14 miles, 20 degrees

I know, some of you out there don't find 20 degree Farenheit that cold.  And maybe a few years ago I didn't either.   But once the temperature drops below freezing there is a lot of give-and-take in distance running, trying to find that sweet spot when you're not too cold but also not soaked with sweat when you're done with a long run.

Yesterday the high temperature was 20 degrees here.  It will likely be the coldest day of the year.  (I just confirmed on weather.com that it was the lowest high temperature we've had yet this year.)  On the news they advised everyone to stay indoors unless you absolutely had to be outside.

I was scheduled for a 14-mile run, so I decided that meant that I absolutely had to be outside. 

I headed out at 1 PM when the temperature was 19-degrees.  Coincidentally that was the temperature on the bank sign in Boonsboro Maryland when I started the JFK 50 in 2008.  Except at the JFK it warmed up (somewhat) as the day went on.  Not so much yesterday.

Part of the Galloway program is that you do your long runs at least two minutes per mile slower than your goal pace for your half marathon or marathon.  Since I'll be shooting to run Chambersburg at about a 9:00/mile pace.  I needed to do my 14 miles at at least a 11:00/mile pace.  So I decided I would make this one of my fun runs; take some pictures and not worry about the clock.

The first photo-worthy scene I found was less than a mile from home:

 

That's a big yellow Peanut M&M and a diaper.  It looked like the diaper had fallen off the Peanut M&M.   I felt kind of bad for the Peanut M&M, being left on the sidewalk on such a cold day without it's diaper on.  Then I thought, who puts a diaper on a Peanut M&M?  (And, no I did not check the diaper for M&M Minis.)

I was feeling pretty warm the first half (maybe a bit less) of the run.  I even took the time to drop a middle layer at a park and pick it back up on my way home because I was feeling a little too warm.  I made my way through town maintaining and easy pace and taking walk breaks every nine minutes (true to Galloway form)

As I left town I found my second photo-worthy scene: 

 

That's a rubber glove with something red on it.  Let's call it finger paints.  It made me think of the Pearl Izumi ad I used to see in running magazines that asked "ever wonder why it's always runners who find dead bodies?"

One of the things I'm trying this year is not taking in any nutrition (except water) on my long runs.  Well, I tried it, and when I did 10 miles I bonked a little over an hour into it.  So for the last two runs I've taken just one gel with me and taken them at the halfway point.   So yesterday I was pretty thrilled when my GPS rolled onto the seventh mile and I got to take in a very cold vanilla bean GU.

I think I mentioned it was cold out.  How cold was it?  At mile eight the nipple on my water bottle froze, keeping me from getting any more out of that bottle.  Fortunately I was carrying two, and since no water has passed through the lid of the second that one was clear.  Until mile 10.5 when that one also became stopped up with ice.

It was also at that time that I got really hungry.  It was a little over two hours out, and I decided that I should be taking in a gel every hour or so.  I was so delirious with hunger and fatigue that I got a little spiritual and starting singing (mentally, not out loud - I didn't have enough spare energy) the hymn I Need Thee Every Hour.  (The Jars of Clay Version.) Except I replaced the word "thee" with "GU" and some other words.  It come out (if I were to sing it out loud that is, which I didn't) like this: 

I need GU every hour

Whene'er I run

I need GU every hour 

Or the end's not fun

I need GU, I need GU

Every hour I need GU

I need GU, I need GU

I need GU every hour.

I got over this at around mile 13 when my fingers started going numb.  I finished in 2:39 and as I entered the front door (I minor miracle that I was able to use the house key with no feeling my hands) I began contemplating a treadmill.  Or maybe I'll just start using thicker gloves when it gets below 23.

Some Pictures for My Friends

I was stumped as to what to post tonight.  There's not much to report on the training front.  Which probably means that my plan to make this a dedicated cycling/running blog has failed miserably.  Well, not miserably - but there is only so much to say when you are running only three times a week and maybe riding your bike (on the trainer because it is wicked cold and/or dark out) once a week.  Okay, I've ridden my bike once in the last month.

