tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68393439366984579562024-03-13T05:45:14.601-04:00#kinosfaultThis is the personal blog of Charity Runner Kino, a 5 Hour Marathoner turned 3:15 Marathoner, who has traveled the world running over 200 marathons & ultras, raising awareness and funding for various charitable causes while encouraging others to do the same, hence #kinosfault.Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-51320518354611066052013-03-29T13:11:00.000-04:002014-02-06T02:07:15.263-05:00Eunji Jen Kim<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
Interview Conducted on: 2013/03/27<br>
<br>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mU2zTYEjCCU/UWhwKLUPo-I/AAAAAAAALyk/mzKJbaNH7oU/s1600/2013-03-30+13.21.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mU2zTYEjCCU/UWhwKLUPo-I/AAAAAAAALyk/mzKJbaNH7oU/s1600/2013-03-30+13.21.36.jpg"></a><br>
<br>
Race: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://fastfinishes.net/events/two-rivers-marathon-race-festival/" target="_blank">2013 Two Rivers Marathon (Lackawaxen, PA)</a> on 2013/03/30 in <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/13/pa/Mar30_TwoRiv_set1.shtml" target="_blank">3:51:54!</a></font><br>
Cause: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/hideki-kinoshita/KeeptheMemoryAlive" target="_blank">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN)</a></font><br>
<br>
<u>BACKGROUND INFO</u><br>
Name: <font color="0000A0">Eunji Jen Kim</font><br>
Hometown: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queens" target="_blank">Queens, NY</a></font><br>
Current Location: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City" target="_blank">New York, NY</a></font><br>
Age: <font color="0000A0">31</font><br>
Occupation: <font color="0000A0">Pastry Chef</font><br>
Blog / Website: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Facebook Page: <font color="0000A0"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/eunji.j.kim" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/eunji.j.kim</a></font><br>
Twitter: <font color="0000A0"><a href="https://twitter.com/EunjiJKim" target="_blank">@EunjiJKim</a></font><br>
Videos: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Press Articles: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Running Clubs: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1620" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs #4806</a></font><br>
Sponsors: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
<br>
<u>LIKES</u><br>
Favorite Running Books: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible" target="_blank">The Bible</a></font><br>
Favorite Running Websites: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://ryanhall.competitor.com" target="_blank">Ryan Hall</a></font><br>
Favorite Quote: <font color="0000A0">"I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free." - Psalm 119:32</font><br>
<br>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jKKIEhzLOvs/UVXMDuhDQeI/AAAAAAAAK-M/aCnKrgQP7Sc/s1600/IMG_2632.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jKKIEhzLOvs/UVXMDuhDQeI/AAAAAAAAK-M/aCnKrgQP7Sc/s1600/IMG_2632.jpg"></a><br>
<br>
<u>RUNNING HISTORY</u><br>
First Marathon: <font color="0000A0">2011/01/30 @ <a href="http://www.ingmiamimarathon.com" target="_blank">2011 Miami Marathon (Miami, FL)</a> in <a href="http://results.active.com/events/ing-miami-marathon-and-half-marathon--6/marathon/eunji-kim" target="_blank">4:08:49</a></font><br>
Total Marathons: <font color="0000A0">10</font><br>
Total Ultras: <font color="0000A0">0</font><br>
Total Marathons+Ultras: <font color="0000A0">10</font><br>
Marathon PR: <font color="0000A0">2012/11/18 @ <a href="http://www.thebrooklynmarathon.com/" target="_blank">2012 Brooklyn Marathon (Brooklyn, NY)</a> in <a href="http://www.thebrooklynmarathon.com/2012-results/2012-results#/results:&AthleteSearch=Eunji&Division=All:13645094904810" target="_blank">3:43:20</a></font><br>
Training Miles / Week: <font color="0000A0">0 to 20 miles per week</font><br>
<br>
<u>CHARITY RUNNING</u><br>
Favorite Charities / Running Causes: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.pancan.org" target="_blank">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN)</a></font><br>
Fundraiser Sites: <font color="0000A0"><a href="" target="_blank">N/A</a></font><br>
Amount Raised: <font color="0000A0">$2,105</font><br>
Amount Raised for PanCAN: <font color="0000A0">$2,105</font><br>
<br>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Wllfrzy7GP0/UVXMm1R0o2I/AAAAAAAAK-c/cfO9wTwAbjw/s1600/IMG_2647.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Wllfrzy7GP0/UVXMm1R0o2I/AAAAAAAAK-c/cfO9wTwAbjw/s1600/IMG_2647.jpg"></a><br>
<br>
<u>QUESTIONS</u><br>
1.) Describe your life before running.<br>
<font color="0000A0">I was never involved in any sports growing up so I didn't know that I had a spirit of competition in me. Running has taught me so much about perseverance and resilience. I don't believe that any other sport or activity would have made me as strong as I am now-physically and mentally-like running has.</font><br>
<br>
2.) What prompted you to start running, and how old were you at the time?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I started running when I was 21 because I wanted to get in shape. It was torturous and I don't think that I ever went past one mile. I stopped running for a few years and started again at 25 and ran four miles every morning before work. I signed up for a half marathon and did surprisingly well considering I'd never run more than four miles. I became addicted to running races and finishing fast. I ran 15 half marathons, and many 10k's and 4 mile races before I ran my first full marathon in 2011.</font><br>
<br>
3.) Why do you love running and what keeps you motivated to continue running?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I love the feeling of pushing through the lows and feeling the highs and finishing strong. I feel like there is a story happening during each run. I love the camaraderie of races and especially the community of runners. As long as my feet and heart will carry me, I will keep running!</font><br>
<br>
4.) What is your prior experience with charity running and fundraising?<br>
<font color="0000A0">Running for PanCAN has been my one fundraising experience. I had donated to my friends who raised money for different causes but I had not been one to raise funds. PanCAN is an amazing organization with extraordinary people on staff and I am so grateful to have been a part of their team. </font><br>
<br>
5.) Why did you volunteer to become a charity runner with Kino, and what about marathons appeals to you?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I had not known anybody who had been affected in any way with pancreatic cancer prior to my involvement with PanCAN. Kino had a very close uncle pass away from the disease as well as another one of our friend's mother. At that point, Kino had already raised thousands of dollars and had motivated so many people to run for this-as well as many other causes. It inspired me to see what one person could do and I wanted to get involved. It was an amazing experience from beginning to end. I was so grateful to all of the people in my life who donated money. But the best part was meeting the PanCAN team and coach as well as the survivors (and runners!!) of pancreatic cancer. It was truly humbling and the race was challenging but so amazing. I will never forget my first marathon for so many reasons.</font><br>
<br>
6.) How has your experience been raising awareness and funds for PanCAN/BoMF/WTC?<br>
<font color="0000A0">Since being a part of the organization, I have been an advocate for people to get regular check ups for pancreatic cancer. I have also had the opportunity to link a friend whose father was recently diagnosed to speak with other people who have had family members with the disease.</font><br>
<br>
7.) Describe your 2013 Two Rivers Marathon charity race experience. How different was it compared to not running for charity (i.e. Why do you feel that using running is a useful tool in helping out charities?)?<br>
<font color="0000A0">This was a great race because I was able to run it with my friend, Kino, and represent PanCAN together. It has been the third race where I was running for the organization and it is more meaningful to run for a cause and not just for personal pursuits. Running is a great tool for helping charities because it is a great way to present a certain cause in an exciting way. Social media has also been a great tool in raising funds and awareness. </font><br>
<br>
8.) Do you plan to run a race for charity again, and if so, what charity will it be for?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I would like to continue to run and raise funds and awareness for PanCAN. I am also interested in <a href="http://jdrf.org" target="_blank">JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation)</a>. A very close friend of mine has a daughter who was diagnosed with Juvenile diabetes and is a very strong advocate for awareness and in finding a cure. I am inspired by their lives everyday and reminded about how grateful I should be for my health and for being able to do something I love so much... run!</font><br>
<br>
9.) What are your current running goals?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I would like to qualify for Boston.</font><br>
<br>
10.) Feel free to add anything else, give thanks, or shout outs.<br>
<font color="0000A0">I would LOVE to thank my dear friend KINO-because if not for him, I would have never run my first marathon! And second, third....tenth! He continues to inspire and encourage me as well as hundreds...thousands of others. His running history is amazing and truly shows that if you work hard and believe in yourself you can accomplish some pretty unbelievable things. His charitable works have reached so many people and will only continue to grow. Steven Thunder Lee has been such an amazing mentor to me and I am endlessly grateful to him for his motivation and kindness. He is as fast as he is gracious...and he is FAST!!!!</font><br>
<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-28532999671787389912013-01-31T19:21:00.000-05:002013-12-11T18:21:04.837-05:00Alicia Eno<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
Interviews Conducted on: 2012/05/18 & 2012/09/17<br>
<br>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ6OJndlkZ0/URGNvo8lrSI/AAAAAAAAISA/elm9k3eRr24/s1600/2012-09-09%2B10.29.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ6OJndlkZ0/URGNvo8lrSI/AAAAAAAAISA/elm9k3eRr24/s1600/2012-09-09%2B10.29.47.jpg"></a><br>
<br>
Race: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.siouxfallsmarathonhalfmarathon.com" target="_blank">2012 Sioux Falls Marathon (Sioux Falls, SD)</a> on 2012/09/09 in <a href="http://www.allsportcentral.com/results/results.cfm?EventID=388282" target="_blank">3:20:52!</a></font><br>
Cause: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/hideki-kinoshita/KeeptheMemoryAlive" target="_blank">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN)</a></font><br>
<br>
<u>BACKGROUND INFO</u><br>
Name: <font color="0000A0">Alicia Eno</font><br>
Hometown: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_City,_Michigan" target="_blank">Bay City, MI</a></font><br>
Current Location: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion,_Arkansas" target="_blank">Marion, AR</a></font><br>
Age: <font color="0000A0">35</font><br>
Occupation: <font color="0000A0">Behavioral Psychologist</font><br>
Blog / Website: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Facebook Page: <font color="0000A0"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/alicia.m.juhl" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/alicia.m.juhl</a></font><br>
Twitter: <font color="0000A0"><a href="https://twitter.com/karhu262girl" target="_blank">@karhu262girl</a></font><br>
Videos: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjHo-9-1DSU" target="_blank">88 Marathon Runner, Psychologist, Alicia Eno (Karhu Sisu Series)</a></font><br>
Press Articles: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Running Clubs: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1620" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs #1620</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marathon-Maniac-Divas/157869800911871" target="_blank">Marathon Maniac Diva #3</a>, <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com" target="_blank">50 States Marathon Club</a>, &
<a href="http://runitfast.com/run-it-fast-the-club-members/" target="_blank">Run It Fast - The Club #126</a>.</font><br>
Sponsors: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
<br>
<u>LIKES</u><br>
Favorite Running Books: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.runningtimes.com" target="_blank">Running Times</a>, <a href="https://www.trailrunnermag.com" target="_blank">Trail Runner</a>, & <a href="http://www.outsideonline.com/Outside" target="_blank">Outside</a> magazines.</font><br>
Favorite Running Websites: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://forums.runnersworld.com/forums/running-times/running-times" target="_blank">Running Times Forums</a> & <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs</a></font><br>
Favorite Quote: <font color="0000A0">"Achievement without struggle is not rewarding." - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heather_Fuhr" target="_blank">Heather Fuhr</a></font><br>
<br>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dvB3zfiFt6s/URGOTFi55NI/AAAAAAAAISM/r9nN-lU2VyI/s1600/IMG_1110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dvB3zfiFt6s/URGOTFi55NI/AAAAAAAAISM/r9nN-lU2VyI/s1600/IMG_1110.jpg"></a><br>
<br>
<u>RUNNING HISTORY</u><br>
First Marathon: <font color="0000A0">2001/04/21 @ <a href="http://www.glasscitymarathon.org" target="_blank">Glass City Marathon (Toledo, OH)</a> in <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=500010422" target="_blank">4:06:41</a></font><br>
Total Marathons: <font color="0000A0">73</font><br>
Total Ultras: <font color="0000A0">0</font><br>
Total Marathons+Ultras: <font color="0000A0">73</font><br>
Marathon PR: <font color="0000A0">2012/02/18 @ <a href="http://www.mbmarathon.com" target="_blank">Myrtle Beach Marathon (Myrtle Beach, SC)</a> in <a href="http://www.mbmarathon.com/Assets/2012+overall+results.pdf" target="_blank">3:19:40</a></font><br>
Training Miles / Week: <font color="0000A0">80 to 85 miles per week</font><br>
<br>
<u>CHARITY RUNNING</u><br>
Favorite Charities / Running Causes: <font color="0000A0"><a href="http://www.pancan.org" target="_blank">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN)</a>, <a href="http://www.autismspeaks.org" target="_blank">Autism Speaks</a></font><br>
Fundraiser Sites: <font color="0000A0">N/A</font><br>
Amount Raised: <font color="0000A0">$161</font><br>
Amount Raised for PanCAN: <font color="0000A0">$161</font><br>
<br>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gr6xBzBzdVs/URGO5tzfw7I/AAAAAAAAISY/qSYnOa3HJ3g/s1600/IMG_1938.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="100%" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gr6xBzBzdVs/URGO5tzfw7I/AAAAAAAAISY/qSYnOa3HJ3g/s1600/IMG_1938.JPG"></a><br>
<br>
<u>QUESTIONS</u><br>
1.) Describe your life before running.<br>
<font color="0000A0">I was a college student in Psychology, and enjoyed riding horses in dressage and eventing competitions.</font><br>
<br>
2.) What prompted you to start running, and how old were you at the time?<br>
<font color="0000A0">In college I started running when I lived in the dorms to get a way from a bad roommate.</font><br>
<br>
3.) Why do you love running and what keeps you motivated to continue running?<br>
<font color="0000A0">Health is a number one. All of the other number ones are to meet people with similar high motivations, to see all that I can see in travel ( I wish to go to as many places as i can), to experience the good races/bad races, to learn about my own self imposed limits and to try to break them, and to push myself and my goals to see how fast I can become in the marathon.</font><br>
<br>
4.) What is your prior experience with charity running and fundraising?<br>
<font color="0000A0">This was my first for PanCAN. I received very positive and wonderful feedback from others.</font><br>
<br>
5.) Why did you volunteer to become a charity runner with Kino, and what about marathons appeals to you?<br>
<font color="0000A0">Kino is an inspiration to me and I feel lucky to be able to help him raise awareness about PanCAN. If I can help others through my miles, I want to do so more than anything!!! The marathon, no matter how many you run, is always hard-physically and more than that mentally. I wish to see how tough I can get my legs and mind through running marathons.</font><br>
<br>
6.) How has your experience been raising awareness and funds for PanCAN/BoMF/WTC?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I wish to do more and do another race for PanCAN. I feel that others need to know about
this and that we can together help others through running.</font><br>
<br>
7.) Describe your 2012 Sioux Falls Marathon charity race experience. How different was it compared to not running for charity (i.e. Why do you feel that using running is a useful tool in helping out charities?)?<br>
<font color="0000A0">I felt I was running the race not just for myself, but for others-I felt I needed to be there, out there, for the whole race and leading up to the marathon.</font><br>
<br>
8.) Do you plan to run a race for charity again, and if so, what charity will it be for?<br>
<font color="0000A0">Yes I do. I hope to run 3 marathons in 2013 for PanCAN.</font><br>
<br>
9.) What are your current running goals?<br>
<font color="0000A0">My current running goals are to break 3:00 in the marathon and to complete all 50 states in under 4 hours in time.</font><br>
<br>
10.) Feel free to add anything else, give thanks, or shout outs.<br>
<font color="0000A0">Thank you for your support Kino so so much and to all the Marathon Maniacs.</font><br>
<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-29215357153079474962013-01-31T19:10:00.001-05:002013-01-31T19:10:50.284-05:002012 Running Year In Review<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
It's already 2013, wow.<br>
Here's a recap of what I wrote last year: <a href="http://www.runkino.com/2012/01/running-year-in-review.html" target="_blank">2011 Running Year In Review</a><br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://dl.dropbox.com/u/10526998/Running/818560.gif"><img border="0" width="100%" alight="left" src="https://dl.dropbox.com/u/10526998/Running/818560.gif"></a></div>
In 2012, I vow to train my ass off and quit making excuses. I know that I can compete on a higher level, but only if I put in the dedication and effort.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">Marathon PR Times & Avg Marathon Times</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR Marathon</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Time</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th>Avg Time</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="left">Philadelphia Marathon (PA)</td>
<td align="left">2008/11/23</td>
<td align="right">4:39:42</td>
<td align="right">10:40</td>
<td align="right">4:50:44</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="left">New York City Marathon (NY)</td>
<td align="left">2009/11/01</td>
<td align="right">3:56:07</td>
<td align="right">9:00</td>
<td align="right">4:20:51</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">Houston Marathon (TX)</td>
<td align="left">2010/01/17</td>
<td align="right">4:05:11</td>
<td align="right">9:21</td>
<td align="right">4:36:15</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">Portland Marathon (OR)</td>
<td align="left">2011/10/09</td>
<td align="right">3:36:53</td>
<td align="right">8:16</td>
<td align="right">4:01:58</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left">Fargo Marathon (ND)</td>
<td align="left">2012/05/19</td>
<td align="right">3:19:12</td>
<td align="right">7:36</td>
<td align="right">3:38:18</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2013</td>
<td align="left">Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon (AZ)</td>
<td align="left">2013/01/20</td>
<td align="right">3:50:54</td>
<td align="right">8:48</td>
<td align="right">3:57:10</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">Fargo Marathon (ND)</td>
<td align="left">2012/05/19</td>
<td align="right">3:19:12</td>
<td align="right">7:36</td>
<td align="right">4:04:29</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
*Marathon indicates road marathons and excludes trail marathons and ultras.<br>
<br>
I ran my first marathon in 5:00:15, back in 2008. I went on to PR the first five marathons I ran (and first 6 out of 7). It took until my 15th marathon to break 4 hours, at the 2009 Asbury Park Relay Marathon, with a time of 3:59:41, with the help of Marco Cheung & Mike Moschitta who helped pace me. Two weeks later, I bested that time with a 3:56:07 at the 2009 New York City Marathon. In 2010, you can see that I regressed. That was mainly due to coming off a calf strain injury (from the Beast of Burden Summer 100) and focusing on conquering the 100 by running many doubles (and not focusing on marathon times). I regained my form in 2011 by running 14 sub-4's (6 in 6 straight weeks, all in different states + Germany), and setting 5 new PR's. I experienced a major breakthrough at the 2011 Berlin Marathon with a 3:38:21 marathon with a huge help from Steven Thunder Lee who paced me for the second half of the race, helping me to negative split. I lowered that PR, two weeks later, at the 2011 Portland Marathon with a time of 3:36:53, despite being halted momentarily by a passing freight train. As for my average marathon times, if I didn't run any doubles (2 marathons in 2 days), my average would be significantly lower.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">100 Milers</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR 100</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Time</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th># of 100's</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">Javelina Jundred (AZ)</td>
<td align="left">2010/10/23</td>
<td align="right">28:23:21</td>
<td align="right">16:47</td>
<td align="right">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">Jerseyville Fat Ass 100 (ON)</td>
<td align="left">2011/04/23</td>
<td align="right">27:12:00</td>
<td align="right">16:19</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left">Rocky Raccoon 100 (TX)</td>
<td align="left">2012/02/04</td>
<td align="right">29:21:23</td>
<td align="right">17:36</td>
<td align="right">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2013</td>
<td align="left">N/A</td>
<td align="left">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">2011 Jerseyville Fat Ass 100 (ON)</td>
<td align="left">2011/04/23</td>
<td align="right">27:12:00</td>
<td align="right">16:19</td>
<td align="right">4</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
*100 Milers used to indicate traditional distance-based 100's and excludes timed races.<br>
<br>
I tried to break 26 hours at 2011 Umstead 100, 2011 Beast of Burden Summer 100, 2011 Javelina Jundred 100, & 2012 Rocky Raccoon, but for unexpected reasons like injury and torrential rains, my efforts were thwarted. Again, my ramped up more rigorous training in 2012 will prove to yield faster results, barring injury and freak weather conditions.<br>
<br>
2012 Goal: "My ramped up more rigorous training in 2012 will prove to yield faster results, barring injury and freak weather conditions."<br>
2012 Results: <br>
2013 Goal: <br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">24 Hour Runs</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR 24 Hour</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Distance</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th># of 24 Hour 100's</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">20in24 (PA)</td>
<td align="left">2010/07/17</td>
<td align="right">80.224 miles</td>
<td align="right">17:56</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">NorthCoast 24 (OH)</td>
<td align="left">2011/09/17</td>
<td align="right">104.79 miles</td>
<td align="right">13:44</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left">20in24 (PA)</td>
<td align="left">2012/07/14</td>
<td align="right">76.104 miles</td>
<td align="right">+13:40</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2013</td>
<td align="left">N/A</td>
<td align="left">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">2011 NorthCoast 24 (OH)</td>
<td align="left">2011/09/17</td>
<td align="right">104.79 miles</td>
<td align="right">13:44</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
+ At 2012 20in24, I officially quit the 24 hour race at 17:20:57.<br>
<br>
After placing 10th overall at <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=12866" target="_blank">2011 FANS24</a> and 29th overall at the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=11655" target="_blank">2011 USA Track & Field 24-Hour National Championships (NorthCoast 24)</a>, my eyes were opened to what I am potentially capable of. I will try my best and make the most of 2012 for my running and improve upon my results.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">Total Marathons & Ultras</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>Marathons</th>
<th>Ultras</th>
<th>Total</th>
<th>New States</th>
<th>New Sub-4 States</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="right">18</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
<td align="right">20</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="right">19</td>
<td align="right">6</td>
<td align="right">25</td>
<td align="right">9</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="right">23</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
<td align="right">34</td>
<td align="right">13</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="right">33</td>
<td align="right">4</td>
<td align="right">37</td>
<td align="right">14</td>
<td align="right">28</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2013</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="right">99</td>
<td align="right">23</td>
<td align="right">122</td>
<td align="right">50</td>
<td align="right">43</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
