Team Spiridon

Help Needed for Ten Dogs In San Antonio

2011-01-21T12:56:00.001-08:00

Is there anyone out there that can help out?

Dear Friends,

With this e-mail, I am sending ten photographs of dogs currently impounded at Animal Care Services Brooks City Base Facility. These photos were taken this afternoon by Rita and me. ALL are extremely friendly and SWEET SWEET dogs. ALL would make excellent and very sweet pets ... they're non-aggressive, get along w/other dogs, very people-oriented, etc. We also feel that all of these dogs are or were owned by someone. They are in good condition, healthy weights, sweet personalities. How they became lost and impounded is always a mystery, but they are there and need help.

The situation is this ... Animal Care Services is finally re-instating an ADOPTION CENTER at the main facility on Highway 151; however, to do this, the Brooks City Base facility will house only "bite observation" dogs and other dogs deemed not quite as adoptable for whatever reasons. There is not enough space at the Hwy 151 facility to hold those dogs and still have a designated "Adoption Center". Everyone agrees that a designated Adoption Center is direly needed there.

There will be a transition of approximately one week, where dogs currently impounded at Brooks need to get out of there ASAP or be killed. While the transition is underway, it will be impossible to hold dogs any longer than their required 72 hours no matter how adoptable they are :( The photos attached with this e-mail are of ADORABLE dogs who will be killed at 8 A.M. this Saturday morning (January 22)unless they are able to go to either rescue/foster care or adoption. So, if there is anyone out there in cyberspace who would be able to take in any of these dogs (either by rescue, foster care or adoption), you MUST contact ALL of the following people (listed below) on FRIDAY, preferrably before 6 PM, but just write or call PLEASE ... it would be a crime for any of these precious dogs to loose their lives just because there are not enough homes. Please contact Peggy below ... and BE SURE to include the ID# of the dog you are interested in ...

PEGGY BRINK - 210=313-3600

pbrink

caretx

DOTcom

1After this e-mail, I will be sending out another identical e-mail, but picturing dogs that are scheduled to be killed at 8 a.m. on Monday morning (January 24)

Photographs of the dogs scheduled to be killed Saturday morning at 8 a.m. are attached, as well as imbeded below with small descriptions of each dog ... and they are ALL GREAT DOGS!!

1) ID#A152701 - Female, 2-year old Australian Shepherd mix - gorgeous sweet dog

2) ID#A152785 male, 2-year old Poodle (a CUTIE!!!) Helga's Grooming on Culebra Rd often does grooming free of charge for Animal Care Services so this might be an option on this adorable fellow ... he is very clean, but probably needs a simple haircut ...

3) ID#A152768 female, 2-year old Dachshund (mix?) oh my gosh she is a little sweetheart ... small and cute ...

4) ID#A152833 male, 3-year old Schnauzer ... this sweet dog is just adorable in person ... such a love bug ... we believe him to be a purebred, even though his tail isn't docked ... his tail just gives more of him to love ...

5) ID#A152844 male, 3-year old Fox Terrier weighing about 15 lbs. He is smaller in person than he appears in his photo! He is a small dog. A precious sweetheart ...

6) ID#152829 female, one-year old Australian Shepherd? mix. She is a smallish little dog and soooooo cute and submissive. She is truly a little sweetheart and very very pretty in person. Gorgeous coat.

7) ID#A152828 female, one year old Yellow Labrador Retriever (we believe she's purebred) gorgeous and very sweet young dog.

8) ID#152837 male, 3-year old Flat Coated Retriever? mix (smallish medium in size) We aren't really sure of this sweet dog's breed mix, but suffice it to say, he is a gorgeous dog with a shiny black coat, thick, silky and wavy. Photographs do not do this sweet dog justice, so you must meet him in person ... HURRY PLEASE!! His time is up at 8 a.m. Saturday morning :( Don't let him die ...

9) ID#A152863 male, 2-year old Australian Shepherd with a docked tail! In his photo he doesn't look "aussie" but HE IS. What a sweetheart. You will love him!!

10) ID#A152825 male, approx 4-year old wire-haired Terrier mix weighing 32 lbs. This sweet dog is SO wonderful. All he needs is a trip to the groomer's (again, Helga's Grooming on Culebra Rd might be willing to help out) This sweet guy's tail just never stops wagging. He loves people and is a little lovebug. He has a bit of an infected anal gland and Debbie has him on antibiotics. He'll do fine, that is not a big problem and is quite common with some dogs.

Please forward this message FAR AND WIDE ... to anyone you think might be interested in any of these precious sweet souls who do not deserve to loose their lives.

Thank you SO much!

Jan
www.PetAdoptionSA.com

So, You Made Us Suffer for Two Miles. What's Your Point? (Repost)

2010-11-01T11:52:00.001-07:00

OK, this is another exceedingly long post about stuff.

I sort of fear being challenged on some of this - I'm no scientist, and I prefer to geek out on physics, but I can give you a poor, but usable, explanation of my poor understanding of what our bodies do, with some of the more hazily remembered numbers culled from the Internet, that bastion of infallibility.

So, when a boy or girl reaches a certain age...

Wait, that's the other thing I have a poor understanding of.

Running. Yes. So, our physical ability to run is governed by several things, of course, but the key fundamental component is our ability to burn fuel, which involves our use of oxygen at the cellular level.

Yeah, you have to physically get oxygen into your lungs and blood vessels and to the cells, and there are variables and potential roadblocks along the way. But all those extraordinary conditions as they may be, it still comes down to your ability to burn fuel.

Two of the key measures of this ability are our VO2 max, and our lactate threshold.

VO2 Max
Your VO2 max is specifically a measure of your body's maximal, or best, ability to transport and use oxygen. There's a couple of different expressions of it, but for athletes, we usually talk about milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. It's generally accepted as the best measure of aerobic fitness.

Our VO2 max is largely genetically determined, but can obviously be affected by weight, and by training. The average VO2 max for untrained men is around 45 ml/kg/min, 38 for women. Decently trained athletes will get into the 50's and 60's, world-class athletes higher. Lance Armstrong? Reportedly around 86. Freak. A famous skier had an off-season measurement of 96. In the off-season, not at his training peak. Total freak. Interestingly, Wikipedia lists Iditarod sled dogs at upwards of 240 ml/kg/min.

Lactate, or Anaerobic, Threshold
So, VO2 max measures your ability to deal with aerobic training under maximum effort. At some point, though, your cells are burning at as high a rate as they can with the oxygen they're getting. Essentially, they burn through all the oxygen, and begin to rely on either creatine phosphate or glucose to burn for energy. This is anaerobic energy production.

There are certain byproducts of this new zone of energy production, including lactic acid. Up to a certain point, your body can reuptake it, limiting its build-up in your bloodstream. On top of everything else, Lance Armstrong has a freakish ability to reuptake lactic acid, meaning he can hold a higher level of intensity for longer than lowly humans, and recover faster. It's just not fair.

Once the demand for energy reaches a point and becomes even more inefficient, lactic acid production outpaces the body's ability to reabsorb it. Once it hits a certain level in the bloodstream, generally accepted to be, like 2 somethings per something else, you're considered to have hit your lactate threshold.

Very often, you hear people say they couldn't hold their speed or push more weight because of the lactic acid, which is technically wrong, or because they were lactating, which is completely wrong in almost every case.

Really, the lactic acid in the bloodstream is a symptom, not the cause.

Our higher-intensity workouts will push you just into the anaerobic/lactate threshold, which will help push it higher. And yes, this kind of training will benefit your distance running ability, as well.

OK. So, like... what?
I've done the testing. It's humbling, and not entirely comfortable. You run on a treadmill, with a huge mouthpiece jammed in your grille that, because of the noseplug, is your only way to inhale and exhale. You get pushed to successively higher levels of exertion for periods of time, and periodically, they jam a needle into your ear for a blood sample to test for lactic acid buildup. It is unpleasant, though you do feel like Steve Austin for a while.

From your VO2 max and lactate threshold, you can derive with some accuracy your predicted potential paces for other distances.

Running the two-mile time trial (remember, that's what all this crap was supposed to be explaining) bypasses all that testing, and essentially works this process backwards. Running it ideally, you are running at maximal capacity for a distance that is long enough to get you into the anaerobic zone, and long enough to not just be something you can totally will yourself through, yet short enough to run without spending too much time in the anaerobic zone.

You run it, and in an indirect way, it measures your VO2 max and lactate threshold. I suppose that doesn't matter, because just running the time through a formula, you can still determine your ideal paces. But I think it's good to know why it works.

Whew. Still with me? So, here's what you do. I'll email you your times. Take your two mile time trial time to the McMillan Pace Calculator. It's a magical thing that will tell you with freaky accuracy what your paces should theoretically be for other distances. You'll use these paces for some of our workouts, and you can use them as guides for your pace in races. Also, please note the suggested long run paces.

A final note about this: these paces are ideals based on your body's most fundamental capabilities. They don't take into account terrain, headwind, illness/hangover, a bad day, a good day, or the other things that start happening to your body when you hit a certain mileage. It has predicted my times well up to the half marathon, and then it breaks down for me. Honestly, I have yet to have my ideal, or even acceptable, marathon. I'll own up to that. But I've had some great coaches in the past, and I'm confident of my own coaching. It's just something I need to deal with and overcome.

So, don't live and die by these numbers. They're just a guide. If nothing else, the time trial teaches you to push your limits of discomfort, and for that alone, it's valuable. More on that later.

Marshmallows and Marathons

2010-10-13T07:32:00.000-07:00

My new job is such that I can turn out good numbers while listening to music, plotting running routes in my head, or finally catching up, after over a year, with podcasts of This American Life and Radiolab.

This morning, one of the Radiolab podcasts was called "Mischel's Marshmallows," and it told the story of a psychological experiment interesting not only in its scope, but its results. I don't want to spoil the story, but in short, this study started with some kids left alone in a room with something tempting like marshmallows, or, more effectively, I would think, Oreos. It tested the ability to delay gratification, a skill that supposedly starts improving at around age four. Where it gets interesting is when they revisited these same kids a decade later, and found dramatic and undoubtedly nonspurious correlations to SAT scores, GPA, and behavior.

So, I'm listening to this, as I hope you will (it's only 15 minutes long), and I was excited because it actually feeds into one of the main reasons I enjoy coaching and feel that running is good for us.

The kids in the experiment all suffered horribly from the temptation of the Oreos. Some kids, though, naturally used strategies to either dissociate or associate from the stimulus - they would distract themselves by making up a song, the boys would sit there and kick the table, or they would mentally put a picture frame around the the yummy, delectable sandwich cookies. These are the kids that did well, then and later in life.

The other kids could be taught tricks to help them delay gratification, and it would help them become "high delayers". Unfortunately, teaching a kid tricks to keep themselves from eating a cookie in a room isn't going to translate to every day, lifelong strategies, right?

In comes running. The doing of running, even showing up to do it, requires discipline, self sacrifice, delayed gratification. I've seen the varieties of those kids in the adults that show up in our group wanting to run a half marathon and marathon, and their success is obviously tied to their discipline and their ability to push themselves into discomfort or inconvenience. But I have alos seen people learn these skills in training. They take little steps, day by day, just getting that day's run in. They are encouraged by their teammates who are doing it with them, and they are boosted by the amazement and approval of their families and friends. Eventually, they find something within them that drives that effort to deny their own comfort and convenience, because they know there's something of value in it.

And while it may be a bit idealistic or megalomanical, I believe that something like running, more than yoga, more than basketball, requires so much repetition and commitment that it really reinforces those better qualities in us, perhaps enough that we carry those same stronger virtues into the rest of our lives. So, really, here's my grand evil plan - I want us to be better runners, but I want us to be even better people.

So, please, listen to the podcast, and give it some thought - what are your strategies for delaying your own gratificaiton, and staying committed? And what is your payoff - why are you doing this? Feel free to comment...

The Nerdy Essay On Hills

2010-10-11T20:24:00.001-07:00

Working with the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, I've heard a lot of whining about the hills on our courses, mostly from wussy flatlanders from places like "Dallas" or "Houston", which are clearly lame, in addition to being flat. I also hear some occasional whining from people about the hills we run on our long runs. In response, I usually challenge them to construct any route longer than seven or eight miles that has no hills, and doesn't involve running back and forth across a parking lot.

The thing is, you're better for running hills, whether your goal race is hilly or not. Arthur Lydiard, arguably the greatest running coach of all time, realized it, ran his runners on crazy hills in New Zealand, and brought hardcore hill training to the coaching world. So, blame him, not me.

Personally, I like hills. Living, biking, and later, running here in Austin, there was no choice, so I decided that if I could be a good hill runner, that would give me an advantage over other people in my quest to join the lower middle of the distance-running pack. Hills can build strength and stamina pretty quickly, and you can do better than a lot of other people simply through proper form and some knowledge.

I should also point out that I am a tremendous geek, and when I'm running, I'm thinking through all this stuff, and how best to try to explain it. So... here ya go.

Running Uphill
It helps to think about the physics of hill running, which starts with some geometry. Think about the geometry of your body in relation to the ground - you've got a triangle formed by: the imaginary line from the top of your head intersecting the ground at a 90 degree angle (side A); the line along the ground from there to your front foot (side B), and the line from that point back to the top of your head, which is the triangle's hypotenuse (side C).

Now, think also about the vector of gravity's pull... on a hill, it's not perpendicular to the ground, right? It's straight to the center of the earth (let's stick with Newtonian physics and ignore more recent modifications of it). Hence the suckiness or coolness of running up, or down, a hill.

Ideally, on a hill, you maintain the same upright, hips under you form as you do when you're on flat ground. Of course, your ability to do that depends on the steepness of the hill.

So, once a hill hits a certain level of steepness, the geometry of our bodies makes it impractical to stay perpendicular to the ground, because you'd fall back on your butt. So, we increase forward lean. This makes Side A, in front of our bodies (top of the head, perpendicular to the ground) shorter, and lengthens the hypotenuse, which is from the top of your head to the foot pushing through the strike behind you. Because of the way our legs bend, and because of the way we're best able to exert force for maximum traction and power, the lean forward makes sense.

The big problem is that most people get their lean by bending at the waist. First of all, as we've talked about on flat ground, this angle between the hips and leg is biomechanically inefficient.

Next, the butt starts falling out behind you, changing your center of gravity, and distorting the geometry of your body. Once that happens, people tend to hunker their shoulders, which is often also a result of people dropping their heads down.

The result - an inefficient, tiring, difficult-to-breathe, and not-attractive running posture. No bueno.

The answer is in your hips, shoulders, and head. Keep your head up - be looking at the next point on the hill that you're aiming for. Keep your shoulders relaxed, but back, allowing a good, unobstructed flow of air. Finally, keep your hips under you. On steeper hills, it helps me to imagine pressing my hips forward into the hill.

Move your arms. Their relation to the body will change on hills - they'll be moving a bit more in front of your shoulders, but still not crossing the front of your body. When your legs are failing a bit, focus on moving the arms, and the legs will follow.

A lot of people just strike with the foot and lift straight up. On hills in particular, they're missing out on a huge bit of strength, just in your foot and calves. So, strike, and roll all the way so that when you're taking off, it's off the front tip of your shoes.

Finally, break the hill into manageable chunks. Find a landmark, and just focus on getting to it, then pick another and get to it. If you try to look up the 8th street alley, or some of the other hills we'll be running, you'll end up trying to find a tree and a bit of rope to hang yourself.

Running Downhill
The general rule is that uphills and headwinds are harder than downhills and tailwinds are easy. But make no mistake, downhills run properly and patiently can give you a good deal of time back. However, they can also wreck your legs in a longer race.

On the downhills, the temptation is to lean back and let gravity carry you. This is actually not good.

Think back to the geometry thing. When you lean back, you feel more in control because the hypotenuse is intersecting the ground at an angle that matches the vector of gravity's pull - in other words, you don't feel like you're going to fall on your face. The problem is, leaning back also stretches that hypotenuse out - to connect with the ground on each stride, your body has to get longer in front of you. To accomplish this, two things usually happen. First, you lengthen the front part of your stride by stretching the leg out, straightening the knee out and striking on your heel. Because you're also shortening side A of your triangle (the imaginary back line), and lengthening side B (the bottom), gravity gets to accelerate you a bit longer on each stride, resulting in higher speed and greater impact.

Bottom line - bad for your knees, ankles, hips, spine... hell, everything. It even makes my teeth hurt.

Meanwhile, if you're also trying to move your feet faster over a longer distance (side B), you might actually be working harder and getting your heart rate higher than when you're on flat ground. Also dumb.

The answer is to run downhill with the same form and angle as you run on flat ground, and uphill. When you do it, you're going to feel like you're falling forward. This is why you want strong quadriceps muscles, and a quicker, but not too quick turnover. This is a matter of just getting the right feel running downhill.

I try to get to a point of turnover where I'm still striking midfoot, but immediately rolling forward and through the strike. There's a split second between the initial strike of the foot, and the point at which your shoes and joints compress, and you get the sudden, sharpest moment of impact. That's what you need to minimize. Rolling forward immediately helps dissipate some of that energy.

The cautionary warning here is that on a long, very hilly course, like the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, slowing yourself too much will wear out your quads and increase the odds of them cramping up later... So, it can be a fine line.

Everyone wants to bank time running downhill. But even if you're being conservative and patient, you're just gonna pick up some speed. Side B of your triangle (the travel along the ground) is going to naturally lengthen a bit when you factor in that you're still falling downhill a little, making each stride, even at the same cadence, cover a little more ground.

More importantly, managing a downhill gives you a chance to recover. In the Capitol 10K, or the Austin Marathon or Half Marathon, managing the course is everything, and will make or break your day.

So, that's a lot to absorb, I know. The point here is to think about the physics and form involved in running hills. Stay conscious of them, remember the few rules about form, keep working on building strength and stamina, and you'll be kicking butt on the hills in no time.

Running Log

2010-09-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

For three years, I have recycled a mention of Running Log, the great Native American track and field star. I still haven't written that legend out, though.

Instead, this is about the importance of logging your runs and workouts and what-not.

I really recommend that you keep track of your running. Most obviously, it helps you develop a picture of how often you're running, and what kind of mileage you're putting in every week. Most people think it'll make them feel bad when they miss a workout - actually, that's not a bad thing. But it will also give you an appreciation for how much you're doing. When you miss a workout, but you still see that you ran six or nine or (eventually) 20 miles that week, it can prevent that Stuart Smalley shame spiral where you decide it's all hopeless, and you go grab the peanut butter, a jar of Bonne Maman strawberry preserves, and the largest spoon that will fit in the mouths of both jars, and go to town, washing it down with successive Lone Star tallboys, the tinge of aluminum made slightly salty by your own tears.

It happens. Or so I hear.

So, check out the training log. It's fun to do, and you can also track your other activities, like yoga, cycling, swimming, and your weekly pickup jai-alai games. It'll also track your vitals, like your weight.

A training log is also good because it helps you track the mileage on your running shoes, which we call "tennis" or "tenny" shoes in Texas, but which the British, apparently being masters of the obvious and explicit, call "runners."

Now, if you'll look to the left over there, you'll see a link for the Nikerunning website, which contains a free training log. There have long been rumors that they were going to discontinue the site, but it hasn't happened yet. It also uses Flash, and won't work on some mobile devices. So... that kind of sucks. I just haven't been entirely thrilled about any other log application that I've seen. Many of them don't track shoes, or allow you to enter other types of workouts. So, for now, I keep using the Nike one.

If you find something you like much better, let me know. In the meantime, make sure you do something to keep track of what you're doing - I think you'll be pretty pleased with the results.

Ditch the Headphones

2010-09-15T21:55:00.000-07:00

I love music. I love music far more than running, truth be told, which, in summers like this one, isn't hard. And, I am big on wanting to block things out in certain situations - in grad school, I took almost all my exams with headphones on, back in the days when even recordable CD's were not commonplace. The one time I was asked to remove the headphones, I was lost, and couldn't focus. Having not gone to that class at all may have also figured into the negative experience, but I really felt I was better off writing about immigration law with Tanya Donnelly's sweet voice in my head.

In 2007, USA Track and Field made personal music devices verboten at sanctioned events. The Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, as required, banned headphone use in 2008. Prior to that, lacking an enforcement mechanism, the marathon went with just strongly discouraging their use.

Many large marathons, including the Marine Corps Marathon, immediately, and probably eagerly, complied. The Twin Cities Marathon warned people headphones were banned, but people ignored the warnings, or perhaps couldn't hear them over the Justin Timberlake rattling in their skulls, and 176 runners were disqualified. It was not enforced in Austin, and headphone use in races is increasing exponentially.

The flap from the average headphone-wearing runner crowd pushed the USATF to reconsider, and within a year, they backed off, largely due to the incessant whinging (not a typo, Cindy) from people who want to say they can run a half marathon or marathon, but claim they can't do it without their headphones.

Shortly thereafter, the Austin Marathon reluctantly announced that it changed its headphone policy in accordance with the caving of the USATF, even though they've seen, time and time again, in every race, the high frequency of irresponsible headphone use and the problems it causes, but they probably just got tired of the complaints from people who probably went on to organize and be the loudest people at Tea Parties. The amount of whining they'd gotten at the marathon office about the headphone ban has quite frankly been pathetic, and has included ridiculous arguments about blind or deaf runners, claims about "big government", and many people saying they are disgusted and will just run some other race, to which I personally say, "good riddance, break a leg."

In large part, the USATF enacted the rule to conform to the policy of the International Association of Athletics Federations, which is mainly concerned with the use of two-way radios in competition.

For most races, though, the main issue is safety. I can't think of the last race where I didn't see a number of examples of people being completely oblivious to their surroundings because they were wearing headphones. I've seen people not able to hear the sirens of support vehicles passing them, a half marathoner in Dallas not able to hear the large, honking Hummer pace vehicle behind her or the runners around her yelling at her to move so the elite marathoners could pass, or the shouts of "wheelchair up" when a wheelchair racer needs to be able to pass. We've all seen that when moving through a not-too-thick crowd, a runner will usually hear you come up and often move over just a little to help you pass through a tight spot. Runners with headphones tend to be in their own little world, though.

One year, at the Turkey Trot, Michelle from Conley Sports (the folks who put on the Austin Marathon) was blowing past me just as I was trying to say hi to someone I knew. He was wearing headphones. I called his name from about 20 feet away. Nothing. I got closer, at one point just about five feet behind him, and yelled his name. Nothing.

This year, at the Zooma Half Marathon, we had a major problem with the turnaround. I hopped on the back of the course manager's Harley (please... don't picture it, we had no choice), and he took me down to the turnaround point. On the way, I shouted instructions, mainly to blank stares from the runners, almost half of which seemed to be wearing headphones. One woman was running up a hill with her head down (a problem in and of itself), and couldn't hear the large hog approaching her, or the yelling from us or the other runners, until she almost ran right into us.

I also believe (pause for effect) that headphones have a deleterious effect on running form. Yeah, that's right. I'm tempted to submit an article on "iPod Assymetry Syndrome" and submit it to a medical journal, except that I'm lazy.

I first started thinking about this while watching an avid marathoner I know that would wear her iPod on her right arm. She also wore her long hair in a ponytail, and many times, running behind her, I could see the ponytail didn't swing evenly. You could trace the asymmetry to her shoulders, and to... the arm with the iPod strapped to it. From there, you could even see the slight imbalance in her stride. She even had some issues in the leg that ended up getting the shortened stride, which could be due to any number of factors... but you had to wonder.

I know when I run with an iPod on my arm, it's easy to get caught up in cord management (pardon the pun). Watch runners, and most of them carry their music-bearing arm differently. I've already seen some of you compromising your running form to accomodate your headphones.

As we've all figured out by now, the high repetition of the motions of running means that imbalances and eccentricities have consequences, and will likely be mirrored elsewhere. Everyone should, by now, be feeling and seeing the link between the way you move your arms, and your stride.

When you shorten the travel of one arm, it's likely to play out in the stride, because you're essentially throwing yourself out of balance. There's also the added tension in the shoulder from carrying that arm out slightly. Over any appreciable distance, it all translates to "no bueno."

When I do take the iPod on a training run, I use a little Shuffle and attach it to my waistband - it doesn't move through a range of motion, so the cord stays stable. Even then, I make the the cord short enough or run it through my shirt so that I don't have to move the arm on that side any differently to clear it.

Finally, and most importantly to me, I don't want to race or even train much with music, because it's a crutch, even a cheat. Clearly, we want to run with music because it benefits us - it keeps us from getting bored, it motivates us. There's a reason the Nike+ iPod system has a "Power Song" feature. Hell, I want to add a Nano to my ridiculously complete Apple audio product lineup just so I can push the button and immediately go to AC/DC's "Hell's Bells".

One whin- sorry, "runner", in one article said, "I need my music to get me through it. A marathon is a mental challenge and if I don't have my music to keep me motivated, it just isn't fun."

Well, guess what? Remember that we do this precisely because it is not "easy", and it is not "fun" in the same way as, say, Whack-A-Mole, or taunting Aggies. You've all learned or will learn how important the mental component of distance running is. The thing is, we're not all running to challenge the winning time in a race - we all run to challenge our own limits and abilities, and that's ultimately a mental challenge of your ability to deal with discomfort and pain, and to continue to push yourself. Whether you are physically capable of running a 2:20, three-hour, four-hour, or five-plus hour marathon, it all comes down to your ability to push yourself, not just physically, but primarily mentally.

If you say you get bored, or need the distraction, and music helps you, then that music is a crutch. The mind is a powerful thing - I completely believe I could run a faster race at almost any distance with the "Rocky" theme pounding through my head every step of the way. I'll do some of my short runs with music, but I don't wear headphones for long runs or races, exactly because music is such an effective crutch.

That state of being alone in your head, is one of the difficult, but essential, parts of distance running. The challenge is not just to move your body over the distance, but to move your mind and your will over that distance. Can you keep your mental focus over the miles, and over the time you need to complete those miles? Music can help you dissociate, which is a perfectly acceptable method of dealing with pain and boredom. But again, it's external, it's not a skill or a layer of toughness you've developed. You're just taking it away. You might as well be racing on painkillers, or high. Numb your mind with headphones, and you have failed to accomplish an essential component of the challenge. If you can't live with your own mind for the distance you're running, then you can't really claim to do the distance.

Music is a crutch. It's a cheat. I want you to be able to depend on yourself to get through the race.

There are going to be helpful distractions out on the race course. We've got 40 bands on and around the marathon course, far more than the "Rock 'n' Roll" marathons in San Antonio and elsewhere. There'll be great crowd support, you'll have friends out there running with you, and, if you're not wearing headphones, you'll be surprised by how many people you'll talk to on the way. Every year, I see and chat with Steve Boone, this older guy with long, stringy grey hair. He's run every Austin Marathon, and runs over fifty marathons a year (in 2009, he ran Austin the day after running one in California). He doesn't run with headphones. But all those things are part of the race experience itself, not something extra and unnecessary you bring into the race to help you get through.

I'd hate to think of what I'd have missed wearing headphones in races: the little kids in Chicago's Mexican district yelling, "Si, se puede!"; my friend Tom telling me about his kids, including the newborn son that didn't make it, as we plodded through 20 miles; or the company of good friends for our first half marathon. Those were all hard races, and maybe headphones would have helped. But I wouldn't have the experiences and memories that made running those races meaningful.

Use your headphones on your solo runs, and let it help drive you. Let some music or podcasts, or whatever noise you need help you get those weekday runs in. Listen to some relaxing music the night before the race. Crank the tunes up in your car on the way to the race, and get pumped.

But don't use headphones in races. And, if you make that commitment, don't wear them for your long runs - that's where you're going to need to develop the mental toughness that will get you through your goal race.

In the end, it's about safety, and it's about not selling yourself short, not cheapening all the work you're putting in to this. Don't fail to truly meet the challenge you signed up for and are training for. Don't miss the very real support and inspiration that your teammates and the race itself is going to offer you. Leave the headphones at home.

Hard. Core. Good.

2010-09-14T11:57:00.001-07:00

I know, I know - as if the running and the yelling and flogging weren't enough, I'm making you do core training. WTF?

Core training helps keep the pelvis aligned. A misaligned pelvis leads to injury as far down as the Achilles, and up into the lower back.

The stronger your core, the more solid you remain on strike, reducing the need for unnecessary stabilization, allowing you to be a more economical runner.

Glistening abs, just like in those Shake Weight commercials (one Spiridoner owns Shake Weights. Let the speculation begin).

So, we're going to do these every week after our workouts. You're gonna be a machine. Rest for 15 seconds before moving to the next exercise. After completing the whole circuit (also known as a "superset"), take a three-minute break, and repeat the entire series. Try to do this routine three times a week.

Bicycle 60 seconds total

Lay on back
Place hand beneath small of back. Your low back should not lift off of your hand nor should it push down into your hand.
Knees and hips bent 90 degrees.
Slowly bring your left foot down towards the ground while you keep your left knee bent. When your left foot is approximately one inch off the ground, stop and hold this position for 2 seconds before bringing your left leg back to the starting position. Repeat with your right leg.

To make the exercise more difficult straighten your left leg as you bring your foot towards the ground and hold your leg approximately four inches off of the ground before bringing your leg back to the starting position.

Plank (prone core stabilization)

60 seconds total

Up on knees and forearms, or toes and forearms
Keep a flat back, don’t let hips sag
Lift left leg four inches, hold for two-count. Repeat with right.

Bridge

60 seconds total

Start on back with arms laid back above head and weight balanced on shoulders and heels. Knees at 90 degrees.
Straighten right knee. Hold this position for two seconds and then switch legs.

Side plank (side-lying core stabilization)

30 seconds on each side

Start on knee and elbow, or side of foot and straight-arm it, if you’re a bad-ass.
Lazy arm on side, or straight out, if you want to look like cool.
Keep straight
Maintain a posterior pelvic tilt by pushing the bottom of your pelvis forward and the top of your pelvis back.

Fire hydrant

Hold each pose for four seconds, run through sequence three to five times with each leg

Start on your hands and knees.
A. Maintaining the 90-degree angle of your left knee, lift your left leg until the thigh is parallel with your upper body, without arching your low back. All the movement should come from your hip. Hold for 4 seconds, and then lower.
B. Repeat the same motion, but continue it by adducting the knee and thigh as far to the left as possible (like a boy dog at a fire hydrant). Hold for 4 seconds.
Repeat A and B, but press the knee and thigh as far as possible to the right, crossing over your body's midline. Hold for 4 seconds.
Movement in all three directions constitutes one rep.
For added difficulty, lift your opposite arm off the ground.
Repeat with the right leg.

Supine stabilizer

Lie on your back with your legs fully extended.
With your elbows under your shoulders, lift your entire body onto your forearms and heels.
Keep your legs, hips, and back as straight as possible.
While maintaining this position, lift your left leg four inches off the floor. Hold for four seconds, then repeat with your right leg.
Repeat both sequences three to five times.

Push-ups

Ten to 20

Feet hip-width apart
Toes into ground, not flexed
Hands slightly wider than shoulders
Tighten your quads, glutes, and abs
Push up
Toes stay pointed!

Too hard?

Curl legs up from knees
Do the negatives – use your knees to press up, then get on your toes, and lower yourself down.

You're Going Out In That? - What (Not) To Wear

2010-09-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

So, here's a fundamental issue that a lot of us take for granted: what to wear when we run. Running is a wonderfully simple sport, requiring very little "stuff", but it's still critically important to your running, your fun, and your health to have the appropriate "stuff".

Better Running Naked Than Barefoot
Clearly, most of it comes down to shoes. Shorts might ride up, you might chafe, that sportsbra may... do whatever bad sportsbras do. But if you have the wrong shoes, things can hurt, and you can end up with any number of long-lasting problems. A slightly wrong shoe, even if it's worked for you for years of occasional three-mile runs, can derail your training with injury. Go to a proper running store. This will be the most important thing you spend money on.

There are quite a few variables involved in running shoes. There's your pronation - whether you pronate naturally, overpronate or supinate. These generally relate to the height of your arch - flatfooted people like me tend to overpronate, people with really high arches are more likely to supinate. Accordingly, there are three broad categories of running shoes: neutral-cushioned for the natural pronators; motion control for the overpronators, and stability shoes for the supinators.

Most of these specific structures are accomplished with the use of different density foams in the sole of the shoe, arch supports, and rigid structures in the sole. Then there are variables of cushioning in general. I have flat, wide feet, and finding shoes has been a pretty frustrating process, quite frankly, even with really good people helping. I need a wide shoe with enough support to keep my foot moving properly, and being a bit larger than those stick-people runners, I need a good deal of cushioning, or I will literally feel the impact in my teeth and skull, which can't be a good thing.

