The Art of Joyful Running

This morning was a beautiful day to run.  I forced myself out of bed, grabbed a bottle of water, and drove to the OLP.  I parked out by the dog park and ran from there to the Wegmans skater park and back.  What makes this run enjoyable though is not the act of running, but what you see and experience while running.

The sights and sounds of the park make the first impression:  cars zooming by along 370 can be heard, the hum of bikers, and the steps of runners coming up from behind and the sound of a dogs gallop.  All of these sounds surround you while the music of birds and squirrels offer a constant chorus to fill the quiet as you step further away from the parking area and fee to the sanctity of the inner park.

More runners pass by from behind and from the opposite direction.  But what catches my eye are the variety of walkers and runners.  many of the walkers are elderly folk who are making an attempt to stay fit and live "just a bit" longer.  I hope they achieve their goal.  Its a pleasure to see an older couple walking along in conversation, sometimes holding hands.  They seem happy.  Pointing at things they see in the park or out in the horizon of Onondaga Lake, laughing and simply enjoying their time together.

I see roller bladers.  Most rolling quietly by quickly.  Those wheels are dead silent.  Its amazing to watch them glide along so effortlessly.  I saw a young mom rolling swiftly while pushing a double sport stroller.  The kids were young, yet they seemed to be having a blast feeling the wind in their face silently riding along.  Then there was the dad who was running while pushing a single sport stroller.  He, too, made it look easy.  I know its not though.  Not from experience, but from running with an old friend who brought his sport stroller a few times.  He struggled at times to keep up.  Maybe that's why he was such a fast runner.  He persevered through those challenging runs and made it to the end.

There was even a moment of sweetness.  A little girl, no more than 10 or 11 years old was running with her toddler age brother.  He could not have been older than 4.  They were running.  She look like a fairly strong runner for her age while her brother struggled.  She slowed down so he could catch up and she held out her hand and said, "You gotta slow down."  Those are the best words of advice for beginning runners.  Slow down.  Running fast is not the goal.  Running comfortably is the goal so running long and far into the future can be accomplished.  I bet that in a few years that little boy will be running with his sister ten years from now and will be out running her.  However, he will always owe it to her, his sister, for giving him that small piece of advice that he can share with his running mates when they can't finish the run... slow down.  I hope he doesn't forget the most important part of that advice though, he has to slow down, too.  Stay with your friend.  Encourage him or her to keep running.  However, its alright to walk.

On a note of sticking with your pal who is running slow... There was such a pair this morning.  A tall, thin woman ran slowly alongside her overweight friend although, I'm sure she could have sped up any time.  She showed her loyalty in helping her friend who struggled.  Obviously, she was helping and encouraging her friend to achieve a personal health goal.  To be honest with you, I wanted to run with them.  Its these experiences, these strangers, who inspire me the most to continue running.  They demonstrate the any challenge can be overcome and remind me of my running journey that started in April of 2008.

A few final notes:  On my way to the OLP, I witnessed a bicycle crash.  I drove by a group of road bikers who stood by caring for their fallen pedal-mate along Budweiser Highway, Rte 631.  I slowed down to see if they needed any assistance.  They were waiting for the ambulance.  I later discovered that the fallen cycler was a woman, 60ish years old, and she broke her elbow in the crash.  I do not know the details of her fall, but I hope she gets better with minimal complications and gets back on her pedals again soon.

I also learned how fragile life is just before lunch when I bumped into a friend who told me about a young mother, Desiree, who ran with us a few times.  Apparently she was having some numbness in her left arm that turned out to be a bulging disk problem she was unaware of and it burst while attending a function for her son.  She dropped and is currently at University Hospital Spinal Center.  She is paralyzed from the chest down.  Please say a few prayers for her and her son.  My hope is that she recovers and can reverse her paralysis.

There is one more item I'd like to add.  As I ran toward and around my turnaround, there was a an exercise spectacle happening on the main lawn alongside the lake.  There was an aerobic instructor leading a class of 30 or so women in a morning aerobics class blasting and moving to some awesome music.  I loved it.  This is what makes Syracuse so wonderful.  The people are outside and enjoying the beautiful day.  I hope I see this again soon.  If you haven't been out to the OLP in a while, I command you to go and take it all in.

Keep running.  Never stop.

See you on the road.

No Goat for Me

Well, although I trained for and ran the training run three times, I was unable to participate in the Mountain Goat Run with all my friends and old running mates.  I was ready too... then I had two obstacles:  one, my dad's 70th birthday and two, injuries.