2011 was a successful and prolific year in which I was fortunate to have traveled to many states and countries (Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Canada, & Germany) for running, shared lifelong memories with the best of friends, met a lot of inspirational and quality individuals, and set PR's in all distances from a marathon and up (50K, 50M, 100K, 100M, & 24hr). I also achieved Marathon Maniacs 10-Star Titanium status and have made it into a couple press articles (<a href="http://www.examiner.com/running-in-national/ultramarathon-moneymaking-man-confessions-of-a-fundraising-marathon-maniac" target="_blank">Examiner.com</a> and <a href="http://pavementpieces.com/nyc-marathon-marathon-maniacs/" target="_blank">Pavement Pieces</a>). <br>
<br>
I am now on pace to run my 100th marathon + ultra at <a href="http://www.comrades.com/" target="_blank">Comrades</a> on 6/3/2012. I am also set to finish my 50 States quest on 12/9/2012 at the <a href="http://www.honolulumarathon.org/" target="_blank">Honolulu Marathon</a> in Hawaii with my one of my best friends and impressive runner himself, Steven Thunder Lee.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="7"><a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/RunKino" target="_blank">Total Yearly Mileage</a></th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>Miles</th>
<th>Miles/Week</th>
<th> Race Miles (%) </th>
<th>Training Miles (%)</th>
<th>Days Run (%)</th>
<th>RunStreak<br>Max Days</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="right">239.8</td>
<td align="right">4.6</td>
<td align="right">239.8 (?%)</td>
<td align="right">N/A (?%)</td>
<td align="right">N/A (?%)</td>
<td align="center">N/A</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="right">756.5</td>
<td align="right">14.6</td>
<td align="right">697.9 (92.2%)</td>
<td align="right">58.7 (7.8%)</td>
<td align="right">73 (20.0%)</td>
<td align="center">3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="right">1,115.2</td>
<td align="right">21.5</td>
<td align="right">1,023.1 (91.7%)</td>
<td align="right">92.1 (8.3%)</td>
<td align="right">71 (19.5%)</td>
<td align="center">3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="right">1,563.7</td>
<td align="right">30.1</td>
<td align="right">1,424.8 (91.1%)</td>
<td align="right">138.9 (8.9%)</td>
<td align="right">76 (20.8%)</td>
<td align="center">7</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="right">1,411.5</td>
<td align="right">27.1</td>
<td align="right">1,134.9 (80.4%)</td>
<td align="right">276.6 (19.6%)</td>
<td align="right">136 (37.1%)</td>
<td align="center">43</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2013</td>
<td align="right">Goal:<br>2,600.0</td>
<td align="right">Goal:<br>50.0</td>
<td align="right">Goal:<br>1,274.0 (49.0%)</td>
<td align="right">Goal:<br>1,326.0 (51.0%)</td>
<td align="right">Goal:<br>200 (54.8%)</td>
<td align="center">Goal:<br>50</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="right">5,086.6</td>
<td align="right">19.6</td>
<td align="right">4,520.4 (88.9%)</td>
<td align="right">566.2 (11.1%)</td>
<td align="right">356 (19.5%)</td>
<td align="center">43</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table><br>
My training miles above are very shameful, and I have no one to blame other than myself. Many of my race-time bonks could have been avoided with adequate training. I have made it a resolution to train hard in 2012 and not lose "the gift" as Pre calls this gift of running, see the quote at the top of this entry.<br>
<br>
After being inspired by my friend & <a href="http://www.vctc.org/" target="_blank"">VCTC</a> + <a href="http://www.usatf.org/" target="_blank"">USATF</a> teammate Michael Arnstein aka <a href="http://www.thefruitarian.com/" target="_blank"">The Fruitarian</a>, and watching his <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheFruitarian/videos" target="_blank">The Fruitarian YouTube channel</a>, I became inspired to incorporate running more into my daily life. <br>
<br>
In particular, this video made me realize this and provided me with the passion to love training and not disdain it:<br>
"Exercise Each Day As If Your Life Depends On It!"<br>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tQA3Tvkg_s" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tQA3Tvkg_s</a><br>
You don't have to be a fruitarian to take in his message of a healthy lifestyle. I no longer view "training" as a chore. I now use it as a mode of transportation to get from place A to place B, as part of my daily life. <br>
<br>
I have started my #RunStreak on 12/25/2011 (it ended on 2/6/2012 after Day 43 due to a sprained toe sustained at 2012 Rocky Raccoon 100, but restarted on 2/9/2012), by running 10 miles with my running buddy <a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/Peaser" target="_blank">Jim Pease</a> and have kept it going since. The idea of a #RunStreak was first introduced to me by my friend <a href="http://ishouldgetarealhobby.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Dave Shannon</a> from Minnesota. The next time you think, "It's too cold to run outside today", try thinking about Dave and him keeping up a #RunStreak up in St Paul, MN!<br>
<br>
With increased training miles in 2012, I anticipate faster road marathon times and better 100 mile & 24 hour results. Big things are in store! It is all thanks to friends making me accountable for my training now and to useful tools such as <a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/RunKino" target="_blank">DailyMile</a> and my Garmin watch, to push me to run further and more frequently.<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-10047073675881110852012-11-13T14:34:00.000-05:002013-02-20T14:35:17.087-05:00Team Orange<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DF6-p2J1Tr0/UKKYrfvtU9I/AAAAAAAAEiM/cPs6KsSI3wg/s1600/2012-11-10%2B15.34.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DF6-p2J1Tr0/UKKYrfvtU9I/AAAAAAAAEiM/cPs6KsSI3wg/s400/2012-11-10%2B15.34.53.jpg" /></a></div>
<a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">Team Orange</a> is a group of runners and friends of runners, who realized that we could put our able bodies to good use by volunteering our time to aid Hurricane Sandy victims in the rescue clean up efforts in The Rockaways and Staten Island in New York City.<br>
<br>
Not all of us are runners, but we have decided to wear the color orange to signify that even though the 2012 New York City Marathon (orange is the signature color for the race) was cancelled, the spirit of the dedication, comraderie, and hard work from training for a race can live on through volunteerism and assisting those who are in dire need of picking up and carrying on with their lives. We aim to contribute physical labor in clearing out debris.<br>
<br>
Our first volunteering effort was on Sat 11/10/2012 in Belle Harbor, Rockaway Park and on Sun 11/11 in Midland Beach, Staten Island (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/361553697271546/" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/events/361553697271546/</a>).<br>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151111824056500.435152.182049636499&type=1" target="_blank">Team Orange Day 1 (Sat 11/10) Pics</a><br>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151111844461500.435155.182049636499&type=1&comment_id=25082854" target="_blank">Team Orange Day 2 (Sun 11/11) Pics</a><br>
<br>
Our next event will be on Sat 11/24/2012 & Sun 11/25/2012 (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/251460154979920/" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/events/251460154979920/</a>).<br>
<br>
If you cannot donate your time to join us with the cleanup efforts, but would like to contribute financial aid, it would be greatly appreciated if you could donate to Team Rubicon through our fundraiser site. Team Rubicon is a superb relief organization that we team up with for our Rockaways cleanup efforts.<br>
<br>
Team Orange Fundraiser:<br>
<a href="http://www.crowdrise.com/teamorange/" target="_blank">http://www.crowdrise.com/teamorange/</a><br>
<br>
Team Orange Google Groups Email List:<br>
<a href="https://groups.google.com/d/forum/teamorangenyc" target="_blank">https://groups.google.com/d/forum/teamorangenyc</a><br>
<br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-08yvVLwBH8Q/UKKZJzvJSuI/AAAAAAAAEiY/-_u7qsQZ_NA/s1600/team-rubicon-logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="222" width="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-08yvVLwBH8Q/UKKZJzvJSuI/AAAAAAAAEiY/-_u7qsQZ_NA/s400/team-rubicon-logo.png" /></a></div>
About Team Rubicon:<br>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgEn4ZmTzD4" target="_blank">Team Rubicon Member Harry Golden's YouTube Video Testimony</a><br>
"Team Rubicon unites the skills and experiences of military veterans with medical professionals to deploy vanguard teams that bridge the gap in disaster response. Since its creation in January 2010, TR has saved and helped thousands of lives – in Haiti, Chile, Burma, Pakistan, Sudan, and here at home. TR reaches victims outside the scope of where traditional aid organizations venture; victims on the fringe.<br>
<br>
Team Rubicon Engages Veterans. Hundreds of US military veterans, many returning home after fighting ten years of war, find a renewed sense of purpose for their skills and experiences through TR."<br>
<br>
If you tweet about <a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">Team Orange</a>, plesae use hashtag #TeamOrangeNYC . If you would like to post our fundraiser URL, please use http://www.crowdrise.com/teamorange . 100% of donations go to the team in the field to aid and assist Hurricane Sandy victims.<br>
<br>
Thanks!<br>
<br>
Sincerely,<br>
<a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">Team Orange</a><br>
<br>
<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-45273196913859011442012-11-13T14:30:00.000-05:002013-02-20T14:32:13.463-05:00Hurricane Sandy Aid<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
[Note: This information was posted on 2012/11/13. Since then, most of these volunteer staging areas have been dismantled. The information will remain here for archive purposes.]<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>Info on How to Volunteer (Even Without a Car)</b><br>
Are you willing to volunteer and provide "boots on the ground" for the Hurricane Sandy clean up efforts in NYC, but are having a hard time coming across useful info on where to go and how to help? If so, you're not the only one. I was having the same difficulty. It took me many hours of visiting websites and reading newspaper articles, but I finally came across great organizations to volunteer for. I can personally attest that each of the organizations above is reputable and great to work with.<br>
<br>
I had the pleasure of working these organizations:<br>
- Team Rubicon (Belle Harbor, Queens in The Rockaways)<br>
- Staten Island Recovers (Midland Beach, Staten Island)<br>
- Hallowed Sons Motorcycle Club (New Dorp, Staten Island)<br>
<br>
Below are directions on how to use public transit to show up to each of the organizations' staging areas and begin the vital clean up work. Note that commute times are extremely long because all of these areas are disaster zones. Don't expect your cell phones to work (these areas have NO ELECTRICITY), so print out the directions below (and from Google Maps) before you go. Typical one way commutes range from 1.5 hours to 3 hours depending on traffic conditions in various parts of NYC.<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>Team Rubicon</u></b><br>
Rocakway Beach Blvd & Beach 123rd St<br>
Belle Harbor, Queens (The Rockaways)<br>
<a href="http://teamrubiconusa.org" target="_blank">http://teamrubiconusa.org</a><br>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/teamrubicon" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/teamrubicon</a><br>
<a href="https://twitter.com/teamrubicon" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/teamrubicon</a> @TeamRubicon<br>
<a href="http://www.crowdrise.com/teamorange" target="_blank">Team Orange Fundraiser for Team Rubicon</a><br>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgEn4ZmTzD4" target="_blank">Team Rubicon Member Harry Golden's YouTube Video Testimony</a><br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zuyVeCcGz4Q/UKKDwKL1E1I/AAAAAAAAEhQ/0TNNPx6sB_M/s1600/2012-11-10%2B16.24.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zuyVeCcGz4Q/UKKDwKL1E1I/AAAAAAAAEhQ/0TNNPx6sB_M/s400/2012-11-10%2B16.24.07.jpg" /></a></div>
<b>Directions to Team Rubicon Staging Area</b><br>
<a href="https://maps.google.com/maps?daddr=Rockaway+Beach+Blvd+%26+Beach+123rd+St,+Belle+Harbor,+Queens&hl=en&sll=40.577896,-73.84306&sspn=0.006649,0.01384&geocode=FUUrawIdlz6Z-ykpLhgUgELCiTH86uF9Qhg90A&dirflg=r&ttype=now&noexp=0&noal=0&sort=def&mra=ltm&t=m&z=16&start=0" target="_blank">Google Maps (click here & plug in your address)</a><br>
<br>
Subway/Bus/Ferry to Belle Harbor (from Times Sq, it's a sample start location):<br>
<u>2 Train</u><br>
- Take (2) towards Brooklyn to Flatbush Av - Brooklyn College station (40 mins, 22 stops).<br>
- Walk to Flatbush Ave & Ave H, transfer to Q35 Bus (28 mins, 21 stops) to Newport Av/Beach 129th St.<br>
- Walk 7 blocks to St. Team Rubicon at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 123rd St (8 mins, 0.4 miles).<br>
<br>
<u>A Train</u><br>
- Take (A) towards Brooklyn to Rockaway Blvd station (40 mins, 17 stops).<br>
- Transfer to Q53 LIMITED to Rockaway Park station (last stop) at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 116th St (28 mins, 12 stops).<br>
- Walk 7 blocks to to Team Rubicon at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 123rd St.<br>
<br>
<u>7 Train</u> (great option for Queens folks, sample distances are from Times Sq)<br>
- Take (7) towards Queens to Woodside - 61 St station (20 mins, 11 stops).<br>
- Walk 1/2 block to 61st St & Roosevelt Ave NW corner to transfer to Q53 LIMITED to Rockaway Park station (last stop) at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 116th St (60 mins, 23 stops).<br>
- Walk 7 blocks to Team Rubicon at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 123rd St (8 mins, 0.4 miles).<br>
<br>
<u>Rockaway Seastreak Ferry</u> (Weekdays Only)<br>
<a href="http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2012b%2Fpr410-12.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1" target="_blank">NYC Gov Press Release</a><br>
- Take the ferry from Manhattan's E 34th St Ferry Landing (East River & E 34th St)or Pier 11 Ferry Landing (East River & Wall St) to the Rockaway Ferry Landing (Beach 108th St & Beach Channel Drive) (70 mins from E 34th St / 50 mins from Pier 11)<br>
- Walk down Beach 108th St then make a right at Rockaway Beach Blvd for 15 blocks to Team Rubicon at Rockaway Beach Blvd & Beach 123rd St (18 mins, 0.9 miles).<br>
<br>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="3">Manhattan to Rockaway Weekday Ferry Schedule ($2 each way)</th></tr>
<tr>
<th> E 34th St Departures </th>
<th> Pier 11/Wall St Departures </th>
<th> Rockaway Arrivals </th></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">N/A</td>
<td align="center">6:35am</td>
<td align="center">7:45am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">N/A</td>
<td align="center">7:25am</td>
<td align="center">8:15am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">N/A</td>
<td align="center">8:35am</td>
<td align="center">9:20am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2:45pm</td>
<td align="center">3:05pm</td>
<td align="center">3:55pm</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">4:20pm</td>
<td align="center">4:45pm</td>
<td align="center">5:35pm</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">5:10pm</td>
<td align="center">5:35pm</td>
<td align="center">6:20pm</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">6:30pm</td>
<td align="center">6:50pm</td>
<td align="center">7:40pm</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">7:30pm</td>
<td align="center">7:50pm</td>
<td align="center">8:40pm</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="3">Rockaway to Manhattan Weekday Ferry Schedule ($2 each way)</th></tr>
<tr>
<th> Rockaway Departures </th>
<th> Pier 11/Wall St Arrivals </th>
<th> E 34th St Arrivals </th>
<tr>
<td align="center">5:45am</td>
<td align="center">6:35am</td>
<td align="center">7:00am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">6:35am</td>
<td align="center">7:25am</td>
<td align="center">8:00am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">7:45am</td>
<td align="center">8:35am</td>
<td align="center">8:45am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">8:15am</td>
<td align="center">9:05am</td>
<td align="center">9:30am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">9:20am</td>
<td align="center">10:10am</td>
<td align="center">10:30am</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">4:30pm</td>
<td align="center">5:30pm</td>
<td align="center">N/A</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">5:55pm</td>
<td align="center">6:45pm</td>
<td align="center">N/A</td></tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">6:55pm</td>
<td align="center">7:45pm</td>
<td align="center">N/A</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br>
<br>
<b><u>Rebuild Staten Island</u></b><br>
780 Olympia Blvd (& Slater Blvd)<br>
Midland Beach, Staten Island<br>
<a href="https://statenisland.recovers.org" target="_blank">https://statenisland.recovers.org</a><br>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/SIRecovers" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/SIRecovers</a><br>
<a href="https://twitter.com/SIrecovers" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/SIrecovers</a> @SIRecovers<br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--b3XU-gt6Aw/UKKJ40vjEdI/AAAAAAAAEhk/FDLJ-UbWT8U/s1600/2012-11-11%2B13.07.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--b3XU-gt6Aw/UKKJ40vjEdI/AAAAAAAAEhk/FDLJ-UbWT8U/s400/2012-11-11%2B13.07.38.jpg" /></a></div>
<b>Directions to Rebuild Staten Island Staging Area</b><br>
<a href="https://maps.google.com/maps?daddr=780+Olympia+Blvd,+Staten+Island,+NY&hl=en&sll=40.577896,-73.84306&sspn=0.006649,0.01384&geocode=FcgvawIdwYSV-yl9bd-10U7CiTFUS7kJbAn4og&dirflg=r&ttype=now&noexp=0&noal=0&sort=def&mra=ls&t=m&z=16&start=0" target="_blank">Google Maps (click here & plug in your address)</a><br>
<br>
Subway/Bus/Ferry to Midland Beach:<br>
<u>MTA X1 Bus</u><br>
<a href="http://www.mta.info/nyct/bus/schedule/xpress/x001cur.pdf" target="_blank">X1 Bus Schedule (Sat times on page 14 & Sun times on page 16)</a>, Metrocards are accepted<br>
- Take (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(A)(C)(E)(N)(R)(J)(Z) to City Hall/Chambers St area.<br>
- Walk to Broadway & Park Pl, take X1 Express bus towards Staten Island to Hylan Blvd & Seaver Ave in Midland Beach (25 mins, 15 stops).<br>
- Walk to 780 Olympia Blvd & Slater Blvd (12mins, 0.6 miles).<br>
Note the X1 Bus also stops at many places in Midtown along 5 Av (see page 17 of Schedule above).<br>
<br>
<u>Staten Island Ferry</u><br>
<a href="http://www.siferry.com/SIFerry_Schedules.aspx" target="_blank">Ferry Schedule</a><br>
You can bring bicycles aboard.<br>
- Take (1)(2)(3)4)(5)(N)(R) to South Ferry/Bowling Green/Wall St in Manhattan then walk to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal at South Ferry.<br>
- Take the Staten Island Ferry (free) to St George in Staten Island.<br>
- Take SI Railway (<a href="http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/simap.htm" target="_blank">Map</a>)to Dongan Hills (17 mins, 6 stops). Metrocards are accepted.<br>
- Walk down Seaver Av towards the Ocean, right onto Mason Ave, left onto Slater Blvd to 780 Olympia Blvd & Slater Blvd (21mins, 1.1 miles).<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>Hallowed Sons Motorcycle Club (Bay Ridge, Brooklyn)</u></b><br>
Cedargrove Ave & Wavecrest St<br>
New Dorp, Staten Island<br>
<a href="http://hallowedsonsmc.com" target="_blank">http://hallowedsonsmc.com</a><br>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/hallowed.sonsmc" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/hallowed.sonsmc</a><br>
<a href="http://batmanwi.com/2012/11/06/hallowed-sons-motorcycle-club-first-responders-to-neighborhood-ravaged-by-sandy/" target="_blank">Jenna Pope Blog Post</a><br>
<a href="http://ebikerleatherblog.com/2012/11/07/hallowed-sons-motorcycle-club-helping-at-new-dorp/" target="_blank">eBikerLeather Blog Post</a><br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-maRewiuh9yY/UKKNyPOu5VI/AAAAAAAAEh4/YP3CKjERqB4/s1600/2012-11-11%2B16.01.37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-maRewiuh9yY/UKKNyPOu5VI/AAAAAAAAEh4/YP3CKjERqB4/s400/2012-11-11%2B16.01.37.jpg" /></a></div>
<b>Directions to Hallowed Sons MC Staging Area</b><br>
<a href="https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Cedargrove+Avenue+%26+Wavecrest+St,+New+Dorp,+Staten+Island,+NY&hl=en&sll=40.579016,-74.087231&sspn=0.006649,0.01384&geocode=FcgvawIdwYSV-yl9bd-10U7CiTFUS7kJbAn4og&dirflg=r&ttype=now&noexp=0&noal=0&sort=def&hnear=Cedar+Grove+Ave+%26+Wavecrest+St,+Staten+Island,+Richmond,+New+York+10306&t=m&z=16&start=0" target="_blank">Google Maps (click here & plug in your address)</a><br>
<br>
Subway/Bus/Ferry to Midland Beach:<br>
<u>MTA X1 Bus</u><br>
<a href="http://www.mta.info/nyct/bus/schedule/xpress/x001cur.pdf" target="_blank">X1 Bus Schedule (Sat times on page 14 & Sun times on page 16)</a>, Metrocards are accepted<br>
- Take (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(A)(C)(E)(N)(R)(J)(Z) to City Hall/Chambers St area.<br>
- Walk to Broadway & Park Pl, take X1 Express bus towards Staten Island to Hylan Blvd & New Dorp La in New Dorp (35 mins, 20 stops).<br>
- Walk down New Dorp La towards the beach then make a left on Cedargrove Ave to Hallowed Sons MC in the parking lot at Wavecrest St (18mins, 0.9 miles).<br>
Note the X1 Bus also stops at many places in Midtown along 5 Av (see page 17 of Schedule above).<br>
<br>
<u>Staten Island Ferry</u><br>
<a href="http://www.siferry.com/SIFerry_Schedules.aspx" target="_blank">Ferry Schedule</a><br>
You can bring bicycles aboard.<br>
- Take (1)(2)(3)4)(5)(N)(R) to South Ferry/Bowling Green/Wall St in Manhattan then walk to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal at South Ferry.<br>
- Take the Staten Island Ferry (free) to St George in Staten Island.<br>
- Take SI Railway (<a href="http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/simap.htm" target="_blank">Map</a>)to New Dorp (16 mins, 8 stops). Metrocards are accepted.<br>
- Walk down New Dorp La towards the beach then make a left on Cedargrove Ave to Hallowed Sons MC in the parking lot at Wavecrest St (26mins, 1.3 miles).<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>What to Bring?</b><br>
<a href="http://www.weather.com/weather/weekend/York+NY+USNY1630:1:US" target="_blank">NYC Weekend Weather</a><br>
<u>Necessary Supplies</u><br>
- Yourself (the most important element, just showing up makes a world of a difference to victims to show that you care & support them)<br>
- Clothes that you are okay with getting dirty<br>
- Working Boots (preferably steel-toed)<br>
- Gloves<br>
- Surgical Masks (preferably P95 surgical masks since you will be breathing in dust, dirt, & potential toxins)<br>
- Headlamp or Flashlight (make sure your batteries work)<br>
- Portable Cell Phone Charger (solar-powered or battery operated)<br>
- Goggles (that don't fog)<br>
- Tyvek Suits (if you will be doing demolition work)<br>
<br>
<u>Optional Supplies</u><br>
Many of the volunteer staging areas can provide you with the following:<br>
- Extra Heavy Duty Garbage Bags<br>
- Cleaning Supplies (Brooms, Shovels, Rakes, Buckets, & Bleach)<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">Team Orange</a></b><br>
<a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html</a><br>
If you would to join our team of volunteers comprised of <a href="http://www.runkino.com" target="_blank">Kino</a> & friends, then please visit our <a href="http://www.runkino.com/p/team-orange.html" target="_blank">Team Orange</a> page to learn more about our efforts.<br>
<br>