So, most people want to steer me towards motion control shoes, which use denser (and therefore heavier and stiffer) foams, and more rigid (and therefore heavier and stiffer) structures. And I hate every motion-control shoe I've ever tried. The cushioning in the heel and forefoot might be great, but those rigid structures tend to be right under where most of my foot strike occurs, so I get the teeth-and-skull jarring ride.

The point is, you need knowledgeable help to identify your needs, narrow the options, and minimize the potentially expensive and frustrating trial-error quest for footwear. You want to know how to download Lady GaGa ringtones? Chip at Foot Locker is your guy. Otherwise, for running shoes, go to a proper running store, where they will take a look at your gait and other factors, and give you guidance on the kind of shoe you need. Your proper running stores in Austin:

Hill Country Running Co. - This is a great store, with very knowledgeable and conscientious people. We get a 10% discount there.

Bettysport - We get a 15% discount here. They're a great store, and have been a strong supporter of ours from the start. They are obviously more for the lllllaaadies, but they also have some equipment (bottles, Bodyglide, etc.), and can order shoes for men, if you already know what you need/want.

RunTex - RunTex was once the only game in town. They're still here, and they're happy to give us a 15% discount.

Texas Running Company - I visited these guys this week, and was very impressed. For one thing, they have Mac Allen, one of the best coaches in Austin, working there. He used to work at another local store, and was one of the main people I trusted my runners to go see there. They're also very excited about being involved in the community, even though they're a chain what ain't from 'round here. They won't have an ongoing discount for us, but we will have an event there during which we'll get a 15% discount.

I'm still waiting on a response from Rogue Equipment about a discount there. Luke's Locker is also opening a store, in the Gables building at 6th and Lamar, in a matter of weeks. One of my old coaches will be managing it, so I'll be working to wrangle us some love there, too.

Socks, the Forgotten Clinton
Yeah, Hillary, what have you done with Socks?

While we're waiting for an answer, you should be experimenting with socks. Some people can run in thick, cushioned cotton socks. I sweat too much on a long run. When socks get soaked, your skin gets soaked and softens, and the friction actually seems to increase, as well. All this results in blisters. So, I use thinner socks that won't hold as much sweat. Sock thickness also obviously affects how your shoes fit, so be careful with that.

I'll also add that you may want to be careful about how tight your socks are. Yeah, it sounds crazy, but when they're too tight on the toes, they can contribute to the dreaded Black Toenail of Death (BTOD), which, like the Windows Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) and the Xbox 360's Red Ring of Death (RROD), is really annoying and potentially embarassing. Eventually, the toenail will fall off, leaving a weirdly mutated little... toenail deposit sort of thing. I have two medical journal articles waiting for me to write them - one on "iPod Arm", and the other on Sock Creep Syndrome.

But, really, please don't run naked. Running naked is not Good Naked.
The tech fabrics, like Nike's Dri-Fit, Adidas' Clima-Fit, and the generically licensed CoolMax, are not just hype - they work. They wick perspiration from your skin, and speed evaporation, keeping you cooler, and certainly keeping you lighter. If you're able to run in this heat in a cotton t-shirt, and it's not 10 pounds of sweaty fiber in 10 minutes, you're clearly dehydrated and about to die.

But not all are created equal. Some cheap "tech fabrics" are just pointless polyester, and seem to get just as soaked as anything else. Even within a brand and fabric, there's variation - some DriFit stuff is outstanding for hot conditions, some of it is thicker and warmer. Keeping it thin seems to help, obviously - moisture will evaporate out rather than get locked in the fibers. Some of the fabrics have dimples (like Brooks stuff), some have a sort of waffle texture (like Nike Sphere), that increase the surface area for evaporation.

You want to be mindful of seams - start running four or more miles, and they can chafe.

For shorts, I do recommend using shorts made for running. The fabric is lighter and less restrictive, the seams should minimize chafing, and you can get them in varying lengths. The length is important, depending on your body. If your inner thighs tend to touch, I'd go with longer shorts - they're less likely to ride up on you. This is just personal preference, though.

For women, Bettysport is a great, locally-owned athletic clothing store, carrying everything from the basics to the more expensive but extra-hip Stella McCartney Adidas line. For women needing help with sportsbras... sorry, I'm not your guy, but I'm told that Bettysport is where you should go.

While I prefer to shop local, and it's not a place to go get fitted for shoes, I do have to say that for a lot of clothing, Academy is pretty darned good.

Other considerations

Headgear - it's a toss-up. A white cap is probably better than a dark head of hair on a hot sunny day. With my only partially-haired head, I worry about the sun, as we all should, but a hat is hotter than going without. A hat can be useful in the rain to keep the water out of your eyes.

Bodyglide - Is your friend, one that you are likely to take for granted, but whose absence will make you weep when you're walking like John Wayne, and not in a cool, macho way, but in a slightly whimpering way because your thighs are chafed raw.

Band Aids and nipple guards - Clearly, Janet Jackson was contemplating running some major distance... But guys, and even some girls, will start chafing in three-four miles, depending on how you sweat, how your shirt or bra fits, and how abrasive the fabric of that shirt or bra is. For girls, it's probably an indication that your sportsbra isn't fitting right. For guys - you'll see people at races with blood running down their white shirts. Nipple guards seem like overkill, and most adhesive bandages fail when they get wet, but Band-Aid's Clear Water Block Plus bandages are perfect (well, for guys, anyway), and won't come off. After my first marathon, I came home and crawled in bed. I didn't take a shower until the next day, and I still had to rip the Band-Aids off, after the shower.

A watch - You need to have the discipline and perspective not to be a slave to timing, but it's good to be able to keep track of your pace. All you really need is something with a stopwatch function, preferably that will track lap (keeping time for each segment of a run) and/or splits (accumulated time at each waypoint of a run). Some watches have heart monitors, but as I've said, I'm not a believer in them. There are also the cool Garmin GPS things, but I think that's more just a matter of gadget appeal for most people.

Everyone talks about how cheap running is. Well, it's cheaper than, say, the biathlon. And it is pretty darned cheap, once you get past the shoes. But don't skimp on the shoes, and get clothes that are going to work for you, or running can quickly become significantly less fun...

The Stretchy Question

2010-09-01T10:45:00.000-07:00

So, file this New York Times Magazine piece with the earth-shaking exposes that leave you thinking... "meh". However, it's good food for thought, and a good springboard for a quick discussion of stretching.

The article cites a study by USA Track and Field, and I'll bottom-line it for you: static stretching (holding a position for a period of time) before running doesn't seem to have an impact on the incidence of injury. Over three months, 16% of the stretchy group had an injury that sidelined them for at least a week, and 16% of the group that stood around and chatted instead of stretching before runs had similar levels of injuries.

This doesn't change, well, anything for us. I generally don't stretch before a run, and I never ask you to, unless for some reason I'm really tight, or I'm about to run really fast (which almost never happens, anyway). Basketball players stretch because they are going to be using bursts of speed and need to be sure the muscles are warm and flexible, especially playing in a chilly arena.

But as local physical therapist Alan Besselink once pointed out, if you're running in Texas, especially in August, you're pretty much warm when you step out of your car.

What I'm pretty sure everyone is still in favor of is stretching after your runs, and I think most runners can attest from personal experience that it makes a difference. Periods where I have been at least marginally diligent about stretching, my running improved (don't care about speed? Then, read that as, "got a lot easier."). The chronic tightness in my hamstrings that has, well, hamstrung my running for the last couple of years is entirely a matter of not stretching well after runs.

If nothing else, make sure you stretch your hamstrings, quads, and calves after all your runs. If you can through in your IT band and, um, groinular area, that is even better. And, because we invariably leave the run, go sit crunched-up in a car, then crunched-up at a desk or on the couch, stretch again two to three hours later.

We will work this season to do more dynamic, rather than static, stretching, but get in the habit now. And, if you're around or talking to me after I've run with you, feel free to order me to stretch, too...

Cap 10K Race Plan

2010-04-08T20:08:00.000-07:00

First off, don't forget to pick up your race packet. You can still late-register, though the timed run is full. Packet pickup is at the Crockett Center, 10601 N. Lamar (1/2 mile south of Braker Ln).

You should download the course map, print it out, and even drive the course before Sunday. Nothing shortens distance and flattens hills like familiarity. Drive it, and then envision it, run through it in your head.

The night before the race, check the weather, decide what you're going to wear. If it's going to be over 50 degrees at the start, don't wear long sleeves and long pants. You want to dress for 20 degrees warmer than the temperature, because you will heat up. Most people are going to be out there for around an hour or more, and being overheated will not only hurt your performance and make you miserable, but it'll increase the risk of getting dehydrated. Shorts and a short sleeved shirt will be a good idea. If you want, wear a long sleeve shirt that you can take off and discard at the start.

The night before, pin your bib number on, attach your chip to your shoe, make sure you have what you want to eat in the morning, and get everything together. You don't want to be rushing around when you get up in the morning, or at the race.

Plan where you're going to park, and have a back-up plan. The race starts at 8:45 if you're chip-timed, and 9:00 for the untimed Fun Run.

We'll meet at 8:00am in front of Zax's on Riverside Drive, around the corner from RunTex, for a short warmup and drills. You need time to park and get there, so plan to be at your parking spot by 7:45 or so. Work backwards from there - how long will it take you to get there? You should get up a good hour before you need to leave your home. Get up, eat and drink first, check the weather, and relax. Why an hour? Because you can't run well if you gotta "go", and you'd rather do what you gotta do at home, not in a porta-potty.

We'll meet, warmup, answer any questions, then about 15 minutes before the start, we'll start plowing into the crowd. You'll have a colored bib that will assign you to a time-segregated starting area. Use it. It'll make things easier on you, and it's just rude to clog up the works for any faster runners.

The Course:

Most of mile one is just slightly uphill, running up Congress. It's not too bad, and besides, you're going to be packed in by people. Keep in mind - this is the largest 10K in Texas, and the fifth largest in the nation, which means a lot of people who have not run races before, many of whom have not been taught race courtesy, and many who have not been taught common courtesy. It is, however, a race for everyone, more than just for the gunners trying to turn their best time. Do not try to dodge around people too much - that burns a lot more energy than you might think. Plan ahead, pick a path, and make gradual course adjustments. If you need to pass someone or squeeze between people, don't be rude, but don't be shy. It's still a freakin' race. Politely say "on your left", or lightly "accidentally" touch someone's elbow slightly before you pass them so they know you're coming through.

If they're oblivious because they're wearing headphones, screw 'em.

Just past mile 1, you turn right on 11th street, up a short, steep hill. People that got too excited and took off too fast are going to suffer here. Remember your form - hips up under you. When you feel that release at the top, relax. Work from the top down, relaxing your face, your neck, your shoulders, all the way through your legs. Shake out your arms.

Left on San Jacinto takes you into a long downhill to 15th Street, the first part of which is steep. Do not fly down San Jac - this is where many of you will first see and learn from others around you that will make this common mistake. They'll blow by you, then, if you've been smart, you'll pass them going up 15th.

Keep your form under control. Find a balance between descending too fast and putting the brakes on too much. If you go too fast down this hill, you're going to hurt going up, and be tired for the long uphill on the other side of Lamar. If you put on the brakes too much, and you haven't been running a lot of long mileage, you'll wear out your quads.

Left on 15th takes you into a lengthy uphill climb to Congress. The course then rolls slightly up to just past mile two, when you hit a steep uphill to West Avenue. When you get to the top, you have a steep downhill. Relax, shake out your arms, and let the downhill give you a recovery. Once again, find a balance.

Same thing past mile three, when you start going down a steep hill under Mopac. On the other side of Mopac, you turn left for a mile-long stretch of mostly gradual uphills on the Mopac access road, also known as Winsted. Thing is, it's broken up enough by some short flats to recover. Just focus on holding a comfortable pace here. About 1/2 to 2/3 of the way down Winsted, you get a downhill and a flat to RunTex Lake Austin.

When you start on the downhill, shake out your arms, relax your body, and try to focus on making your stride smooth and easy. At around mile four, you need to assess how you feel, how much you have left in the tank. Can you pick up the pace? If so, do it gradually, because the last mile of the course is a bear.

But first, just past mile four, you get the steep downhill to Veteran's Blvd. If you're feeling good, let it carry you just slightly, but still keep your form under control. You turn left on Veterans, and it's pretty flat all the way out past Austin High to Cesar Chavez. Get into your revised, faster pace.

You hit Cesar Chavez at almost mile five, and it's a long, slow uphill grind. You only have 1.2 miles left. You've trained hard, and you can gut this out. This might be a good time to start picking people off. Find someone a little ways ahead of you, and gradually catch them. Then pick another. Be smart about this - don't go sprinting to catch people, but you can use this to get you through the last mile, and the hill.

You turn right on the South First Street Bridge, and you're less than half a mile out. Roll into the turn, and think about increasing your footspeed again. Halfway across the bridge, the slope turns downward a little, and that's another good point to pick up the pace at again.

Finally, when you turn right onto Riverside, you'll have less than 200 meters left. Go. Keep your eyes on the next person you want to catch, or on the finish line. Again, increase your speed by increasing your footspeed, just like we do with strides - don't be stretching and pushing your legs, that's a good way to get injured.

Run all the way through the finish.

Those of you that are running Sunday have worked hard, and I think you're far better prepared than most runners, even experienced runners who do nothing but go and run five or six miles on the flat trail three to five times a week. You've trained on hills like marathoners, and you've done track work like the speedier 5K and 10K runners.

Now it's about being smart, and being tough.

You have to be smart about your choices, taking into consideration your limitations, the course, and even the conditions on any given day. Sometimes, slowing down or even, in the case of injury, stopping, are the intellectually and strategically soundest choices.

Some of you want to just cover the distance, and that is a great and impressive goal. You're all well capable of it. Some of you want to push yourself in terms of time. Decide now what you want out of this, be honest with yourself about what you're prepared for, and decide what choices you're going to make when things get tough. Then, when you're running, take those choices one at a time, and win as many of those little battles as you can. Those victories are what will ultimately make the experience rewarding, not the number of miles or the time.

Good luck, and I'll see you on Sunday morning!

The Nerdy Essay On Hills

2010-03-08T13:46:00.000-08:00

the long, dull speech you missed.

2010-02-23T12:05:00.000-08:00

Agent Smith: Why, Mr. Anderson? Why do you do it? Why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something? For more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is? Do you even know?... You must be able to see it, Mr. Anderson. You must know it by now. You can't win. It's pointless to keep fighting. Why, Mr. Anderson? Why? Why do you persist?

Neo: Because I choose to.

There have been so many nights in the past few years, when things didn’t make a lot of sense to me, or I couldn’t get over something lost, or get past a mistake I’d made, that I had the overwhelming desire to go out to Congress Avenue, find the start line in the dark, and run the entire marathon course. I have found that the farther out of running shape I get, the less of a good idea it sounds like.

For two hours, or 2:50, or 4:10, or five hours, you have one goal, and that’s to run 13.1 miles, or to run 26.2 miles. A mission statement could not be simpler – go the distance, or at least as far as you can possibly go.

I could care less how fast or slow you run today. Times, Boston qualifiers, personal records, even winning, are horribly inadequate measures of who we are, and of our hearts. Great people are not really made by their accomplishments.

There will be things outside your control: the weather; the roads; the people around you; how your body feels; how hard you did or didn’t train in the past. Those conditions may set the stage, but great people are not made by the conditions they find themselves in.

You can control the choices you make, and that’s the beauty of this sport. Right now, we can’t do anything about the physical or mental state in which you’re lining up to race. But once the gun goes off, all that will matter are how you face the choices ahead of you today.

Great people are constantly and consistently defining themselves by their choices. You started with the choice to take up the challenge of running a marathon or half marathon. You made the choice to train, and over six months, you made countless choices to get up, to show up, to run. You make a choice today by stepping to that starting line, and putting yourself in a situation where you will be faced with even more tough, painful choices.

That you are here today says so much about you – the choices you’ve made to get here define the story of your character… so far. I want to tell you all that what you’ve done is enough. But if that were the case, then you could all turn around and go back to bed, and I know none of you would choose that. You are not people that decide that you are just good enough.

The other night, Lorrie and I discussed whether our choices define us. I think that they do, but it’s a non-stop process – there’s never a finished resume, never a final test score, until we die. We have to be responsible for our failures, and we get to take credit for our successes, but who we are is never set in stone, because there’s always another choice to be made, just ahead.

You have to be mature and intelligent today. If you’re feeling ill, dehydrated, or really injured, then slowing down or stopping is every bit the smart and equally tough choice.

But hopefully, that won’t be the case. And if not, then every time you want to slow down, but don’t really have to, you’ll really get to choose the kind of person you are. Every time you want to walk, but don’t, you’ll win. Every time you want to quit, but don’t, you get to be a hero. That’s where you might draw on the “why” that I talked about. That’s what our shirts are about, the “why”.

So, today, choose how you run. Take what the course gives you, and be smart with how you use it. Take what your body can give you, and take a little more.

Today, choose to be who you want to be. No matter what you do for a living, how much money you have, what degree hangs on your wall, no matter what mistakes you’ve made, how you’ve succeeded, or what you’ve lost, today, for that chunk of time you’re out on the road, you can be the kind of person you want to be. You all have the training, and the will - I’ve seen it in every one of you, and I am extremely proud of you all. Now is your time. Don’t let it go.

the "why"

2010-02-10T20:17:00.000-08:00

The single question, the greatest paralyzer, and greatest motivator, of my running, has been, "Why?" Why should I run today? What will it matter? Why should I push myself past the point of discomfort? What would it mean?

Three years ago, I lost my job coaching for another group. I had quit my regular law job a year earlier. Things were, to put it delicately, in the shitter. Every day, "why" was the overriding question.

At first, it didn't need an answer. My friends, some of you, answered it with, "get your ass up, let's go run." that's how this all started, and that's what I always need to remember is the heart in our colorful logo - the love of friends.

But that can't answer everything. The question remains, plagues me, haunts me. Many days, I let it pin me to the bed, to the couch, to a dark, hopeless vision of what that day, or the next, holds.

Every day, we have to fight. Every day, we have to answer that question. Brian has to ask and answer it, after almost 21 flawless, awe-inspiring weeks of running and putting the work in. Lorrie and Anna Beth had to ask why they should persevere after injuries and illness.

Nancy has faced the question. One Tuesday night, she faced it through the entire workout. She had to think back to why she pulled the treadmill out into her living room the day after one of the toughest events in her life. Tuesday night, she wanted to quit, in the face of, "Why go on?" But she found four reasons, one for each repeat she had left: two to take back some measure of control that had been taken from her; two for her kids.

Don't get me wrong - you don't need drama or trauma, you don't need to need all of this, like some of us do. Jim and Eve are rocks, always (mostly proportionately) happy to be there. But do not be fooled - they wake up at 5:30am on Saturday mornings, and unless they are really cool robots, they, too, hear that question in their heads, and they must either answer it, or as many of us do on many days, ignore it.

It is easy to lose the thread, the faith, the reasons, the will, the love, to do this. But you each have, for six long months. You faced that question, and many others, and from day to day, you either found an answer, or chose to ignore the question and, to borrow the phrase that works, "just do it."

Your training is done. Now there’s just the waiting. But, there will be a few more days, more battles to be fought to get yourself through these days, and then, through the race, to quell your fears and doubts and face your goal with the desire and intent and will to meet it.

You've come this far, and each of you have repeatedly answered the questions, met the challenges, won enough battles. From here on out, there is no, "I hope..." There can be no more doubts in your heart or mind, because you've put in the work. Whatever you've left behind you in your training is behind you, pushed through. Whatever happens on race day will happen. But you now have every reason to know that you are ready, and that you're not being led to the race, you're stepping to the start line, willing, prepared, and determined to face whatever the day gives you.

Race Week Preparation

2010-02-09T23:00:00.000-08:00

So, you’re running the Austin Half Marathon or Marathon this Sunday. Most likely, you’re going to obsess a little (or a lot) this week, so you might as well make it productive…

Get familiar with the course –Go to the race website and print out several copies of the map. Put one in your car, one on your desk at work, one on the nightstand, or on the fridge. Drive the course, if you haven’t run it much. Familiarity will (help) flatten hills and shorten miles. Stop at the bottom of hills, get out, and walk or run up them, so you know what to expect. When you near the top, remember beating the hill. Read the race plan.

Visualize - After driving the course, pick up one of those maps every now and then, and run the race in your head (at high speed - please don't sit at work staring at a map for three hours). Run chunks of it in your head. Feel the rhythm of the stretches that will require more effort, and the ones where you'll be able to recover. Break the course into manageable chunks of two to three miles each.

Plan Nutrition – Know when you'll take nutrition. Work backwards from when you want your last gel or whatever, look at where the water stops are on the map, and plan accordingly. Buy your somethingcose fuel of choice now – some stores will sell out of everything but "Rancid Horseapple" gel by Friday. This is not time to experiment with new brands or flavors. Don’t rely entirely on someone meeting you with supplies. Going nutritionless through the last 12 miles of a marathon can damage a friendship.

Have your outfit ready.
Check the weather frequently. Then, just accept that the weather will be what it will be. It might be 29, windy and cold (as it was in 2006). Fine - what will you wear? Find those pieces, lay them out now.

It might be 74 and humid (2005?). Fine - what will you wear?

Dress for 20 degrees warmer than the temperature. You should know by now what you like. Now is not the time to try new shorts, socks, jogbras, or shirt. That's a sure entry to that popular game show, “What’s Gonna Chafe?”

It will most likely be just a little cold this weekend. It’s good to have some disposable clothes - go to Goodwill, or dig out that hideous sweatshirt, you know, the Alabama one, and use it. Up to 40% of body heat is lost through your head, most of the rest through your extremities. So, hat and gloves are the most crucial things in cold weather.

When you run, don’t be too quick to discard your clothing. At first, you’re going to heat up as blood flow is someone uniform. But after a while, your body will redirect the flow to keep your core warm, and you’ll end up feeling cold again.

In case of rain, have something disposable, or a trash bag with holes for the arms and head. It's nice to be dry while standing around at the start line, then you can rip it off when you get moving.

The sun often emerges – even if it’s cold, you can get a sunburn, so don’t forget sunblock. Got Bodyglide? Bandaids?

Thursday and Friday:
Hydrate. Get a couple of liters of water in you a day. Use ElectroMix, Nuun, or something similar to get plenty of electrolytes.

Friday night:
Get your race packet and check out the expo, or do it early Saturday. This is actually your best night to get your carbs.

Saturday:
Stay off your feet. This is not the time for a hike, lawn work, walking at the 2006 Chicago Marathon expo for four hours trying to decide if I should buy and wear new clothes for the marathon.

Know where you’re parking Sunday morning, and how you’ll get there. Know the street closures, and have a back-up plan.

Eat early – Unless you already have a consistent routine (that works), eat at 5:30 or 6, be done by 7 or 7:30. You want to be able to sleep, and you want the food to digest, so that it'll be usable in the race, not filling up your lower intestines demanding immediate release at mile five.

Don't drink too late - you want to be able to sleep without getting up constantly through the night.

Get everything together Saturday night:

Put your D-chip on your shoe!
Pin your race bib to your shirt or shorts. This could take you half an hour to get it perfectly straight. It has to be straight. It just does.
Put your gels, electrolyte capsules, whatever you're taking on the course, in whatever you're taking them in.
Pack your drop bag with your post-race stuff –dry clothes and shoes, and a little cash hidden in those shoes for the finish line food court.
Make sure you have everything you need for breakfast.

Work out your morning schedule backwards:

7am start time.
You need to be parked and on-site at 6:00am, AT THE LATEST.
Figure out how long it’ll take to get downtown, conservatively.
You want to use the restroom (twosies) before you leave. Give yourself time (because you never know) - so, seated 15-20 minutes before you need to leave.
You need to allow at least an hour for your breakfast to digest, so you need to be eating an hour before that.
Set your alarm for the time you arrive at (you'll eat first).
Set multiple alarms. Use your alarm clock, your phone, your running watch. Get a friend to call you. Leave nothing to chance.

Race morning:

GET THE HELL UP. No snooze button.
Eat first, and have some water.
If you've done things right, you have an hour to dress, make sure your bib number really is straight, relax, and check the weather, and hope they don’t open with “Wow, it is really unpleasantly hot and humid out there.” IBM 10K, 2006.
In case of severe weather, meteor strike, or uprising of giant robot aphids, check KLBJ AM 590 for information.

At the race:

DO NOT BE LATE. Period. You need to park, drop your bag, and have time to relax, warm-up a little, and hit the porta-potty.
Get to the start line by 6:50. Then... relax. Soak up this moment. Look around at all the people that are about to do something pretty amazing. You're one of them.

Attitude

2010-01-29T09:52:00.000-08:00

So, here's the update from Brian, who's had two appointments with physical therapists this week:

dude,

my marathon just got a little more "marathonier". i have a few minor tears in my patella tendon where it meets my knee. i also have a "weak left side"-i am still a democrat and i am still gonna run damn it! i have a bunch of strenghthing exercises, am starting eliptical tomm and ran in a harness today that made me 40 pounds lighter. my physical therapist says this is the best time for this to happen and that i will be ready to go on v-day!

So, there's the update, but that doesn't tell the more important part of the story. In the last week, Brian has been one of the people whose attitude and perseverance have reminded me why we do this, and why it matters.

He's had two appointments, and talked to me after each. Yes, he was fortunate to have hopeful prognoses. But he also had the right take on it all - he was going to do what the docs prescribed, and wait and see. Several times, he said, "Hey, what else am I gonna do, give up?" He decided not to worry, not to assume the worst, not to give up, not to be bitter. He made a choice - he's decided that he's put in the hard work, which both helped to minimize the injury, and improves his chances of being able to recover and run the marathon. He's decided that he's going to continue putting in hard work, doing whatever he is able to do to get to the start line on February 14.

On race day, Brian will be able to go, or he won't. But beyond that practical view is the simple strength of belief and faith, that whether he can run or not is just another battle he faces. No matter how you feel today, that's the reality we all face, not just for running, but for everything we do. And that attitude, difficult as it is to embrace and maintain in the face of the things many of you have and continue to face, is a key thing to learn about running, and one of the things I think we can take from it into the rest of our lives.

I haven't done a good job with that in a while, but you guys have been unwittingly reminding me along the way. I think everyone has been sick or injured at some point this season. This week in particular, Brian, Lorrie, and Nancy really reminded me, and have made a difference - thanks for that.

Wednesday, I was talking to someone that had just been diagnosed with a pretty aggressive case of prostate cancer. We talked, and I found myself telling him about Brian's situation, and his attitude. I didn't want to compare the situations and trivialize cancer, but the fact remains that the choices of how to confront those situations is the same - what else are you gonna do? Give up, despair, get bitter, throw away the strength of body and character that you've worked on? Do you let go of all of that so easily? And, if you're not going to give up, then what? Do you keep fighting?

So, bottom line, keep at it. You have three weeks left. Keep making the hard choices to get out there and run, or to be patient and wait out an injury, or to stay in touch with why you're doing this. You have all put in the work, now you just have to keep your head together and keep everything in perspective. Stay positive, and I believe we're all going to get there.

Second Annual Night of the Moustache! Friday, November 20!

2009-11-14T12:00:00.000-08:00

chop wood. carry water. run.

2009-10-10T20:08:00.000-07:00

OK. Bedding down a little later than I'd like. This morning, looking at the start/finish area, and the people getting last easy runs in (I did not), I felt that the condition of my body and my heart didn't merit my being here. This should be more than a matter of showing up: you should feel a kinship based in shared experience and faith.

But as the day went on, I remembered that: first, I worked really hard for almost six months in nasty conditions; and second, that tomorrow, at the start, the slate would be clean, and all that would matter would be how hard I chose to try during the 26.2 miles ahead. The failures of this summer and my lack of running in the past several weeks will be challenges to face, dragons laying in wait in my body and my mind and my heart.

I have to believe that my heart will push my body and mind to respond to the challenges. That's why we do this.

So now, I just sleep, and in 9.5 hours, I just run. Chop wood. Carry water. Run.

without regret

2009-10-08T06:58:00.000-07:00

The race report from 2006...

i don't have the questions this time. there's the wishing, the wondering about different conditions, and about how things might have gone had i done this or that differently.

but this time, i know there wasn't much more i could have done, or much more i could have given, in the 26.2 miles, the four hours and forty-four minutes between crossing the start and finish mats in Chicago.

i did a lot more right this time around. eating the night before has often been an issue, because i would eat too late and/or too much. the hostel i was staying at was full of runners, and one of the things they did in support of the marathoners was a free spaghetti dinner at 5:00 the night before.

i was in a six-person room, three of the other bunks occupied by other rogue runners, who had arranged the stay and invited me along. i felt like the veteran runner, with my extensive history of one marathon to draw on. however, i've run far more races, and that, together with the fact that i wasn't in my early twenties, tended to set me apart. i tried to advise them on some of the finer points of race weekend preparation: no, 8:30 dinner reservations the night before are not ideal; no, you don't want to go out clubbing at 10:00pm on friday; no, walking around shopping the magnificent mile all day the day before the race is not a good idea; you might want to get your stuff together, know where your bib number is and attach it, and plan what you're going to take - tonight, not in the morning, etc.

they pretty much didn't listen, and went to eat and party and shop. ah, youth.

i was up at 5:30 sunday morning. ate a bagel and a half, which proved to be perfect, and for once, because of the better-timed dinner, things happened as i needed them to. you know, in the bathroom.

at about 6:45, we walked the three or four blocks to the start area. it was definitely cold - around the low 40's - and windy. somehow, though, the 30% chance of it not raining came through for us. i wished my young roommates good luck and met up with melissa, who had made the decision to run despite having suffered from a bad cold or flu for three or four days. i sent her off to find holly while i went to check my gear bag.

a few minutes later, i sorted through the crowds to the set of speakers where holly had said she was waiting with her husband, chris. the street at that point wasn't full yet, but i couldn't see them. i trotted up about fifty yards towards the starting line and into the thickening crowd, but still nothing.

i began to panic a little. i felt like my 20 mile and freescale marathon experiences had been harder because i'd been alone. part of my race plan this time from the beginning had been to stick with holly, whose time trial forecast a 4:05 time for her, five minutes faster than my own predicted time. this would have us running at a pace of 9:22 per mile.

i finally found them. we said goodbye to chris and kurt, and went out into the middle of the crowd to get some warmth as we waited for the start. they actually played good music, not the same old melange of overly obvious crowd pleasers that get played at every austin race, and the music was interspersed with information given in multiple languages.

holly was wearing a giant white plastic bag with holes for the arms and head, and we laughed as she continued to produce a variety of objects from under the bag.

the national anthem was sung by a famous local baseball announcer, the president of the sponsoring bank spoke, the wheelchair racers were sent off, then the horn blew at 8:00am, ending twenty-three weeks of training and beginning the race. 47,000 runners began to move.

melissa immediately began to pull away, and i was torn. i knew i couldn't keep up with her pace, but i had to keep dropping back to rejoin holly, who was being disciplined and starting slow.

i retraced the steps of my run the day before, under the millenium park pedestrian bridge, and into the tunnel and across Lower Wacker Drive, except this time, there were people everywhere, cheering, blowing whistles, waving signs, ringing bells. the runners talked excitedly among themselves, and we waved and whooped back at the crowds.

men ran to the sides of the tunnel to relieve themselves, as i had been told was the norm, and i thought about doing it myself. yeah. once again, as always, despite having timed my water consumption and gone twice at the hostel, i had to pee. but i didn't want to lose holly, so i decided to wait. surely she had to pee sometime, right?

coming out of the tunnel, a spontaneous wave of even louder cheering from runners started behind me, and swept up and around me, erupting from the north end of the tunnel and down michigan avenue.

i still had to drop back a number of times to rejoin holly, jogging in place, maneuvering side to side to let runners pass around me, standing up on the curbs. it was the right thing to do - again, holly was being disciplined and avoiding the common mistake of going out too fast, listening to fresh legs and adrenaline, and forgetting you had to do this for 26.2 miles.

we turned west. the first mile was a 10:46 - maybe a little too conservative, but not a cause for concern.

we turned south, and the sidewalks were still jammed with spectators. at times, it was like being in a stadium, with the sound echoing off of old buildings and masterpieces of architecture, and folding back on itself.

the second mile was a 10:06. we were picking up little by little. at this point, i was still holding back - i felt great. i was running like i have been for the last month or so, in a more upright position, and with a higher, more active, and quicker stride. the left hamstring was feeling a bit harsher than i'd hoped, but the discomfort was familiar and totally manageable.

west again, then north again, through the North Side, and the upscale Gold Coast neighborhood, and into a park area. 9:49, a fast 9:10, and then, just before the five-mile marker... i still really had to pee. we came up on porta potties, and i decided i'd be better off unloading some liquid. i avoided the mcdonald's syndrome, passing up the first bank of toilets with the longer lines, and was into one pretty quickly. during my brief wait, i saw a woman dropping trou and copping a squat behind a tree. well, more or less behind a tree. actually, the tree was fairly pointless.

mile five, then, was a 10:33. not bad. the wind here was biting cold, and i tried to maneuver do draft off of groups of people.

i passed a pair of sisters dressed as Thing One and Thing Two. people cheered for them, some by name, but some in a fashion showing their clear unfamiliarity with the dr. seuss classic - "Go... Blue Haired People!" and "Alright, aliens!" i asked Thing Two if she was annoyed that Thing One always got top billing. she said she was used to it from a lifetime as the kid sister.

