Old School Runner

A Nation Challenged

2011-09-11T21:12:00.000-04:00

I interrupt this retirement to bring you this edited version of a post from a few years ago.

Each year, on the day before Thankgiving, the Wall Street Journal runs the same two pieces on its editorial page. One is about the arrival of the pilgrims, the other about the promise of America. In that tradition, I offer my annual piece on the September 11 attacks.

Today marks the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks against the United States. The world is dramatically different in ways that have now become commonplace (new employees at my office are issued a gas mask), and yet the horror of that day itself has begun to fade into memory. As President Bush said in a speech nine days after the attacks, "Even grief recedes with time and grace."

My father grew up in Hawaii. He once described what it was like to be in Honolulu on December 7, 1941. He was working as a caddy when he saw plumes of black smoke rising in the distance. That day marked the beginning of a long struggle. I work in Washington and my sister in New York, so I can easily remember September 11, 2001. Like my father, I think I witnessed the start of a long war.

The first indication that something was wrong was a small news story on Yahoo that reported that a "small plane" had crashed into the World Trade Center. (You can see an archive of Yahoo from later that day here.) I thought that was a very strange accident. Not long after that, there was a flash about a second plane crashing into the World Trade Center. At that point, rumors began to fly. My friend R., who worked at the World Financial Center during the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center, called me from London. "Do you know what's happening?" he asked. "Two planes have been crashed into the World Trade Center!" We have no televisions in our office, only the Internet.

My boss is out of the office at a large meeting in another part of the city. Instead of being instructed to evacuate, we are told by building security to stay inside. At about 9:45, news about the Pentagon circulates inside the building. Rumors swirl: a plane has crashed on the National Mall, a truck bomb has exploded at the State Department, the bridges have collapsed. My phone rings; it's my brother-in-law. "My sister told me to tell you to get out of there," he saids calmly. "Huh? What?" I ask. "My sister told me to tell you to get out of there. She can't reach you by phone, so she told me to tell you to get out of there." He is amazingly calm. My wife works in another part of Washington. Later I learn that she couldn't leave because there was a suspicious vehicle parked in front of her building.

At this point, I feel slightly disoriented, but figure that given the multiple attacks, it's better to defy orders and go home. As I head for the stairwell, the security guards make the rounds, shouting orders to evacuate. Once I step outside, it's near chaos. My building is next to a daycare center and the workers have led all of the kids outside into an open area. Children are screaming for their parents as the workers struggle to retain control. "Is the Metro running?" someone asks. "No!" comes the answer. I live in Virginia, on the other side of the Potomac River. I have only two options to get home: Metro or walk. I head for the Metro and find, to my amazement, that it is indeed running. My stop is Pentagon City on the Blue Line, which is the stop right next to the Pentagon. The train slows as it approaches the Pentagon, but it doesn't stop. The platform at the Pentagon is empty, but I don't see any damage. I get off at the next stop and walk through the eerily empty Pentagon City Mall. As I step outside, I'm struck by how bright and clear the day is. My wife makes it home a few hours later. The night is filled with the sound of sirens and helicopters.

I get a call from a friend in California asking about travel to New York. I remind him that all flights have been grounded. "I have to get to New York," he says. "My brother works at Cantor Fitzgerald." Later I learn that Cantor's offices occupied five floors at One World Trade Center and nearly two-thirds of Cantor's employees were killed that day. I remember meeting my friend's brother a few years ago. C. was a true foodie so we all went out to dinner at Galileo, one of the top restaurants in Washington. We ate and drank so much that by the end of the evening, I gasped, "We ate like kings!" He had a five-year-old daughter.

Later I learn that the passengers of United Flight 93 refused to capitulate. They seized control of the aircraft from the terrorists and crashed it into the ground. My office is very close to the White House, so I believe in my heart that those passengers saved my life.

Less than a month after the attacks, I have to fly to another country on business. About an hour before landing, the purser comes down the aisle, shakes each person's hand and says, "Thank you for flying."

America has long struggled between its impulse to serve and do good in the world and the desire to retreat into a shell and let the rest of the world hang itself. Thus the nation that produced George Marshall, Bretton Woods, and the Peace Corps also produced Lou Dobbs, Smoot-Hawley, and the Minutemen Project.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan hasn't caused much disruption to the lives of most people. There is no rationing, no blackouts, and life continues as it did before. As a result, we don't feel that we are at war, but I believe we are. (Here I speak not of the wars specifically, but more broadly.) You can call it a "clash of civilizations," or a war against Islamofacism. However you label it, I believe that liberal democracy is under assault and this conflict will continue for many years. This is a war we can't afford to lose.

Denied

2010-04-05T22:23:00.001-04:00

Today I learned that none of the three high school seniors I had interviewed for my alma mater were offered admission. One of the three was placed on the wait list, while the other two were flat out rejected. I’ve been conducting interviews for over a decade and in that time, only one of the students I’ve interviewed has been admitted. That student was a “legacy,” or someone with a family connection to the university. I’ve also had another student offered a spot on the wait list before this year.

I always feel a bit disappointed for those who don’t get in. I wonder how their lives turned out. Many of them are extremely accomplished at a very young age. At a recent alumni event, the university’s Vice President for Alumni Relations joked, “Don’t worry, you’d all still be admitted today!”

No Fooling: Army Ten Miler Two-Thirds Full

2010-04-01T15:20:00.000-04:00

This is no April Fool's joke, I promise. Registration for the Army Ten Miler, a fixture in the local racing scene, opened today. As of 3:00 pm, the over 21,000 of the 30,000 slots had been filled. Last year's race filled up in six days; this year's edition will likely beat that record.

Goodbye Numb3rs

2010-03-19T22:04:00.000-04:00

I’ve mentioned a couple of times that I don’t watch much television. I don’t have anything against television, mind you. In fact, if I had more free time, I’d probably watch more. I tend to watch Squawk Box in the morning and SportsCenter at night. Aside from those programs, the only other show that I made time to watch was Numb3rs on CBS.

Numb3rs was a police procedural drama with a slight twist. The two main characters were two brothers, Don and Charles Eppes. Don, the older brother, was an FBI agent; Charles was a professor of mathematics at the fictional Cal Sci University. The siblings lived very different and separate lives until Don began asking for Charles for help on some of his cases. Charles, with the help of his girlfriend Amita and colleague Larry, would apply sophisticated mathematics to solve criminal cases.

The show was broadcast on Friday nights, when few people watch television. It managed to stay on the air for six years, no mean feat these days. This year CBS cut back the number of episodes on order from 22 to 16, which was not a good sign. I was surprised to learn that the season finale would air on March 12. Many have concluded that the episode was the series finale, as well. The producers managed to close out all of the main story lines. In the finale, Charles and Amita finally get married and prepare to move to London. Don accepts a promotion, while his second-in-command accepts a position in Washington. Don proposes a second time to his girlfriend, who accepts this time.

I thought the idea of using math to solve crime was a fascinating premise. Whenever Charles would explain how a particular theory or application worked, the screen would be filled with wild special effects that tried to bring the idea to life. One mathematician tried to explain the different mathematical concepts behind the different episodes.

But I guess this is goodbye. Thanks for six great years. At least I can still watch the show on DVD.

What Goes Around

2010-01-25T23:56:00.000-05:00

I should have seen it coming. Last Tuesday my younger son’s school called me at work to inform me that he was sick. He was running a temperature of 101 degrees and needed to be picked up. I left the office early to get him and take him home. The school has a rule that prohibits the student’s return to school until 24 hours after the end of the fever, so I stayed home with him for the next two days. I had my Blackberry to check office emails, but it’s nearly impossible to do office work while caring for a sick child. My son was lethargic on Wednesday, but responded nicely on Thursday.

I woke up early Friday morning with a sore throat and a cough. Frankly, I was surprised that I didn’t get sick sooner. I was looking forward to taking my younger son back to school and catching up on work at the office; a cough is not going to keep me home. Then I heard the patter of my older son running down the hallway from his room to mine, followed by a retching sound and a splatter. He had just vomited all over my bedroom carpet.

Having stayed home the last two days, it was now my wife’s turn to do so. My son ended up throwing up several more times that day, but then it passed quickly. He was a little lethargic on Saturday, but then back to normal yesterday. I’m not sure what caused the illness.

The schedule called for 18 miles this weekend. The forecast called for several inches of rain on Sunday, so I considered moving the long run up a day earlier, to Saturday. That didn’t work out, so I was left with Sunday. I waited until the kids took a nap, then drove out to the C&O Canal (my wife was home with the children, of course). I ran from mile marker 23 above Riley’s Lock to mile marker 14 at Great Falls, then turned around and came back. My illness had drained me of my strength and I felt weak in my quads, calves and ankles. I felt slightly better after eating a gel at the halfway point, but not much. After 12 miles I wanted to quit, but I kept going. With three miles to go I even managed to pick up the pace by about 30 seconds per mile, but that may have been an effort to finish the run as quickly as possible. At least it didn’t rain.

To Winterlude

2010-01-16T08:06:00.003-05:00

I’ve decided to escape the cold temperatures in Washington for some winter training: I’m going to Canada.

It looks like I’ll have to travel to Ottawa in February for a series of meetings. I’ve mentioned before that the cold temperature doesn’t bother me too much. I’ve actually been to Canada several times for meetings in the winter. Ottawa is especially nice because in February they have Winterlude, a winter festival. The authorities turn the Rideau Canal into the “world’s longest skating rink.”

I might be able to compete in a short triathlon while I'm there: ski, skate, run. Average high temperature in early February: 18 degrees F (-8 C).

My Hash Browns

2010-01-12T19:50:00.000-05:00

My older son is a picky eater. My younger son is not, but he has food allergies which means we have to force him to be picky. It’s unusual for my older son to eat a lot of anything. Usually he will eat a little bit of something and then push it aside. I made French toast for breakfast last week. He ate about three-fourths of the bread and then asked for a bagel. As a cook, I want to make something that he will eat.

Fortunately, there is something that I cook that he really enjoys: hash browns. He loves the hash browns from McDonald’s, but I prefer to cook them myself because I can control what goes into them. I start with two good-sized russet potatoes. (Yukon gold potatoes are preferable for mashed potatoes, but russets are better for hash browns.) I cook them in the microwave for about eight minutes, then peel the skin off and chop them into cubes about a third of an inch wide. I chop and sauté an onion in a small amount of canola oil on medium-high heat. When the onion gets soft and starts to turn translucent, I throw in the potatoes. You need to let them sit for a bit so that they begin to brown; don’t keep turning them. If my kids weren’t eating the hash browns, I’d season them with kosher salt and pepper. They complain about the pepper, however, so I just add salt then add pepper to my own serving. Once the potatoes are brown I serve them up.

Bad from Start to Finish

2010-01-11T21:32:00.000-05:00

Sometimes you start a run feeling lousy, and then things get better as the run progresses. For example, you might feel a little stiff or sore in one part of the body when you begin, but then loosen up as you go along. Yesterday’s 17-mile long run sucked from start to finish.

Saturday was a 5 mile recovery day, so I was surprised to feel so poorly at the start of Sunday’s long run. I was tight and sore in my calves and quads. Maybe it was cold temperature: 23 degrees F (-5 C) with a wind chill factor of 16 F (-9 C). Maybe I didn’t eat enough the night before. Maybe it’s because I just didn’t feel like running 17 miles. In any case, I started slowly and barely accelerated throughout the run. During one three mile stretch I was running uphill and into the wind. That was unpleasant.

My mind started playing tricks on me. I thought about stopping after 8 miles, then 13, then 15. Finally I buckled down and pushed through. I got a wide range of greetings when I got home. My younger son, who was napping when I left, recognized my running gear and asked, “Daddy, did you win?” I told him I went running, but not in a race. My older son was pouting after a frustrating session of Mario Cart. I reassured him that the more he played, the better his scores would be. My wife asked me why I was already running 17 miles when Boston was a couple of months away. I explained that unlike some marathon training programs where the goal is to finish, I was focused on running faster in Boston, so that required tougher long runs.

Tired of the Snow

2010-01-08T06:40:00.000-05:00

I am tiring of the winter. I recently read that 17 of the last 21 days in Washington have had temperatures below normal. The cold, while unomfortable, doesn’t bother me too much since I can always wear extra layers. More irksome are the wind and the snow, and recently we’ve had more than our fair share of both. Last Sunday it was 23 degrees F (-5 C) outside, but the wind (up to 40 mph) made it feel like 6 F (-14 C). Running 16 miles, half with the wind in my face and half at my back, was draining.

Last night the schedule called for 8 miles with 8 x 100 meter strides. The forecast called for snow to begin in the evening and continue into the morning. When I left the house at 9:15 the snow was starting to fall. At first it was more like flurries, but by the time I finished my run it was a bit more substantial. I had frost on my hat and jacket when I got home. I awoke to find a little more than an inch of snow on the ground.

The temperature is supposed to remain below freezing for the next three days. I’m concerned that the snow on the ground will freeze, making it difficult to run. Tonight I’m supposed to run 9 miles. Saturday calls for 5 miles and the long run on Sunday is supposed to be 17 miles. I wish I had a treadmill in my basement so I wouldn’t have to worry about the weather as much. I think about getting one every year, but I never pull the trigger.

Long Forgotten Speedwork

2010-01-06T21:31:00.000-05:00

Last night I really didn’t feel like running 11 miles. It was cold, windy and I was feeling tired. I had put my kids to bed and dozed off for a few minutes myself. I got up and looked at the clock: 9:40 PM. I rationalized skipping the workout or cutting it short, then concluded that would only mess up my schedule even more. I flipped to the Weather Channel: 26 degrees F (-3 C), wind chill of 17 degrees F (-8 C). My wife watched incredulously as I began to get dressed. I put on my running underwear and tights, then strapped on my heart rate monitor, Under Armour compression top, long sleeve tech shirt, and finally another long sleeve top. Then I put on ankle length socks to be sure that the inch of exposed skin between the bottom of my tights and the top of my shoe was covered. Finally I pulled on the gloves, hat, watch and reflective vest and set out.

The cold wind was like a slap to the face. I started very slowly to give my muscles a chance to warm up. The schedule called for 11 steady miles, but since I hadn’t done much speedwork lately, I wanted to run the last three miles at around 7:25 per mile. I didn’t feel great, but I wasn’t suffering, either. I did feel a bit of a twinge in my left Achilles tendon, which I hoped would not prevent me from doing the speedwork. As my Garmin registered eight miles, I pushed the pace. As it happened, I was running straight into the wind. I’m certainly no speedster, but normally 7:25 should not be difficult for me to maintain. I’ve run longer races at faster paces. I ran the first hard mile in 7:22. The course shifted so that the wind was again at my back and I still felt lousy. I could no longer blame the wind, only my poor fitness. I briefly thought about slowing down. I ran the second mile in 7:21, at which point the course went back into the wind. After about 2.4 miles, I began to feel a bit more comfortable and felt that I could sustain the effort for longer, if necessary. I did the last mile in 7:27.

It was a quarter to midnight when I got home.

A Picture of the Towpath

2010-01-06T14:14:00.000-05:00

Today's Washington Post had a great picture of one favorite areas to run, the towpath along the C&O Canal.

In order not to infringe on the copyright, I won't post it here. You can view it by clicking this link.

Establishing a New Goal

2010-01-05T19:35:00.001-05:00

I’ve noted in earlier posts that I don’t make resolutions; I set goals for the new year. Last year my goal was to run 3:30 and thereby qualify for the Boston Marathon, which I managed to do by a mere 15 seconds. Now, like others who qualified for Boston for the first time, I’m struggling to reset my goals. I’ve thought about Boston since 1982, when I was a spectator at the “Duel in the Sun.” I’ve trained with Boston in mind since 2006. Over three years I worked my marathon time down from 4:06 to 3:30. Boston is now 15 weeks away and I’ve yet to identify a realistic goal for that race or moving forward. “Run as fast as I can” is not sufficiently specific. Given the difficulty of the Boston course, I was thinking that something in the range of 3:20 to 3:30 is realistic.

But what about moving forward? I’ve thought about aiming for 3:10, which would allow me a guaranteed entry into the New York Marathon, or 3:15, which would qualify me for the London Marathon. Some people say that there is nothing like running Boston, so they run it every year. But that would mean passing up on other winter and spring marathons, like Disney, London, Houston, and Napa Valley. In addition, training to run 3:10 or 3:15 would require significantly more work than I currently do (65 miles/week max), so I’d have to determine when I could run those additional miles.

I guess I’ll aim for 3:20 in Boston, then reassess my goals after the race. One thing is certain. I told my wife that I plan to load up on Boston Marathon logo gear at the expo, just so I can wear it in public.

The Number Nobody Wanted

2010-01-04T23:52:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year!

This year I continued my tradition of volunteering at my running club’s new year’s 5K. The organizers schedule the race to begin at the humane hour of 10:00 AM, to allow late-night revelers to straggle to the starting line.

One of the benefits of going to the first race of the year is that members receive the bib that they use in club races throughout the year. The club reserves numbers 10 through 100 for runners who meet certain criteria. Runners must do one of the following: (1) volunteer for five or more races, (2) contribute 20 or more volunteer hours to the club, or (3) donate $100 to the club. Any member who satisfies one of the requirements gets to choose a number and have his or her name embossed on the bib. I confess that I’ve never satisfied any of those requirements, so I have never received a number lower than 100. Since I have volunteered at the new year’s day race for the last few years, however, I’ve always received low numbers (104, 105, and 103).

I went to the check-in desk to get my bib for the year. The woman working at the desk offered me number 37. I told her that I hadn’t qualified to receive a low number because I hadn’t fulfilled any of the requirements. She said that was all right, because she was now distributing the reserved numbers that nobody selected. So, I got 37.

I guess 37 did not hold any special attraction for other club members. I remembered, however, that the number does hold some significance in the Star Trek universe. The first episode of the second season of Star Trek Voyager is entitled “The 37’s.” In the episode, Voyager visits a planet that is populated by the descended of humans taken from Earth in the 1930s. These humans were taken by a race called the Briori and forced to work as slaves. They eventually rebelled and defeated their captors. Eight humans remained in suspended animation. Their descendants dubbed them “the 37s” for the year in which they were abducted. Captain Janeway “defrosts” the 37s and one of them turns out to be Amelia Earhart. Captain Janeway visits the civilization that the humans have built on the planet and offers the crew the choice of joining their fellow humans on the planet or remaining with Voyager on its lonely quest home. She asks that any crew member who wants to stay behind assemble in the cargo bay. In this scene, Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay walk to the cargo bay to see who has decided to stay.

23 degrees, 10 Miles

2009-12-31T07:08:00.001-05:00

Even though I grew up in the tropics, running in cold weather doesn't bother me as much as running in the heat. After all, you can die from heatstroke, but as long as you keep running the cold is unlikely to kill you. More bothersome are snow and slippery surfaces. The Toronto Globe and Mail has a short piece on how to "winterize" your running. It's filled with stuff that you've probably heard before (e.g., wear layers, know your limits).

On Tuesday I went out for a 10 mile run. I considered skipping it or cutting it short, but concluded that doing so would just screw up the remainder of the training week. I mentioned before that my medium-long run on Tuesday is the second most important run of the week. Pusing it to Wednesday only compresses the remaining workouts into fewer days. It's much easier to suck it up and push myself out the door.

It was 23 degrees F (-5 C) when I set out at 10:00 PM. The wind made it feel like 17 F (-8 C). I wore three layers on top and tights on the bottom. My quads felt a little sore; I'm not sure why. This was not a very enjoyable run. I just plugged along until I reached the end of the run.

Boston: T minus 16 Weeks

2009-12-30T06:37:00.000-05:00

On Monday I realized something important: Boston is exactly 16 weeks away.

My training has not progressed as well as I had hoped. In the last month I’ve experienced the “perfect storm” of training detractors: work, travel, and illness. This brief interlude between Christmas and the new year has been a pleasant break. I’ve tried to take advantage of it by faithfully putting in the miles.

