2009 marathon in Pittsburgh. Here is the response I got from Kevin Smith of Elite Runners and Walkers:

"If it happens the group will be announcing within the month. If it all does not come together soon, we will have to wait for 2010. Things are looking up for 2009."

This is not a super strong answer and given that I had information last year that "a 2008 marathon is definitely going to happen," I don't have my hopes up.

Bacon is a turn on after all...

On one of our Boston subway trips we were thoroughly entertained by a seemingly drunk girl going on and on and on about all of her favorite types of meats and chimichangas. She obviously saw this commercial before I did and took it for actual dating advice. Poor Thing....

Boston Marathon

Leading the race were the top three women from the time trials held the day before. Nathan said to Deena Kastor, "Aren't you supposed to be throwing candy or something?" She laughed!
Team Hoyt bring tears to your eyes. Dick Hoyt has pushed his son, Rick, in over 65 marathons, including 25 Boston marathons. Read more here.
The elite women - among them are Jelena Prokopcuka (Bib No. 2, Latvia), Rita Jeptoo (Bib No. 4, Kenya, finished third), Alevtina Biktimirova (Bib No. 8, Russia, finished 2nd) and Dire Tune (Bib No. 7, Ethiopia, finished 1st)
The elite men - leading the pack is Robert Cheruiyot (Bib No. 1) who was the ultimate winner.

Humid Hoofing

I knew I was going to have an interesting run the second that I went down my stairs and my knees just ached. Ah, it must be really humid! So sad that my body in its old age can already tell me the weather report. I set out anyways and decided to go back to the dirt bike trails that I found last week. I took a different trail that led to a dirt road which led down to the continuation of 9 mile run stream. So excited. So I crossed to the other side where there looked to be a 'path' and headed back to the familiar Frick Park. It turned out to be a good run athough since some parts of the trail were rough/non-existent/grown over I slowed down almost to a walk. Well, also becuase I ran through a lot of greenery, I am now totally itchy. It's probably just mental but I'm not taking any chances. I've already thrown all my clothes and shoes into the washer and am going to scrub down asap!!

Just a reminder - Wednesday at Noon - Sign up for the MCM!!!!

Women's Olympic Time Trials - The Spectators

Sitting on the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge, waiting for the next pack of runners to come by.
The view from the bridge over into Cambridge.
Lisa and Nathan at the starting line.

Women's Olympic Time Trials - The Runners

Magdalena Lewy Boulet - the lone lead runner for 23.5 miles; ultimately finished second.
The main lead pack - among them are Blake Russell (finished third), Deena Kastor (finished first), Elva Dryer, Desiree Davila, Mary Akor, Kate O'Neill and Desiree Ficker
Joan Benoit Samuelson - won the inaugural women's marathon event in LA in 1984. This was supposedly her last real competitive race (though I bet she might still be able to beat me even when she's 70).
Veena Reddy - not a real contender in the race, but featured in Runner's World as one of those people who has a "normal" life in addition to training for the Olympic Time Trials.

Hydration Station #2

Lisa and I are carefully mixing the brew. It is a strict one bottle of concentration to 5 gallons of water. And by "strict" they mean that a Gatorade rep comes around to test your mix to make sure you are doing it correctly. Nathan and Osei had a drive-by audit of their brew!
Standing proud next to four tiers of lemon-lime Gatorade!
We quickly discovered that the newbies are the ones who get stuck w/ the Gatorade duty. What a sticky mess. Don't know if I'll be able to stomach lemon-lime Gatorade for a little while.
Do you see the fluorescent yellow glow bouncing off of Nathan's face?

[More photos to come...there are so many great ones to post up here!]

lopsided!?!

So Megan suggested i could ask my running questions here. I'm impressed, by the way, with your bloggingness.

So my one leg (calf) hurts and the other doesnt. Do we think i am lopsided? It hurts the day i run and then lessens as time goes on. I think i am a freak. But mainly i can probably still run with it like that right?

thanks!

Girls on the Run Team Picture

Maybe I should get an Ipod...