9:26 - still good, but i began to realize that i was feeling more taxed at six miles than i should, considering the 20 looming ahead. i decided i would just try to keep my pace above 9:35 per mile, which still gave me a shot at coming in at around 4:10.

9:29. i was still working just a little too hard. we passed near an expressway, and a siren zoomed by, and i thought about danny escobedo, the man that died running the 10K a few weeks ago. i thought, "danny says run." i kept running.

up into Wrigleyville, west, then south. somehow, i missed Wrigley Field. i missed a lot of notable landmarks. i got a sense of the neighborhoods, and recognized some of the downtown buildings i had seen the day before on the architectural boat tour, but later, the most striking landmark i remembered was a best buy that was housed in what looked like a brownstone. this struck me as odd.

9:17, Lincoln Park, 9:34, 9:34, Old Town, past trattoria roma, the italian restaurant i ate at friday night, the place with the snotty guy who answered the phone and with whom i had the following exchange:

"yeah, hi, i'm at clark and division - are you located nearby?"

"oh yeah, real close."

"oh, great. i hate to ask this, but could you possibly give me directions to get there?"

"no, i can't."

"uhhh... ok. alrighty then. thanks a lot."

"goodbye."

the alternative answer was "go west two blocks, go north on wells. we're about five or six blocks up."

asshole.

9:39. clockwork. my form was still energetic, my turnover quick, the footstrikes still somewhat light, because i was picking back up quickly. a runner passed me on my left - long red-brown hair in a pony tail, beard, iPod strapped on the arm, and a massive tattoo on his right calf framing the Zig-Zag man. my friend, Fagan.

i yelled his name. repeatedly. Fagan likes his music loud. i cursed, sped up to catch him, slapped a hand on his shoulder. he was happy to see me, wanted to slow down and talk, but i told him to go on, that it just made me happy to see him. it was true.

south, south, south, the Near North Side, River North, and across the Chicago River for the fourth time, down into The Loop, back among the glorious skyscrapers designed by famous dead european guys, their bases framed by very alive crowds. some very slight inclines. 10:13, 10:02. i was suddenly having to push myself a bit just for those times.

i passed through the halfway point at 2:08:47, just a minute and two seconds shy of my best half-marathon time, set back in january. i was having a little more trouble than i should. i began to realize the pace had been a bit high for me, and i decided to let off a little to try to get the best effort i could through the entire race.

Greek Town. 10:20 for mile 14. i began to feel twinges in my quadricep muscles. they quickly became cramps, first in the right thigh, then the left. the hamstring ceased to be an issue altogether.

here's the thing. that higher, more active stride? great. fast. but having only done it for less than two months, and on no run longer than ten miles, i wasn't conditioned to do it for distance. i burned up more energy, and overused those muscles.

cramps ebb and flow to some extent when you run through them. i got what pace i could when they occasionally receded, and during one such period, i passed holly. i could only mimic her shirt and say "go holly." i knew she was in her own place, and i didn't think i'd be any help to her. i also knew she'd be passing me again. i had to use whatever i had while i had it.

10:22. then, in mile 16, the cramps began to burn more. i stopped to stretch, and moved awkwardly onto the sidewalk to prevent the muscles from completely contracting.

12:12, 11:16. Little Italy. smaller buildings, a mix of homes and shops and businesses, old streets, but still, crowds out in force, music. i drank it up - got high fives from little kids and adults, too, waved back at them.

a runner came up beside me and said he'd seen me consistently through the race. he asked how i was doing, and i told him i was fighting off some cramps. he told me it would be worth it to take a couple of minutes to stop and stretch, jump back in and, he said with a smile, "then you come catch us."

so there i was. 4:05, 4:10, 4:20 - those times weren't going to happen. the epiphanies i had reached about running in the past month, after the meltdowns and after quitting and walking off a race course for the first (and last) time, and my reunion with what running is all about, were being tested. i wanted to stop, but there was never really a question of that. i wanted to walk, wanted to let up.

but there's too often been questions in my head - did i really push as hard as i could? could i have held that pace a little longer? what if what i'm feeling isn't that bad, and i just don't know any better?

i still wanted to finish, and still wanted a time that would be an improvement over my freescale run. but my primary goal just became to push myself as far as i possibly could for the rest of the race, no matter what. no questions this time, no regrets.

i told myself just to get to the next mile marker, then i could walk. then i wouldn't. as each mile began to seem increasingly interminable, i picked street corners - just get there, then i can walk... ok, no, let's not stop yet. here's a street lined with people. they really seem to care - i can't stop here. maybe when the crowd thins out. no, not yet.

11:28. just past the 18 mile mark, it was like someone flushed my right out with clean, cool water. the pain disappeared completely, and receded significantly in my left leg, too.

this lasted for not even half a mile, but it was enough to get a 10:53 in the 19th mile.

the old Czech neighborhood of Pilsen. i was walking through the water and gatorade stops, but never for more than 10-20 feet.

Little Village. mexican dancers, dresses swirling, arms curving gracefully. a woman with styrofoam cups of what i later heard was either margaritas, or tequila. the crowds were local, and entirely enthusiastic. working class folks were out with boxes of food, sitting out in chairs to watch a bunch of people run through their neighborhood. a trio of little girls sat on a curb and chanted, "si, se puede, si se puede."

11:16. six miles left - a 10K. i looked at my watch, and knew there was little chance of a 4:30, and a danger of pushing past my 4:54 previous best. and, there was the danger of not finishing. it was strange - it seemed like an option, almost a reality, but one i just kept deferring.

11:44 into Chinatown. drums and bells and rich spicy smells, dragons dancing in high definition color in the momentary sunlight, undulating alongside us on the streets in rustles of crepe paper.

12:00. Bridgeport, running south alongside the Dan Ryan Expressway.

wall. stumbling at times now, trying to make the legs move through the misfiring muscles that were contracting whenever they pleased, as much as they pleased. my chest has a tried soreness, too, but that's ok. stop, squat to stretch. loosen the sock on my right foot that's crushing the tip of one of my toes. i stop a couple of times in the 23rd mile. 14:23.

Bronzeville, and we turn north again, back onto Michigan Avenue. three miles left. calculate time. i hate that Oprah is going to beat me again with her 4:29 in New York. it's just not right. but, i begin to see that i can beat my freescale time by 10 minutes.

i'm doing a stiff-legged parody of running now, with grunting occasionally involved. i stop a couple of more times to stretch. back into downtown. 12:37. Prairie District, the familiar sight of downtown.

i'm too slow. i can't afford to be this slow. please, please, just let the cramps fade one more time, just give me that. just past the 40K sign, 24.8 miles, 1.4 miles to go, they let up a little. i speed up. 14:11 in the 25th mile, but the reprieve in my legs continues. they're leaden, but not hurting, and i can control them. i try to recover the form i started with.

the crowds are still here, but i can hear the bigger crowds near the finish.

a sign says there's 800 meters left. i turn right on roosevelt, towards the Field Museum and Shedd Aquarium. i don't see them, though, just like i have somehow missed Soldier Field to my right.

at the moment, i am more stunned by what i see. there was no elevation map for the course, because there is no real change in elevation - it's all flat, which is why it's such a fast course. but there before me, with about 600 meters left to go in the race, is the one real hill on the whole damned course.

fuck this, i think. i'm from austin. these people don't know shit about hills. i take the hill with no change in pace. the quads remain silent.

turn left into the most beautiful 200 yards i've ever seen - straight, lined with bleachers and cheering crowds, the green banner over the finish clear, the yellow numbers of the race clock clicking away. i pick up, i'm taller again, shoulders back, hips under me, and i know my legs aren't going to let me down for this.

i turn in a great 200 meter sprint. at 100, i throw it all out, and i'm blowing past people and i hear the crowd respond, and the pain is excruciating, but it's worth it, and it's almost over, and then it is.

water, volunteers congratulating, shiny space blankets, scores of runners shawled in those shiny space blankets ahead of me, rustling like one giant silver version of the dragons in chinatown.

i'm a little delirious, i can't grasp that it's over. it had seemed like it wouldn't end. i cry. i'm freezing. i get my medal - they take the time to hang it around my neck. i cry, but no one can see it between the hat and the blanket. god, it hurt so much for so long. i love the weight of the medal around my neck. i hate my time, but i beat it, i beat pain and doubt. that is who i am today, who we all are today, and i feel the burn of it in my legs and the deadness of it in my lungs and the weight of it hanging around my neck, and i love it. i cry, and i clutch it to my chest, and there is nothing else.

tapering (five days to go)

2009-10-06T21:10:00.001-07:00

so many nights, stuff gets so deep that all i've wanted to do was go out to Congress Avenue, find the old "S" spray painted into the asphalt, toe it, close my eyes, hear the horn, and start running.

i find in the race the same thing i find in a game of basketball. the universe is partitioned for that bit of time, that bit of space, and the task is simple. play basketball. run.

sometimes, i need my life to be no more complicated than to be at the starting line, waiting to run, and running. left, right, left, right, for hours and hours, driving relentlessly to the finish line. sometimes, my muscles and bones and lung scream for wanting the finish, but my heart does not. my heart hates the finish, because i know that purpose will be lost, and i will be just a person standing there, tired and sweaty, the same person that toed the line almost five hours earlier.

it isn't fair that life is not that simple.

anyway. i wrote this in 2006, when i was in a very different place. then, as now, it was five days until the Chicago Marathon.

emails are flying between my friends and me. no work is getting done. emotions are high. we want to be in chicago right damned now, regardless of the weather (though we update each other on the forecast twice a day). we want to be running it now.

marathoners call it "taper madness" - the wackiness that ensues during the two or three week period before a marathon when we back off the mileage and let our bodies repair and become ready. i ask melissa, a psychologist, and a friend going to run chicago with me, if there's a biochemical basis for the weird psychosis. hours pass, i get more emails reminiscing about our favorite coaches, about weather, and finally, "sure. but you are asking me to think in order to formulate an intelligent answer to that. and, i just can't do that right now."

so, i'm left to my own devices. i eat a banana, and stare at the whopping third document i've reviewed today. a normal pace would have me at 60 or so. why are we all losing our minds?

simply put, running is a natural ability, but training for and running a marathon is not a natural thing to do.

we train for 23 weeks. close to a thousand miles run - 30, 40, 50, 60 miles a week. we run four or five days a week. an hour monday, an hour tuesday, a hard workout for an hour and a half on wednesday, cross training or a half hour run on thursday, over an hour on friday, long runs for hours on saturdays.

those hours are squeezed into mornings before work, appended to the end of workdays when you feel like you only have the energy to open a beer and keep the couch from floating away.

people that choose and stick with this path are not likely to say, "I can't," and the training reinforces that. on the other hand, we say it more now than ever - "I can't, gotta run." "I can't, I have a race."

we push ourselves six days a week, for 23 weeks. exertion and fatigue become constants, as does the simple act of consistently, persistently, committing ourselves to creating discomfort in our bodies and pressing on anyway.

"The will to win means nothing if you haven't the will to prepare." - Juma Ikangaa, 1989 NYC Marathon winner

it's a compulsion, and if it didn't start as one, it became one along the way. every run says something about us, who we are and what we can do - not about our speed but about our will. sometimes, we're disappointed by how slow we were on a run or in a race, because we're competitive and because sometimes we lose sight of the fact that the time doesn't matter so much as how hard we pushed ourselves to get it.

one day, during a particularly hard workout on the Austin High School track, a kid leaned out a passing car's window, yelling some line i recognized from a movie about the day of judgment being on us, and asking, "how will ye be judged?"

the immediate response yelled back as i turned down onto the stratghtaway - "by what i do here today."

we watch the chicago marathon highlight video, and the sight of the runners and the cheering crowds shakes us. to some extent, it's adrenaline - fight or flight response positively subverted, adrenaline charges as we recognize the scenario. but we can't do anything with it right now, sitting at our desks, or at home.

we want the race, the pre-run jitters, we want to be surrounded by 40,000 other people who have made the same journey thus far, the same hegira from doubt and unchallenged limitations.

we don't know each other, we might not even like each other if we did, but almost everyone out there "gets it," and we are finishing a journey together, whether it takes us 2:10 or 6:10 to do it.

the hundreds of thousands of spectators lining the course watch people go by, see the determination and pain, and to some extent, they "get it." some of them will be motivated, as i was two years ago, to make that same commitment, to see what they can make themselves do.

i think again of our head coach, steve sisson, saying that whether it's the first time you cross the finish line, or the 50th, you are not the same person that started it.

the clock, the calendar, are running too slow. my friends and i want and need sunday to get here, so we can do what we have worked so hard to do, as best as we can on that given day. we want to run, so we can cross the finish line and see who we will have become.

Spirit of the Marathon Tuesday Night, Chicago Sunday...

2009-10-05T07:13:00.000-07:00

So, this is an older trailer for the movie, with the original title, "Land of the Gods". There are more recent, higher-quality trailers out there, but I like the music in this one the best...

Safety Stuff

2009-09-17T06:29:00.000-07:00

So, the incidence of runners being attacked or harassed or simply creeped-out is sort of frighteningly high. I don't like being alarmist, but we have to be conscious that stuff happens out there, whether you're running in upscale Tarrytown, in Clarksville at the tail end of a group workout, where a couple of men followed and harassed one of our runners last year, or across the street from Whole Foods with a bunch of bystanders.

There's also the issue of running at night, which is probably not so much an issue now as it will be in October. At that point, we'll move our workouts up to 5:45 or 6:00pm, to try to get us a little more daylight, what with the apparent shortening of the days by means of some black magic that liberals and conservatives can blame each other for, the falling-back clock action, and the gradual, evil lengthening of workouts.

So, let's be smart about things, by means of my beloved bullet points:

Turn on your heartlight - OK, so quite simply, get you some light, so you can see and be seen. Bettysport, RunTex, Academy, REI, all have varieties of lightweight blinky lights. The blinky LED's that go on the shoes are incredibly disconcerting to watch, but that noticeability is exactly what you want, and they even end up casting a little light in your path. REI even has some super-bright halogen headlamps that you can wear on your head, or maybe clip to your arm or waistband.

I also run with these little guys. They're heavy duty, super-crazy bright, and made for law enforcement. They're bright enough that you can actually use them to momentarily stun someone. Seriously. Ask Paul - I have demonstrated it on them. They're easy to carry in your hand when running, have a button to momentarily activate them, or you can leave them on. The LED version is a little pricey, but gives you really long battery life. The regular version is $35. I've even strapped it to a beam with a hair scrunchy and used it as a spot for a friend's show. They're available at Whole Earth, Cabela's, and online.
Black is the new way to get your butt run over - Yes, you look cool, Mason, and you get to play Ninja Runner Person, Mason. But you'll never get to use your nunchuks, Mason, if you get smacked by the car that you were stealthily invisible to. Mason. Oh, it was just the once, and you figured out it was a bad idea. Anyway, wear light colors, with reflective stuff. Reflective vests are cheap, if you'll take alive and stupid-looking over dead and cool.

Be actively visible - Run on the left, unless circumstances make this clearly the worst option. When you have cars coming at you, make eye contact, even wave at them. Make sure they see you.

Take a buddy, or at least someone you can almost stand - Don't run alone. Simple enough. You're more visible, you have a spotter, you're less likely to get messed with, and if you see the other person fall into a gaping hole, you can then avoid the hole and continue your run.

Step light - When you're running through a dark patch, don't assume that it's not the only patch of sidewalk in five miles that isn't clear. Confused by the double negative? Me, too. Point is, find the most lit path through the darkness, slow a little, pick up your feet, and step lightly, as if you're running across a rocky stream. If there is something wonky underfoot, you'll have a better chance of recovering from it.

Pick your route carefully - There are lots of considerations here. Stay out of deserted and/or dark areas, and clear of pothole infestations. Vehicle traffic can provide you a bit of light and security, but you need to steer clear of narrow roads, blind hills and corners, or high speed limits. Portions of the trail are OK, but it gets awfully dark. If you're close to the trail, you might be better off running downtown, or on South Congress.

Run tough, act tough, be tough - One year, one of our runners was accosted by someone who thought she looked good in shorts, but then wanted to see if she, um, felt good, too. She tried to edge away and be polite. That's understandable, but if it's not going to work with a frat boy in a bar, why would it work with a possibly loony predator? If a comment gets made that's over the line, ignore it. Don't give them anything. If they persist or approach you, say, look them in the eye and say "Hey. Back off. I'm running." Ignore him when he calls you whatever he calls you, as long as he walks off. Keep anything you say short, but be assertive and make the point that you're not going to be messed with. In the situation our runner was in, she could cross the other street, approach some other people, or even go up to one of the cars in the intersection, and start communicating with them - make sure he sees that people see you and him, and he'll probably move off. If you get in serious trouble, yell, and flag down a car.

Above all, use yer head. It's your best weapon, your best shield. Be alert. I'd strongly consider ditching the iPod for night runs, but if you choose to run with tunes, day or night, you have to take extra steps to be alert, period.

But whatever, whenever, just be alert, be thinking, be aware of your surroundings. Think about strategery - what's open? Where are there people? What house on this block has lights on that you could get to if you needed help? Being alert and aware are good skills to have anyway, and if that's something you learn from running, then that alone is valuable.

OK. There you go. Please, take this stuff seriously. I'm the only person who should be trying to annoy or hurt you.

Rain or Shine, People!

2009-09-11T07:00:00.000-07:00

"There's no such thing as bad weather. Just soft people."
- Bill Bowerman, legendary coach guy

We've seen some strange phenomenon occurring this week, in which something appearing to be water is falling from the sky in small drop-like packets. Whatever this stuff is, it makes things, including runners, wet.

However, I actually think that with this years group, I'm not going to hear any whiny little voices asking "But what if it's raaaaaiiiiniiiiing?" If I do, the answer is easy - we run in it. Aside from lightning, there's no reason not to run in the rain, and every reason to do it.

Races are run rain or shine - they, like us, will only cancel for lightning or major meteor strike at the start/finish area. What good would it do you to train in ideal conditions, just to show up and have to run in the rain? Very little. And if you think you're not all hardcore about running a race - when you slap down your money for a race, you'd be pretty lame to turn tail and go home because it's raining.

It's an exercise in commitment - If you're going to let moisture stop you from training and putting in the work, then what else are you going to let stop you? Not having clean socks? Everyone Loves Raymond reruns? Do you want to be someone who gives in that easily? Do you want to be someone that loves Raymond? No, you don't.

It's freakin' epic - Pounding the pavement or the track or the trail in a downpour, you feel like you're in the middle of a Rocky training montage, or in the climactic scene of a movie. Leave the iPod at home, because you can pretty much hear the orchestra churning along with you. People drive by, and those that don't "get it" may think you're an idiot, but the many who do "get it" will think you're a bad-ass, and maybe they'll think about their own level of commitment.

All this is not to say you shouldn't be prepared. Bring dry clothes and shoes to change into afterwards. Wet shoes and socks make for wet skin, which increase the chances of blistering - use some Bodyglide or Vaseline on your arches and anywhere else you tend to rub in your shoes.

And remember - whining is only allowed insofar as it's funny.

The Inevitable Commitment Lecture

2009-09-02T09:18:00.000-07:00

So, in the course of making some changes to the schedule, I was trying to maneuver long runs around the holidays, and decided it's time for Tedious But Important Lecture #1.

One of the biggest problems runners face is when the running becomes this onerous obligation. Believe me, I know that feeling, and I'll be honest, I've felt that a lot this summer. The quote in the Austin Fit article about all runners needing breaks? That's what I'm talking about, and in typical hypocrytical coach fashion, I have not taken many breaks in the past few years, largely because I have a hard time watching and not doing, but also because I feel an obligation to do what I'm requiring you all to do.

But with a few exceptions (those of you who just want to keep running, but don't feel that you're compelled to prove just a whole lot) you've all taken on this task of training with a goal of accomplishing a half marathon or marathon. That decision is made, you're in it now. What comes with that is not just a schedule, though. It is commitment. I know you all know that, at some level, but I think it's important to really realize and appreciate the scale of the commitment you need to make.

The half marathon and marathon, 13.1 and 26.2 miles, don't care what happens in your life. They don't care that you're out of town for work or Thanksgiving. They don't care about injuries or very important things that come up that we all have to deal with. They definitely don't care about laziness and hangovers, and neither do I. There's no universal rule of fairness here, that will cut you some slack if you miss workouts for whatever reason.

Now, all that is not to make this task sound onerous. I absolutely do not want running to take over your life. I want us to be well-balanced. So, we'll make choices along the way, and therein lies what is most important and most valuable about the training and running - we've chosen to put ourselves in positions to make choices that are capable of saying a lot about who we are, and who we choose to be.

You've chosen to train. That's a win. That says something about you. Unlike other groups, we don't have stay-at-home moms running because they have nothing better to do. We are all teachers, lawyers, people in the service industry - we all work hard. So, every time you choose to make it to a workout after a really hard day, that's a win. When you are tired, and want to quit and run less, but don't, that's a win. When I say to run five or six repeats, and you choose six, that's a win. When you're away for Thanksgiving and you have to run 10 miles on Saturday, that's a win. When you choose not to have that extra one or five drinks on Friday night, or when you think ahead to arrange your schedule and vacations so that you can get your runs in, those are wins.

Ultimately, those wins are what matter, no matter how fast or slow you are. Running a half marathon or marathon is an impressive stunt. Training for six months is an accomplishment. Make those choices along the way, and your races are going to be easier on you. You'll be faced with more choices in those races - whether to let up or stop, and your ability to make the tough choices then will be built on the choices you make every day in training. And, I believe that in the course of making these choices, we have the very real opportunity to decide who we are going to be, not just as runners, but as individuals.

Again, this is not rah-rah, "110 PERCENT!!!!" B.S. Just appreciate what you've taken on - the seriousness of it, and the potential of it. Deceide what you do and don't want out of it, and then do not sell yourself short on whatever you decide those goals are. Make the hard choices, and this will all be far more rewarding than you could possibly realize.

OK. Enough of that. The practical implications are this...

1. If you have to miss a long run, let's plan for it. Some people have had fun hooking up with running groups when they're in another city, meeting people, seeing a new place, and making a fun experience that we're often jealous of back home.

2. You'll need to run even during the holidays. I'm trying to finagle the schedule so that you're be on "down weeks", with slighthly less mileage. But I'll be here, and the runs will go on as scheduled.

3. Marathoners - you're going to have a choice between running 24 the day before 3M, and skipping 3M, or adding mileage before and after 3M to get at least 22 miles. If there's a lot of grief about that, we can talk about it, but I want you to be as prepared as possible for your goal race. 3M is fun and fast, but it's a scheduling problem for all Austin running groups. I think Amy is really happy with choosing to skip it this year. If you want to run it, that's fine, but adding mileage to it will get you your longest run, and it'll keep you from blowing your legs out three weeks ahead of the marathon.

OK. If there's any questions or concerns, or if I've not come across right and ended up scaring you, let me know.

See you Saturday!

Rob

Training Starts In Two Weeks!

2009-08-14T09:48:00.000-07:00

OK, actually, in a little over two weeks... let's not exaggerate. I'm just trying to build some excitement, here.

Our first workout is on Tuesday, September 1, at 6:30pm, at Whole Foods. Don't worry, you'll get plenty of reminders.

What we've landed on, cost-wise, is $175 for new folks, $150 for returning vets. If that's a problem, or you need a payment plan, let me know. You can pay by cash or check, or by Paypal - www.paypal.com, and use this email address (robhill45@gmail.com to find my account.

But this is not a matter of sitting around for the next two weeks waiting for training to happen. You need to be preparing. Let's talk about that.

Getting up to speed - whatever speed that is...

Half marathoners, you need to show up able to run at least three to four miles comfortably. Marathoners, five to six miles.

Now, I know many of you have been slacking, with the, "Wah, it's 105 degrees," or "Wah, my shoes melted," or "Wah, I have cable/friends to drink with, and I haven't been bothered with running since February." Well, it's time to suck it up, people!

If you're pretty darned near zero right now, there's no time to lose, but you can most likely be where you need to be in two weeks (unless you've just reeeeeeally let it all go). There's a couple of good ways to get yourself up to speed:

1. Go out, warm up with a jog or brisk walk for about 5-10 minutes. Then, use your watch, and go two minutes "hard", then three minutes "easy". Repeat this for a total of 20 minutes. Now "hard" and "easy" are going to vary. You might be walking the easy part, and jogging the hard part, or you might be running the easy part at a comfortable, conversational pace, and getting a little out of your comfort zone for the hard part. Afterwards, do an easy cool-down for 5-10 minutes.

The following week, make it three minutes hard, two minutes easy.

2. If you run around the lake or at Camp Mabry, try going easy for three quarters of a mile, then harder for a quarter. Then, easy for a half, harder for a half, then easy for a quarter, harder for a quarter. Then get a cooldown. For a lot of us, we go out and try to literally hit the ground running, and we're tanked after several minutes. This is a good way to ease into it.

Either way you use, you'll find that you're pretty quickly able to string together more running and less walking. Do these workouts only once, or maybe twice a week, say, Tuesday and Thursday. Get some light running/walking in on other days, but if you're starting from near-scratch, don't go more than 3-4 times a week. Try to do a slightly longer run on Saturday morning.

If doing these seem really hard, or you're not able to run at all right now, let me know, and let's figure out what we need to do.

Getting the medical go-ahead

Have no doubt, what you're taking on here is a serious thing. You're going to be placing a lot of demands on your body. Some of you will learn exciting new levels of soreness and aches. you have to pay more attention to staying healthy, because your immune system can get worn down. And some of us are not as young as others.

Training for a marathon or half marathon is sort of like owning a motorcycle - in the course of training, friends and relatives are going to hound you with stories about people dying, losing interest in their other friends, or soiling themselves. Right now, let's just talk about the first issue.

The incidence of marathon death is very low - around one in 100,000, if I remember correctly. Marathon mortality kind of breaks up into two groups - deaths for those under 30-35 tend to be due to congenital heart defects, known or unknown, and for those of us with more birthday party experience, the issue tends to be more typical cardiac events.

For anyone about to embark on training like this, getting a check-out from a doctor is a good idea. Runners, particularly male runners, 35 and over should really go have a proper stress test and all of that. Better to have a gripper on a treadmill in the Heart Hospital with hot nurses around than out on Great Northern with me giving you mouth-to-mouth. Neither of us wants that.

Getting equipped

Yeah, everyone says running's great because all you need is a pair of shoes to do it. Doesn't mean you can't still find ways to spend stupid amounts of money on things, but that's still essentially true. But shoes are worth spending the money on.

Other runners in the group can tell you what a dramatic difference shoes can make. When people come to me with pains and injuries, I usually look at shoes first, and it's amazing how often that's the fix.

I plan to set up a little seminar at Hill Country Running Company about shoes, but let's get a few things out there.

You can't just go buy a "good" or expensive running shoe. It has to be right for you. A $165 pair of Gel Kinsei's would be dumb for many people, and an $85 pair of shoes might be perfect for them. Different people have very specific distinctions in their gait, foot strike, foot shape, and cushioning needs. To get the right shoe, you have to go, in person, with time to spend, to a place where someone is going to look at you walking and running barefoot, and then watch you run in the shoes they knowledgeably suggest.

I strongly suggest Hill Country Running Company, Bettysport for women, Rogue Equipment, or RunTex. We get a discount at all these stores - I'll be getting discount cards soon. Wherever you go, talk to the person first and see if you get an involved, knowedgable vibe. If you don't, leave.

Brand loyalty and cuteness are secondary considerations. You may have to ditch them completely when you're looking for running shoes. I always loved basketball shoes, and Nikes and Jordans were the best there were, but when it comes to running shoes... not so much. I have to be reminded that Reebok still exists.

Even if you have the most perfect-for-you running shoes ever, that you slapped a lot of cash down for back in 2003... yeah. You need some new ones. Even the right shoes will break in during the first 50 miles, giving you more (!) cushioning and a better feel than the day you bought them. But once you get in the 200-300 range, they start to break down, giving you less support and cushioning, which can lead to aches and pains and even injury.

As for shorts and jogbras and stuff... uh... yes. You need those. If you're new to the whole jogbra thing, go to Bettysport. Paul in our group also tends to have opinions and even some experience in this area, but I'd avoid talking to him about it, if at all possible.

You're gonna need a running watch, although a couple of our vet runners pride themselves on not being held to the restrictions of the time-space continuum. I'd recommend going to Academy - Nike watches are getting cleared out, and you can get great deals on them. Just get one that's comfy, has a light, and will do lap and split timing.

Academy is a great place to go for running clothes, and occasionally, IF you already know that a particular shoe model works for you, you can get shoes there, too.

OK, that's enough for now. I'm planning on having a little get-together, maybe with a short run beforehand, on Tuesday, August 25, at 6:30. We'll most likely run down to Hill Country Running Company, get some info on shoes and other stuff, then run back and have a bite to eat and some stuff to drink.

Cool? Good. Now get your butt out there and run.

Looking for us?

2009-07-29T08:52:00.000-07:00

Hi - If you've come here looking for Team Spiridon, don't be dismayed by the lack of any signs of life. This site gives us a landing point, and I do post some information on it, but I mostly bombard our runners with a couple of lengthy emails a week during training.

This summer, a handful of us are training for the Chicago Marathon, and spending the balance of our time wondering what we were thinking, and just how hot it's possible for it to get here.

If you want some more information on Team Spiridon, stay tuned, or email me.

We look forward to hearing from you - stay hydrated!

Rob

Important Chicago Marathon Rule

2009-04-30T15:43:00.001-07:00

"This means, for example, that urinating or defecating anywhere on or near the course shall be strictly prohibited except in toilet facilities."

Spiridon Flying Circus Expedition X

2009-04-30T09:17:00.000-07:00

OK, you bunch of clowns and carnies - there is now a button on the left there for the Chicago Expedition. I'm working on the entire schedule, but I can tell you that being slightly more experienced runners, I'm getting you started a little quicker with the "short" mileage, then giving you a little more space in the middle, where you'll build some strength and speed, and then giving you plenty of recovery space for the last three long runs, which will take you to 23 or 24 miles rather than the usual 22.

This first phase of training is just going to build your aerobic base, so on your solo and long runs, just focus on getting the miles and time in, and don't worry about speed. Laura and Amber - you're coming off of post marathon and half-marathon lay-offs. Alex, you've been running like a fiend and could use some rest. Debbie's coming back from an injury. The heat and humidity are also going to take some getting used to. So, go easy and be OK with whatever time you turn in. There'll be another phase where we work on speed.

You're still getting plenty of hills, though given the flatness of the Chicago course, I might minimize it a bit, but will probably at least end each run with a short uphill, just like the stupid one at 800 meters from the finish.

Most importantly, get out there and do your damned runs. You've all spent $125 on registration, $226 on flights, you'll be spending money for the hostel and post-race booze and pizza. This is not something you can half-ass. You're buying into an opportunity to have a good time, but to run a great race that you'll always remember. But every day for the next six months, you have to make the right choices, or it's all for nothing. Got it? Good.

Texas Round-Up Race Plan

2009-04-24T08:40:00.001-07:00

Hey, everyone that's running the Round-Up tomorrow,

Sorry not to get this out sooner. On the other hand, you all know the drill by now - you went to the Round-Up website and looked at the course and elevation map - http://www.texasroundup.org/10K_5K_Race/Race_Route.aspx

You may have even driven the course...

I'm actually working the race - you may see me around the start, and after, I'll be at the Awards stage. I might be able to hit breakfast with you guys at some point, we'll just have to see how things are going. I need to earn the sweet Nike schwag I got.

So, if you guys want to meet up before the race, I'd recommend doing it on the small stairs just across MLK from where Congress ends.