Most of the people in my organization are on vacation this week. If something happens that requires swift action by someone senior, I’m screwed. You would think that anything that happens this week can wait until next week to be addressed, but that’s not always the case. About four years ago I had to deal with a mini-crisis in another country during the last week of the year. That was unpleasant. I’m hoping for a quiet week.

Movie of the Year: Star Trek

2009-12-29T05:50:00.002-05:00

I only saw one movie this year, but I saw it four times: twice in a theatre, once on an airplane, and once on DVD. (Caution: Spoilers ahead.)

The Star Trek universe had been in disarray for several years. The last movie, Star Trek Nemesis, was a critical and financial mess. Star Trek Enterprise, the last series, went off the air in 2005. The Las Vegas Hilton even decided to close down the Star Trek Experience (thank goodness I went before it closed). The word was that the new Trek movie would not be a Next Generation flick, but instead would be an “origins” story about Kirk and Spock. I groaned. I had two main concerns. First, moviemaking technology continually advances. Filmmakers can produce more dazzling special effects, usually more cheaply. Consider the computer displays on the Enterprise training bridge at the beginning of Star Trek Wrath of Khan (1982): they look like something out of an old Pong game. By choosing to produce a movie about an era (Kirk-Spock) that is less technologically advanced than the one we are used to (The Next Generation), producers may have to reign in their creativity. Second, if not crafted well, origin stories can be disappointing (e.g., Wolverine).

I was wrong on both counts.

First, the producers made space travel seem more frightening and real than it had previously been depicted in the Trek universe. The sleek bridge of the Enterprise D (Captain Picard’s Enterprise) is gone. Instead, we see pipes, pumps, and cramped spaces on the new Enterprise. During the battle between the USS Kelvin and the Narada, an explosion rips a hole in the hull and a crewman is sucked out into space. The shuttlecraft used to take the cadets to the Enterprise is visibly worn and scarred.

Second, the producers didn’t just give us an origins tale, they ripped up our old universe, as well. Romulus and Vulcan are both destroyed. Spock’s mother fell into a black hole. The Star Trek universe as we knew it is gone (unless it exists as a parallel universe, of course). That took guts!

The movie is both a tribute to the old Trek, as well as a dramatic rewrite of the Trek universe. Nowhere in the film’s score do you hear the classic eight note prelude of the Alexander Courage theme (although the theme itself runs over the end credits). The new theme, Enterprising Young Men, starts off mournfully, builds with hope, then explodes into triumph.

The first 10 minutes of the film, which tell the story of Kirk’s birth, are stunning. The opening is filled with interesting details. As Captain Robau makes his way from the bridge to the shuttlecraft, the ship seems to be falling apart around him. In the midst of the chaos, a crewman stops and snaps to attention as he walks by. Two crewman rappel down to get to their shuttles. Plastic sheeting seems to separate the main section of the shuttle from the cockpit.

Go check it out.

Kind of a Moment

2009-12-28T06:52:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I drove out to the C&O Canal to do my long run. The recent rain and stretch of temperatures above the freezing mark had cleared much of the snow from the roads and sidewalks, so I was hoping that the towpath would be relatively clear. When I arrived it was about 45 degrees F and I was wearing shorts and a long sleeve tech shirt. I should have worn gloves because my fingers were stiff nearly all of the way.

I started at Riley’s Lock, about a quarter mile south of mile marker 23. I started running south, toward Washington. Most of the towpath was clear, but there were some long segments that were still covered with snow. I was forced to run on the edge of the towpath to avoid the slush. I felt a bit stiff and sluggish at first. For some reason my hamstrings felt unusually tight. The tightness abated after a few miles, but I still felt lethargic and slow. It took great effort to throw in a few surges.

I turned around a bit past Swain’s Lock (past mile marker 17). The sun was beginning to set. There was nobody else around me on the towpath. I passed a section of the Potomac River that was pulsing with energy. The muddy brown water on my left was rushing along, the river swollen from the recent rain and melting snow. By contrast, the canal on my right was utterly still. Large parts of the canal were still covered with sheets of ice. The sun was partially obscured by the trees over in Virginia. A lone goose honked. And then I was struck by melancholy. One day, I thought, I won’t be able to do this anymore.

That sucks.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-25T01:57:00.000-05:00

It's Christmastime, which means reruns. Today I dust off my blog entry from last year about my favorite non-traditional Christmas songs.

My older son loves “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Feliz Navidad,” both of which he learned in school. I’ve had problems introducing him to more contemporary Christmas songs (although he giggles at the sound of Alvin and the Chipmunks). Here, in no particular order, are my favorite non-traditional (i.e., slightly more contemporary) Christmas songs.

1. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home): The original by Darlene Love is a classic:

She also performs the song each year on Letterman

I really enjoy the version by U2

There’s even one by Joey Ramone. The best part: the plaintive cry, "Baaaa-bee please come home!"

2. Blue Christmas: Of course, the version by Elvis Presley.

3. Little Saint Nick/Merry Christmas Baby: Both released on the “The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album.” If you didn’t know any better, you’d think “Little Saint Nick” is a type of car.

4. Mele Kalikimaka: Given President Obama’s upbringing in Hawaii, perhaps this will garner new fans. Go for the version by Bette Midler, who also has Hawaii ties.

5. Last Christmas: Yes, it was written by George Michael and originally released by Wham, but it’s actually a nice little ditty. Take a look at the Wikipedia entry about the song. It is absolutely amazing how many artists have covered it. There is even a website devoted to covers of the song.

Even Coldplay has covered it.

6. Do They Know It’s Christmas:

Far superior to “We Are the World” as a song and in star power. The list of performers reads like a list of 80s pop stars: Bono, Duran Duran, Bananarama, Sting, Paul Young, Paul Weller (Jam, Style Council), David Bowie, Midge Ure (Ultravox), and more. Hard to believe it’s been 25 years since the song was released. The song basically ignited the mega-concert for charity movement. My favorite lyrics:

There's a world outside your window
And it's a world of dread and fear
Where the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears
And the Christmas bells that ring there are the clanging chimes of doom
Well tonight thank God it’s them instead of you

7. 2000 Miles: The Pretenders. Who said Chrissie Hynde doesn't have a soft side?

Coldplay covered this one, too.

8. Happy Xmas (War is Over): Only the John Lennon original

9. And, for my friends CS and SL in SF, NM, "The Little Drummer Boy," sung by Bing Crosby and David Bowie. Two years ago the Washington Post had a story that described how the performance came about.

Merry Christmas!

Athletes of the Decade?

2009-12-23T07:49:00.001-05:00

We’re not only nearing the end of the year, we are nearing the end of a decade. As such, the media is filled with the obligatory “best of” lists: best movies, best books, and in the case of Sports Illustrated, best athletes. The magazine released its list of the top 20 male athletes of the last decade:

1. Tiger Woods
2. Roger Federer
3. Michael Phelps
4. Lance Armstrong
5. Usain Bolt
6. Tom Brady
7. Kobe Bryant
8. Peyton Manning
9. Albert Pujols
10. Michael Schumacher
11. Mariano Rivera
12. Tim Duncan
13. Zinedine Zidane
14. Shaquille O’Neal
15. Jimmie Johnson
16. LeBron James
17. Manny Pacquiao
18. Derek Jeter
19. Nicklas Lindstrom
20. Alex Rodriguez

Next group: Kenenisa Bekele et al.

I have some concerns about this list, and not just because only one runner (Bolt) is listed. First, why are Schumacher (10) and Johnson (15) listed? To be sure, their achievements are notable, but are drivers athletes? Some will point out the difficult environmental conditions inside a Formula 1 (I once tried to sit in one and couldn’t squeeze in) or NASCAR vehicle. Yes, it’s hot and drivers have to wear a fire suit. Driving fast takes skill, but I question whether drivers can be considered athletes. (I would also question whether pool players are athletes.) Second, why is Rodriguez (20) listed? This man acknowledged using steroids, and blamed it on youthful naiveté.

I completely agree that Usain Bolt is one of the greatest athletes of the last decade, probably of all time. His achievements speak for themselves: three Olympic gold medals, three World Championships gold medals, two World Championships silver medals, multiple world records, and the first and only human to run under 9.6 seconds for 100 meters.

Kenenisa Bekele should be listed in the top 20. How about this: three Olympic gold medals (including the tough 5000/10,000 double in the same Games), one Olympic silver, five World Championships (again including the tough 5000/10,000 double in the same competition), IAAF Grand Prix Million Dollar Challenge co-winner (must win same event six times in the same season), multiple world records, and six world cross-country titles.

One glaring omission: Haile Gebrselassie. One could argue that his best running took place before 2000, but even if you set aside his achievements from the 1990s (one Olympic gold (10,000 meters) and four World Championships), you are left with a stunning resume: four time winner of the Berlin Marathon, two time winner in Dubai, world half marathon champion, world Championships silver and bronze in the 10,000 meters, indoor 3000 meter world champion, two time world record holder in the marathon (including the fastest all time, 2:03:59).

No TV

2009-12-17T05:09:00.000-05:00

I frequently struggle to squeeze my workout into my day. I have to juggle multiple priorities: a fairly demanding job, travel, and family obligations. In most cases, I don’t start my workout until after 9:00 PM during the week. On Saturdays I try to run when my kids are napping; on Sundays I sometimes start my long run at 8:30 PM. I’m not always successful. My workout log has numerous entries that say something like, “Exhausted. Fell asleep.” Nevertheless, I’ve tried my best to make it work. The key has been ruthless prioritization.

One of the effects of this schedule is that I have very little time to devote to anything else. I realized that I hardly watch any television. I usually watch SportsCenter for a few minutes after I get back from a run and stretch out. I record the show Numb3rs and watch it later, but that’s about it. I don’t know anything about American Idol, Survivor, The Biggest Loser, Gossip Girl, Grey’s Anatomy, Mad Men, or any other show on television. I tried to follow the current season of Top Chef, especially since it featured Bryan Voltaggio, the chef at Volt, one of my favorite restaurants (you can read my review here). Alas, I failed.

The New York Times health blog has a bit on how watching less TV affects people. Researchers found that those who watched less TV consumed the same amount of calories as the control group, but they also burned about 120 calories more per day. In other words, they substituted activity for sitting around and watching TV.

The Great Shakedown

2009-12-14T21:59:00.000-05:00

I don’t mind tipping, but I don’t like being asked for a tip. I would much prefer to live in a society like Japan, where tipping was unnecessary, but I don’t. I also hate it when those who provide mediocre or downright lousy service expect a tip.

For example, every day the person who delivers my newspaper seems to make a point of throwing it as far from my door as possible. He thinks he gets extra points if he manages to toss it in a puddle or on the wet grass. Then he has the audacity to leave me a self-addressed, stamped envelope so I can send him a tip. I cut out the stamp and used it to pay a bill. I used to deliver newspapers as a teenager, so I know a bit about the drudgery involved. I also did it using a bicycle with a banana seat and ape hanger handlebars, not a warm car. My goal was to get the newspaper on the porch, right outside the door.

This weekend the company that collects my trash (a service for which I pay a monthly fee) went around to each of the homes in the neighborhood and taped a note to the door. The note said that given the thefts of tips from trash can covers, it would be appreciated if we sent a personal check made out to a certain individual, who would then consolidate the money and distribute it to the workers. If only they paid the same attention to my trash can as they do to their tip! Perhaps then I wouldn’t come home to find it half-emptied, with the remains on my lawn.

I know there will be some who call me Scrooge, or who note that many people need these tips to survive. So be it. Why is it, however, that society has conditioned us to tip those who work in certain professions, but not in others? You probably don’t tip your real estate agent. In fact, your real estate agent usually gives you a present when a deal closes, even though you pay the agent a commission. Why do we tip wait staff (whose wages are relatively low), but not the pilot of a commuter airline (whose wages are also relatively low)?

Cherry Blossom 10 Miler: I Got In

2009-12-14T20:15:00.002-05:00

The organizers of the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler announced the results of the entry lottery today and I was delighted to find out that I made it. It's hard to determine what percentage of applicants actually won slots in the lottery. My eyeball calculation indicates that the majority of runners who applied got in.

Freak Out! 10 Miles in the Freezing Rain

2009-12-09T10:10:00.003-05:00

I’ve noted before that the hardest day of the week for me is Tuesday, the day of my medium-long run. Although setting aside three hours for a long run is challenging, at least I have all of Sunday to squeeze it in. Tuesday is a workday, so I am unable to start the run until after my kids go to sleep. Last night was especially trying because the forecast called for rain and sleet through the evening. The schedule called for 10 miles. I was hoping to get out the door before the rain actually started, but my younger son couldn’t sleep, so I tried to comfort him. By the time he was sleeping it was already after 9:00. I looked out the window and saw freezing rain coming down. I checked the temperature: 35 degrees. Suddenly I felt a tug on my backside. The sofa was calling me over. “Bag the run!” it said. “Come sit down and watch SportsCenter! Your friends Doritos and salsa are already here!”

I covered my ears to block out the siren’s call. Wearily, I gathered my gear and got dressed. Mental weakness was already setting in. I told my wife I would probably be gone for only 40 minutes or so, but I might go a little longer. The freezing rain was coming down hard. The little pellets were smacking me in the face, and I felt as birds were pecking at my face. For safety’s sake, I opted to run a two-mile out and back. I figured that I could probably run four miles tonight and push the 10 miler to the next day. That will just screw up the remainder of the week, I thought. You have a speed workout on Thursday, which would have to be pushed to Friday, which would mean less recovery before the long run on Sunday. Better to get it over with. For some reason I started thinking about the old song by Chic, “Le Freak.” I tried to think of new lyrics to describe my situation.

Oh! Wimp out!
You freak, so weak!
Wimp out!
You freak, so weak!

Then I couldn’t remember any more lyrics.

After four miles I figured I’d run two more to make it six. The freezing rain was still coming down hard. After six I decided that I might as well finish the 10. My clothes were soaked and my fingers were aching from the cold. After I was done I struggled to open the zipper of the pocket that held my house key because my fingers were so stiff. By that time Doritos and salsa had already gone home, so I settled for a yogurt and bagel.

Tough Crowd

2009-12-08T05:33:00.001-05:00

I was looking at the results from the Gar Williams Half Marathon this past weekend. I mentioned that I finished in 1:46 and change, far off my PR for the distance, but still within the realm of "respectability." Well, it turns out that I finished seventh out of eight in my age group.

Here’s how the others in my age group fared:

1:29:40, first, 9th overall
1:36:55, second, 18th overall
1:37:07, third, 19th overall
1:42:32, fourth, 30th overall
1:44:02, fifth, 35th overall
1:44:12, sixth, 37th overall
1:46:39, seventh, 47th overall
1:23:13, eighth, 122nd overall

141 total runners, 84 men, 57 women. I didn't even finish in the top half of all men!

Cherry Blossom Closes December 10

2009-12-07T19:53:00.000-05:00

The Cherry Blossom 10 Miler is one of the biggest events on the DC running scene. It is part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, an annual rite of spring in the Nation’s Capital. The race is impeccably managed and takes runners past thousands of pink flowers. At one point on Hains Point, the branches of trees on one side of the road stretch out and nearly touch the branches of the trees on the other side, creating a virtual tunnel of flowers.

Last year the race filled its 12,000 slots in two hours and 45 minutes. At one servers were logging 11 registrants per second. The organizers felt that the process discriminated against runners who did not have a computer at work, so they changed the registration process to a lottery this year. The registration period began on December 1 and closes on December 10. Those who win a slot in the lottery will be notified on December 15.

Slow in the Snow

2009-12-06T22:33:00.000-05:00

We are digging out after the first snowstorm of the season yesterday. We ended up getting about four inches. It got below freezing overnight, which turned the snow into ice.

My thighs felt stiff after the hard effort yesterday. They weren't throbbing, but I did have some residual soreness. I logged an easy four miles at around 10:00 per mile today. I tried to keep my heartrate as low as possible.

I also went grocery shopping. I ended up going to three different stores to get everything I wanted. You know how it is--one kid eats a certain type of yogurt that is available only at Whole Foods, I need a jar of kim chee that I can only get at the Asian supermarket, and I also need to pick up some parchment paper at the regular supermarket.

Race Report: Gar Williams Half Marathon

2009-12-05T21:35:00.000-05:00

Today it snowed for the first time this winter. Great for the kids, not so great for me since I ran the Gar Williams Half Marathon this morning. The forecast called for rain, turning to snow by midday, with an eventual accumulation of about two to four inches.

It was raining as I drove to the Carderock Recreation Area, the starting point of the race. The race was an out and back along the C&O Canal Towpath, where I frequently do my long runs. Check-in was swift and efficient. The race organizers didn't pass out bibs, but they did use the D-Tag timing system, which I thought was very impressive, especially for a simple club race.

I hadn't done much speedwork since the marathon in October, so I was feeling rusty. I mixed in a few strides during a six-mile run this week and really felt the effort in my quads. My goal today was to run slowly for the first few miles, then run the remainder of the race at marathon pace (MP), about 8:00 per mile.

The first few miles were difficult. The race only had about 140 runners, but it was still jammed for the first mile or so. The rain had saturated the towpath, creating large puddles. Runners spent a lot of effort navigating the obstacle course in an effort to keep their feet dry for as long as possible. I was doing fairly well until around mile 5, where I stepped into a huge puddle that soaked my socks. I ran the first few miles alongside another runner at about 9:00 per mile. I felt sluggish, like it was difficult to get into gear. She pointed out that the rain had shifted to snow. She was right: light snowflakes had started to fall.

We hit a stretch of the towpath that was filled with puddles. I ran off to the side at one point and the mud nearly pulled my shoe off. I felt as though I was back in Lowell, running the Bay State Marathon. The conditions were similar: wet, with temperatures in the 30s. I accelerated in an effort to dodge other runners and the puddles and soon I was running alone.

I hadn't made a conscious decision about when to speed up, so I decided just to keep going. I could tell from my effort that I was running right around 8:00 per mile. I began to feel much better, but that was probably because I wasn't surrounded by other runners on a narrow path. Still, I made sure not to push it too hard; this was not a day for a PR. I walked through the water stops to make sure that I took in enough fluids.

By mile 8 the snow was coming down hard. I had to blink frequently to see what was ahead. The miles seemed to go by easily. I was glad that I had pushed myself out the door to get in my long run. By mile 12, however, I was feeling fatigued. I was ready for the race to be over. I pushed a little harder and ran the last mile in 7:38. My final time was 1:46:38, or 8:08/mile.

I stumbled to the meet-up area and grabbed a banana and bagel. My hands were stiff with cold, so it was hard to hold the food. I wolfed down the bagel and walked back to my car. It was covered with snow! By the time I got home I was shivering badly. This is exactly how it was after the marathon, I thought. You have to watch out for hypothermia. I got in the shower and just stood there under the hot water, slowly defrosting.

New Yorker on Caster Semenya

2009-12-04T21:07:00.000-05:00

I don't know what to think about Caster Semenya. When I first saw her, I couldn't help but think that she looked like a man. In addition, her unusually rapid improvement (nearly 10 seconds for the 800 meters over the course of a year) raised suspicions.

As the circus unfolded in Berlin this summer, I began to learn that sex was not a "this or that" kind of issue. A human could have both male and female elements. (For an excellent article on the issue, see this New York Times piece.) But if we don't classify athletes by sex, how should we? Weight? Body fat? Levels of testosterone?

The New Yorker has a very good piece that tries to look at Semenya in context: biological, environmental, and historical. She really doesn't appear until the end of the article, but by then you feel that you understand her a lot better than you did before.

Clicks > Bricks

2009-12-03T23:27:00.001-05:00

For the last three years I’ve been wearing the various iterations of the Brooks Glycerin. I was not very happy with the most recent model, the Glycerin 7. The toebox felt tighter and shoe seemed to have lost some of the cushioning it was known for. I tried a half-size larger, but that felt too big. I decided to go looking for a new shoe.

I visited a local running store so that I could try a variety of shoes. The clerk asked me, “Where do you usually buy your shoes?”

I answered truthfully: “Online, because the prices are better.”

He said, “Do you plan on buying any shoes today?”