So where does one go for blog inspiration?  Your cell phone.  I browsed through my pictures and found a few that I think some people will enjoy.

For Jason & Heather:

Remember when we went to IKEA and I bought the bamboo?  This is from about a year ago (holy smokes we haven't seen you guys in a while!).  It's about a foot taller now.

For my father-in-law, Dave:

Beth and I saw this shirt at Old Navy and thought you'd get a kick out of it. 

For my brother, Tim:

 

Remember that snowman you made when you and Mom and Dad were up around New Year's?  This is it after a brief warm up.  I'm sorry to say, he didn't make it.

For Beth:

 

Actually, you could say that this is for anyone thinking of running the Pittsburgh Marathon.  Walking the Pittsburgh Zoo the next day is great recovery and they have an awesome polar bear exhibit.

For Beth again.  And pretty much everyone else:

 

Our girl with her sippy cup.  We were told she would probably just use it as a teether.  But she grabbed it and started sucking that apple juice down right away.  She's a genius.

Tricky Tricky...

Remember last week when I said I would be cutting back on the "fluff"?  Well, it's about to get all fluffy up in here!  (Now all I can think of is Gabriel Iglesias - "I'm not fat, I'm fluffy!")

I had one of those experiences where things pop up in different spots.  This time it was tricky marketing.

It started last weekend when Beth and I were doing some web-shopping for refrigerators.  Not that we're necessarily buying a fridge, but we may be in the next few months.  Maybe.  So anyhow, we basically just wanted to get an idea of price.  We were on Sears.com and saw this:

Notice the regular price.  Now compare the sale price.  Now subtract the sale price from the regular price.  Use a calculator if you have to.  What you don't need to?  Is that because the difference is only TWELVE CENTS?  A $850 refrigerator and they want you to think you're getting a deal because you got it for $0.12 less than MSRP.  That's a whopping 0.014% off!

Then Monday night after bowling I swung by Wegman's.  I needed some turkey for my lunch (I always pack a turkey sandwich) and some snacks for work (I like snacks).  Upon entering the store I saw this sign:

My phone was pretty much free with a two-year contract (from two years ago), so the picture is a little grainy.  But you may be able to make out the words "Seedless Grapes" and the price: $1.29/lb.  (You probably can't see "/lb." but you can trust me on this point.)  So I thought, hey that's a good price for grapes!  I went up there and the green ones were a little iffy but the red grapes looked pretty good.  So I bought a bag of red grapes.

When I was checking out, I noticed they rang up as $2.99 a pound.  I thought, "maybe that's because I didn't swipe my 'Shoppers' Club Card'.  So I swiped it, paid and checked my receipt on my way out.  Still $2.99 a pound.  I knew then that I needed to investigate this and went back and looked at the sign.

I know you can't read in the picture above the little word in white above "Seedless."  Right here:

That tiny word is "green."  Only the iffy green grapes were on sale.  Not the red ones that I thought were just picked over.  Tricky tricky Wegman's...

Time for a New Plan

I mentioned briefly last week that the tendinitis in my left foot has returned.  It's not to the point yet that I feel I need to see a doctor, but I am questioning whether training for the Chambersburg Half Marathon is such a good idea.

So this weekend I dusted off some books that I haven't looked at in a while to get some perspective.  The first was Galloway's Book on Running by Jeff Galloway.  Galloway is known for his easy-going style and the use of regular walk breaks when training and racing.  His plans are intended to keep your body fresh and injuries to a minimum.  I used a modified version of his marathon plan (found in Marathon: You Can Do It!) to finish my first marathon in 2007.

In his Book on Running, he has several half marathon plans for various time goals.  I might not need as many walk breaks as he recommends, but I like his three-day a week plan (which also incorporates some cross-training on the "off" days) that still can push me toward my time goal.

I think one of my problems, especially over the last year has been to try to do too much.  I'm not a 2:30 marathoner or even a 3:30 marathoner at this point, so why would I try to use training schedules targeted at fast, experienced runners?