As such, I have no stories of the run to tell other than letting everyone know that I will be ready for the Boilermaker and have high hopes of running without injury or pain and plan to pay close attention to all the happenings so I may share them on this site.

I have been running fewer days and slower to avoid pain and injury.  I am probably only logging about 15 to 21 miles/week.  Occasionally   I will push a long run into double digits, but I pay the price in soreness and back pain that grounds me for two or three days.  I get very anxious when I get laid up, so I must do my best to run as I feel which means slowing down or stopping when my back becomes uncomfortable (or at least slow down to reduce the impact).

I am still trying to figure out this mac.  I haven't figured out how to add pictures from the web with this computer.  However, I did finally figure out how to "right click". 

OK.  I digress.  I don't have much to say.

so I shall sign off... "see you on the road."

Making It Another Ten

Well, another weekend training run for the Mountain Goat has passed, and it was a challenging run from the get go...

Waking up early after a late night of watching The Walking Dead was quite appropriate because I had nothing on hose zombies except for I could think about the task before or rationalize a way to stay in bed.

I did roll out of bed, and I hit the road for downtown Syracuse where I promptly arrived just before the start of the run with upwards of 300 other runners.  This morning I ran alone which made it that much more mentally taxing.

I ran to the music in my iPhone. As always the start is unbearable.  My legs and back ached and my mind was telling me to quit.  I slowed my pace and watched the other runners.  The best distraction and motivation a runner can have is to chill and observe the surroundings, especially the runners.  Runners are quite varied in their appearance... One guy looked like a jigsaw puzzle.  He wore long sweat pants covered by jogging shorts and several shirts of various colors and sleeve lengths.  As I ran passed him, I wondered if he actually dressed himself and realized how silly he looked.  I would have said, "Is he blind or something to dress like that" until I witnessed a first, a blind runner.  She ran while holding onto her sighted running friend.  Now that was inspiration.

I felt good now that we were about a mile in.  I was acing just over a ten minute mile and reached the water tower of our first descent into Strathmore and Hiawatha Park.  More hills and another beautiful downhill; I love going downhill.  An opportunity to go fast and rest simultaneously.  Unfortunately, I still had many aches and pains in my legs and back plus ankle pan.  Yet I ran forward determined to make it those ten miles.  My pace quickened nonetheless.

As I trudged up Colvin, I passed a friend who was walking and two other friends passed me floating on clouds.  Very impressive.  I decided to stay close to them to maintain a nice pace through Thrndon Park for that final hill and quick descent toward East Genesee St and the finish line at Armory Square.  I made it to the square and kept running to my car saying to myself, "what a hard run, but I'm glad to have completed the course for a third time."

My only words of encouragement are to "stay the course."  Finish the race my friends.  Train hard and never waiver from your goal because its achievable.  Overcome the negative aches and pains that push you to quit.  Replace the bad thoughts with the happy thoughts of success and the joy of reaching the end.

With that said, "I'll see you on the road."

Thinking... An untitled Post Noe Titled

 Running and Management

It has been a long time since my last post.  I fell away from writing as I fell away from running long, bu for different reasons.  I tried to start writing again several times only to stop abruptly because I wasn't writing about something I love.  I love to run and enjoyed my stories of running in a variety of places and talking about the people who I have met and who inspired me while running the miles.

This weekend, I was just beat by late hours and could not get out of bed to run the Mountain Goat training run so I forced myself to run ten miles on Sunday morning.  I ran a solo ten miles of hills and flats.  I even doubled back to run a steep incline and a long gradual incline to "pretend" I was running up the short hill in Hiawatha Park and the long gradual, and final incline of Thorndon Park; if I hadn't done this, I would have felt guilty.  There were several times I wanted to quit.  My legs were burning and my mind was bored.  Yet, I trudged onward, finishing my own training run.

I think of many things while running alone. I think of friends past, running mates whom I haven't run with since my back surgery in 2010, and all the things I hoped to accomplish, but haven't.  Hence the reason why its so critical that I run and finish what I start.  Running, unlike work, places only one obstacle before me, me.  There is nothing out of my control once I head onto the asphalt.  I can control my mind, my pace, my breathing, and my desire to finish.  In work there are too many obstacles, too many people who interfere or just get in the way, too many managers who believe good management is molding everyone to them when they should be managing talents toward their strengths.  Running allows me to manage my talents to my strength, running fast down hills and slow up hills while maintaining a consistent and engaged pace on the flats.  I know my weaknesses and I know what hurts.  I have only had one manager who understood that...  But that another story about successful management best saved for another blog that may be worthy of creating.

