Getting Ready to Race

Here is a quick recap of the ING Georgia Marathon with Team Samaritan's Purse!

Sharing why I run at the Team Samaritan's Purse dinner.

First Team Samaritan's Purse race photo.

A bit of a Where's Waldo if you are looking for me.

Everyone find a running buddy!

Me making it look easy?

Down the stretch.

Mile 26.20000001

The ING Georgia Marathon was tough, always up or down hills. I finished in average 4:30 time for me. If you asked me it wasn't "nothing," but it feels too easy to recover so quickly from something so difficult. It makes me wonder how it would go if I ran without reserves, ran without regard of recovery. The first guy to run a marathon died... poor Pheidippides.

I can go faster, but it has to be done in training. It has never really been a focus for me. I can finish all these races, and until now I have been fine collecting medals and running a huge event every month to keep up my endurance without training. For once, and really for the first time, I am going to train.

We will know how fast I can go. I am not going to just finish this Ironman, I am going to race.

A Sign

ING Georgia Marathon

This weekend I ran a marathon. It was the hilliest course I have ever ran and my knees hurt pretty badly afterward. Today, you'd never know it. The human body is amazing. I love being able to run a marathon and the next day walk around and people who don't know I just ran a marathon have no idea.

I ran with Team Samaritan's Purse who organized a great race weekend around the event. During the marathon a woman who knew I had done an Ironman asked, "So is this just like nothing to you?" I laughed because I was struggling a bit and this was on mile 12. Any marathon is so tough.

But if she asked me today, well...

Badge of Honor

One thing that is crazy is my dulled sense of 'the event.' I have run enough events that little phases me in the preparation, or lack of, leading up to an event. Plus, I have the ultimate badge of racing honor, an Ironman. There is a sense, really not even a false sense, that I can finish anything.

I've felt a bit sick recently, not good timing for a cold, really haven't been running too much, and am 3 days away from the most challenging marathon course I have ever run.

And I can't wait to run.

Bay to Breakers

These race photos are awesome.

Air Max

I love running in new shoes.

Welcome to Atlanta

Less than two weeks until I go sightseeing in the ATL.

Vote for my photo in this contest!

Vote everyday, on every computer you own, like I am.

Ultra Training

How do you run an ultra marathon? You walk too.

I started by running 16 miles.

Then I walked 4, ran 3, walked 6, and ran the last 2 miles.

Cowtown.

Just in case I didn't make it, half way through, I took a "finisher" photo.

Still posing.

The Bear and my biscuits at mile 16.

Ready to walk and roll in my MBTs.

One foot in front of the other, literally.

Look closely, and yes, unfortunately a man in a cow outfit just passed me.

An awesome recycling spectacle on display. Magneto crushing metal at mile 26.

6 hours and 30 minutes of my life later, trucking it to the finish.

Really finishing.

31 miles and the refuel now light is on.

2/5 of the greatest finisher medal idea ever.

*Editor's Note: I did eat a couple packs of those expired gels. They didn't taste too good, but they usually don't. And they didn't throw any monkey wrenches in my system either, so I think I'll continue to stockpile the goods.

Blast from the Past

So I stockpile gels, bites, basically anything I can grab for free at races. I was gathering some running essentials for a 31 mile fun run Saturday and came across a PowerGel with a "best by" date from April 18, 2009. I have about 7 of these old packets. Should I eat them?

Skewed Training

I'm thinking the only way to prepare to run a marathon in March is to run an ultra marathon in February. Perhaps I'll run 20 miles and walk 11 in the Cowtown. How long will that take, no more than 8 hours I'm thinking.

I Must Break You

I am either:

A) Building myself up

or

B) Slowly breaking down

It is easy to listen to your body, just tough to know which is happening.

Tunes

Yesterday was the first time I ran with music. Has anyone else done this? It is awesome. This iPod thing is really going to catch on.

Project Runner's Way

I mentioned that I got a new running vest. To say it wasn't designed strictly for running is an understatement. After my first run with it I found some areas that needed some improvement. So in the thinking of "Survivor Man" Office Manager Michael Scott, I fashioned pieces of my pants into a comfy collar.

If you are thinking I get some odd looks when I run, you are correct.

3 Minute Guide to Marathon Spectating

I try to run the Houston Marathon every other year. It is a great race. The years I don't run in it I am usually wishing I was running, for the first 3 minutes I'm watching. Then I go back to bed or something.

Here is the sideline view of the race from between miles 8 and 9. It is hilarious. First comes a convoy of cars, then the half marathon leaders. Next, a bunch of runners not going to place in the half's top 5 (who look like they are wishing for death), a huge truck carrying all the marathon press like cattle, and then the real crazies. It is just fascinating, shocking really, to see the real marathon runners flying down the street. And finally, my favorite part, the huddled together group of white guys running the marathon just scratching their heads.

Merry Poppins

You can find simple running formulas for increasing milage, training frequency and how hard to push yourself, but the most important advise is 'listen to your body.'

I had surgery on my knee 2 years ago. One thing my knee would do afterward in rehab is pop. It is almost like a cramp, it just really needs to be popped and then after it pops it feels instantly better. Popping like cracking your knuckles (which I rarely do), but in a more needy way. Months after surgery it continued and I asked my physical therapist if I should be worried about that popping and he said as long as it doesn't hurt there shouldn't be any problem. Two of the most athletically demanding years of my life later, I pop a lot. Maybe I'm just listening to my body more. Every joint feels great after it pops, my feet, ankles, knees. A lot of stuff is popping. But somehow almost in a good way.

I knew I would have to give a number to explain myself, so the other day I counted pops, not including fingers. It was somewhere around 35.