So shockingly I not only left work before 8:30, I made it to GOTR, AND got there early ...I was so pumped at having a free night that I went out for a run as the dusk was settling in. It was chilly, but it was delightful to be outside for the first time in a couple weeks. After a good half hour, I realized that in between my random thoughts, I had continually been singing the first two lines of the chorus of "Touch my Body" by MC. It was only stuck in my head because a 3-5 grader had it as a ring tone! Can you say growing up too fast!?!?! It would have been nice to have some variety but still very happy to have full awareness of my surroundings since it was very dark by the end of the run and I still insisted on running on the streets (sidewalks are so uneven and a hazard).

Happy End of Busy Season Eve!!!!

A Springtime Run in Central Park

After plans of running mid-busy season were continually cancelled and no schedule whatsoever was being adhered to, I simply submitted and said, "OK, at this point, I'll just wait until after April 15th." Well, I broke that by three days with a trip to NYC. I can never pass up a chance to run in Central Park and Saturday morning was absolutely gorgeous. It had rained the night before and the fog was so thick that you couldn't see the tops of skyscrapers, but it was warm and the blossoms were out on cherry trees, magnolias, forsythias, dogwood - you name it! I jogged up from Times Square and then did a portion of the loop, cutting through the middle when I had thoughts of, "You haven't run in awhile, Megan. Make sure you can make it back." The park is always the quiet gem in the middle of the city, but it was extra peaceful on Saturday morning because there was a bike race going on and the whole loop was closed for any traffic at all. Very fun - what a great way to kick off the spring training and the post-April 15-return-to-normalcy...well, maybe...

LOVE/hate

Have you guys seen the new ad campaign launched by New Balance? The commercial I have seen a few times is so incredibly good...completely captures a runner's mentality. Check it out!

I guess I'm a hypocrite too

While I'm still resisting using headphones on my runs, I realize that I am now doing the one thing I always hated about other people - only running when the weather is above freezing. But now that tomorrow is spring, I have no more excuses. Went running this morning since I didn't have to be anywhere until 9. I don't really know why I stopped running over the winter - it feels so good and I have so much more energy.

P.S. Since some of you do not have Facebook - I want to make sure that you know that tomorrow (Thursday) is Rita's Italian Ice's First Day of Spring celebration - I think you get a free ice (or at least some discount). I know it's supposed to be chilly and wet but I am stoked for Rita's to open up again.

Gasp! She's a Hypocrite!

Today I did what I said I would never do - listened to music while running outside! I have to admit, it was a bit anti-climatic, not life-changing at all. In spinning, you can kind of pedal to the beat, but in running, you really have to work to keep up to the beat. I think I was only once in stride w/ the cadaence and it was going down a hill. There is no way I would have been able to keep up to any of the music. The other thing is that headphones have a totally different sound quality than a car stereo or speakers at the Y. And I was a little nervous to turn it up too loud to drown out the surrounding noise even though I was running on the sidewalks and there was little chance of me being hit by a car. I actually heard someone come up behind me (go figure, I haven't been passed by another runner in a long time...it was up a hill and he stopped at the top of it, though and I repassed him) and didn't jump out of my skin. It did give me a chance to fine tune my next contribution to Emery's music selection, though. Will I do it again? Maybe. Top song of the run - Chocolate by Snow Patrol.

PS - I was inspired by Lisa's Daylight Saving post, but I was a bit too ambitious about it starting to feel like "spring" outside. I went out in my shorts and lightweight long-sleeve T and was freezing the whole time. All the other runners I saw had no leg-skin showing at all and most had multiple layers on top. One even had full hat and gloves. I also saw a dog w/ a coat on. Granted, it was a wimpy looking dog, but still...

Daylight Savings Rocks

So last night when I was leaving my client relatively early, some weird feeling possessed me. Maybe it was the sun beating down on me during rush hour traffic or maybe it was that I had ordered a new pair of running shoes (that are currently out for delivery), or the fact that I realized that I better start actually running if I want to meet my goal of running 10 miles before I sign up for the Marine Corps Marathon on April 30th. Whatever it was I put on my running shoes and bolted out the door for the first time since Thanksgiving (yikes!). I only had twenty minutes to run, but I used every minute with glee as the sun began to set and blind me. The exciting part is that I could have gone much longer than twenty minutes - I didn't totally lose all my muscle mass and lung capacity. Wahoo! Can't wait to be able to start running with you girls again once our schedules open up.