No @$$h0l€, I’m here just for fun, I thought. I rolled my eyes and assured him that I did indeed plan on buying shoes today (even though his prices were higher than I could find online). I used to wear ASICS shoes for many years, so I tried on the Nimbus. It felt a bit stiff. I also tried the Nike Vomero, the Mizuno Wave Creation, and the Adidas adiSTAR Ride. Then the clerk brought out the Saucony ProGrid Triumph 6. (Why do so many shoe names incorporate unusual capitalization?) It had the level of cushioning I was looking for. I had a gift certificate for $25, which knocked the price down from original MSRP of $130.

About a week later, the shoes went on sale at Running Warehouse: $69.88 for one, $59.88/each for two or more. I bought two pairs.

Book Review: A Race Like No Other

2009-12-01T20:31:00.000-05:00

I recently finished “A Race Like No Other,” by Liz Robbins, a journalist with the New York Times. Over 26.2 chapters, the book follows elite and recreational runners competing in the 2007 New York City Marathon. Along the way Robbins traces the history of the event, as well as the personal histories behind some of the elite and recreational runners. She also describes the men’s Olympic marathon trial, held the day before the NYC.

Robbins is a solid writer, so the book is well-written. The material itself, however, is uneven. The prose is easy to follow and colorful, where appropriate. While I knew about the event’s humble origins, from a multi-loop race in Central Park to the massive five borough spectacle it has become, Robbins narrative filled in the gaps. She has extensive profiles of several elite runners, including Paula Radcliffe, Gete Wami, Jelena Prokopcuka, Martin Lel, and Hendrick Ramaala. She also describes the sad death of Ryan Shay during the Olympic trials.

I found her description of the recreational runners to be uninteresting and, frankly, uninspiring. While I respect what they have accomplished and the role that running has played in their lives, I could not help but feel that I had heard these stories before. Robbins describes the runner who battled back from cancer and chemotherapy, the alcoholic who uses running to help battle her addiction, and a couple of runners who aim to keep their running streaks alive. Runner's World has featured these kinds of people for the last few decades. A friend once remarked that she couldn’t understand why anyone would subscribe to Runner's World. “They only have a few stories that they run over and over again,” she said.

I understand what she means.

Why the USPS Sucks

2009-11-30T00:48:00.000-05:00

I mailed two postcards from San Diego on November 19, one to each of my children (same address). One arrived on November 21. The other has yet to show up.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T02:51:00.004-05:00

The easiest way to appreciate the holidays is to spend them somewhere else, especially in a place where they celebrate the holiday more seriously, or somewhere that doesn’t mark the day at all. I once woke up on December 25 in Petra, Jordan, then drove back through Eilat, Israel, to get back to Egypt. That was something I’ll never forget. I’ve also experienced Easter in Greece and New Year’s in Japan. I can tell you that Easter in Greece is not marked by coloring eggs. I had to make sure that I had plenty of food in my house before the weekend, because every store was closed for days. The same goes for New Year’s in Japan, where many stores and restaurants shut down for an entire week. On New Year’s Eve people watch the Red and White Song Contest, and then make the pilgrimage to a shrine to ask for a healthy and prosperous new year.

When I lived in Tokyo I would host a Thanksgiving dinner for my American and Japanese friends. For the Americans, it was a chance to celebrate one of the most important American traditions together. It was also an opportunity to introduce my Japanese friends to foods that they rarely ate, like turkey. I always held the dinner on the day after Thanksgiving, however, so that people could stay late and not have to worry about going to work the next day.

I'm not going to get overly sentimental and prattle on about how we all have something to be thankful for, even during these trying times. I'll just say that I consider myself fortunate to have a loving family and a job that allows me to provide for them. I'm also grateful that my body held up long enough to qualify for Boston.

If you ever need reminding of the greatness of this country, read the annual Wall Street Journal pieces on Thanksgiving, The Desolate Wilderness and And the Fair Land.

Happy Thanksgiving!

To the West Coast and Back

2009-11-22T22:38:00.003-05:00

I recently returned from a short trip to San Diego. I flew out on Wednesday, had a busy schedule on Thursday, and then returned on Friday. I expect that it was my last trip of the year, but I can never be sure.

I don't consider myself to be a "road warrior," one of those people who travel frequently for business. You know the types: super elite on every airline, always hogging the overheard bins, and constantly yakking on their cellphones. Generally speaking, if I log more than 25,000 miles in a year, that's a lot. Most people know, however, that 25,000 miles is a magic number, since it typically confers elite status. This trip put me over 25,000 miles for the year, which means I am now the lowest level elite flyer. I immediately reaped the benefits. The security line in San Diego snaked all around the terminal, but I got to use the first class line, which only had about five people in it. I also got a mini-upgrade from the back of the plane to "economy plus," the seating area on United that offers a few more inches of legroom. Since I'm six feet tall, that makes a big difference. Finally, I bought a few bottles of wine in California. I couldn't bring them on the airplane, so I had to put them in my luggage. As an elite flyer, I could check a bag for free.

I managed to do some running in San Diego. My hotel was in the downtown area, so I ran out to Harbor Drive, which runs along the water for several miles. It's not as nice as you might think. Yes, you get to see the water off to one side, but you have to run on concrete for most of the way, and the traffic is roaring by on the side opposite the water. I wish I had the time to run in Balboa Park or some other more serene location.

The Cycle Begins Anew

2009-11-17T23:03:00.000-05:00

My coach sent me the first few weeks of my new training schedule to carry me through the winter and on to Boston. This past weekend called for a long run of 15 miles. I nearly fell down after I saw that. Since the BayState Marathon on October 18, I have not been doing a lot of running. I didn’t run at all for the first week after the race. In the second week following the race I probably ran three times, for a total of 12 miles. My longest run prior to last week was six miles. So you can imagine my trepidation when the schedule called for 45 miles, including a 15 miler.

Sunday was unusually warm in Washington. After a cold and rainy week, the skies cleared and we got up to around 74 degrees (23 C). My wife and I took the kids to the National Zoo, which they always enjoy. I was thinking about the run all day long—two and-a-half hours of running. After putting the kids to bed I started collecting my gear: reflective vest, two-bottle belt, and gel. I chose a very hilly route in order to build strength for Boston.

I felt sluggish at first. Perhaps it was just general fatigue after a long day. I averaged 9:15/mile for the first eight miles, which is about 10 seconds per mile slower than my normal long run pace. I began to work a little harder in the second half, running 9:02/mile over the last seven miles. My quads began to tire, and so the last three miles were a bit difficult. I got home just in time to see Peyton Manning work his magic against the Patriots.

Under the Wire

2009-11-16T23:24:00.000-05:00

Last Tuesday I received my confirmation from the Boston Marathon. Three days later the Boston Athletic Association announced that registration had closed. According to Marathon Guide, the race will still accept entries from charity runners until it reaches 25,000 entrants, the same ceiling as last year.

When I was shopping for a fall marathon to qualify for Boston, I also looked at the Philadelphia (November 22) and Las Vegas (December 6) marathons. I’m glad I didn’t select one of those races, as I would not have made it.

Where's My Bling?

2009-11-09T23:27:00.000-05:00

Although I’ve been running for over 25 years, I didn’t run my first marathon until 2006. Since then I’ve run two more, for a grand total of three. If you asked me where my finisher’s medals are, however, I couldn’t tell you. They are somewhere around my house, I guess. My five-year-old was playing with my medal from the BayState Marathon a few weeks ago; since then I haven’t seen it.

I’ve never been a sentimental runner. I don’t collect bibs. I do keep the t-shirts, of course, but they have utility. What really matters to me are the numbers. I maintain a spreadsheet with all my race results. Sometimes I call it up and just scroll through it to see my progression.

I went to the Marine Corps Marathon Expo a few weeks ago just to look around. Visiting the booths for various races piqued my interest in them. The Disney booth was fairly modest, but it had a case filled with the medals for each of the company’s races. I thought that my kids might enjoy playing with one of them.

Back to Work

2009-10-26T13:31:00.001-04:00

After finishing the race in Lowell, I drove back to my hotel, showered, then drove to Logan Airport in Boston. I was scheduled to fly back to Dulles, then catch a flight to Dallas for a big meeting. I had booked the last flight of the day to Dallas, which was scheduled to depart at 7:15 PM. My flight from Boston was scheduled to depart at 4:40 and land at Dulles at 6:20, which did not leave me a lot of time. I arrived at Logan at about 2:15, so I had plenty of time to sit around and wait. Then I got an email from the airline: your flight from Boston to Washington has been delayed; the new departure time is 5:15. My window between flights had narrowed.

I called my corporate travel office to determine if I could book a seat on a flight from Boston to Dallas and bypass Washington entirely. The only seat available was in first class. I looked into flights from National Airport to Dallas. No luck. The travel agent told me that if I missed the flight from Washington to Dallas, then my employer would still be charged for one segment of the ticket. If I cancelled the entire itinerary before the flight, then my employer would be refunded the entire cost of the ticket. I looked out the window: planes were being de-iced because of the snow. The aircraft for my flight had still not arrived. It was 4:45. I pulled the plug and cancelled the entire itinerary. I emailed my colleagues to let them know. Fortunately, three other people from my office were in Dallas, so my presence wasn’t critical to the success of the meeting.

My flight back to Washington was delayed even further. We didn’t take-off until 6:40, so I didn’t get home until around 10:00. The weather in Washington was expected to dip into the 30s, so I had to make sure that the pipes didn’t freeze. My wife shut off the water and I went outside to open the taps. I was so stiff I could barely shuffle around the lawn. Going down two steps was agony.

It was three days before I felt comfortable going down stairs. The last bit of stiffness didn’t depart until five days after the race. I am now fully ambulatory and pain-free. I haven’t run a step in the last week. Basically, all I’ve been doing is eating a lot of food and reading about Boston. I spent an hour on the phone with my coach, dissecting the race, sketching out training between now and April, and discussing strategies for the Boston course (which he has run four times). He noted that many people spend so much energy trying to qualify that when they do, they don’t have clear goals for Boston. I said that I didn’t know what kind of time was realistic for the Boston course, given my training and race results. He said that he believed that I could run 3:20. That was a shock to me, given the difficulty of the Boston course. He said that with the right training and race execution, it was a realistic goal.

I feel fine right now, but I know a full recovery takes several weeks. I’ve never run a marathon in the spring, so winter marathon training is going to be new for me. I suspect that I’ll have to make several changes to my routine. Time to go back to work.

Times Article on Slow Marathoners

2009-10-23T07:03:00.000-04:00

Today's New York Times has an article on the debate regarding slower runners in the marathon. Faster runners argue that plodders disrespect the distance and that they merely participate in the event, rather than racing it. Slower runners respond that they paid the same amount of money to run, and that the primary achievement is completion of the distance.

Race Report: BayState Marathon

2009-10-20T22:49:00.003-04:00

Have you ever gone into a test feeling utterly unprepared, then feeling a mix of delight and embarrassment when you get your test booklet back and learn that you scored an “A”? That’s how I feel right now.

Heading into the marathon, I only had one goal: run 3:30 and thereby qualify for Boston. It didn’t matter if I ran 3:31 or five hours; neither was acceptable. My training had been going very well over the summer. I was running around 65 miles a week and my race times were improving. Then, about five weeks before the race, I learned that I might have to prepare for a big meeting on the day after my race. Three weeks before the race, the date and location were confirmed. I spent nearly every minute at work each day preparing for the big meeting: writing papers, organizing schedules, pulling together briefing material. My training went into the tank. I’m lucky that the meeting preparations took place as I was tapering, and not when I had to train at peak mileage. On the Friday before the race I completed the preparations, went home, and packed for the trip to Massachusetts.

It was pouring in Washington when I woke up on Saturday. It was cold and overcast in Boston, but the forecast called for the rain to move up the east coast and hit Boston on Sunday morning. I drove to Lowell High School to pick up my race packet, then to my hotel to relax. The weather was decent when I got up on Sunday: around 38 degrees, but no rain. I parked my car and waited inside the Tsongas Center, about 1000 meters from the start. It was great to have a warm place to relax, stay hydrated, and use a real flushing toilet. I sat in the stands and watched the Zamboni drive around the rink (home of the Lowell Devils).

At about a quarter to 8:00, people started making their way to the starting line. The race director introduced the mayor of the city, who would start the race. He yelled, “Are you ready, runners?” People cheered and I took off my throwaway t-shirt. Then he asked people to stand for the national anthem. As the song progressed, I started feeling cold again, so I grabbed my t-shirt off the ground and put it back on.

And then we were off.

Miles 1 to 3: According to the race staff, about 4,100 people signed up for the marathon and half-marathon combined. The starting line for the half-marathon was about 50 meters behind the marathon start, but the first mile was still pretty cramped. The course has a few very mild inclines, which are usually followed by gentle downhills. I ran the first mile in 8:18, then picked it up a bit to get back on track. Time at 3 miles: 22:44, 7:35/mile.

Miles 3 to 7: The rain begins to fall about 25 minutes into the race. It starts as a sprinkle, then turns a light drizzle. By the end of the race it will be a steady freezing rain. Just before mile 3 the marathon and half-marathon courses diverge. The half-marathoners turn right onto the Rourke Bridge, while marathoners proceed along Middlesex Street. I eat my first gel at around mile 6. The race is exceptionally well-organized. Every water stop is preceded by a sign about 150 meters before it. Each of the water stops is staffed by students from local high schools and they all do a great job. The water stops are organized the same way, with water first and Gatorade second. Most of the volunteers wear neon green shirts, which makes them easy to spot. Runners are encouraged to vote for their favorite water stop, and the school that gets the most votes receives a donation to its athletic fund. Chelmsford High, you got my vote! Time at 7 miles: 54:18, 7:45 mile.

Miles 7 to 11: Runners cross over the Merrimack River via the Tyngsboro Bridge pedestrian walkway. The walkway is made out of metal that flexes as runners make contact. As I get closer to the midpoint of the bridge, the flex becomes more noticeable, until I feel as though I’m being tossed a few inches into the air on each stride. It’s a bizarre feeling and I want to get off the bridge as quickly as possible. As I come off the bridge I hang a right and head southeast back towards Lowell via Pawtucket Blvd. I cross the timing mat at 9.9 miles in 1:18:03, or 7:54/mile.

Miles 11 to 17: A lively section of the course, followed by a lonely one. I make my way back to the Rourke Bridge and cross over. On the other side of the street are half-marathoners in between mile markers 9 and 10. The crowds are thick as I come off the bridge and hit mile marker 13. They thin out as I begin the second loop of the course and by mile 14, I’m alone again. I consume another gel at mile 16. I’m still wearing my throwaway t-shirt to keep me warm, but by now it’s getting heavy. I throw it to the side of the road at around mile 17. Time at mile 17: 1:12:55, 7:49/mile.

Miles 17 to 22: What had seemed so effortless begins to hurt. My calves feel a little tight, so my stride shortens. I cross the timing mat at mile 20 in 2:38:31, or 7:56 per mile. That means I have about a minute and-a-half cushion, but I know I’m going to need it. Shortly after mile 21 my calves start to cramp. It’s mild at first, but then I can feel them “popping,” as though knots were forming and exploding in my calves. I refuse to stop and stretch them out. I fall into a pattern: run on the edge of pain until a cramp strikes, slow down until it passes, then get back up to speed. This seems to work, but as the miles slowly go by, I recalculate my margin of safety. It’s shrinking. I run mile 21 in 8:23, then the next one in 8:32.

Miles 22 to 25.2: The cramps are intense when they hit, but I keep plugging along. I think of my family and how they would cheer me on if they were here. They sacrificed a lot for this race, too. I don’t want to let them down. I begin to think about how many people know I’m gunning for Boston and how awkward it would be to have to tell the story about how I failed again and again. Shame is a strong motivator. I pass the Rourke Bridge for the final time at mile 23. I see an ice cream store on my left and get a crazy thought, wondering how they stay afloat during the winter. The road begins to go downhill and I pass the mile 25 marker and then a marker that reads, “1 mile to go.”

Miles 25.2 to the Finish: I glance at my watch and figure I have about eight minutes to run one mile. Even that takes into account the extra 59 seconds that Boston grants runners. That would have been nothing at the start of the day, but now it seems impossible. Fortunately, the road continues to go downhill. I can see LeLacheur Park, home of the Lowell Spinners and the place where the race ends. I’ve lost the ability to determine exactly how far I have left, so I decide to push the pace as fast and as far as I can. The crowds are thick on both sides of the street, shouting encouragement. You want this? Go get it! I think to myself.

I enter the stadium on the warning track in left field, then proceed to run clockwise through the outfield. I turn right and run down the first base line towards home. About two feet from the finish, one last massive cramp clutches my right calf and I stumble across the finish line. I quickly glance down at my watch: 3:50:44…45…46. I did it.

Two volunteers immediately grab me, one on each arm, and guide me through the chute. One of them grabs a space blanket and puts it on me. Then he grabs a bottle of water and puts it in my hand. I barely have the strength to open it. Thank you, kind sir, whoever you are.

I don’t know what to feel. Elation? Relief? Right now I only feel pain. As I begin the mile long walk back to my car in the freezing rain, I begin to feel something else: cold. I’m shivering badly. This is not good. I’m well aware of the dangers of hypothermia. I finally make it back to my car, start the engine, and let the heater run full blast for 10 minutes before going anywhere. With trembling hands I send an email to my wife: I did it. As I look down at my thighs, I can see them seizing up and going into spasms. It looks like someone is pushing outward from inside my legs. After what feels like an eternity I arrive at my hotel room and stumble into the shower. The hot water makes me feel human again.

I BQed

2009-10-19T06:20:00.000-04:00

By about 15 seconds.

For My Family and Friends

2009-10-18T08:00:00.001-04:00

I set this entry to post at 8:00 AM on Sunday, October 18, the starting time for the Bay State Marathon. Right now, on Friday afternoon, the forecast calls for rain, and lots of it. It could be worse; at least it's not 90 degrees with high humidity. I've run in the rain dozens of times, so this won't be anything new. I ran the Baltimore 10 Miler in the rain from the second mile on and ended up setting a PR. I am concerned primarily about my shoes. They will eventually get waterlogged and heavy as the race progresses.

I feel that I'm closer to 3:30 than ever before. Before last year's Marine Corps Marathon, my Yasso 800 and tune-up race times suggested about 3:35 to 3:37. I ran 3:36. This year the same indicators project a time between 3:20 and 3:26. I've been most thrilled by my ability to push hard late. At the Army Ten Miler a few weeks ago, I ran the last mile in 6:46. At the Parks Half Marathon in September, I ran the last mile in 6:50.

I have tried to minimize the impact of my running on my family life. I remember one run in particular. We woke up early and drove to Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. After spending the day at the amusement park, driving home, eating dinner and putting the kids to bed, I left the house at 9:45 for a 15 mile run, eventually finishing after midnight. While I was out on the roads a blackout rolled through the area, causing the streetlights to go out. I ran in near complete darkness for about 40 minutes.

It's impossible, however, to train effectively without affecting my family. I could never have reached this point without their love and support. They have patiently endured countless Sunday long runs, weekend track work, and late night recovery runs. When I come home from a race, my kids always ask, "Daddy, did you win?" I have to break the news that I didn't. (Although one time this summer they actually got to see me win a race.)

We often remind my older son that it's important to always do your best. This Sunday I'm going to do just that.

The Last Six Minutes

2009-10-12T11:30:00.003-04:00

When I started this blog, I had a little pull-out to the right that listed the race times that I wanted to beat:

5K: 22:00
10K: 45:00
Half-Marathon: 1:40
Marathon: 3:30

Since that time, I've accomplished what I set out to do for the 5K and the half-marathon. I probably would have done the same for the 10K, but I haven't raced one since April (in that race I ran 45:09, so I know I'm close).

The most meaningful goal remains: 3:30 for the marathon, my BQ time. Last year I ran 3:36--close, but not close enough. In less than a week, I'm going to give it another shot.

My preparation for the race has been more intense than last year. I've run more long runs exceeding 20 miles, as well as more fast-finish long runs. Heck, I've done a lot more speedwork, period. Two weeks ago I ran 10 miles, with the last six miles at 7:20/mile. At the Army Ten Miler I ran 1:12, which comes out to 7:15 per mile. My workouts tell me I'm ready for the final assault.