The race starts at 8, so you work backwards - I think you're using the D-chips (disposable), so that's not something you have to plan for. There'll be 4,000-5,000, I believe, so some of you will want to be fairly close to the front. You should all figure on getting to the start by 7:40. You'll want that last bit of bathroom time - this is a Conley Sports run race, so you know there'll be enough porta potties (though someone's always gonna complain), but there'll still be lines. So, plan on being in line by 7:25.

It would be good to get in about a 10-minute warmup, followed by some light drills, just to get loose. I suggest running your warmup in campus, on Speedway - it's nice and flat, and shouldn't have traffic. You can probably just run down to Dean Keeton and back - that's about a mile. The warm-up should be easy and chatty, just to get the blood flowing, but every now and then, do a "pick up", where you increase the speed just a little, just for 20-30 seconds.

For drills, do side-to-side, over and under, high knees, butt kicks (gently - just get loose), and a little backwards - carefully.

OK, so the course. It's going to be tight, I think. I think we have four lanes of roadway going from the start at 18th and Congress up to 15th, but still - it's a lot of people. I am not certain how the 5K and 10K will be split (I missed that meeting, sorry), but pay attention to that when you go to the start.

So, don't get pushed outside or pinched inside on the first couple of turns. Don't run over the curbs - it's asking for a turned ankle in a pack like that.

Use the first mile to get into a rhythm. Some of you that ran 10K's recently should know what your pace feels like. Try to get close to that, but don't push too much - you have hills ahead.

Right turn on 15th - a tiny hill

Right turn on Lavaca - just a very, very slight uphill grade, nothing to worry about.

Left on MLK, into a short downhill

Right on Guadalupe - a very slight upward grade. Mile one is probably somewhere in front of the tower.

Right on Dean Keeton - for those of you that ran the marathon this year or the Human Race last year, here's your payback - you're running down Dean Keeton. Here, as before, keep your form. You're going to pick up speed, regardless, but don't let it push your heart rate up much at all, and don't let it increase the impact or load on your quads too much. Form, form, form. You have to remember that you're running down into a small valley, and you've got to come up the other side. Use this time to relax and prepare - you're still going to pick up time.

When you get to San Jacinto, you start going up. Mandy and Kristin may be on this corner doing their Cover Girl thing. Wave hi, point at your Spiridon shirt, and get a shout-out.

Here, many people are going to have blown it out down the hill, and here's where you'll pass them as you go slow and steady. It's long to get to the top, then you have another shorter down-and-up, so you've got to keep your heart rate under control, and your legs from getting into lactate threshhold problems - you need to stay loose and just chug up it. You will lose time going up this, most likely, but that's fine. The course will give and take.

Mile 2 is somewhere along this hill.

When you pass the law school (big white boring building) on your right, it levels off slightly for a bit, and with just one more incline ahead. Also, when you pass the law school, think of me and give it the bird.

At Red River, you crest the hill, and go under I-35 - it's steep, so be careful. And, you have to come up the other side, but it's a short one - nothing like Crazy 8's or Rainbow.

Right turn on Lafayette, before you get to Hoover's. This is the other location Mandy and Kristin might be at.

When you cross Manor, the street you're on becomes Chicon. We've done much of this run. From here, you have a long downhill. Take this with a huge grain of salt, but I feel like this is a good decision point. If you've had an easy time of it, this is a good place to increase your pace. But be mindful of the fact that the downhill doesn't last long, and you'll have 50-foot elevation change rollers for a couple of miles after that. You can't increase too much.

You can think about your breathing:

1. Let's say you you exhale as your left foot strikes
2. Right strikes
3. Left strikes (if you're exhaling again, you're at about 5K or better pace, and you're screwed)
4. Right strikes - maybe you exhale here, and you're probably OK, depending on how good your conditioning is, but it's probably just a little fast
5. Left foot strikes - this is probably the safer timing

Now, I don't mean for you to try to time your breathing with your footstrikes, but if you don't have a real good sense of your pace, it'll help. Remember, the relationship of pace to breathing is not coincidental or arbitrary - you breathe harder because of what your cells require to burn fuel to do what you're asking of your body. Ask too much, and it can only do so much before fatigue sets in or you hit your lactate threshhold.

Mile 3 is about halfway down, probably around E. 14th/16th

Anyway.

You get a bit of uphill right before 11th, but I don't think it's too bad.

Right on 11th - flat, as I recall. Mile 4 is around Concho.

Left on Comal - downhill

Right on 7th - short uphill

Right on Navasota - very slight, probably imperceptible uphill grade

Left on 11th - again, you've been here before. Nice easy downhill, and somewhere around San Marcos or Curve Street is mile 5 - one mile to go. Time to pick up the pace. Maybe start exhaling on that 3 instead of 4, and see how that feels. Remember, it's just a mile, but it's still a mile.

Around Nueces, you have one of the last tests - a short uphill to San Jac, but you know the downhill on the other side, with just a very short, insignificant uphill after that. It doesn't matter now, because you should be really going.

Right on Colorado.

A little 13th-Lavaca-14th bump to the left, to the left. All this is very slightly uphill, but not enough to keep you from maintaining or increasing your pace. If you're not hurting a little when you hit 14th, you need to go. This is far easier than most of your workouts. Work.

Right on 15th, real briefly.

Left on Congress, and it's three blocks of slight downhill. Stay relaxed, but pick up your footspeed and go, go, go.

I truly believe this can be a fast course, if you run it right. Come look for me afterwards and tell me how it went, and good luck...

Filler.

2009-02-18T08:01:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm catching up with work BS and other stuff, as well as trying to regain my taste for beer and finding spare moments to lay very still and moan quietly to myself. I'll get a race report written tonight - in the meantime, send me yours, and I'll put those up, too.

So, because I was asked to do so, let's start on a low note (specifically, E):

showtime

2009-02-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

in keeping with the marathon's green theme, this, from february 2005, gets recycled.

no iPod necessary tonight. i'm at the bar at halcyon, lovely cold amber bubbling in a glass before me.

tom petty's playing - an american girl. earlier, journey, separate ways.

the songs of my youth. my youth - what a weird phrase to use. few memories exist where the radio isn't playing. i remember life marked out in time with music, with rock and roll, on KLBJ, on Z-102, on cassette tapes and eventually cd's.

i'm riding high. i feel myself rushing towards the surface from the depths, like one of the bubbles in my beer, driving smoothly upwards towards the heavens.

i went to take this picture after work, a mission that has bugged me for days. my coworker felipe went with me, walked part of the way, stayed behind to make a phone call. i ran across and along the access road, free on our first clear and crisp day in weeks, running past the people and the cars mired in rush hour traffic. i ran instinctively to a point on the grassier verge, turned, brought the camera up to my eye, and there through the viewfinder was the sun, low in the sky now, backlighting a glowing brushstroke of a cloud, and there, the sign, yellow, saying simply, "showtime."

on tuesday, i was awash in emotions. maybe illness or fatigue, but a few times that day, i was overwhelmed, and i felt the warmth build up behind my eyes, before i'd push it all back. but one moment that day hit me more squarely, more firmly, as i drove up to the Runtex Store for Psychotic Running People, and saw the sign.

i had run my first half-marathon a couple of weeks ago. and as important as it was, as an accomplishment, and a catharsis, it still seemed like a part of the preparation for the freescale half-marathon.

so, i didn't understand why, as i saw the sign, but even now, thinking of it, i feel again the same warmth, the same tightening in the throat. and this time, the words on the page blur in my vision, and the ink itself begins to blur in drops on the page.

there is so much in a life, so much to feel and know and remember, but nevertheless, there are those moments and events that we single out, that resonate more deeply for us, that we know will linger.

so much of life is preparing, so often for dreams, worthwhile or misguided, that may or may not come true.

this thing, preparing for this run, is a small thing for some runners, a small thing in this life, certainly a small thing in this world, but still... so many miles. so much effort, so much wanting and needing. so much love and encouragement from so many people, lifelong friends, new friends, old loves, even strangers, even from a friend now gone. so much wanting to help, to be a part of something, so much help from people for that friend's daughter, for a little girl they may never meet.

i hear all the footsteps run, all the pavement and trail underfoot, i hear all those voices, i hear my own, cursing myself, praising myself, i feel everything of the last four months, i feel the echoes of preparations and hopes of a life already long but not done, all saying steadily, confidently, now, "showtime."

taper madness in the workplace...

2009-02-12T06:54:00.000-08:00

Before my first marathon in 2006, until, not coincidentally, a few days after my first marathon, I used to have a "real" lawyer job, a permanent one with benefits and suits and ties and all. Well, not really, because I worked for the state (sorry, Jenn). I was an attorney for the Board of Dental Examiners - we licensed and regulated dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, and propane accessories, or something to that effect. My office was on the 8th floor of the Hobby Building, across from Gingerman (which is why I still have sweet parking), and it looked out at Auditorium Shores. There, that week, I first experienced the full sweep of taper madness...

good afternoon, this is rob.

yes. yes, ma'am. i see. well, tell me what happ... oh, snap, i can see the finish line from my office. i didn't realize that...

what? oh, no, please, go ahead.

right. i see. so the dentist pulled the wrong tooth. because he was drunk. on absynthe. wow, that's different. real different. no, different is good. no, not so much for you, of course not.

ok, ma'am, i understand you're very upset, and in what you understand to be "pain." yes, ma'am, i made the air quotes. that was very perceptive of you. now, i grant you, you sound like you've got about 10 packets of banana blast gu in your maw, but i think you need to put this in perspective. now, i...

i'm sorry? hello, it's a carb replacement energy gel. well, maybe if you turned off matlock and got off your ass, you'd have known that.

uh, no ma'am, i said... if jews turned over and cottoned giraffes, you'd have known that. no, ma'am that doesn't make sense, but it's ok, i'm a runner. i mean, an attorney.

so, look, i feel for you, but i mean, it's not like you've got, say, an IT band problem, or a stress fracture, or plantar fasciitis. heard of that? yeah, i got that. i get these pains in my feet that go up my ankle, and they annoy me and make me want to kick my cats, if it wouldn't, you know, hurt my feet. plus, they'll sleep next to my legs the night before the run and keep the hammies warm. no ma'am those aren't small hams.

you can file a complaint online, on our website. you don't need to talk to me. especially today. i mean... are you... are you talking to me? are you talkin' to me? cause... i don't see anyone else that's running a marathon this sunday.

you know, i shouldn't even be at work right now. i mean, what the hell? i'm making calls trying to see what the hell the hold-up is with sunday. i think my calendar is slow. i should be home stress-testing my socks, and making sure there's no exposed elastic in the liner of my shorts. i should be hanging upside down in a vat full of icewater and listening to some ice cube, ac/dc, and mars volta to keep me mentally prepared. i shouldn't be here sneaking monopolova into my iced tea at work.

but here i am, listening to your petty problems. oh, a golf-ball sized abscess? oozing pus? yeah, well, i got a toenail i could show ya that'd make you gag. what? a fever? A FEVER? you wanna talk about hot - do you know the temp outside? it's 79 DAMN DEGREES! the wind is gusting up to 16 mph from the SOUTH! that's a headwind! what? why in god's name would anyone be going north on sunday morning? are you mental?

i need sunday morning's temperatures to curve smoothly from 38 degrees at 7:00 am, to 50 at about 11:30. i need low humidity. and a tailwind. i was promised a tailwind. i converted to catholicism two weeks ago just to get low humidity and a tailwind. so help me god, and i mean that literally, i'll go aetheist!

no, i'm not spending taxpayer money staying glued to weather websites. i opened a personal credit card to pay a meteoroligist to sit in my office and give me verbal reports every ten minutes, freeing me up to study the course map carefully during my work hours. i don't know, he used to work in portland, then there was something about a career day visit to the local highschool. not important, except it made him a little more affordable.

so, you know, it's easy for you to sit there and mumble, with very poor diction, i might add, "look at me, my 72 year-old negligently mangled mouth hurts, i might die from the infection. wahhhh." but sunday morning, while you're watching faux news and gumming some pureed scrambled eggs, ima be at about mile 14, schvitzing through whatever nike dri-fit shirt i finally decide on, hoping the bandaids hold on over my nipples, and trying to focus on the hot girl in the black tights in front of me, hoping it'll distract me from the weird twinge of pain in my left ass cheek.

yeah, you're damn right. no, don't cry, you didn't know. now you do. call me back on tuesday. afternoon.

The Grand Finale

2009-02-11T07:23:00.000-08:00

OK, so, I've left just the last I left the half marathoners at 12.5 and the marathoners at 25.4 or so, both at 15th and San Jacinto, where the courses rejoin each other. Clearly, you won't rally be reuniting at this point, but we've run this entire season as a team, sharing the experience of training, differentiated only by numbers here and there. When you get to this point, get it in your head that we're all back together here at this intersection as a team, and we're all heading for home.

You have this one last hill, but it's nothing, and you have, at most, a couple of laps of the track left. When Phillip and I ran Austin in 2006, the first for both of us, this hill was at mile 20 or so, which sucked severely.

And now, at the end of your race, you can't let it slow you down. Form form form, strong strong strong. At the top, you turn right onto 11th, and you get a downhill. Let it take you. Be careful and in control, because you'll likely be a little tight at this point.

Left turn on Congress, and it's glory time. Mandy's band is to the right, the crowds are all around, and let me tell you, they love to see a good finish, whether it's for first or four thousandth. You sped up coming down the hill - hold that pace coming out of the turn.

The finish line is closer this year - nice, right? It's about in front of Kellie's building, I think, just short of 9th Street. When you hit 10th, kick it up a notch. Adrenaline can even knock out cramps and a good deal of pain. Start picking runners in front of you and passing them, one by one. Run fast by being quick and relaxed - more like strides (not you, Laura) than sprinting - if you try to push yourself too hard, you risk pulling a hamstring or something. Stay relaxed and in control, and just finish strong. Run all the way through the finish, and get yer damned shiny, shiny medal.

OK, so of course, I've got more to say. I'll save some of it for race morning. For now, it's enough to say that you are ready for this race. You've put in the time and the work, and yeah, I'll put our training up against anyone's. It's taken a village - you've gotten what great coaches taught me, and some of the great coaches in Austin have been there for me when I had questions or needed help. You're a product of the absolute best of the Austin running community, in terms of experience and knowledge, and in terms of heart and soul - you came into this group understanding that we don't do elitist, we don't do uppity, we don't do rude, and we know the difference between being a team and having a mob mentality.

You're a product of each other's support, and each other's experiences, successes, mistakes, good runs and bad runs.

And who you are now is obviously a product of the work you've put in, and of the goals and hopes that made you take this task on, have gotten you through the tough workouts and moments of doubt, and have gotten you here, ready to get to the starting line.

Ultimately, I'm proud of the product, of you all as runners, but I am even more proud of all those things that shaped you. Times, distance run, even Boston or Olympic qualifying, are all inadequate measures of an individual, of their will and their character. "The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare." Running 13.1 miles or 26.2 miles is a stunt - an impressive one, but just a stunt. But training as you have, and committing to make the hard choices to do your best, is an accomplishment and a true testament to your character. And, I believe that it is impossible for that not to affect the rest of your life, and the people around you.

That's the point of it all, for me, and I hope for you. Have fun with the run Sunday - you've all earned it.

Austin M&HM Race Plan: The Back Half

2009-02-10T06:49:00.000-08:00

When we last left our intrepid band of questionably intelligent runners, the marathoners, clearly not understanding there was another option, took a left turn onto Exposition, while the only slightly smarter half marathoners took the shorter way back to the finish...

Half marathoners, skim through this - there's stuff to help you, too. Also, remember, if you're looking at the map, the mile marker marks the end of that mile, not the beginning...

Miles 11 and 12: The End of the Beginning
OK, so the marathoners are not off the dragon's back yet, but only have a little over a mile left to ride through it. You've all run it enough times that you'll probably unconsciously avoid potholes. And, for those of you who ran the Double Dragon, just think to yourself, "Well, at least I only have to do it once today."

Here, form, form, form. The road should open up a bit with the half marathoners turning off. Get out of the camber on the sides, and run the crown of the road, or at least out where it's a little flatter.

You get the short climb, then the long climb up to Windsor, then you've got a little reprieve until the big hill going up to Westover. Do not worry about your time here - this hilly portion is just a couple of miles out of 26.2. Don't burn yourself up now, when you could be conservative and have more in the tank later. Just get up the hill, balancing your pace and your energy output. Keep your head up, and your hips pressed into the hill. Roll all the way through your foot with every stride. There will be some crowd support here, but you should really be able to hear the crowd and the band at the top. Let that draw you up the hill.

When you get to the top, relax, shake it out. You've got another, oft-overlooked hill going up to 35th, and the climb to the peak of the bridge over Mopac is always a bit harder than I expect. Cherish this - it's not the last hill, but it's the last for another 9 or 10 miles, and it's the last of the hilly sections.

Now you get a downhill to Jackson, where you make a left turn.

Miles 13-18: Where the Hell Am I and What the Hell Am I Doing?
I always think this point is a little disorienting, which is bad, since I'm already only half Asian. HA! Sorry. Anyway, by this time, the initial excitement of the race has worn off, you enter neighborhoods where the crowds are spottier, and you've gotten through the section that people are stressed about, and that presented a set of challenges for you. From here on out, it's just a matter of running, and running, and running.

You can't lose purpose or discipline here, and your priority now is to get back on pace. If you feel good, you might be tempted to speed up, thinking it's flat from here on out. I would advise against that - it's not flat, for one thing - it's mostly a low, uphill grade until you get up to Great Northern, and then, of course, there's Great Northern. Really, you're not going to get significant flat or downhill until you turn onto Woodrow. And, there's always that other thing - you've got 14 miles left to run.

So, trust me, it's not as simple a calculation as it seems - "Gee, I've run the 12 hard miles, and I feel good. I should speed up." Well, maybe, maybe not. You've run 18, 20, 22 miles, and you should remember how the miles catch up to you quickly near the tail end of those distances. And, that four tacked onto the end of 22 aren't exactly a cakewalk. So, no matter how good you feel, just use these next four miles to see how you feel getting back on and staying on your marathon goal pace. If you dropped a bit of pace in the hills, that's fine - be patient, pick up just a little time on each mile until you get back to pace.

You'll take a right turn at 39th through a little neighborhood, then a left on Bull Creek. You hit the halfway point on Bull Creek, near 45th. Yihah. You cruise up to Hancock, take a right, go down a little hill and up a little hill. Again, just maintain pace.

Again, there's not a lot to say about these miles. You're running. You're trying to stay on the flat parts of the street, off the camber. It the sun's out, you stay in the shade. You're staying relaxed. If you feel things tightening up, change things up a little - butt kick lightly for a few strides, pull the knees a bit higher for a few, run slightly stiff-legged, kicking lightly out in front of you a bit.

There's a small incline up White Rock to Great Northern, then you enter, as I always think of it, what Douglas Adams might have called "the long, dark, teatime of the soul." Long and flat, the road itself is numbing, even discouraging for some people, and you're entering the true "middle miles" of the race. You've been on this road and on those miles, so you know them well. You know both better than the majority of the other runners out there. So, this is a good test of your where you're at with your pace. If you hold pace well here, and you get through mile 16 and up to Foster, and still feel just outstanding, then you can start thinking about turning up the pace, though I don't think I'd put too much effort into that just yet, at least not until you make the turn south.

If you do increase your pace, start planning in your head. Plan on just increasing your pace by just five seconds or so, and holding that pace up to mile 20, where you can reassess it then.

You might be at a point where you seriously doubt your ability to maintain your pace for the rest of the race. You're at an important decision point, and only you can truly make that choice. I will say that if you held on up to Great Northern, don't let your performance on Great Northern decide the rest of your race. It's a tough stretch of road. Just hold on, do your best, try to run comfortably for now, and make any real decisions after mile 18.5, when you've turned back south and into the downhills and flats.

At Foster, behind Northcross, you should see some crowds again, which should really help. You also know that you've hit the uppermost point of the course, and soon you'll be heading home. Let it boost you, but if you're considering upping your pace a little, again, think back to your training runs, and ahead to the final miles, and carefully weigh your decision.

Finishing mile 18, you're halfway down Morrow. Start looking at the ridiculous blue line we painted down the street - it'll be there for quite a while. Think of it as a big blue thread pulling you down the course.

Mile 18.5-24: Homeward Bound
I refer to the Simon and Garfunkel song, not the ridiculous Disney movie, though, if the ridiculous Disney movie works better for you... whatever.

At 18.5, you turn the corner south onto Woodward, and you're on your way to the finish. You're close to the end of the dreaded "middle miles", and the elevation profile finally starts trending downhill. This is another good spot to relax, shake out the arms, and hit the mental and physical "reset" button. If you're looking at the finish at this point, it's going to seem improbably far. You still want to break it into manageable chunks, a few or a couple of miles at a time. It's like when we do repeats - you don't want to think about the total mileage you have left, it's easier to think about the repeat you're on right then, and worry about the next one later.

These are flat to slightly downhill streets. If you struggled through the middle miles, try to regain a relaxed rhythm. If you're feeling strong, and have easily maintained your pace, you again have to choose whether to hold where you are, or give the pace a little nudge.

Most of us are going to have felt discomfort and maybe a bit of pain by now. We've all had little to large "dings" in the past six months, little to large aches and pains, and we all know what we really need to be concerned about, and what we can safely push ourselves through. If you're hurting here, don't dwell on it, but don't just try to ignore it, either - take a zen approach, or rather, a zazen approach. It's like meditation. People think they have to clear their mind, and they end up getting all mentally bunched up by trying not to think. Acceptance (but not resignation) is the better way - go through your body from head to toe. Think about how you feel. Look at it like you're picking up a shiny object, then put it back down. Go through it all, then be done with it.

I also know that all that zen stuff is a matter of practice, and sometimes just too hard to do. If it doesn't work for you, then just... don't give up, right?

Down Woodward and Arroyo Seco, left on Romeria, and back onto Woodrow, all the way to North Loop. Again, all you have to worry about is getting in, and/or staying in your rhythm and pace.

North Loop is a little challenge, but you're not running the full length of it like you did at 3M - this is relatively easy. If you've been struggling or just been holding on, let it take a little pace from you - conserve your effort to get you to the finish, or for where it's better used. If you're feeling good, try to minimize how much it takes from your time, but don't burn yourself up.

You turn right on Guadalupe, left on 46th. 46th kind of gently undulates ahead of you, up and down, and you can still see that blue thread of a line from last year, pulling you down it.

Left turn on Avenue H, right on 49th, and then, glory be, right turn onto Duval, and all it's glorious, perfect-decline downhills. You should start getting some more people out there cheering, and you're in more familiar territory, approaching the UT campus and all those students with their Sunday morning hang-overs. Take it all as a sign that you're close, you're out of the suburban and mental wilderness, and returning to center, where there's going to be lots of people supporting you.

There's a slight uphill just past 45th street. Don't think about the effort, think about the form. That will carry you through, and will make you feel stronger.

You're close. You have to make choices here about the balance between banking time and energy on these downhills, with the major thing in mind being what comes at the end of the downhill...

Mile 25-25.9: The Gut-Check, and the Flow to the Finish
OK. So, you knew before most people the changes in the course, and you ran the new course before most people, and you all know about Dean Keeton. Some of you ran the Human Race, that cruel August evening adventure, that had you running up this hill late in the race. From what I can recall, you marathoners have all run this, and run it well - you've beaten it, and on Sunday, you will not have run 24 miles just to be beaten by a hill that a bunch of out-of-shape engineering students and sorority girls jog up on a daily basis.

If you have not walked, or walked much, by now, then unless you get a cramp or something that really medically concerns you, you will not walk now. Be determined, pull your form together, decide you're going to look better and stronger than all the people dying around you. At the same time, when you see someone struggling up it with you, encourage them, tell them to keep moving, to come with you. Decide you're stronger, more experienced, and that you're there to set the example for the others. Don't push the pace, just be strong and steady. This is the hill that people will talk about, and you're going to be proud of how you took it on.

When you get to the top, it's time to think about finishing this damned thing. You've got a slight downhill shooting straight down the Drag. Trust that your breathing will catch up on its own coming off the hill, and maintain effort. Focus on being light and loose and striding easy.

At the left turn onto MLK, you've finished 25 miles, and you get the reward for your effort on Dean Keeton - an equally long downhill. Relax, and do what you can without burning out just yet.

Right turn on San Jacinto - a long, slight grind up to the last hill. It is too late to drop form or pace - hang on.

At 15th, the half marathon course rejoins you (though they will be long done). We'll finish together tomorrow...

The Austin M&HM Race Plan, Part One

2009-02-09T08:04:00.000-08:00

OK, so I still see no need to completely reinvent the wheel with this, though it is updated a bit from last year, due to course changes, and to the continuing process of figuring this course out. Half marathoners and marathoners share the first ten miles, of course, so let's get through those together first:

This is a different race…If you ran 3M, do not take this race for granted. This race is an entirely different experience. Race management at 3M was all about regulating pace, and getting through a very few gently sloping uphills. The Austin Half, and the first 12 miles for the marathoners, will be more about intelligence, maturity and patience as it will be force of will.

Despite the difference in the elevation profile from the old Freescale courses or from 3M, this course can still be fairly fast, if you manage it properly. Many people who ran their first half at 3M will actually run faster here, just with the benefit of that bit of experience. If you’re smart and patient about the hills, you won’t give up too much time, and you’ll get enough long downward slopes to recover and catch a little of that time back. If you fail to manage the hills, going at them too hard and fast, you will pay the price with your pace later, and you won’t get the full benefit of the downward slopes.

Prepare, Yada, Yada, Yada
I won’t rehash all the stuff from my previous novel on pre-race prep, but I will emphasize that you need to be PARKED, AND ON SITE AT 6AM. No excuses, no flexibility. The race is incredibly well organized, and has been planned to cover almost every eventuality. In its first year with the downtown start/finish, parking and traffic proved to not be a problem. But the facts remain – 13,000 runners will be trying to get to a downtown start/finish, and many routes into the race area will be getting sealed off after 6am. I know the traffic plan for the route, and can answer individual questions about the best routes to take from different locations. You can also check out the traffic guide, which should be online shortly.

Have a plan, and two backup plans, for how to get to the start, and for where you’ll park.

Make sure you pack your clothing drop bag the night before. Warm, dry clothes, a small towel (you should always know where your towel is), even some shoes for after the race. Put your ID and a bit of cash in your shoe or wrapped up in something where it won’t come out, so you can buy some extra food or drink after the race from the Farmer’s Market.

There are no pace groups for the half, but you can get in with one of the full marathon pace groups for the first ten miles. So, if you’re looking at a 2:15 half marathon, get in with the 4:30 pace group (NOT THE 2:15! HA!). The pace group leaders almost always do a great job of running a flat, constant pace, and there are two for every pace, to help ensure consistency. Still, be prepared to run your own race. For one thing, you might want to drop a little pace in the hilly sections.

The starting chute will be divided by signs into various per-mile paces. Use those to place yourself.

The Course: Slaying Dragons
So, I’m not a Harry Potter fan, and I got tired of Dungeons and Dragons really quickly, but I tend to think of challenging parts of a race course as dragons. In running and looking at this course a couple of years ago, I began to think of it as one dragon in three parts. I think you can do the same with the half marathon course, because I refuse to ditch the metaphor. That’s why the runs a week ago were called the Dragon.5 (NOT the Dragon "5", Eve, and you have no proof survives, um, exists, to the contrary), or the Double Dragon.

You can choose to view the dragon, this course, as your opponent, or your friend, whatever works for your psychology, but either way, you need to understand it.

You’ve run all of the course many times over, in pieces, but again, familiarity is one of your best weapons. Drive the course, study the map, the elevation profile, run through the course in your mind as much as you can. Let’s run through it here…

Mile 1-3: Enter the Dragon
The tendency of almost all runners, not just Amy and Susan, is to go out too fast, caught up in their own adrenaline, fooled by their fresh legs, and lured into the mob mentality of the people around them that are suffering from the same afflictions. It really is like an amped-up warrior charging a dragon head-on. It looks impressive until the warrior gets summarily bitten in half or burnt to a crisp.

IF YOU GO OUT TOO FAST IN THIS RACE, IT WILL SUCK MORE LATER THAN IT NEEDS TO.

You’re going to climb over 250 feet in about 3 miles. So, look at those first three miles as your warm-up. For those of you trying to run at a certain pace, you have to let yourself be a little slower, even if its 30 seconds or even a minute per mile - you've got to keep your effort low this early on, particularly going uphill. If you're starting to breathe quite a bit harder, back off, and just relax.

You have got to get it firmly in your head that using too much energy and muscle now is going to take more than its fair share from you later in the race. That 30 seconds you give up may allow you to run faster splits at the end of the race, whereas forcing yourself to not give up that 30 seconds might make you lose minutes at the end of the race. I have foolishly proven it time and again, myself - start a marathon shooting for a 4:10, when I should have gone for a 4:20 or even a 4:30, and end up running a 4:45. Especially if this is your first marathon, do it right.

Let the crowd slow you down – don’t waste too much energy trying to dodge around people. Look around, soak in the experience. Wave at the bands, the crowds, thank the police officers (but don't waste energy or breath yelling or speeding up in response to the crowds, either). Look at all the shops. Be aware of your surroundings – what’s the address of the San Jose Motel? Does Guero’s look open? What flavors are up on the Amy’s Ice Cream menu? What brand is the giant boot? Do what it takes to calm yourself, and slow down.

As for the hill on South Congress, it’s not as bad as it looks, if you treat it with respect. It actually breaks into several chunks, with short flats in between. Treat it as multiple short hills, and enjoy those little recoveries. Use these first hills to set the precedence for your hill-climbing form for the day. Head up, hips pressed into the hill ahead of you, arms relaxed but setting the pace for your legs.

When you get to about Mary Street, past the first mile, it seems to level off, but you still have a very slight grade all the way past Oltorf, through the second mile, pretty much to Cumberland. When a race starts on hills like this, it’s hard to get into a groove. It’s easy to get down on yourself and think you’re not running well, and that you’ll never make your pace. The dragon that is this course gets help from the dragons of fear and doubt that reside in us. You’ve got to do battle with them, too. Accept the course for what it is, know there will be ups and downs, and be confident in all the work you’ve put in. When you get a true flat or even a slight downhill, don't speed up, just relax, take a breath, and feel yourself recovering.

When you’re approaching the turn at Krebs, look up ahead to see how the crowd is shaping up around the corner. You don’t want to get caught too far inside, where you might be forced over the curb, and you don’t want to be pushed to the outside. Pick a line through the corner and stick with it. If it gets crowded in this or any other turn, be light on your feet in case they bump someone else’s, and if someone in front of you is pushing you in or out, give them a very light, quick touch on the elbow to let them know you’re there.

Left turn, then a right onto the Alley Known As Ft. McGruder. It might get tight, here, but not for long. Get through the last bit of hill, and look for the crowds there - we're doing everything we can to push that as a big crowd site. I wanted rock and roll, but there's going to be some school choir there. Whatever, maybe they'll rock "If You Seek Amy".

Once you get to South First, if you’ve been disciplined, then you’ve bopped the dragon soundly on the head. Great. Don’t get cocky.

Mile 3.25-6: Glide.
You turn right on South First, and start to drop that 250 feet back off over the next 2 miles. You still have to be smart, though – this stretch is just as dangerous as the uphills you just conquered.

When you turn the corner, I want you to think again about relaxing, shake your arms out, loosen your neck and shoulders, then focus on settling into an easy pace. This is where I think you should start feeling like you’re running a race, which just means getting your head together and settling into a rhythm.

Do not try to make up time. This is another stretch where people are going to ruin their day by failing to be smart and mature. If you run it properly, and with some restraint, you’re going to get some time back, and you’re going to bank some energy, as well. On some of the steeper downhill portions, you might even put the brakes on a bit – but not too much. You need to control your pace, minimizing impact, and keeping your turnover rate from getting so high you’re actually taxing your lungs and legs. But, you don’t want to be really jamming on the brakes, either, because you’ll burn out your quads. It’s like driving a car down a mountainside – you have to finesse the brakes so you control your speed without burning them up. You’ve all worked on finding that balance – do it.

You’ll come down onto level ground past Whataburger and RunTex. You’ll feel the incline going over the South First Street bridge, then you'll hear the crowds and the St. James Missionary Baptist Church men's chorus rocking it out as you turn left onto Cesar Chavez, for the better half of what we all know and loathe as the Dog Pound Loop.

Again, draw energy from the crowd support and the music, but don’t let it affect your pace. Thank the crowd with a smile and a wave, and store that energy away for later.

Miles 6-9.25 - The Part Where You Just Run
Once you turn left onto Cesar Chavez, you’re in for the long stretches that lay between you and the dragon’s back. Please don’t tell me you’ve already forgotten my overworked metaphor… you’re fighting dragons here, remember? At this point, you’re pretty much on the dragon’s neck.