Todays weekly run take homes for me are the following: 
1) Run and finish what I start.
2) Find someone to run long with so I can generate more endurance and better stories.
3) Do not expect a manager to manage you toward your strengths, only I can do that for myself.

See you on the road.

"Where, Oh Where, Has Oilcan Gone?"

Where has Oilcan gone, if not out training for a marathon? I can say for a fact there are fewer mysterious sightings of the OC than there are of Elvis on a daily basis. You may See him at North Medical Center or out at Ocean Sushi or Starbucks, but its doubtful you’ll see the OC running.

Running has not been an option for Oilcan. As a matter of fact, if you haven’t noticed, he’s been out of the running loop and desparately wants to get back into the loop. So Oilcan will start appearing on these pages on a bi-weekly basis writing something; he’s not sure what, but it will be something to stay involved.

But really, where has Oilcan been? He has been on the DL, the disabled list. All those humorous injury stories have been realized to a high degree. Again, read his stories and don’t do what he does because its a recipie for disaster.

Ok, where do I begin… I really haven’t been the same injury free runner since training for the San Diego Rock n Roll Marathon with the Team in Training and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I recall over training and suffering severe hamstring pain which caused me not to run for two weeks prior to the marathon. (details on my training for San Diego can be found under Bill’s TNT Tab.) I did run San Diego on May 31, 2009 and struggled severely from mile 21 to the end. the pain in my hamstring was awful, but like all addicted runners its mind over matter. The pain is pushed to the side while thoughts of completing the run take over and push you toward the end where rest and cold beer are the reward. I do believe that was the beginning of my “disk” problems.

After San Diego I took a few days off and started running again. I ran Paige’s Butterfly run; my first ever run that hooked me on running. I ran it slow with a friend and felt good. I ran the Boilermaker with that all too familiar hamstring pain. I intended to run slow, but seing other runners pass me bugged the hell out of me, so I hit the golf course and decided to pace myself and a couple of friends out for a good finishing time. I lost my two friends in the crowd, but I finished strong and fast over the last 5 miles of the run to average. just above an 8 min mile pace. I was pleased. Yet the pains were worse the next day. Walking was very tough for a few weeks. I rested for a week. I continued to run with pain. I figured that’s what happens when you push for better times.

I ran the Burn Run, and finished in pain but with a pace just under 8 mins/mile. I just brushed it off as muscle aches. The pain moved to my calf. However, knowing my pain now which is a combo of severe hamstring, calf, quad, and IT pain that radiates under my left foot I know I should have seen someone. Maybe I could’ve avoided my current debacle of walking with a cane (well a pitching wedge since I will not use a cane.) The IT and quad pain mentioned above arose from training for the Walt Disney Marathon.

I pushed it in the fall of 2009 while training for Disney. I ran the Philadelphia Half on November 22 and was pacing well until mile 11 when severe hamstring and quad pain struck. I finished with a pace near 9 mins/mile, but I could’ve done better. I felt ok before the run started and I was cruising with a plan through the city streets. I blame the hills of Dexel University for exacerbating my injuries which I ignored. A few days later I found myself in Brooklyn running the Prospect Park Turkey Trot and surpassing my previous years PPTT by 2 minutes. My knees screamed and my quads cried. But I met my goal and followed my race plan. Although not in great shape, I returned to Syracuse Saturday night and ran 18 miles alone on Sunday morning. It was snowing. I ran along 31 to Morgan Rd to Buckley Rd and up 370 where the trouble began near mile 15. I ran gimply the last three miles (something I would experience at Disney) and took a week off to run a hilly 20 miler in Cortland two weeks later.

If you have ever run the Leaf Peeper Half Marathon in Cortland you are familiar with the route we ran for the 20 miler. All the muscles in my left leg tightened at mile ten. The smart runner would have stopped. Not me. I remember saying to my running partner that if I couldn’t fight the pain of the last 10 miles how could I ever expect to beat the pain of the last six miles at Disney. I ran on and finished. I did not run again for at least a month prior to the Walt Disney Marathon. (That whole adventure is also on the Bill’s TNT Tab.)