So it's time for a new plan.  If the foot gets worse over the next few weeks, I'll probably ditch Chambersburg and focus on getting healthy in time for the Finger Lakes Fifties.

DNF

Before I get started on the post, I just wanted add a shameless plug for Bonktown and Chainlove.  I've noticed some pretty sweet items going at really good prices lately: tubes, energy drinks, sunglasses, and some nice apparel.  Those deals run one at a time, and once they're gone they are gone!  Use the links in the sidebar and get some sweet bike gear!

Every so often a topic comes up in two (or more) relatively unconnected places and gets me thinking.

A few weeks ago Andy Jones-Wilkins (AJW) posted his thoughts on DNF's (DNF stands for Did Not Finish, or as some ultra runners will say, Did Nothing Fatal) and how they should factor into choosing an Ultra-Runner of the Year (as awarded by Ultra Running magazine).  This raised the ire of many readers and may be his most commented post ever. Then just yesterday I spotted a post on the Runner's World Forums by a marathoner who recently DNFed the Rock 'N Roll Arizona Marathon. It was interesting to see the reaction to these very different posts and how strongly people felt about when it's appropriate to DNF.

On AJW's blog he explained there is a difference between "quitting" a race and "dropping" it, even though both fall under the category of DNF.  In the context of the Ultra Runner of the Year award (which, by the way went to Geoff Roes) Andy mentioned five finalists and the DNFs they experienced this year.  He has the distinction of never experiencing a DNF, but also of experiencing acute renal failure after finishing an ultra. Many of his readers took umbridge to his "judgment" over the DNFs of these elite runners, citing that to suggest that someone dropped when they could have finished is somehow "wrong" or unsportsmanlike, especially when you do not know the details of the situation.

At the other end of the spectrum was the post in Runner's World Forums, where a marathoner gave his story of having to drop at mile 20, suffering from cramps in his "legs, arms and chest."  Surprisingly (to me, at least) many other "forumites" chastised him for not sucking it up and finishing the race.  One person had he audacity to say that "there are NO cramps bad enuf to make me stop." 

Personally, I speak from experience when I say that there ARE cramps bad enough to make me stop.

Later she added, "hope you don't have kids....what do you tell them...If you aren't doing as good as you want then quit???" 

Most responses to the post were positive, backing his decision considering his debilitating cramps.  But there were a few that sided with the individual who thought that he should have pushed through regardless of the physical discomfort or long-term damage.

I haven't experienced a DNF, but I have had a DNS (Did Not Start) for the 2009 HAT run and strongly considered dropping during the 2008 Erie Marathon. 

Erie was unusually warm for September, and while the first half went okay (except one stop at a bathroom), the second half totally drained me.  The heat and humidity sucked the sweat out of me.  Late in the race I noticed my shorts getting sudsy from the residual laundry detergent in them being worked out by my sweat (and the many, many cups of water I poured over myself).  I strongly considered dropping at around the 20 mile mark, but I felt that I could make it struggle through the last 10K without doing any real damage.

I did end up with a bout of ITBS (iliotibial band syndrome) after the race, but that would have come on in my JFK 50 training whether I finished Erie or not.  However, I also learned that by slowing down and assessing my situation I can overcome dehydration and run further (or at least run/walk further) than I can when pushing myself towards a given time.  That strategy helped me immensely at JFK, when I recognized that something was not right in my water/electrolyte balance at around the halfway point.  I manage to regroup, recover and finish the race before the final cutoffs.

So there is benefit to pushing through.  But there is also benefit in knowing when to call it a day.  I chose not to start the HAT run 50K, because I was dealing with ITBS (on my other leg) and felt that having a good run in Pittsburgh six weeks later was more important than finishing, or even showing up at the HAT run.  That decision paid off with a marathon PR on a tough course.