I don’t feel there’s a lot to say about these bits of the course. That’s why there’s no clever titles for these miles. You just run, and you stay disciplined and patient about your pace. You’ll get some long slow downgrades, and a few shorter inclines. Maybe you feel pretty good, and you're wanting to go - if so, do the math, and remember some of your long runs where you might have felt great at eight miles, then a few miles later... not so much. Just stay relaxed, and hold your pace. This part of the course may be boring, but it’s not insignificant, because they set you up for the hills that start at Enfield.

At about 7.75 miles, after you come out from under the Mopac Bridge on Veteran’s, you have the hill that goes up by the fire station and up to Lake Austin Blvd., across from Magnolia Café. It’s steep and a little long. But how many times have you run up this? You’re on your turf now. You have the homefield advantage, and you should feel comfortable here. Just think about all those poor sods that are from Dallas or Houston, and wouldn't have a chance in hell at matching you on the hill workouts you've done. When you hit the street that comes down from RunTex, shake out the arms and hands, relax, and roll easily into the hill. When you see the fire station and Daily Juice (because your head's up, right?), I want you to think about your form, and about keeping your hips under you and pressing them into the hill. Reinforce that good form.

There’s about a two-mile stretch down Lake Austin. Again, this is old hat to you. It’s just not a big deal. It is boring. Sorry. This spot often sees some wind - if you start feeling the wind giving you a lot of resistance, tuck in behind a group of runners, and draft. It makes a difference, and it makes you feel that much smarter than everyone else.

Miles 9.25-10: On the Back of the Dragon
So, at the end of Lake Austin, you turn right onto Enfield, right into what all the fuss is about for those that whine about the course. But again, you’ve all been here, trained here. You marathoners ran it twice a couple of weeks ago. You’re on the dragon’s back, and there’s not much he can do about it. He will writhe up and down, but you’re just going to hold on, maintain your form, keep your wits about you, and ride the hills like you have in training runs before, for not quite a mile.

At Exposition, almost exactly ten miles in, the marathoners and half marathoners will split off. I’ll continue with the half marathon course for a ways here, and wrap up both courses tomorrow.

So, the half marathoners have just a 5K left. You’re sliding down the dragon’s back, but it's going to go up again. So, again, relax from the head down, shake out your arms, and take advantage of the downhill towards Mopac. Again, as before, do not fly down this. Strike that balance. Use this to relax and gather your strength for your finish. You’ll still pick up a little pace just naturally. You want to do that and regain your energy.

Miles 10.8-12.6: The Dragon’s Tail (Well, One of Them)
Coming out from under Mopac, you get a smallish uphill. Remember your form. Keep your head up, think about your hips, and focus on being smooth and strong.

When you get to the top, just past West Lynn, make a decision. If you feel like you’ve got a lot left in the tank, and can pick up the pace, then this is the time to do it. If you do increase pace, DO IT GRADUALLY. Keep it under control, and keep it smart - you’ve been through enough workouts that you should be able to feel what you have left in you.

Remember, too, that the dragon has one last true challenge for you – the uphill at mile 11.7 or so, coming off the Lamar Street overpass on 15th Street. It’s a steep one. Even the female half marathon winner a couple of years ago commented on being surprised by this hill. You won't be. You've run it, and you've run more hills, tougher hills, than most training groups do - it's not Wilke, and it's not as painful as the Spiridon Reverse Cowboy Rainbow Repeats.

There’s a long downhill coming into it – maintain a strong, but relaxed pace. At this point, let the downhill carry you a little more than you might have earlier in the race, but still, keep it under control. Remember back to the workout in Clarksville, on Pressler, on the street with the crazy yelling guy, where you maintained your form down the hill, and worked on a slightly quicker, relaxed turnover. Find that day's groove again.

Relax and gather yourself to take that big hill. Hit it, and let it take just a little off your pace. It’s steep, that’s OK - you'd rather be able to put more into that last mile. Hold your form together – on a hill this steep, if you run with your hips under you, when you hit the top, you’ll feel a release, and it’ll feel good as you transition into another nice long downhill.

When you reach the top, relax, take some good breaths, and remember – you don’t have to slow down, because the effort you needed to climb the hill just dropped off. Trust that, and let your breath come back to you as you go down the hill a couple of blocks. Feet light, relaxed, but a little quick. Get back on your finishing pace.

You get some flat and then a little downhill towards the turn at San Jacinto. Hold your pace, or, if you have it in you, pick up the pace again just barely, and gradually. Let the downhill carry you into it. If there’s someone that’s kept their distance ahead of you for the past several minutes, decide you’re going to slowly catch them over the next few blocks. When you catch them, pick someone else, and go after them.

At San Jac, you rejoin the marathoners. Tomorrow, we'll catch them up to you, then finish it together.

tapering

2009-02-06T12:50:00.000-08:00

I just got a text from one of our marathoners: "Is it weird/bad that I cannot force myself to run this week?"

Mmm... no. Right about now, you're feeling the effects of running fewer miles. You're aware that the race is now not a matter of weeks away, but just one week. You may want to run more, you may feel weirdly unmotivated. people react a bit differently, but it's all the "taper madness".

What do you do? Run the long run tomorrow - it's just seven miles, it'll be over before you know it. It'll be flat, it'll be the last long run of this season with your friends. Enjoy it.

Next week, your runs are short and easy. Decide to get them out of the way. Yesterday, I parked at Doc's for my work happy hour, got out, and ran the first 10K of the course before joining my coworkers. Make each run a recon mission - run a part of the course. Visualize, think about what you'll need to be doing there, think about what it'll be like. Visualize the final miles, the specatators, the finish.

Over this next week, think about why you decided to do this in the first place. Think about how your motivations may have changed as you got deeper into training. Think about the doubts you had, the moments where you thought of giving up. Think about all the support you've had, all the miles you've run, all the times you've said "no" on a Friday night to going out, or another drink, or a heavy meal.

Our lives will go on this next week. But you have worked for six months for this race. You've earned the right to focus on it, to take refuge in it from everything else, at the very least, when you step up to the line on Sunday morning.

I will commit to posting something on here daily over the next week, much of it old stuff that a few of you might have seen on my personal blog. I do this to share, and yeah, because I'm a self-aggrandizing writer, but also because I want you to think about this whole experience.

The following is from October 17, 2006, just five days before the Chicago Marathon (yeah, we ran six days a week - it was an intermediate program):

tapering (five days to go)

emails are flying between my friends and me. no work is getting done. emotions are high. we want to be in chicago right damned now, regardless of the weather (though we update each other on the forecast twice a day). we want to be running it now.

marathoners call it "taper madness" - the wackiness that ensues during the two or three week period before a marathon when we back off the mileage and let our bodies repair and become ready. i ask melissa, a psychologist, if there's a biochemical basis for the weird psychosis. hours pass, i get more emails reminiscing about our favorite coaches, about weather, and finally, "sure. but you are asking me to think in order to formulate an intelligent answer to that. and, i just can't do that right now."

so, i'm left to my own devices. i eat a banana, and stare at the whopping third document i've reviewed today. a normal pace would have me at 60 or so. why are we all losing our minds?

simply put, running is a natural ability, but training for and running a marathon is not a natural thing to do.

we train for 23 weeks. close to a thousand miles run - 30, 40, 50, 60 miles a week. we run four or five days a week. an hour monday, an hour tuesday, a hard workout for an hour and a half on wednesday, cross training or a half hour run on thursday, over an hour on friday, long runs for hours on saturdays.

those hours are squeezed into mornings before work, appended to the end of workdays when you feel like you only have the energy to open a beer and keep the couch from floating away.

people that choose and stick with this path are not likely to say, "I can't," and the training reinforces that. on the other hand, we say it more now than ever - "I can't, gotta run." "I can't, I have a race."

we push ourselves six days a week, for 23 weeks. exertion and fatigue become constants, as does the simple act of consistently, persistently committing ourselves to creating discomfort in our bodies and pressing on anyway.

"The will to win means nothing if you haven't the will to prepare." - Juma Ikangaa, 1989 NYC Marathon winner

it's a compulsion, and if it didn't start as one, it became one along the way. every run says something about us, who we are and what we can do - not about our speed but about our will. sometimes, we're disappointed by how slow we were on a run or in a race, because we're competitive and because sometimes we lose sight of the fact that the time doesn't matter so much as how hard we pushed ourselves to get it.

one day, during a particularly hard workout on a high school
track, a kid leaned out a passing car's window, yelling some line i recognized from a movie about the day of judgment being on us, and asking, "how will ye be judged?"

the immediate response yelled back as i turned down onto the stratghtaway - "by what i do here today."

we watch the chicago marathon highlight video, and the sight of the runners and the cheering crowds shakes us. to some extent, it's adrenaline - fight or flight response positively subverted, adrenaline charges as we recognize the scenario. but we can't do anything with it right now, sitting at our desks, or at home.

we want the race, the pre-run jitters, we want to be surrounded by 40,000 other people who have made the same journey thus far, the same hegira from doubt and unchallenged limitations.

we don't know each other, we might not even like each other if we did, but almost everyone out there "gets it," and we are finishing a journey together, whether it takes us 2:10 or 6:10 to do it.

the thousands of spectators lining the course watch people go by, see the determination and pain, and to some extent, they "get it." some of them will be motivated, as i was two years ago, to make that same commitment, to see what they can make themselves do.

i think again of our head coach, steve sisson, saying that whether it's the first time you cross the finish line, or the 50th, you are not the same person that started it.

the clock, the calendar, are running too slow. my friends and i want and need sunday to get here, so we can do what we have worked so hard to do, as best as we can on that given day. we want to run, so we can cross the finish line and see who we will have become.

3M: Before, During and After...

2009-02-02T20:55:00.000-08:00

Finally, right as Katie is about to leave town, dramatically cutting down her ability to rag on me for not getting the 3M pictures up...

From Friday's pre-race pasta gorgefest, at which I went nuts and ate many meatballs, pictures of pre-sweaty Team Spiridoners wearing their growed-up clothes:

Then, just as the wine and pasta had settled a bit, two days later, everyone showed up and kicked butt (except for Amy, who did her butt-kicking on a 22-mile run the day before, then showed up to cheer us on).

It was the first half marathon for Katie (2:17:38), Susan (2:04:55, in spite of being conservative for seven miles), and the singing duo of Amber (2:22:20 - you couldn't wait two more seconds? Ooh! That's what she said!) and Laura (2:22:16, beating the 2:25-2:30 prediction I made while eating my oatmeal Sunday morning).

(Apparently, Katie's mom likes to make signs. The wedding pictures must have been interesting...)

Super mad shout to Lounell. At San Antonio in November, she came in at 3:00:17 a PR over her 3:02:30 at 3M in 2007... ... Yesterday? 2:48:26. What the hell, Lounell? No, I'm sorry, WTF, Lounell? That is amazing. And you looked smooth and strong at the end, too.

Jim, Eve, and Kellie all motored through it with their usual smooth efficiency (spending too much work time on the email to look up more times on this slow system), and Paul came cruising through, maybe at the tail end of things, but looking strong and ready for the marathon.

Mirsa, who continues on the low-pro (where are you?), was out there, and ran it in 2:12:42.

Sarah led the way for all of us, blazing the race in 1:49:26, which I think she said was a PR for her, coming in ahead of Christina's 1:52:02 (though Chirstina maintains her Spiridon-record 1:47:27 from last year).

Phillip and I didn't see each other before the race, though I saw him duck behind a bush just before the end of the first mile, and played leapfrog with him past mile 5. Yet, by some weird, freak accident, we tied each other - 1:58:47. Phillip has raised the idea of synchronized running as an event... Stay tuned for that.

Afterwards, we were brought right back to the eating and (light) drinking with mimosas and tacos at the Screaming Goat...

Rain or Shine!

2009-01-26T07:01:00.001-08:00

"There's no such thing as bad weather. Just soft people."
- Bill Bowerman, legendary coach guy

In the midst of all this hurricane business, I hear a theoretical tiny, tinny, whiny voice crying out, "But what if it's raining?" Easy - we run in it. Aside from lightning, there's no reason not to run in the rain, and every reason to do it.

Races are run rain or shine - they, like us, will only cancel for lightning or major meteor strike at the start/finish area. What good would it do you to train in ideal conditions, just to show up and have to run in the rain? Very little. And if you think you're not all hardcore about running a race - when you slap down your money for a race, you'd be pretty lame to turn tail and go home because it's raining.

It's an exercise in commitment - If you're going to let moisture stop you from training and putting in the work, then what else are you going to let stop you? Not having clean socks? Everyone Loves Raymond reruns? Do you want to be someone who gives in that easily? Do you want to be someone that loves Raymond? No, you don't.

It's freakin' epic - Pounding the pavement or the track or the trail in a downpour, you feel like you're in the middle of a Rocky training montage, or in the climactic scene of a movie. Leave the iPod at home, because you can pretty much hear the orchestra churning along with you. People drive by, and those that don't "get it" may think you're an idiot, but the many who do "get it" will think you're a bad-ass, and maybe they'll think about their own level of commitment.

So, tomorrow, we run, and take pictures, rain or shine - anything but lightning, a decision I'll make at 6:30.

All this is not to say you shouldn't be prepared. Bring dry clothes and shoes to change into afterwards. Wet shoes and socks make for wet skin, which increase the chances of blistering - use some Bodyglide or Vaseline on your arches and anywhere else you tend to rub in your shoes.

It's gonna be fun, really.

3M Race Plan

2009-01-20T13:59:00.000-08:00

Again, this is a bit of cut and paste from last year. Why? Because it was right the first time.

The Approach - You have to put every race you run into the larger context of your training.

Half marathoners, this is, for some of you, your first half marathon. You just want to get through it safely and relatively happily. You'll have Austin three weeks later, which is enough time to recover, if you don't go absolutely nuts and blast yourself too hard on Sunday. I consistently see half marathoners actually run faster on the harder course in February than they were at 3M, just because they had that first experience under their belt, and because they benefit from more of a taper. So, appreciate this for what it is, work hard, but know that your true goal race still lies ahead.

For the marathoners - you really have to be disciplined about running this race, if you want to do alright at the marathon. Read the article by Mac Allen in Austin Runner. You all saw what Mercedes had to say about it. Hell, ask just about any coach in the city, they'll tell you that especially as a beginner, racing 3M hard is likely to derail your marathon effort. Period. Anyone who doesn't believe that and thinks they know better is a fool, period. I know, because I have been that fool every year, regardless of what I've preached. That shiny, three-week-old half marathon PR doesn't mean squat when you're walking the last chunk of the marathon.

That's not to say you shouldn't run it, but you have to be disciplined. I'd like to see the marathoners run it at MGP, no faster. You want to see how fast you can run a half marathon, run Zooma in April, or wait until next year. Your focus is the marathon, period.

At the race, and in these final weeks, you need to be aware of your body and conservative in what you do with it - this is a lousy time to get injured. If you have a problem now, talk to me about it. If a problem arises during the race, you've gotta be mature enough to assess it honestly, and put it and the race in perspective.

OK, let's talk about the race and the course. I think planning is one of the funnest parts of this sport. You get to play general, plotting and scheming your battle. For those of us that are prone to obsessing about a race, it's better to focus that energy on something useful than to sit around imagining that there are little gnomes planting explosives in your knee. Or something like that.

You have hopefully all reviewed the race preparation guide I posted. Some of you are prone to blowing things off, thinking it's not a big deal. Eventually, that will bite you in the gluteal region. Just humor me and do the prep work this week, OK?

OK, the course...

The start - Take it easy. It’s that simple. Unless you’re unusually experienced and disciplined, if you’re supposed to run 10 minute miles in a race, and you try to start at that, you’re going to run faster. Getting too swept up in the adrenaline and excitement, the press of thousands of runners, can all add up to an early critical error in your race. Going out too fast might not just be a simple mathematical fix of going slower later - you could burn yourself up, or at least take longer to get into your rhythm. And recovering from going out :30 or a minute too fast is not a simple matter of addition and subtraction - there's a multiplier effect, such that going out at a pace to break two hours might mean you come in at 2:20 when you could have/shoud have run a 2:10.

Do not bother trying to dodge around people - you’ll just burn energy. Look ahead, and pick a path through people that doesn’t have you darting around too much. This is not the Komen 5K. You have time, and the crowds will thin.

Watch your feet - People will be discarding clothing and plastic garbage bags - don’t trip on them. If you’re ditching clothing, for God’s sake, throw it safely off the road.

The first mile has you going north on Stonelake. It’s basically flat, but with some slight incline - only about 40 feet over about half a mile. At this point, that doesn’t matter - just relax, enjoy the start, and try to get into a rhythm.

Mile 2 - Running south on Jollyville should feel somewhat good. There’s about 50 feet of climb over the course of a mile - nothing to worry about.

Miles 3 and 4 - Running south on Mesa should still feel pretty good, because it’s somewhat flat. There’ll be some spectators here.

Miles 3.5-5 - This stretch down Spicewood Springs is fun, beginning about a 170-foot drop in elevation up through mile six. BUT, it’s also a great place to blow your race. You don’t want to go pounding down this. We’ve all learned that running downhill can still wear you out - moving your legs at a faster rate can easily overwhelm the benefit that gravity is giving you, giving you a net energy loss. On the other hand, if you try too hard to control your speed, you can break your rhythm and wear out your quads. Try instead to just relax and just hold your pace, taking advantage of the downhills to conserve your energy. This early in a race, it’s better to bank energy than time. And besides, on a decent downhill, you’re still going to get a little time benefit, whether you intend to or not.

The bagpiper is usually around here, too...

Miles 6-6.5 - Count your blessings. After a sharp right onto Shoal Creek, and a sharper right onto Foster, you spend just a few blocks on Great Northern. Consider this a fairly mellow part of the run - just stay on pace and cover this middle distance. Shake your arms out, relax your neck, shoulders, legs and feet, and just run.

Miles 6.5-8.5 - This is the long stretch down Burnet Road. There’s a minor but longish incline, here, but you guys have had slightly more hill training than most groups probably have. You’ll do fine. Stay relaxed, keep your hips under you, and enjoy this stretch - there are usually plenty of crowds here. In the last half mile, you get rewarded with a long downhill, but again, use this to relax and recharge, because you have a couple of long climbs coming up...

Miles 8.5-10 - North Loop - the long incline. But most everyone in this group has run it at least 3-4 times just in the past six months, if not more. You know it, you’ve beaten it time and time again, even after more distance and more hills. Just hold your pace and your form, and get up it. Around 10, you get another climb, but grind through it - you’re about to get this course’s big reward.

The Big Finish -
At mile 10, you'll be turning right off of North Loop's long incline, onto Duval, beginning a great 3.2 mile fast stretch of downhills and flats to the finish. It’s almost a 200 foot elevation drop, a lot of it coming in a couple of smooth drops.

There are still occasional fluctuations, where there’ll be a slight incline for a block or so. Just ride through them, knowing another drop is coming.

Here's where you can take a look at how you feel, and decide whether to turn it up or not. If you do increase pace, do it gradually. Don't go from 11:30 per mile to 11:00 unless you are darned sure you can hold that for 3 miles. The best plan is to try to pick up 5-10 seconds in mile 11 and 12, with the option to crank it up a little more in the last mile.

I like to pick several “go points” near the end of a race, where I think the factors will come together to make for a good place to boost my speed a bit. I ran a 5K last once seriously hung-over. The first mile was a struggle. But, I hit my first go point, where for a week, I had known it was where I would make my move (insofar as I ever have “a move”). Being psychologically prepped for that made a tremendous difference, and I was able to pull out a PR.

The stretch through campus can be challenging - the crowds get sparse, and it gets relatively quiet, and you lose sense of how close you are to the finish. Trust that you are very close. If you haven’t keeled over or given up yet, then you've missed your chance to, and it’s too late for that - keep running.

In the last mile, feel it. Regardless of what's happened so far, it's going to be over soon. That last mile is all yours, and you are in control of how you end the race. Think of the finish line, and the crowds cheering, and your friends that'll be there, proud of what you've accomplished.

You’ll come out of campus crossing MLK, and you’ll be able to see the finish. Try to boost your pace a little (but don’t burn up too early). Pick someone ahead of you, and catch them. Pick another, catch them. Stay relaxed - you want to think of running strides, not sprints. You don’t want to pull anything, here, you just want to pick up the pace.

Run all the way through the finish. Do not let up at all until you've crossed both finish mats.

Some other things to think about:

Pace. In terms of pace, I can talk to you individually about that. For almost everyone, I just want to give you a speed limit. Here's what I'm doing: your time trial time gives us your predicted pace for the half. I'm adding 10 seconds per mile. The first two miles, you need to try to be 30-45 seconds even slower per mile. After that, you don't exceed that predicted pace, until mile 10... Marathoners, MGP for at least the first ten miles, then if you feel great, you can go.

Run your own race. Ignore people passing you. Some won't finish, you'll pass some of them back up if you're smart, and hey, everyone but one person is going to have at least one faster person out there. You get sucked into someone else’s run, and you’re probably ditching at least six months of training and experience. Run your own race.

Do what you have to do, as soon as possible. Gotta pee? Pee. The first mile of the course will be lined with men facing bushes, and women hunkering in the weeds. Might be gross and unseemly, but you're there to run a race. Got a rock in your shoe? Get it out right then. Give up 10-15 seconds early rather than 5-10 seconds a mile for the rest of the race.

Fight the urge to strip. I mean, in addition to your usual urge to strip. If it's very cold, you're going to heat up in the first couple of miles. DO NOT DITCH ALL YOUR LAYERS unless the temperature drastically changes. I did this at the 2006 marathon (29 degrees), and it was perhaps my biggest mistake. Initially, your body will act normally, and you'll feel hot. Before long, though, your body will decide to shift blood flow to keep your core warm, and you'll feel cold again. Give it an hour or two, and your core temperature could even drop, and then you're having problems. Leave the gloves on. If you do take them off, keep them. Stuff them in your waistband. Keep your hat and your long sleeves. You can always push the sleeves up.

Run friendly. Remember who we are - the group for non-uppity, non-elitist runners. Thank the volunteers, especially the kids. Thank the cops guarding the intersections. Wave thanks at the spectators. Encourage your fellow runners. You can be focused on your race, but make it part of your routine to spread some love. You’ll feel better for it.

Drink water. If it's cold, cold water doesn't always seem appealing, but you need it. People get dehydrated in winter races because they're cold and don't drink as much water as they usually would. Take it, drink it. And thank the volunteers.

Run the crown of the road. When possible, run the center stripe.

Draft. Drafting is not just for doped cyclists and NASCAR. If we get winds, use the crowds to your advantage to, um, break wind for you. You know what I mean.

Break the race into manageable chunks. Don't try to bite off 13.1 miles, run a mile, or two or three miles at a time. Think about these chunks when you familiarize yourself with the course.

No iPods. Use it before the race to get in your happy place, but during the race, you want to hear the crowds and the bagpipes, and you want to find the motivation in yourself. If you're going to ignore me (susan), then you damned sure better have it at a reasonable volume.

Again, run your own race. This includes your running partner. If you're running with someone, and you get separated, be prepared to be alone for a while. DO NOT try to speed up to catch them. If you do decide to catch them, give yourself a long time to do it. Keep an eye on them, and make it a multi-mile mission. It’ll give you something else to focus on, too. Decide you'll get to them near the finish.

Dealing with trouble. You're likely to get some combination of tired/sore/stiff/dejected, unless you're a freak and/or you're running waaaaayyy too slow. When you do, focus on your form - keep your head up, shoulders back. you may be tired, but slumping makes things worse. You get less air, and it will turn your stride into a shuffle. It all starts with your eyes. If the eyes drop to the ground right in front of you, your head will follow. Your neck, being tilted, will cause your shoulders to shift forward. Pretty soon, your butt is hanging out behind you, and you’re wondering why you can’t breathe well, and why your neck, shoulders and back hurt.

Think about all the time and effort and will you've spent training. You've had tough runs, and gotten through them. Get through it now. Don't trade away a few minutes, or even an hour, of moderate discomfort for regret that'll last until you get a chance to race again.

Which, granted, will just be in three weeks.

Race Preparation

2009-01-19T08:30:00.000-08:00

I am not going to reinvent the wheel (especially such a perfectly mostly round one), so, yes, this is a repost (not a riposte) from last year.

OK, it's time to start thinking about and prepping for 3M. You can't just piddle through the week and show up to run Sunday morning. Well, you can, but it would be, um, dumb. This is not a 5K. This bit here is about just general race prep. A race plan will follow tomorrow...

Preparing this week:
Get familiar with the course - it makes a difference. You've all seen how much better runs go in familiar territory. Go to the race website and print out several copies of the map. Put one in your car, one on your desk at work, one on the nightstand, or on the fridge.

Drive the course - I even tend to stop at the bottom of hills, get out, and walk or jog up them, so I know in my head what it feels like. When you near the top, think about how it's going to be to beat it and not let it wear you down. You've run most of the course at one point or another, but you haven't run down Spicewood, which is a key point in your race strategy (we'll discuss this later). You've only run down Burnet once, and it's good to take a look at where the hills are there.

Visualize - After driving it, pick up one of those maps every now and then, and run the race in your head (at high speed - please don't sit at work staring at a map for three hours). Run chunks of it in your head. Feel the rhythm of the stretches that will require more effort, and the ones where you'll be able to recover. I promise you this will be a huge benefit to you.

Segment the Course - Break the course into manageable chunks of two to three miles each. Getting through each chunk will be an accomplishment, and it'll be easier than going at all 13 miles at once.

Plan Nutrition - Part of knowing the course is knowing when you'll take your nutrition. What I do is work backwards - I want my last Gu 3 miles out from the finish, and I want them every 30-40 minutes. Water stops are at every even-numbered mile. So, I know I'll Gu at miles 10 and 6. Figure out how many you'll need, and go buy them now - RunTex sells out of everything but "Your Nephew's Dirty Diaper" flavored gel before races. You can also get gels at bike shops, REI, and Academy. You also need to know how you're going to carry what you need to carry.

Have your outfit ready.
You've all run in a variety of conditions. Now, just accept that the weather will be what it will be. That acceptance will give you another big advantage over people that are agonizing about the weather all this week. It might be 29, windy and cold. Fine - what will you wear? Find those pieces, lay them out now.

It might be 65 and humid. Fine - what will you wear?

The rule is to dress for 20 degrees warmer than the temperature. You should know by now what you like. Now is also not the time to try new shorts, socks, jogbras, or some shirts. That's a sure entry to that popular game show, “What’s Gonna Chafe?”

Remember, up to 40% of body heat is lost through your head, most of the rest through your extremities. Plus, blood flow is redirected by your body to keep your organs and brain warm. So, hat and gloves are the most crucial things in cold weather.

In case of rain, have something disposable, or a trash bag with holes for the arms and head. It's nice to be dry while standing around at the start line, then you can rip it off when you get moving.

Got Bodyglide? Bandaids?

Thursday and Friday:
Hydrate. Get a couple of liters of water in you a day, depending on your size. Use some ElectroMix or something similar - available at Central Market, Whole Foods, RunTex, or bike shops.

Friday night:
This is actually your best night to get your carbs. Have a reasonable-sized plate of pasta, not too late in the evening. We're making this easy with the pre-race party at Katie's house Friday night. You should be there.

Saturday:
Stay off your feet. This is not the time for a hike, lawn work, walking at the race expo for four hours like I did in Chicago trying to decide if I should buy and wear new clothes for the marathon when I know not to do that (I didn't, other than a new hat).

Oh, and don’t forget to pick up your race packet.

Eat early - eat at 5:30 or 6, be done by 7 or 7:30. Why? Because you want to be able to sleep, and you want the food to digest, so that it'll be usable in the race, but yet not filling up your lower intestines demanding immediate release at mile five. Having to pee is fairly common, but you do not want to have to go #2, losing time while your legs cramp up in a cold, nasty porta-potty. And if you try to hold it, your core will tighten up, expending more energy and messing with your mechanics.

Don't drink too late - you want to be able to sleep without getting up constantly through the night.

Get everything together Saturday night, not Sunday morning:

Pin your race bib to your shirt or shorts. If you are slightly OCD like some coaches, this could take you half an hour to get it perfectly straight. It has to be straight. It just does.
Put your gels, electrolyte capsules, whatever you're taking on the course, in whatever you're taking them in.
Pack your drop bag with your pre and post-race stuff.
Make sure you have what you need for breakfast.

Figure out your morning schedule - work it backwards:

The race is at 7am.
You need to be parked and out of the car at 6am AT THE LATEST.
Maybe it'll take you 30 minutes to get there, so you need to leave your place at 5:30.
You want to use the restroom (#2) before you leave. Give yourself time (because you never know) - so, on the pot by 5:15.
You need to allow at least an hour for your breakfast to digest, so you need to be eating at 4:15.
Set your alarm for 4:15 (you'll eat first). Yeah, this is insane. But so is running 13 miles, so... what the hell?
Set multiple alarms. Use your alarm clock, your phone, yuor running watch. Get a friend to call you. Leave nothing to chance.

Race morning:

GET THE HELL UP. No snooze button. This is when being nervous is a good thing, because it'll wake you up.
Eat first, and have a glass of water, and coffee, if you need it.
If you've done things right, you have an hour to check the weather, put on your laid-out clothes, make sure your bib number really is straight, and relax. I always turn on News 8, not so much for the crappy reporting, but to check the weather. On the other hand, one morning, the weatherperson’s first words were, “Wow, it is really unpleasantly hot and humid out there.”

At the race:

DO NOT BE LATE. Period. Non-neogtiable, no excuses. You need to park, pick up your chip, drop your bag (if there's a bag drop), not be overly frazzled, and be ready for a warm-up at 6:15. I have to say, as a group, we’re lousy about this, for our long runs, and the races so far. Well, now it’s showtime, and whether we’ve developed good punctual habits or not, it’s time to get our crap together. BE ON TIME.
Don't guzzle water. If you've hydrated well, and had some when you got up, you'll be fine with what you get on the course. Drink too much, and you'll have to pee.
Still, hit the porta-potty after the warmup.

Get to the start line by 6:50. Find your friends. Then... relax. Soak up this moment. Look around at all the people that are about to do something pretty cool. You're one of them. You're probably also better trained and better prepared than most.

This is a lot of stuff, I know. But again, you're running 13.1 miles, asking a lot of your body. You've all worked so hard, you deserve nothing less from yourself than to be as knowledgeable and prepared and mindful as you can possibly be going into this. You're all going to do great.

Tomorrow: The Race Plan. Really, I promise. It's already written. I'm artificially creating suspense, like in a Bruckheimer movie.

Upstarts Monday Workout...

2009-01-09T14:53:00.000-08:00

Our first workout is at the Austin High Track.

If you're coming from south of the river, it might be easier to avoid traffic by taking Barton Springs Road, turning north on Stratford, parking under Mopac, and walking/running across the pedestrian bridge.

I'll be down with grabbing food/drink after, if anyone else is. It's one of the fun bits about this.

Getting to Austin High's track:

From Southbound Mopac:

Exit at Lake Austin Blvd.
Continue down the access road, through Lake Austin Blvd., past RunTex
At Stephen F. Austin Drive at the bottom of the hill, either park under the bridge in the dirt to your left, find street parking, or park in the lots around the tennis center.

From Northbound Mopac:

Take the 1st-5th Streets Exit)
Stay to the left (towards 5th street)
Turn left on 6th/lake Austin Blvd.
Turn left at Run Tex
At Stephen F. Austin Drive at the bottom of the hill, either park under the bridge in the dirt to your left, find street parking, or park in the lots around the tennis center.

From Downtown:

Take Cesar Chavez west towards Mopac
Veer right just past the Animal Shelter, before you go up the ramp to Mopac (this is known in running circles (pardon the pun) as the Dog Pound Loop
Go under the overpass, then turn right on Stephen F. Austin drive - you'll see the track

Ditch the Headphones

2008-12-29T10:02:00.000-08:00

(This is a rewrite of an earlier bit about wearing headphones...)

I love music. I love music far more than running, truth be told. And, I am big on wanting to block things out in certain situations - in law school, I took almost all my exams with headphones on, back in the days when even recordable CD's were not commonplace. The one time I was asked to remove the headphones, I was lost, and couldn't focus. Having not gone to that class at all may have also figured into the negative experience, but I really felt I was better off writing about immigration law with Tanya Donnelly's sweet voice in my head.

Last year, USA Track and Field made personal music devices verboten at sanctioned events. The Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, as required, banned headphone use in 2008. Prior to that, lacking an enforcement mechanism, the marathon went with just strongly discouraging their use.