<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-52758060503438382662012-06-24T12:00:00.000-04:002013-06-05T09:36:35.338-04:00Marathon #103: 2012 Maritime Marathon (2012/06/24)<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DOIYXN2i2oU/T_NaaDOgmYI/AAAAAAAAACQ/8Ah2XJqryss/s1600/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExNzctMjAxMjA2MjQtMTA0MC5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-756000"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DOIYXN2i2oU/T_NaaDOgmYI/AAAAAAAAACQ/8Ah2XJqryss/s320/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExNzctMjAxMjA2MjQtMTA0MC5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-756000" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5761047751926258050" /></a></p>The inaugural Holy Family Memorial (HFM) Maritime Marathon in Manitowoc, Wisconsin took place today. It was my 81st full marathon, and 103rd overall marathon/ultra. <p>Oh my goodness! The 2nd half of this marathon became sauna hot! Pre-race, it had rained. It was nice and overcast, in the 60's F, during the 1st half, but reached the 70's F with the sun out in full force, evaporating all of the rain. We ran along Lake Michigan so were exposed to the sun.<p>I came in 20th Place overall out of 204 marathon finishers, in a time of 3:24:53.<p>After 3 straight marathons & ultras "at altitude" in Comrades (Durban,<br>South Africa) 3,000ft/1,000m, Utah Valley (Provo, Utah) 6,200ft/2,100m,<br>& Teton Marathon (Jackson, Wyoming) 6,200ft/2,100m, it felt "easy" to<br>breathe here along Lake Michigan on the shoreline at sea-level, although<br>all the morning rain did evaporate and turn into sauna-like conditions<br>on the 2nd half.<p>I traveled w/ my NYC Maniac buddy Peter Lantin, and got to see<br>marathoner friends Diana Bolton, Rebecca Sudduth, & Robert "Cowboy Jeff"<br>Bishton!!! Always a pleasure.<p>THANK YOU so much to all those who have donated to my Back on My Feet<br>NYC fundraiser, to help combat homeless!!!!! <br>If you haven't donated and would like to, please visit:<br><a href="http://tinyurl.com/runkinobomfnyc">http://tinyurl.com/runkinobomfnyc</a><p><br>Town<br>Manitowoc is Wisconsin's Maritime Capitol, along the Lake Michigan shoreline, and has been renowned for shipbuilding, from schooners of the 19th century and, now to world class luxury yachts built by Burger Boat. At the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, you can go aboard the USS Cobia, one of the 28 submarines built in Manitowoc during World War II. There's a Budweiser plant across from the museum, but I doubt they have tours. There isn't much to do in this town, so I recommend, spending sightseeing time in Milwaukee (1hr 15mins away) or in Green Bay (45mins away).<p><br>Packet Pick Up<br>Wisconsin Maritime Museum<br>75 Maritime Dr<br>Fri 6/23, 5-8pm<br>Sat 6/24, 10am-4pm<br> <p>Hotel<br>I would not recommend the Super 8 Motel on 4004 Calumet Ave. It was only $99 (race discount) and came with breakfast, but is along a highway (stripmall territory) and for late check-out, the best they could do for us was a 12pm check out (the race starts at 7am). Also, Peter & I ended up with 1 full size bed, and not 2 doubles. I did book the place a week before the race though.<p>The Best Western Lakefront Hotel on 101 Maritime Dr (across the street from packet pick up at the Wisconsin Maritime Hotel), 920-682-7000, would be a better option. It's a better chain and is located in town. They offer a "Schooner Coast Package" for $113.99, including breakfast for 2 and 2 adult admission to the museum. <p><br>Restaurants<br>Courthouse Pub (5-stars on Yelp)<br>1001 S 8th St<br>Manitowoc, WI<br>920-686-1166<br><a href="http://www.courthousepub.com">http://www.courthousepub.com</a><br>It's downtown. They provide a free soft drink or microbrew for runners.<p>Luigis Italian Restaurant (3.5-stars on Yelp)<br>6124 Calumet Ave (Hwy 151W)<br>Manitowoc, WI<br>920-684-4200<br>It's on the highway.<p><br>Course<br>We started on Viebahn St & S 8th St, by the University of Wisconsin - Manitowoc. We ran north along the Lake Michigan shoreline, and then along Mariner's Trail to Two Rivers (named so because the city has the West Twin River & East Twin River on both sides of its downtown penninsula) and turned around at the 13.1 mile mark in Point Beach State Park. There were marathoners, relay teams of 2, and relay teams of 4. There were 15 aid stations, with each having water & Gatorade, located at: Miles 1.7, 3.5, 5.7, 7.6, 9.1, 10.5, 11.5, 13.1, 14.5, 15.6, 16.9, 18.4, 20.3, 22.5, & 24.4. The Mile 13.1 aid station had fruit & bagels, and the Mile 18.4 aid station had G2 gels.RunKinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02885010221742421763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-75071376763617317012012-06-17T16:49:00.000-04:002012-06-17T18:13:55.432-04:00Marathon #102: Teton Marathon (2012/06/16)2012 Teton Marathon (Inaugural) / Jackson Hole Half Marathon<br>Sat 6/16, 6am for the full, 9am for the half<br>Website: <a href="http://redlinerunningcompany.com/races-1/jackson-hole-half-marathon">http://redlinerunningcompany.com/races-1/jackson-hole-half-marathon</a><br>Results: <a href="https://redlinerunningcompany.worldsecuresystems.com/results">https://redlinerunningcompany.worldsecuresystems.com/results</a><p>RD's:<br>Josh Melver & Pam Reed (the legendary Pam Reed of Badwater fame)<br>Redline Running Company<br><a href="http://www.redlinerunningcompany.com">http://www.redlinerunningcompany.com</a><br>@RedLineRunning on Twitter<p><br>Packet Pickup: <br>Snow King Resort<br>400 E Snow King Ave<br>Jackson, WY<br>307-733-5200<br><a href="http://www.snowking.com">http://www.snowking.com</a><br>Fri 6/15, 5-8pm<br>RD's words: "You can also pickup your bib at the starting line starting at 5:45am Saturday morning, but your goody bag and t-shirt can be picked up at the finish line after the race. If you are coming in late and want to have a friend pick up for you on Friday night, that is fine as well."<br>Both Josh & Pam were extremely friendly, they even issued Steven & I $20 checks to make up for the cancellation of the full marathon course (more to follow as you read along).<p><br>Host Hotel:<br>The Inn at Jackson Hole<br>3345 West Village Drive<br>Teton Village, WY 83025<br>800-842-7666<br>Standard Room (double beds):  $119 per night (used Teton Marathon rate), prepaid 7 day cancellation policy, Total $273.94.<br>Walking distance to finish line / shuttles to Half Marathon start (in Teton Village), not the Full Marathon start (Phil Baux Park in Jackson).<br>From/To JAC Airport: $26 for shuttle, $60 for taxi (flatrate). Car rental is $60/day, so is a better option and gives you the flexibility to visit the nearby Grand Teton National Park, and also Yellowstone National Park.<p><br>Logistics:<br>From NYC, Steven Thunder Lee & I traveled on AA from LGA via DFW to JAC. We rented a car at JAC. The airport is small but well run and picking up the car rental took no time at all. The airport did not have traditional gates, and we deplaned using a mobile staircase (similar to Missoula, MT) and were greeted by stunning snow-capped mountain vistas! The entrance into the airport had a deer horn arch, welcoming us to "Jackson Hole".<p><br>Course:<br>RD's words: "The ½ marathon course is beautiful and you guys are the luckiest people in the world as you get to see it twice!! Thanks for bearing with us on the route change. This note is in way of some last minute reminders to ensure everything goes off without a hitch this weekend. PLEASE NOTE: We are changing the marathon start to 6am since we are now doing an out and back course. This will ensure that you won't have to battle the crowds of the ½ marathoners head on."<p>"There is only one big street crossing and that is as you turn right off of Hwy 22 onto Hwy 390 (Moose Wilson Blvd?). You have to cross 390 within the first 100 meters to connect with the bike path on the opposite side of the street at the drive-in to a local park."<p>"Remember, true hydration is at a cellular level and does not happen by pounding 2 gallons of water the day before the race. Those who are not regularly hydrating and try the shortcut will just spend more time in the bathroom on race day! Don't be fooled by the expected cooler weather into thinking you don't need to stay as hydrated. Remember that you are still at 6,200 ft elevation so you will naturally dehydrate faster if you are not acclimated to the elevation. Water stations will be every 2 miles starting at mile 2 (so 2, 4, 6, 8, 10). We will have some setup at the ½ way point but that will make it a 3 mile gap between miles 10 and 13 and 13 and 16. There will be Cliff gels and Jelly Belly Sport Beans at miles 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 13, 20, 22, and 24 as well. Gatorade will also be on tap at miles 2, 4, 6, 8, 18, 20, and 22. There will be port-a-potties at the start and finish line. They will also be at mile 8 and 13 and usually the school has one which will be your mile 3 and 23."<p>The course was not a typical high altitude "net downhill" course since the point-to-point full marathon course was canceled a week prior, and we had to run the half marathon course backwards and then forwards with the half marathoners. <p>The full marathoners were allowed to start anytime from 6am (3hrs before the half marathon start, 13.1 miles away at Teton Village), as long as we made it to the turnaround before 9am. We were responsible for self-timing our 1st halfs, and then starting the "half marathon" at 9am.<p>We started at Phil Baux Park (next to Snow King Resort where packet pickup was) and immediately turned left onto E Snow King Ave, which then turned into W Snow King Ave at S Carcas(sp?) St(?). We followed the flour markings in the opposite direction. The markings were pretty good and we did not get lost, which was my #1 concern going into this non-traditional half marathon x2 course. However, our friend Jeff Hill did miss a turn early on and found himself lost.<p>Steven & I ran together for the 1st half. We didn't see any other runners, but it was a nice, serene, & scenic. We took a lot of pictures. They had unmanned aid station with cups of water & Power Aid pre-poured for us, which was very nice. We didn't have to run with water bottles. I thought I took it easy, running a 1:52:31 (this proved not to be the case in the 2nd half, as I could not push). We timed our run perfectly and made it to the half marathon "start" at 8:57am, enough time to grab some water then start the 2nd 1/2. We didn't want to start too early for risk of cramping from standing / waiting around.<p>The 1st half was net uphill, by maybe 100ft? The 2nd half was supposed to be easier since it's net downhill, but the altitude got to me and I ran a 2:03:45, for total marathon time of 3:56:16, just squeezing in a sub-4 marathon (my worst marathon time of 2012, even worse than Day 2 of my Mississippi+Alabama double in Jan, but hey, it's a sub-4, so I'll take it!) for my 28th state under 4hours (22 more to go for my "50sub4" goal). <p>The red shirt I'm wearing is the 50sub4 club shirt. Jeff, next to me, is the founder/President! He finished the 50sub4 trek a while ago. This was also State #43 for me. That means I still have to repeat 15 states!<p>The race was extremely beautiful! The snow capped mountains were visible from parts of the course. The start was chilly at 40F, even in June! It ended up in the low 70's F at the end of the race. We mostly ran on bike paths, but it was difficult to breathe as we are up "at altitude" at 6,200ft (1,000 feet above 1 mile / Denver), easily making it my most difficult sub-4 state. I've had worse finish times in other states, but I was in much better shape for this race (usually averaging 3:20s to 3:30s) and barely ended up sub-4'ing. If you're a flatlander, expect to run 1min/mile slower than what you are used to! You'll feel like you're gasping for air, and even drowning after you drink fluids at aid stations.<p><br>Post-Race Festival:<br>RD's words: "There will be many opportunities to get the needed calories back into your system directly after the race. There will be Water, Vitamin Water, Muscle Milk, pizza from both local pizza joints Mountain High Pizza Pie and Pinky G's Pizzeria, Bagels from Pearl Street Bagel and Rolls from Great Harvest Bread. In addition, we will also have post-race Acupuncture treatments available from East of the Tetons Acupuncture and massage treatments by Chill Spa."<p>The awards ceremony took place after the last finisher crossed. Pam & Josh gave away a lot of prizes through a raffle (tickets were attached to our bibs). Prized included gift certificates to local stores, restaurants, & yoga classes. They even gave away a men's and women's cowboy hats! With only ~14 marathoners and ~200 half marathoners, your chances of winning something were high. Steve won a yoga gift certificate, but exchanged it for a $10 Haagen Daas gift certificate, which he later gave away to a local. The guy even won 3rd Place AG for the Half, even though he ran a 13.1 "warm up"! He never ceases to amaze.<p><br>Closing Notes:<br>It's so beautiful here and is one of the most scenic places I have been to in the Lower 48. I truly enjoyed my time here and would definitely want to return, either to ski, or spend more time in Yellowstone National Park. We also visited Grand Teton National Park, post-race, as we only spent one full day in town. We were lucky enough to catch Old Faithful Geyser erupt (it erupts every 90mins +/- 10mins)!<p>The drive to Grand Teton from Jackson was quick, about 20mins to get into the park and another 10mins to the Visitor's Center. From there, it was another 2hrs (less if you don't make random stops to take pictures of wildlife) to get to Old Faithful within Yellowstone. We saw a bunch of elk, but did not spot any buffalo, as they are in a different section of the expansive park.<p>Near our hotel at Teton Village (where the famous Jackson Hole ski resort is), we spotted cows, horses, and even real cowboys herding their horses.<p>The town square area in Jackson is fun. It reminded me of Santa Fe, but even nicer. There are lots of hidden stores off of the square, so try walking around. <br>For carbo-loading, we ate at Pinky G's Pizzeria in Jackson on W Broadway. They use gas ovens, and have a full bar with TV's that show sports games and ESPN Sportscenter. The pizza took a long time to make, but was pretty good. I liked the crust, and it still tasted good the next day. It was cheap, at $23 for a pie, but they allow half-half options. We had Margherita+3 Cheese (no tomato sauce w/ garlic & olive oil). Nearby there are also two other pizza places: Caldera and Mountain High.<p>A fun bar we visited was Million Dollar Cowboy Bar (they have a steakhouse downstairs), across the street from the square. We sat at the bar on their comfortable saddle bar stools, complete with stirrups! Patrons with cowboy hats were present. At night (busy nights only?) they charge a $5 cover. Their TV's show sports games. We tried elk cheeseburgers, which tasted leaner and healthier than beef, but not as tasty as ostrich. A let down here was that they served no beers on tap.<p>A great store for gifts is Jackson Mercantile, right off the square.<p>This area is also right next to a mountain with chair lifts (Snow King), so it's so close for skiing and summer mountain biking.RunKinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02885010221742421763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-43340618125404500602012-06-02T04:36:00.001-04:002012-06-02T04:36:49.439-04:00Marathon #100 Preview - Comrades Marathon (2012/06/02)<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rfJd6eiENUM/T8nQouO5MeI/AAAAAAAAACA/4NoVh9JGddo/s1600/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExNDMtMjAxMjA2MDItMTAwNi5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-709440"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rfJd6eiENUM/T8nQouO5MeI/AAAAAAAAACA/4NoVh9JGddo/s320/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExNDMtMjAxMjA2MDItMTAwNi5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-709440" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5749355797338993122" /></a></p>Pictured: Comrades House (Comrades Museum) in Pietermartizburg (PMZ)<p>Social Networking sites:<br><a href="http://www.facebook.com/ComradesMarathon">http://www.facebook.com/ComradesMarathon</a><br><a href="https://twitter.com/ComradesRace">https://twitter.com/ComradesRace</a><br>Another great site is "North Americans Run Comrades" group on facebook.<p><br>Recommended Hotel<br>Durban Hilton<p><br>Bonitas-Comrades Expo<br>Thu 5/31, 9am-7pm<br>Fri 6/1, 9am-7pm<br>Sat 6/2, 9am-5pm<p><br>Live TV Coverage<br>Sun 6/3, 5:10am on SABC (national live coverage for the entirety of the race!!!)<p><br>Bus Tour<br>Today, the day before the race, we took the Course Preview Tour Bus from 8am on Sat. We made a stop at Comrades House (Museum). Lunch is provided along with a bottle of Energade.<p><br>Course<br>90K Pietermartizburg<br>82K Polly Shorts, 732m<br>78K Ashburton, 671m<br>Highest Point, 824m<br>64K Camperdown, 732m<br>59K Cato Ridge, 732m<br>50K Bayat's Store, 704m<br>Inchanga Hill, 762m<br>Halfway Drummond, 640m<br>39K Botha's Hill Hotel, 747m<br>31K Winston Park, 616m<br>22K Field's Hill, 518m<br>17K Cowies Hill, 366m<br>14K Westville Shopping Centre, 229m<br>8K 45th & Cutting, 152m<br>Finish Durban, Sea Level<p><br>Runner Tracker<br><a href="http://www.comrades.com">http://www.comrades.com</a><br>My bib #: 17100 (C corral, for sub-3:40 marathoners)<br>For South African mobile phones only: Text the runner's bib # (race number) to 38132. It costs R10. One race number per SMS. You will receive 5 SMS messages with your runner's splits.<p><br>Charities<br>6 official charities<br>The Community Chest - support 145 welfare and development societies, <a href="http://www.communitychest.co.za">http://www.communitychest.co.za</a><br>PinkDrive - breast cancer awareness, <a href="http://www.pinkdrive.co.za">http://www.pinkdrive.co.za</a><br>Sports Trust - invests in 5 schools to promote sport and running, <a href="http://www.thesportstrust.co.za">http://www.thesportstrust.co.za</a><br>Starfish - supports children orphaned and/or made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS in South Africa, <a href="http://www.starfishcharity.org">http://www.starfishcharity.org</a><br>Wildlands - establishes "green jobs", restores ecosystems, supports conservation and protection of biodiversity, <a href="http://www.wildlands.co.za">http://www.wildlands.co.za</a><br>World Vision - tackles root causes of poverty and injustice that affect children in South Africa, <a href="http://www.worldvision.co.za">http://www.worldvision.co.za</a><p><br>Statistics<br>87th Comrades, race started in 1921, women allowed to run in 1976<br>2011 Starters: South Africans 11,818 / Rest of Africa 146 / International 684 / Total 12,648<br>2011 Finishers: South Africans 10,290 (87.1%) / Rest of Africa 122 (83.6%) / International 642 (93.9%) / Total 11,054 (87.4%)<br>2011 Novice Starters: South Africans 2,143 / Rest of Africa 56 / International 417 / Total 2,616<br>2011 Novice Finishers: South Africans 1,820 (84.9%) / Rest of Africa 46 (82.1%) / International 400 (95.9%) / Total 2,266 (86.6%)<br>2012 International Runner Entrants: 1,378 (Male 1,043 / Female 335) / UK 238 / USA 236 / Australia 185 / Brazil 122 / Zimbabwe 76 / Germany 56 / Lesotho 37 / Canada 35 / Japan 35 / Namibia 34 / India 31 / Switzerland 25 / UAE 22 / Botswana 20 / 66 countries / China 0<p>500 runners end up at the medical tent.<br>Only 1.5% of the field runs a negative split (called a "positive" split).<p>Course Records<br>Down: 2007 - Leonid Shvetsov, 5:20:49 / 1989 - Frith Van Der Merwe, 5:54:47<br>Up: 2008 - Leonid Shvetsov, 5:24:47 / 2006 - Elena Nurgalieva, 6:09:24<br>Most Wins - Bruce Fordyce, 9<br>Longest Gap between 1st & Last Wins - Wally Hayward, 1930 & 1954, 24 years (5 time Winner: 1930, 1950, 1951, 1953, & 1954)<br>Notable Americans - 1994 Winner Alberto Salazar (winner of Boston & NYC multiple times), 5:38:39 Up / Ann Trason 1996 Up & 1997 Down<p><br>2012 Notable Runners<br>Stephen Muzhingi (Winner 2009-2011, 5:32:46 Up in 2011)<br>Leonid Shvetsov (Winner 2007-2008, Up & Down Course Record Holder)<br>Elena Nurgalieva (Winner 2011, 6:24:11 Up, 9 finishes, 6 Wins in 2003-2004, 2006, 2008, 2010-2011, Up & Down Course Record Holder)<br>Olesya Nurgalieva (2nd place 2011, 6:24:36 Up, Winner 2007 & 2009)<br>Kami Semick<br>Zola Budd<br>Michael Wardian<br>Marshall Ulrich<p>Race Day<br>Breakfast at the Durban Hilton begins at 12:30am. We had to board our buses between 2am & 2:30am.<p>The race began at 5:30am at the City Hall of PMZ. The finish line cutoff is 5:30pm at The Sahara-Kingsmead Cricket Stadium in Durban, 89.28K (56mi) away. The "down run" is longer than the "up run".<p>There are 8 corrals ("seeding batches"), letters A to H.<p><br>Race Day Schedule<br>5:30am Comrades Marathon start<br>10:40am (5hr 10mins) Cut-off at Cato Ridge<br>10:55am (5hr 25mins) Expected arrival of Male winner<br>10:25am (5hr 55mins) Expected arrival of Female winner<br>11:30am (6hr) Wally Hayward Medal cut-off at finish<br>11:40am (6hr 10mins) Halfway cut-off<br>1pm (7hr 30mins) Silver Medal cut-off at finish<br>1:30pm (8hr) Prize-Giving Ceremony (Awards Ceremony)<br>2pm (8hr 30mins) Cut-off at Winston Park On-Ramp<br>2:30pm (9hr) Bill Rowan Medal cut-off at finish<br>3:30pm (10hr) Cut-off at St. Johns Avenue Pinetown<br>4:30pm (11hr) Bronze Medal cut-off at finish<br>4:50pm (11hr 20mins) Cut-off at 45th Cutting - Sherwood<br>5:30pm (12hr) Last Gun: Race Ends<br>5:35pm Closing Ceremony<p>The "mile" markers were in KM to go, not KM run so far.<p><br>Aid Stations<br>47 aid stations (table refreshment stations). They contain some combination of Energade, water, Pepsi, chocolate, oranges, bananas, potatoes, biscuits, vaseline, Amica Ice, Mageu Number 1, Mega Load (our tour bus guide warned us this is nasty, it's commonly eaten by the Blacks [term used by the guide] in South Africa), among other treats. Drinks are served in "sachets". <p>The 1st aid station doesn't appear until 4.8km, and the last one is at 86.2km (2.8km to the Finish). Most have its own corporate sponsor. The tables are 600m long, and are on avg 1.8km apart, with the closest being 1km apart, and the longest being 2.7km apart. There is aid everywhere! There were portable toilets are every station.<p>Reebok finisher's jackets are given only to those who finish the race in Reebok running sneakers. The race shirt given at the Expo is by Reebok, as is the hat given to the 1st 16,000 registrants.<p>NED Bank is a major sponsor, and sponsors many of the elite athletes. If you wear a non-NED Bank or official Comrades hat, are the only official branded head gear you are allowed to wear. The race marshals may ask you to remove it while on the course.<p>Bib must be worn on both the front and back of your jersey, not your shorts.<p>Drop Bags are called Tog Bags.RunKinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02885010221742421763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-31253183375330066582012-05-06T15:43:00.001-04:002012-05-24T12:10:33.873-04:00Marathon #96: 2012 Providence Marathon (2012/05/06)<p class="mobile-photo"><center><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lPsg6efURSQ/T6bUdxWjDNI/AAAAAAAAABw/1RDXlh0wgb0/s1600/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExMDgtMjAxMjA1MDYtMTIxOC5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-730769"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lPsg6efURSQ/T6bUdxWjDNI/AAAAAAAAABw/1RDXlh0wgb0/s320/%253D%253Futf-8%253FB%253FSU1HMDExMDgtMjAxMjA1MDYtMTIxOC5qcGc%253D%253F%253D-730769" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5739508383059479762" /></a></center></p>5th Annual Providence Marathon<br>
<br>
Read Also:<br>
<a href="http://dnakajima.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Daiki Nakajima's</a> blog post - <a href="http://dnakajima.blogspot.com/2012/05/road-marathon-3-cox-rhode-providence.html" target="_blank">"Road Marathon #3 (4/6/12) - Cox Rhode Providence Marathon, RI"</a><br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>Race Logistics</u></b>
<br>
PVD is a nice small town, and we (Daiki, Jenny, & I) are enjoying our time up here. There are a lot of Italian and seafood restaurants. Thayer Street is a lively night time are with bars. There are clubs in downtown. I used to come up to here during college to visit my RISD friends Momoko and Daisuke. I was able to convince Daiki & Jenny to join me on this trip, last minute, because they have an affinity to this town, both having lived here.<br>
<br>
I highly recommend staying at the <a href="http://www.westin.com/providence" target="_blank">Westin Providence</a> (don't forget to earn your Starwoods points) on 1 W Exchange St in Downtown. It is connected to the Rhode Island Convention Center where the Marathon Expo is (the race has race day packet pick up from 6am with the race starting at 7:30am), and is next to Providence Place Mall. It is also a ridiculously close 2 min walk from the race start, so you can sleep in! Props to Jenny for securing a reservation here. The only drawback was that check-out was 12pm (even if you are a Starwoods member), but the hotel provided bag check and allowed you to shower in their fitness center for free (only if you stayed there, they will check).<br>
<br>
The race shirts were pretty plain and white and ran large. I'm usually a large, but in this case, medium was my size. The race used b-tags, affixed at the back of the bibs, for its race chip timing. At the top of the bib is a post-race Narragansett Beer ticket, which our group didn't realize its purpose, and just tore off and disposed of. It simply said "Narragansett" and nothing else. There was a beer tent and food at the post-race festival in the park next to the start/finish, but the three of us just wanted to shower and grab lunch, so skipped the festival. Post-race, I learned that this was the 5th Annual Providence Marathon, but the race organizers, Cox Rhode Races (<a href="https://twitter.com/coxrhoderaces" target="_blank">@coxrhoderaces</a>) did not even mention that this was the big 5th year of the race, a definite missed opportunity.<br>
<br>
Course Map: <a href="http://www.rhoderaces.com/img/maps/gif-marathon.gif" target="_blank">http://www.rhoderaces.com/img/maps/gif-marathon.gif</a>
<br>
Course Elevation Profile: <a href="http://www.rhoderaces.com/img/maps/elevation-revised.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.rhoderaces.com/img/maps/elevation-revised.pdf</a>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7GmZfOMVLP0/T6f1xv7mSgI/AAAAAAAABg0/cYBd5wfNVb0/s1600/Providence%2BMarathon%2B2012.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="309" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7GmZfOMVLP0/T6f1xv7mSgI/AAAAAAAABg0/cYBd5wfNVb0/s400/Providence%2BMarathon%2B2012.gif" /></a></div>
<br>
The course is basically a long out & back, though there is only one section where you pass runners approaching from the opposite direction.
<br>There were major 100 ft hills at Miles 5.5 to 6.5 and Miles 19 to 20.5, in addition to the numerous other hills.
<br>
The Aid Stations were located at miles 1.5, 4.5, 5.5, 7.5, 10.5, 12, 14.5, 16.5, 17.5, 19, 20.5, 22.5, 23.5 and 24.5. Some aid stations had GU Energy Gels and Gatorade. They advertised bananas and candy, none of which I saw.<br>
<br>
The mile markers on this course were way off. Some appeared early, like the Mile 18 marker. Others appeared late, like the Mile 25 marker. You definitely need to wear a GPS watch when running this race.<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>My Race Experience</u></b><br>
Results: <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/12/ri/May6_COXRho_set1.shtml" target="_blank">http://www.coolrunning.com/results/12/ri/May6_COXRho_set1.shtml</a>
My Garmin: <a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175769714 " target="_blank">http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175769714 </a><br>
3:24:50 (7:49 min/mile pace), 195th out of 1,354 finishers
<br>
For Age Groups, they grouped them by 10 years, which was disappointing. That meant my "Male 30-39" age group was pretty sizable with 265 runners. I placed 67th, a far cry from my last two performances, in Kentucky and in Michigan.<br>
<br>
I beat my Kentucky Derby Marathon time from last week by 7 seconds, running my 3rd best time and 6th marathon in under 3:30. I was hoping for a sub-3:25, so am very happy with my results. I decided to run Providence in order to sub4 it (instead of attempting the Newport Marathon in Oct, which would have been the back end of a double). The last time I ran in Rhode Island was in 2010 at the Newport Marathon, and finished in 4:27:06.