My mind, however, is distracted. I have a lot going on at work these days. Hours after running the marathon this Sunday, I have to catch a flight to another city for a big meeting the next day. I'll probably be limping around the conference site. My coach says it's not that bad. He argues that if I weren't stressing out about the meeting, then I'd be stressing out about the race. he's got a point. I think I need to sit down and work on some positive visualization.

A Nation Challenged: 2009

2009-09-11T08:46:00.001-04:00

Each year, on the day before Thankgiving, the Wall Street Journal runs the same two pieces on its editorial page. One is about the arrival of the pilgrims, the other about the promise of America. In that tradition, I offer my annual piece on the September 11 attacks.

Today marks the sixth anniversary of the terrorist attacks against the United States. The world is dramatically different in ways that have now become commonplace (new employees at my office are issued a gas mask), and yet the horror of that day itself has begun to fade into memory. As the President said in a speech nine days after the attacks, "Even grief recedes with time and grace."

My father grew up in Hawaii. He once described what it was like to be in Honolulu on December 7, 1941. He was working as a caddy when he saw plumes of black smoke rising in the distance. That day marked the beginning of a long struggle. I work in Washington and my sister in New York, so I can easily remember September 11, 2001. Like my father, I think I witnessed the start of a long war.

The first indication that something was wrong was a small news story on Yahoo that reported that a "small plane" had crashed into the World Trade Center. (You can see an archive of Yahoo from later that day here.) I thought that was a very strange accident. Not long after that, there was a flash about a second plane crashing into the World Trade Center. At that point, rumors began to fly. My friend R., who worked at the World Financial Center during the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center, called me from London. "Do you know what's happening?" he asked. "Two planes have been crashed into the World Trade Center!" We have no televisions in our office, only the Internet.

My boss is out of the office at a large meeting in another part of the city. Instead of being instructed to evacuate, we are told by building security to stay inside. At about 9:45, news about the Pentagon circulates inside the building. Rumors swirl: a plane has crashed on the National Mall, a truck bomb has exploded at the State Department, the bridges have collapsed. My phone rings; it's my brother-in-law. "My sister told me to tell you to get out of there," he saids calmly. "Huh? What?" I ask. "My sister told me to tell you to get out of there. She can't reach you by phone, so she told me to tell you to get out of there." He is amazingly calm. My wife works in another part of Washington. Later I learn that she couldn't leave because there was a suspicious vehicle parked in front of her building.

At this point, I feel slightly disoriented, but figure that given the multiple attacks, it's better to defy orders and go home. As I head for the stairwell, the security guards make the rounds, shouting orders to evacuate. Once I step outside, it's near chaos. My building is next to a daycare center and the workers have led all of the kids outside into an open area. Children are screaming for their parents as the workers struggle to retain control. "Is the Metro running?" someone asks. "No!" comes the answer. I live in Virginia, on the other side of the Potomac River. I have only two options to get home: Metro or walk. I head for the Metro and find, to my amazement, that it is indeed running. My stop is Pentagon City on the Blue Line, which is the stop right next to the Pentagon. The train slows as it approaches the Pentagon, but it doesn't stop. The platform at the Pentagon is empty, but I don't see any damage. I get off at the next stop and walk through the eerily empty Pentagon City Mall. As I step outside, I'm struck by how bright and clear the day is. My wife makes it home a few hours later. The night is filled with the sound of sirens and helicopters.

I get a call from a friend in California asking about travel to New York. I remind him that all flights have been grounded. "I have to get to New York," he says. "My brother works at Cantor Fitzgerald." Later I learn that Cantor's offices occupied five floors at One World Trade Center and nearly two-thirds of Cantor's employees were killed that day. I remember meeting my friend's brother a few years ago. C. was a true foodie so we all went out to dinner at Galileo, one of the top restaurants in Washington. We ate and drank so much that by the end of the evening, I gasped, "We ate like kings!" He had a five-year-old daughter.

Later I learn that the passengers of United Flight 93 refused to capitulate. They seized control of the aircraft from the terrorists and crashed it into the ground. My office is very close to the White House, so I believe in my heart that those passengers saved my life.

Less than a month after the attacks, I have to fly to another country on business. About an hour before landing, the purser comes down the aisle, shakes each person's hand and says, "Thank you for flying."

America has long struggled between its impulse to serve and do good in the world and the desire to retreat into a shell and let the rest of the world hang itself. Thus the nation that produced George Marshall, Bretton Woods, and the Peace Corps also produced Lou Dobbs, Smoot-Hawley, and the Minutemen Project.

The war in Iraq hasn't caused much disruption to the lives of most people. There is no rationing, no blackouts, and life continues as it did before. As a result, we don't feel that we are at war, but I believe we are. (Here I speak not of the war in Iraq, but more broadly.) You can call it a "clash of civilizations," or a war against Islamofacism. However you label it, I believe that liberal democracy is under assault and this conflict will continue for many years. This is a war we can't afford to lose.

Race Report: Norman Tamanaha 15K

2009-09-02T22:38:00.000-04:00

I recently returned from my vacation in Hawaii, where I ran in the Norman Tamanaha 15K. The race is the first in the Marathon Readiness Series, five races that help runners prepare for the Honolulu Marathon on December 13. The races increase in distance from 15K to 30K, then back down to a half marathon on November 9. Although clubs and companies in other areas have scheduled races to prepare runners for a big marathon, the Honolulu system is the only one I know of that is organized by a single entity.

I landed in Honolulu at around 1:00 PM, and my father drove me to the designated running store to pick up my number. I had hoped to spare him the miserable drive through Honolulu’s nasty traffic by picking up my bib on the morning of the race, but the guy who answered the information line said that no race day pickup was available.

The race started was scheduled to start at 6:00 AM, about 17 hours after I landed in Honolulu. I woke up early because of the time difference (Honolulu is six hours behind the east coast), as did the rest of my family. They chose to stay at home and enjoy one of Grandma’s breakfasts rather than stand in Kapiolani Park for an hour or so waiting for me to finish. Good choice. My father drove me down to the start and wished me luck. As I walked through the starting area I heard the announcer say, “Packet pickup is located near the starting line.” So much for accurate information.

I started jogging slowly around the park to warmup. I ran for about a mile, then turned around to head back towards the start. The announcer said, “Runners please proceed to the starting line.” I was probably about a half mile away from the start on the road, so I decided to pick up the pace and cut across the park on the grass to get to the start quickly. I had just found a decent place to stand when I heard the air horn blast. I kept looking down for the timing mat, but didn’t see one so. I figured I must have missed it and so just pressed start on my watch.

Summer in Hawaii is not the most pleasant time to run. Daytime temperatures routinely reach the upper 80s or low 90s with high humidity, although the tradewinds tend to alleviate the heat. The 6:00 AM start helped, but it was impossible to escape the sun completely. The course is flat for about the first 1.5 miles, before proceeding up the side of Diamond Head via Diamond Head Road. It flattens out at about three miles, then remains generally flat until runners work their way back up and down Diamond Head. My first mile was in 7:47, which surprised me a bit because I thought I had warmed up well. The second mile was slower (8:06) because of the uphill section. At one point I was running uphill, had the rising sun in my eyes, a gusty wind in my face, and someone was drafting me. I moved to one side so she could suffer, too. From that point to mile nine I ran fairly even splits, between 7:33 and 7:41 per mile. The section of the race on Kahala Avenue, from the Waialae Beach Park (next to the famous Kahala Hotel and the Waialae Golf Course, site of the Hawaiian Open) is horrible because the cant of the road is severe. On the other hand, this stretch goes by some of the most expensive homes on the island, many of which are valued at over $10 million.

Runners reach the crest at about mile eight, then go back downhill to Kapiolani Park and the finish line. I ran the ninth mile in 7:04. The stretch along Kalakaua Avenue seems interminable, but eventually I see the arch over the finish line. I sprint past one last runner and stop my watch: 1:09:55. My official time was 1:10:17. The difference was probably attributable to the missed starting line. My Garmin indicated that the course was 0.1 mile short.

After the race the organizers had a refreshment area set up with plain water, Gatorade, and something I had never seen offered at a race before: water with salt. I understand that the body loses sodium through perspiration, but most people probably get enough sodium in their diets to replace what they’ve lost.

A Bermuda High Doesn't Make You Feel Good

2009-08-15T15:55:00.000-04:00

The only thing worth savoring about the Washington summer is the general slowdown in the pace of activity. It’s easier to find parking at the Metro station, although the trains themselves are more crowded because they run further apart since the accident in June. Washington typically empties out in August and the exodus accelerates once Congress goes on recess. As residents depart, our out-of-town guests arrive, and the National Mall is filled with wide-eyed, slack-jawed tourists. You can always tell who the tourists are in the Metro stations: they’re the ones who stand on the left side of the escalator, can’t figure out how the turnstiles work, and eat on the trains.

This summer was unusually cool until last weekend. On Saturday a Bermuda High rolled into town and sat on us for three days. I put off my run until after the sun went down, but it was still muggy. The forecasters called for a hot and humid day on Sunday, so I set out for my long run at 7:30. That wasn’t early enough. The sun drained me to the point that I cut my run short at 17.5 miles.

A few days later I was scheduled to run 13 miles. It was 76 degrees with 84 percent humdity. I thought of the "Rule of 152," which states that runners should be vigilant when the temperature (in degrees Fahrenheit) and relative humidity added together exceed 152. I took it very slow for the first seven miles, running 1:05:38 (9:23/mile). I started to feel better, so I began to push the pace on the last six. I did them in 52:18 (8:23/mile).

WSJ On The Decline of American Sprinting

2009-08-14T12:41:00.002-04:00

The Wall Street Journal has a good article on how American sprinting has declined since the glory days of the 1980s. Check it out here.

Ramping Up, Slimming Down

2009-08-14T05:55:00.000-04:00

I know my training is ramping up because two nights ago I ran a half-marathon in the middle of the week. When I started the current training cycle back in May, the distance of the long run in the first week was 13 miles. Now the weekend long run has reached 20 miles (once) and I have a second, moderately long run of about 12 to 14 miles during the week. Last night I left the house at around 9:00 PM and returned around 11:00. I ran the first seven miles at around 9:20 per mile, and the last six at around 8:40 per mile.

The upside to all of this running is that from a caloric intake standpoint, I have reached the point where I can eat anything I want. I can eat double portions and drink alcohol and I still just run it off. When I weighed myself last weekend, I noted that I had dropped two more pounds, so I am now down to around 156 pounds (70.9 kg). I’ve run out of holes on my belt and even certain elastic waist underwear doesn’t fit properly. I went to a major department store recently and noticed that they didn’t have any belts for 32 inch waists. The smallest size was 34.

World Championships

2009-08-13T03:54:00.000-04:00

In case you hadn't heard, there's going to be a track meet of some importance in Berlin: the World Championships. The Worlds are held in odd-numbered years and bring together the top athletes in track and field. In 2007 Kara Goucher won the bronze medal in the 10,000 meters and established herself as one of America's top distance runners. Bernard Lagat won gold in both the 1,500 and 5,000 meters and will attempt to do the same this year. The Let's Run website has an exhaustive preview of each event. You can also check out the website of the International Amateur Athletics Federation, which has the full schedule. Universal Sports will offer streaming video, and you can watch the event on NBC and Versus:

August 15: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. NBC
August 16: 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. NBC
August 17: 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Versus
August 18: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. Versus
August 19: 1:30 - 4:00 p.m. Versus
August 20: 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. Versus
August 21: 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. Versus
August 22: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. NBC
August 23: 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. NBC

For marathon junkies, the women's race is on Saturday, August 22, and the men's race is the following day. I'm looking forward to the women's 800 and 1500 meters. In the 800, Maggie Vessey has emerged this year as an elite athlete. She shaved nearly three seconds off her PR to get below 2:00 in Monaco recently. In the 1500, the United States has Shannon Rowbury, Christin Wurth-Thomas, and Anna Willard. The men's sprints should also be electric, with Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt going at it. Finally, it'll be great to watch Kenenisa Bekele go for gold in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters.

Race Report: Riley’s Rumble

2009-08-12T22:30:00.000-04:00

On July 26, about nine hours after arriving home from my trip to Mexico, I ran in Riley’s Rumble Half-Marathon, one of the most popular races staged by my running club. The race derives its name from its historical starting point at Riley’s Lock, which is near mile marker 23 on the C&O Canal Towpath. This year the club was unable to get permission for parking near the canal, so they moved the starting point of the race to the Germantown Soccerplex. From there the course was shaped like the letter Y: it proceeded up the base of the Y, then went out and back on two “prongs” before returning to the starting point.

Riley’s Rumble is known for three things: heat, humidity, and hills. (You can watch a tour of the course here.) All three were present in abundance on the new course. Race time temperature was about 75 degrees, but humidity was around 95 percent. About a minute after the race started it began to rain—hard. By mile two I was soaked down to my shoes. I thought back to the Baltimore Ten Miler, where the same thing happened.

My goal for the race was to run 8:00 per mile, my marathon pace. That would not have been difficult on a flat course under cool conditions, but this was my first time running the new Riley’s course and it was sweltering. I hit the first mile in 8:04. I figured I was just warming up. The second mile was 8:01, followed by 8:06. This was not going too well. I needed to speed up. I ran the fourth mile, which included a significant hill, in 8:15. That was enough. I broke away from the group I had been running with and began to push it, not too much, but I wasn’t lollygagging, either. The next four miles were 8:06, 7:50, 8:04, and 7:52. Better, but not yet back to an 8:00 per mile average.

The next few miles included more hills: 8:11, 7:41, and 7:45. I saw a young man in front of me wearing basketball shorts, cross-trainers, and a cotton t-shirt with the sleeves cut off. I decided I could not let someone dressed like that beat me. I bore down and trudged up the final hill. I hit the roundabout near the start and looked down at my watch: 13.1 miles. Why am I still running? I attributed it to technological imperfection. I managed a smile for the volunteer taking pictures near the finish. Final time: 1:47:04, 13.4 miles (7:58/mile). After the event the race director noted that the course was indeed long.

And Back to Sea Level

2009-08-06T21:32:00.001-04:00

I’m traveling more frequently than I usually do. Last night I returned from an overnight trip to The Bahamas. I left Washington on Tuesday morning and came back Wednesday evening. If there had been an earlier flight, I would have gone down and come back the same day. The plane was filled with anxious vacationers; I was the only one wearing a suit.

My meeting wasn’t until Wednesday morning, so I spent some time walking around downtown Nassau. I visited the Straw Market, a maze of tiny stalls filled with handcrafts, knockoff accessories and tacky souvenirs. I strolled down Bay Street, which is lined with duty free liquor stores, perfumeries, and souvenir stores. After about 20 minutes I started sweating profusely, so I went back to the hotel to relax and eat lunch.

As I rode in from the airport I kept looking at the roads to look for areas to run. Sidewalks and shoulders were rare. After walking down Bay Street I concluded that it would be pointless to run there because of the traffic and tourists. I ended up running seven miles (including some strides) on the treadmill. Then I changed into my swim shorts and took a dip, first in the hotel pool, and then in the Caribbean. I watched a huge cruise ship, the Majesty of the Seas, sail by. Another ship, the Carnival Sensation, remained docked in port.

I asked the concierge for a recommendation on where I could run and he suggested running eastward along Bay Street, across the bridge and down to the Atlantis Hotel, then back. I was a bit leery of his suggestion after my stroll along Bay Street earlier that day. When I woke up the next morning at 5:30, it was still dark outside, so I thought it would be prudent to run on the treadmill again.

My meeting ended at around 1:45, which gave me barely enough time to rush back to the hotel, grab my stuff, and head to the airport. My routing on USAir took me from Nassau to Charlotte, then onward to Washington. Although I am not a big fan of USAir, I do like the Charlotte Airport. It has a wide variety of interesting shops and eateries (unlike Dulles). Unfortunately, a strong thunderstorm delayed my flight home, so I didn’t land at National until a bit after 10:00 PM.

Higher and Higher

2009-07-28T20:52:00.001-04:00

Gentle reader, 5280 feet was not enough for me, so last week I went all the way to 7,400 feet to train. I traveled to Mexico City for six days for a series of meetings and still managed to log 53 miles for the week.

My coach had laid out the training plan several weeks in advance, without knowledge of this trip. I tried to rearrange the workouts to fit them in when I would have the time. For example, Monday was a rest day following Sunday’s long run, but since I knew I would be traveling, I moved the long run to Saturday. On Sunday I did an easy seven miles, then on Monday ran nine miles (including 6 x 800 in 3:20) before going to the airport. It seems that airlines have really cut the number of flights to Mexico in the wake of the flu outbreak this spring. Fortunately, United still offers the daily non-stop from Dulles to Mexico City each afternoon.

Tuesday was my first full day in Mexico. After my meetings I went back to my hotel and ran in Chapultepec Park. I ran down Paseo de la Reforma and into the park. As I entered one of the gates, I thought I heard a policewoman yelling at me. I wasn’t sure if she was trying to tell me that running was not allowed in the park (I’m pretty sure that’s not the case), or that the park was closing soon (it was about 6:15 PM). Unlike running in Denver, where I felt the altitude in my legs, I quickly felt out of breath in Mexico City. My breathing grew labored each time I went up even a gentle incline, or when I did some strides. The next day I took it easy with four miles on the hotel treadmill.

I knew that I would have a big block of free time on Thursday, so that’s when I did my medium long run, 12 miles, with the last four miles in 29:30. When I was about half a mile from my hotel I realized that I had forgotten to bring any water. The temperature was about 74 degrees, so I decided just to push on. Bad mistake. By seven miles in I was starting to get cotton mouth. When it was time to accelerate after eight miles, I had very little energy. Dehydration and altitude just drained me. I managed two miles in a shade under 16 minutes before backing off. I stumbled back to the hotel room, drank half a liter of Gatorade, then 1.5 liters of water and lay on the floor with the air conditioner going full blast.

I had a few hours in between meetings on Friday to do an easy seven miles. I knew I wouldn’t be able to run on Saturday, since that was a travel day. Because of the cutback in the number of flights, I was booked on a flight from Mexico City to San Francisco, then another flight back to Dulles. What kind of routing is that? When I got to the airport, however, the agent asked, “Do you want to fly on the non-stop?”

“Sure!” I replied.

“Well, we have a seat, but the flight is delayed,” he said. I asked how long the delay was. He said it was three hours. I took it. The flight ended up being delayed a bit longer than that, but it was still better than flying to California before turning around and flying home.

Altitude Training

2009-07-15T21:24:00.001-04:00

I traveled to Denver a few weeks ago to attend a three-day meeting. Although I’ve changed planes numerous times in the new(ish) Denver airport, I’ve never actually left the building to visit the city until this trip. I was pleasantly surprised. I found Denver to be a lovely city, with a very walkable downtown that included a pedestrian mall with a free city bus. I ventured out to a residential area one evening to have dinner with a college friend and thought that her neighborhood was very charming. It had the feel of a community, rather than a development.

I have an interest in civil engineering, so I was fascinated by the Denver airport. As the cab pulled away, I looked back at this immense facility. It appeared as though the planners said to the engineers, “You can have as much space as you want to build an airport.” It is out in the middle of nowhere and it is sprawling. The rental car facility is about five miles from the terminal!

I was a bit concerned about running at altitude (5280 feet, or 1609 m), since all of my training is done at sea level. After checking into my hotel I changed my clothes and set out. Bad mistake. Summer afternoons in Denver can be hot. The temperature was around 85 degrees F (29.4 C), but with low humidity. I ran an easy five miles and felt dehydrated at the end. The forecasts called for temperatures in the 60s in the morning, rising to the mid-80s each afternoon. Obviously, the best time to run was in the morning before it got hot. The next day the schedule called for 10 miles, with the last 1.5 mile hard. I was staying in a hotel downtown, so I ran out to the Cherry Creek Trail, a paved path that runs along Cherry Creek for several miles. It reminded me a bit of the C&O Canal back home, except for two things. First, the Cherry Creek Trail is paved. Second, unlike the C&O Canal, the Cherry Creek actually flows. I ran from downtown to Washington Park, a popular area among runners.

