To my supporters… I apologize for not keeping up the website with my training. Facebook has stolen the show 
As I move closer to the race date, I will add more and more details to the site. Facebook can’t capture everything that’s happening…can it?!
In all seriousness I will update the website more and more…
Yes! I am so excited! there is only one day left!
I am looking forward to tomorrow! You can get details on the race at www.endurance50.com………..
It was an amazing race! The heat was up to 87!! Way too hot for runners, but it was a good day nontheless. I finished with a PR of 3:36. The lessons learned from that race can be summed up in one word…..sodium. I am still learning what works and what doesn’t. Had i had some more sodium I would have not cramped during the last 5 miles to a walk across the finish line. While I am excited about a PR, I realize that I need to continue learning my body in all sorts of circumstances, because I would have easily qualified for the Boston Marathon. The good news is that I will during my next marathon!
All in all, I think that the Chicago Marathon was a wonderful test for me.
The winning Kenyans said…..they run to win. They further elaborated that they wouldn’t run a 3 hour marathon because it is simply too much work. Hmmmm…..
Back to the drawing board!
Over the last week or so i’d been struggling with my motivation to run. Weird eh? I think that i’ve got to get in some other training to keep my focus. I didn’t run last Friday and Saturday. I was pretty bummed. It’s a wierd thing to be a runner and not want to run, but need the endorphins to keep you sane?? :-)
You’d be glad to know that i did run.
I ran a good 14 miles Sunday night. Once again I ran along the lake to allow nature to soothe my mind and inspire creative thoughts. It worked. It was a good run.
Last night I ran 20 miles…..well 15 ran and 5 walked. It was a little tougher than I thought it would be. I just received a different pair of street shoes and wanted to see how they would fair for the marathon. NO GOOD! I will return them sometime this week. I had some soreness that was abnormal.
This morning I feel good again! So, I will rest, stretch and breathe.
Sunday, i will be running the Chicago Marathon. I am not sure if I will run and attempt to qualify for Boston or simply run and enjoy the experience. I like the experience concept since I have the 50 miler in 3 weeks, but as a friend reminded me, I am a type “A” kind of guy and the hype might cause the competitor to come out.
They may be right, but we shall see.
till next time.
yesterday was good day. it was the first time i ran in cold weather this season. well, i guess cold is a relative term. it was high 50′s with a windchill in the low 50′s along the lakefront. i still wore shorts, but this time i also wore a t-shirt and gloves. :_) my body was okay, but my fingers froze ?? nonetheless, the winds where high as well as the water level. the tide was in like i’d never seen before. it was amazingly beautiful! there’s something soothing about the waves crashing the sidewalks.
i was scheduled for a 4 hour run, but only logged about 3. my goal is to be about 24 miles in 3 hours during my training runs. although i wasn’t as fast as i would’ve liked i remembered that was only training and that these days come.
i am looking forward to marathon day, it’s only 9 days away! the weather looks as if it will be perfect, right around 50-55 degrees.
by the way, if you have donated yet, we still need your support. with the change in the economy programming funds are being stripped from families that really need them. give of yourself to help autistic families. it will come back to you, if you give from your heart.
-the runner
this past weekend was filled with distractions. good or bad. I didn’t get my 5 hour run in until last night at 7pm. the weather was incredible though! It was about 60 w/ moderate overcast.
about mile 5 had to take a rest room brake. as i was entering the area to take care of business i met at guy Michael Chitwood. he’s the leader (i believe) of World Vision Chicago. we struck up a conversation and he mentioned an upcoming dinner they were having. he mentioned that Ryan Hall would be one of the speakers. what’s crazy is that i’d just walked right by Ryan and his wife Sarah, but didn’t know. so of course, i turned around and went out to meet him. who is Ryan?
well Ryan is the American Record holder of the Half-Marathon @ 59:43. impressive, believe me.
we shot the breeze for a moment, i handled my business and hit the trail.
as i got to mile 12 I decided that i would get off the path and run along the rock barriers of lake michigan. i am so glad that i did. it was simply beautiful. watching the water crash upon the boulders and running without anyone around other than God and his universe was refreshing.
when i hit mile 15 things changed. i began to feel uncomfortable. my feet were bothering me and my hamstring was pulling. by the time i hit mile 22, i’d began walk breaks. i didn’t think that i would need them because i had a moderate start.
by the time i hit mile 25 i was thinking about laying in the grass and going to sleep :-) i am sure that the problem was that i hadn’t packed in enough fuel to give my body what it needed. it was also only my second long run in the trail shoes. i am convinced. the trail shoes are made strictly for trails and not concrete.
nonetheless i got in about 12:20am and i was glad to finally be home.
today, i feel good.
tonight, i run. for 4 hours
the runner.
I just found out that I will be able to run in the Chicago Marathon in two weeks!
Nice, nice, nice!
The only questions is…..am I ready? Training for the Autism50 is different than marathon training.
hmmm…
Yesterday evening I had the opportunity to speak for a moment in front of an autism group called The Answer. They allowed me to share what the Autism 50 is all about. They were so enthused that they took flyers to hand out to their respective patrons and friends. It was neat hearing responses from people that were in awe of the 5O miler on their children’s behalf.
This morning I woke up near 4:00am. I slept pretty decent because of the crisp fall air coming through my windows. I hit the road about 4:40 for a decent 9-miler. The run went well except for the soreness in my lower left hamstring. I definitely should have taken the ice bath on Sunday! Darn . Who likes cold baths anyway?
Oh well.
I rolled out of bed about 5:30 for a 6:30 20 mile race….
I suppose I was tired from yesterday. I woke up at 2 am and didn’t crash to almost 11pm.
Nonetheless, the race started 2 blocks from my house, thank God!
I ran in a new pair of shoes by North Face. They were a little stiffer than my Nikes and forced me to be honest with my form. I am not sure what I want to do for the Chicago Marathon as far as shoes are concerned, but we will see.
the race went well. although I treated it like a training run, the energy of race drove me. I was definitely tired afterwards and needed a nap. Hopefully it was just because yesterday was such a long day.
the good news is that i feel good now and its less than 10 hours later.
more rest. biggest week yet, this week! yes!!
Yesterday i woke up at 2am. I had full day with my kids after my son’s morning football game. Things didn’t go as planned throughout the day, but having already ran 14 miles that morning I was great!
Its now Sunday morning.
This morning I am going get a quick 20 miles in. My time is limited again this morning, but at least I slept pretty good and had salad before bed.