<br>I was initially registered for the USA Track & Field National 24 Hour Championships at North Coast 24 in Cleveland, OH with Jackie Choi, but withdrew, due to lack of ultra fitness. I am too conditioned to road marathons now. I also decided to cut back on travel these next couple of weeks, so did not opt to join Thunder or Becky at their Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, OH.<br>
<br>
As for the race, the weather was nice, starting off at a slightly cold 48F and rising to 65F. The course was hilly and tough, and was not that scenic (mainly suburban and through some parks along bike paths). We started in downtown PVD and quickly headed across the river east to the suburbs. The race started off overcast, and the sun did appear late in the race, making it a bit hot since the course was exposed, but became overcast again. During parts of the later half, we were running alongside live traffic, which is always unsettling.<br>
<br>
Mile 24 involved crossing back over the Seekonk River along a bridge for I-195. I heard many complaints about the tight spacing for the running path for it. When I came across it, there weren't many of us there. I had no problems passing the 3 or 4 runners I encountered. I felt strong at that point. A runner in front of me and I almost went down the stairs for the bridge, but luckily a runner behind us warned us to take the ramp down. Those stairs would have messed up our race. You never want to take stairs during a marathon!<br>
For RI, I would recommend the <a href="http://www.amicamarathon.com" target="_blank">Amica Newport Marathon</a> in Oct. It's a much prettier course, but even tougher than this one.<br>
<br>
I ran with friends <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=4241" target="_blank">Daiki</a> (he set a 37 PR, 4:27 down to 3:52), <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=4806" target="_blank">Jenny</a> (beat her last year's Providence time by 40mins+), <a href="http://plaza.rakuten.co.jp/philadelphia" target="_blank">Tats</a> (State #47), & his co-worker from Malaysia whom I just met. Also at the race were local NYC <a href="http://www.dashingwhippets.org" target="_blank">Dashing Whippets</a> runner friends Andrea (PR+BQ), Blaise (PR), A.J. (PR+BQ, 3:08:20, 7:11 pace!), & Tessa (BQ, met her for the first time), along with <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com" target="_blank">Marathon Maniac</a> friends like <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=3960" target="_blank">Julia from NYC</a> (State #40), <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=3836" target="_blank">Steve L. from RI</a>, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1224" target="_blank">Lis C. from OR</a> (State #38), & <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=3490" target="_blank">Crab Shaman Alan from MD</a>. I met <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=3400" target="_blank">Shane from AK</a> (State #43) & <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=4347" target="_blank">Lisa G. from MD</a> (State #44, also finishing in Honolulu with me, Tats, Thunder, & Steve Miller) for the first time, pre-race.<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>My Fundraiser</u></b><br>
I wore my USA Track & Field jersey to support the Mount Sinai Medical Center in NYC's WTC Health Program charity. I received many USA chants and explained to people about the WTC Health Program after the race.<br>
<br>
My fundraiser site for the charity just launched yesterday and can be viewed at:<br>
<a href="https://philanthropy.mountsinai.org/kino" target="_blank">https://philanthropy.mountsinai.org/kino</a><br>
<br>
Thank you to those who provided moral support and especially to those who donated to my 9/11 10th Year Anniversary fundraiser last Sept! With your generosity, I was able to raise $5,550 for the program to provide FREE medical screenings and treatment for our 9/11 First Responders. This is particularly useful to those who are now ailing without medical insurance coverage!<br>
<br>
<br>
<b><u>Next 5 Marathons</u></b><br>
Sun 5/13: Delaware Marathon for Back on My Feet<br>
Sat 5/19: Fargo Marathon for Pancreatic Cancer Action Network<br>
Sun 5/27: Edinburgh Marathon in Scotland for Back on My Feet<br>
Sun 6/3: Comrades 56-miler ultra in South Africa, Marathon #100, for WTC Health Program<br>
Sat 6/9: Utah Valley Marathon for WTC Health Program<br>
<br>RunKinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02885010221742421763noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-20186939452596853562012-02-23T20:34:00.006-05:002014-02-06T17:49:47.194-05:00Anthony Portera<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
135 Mile Ultra Running Specialist - 3x Badwater 135 & 2x Brazil 135 finisher<br>
<br>
Inspirational Runners Series on <a href="http://www.runkino.com" target="_blank">RunKino.com</a><br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ibpvk2wtyho/Tz2Pw4YgNXI/AAAAAAAABY0/q6pkFoCreGA/s1600/tonyportera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="249" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ibpvk2wtyho/Tz2Pw4YgNXI/AAAAAAAABY0/q6pkFoCreGA/s400/tonyportera.jpg" /></a></div><center>[2009.07.13] <a href="http://www.irunultras.com" target="_blank">Tony Portera</a> running the first of his four Badwater Ultramarathons.</center>
<br>
I first interacted with the ultra legend known as Tony Portera back in 2010 while preparing for my very first 100 mile ultramarathon, the inaugural <a href="http://summer100.com" target="_blank">Beast of Burden Summer 100</a>. My friends <a href="http://numberjello.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Marco Cheung</a>, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1540" target="_blank">Rick Thiounn</a> (opted for the 24 hour race), & I had signed up and had no idea the torment and indescribable journey we were about to embark on, a distance that is a mere jog for Tony. On the <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs</a> calendar, I noticed that Tony had also registered and contacted him. We met up pre-race and he was supportive through out the race. Tony went on to finish the 100 in an impressive sub-24 time of 22:47:14 while none of us (Marco - DNF at Mile 62.5, Rick - 50 miles, & I - DNF at Mile 93) made it up to 100 miles.<br>
<br>
Tony willingly took on an ultra running mentor role, keeping in touch and providing me with invaluable ultra running tips. Two months after my failed first attempt, we both ran the 2010 <a href="http://www.javelinajundred.com" target="_blank">Javelina Jundred</a> where I managed to finish, but with badly blistered feet (so bad that I needed to be in a wheelchair at the airport when returning home). Again, Tony was there to provide me with advice on how to cope with the pain and quickly recover, by using an epsom salt + hyrdrogen peroxide (substitutable with witch hazel) solution that acts as a magical potion to revive mangled feet.<br>
<br>
I would continue to see Tony at successive 100's and during these races, he would offer up tidbits of his ultra running wisdom in helping me cope with various ailments that naturally arise from running ultras, from hamstring strains (2010 Umstead) to heat exhaustion (2011 Beast of Burden Summer 100). In the brief time I have known Tony, he has gone on to finish an impressive 7 more 100's, 2011 Brazil 135 (part of a record breaking 350 mile Caminho Da Fé pilgrimage journey), & 2011 Badwater 135.<br>
<br>
Not only has Tony demonstrated a laudable ultra running track record (his first 100 was less than 4.5 years ago at the 2007 Grand Teton 100 on 2007/09/01, and he has finished all 19 of the 100 & 135 mile races he has attempted), he has been a noble ambassador of the sport, supporting the <a href="http://adventurecorps2011.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=448302&lis=1&kntae448302=56846C3EFEFD422D840761DB2AAB2332&supId=254555402" target="_blank">Challenged Athletes Foundation</a> and raising over $100,000 for the charitable foundation through his various fundraisers. I look up to Tony greatly, am very thankful for his compassionate support, and aspire to be as kind and as helpful as he has been to our fellow ultra runners and to one day follow in his footsteps to be accepted into and complete his favorite all-time race: the Badwater Ultramarathon.<br>
<br>
Two days ago, Tony learned the good news that he has been accepted into his 4th consecutive Badwater race, receiving one of 90 coveted spots. It is a testament to how well-respected and inspirational of a runner and human being he is.<br>
<br>
And now, as the very first runner of RunKino.com monthly "Inspirational Runners" feature, I present to you Anthony "Badwater / Brazil 135" Portera:<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>BACKGROUND INFO</b><br>
Name: <font color="0000A0"><b>Anthony (Tony) Portera</b></font><br>
Hometown: <font color="0000A0"><b>White Plains, NY</b></font><br>
Current Location: <font color="0000A0"><b>White Plains, NY</b></font><br>
Age: <font color="0000A0"><b>40</b></font><br>
Occupation: <font color="0000A0"><b>Attorney</b></font><br>
Blog / Website: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://www.irunultras.com" target="_blank">http://www.irunultras.com</a></b></font><br>
Facebook Fan Page: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/IRunUltrascom/260200149572" target="_blank">IRunUltras.com</a></b></font><br>
Twitter: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="https://twitter.com/irunultras" target="_blank">@irunultras</a></b></font><br>
Videos: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://vimeo.com/user1775766" target="_blank">Tony Portera on Vimeo</a></b></font><br>
Press Articles: <br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>1.) <a href="http://www.adventurecorps.com/news/bw/2009portera.pdf" target="_blank">"A Long Run Across The Desert", The Journal News (Westchester, NY) (2009/07/12)</a><br>
2.) <a href="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/10526998/Running/Inspirational%20Runners/Badwater%20Follow%20Up%20Article.pdf" target="_blank">"Portera Survives Badwater Ultramarathon", The Journal News (Westchester, NY) (2009/07/28)</a><br>
3.) <a href="http://www.irunfar.com/2011/01/tony-portera-to-run-350-mile-caminho-da-fe.html" target="_blank">"Tony Portera to Run 350-mile Caminho Da Fé", iRunFar.com (National) (2011/01/17)</a><br>
4.) <a href="http://talk.brooksrunning.com/2011/07/06/brooks-id-member-portera-goes-for-three-peat-at-badwater/" target="_blank">"Brooks ID Member Portera Goes for Three-peat at Badwater", Brooks Sports (National) (2011/07/06)</a></b></font><br>
Running Clubs: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1060" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs #1060</a></b></font><br>
Sponsors: <font color="0000A0"><b>Brooks, Phix Energy Drink, & Drymax Socks</b></font><br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u2VtBGZuS_U/T0bdyumCJCI/AAAAAAAABaQ/Vmr9YKUAnXI/s1600/tonyporterabuckles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="533" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u2VtBGZuS_U/T0bdyumCJCI/AAAAAAAABaQ/Vmr9YKUAnXI/s400/tonyporterabuckles.jpg" /></a></div><center>[2012.01.19] Tony Portera's Bling: 100miler and 135miler Buckles!</center><br>
<br>
<b>RUNNING HISTORY</b><br>
First Marathon: <font color="0000A0"><b>2004 Twin Cities Marathon (MN), age 33</b></font><br>
Total Marathons: <font color="0000A0"><b>22</b></font><br>
Total Ultras: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Anthony&lname=Portera" target="_blank">46 (19 100+ milers)</a></b></font><br>
Total Marathons+Ultras: <font color="0000A0"><b>68</b></font><br>
Marathon PR: <font color="0000A0"><b>3:40:16, 2007 Long Island Marathon (NY)</b></font><br>
100-Mile PR: <font color="0000A0"><b>19:24:46, 2010 Umstead 100 (NC)</b></font><br>
135-Mile PR: <font color="0000A0"><b>39:59:14, 2011 Badwater Ultramarathon (CA)</b></font><br>
24-Hr PR: <font color="0000A0"><b>I haven’t taken a stab at one yet, but I’d love to.</b></font><br>
Training Miles / Week: <font color="0000A0"><b>It depends on several factors, including what type of training (base vs. core vs. recovery, etc...) and what race I’m preparing for. It can be anywhere from 40 to 100 miles per week.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
<b>LIKES</b><br>
Favorite Charities / Running Causes: <font color="0000A0"><b><a href="http://www.challengedathletes.org" target="_blank">Challenged Athletes Foundation</a></b></font><br>
Favorite Running Books: <br><font color="0000A0"><b>
1.) Death Valley Ultras: The Complete Crewing Guide by Theresa Daus-Weber and Denise Jones<br>
2.) Relentless Forward Progress: A Guide to Running Ultramarathons by Bryon Powell<br>
3.) Running on Empty by Marshall Ulrich<br>
4.) The Death Valley 300 by Richard Benyo</b></font><br>
Favorite Running Websites: <font color="0000A0"><b>Besides irunultras.com..... :) There are probably too many to list.</b></font><br>
Favorite Quote: <font color="0000A0"><b>"The episodes in life that last so many years in memory are often measured in fleeting minutes as they happen. In minutes, this won’t last very long, but the memories sure will."</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MdVvvS1Fp44/T0bRlpyr7QI/AAAAAAAABaE/6GpmPfALS_Y/s1600/IMG_3967.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" width="533" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MdVvvS1Fp44/T0bRlpyr7QI/AAAAAAAABaE/6GpmPfALS_Y/s400/IMG_3967.JPG" /></a></div><center>[2010.08.21] <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1540" target="_blank">Rick Thiounn</a>, <a href="http://numberjello.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Marco Cheung</a>, <a href="http://www.irunultras.com" target="_blank">Tony Portera</a>, & <a href="http://www.runkino.com" target="_blank">Hideki Kinoshita</a><br>
pre-race at the inaugural <a href="http://summer100.com" target="_blank">Beast of Burden Summer 100.</a></center><br>
<br>
<b>QUESTIONS</b><br>
1.) <i>Describe your life before running.</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>I started running in 2004 at the age of 33, but it wasn’t until 2008 when I became serious about it and, in particular, the 100-mile distance. I had a fairly normal childhood, traveled a bit as my family moved here and there due to Dad’s job, went to college, then law school where I met my best friend and wife, and had two amazing daughters.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
2.) <i>What prompted you to start running, and how old were you at the time?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>2004. I was 33 and 205 pounds (today I’m typically between 160-165 pounds). My oldest daughter had just turned 3 and my youngest was going to be 2 later in the year. I drank a lot of beer, especially on Saturday’s and Sundays during the football season. I just wanted to get in shape and be active as my kids grew up, but I had no idea it would balloon into what it has become today. There were two guys in my neighborhood that were into running – Ira Zaroff and Peter Hirsh. We started meeting every morning before work for training runs. Peter was a seasoned marathoner. Ira and I were just starting out. So, we picked a marathon and decided to go for it. Ultimately, Ira and I began reading about ultrarunning...Dean Karnazes book, Ultramarathon Man. And I heard about this race called the Badwater Ultramarathon. Then the fun began.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
3.) <i>Why do you love running and what keeps you motivated to continue running?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>There are so many things that I love about running. It is so serene, providing hours and hours of time for reflection. It is challenging, and tests the limits of human endurance, pushing the human mind and body in unique ways. It can be so defeating at times, but yet so rewarding and educational. Running brings out a hodgepodge of emotions – anxiety, elation, despair, disappointment, hope – but, ultimately, it is a great facilitator of the triumph of the human spirit.<br>
<br>
What keeps me motivated to continue running? For one, the desire to continue to have the great learning experiences that running has already provided. And then, there are the people (many have become friends) that I have met through running. Their accomplishments, their drive, their unwillingness to accept defeat and to always move forward.....they are all heroes to me, and they keep me motivated to always strive to be better – better in running and better in life.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
4.) <i>What running gear and nutritional products do you prefer?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>On the gear side, I’ll try just about anything. Brooks and Saucony have been my shoes of choice for the last several years. Drymax Socks. Nathan handhelds. The new UltrAspire packs looks great, but I haven’t gotten my hands on one yet. On the nutrition side, primarily Hammer Nutrition products – Hammer Gels, Heed and Perpetuem. For a recovery drink, I really like Ultragen.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
5.) <i>Describe your first marathon experience and did you envision running any more marathons after that?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>It was the 2004 Twin Cities Marathon. I was 33. I loved it and hated it at the same time, but was ecstatic when I crossed the finish line (4:07:33). At the time, it was the most difficult thing I had done in my life from an endurance perspective. When I finished, I’m certain I said “no mas”....but I would do 4 more in 2005 before getting into ultrarunning.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
6.) <i>What are your Top 5 favorite races, marathon-distance or longer, and why?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>For me, there really is only one - the Badwater Ultramarathon. It is grueling, deflating, and full of despair, yet it is so unexplainably life-affirming, rewarding, reflective, and full of triumph. It is a race and a place where the ordinary can become extraordinary. A place where you can drift off into a state where you are one with your surroundings. The event is so well organized.....the race staff and volunteers are amazing and provide an experience like no other I have seen.<br>
<br>
<center><iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/6135159" width="533" height="400" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/6135159" target="_blank">2009 Badwater Video</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user1775766" target="_blank">Tony Portera</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com" target="_blank">Vimeo</a><br>
<a href="http://vimeo.com/6135159" target="_blank">http://vimeo.com/6135159</a>.</p></center>If I had to list 4 more, Brazil 135 would be next on the list. What a fantastic location for a 135-mile race, in Brazil on the Caminho Da Fe. I got to see so much out there that I wouldn’t have seen but for this race – the surroundings.....the people.....all amazing.<br>
<br>
3 more.....I’d probably go with Umstead 100, Javelina 100 and the Walt Disney World Marathon. Umstead and Javelina simply because they are such well put-on events with great people (and I’ve done quite well at each). Disney because my family is a Disney family. We went 7 years in a row (missing for the first time in 2012) and just love it there.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
7.) <i>What is your proudest running accomplishment?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>You would probably think I would say finishing the Badwater Ultramarathon – I’ve done so 3 times (2009, 2010 and 2011). Well, actually, it is not finishing it but the honor of being accepted 3 times that I consider my proudest accomplishment, followed of course by completing the race. Also, in January of 2011 I, along with friends Chris Roman and Jarom Thurston, ran the entire length of Brazil’s Caminho Da Fe (about 340 miles, including running the Brazil 135 in 55 hours straight in the middle) to raise funds and awareness for the Challenged Athletes Foundation. That was an amazing experience for an amazing cause.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
8.) <i>Describe your biggest setback in running and how did you bounce back from that experience?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>I’ll go with obstacles, the biggest of which for me is finding the time to “fit it all in” while being a good husband and father. It is often tough to try to find time in the day for everything. Wake-up is around 4 AM on week days...training done by 6:30 AM...then off to work an hour later.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
9.) <i>Who have been influential in your running career?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>The people that I have met on this incredible running journey are the most influential. Each and every person has their own story, their own demons, and their own triumphs. It is really amazing to see so many folks out there giving it all they have, and each one of them has had a unique impact on my own running career. On the mentor side, it is amazing how many runners have offered their help and advice. Over the course of time I’ve received guidance from superstars such as Lisa Smith-Batchen, Bryon Powell, Jamie Donaldson, Dan Rose, Rick Gaston, Andy Jones-Wilkins, Matt Hart, Jill Perry, David James, <a href="http://longdistancevoyager.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Phil McCarthy</a>, Ray Zahab, Chris Roman, Charlie Engle, and many more. Many times that guidance/advice comes right in the middle of a 100-miler! It is simply amazing how this community helps other runners out. Just amazing.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
10.) <i>Do you use running to give back in any sort of way and are there any particular runners that you mentor?</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>Absolutely. As always, we raise funds and awareness for the Challenged Athletes Foundation, and our 2012 fundraising effort will kickoff soon. I’m always happy to give my advice and share my experiences through “coaching”, and have worked with a few folks over the last year or so. My email box is always open. Pacing and crewing....love it. For me, there is nothing more rewarding than helping someone strive to reach their goals.</b></font><br>
<br>
<br>
<b>FINAL WORDS</b><br>
<i>Feel free to add anything else, give thanks, or shout outs.</i><br>
<font color="0000A0"><b>Shout-outs and thank-yous would take pages and pages to write, but I will say this – never stop striving to be a better person, whether it be a better runner, friend, parent, son/daughter, etc.... Always have faith, even in times that may seem hopeless. Always move forward, one step at a time, and live each second of life as if it was the last.</b></font><br>
<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-17195644610354320542012-01-03T03:12:00.011-05:002013-01-29T17:58:03.453-05:002011 Running Year In Review<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Prefontaine" target="_blank">Steve Prefontaine</a><br>
<br>
In 2012, I vow to train my ass off and quit making excuses. I know that I can compete on a higher level, but only if I put in the dedication and effort.<br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xsYZL3o8VwI/TzqD0j3kqmI/AAAAAAAABYc/aEU2QP0dGXs/s1600/PR_Times.bmp"><img border="0" width="100%" alight="left" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xsYZL3o8VwI/TzqD0j3kqmI/AAAAAAAABYc/aEU2QP0dGXs/s320/PR_Times.bmp"></a></div>
<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">Marathon PR Times & Avg Marathon Times</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR Marathon</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Time</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th>Avg Time</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="left">Philadelphia Marathon (PA)</td>
<td align="left">2008/11/23</td>
<td align="right">4:39:42</td>
<td align="right">10:40</td>
<td align="right">4:50:44</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="left">New York City Marathon (NY)</td>
<td align="left">2009/11/01</td>
<td align="right">3:56:07</td>
<td align="right">9:00</td>
<td align="right">4:20:51</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">Houston Marathon (TX)</td>
<td align="left">2010/01/17</td>
<td align="right">4:05:11</td>
<td align="right">9:21</td>
<td align="right">4:36:15</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">Portland Marathon (OR)</td>
<td align="left">2011/10/09</td>
<td align="right">3:36:53</td>
<td align="right">8:16</td>
<td align="right">4:01:58</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left">Rock 'n' Roll New Orleans Marathon (LA)</td>
<td align="left">2012/03/04</td>
<td align="right">3:22:38</td> <td align="right">7:44</td>
<td align="right">3:33:30</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">Rock 'n' Roll New Orleans Marathon (LA)</td>
<td align="left">2012/03/04</td>
<td align="right">3:22:38</td>
<td align="right">7:44</td>
<td align="right">4:12:50</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
*Marathon indicates road marathons and excludes trail marathons and ultras.<br>
<br>
I ran my first marathon in 5:00:15, back in 2008. I went on to PR the first five marathons I ran (and first 6 out of 7). It took until my 15th marathon to break 4 hours, at the 2009 Asbury Park Relay Marathon, with a time of 3:59:41, with the help of Marco Cheung & Mike Moschitta who helped pace me. Two weeks later, I bested that time with a 3:56:07 at the 2009 New York City Marathon. In 2010, you can see that I regressed. That was mainly due to coming off a calf strain injury (from the Beast of Burden Summer 100) and focusing on conquering the 100 by running many doubles (and not focusing on marathon times). I regained my form in 2011 by running 14 sub-4's (6 in 6 straight weeks, all in different states + Germany), and setting 5 new PR's. I experienced a major breakthrough at the 2011 Berlin Marathon with a 3:38:21 marathon with a huge help from Steven Thunder Lee who paced me for the second half of the race, helping me to negative split. I lowered that PR, two weeks later, at the 2011 Portland Marathon with a time of 3:36:53, despite being halted momentarily by a passing freight train. As for my average marathon times, if I didn't run any doubles (2 marathons in 2 days), my average would be significantly lower.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">100 Milers</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR 100</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Time</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th># of 100's</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">Javelina Jundred (AZ)</td>
<td align="left">2010/10/23</td>
<td align="right">28:23:21</td>
<td align="right">16:47</td>
<td align="right">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">Jerseyville Fat Ass 100 (ON)</td>
<td align="left">2011/04/23</td>
<td align="right">27:12:00</td>
<td align="right">16:19</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left">Rocky Raccoon 100 (TX)</td>
<td align="left">2012/02/04</td>
<td align="right">29:21:23</td>
<td align="right">17:36</td>
<td align="right">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">2011 Jerseyville Fat Ass 100 (ON)</td>
<td align="left">2011/04/23</td>
<td align="right">27:12:00</td>
<td align="right">16:19</td>
<td align="right">4</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
*100 Milers used to indicate traditional distance-based 100's and excludes timed races.<br>
<br>
I tried to break 26 hours at 2011 Umstead 100, 2011 Beast of Burden Summer 100, 2011 Javelina Jundred 100, & 2012 Rocky Raccoon, but for unexpected reasons like injury and torrential rains, my efforts were thwarted. Again, my ramped up more rigorous training in 2012 will prove to yield faster results, barring injury and freak weather conditions.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">24 Hour Runs</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>PR 24 Hour</th>
<th>PR Date</th>
<th>PR Distance</th>
<th>Pace</th>
<th># of 24 Hour 100's</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="left">20in24 (PA)</td>
<td align="left">2010/07/17</td>
<td align="right">80.224 miles</td>
<td align="right">17:56</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="left">NorthCoast 24 (OH)</td>
<td align="left">2011/09/17</td>
<td align="right">104.79 miles</td>
<td align="right">13:44</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="left"></td>
<td align="left"></td>
<td align="right"></td>
<td align="right"></td>