I thought I would feel the altitude in my lungs, like the searing sensation that you get after running intervals or sprinting. Instead, I seemed to feel it more in my legs, as though I just didn’t have the energy to run faster. It was the same fatigued feeling I get on the day after a long run.

On the last morning, I was supposed to do eight miles, including 5 x 1000 meter intervals in 4:10, with a 3:00 jog in between . I wasn’t close to a track, so I planned to run the intervals by time. I would run hard for the specified period, recover, then run hard again. I wouldn’t know how far I had run each hard segment until I uploaded the data from my watch. I found the intervals to be extremely difficult. I felt like quitting after the second repetition, but managed to complete them all. The data confirmed what I suspected: three of the five repetitions were short of 1000 meters by between 30 and 50 meters.

I don’t think three workouts at altitude are sufficient to confer any meaningful benefits, but it was still interesting.

Race Report: Midsummer Night's Mile

2009-07-13T04:30:00.002-04:00

Friday evening I ran in the Midsummer Night's Mile, one of the track meets staged by my running club. I almost didn't make it. The organizers have a number of heats, based on the projected finish times. The heats began at 7:00 at Rockville High School. At about 4:00 that afternoon, I was asked to attend a meeting at 5:00. Who schedules a meeting at 5:00 on a Friday afternoon? You would think that the time would make people move things along, but it did not. There was the usual droning and pontificating before the meeting finally ended at around 5:45. I dashed out the door to take the Metro from downtown to Rockville. The conditions on the red line (which I had to take) have been horrendous since the accident a few weeks ago. The trains run slower and as a result are more crowded. By the time I pulled into the parking lot it was about 7:10, and the first heat was already underway.

As I was signing in, I heard a small voice behind me. "Hi Daddy!" I turned around to see my older son, A. I looked over to the fence and saw my wife and younger son M. I was glad that they made it. Since this was a short race, they wouldn't have to wait around too long. My older son said, "Dad, remember: just do your best!"

"I will," I answered.

The last time I raced a mile was August 2008, at another club race. Back then I ran 6:24. I knew I was fitter than I was a year ago, but I didn't know by how much. I had two choices: 6:15 to 7:00, or 5:45 to 6:15. If I finished in 6:20 or so, I'd be near last place in the 5:45 - 6:15 race. That would be embarassing. If I was significantly faster than last year, then I'd finish near the front of the 6:15 - 7:00 race. It would also look as though I purposely chose to run with athletes slower than me in order to make myself look good. I wasn't sure what to do. I ended up picking the 6:15 - 7:00 race. As I stood on the line I heard my two sons shout, "Hi Daddy!" I smiled and waved.

The field numbered about 15 runners, significantly smaller than last year. I think there were two women and one kid. I didn't know any of the other runners, but I recognized many of them from club races. I started in the second row. (I'm on the right, next to a gentleman wearing a blue bandana.) The race director shouted "Go!" and we were off. I tried to keep an even pace, around 1:30 for the quarter mile. On the backstretch of the first lap I found myself about 15 meters in back of the leader, a young boy, and a bunch of other runners. I knew not to take the kid lightly. A young boy ran 6:00 in one of the earlier races. I hit the first lap in around 1:31.

Here I am, hanging back near the end of the first lap. Look about two people behind the gentleman with the yellow bandana around his head.

On the second lap I just tried to maintain my rhythym. I was in a small group of runners, with about three or four runners in a line in front of us. The second lap was around 3:03. Slowing down, I thought. Pick it up a bit. The field began to string out on the third lap. There was a slight headwind on the backstretch, so I fell in behind a runner until I reached the curve. After three laps the clock read 4:35. The race announcer rang a big cowbell. I started thinking about how I taught my older son that they ring the bell as the runners start the last lap.

As I came out of the first turn I knew I was working hard, but I also felt like I had a lot left. I made a move. I moved one lane out and started pushing the pace hard, passing runners. I passed another runner at the start of the far turn. Near the top of the straightaway there was one runner left. Go right past him, I thought. Don't give him time to react. As I went by he picked up the pace, but I didn't look back. I went into a flat out sprint.

And won. 6:03.

I couldn't believe it. I had never won a race at any distance in my life. The runner who finished second came up and congratulated me. I could barely speak because I was gasping for air.

As we were walking to the car my son asked, "Does it feel good to win?" I said it did, but it was more important to do your best. Then I started to feel bad. If I ran 6:03, I should have run in the 5:45 - 6:15 race. Now I felt as though I had sandbagged the other runners. I decided not to beat myself up too badly over this. I mean, I had just whacked 21 seconds off of last year's time. I told myself that I'd run in a faster group at the next track meet.

More Running, Less Weight

2009-07-10T04:58:00.000-04:00

My training has intensified. With 15 weeks to go before the BayState Marathon on October 18, I’m already running about 50 miles per week. For some, that’s only a few days worth of training, but for me that’s a lot. Prior to the Marine Corps Marathon last year, I peaked at around 45 miles a week. This is a recovery week and I’m already scheduled to run 40 miles. Last weekend my long run was 17 miles. Between now and the race I’ll have two runs of 20 miles or more and a bunch of runs a wee bit shorter.

As a result of the increased workload, two things have happened. First, I’ve lost a lot of weight. Last September I noted that I was 6’1” (1.85 m) and 168 pounds (76.4 kg). When I weighed myself a few weeks ago I was 158 pounds (71.8 kg). I’m getting closer to Dr. Stillman’s ideal running weight for my height (154 pounds, 70 kg). I’ve run out of holes on my belt and even my “skinny pants” won’t stay up. My weight tends to hover around a certain level before moving quickly downward. For example, I was 163 pounds (74.1 kg) for a long time before losing five pounds very quickly. I’ve been stuck at 158 pounds for about a month. I don’t restrict my caloric intake in any way. In the book “Once a Runner,” one of the runners jokes that the body will burn anything, even Big Macs, if the fire is hot enough.

The second thing to happen is related to the first: I’ve gotten faster. Less weight means the body doesn’t work as hard. Since April I’ve lopped two minutes off of my 10 mile PR. I have a 15.6 mile training run marked out. I recently ran it seven minutes faster than I did last fall.

This is all good, of course. I think I’d like to get down to around 147 pounds (66.8 kg) before the marathon to see how that affects my time.

Start Slow, Finish Fast

2009-07-06T05:49:00.000-04:00

Last week began poorly and ended well. I started off the week by straining my right knee pushing in a drawer full of children’s books. I should have bent over and used my arms. My leg was still bothering me on Monday evening, so I bagged the six mile recovery run that my schedule called for. Since it’s impossible to miss Tuesday’s workout without gumming up the remainder of the week, I pushed myself out the door late Tuesday evening for a steady 11 mile run. I started so late that I finished the run at 11:00 PM. Not good.

I was going to run Monday’s recovery run on Wednesday, but I still felt tired on Wednesday. It started raining pretty hard at 8:30, so I just went to bed. Three days into the week and I was already tired and behind schedule. My luck began to turn around on Thursday, when I was allowed to leave work early for the long weekend. My wife watched the kids as I ran to the local high school track for an interval session. The schedule called for nine miles, including 4 x 1 mile in 7:00. I pushed the pace and ran all four repetitions under 6:53, including one in 6:35. Friday would have been a day off, but I moved Monday’s recovery run to that day instead. I managed to squeeze in an easy seven miles on Saturday afternoon before a play date for my kids.

The schedule called for a 17 mile long run on Sunday, with the last two miles in 14:45 (7:22.5/mile). I was debating when to run, when my wife declared, “You’re just avoiding it.” She was right. I grabbed my gear and drove out to the C&O Canal. I set off from my usual starting point at Riley’s Lock, in between mile markers 22 and 23. I ran down to Great Falls, near mile marker 14, then turned around and headed back. I ran the first nine miles at around 9:02/mile, then decided to pick up the pace. I averaged 8:45 for the next two miles, then dropped down to 7:51/mile, just below my target marathon pace, 8:00/mile. At mile 15 I really started pushing it, getting down to my lactate threshold pace, around 7:25/mile. I ran the final mile a touch over 7:00/mile. Final stats: 17.3 miles, 2:28:13. For the week: 51.4 miles.

Race Report: Baltimore 10 Miler

2009-06-29T21:22:00.001-04:00

The world is awash in expensive, poorly-run 5Ks. They charge $25 to $30 for a lousy t-shirt and a non-chip-timed race. My favorite distances are those between 15K and the half-marathon, but these races are not as common. I can understand why; they take more time and require more volunteers. Last week I ran in the second annual Baltimore 10 Miler, which had received some good press following the inaugural race last year. Although the entry fee was $55, the organizers offered a terrific waterproof jacket that Runners' World called one of the best race premiums around.

I had originally thought I’d stay with friends just outside of Baltimore the night before the race, but had to scratch those plans at the last minute. In the end I woke up at 4:30 AM and drove to Baltimore for the race, which began at 7:30 AM. The race started and finished at the Baltimore Zoo, in Druid Hill Lake Park. The organizers said that participants would have access to the zoo parking lots, but by the time I arrived at 6:50, the only parking left was on the grass.

The field was capped at 3,000 runners, but the race organizers arranged for packet pickup on three days prior to the race. One location was in Columbia, Maryland (about 35 miles from downtown Washington), and the other two were in Baltimore, so I still wasn’t able to pick up my bib before the race. Fortunately, race day pickup was fast and efficient. I stood in line to use the porta-potties and noticed that a volunteer was directing runners to the next available facility. Very impressive!

I was concerned that the day would be hot and muggy, but instead it was cool and overcast. As I stood in the corral waiting for the race to begin, it started drizzling. About 30 seconds before the start it started to rain very hard. By the time I reached the second mile marker, I was practically soaked.

The course was shaped like a lollipop: basically an out and back, circling Lake Montebello about midway through the course. I knew that the course would have a sharp downhill in the second mile that would become a steep uphill on the way home. I hit the first mile in 7:33, then dropped down to 7:13 (the downhill) for the second mile. The course undulated until it flattened out at the lake, then we turned around and retraced our way back to the start.

Back in April I ran 1:17:05 at the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler, so my goal this time around was to break 1:15, which works out to 7:30 per mile. My splits were all right around that pace. My watch beeped 8 miles just as I passed the 8 mile marker, so I felt like it was recording the distance accurately. I trudged up the steep hill, where my pace slowed to 7:44. My watch beeped 10 miles…and I was still running. Where was the finish line? I thought maybe I had run too many tangents, or my watch was malfunctioning. About a minute later I turned a corner and saw the finish. I crossed in 1:16:12. My watch indicated that I had run 10.2 miles. I was disappointed that I didn’t break 1:15, but I still ran nearly a minute faster than my last race.

Last week I received an email from the race organizers. It read in part, “There is some question as to whether the course was long. Although the 2009 course was certified accurately, it does appear that the mat on the up and back portion of Red Road was placed at the 2008 location, making the course 2/10 mile longer than it should have been. We take full responsibility for this error. We have had numerous conversations with the timing company to see where the miscommunication occurred and what we can do to make sure it does not happen again. Please accept our apologies. Because everyone ran the same course, we will not be making any further adjustments to the times or finishing order.”

I checked the data from my watch. According to my splits, I ran 1:14:58 for 10 miles. I can’t take that as a certified time, but I can claim a moral victory.

The Most Critical Day: Tuesday

2009-06-17T06:56:00.000-04:00

Six weeks into my new training regimen, I continue to learn about its structure and rhythms. In my previous post I mentioned that each week has three key workouts: a long run on Sunday, a medium-long run on Tuesdays, and an interval session on Thursdays. Mondays and Saturdays have recovery and easy runs, respectively.

In the past, I took Mondays off completely to recover from the previous day’s long run, so it’s a bit of a change to run on Mondays. Sometimes I still feel fatigued on Tuesdays, so I’m tempted to take that day off and push the medium-long run to Wednesday. Bad idea. That compresses the remaining workouts into fewer days, which reduces my recovery time. Last week I felt tired on Tuesday and decided to push that day’s scheduled 10 miler to Wednesday. Then next day it rained all evening, which meant that I had to run 10 miles on Thursday, an interval workout on Friday, an easy day on Saturday, and a long run on Sunday. The Sunday long run called for 16 miles, with the last five miles at marathon pace (8:00/mile). I did the first three miles in 24:38, then just couldn’t sustain the pace. The next week began with five miles on Monday and 10 on Tuesday.

In short, I’ve learned that in some ways, Tuesday is the most critical workout of the week. Missing or postponing it has a ripple effect on the remainder of the week. So what happened last night? You guessed it: I missed the workout. Fortunately, I woke up early this morning and ran before work. This is an easy week for me, so the normal Thursday interval workout has been replaced by an easy six miles.

BQ or Bust

2009-06-15T05:36:00.001-04:00

Last October I ran the Marine Corps Marathon in 3:36, half-an-hour faster than I ran the previous marathon, but still six minutes slower than my qualifying time for the Boston Marathon. I established qualifying for Boston as my number one running goal for this year. Nothing else matters.

I took three steps to achieve that goal. First, I chose a new marathon. After researching various races on marathonguide.com, I signed up for the Bay State Marathon in Lowell, Massachusetts, on October 18. I chose Bay State for a number of reasons. It’s flat, it’s small, and it’s not too far from Washington. The field is capped at 2,000 for the marathon and 1,500 for the half, which means no more than 3,500 runners on the course at any given time. The Marine Corps Marathon has over 35,000 runners. Last year I felt cramped for the first six or seven miles. Another reason I chose Bay State is timing. The weather in Lowell should be nice in October. In addition, the course is a double loop. The layout allows me to assess how I’m doing at the halfway point. If it’s just not my day, I can drop out there. I still have time to run another race to attempt to qualify for the 2010 Boston Marathon.

The second step was to begin to integrate swimming into my training. In order to do that, I started taking swimming classes. My goal is to swim on recovery days to give myself an aerobic workout without overly stressing my legs.

The third step was to hire a coach. There are dozens of coaches for hire, both in person and through the Internet. I selected my coach based on the experience of another blogger who had good results. I described my situation to my coach in an email, then we spoke on the phone to talk about my goals and constraints. He sent me a training plan for the first nine weeks. The training week is structured around three key workouts: a long run on Sunday, a medium-long run (sometimes with some added speedwork) on Tuesdays, and a shorter speed session on Thursday. Mondays and Saturdays typically have recovery runs of five to seven miles. My mileage has been building from about 35 miles per week at the start of May to around 47 miles per week now. There is a three-week cycle that begins with an easier week. The mileage increases in weeks two and three, before dropping back down at the start of the next cycle.

I haven’t raced in a while, so I don’t really feel faster. I do, however, feel a lot stronger. The distance of my last six long runs: 14, 15, 16, 14, 16, 16. Yesterday’s long run included the last 2.5 miles at 7:25 per mile. The 15-miler included the last five at marathon pace. I went back and looked at my log from last year. I saw that I did not have a long run longer than 14 miles until 11 weeks prior to the race.

Not Such a Good Idea

2009-06-01T05:11:00.001-04:00

Nothing related to running generates as much stress as the weekly long run. It is one of the fundamental aspects of any marathon training program. You can complete a marathon without ever doing any speedwork, but you probably can’t finish one if you don’t do your long runs. It’s not only the run itself that needs to be planned, it’s my absence from my family. At the peak of training, a long run will take up three hours. If I run along the C&O Canal, then I need to figure in an additional 40 minutes of driving time. I think it’s a bit selfish for me to ask my wife to watch the kids for that long, so I try to run near my house when the kids take their afternoon nap. Unfortunately, that’s around 1:00 PM, when the day is near its hottest point.

Yesterday I set out at 12:45, when the temperature was 81 degrees and the humidity was 62 percent. The schedule called for an easy 14 mile run. I opted to run multiple loops, which would bring me back towards my house in the event I had to refill my water bottle. I felt a little stiff from the track workout the day before, but after three miles I was loosened up. Near the end of the first mile I had to run up a mild but long hill. Some kids were flying down the hill on their bikes. One of them yelled, “You have to run up a long hill!”

By seven miles I noticed that my cap was no longer absorbing perspiration; the brim was fully saturated so the sweat just ran off the cap. I had to wring it out. I had to repeat the process about 40 minutes later. At 12 miles the heat was really getting to me and I was running low on Powerade. I felt like quitting, but I didn’t want to enter a lousy workout into my training log. The last mile was pure misery. I walked in the house and could barely talk. “Water,” I croaked. I drained a bottle and-a-half of Powerade immediately. After showering and eating I sat down to rest. A few hours later I realized that I had not gone to the bathroom. This is not good, I thought. I have to drink some more. Finally, about three hours after returning I went to the bathroom, but based on the result I figured I should continue to drink. I didn’t get the “all clear” sign until the evening.

More on Spirit of the Marathon

2009-05-28T19:23:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I desperately need motivation to run. I feel as though my back is glued to the couch. I need something to pry me loose and shove me out the door. At times like that I pop in the DVD of “Spirit of the Marathon” and jump to the finish, where Deena Kastor is struggling to hold off Constantina Tomescu-Dita. Kastor appears to be nearly exhausted, while Tomescu-Dita is charging hard. As they head towards the finish, Tomescu-Dita looks as though she’s flying, but Kastor holds her off for the win. My older son happened to be watching with me the other night. He said, “Dad, is that man going to win?” He thought Deena Kastor was a man! “That’s not a man, that’s a lady,” I said.

Then I jump to the scene when all of the runners cross the finish line. So many of them are crying. Amby Burfoot says in the voiceover, “People run the marathon to show that there is still triumph, that there is still possibility in their lives.” My son asked, “Daddy, why are the people crying?” I told him that they were so happy that they finished the race.

And then I go out for a run.

Looking for a New Way

2009-05-21T19:04:00.000-04:00

In the book Advanced Marathoning, the authors describe how Bill Rodgers noted that he would beat anyone who had to work full time because they couldn’t devote the same amount of time to training as he could. They also describe how Deena Kastor treats training like a job. Would that running were my job!

People speak of seeking a “balance” between work and one’s family, as if there were a perfect state of equilibrium between the two. There isn’t. Sometimes a pressing deadline at work means shortchanging time with the family; at other times a family emergency means work will have to wait.

Generally speaking, aside from my long run, all of my training is done in the dark, either at night after my kids go to sleep, or in the morning before they wake up. If my wife is on travel for work, I can’t train. (There are no showers at my workplace.) This schedule has a few minor advantages (I don’t spend a lot on sunscreen), but many disadvantages. First, I get progressively more tired as the week progresses. Sometimes I don’t start my run until 9:30 or later. Depending on the length of the run, I don’t get back until quite late. Last night I set out at 8:40 for a 10 mile run, finishing up at around 10:30. Last week I left the house at 8:45 for a 14 mile run. A long run will exhaust me so that I fall asleep quickly, but a short recovery run often refreshes me and keeps me awake later. Thus begins a terrible cycle of staying up later each night as the week goes on. By Saturday, all I want to do is sleep in, but I can’t because my kids get up at 6:00 am.

Second, it’s dangerous to run in the dark. I always wear a reflective vest, but that doesn’t reduce the number of crazy drivers on the roads. I’m not worried about someone jumping me since I can probably outrun them, but I have been the recipient of numerous taunts and jokes. I just give them the finger and keep running. I’m also concerned about tripping on uneven sidewalks or bumps in the road.

Third, I don’t get to go to the track very often because the lights are usually out by the time I get there. Sometimes you need to do specific interval workouts and the track is the best place to do them. I suppose I could get a headlamp, although that would be really bizarre.

I suppose things will improve as the summer progresses. The sun will rise earlier and set later each day, which means a few more minutes of running in the dawn or twilight. Until them, drive carefully.

Hiss!

2009-05-19T03:53:00.002-04:00

The weather this past Sunday was nearly perfect for running: 55 degrees with low humidity. My schedule called for 15 miles, with the last five miles in 41 minutes (8:12/mile). I drove out to Riley’s Lock, in between mile markers 22 and 23 along the C&O Canal Towpath. It had rained the night before, but the towpath, which is dirt and crushed rock, drains quickly. I felt a bit sluggish at first, but that cleared up by the third mile.