Many large marathons, including the Marine Corps Marathon, immediately, and probably eagerly, complied. The Twin Cities Marathon warned people headphones were banned, but people ignored the warnings, or perhaps couldn't hear them over the Justin Timberlake rattling in their skulls, and 176 runners were disqualified. It was not enforced in Austin, and headphone use in races is increasing exponentially.

The flap from the average headphone-wearing runner crowd has pushed the USATF to reconsider, and they have now backed off (thanks, Katie), largely due to the incessant whining from people who want to say they can run a half marathon or marathon, but claim they can't do it without their headphones.

Just today, the Austin Marathon reluctantly announced that it has changed its headphone policy in accordance with the caving of the USATF. They've seen, time and time again, in every race, the high frequency of irresponsible headphone use and the problems it causes, but they probably just got tired of the complaints. The amount of whining they've gotten at the marathon office about the headphone ban has quite frankly been pathetic, and has included ridiculous arguments about blind or deaf runners, claims about "big government", and many people saying they are disgusted and will just run some other race, to which I say, "good riddance."

In large part, the USATF enacted the rule to conform to the policy of the International Association of Athletics Federations, which is mainly concerned with the use of two-way radios in competition.

For most races, though, the main issue is safety. I can't think of the last race where I didn't see a number of examples of people being completely oblivious to their surroundings because they were wearing headphones. I've seen people not able to hear the sirens of support vehicles passing them, a half marathoner in Dallas not able to hear the Hummer pace vehicle behind her or the runners around her yelling at her to move so the elite marathoners could pass, or the shouts of "wheelchair up" when a wheelchair racer needs to be able to pass. We've all seen that when moving through a not-too-thick crowd, a runner will usually hear you come up and often move over just a little to help you pass through a tight spot. Runners with headphones tend to be in their own little world, though.

Just last month, at the Turkey Trot, Michelle from ConleySports (the folks who put on the Austin Marathon) was easily passing me as I tried to say hi to someone I knew. He was wearing headphones. I called his name from about 20 feet away, as we ran past Rainbow. Nothing. I got closer, at one point just about ive feet behind him, and yelled his name. Nothing.

I also believe (pause for effect) that headphones have a deleterious effect on running form. Yeah, that's right. I'm tempted to submit an article on "iPod Assymetry Syndrome" and submit it to a medical journal, except that I'm lazy.

I started thinking about this watching an avid marathoner I knew for well over a year that would wear her iPod on her right arm. She also wore her long hair in a ponytail, and many times, running behind her, I could see the ponytail didn't swing evenly. You could trace the asymmetry to her shoulders, and to... the arm with the iPod strapped to it. From there, you could even see the slight imbalance in her stride. She even had some issues in the leg that ended up getting the shortened stride, which could be due to any number of factors... but you had to wonder.

I know when I run with an iPod on my arm, it's easy to get caught up in cord management (pardon the pun). Watch runners, and most of them carry their music-bearing arm differently.

As we've all figured out by now, the high repetition of the motions of running means that imbalances and eccentricities have consequences, and will likely be mirrored elsewhere. Everyone should, by now, be feeling and seeing the link between the way you move your arms, and your stride.

When you shorten the travel of one arm, it's likely to play out in the stride, because you're essentially throwing yourself out of balance. There's also the added tension in the shoulder from carrying that arm out slightly. Over any appreciable distance, it all translates to "no bueno."

When I do take the iPod on a training run, I use a little Shuffle and attach it to my waistband - it doesn't move through a range of motion, so the cord stays stable. Even then, I make the the cord short enough or run it through my shirt so that I don't have to move the arm on that side any differently to clear it.

Finally, and most importantly to me, I don't want to race or even train much with music, because it's a crutch, even a cheat. Clearly, we want to run with music because it benefits us - it keeps us from getting bored, it motivates us. There's a reason the Nike+ iPod system has a "Power Song" feature. Hell, I want to add a Nano to my ridiculous Apple product lineup just so I can push the button and immediately go to AC/DC's "Hell's Bells".

One whin- sorry, "runner", in one of the articles said "I need my music to get me through it. A marathon is a mental challenge and if I don't have my music to keep me motivated, it just isn't fun."

Well, guess what? Remember that we do this precisely because it is not "easy", and it is not "fun" in the same way as, say, Whack-A-Mole, or taunting Ron Paul supporters online. You've all learned how important the mental component of distance running is. The thing is, we're not all running to challenge the winning time in a race - we all run to challenge our own limits and abilities, and that's ultimately a mental challenge of your ability to deal with discomfort and pain, and to continue to push yourself. Whether you are physically capable of running a 2:20, three-hour, four-hour, or five-plus hour marathon, it all comes down to your ability to push yourself.

If you say you get bored, or need the distraction, and music gives that to you, then that music is a crutch. The mind is a powerful thing - I completely believe I could run a faster race at almost any distance with the "Rocky" theme pounding through my head every step of the way. I'll do some of my short runs with music, but I don't wear headphones for long runs or races, exactly because music is such an effective crutch.

That state of being alone in your head, is one of the difficult, but essential, parts of distance running. The challenge is not just to move your body over the distance, but to move your mind and your will over that distance. Can you keep your mental focus over the miles, and over the time you need to complete those miles? Music can help you dissociate, which is a perfectly acceptable method of dealing with pain and boredom. But again, it's external, it's not a skill or a layer of toughness you've developed. You're just taking it away. You might as well be racing on painkillers, or high. Numb your mind with headphones, and you have failed to accomplish an essential component of the challenge. If you can't live with your own mind for the distance you're running, then you can't really claim to do the distance.

A couple of you, despite my requests to try at least one without them, run every long run with your headphones. That's your choice, obviously, but again - it's a crutch. It's a cheat. I want you to be able to depend on yourself to get through the race.

There are going to be helpful distractions out on the race course. We've got 40 bands on and around the marathon course. I hope to get the gospel choir back from last year. There'll be great crowd support, you'll have friends out there running with you, and, if you're not wearing headphones, you'll be surprised by how many people you'll talk to on the way. But all those things are part of the race experience itself, not something extra and unnecessary you bring into the race to help you get through.

I'd hate to think of what I'd have missed wearing headphones in races: the little kids in Chicago's Mexican district yelling, "Si, se puede!"; my friend Tom telling me about his kids, including the newborn son that didn't make it, as we plodded through 20 miles; or the company of good friends for our first half marathon. Those were all hard races, and maybe headphones would have helped. But I wouldn't have the experiences and memories that made running those races meaningful.

You've all trained really hard, and you have all displayed some extraordinary toughness along the way. Use your headphones on your solo runs, and let it drive you. Let some music or podcasts, or whatever noise you need help you get those weekday runs in. Listen to some relaxing music the night before the race. Crank the tunes up in your car on the way to the race, and get pumped.

But don't sell yourself short. Don't cheapen all the work you've put in. Don't fail to truly meet the challenge you signed up and trained for. Don't miss the very real support and inspiration that the race itself is going to offer you. Leave the headphones at home.

Running Not In Austin, No. 1: Seattle

2008-12-23T07:22:00.000-08:00

Christina, running or snowshoeing or something in some place called "Seattle":

Ouchies: Why They Happen, and How to Avoid Them

2008-12-03T14:18:00.000-08:00

OK. Injuries and recovery. We've had a spate of injuries recently, and it's interesting to look at what the likely causes are.

Lisa - left knee. Laura - calf and tendon. Lounell - knee pain. Amber - knee pain. Susan - pain in left knee and both hips.

I'll take the first hit - I run you somewhat aggressively. I feel like I throw a lot of hills at you, though I'm always very conscious and deliberate about it. Our mileage, both in weekly totals and the long runs, is properly incremented, and while I try to balance them out, some of the long runs are obviously difficult. I can say with good certainty that you get a little bit more hill work, but it's not far out of line with what other groups do. Still, I haven't made it very easy on you, and I should be harder on some of you about doing the right things for recovery, and making sure you're aware of some pitfalls that can injure you. Let's look at a few of those:

1. Shoes. When I first started running, and would see advice about shoes, the basketball sneaker pimp in me understood and believed, but I was still sure RunTex was driving it all somehow. I've learned better. Several of our runners last year had pains in their calves, even their knees, and they had readily apparent shoe issues - either the wrong shoes altogether, or shoes whose support had deteriorated beyond any physiological usefulness. Amber is a fairly severe overpronator. She went to a reputable local store, and was put in a pair of very neutral shoes from a company that also has a reputation for short-lived cushioning and support. Did this play a role in her knee injury? Maybe. Probably even, though since her problem is assymetrical, something else probably also came into play, maybe...

2. Road camber. I once heard someone talk about road camber with the qualifier, "Austin streets". I don't know if ours are any worse than elsewhere, but you all should realize by now that all our streets slope sharply off to the sides. IT band problems and assymetrical knee issues are common in Austin, because a lot of people only run on the left side of the street (as they should), in the gutter all the time. Think about it - there's often a difference of several inches between the length of travel in your left leg from your right. The muscles in your left leg are having to work harder, through a longer range of motion, and is even suffering a little more impact. The right leg's natural range of motion is compressed, on the other hand. It's a recipe for getting messed up, and it's a wonder more of us don't have more problems.

The solution here is tricky. Running on sidewalks opens you up to more impact, because concrete is appreciably harder than asphalt, and often, it's cambered, too, if not riddled with cracks and major continental rifts and faultlines. I try to stay on the street, but, as safety will allow, I'll run on the more level part of the road, and will even change sides, occasionally, though then you're kind of just balancing bad against mirror-image-bad.

A good solution is to run your solo runs on the hike and bike trail. It's soft, it's flat, it's relatively safe, it's got water. Control the camber and surface where you can.

3. Over-aggressiveness/Being dumb - OK, just kidding, no one's been seriously dumb yet. They've tried to be, but have held back. But some of us have been wonderfully gung-ho about our running, and unwilling to compromise or blink in the face of miles and hills. In Lisa's case, she quite understandably wanted to jump right back in at 10 miles. She was reasonable about it, and could have been deterred, but I got selfish and didn't tell her no. So, she ran seven on October 17, got freakin' typhus (fleas, not poo), was bed-ridden for several weeks, ran a couple of times in mid-November, then ran 10 on November 22. I've gotta take all the blame for this one.

December is the time when injuries really start cropping up, and people's hopes of running a half marathon or marathon either become questionable, or are dashed completely. Many times, they're just questionable, a little nagging pain here or there. But people are busy at the end of the year, and not wanting to miss the long runs, and they put off going to see the doctor. Sometimes, they simply doubt that a doctor will do anything useful, and might even tell them they have to stop running.

In fact, most often, it seems, a doctor and sometimes a physical therapist can pinpoint the cause of the problem, and give you a way to attack it. Maybe you have to lay off a couple of weeks, but doing it now is a lot better than two to three weeks from now. And if you ignore that little niggling pain or discomfort, it could very well grow into something that will peak at a more critical time, and could put a complete end to your training season, and your hopes of running your goal race. No bueno.

Injuries aside, the miles are getting long, the workouts are getting hard, and, depending on your individual level of athleticism and resilience, how hard you push, and how well you take care of yourself in other ways, the training could very well take a noticable toll on you. Some people just feel a bit beat up all the time. Most find they need more rest, more sleep. I'll sometimes get sore enough that I can't sleep well.

So, you have a responsibility to do everything you can to minimize the toll on your body and mind. You can't just go out there and barrel through all or some of the runs, and expect to be OK. You have to stretch. You have to eat right. You have to get your nutrition for long runs down. You have to get your sleep. You have to get all your runs in. You have to consider massage and other things - foam rollers, Trigger Point massage - for your body. You have to consider ice baths after the long runs. You have to recover properly. And, you have to maintain a focused, but healthy and positive attitude towards your training and your goal.

None of these things are negotiable. If you feel OK now, you have to consider yourself lucky, and be proactive in keeping luck on your side. If you're hurting, you need to not give up, and you need to investigate and take proper measures.

I'm going to be more aggressive in pushing information on these things to you. First off, please read this article by local physical therapist Allan Besselink. For some of you people who don't believe that you need a day off... there you go.

We also have a great sports nutritionist willing to come talk to us. I need to make sure it's in our budget, and that there's interest - please let me know if you'd be interested in coming out on a Monday, Wednesday or Thursday for about an hour talk from her.

"Guess how far..."

2008-11-28T10:18:00.001-08:00

Turkey Trot!

2008-11-26T12:26:00.000-08:00

OK, Ya Turkeys,

Thursday morning is the big Turkey Trot, the five-mile pre-gluttony (mmm... gluttony...) tradition that is the only race, besides that thingy in February, that I can never seem to let myself miss.

A lot of us are running it, and if you're here in Austin for the holiday, there's no good reason for you not to. It's $30 at this late point, but you can opt for the $10 Thundercloud voucher over the shirt, effectively making the race $20, which is well worth it for something to lord over your fat relatives when you go back for a second pecan pie - not a second piece, mind you, but a second pie.

The race starts at 9:30. Keep in mind, this is a pretty big race - about 7,000-8,000 participants annually, I think, and it's likely growing. So, it's one where you want to allow yourself time for the bathrooms and to worm into the crowd at the start.

So, we'll meet at the corner of 12th and San Jacinto. I'll actually try to get there around 8:50, in case anyone wants to warm up and do some light drills, but we'll be back there around 9:00-9:05 to hang out before we head down at about 9:15.

As you know, the course is different this year because of that "footingball" sport that takes time away from basketball coverage on Sportscenter. It'll be easier, but not a breeze:

If you're running this for time, it'll be important to get in the right pace area, even though people are stupid and ignore that, and in the 7:00 per mile area, you'll get stuck behind a walking family of five that looks like Tech's offensive line, walking two great danes and a chihuahua, and pushing strollers. As always, don't burn up too much energy dodging people - look for clear lines through the crowd that require minimum extra travel, and if you need to get past someone, just ask nicely.

In the past, you immediately had to run up MLK, which sucked. This year, we'll be heading south on Trinity to Sixth, starting us on an uphill, but then giving us a good downhill to Sixth. Go ahead and get in as good a pace as you can on the hill without winding yourself, then be conservative going down the hill.

Sixth is going to be pretty flat, even with some slight downslopes. Get into your comfortable pace immediately. Five miles is an interesting distance, being almost smack in the middle of a 5K that you'd run hard, and a 10K, where you have to pace a little more conservatively. In terms of effort, you won't be conversational, but you won't be wheezing - your respiration rate will be up, but in a nice, steady rhythm, probably in that two steps per inhale to one step of exhale range.

The one mile mark is around San Antonio/Nueces.

You turn right on West Lynn, just after passing the mile two marker - you guys have the benefit of having run up this street more times than probably any other running group in Austin, and probably more than over 95% of the runners out there. You know what's coming, you know it's going to take some time from you. You can work just slightly harder, but don't get yourself breathing too hard - you've got three miles left, and if you get your legs burning now, you're going to have a tough time holding a good pace.

Westlynn will flatten out and even give you a little downhill relief around Galaxy Cafe, before 12th Street. You'll have it flat and easy all the way down, jagging right briefly on Niles, then hopping onto Windsor.

Take a look to your left, and think, "at least I'm not running up Rainbow, though I could kick everyone else's ass doing it, because Rob is a jerk and plans half our runs that way."

Instead, you'll run down East Windsor, the long side of our Rainbow workout. This is tricky - I think with two miles left to go, you can start cranking it up a little, but you have to remember you'll be getting a long uphill on 12th Street, from just past Lamar, all the way to Guadalupe/Lavaca - almost half a mile of rolling uphill.

So, I think you want to let the downhill here take you a little, maintaining good form, but not letting it mess with your breathing much. You'll pick up more time on Parkway all the way to 12th.

The 3 mile mark is just after the turn onto Parkway.

On 12th, you just have to dig in. Hold your form, and try to stick with the pace you've been at, which has probably been a bit faster for the last mile. Go block to block if you have to - I don't think it'll really be that bad.

Mile 4 mark is around San Antonio and Nueces.

At Lavaca, or whenever you feel the hill crest, the terrain becomes varied, so this is where you want to make the conscious choice to crank up the pace. With less than a mile to go, cut loose, but be looking ahead and anticipating - use the downhills a little for speed, and a little for recovery. You'll have a little hill going back up to Trinity - at this point, get into it - don't run it fast enough to tank you, but don't let it take much time from you.

Trinity's going to roll a little, too, but you're so close at this point, you should just be going for it.

Coming into the finish, keep those leg muscles relaxed, and focus on footspeed, not stride length - you don't want to pull a hamstring, here...

Most of all, have fun with it!

See you there,

Rob

Night of the Moustache Rocked!

2008-11-24T08:52:00.000-08:00

For detailed photo questions, like, "Who's the hot chick with the lip hair?", click a picture, then the link to my Flickr site.

Friday night, everyone's efforts finally came together at the Night of the Moustache Benefit at the Tiniest Bar In Texas.

Despite the chilly weather that decided to set in on the day of the event, people turned out in force for the event, kept warm by moustaches, friendly dogs, an army of space heaters, and the grill that churned out dozens of sausage wraps and veggie burgers.

People gave heartily at the door in return for moustaches, gave more at the grill, and the silent auction was hotly contested. Mercedes Orten's cookies alone brought in $21 in tips (Mandy's would have also helped, had they not all been eaten by us as we were setting up).

We're still waiting for the final figures from the sales of the Lone Star keg that was quickly floated, and the vodka and tea drinks. Receipts from the door, silent auction, and other donations alone totalled $1,397. The bar receipts will likely take us close to $2,000. That's a cool grand for each of our two great charities, Emancipe+ and the Dick Beardsley Foundation.

Emancipe+ may also be able to use the money to qualify for a match from a grant fund, doubling the amount to $2,000.

I'm extremely proud of everyone for pulling together, being willing to help, and making this happen. I've got to give some special thanks, though, to:

Mandy, who, in addition to bearing a wealth of movie quotes and encycolpedic knowledge about varieties of deviant behavior, also has a natural instinct for promotion. She suggested we use the already-booked entertainment, she suggested the silent auction, contributed to it, and pitched in Friday night. She's largely responsible for Team Spiridon in the first place, even though she isn't able to run with us this season.

Eve, for designing the great flyers and picking up my slack at the 11th hour to make up really nice looking bid sheets. Again, she's been a strong supporter all along, and is always willing to help/plan waffle parties.

Stacy, for printing up a ton of said cool flyers, as well as our press releases, on a beautiful laser copier. Hopefully, we'll see her back running with us soon...

Lounell, for mobilizing her entire office in a search for moustaches, even turning up good deals from suppliers in Hong Kong.

Daniel, who thought a benefit concert would be a great idea in the first place. Up to that point, I only knew the benefit would involve beer.

Jean, another Spiridon original gangsta, who, due to being due in... January?... can't run with us this season, but is still supporting us, and came out to help set up and work the door.

Mercedes, for her overwhelming positivity, and her awesome chocolate chip cookies.

Laura, Jenn, and Jane, who did anything else that needed to be done, which amounted to a whole lot, all the time.

The Girlfriend, Christina, who kept me at an efficient level of mentalness last week (and often, really), even helping me make decisions on the 50 sausages we bought, when she's a vegetarian.

David and Jason of the Tiniest Bar In Texas, and their evil henchmen, John, Connor, and James. They're always down for an event, particularly one for a cause, and they're more interested in making the event a success than in making a buck. They've been great to us, and we shall do our best to pay back with our patronage of their establishment (that means lots of Lone Star tallboys for me).

Finally, a huge thanks to all the great businesses that donated for the silent auction, and didn't bat an eyelash when I came at them a few days before the event:

The three great running stores in Austin: Bettysport, Hill Country Running Company, and RunTex. Please, shop at all three - we always need to make room in this town for healthy competition like them that do things right, and care about the running community and the people (and dogs and cats) in it.
Tito's Vodka
Mellow Johnny's
The makers of the fantastic movie, Spirit of the Marathon (which we're helping to bring to the Alamo Drafthouse on Austin Marathon Weekend)
Dirty Dog Dog Wash
Nike (thanks, Ash!)
Thundercloud Subs
Austin Guardian
Third Base Sports Bar
eŌs Dermatology and Med Spa
The Longhorn Club
Girl Guitar Austin
Amanda Thomas - another original Spiridon runner, who does beautiful stained glass work
Frugal Media
Fit One Austin

Our fundraising and funraising (and occasional hellraising) aren't over, though. We got miles and miles yet to run. I know not everyone is comfortable with mroe direct fundraising, but I'm hoping some of you will join me for some of the more traditional bit of, "Hey, I'm training my butt off, here. I'll run the half marathon or marathon, and you'll give some money to charity, aight?" I'll get those details to you soon...

Thanks again, everyone. For my runners, your attitude (mmmostly...) and hard work (mmmostly...) make all this tremendously worthwhile for me, and our ability to do some good outside of our own lives is just a massive bonus. Keep working, keep smiling, keep running...

San Antonio Race Prep

2008-11-10T14:10:00.000-08:00

Fuh-lat.

No, wait! I know you might not be running San Antonio, but you're just going to go surfing off to read about some stupid celebrity crap. Might as well read this, so you start absorbing some of it now, and maybe start practicing some of it before your Saturday long runs, so that by the time the races hit in January, you've got a set routine, and you're not experimenting with things like eating and clothing and going twosies. And yes, this is a bit of a repost from before. I can only keep things so fresh.

OK, so it's close to showtime. You can't just piddle through the week and show up to run Sunday morning. Well, you can, but it would be, um, dumb. This is not a 5K. So, here's a bit of a guide...

Preparing this week:
Get familiar with the course - it makes a difference. You've all seen how much better runs go in familiar territory. Problem is, it's in freakin' San Antonio. Still, go to the race website and print out a copy of the map. Try to get a sense of how the course works, what landmarks you're going by. Look at the elevation map - there's not much too it. But try to figure out where the hills (if you can call them that) are, where the uphills and downhills start and end. Make notes.

Drive the course - Again, not practical, here, unless you're going down early enough, and you're bored.

Visualize - Pick up the map every now and then, and run the race in your head (at high speed - please don't sit at work staring at a map for three hours). Run chunks of it in your head. Feel the rhythm of the stretches that will require more effort, and the ones where you'll be able to recover. I promise you this will be a huge benefit to you.

Segment the Course - Break the course into manageable chunks of two to three miles each. Getting through each chunk will be an accomplishment, and it'll be easier than going at all 13 miles at once.

Plan Nutrition - Part of knowing the course is knowing when you'll take your nutrition. What I do is work backwards - I want my last Gu 3 miles out from the finish, and I want them every 30-40 minutes. Water stops are at every even-numbered mile. So, I know I'll Gu at miles 10 and 6. Figure out how many you'll need, and go buy them now - RunTex sells out of everything but "Your Nephew's Dirty Diaper" flavored gel before races. You can also get gels at bike shops, REI, and Academy. You also need to know how you're going to carry what you need to carry.

Have your outfit ready.
Check the forecast periodically. Right now, it's looking perfect - low forties for the start, only getting to 59 by noon, moderate humidity. A bit of wind. Sunny - important to know. The air temperature may be cool, but if you go wearing black, the solar heating alone could be an issue.

All that said, now, just accept that the weather will be what it will be. That acceptance will give you another big advantage over people that are agonizing about the weather all this week. It might turn out 29, windy and cold. Fine - what will you wear? Find those pieces, lay them out now.

It might be 65 and humid. Fine - what will you wear?

The rule is to dress for 20 degrees warmer than the temperature. You should know by now what you like. Now is also not the time to try new shorts, socks, jogbras, or some shirts. That's a sure entry to that popular game show, “What’s Gonna Chafe?”

Remember, up to 40% of body heat is lost through your head, most of the rest through your extremities. Plus, blood flow is redirected by your body to keep your organs and brain warm. So, hat and gloves are the most crucial things in cold weather.

In case of rain, have something disposable, or a trash bag with holes for the arms and head. It's nice to be dry while standing around at the start line, then you can rip it off when you get moving.

Got Bodyglide? Bandaids?

Thursday and Friday:
Hydrate. Get a couple of liters of water in you a day, depending on your size. Use some ElectroMix, Nuun, or something similar - available at Central Market, Whole Foods, RunTex, or bike shops.

Check the race website for any last-minute changes to instructions. Make sure you get to the packet pickup in time!

Friday night:
This is actually your best night to get your carbs, not the night before. Have a reasonable-sized plate of pasta, not too late in the evening. And get to bed at a reasonable hour. You can forego the clubs for one damned night.

Saturday:
Stay off your feet. This is not the time for a hike, lawn work, walking at the race expo for four hours like I did in Chicago trying to decide if I should buy and wear new clothes for the marathon when I know not to do that (I didn't).

Oh, and don’t forget to pick up your race packet.

Eat early - eat at 5:30 or 6, be done by 7 or 7:30. Why? Because you want to be able to sleep, and you want the food to digest, so that it'll be usable in the race, but yet not filling up your lower intestines demanding immediate release at mile five. Having to pee is fairly common, but you do not want to have to go #2, losing time while your legs cramp up in a cold, nasty porta-potty. And if you try to hold it, your core will tighten up, expending more energy and messing with your mechanics.

Don't drink too late - you want to be able to sleep without getting up constantly through the night.

Get everything together Saturday night, not Sunday morning:

Pin your race bib to your shirt or shorts. If you are slightly OCD like some coaches, this could take you half an hour to get it perfectly straight. It has to be straight. It just does.
Put your gels, electrolyte capsules, whatever you're taking on the course, in whatever you're taking them in.
Pack your drop bag with your pre and post-race stuff.
Make sure you have what you need for breakfast.

Figure out your morning schedule - work it backwards:

The race is at 7:30am.
As big an event as this is, you need to be parked and out of the car at 6:30am AT THE LATEST.
Maybe it'll take you 30 minutes to get there, so you need to leave your place at 6:00. Make sure you know how to get there.
You want to use the restroom (#2) before you leave. Give yourself time (because you never know) - so, on the pot by 5:45.
You need to allow at least an hour for your breakfast to digest, so you need to be eating at 4:45.
Set your alarm for 4:45 (you'll eat first). Yeah, this is insane. But so is running 13 miles, so... what the hell?
Set multiple alarms. Use your alarm clock, your phone, yuor running watch. Get a friend to call you. Leave nothing to chance.

Race morning:

GET THE HELL UP. No snooze button. This is when being nervous is a good thing, because it'll wake you up.
Eat first, and have a glass of water, and coffee, if you need it.
If you've done things right, you have an hour to check the weather, put on your laid-out clothes, make sure your bib number really is straight, and relax. Check the temperature and forecast.

At the race:

DO NOT BE LATE. Period. Non-neogtiable, no excuses. You need to park, drop your bag (if there's a bag drop), not be overly frazzled, and get you a little warm up around 6:45. Just run 8-10 minutes, and at a few points, pick up the pace for a block or so. When you're done with that, do some light drills.
Don't guzzle water. If you've hydrated well, and had some when you got up, you'll be fine with what you get on the course. Drink too much, and you'll have to pee.
Still, hit the porta-potty after the warmup.

Get to the start line and in your corral by 7:15. Find your friends. Then... relax. Soak up this moment. Look around at all the people that are about to do something pretty cool. You're one of them. You're probably also better trained and better prepared than most.

This is a lot of stuff, I know. But again, you're running 13.1 miles, asking a lot of your body. You've worked hard, and you deserve nothing less from yourself than to be as knowledgeable and prepared and mindful as you can possibly be going into this. You're all going to do great.

I'll add a rudimentary race plan tomorrow. It's super complicated: don't go out fast; go the right speed in the middle; and, go faster at the end, if you can.

Danger! Run, Will Robinson!

2008-11-07T13:27:00.000-08:00

Yes, danger, indeed.

We've hung together for ten weeks. You've all gotten comfortable with running consistently, running hard, running long miles. It's becoming familiar... you're feeling confident, even if you worry a little about the next new distance on the calendar.

It's here that your worst enemy lurks. It's the whispered undertone just beneath invitations from friends and family. It lies in wait in the cushions of your couch, alluring and sticky, ready to clutch at you like a Venus flytrap. It sings beckoningly in the chorus of the holidays. It flits amidst the days and hours, compressing them here, loosening them there. It is abetted by the changing of the season, by days that are ever colder and grayer and fall more quickly to darkness.

It's one monster with many faces: Complacency; Apathy; Routineness.

I don't think any of you are thinking of actually quitting. But it can be easy to let your momentum and desire fritter away and fade. Because this running thing is no longer new and novel, because the first question of whether you could run distance at all has already been answered, because the $150 wallop to your checking account has dissolved into your economic past, and because I don't think I've done enough to kind of keep that fire going, because of all this, the pull of other events in your daily life, and even the pull of fatigue and listlessness, might seem stronger than your will to run, and clearer than the vision of your goal.

You miss a run, whether solo or with the group. Then another. You sleep through a long run. You might decide to recommit, but you come back and something real happens - sickness, an injury, a personal or work issue. Just like that, your goal is compromised, if not missed.

This is the point in training where people are in danger of losing focus and motivation. It's easy to do, certainly. But it's also one of the challenges you have signed up to face and conquer.

This training is more than a diversion. It's not a project you can set aside and not finish. It's not the exercise gadget gathering dust in the closet or under your bed. Whether you realize it or not, this training is a question you chose to ask yourself about who you are, who you want to be, and what you can do.

If you quit this now, are you happy with the answer? If you quit this now, what else will you quit?

Take some time to think about what you set out to do in September or whenever you decided to commit to running a half marathon or a marathon. Remember the work you've already put in. Consider the tremendous things you've already accomplished. Think about what you want your answer to be, and what this all could mean to you. Reengage and recommit yourself. Show up. Stay involved. Set two alarms. Get enough rest. Recover properly. Take care of yourself. Run.

Lisa hates that she hasn't physically been able to run. I'm sure Amber (strep throat), is, too. They'll both be back.

You've all come a really long way in the past ten weeks. Don't short yourself now. It's all a matter of choice. To paraphrase an advertising punch line - someone busier, and more tired than you, is out there running right now.

Grace, Pace and Space

2008-11-06T13:31:00.000-08:00

There's also a new post over on Run Drink Repeat... about my first eight miler...

OK, a quick note on pace. Again, on your long runs, unless I tell you otherwise, you want to be going easy. I'm horrible at this - I'm checking my watch, every mile. I'm basing my expectations on what I know I've done before at this level of conditioning, but it's still not the smartest way for me to be training myself.

Look in any running book or website, and they'll tell you that a good training program has you doing "LSD". Sweeeet. No, you hippies, that means "long slow distance". You have to remember that "running" is not just one thing, one strength. It's a combination of elements, all of which we try to address in different ways.

Basically, you want to reach and sustain a pace that keeps you in the realm of aerobic energy production. Naturally, your muscles, your skeleton, your cardiovascular system, even your energy production at the cellular level, will respond.

A lot of this is because of fuel. Think of yourself as a car that some gearhead has stuck a nitrous tank on. At easy speeds, like when you're working aerobically, you go well enough on gasoline, the way you were meant to run. When you push the speed past a certain point, you hit the nitrous to add some boost to the fuel, which will now burn hotter with the same amount of oxygen. The problem there is, that boost is short lived, and has consequences, like voiding your warranty and possibly causing you to blow a seal, which is and isn't as nasty as it sounds.

Thing is, we're better than cars, because our bodies can respond and improve themselves.

In response to the increased, prolonged oxygen demand of lengthy runs in the aerobic zone, your body will build new and more extensive capillary beds in your muscles that are critical for the delivery of oxygen.

Your cells will produce greater size and number of mitochondria, the little guys that are responsible for energy production, which in turn will enable you to actually maintain a faster pace, even in shorter races. On top of that, the enzymes in the mitochondria responsible for energy production become more active, leading to even more efficiency.

Your body will learn to conserve its primary fuel - glycogen. When you're out of glycogen, your time on the road is drawing to a close. Your body will respond to greater fuel consumption by burning it more efficiently, and storing more of it in favor of increasing its use of another fuel for energy - fat. If you keep your speed under control, your body will read the writing on the wall, realize you're going to continue to do this stupid running activity on a regular basis, and it will use more fat and less carbs on a regular basis. Result - you'll go longer without bonking, and you'll look hotter. Those are both good things.

Somehow, in ways I don't understand, your musculoskeletal system will even become stronger to put up with the repetitive impact and stresses.

There's a bunch of other crap that happens - fast-twitch muscles changing teams to slow-twitch, something about Mia's globes... uhh... science... Whatever.

Finally, a lot of what we're getting into is the mental aspect of simply enduring the distances and the times involved. At some point, you will have been running for an hour and a half, two hours, then realize you've got another hour or two to go. You only learn to cope with that by doing it, by putting in the time - without an iPod, I should add.