<td align="right"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="left">2011 NorthCoast 24 (OH)</td>
<td align="left">2011/09/17</td>
<td align="right">104.79 miles</td>
<td align="right">13:44</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
After placing 10th overall at <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=12866" target="_blank">2011 FANS24</a> and 29th overall at the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=11655" target="_blank">2011 USA Track & Field 24-Hour National Championships (NorthCoast 24)</a>, my eyes were opened to what I am potentially capable of. I will try my best and make the most of 2012 for my running and improve upon my results.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="6">Total Marathons & Ultras</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>Marathons</th>
<th>Ultras</th>
<th>Total</th>
<th>New States</th>
<th>New Sub-4 States</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="right">18</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
<td align="right">20</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="right">19</td>
<td align="right">6</td>
<td align="right">25</td>
<td align="right">9</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="right">23</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
<td align="right">34</td>
<td align="right">13</td>
<td align="right">11</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="right">10</td>
<td align="right">2</td>
<td align="right">12</td>
<td align="right">3</td>
<td align="right">9</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">Lifetime</td>
<td align="right">73</td>
<td align="right">21</td>
<td align="right">94</td>
<td align="right">39</td>
<td align="right">22</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
2011 was a successful and prolific year in which I was fortunate to have traveled to many states and countries (Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Canada, & Germany) for running, shared lifelong memories with the best of friends, met a lot of inspirational and quality individuals, and set PR's in all distances from a marathon and up (50K, 50M, 100K, 100M, & 24hr). I also achieved Marathon Maniacs 10-Star Titanium status and have made it into a couple press articles (<a href="http://www.examiner.com/running-in-national/ultramarathon-moneymaking-man-confessions-of-a-fundraising-marathon-maniac" target="_blank">Examiner.com</a> and <a href="http://pavementpieces.com/nyc-marathon-marathon-maniacs/" target="_blank">Pavement Pieces</a>). <br>
<br>
I am now on pace to run my 100th marathon + ultra at <a href="http://www.comrades.com/" target="_blank">Comrades</a> on 6/3/2012. I am also set to finish my 50 States quest on 12/9/2012 at the <a href="http://www.honolulumarathon.org/" target="_blank">Honolulu Marathon</a> in Hawaii with my one of my best friends and impressive runner himself, Steven Thunder Lee.<br>
<br>
<table border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<th colspan="5"><a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/RunKino" target="_blank">Total Yearly Mileage</a></th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>Year</th>
<th>Miles</th>
<th>Miles/Week</th>
<th>Race Miles (%)</th>
<th>Training Miles (%)</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2008</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
<td align="right">N/A</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2009</td>
<td align="right">756.50</td>
<td align="right">14.55</td>
<td align="right">697.85 (92.25%)</td>
<td align="right">58.65 (7.75%)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2010</td>
<td align="right">1,115.19</td>
<td align="right">21.45</td>
<td align="right">1,023.09 (91.74%)</td>
<td align="right">92.10 (8.26%)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2011</td>
<td align="right">1,563.70</td>
<td align="right">30.07</td>
<td align="right">1,424.76 (91.11%)</td> <td align="right">138.94 (8.89%)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center">2012</td>
<td align="right">Goal: 3,000.00</td>
<td align="right">57.70</td>
<td align="right">1,470.00 (49.00%)</td>
<td align="right">1,530.00 (51.00%)</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table><br>
My training miles above are very shameful, and I have no one to blame other than myself. Many of my race-time bonks could have been avoided with adequate training. I have made it a resolution to train hard in 2012 and not lose "the gift" as Pre calls this gift of running, see the quote at the top of this entry.<br>
<br>
After being inspired by my friend & <a href="http://www.vctc.org/" target="_blank"">VCTC</a> + <a href="http://www.usatf.org/" target="_blank"">USATF</a> teammate Michael Arnstein aka <a href="http://www.thefruitarian.com/" target="_blank"">The Fruitarian</a>, and watching his <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheFruitarian/videos" target="_blank">The Fruitarian YouTube channel</a>, I became inspired to incorporate running more into my daily life. <br>
<br>
In particular, this video made me realize this and provided me with the passion to love training and not disdain it:<br>
"Exercise Each Day As If Your Life Depends On It!"<br>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tQA3Tvkg_s" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tQA3Tvkg_s</a><br>
You don't have to be a fruitarian to take in his message of a healthy lifestyle. I no longer view "training" as a chore. I now use it as a mode of transportation to get from place A to place B, as part of my daily life. <br>
<br>
I have started my #RunStreak on 12/25/2011 (it ended on 2/6/2012 after Day 43 due to a sprained toe sustained at 2012 Rocky Raccoon 100, but restarted on 2/9/2012), by running 10 miles with my running buddy <a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/Peaser" target="_blank">Jim Pease</a> and have kept it going since. The idea of a #RunStreak was first introduced to me by my friend <a href="http://ishouldgetarealhobby.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Dave Shannon</a> from Minnesota. The next time you think, "It's too cold to run outside today", try thinking about Dave and him keeping up a #RunStreak up in St Paul, MN!<br>
<br>
With increased training miles in 2012, I anticipate faster road marathon times and better 100 mile & 24 hour results. Big things are in store! It is all thanks to friends making me accountable for my training now and to useful tools such as <a href="http://www.dailymile.com/people/RunKino" target="_blank">DailyMile</a> and my Garmin watch, to push me to run further and more frequently.<br>
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-9825209961644947082011-02-03T16:01:00.005-05:002012-02-21T16:02:33.147-05:0050 States + DC and 7 Continents<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qImCc9R6eD4/TyrbDOPDU2I/AAAAAAAABXw/v2lZLH5qDks/s1600/568237.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qImCc9R6eD4/TyrbDOPDU2I/AAAAAAAABXw/v2lZLH5qDks/s400/568237.gif" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Running marathons is fun and all, but there are so many out there to choose from. Take a look at how marathoning has exploded in the U.S. the past 3 years since I started running them, according to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/index.cfm">MarathonGuide</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> - 2008: 477 marathons</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> - 2009: 501 marathons</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> - 2010: 620 marathons</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> - 2011: 710 marathons</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">In 2000, there were only 220 marathons in the country! In the span of a decade, the number of marathons has nearly tripled, and this doesn't even take into account ultramarathons, which have increased with an even more upward trajectory.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">So, with so many races, how does one go about choosing which to run? </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">From my</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/poweredbydimsum/">PoweredByDimSum</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> running club teammates, I had heard of their marathoning adventures in various states and countries. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I decided to focus on knocking off states and becoming a <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com/50dc/finishercert.html">50 States Marathon Club Finisher</a>. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Right from the get go, my first three marathons were all in different states. In fact, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1382">my first 10 marathons</a> were all in different states + DC+ Quebec Province. After knocking off those initial 3 states (NY, IL, & PA), finishing <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2942520.50_50">Dean Karnazes' 50/50</a> book (about running 50 marathons in all 50 states in 50 days), and becoming a <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/">Marathon Maniacs</a> member, my quest to run all 50 states became solidified. Since childhood, I wanted to visit all 50 states and had been tempted to start collecting those state-shaped tourist magnets to commemorate each visit. Luckily, I never started up such a collection, and could now use marathon/ultramarathon finisher's medals as state visit mementos. I would say that's better than a refrigerator magnet collection!</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/09/marathon-1-2008-yonkers-marathon.html">I began marathoning on 9/20/2008</a>. With my marathon finish in Baltimore, MD, a</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> year later (on 10/10/2009),</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I had run my 10th state + DC, thus qualifying me as a member of both the <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com/">50 States Marathon Club</a> and <a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/">50&DC Marathon Goup</a>! As soon as I returned home from that marathoning weekend (which also happened to be my first marathon double: Baltimore+Steamtown), I sent <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com/50dc/50applic.html">my 50 Stater paper application</a> and my <a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/apply.cfm">50&DC paper application</a> to become an official member of each group.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">After joining the 50 States Marathon Club, don't forget to also join their <a href="http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/50StatesMarathonClub/">50StatesMarathonClub Yahoo Groups</a> email list:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/50StatesMarathonClub/">http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/50StatesMarathonClub/</a></span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Although it is a bit more difficult to finish 50+DC, there is less fanfare attached to it when compared to completion of the regular 50 State circuit. The 50 States club is more active and visible. You'll see 50 Staters in their 50 State gear on most marathon courses, but that is not the case for the 50&DC. Many members are in both clubs, as am I. Membership in either club does not preclude the ability to join the other; they are not mutually exclusive.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Had it not been for US Air, I would have already celebrated my 25th state finish (Charleston, South Carolina), but that is a whole other story. My 50 State progress looks like this:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">2008: 3 States (NY, IL, PA)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">2009: 11 States + DC (LA, DC, DE, VT, MT, NJ, WI, MD, VA, IN, GA, NV)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">2010: 9 States (FL, TX, CA, NH, ME, CT, RI, AZ, TN)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">2011: 13 States (MA, AR, AL, NC, KS, MN, WA, ID, CO, OH, WV, OR, MO)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">2012: 14 States is the goal in order to complete the 50 States</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Total: 36 States + DC</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">An easy way to keep track of which states I have run, I use this 50 States Map Maker: </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">"<a href="http://monarch.tamu.edu/~maps2/us.htm">Map Maker Utility</a>" hosted on a Texas A&M server (</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://diymaps.net/">http://diymaps.net/</a>). </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">To see my personal 50 States Map, click <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_RwQwJJKwZ_M/TUsb2cgJ2BI/AAAAAAAAA88/bhWYiKlW2Qo/s1600/14323235.gif">here</a>. A lower resolution version of the map also appears at the top of this blog entry.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Now that I have run 24 States + DC (roughly mission halfway accomplished), I have reflected back on which particular races I would recommend for the states I have already run in the list below. Likewise, I have done the same for those questing to run a marathon/ultra on all 7 Continents, to become a </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.sevencontinentsclub.com/">Seven Continents Club</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.sevencontinentsclub.com/index.cfm?pid=11193">finisher</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">The greatest part about my 50 States+DC & 7 Continents quest is the fortunate experiences I have had being able to visit all the great places, domestically and globally, and meet such inspirational people hailing from backgrounds so different than myself. This quest definitely instills in you a better sense of what "America" truly is and the cultural vastness and sheer raw beauty that this land of ours has to offer.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">As I continue to run races and receive feedback from other runners, I will continue to revise both of the below lists. Also, new marathons spring up all the time, so those might be better options in the future. We shall see.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><u>Kino's Recommended 50 States Marathons / Ultras</u></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">[States & races that I have run and recommend are in <b>bold</b>. The others were recommended by others, or ones I selected based on my own research. Currently finished with 38 states + DC. Updated as of 02/21/2012.]</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>AL - </b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.firstlightmarathon.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">First Light Marathon</a>, </span><a href="http://www.runrocketcity.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Rocket City Marathon</a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">, </span><a href="http://www.mercedesmarathon.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Mercedes Marathon</a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">AK - <a href="http://www.southeastroadrunners.org/marathon.htm">Frank Maier Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>AZ - <a href="http://www.javelinajundred.com/">Javelina Jundred</a> 100M (Trail)</b></span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">AR - <a href="http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/">Little Rock Marathon</a></span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/"></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>CA - </b><a href="http://www.ws100.com/">Western States 100 Endurance Run (Trail)</a>, <a href="http://www.envirosports.com/default.asp?PageID=20888" style="font-weight: bold;">Death Valley Trail Marathon</a><b> (Trail), </b><a href="http://www.bsim.org/" style="font-weight: bold;">Big Sur International Marathon</a><b> (Natural Beauty), </b><a href="http://www.lamarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">LA Marathon</a><b> (Big City)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>CO - <a href="http://www.adtmarathon.com/">American Discovery Trail Marathon</a> (Trail)</b>, <a href="http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/">Pikes Peak Marathon</a> (Trail), <a href="http://www.leadvilletrail100.com/Home.aspx">Leadville Trail 100</a> (Trail), <a href="http://hardrock100.com/">Hardrock 100 Endurance Run</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>CT - <a href="http://www.hartfordmarathon.com/">Hartford Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>DC - <a href="http://www.nationalmarathon.com/">National Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>DE - <a href="http://www.delawaremarathon.org/">Delaware Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>FL - <a href="http://www.ingmiamimarathon.com/">Miami Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>GA - <a href="http://www.atlantatrackclub.org/">Atlanta Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">HI - <a href="http://www.honolulumarathon.org/">Honolulu Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.hurt100trailrace.com/">HURT 100</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>ID - <a href="http://www.pocatellomarathon.com/">Pocatello Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>IL - <a href="http://www.chicagomarathon.com/">Chicago Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>IN - </b><a href="http://monumentalmarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Indianapolis Monumental Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.dinoseries.com/marathon.html">Tecumseh Trail Marathon</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">IA - <a href="http://www.desmoinesmarathon.com/">Des Moines Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>KS - <a href="http://www.olathe.org/cvb/sports/Marathon/index.html">Oz Marathon</a></b>, <a href="http://www.eisenhowermarathon.com/">Eisenhower Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.ksultrarunners.org/">Heartland 50/100</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">KY - <a href="http://www.derbyfestivalmarathon.com/">Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.ironmanlouisville.com/">Ironman Louisville</a> (Ironman), <a href="http://66.49.143.155/phpnuke/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=2">Land Between The Lakes 60K</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>LA - <a href="http://mardi-gras.competitor.com/">Rock 'n' Roll Mardi Gras Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>ME - </b><a href="http://www.mainemarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Maine Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.mdimarathon.org/">Mount Desert Island Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>MD - </b><a href="http://www.thebaltimoremarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Baltimore Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.jfk50mile.org/">JFK50</a> (Partially Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>MA - </b><a href="http://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon.aspx">Boston Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">MI - <a href="http://www.freepmarathon.com/">Detroit Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.greatlakesendurance.com/grand-island-trail-marathon/">Grand Island Trail Marathon</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><strong>MN - </strong><a href="http://www.mtcmarathon.org/">Twin Cities Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.fans24hour.org/"><strong>FANS 12 & 24 Hour Runs</strong></a> (Timed Ultra)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>MS -</b> <a href="http://tupelorunningclub.homestead.com/tupelomarathon.html">Tupelo Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.msbluesmarathon.com/"><b>Mississippi Blues Marathon</b></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>MO -</b> <a href="http://www.gostlouis.org/">GO! St Louis Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>MT - <a href="http://www.runwildmissoula.org/">Missoula Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">NE - <a href="http://www.lincolnrun.org/marathon.htm">Lincoln Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>NV - </b></span><a href="http://www.envirosports.com/default.asp?PageID=20888" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Death Valley Trail Marathon</a><b style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> (Trail), </b><a href="http://calicoracing.squarespace.com/red-rock-marathon-and-12-marat/" style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Red Rock Canyon Marathon</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">, <a href="http://calicoracing.squarespace.com/et-full-moon-midnight-maratho/">E.T. Full Moon Midnight Marathon & 51K</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>NH - <a href="http://www.nhmarathon.com/">New Hampshire Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>NJ - </b><a href="http://www.odmarathon.org/"><b>Ocean Drive Marathon</b></a>, <a href="http://www.acmarathon.org/">Atlantic City Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">NM - <b><a href="http://www.highaltitudeathletics.org/JemezMt.htm">Jemez Mountain Trail Runs 50K & 50M</a> (Trail)</b>, <a href="http://www.vallescaldera.gov/comevisit/run/run_viewall.aspx" target="_blank">Run the Caldera Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>NY - <a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.com/">NYC Marathon</a>, <a href="http://summer100.com/">Beast of Burden Summer 100</a> (Trail)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>NC - <a href="http://www.umstead100.org/">Umstead 100</a> (Trail)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">ND - <a href="http://www.fargomarathon.com/">Fargo Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>OH - <a href="http://www.northcoast24.org/">NorthCoast 24-Hour Endurance Run</a></b>, <a href="http://www.flyingpigmarathon.com/">Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.akronmarathon.org/">Akron Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.burningriver100.org/">Burning River 100 Mile Endurance Run</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">OK - <a href="http://www.okcmarathon.com/">Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>OR - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.portlandmarathon.org/"><b>Portland Marathon</b></a>, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.craterlakerimruns.com/">Crater Lake Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.eugenemarathon.com/">Eugene Marathon</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>PA - <a href="http://www.steamtownmarathon.com/">Steamtown Marathon</a> (Partially Trail), <a href="http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com/">Philadelphia Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.20in24.com/">Back on My Feet 20in24 Lone Ranger Ultra Marathon</a> (24 Hour Ultra, Pavement)</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>RI - <a href="http://www.amicamarathon.com/">Newport Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>SC - <a href="http://www.mbmarathon.com/" target="_blank">Myrtle Beach Marathon</a></b>, <a href="http://www.adventuregeekproductions.com/">Kings Mountain Marathon</a> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">SD - <a href="http://www.deadwoodmickelsontrailmarathon.com/">Deadwood-Mickelson Trail Marathon</a> (Trail), <a href="http://www.runcrazyhorse.com/">Crazy Horse Marathon</a> (Part Trail), <a href="http://www.leanhorsehundred.com/">Lean Horse 50K, 50M, & 100M</a> (Trail), <a href="http://www.blackhills100.com/">Black Hills 100</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>TN - <a href="http://www.harpethhillsmarathon.com/">Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>TX - <a href="http://www.chevronhoustonmarathon.com/">Houston Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">UT - <a href="http://www.wasatch100.com/">Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run</a> (Trail), <a href="http://www.stgeorgemarathon.com/">St George Marathon</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>VT - <a href="http://www.vermontcitymarathon.org/">Vermont City Marathon</a></b>, <a href="http://www.vermont100.com/">Vermont 100 Endurance Run</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>VA - </b><a href="http://www.marinemarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Marine Corps Marathon</a>, <b><a href="http://www.racepacket.com/tidalbasin">Grant-Pierce Indoor Marathon</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>WA - <a href="http://seattle.competitor.com/">Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon</a></b>, <a href="http://www.cascadecrest100.com/">Cascade Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run</a> (Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>WV - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.freedomsrun.org/"><b>Freedom's Run (Marathon)</b></a>, <a href="http://www.wvmtr.org/events/highlands-sky-40m-trail-run/">Highlands Sky Trail Run 40M</a> (Trail)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.freedomsrun.org/"></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>WI - </b><a href="http://www.cellcomgreenbaymarathon.com/">Green Bay Marathon</a>, <a href="http://sandboxindoormarathon.com/">Sandbox Indoor Marathon</a> (Indoor Trail)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">WY - <a href="http://www.bighorntrailrun.com/">Bighorn Trail 100 Mile Endurance Run</a> (Trail)</span><br />
<br />
<u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><u>Kino's Recommended 7 Continents Marathons / Ultras</u></span></u><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none;"><u></u></span></u></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Africa - <a href="http://www.comrades.com/">Comrades Marathon 89K (56M Road)</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Antarctica - <a href="http://www.icemarathon.com/">Antarctic Ice Marathon & 100K (Trail)</a>, <a href="http://www.4deserts.com/thelastdesert/">The Last Desert (250K 6-Days Trail)</a>, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/sports/30antarctica.html">McMurdo Marathon (Trail)</a>, <a href="http://www.marathontours.com/index.cfm?pid=10734">Antarctica Marathon (Trail)</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Asia - <a href="http://www.tokyo42195.org/">Tokyo Marathon</a></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Europe - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.berlin-marathon.com/"><b>Berlin Marathon</b></a>, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.virginlondonmarathon.com/">London Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.parismarathon.com/">Paris Marathon</a>, <a href="https://www.edinburgh-marathon.com/">Edinburgh Marathon</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>North America - </b><a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">NYC Marathon</a>, <b><a href="http://www.javelinajundred.com/">Javelina Jundred 100</a></b>, <b><a href="http://www.20in24.com/">Back on My Feet 20in24 Lone Ranger Ultra Marathon</a></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Oceana - </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://www.bullermarathon.org.nz/">Buller Gorge Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.goldcoastmarathon.com.au/">Gold Coast Airport Marathon</a>, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.sydneymarathon.org/">Sydney Marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.solar-eclipse-marathon.com/">Solar Eclipse Marathon</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> South America - <a href="http://www.maratonadorio.com.br/">Maratona do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro Marathon)</a></span></span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-17873627882786054642011-02-03T04:20:00.004-05:002012-02-20T11:05:00.091-05:0050 Sub-4 Marathon Club Aspirations<div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="White Visor" src="http://www.50sub4.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/white-hs-visor.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.50sub4.com/members/club-apparel/">50<4 Club Apparel</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div>With today (2/3/2011) being <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year's">Chinese New Year's</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit_(zodiac)">Year of the Metal Rabbit</a>, speed comes to forethought. Though my primary goal when running a road marathon is to successfully finish and avoid a road marathon PW ("personal worst", which for me is 5:00:15 set at my first marathon, <a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/09/marathon-1-2008-yonkers-marathon.html">2008 Yonkers</a>), my secondary goal is to run it as fast as I can when possible, and to PR (setting a "personal record", which many refer to as a PB or "personal best") it ideally. Scheduling (e.g. running doubles or too soon after a 50/24hr/100) and course elevations prevent this from happening oftentimes, and those are the times I like to run with a camera and document my journey. However, when I can pull off a fast race, it feels great to finish ahead of half of the race field. What I personally define as fast is running a marathon in under 4 hours, the elusive "Sub-4" finish for many of us. So during this year of the Rabbit, I hope to run in that sub-4 realm once again and maintain consistency while running road marathons in various states, something that my friend and <a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PoweredByDimSum/">Powered By Dim Sum</a> teammate, <a href="http://www.athlinks.com/myresults/83940284/Wei-Chen.aspx">Wei Chen</a>, is adept at accomplishing.<br />