The canal and towpath are filled with wildlife. Many people come to fish. I usually don’t see anyone catch anything, but this time I saw two men, each carrying a fish that was about 18 inches long. “Nice catch!” I remarked as I passed. Once I heard branches snapping and leaves rustling in the bushes to my right. Two deer leaped out onto to towpath and sprinted away. On several occasions I have seen what I believe were Great Blue Herons. Now that it’s spring, I see a lot of adult geese with their babies. They waddle along the towpath, often stopping to rest. Some years ago I got too close to the baby geese, and one of the adults started chasing me. Ever since then I’ve been careful to give them a wide berth. When I see them on the path I start clapping my hands to get them to move along. I always run as far away from them as possible. This weekend I noticed something for the first time. The adult geese “hissed” at me as I passed. I assume that was a kind of warning to get me to stay away. It happened several times.

I reached mile marker 15, the turnaround point, in around 1:13. I started to pick up the pace in mile 10, to get ready for the harder pace. I ran mile 11 in 8:09. Just about right, I thought. The next mile was 8:17. Slipping a bit, let’s pick it up. The last three miles were done in 7:55, 7:52, and 7:41.

I was pleased that I ran the last three miles faster than 8:12/mile, but I wondered if I ran them too fast. The point of the workout is not necessarily to run the hard segments as fast as possible, but to run them in a controlled manner. I can see running the last repetition of an interval workout flat out, but I’m not sure that I should have run the last three miles faster than 8:12.

I have problems with pacing. Generally speaking, I fall into a 9:05/mile pace during a long run. Following one long run I noticed that over the course of the first 10 miles, I had less than a three second variation in minutes per mile. If you were to ask me to run 7:45/mile, however, I would have difficulty determining the pace accurately. I tend to gauge my pace based on my breathing and level of discomfort in my legs. The longer I run, the more fatigue I feel. That means I have to compensate by exerting myself a bit more. Sometimes, as happened on Sunday, I miscalculate and end up pushing the pace faster than necessary.

Everybody out of the Pool

2009-05-12T05:03:00.000-04:00

Last night was the last swim class for a while. The session has ended, and in less than a week the Bethesda pool will close for repairs until the fall. Other county indoor pools will remain open and the outdoor pools will open Memorial Day weekend, but none of these facilities offer swim classes for adults.

Yesterday was our “final exam.” I warmed up with 100 meters of kicking, then did a basic pyramid workout: 50 meters of freestyle, sidestroke, backstroke, then breaststroke; then 75 meters each of the four strokes; then 100 meters; then 75 meters; and finally 50 meters again. I finished with 100 meters to cool down. As I sat in the hot tub after class, I realized that I progressed quite a bit. I never missed a class, and I went from sucking wind after two laps to a mile swim in the last class. I also corrected fundamental flaws in my breaststroke technique. The next point to focus on is bilateral breathing.

Now I have to determine how to integrate swimming into my training regimen. I like having swim class on Mondays, the day after my long run. Usually I don’t run at all on Mondays, but swimming helps keep me active without stressing the legs. Unfortunately, the Bethesda pool is the only one with late hours on Monday. This is going to take some thought.

Back from El Paso

2009-05-11T19:45:00.000-04:00

The last week has been a blur. Way back in January, my wife notified me that she would have to travel for work that entire week. About a week before the actual conference, however, the organizers canceled the trip. Ironically, I subsequently learned that I would have to travel to El Paso for business. Fortunately, it was a short trip: leave on Thursday, come back on Friday.

My flight left National Airport at 8:00 AM, so I woke up at 4:00 for an easy four mile run. I wolfed down some food then drove to the airport. I realize that many people are not frequent travelers, so they are not completely familiar with current airport procedures. You would think, however, that such people could apply some common sense. For example, in order for the x-ray machine to work, you have to push your stuff into it. You see that conveyor belt? Your stuff has to be on it for it to work.

Sorry for the rant.

I arrived in El Paso and went to my hotel, the lovely Hilton Garden Inn. The hotel was fine, with free Wi-Fi. Why is it that cheap hotels offer free Internet access, while expensive hotels charge $10 a day? As a Hilton Honors member, I also received a special gift: two bottles of water. I went to my room and opened the curtains to look out onto a huge pile of rocks.

Two of the pillars of the El Paso economy are international trade (El Paso borders Ciudad Juarez) and Fort Bliss. I met someone who told me that the city is also trying to promote itself as a retirement destination. “One of the great things about El Paso is that the weather doesn’t change your life, the way a blizzard in the Northeast might change your life.” Another person agreed but conceded that it might get a bit windy. “Yes, you’re right,” the first person laughed. “I have had to cancel a round of golf because of the winds near the mountains.” I thought, It’s a hundred and one degrees outside! That doesn’t change your life? You must not be a runner.

Friday was filled with meetings followed by my flight back home, so I had to run in the morning. It was already 72 degrees when I left the hotel at 6:50. I set out towards UTEP, then turned up Sun Bowl Drive towards the stadium. As you progress up the hill, you can see the city of Juarez just across the border. I did an easy six miles. El Paso sits 4,000 feet above sea level. I live at sea level, but I didn't have any difficulty breathing (except when I was running up Sun Bowl Drive, a steep hill). When does altitude begin to affect runners?

I left El Paso at around 4:00 PM local time. By the time I arrived home it was after midnight. I was asleep within five minutes.

A Reason to Cheer

2009-05-04T06:35:00.000-04:00

Fans of running have reason to cheer. NBC Sports has reached an agreement with the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF), the world's governing body for track and field, to broadcast track's major events through 2015. NBC's Universal Sports channel carried three major marathons this spring: Rotterdam, Boston and London. Universal Sports also carried the last World Championships in Osaka.

One Week to Go

2009-05-01T04:46:00.002-04:00

Imagine:

You and a bunch of friends go to a movie theater to watch Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, considered by most Trekkies to be the greatest Trek movie of all time. The lights go down and the movie begins. A few minutes into the movie, the film breaks. Everybody groans. The house lights come on and someone walks on the stage to calm the crowd. Hey, that’s Leonard Nimoy! He apologizes for the problem and offers customers a substitute movie: Star Trek, the latest film by J.J. Abrams, which hasn’t even been released. The crowd goes wild.

It really happened.

For the rest of us who weren’t there, the movie will be released one week from today. It's hard to believe it's been seven years since the release of Star Trek: Nemesis, the last Star Trek movie. It's been 13 years since Star Trek: First Contact, the last great Star Trek movie (and my personal favorite).

The press has been uniformly positive. Some are calling it even better than Wrath of Khan.

Watch the trailer below. Select trailer 3, the best one.

Rashid Ramzi Fails Olympic Drug Test

2009-04-29T19:03:00.000-04:00

Several news sources (including the New York Times) are reporting that Rashid Ramzi of Bahrain, who won the Olympic gold mendal in the men's 1500 meters, tested positive for CERA, a blood booster. If he is eventually stripped of the gold, Asbel Kiprop (Kenya), the silver medalist, would get the gold, and Nick Willis of New Zealand would move up to silver. Mehdi Baala of France, who finished fourth, would be awarded the bronze.

Blood boosters increase the number of red blood cells in the bloodstream. More red blood cells means increased aerobic capacity.

Where'd Everybody Go?

2009-04-29T06:07:00.000-04:00

Last week I noted that my swim class had swelled from about five or six swimmers to nine. This week the enrollment dropped down to three: a holdover from last term, a new woman, and myself. At the end of the evening I asked the instructor what happened to all of the students. He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Two of the students who joined last week decided to go to Swimming for Conditioning 2. I taught them how to swim in one class!” he joked.

That was fine with me, since I could swim in a lane by myself and not have to worry about bumping into people when I do the backstroke. I realized that I have a common deficiency in my backstroke: my arms do not enter the water symmetrically, which means that over the length of a pool, I drift towards one side. I try to concentrate on keeping my stroke slow and even, to minimize the drift. I also focus on the pipes on the ceiling of the building to keep me going straight. An instructor once said that just as you “roll” from side to side on the freestyle, so you should roll when doing the backstroke. For some reason, however, I find it more difficult to roll while on my back.

The lesson included a fourth stroke, the breast stroke. The instructor pointed out an error with my technique, one that I had been committing for the last 25 years or so. I had been doing the arm movement and leg kick simultaneously; he said that they should be sequential. The arms should shoot forward as the legs kick, then you should glide for a bit before the arms pull out and back towards the body. It took me a while to re-learn the stroke the way it should be done. I don’t understand the glide part of the stroke. I don’t want to glide—I want to take a breath!

I continue to practice breathing on alternate sides when doing the freestyle. After years of breathing on only the right side, I’m naturally less flexible when I turn to the left. I also find that as I grow more fatigued, my stroke gets sloppy and I don’t get a good breath on the left side. As a result, I remind myself to swim more slowly. At this point, technique is more important than speed.

The workout:

100 meters warmup

Kick Drills

50 meters freestyle (flutter)
50 meters back crawl (flutter on back)
50 meters elementary backstroke (frog)

Swim

100 meters freestyle
100 meters back crawl
100 meters elementary backstroke
100 meters breaststroke
100 meters side stroke
4 x 50 four strokes

100 meters cooldown

Race Report: Pike's Peek 10K

2009-04-27T19:55:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I ran in the Pike's Peek 10K, one of the largest races organized by my running club. Approximately 2,700 runners dash down Rockville Pike, from the Shady Grove metro station to the White Flint Shopping Mall. Although not pancake flat, the course does include a 190 foot net drop, which means fast times. The race includes a fair number of elite runners, as well. Jen Rhines ran it in 1998, and Dan Browne did so a year later.

April is a tricky time in the Washington area. Last year the conditions were nearly perfect: 52 degrees and cloudy. This year the weather was far from ideal: clear and hot. The temperature at the start was about 70 degrees. As I neared the finish at White Flint Mall, the sign there read 75 degrees. It felt a lot hotter than that.

My goal was to break 45 minutes, which meant I'd have to run 7:15 per mile. That pace would require fighting my natural tendency, which is to start slow. As in years past, the organizers had staggered starts, which really helped. The elites and sub-7:00/mile runners started on the first gun. They were followed a minute later by the 7:00 to 8:00/mile runners, and so forth.

I ran the first mile in 7:01. Too fast, too fast, I thought. Control yourself! I noted that I hit the first mile just as my Garmin beeped one mile. The same thing happened at every single mile marker through the race. Maybe they used a Garmin device to set the mile markers. The race also had half-mile markers, as well as a sign at the 5K point. You certainly couldn’t complain that you didn't know where you were.

I ran mile two in 7:18. I tried to teach my body to remember that effort so that I could sustain it through the end of the race. I couldn't. My pace began to slip--7:27, 7:22, 7:27. I was starting to feel the fatigue in my legs. The course undulates a bit from mile four to the finish. You have to push up a hill that turns to the right at about 5.2 miles. I remember that a tall white building is near the White Flint metro station, which is very close to the finish line. When I get close to that building, I know the finish is near. Suddenly you hit the top of a hill, and the road drops away. An arch fashioned out of helium-filled balloons marks the finish and runners unleash their kicks. It's a lot easier to kick when you're running downhill! I cross the finish and look down at my watch: 45:09. I didn't break 45 minutes, but I came very close.

I tried looking for Jeanne after the race, but there were just too many people. My wife and kids met me at the post-race party, where we snagged a lot of free food and goodies.

Two Articles on Training

2009-04-26T06:37:00.000-04:00

The Los Angeles Times had an article on personal training via the Internet or phone. It doesn't focus exclusively on running, but is more general. Gina Kolata of the New York Times looks at the effect of training and finds (surprise!) that "training is the ultimate performance enhancer." Races Like a Girl studies the article a bit more closely.

Diaper Wars

2009-04-25T07:16:00.000-04:00

I try to make choices that are environmentally friendly, even with my running. When I go to a race I bring home the empty water bottles to recycle. I recycle all the flyers I get in my goody bag. I intend to recycle my used running shoes (this weekend, I promise).

More broadly, however, there is one thing I won’t give up: disposable diapers. Cloth diapers are reusable and probably better for the planet, but as any parent can tell you, disposable diapers are easier to use. Imagine being already late for work and having to stop and change a dirty diaper. Let’s just say that “stuff” will get on your hands. At that moment, all I want to do is to throw that “stuff” away, not put it aside to be laundered. I’m proud to say that I use the plastic bags my newspaper comes in to dispose of the dirty diaper.

Imagine another situation: You take the family on a road trip and you’re at a rest stop. Time to change the diaper. Do you want to transport that “stuff” back home? No way. How about on an airplane? Do you want to bring that “stuff” back to your seat?

According to the Wall Street Journal, a parent can expect to change a baby’s diaper 5,000 to 7,000 times in the first two years of a child’s life. As the parent of two kids, that number seems too low.

Catching Up With the Central Park Jogger

2009-04-23T05:02:00.003-04:00

I came across an interesting interview in the New York Times Health section. Tara Parker-Pope, the keeper of the “Well” blog, spoke with Trisha Meili, who is probably better known as the Central Park Jogger. It has been 20 years since Meili was savagely attacked and raped while running in Central Park. When she was found by passersby, she was near death, having lost 75 percent of her blood. And yet she survived and recovered.

I lived in New York City at the time and the case dominated the news. The outrage stemmed from the sheer brutality of the crime, and the feeling of powerlessness that residents felt. This was a crime that could have happened to almost anyone.

Meili talks about the role that running played in her recovery and her life today. She works on the Hope and Possibility 5 Miler, which will take place in Central Park, on June 28.

Who Knew?

2009-04-22T04:36:00.000-04:00

I suppose that my organization is much like many others. We have some athletic people, and some who are more sedentary. My interests are probably puzzling to some and avoided by others. The younger employees talk about the most popular places to eat and drink, while those with kids talk about the high cost of child care or the quality of schools.

I still find, however, that we often know very little about our colleagues. Sometimes when I travel in a group, I learn a lot about my colleagues. We’ll all go out to dinner and start talking about life outside of the office. Then I learn that this person is passionate about gardening, while that person writes screenplays on the side. Who knew?

On Monday I was invited to attend a meeting on some subject, but I backed out in order to (cough, cough) follow the Boston Marathon by computer. A colleague of mine in the same office was already going to the meeting, so I figured there was no reason for two of us to go. (Right?) When she returned, she mentioned that she didn’t see so-and-so (I’ll call him Person A) because he was running the marathon. It also turns out that another person in the organization (I’ll call him Person B) was running, too. I’ve worked with Person A on a couple of projects and I had no idea that he was a runner. Person B is a relatively new hire, so I hadn’t even met him. I tracked them through the race and they both did very well. Person A ran 3:29, and Person B ran 2:56. I sent Person A a congratulatory email and asked to get together for coffee so I can pick his brain. This morning I went over to Person B’s office, introduced myself, and congratulated him.

Too Many Students Spoil the Class

2009-04-21T05:18:00.001-04:00

Last night was the second swim class of the session. The class has swelled from five students to about nine. Half of the pool is reserved for the water aerobics class, which means that our class only has about six lanes. Instead of each student getting his or her own lane, some students now have to share lanes. I was one of those who shared lanes. It’s not a big deal, except when I practice the backstroke (crawl). I have a hard time swimming that stroke in a straight line, so I tend to veer off course into the floating lane dividers. Lately I’ve been using the pipes that run along the ceiling as guides.

Before class the instructor wrote the workout on a whiteboard:

-- 150 meter warmup, any stroke
-- 50 meter kick, followed by 100 meter swim: freestyle, back crawl, elementary backstroke, sidestroke
-- 150 meter cooldown, any stroke

I mentioned that one student does not always put her face in the water. She turns her head from side to side as she moves her arms. That causes her legs to drop down into the water, which results in even less power. The prerequisite for the class is to be able to swim 25 meters of the freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke. She clearly falls short. The instructor spends a lot of time with her, demonstrating the proper technique. As a result, the other students (myself included) get less attention. I swam the workout without any feedback from the instructor. I doubt that that is a reflection of how far my swimming has progressed.

I am mildly irritated that a less-than-qualified student is drawing resources away from the rest of the class. The county has different classes to teach students the basics of swimming. Maybe she should check them out.

Beardsley Gives His Thoughts on Boston

2009-04-16T20:32:00.000-04:00

At the end of his speech at the Cherry Blossom Expo, Dick Beardsley took a few questions. I wanted to ask him for his thoughts on the FIRST training program, but I thought my fellow audience members might appreciate something less parochial. “Who do you like in this year’s Boston Marathon?” I asked. He said that he was very excited about the new wave of young American runners, including Kara Goucher and Ryan Hall. He said both of them had great chances in Boston. He had sent Hall an email and offered to help him in his Boston preparations in any way he could. Beardsley added that he thought Hall was “just a great guy.”

Today’s USA Today has a nice profile of Ryan Hall as he prepares for Boston.

Cherry Blossom 10 Miler: The Best Part

2009-04-15T04:51:00.002-04:00

Gentle readers, I saved the best for last. I want to tell you about the best part of the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler. It wasn’t running under a sky of pink and it wasn’t setting a new PR.

It was meeting Dick Beardsley.

What? I can’t believe you don’t know who Dick Beardsley is! He is one of the fastest American marathoners of all time, with a personal best of 2:08:53. He tied for first in the inaugural London Marathon and won the Grandma’s Marathon twice. He appears a couple of times in the documentary “Spirit of the Marathon,” highlighting something that all marathoners have learned, “When you cross that finish line—no matter how slow, no matter how fast—it will change your life forever.”

Beardsley is probably best known for his performance in the 1982 Boston Marathon, which has been dubbed the “Duel in the Sun.” Beardsley slugged it out against Alberto Salazar for 26 miles under brutal conditions, eventually finishing second, less than two seconds behind.

I started running in 1980 and soon started getting more involved in the sport. Although I've seen the Boston Marathon several times on television, I've only seen it once in person—in 1982. I remember the weather that day: clear and hot. I went to Boston with a friend of mine from Massachusetts and we positioned ourselves near the 23 mile point. People starting shouting “Here they come!” and then Beardsley and Salazar flew past. Soon the other elite runners started going by. I didn't see the finish of the race until later, but that day left an impression on me that still lingers. I knew I wanted to run it myself.

Neither Beardsley nor Salazar would ever better their performances that day. Beardsley’s life following that race is simply incredible. A series of accidents, including being pulled into a farming machine, left him battered and eventually addicted to painkilling drugs. Yet he found the strength to recover and persevere. He spends his days running the Dick Beardsley Foundation and a running store in Fargo, North Dakota. He even blogs.

Beardsley was one of the speakers at the Cherry Blossom expo. He told a hilarious story about how he got into running (to earn a varsity letter and impress the ladies) and the humiliation of having to walk to complete his first workout, a three mile run. He brought to life that day in April 1982 when he etched his name into Boston Marathon history. He recounted how the leaders ran the first mile in a scorching 3:59, and he wondered how he could keep it up. Just one more mile, just one more mile, he said to himself. With grace, humor and brutal honesty he told the crowd how he fell into and then fought back from addiction. “If you tell someone you have cancer, they’ll say ‘That’s terrible! What can I do for you?’ If you tell them you’re a drug addict, they look at you as though you were the scum of the earth.” He’s right. Today, the Dick Beardsley Foundation is “dedicated to educating [people] about chemical dependency as well as providing grants to those who need help in seeking treatment.”

If you ever get a chance to hear Dick Beardsley speak, go.

One of these guys has run a 2:08 marathon. HINT: it's not the guy on the right.

Back to the Pool

2009-04-14T19:31:00.000-04:00

After a week-long hiatus, a new session of swim class started last night. I mentioned earlier that the county only has two swim classes for adults who already know how to swim: Swimming for Conditioning (SFC) 1 and 2. SFC 1 aims to improve stroke technique and build endurance to the point where students can swim half a mile continuously. SFC 2 focuses on improving conditioning through structured workouts. Although my instructor said that I was ready, I opted not to move on to SFC 2 this time. At this point, I thought I would benefit more from his critique of my technique rather than from help developing a proper swimming workout. SFC 2 meets at the same time as SFC 1, and every time I look over, I see students chugging along with their laps. I don’t see any of them getting help with their technique. I’m not alone in my analysis. At the end of the last class, I told the instructor that I intended to repeat the class and another student remarked that she had been taking the class for two years. “I don’t want to graduate!” she said.