Kickoff to GOTR

Last night was the first session of Girls on the Run. We have a full group already with two repeaters (Katie Hazen and Maive) and one little sister (Brooke). It seems like we either have really quiet or really loud girls - one or the other. Its different without CJ, but the new coaches, Sarah and Kat, seem like they are really excited to coach and it comes as a bonus that they are actually runners as well. Excited for the season!

Full Body Workout

My midweek workout this week was comprised of shoveling snow! You may not think this counts as a workout, but let me tell you, this was some of the heaviest snow I have ever shoveled and I have shoveled a lot of snow in my days. I normally like shoveling snow and, yes, it could be considered a chore with a healthy dose of fresh, winter air to go with it, but when you take 7 inches (that's the word on the street, probably exaggerated, but we'll go with it) of nice fluffy snow and then you dump an inch (complete guess) of freezing/mixed rain on it, that 7 inches gets really heavy. That's what happened to me. I procrastinated shoveling it in the morning when it was fluffy, so by the time I got home at night, it was the heavy sludge. My abs/back muscles felt like they were going to rip apart as I shoveled the stuff. I had to stop every few minutes for a break; if the neighbors were watching (most of them didn't shovel their walks), they were probably laughing.

I did learn my lesson the next day it snowed and though I was a bit later to work than I wanted to be, I shoveled a clean path, salted it and came home to a nice clean walkway!

Not the Stroudsburg we know and love

We had somewhat of a warm spell this week, so there were no snowy morning runs in East Stroudsburg this year. I got in one morning run, but I was a little overheated in my tights and long-sleeve T with a jacket over top. I wasn't too courageous in venturing all that far from the hotel, so I did a couple out and backs to places I am familiar with - the Wa-Wa, the hill up 10th Street and the Main Street. The only snow I came across was a severely melted pile at the back of a parking lot.

A View of the Golden Corral

Did the treadmill again tonight. I gained some confidence and did a faster pace than last time. I still can't look up enough to be able to watch the TV, so all I have to look at is my reflection in the window (which is helpful, b/c I can see if I am veering to one side and I can really focus on NOT having a freak treadmill accident), the glow of the red and gold neon lights from the Golden Corral and the parking lot of the Super WalMart off in the distance.

The 10 Degree Runner

The 10 Degree Runner is not me...but I saw someone out this morning and was actually slightly jealous that it wasn't me. I've been slyly good at coming up with excuses for not running without directly using the excuse "It's too cold out." Other excuses recently have been - "I need to get into work" or "I need to catch up on sleep."

Happy Birthday, Crazy Daisies!

I just missed the two year anniversary of the Crazy Daisies blog. (It was on January 12.) But, I am back up here in good ole Hermitage/Greenville and this may be the first year that I do not get in a track workout. Reason being (1) I'm not on a training program that suggest them, (2) It is darn cold outside...ok, maybe not any colder than the past two years, but next week the forecast is filled w/ single digits and (3) Nathan wasn't all that comfortable w/ me running after dark at a track behind a high school...not that it wasn't dark when I've done it the past two years.

Tonight I got my two staff to join me at the Y. They both said their wives would be proud of the job I did in getting them there. I'm not a huge fan of the treadmill, as we all know, but I got in 30 minutes on it with no freak accidents. I always picture this happening...my shoelace comes untied and then gets stuck in the belt.

Here's to another year filled with good blogging, but more importantly, good running and good times!

Mark Your Calendar!