Ultimately, one person cannot judge for another when he or she should or shouldn't DNF a race.  A decision to DNF can pay off later by showing up to another starting line fresh and well-prepared because you limited the damage done to your body.  On the other hand it can pay off to push through and have a pathetic time (4:59 in Erie) but gain a learning experience and the mental toughness to push through what might feel like impossible physical barriers.

When you reach the wall it's up to each person to evaluate their goals and their current condition to make the best decision on whether to throw in the towel or accept a fate that's less than ideal and finish a race beaten up but with a finisher's medal (or buckle or plaque or whatever).

Focus Man! Focus!

Yeah I don’t know if I’m past my prime
 I’m feeling old I just turned twenty-nine

It’s crazy I think I’ve lost my mind
Cause lately at shows I forget my...uhh...
Sometimes I feel like my brain is missing
Sometimes I feel like Jessica Simpson
Don’t know if tuna is fish or chicken

                               - KJ52, "Fivetweezy"

I was looking at my blog this morning, and something struck me.  On the entire first page there isn't a single post about running or cycling.  I've totally lost my focus.  I'm all over the place.  I've been so busy putting up things I think are funny or interesting, I got away from what this blog is supposed to be about.  I think.

So I'm going to slow down some for a while.  I've been pretty diligent posting almost every day lately, but those posts aren't always what this blog is about.  Not that I'll quit posting about my family, (if you had a baby this cute, wouldn't you brag too?) but I'll cut back.  Actually, I'll be cutting back more on the fluff like Eight Reasons I'm Glad We Didn't Have a Boy, because what does that really have to do with anything?

Meanwhile, I got my long run up to 12 miles this weekend and am now experiencing the return of the tendinitis that derailed me all summer.  I think I can hold it off long enough to do the Chambersburg Half, but I'm definitely glad I didn't commit to anything longer this spring.

So I'm going to get my focus back on training updates, gear reviews and race reports.  That's not to say I won't mix in some family stories or fluff now and then (there's a story about $200,000 worth of Red Bull stolen from the Navy that is begging to be commented on), but really that's not what a lot of people follow this blog for.

This is supposed to be a record of my "experiment of one" that every ultra marathoner is.  No two people react the same way to training and we all have our different formulas that work for us.  The more we share our ideas on those formulas, the more information there is to apply to our own experiments.  That's sort of the point - this is what's working for me, this is what isn't - and I've totally strayed from that lately even though there has been so much going through my head about my training and goals for this year and years following.

Now I'm wondering if those lyrics from KJ52 were really pertinent.  But you know, sometimes I do "forget my...uh..."

3-day Weekend

Beth and I both got to enjoy an extra day off this week. To give her some extra sack time before the long (okay, not so long) week ahead of us, I got up with Adele yesterday morning a little before seven. Looks like Adele's going to be a morning person. (Oh goodie!)

She was actually already awake in her crib since about six, so she was due for a nap around 8:30 - maybe earlier - but she's a fighter. Unwilling to fall asleep she clawed and squirmed and whined until she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer and finally dozed off.

I put her in her swing (she'll wake up right away if I put her in her crib for a nap) and was feeling pretty beat myself (I think I may have accidentally brewed decaf that morning), so I grabbed a pillow off the couch and took a quick snooze of my own on the living room floor.

And that's where Beth found us when she got out of bed - after her well-deserved bit of extra rest.

Book Review: Open: An Autobiography, by Andre Agassi

I had heard several interviews with Andre Agassi around the time this book was released, and they were so compelling I waffled back and forth over whether to use a gift card to buy the book (I normally don't buy hardcovers) or to give it time and maybe get it in paperback.  Or borrow it from the library.

Fortunately, I chose not to buy the book and my parents bought it for me for Christmas.

Some books I take my time reading.  It might take me a couple months to get through.  Others I go through in just a couple weeks because I find myself constantly wanting to read it, rather than just at night before I go to bed.  This book was of the latter variety.

The book is full of relevations from his childhood when his father would force him to hit ball after ball after ball shot out of his homemade ball machine, which Agassi calls "The Dragon," to his admission of doing meth in the mid-nineties, even testing positive for it - his career saved only by a lame excuse.