The class has room for 15 students and when I checked the status yesterday, I saw that only four slots had been filled. I figured that they were the same four people who had taken the class last session. When I arrived at the pool, however, I saw only one person from the last class. The rest of the students were new.

The county’s swim classes are typically six weeks long, but because this particular pool will be renovated in May, the current session has been shortened to five weeks. Last night’s class began with two strokes, freestyle and the backstroke. I found myself doing mental gymnastics to focus on the key elements: swim downhill, drop and pull, kick from the hips, keep your head down. After warming up I tried to implement a new breathing technique. Instead of breathing on every second arm movement, I tried to breathe on every third one. This meant breathing on alternate sides. It was rather difficult to add yet another thing to keep track of while swimming, but by the end of class I started to get the hang of it. Unfortunately, after years of breathing only on my right side, I an not as flexible when I turn towards the left. I really have to roll my body to get a good breath on that side.

My new classmates seem like nice people, but since everyone is doing their own thing we don’t get a chance to talk. One woman (I hope she doesn’t read this blog) didn’t put her face in the water when she did she freestyle. She’d turn her head from side to side as she moved her arms. The instructor said, “Pick a side to breathe on.”

Race Report: 2009 Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run

2009-04-10T04:29:00.003-04:00

One of the annual rituals of the Washington spring is the Cherry Blossom Festival. Tourists and locals alike descend on the Tidal Basin to soak up the color and reflect on the fleeting nature of life. People throng Pennsylvania Avenue for the Japanese Festival. And 20,000 runners dash 10 miles through the streets of Washington in the annual Cherry Blossom 10 Miler.

This was my third Cherry Blossom race and I think it may be my last. The bad points are beginning to outweigh the good. But let’s start with the race’s many advantages. First, for many Washington residents, including myself, it’s about the only time I’ll drag myself down to the Tidal Basin to view the flowers. The last two miles are in Hains Point, where cherry trees line both sides of the course, creating a virtual roof of flowers over runners. It’s lovely. If I don’t run the race, I’ll never go on my own. Second, the race is exceptionally well organized. The 10 mile course has an amazing five water stops. Volunteers dot the course and cheer runners along. Packet pickup was fast and efficient and the expo had a lot of great deals. (I arrived 10 minutes after it opened, however.)

And now for the shortcomings. First, race pickup is in downtown Washington on a Saturday morning. I live in the suburbs, which means I have to take the train into the city on a weekend just to get my stuff. Other large races, such as the Marine Corps Marathon and the Army Ten Miler, provide for packet pickup on the Friday before the race, which makes it much easier on commuters. Second, the course was just too crowded. I had a hard time maneuvering until at least the eight mile marker (which was short). The course also has two hairpin turns on narrow streets, which slow runners down considerably. Why not use Independence and Constitution Avenues?

But enough with the analysis. Let’s get down to the race itself.

I woke up at 4:30 on race morning and had breakfast. The weather was nearly perfect: mid-40s and clear. I left the house a little later than I should have. By the time I exited the Smithsonian Metro Station, it was 7:15, and the race was scheduled to start at 7:40. I tried to peel off my jacket and t-shirt while jogging to the start area. Not a good idea. I ended up stopping and taking my time. I dropped off my stuff at the bag check and ran to the porta potties. Unfortunately, about 500 people had the same idea. The line barely inched along. Finally, the guy in front of me gestured towards the Washington Monument and said, “Are there more toilets over there?” I craned my neck and said, “I think there are!” The two of us ran over. These toilets had virtually no lines.

The race used a wave start. The elite women began first, followed by the wheelchair athletes. The next group was the yellow wave, which included the elite men and other seeded runners. After that came the red wave, then the blue, followed by the orange, green, and purple waves. I was in the red wave. As I was taking care of business in the porta potty, I heard the announcer say, “And there goes the red wave!” Hey, wait for me!

I scrambled out of the porta potty and ran to the start. I hopped over the guardrail to join the front ranks of the blue wave. The horn sounded and I sprinted away. For about 45 seconds I ran unencumbered, then ran right into the tail end of the red wave. From that point to mile eight it was a lot of weaving, accelerating, and decelerating. My situation was worse because I essentially started at the back of my wave, which meant I was among runners slower than me.

The crowds were thick at points, non-existent at others. I expected that. Who’s going to stand out on Hains Point to cheer runners along? I saw some amusing signs. My favorites were “Don’t embarrass us!” held by a mother and young child, and “Free lap dance at the finish!” held up by a young woman.

Last year I ran a touch over 1:20 and had a lot of gas left in the tank, so I was determined to try to push it harder from the start. As my splits below indicate, I was not entirely successful. I really didn’t get going until mile 4. My watch also indicated that all of that bobbing and weaving took its toll: I ran an extra 0.15 mile. The good news is that I ran a PR for 10 miles.

1 mile: 7:35
2 miles: 7:57, 15:33 cumulative, average of 7:47/mile
3 miles: 7:54, 23:26 cumulative, average 7:49/mile
4 miles: 7:30, 30:56 cumulative, average 7:44/mile
5 miles: 7:43, 38:39 cumulative, average 7:44 mile
6 miles: 7:35, 46:14 cumulative, average 7:42 mile
7 miles: 7:40, 53:54 cumulative, average 7:42/mile
8 miles: 7:34, 1:01:28 cumulative, average 7:41/mile
9 miles: 7:31, 1:08:59 cumulative, average 7:40/mile
10 miles: 7:14, 1:16:13 cumulative, average 7:37/mile
10.15 miles: :52, 1:17:05 cumulative, average 7:36/mile

Crosstraining, Part 4: Integrating Swimming into my Training

2009-04-09T03:03:00.000-04:00

Swim class ended last week. I’d like to continue, but I’ll have to skip the next session because I already know I’d have to miss two out of the five classes. The session after that is not until the summer. The key to improvement will be to force myself to go to the pool and practice. If I want to go running, I can be out the door in five minutes or less. Going to the pool requires packing a lot more stuff: towel, slippers (i.e., flip flops), change of clothes, goggles, toiletries, lock, and pool pass.

On Monday I wanted to pack it in and go to bed early, but I managed to summon the energy to pack my stuff and drive to the pool for “late laps.” On certain weeknights, county pools stay open a little later to allow adults to put in their laps. I did a simple pyramid workout for a total of about two-thirds of a mile.

I’ve noticed that swimming has affected my personal hygiene. I got a haircut recently and the stylist commented how dry my hair was. I told her that I had recently started swimming. “I can tell,” she said. She said that she used to dive competitively and suggested that I use conditioner everyday. I also noticed that my skin smells like chlorine even the day after I go swimming. It’s horrible. Suggestions for addressing this are welcome.

Have you ever seen people who swim while wearing glasses? I’m not talking about swim goggles, but regular eyeglasses. Most of them do the breaststroke and keep their head above water. It’s bizarre.

Lessons can only take me so far. It’s time for me to log some miles.

Army Ten Miler Sold Out, Marine Corps Close

2009-04-08T05:52:00.000-04:00

Last year the Army Ten Miler sold out 26,000 in a record 21 days. This year, the organizers increased the size of the field to 30,000 runners and sold out in less than a week. According to a press release on the race website, an incredible 14,696 runners signed up on the first day alone.

I checked the Marine Corps Marathon website this morning, and they say that the race is 86 percent filled. Better hurry!

Crosstraining, Part 3: Gasping for Air

2009-04-03T05:20:00.001-04:00

After class the instructor gave me a few more pointers. Her final words to me as I headed towards the showers: “Don’t quit!”

Never.

Most of Montgomery County’s swim classes meet once a week for six weeks. The swim center was closed the second week of class because of a snowstorm. In the third week of class we worked on the backstroke (back crawl), in the fourth, the sidestroke and the elementary backstroke (i.e., frog kick). In the fifth week we took up the breaststroke and began to add some structured workouts. By the fourth session I find that I am no longer gasping midway through class. By week five I cramp only once, instead of multiple times.

When I run my mind usually wanders. What do I have to take care of this weekend? What’s coming up at work? Do I have clean underwear? When I swim, I find that I’m completely focused on swimming. For example, when swimming the freestyle, I’m reminding myself to keep my elbows high, let my arm drop properly, swim downhill, kick from the hips, and—oh yeah—breathe. The backstroke is a little less mentally taxing, until I see the flags a few meters from the deck. At that point I keep telling myself, Don’t hit your head!

I try to supplement the class work by going to the pool during the week, but it’s hard. I usually go for “late laps” just before the pool closes at 10:00 PM. The pool is nearly deserted by then, but that’s fine, since I don’t bother anyone. I do some kicking drills in between laps to work on leg strength and flexibility. Kick sets are frustrating because I…go…so…slowly. A baby can crawl faster than I can kick! It makes me realize just how much power comes from the arms.

This week was the final class of the session. We began with a 100 meter warm-up, then did a pyramid workout: 25 meters using four different strokes, 50 meters using four strokes, 4 x 75 meters, 4 x 50 meters, then finally 4 x 25 meters. That comes out to 1000 meters (including the warm-up), or about two-thirds of a mile. I only needed to rest a couple of times, and then only for a few seconds. By the end of the workout I am pleasantly fatigued, not on my deathbed. I don’t suck (that badly) anymore!

Next: Integrating swimming into my workout schedule

Crosstraining, Part 2: Swim Class Begins

2009-04-02T05:41:00.001-04:00

Because technique is so important, a out-of-shape swimmer will easily beat out a good runner in a swimming race. As a result, I decided to register for swim classes through the county’s recreation department. Based on experience garnered though my kids, both of whom have taken numerous swim classes through the county, I figured that the county’s classes should be more than adequate. I should have no problem funding a class to help me fine tune my form. I quickly discovered, however, that the county’s offerings are geared towards children. The county offers a stunning 13 classes for kids: Waterbabies, Aquatots, Preschool, Pre-Beginner 1 through 4, and Youth Level 1 through 6. There are five classes that aim to teach adults the skills that kids learn in the pre-beginner classes. For example, the course description for adult level 1 reads: “Designed for teenagers and adults (14 years and older) who are fearful of the water and/or may have had a bad experience in the water. Basic water adjustment skills will be taught.” Adult level 5 is for “for teenagers and adults (14 years and older) who can swim 1 length of front and back crawl, 15 yards of elementary back stroke in good form, tread water, and dive into and swim in deep water.” There are only two courses for adults who already know how to swim: Swimming for Conditioning, levels one and two. Level one is “designed for teenagers and adults (14 years and older) who can swim 25 yards of freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke. Students will further refine technical skills and learn to develop their own conditioning program.” I signed up.

In January, the Los Angeles Times ran a series of excellent articles on how to get started in several sports, including swimming, weight training, running, and cycling. Drawing on the information in the swimming article, I learned that I should ditch my baggy surf shorts in favor of something that wouldn’t impede my progress. The idea of wearing brief-style swim shorts filled me with dread, so I opted for a slightly more modest pair of square leg shorts. I still felt self-conscious when I stepped onto the pool deck on the first day of class. The normal instructor was out, so we had a substitute teacher, the instructor for Swimming for Conditioning (SFC) Level 2. She gave the class the first assignment: swim 50 meters of freestyle so she could watch. I tried to focus on my form by keeping my stroke nice and slow. By the end of the second leg I was nearly gasping for air. How can this be? I’ve run marathons, for goodness sake! Her criticism wasn’t as harsh as I thought it would be. She said, “That’s not bad. By the end of the session I think you can join the other class [i.e., SFC 2].”

She had us work through a couple of drills to reinforce keeping the elbow high when the arm came out of the water. For example, in one drill, we dragged our thumb up the side of the body before lifting the arm out of the water. In another, we tried “tickling” the surface of the water as the arm came forward. Halfway through the lesson I was sucking wind badly and cramping, so I took a bit of a break between laps. The instructor shouted to me from the other end of the pool, “That’s a lot of rest!” I pulled the goggles back down and started again. The morning after my first class, I could barely lift my arms.

Crosstraining, Part 1

2009-04-01T04:52:00.001-04:00

For the last few months I’ve been thinking about adopting the FIRST training system. The FIRST system, which stands for Furman Institute for Running and Scientific Training, is a program intended to help athletes run faster by substituting recovery miles with other aerobic activity. The underlying principle might be described as “In order to run faster in races, you must run faster in your workouts.”

The training week is structured around the “3 plus 2” concept: three key runs and two cross-training workouts. The three runs include a long run, a tempo run, and a track workout. Because they usually run only three times a week, runners will typically run fewer miles than they normally do. Lest you be concerned that three runs per week are insufficient to lower your race times, two of the key runs are speed workouts, and the long run is usually done only 30 to 40 seconds slower than race pace. In short, the FIRST program substitutes cross-training for the easy runs and makes the hard workouts harder. I looked at week one of the 16-week program designed for a 3:30 marathon. The long run is 13 miles at 8:30/mile.

My problem has been trying to identify a suitable cross-training activity. I really only had three choices: biking, rowing, or swimming. My bike is in pieces and I haven’t rode semi-seriously since about 1995. The thought of sitting in a rowing machine for more than 10 minutes was depressing. And even though I grew up in Hawaii, learned to swim at a young age, earned the swimming and lifesaving merit badges and the Mile Swim award, I have never really trained to swim. Perhaps more importantly, all of my cross-training options had certain restrictions. I have to go to the gym to use the rowing machine or stationary bike. I had to drive to one of the county pools to swim, and lap swimming was only available on certain days at specific times. It was unwise to ride outside at night (or even in the day in some places). Only running offered me sufficient flexibility for my schedule. I could run anywhere at any time of day, on a treadmill or outside, at home or on a business trip.

I found that I was making excuses not to cross-train, so in the end I chose swimming. Unlike the stationary bike or rowing machine, I would actually move as I worked out. Swimming was cheap—I only had to buy a proper pair of swim shorts and a pair of goggles. Finally, swimming is not a weight-bearing activity, so it would help me recover from hard workouts.

Next: I actually go swimming!

Not an April Fool's Joke, I Promise

2009-03-31T03:24:00.001-04:00

Tomorrow three big races open up for registration: the Army Ten Miler (October 4, 2009), the Marine Corps Marathon (October 25, 2009), and the St. George Marathon (October 3, 2009).

This year the Army Ten Miler decided to expand its field from 26,000 to 30,000 runners. Last year the race sold out in 21 days.

The Marine Corps Marathon field is capped at 30,000 runners. Last year the race sold out in five days.

The St. George Marathon is regarded as an excellent Boston qualifier, in part because runners experience a net loss of about 2,300 feet over the course of the race. On the other hand, the race begins at 5,000 feet, so that has to affect breathing. The race is capped at only 7,200. Registration closes on May 4, and the race uses a lottery system to determine the chosen few who get to run in the race.

The Five Biggest Marathons in the U.S.

2009-03-30T04:14:00.002-04:00

USA Today has a small graphic on the five largest marathons in the United States: New York, Chicago, Boston, Honolulu, and Marine Corps. I had no idea that New York is more than twice the size of the Marine Corps Marathon.

Race Report: Piece of Cake 10K and Quarter Mile Fun Run

2009-03-24T04:18:00.005-04:00

I decided to restart my blog. More on that in another post.

On Saturday I ran in the Piece of Cake 10K, a race organized by my running club at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, Maryland. At last year’s race we got a nice dose of wintry precipitation just prior to the start of the race; this year it was clear but cold, with temperatures in the low 30s.

One of my greatest concerns for my kids is obesity. I do not want my kids to grow up fat. They needn’t be star athletes, but they will not be fat. I want to instill a love of (not obsession with) sports that will carry through into their adult lives. The trick is to keep it fun, so that they want to keep going. Both of my children take swimming lessons, which they enjoy. Many of my club races include fun runs for children, so I’ve used them to teach my older son about running. Including this weekend’s race, we’ve run four of them together. In the past he has sprinted out of the gate, only to run out of gas midway. He did very well this weekend: he kept a steady pace, never ran out of breath, and never asked where the finish was. When he crossed the finish line he was smiling and laughing. His prize: a ribbon and a gummy worm.

Dad and son goof around before the start of the race.

Here we are running together.

After that it was my turn. I barely had time to warm up (the quarter mile jog with my son hardly qualifies) before the race started. My recent training has lacked focus because of schedule changes and illness, so I wanted to use the race to gauge my fitness level in advance of the two big April races, the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler on April 5 and the Pike’s Peek 10K on April 26. I was so far in the back of the pack at the start that it took about 20 seconds to reach the starting line.

It seems that all of the club races in Seneca Creek Park cover much of the same ground: away from the parking lot, a weird loop into a parking lot, past Clopper Lake, include a loop around Deer Ridge, then back to the start. While I have much of the course etched into my memory, I keep forgetting how hilly it is. I spent most of the first mile slowly moving up the field and trying to find some running room. At about mile three I passed the same guy I passed in a previous race who muttered, “That’s okay, you’re not in my age group.” He grunted something this time as well, but I couldn’t make it out. The segment from mile three to mile four includes a uphill climb, so my pace dropped substantially. Once I came out of Deer Ridge, however, I was running down the same hill towards the finish. My gun time was 47:50, and my watch time showed 47:31. My watch also indicated that the course was a tiny bit short.

1 mile: 7:57
2 miles: 7:23, 15:20 cumulative, average of 7:40/mile
3 miles: 7:57, 23:17 cumulative, average 7:46/mile
4 miles: 7:59, 31:16 cumulative, average 7:49/mile
5 miles: 7:39, 38:55 cumulative, average 7:47 mile
6 miles: 7:36, 46:31 cumulative, average 7:45 mile
6.16 miles: 1:00, 47:31 cumulative, average 7:43/mile

The End of the Road

2009-03-04T20:44:00.001-05:00

I originally started this blog because I thought I had something to say about running. I quickly learned two things. First, I had a few gripes and opinions, but not much beyond that. Second, most people were uninterested in what I had to say. That's fine. I never intended this rivulet to grow into a revenue stream. I've learned that the most popular blogs are not those about running, but rather those that include more details about an individual's life. I don't want to run there.

So now it's time for me to step off the track. This will be my last post. I'll still be out there running, racing and even following other people's blogs. I'll probably comment from time to time, but I think I need to focus on other things for a bit.

What Color is That?

2009-02-25T05:24:00.000-05:00

My friend R. and I used to joke about the words used to describe color in the J. Crew catalogs. Some of the words were understandable; “forest” was probably a shade of green and “ocean” was likely blue. But what about “eucalyptus”? Were they referring to the color of the bark or the leaf? Seems that this kind of loose language has affected athletic wear companies, too. I saw a Brooks jacket that was black and “titan.” In Greek mythology, the titans were the children of Uranus and Gaia. They were the deities who ruled before the Olympians. I have no idea what color they were. There is also a jacket that is "London and Helios.” Helios is the personification of the sun. You’d think it might be associated with white or yellow, but the Brooks jacket is a shade of orange. Mizuno has a top that comes in “Prince Blue and Bolt.” Turns out “bolt” is yellow.

Race Report: RRCA 10 Mile Challenge

2009-02-23T05:31:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I ran in the RRCA 10 Mile Challenge, a race hosted by the Howard County Striders. I’ve wanted to run this race for quite some time, but this was the first time that I actually did so. I had always been put off by the location of the event, in Columbia, Maryland. It’s fairly easy to get to Columbia, but it does take some time. The weather forecast called for rain on Saturday night, then rain and snow on Sunday morning. When I awoke on Sunday, however, the ground was dry. I ate breakfast quickly, packed my gear, and managed to get on the Beltway by 6:45 AM.

Although open to the general public, the race serves as the kickoff to the Maryland RRCA Grand Prix Series, a series of races to foster competition between local running clubs. Nearly every runner competes for a particular club. My running club picked paid the entry fee for any runner that chose to run. I thought that each club would field several teams, but that was not the case. There were three divisions: open male, open female, and open co-ed. The top 14 runners in the open male and open female categories scored. The top 15 scored for the co-ed teams, but the scorers had to include at least four women.