<br />
Wei is one of 93 members of an elite group of marathoners (along with 50 Stater/<a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/">Marathon Maniacs</a> friends Steve Boone and <a href="http://www.athlinks.com/myresults/84663110/Mark-Ott.aspx">Mark Ott</a>) who are members of the <a href="http://www.50sub4.com/">50sub4 Marathon Club</a>. The meaning behind 50sub4 is: completion of a marathon in all 50 states in under 4 hours for each marathon. Though simply running a Sub-4 is impressive, it is something that most marathoners are capable of. What makes a 50sub4 finish so alluring is that it rewards speed, consistency, longevity, and logistical planning skills.<br />
<br />
While regular <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com/">50 States Marathon Cub</a> admittance is irregardless of finish time (you only need to finish a marathon/ultra in 10 different states and pay annual dues to become a regular member), the exclusive 50sub4 Marathon Club requires 10 states to be run in a sub-4 marathon time, in order to be admitted as a regular (non-finisher) member. Once all 50 states are completed, a member is considered a "finisher". The club makes available its <a href="http://www.50sub4.com/wp-content/uploads/Membership-Roster.pdf">Current Membership Roster</a> (93 members) and its <a href="http://www.50sub4.com/wp-content/uploads/Race-Results-Summary.pdf">Finishers Roster</a> (12 finishers).<br />
<br />
Of those 93 members, there are only 12 (there are more in this world, but only 12 have actually registered to join the club as members) who have completed this difficult 50sub4 task. The most recent finisher was fellow 50 Stater/MMer <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1945">Gary Krugger</a>, who finished both the 50 states and 50sub4 on 10/30/2010 at the 5th Annual <a href="http://www.spinxrunfest.com/">Spinx Marathon</a> in Greenville, SC. That race was also significant because Gary's Maniacal girlfriend, and also fellow 50 Stater/MMer, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1957">Morgan Cummings</a>, became the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/marathon-in-national/new-record-set-for-youngest-woman-to-run-all-50-states-and-dc">youngest woman to finish 50+DC</a>. Gary is more of a sub3 marathoner, the likes of <a href="http://www.sub3marathoner.com/mymarathons.html">Joe Bowman</a>, and has a legitimate shot at the more prestigious and daunting task of becoming a <a href="http://www.sub3marathoner.com/">51sub3</a> club member! As far as I know, there are only 2 members (Joe and <a href="http://www.sub3marathoner.com/toby.html">Toby Skinner</a>) of this elite club, maybe 4 if <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=251">Maniac "Marathon Junkie"</a> <a href="http://www.sub3marathoner.com/chuck.html">Chuck Engle</a> and <a href="http://www.sub3marathoner.com/Wardian.html">Michael Wardian</a> have both completed the task?<br />
<br />
As mentioned earlier, when running marathons, my primary goal is finishing, which goes along with my primary focus of becoming a 50 State Finisher. However, it would be nice if I could start reeling off more Sub-4 state finishes. I have made it a secondary goal of mine, when attempting to conquer the states. This 50sub4 goal will take much longer than simply finishing a tour of the 50 states. While the 50 states circuit is expected to take me 5 years to complete (2008-2013?), finishing all 50 states in a sub-4 time will require roughly 10-15 years (if all goes well).<br />
<br />
Currently (as of this blog posting date, 2/3/2011), of my 41 marathon finishes (not counting my 9 ultras), I only have 2 sub-4 states completed. Surprisingly they occurred within a 3 weekend span, with a 4:00:28 finish (missed a sub-4 by 29 seconds) at MCM in between.<br />
<br />
<u>PR's By State</u><br />
Sub-4 State Count: 18 (as of 02/18/2012, these states are listed in <b>bold</b>.)<br />
<b>AL - 3:52:07, 2012 First Light Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
AK - ?<br />
AZ - 14:54:48, 2011 Javelina Jundred (100K Trail)<br />
<b>AR - 3:58:37, 2011 Little Rock Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
CA - 4:35:08, 2010 LA Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
CO - 4:27:04, 2011 American Discovery Trail Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
CT - 4:43:26, 2010 Hartford Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
<b>DC - 3:54:03, 2011 National Marathon, 1-for-2</b><br />
DE - 4:20:37, 2011 Fortitude For First Descents Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
<b>FL - 3:39:52, 2012 Miami Marathon, 1-for-3</b><br />
GA - 4:10:55, 2009 Atlanta Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
HI - ?<br />
<b>ID - 3:54:33, 2011 Pocatello Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
IL - 4:52:16, 2008 Chicago Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
IN - 4:14:27, 2009 Indianapolis Monumental Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
IA - ?<br />
<b>KS - 3:52:49, 2011 Oz Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
KY - ?<br />
LA - 4:35:36 2009 New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
ME - 4:48:54, 2010 Maine Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
<b>MD - 3:43:13, 2011 Baltimore Marathon, 1-for-3</b><br />
MA - 5:27:00, 2011 WMAC Fat Ass 50K (31M)<br />
MI - ?<br />
MN - 24:00:00, 2011 FANS 24 Hour Run (102.89M)<br />
<b>MS - 3:35:33, 2012 Mississippi Blues Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
<b>MO - 3:55:14, 2011 Rock 'n' Roll St. Louis Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
MT - 4:34:36, 2009 Missoula Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
NE - ?<br />
<b>NV - 3:58:08, 2011 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon, 1-for-3</b><br />
NH - 4:55:18, 2010 New Hampshire Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
<b>NJ - 3:59:43, 2009 Asbury Park Relay Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
NM - DNF, 2010 Jemez Mountain Trail Runs 50K<br />
<b>NY - 3:56:07, 2009 NYC Marathon</b><b>, 1-for-4</b><br />
NC - 11:49:51, 2011 Umstead 50<br />
ND - ?<br />
OH - 24:00:00, 2011 NorthCoast 24-Hour Endurace Run, 104.79 miles<br />
OK - ?<br />
<b>OR - 3:36:53, 2011 Portland Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
<b>PA - 3:48:17, 2011 Pocono Mountain Run for the Red Marathon, 1-for-4</b><br />
RI - 4:27:06, 2010 Newport Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
<b>SC - 3:26:29, 2012 Myrtle Beach Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
SD - ?<br />
TN - 4:41:13, 2010 Flying Monkey Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
<b>TX - 3:28:18, 2012 Houston Marathon, 1-for-2</b><br />
UT - ?<br />
VT - 4:11:17, 2009 Vermont City Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
<b>VA - 3:39:15, 2011 Marine Corps Marathon, 1-for-3</b><br />
<b>WA - 3:59:39, 2011 Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
<b>WV - 3:56:39, 2011 Freedom's Run, 1-for-1</b><br />
WI - 4:03:09, 2009 Lakefront Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
WY - ?<br />
<br />
<u>PR's by Country</u><br />
Sub-4 Country Count: 2 (as of 12/04/2011, these countries are& listed in <b>bold</b>.)<br />
CANADA - 4:34:38, 2009 Marathon Oasis de Montreal, 0-for-1<br />
<b>GERMANY - 3:38:21, 2011 Berlin Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
HONG KONG - 4:11:17, 2011 Hong Kong Marathon, 0-for-1<br />
JAPAN - 4:11:10, 2011 Tokyo Marathon, 0-for-2<br />
<b>USA - 3:26:29, 2012 Myrtle Beach Marathon, 1-for-14</b><br />
<br />
Sub-4 Continent Count: 2 (as of 2/18/2012, these continents are listed in <b>bold</b>.)<br />
Asia - 4:11:10, 2011 Tokyo Marathon, 0-for-3<br />
<b>Europe - 3:38:21, 2011 Berlin Marathon, 1-for-1</b><br />
<b>North America - 3:26:29, 2012 Myrtle Beach Marathon, 1-for-15</b>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-35827834953791828352011-01-03T23:57:00.000-05:002011-02-11T16:27:05.848-05:0050&DC Marathon Group - 2011 Humanitarian Award Recipient<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><u>2011 HUMANITARIAN AWARD</u><br />
Awarded by the <a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/">50 States & D.C. Marathon Group</a>.<br />
[This article was originally written by Frank Jobe and featured on the 50&DC Marathon Group website (<a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/awards.cfm">http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/awards.cfm</a>) on 12/29/2010. For the purposes of this blog, it has been revised below.]</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RwQwJJKwZ_M/TSKol1o4-RI/AAAAAAAAA5w/ezluwxOeBfQ/s1600/IMG_1901.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RwQwJJKwZ_M/TSKol1o4-RI/AAAAAAAAA5w/ezluwxOeBfQ/s320/IMG_1901.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">[2010.12.25] Photo taken by <a href="http://www.ohsnapper.com/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">Richard Chung</a> in front of the <a href="http://www.vcpark.org/park/features/cross_country_trail.html">Tortoise and Hare statue at Van Cortlandt Park</a> in The Bronx, New York City.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">When you hear the term cancer, any thoughts you may have will likely be unpleasant ones. When you hear the term pancreatic cancer, your thoughts may become grimmer yet, possibly along the lines of "low survival rate" or "short life expectancy after diagnosis". Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death with a five-year survival rate of 6% (mortality rate of 94%). According to the National Cancer Institute, over 43,000 Americans were estimated to have been diagnosed with the disease in 2010 with roughly 37,000 losing their lives. 75% of patients die within the first year of diagnosis. The average life expectancy after diagnosis with metastatic disease is just three to six months.<br />
<br />
The disease is hard to detect because of the location of the pancreas—it is deep in the abdomen and the symptoms are often vague. There are no early detection or screening methods as there are with colon, breast or prostate cancer. The mortality for pancreatic cancer is so high because patients are typically diagnosed when the cancer has already spread to other organs.<br />
<br />
Pancreatic cancer is a leading cause of cancer death largely because there are no detection tools to diagnose the disease in its early stages when surgical removal of the tumor is still possible. Early diagnosis and early treatment are two areas that need to be improved upon. However, more funding for pancreatic cancer research is needed to enable scientists to fulfill these two research goals. Despite being the fourth leading cause of cancer death, <a href="http://www.parade.com/news/intelligence-report/archive/100620-cancer-funding-doesnt-add-up.html">pancreatic cancer research funding was not one of the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) 10 Most-Funded Cancers</a>. <a href="http://fundedresearch.cancer.gov/">The NCI spent an estimated $89.7 million on pancreatic cancer research in 2009</a>. This represented a mere 2% of the NCI’s approximate $5 billion cancer research budget for that year, which constitutes the bulk of the U.S. federal government's cancer research funding dollars.<br />
<br />
Low funding hinders scientific progress. 94% of pancreatic cancer patients die within five years from their diagnosis; a statistic largely unchanged in the past nearly 40 years. In fact, pancreatic cancer is the only one of the top 10 cancer killers that still has a five-year survival rate in the single digits. Additionally, in the same time frame, the five-year survival rate for all forms of cancer has risen from 50% to 68%, and some cancer survival rates are now 90% or above. The sad truth is that there are few survivors to advocate for more research funding.<br />
<br />
This year's recipient of the <a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/awards.cfm">50 States & D.C. Marathon Group's</a><a href="http://www.50anddcmarathongroupusa.com/awards.cfm"> Humanitarian Award</a> is Hideki Kinoshita, an individual who has lost two loved ones to this disease. His concern for effects of this disease and his love for running were coupled together in a quest to run <a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/hideki-kinoshita/kino555">14 marathons in 13 weeks</a>. He partnered with the <a href="http://www.pancan.org/section_get_involved/events_fundraising/marathons.php">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network</a> to establish a fundraising goal of $10,000 to help in the research and awareness of this dreaded disease. He set out to run one marathon a week for thirteen weeks (3 months) and in one of those weeks, he ran a back-to-back double to complete his goal of fourteen marathons. Hideki experienced some unexpected results along the way: Four marathon PR's were set, the longest distance he ever ran was completed at <a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/11/marathon-21-2009-nyrr-knickerbocker-60k.html">60K (37.2 miles)</a>, he met a lot of great runners along the way, and exceeded the $10,000 goal.<br />
<br />
This 31 year old runner from New York/New Jersey has also participated in a <a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/deborah-hsieh/pancan_r2c">seven person relay that raised over $26,000</a> for this cause and has since completed a 50-miler, a 24 hour run, and then a 100-miler. He is <a href="http://www.runkino.com/2011/02/50-states-dc-and-7-continents.html">halfway finished with his goal of running a marathon in all 50 states plus DC</a> and plans to challenge himself to additional 100-mile endurance runs.<br />
<br />
He continues to raise awareness and funding for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network and aims to run for the organization's <a href="http://www.pancan.org/teamhope/">TeamHOPE</a> charity runner group for his 50th marathon in Miami on January 30, 2011 and for his 65th marathon in Seattle on June 25, 2011. His goal for both races is to <a href="http://www.tinyurl.com/runkinomiami">raise $2,500</a>. To make a donation, visit his fundraising websites: <a href="http://www.tinyurl.com/runkinomiami" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.tinyurl.com/runkinomiami</a> and <a href="http://www.tinyurl.com/runkinoseattle" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.tinyurl.com/runkinoseattle</a> .<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f6gWnuVPGQk/TVRRNAKkBaI/AAAAAAAAA-o/Kht0T_Xuav8/s1600/50%2526DC_2011Award.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f6gWnuVPGQk/TVRRNAKkBaI/AAAAAAAAA-o/Kht0T_Xuav8/s320/50%2526DC_2011Award.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Congratulations to Hideki Kinoshita, recipient of the 2011 Humanitarian Award. To learn more about his 14 marathons in 13 weeks endeavor, visit his fundraising website: <a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/kino555" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.firstgiving.com/kino555</a> . To learn more about the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network and TeamHOPE, visit these websites: <a href="http://www.pancan.org/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.pancan.org</a> and <a href="http://www.pancan.org/teamhope/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.pancan.org/teamhope/</a> . To follow Hideki's races and progress, visit his website: <a href="http://www.runkino.com/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.runkino.com</a> .<br />
<br />
Note: The above facts and figures were obtained from the <a href="http://www.cancer.org/">American Cancer Society</a>, <a href="http://www.cancer.gov/">National Cancer Institute</a>, and the <a href="http://www.pancan.org/">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network</a>.<br />
<br />
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-30630334710578332462010-09-24T17:17:00.000-04:002011-11-16T11:26:40.528-05:00Hello (Running) World !<span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 18px;font-size:small;" class="Apple-style-span" ><img src="http://www.pancan.org/section_get_involved/events_fundraising/images/marathon.jpg" /><br />
[2009.11.21] A picture of me at the finish of the NYRR Knickerbocker 60K (37.2 mile) Ultra in Central Park, NYC. I am holding up a finisher's award (a paper weight). The race was my furthest at the time. It took me 6:49:13 (11:00 min/mile) to complete.<br />
<br />
[This blog entry was also featured on <a href="http://www.nycruns.com" target="_blank">NYCRuns.com</a> (http://www.nycruns.com/ny-stories/item/605-hello-running-world) on 9/27/2010.]<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hello_world_program" target="_blank">Hello (Running) World</a><br />
<br />
I am a <a href="http://www.thewriterscoin.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/steve-prefontaine-poster.jpg" target="_blank">runner</a>, based in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City" target="_blank">New York City</a>, who is fairly new to the <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/" target="_blank">running</a>, <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/" target="_blank">marathon</a>, <a href="http://www.trailrunnermag.com/" target="_blank">trail running</a>, and <a href="http://www.ultrarunning.com/" target="_blank">ultra running</a> scene. I ran my first race on 6/3/2007 and <a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/09/marathon-1-2008-yonkers-marathon.html" target="_blank">my first marathon on 9/21/2008</a>. I am <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/" target="_blank">Marathon Maniac</a> <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1382" target="_blank">#1382</a>, known in the running community as <a href="http://www.facebook.com/RunKino" target="_blank">Kino</a>. I just celebrated <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=1055100919" target="_blank">my 2 year marathon anniversary</a> this past week.<br />
<br />
I delved into the sport of running thanks to the influence of two runner friends: <a href="http://www.athlinks.com/searchbeta.aspx?term=yasuaki%20shimizu" target="_blank">Yasu</a> and <a href="http://www.athlinks.com/searchbeta.aspx?term=melissa%20hon" target="_blank">Melissa</a>. I credit the two of them with introducing me to the sport of running. Both had been training for the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Race-Like-No-Other-Through/dp/0061373141/" target="_blank">2007</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Marathon" target="_blank">NYC Marathon</a>. They convinced me to register for my very first race: the <a href="http://www.nyrrc.org/race/2007/photosa70603.html" target="_blank">2007 Japan Day 4-Mile Race</a> with the <a href="http://www.nyrr.org/" target="_blank">New York Road Runners</a>. It was a painful 4 miles, and the furthest I had ever run. I ran it in 35:31 (8:52 miles/min) and was discouraged with my performance. I hated running "long" distances (in hindsight, it's hard to imagine 4 miles as being considered "long", that's shorter than the distance between many aid stations at ultramarathons) and although I enjoyed the race atmosphere, I did not picture myself running races on a regular basis.<br />
<br />
Prior to this first race of mine, the longest distance I had run was 2 miles in combat boots and in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Dress_Uniform" target="_blank">BDU's (battle dress uniform)</a>, as a PT training run while as an <a href="http://www.jhu.edu/rotc/" target="_blank">Army ROTC cadet in the Blue Jay Battalion</a> at <a href="http://www.jhu.edu/" target="_blank">Johns Hopkins University</a>. Even that felt like an eternity. I hated each moment of it and did not plan to ever run an official race.<br />
<br />
At <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonia_High_School#Athletics" target="_blank"> Leonia High School</a>, my athletic commitments all revolved around team sports. In the fall, I played JV & varsity soccer. During the winter, I stayed indoors and played JV & varsity basketball. Come spring time, I played on the Freshman, JV, and varsity baseball teams. Individual sports, such as running and tennis, had no allure to me. Now, reflecting back, I regret not choosing Cross Country as my fall sport at least one of those seasons, instead of soccer. Whatever formalized coaching I could have received might have provided invaluable knowledge and insight to me. On the other hand, a rigid training system might have forever turned me off and pushed me away from the sport, so who knows how things would have turned out?<br />
<br />
It is funny to reflect back because up until Fall 2007, I HATED running. So what changed? On 11/4/2007, I went out to spectate at the New York City Marathon and cheer on Yasu and Melissa, the very two friends who had been encouraging me to take up running. From the vantage point at <a href="http://i4.photoblog.com/photos/53736-1283851311-0-l.jpg" target="_blank">Engineer's Gate</a> in Central Park (E 90th Street and Central Park East Drive) and also at the E85th Street bend within Central Park, I saw many of the 38,000+ runners pass by (the 2007 NYC Marathon set the world record as the <a href="http://www.aims-association.org/statistics/World's_Largest_Marathons.html" target="_blank">largest ever marathon</a> with 38,557 finishers, a record that lasted until it was surpassed by the 2009 NYC Marathon). It was my first time witnessing an actual marathon in-person. Prior to this, I had only seen marathons on TV and held the preconceived notion that a marathon was an undertaking feasible only by elite athletes. Upon seeing the masses of ordinary citizens (young and old, gaunt and heavy set, and even those in full body costumes) eclipsing 24 miles, on their way to completing the full marathon distance of 26.2 miles, I came to the realization that I, too, could accomplish this same goal. The "If they can do it, then I can too" mindset set in. "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon" target="_blank">The marathon</a>" was not something reserved just for exceptional athletes, but could be an achievable goal for a non-elite as myself. At that moment, I was inspired to run my first marathon within one year's time. The very next day, I became a <a href="http://www.nyrr.org/about/membership/index.asp" target="_blank">New York Road Runners member</a> and registered myself for a slew of races.<br />
<br />
I was hoping to make my marathon debut at the 2008 NYC Marathon, but it was too late for me to achieve guaranteed entry via NYRR's 9 race Program for Guaranteed Entry (now the <a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/about/9_1_guaranteed_entry.htm" target="_blank">9+1 Program for Guaranteed Entry</a>). I tried my luck in the <a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/apply.htm" target="_blank">marathon lottery application</a>, but was rejected (the chance of a local being admitted through the lottery process is slim, somewhere in the 20%-30% range). Luckily, the town in which I worked, hosted a marathon that was easy to enter and only cost $25 to register for (that amounts to less than $1 per mile, talk about a bargain!). It also happened to be the second oldest active marathon in the world: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonkers_Marathon" target="_blank">The Yonkers Marathon</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://runkino.blogspot.com/2010/09/marathon-1-2008-yonkers-marathon.html" target="_blank">My marathon debut</a> took place at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonkers,_New_York" target="_blank">Yonkers, NY</a> on <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=1055080921" target="_blank">9/21/2008</a>, a date I will always remember. I finished the marathon and just simply took off running in an almost <a href="http://www.dieseldoeswestern.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/forrest-gump.jpg" target="_blank">Forrest Gumpian</a> manner. I completed my second (<a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/09/marathon-2-2008-chicago-marathon.html" target="_blank">Chicago Marathon</a>) and third (<a href="http://www.runkino.com/2010/11/marathon-3-2008-philadelphia-marathon.html" target="_blank">Philadelphia Marathon</a>) marathons within the next 63 days. Unbeknownst to me, this achievement of running 3 marathons in less than 3 months had <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/criteria.html" target="_blank">pre-qualified me</a> to become a member of the <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/" target="_blank">Marathon Maniacs</a>.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1382" target="_blank">After a two year whirlwind of marathons and ultras</a>, I have somehow finished running 1/3 of the <a href="http://www.50statesmarathonclub.com/" target="_blank">50 states</a> (17 states + DC finished) and coincidentally also 1/3 of the way to <a href="http://www.100marathonclub.us/" target="_blank">Marathon #100</a> (34 marathons + ultras completed). I am very open to sharing my experiences and am frequently approached by fellow runners to provide recaps for certain races that I have run. As such, I was inspired to start this blog to form as a collective repository to share my thoughts and experiences in various races I have participated in. Without recording down my thoughts, it will be difficult for me to recall the specifics of each race (I have already logged over 100). I hope that all who come across this web log ("blog") find these posts to be of some use.<br />
<br />
Please follow my endurance adventures on my blog (<a href="http://www.runkino.com/" target="_blank">http://www.runkino.com/</a>), through my facebook fan page (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/runkino" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/runkino</a>) , & via my twitter account (<a href="https://twitter.com/runkino" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/runkino</a>).<br />
<br />
Thank you for stopping by!<br />
<br />
Keep On Running,<br />
<a href="mailto:kino@runkino.com" target="_blank">Kino</a> (of <a href="http://www.runkino.com/" target="_blank">RunKino.com</a>)</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-35978898388581080542009-11-21T23:59:00.000-05:002013-10-09T16:07:22.841-04:00Marathon #21: 2009 NYRR Knickerbocker 60K Ultramarathon (2009/11/21)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
[As of 2012, the Knickerbocker 60K has been renamed as the "NYC 60K".]<br>
<br>