The thing I found most amazing, however was the fact that Agassi hates tennis.  Since he was a child hitting balls on his father's backyard tennis court he despised the game.  This is especially astonishing, not only when you consider his success, but also longevity in the sport.  Rarely does a professional tennis player not only play for as long as Agassi did (over 20 years, until he was 36), but also have such success later in his career.  Five of his eight Grand Slam titles came after 1998.

The thing that drove him was his desire to be the best, even if that was in a sport that he hated.  He declared to one opponent that "you will not beat me again." He had what his father called a killer instinct, something his brother lacked, much to Mike Agassi's dismay.

Also of interest are details about his marriage to Brooke Shields, the ensuing divorce and eventual courtship of fellow tennis superstar Steffi Graf (who, as it turns out, actually prefers being called "Stefanie").

The book is well-written and full of interesting insights to a misunderstood athlete, his maturing process and how he was transformed from the rebel who couldn't win the big one to a tennis champion and philanthropist.

Haiti

Nearly fifteen years ago I set off on my first trip outside the country (excluding Canada) and the first trip anywhere (except summer camp) without my parents.

I took part in a summer-long missions trip to Haiti with Teen Missions International (TMI).

As you might imagine, I've been flashing back to that trip over the last several days.  I went with a group of about 25 teenagers and four adults.  Five adults actually, since the head leader also had his wife and two young children with him (which right about now seem super brave of her!).

I haven't kept up with anybody from that team.  (Maybe somebody will be Googling "Haiti Orphanage Teen Missions 1995 and find this blog).  I'm wondering if they've been flashing back like I have.  I haven't been back to Haiti since that trip (although I did go with TMI a second time to Jordan), so I'm not quite as connected to the country as some who have been there more recently.

But now images of the orphanage we worked at flash through my mind.  I wonder if the building we had worked so hard on all summer is still standing.  I remember the girls at the orphanage - we had to do our laundry by hand and they begged us to let them help (most of us were pretty lousy at it - and they were much better, from experience probably) but we weren't aloud to let them.

I remember Danny Jeune, the son of a Haitian pastor.  He grew up in Carrefour, the town that the orphanage was in.  The orphanage was surrounded by a large yard, which in turn was enclosed by a stone wall with broken glass cemented into the top to keep intruders out.

We slept in tents out in that yard, except one night when Tropical Storm Erin was passing by and we slept on the floor inside the orphanage.

That summer may have been the hardest I'd ever worked.  Certainly up until that point it was.  We laid cement blocks and poored hundreds of cubic feet of concrete by hand.  At one point my bicep cramped from lifting a bucket of wet concrete up to the second level where we were pouring a concrete floor.

I learned a lot that summer about myself, about God and about people in general.  Mostly I learned just how good we have it in America.

I tried digging out some photos, but unfortunately most of them are in slide form somewhere.  So I found one that I thought represented Haiti best.

You can see the rebar and glass embedded in the top of that wall - the only security system available in that country.   When we arrived we were quite the attraction so it wasn't unusual to see people parked out on their roof watching the Americans (and a few Canadians) come in and set up camp.

By now you already know how to give to the earthquake victims, so I'm not going to post a link to the Red Cross, Mennonite Central Committee or any other organization.  But I'll encourage you to give.  These people had almost nothing, and for many of them even that is now gone.  For me, I find that the thought of a country that had so little could be so further devastated is mind-blowing.  And heartbreaking.

Oh Christmas Tree!

Beth loves getting a real Christmas tree every year.  I love the idea of getting a real Christmas tree.  But around this time each year, I swing a little towards the "they make some very nice artificial trees" side of the real versus fake tree argument.

Last year we had a huge tree that died in the stand.  And we didn't have a bag.  And we live on the second floor.  Let's just say there were a LOT of needles left on our carpet after we dragged the tree out to the curb.  A LOT of needles.  It was like a big green path going through our house.