Matt called me yesterday and said that his dentist, who is also a runner, filled him in with all the Michigan relay races. I've found the site for a few and I am still looking for a supposed 70 mile trail relay. I think it is an absolute MUST that we do one of them!

http://greatlakesrelay.com/ - A 270 mile relay. They start taking applications on April 16 - a wonderful way to celebrate the first day of non-busy season. Swag for this race is a custom-made ceramic mug from potter I.B. Remsen and you get to meet famous Pinky Winky (???).

http://www.shoretoshorerelay.com/ - A 200 mile relay, actually not in Michigan...it is in sourthern Ontario. We should get things pulled together by February 29 to get a discount. This race looks a bit more organized than the first.

http://danceswithdirt.com/ - A 100k relay in either Hell or Gnaw Bone Michigan (one in May, one in September). This could be a good starter. It is the shortest and only includes 5 relay runners, but we could have multiple teams race against each other if we get some interest.

http://www.laurelultra.com/ - I also just found this one! I knew they did a 70 mile ultra, but didn't know there was a relay option. So close to home!

And I also looked for half marathons in the spring/early summer. Here are some reasonably close options:
May 4 - Frederick, MD
May 4 - Alexandria, VA
May 18 - Marine Corps Historic Half (already sold out...darn)
June 21 - Niagara on the Lake, Ontario
Hmmm...that's not that many options.

Also - REGISTRATION FOR THE MARINE CORPS MARATHON OPENS ON APRIL 30. THIS ONE FILLS UP FAST!

Guess Who I Saw?

I was at Michael's (the craft store, not the pizza place) on Sunday and I saw Laurie (or is it Lori?) from GOTR! She was with her mom and I stopped to talk with them for a few minutes. I asked what they were there for and she said, "Well, I'm like, kind of getting into scrapbooking..." I asked her if she had been running...to which she said "no," but her mom chimed in with the fact that they had gotten a stepper for Christmas...interesting.

Volunteering Info for Boston

There is a group set up for us so that we can all be together in our volunteering! The group name is "Crazy Daisies" and the PIN is "Pittsburgh".

Once a Runner

Here is a link to a "preview" for the upcoming Once a Runner movie (don't get too excited, though...see next link):

http://www.oncearunnermovie.com/

Here is a link debunking the movie trailer:

http://www.eliterunning.com/blog/2007/04/09/296/

What a letdown! I was so excited after I watched the trailer, but you'll note at the end that it says "Coming Summer 2007." When I went to do some research as to how it came and went without me noticing, I discovered it was a fake.

Musings on the Day

As I walked out of the Y this morning I wondered if maybe I had blinked and busy season was actually already over. It felt like such a nice spring day that it just had that feeling like winter (and long hours at work) was drawing to a close. As I sweated my way over to the office (remember how the Y has that archaic heating/cooling system that takes about 4 days to catch up if there is a drastic change in temperature?), I was brought back to reality looking at all of the work that was in front of me. Alas, busy season 08 is only just beginning.

It was so nice out that I decided I had to take advantage of the warm weather and go out for a quick run this evening. Just had to savor it! Plus, I'm reading Again to Carthage, John L. Parker Jr.'s sequel to Once a Runner, and it is so inspiring, it just makes you want to go out and run. The thing is, it takes place in the South, so it makes me want to run in WARM temperatures, not COLD. That's why today was perfect.

(Amber, do you know if Ryan has the book Once a Runner? It is out of print and sells for about $200 a copy on Amazon. I thought there might be a slim chance that he would own it, though.)

I also think it quite impressive that my last run was done in 19 degree temps (1 degree wind chill, I later heard that morn) and a mere four days later it is 64!

Boston Volunteering

Volunteer applications will be available starting January 10. Not sure how quickly this fills up, so we might want to get our act together and decide what we want to do. Here is the link http://www.bostonmarathon.org/Volunteering/BostonMarathonVolunteer.asp to the homepage. From there you can check out what the requirements are and the different positions that are available. Most of them are, in fact, a pretty extensive committment (ie - 9 am - 5 pm), so we will probably be looking at a full day. There are many options for the hydration stations along the course. Other jobs that sound interesting to me - Drug testing and/or VIP security for the elite athletes (actually, kind of kidding on this one), mylar blankets. I do NOT want to be a "rope holder" ie the person who enforces the corral designations. Personally, I always get annoyed at these people, so I do not want that job.

I think this will be a fun way to be involved and though its a committment, I think we'll be able to cheer the day before for the time trials, so we'll get our fun in that way. I'm sure the boys will be up for interspersing some non-running related fun things as well!

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!