Now, if you go too fast in your long runs, you push out of the aerobic threshhold, and all those systems don't have to respond, they don't have to improve. You may be able to run a distance, but you've missed out and being better, faster, less... hurty.

Go too hard too much of the time, and you dramatically increase your risk of injury, even burnout. You won't feel like a bad-ass watching in February, if you're wondering if you screwed yourself up. And running yourself so hard that you peak right around National Bicarbonate of Soda Day (that's December 30 for you people without decent calendars) does you no good on February 15, either.

Go fast on Tuesdays. Bump up the pace a little on one of your solo weekday runs - Monday, perhaps. Bump up the pace for the last mile or two of your Thursday run, which will be the longer of your solo runs. In a couple of the long runs, I'll ask you to run MGP or HMGP for a certain number of miles, usually near the end, where you'll hate me the most for it.

All my coaches tried to pound patience into me, but I was in too much of a hurry to listen. I still wrestle with the siren's call of the stopwatch, but I'm a better runner when I win that struggle.

Now, by the same token, you don't need to be just dogging it out there. If your buddy is a lot slower than you, then you need, to some extent, to do your own thing, or find someone different to run with, and hook back up afterwards. You may also be forcing them to run faster than they should, so you're not helping them, either...

I also mean to enforce less loitering, slacking, dallying, dawdling, loafing, frickafracking and general lollygagging at the water stops. There'll be none of that at the races, so you need to start minimizing your inactive periods.

Alright. Get running.

Wow, That Sucked: Dealing With The Long Runs

2008-10-27T08:24:00.000-07:00

Some people indicated they had gained some humility on Saturday's run. Well, good. That was part of the point...

We've hit a point in the past couple of weeks of training that is new to a lot of you. We're getting into distances on our long runs that are farther than you've gone before, and with Saturday's run, it was probably far harder a route than you've run before.

So, first, big ups to everyone who came out and ran Saturday (and Friday, in Katie's case). I told you, it's a far tougher route than you've seen yet, and intentionally so. It's one of two to three runs we'll do that are intended to humble you as much as they are to build your strength and confidence. Several great coaches have told me, "you have to respect the distance." You've all seen gains in your speed and mileage, and it's been fairly easy so far. You've accomplished a lot, but now we're talking about running for an hour and a half, two hours, and soon, three hours and longer. It's time to check some of your ego at the door, because it's becoming a whole different ballgame, with far greater physical and mental stresses.

All that said, runs like Saturday's should make you more confident. That kind of run will make you physically tougher, but more importantly, it builds your mental toughness. That route is more relentlessly hilly than the 3M or Austin half marathon courses, or the hilliest part of the Austin Marathon course. Now you know you can do more than just run seven or ten miles - you can run seven or ten really tough ones. You half marathoners won't have trouble with a flatter nine or ten miles, and you full marathoners shouldn't have an issue with our twelve miler in a couple of weeks.

Having that physical and mental experience under you makes the next increase in distance easier, and it keeps advancing your ability to push the envelope of discomfort, which is what a lot of this is about. If you got through the run Saturday, if you're getting through the intensity workouts, then you've earned the right to be confident. You are all runners now, and you can act and think like it.

If you're putting in the work, if you're doing things properly, from running your miles, to paying attention to hydration and nutrition, to stretching, to running your workouts at the proper paces, you can do this. We're going to talk more about and reinforce some of these aspects over the next couple of weeks.

What I told one of our humbled runners applies to all of you - you're running well, and you're going to do well. To get the most from yourself in training, you have to strike balances between confidence and humility, impetuousness and patience. So, no slacking, keep the faith, and don't get ahead of yourself. Focus on the fundamentals, be patient, and let the training plan work for you.

Chop wood, carry water.

Our Night With Dick Beardsley

2008-10-08T09:22:00.000-07:00

A big thanks to Dick Beardsley, and his wife, Jill, for coming out again to run and speak with us last night. I'm sorry things ran as late as they did, and I'm annoyed that I forgot to take a group picture of us with him...

When you get to know me very well, you'll see that one side of me is really focused on the mechanics and fundamentals of running, and of training for an event like a half marathon or marathon. A lot of that is just the geeky side, that is fascinated by the physics and the science and the logical processes. Maybe all that would be enough for me to want to coach, but if that were all, coaching and running would be interests, not passions. What I am passionate about is the perspective running can put the rest of our lives into, and Dick obviously epitomizes that. His life speaks to his running, and his running speaks to his life, and the attitude that results from him is what makes him one of my heroes, and like I said last night, an example for what I want us to get out of running in Team Spiridon.

On top of all that, he came out last night for honestly an embarassing pittance, pretty much as a favor. I'm looking forward to us returning that favor by raising some funds for the Dick Beardsley Foundation, as well as Emancipet - apparently, they have quite the menagerie, themselves, and Jill has been known to rescue baby squirrels...

We got to hear his recounting of the 1982 Boston Marathon. Here's video of it. Much as I love U2, the music is a bit cheesy, but I've never found another extensive video posted without it...

Running Log (repost of a repost of a riposte)

2008-09-30T09:45:00.000-07:00

Someday, I will share with you all the legend of Running Log, the great Native American track and field star. But not now.

If you'll look to the left over there, you'll see a link for the Nikerunning website, which contains a free training log.

I really recommend that you keep track of your running. Most obviously, it helps you have a picture of how often you're running, and what kind of mileage you're putting in every week. Most people think it'll make them feel bad when they miss a workout - actually, that's not a bad thing. But it will also give you an appreciation for how much you're doing. When you miss a workout, but you still see that you ran six or nine or (eventually) 20 miles that week, it can prevent that Stuart Smalley shame spiral where you decide it's all hopeless, and you go grab the peanut butter, a jar of Bonne Maman strawberry preserves, and the largest spoon that will fit in the mouths of both jars, and go to town, washing it down with successive Lone Star tallboys, the tinge of aluminum made slightly salty by your own tears.

It happens. Or so I hear.

So, check out the training log. It's fun to do, and you can also track your other activities, like yoga, cycling, swimming, and your weekly pickup jai-alai games. It'll also track your vitals, like your weight.

A training log is also good because it helps you track the mileage on your running shoes, which we call "tennis" or "tenny" shoes in Texas, but which the British, apparently being masters of the obvious and explicit, call "runners."

So, You Made Us Suffer for Two Miles. What's Your Point?

2008-09-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

OK, this is another exceedingly long post about stuff.

I sort of fear being challenged on some of this - I'm no scientist, and I prefer to geek out on physics, but I can give you a poor, but usable, explanation of my poor understanding of what our bodies do, with some of the more hazily remembered numbers culled from the Internet, that bastion of infallibility.

So, when a boy or girl reaches a certain age...

Wait, that's the other thing I have a poor understanding of.

Running. Yes. So, our physical ability to run is governed by several things, of course, but the key fundamental component is our ability to burn fuel, which involves our use of oxygen at the cellular level.

Yeah, you have to physically get oxygen into your lungs and blood vessels and to the cells, and there are variables and potential roadblocks along the way. But all those extraordinary conditions as they may be, it still comes down to your ability to burn fuel.

Two of the key measures of this ability are our VO2 max, and our lactate threshold.

VO2 Max
Your VO2 max is specifically a measure of your body's maximal, or best, ability to transport and use oxygen. There's a couple of different expressions of it, but for athletes, we usually talk about milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. It's generally accepted as the best measure of aerobic fitness.

Our VO2 max is largely genetically determined, but can obviously be affected by weight, and by training. The average VO2 max for untrained men is around 45 ml/kg/min, 38 for women. Decently trained athletes will get into the 50's and 60's, world-class athletes higher. Lance Armstrong? Reportedly around 86. Freak. A famous skier had an off-season measurement of 96. In the off-season, not at his training peak. Total freak. Interestingly, Wikipedia lists Iditarod sled dogs at upwards of 240 ml/kg/min.

Lactate, or Anaerobic, Threshold
So, VO2 max measures your ability to deal with aerobic training under maximum effort. At some point, though, your cells are burning at as high a rate as they can with the oxygen they're getting. Essentially, they burn through all the oxygen, and begin to rely on either creatine phosphate or glucose to burn for energy. This is anaerobic energy production.

There are certain byproducts of this new zone of energy production, including lactic acid. Up to a certain point, your body can reuptake it, limiting its build-up in your bloodstream. On top of everything else, Lance Armstrong has a freakish ability to reuptake lactic acid, meaning he can hold a higher level of intensity for longer than lowly humans, and recover faster. It's just not fair.

Once the demand for energy reaches a point and becomes even more inefficient, lactic acid production outpaces the body's ability to reabsorb it. Once it hits a certain level in the bloodstream, generally accepted to be, like 2 somethings per something else, you're considered to have hit your lactate threshold.

Very often, you hear people say they couldn't hold their speed or push more weight because of the lactic acid, which is technically wrong, or because they were lactating, which is completely wrong in almost every case.

Really, the lactic acid in the bloodstream is a symptom, not the cause.

Our higher-intensity workouts will push you just into the anaerobic/lactate threshold, which will help push it higher. And yes, this kind of training will benefit your distance running ability, as well.

OK. So, like... what?
I've done the testing. It's humbling, and not entirely comfortable. You run on a treadmill, with a huge mouthpiece jammed in your grille that, because of the noseplug, is your only way to inhale and exhale. You get pushed to successively higher levels of exertion for periods of time, and periodically, they jam a needle into your ear for a blood sample to test for lactic acid buildup. It is unpleasant, though you do feel like Steve Austin for a while.

From your VO2 max and lactate threshold, you can derive with some accuracy your predicted potential paces for other distances.

Running the two-mile time trial (remember, that's what all this crap was supposed to be explaining) bypasses all that testing, and essentially works this process backwards. Running it ideally, you are running at maximal capacity for a distance that is long enough to get you into the anaerobic zone, and long enough to not just be something you can totally will yourself through, yet short enough to run without spending too much time in the anaerobic zone.

You run it, and in an indirect way, it measures your VO2 max and lactate threshold. I suppose that doesn't matter, because just running the time through a formula, you can still determine your ideal paces. But I think it's good to know why it works.

Whew. Still with me? So, here's what you do. I'll email you your times. Go to the link on the left for the McMillan Pace Calculator. It's a magical thing that will tell you with freaky accuracy what your paces should theoretically be for other distances. You'll use these paces for some of our workouts, and you can use them as guides for your pace in races. Also (Amy), please note (Amy) the suggested long run paces (Amy). By the way, Amy, I think you should particularly look at that, Gunner.

A final note about this: these paces are ideals based on your body's most fundamental capabilities. They don't take into account terrain, headwind, illness/hangover, a bad day, a good day, or the other things that start happening to your body when you hit a certain mileage. It has predicted my times well up to the half marathon, and then it breaks down for me. Honestly, I have yet to have my ideal, or even acceptable, marathon. I'll own up to that. But I've had some great coaches in the past, and I'm confident of my own coaching. It's just something I need to deal with and overcome.

So, don't live and die by these numbers. They're just a guide. If nothing else, the time trial teaches you to push your limits of discomfort, and for that alone, it's valuable. More on that later.

Rain or Shine, People!

2008-09-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

"There's no such thing as bad weather. Just soft people."
- Bill Bowerman, legendary coach guy

In the midst of all this hurricane business, I hear a theoretical tiny, tinny, whiny voice crying out, "But what if it's raining?" Easy - we run in it. Aside from lightning, there's no reason not to run in the rain, and every reason to do it.

Races are run rain or shine - they, like us, will only cancel for lightning or major meteor strike at the start/finish area. What good would it do you to train in ideal conditions, just to show up and have to run in the rain? Very little. And if you think you're not all hardcore about running a race - when you slap down your $120 or $80 or whatever for the marathon or a half marathon, you'd be pretty lame to turn tail and go home because it's raining.

It's an exercise in commitment - If you're going to let moisture stop you from training and putting in the work, then what else are you going to let stop you? Not having clean socks? Everyone Loves Raymond reruns? Do you want to be someone who gives in that easily? Do you want to be someone that loves Raymond? No, you don't.

It's freakin' epic - Pounding the pavement or the track or the trail in a downpour, you feel like you're in the middle of a Rocky training montage, or in the climactic scene of a movie. Leave the iPod at home, because you can pretty much hear the orchestra churning along with you. People drive by, and those that don't "get it" may think you're an idiot, but the many who do "get it" will think you're a bad-ass, and maybe they'll think about their own level of commitment.

So, tomorrow, we run, and take pictures, rain or shine - anything but lightning, a decision I'll make at 6:30.

All this is not to say you shouldn't be prepared. Bring dry clothes and shoes to change into afterwards. Wet shoes and socks make for wet skin, which increase the chances of blistering - use some Bodyglide or Vaseline on your arches and anywhere else you tend to rub in your shoes.

It's gonna be fun, really.

Safety Things...

2008-09-11T10:17:00.000-07:00

So, the incidence of runners being attacked or harassed or simply creeped-out is sort of frighteningly high. I don't like being alarmist, but we have to be conscious that stuff happens out there, whether you're running in upscale Tarrytown, where a runner was attacked but escaped the other day, in Clarksville at the tail end of a group workout, where a couple of men followed Laura the other night, or across the street from Whole Foods with a bunch of bystanders.

There's also the issue of running at night, which is probably not so much an issue now as it will be in October. At that point, we'll move our workouts up to 5:45 or 6:00pm, to try to get us a little more daylight, what with the apparent shortening of the days by means of some black magic that liberals and conservatives can blame each other for, the falling-back clock action, and the gradual, evil lengthening of workouts.

So, let's be smart about things, by means of my beloved bullet points:

Turn on your heartlight - OK, so quite simply, get you some light, so you can see and be seen. Bettysport, RunTex, Academy, REI, all have varieties of lightweight blinky lights. The blinky LED's that go on the shoes are incredibly disconcerting to watch, but that noticeability is exactly what you want, and they even end up casting a little light in your path. REI even has some super-bright halogen headlamps that you can wear on your head, or maybe clip to your arm or waistband.

Christina and I also run with these little guys. They're heavy duty, super-crazy bright, and made for law enforcement. They're bright enough that you can actually use them to momentarily stun someone. Seriously. They're easy to carry in your hand when running, have a button to momentarily activate them, or you can leave them on. The LED version is a little pricey, but gives you really long battery life. The regular version is $35. I've even strapped it to a beam with a hair scrunchy and used it as a spot for a friend's show. They're available at Whole Earth, Cabela's, and online.
Black is the new way to get your butt run over - Yes, you look cool, and you get to play Ninja Runner Person. But you'll never get to use your nunchuks if you get smacked by the car that you were stealthily invisible to. Wear light colors, with reflective stuff. Reflective vests are cheap, if you'll take alive and stupid-looking over dead and cool.

Be actively visible - Run on the left, unless circumstances make this clearly the worst option. When you have cars coming at you, make eye contact, even wave at them. Make sure they see you.

Take a buddy, or at least someone you can almost stand - Don't run alone. Simple enough. You're more visible, you have a spotter, you're less likely to get messed with, and if you see the other person fall into a gaping hole, you can then avoid the hole and continue your run.

Step light - When you're running through a dark patch, don't assume that it's not the only patch of sidewalk in five miles that isn't clear. Confused by the double negative? Me, too. Point is, find the most lit path through the darkness, slow a little, pick up your feet, and step lightly, as if you're running across a rocky stream. If there is something wonky underfoot, you'll have a better chance of recovering from it.

Pick your route carefully - There are lots of considerations here. Stay out of deserted and/or dark areas, and clear of pothole infestations. Vehicle traffic can provide you a bit of light and security, but you need to steer clear of narrow roads, blind hills and corners, or high speed limits. Portions of the trail are OK, but it gets awfully dark. If you're close to the trail, you might be better off running downtown, or on South Congress.

Run tough, act tough, be tough - Last year, one of our runners was accosted by someone who thought she looked good in shorts, but then wanted to see if she, um, felt good, too. She tried to edge away and be polite. That's understandable, but if it's not going to work with a frat boy in a bar, why would it work with a possibly loony predator? If a comment gets made that's over the line, ignore it. Don't give them anything. If they persist or approach you, say, look them in the eye and say "Hey. Back off. I'm running." Ignore him when he calls you whatever he calls you, as long as he walks off. Keep anything you say short, but be assertive and make the point that you're not going to be messed with. In the situation our runner was in, she could cross the other street, approach some other people, or even go up to one of the cars in the intersection, and start communicating with them - make sure he sees that people see you and him, and he'll probably move off. If you get in serious trouble, yell, and flag down a car.

OK. There you go. Please, take this stuff seriously. I'm the only person who should be trying to annoy or hurt you.

Hills, Stupid Hills: The Quiet Commie Menace

2008-09-09T09:38:00.000-07:00

OK, I'll bore you with this tonight, but I'd like to bore you with it now, because it's important in Austin to know how to run hills properly. It is important to realize that I am a big geek, and when I'm running, I'm thinking through all this stuff, and how best to try to explain it. So... here ya go.

Running Uphill

It helps to think about the physics of hill running, and first it comes down to geometry. Think about the geometry of your body in relation to the ground when you lean back - you've got a triangle formed by the ground: the imaginary line from the top of your head intersecting the ground at a 90 degree angle (side A); the line from there to your front foot (side B), and the line from that point back to the top of your head, which is the triangle's hypotenuse.

Now, think also about the vector of gravity's pull... on a hill, it's not perpendicular to the ground, right? It's straight to the center of the earth (let's stick with Newtonian physics and ignore more recent modifications of it). Hence the suckiness or coolness of running up, or down, a hill.

Ideally, you maintain the same upright, hips under you form as you do when you're on flat ground. Of course, your ability to do that depends on the steepness of the hill.

So, once a hill hits a certain level of steepness, the geometry of our bodies makes it impractical to stay perpendicular to the ground. So, we increase forward lean. This makes Side A, in front of our bodies (top of the head, perpendicular to the ground) shorter, and lengthens the hypotenuse, which is from the top of your head to the foot pushing through the strike behind you. Because of the way our legs bend, and because of the way we're best able to exert force for maximum traction and power, the lean forward makes sense.

The big problem is that most people get their lean by bending at the waist. First of all, as we've talked about on flat ground, this angle between the hips and leg is biomechanically inefficient.

Next, the butt starts falling out behind you, changing your center of gravity, and distorting the geometry of your body.

Once that happens, people tend to hunker their shoulders, which is often also a result of people dropping their heads down.

The result - an inefficient, tiring, difficult-to-breathe running posture. No bueno.

The answer is in your hips, shoulders, and head. Keep your head up - be looking at the next point on the hill that you're aiming for. Keep your shoulders relaxed, but back, allowing a good, unobstructed flow of air. Finally, keep your hips under you. On steeper hills, it helps me to imagine pressing the hips forward into the hill.

Move your arms. Their relation to the body will change on hills - they'll be moving a bit more in front of your shoulders, but still not crossing the front of your body. When your legs are failing a bit, focus on moving the arms, and the legs will follow.

A lot of people strike with the foot and lift straight up. On hills in particular, they're missing out on a huge bit of strength, just in your foot and calves. So, strike, and roll all the way so that when you're taking off, it's off the front tip of your shoes.

Finally, break the hill into manageable chunks. Find a landmark, and just focus on getting to it, then pick another and get to it. If you look up Wilke or some of the other hills we'll be running, you'll try to find a tree and a bit of rope to hang yourself.

Running Downhill

The general rule is that uphills and headwinds are harder than downhills and tailwinds are easy. But make no mistake, downhills run properly and patiently can give you a good deal of time back. They can also wreck your legs in a longer race.

On the downhills, the temptation is to lean back and let gravity carry you. This is actually not good.

Think back to the geometry thing. When you lean back, you feel more in control because the hypotenuse is intersecting the ground at an angle that matches the vector of gravity's pull. The problem is, it also stretches that hypotenuse out - your body has to get longer in front of you. To accomplish this, two things usually happen. First, you lengthen the front part of your stride by stretching the leg out, straightening the knee out and striking on your heel. Because you're also shortening side A of your triangle (the imaginary back line), and lengthening side B (the bottom), gravity gets to accelerate you a bit longer on each stride, resulting in higher speed and greater impact.

Bottom line - bad for your knees, ankles, hips, spine... hell, everything. It even makes my teeth hurt.

Meanwhile, if you're also trying to move your feet faster over a longer distance (side B), you might actually be working harder and getting your heart rate higher than when you're on flat ground. Also dumb.

The answer is to run downhill with the same form and angle as you run on flat ground, and uphill. When you do it, you're going to feel like you're falling forward. This is why you want strong quadriceps muscles, and a quicker, but not too quick turnover. This is a matter of just getting the right feel running downhill.

I try to get to a point of turnover where I'm still striking midfoot, but immediately rolling forward and through the strike. There's a split second between the initial strike of the foot, and the point at which your shoes and joints compress, and you get the sudden, sharpest moment of impact. That's what you need to minimize. Rolling forward immediately helps dissipate some of that energy.

The cautionary warning here is that on a long, very hilly course, like the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, slowing yourself too much will wear out your quads and increase the odds of them cramping up later... So, it can be a fine line.

Everyone wants to bank time running downhill. But even if you're being conservative and patient, you're just gonna pick up some speed. Side B of your triangle is going to naturally lengthen a bit when you factor in that you're still falling downhill a little, making each stride, even at the same cadence, cover a little more ground.

More importantly, managing a downhill gives you a chance to recover. In the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon, managing the course is everything, and will make or break your day.

I'm sure I'll think of more, but I think this is enough to make everyone wonder just what the hell I'm talking about...

What, When, Wha?

2008-09-08T08:35:00.000-07:00

TEDIOUS ALERT! There's good stuff here to learn and understand, but you'd better go get a cup of coffee...

OK, so let's talk about what the thinking behind the schedule is. This is incredibly long, and as mentioned, tedious. But I think it's important to understand the "why" of what I'm asking of you, here.

Basically, I have a giant, wall-filling six month calendar. I write down all the workouts for the season, including your solo runs on small strips of paper, twist-tie them to darts, blindfold myself, and throw them at the calendar. It's an amazing system, actually, though the cat doesn't always clear the room, so part of your fee goes for vet bills.

Sometimes, however, I actually plan this thing out, and there's a method to my madness.

First off, there are some reputable and probably successful marathon or half-marathon programs out there that will train you for 19 weeks. Every now and then, Runner's World runs a headline that you can do it in three weeks, for just pennies a day or some crap.

I used to train in and coach in a program that ran for six months. Despite wanting to try to be as different from them as possible, I looked at other similar programs, and 24 weeks seemed to be somewhat of an industry standard. For one thing, the math works out - bring in half-marathoners that are capable of running the reasonable and common distance of three to four miles, see what you have to build them up to, and if you're into the use of macrocycles (as we are), it gives you a nice period of time to do a steadily progressive program. Same with marathoners.

Now, this macrocycle thing. Again, this is not anyone's patented system. No running group, in Austin or otherwise, owns it or is maverick in their employment of it. In fact, I believe all the major groups in Austin use some form of it. Here's an excerpt from a paper by Dr. Atko Viru, who has a very impressive scientist-y name:

The potentiality of intensive adaptive changes in the organism are limited by the adaptive energy (Selye, 1960), or the adaptive capacity reserves. The exhausted reserves are, as a rule, restored by relative rest (reduction of the training volume). However, further intensive training and competition loads will progressively exhaust the adaptive reserves and can lead to a drop in the performance and finally result in overtraining. It is impossible to assume that an athlete can meet the requests of the competition calendar set by organizers and remain in peak form for six months or even longer. Even the organism of an athlete needs rest.

Ah, gotcha. Science! So... just what the hell does that mean? Simply, ya gotta rest. You keep increasing the workload, or even trying to maintain a high level of distance and intensity, and you're gonna poop out, burn out, or worse, get injured. Sorry if that's still too much technobabble for you.

So, you'll see that we'll build in distance for a couple of weeks, then you'll get a recovery "week". This is mainly visible in our long run miles, though I also take into account total distance for the week, and the intensity of our weekday workouts, as much as one can for a group of athletes with somewhat different abilities and needs. There's also the fact that a general principle of running is that you don't want to increase long run mileage or total mileage by more than 10% a week. A few times, we might breach that by a couple of points, but if it's more than that, I'll make up for it with a flatter route, or a less intense Tuesday workout.

Now, as for the weekly schedule, there are probably very scienc-y principles underlying this, but basically I'm going by what I learned worked from my own training. It's about getting a rhythm in your training that, like the macrocyle method, incorporates intensity and recovery.

Let's look at this as Monday through Sunday, with Saturday long runs, and Tuesday intensity workouts. On Monday, you're still a bit stiff and sore from Saturday, unless you slept in/didn't set your alarm, Dina and Carmen. So, a nice, easy run seems to work that out. You might feel a bit clunky starting the run, but by the end, unless you push the pace too much, you'll work out the kinks.

Tuesday, I try to hurt you.

Wednesday, at least in the beginning, you need to rest. Rest is a very real need. You might feel like a running machine, unbreakable and... untirable or something. Well, if you are, then you need a much more bad-assed coach than me. Your body needs to heal its muscles, its joints, and its brain, even. So, your cross-training should be low- to no-impact, and relatively low intensity in terms of workload on your legs and cardiovascular system. Do stuff that will get the blood flowing, keep you moving, build upper-body and core strength, or work on your flexibility.

Thursday, run again. Again, with the clunkiness, and, if you haven't been diligent about stretching, maybe some stiffness and soreness. Again, in addition to building mileage, this helps work out the kinks from Tuesday, and set you up to be at your best Saturday.

Friday right now is light cross training, and a bit of rest before your long run.

Sunday, you rest. Period. Learn to like watching football or something. But nothing too taxing, especially as the long runs get longer. I don't care how good you feel, your body needs the recovery, especially since you'll run again Monday and be getting your butt kicked again on Tuesday.

Now, there's reasons we'll deviate from the norm sometimes. There'll be races, most of them on Sunday, that we need to account for and work around. There's also be personal reasons. The big thing you don't want to do is try to make up mileage and runs in a haphazard way. So, let's look at a couple of real examples I got in my email in the past couple of days...

I did a good run this weekend. It was over a 7 mile run. Regarding the training schedule, are the days to cross train set in stone or are they flexible?

You probably have the answer from my explanation above. Again, the Sunday off is set in stone. Period. As for the placement of running and cross-training, the schedule is preferred, but if you need to, deviate from it. If you understand the principles above, you can make up for some of it by moving runs to mornings or evenings, to get those recovery runs in, and get as much actual rest-recovery as you need.

Here's another one:

I’m a mess this week- I have a meeting on Tues night so I’ll miss that run, Wednesday I have tennis practice so I can’t make it up then, and Saturday I have a tennis game at 8:30 (singles, so at least I’ll be running around a lot, but more sprints). To top that off, I managed to acquire a massive bruise on the back of my upper thigh on Saturday that is about the size of a softball which is so painful that it’s actually difficult to walk, sit in a chair, or even sleep. Blah. I’ve been icing it, but it’s just a bad bruise. So, all that to say, do you have any suggested runs I could do this week maybe on Thursday, Friday and/or Sunday? Maybe I could do the Clarkesville run on Thursday and the normal Sat. run on Sunday if my leg is feeling better.

So, lots of things going on, here. First of all, this runner needs to stop using two spaces after periods. That's an old-school holdover from the days before proportioned typefaces. But I digress. Hopefully, this runner will still get her three miles in today. At some point, she could pick up her miles or even the specific workout tomorrow morning. But, think about that - doing it in the morning is cutting recovery time in half, which may or may not be an issue, depending on the individual. If she can run in the mornings Monday and Tuesday, that would be ideal.

The ideal here would be to run the Tuesday workout early, and stick with the schedule, but let's say she can't do that.

I think running the workout Wednesday morning is her next-best option. If Wednesday night was a tournament, then she might just take an easy run that morning. Even with practice, she'll need to be sure to stretch, particularly after running hills. She should stretch right after, again later that day, and a little tiny bit before the practice, if she's feeling really tight. Then, she'd chill Thursday, and run Friday, in the morning, if possible, again to maximize the recovery time, which is not as critical now with our current mileage, but, still.

Now, a quick word on the extracurriculars. I wouldn't ask anyone to stop playing tennis or basketball or jai-alai, but just know that it complicates your training a bit, and each activity can increase the odds of injury in the other. Just sayin'. You'll need to be extra diligent in both sports, and as you get within a month or two of your goal race, you might consider backing off of a sport where you could roll and ankle and be sidelined from both sports.

If you're in doubt, or even just because you're bored, you can always run your schedule by me, and I'll try to suggest some alternatives. And, as a side note, I'm still working out the schedule, so some of the distances I have posted for two to three weeks from now might get tweaked a bit.

Nike Human Race Video

2008-09-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

More to come, but for now, and to get your uncalled for AC/DC fix, there's this:

Help Yourself (the Repost)

2008-09-03T10:09:00.000-07:00

OK, so let's talk about a few things up front. This is largely a repost, but with some things to bring it up to date.

Our schedule is pretty specific for certain reasons. For those doing Tuesday workouts, Wednesdays will be your cross training day, and then you run again Thursday. That first run after Tuesday's harder workouts may feel clunky - you might be tight and sore. Just go easy, and bear with it. The run, even short, will work some of that out, and help set you up for a Friday run and the Saturday long run.

For those doing a different schedule, like Wednesday workouts or Friday long runs... I'll work with you individually.

You might want to consider running in the mornings during the week. It's cooler, and helps sort of minimize the gaps between runs. Running in the morning also ramps up your metabolism for the day, which is good if you're wanting to burn some fat. If anyone would like to burn some of mine, feel free.

Some of you are gonna be sore. You might be sore starting out, and then later, you might be sore because you're hitting your stride and you're working harder, and then later because of the mileage. Great, huh? I do get to a time in my own training where I'm sore and feeling a little beat-up most of the time. The thing is, I also feel strong, and the soreness and beat-uppedness shouldn't be indicative of more serious issues, like muscle pulls or strains, shin splints, skeletal issues, or infestation by an incubating, parasitic alien.

At every phase of the training, we have to take responsibility and start taking extra care of ourselves. This is half marathon and marathon training, not a correspondence course in, I don't know, incubating parasitic alien infestations. There are things we can do to minimize or eliminate our discomfort, and help ward off injury. We'll talk more about some of these things as we go along, but here's a few points:

Ice baths - Yeah, ice baths. After long runs, and even after hard weekday workouts. It alleviates a lot of soreness, and hastens recovery, so that the next run is not so horrible. I know some of you have become believers - would you please weigh in on this in the comments?

Stretch - I am the worst about this. In fact, class one, we did foot drills, and then I thought food and beer, and didn't enforce stretching. Help keep me in line about stretching as a group, please.

For one thing, if you aren't very flexible, stretching doesn't seem very satisfying, and it can be a bit disheartening. We have to be disciplined and do it, though, especially as the weather gets colder. Light stretching before runs, then good stretching after every run. I like to try to stretch again a couple of hours after the run - we tend to get in our cars, go home or to work, and sit, making it as easy as possible for our leg muscles to tighten up. Tight muscles affect your stride, even your footstrike, increase the chance of some injuries, and generally makes life miserable. And with just 5-10 minutes a day, we could avoid a lot of that. Yoga is helpful - more on that in a moment.

Massage - Massage is another miracle worker. If you wanted to be completely serious about this running thing, you'd get them regularly. I know there's an expense factor. But even if you can get one once a month, it'll help tremendously.

Self massage is a good thing, too. No jokes, please. Look into foam rollers. They're a wonderful thing, if you remember to use them...

Get help now, not later - We all want to run, some of us are afraid of stopping and losing ground. But the algebra of this is simple - you can go get that pain looked at now, maybe have to sit out or minimize your running for a few weeks, or maybe just address it with rehab or changes in routine, or, you can ignore it and keep pounding at it, thinking the magical running fairies, or maybe your incubating, parasitic alien infestation are going to repair it, and end up injured, fat, and asleep on the morning of February 18.

Listen to your body - Facing and overcoming discomfort and fear, even pain, are attributes you need as a runner. But ignoring pain during training that is trying to warn you of an issue with your body is just stupid. Get to know your body, and pay attention to it.

Run softly - I keep our workouts on the streets, because that's what you'll be running your races on. Dick Beardsley told us last season that he thinks people train on trails, then run distance on the street and their bodies aren't ready for it. I think that with the great trail system we have here, that happens a lot. I have a friend that runs ultramarathons on real trails, and will run the occasional marathon, and he talks about what a difference it makes when you aren't used to it. But there is a very real cost in impact and wear and tear on our bodies. So, on your solo run days, I encourage you to run on the trail, or even in grass. Take any opportunity to minimize the impact. You're also getting a slightly harder workout when you run on a surface with more energy absorption and less traction.