So this year we learned.  Beth and I agreed that this year we'd get a smaller tree (6-7 feet), and we'd definitely get a tree bag.

So when we bought our eight foot tree, we also bought a tree bag.

Unfortunately tree pick-up didn't happen until this week - almost three weeks after Christmas.  Living in a condo, what are we to do?  The tree was obviously dying in the stand by New Year's day.  So that weekend we put the bag over the tree (more or less - it is an eight foot tree after all) and stuck it on our back porch.  Where it died some more.

After work on Tuesday, I dragged it out to the curb so it could be picked up Wednesday morning.  We weren't allowed to leave it in the bag, so I had to take the bag off once I got it outside, which proved to be quite the struggle.  Here you can see the aftermath:

You can imagine what our stairway looked like.  Between the needles and the gloves I've ruined with tree sap I get a little closer to purchasing a fake tree every year.

Eight Reasons I'm Terrified That We Had a Girl

As promised, here are my eight reasons that raising a girl terrifies me.  (Yes, I thought of an eighth since my last post.)  I think most dads would agree with these.

1. Boys.

2.  She might want to become a cheerleader.

3.  We're on the hook for the wedding.  (Unless we use that money to buy a beach house.)

4.  Have you seen the clothes they have for teenage girls?  Do you think they are going to get any more modest in the next 12 years?

5.  Boys.

6.  Hormones (I believe the magic age is 12.)

7.  Creepy old guys.  This might be the worst, hearing guys in their fifties talk about teenagers and college girls - makes my skin crawl.

8. Three words:  Spring Break Cancun!

I'm sure there are many others that just haven't come to mind.  Feel free to add your own.

Eight Reasons I'm Glad We Didn't Have A Boy

This is about five months too late, but I got thinking about these things when Beth noticed that among the recent baby boom at church (about nine - I think - babies in 13 months) Adele is one of only two girls.  There are certainly good and bad things about having either gender, and I think most men think that having girls are tougher.

But there are tough things about having boys too.  I can think of eight things (I was shooting for ten, but this is all I've got).

1.  Changing a boy's diaper is a little scary.  Don't get me wrong, Adele can make a big mess (did today at day care), but at least the walls and ceiling are safe.

2.  Birds and the bees?  With a boy, that's my responsibility.  With a girl, I can hand her off to Mom.

3.  Between the ages of 14 and 18, the answer to every question won't be "I don't know."

4.  Have you ever smelled a teenage boy's room?

5.  Have you ever smelled a teenage boy?

6.  Chances are I'm not going to have to have a conversation with my daughter about how dangerous setting fire to ___ is, when deep down I think it's sort of cool.

7.  I don't want to have to think long and hard when asked the question, "Dad, can I get my ears pierced?"

8.  Only a boy would be dumb enough to taste garbage water.

Check back tomorrow for Eight (well, maybe only Seven) reasons I'm terrified that we had a girl.

2010 Plans

I sort of already covered this in my "3-year plan" to my first 100-miler.

But as expected I've tweaked plans and made some other decisions.   Actually it's not all that different than the plan I typed up I've just really finalized my decision.  2010 is going to be a year of repeating some firsts (and hopefully at least 3 PRs!)

March 13 - Chambersburg Half Marathon  (First half marathon)
I ran this in 2008 in 1:59:14.  It's the only half I've ever run.  My goal was to break 2 hours and did exactly that.  This year I'll just make my goal a new PR.  I think I could probably do that by about five minutes, but if I do it by 30 seconds, that will be fine to.  It will just make it easier to set a new PR the next time I run a half.

July 3 - Finger Lakes Fifties 25K (First trail race)
I've done this race twice before (it's probably my favorite race), and I toyed with the idea of moving up to the 50K distance this year, but I've decided to make my comeback slowly, and I'll be sticking to that plan.  I'm only 30 years old, the Ultras will always be there, but Adele will only be a baby once.  Besides, I plan to go a little nuts with the distances in 2011.  Same deal as Chambersburg - PR, whether by ten minutes or ten seconds.