I have attempted 7 different ultras and finished 5 of them (in the ultra world the <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dnf">DNF</a> rate is ridiculously high) in 5 states over very varied terrain and surfaces (and I am currently writing entry en-route to my 8th ultra attempt in my 6th state, the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=12159">Javelina Jundred</a> 100 in Arizona). I can easily say that <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=12272">Knickerbocker 60K</a> (37.2 miles) is the easiest ultra I have attempted, by far. It is even easier than trail 50Ks, which are 10K shorter in distance. Why is it, do you ask? The K60K is run along entirely on pavement, which is very rare. The only other "all pavement / mostly pavement" ultras I can only think of, are the <a href="http://www.comrades.com/">Comrades Marathon</a> (actually an 89K / 56mi ultra) in South Africa, the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=7976">Mother Road 100</a> in Oklahoma, the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=10632">TATUR Midnight Madness 50</a> also in Oklahoma, the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=6612">Back on My Feet 20in24 Lone Ranger Ultramarathon</a> in Philadelphia, and the insane <a href="http://3100.srichinmoyraces.org/">Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race</a> in Jamaica, Queens, New York. Additionally, the K60K is run over familiar territory (all those from NYC have run Central Park countless times). The Park is so close with no need to wake up extra early to drive, just take the subway there. Your friends & family don't have to go out of their way to come cheer. Finally, the short 4mi loops mean you have easy access to your drop bag. In fact, you have access to it once per every 40-something minutes! However, one disadvantage of a multi-looped course is that mentally it is very easy to wussy out and call it quits. You are back where you started and don't need to hitch a ride to the finish line, or walk to the next aid station to DNF. One time I had to spend an extra hour climbing a mountain just to freaking DNF myself!<br />
<br />
I remember leading up to my K60K, I was really nervous about it. If you think about it, it's practically a marathon (26.2mi) + another half (well, 11mi instead of 13.1mi). But really, it's not all that bad. Just remember what I mentioned: The Knickerbocker is an all-road race (no portion is on trails) over the very familiar Central Park lower 4mi loop (no Harlem Hill, which is the most difficult part of the park). I ended up completing the race in a time of <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Hideki&lname=Kinoshita" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 13px;">6:49:13 (11:00mm)</a>. The race featured a nice intimate gathering of ultra running purists. There's no big prize money to be had in this race. There are no bragging rights to running a fast 60K because it is such an unconventional distance. The course is not glamorous and the race doesn't even provide a finisher's medal (instead you receive a plastic paper weight). The race entry fee is a mere $25 for New York Road Runners members. Basically, the race attracts those who want to run an ultra on a November Saturday morning, just for the sake of running.<br />
<br />
I arrived a bit early and was able to chat with my <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/">Marathon Maniacs</a> trio of <a href="http://www.frny.org/">Front Runners NY</a> friends whom I met at <a href="http://www.steamtownmarathon.com/">Steamtown</a>: <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1539">Tim Guscott (#1539)</a>, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=243">Richard Ervais (#243)</a>, & <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=627">Zander Ross (#627)</a>, along with a Maniac I met while running the <a href="http://www.hamptonsmarathon.com/">Hamptons Marathon</a>: <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=942">Guy Klarfeld (#942)</a> whose wife is a <a href="http://www.halffanatics.com/">Half Fanatic</a>. I met <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=714">Karl Leitz (#714)</a> for the first time during this pre-race chit chat downtime. He's one tall Maniac, but not <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1333">George Tchakanakis (#1333)</a> tall. I also got to see my <a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PoweredByDimSum/">PoweredByDimSum</a> (PBDS) teammates, namely a couple of my friends from back in the day who I have never had the chance to run with: <a href="http://numberjello.blogspot.com/">Marco Cheung</a> and <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=2953">Jackie Choi</a>! I have known Marco since high school through our friend Ryo, and I grew up with Jackie since our middle school years in NJ. This race also reunited me with ultra madman, <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Johnny&lname=Rodriguez%20Jr.">Johnny Rodriguez Jr.</a> of NJ, the fearless leader of the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=130149920374">Crash and Burn Ultrarunners</a>! <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1540">Rick Thiounn</a>, <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Lucimar&lname=Araujo">Lucimar Araujo</a>, <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacsdb.com/Maniacs/MyMarathons.asp?ManiacId=1837">Thomas GojiYerba</a>, and I first met him at the finish of the <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=6083">Turkey Swamp 50K</a> in Freehold, NJ, back in August. I remembered him because he told us a crazy story where he tricked his son into running his first ultra, by convincing him to join good old pops on a jog, which turned out to be a 50K along the treacherous <a href="http://www.appalachiantrail.org/site/c.mqLTIYOwGlF/b.4850633/k.9733/Interactive_Map.htm">Appalachian Trail</a> ("the AT")! Along the K60K course, Johnny introduced me to his buddy <a href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Frank&lname=Harczuk">Frank Harczuk</a> who, like me, was also setting a distance PR with this 60K.<br />
<br />
At Aid Station #2, I met Maniac David Lin (#1520), who was volunteering for the race. I recognized him from the <a href="http://www.runasburypark.org/">Asbury Park Relay Marathon</a>, which was held for the first time only a month prior to K60K. He was kind enough to mention me and my <a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/kino555">14 marathons in 13 weeks fundraiser</a> for the <a href="http://www.pancan.org/">Pancreatic Cancer Action Network</a> (PanCAN) in his <a href="http://runningtodinner.blogspot.com/">Running to Dinner</a> <a href="http://runningtodinner.blogspot.com/2009/12/i-am-thankful-for-not-rolling-off.html">blog entry on K60K</a>!<br />
<br />
The race starts off with a mini out & back, to tack on 1.2 miles before embarking on the 9x 4mi loops. It's a weird distance of 1.2mi + 36mi = 37.2mi = 60K. Why did <a href="http://www.nyrr.org/">NYRR</a> choose a race distance of 60K over a typical 50K ultra distance beats me. NYRR has never explained this.<br />
<br />
So you'll run a dizzying 9 loops. You'll be on your feet for a long time and will start losing count of these loops. Make sure to keep count and verify with the volunteers that they have the same lap count as you do. Each time you go through the chute, confirm with them, "That was lap 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8 (for the last one, you'll be sprinting) for me, right?" You definitely don't want them to mess up and have to end up running an extra loop!<br />
<br />
Everybody gets to have a drop bag a little past the start, just south of <a href="http://www.centralpark2000.com/database/engineers_gate.html">Engineer's Gate</a> (Central Park East Drive & E 90th St). Don't worry, your stuff is pretty safe. I had my wallet & cell phone in there and nobody took it. If you officially check-in your belongings with NYRR, they will keep it under a tent, but will NOT allow you access to your gear at all during the race, so don't do it. If you do check-in anything, choose to check-in your valuables.<br />
<br />
In the drop bag, pack emergency worst case scenario stuff like extra socks & sneakers, additional shirts (I changed into 3 shirts, but not because I was super sweaty or disgusting; I was just trying to be a <a href="http://trakmaniak.blogspot.com/">Brian Hsia</a> and represent 3 different causes, which were the Maniacs/PBDS/PanCAN), a poncho, an anti-blister kit, <a href="http://www.kinesiotaping.com/">Kinesio tape</a>, <a href="http://www.bodyglide.com/">BodyGlide</a>/Vaseline/<a href="http://www.nipguards.com/">NipGuards</a>, packets of your fav electrolyte drink mixes, your fav ultra foods like Granola bars/bananas (I think NYRR gives bananas)/etc, etc.<br />
<br />
Be prepared to change gear in case of rain/hail/sleet/snow. Also, the race usually starts off VERY cold. We were blessed with very unusually moderate temperatures, so runners busted out speedy times. It's the same weekend as the <a href="http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com/">Philadelphia Marathon</a>, and you all know that Philly is a cold weather race that is afflicted with black ice at water stations and frozen water in the water cups.<br />
<br />
There are two aid stations. One is at the start (which is also the finish). That one has food and flat Coke (yum). Not sure why, but to me flat soda tastes awesome during ultras. Take advantage of the food! This is not a marathon. You need to eat and constantly fuel yourself. Think outside the bounds of a traditional 26.2mi race. Eating stuff like pretzels and potato chips are okay and actually encouraged! Your body needs the extra salt to re-salinate after all the sodium lost due to sweat (just feel your face after a race and notice the caked on layer of salt). If you don't salt up, you WILL cramp, and cramp badly. You also run the risk of developing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponatremia">hyponatremia</a>! I like to take a packet of salt/a couple <a href="http://www.saltstick.com/">SaltStick</a> capsules/pinches of rock salt prior to the race and after every 10 to 13.1 miles. Some ultras even have super salty chicken broth, which rocks, but as I recall K60K does not.<br />
<br />
Along these lines, you need to replenish certain minerals such as magnesium and potassium. <a href="http://www.hammernutrition.com/">Hammer Nutrition</a>'s <a href="http://www.hammernutrition.com/products/endurolytes.elt.html">Endurolytes</a> capsules (I take 2 to 3 per hour, 4 if I'm really desperado) or even a banana does the trick. In my "Ultra Tips" posting I mention these various salt + mineral products.<br />
<br />
As with a 26.2 miler, you still will need to carboload prior to the race. I particularly like to carb up the 2 days prior to a race and not just the night before.<br />
<br />
So the other aid station on the west side of the park, at about 2 miles apart, is just a regular fluids aid station with water & Gatorade and cheering fans + volunteers. There is no food here. At the main start line food aid station, feel free to stop and eat and take a short break to munch on stuff. You don't need to feel pressured to shove food in your face and keep moving. But do NOT sit down. You stiffen up if you do and it makes starting up again hellish.<br />
<br />
As for pace, don't be a fool and go out too fast. Do not run your marathon PR pace at any point. You will pay for such foolishness. For example, my marathon PR is an exact 9min/mile pace, and for the K60K I ended up averaging an 11min/mile, but that included a lot of walking up hills. I don't have a general rule of thumb, but dropping down a minute from your PR pace would be a wise choice. I cannot stress enough about starting off slowly. Going out too fast is an appetite for crash & burning and that's no fun. Run, cramp, shuffle, walk, run, cramp, shuffle, walk, ... is no way to enjoy a race. I've been there too many times.<br />
<br />
You run around the lower 4mi loops CW (clockwise). This means Cat Hill is no longer a hill. But you do you have the rollers on the westside (what were those hills called?). So strategize wisely. It is totally okay to walk the hills on ultras, even if you're not tired. Sometimes it's just not worth tiring yourself out by climbing them. And funny or not, sometimes walking is almost as fast as shuffling up a hill, with much less energy exhausted.<br />
<br />
You are running around a lot in a loop and constantly turning in a single direction, which would be the right hand direction. As such, this puts uneven stress on one side of your body. It doesn't help that the inner course at Central Park is cambered/camphered/sloped/angled/cantilevered/whatever the correct term is for this (I still don't know what the proper term is), so don't run a tight circle or worry too much about running tangents. I tried to do this and my right ankle hurt a lot after the race!<br />
<br />
To whoever reads this Knickerbocker 60K race report, you probably did so in preparation for your race. Many runners use the K60K as their foray into ultra running. If this includes you, best of luck! Don't let the K60K race be your last ultra. Try a trail ultra out. It will be a lot more fun and scenic, and at the same time more rewarding yet challenging. You'll then understand why us ultra runners simply love this sport!<br />
<br />
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-69084584395789554992009-09-26T23:59:00.000-04:002012-02-22T17:13:31.123-05:00Marathon #12: 2009 Hamptons Marathon (2009/09/26)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;"> Below is my Hamptons Marathon race recap. It provides my thoughts/advice to future runners for the Hamptons Marathon (sorry Halfers, I have only run the full).<br />
<br />
Course Map:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CUdEFvVU3ik/T0Vl7Bicu7I/AAAAAAAABZs/cnv9qJHbPbM/s1600/HamptonsMarathonMap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="220" width="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CUdEFvVU3ik/T0Vl7Bicu7I/AAAAAAAABZs/cnv9qJHbPbM/s400/HamptonsMarathonMap.jpg" /></a></div><center>The course map is very confusing to look at. Click on the image to view it close-up.</center><br />
<br />
Course Elevation Chart:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TSElXpi_78o/T0VmBFMK46I/AAAAAAAABZ4/wD2_TBvm2-k/s1600/HamptonsElevation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="142" width="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TSElXpi_78o/T0VmBFMK46I/AAAAAAAABZ4/wD2_TBvm2-k/s400/HamptonsElevation.jpg" /></a></div><center>There are no major hills on the course, and thus it is a speedy race.</center><br />
<br />
Official Course Video:<br />
<a href="http://www.wellcomemat.com/ny/new_york/property-owner/amanda-moszkowski-and-diane-weinberger/members-showcase/hamptonsmarathon.html" target="_blank">http://www.wellcomemat.com/ny/new_york/property-owner/amanda-moszkowski-and-diane-weinberger/members-showcase/hamptonsmarathon.html</a><br />
<br />
My Pictures:<br />
<a href="http://www.brightroom.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=47607&BIB=224&S=230&PWD=" target="_blank">http://www.brightroom.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=47607&BIB=224&S=230&PWD=</a><br />
<a href="https://www.dropbox.com/gallery/10526998/1/2009.09%20Hamptons?h=318b3d" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/gallery/10526998/1/2009.09%20Hamptons?h=318b3d</a><br />
<br />
My Garmin GPS Results:<br />
<a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14546197" target="_blank">http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14546197</a><br />
<br />
Full Marathon Results:<br />
<a href="http://www.hamptonsmarathon.com/results/2009/hm09f.txt" target="_blank">http://www.hamptonsmarathon.com/results/2009/hm09f.txt</a><br />
<br />
Half Marathon Results:<br />
<a href="http://www.hamptonsmarathon.com/results/2009/hm09h.txt" target="_blank">http://www.hamptonsmarathon.com/results/2009/hm09h.txt</a><br />
<br />
MarathonGuide: The 2009 Hamptons Marathon average time was 4:17:15 (vs. 4:24:42 for the 2009 NYC Marathon)<br />
<a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=2642090926" target="_blank">http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=2642090926</a><br />
<br />
The 2009 Hamptons Marathon was my 12th lifetime marathon and 3rd in 3 weeks as part of my <a href="http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/hideki-kinoshita/kino555" target="_blank">$10,000 "14 Marathons in 13 Weeks" fundraiser for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/hideki-kinoshita/kino555)</a>. I had decided to run it sort of last minute, so was not able to secure affordable lodging nearby. I decided to drive out the morning of the race. I woke up at 2:30am and left New York City, arriving at Springs School in the pre-dawn darkness of 5:30am. My friend and I parked our car on the street within a few blocks of the school. If you arrive any later, it will be difficult to park nearby. There is an option to park further away in the marathon designated parking lot then catch the shuttle bus to the start. This is probably recommended unless you can arrive early to snag a spot on the street.<br />
<br />
We waited 30 minutes for race day packet pick-up to open at 6am inside the Springs School gymnasium. The sun wasn't fully up yet and it was quite chilly with the temperatures still in the 50's. After picking up our race materials and schwag bag (the goodies had a summer theme featuring an eco bag, a Hamptons Marathon logo embedded beach towel and neon orange race shirt with the main sponsor logo on it, which was JetBlue), we still had a full 2 hours to spare before the race start, so we returned to my car to wait it out.<br />
<br />
It was still the wee hours of the morning, so we were wearing long sleeve t-shirts, but still felt cold while walking outside and waiting in my car. As the race start time neared, we returned to the gym; however they would not let us use the restrooms inside, so we had to use the port-o-potties outside where long waiting lines had developed.<br />
<br />
There were no corrals at the start. They used the old school "honor system" for lining up at the start. There were signs that designated marathon paces (e.g. 6 mins, 7 mins, 8 mins, etc.), but these were largely ignored, so walkers and fast runners were all mixed together. There is no need to push and shove your way up to the front because all runners use the D-Tag chip timing system where your "chip time" only begins when you cross the starting mat and finishes when you cross the finish line mat. The race featured a lot of slower runners and walkers, so you don't want to be caught all the way in the rear though.<br />
<br />
The marathon started promptly at 8:00am after the signing of the national anthem. Though I was no where near the front during the line up, I soon crossed the starting line at 8:01am and my race began. This race features a large presence of charity runners, especially those from Team In Training (TNT). TNT had tremendous support with coaches, family, and friends blanketing the sidelines of the first few miles. Many of these TNT runners were slow and seemed like first time runners, unknowingly forming a solid wall and preventing other runners from trying to pass by them. To avoid collisions into the slower runners and walkers, I often found myself running on the grass along the sides of the road for the first mile plus.<br />
<br />
After running for a few minutes, you'll want to throw away your extra layer since you'll start to warm up. Starting from around 3/4 miles until Mile 2, there is a small 150 foot hill. From about Mile 5, runners leave East Hampton and enter the town of Amagansett. At Mile 6, the half marathoners split off from the full marathoners. The half runners turn left while the full marathoners turn right. Up until this point the course is residential and is shaded by trees. From this point, the half runners run their final 7.1 miles along the Miles 19.1 to 26.2 of the marathon course. <br />
<br />
As with all marathons combined with half marathons, the course becomes lonely after the half runners split off. A good majority of the runners take up the half and not the entire full. For this 2009 race, the disparity was pretty bad: 1,159 half marathon finishers (80% of all finishers) vs. a mere 295 marathon finishers (20% of all finishers), meaning the halfer runners outnumbered the full runners 4-to-1. At around Mile 8, you leave Amagansett and enter Napeague. It is now close to 9:30am and this section of the course will start to feel hot for the lack of trees to provide shade, however you pass by scenic Hamptons mansions.<br />
<br />
There is an out-and-back at Mile 11 where you will get to pass by your faster marathon friends (they will be returning from the turnaround while you will still be headed there) and likewise you will also get to see and cheer on your slower friends (when you've turned around and are making your way to Mile 12 while they will still be making their way to the turnaround point).<br />
<br />
You will reach the furthest point on Long Island during this race within a stone's throw of Napeague Harbor at Mile 13.1 (precisely after having run a half marathon). There is a timing mat to record your first half split. During many races, this half point is where I begin to slow down and lose my previously established pace, and this race was no different. I would run my 1st half in 2:00:24 (9:11 min/mile pace) and slow down to run my 2nd half in 2:07:32 (9:44 min/mile pace).<br />
<br />
Mile 12.5 to 14 would consist of a loop, then the rest of the way to Mile 17 was just back tracking the roads you covered. During this portion, you encounter the same aid stations and same volunteers. I don't exactly remember what was offered at the aid stations, but all had water, and most probably had electrolyte fluids with some probably distributing GU gels.<br />
<br />
From Mile 17 to 19, you cover entirely new ground. Mile 18.5 featured a 100 foot climb up to Mile 19.5. From Mile 19.1, you begin to cover the ground that the half marathoners traversed. Mile 20 to 21 takes you down a 130 foot drop in elevation. <br />
<br />
There is a final loop from Mile 22 to Mile 25.5. From Mile 22 to the finish, you face a number of small rolling hills. At this point in the race, climbing them will be difficult despite the hills not being all that tall. But you are rewarded with the pleasure of speedily running down them. Strong runners will be able to avoid cramping up during this stretch. I ran my worst miles during Mile 23 & 24, and my dreams of running a sub-4 hour marathon fell apart at Mile 23.5 when I realized I was jogging too slowly to maintain the necessary 9:09 min/mile pace to break 4 hours.<br />
<br />
The most scenic portion of the race comes up soon after Mile 24 when the Louse Point Town Beach is within view. Despite this being the Hamptons Marathon, this is the only point of the race where you actually see the water and the shoreline. There is an aid station here and this is where the PanCAN volunteers were stationed. They were quite the sight for sore legs! This aid station acts as another out-and-back turn around point. At this point, there are only 2 miles remaining.<br />
<br />
The finish line is the same area at Spring Schools as the starting line where you departed roughly 4 or 5 hours before. On your return approach to the finish, you will recognize the shaded streets you are running on. The finish line feels a lot further than you would hope it to be. But as you hear the voices of more onlookers and see the spectators, the adrenaline will kick in. You then make a left turn towards the finish line for the final dash. I gave the race my all and almost cramped up badly. I set a PR (personal record) at 4:07:56 (9:27 min/mile pace), beating my previous PR by almost 4 minutes. The finisher's medal featured an emblem of a windmill, which was puzzling because none could be seen along the course. When later checking out the Main Street area of East Hampton, we did pass by this windmill landmark and took pictures with it.<br />
<br />
The finisher's area is the school parking lot. On the grass areas, there are volunteer masseuses to give free massages to those in need. Bottled water, bananas cut in halves, and space blankets were given out. One drawback was that there wasn't much food. There were people selling food at tables, but who carries money with them when they run a marathon? I had to ask a friend buy me some more food and a drink. <br />
<br />
The Hamptons Marathon was great, with nice weather (sunny, but not humid), and supported by PanCAN volunteers and other fellow charity runners too! Although I required a complimentary leg massage, I ended up feeling good enough to run the 18-mile NYC Marathon Tune-Up race in the rain the next day in Central Park, which was an NYRR race that ran three large loops around the park.<br />
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-47460808764790346802009-07-12T12:00:00.000-04:002012-05-08T17:50:30.598-04:00Marathon #8: 2009 Missoula Marathon (2009/07/12)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">
The Missoula Marathon in Montana was a complete change of scenery from my previous 7 marathons. It was my first "back country" race of any type.
<br>
<br>Missoula, Montana is a college town straddling the Clark Fork river with a population of 57,000 (according to the 2000 U.S. Census). Its name is derived from the Native American Salish tribe name for the river. The town is most known as being the home to the University of Montana Grizzlies.
<br>
<br>This year was the third running of the race. The previous two years experienced unseasonably high temperatures, reaching a high of 102 degrees in its inaugural year. Lucikly, Missoula has a 6am start time. When Wei, Rick, and I boarded the marathon shuttle in Downtown Missoula, the Montana night sky was pitch black, though it was a pretty sight. Our shuttle bus ride to Frenchtown took only about 20 minutes to cover the 26.2 miles we were about to embark on.
<br>
<br>Missoula was my first point-to-point (non-loop) marathon. It was Wei's second in a row since he had run Grandma's in Duluth, MN only a few weeks prior.
<br>
<br>Due to our proximity to the state of Washington, and Missoula being the most highly rated Montana marathon on Marathon Guide, there was an abundance of yellow jerseyed Marathon Maniacs including Rick and myself.
<br>
<br>Rick and I hiked up Mount Sentinel, adjacent to the UM campus, the day before to witness the Big Sky view of the campus and the ancient glacial lake basin that Missoula was comprised of. The hike took half an hour each way, but the view was majestic. We could see the brownish green mountains which enveloped Missoula and see as far out as Missoula airport, 20 miles away! Needless to say, this trek up the mountain tired our legs enough to prevent Rick from PR'ing by a mere 2 minutes and contributed to me slamming into "the wall" sooner than I had in any previous marathon, making its appearance at Mile 17. We both agreed though, that the hike was worth it and would do it again. It's not everyday that we have a chance to hike Sentinel!
<br>
<br>As with the Delaware Marathon, Missoula's set off with the 'boom' of a canon. We started off from a parking lot in Frenchtown along Route 263. The mountainous skyline with the Montana Big Sky backdrop led to this marathon to being my most scenic by far. The course had a slight upgrade over its entirety and maintained the same scenery, full of natural beauty, for the first 16 miles of the course. One exception was a processing plant which reeked of industrious odor.
<br>
<br>I was intent on PR'ing this low-humidity high-elevation (3200' above sea-level) mid-summer marathon and had maintained pace with the 9 min pacer for the entire first half. After we crossed the half marathon timing mats, we soon encountered the only big hill of the race, along "Big Flat" Road, quite a misnomer. My pace then dropped to 10 min until Mile 17 when the wall had dropped its full weight upon my Sentinel-weary legs. At this point forward I had to negotiate between walking and running, wavering between a 11 to 14 min pace. The wall also coincided with our race entering the city limits of Missoula and slightly zigzagging through it. Finally, we headed north across the Clark Fork River over the Higgins Ave Bridge, providing a great end to a marathon with such a picturesque first half.
<br>
<br>Missoula's Marathon Expo was held under the tent at Caras Park Pavilion and was a decent venue along the river, it was lacking in vendors however. The post-race festivities also took place underneath the permanently erected tent where marathoners were given complimentary post-race photos and surprisingly decent pad thai (yes, in Montana).
<br>
<br>This marathon was combined with a marathon relay, and the half runners ran the same back half with us, but intereference from these two running segments was minimal. The view atop our lone hill after the half point overlooking the undulating river and surrounding hills sans man-made structures in sight was my single biggest highlight of this race.
<br>
<br>Along Mile 6 a tall Greek Maniac named George Tchakanakis befriended me and we shared our maniacal enthusiasm over marathon running. At Mile 10, we passed a 50 States Marathon Club member with "Larry" written on the back of his running shirt. As soon as I ran passed him, I instantly recognized his face as none other than Mr. 105 Marathons in A Year himself, Larry Macon! I was honored to greet him. We happened to bump into each other again later that day at the Missoula Airport on our way back to our respective homes.