Well with all that being said, I have not been the same since Disney.I have run off and on, but not with much confidence and with a lot of trepidation. The last time I ran without pain was the first Mountain Goat training run this year. A few days after it was all she wrote. All the left leg pain in the world returned. The exercises given to me by PT no longer worked. However, The oxycodone and Skelaxin cocktail made me “feelgood” but it did little for the pain.

The moral of this long drawn out story is to be careful. Listen to your body. Take time off after races and long runs. Don’t worry about going fast when training. Go slow; save your knees, muscles, and tendons for another day. If you hurt bad, see your doctor and let her make the appropriate diagnosis and referrals. Following a conservative approach to running, especially if your just starting and 40+. I don’t want you to hear those infamous words, “Where have you been?” Be smart and do as I say not as Ihave done.

See you on the road.

Cold Weather, Walkers, and Wheelchairs

Upon arriving at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL I was able to settle down at the Caribbean Beach Resort, chill for a little while, and take a bus, provided by Disney to all resort guests, to the Marathon Expo to pick up my race day packet and bib number. The marathon expo is located at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex the Spring Training home of the Atlanta Braves. Very exciting. My race day number was 21931. The pre-race registration was 24,000. That was for the Sunday marathon and did not include those who participated in the 5K or the half marathon on Friday and Saturday respectively.

Aside of all the anticipated race excitement and the nervous energy to run my second and "final" marathon, the cold weather, rain, wind, and sleet truly dampened the festivities for the weekend. I grew weary of the cold after spending Friday at the Magic Kingdom. I missed the kickoff pasta dinner and the team Team In Training meeting because of 2 reasons, 1) I was confused as to which tickets were functional and what or if I was supposed to wear a wrist band or not. 2) I didn't realize we were having a meeting because I, sometimes, don't listen well to instructions. I was quite the ditz that weekend. Nevertheless, spending time at the Magic Kingdom with my kids, and nephews was fun. Space Mountain has been upgraded: it has new cars, is much smoother, and faster than I remember as a teenager when I frequented the Magic Kingdom often while a Sr. in high school and in college.

Saturday morning started early for the half marathoners. I met the Team in Training crew at 3am at the CBR food court and wished them well as they departed for the race staging area outside Epcot. The air was cold. It had yet to turn. I returned to my room, slept for a few more hours and hopped a bus to the finish line around 8am. The rain was falling and transitioned to sleet. The sun slept and wouldn't open her gorgeous eyes until Sunday while running through the Animal Kingdom. It was so cold I abandoned the finish line and retreated to the Team In Training rendezvous tent and waited for my team mates to return . I can say this, once Rene and June arrived back at the TNT tent after crossing the finish, I, like most folks, headed for the bus and returned to the resorts. Participating the after race festivities was not going to happen; it wouldn't happen Sunday either. It was just too cold.

I rested the remainder of the day at the CBR. I needed to rest my knee which I injured a month earlier running the Philly Half, the Prospect Park Turkey Trot, and a 15 miler in B'ville in the same week. week or 2 later I completed a hilly 20 miler in Cortland that truly hobbled me. So, I took a couple of weeks off and rested on the eve of the marathon. The Jets surprisingly defeated the Bengals for the wild card and the Cowboys spanked the Eagles. I wrapped my IT Band with tape following directions off a You Tube Video and Harland, the Binghamton team coach. I felt comfortable and gained some confidence that I could finish. I have few friends who believes in me more than I believe in myself. They each said I would finish it regardless of the pain. One in particular believed the pain would melt away by the adrenaline rush of the marathon.

Race morning started with a 2:30am buzz from the bedside alarm. I dressed in a tight white tech shirt under a singlet, covered with a long sleeve tech shirt to keep warm. It wasn't enough. I was freezing as I walked to the food court. The trek to the bus and then form the bus to the staging area outside Epcott was brutal. Thank God for giving modern man plastic garbage bags. I slipped one over my head to break the wind while occasionally tucking my head inside the bag like a turtle hiding from an approaching lawn mower. I waited for the 20 minute "death march" with the team, but stuck with Nick, Sarah, and Andrew most of that time shivering and teeth chattering. Listening to my blackberry tunes on Pandora Radio was my only distraction. I shivered and swayed to the music in the cold while listening to the easy sounds of the Sex Pistols, the Ramones, and the Clash. I guess it was about 4:30am or so. The Disney Marathon "death march" commenced near 5:30am. The corrals filled fast while many runners stepped into the woods to take care of business, the epitome of an opportunity missed and jumbled nerves.