September 5 - Tour de Tamarack   (First bike race)
Beth and I did this race in 2005 and 2006.  Despite a cold and rainy race morning, 2006 was the better of my two races, likely because there were others going "my speed" and I could draft them for most of the race.  A tactical error made me lose that group on the last lap, which likely cost me a couple minutes.  I finished that year in 1:04:32.  A new PR will be my main goal, but under one hour would be especially sweet.

November 14 - Harrisburg Marathon (First marathon)
My PR at the marathon distance was set in Pittsburgh, so Harrisburg will be my only race this year where don't have a current PR (for a given distance).  In Pittsburgh my time was 4:07:55, but unlike Chambersburg and Finger Lakes, I really want that milestone time - 4 hours.  After that great race on the tough Pittsburgh course, I fingered sub-4:00 would be a shoe-in for Harrisburg in 2009, unfortunately my left foot had other ideas, so that's what I'm shooting for in 2010.

I also have a pretty good idea of what I'd like to do in 2011: The Hashewha Hills 50K, Bull Run 50-miler, 20 in 24 Lone Ranger Ultramarathon (24-hour race), Trail 4 Tails (40 miles), JFK 50-miler.  But we'll see.

Be My Fan!

This week I've done a lot of thinking.

I have a lot of great things in my life.  A beautiful wife, a lovely baby girl, a good job, a home, a wonderful church family and a Savior who loves me more than I can imagine.

But something is missing.

After much contemplation, prayer and introspection I realized that that thing is fans (preferably throngs of them).  Oh sure, I have followers who can follow this blog through google blogger and friend connect and whatever other mysterious ways that the Google Friend Connect widget works, but I lack fans.

So now you can be a Facebook fan of Another Mile!  Hooray!


I'd love to say that this will come with neat little perks like t-shirt giveaways, concert tickets and fantastic European vacations.  But it doesn't.  You just get to see when posts come up (similar to following this blog through the Google widget).

I'll also try to work in some one-liners that won't make it to the blog (because they're just too short to post here) to slap on the wall and maybe some blog-related announcements.  Not that I announce much. (Except right now - but I did announce this FIRST on Facebook!)

It's Not That Hard

When I decided to do the Chambersburg Half Marathon again this year, I started looking around for a training plan that will make me faster.  And there are lots out there.  Outside has one, Runners' World has about fifty, and just about every running website out there has something for someone looking to run a half marathon.

And none of them work.

I mean, they work if you have the time (and ambition) to go to a track every Wednesday evening to do 800-meter intervals.  Or to run more than 3-4 miles on a weekday.  And yes, I suppose I can squeeze that stuff in, but it won't improve my life any by doing so.  And isn't running really about improving your life to some degree?

So I don't use training plans.  That is, I have a training plan - it's just my scheduled long runs written in pencil on my calendar at work (next is a 12-miler on the 16th).  I go by more of a training philosophy.  It's a mix of Phillip Maffetone, Jeff Galloway and Mark Verstegen.  Basically there are  four rules:

1.  If you want to run farther, run farther (that is, increase mileage).
2. If you want to run faster, run faster (include tempo runs, intervals and fartleks).
3. If you don't want to feel totally trashed from a long trail run or be at a disadvantage in non-endurance sports, do some strength training.
4. Take it easy every few weeks before you are totally trashed.

Since my goal is to run a faster half marathon, I'm working in some speedwork about once a week (less when it's really cold out).  Not a lot, but some. I'll build up my long run to about 16 miles, taper properly and I'll be set.

Ultimately running a marathon or ultra isn't that hard, it's just a matter of going out and running miles.  If your goal is to finish (as mine usually is at new distances), then you don't need to know your tempo pace, or spend time running circles on the track, you just need to run (and a good pair of running shoes).  You'll learn everything else from running.

The Same Guy

The other day I got the most recent issue of Outside magazine, and the first thing that caught my attention was this ad:

I know what you're thinking - Eyewear Entrepreneur?  Isn't that the dude from Mythbusters? 