At about 7:50, I made my way to the starting area and found a spot about 20 meters back of the starting line. The weather was cold and grey, about 35 degrees. This was a true club race: no chip timing. I didn’t hear anyone shout “go,” but I did notice the pack start to move. I overheard many runners talk about the hills on the course, so I figured this was going to be a tough race. I was not disappointed. The race begins with a gentle descent, followed by a fairly steep descent and rapid ascent around 2.5 miles. From that point the course undulates unceasingly until it flattens out about half a mile from the finish. It reminded me of Riley’s Rumble, the hilly half marathon in Seneca, Maryland. Some of the hills were mild, others made your legs and lungs burn. The cumulative effect was to sap your endurance and make you want to walk.

I’ve been suffering from a cold for the last few weeks. I tried to keep up my training, but I cut out all of the speedwork. I was worried what effect that would have on my race. As the race progressed, I was surprised to be running nearly even splits. I ran the first six or seven miles all between 7:58 and 8:05 per mile. The eighth mile was significantly slower, around 8:18, and then I tried to push it. At that point it started to snow, a few flakes at first, then more and more. A strong crosswind made running difficult in spots. A bit after I passed the nine mile marker, a runner who had already finished was shouting encouragement. “Good job runners! Only a quarter mile to go!” That can not be right, I thought. Didn’t we just pass the nine mile marker? I thought the race would end where it started, but I saw the runners in front of me make a right turn into a parking lot. A split second later, I saw the finish line around another corner. I made a strong push and finished in just under 1:20. My watch, which had matched the mile markers fairly closely, only registered 9.92 miles. An article about the race also noted that the course was a bit short. It’s a bit surprising that a championship course is not certified!

By the time I grabbed a cup of Gatorade and my free pair of gloves, the snow was falling heavily. Fortunately, nothing was sticking to the ground, so getting home wasn’t a problem. If the course had been a full 10 miles, I probably would have finished a touch over 1:20. Nevertheless, I was generally pleased with my effort. I ran very even splits throughout the race. I passed a lot of people along the way, which means that some people went out way too fast.

Step Off the Scale

2009-02-18T05:59:00.000-05:00

I love numbers. In college I flirted with the idea of majoring in mathematics. After big races I break down the splits to see how the race went. My fascination with numbers includes my body, as well. I’m waiting until I recover from a cold so that I can gauge my VO2 max. Recently I signed up to have my body fat measured. When I arrived at the facility, I was disappointed to see that they were using a simple home device. I can buy one on my own and test myself! I was hoping they’d use something a bit more accurate, such as underwater weighing.

The technician asked me to take off my shoes and socks, then step on the scale. I was still wearing an undershirt, dress shirt, underwear and pants. She punched in my height, then asked me to hold a T-shaped handle with a small display away from my body. Within a few seconds, the screen displayed my weight, 167. That seemed accurate; I weighted myself at the gym a few days ago (when I was nearly naked) and I was 164. Then it revealed my percentage of body fat: 17. Not surprisingly, I was hoping for a lower number. The technician explained that the target range is between 12 and 22 percent for men, so my score is right in the middle. Seventeen percent body fat means I’m lugging around 28 pounds of lard. I was a little surprised, since I think of myself as “lean.” I need to drop some weight.

Restaurant Review: VOLT

2009-02-11T05:11:00.002-05:00

I took a day off from work a few weeks ago and drove up to Frederick, Maryland, to drive over the course for the Frederick Marathon. I mentioned earlier that I was thinking about running a marathon in May. After driving the hills that run from miles 18 through 23, however, I think Frederick is out. But I’ll save that for another post.

The other reason I drove up to Frederick was to dine at VOLT, the restaurant opened last year by Bryan Voltaggio, the former executive chef and general manager at Charlie Palmer Steak in Washington. As befits its location in a renovated mansion, VOLT is clearly one of the best places to dine in the Washington area. It is well-worth the drive up I-270 because you will be rewarded with an exceptional meal. As my wife and I made our way through each delicious course, we realized that we had not been this excited about and delighted with a restaurant for a long, long time. We couldn’t remember the last restaurant we had enjoyed so much.

Lunch offers three options: a la carte selections, a three course prix fixe menu ($28), and a special express lunch. We both selected the prix fixe lunch; I added the wine pairing for an additional $15. I started with a perfectly prepared beet salad. Most people are exposed to poorly cooked beets as children, which makes it difficult to get them to try properly cooked beets. These beets were tender and delicious. For the main course I had a grilled hanger steak, and for dessert I had the chocolate and hazelnut pave. The wine pairings were thoughtful. The sommelier paired the Folie a Deux Ménage à Trois, a rose made with Merlot, Syrah and Gewurztraminer. The steak was matched with the Novas Carmenere from Chile. Finally, I savored a glass of Vin Santo, an Italian dessert wine from Tuscany, with my pave.

After lunch the hostess gave us a little tour of the restaurant. We peeked into the chef’s dining room, where guests can enjoy a five or seven course tasting menu at dinner. All of the tables in the chef’s dining room have a view of the open kitchen. I remarked that most restaurant kitchens are noisy places, with people screaming back and forth. This kitchen was remarkably serene. The table closest to the kitchen is Table 21, reserved for diners who want to enjoy a special 21 course dinner. I also went inside the private dining room, which used to be a conservatory. The room is curved at one end, with floor to ceiling windows. It even has a small display and access to the Internet, so that it can be used for business functions.

After our tour the hostess explained the special $14 express lunch in the bar. Diners get to make three choices from the menu. But instead of choosing one starter, one main course and a dessert, all of the options are placed together on a single list. In other words, diners can have three cocktails, three desserts, or three sides if they wish. I thought that was very inventive. When we got back to our table, our server had left us with little parting gifts: a small piece of cake in a little gift box.

My only quibble with VOLT is a minor one. The servers explain each dish, even the sides, like the breadsticks and butter. (“The breadsticks are seasoned with fennel seed and sea salt, and the butter is from Vermont.”) While I generally appreciate a little background on my main dishes and wine, I can do without the commentary on the sides.

Bottom Line: Wonderful food, perfectly prepared. Graceful service and elegant décor. Well worth the drive to Frederick.

Final Grade: A

Trying to Get on Track

2009-02-09T05:34:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was unseasonably warm in the Washington area. We broke out of the 30s and pushed into the mid 60s by the afternoon. I left the house at 3:30 for a run along the C&O Canal. I was hoping that the towpath was in better condition than last week’s botched long run. Fortunately, it was. All of the snow had melted and it was clear running up and down the canal.

From a training perspective, the last two weeks have been poor. I hardly ran at all because I'm struggling to recover from a nasty cold. Sometimes when I run I’ll get a coughing fit so bad that it alters my stride. In addition, I think I strained a muscle in my upper hamstring a few weeks ago. I was looking forward to logging something other than a zero in my training log.

As I made my way from the car to the towpath, I realized that I had forgotten two important things at home: the chest strap for my heart rate monitor and band aids. I could do without the chest strap for a run, but I really need band aids for long runs, even during warmer weather.

I ran from Riley’s Lock down to mile marker 15 and back, a total of 15.6 miles. I ran an even pace throughout the run, averaging 9:00 flat (2:20). I started to get a bit nervous during the second half of the run because the sun was setting. I did not want to finish a trail run in the dark. By the time I reached the end I could barely see 25 feet in front of me. It felt good to start to get back on track, but I did suffer afterwards. I wore a new pair of shoes, which led to a small blister on my right sole. I also felt some tightness in my right IT band. Finally, I was reminded of the importance of band aids when I took a shower.

Crying, Waiting, Hoping

2009-02-04T04:45:00.000-05:00

Ever hear of Richard Valenzuela, Jiles Perry Richardson, Jr., or Charles Hardin Holley? Well, how about Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper, and Buddy Holly? Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of “The Day the Music Died,” when all three died in a plane crash in Iowa. It’s difficult to overstate the importance of these artists in rock and roll history, or their influence on other musicians.

Consider Valens’s biggest hit, “La Bamba,” released when he was 17. For starters, it’s sung entirely in Spanish, yet it reached number one on the charts back in 1958. Can you imagine a song in a foreign language reaching the top of the charts in the United States? (Nena’s “99 Luftballon” comes to mind, but it was bolstered by the English language version.) The opening guitar lick of the song is instantly recognizable. You can’t help but sing along.

Holly’s career was oh-too-brief (1953 – 1958), but he cranked out songs that resonate today, either directly or through the other artists he influenced (e.g., the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Marshall Crenshaw). Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal had a great piece on the release of a new CD collection of Holly’s works.

My Favorite Buddy Holly Songs:

“Peggy Sue” – The driving drum beat and guitar lick that open the song are irresistible.

“Rave On” – It’s a crazy feeling

“Oh Boy” – You don’t know what you’ve been missing!

“That’ll be the Day”

“Crying, Waiting, Hoping” – My all-time favorite Buddy Holly song. I also love the versions by Marshall Crenshaw (who portrayed Buddy Holly in the movie "La Bamba" and sang this song) and the Beatles.

A Slushy Mess

2009-02-03T05:01:00.000-05:00

Following an unusually cold January, the first day of February dawned bright and full of promise. The temperature rose to about 58 degrees by mid-afternoon, a great day to run outside. I dressed in shorts and a short sleeve top, slathered on some sunscreen, and drove out to the C&O Canal for a run. I grossly miscalculated the trail conditions. I had expected a few small, scattered piles of snow, but the trail was nearly completely covered with slush. It was impossible to run very hard not only because of the danger of slipping, but also because I couldn’t push off properly. Three miles into the race my shoes and socks were soaking wet. I cut the run short after six miles, bitterly disappointed. I should have stuck to the roads and sidewalks near my house; at least they were clear.

After the warm weather melted much of the snow on the ground, some of it returned last night. When I left the house at around 9:30 it was snowing lightly, almost more of a drizzle than a flurry. Nothing stuck to the ground so I did an easy four miles.

I received an email from my running club that I am eligible to receive special athletic wear from the club because I competed in three or more races as part of a club team. Ironically, I have never met any of the other club members who were part of these teams. I just ran my own race and checked the results afterwards to see how we did. After not having run a race since last November’s Turkey Burnoff, I’m planning to run two races as part of a team in the spring: the RRCA 10 Mile Challenge and the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler.

Below Average

2009-01-27T04:15:00.000-05:00

I recently heard on the radio that Washington has experienced something like 15 days in a row of below average temperatures. The coldest days came about 10 days ago, when the mercury only climbed a few degrees above zero. Lately it’s been roughly the same: highs around freezing, lows in the 20s. On Sunday I went for my weekly long run along the C&O Canal and saw something startling: people were skating on the frozen canal. During the winter the water level in the canal drops significantly (down to about a foot in some places), so it’s not that difficult for large segments to freeze over. I saw two guys joyously skating around, using hockey sticks to pass a puck between them.

My wife and I were discussing the various advantages and disadvantages of cold weather running vs. warm weather running. I thought training for a marathon during the summer months was difficult because I was always struggling to squeeze in my workouts when it wasn’t so hot (i.e., mornings and evening). I also had to remember to stay properly hydrated during hard workouts. Now that I’m training seriously during the winter, I’m more aware of the challenges associated with this time of year. I can run whenever I want, but the tough part has been to push myself out the door when it’s 10:00 PM and 20 degrees F outside. At that point, a warm bed is more inviting than 10 hard miles with a biting wind. The weekend long run is easier during the winter, since I can go anytime I want and not worry about overheating. The Washington area has only had two significant snowfalls this year (today is one of them), so ice has not been a problem. When the snow piles up, however, running along the streets and trails can be difficult. Sometimes I’m forced to head indoors, but I loathe the treadmill. I also realized that although I have many pairs of running shorts and short sleeve tops, I don’t have a lot of cold weather gear. I have two pairs of tights and three mock turtleneck tops, so I have to wash my clothes more frequently during the winter.

Going Shopping

2009-01-23T03:11:00.001-05:00

I have one overriding running goal for 2009: to run 3:30 for the marathon and thereby qualify for the 2010 Boston Marathon. As Captain Picard says in Star Trek Nemesis, “All other concerns are secondary.” I ran 3:36 at the Marine Corps Marathon last October, so I feel that 3:30 is within the realm of possibility.

In order to reach this goal, I’ve devised a two-part strategy. First, I’ll attempt a marathon in the spring. If I’m successful, then I’ll continue to train through the remainder of the year, but not run any more marathons. If I should I fall short, I’ll regroup then try again in the fall. The key to this strategy is timing. Working backwards from April 2010, I know that I can’t pick a marathon in December 2009 to qualify because that won’t give me sufficient time to recover and train properly. I figured that October 2009 is probably the best time to race. The month is filled with marathons, including several over fast courses (e.g., Steamtown, Bay State). Proceeding backwards from October, I determined that I should look for a marathon from late April to the third week in May as the window for a spring marathon. Any later than that and the weather starts getting warm.

I am looking for a race with certain characteristics. First, the course should be suited for a PR. I don’t want a rolling course or one with too many turns. Steep hills, especially those in the later miles, are undesirable. The surface is also important. Some people have complained that long segments of the Eugene Marathon are run over concrete, which is tough on the legs. Second, I’m looking for a locale that is likely to have ideal meteorological conditions. I don’t want temperatures that are too high or winds that blow in your face. Third, I’m leery of races being staged for the first time. Its like buying the initial release of a new operating system: there are bound to be bugs. Finally, I’d prefer a smaller race. I felt that the thick crowd at Marine Corps restricted me during the first five or six miles of the race. Ideally, the race should not stage a half-marathon simultaneously.

There are some things that I really don’t care about. First, the number of spectators doesn’t matter to me. I don’t draw a lot of strength or inspiration from strangers shouting. Second, I could run through a burned out shell of a city as long as there are aid stations and the streets are closed to traffic. Similarly, the race could be held in a “boring” city as long as it’s a fast course. In other words, I don’t care about the scenery. Third, I don’t care what kind of sports drink they serve. Some people have bad reactions to a particular brand, but I guess I have a tough stomach.

With all that in mind, I’ve come up with the following finalists. Input from readers is welcome!

Oklahoma City Marathon (April 26)

Pros: Cool, relatively flat. Cons: Some have complained about wind.

Frederick Marathon (May 3)

Pros: Close to home. Cons: Steep hills in the latter miles, weather can be iffy in early May, many complaints about race day traffic.

Lincoln Marathon (May 3)

Pros: Flat, cool. Cons: Wind a possibility, choke point at 10K, 6000 runners

Pittsburgh Marathon (May 3)

Pros: Flat, cool, easy to get to. Cons: First time staging the race, number of runners unclear

Fargo Marathon (May 9)

Pros: Flat, cool. Cons: Lots of turns.

Mississauga Marathon (May 10)

Pros: Generally flat, cool. Cons: hills in later miles, course narrows in last 3K

Ogden Marathon (May 16)

Pros: Downhill from start to finish, race capped at 2000. Cons: Altitude, heat as race progresses

Green Bay Marathon (May 17)

Pros: Flat, generally cool. Cons: Some have complained about having to stop running while a train crossed the race path! I’m a Bears fan.

Lessons Learned

2009-01-15T20:02:00.000-05:00

When I jot down notes about each workout in my training log, I sometimes write, “Proud of this workout.” I’m usually proud because I resisted the urge to stay home and sleep and pushed myself out the door to run. One night I came home and unclogged the toilet, took my son to a sports class, then went out for a fartlek run. That’s dedication!

Last night I got to write that I was proud again. I came home for an exhausting day of work, wolfed down some dinner, took my son to a sports class, put him to bed, then went out for a hard run. The plan called for a two mile warm-up, followed by five five-minute repeats with a three-minute recovery. I ran over rolling hills, in order to do the repetitions going uphill, downhill, and over flat terrain. The workout ended with a 20-minute cool down. The total distance covered was about nine miles. I learned some interesting things during the workout. First, running hard uphill for five minutes is painful. My legs are still sore today. Second, hard workouts are better for helping me sleep than shorter ones. After a four mile run, I feel energized. After a speed workout or a long run, I want to go to sleep. Third, I saw where the cops like to hide in order to catch speeders.

Sightjogging

2009-01-14T05:24:00.001-05:00

The Toronto Globe and Mail has an interesting article on companies that organize running tours of major cities. Averages rates run about $125 per person for a one hour tour. I think it's an interesting way to see a city (and probably more efficient in crowded areas), but I'm not sure I like mixing the two. When I run, I want to focus on my training, not be lectured about my surroundings.

Cold Front

2009-01-13T04:44:00.000-05:00

The factor with the single greatest impact on my running is my family. Their schedule directly affects when I can run. I take my older son to sports classes on weekend mornings, which pushes my running into the afternoon when my kids are napping. If my wife goes to the gym or goes out with her friends, I stay home with the kids until she returns. If my wife has to travel for work, that just about eliminates all running until she returns.

The factor with the second greatest impact is the weather. I follow the weather closely so I can determine the best time to run. I listen to the all-news radio station and watch the Weather Channel for the most up-to-date forecast. If I know it will snow in two days, then I rearrange my workout schedule accordingly. Many forecasters have been talking about a cold front that will sweep over the Washington region starting tomorrow. Temperatures are expected to plunge to the teens or single digits--unusually cold for the Washington area. Snow might hinder my running, but cold weather is usually not a problem.

Temperatures in the thirties are fine. When the mercury dips below freezing, I’ll wear tights, a long sleeve tech top, a tech jacket, and gloves. If it’s windy, I might wear a cap. If it gets into the teens, I’ll substitute a thicker tech top as my base layer, maybe a mock turtleneck. On the rare occasion when it gets below 14 or 15 degrees F, I’ll wear running pants over my tights. If it gets colder than that this week, I’ll have to go to the gym. Better yet, I’ll just watch TV.

New York and Philly

2009-01-06T04:22:00.000-05:00

I recently returned from a road trip to New York and Philadelphia. I used to live in New York, but haven’t been back since a business trip two years ago. On that trip I made sure that I stayed in a hotel near Central park so that I could squeeze in a run in between meetings. On this trip I also set aside some time to go running in the park. My older son learned about Central Park from the Wiggles, who have a song about the park. As a result, he was eager to visit. Last Sunday was an unusually warm day along the east coast. In New York it hit 62 degrees as my family and I toured the southern part of the park, near Central Park South. My son was stunned to see so such tall buildings around Columbus Circle. He also delighted in the large globe that stands over the subway entrance.

Central Park is filled with delightful places to run across a variety of surfaces. The bridle path is dirt (although liberally sprinkled with horse manure). The reservoir is basically a cinder path (filled with puddles from the melting snow when I went). There are also miles of roads. I did most of my running around the road that goes around the park (East Drive/West Drive). At the northern end of the park, the road goes sharply downhill, until it bottoms out near the pool before rising again. This time the road didn’t seem as steep in either direction as it did in my memory. I thought the long climb on the east side, near the Met was a bit tougher. At the same time, I noticed the camber in the road much more than before.

After my long run in the park I realized just how much I miss New York. Honestly, I felt a little soft, as though living in Washington was not as tough as living in New York. For a few fleeting minutes, I thought about what it would be like to move back. Then reality set in. I can’t do what I do now in New York. I can’t even contemplate the idea of raising two small children in the city. I’d need to get a second job to cover their education and daycare costs. I wouldn’t have any money leftover to enjoy the things I moved back for.

The last time I was in Philadelphia was about 16 years ago. My brief stay this time coincided with a rest day, so I didn’t do any running. Having viewed it on the Forever stamp, my older son wanted to see the Liberty Bell. We also visited the Rosenbach Museum, which has a special exhibition on Maurice Sendak, the author of the children’s classic, Where the Wild Things Are. I also got a better feel of the course for the Philadelphia Marathon and Philadelphia Distance Run. Maybe I’ll put them on my fall racing calendar.

I was dreading the drive before the trip, but my wife’s mother gave me a wonderful present, an EZPass. This allowed us to zip through the tolls. It was especially helpful on the Delaware Memorial Bridge and the George Washington Bridge. Thanks!