Nick, Andrew, Harland, and I stood in our corral while the girls pushed forward toward their corral. As usual, the corrals were not policed well which allowed the "walker" to move closer to the starting line and to become obstacles along the miles. I can recall, within the first two miles of the marathon a series of three women walking, locked arm in arm across the road caused a log jam as runners darted left and right to get around. Runners banged, bumped, and jostled each other because these three ladies owned the highway. Unbelievable! My knee screamed each time I had to dodge walkers and squeeze into small openings to progress a few feet as a running back charges forward to break through a goal line defense. I reminisced about my days playing football in high school... well I couldn't find many holes back then. However, I did find many defenders bigger than me willing to crush my head into the turf.

We stood in corral H waiting for the start. I switched my blackberry to U2 Radio and listened to that genre for the entire marathon. The fireworks blasted for each corral signaling the next wave of runners to begin. It was still cold. My left knee shouted for me to stop. I pressed on regardless of my mind telling me to quit. I shed the black plastic bag, my temporary turtle shell and wind breaker, somewhere before entering Epcott, maybe a half mile into the run. By mile 2 my knee seemed to disappear from my thoughts and a painless pace that steadily increased locked in. By mile 4 I felt warm enough to remove my outer layer tech shirt, Philadelphia Half Marathon shirt., and passed it to Maura who awaited us to run by. Yet, my hands were frozen. Opening GU and holding cups was difficult.

To keep my mind clear and focused from the cold air I thought about my race plan: GU every 6 miles, Powerade and Quench Gum when necessary, and food when hungry. I ended up only taking 4 Powerade cups throughout the marathon and a single banana as we approached Animal Kingdom. The plan seemed perfect. It was perfect I decided by the time I crossed the finish line.
However, before I crossed the finish line there were many miles to be tread. I decided to enjoy this marathon and take my mind off any possible pain and cold by actively participating with the spectators who lined the parks and streets. Whenever I saw a crowd of quiet spectators I would shout out, "Let me hear some noise!" The people always responded by cheering loud, clapping, and whistling. Many reached out their hands for five; I love it when the little kids hold out their tiny paws looking for a slap. That is very uplifting during a race, more than Powerade or GU. Cow bells could always be heard. "Let me hear more cow bell", I would shout and the cowbells increased in volume and number. The runners around me seemed to enjoy the enthusiasm I brought to the crowds because it lifted their spirits too. That is the secret and the joy of running a marathon, taking in the views, the sounds, and the people-- fellow runners and spectators. All are a vital part to a successful experience.

In the Magic Kingdom, I had the crowd hooting and hollering, whistling and belling, but then I added a celebration of the NY Jets victory from the afternoon before. "J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets." I hoped to get a good response but no one cared. Oh well. Trial and error. That was a big mistake. I would try it again later in the run; same result-- nothing.

The marathon was well organized. Yet there were two issues that drove me nuts, 1) narrow roads and 2) too many walkers. From the start to about mile 22 walkers got in the way. Walking obstacles became dangerous as some roads narrowed. Along the narrow course Disney organized many water and Powerade stations. Unfortunately, tossed cups and spilled liquid quickly became black ice. Runners were slipping, sliding, and falling as they darted to and fro to avoid the walkers. If the runners couldn't get around the walkers they had to slow down and disrupt their pace. For runners with knee pain or muscle aches, like me, this wrecked havoc on the body. Once I get moving, stopping/slowing makes it difficult to get moving consistently again. My team mate Andrew took a header when attempting to run through a water stop only to be knocked over by a walker who decided to cut in front of him to reach for water. Andrew pulled up and slipped. He landed on his fanny. He was lucky he could pop up and continue on. I Maybe it wasn't really that big a deal since he promotes the Zithromax of diabetes drugs-- Januvia; only kidding my friend.
From mile 5 to mile ten we ran up World Drive. This long flat road would take us into the Magic Kingdom. World Drive had many spectators lining both sides: cheerleaders and bands from local high schools were there, elementary school kids cheered and gave out five, and a hot air balloon greeted us as we stepped lively on our magical path to Wally World. We ran into the Magic Kingdom parking lot around the back side of Space Mountain and entered the park heading into Tomorrowland, Frontierland then through Cinderella's Castle and out the front of the park to Florida Way which took us behind the Polynesian Resort. From miles 11 through 15 we ran along Florida Way toward Animal Kingdom. Animal Kingdom definitely smelled like a zoo, but the wild atmosphere of the park made it feel as though you were running through small villages in Africa, India, and S.E. Asia. It was cool. It was here that the roads were the narrowest and contained winding paths with small rolling rises. Before entering Animal Kingdom, right at mile 15, my sister called. Since my blackberry is my "ipod" I took the call. Runners text during races but few if any take phone calls. The looks I got when i said, "Hello" were priceless. I felt fantastic. I wasn't tired, and I spoke to Coleen for a few minutes. Having the phone conversation made this part of the run seem like a Saturday morning run at the OLP, easy with good conversation.
Miles 17 through 21 were the most boring. It was all highway running between Animal Kingdom and Hollywood studios. This is also the hilly part of the marathon. My knee did't like it, not one bit. There was a brief 1 mile out and back between miles 20 and 21 before taking a right to mile 22. This is where I slowed dramatically and started the gimpy part of my run. Yet, I knew if I persevered and reached Hollywood Studios I could regain my stride on the flats for a short 5K to end the marathon well. But that was not to be. I gimped my way to mile 22 and entered the back lot of Hollywood Studios. I saw mile 23 grabbed some Hershey's Miniatures, mostly Mr. Goodbar, my favorite miniature. We ran into a dark tunnel in the costume area. I came out feeling good except for the knee. Then I made a misstep. I stepped into a "pothole" and caught my right foot on the edge and fell onto my hands and left knee. I was helped up by three runners and a TNT coach who was monitoring mile 23. I could't run. My run for final glory and a better time than San Diego was over.

