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...