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0Missoula, Mt, USA46.8605189 -114.01950146.7736594 -114.1774295 46.947378400000005 -113.86157250000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-5231433166537097532008-11-23T23:59:00.000-05:002012-02-22T17:14:15.350-05:00Marathon #3: 2008 Philadelphia Marathon (2008/11/23)<h2 style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #1c2a47; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">For those who are interested in running Philly in the future:</span></h2><div style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br />
The course had a few out and backs (which makes it seem shorter).<br />
The half marathon is also combined with the event, which makes the course more crowded than it should be. As with Yonkers, it is mentally draining to see the half marathoners picking up their pace at Mile 12 and running past you.<br />
<br />
The course had been advertised as being flat in the past, but there were slight inclines at a few places, and there was definitely a hill in Fairmount Park around Mile 10.<br />
<br />
However, I would recommend the course (it is quite scenic), and I feel it is faster than NYC. Plus, heat will not be an issue. Most of the latter half of the course is run along the Schuykill River, which is pretty, but it can get cold with nothing to block the wind. An early part of the race was run along the Delaware River, also pretty, but can get cold. I'm not sure what the start temperature was, maybe in the 20's?<br />
<br />
The start / midpoint / finish were all at the famous Roman architecture-style Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA), very picturesque and a joy to run towards.<br />
<br />
First Half of the Course<br />
The race began in waves. I was in the 3rd and last wave, which started around 15 minutes after the 1st wave. The race started along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway towards the iconic Philadelphia City Hall. At the circle, we ran along it clockwise and turned onto Arch St (so we didn't run directly next to City Hall, but close enough) [Mile 1], through Old City, past Christ Church around Arch & 4th St, turning left onto 4th St then right onto Race St [Mile 2] towards the Ben Franklin Bridge, then made a right turn onto Columbus Blvd [Mile 3].<br />
<br />
Columbus Blvd (a Manhattan Westside Highway feel to it) took us along the Delware River. After that stretch, we re-entered the city area (slight incline until Chestnut St), turning up on Washington Ave [Mile 4], then quickly turning right onto Front St, then left onto South St (cobblestones, see criticism below), then right onto 6th St, and then finally turning left onto Chestnut St [Mile 5]. (Note, the maps they provided us, both hard copy and on the web, are not very good.)<br />
<br />
We then had a nice stretch up Chestnut St and over a bridge past the Amtrak 30th Street Station [Mile 7], and turning right onto 34th St through the Drexel University campus [Mile 8], past the Philadelphia Zoo, and into Fairmount Park [Mile 9~11], this is where we encountered a hill (larger than anything in Central Park, but easily surmountable).<br />
<br />
We headed back towards the PMA, along the Schuykill River on MLK Drive [Mile 12~13.1], so that the Half runners could finish there.<br />
<br />
Second Half of the Course<br />
We ran along the Schuykill [Mile 14~20] on Kelly Dr (slight upgrade) to the suburb of Manayunk, and on its Main St. At Mile 14.5, I was contemplating slowing down my pace and was losing morale because all of the Half runners finishing (5,235 of 12,605 runners). It was at this low point that InnLing spotted me and called out my name and offered me a whole banana. That lifted my spirits and I was able to pick up the pace and continue on. I wasn't expecting to see her, so I was really happy to see her! At Mile 16, I saw Ralph zoom by (he was at Mile 24), then I ran past Betty at Mile 17 (she was at Mile 23). Out & Backs don't bother me, but they do throw me off my concentration as I tend to watch the approaching runners and not focus as much on my portion of the race.<br />
<br />
There was limited crowd support along the river, but the town of Manayunk provided enough cheer. There was an Out & Back at exactly Mile 20, then we returned back to the PMA to finish the race. Since I already ran the same exact stretch on the way to Manayunk, I knew how to time the end part of my race, by picking up the pace towards the end.<br />
<br />
I knew if I busted butt, I could make a sub-4:40 time. I had been averaging 10~11 min miles, and was able to run sub-9 after the 40K mark, which was to me a sprinting speed. Near the finish, supporters were all bunched up and the course had narrowed. Pretty much at Mile 26.1, I saw and hear Yasu cheer me on. I turned around in joy and told him that I would make a sub-4:40 time. I think he heard me, hahaha.<br />
<br />
I heard that the pretzels at the post-race food tent were good. I didn't end up going.<br />
<br />
The weather was tricky. Some parts of the race were sunny. Other parts were in the shade, and other parts were windy. I found myself constantly taking off my race cap and putting it back on. Betty said she did the same with her hood.<br />
<br />
The aid stations all had both water and Gatorade. They weren't at every mile, but were spaced apart at roughly each 1.5 miles, or at least it felt that way. There were enough aid stations, so hydration was not an issue.<br />
<br />
Some minor criticisms about the race<br />
- On Arch St [Mile 1], there were a few parked cars flanking the street. These need to be towed before the race.<br />
- The first water station [Mile 2.5] had very few volunteers, was disorganized, and I practically had to wait for a cup and water at a standstill. This probably also had to do with me having a really bad bib number (8009 for a race with 7280 finishers).<br />
- One portion of Washington Ave [Mile 4] had cobblestone! Most runners (including myself) chose to run on the sidewalk to prevent injury.<br />
- Many of the aid station areas had black ice, which made it very dangerous to run near. A runner in front of me fell hard. I had to slow my jog in order to not slip and injure myself. The organizers should prepare salt to throw on the ground for next time.<br />
- There was no timing mat at the Half Marathon distance (Mile 13.1). It's always good to know your half split, but for this race we'll never know what it was.<br />
- At the Mile 20 turnaround, there was no mat. Ralph mentioned he saw people cheating and turning around earlier. The organizers need to enforce people from not cheating.<br />
- The finish area was very crowded, as supporters were on the course and created a narrow channel that left a running lane of almost 2~3 people wide. I was sprinting at this point and had to weave around people. I think the organizers need to keep a wider path.<br />
- Most of the Mile markers were inaccurate according to my Garmin GPS watch, but I'm sure this is the case with most marathons.<br />
- The medals were handed to up wrapped in plastic. It would've been nice to have them unwrapped and draped on us.<br />
<br />
Philly has been my favorite marathon out of the three I've run (2008 Yonkers, 2008 Chicago, & 2008 Philadelphia). I highly recommend it for those looking to run something after next year's NYC marathon, or even for a BQ race. By the time Philly rolls around, you would have had 3 weeks to recover. It's cold, but as I mentioned, once you start pounding the pavement, you'll be fine.<br />
<br />
</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340656&fbid=572449589325&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs156.snc1/5813_572449589325_5412604_33340656_3279885_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; font-size: 11px; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">[2008.11.22] Bart Yasso and his wife, Laura, were such nice people and both are avid runners whose passion for running is quite contagious! I enjoyed talked to both of them and hearing about their running experiences.</span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33596727&fbid=578668461655&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs225.snc1/7228_578668461655_5412604_33596727_6654339_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; font-size: 11px; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Bart Yasso & his wife are truly quality individuals and inspirational runners! I highly recommend Bart's "My Life on the Run".</span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340657&fbid=572449594315&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs156.snc1/5813_572449594315_5412604_33340657_1078872_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340658&fbid=572449599305&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_572449599305_5412604_33340658_1915274_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340664&fbid=572449629245&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_572449629245_5412604_33340664_4220978_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340665&fbid=572449634235&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_572449634235_5412604_33340665_3263024_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340666&fbid=572449639225&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_572449639225_5412604_33340666_6273431_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; font-size: 11px; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">[2008.11.23] Our post-marathon "Rocky" victory impersonation.</span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340667&fbid=572449644215&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_572449644215_5412604_33340667_4953921_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; font-size: 11px; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">[2008.11.23] Betty & I both PR'ed the Philly Marathon.</span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 11px;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33340668&fbid=572449649205&op=1&view=all&subj=110327396967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110327396967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs156.snc1/5813_572449649205_5412604_33340668_6484079_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div></div></div>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-82194911727695323072008-10-12T23:59:00.000-04:002012-02-22T17:14:32.611-05:00Marathon #2: 2008 Chicago Marathon (2008/10/12)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=32561989&fbid=539703482785&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v1259/60/75/5412604/n5412604_32561989_5764.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></span></span></a></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">[2008.10.11] Bank of America Chicago Marathon 2008! My second marathon, 2nd in 2 months. The Health & Fitness Marathon Expo for Chicago (held at McCormick Place Convention Center) was really good. It was a lot better than the Yonkers Marathon, which doesn't even have an expo (only 100+ participants)!</span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The </span></span><a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=67081012"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2008</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.chicagomarathon.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chicago Marathon</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> was a great marathon! It was my second marathon and was completely different from the </span></span><a href="http://runkino.blogspot.com/2010/09/marathon-1-2008-yonkers-marathon.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Yonkers Marathon</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. The atmosphere was amazing and was a complete change of scenery when compared to Yonkers. Yonkers felt more like a </span></span><a href="http://www.nyrr.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">NYRR</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.centralparknyc.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Central Park</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> race because there was minimal support and barely had any spectators. This was understandably so because only 107 runners ran and finished Yonkers, whereas nearly 300 times that number of runners completed the Chicago Marathon, 31,344 runners to be exact. The crowd support in Chicago was great, and the big city feel is something that needs to be experienced. The marathon had plenty of cheering and had a </span></span><a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">New York City Marathon</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> feel to it. Although I have yet to run NYC, I did witness it as a spectator last year, in 2007.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #666666; line-height: 12px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=32561990&fbid=539703487775&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v1259/60/75/5412604/n5412604_32561990_6056.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 420px;" /></span></a></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=32561990&fbid=539703487775&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"></a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">[2008.10.11] Debbie & Me in Chicago for Marathon Weekend.</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The city of Chicago and its race officials learned from </span></span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/08/us/08chicago.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">last year's debacle</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. The route was very well-supported. There was plenty of Gatorade and water this year. The sights of running through a big city and crossing 6 bridges across the Chicago River was nice. The Sears Tower was within sight for much of the 2nd half of the race, and Mile 21 took us through </span></span><a href="http://www.chicagochinatown.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chinatown</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The race started at 7:30am in </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant_Park_(Chicago)"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Grant Park</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. It was really hard to get into my Corral “B” because of all the runners. Luckily, the start was close to Michigan Ave and the hotel that Debbie and I were staying at in the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnificent_Mile"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Magnificent Mile</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> area. I was lucky to be in Corral “B”, which was only behind the Elites and Corral “A” (</span></span><a href="http://www.baa.org/Races/Boston-Marathon/Participant-Information/Qualifying.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Boston Qualifiers</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">). My gun time / net time differential was a mere 1 min 5 secs. For many of the runners in the open corral, the difference was up to an hour! That hour is valuable because I would rather be begin running at 7:30am than start an hour later and have to still be running that extra hour close to high noon in hot weather.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">Once the race exited the park, we found ourselves running into a tunnel on Columbus Dr. heading due north and then right away across our first bridge. There was such a rush of adrenaline because this was a BIG CITY marathon with all of its spectators and camera flashes going off that I ended up over-pacing myself and running a 7-something 1st mile. It also did not help that I was running at the front of the pack with the 3:30 pace marathoners.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The flatness of the course lent itself to a very fast few miles out of the gate through the downtown Loop area. Right before Mile 5, we entered </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Park"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lincoln Park</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> passing the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Park_Conservatory"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lincoln Park Conservatory</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (the Botanic Garden I had visited the day before) and the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Park_Zoo"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lincoln Park Zoo</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. The park provided some shade, but then as we ran along </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Michigan"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lake Michigan</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> we were exposed to the sun with no tall buildings to help block out the sun.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_View,_Chicago#Wrigleyville">Wrigleyville</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, between Miles 7 & 8, provided us with our first lively neighborhood atmosphere accompanied by blaring music and actual locals cheering us on, rather than fellow tourists.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">I did not run with a camera, so the only pics I have of the race are whatever the photographers posted up plus one picture of me that Debbie took at Mile 11 when I was still on a good pace. Debbie & I had planned for her to cheer me on and hand me a vital banana right at the Mile 11 marker. There she was, just as planned, waiting along Wells St. After running for over 100 minutes, she was a pleasant sight.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">I crossed the half mark at 2:01:51, a tad better than my Yonkers 1st half split of 2:03:07. I expected a faster mark since there was no uphill portions that I encountered.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The 2nd half was not as exciting as the first. The run to the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">United Center</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (where the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Bulls"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chicago Bulls</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Blackhawks"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chicago Blackhawks</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> play) was void of worthwhile sights. Every time there was a turnaround, and we headed East, the Sears Tower was in plain view. It gave runners something to focus on.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Mile 19 provided a change of scenery as the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilsen,_Chicago#Pilsen"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Pilsen</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> neighborhood had lots of flavor to it. It is Chicago’s largest Mexican neighborhood and was well-supported.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305443&fbid=571639103545&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs156.snc1/5813_571639103545_5412604_33305443_7958400_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" /></a></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305443&fbid=571639103545&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"></a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">[2008.10.12] 2008 Chicago Marathon. (Picture courtesy of MarathonFoto.)</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">Mile 21 took runners to Chinatown, which was quite lively with the sound of banging symbols and a lion dance! </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">After leaving Chinatown, it was back to emptiness until Mile 23 and </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Cellular_Field"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Comiskey Park</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (where the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_White_Sox"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chicago White Sox</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> play). I saw beer being handed out to runners (a </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hash_House_Harriers"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hash House Harriers</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> tradition), which proved to be amusing. I saw some runners taking down the beer too!</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In terms of the “marathon shuffle” and “hitting the wall”, I fared better in Chicago than I did in Yonkers. I wasn’t forced to do the marathon shuffle until Mile 18 (Mile 13 in Yonkers), and didn’t slam into “the wall” until Mile 23 (Mile 20 in Yonkers). From Mile 23, I had to </span></span></span><a href="http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/walk_breaks.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">run/walk</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> until the finish</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305452&fbid=571639832085&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_571639832085_5412604_33305452_6389575_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" /></a></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305452&fbid=571639832085&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"></a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">[2008.10.12] 2008 Chicago Marathon. Finish!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (Picture courtesy of MarathonFoto.)</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The final stretch up Michigan Ave past the </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCormick_Place"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">McCormick Place</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Convention Center (site of the Chicago Marathon Expo and the largest convention center in America) was painful at best, but eventually I made it back up to Grant Park to finish the race in 4:52:16 (11:09 min/mile).</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305455&fbid=571639847055&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs156.snc1/5813_571639847055_5412604_33305455_2185232_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" /></a></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33305455&fbid=571639847055&op=1&view=all&subj=112150531967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=112150531967&id=5412604" style="color: #3b5998; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">[2008.10.12] 2008 Chicago Marathon. Time to smile. No more marathons until Philly in Novemeber.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (Picture courtesy of MarathonFoto.)</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I was only able to shave off 8 mins from my Yonkers time even though I felt </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">like I ran the best I could. I didn't feel like I ran as slow as Yonkers, but my time indicates I only ran 19 secs/mile faster. Unknowingly, the heat had played a factor. The race was another hot one (though without any fatalities)! </span></span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/13/sports/othersports/13marathon-1.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At 8am, it was 65 degrees, and rose to 78 at 9:30am</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, and reached 84 by 11:30am. Almost all of the Nike pacers were off (behind) their target pace. The pace tattoos that Nike handed out at the Expo were useful and a great idea since the pacers themselves couldn't keep pace.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">As advertised, this was one FLAT marathon. The only hill that I encountered was at Mile 26 (right before the finish), and it wasn't that bad. By that point, you have so much adrenaline that the hill won’t demoralize you. There were six bridge / overpass crossings though. Those provided slight inclines.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Although 45,000 registered, there were only 31,344 finishers, so it didn't break the <a href="http://www.aims-association.org/statistics/World's_Largest_Marathons.html">all-time record</a> set at last year’s </span></span><a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=472071104"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2007 New York City Marathon</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> with its 38,557 finishers. That was a historic race, chronicled in Liz Robbins’ book, “</span></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Race-Like-No-Other-Through/dp/0061373141"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">A Race Like No Other: 26.2 Miles Through the Streets of New York</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">”.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">As for my training, I didn't train enough, but I did put in a couple of half marathons, two 200-mile relays (for the </span></span><a href="http://www.greenmountainrelay.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Green Mountain Relay</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> in June, I ran 22 miles over 4 legs, and for the </span></span><a href="http://www.rtbrelay.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Reach The Beach Relay</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> in September, I ran 20.6 miles over 3 legs), and ran a full marathon (Yonkers in September) as part of training.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I didn't carbo-load the night before (but did so the few nights prior to that) because Debbie and I tried this amazing restaurant called </span></span><a href="http://www.alinea-restaurant.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alinea</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We celebrated our 6 month anniversary there. </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.zagat.com/Verticals/PropertyDetails.aspx?VID=8&R=98737"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Zagat</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> rated Alinea #1 for food (29/30), service, and wine in Chicago. If you go to Chicago and have a reason to celebrate, you must dine at </span></span><a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/alinea-chicago"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alinea</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (you definitely need to fight to make reservations though, and the experience will cost you a pretty penny).</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I would like to thank <a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PoweredByDimSum/">Powered By Dim Sum</a> teammate </span></span><a href="http://wsxnyc.org/results-1.0-SNAPSHOT/results/results/showme.jsp?first=Betty&last=Eng"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Betty Eng</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, who supported me and kept me up-to-date with Chicago Marathon registration deadline emails (she ran it in 2005). If she hadn't sent me those email updates, I would have missed the registration cut-off since the race filled to capacity by late April, a whole half a year before the start of the race!</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16px;">Debbie and I flew back the day of the marathon. I pretty much went from the post-race party back to the hotel to shower, pack, check-out, then off to the airport to fly back to New York.</span></span></div>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6839343936698457956.post-21155443947442131612008-09-21T23:59:00.000-04:002012-02-22T17:14:45.331-05:00Marathon #1: 2008 Yonkers Marathon (2008/09/21)<span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 18px;font-size:small;" class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33289699&fbid=571286365435&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_571286365435_5412604_33289699_3610565_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] PBDSers gathered at the Yonkers Library, the start of the Yonkers Marathon / Half Marathon. (Picture courtesy of Sportography.)<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=1055080921">2008</a> <a href="http://www.yonkersny.gov/Index.aspx?page=1465" target="_blank">Yonkers Marathon</a> was my very first marathon. Little did I know how much of an impact this race would have on me. It completely changed my lifestyle for the healthier! In a little over two months, I would have completed 3 marathons, qualifying me as a <a href="http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/" target="_blank">Marathon "Maniac"</a>, a very aptly named description of what I had become. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33732713&fbid=582449284855&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs087.snc3/15467_582449284855_5412604_33732713_4903446_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] START Line. (Picture courtesy of Jerry Loo.)<br />
<br />
Proper marathon training calls for a "tapering" period where in the final week(s) of training, the runner is supposed to take it easy and cut back on the mileage. I had done the opposite due to prior lack of training and scheduling. The weekend before Yonkers, I ran with <a href="http://athlinks.com/search/athlete/DEBORAH%20HSIEH" target="_blank">Debbie</a> in the <a href="http://www.rtbrelay.com/" target="_blank">Reach The Beach 200-Mile Relay</a> from the <a href="http://www.rtbrelay.com/course_legs.php" target="_blank"> northern end of New Hampshire to its southern coastal tip</a>. I logged in 20.6 miles by running 3 legs over a day and a half. This is not the ideal thing to do for marathon training. I jumped right into marathon running. The date for Yonkers crept up all so suddenly.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33732712&fbid=582449279865&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs087.snc3/15467_582449279865_5412604_33732712_1377808_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] Yonkers Marathon Start Line. (Picture courtesy of Jerry Loo.)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://athlinks.com/search/athlete/YASUAKI%20SHIMIZU" target="_blank">Yasu</a> and I decided to use this race as a 'training run' for our upcoming larger races, the <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=472081102" target="_blank">2008</a> <a href="http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/" target="_blank">NYC</a> (11/2/2008) for his, and the <a href="http://www.marathonguide.com/results/browse.cfm?MIDD=67081012" target="_blank">2008</a> <a href="http://www.chicagomarathon.com/" target="_blank">Chicago</a> (on 10/12/2008) for mine. We ran the first half together at a good pace (nearly a 4 hour marathon pace), as he kindly paced me. As soon as I crossed the half marathon line, I had to resort to the dreaded "marathon shuffle". At Mile 20, I slammed hard into "The Wall" and had to proceed with <a href="http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/walk_breaks.html" target="_blank">the run/walk method</a> to grind it out to the finish.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonkers,_New_York" target="_blank">Yonkers</a> is known to be quite challenging and is a hilly marathon. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonkers_Marathon" target="_blank">According to Wikipedia</a>, Yonkers is “Known for its many hills, it is considered by many runners to be one of the toughest marathons in the country. For that reason, most elite runners avoid this race.” Great to know this is the very marathon I chose to be my first!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33732715&fbid=582449294835&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs107.snc3/15467_582449294835_5412604_33732715_7642165_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] Yonkers is a double loop course. (Picture courtesy of Jerry Loo.)<br />
<br />
The marathon course is a half marathon x 2 (double loop course). This marathon is also the second oldest marathon in the world, with the oldest being Boston of course. 2008 was the 83rd running of the race, one that began in 1907 (it wasn’t run for 17 years so that explains the differential).<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33289671&fbid=571285976215&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs136.snc1/5813_571285976215_5412604_33289671_8030858_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] 2008 Yonkers Marathon. My very first marathon. (Picture courtesy of Sportography.)<br />
<br />
Without much pomp or circumstance, the race began! The course started off instantly with a 6-mile hill (technically 5.8 miles) up that was seriously no joke! The course landscape consisted of a park setting up the hill on Warburton Ave (where with a glance over your left shoulder you can view the picturesque scene of the Hudson River and the adjacent cliffs of <a href="http://www.njpalisades.org/" target="_blank">the Palisades</a> in New Jersey), then a residential setting through the town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hastings-on-Hudson,_New_York" target="_blank">Hastings-on-Hudson</a> and back into Yonkers down Nepperhan Ave.<br />
<br />
The first time around was fine, but the second time around was hell. The hill is so bad that I have given it the moniker of “Mount Yonkers”. The 6-mile hill consists of 4.5 miles up Warburton Ave. When this first hill is crested, you are greeted by a series of cut out signs with Coca Cola logos and old newspapers clippings, preceding an unofficial aid station that is manned by a single interesting fellow, named Don Dixon. Don is a cheerful fellow who gives out flat Coca Cola (I thought this was interesting) and ice cubes. I enjoyed some of his Coke and it tasted so good, giving me a mental boost. The hill then continues after a right turn up another mile and change up Main St and Broadway into Draper Park, and is quickly proceeded by a short steep downhill overlooking a graveyard (aptly dubbed by <a href="http://athlinks.com/racer/32197645" target="_blank">Ralph</a> as "The Graveyard Roller Coaster"), which serves to be a kind reminder of the hell that was just experienced.<br />
<br />
After the Mile 10 marker, there is an overpass that runners need to climb up to in order to cross over the widened thruway portion of Nepperhan Ave. It's fun the first time around, but painful on the second visit (the same could be said for most of the course). A slight downslope ensues into the Latino neighborhood of Yonkers (dominated by Mexican, Ecuadorian, and Cuban restaurants), at Miles 10-14 (and again at Miles 23-24), where the residents are completely oblivious as to what is going on and why there are occasional runners running down the shoulder of South Broadway through their barrio.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33732716&fbid=582449299825&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs107.snc3/15467_582449299825_5412604_33732716_6807670_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] After the first loop, half marathoners go to the left, full marathoners continue on the right. (Picture courtesy of Jerry Loo.)<br />
<br />
I ran the course non-stop without walking until Mile 20, then my legs hit a wall. I couldn't push myself harder because my legs would instantly cramp. So I did the run/walk the rest of the way. I tried really hard to break 5 hours, and ran at the end and finished strong. Now I know how crazy a marathon is. I am surprised that I was able to endure it with my minimal / lack of training. My long run consisted of running 20.6 miles (over three legs) the weekend before in the Reach The Beach (RTB) relay in New Hampshire.<br />
<br />
Race organizers made it abundantly clear that after 5 hours the roads would be opened to traffic and no more police support would be provided. After 6 hours, runners do not receive an official finish time. I survived my first marathon in the allotted time limit! I finished it in 5:00:15 (11:27 min/mile pace). My splits were horrible. The first time around the loop was bearable, but my second encounter kicked my butt! After the first half, I was on a great pace (4:06 marathon pace), but just as I began my second loop, I instantly died and had to rely on the "marathon shuffle" as my legs did not have the stamina of keeping a jogging pace up Mount Yonkers a second time. I ran the first ½ in 2:03 (9:23 min/mile pace), and the second ½ in 2:57 (13:30 min/mile pace)!<br />
<br />
The great aspects of the Yonkers Marathon are that there are only a little over 100 marathoners (your net time = the gun time, so line up towards the front) and there are aid stations (water at all and Gatorade at some) at EACH mile! Yonkers is the only marathon where I have seen aid stations at every mile. They do a good job at recruiting various organizations (Boy Scouts, church groups, etc.) to man all 13 of their stations.<br />
<br />
The one major drawback for the race was that there weren't many people watching or cheering. I would say 95%+ of the course was void of onlookers. The solitary aspect of mostly running alone along with the thin crowd support do lend itself in making Yonkers an even more difficult race.<br />
<br />
The weather conditions were good. Being scheduled in late September, it was not too hot, but the sun was out the entire time and I got tanned. Marathon veterans say ideal temperatures are in the 50's F to 70's F (I would later discover that my ideal race time temperatures are in the 30's F to 50's F), with an overcast sky (no direct sunlight). The race temperature probably maxed out at 80 degrees F.<br />
<br />
Mount Yonkers will give you the confidence to know that if you have conquered it, you will know you are now capable of finishing those other marathons you have been training for (unless you're running something even more crazy like <a href="http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/" target="_blank"> Pike's Peak Marathon</a>. I swore this race off, but interestingly I'm now looking forward to the challenge of being clobbered by it again. It's not a race for novices since there's a 5 hour time limit, which I barely just made (with an additional 15 seconds).<br />
<br />
What a crazy pick I made for a training run. All I can say is that it feels good having conquered Mount Yonkers. Now that I've conquered Yonkers (probably the hardest road race around New York City), I am not scared of running Chicago next month. I now know the nature of the beast, known as the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon" target="_blank">Marathon</a>. Next up for me is the Chicago Marathon in October. Thank goodness that one's flat. I'm still down for the <a href="http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com/" target="_blank">Philadelphia Marathon</a> because I'm simply hooked!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33755779&fbid=583023164795&op=1&view=all&subj=110352146967&aid=-1&auser=0&oid=110352146967&id=5412604" target="_blank"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs107.snc3/15467_583023164795_5412604_33755779_1492857_n.jpg"></a><br />
[2008.09.21] Debbie came to cheer for me at the finish of my very first marathon. (Picture courtesy of Jerry Loo.)<br />
<br />
A HUGE thanks for my <a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PoweredByDimSum" target="_blank">Powered By Dim Sum (PBDS) Running Club</a> teammates: Jerry, Tommy, Warren, Yasu, and Debbie, along with Mika who cheered for me at the finish. It was an uplifting feeling after experiencing most of the second half running alone. <a href="http://athlinks.com/racer/39353523" target=_"blank">Jerry</a> helped push me to finish the marathon by running along side of me at the very end. I was probably the only first time marathoner in the field of 107 runners. I finished in 104th place and upheld the PBDS motto of “We’re not last!”<br />
</span>Kinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313908599712212730noreply@blogger.com0