I was very angry because I wasn't tired. I never hit a wall in this marathon. Like I said earlier, my plan was perfect. After falling and getting back up to run, and realizing that I couldn't brought me back to a Seinfeld episode wheen Elaine tried to get her boyfriend to LaGuardia by beating the traffic on the Van Wyk. She failed due to "a five car pile up on Queens Blvd..." Just as I failed due to an unfortunate mishap. So, I walked for a half mile until I could achieve a slow, limping jog by mile 24. The crowds who saw me fall and saw me limping my way to the finish were very supportive. They called out my name and encouraged me on to Epcott and the finish.
The last 2 miles around the Epcott Pavillion was torturous. I ran slow. I ran with pain. I reached the ball. Almost there. I turned to the left, mile 26 and a gospel choir. I saw the finish. 2/10ths to go. I took off to look strong at the finish and to remain under 5 hours; now my new goal. I shouted to the finish line crowds to make noise. They did. It was a great feeling. I remember seeing one person clearly, she shouted my name multiple times and cheered me on, It was June; she had run the half on Saturday in horrible conditions and here she was in the cold cheering me and others on to the end. All I can say is "Thank you."

I crossed the finish line. It was over. My phone rang. It was Bernie. I said, "I can't talk right now. I crossed the finish line at the Disney Marathon, can I call you later." He wanted to tell me about his date and possibly complain about the Mets horrendous off season acquisitions. I received my medal and foil wrap to keep warm. I finished the race, I felt good, unlike San Diego I could walk and didn't need the medical tent... so I thought.

The Disney Race Personnel approached me because of my severe limp and cut knee and forced me into the medical tent. They also forced me into a wheelchair. Can you believe it? I was wheeled into the medical tent. They layed me down, gave me a Powerade, and checked out my knee. I even received massage treatment for my IT Band. They took some info, I chugged the Powerade and insisted I was ok and could leave.

After Thoughts: Somewhere between miles 6 and seven I caught up to our team's coach, Kim, and Sarah. while running with the coach form PA, Jason. Kim asked me if I was going to stay with them for a while. I responded, "Sure, I'll stick with you until I get bored." And I immediately took off. Later that night Kim told me she and Sarah thought I was rude and didn't think it was funny. Oops another mistake in judgement.

On the flight home, I discovered that Harland had waited for Kim and Sarah in Epcott. He stood in the England Pavillion sucking down a glass of Guinness; Harland stopped running, got in line and purchased a glass of beer. He even had one waiting for Sarah. I missed out again because I didn't stick with the girls. Serves me right. Yet, if I would have known where to get a Guiness as I gimped along the Pavillion my leg would have been miraculously healed by the dark elixir of suds.

All in all, it was a nice marathon. Unfortunately the weather conditions made it challenging at times and ruined any post race festivities, including the Victory Dinner that evening at Hollywood Studios. It was so cold Paul and I ate and hopped a bus back to the CBR while Karen, Brandon, and Anna hit the rides.

