Number 8

I've completed seven marathons in my ten years of running.

• New York City Marathon (3X)
• Chicago Marathon
• Philadelphia Marathon
• New Jersey Marathon
• Austin Marathon

It would seem I've got at least one more in me.

Come 21-October, I'll be at the starting line of the Detroit Marathon -- one of the only marathons that crosses an international border (into Canada). Participants are actually required to present a valid passport to pick up race packets! But the best part about this race is that I get to run it with my big brother, The Ubster.

"The truth is you don't know what is going to happen tomorrow. Life is a crazy ride, and nothing is guaranteed."

-Eminem

Three and One Half Decades

If you pay attention, gaining wisdom is as simple as aging. Open your eyes and your ears and you learn a little along the way.

One of the things I’ve come to learn is that experiences always trump material goods. High-end electronic gadgetry quickly becomes outdated, fashionable clothing fades from style, and novelty items depreciate faster than new cars. By contrast, a great memory only appreciates over time.

My wife, in her infinite wisdom, has known this gem to be true most of her adult life. And she’s rewarded me with amazing experiences again and again and again.

I turned three and one half decades old recently and my bride has rewarded me with another experience that, I suspect, I’ll thoroughly enjoy and never forget… driving an open cockpit Indy race car at top speed around the Texas Motor Speedway!

Even though I have to wait until September (first available opportunity), I’m all geared up to speed around the track.

Not too dissimilar from the pace at which life is passing by…

"God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well."-Voltaire

The Cowtown Half

On Sunday, February 26, 2012, I ran the Cowtown Half Marathon in Fort Worth, TX. 

Obviously, it's taken me some time to get this blog post written and published. This latency is due, in part, to the general madcap pace of life, but more so, it is due to my disappointing race performance. 

To be absolutely clear, The Cowtown Marathon and Half marathon are terrific races. They're fun, flawlessly managed, well supported, and the course passes through some exceptional neighborhoods. In short, I have nothing but praise for Cowtown and I look forward to running this race again some time. 

My personal performance is another matter. Going into the race, I had a base of about 25 miles per week and I'd put in a number of long runs. I was feeling strong and reasonably fit.

The truth of the matter is that I was only modestly prepared. Sure, I was healthy and race conditions were good, but I was not in peak condition. My training lacked speed work, hill work, and plain old fashioned mileage. 

My mistake was not spending any time thinking about a realistic outcome given my modest training. At some level, I think I was expecting to throw down personal record. 
 
In retrospect, I actually am pleased with the effort and the result. I set a clear goal and was diligent and focused on achieving it. At race time, I set out at a respectable pace and maintained it for thirteen miles. An accomplishment in my book, even if it took me a few weeks to realize it.

"Hindsight is always twenty-twenty."
-Billy Wilder

Moooooove it

A clearly defined goal helps when it comes to motivation. Toward that end I've gone ahead and registered for the Cowtown Half Marathon!

Many moons have passed since my personal best at the New York City Half Marathon so I certainly don't anticipate breaking any records at Cowtown! But caveats noted, I have been running fairly consistently for the past few months, I've even logged some longer runs, and my tempo pace is respectable (relatively speaking!). Perhaps with some speed work over the next few weeks I'll be poised to throw down a solid race. Perhaps another 1:40?

I guess we'll find out in about 34 days...

“Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a heaven for?”
-Robert Browning

Weekly Commitment

Back in September I decided I'd commit to running at least 20 miles per week. I figured this would put me in decent shape for the Dallas Half Marathon and then possibly a go at the Cowtown Marathon.

Well,  since making that commitment my total mileage is a bit over 342 miles. Unfortunately that averages out to about 19 per week; obviously shy of my goal. Not too thrilled with that big goose egg in November either.

Regardless, having a plan, even as simple as a weekly mileage target, is beneficial. It's a plan I intend to adopt for all of 2012. I'm also rethinking my race strategy and running the Cowtown half.

We shall see.

"It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan."
-Eleanor Roosevelt