I'm pretty sure they're the same guy:
According to his bio in Malibu Magazine, Larry Sands owned a chain of five optical shops in Missouri before giving it all up to tour with his rock band, Bartok's Mountain.  Ultimately he returned to eyewear, becoming the premier designer of high-end luxury eye glasses.

According to his bio on DiscoveryChannel.com, Adam Savage is the son of a filmmaker/painter and psychotherapist.  Basically he builds stuff, and has had his art has "been showcased in over 40 shows in San Francisco, New York and Charleston, W.Va."  (Charleston, West Virginia?)

You see, they are both artists.  And they...they totally look alike.  They are the same guy, I mean here are their photos side by side:

I'm telling you, they are the same guy.

Nothing Tastes Better Than Food

Have you ever heard someone say, "nothing tastes better than being thin"? 

That is a falsehood.

As a self-proclaimed thin guy who used to be overweight, I have to say lots of things taste better than being thin.  Like peanut butter fudge.  Or Oreos.  Or Milky Way Bars. Or Pizza Hut Pan Pizzas.  Heck, even the lilttle pools of grease trapped on the pepperoni on the Pizza Hut Pan Pizza tastes better than being thin.

That's not to say you shouldn't eat healthy.  But if you're going to give up Reese's Peanut Butter Cups because you think being thin will feel better than eating a king-size package of peanut butter cups you are sorely mistaken, and you will fail.  Because you will become thin, then say to yourself "I'm miserable without Reese's Peanut Butter Cups" especially since friends and co-workers will cruelly wave them in front of your face and take big bites out of them in front of you and rub their stomachs and go "MMMMM!  These Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are delicious!"

No doubt, being thin (and healthy) feels much better than being overweight.  But there isn't a food I'd give up simply for the sake of being thin.  Except for food I don't like (such as frozen corn).

So don't believe the lie.  Lots of things taste better than being thin.  Namely, food.

Bigfoot Lives

Yesterday I did my scheduled 10-mile run on the Appalachian Trail.  I could blog about how bitter cold the wind was, or how my turn-around point had a great view of Blue Mountain, or the black mole I saw running over the snow.

But I'm going to post about the tracks I saw in the snow.  Namely these:

 

These tracks obviously belong to a sasquatch, or "bigfoot" to the layperson.  There were going in both directions in the snow on the trail, so my suspicion is that he lives somewhere on South Mountain since he (or she) wouldn't live in an area as densely populated as the Cumberland Valley.  Also, the tracks stopped before I reached my turnaround in the direction of Blue Mountain, so his home is not likely in that direction.

Judging by the size of the tracks I'd say they belong to a juvenile, so there is a likely an entire family of sasquach living on the mountain.

I know, you're thinking that if the tracks are small, couldn't they be human tracks?  Please.  In the snow?  Maybe if there was some kind of shoe that protected your feet while still giving you the sensation of being barefoot.  Maybe.

I believe the evidence is clear.  Bigfoot lives, right here in South-Central Pennsylvania.  And those pictures are the proof.

Like a Rubik's Cube

Every six months or so at home I hear the familiar chirp of a smoke detector battery dying.  This is an especially enjoyable experience if the battery dies at around 2 AM.

Fortunately, the last time a battery died was when we got home from visiting Beth's parents for Christmas.  Immediately when we opened the front door we heard that familiar sound.  And you'd think by now I'd be pretty good at changing out the battery.  Except getting the battery cover off is akin to solving a Rubik's Cube.  Nearly impossible.  Then when I do finally get it loose I say to myself, "I'll need to remember this for next time," but I never do.

Take a look at the back of the unit:

You can see that the AC input jack must be removed to get the battery cover off.  It looks easy.  It is not.

You need to squeeze the outside of that AC input deelie to get it to release from the unit.  Then you can get the battery cover off.  But I always forget this and spend five to twenty minutes fiddling with it and trying to remember how to get it off.

I'm just glad this last time it didn't happen at 2 AM.