A final note: The Disney Marathon is a nice run, but don't expect to blow it out since the walkers and tight roads slow it down significantly. You don't run in the parks as much as you would like. I would say that 6 or 7 miles may be spent inside the actual tourist portions of the parks while the rest is all behind the scenes service roads and highways. There are hills. Not big but long slight grades which can cause pain if you have knee or hamstring injuries going in. I recommend taking 800 Motrin and loading up on Biofreeze. This combination works well for me. However, it is not recommended to take Motrin when running long distances since kidney damage can occur, but Tylenol just doesn't cut it.

So, I resolve not to run anymore marathons. I shall stick to halves because they are much easier to run for pleasure and without injury while still getting the full marathon effect for fan support and festivities. Where will the next destination be? Seattle, NYC, San Francisco... I don't know yet. Let me know if you have any good ideas.

See you on the road.

Two Runs. One Week

What a fantastic week for running. Here in the northeast we have had unusually warm weather and the rain has not been to bad; it has fallen in spurts. If you time your run right you may stay dry and score a couple of races like I did: Philadelphia Half Marathon on November 22 followed by the Prospect Park Turkey Trot on November 26.

Running Philly was a blast although I travelled alone, ate alone, and toured alone. Eileen and Pam were the only friends who I caught up with; Pam at the expo, she was running the full marathon and Eileen at the starting line, she too was running the full marathon. I know Eileen finished well, just over 4 hours, which was her goal. Congratulations to Pam and Eileen for finishing another marathon strong.

My trip down began with a long solo drive to The Philadelphia Marriott Downtown. The traffic was heavy that day my friends like an old man sitting upon his throne. It took about an half hour to go around the block to find parking. Once the car was parked I checked into the hotel and hurried to the expo, picked up my packet and purchased a Philadelphia Marathon cap. The expo itself did not have much. Unlike San Diego, which had vendors galore and give away items, Philly was all about selling paraphenallia. Who needs those magnets that help you maintain balance while running? Sorry Lisa, just had to throw that in. Spy belts at every stand, but those are necessary. Buy one if you haven't gotten one yet. No GU or chew samples could be found. So, I caught up with Pam and her family on my way out of the expo and headed back to the hotel.

After making a valiant attempt to have dinner with some friends, I ventured out on the downtown Philly streets, hailed a cab, and told the cabbie, "650 S. 9th St." He promptly drove away from the hotel, and we trekked to south Philly (aka Little Italy). The destination was Ral['s. It is the oldest family owned Italiamn Restaurant in America. The food is out of the world. The setting fits its history. It looks like something from a mob movie, small store front, maitre d up front, and the dining rooms, three floors worth, packed with people. Baboo Bhat would have been proud to serve "all the people."

I was brought to the bar on the second floor to wait my hour to be seated as an individual guest. I leaned back against the wall and just watched the people around me. The bar tender was a cool guy; definetly part of the family. He chatted with the folks sitting on their stools doling out wine and mixed drinks to whomever. Large families surrounded most of the tables. Many having dinner before the big race. Young and old, kids and toddlers. This is an awesome place. I just love it here.

My name was called, "Bill! Follow me."

The maitre d and the wait staff called the head guest by name. It was a nice formality that made you feel as though you were an important guest. Being alone, it was special. i was a loser for being alone, but special because I was alone and being seated as a VIP. Well, in my mind anyway. I was taken to a section where there were three "couples" tables. Against the wall was a couple who seemed out of place for each other. The guy just sat and listened while "his date" seemed to have a problem living. I don't believe she had a positive thing to say all night; not that I was listening.

The couple on my left were cool. The big guy sat next to me. We faced the front of the restaurant. I didn't get his name. Yet I think I saw him in a movie once... His girlfriend had a heavy Jersey accent and was a blast. I spoke wth them during dinner. I ordered spaghetti with marinara sauce and a beer, Miller Lite. A cup of coffee and a canoli chased the spaghetti. It was a night to remmeber. I jumped a cab back to the hotel and called it a night. The cab coming out was ten bucks while the cab going back was 5. Hmm, who ripped me off, I wonder? Who cares, its Philly, Little Italy its to be expected. What a night.