Cross train - When the calendar says "cross training", that's not like, some admonition to get to church (yeah, that was bad. sorry). You should be using that day to give your legs a break, particularly from impact. I want cross training to be as non-impact as possible. Swimming, cycling (don't wear your legs out), yoga, weightlifting (don't wear your legs out) are good examples.

Jack and Adam's Bicycles, at Lamar and Barton Springs, has free core workouts on Mondays and Wednesdays, at 5:30pm. Free. Like, no money. Strengthening your core is going to help you run stronger, and maintain your form longer.

Also, some of Team Spee is already hitting the free Friday night yoga at Yoga Vida. Yoga is fantastic for flexibility and even building some core strength. I think all athletes should be doing yoga, actually - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar gives a lot of credit for his unusually long basketball career to his practice of yoga. In just a few weeks of returning to yoga myself, I've started to regain some flexibility. I can now touch my hands to my knees. OK, just my fingertips, but still.

There's more to discuss - nutrition is a huge consideration. I have someone that will come talk to us about that at some point. And, maintaining your mental well-being, though clearly already a lost cause in general for many of you (OK, of us), is important to. And, at some point, we'll talk about how to deal with incubating, parasitic alien infestations, with the pain and the screaming and gurgling and exploding and the Sigourney Weaver and what-not.

For now, if you have any questions, let me know.

Nike Human Race Race Plan. For the Race.

2008-08-27T11:30:00.000-07:00

As usual, this is a bit exhaustive. But this is an interesting course, it’s an evening race in freakin’ August, and most of you haven’t run a 10K, or… any K’s, in a while.
OK, the course is something new. It was originally going to be on the Round-Up course, but that would have been dull, so we’ve got this. I’ve run it in pieces, most recently taking the Nike Club runners out on it last weekend.

The course map, such as it is, is at http://inside.nike.com/blogs/humanrace-en_US_AUSTIN/2008/08/04/the-official-nike-human-race-10k-course

I’ve mapped it out on Gmaps to get a (rough) idea of elevation changes. I know it says 6.3 miles. Ignore that. http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2211157

Preparation

Hydrate. That’s really all I have to say. I know everyone’s wondering why this race is in August, in the evening. Simply enough, there are 25 other cities worldwide having the race on the same day. If we wanted it, it had to be August 31.

So, it’s gonna be warm, but actually, right now, the forecast for 7pm is 88 degrees, 51% humidity (!), and partly cloudy. The rain from earlier in the day should have dissipated.

For a 10K, I’d say you could eat somewhat normally, but I’d eat lunch at 12 or 1:00, get some carbs, then have a light snack or two later in the day. Going in a little hungry is OK.

Getting to the Race

OK, one really cool thing this race’ll have – bike valets! The bike area will be secured and staffed – you don’t even need your lock.

Downtown is going to be a clusterfrak (yeah, BSG geek). South First will be closed for Bat Fest (because Your Living Room and Sherry Matthews and other business are getting pissy about street closures), the state garages north of the Capitol will be taken up by the Pat Green concert goers, and south of the river, they’ll be staging for the Austin Tri Monday morning… it’s gonna be wacky.

The Nike site says parking will be available in the state parking garages along Trinity St. north of 12th St. – I wouldn’t count on that. You can park in any public metered spot or in paid surface lots. I’d come in from the east or west, stay well outside the course, and park on the street. Consider car pooling, or use Cap Metro (www.capmetro.org).

The Race

You'll start at 6th and Congress, at 6:30pm. There’ll be a good, wide start gate.

Here’s the thing - from the start to the turn at 2nd, it’s just slightly downhill. Just a seven or eight foot drop in elevation, but it’s over four blocks, just enough for your legs to feel a little too good. People will be excited, and many will be inexperienced. There’s also going to be all kinds of silliness at the start to get people hyped.

First rule of racing – anyone? Anyone? Bueller? DON’T GO OUT TOO FAST. The corollary to that is: run your own race. Not getting sucked into everyone else’s pace and being mindful and disciplined is your first and one of your most important challenges. Go out too fast here, and you’ll pay later.

Right now, just think about your body alignment, getting your hips under you, getting a slight forward lean from the ankles, not the hips. Head up, arms and shoulders relaxed. Just start off relaxed, and let the other 7,000-8,000 people around you go nuts and blow themselves out.

Don’t burn energy bobbing and weaving too much – let them slow you down a little. Be watching, and look for lines that let you thread through people efficiently. Be aware of your surroundings, and don’t cut people off. It’s rude, and you don’t want to end up eating asphalt. People will often hear you coming and slide over a little. It's OK to go through a gap between people, but nice to let them know. Sometimes, someone (usually someone wearing damned headphones) will start drifting over in front of you. The "accidental" light tap of your hand on their elbow will usually wake them up and get them to slide over.

Start setting yourself up for the left turn onto 2nd. With this many people, you don’t want to get pinched in the corner, or pushed out too far. Try to stay in the middle. If you’re on the inside, be careful, because you may have to go up and over the curb.

2nd is still an almost imperceptible downward grade. Another left onto Trinity, and it’s the slightest climb to 6th. Right on 6th to Red River – easy, flat to slight downslope.

Left on Red River, a water stop, and now the fun begins. In four blocks, it’s a steady climb of 24-26 feet. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s a good, real hill. Here’s where you should start really thinking about your hill climbing form – press those hips into the hill, keep your head up, and use your arms to set the pace for your legs. Stay relaxed! Let these hills take a little bit of pace. You’ve got a lot more to come, and some good downhills that will give a little back.

Those of you who run the Turkey Trot know that 11th Street is no help. 36 Feet in three blocks. Big fun.

Right turn onto San Jacinto, and the very slight hill for half a block should feel like the beginning of a recovery. Shake out your arms, and relax into the downhill, feeling your breathing and muscles get a little reprieve.

On the long downhill to 15th Street, do not go crazy and try to gain time. Again, those of you who have run the Cap 10K down this hill know that people go flying down it, only to crash and burn slogging up 15th. Maintain form – hips under you, light turnover, not letting your stride lengthen out too much, not letting your knees get any straighter than usual, and not striking too much on the heel. Even if you’re conservative and hold back a bit, your turnover will increase (hello, gravity) and your stride will naturally lengthen a bit. You’re going to get some time back here, and you’ll get a lot more in the last two miles of the race, so just let it happen naturally.

Water stop 2 is at 13th and San Jac. Tell them thank you, but you’re really looking forward to Rob’s water stop, which is supposedly really cool.
Left turn onto 15th, and a good hill – about a 24-25 foot climb over two blocks. Just be glad you’re not going all the way up. If you’ve done this right, you’re going to see some of the people that zipped by you on San Jac.

Right turn onto Congress. A little downward grade to MLK. Look for water stop three, at the end of mile two, in front of the Bob Bullock Museum – I’ll be there at that water stop, yelling at you.

Right turn onto MLK, and a nice downhill. But then back up to Red River. This is a long grind, even after the left turn onto Red River. In fact, just look forward to climbing 90 feet in about half a mile, from San Jac and MLK all the way to Manor and Red River.

Ignore the Nike map here – it says you’re turning on Robert Dedman. Unless 26th has a third name there, you’re turning left on 26th/Dean Keeton. A long, glorious downhill where you’ll get back about 70 feet of that last climb. Again, though, don’t go nuts. Hold what you got, be patient. Red River to Guadalupe is just the fourth mile, and you’ve got a long, tough uphill ahead, from San Jac all the way up to Guadalupe. Take a deep breath, shake out your arms, relax, and hit the hill at a steady pace. Keep that head up.

Left on Guadalupe. You’ve covered four miles. Shake everything out, and relax. Up to now, you should be periodically assessing your pace, preferably on the few flats you’ve gotten, not when the uphill is sucking or the downhill is effortless. But in terms of finishing the race and possibly upping your pace, this is the first time to really look at what you’ve got in tank. If you can turn the pace up, do it, but do it gradually.

At about 23rd and Guadalupe, you start getting a downhill, and your legs should start really feeling a little bit of life again.

Right on MLK, downhill. Right on Lavaca. At 15th, you’ve covered five miles. Look again at what you have left for this last mile. Lavaca is mostly flat to about 11th. If you’re racing this, trying to push yourself for time, and you’re in reasonable condition to do so, now's the time to dig in and do it.

I like to look at a course beforehand and pick out three-four “go points”, at which I’ll push the pace up. I PR’ed one 5K in which I was horribly hung over, because I planned ahead, and had it set in my mind where I was going to turn up the pace.

Past 11th, the downhill is steep enough that you can let it carry you a little. This is a go point. Remember, do it with proper form, hips under you, and quicker turnover, not longer stride. With a mile left, you can be pushing your breathing and heart rate up a bit. Stay relaxed!Left on 9th, right on Colorado, and here’s your payoff – a steady 100 foot drop in half a mile! Keep your form, but go – you’ve only got about 1,000 meters left, 500 of it downhill.

Left turn on second – don’t let up the pace as it levels off. Hang in, you’re close.

Left on Congress. Go point. Pick someone ahead of you, and decide to gradually catch and pass them. At this point, choose your prey wisely, and pursue them patiently. Then pick another. Crank out three blocks, to 5th, then kick it all out to the finish on 6th – use faster turnover, really moving the arms – don’t try to muscle or stretch the legs to the finish – you don’t want to pull a hamstring, here.

Get your very cool finisher's award. Drink beer. Listen to music.

Team Spiridon Nears The Start Line... Wait for it...

2008-08-22T13:19:00.000-07:00

Look! New content! As already seen in email!

Well, I hope all you slacky slackers are enjoying your slacking, cause it's about to end.

Team Spiridon begins its second half marathon/marathon training season on Tuesday, September 2, at 6:30pm. Here's your handy, pocket-sized, easily digestible list of details:

1. We'll meet every Tuesday evening and Saturday morning up to the Austin Marathon and Half Marathon (it's not AT&T anymore).

2. Tuesday evenings will be at 6:30 until the confluence of several events - Daylight Savings Time ends, workouts get longer, and it gets cooler. I'm thinking sometime in October. At that point, we'll meet at 5:45pm or 6:00pm.

3. Saturday mornings will be at 7am, with the exception of a few longer runs.

4. Alternate Workouts: If Saturdays don't work for you, or you need to miss one, I'll probably be doing my long runs on Friday or Sunday mornings, so we can work that out.

5. Money. Stupid money. I'm sticking with $150, same as last year, because I don't want to have to go through thinking about it again. Returning members, let's say $140, rewarding you and allowing you to recoup some of last year's waffle iron contributions.

5(a). If money is really an issue for you, let me know, and we'll set up a payment plan or something. If you aren't sure of your commitment or ability at this point, talk to me, and we'll work something out.

5(b). If you want to charge it or whatever, you can use PayPal. Go to www.paypal.com, and click "Send Money" (duh). My email address, of course, is robhill45@gmail.com.

6. How Ready is Ready? I'd like the half marathoners to be able to run 3-4 miles coming into the training. Marathoners, 5-6. If you're not there, let me know. There's time yet, and we can work with you to get you up to speed.

7. Charity - We'll be choosing a couple of charities, one for peoples, one for animal peoples, to raise money for. Be thinking about that.

8. Nike Human Race - If you aren't running the big Nike Human Race on August 31 (nighttime race), I could use your help working at my water stop. We've got a sweet spot right in front of the Bob Bullock Museum, you get a cool Nike Human Race volunteer shirt, we'll have fun, and you'll get to go to the big Ben Harper post-race concert. And, it's as close as some of us will get to being part of any human race. Contact me if'n your interested.

9-11. These are the things I can't think of right now, that I'll remember as soon as I hit "send".

OK, that's it for now. If you have questions, holla. We'll have some new faces, and they all seem to be cool people that will fit right in. I know it's hot, but just think how nice it's going to feel in a couple of months. We're gonna have some fun, and we're gonna run well. See you in a couple of weeks...

Jenn Squishes San Fran Hills!

2008-08-08T14:17:00.001-07:00

As seen on ESPN and "The View", Jenn completed her first half marathon out in San Francisco last Sunday. Here, by her own hand, is the much-awaited report. OK, the first part is probably not by her own hand, unless she's gunning for a job with S.F.'s Convention and Visitors Bureau Propaganda Department:

Photos of me: (I think I found every single photographer on the course) http://www.marathonfoto.com/index.cfm?RaceOID=27892008M1&LastName=LANG&BibNumber=24293&Mailing=16254

CourseNote: The Second Half Marathon Course runs a separate loop from the Full Marathon Course between Miles 1 and 2. Otherwise, the Second Half Marathon Course is the same as the second half of the Full Marathon.

The start line is located at 36th and John F. Kennedy Dr just North of Rhododendron Island. Starting just footsteps away from Spreckels Lake, watch as children of all ages play with their remote control sailboats. Once you've started your race, be sure to greet the Bison as you pass them on your right. This course takes you through the beauty of Golden Gate Park. As you run around Stow Lake, you will find the waterfall and pagoda awaiting your arrival. Running towards the city streets, pass by the Rose Garden and take one last glimpse at the Conservatory of Flowers.

Run back in time to experience the 60s once more. See Sharon Meadows, home of the free rock concerts and run through the Alvord Lake Tunnel before arriving in the legendary Haight Ashbury District. Transition from the 60s to the Latino flavor of the Mission District. Run by the produce marts and taquerias as you make your way towards the Potrero District and into the developing Mission Bay/China Basin District. Here you will see warehouses, old shipyards, and the new UCSF Medical campus.

For the final stretch of the race, run along the promenade behind AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants. Run under the Bay Bridge and head straight for the Cupid's Arrow where you will be greeted with the finish line. The course ends along the waterfront on the Embarcadero at Folsom.

There were a couple of reasons for picking the second half to run: 1. we got to sleep in until 6:30 instead of running 2. it was a bit more flat, and the steeper hills were down hills 3. I didn't have to run over the Golden Gate Bridge (while Penelope thought that would be cool, I don't like being on bridges, especially ones that big and over that much cold water :-) )

Friday night we met up with some of Penelope's awesome friends for some great Cajun food at Cajun Pacific. It is a restaurant in a house, fits maybe 20 people max in Outer Sunset. There I met Sue, who was nice enough to pick up my bib and shirt. I am sure if I had gone to the expo, I would have walked way too much, and be tempted to buy new shoes :-) When we got back home, I immediately put my race bib on my shirt. I had to make sure it was perfect. Penelope couldn't help but laugh at me. (It wouldn't be the last time she laughed at me due to the race.)

Saturday night I packed my bag with my long sleeved shirt, yoga pants, and hoodie. (I wasn't sure that I would need the hoodie. It was quite warm in San Francisco that day, like mid to high 70's) By Sunday morning, I decided I didn't need the hoodie, so I took it out. I made a wonderful breakfast of toast with peanut butter around 7:00. The race would start at 8:20. Around 7:30, Alex came by to tape up Penelope's knee and drop us off at the start (Thank you so much Alex!!!!) We got to the park around 8:00 or so, dropped off our bags, and got in the 3rd wave group. We tired looking for Sue, but couldn't find her. The night before, it got much cooler, the temp was a perfect for running - low to mid 50's.

Penelope and I started off running together, but I knew she was going to be faster then me. I kept up for a few 100 feet, but then remembered that if I went out too fast now, it would add on much more time later. I dropped back to my pace, about a 12:00 min/mile.

Since we were joining in on the full marathon race, there was a water station at the first mile.I didn't' need water or the sport drink, but I stopped anyway and took both, because, not only did they have that, they had beer! And really, it wasn't enough that I was wearing my Team Spiridon shirt, I had to truly represent the team out there - and took the shot of beer :-)

By the time I got to mile 1.7 and over the first mat, I was feeling really good. My legs were not cramping at all, which they usually do by mile 2. I don't know how much of that was due to the massage I had on Wednesday, all the water I drank the rest of the week, the cooler temps, and/or the fact that I wasn't out drinking the night before. I'm thinking it was all the massage. By mile 2 I was warmed up, and took off my hat. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it for the next 11 miles. I tried putting it in my back pocket but that didn't work, so I ended up strapping it on to my shirt sleeve.

Between mile 4 and 5, the first half marathoners were finishing. They had some extra bananas for the full marathoners, and us. I thought about taking one, but decided I didn't really need it, and didn't need to risk upsetting my stomach. I was feeling fine taking both the water and sport drink every two miles.

We were in the park for the first 6 miles. It is a beautiful park, but by mile 4 I was pretty tired of running through it. I wanted to get on the actual streets of San Fran. About mile 5 the 2:30 pace group caught up with me (I was ahead of them for a while). I decided to pick up my pace and try to run with them (all for you JD) I ran with them for about a whole mile down Haight. I lost them on one of the alternate routes. (in order to keep the foot traffic manageable, they had runners run on different streets). Also, once out of the park, I got to run some hills. I ran up all of the hills. Most of them were comparable to hills here in Austin. there was only one steep hill, not as steep as Wilke, but still substantial. I liked that hill the best, because, well, it was downhill :-)

While on Haight I noticed there were trivia signs every few hindered feet. There were things like, "who was the founder of the Sierra Club?" answer "John Muir." It really helped keep the wall at bay. I also saw a guy from Texas. Some of you may wonder, "how did she know he was from Texas?" Well who else by a Texan would run in Texas flag running shorts (I really need to get a pair). I talked to him for a bit. He was running the full marathon. He had just run one 3 weeks earlier in Montana. He's been running a marathon a month since November of 2007. His goal is to run one in every state. Unfortunately, he had already run one in California earlier, but his friends wanted to do the half, so he came out with them. There were one or two live bands out there, and then some DJ's playing music. One thing that really surprised me where the number of people who were running by me with their ipods on so loud, I could hear their music. Yes Rob, I was running with mine, so I could use the Nike+ feature, but I had the music so low, I could hear other's music. That and about mile 4 I was tired of listen to my music, so I had taken out my earphones.

We stayed on Haight for a mile and half and then turned right on Buchanan for block, then a left on Herman and another right on Guerrero. That put me close to the 8 mile mark, where I went ahead and took my Advil to keep the aches down, and ate my Luna Moons (that seems redundant, but that's what they are called.) At mile 8, took a left on 16th Street and headed towards the bay. At this point I knew I was more than half way done and still felt good and relaxed. However, by mile 9 I was noticing I had blisters on both my feet. Right on the balls of my feet. It now hurt with every step I ran, so I walked a little more. Walking was okay. I was still around the same group I had been with for most of the race. My pace was still steady. I knew if I would run, it would be over quicker, so I ran through the pain, and when I couldn't I walked. I knew I was good on my time.

When I got to mile 11, we were along the bay. All I wanted to do was walk the rest of the route. And I think I would have, if it hadn't been for all the photographers. I was thinking, "I will not be caught walking on film, its bad enough I was caught with the headphones." So I ran. We ran around the SF Giants Stadium. This was my least favorite part of the race. We were now off the street and running on concrete. To make maters worse, it wasn't even level. I don't know if that is how it was designed, or due to an earthquake, regardless, it wasn't fun.

After running around the Stadium, there was just one more mile left! I dug deep, found the energy and finished strong. At one point I saw some women who had just finished the full marathon. They were wearing there medals. I noticed they were 4 times larger than the one I would be getting. I decided then, that I would definitely be doing the full next year!

After crossing the line, I received my first (hopefully of many) Mylar sheets and then my medal. I went through the line to get my food, and water, and electrolyte replacement drinks and then over to pick up my bag. It took them a while to find it, but I was so happy when I was able to put on my long sleeved shirt. The sun hadn't broken through the clouds at all. That was okay while we were running, but it was now cold. I made my over to the ferry building to find Penelope to go back home. We caught the tram and then had to hike a few blocks to her place. That was okay, but she lives at the top of a hill, a hill comparable to Wilke here in Austin. That wasn't too fun.

The original post-race plan was to shower, take a nap then head down to LA. Penelope had to visits some sites down there. After were got all clean, we decided we still had energy, so we skipped the nap and head South. Six and half hours later, we were in Anaheim. So, for those of you wondering, sitting in a car for 6 1/2 hours, not really a good thing after running 13.1 miles, especially if you already are prone to tightness in your calves. We get to the hotel, and check in. I literally limp/gimp my way to the front desk and then to the room. Penelope of course is laughing at me. I think the front desk staff was laughing at me, I was even laughing at me. How was I going to go to the, "Happiest place on Earth," the next day, if I couldn't even walk to my room? The next morning, my legs were a little better, not much but better. So we ate breakfast, and then Penelope dropped me off at Disneyland - where I spent the whole day walking around and riding all the rides. I can't think of a better way to celebrate running my first half marathon.

Week O' Dumbness, In Which Team Spiridon Glurgled, Rode, and Ran to Glory. And Beer.

2008-08-04T08:33:00.000-07:00

Last week was a brief moment of activity in an otherwise eventless running summer for many of us, a sure sign of the sweating and heavy breathing that will soon be upon us again.

First up, Christina raced the Small Texan Triathlon in Boerne last Sunday. It was "international distance", which I think means that no one could agree on what the actual distances were. OK, actually, it means a half-mile swim, a 45k (30 mile) bike, and a 10K run. Yeah, I know, it sounds horrible to me, too.

Though it was a small triathlon with about 300 participants, it was a great crowd - I have to say, a bit more collectively supportive and friendly than at some other tri's I've seen... I was also impressed by how many pretty serious (and talented) athletes were out there - for a small field, there was an unusual number of extremely nice bikes (including a woman with what appeared to be the Cervelo that Team CSC rode to team, white, and yellow jerseys in the Tour de France, which was ending that same Sunday), $3,000 wheelsets, and teardrop aero helmets.

We drove down there early (the first stupid thing about triathlons is this... earliness), and it was beautiful morning - about 73 degrees at the start, with the water temperature about the same.

Christina burned through the swim, starting at the back of her wave, but finishing before most of it, in 15:34. A fast transition, then she was off on the bike ride.

We had rode the course July 4th weekend, and it was a tough one. Long, steep hills, with little downhill payoff. The surface is a very rough, cheap chipseal for almost the entire distance, which we found to be just a bit over 28 miles. The long stretches were also conducive to strong winds, and sure enough, as the morning heated up, the wind began to blow. Still, Christina had a good ride, averaging 15.5 mph.

Meanwhile, I was going a little nuts. I sat. And waited. And watched people get on their pretty bikes and go tearing off into the day. I was jealous. I started thinking things. Stupid things. I had an iPhone. More on this later.

Christina came roaring in on the bike, finishing in 1:48, and went out again for the 10K run. By this time, though, it was burning hot. I was not jealous at this point.

It got tough out there. We hadn't checked out the run course, and when we had talked to a triathlete about it on July 4, we discounted the hill he reported at the turnaround, thinking, "Pfft. San Antonian. What do they know of hills?" She may also have been a little short on nutrition.

Still, she finished it out strong, in 1:07:09, and the day's effort was enough to place her at 3rd in her age group, and 19th female overall.

Afterwards, there were pancakes and omelettes at IHOP, a brief discussion of how dumb an idea it would be for me to register for the Jack's Generic Tri a week later, given the fact that I can't swim, and then the iPhone reappeared, and before the pancakes were gone, I was registered.

Last Thursday, Jenn jetted off to San Francisco for her first half marathon. After a year riddled with injuries, she'd trained well for the past several months, and gotten up to an 11 mile run in the past few weeks. She was ready, and yesterday, she finished in 2:37, challenging herself to run all the uphills, even if she had to occasionally walk a little elsewhere. We'll post her full report (and pictures?) when she returns from LA and Disneyland. No, really, she declared she was going to Disneyland. She might have been severely dehydrated at the time, though.

Meanwhile, in someplace that was definitely not San Francisco...

Christina was the spectator and holder of sandals this time, and I was the person in the spandex, finally able to ride my bike in competition. First, however, I had to swim, which is not something I do. At all. I spent four mornings last week at Barton Springs, trying to pick up my aborted attempts from earlier in the summer, which was itself an attempt to pick up where I'd left off last spring.

I had everything ready, forgetting only my gloves, which I hate wearing, anyway. But, as they say, man makes plans, and God laughs. Twenty minutes before race time, I was in a porta-potty, suffering in probably equal parts the consequences of Friday night, something I ate Saturday, and the anxiety that one should probably expect when they are about to sink to the bottom of a man-made lake for no good reason.

From my week o' swimming, I knew the best I could hope for in covering 500 meters was about 24 minutes. I knew that everyone else, and I do mean everyone, would finish in 14 minutes or less. My goal was to get through it, and not stand up, and not sob uncontrollably with fear.

I positively radiated confidence and fearlessness, which no doubt lent hope to my fellow competitors...

The mass start was breathtaking - a mass of determined and fit competitors between the ages of 35 and 39, carving their way expertly through the water...

And, then there was me, and, perhaps not coincidentally, reported sightings of some sort of gelatinous prehistoric monster in the lake that morning...

For one brief, glorious moment in time that I can't recall or believe at all, I did apparently move as if I were swimming...

I am proud to report that, well... I did not sob uncontrollably with fear. Oh, and I did get through it, though I am still not clear how, what with all the standing near the shore and the gasping for air and the sobbing uncontrollably with fear. But finally, I emerged victorious, placing 800th out of 806 swimmers, one of whom was a wheelchair participant. More importantly, I was able, finally, to ride my shiny bicycle with all the other kids...

Of course, Christina got lots of pictures of me drowning, but none of me being competent on the bicycle. Hmph. Fortunately, another spectator sent me the following picture of me on one of the more moderate climbs:

Suffice it to say, the bike was fun, and I got to catch and dust several of the waves of those jerks that can, you know, swim and what-not. Driven by anger at a sporting event that includes water, and a desire to ride as quickly as possible away from the water, I was able to regain a little dignity, placing 260th out of 800+ on the bike.

By the time I got to the three-mile run, of course, I just wanted the damned thing to be over, and I wanted my free beer that came with the $70 entry fee. I ran considerably slower than I had hoped, but ran all the way through. The only endurance event left was the beer line, but, buoyed by the days meagre successes, I persevered, for myself, and for everything that Team Spiridon stands, and occasionally sits, for...

Austin Running Needs Your Help

2008-07-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

We've got a crisis developing in Austin that most of us never saw coming until the past couple of years. There is a sizeable and powerful movement afoot that may not be intended to crush Austin running, cycling, triathlon and other events, but could certainly have that effect.

I'm asking you to do three things:

1. Read the letter below from John Conley, the long-time director of the Austin Marathon, and the producer of other events, including the Texas Round-Up, the Bagel-Fest 5K, and the Nike Human Race. He's genuinely concerned with the health of Austin's running culture, and he's repeatedly put himself out there, often alone, to represent the Austin racing community, which is not always a pleasant task. He best explains the problem and the challenge we're facing.

2. Join me and Team Spiridon, and hopefully the rest of the Austin running community in making our voices heard, or at the very least, in making our presence and impact known. On Monday, August 11, at 5:00pm, join us at Austin City Hall, room 1029, at the City Council task force meeting. Come as you are, or come in your running gear, or simply wear a local race t-shirt on that day. Ten people will be allowed to speak, but the numbers of committed runners, representing the diversity of the Austin running community, will likely have a far greater impact than any words will. Let me know if you're interested in speaking.

3. Stay engaged in this process. Continue to be present at meetings. Write to the City Council. I'll keep you updated on ways to make an impact. Forward this email to friends that run or participate in races, or that even have an interest in non-athletic events that take place in downtown Austin - those stand to lose, as well. If you have access to public figures or businesspeople that will be sympathetic to the cause, get them involved.

From those of you that put in the work and commitment to run the Komen 5K to challenge cancer, celebrate survivors, and remember those it's claimed, to those who work on behalf of some of the charities that raise funds from special events, to those who have businesses that reap rewards from marathon weekend, to those that have found the better parts of themselves competing in multiple marathons, we have all benefitted in a multitude of ways from this important piece of Austin's culture and identity.

Keep in mind that we are not engaging in a conflict, but we are urging a compromise, because there are certainly genuine problems with the quantity of races in Austin. But if the running community doesn't show up to push for reasonable solutions, we stand to lose a valuable piece of what Austin, and what we, are. If you assume someone else will show up, that someone else will speak up, that someone else will take care of it, then we will indeed lose.

Thanks for your attention, and your involvement. I'll see you on August 11.

Rob

Letter from John Conley follows:

Hello friends!

Apologies for this very long note. This is the best summary I can come up with.

As some of you may know, I am on a City Council Task Force that has been charged with finding some remedies to the disruption to downtown traffic caused by special events. The Task Force consists of 16 citizens who represent various stakeholders in the issue.

So here's the situation:

* Two-thirds of the task force represent 'aggrieved parties' who seek to limit and control running events and triathlons.
* I am the only race director on the task force. Paul Carrozza is a co-chair and he is obviously on the side of event promotion.
* Even though over 60% of the special events in the downtown central
business district are street festivals or parades, not a single street festival or parade organizer is on the task force.
* It is no longer possible to add new members to the task force.
* The task force will likely take a hard stance on downtown running events but any recommendations adopted by the city council may also be applied city-wide.
* The rich and varied running events that have defined Austin as a
'fit-city', generated millions, upon millions of dollars for the local economy and the local non-profit community are at high risk of being over-regulated and in some cases priced out of existence in the next six to twelve months.
* A part of the cultural fabric of our city is in jeopardy.

Here's the challenge:

* If we don't advocate for our running events, then nobody else
will.
* A city council member once remarked to me, that after a race, she only hears from people who are angry and inconvenienced. She never hears from people thanking the city or complimenting a race or the charity that benefitted from the race.
* If this task force rolls with the two-third majority bias, running events in Austin will be regulated out of existence in some cases and will be priced out of existence in other cases.
* If we can get 18,000 people out to run the Cap 10K or 22,000 people out to run the Komen Race for the Cure, then can we get 100 people to email City Council Members this week, to tell them that running events are important to this community and our non-profits? Can we get 100 people to come to the next Task Force Meeting and the one after that and the one after that one until we make our point that runners are not anonymous or invisible people. Can we get 10 people at each meeting to get on the citizens communication part of the agenda to tell the task force of how important running events are to them personally?

If we can make our voices heard, then perhaps we can re-establish the balance that is missing in the composition of the task force.

I think the task force is composed of some of the city's best and brightest and every one of the aggrieved has a legitimate complaint and a solution needs to be generated that reflects a true compromise. We will get there, but so far, the only public energy that has been mustered is from the side that would like to see Austin running events go away.

The silence of the runners is deafening.

In the last three meetings, the only people speaking during the citizens communication part of the agenda are angry, aggrieved people.

No runners or race organizers have spoken. [However, Jann Girard from the Cap 10K and Brad Davidson from the Cap Tex Tri spoke eloquently as invited guests last night, but nobody from the gallery represented a race or a runner during the citizens communication].

I would like to ask you to contact 5 of your running buddies and ask them to attend one or more of our task force meetings. I would ask that they let the chairman know that they would like to address the task force for 3 minutes during the citizens communication period. 10 people are allowed to speak at this time. They can say anything they want and the task force will listen. They might want to give the task force three simple messages:

1. Running events benefit the city economy and its non-profits.
2. Running events help define Austin as a fit and desirable city
3. Running events contribute to the health and wellness of the entire community.

If they don't wish to speak, their presence will still be noted by the task force.

The task force's work will take months and won't likely end this year. However, we need runners to take an interest in this process and make their voices heard.

We will also mount a similar strategy to address the City Council directly once the task force has finished its work.

The next Street Event Closure task Force Meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 11 at 5:00 p.m. in room 1029 at City Hall. Parking is validated.

The task force will meet on an every-other-Monday schedule, always at the same time. I will alert you to any changes.

Please let me know if you are willing to come and if you or others would like to be put on the citizens communication part of the agenda. Meetings usually last 2 hours but the citizens communication period is first on the
agenda and is over in 15 to 20 minutes.

Thanks for your time!

Best regards,

John

Go, Jenn!

2008-07-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

Quick, but large, ups to Jennifer. After a year of persistent injuries (while training with some other group!), she's been training for the San Francisco Half Marathon on August 3, the one I have personally wussed out of (unless someone wants to pay to fly me there).

Anyway, she's been racking up personal best distances, and she hit nine running with Daniel this last Saturday.

Kudos also to Laura, who, due to a wrong turn or to, ran eight miles for the first time a couple of weekends a go.

We've got some new people with us, too - my old friend Jana, and Jessica, and Rosa Maria. August will be on us soon, with the Nike Human Race on August 31, and our training for the AT&T Austin Marathon and Half Marathon will be starting up, as well.

So, if you've been out of touch, and/or sitting on yer butt, get up and come running with us this Saturday morning at 7:00am, at Whole Foods on Sixth and Lamar - routes up to 11 miles will be available...