Well, not much to do after returning to the room, so I hit the hay for an early morning and a second shot for an official time in a half marathon that didn't require jumping over stumps, sloshing through streams, nor running up hills. Just smooth city streets,

The Philadelphia Marathon and Half Marathon start together, in front of the art museum and winds its way through the city and quaint neighborhoods. I ran the first two miles with Eileen and my tunes of choice to begin the run was U2. I switched it up to Guns n Roses and then Jimi Hendrix. As I ran up through Drexel University, I moved on to AC/DC. Drexel University started a small hill climb uet I maintained a quick pace, it wasn't until mile 11 that I coukd no longer ignore the quad and knee pain. I slowed from an 8 minute pace tp an 11 or 12 minute pace unti; about 12.75 minute pace. I finished strong and completed the race 7 minutes faster than i ran the Cortland Leaf Peeper Half at 1:50:51.


After I crossed the finish line I promptly returned to my hotel, showered, and checked out so I could visit the Philadelphia Art Museum to climb the steps that Rocky Balboa climbed, to see the beautiful art work inside the museum, and then to see the statue from Rocky III.
I had never visited an art museum. So, I joined a guided tour of the Gorky exhibit. Interstingly you could see how his painting evolved over time; yet he stayed true to his abstract, cubist roots, Early on he used a lot of paint. Color rarely blended, and figures would fade into the flat, wall-lke background. By the end of the your his paint thinned, and he allowed the paint to flow into the painting. The study work where he prepped for big murals were the most spectacular. The vibrant colors and ideas were more stunning than the actual finished pieces, tome that is. Time ran short. I had to go. The Philly trip was great. I will never forget it because I successfully did all I planned without relying on anyone else.


I returned home to prepare for my next adventure which would bring me to Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Thanksgiving morning.

Wednesday afternoon I started my trip to Long Island with two of my four children, Paul and Anna. We made plans to visit my uncle and cousin on Thanksgiving day and then to visit West Islip, my home town, for a bagel and a short trip to the beach followed by a quick stop to grab 20 White Castles with cheese.

We made it to LI on Wednesday night, and I hit the sack promptly for an early wake up call to leave for Brooklyn. I just love running in events in other cities. It fantastic to experience other people and cultures, to see new streets, landmarks, and sounds. In Brooklyn, during this trip, my GPS took me in a different way than usual. I say countless of Orthodox Jewish folks walking the streets. They dressed in all black from head to toe except for a white shirt. All boys had long curls. in a way they reminded me of the Amish of Northern New York and Lancaster, PA. I witnessed hundreds of people, runners, of all ages, shapes, and sizes arriving by foot, car, bike, and train to Run the Prospect Park Turkey Trot. Its a nice 5 mile run around the lake in two loops, an inner and outer loop. There were about 1700 runners.

I decided not to worry about time like I do before every race until it starts. Then i get antsy and have to take off, but this time I had a plan. I took the first mile at 9 min/mile pace. I increased my pace at each mile and ended averaging an 8:02 min/mile pace and beat my time from the previous year coming in at 40:09. I was satisfied considering I forgot to take my usual 800 motrin although I did load up on Bio-Freeze. The weather was warm with some clouds and no rain. However, I will blame one girl who was slow near mile three who kept cutting me off from passing. if she would have stayed out of my way I could have made it below 40 minutes. It not me, but everyone else, right? I would never get in any one's way, would I? Well, ok, it was my fault and I accept full responsibility for nor not finishing under 40 minutes.

Once the race ended, all of us runners continued through the shute after having the chips removed from our shoes and headed for the Prospect Park Pavillion. Awaiting us were Brooklyn bagels, coffee, and hot chocolate. A bagel and hot chocolate never tasted so good. Oh, the prospect park Track Club gave us all a running cap to commemorate the run, running gloves, and a gold medal. Even after being delayed by that girl, I still pulled of a victory, i finished and felt good, and earned a GOLD MEDAL with a picture of a turkey. Oh yeah. You gotta love it. I can't wait until next year.

What else awaited me on this fine Thanksgiving day? My uncle, hearing that I was hoping to start biking gave me his old road bike; a Centurion Expert Iron Man bike. Old, but in good condition. I can't wait to start riding. I also met a young cousin of mine who runs for the Islip varsity X-Country team at the age of 13 and he is ranked in the top 5 for running in the town of Islip which consists of all the Town of Islip school districts. As a matter of fact, he runs a 19 minute 5K.

Then I visited my cousin Lisa and ended the night drinking wine, Tequila Rose, and beer with her husband and neighbors; I even gained another Facebook friend, Jee. So, long story short, these are two terrific runs. I hope to run them again, and i encourage all of you to leave your localities and run for a new adventure. take in the new restaurants and museums while watching the people. You can only win and feel good by the end of the day.

See you on the road.