Running into 2011...

Not sure if anyone is planning on running any of the local "New Year's" races - 2011 R.I.T.N.Y. (Cary, midnight on New Year's Eve) and Resolution Run (Cary, 9AM on New Year's Day) - but GOOD LUCK if you are! #20

And, because this was the best I could come up with for all of my New Year's related searches on the Guinness Book of World Records site... the record for the greatest mileage run daily (female) belongs to Kathy Pycior. She did not miss a day of training from 1-1-1981 to 6-30-2004, running a total of totalling a distance of 48,656.5 miles (78,305 km).

Athlete

Whew, all this goal setting has me tired, and wondering if I'll be able to achieve everything. So, as a backup plan, I decided to make a robot that could do it for me just in case... they even gave it running shorts! #20

... sorry, that was about the lamest segue ever, but that story was just too "awesome" not to post (and being that I had to google the spelling of segue because I wondered why the editor was red-squiggling at segway... well... my definition of awesome might be substantially different from most)!

The year of the...

Rabbit according to the Chinese zodiac, or the marathon according to Runner's World! Trying to decide on a good first marathon? Try one on this list. Or, have you already run 26.2 and looking to mix things up? Then try one of these.

But, who's to say Runner's World is right? I mean, on my funfetti calendar, 2011 is the year of red sprinkles. Red sprinkles signify total TAF domination at whatever distance they choose to race! #20

Goal Setting 101

1. Set modest race goals to achieve the best results
2. Break a "big" goal into "smaller" goals to see continual progress
3. Make your goals specific and stick to that plan
4. Diversify your goals in case something doesn't go according to plan
5. Make sure your goals are your goals

And, once you figure everything out, keep a running log to help stay honest! #20

Gearing up for 2011...

Now that the holiday season is drawing to an end and I am officially out of ideas for songs... Brian had a great idea the other week-- leave a comment on the blog describing your goals for 2011! Feel free to do so any day this week, and we'll come up with a "master list" for the new year. #20

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Fastest Marathon Dressed as Santa: 2:55:50
Largest Gathering of Santas: 13000
Largest Gathering of Santa's Elves: 607
Deepest Santa Ho Ho Ho: 62.81 Hz
Most Letters Collected for Santa (1 season): 1.06 million letters, 44,166 emails

Fa la la la la, la la la la

So, for the past three-ish weeks, the posts have been holiday music themed. However, many have mixed feelings about running while listening to music. On the one hand, situational awareness often suffers with headphones in your ears... but long runs alone are so boring and music does actually make you run faster! Runner's World had an interesting article this month on the topic. My personal rules on running while listening to music: (1) it has to be light outside, (2) the area has to be well-populated, and (3) the volume has to be lower than normal. #20

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

And weather.com has the Fitness and Comfort index fixed at a solid "uncomfortable"... so what to do? The thought of running on a treadmill makes most of us cringe, so here are some workouts you can do that aren't so awful. And, if you're in the market for a treadmill, here's a review of some of the more current models. #20

So he said lets run and we'll have some fun...

While I don't think we'll have to worry about melting away anytime soon, Frosty the Snowman was quite busy that day. To summarize: (1) he ran hill repeats in the snow, (2) got a good upper body workout carrying a broomstick, (3) ran a track workout around a square, and (4) managed a solid tempo workout outrunning a police officer. No wonder he melted away, he must have been exhausted!

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...

Good thing, because they keep you healthy. Chestnuts are good sources of calcium, iron, phosphorus, and the B vitamins. They are good for muscle building, your teeth, and keeping blood vessels healthy. And, December is the prime month for fresh chestnuts. Roast them or add them to soup, rice, and stuffing. Either way, they're grrrrrrrrrreat! #20

The Grinch Song

The Grinch - Verse 6

You're a foul one, Mr. Grinch,
You're a nasty wasty skunk,
Your heart is full of unwashed socks, your soul is full of gunk, Mr. Grinch,
The three words that best describe you are as follows and I quote,
"Stink, stank, stunk"!

The Grinch - Verse 5

You nauseate me, Mr. Grinch,
With a nauseous super "naus"!,
You're a crooked dirty jockey and you drive a crooked hoss, Mr. Grinch,
Your soul is an appalling dump heap overflowing with the most disgraceful assortment of rubbish imaginable mangled up in tangled up knots!

The Grinch - Verse 4

You're a rotter, Mr. Grinch,
You're the king of sinful sots,
Your heart's a dead tomato splotched with moldy purple spots, Mr. Grinch,
You're a three decker sauerkraut and toadstool sandwich with arsenic sauce!

The Grinch - Verse 3

You're a foul one, Mr. Grinch,
You have termites in your smile,
You have all the tender sweetness of a seasick crocodile, Mr. Grinch,
Given a choice between the two of you'd take the seasick crocodile!

The Grinch - Verse 2

You're a monster, Mr. Grinch,
Your heart's an empty hole,
Your brain is full of spiders, you have garlic in your soul, Mr. Grinch,
I wouldn't touch you with a thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole!

The Grinch - Verse 1

You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch,
You really are a heel,
You're as cuddly as a cactus, you're as charming as an eel, Mr. Grinch,
You're a bad banana with a greasy black peel!

12/11-12 Race Reports

December spells total TAF Domination (not really, other than Domination and December both start with the same letter)... but we rocked this weekend.

• David Oyler was 2nd in his age group at the Jolly Elf 5K Trail Run, finishing 12th overall... WAHOOO! (results)
• Brad B. ran AWESOME at the Thunder Road Marathon, finishing in his goal time for 5th in his age group (72nd overall). Tim G. also competed well. In the half marathon, Nicole Lewis ran a huge PR, crushing the 2-hour barrier. CONGRATS! (marathon, half marathon)
• TAF Racing also did well at the USATF Club XC Championships. This race was fun... crazy fast... but fun... did I mention crazy fast?!? Seriously, it was awesome just to be there and see everyone. Dave and Sean competed in the Master's Men's race. This was the largest of the day, with over 400 people. I can't imagine how crazy their start was, nor do I want to contemplate running a 10K on that course! The women's race also went well, with Laura B. leading the way for team TAF. And... we beat a team, we beat a team, we beat a team... WAHOOO. I was super excited to learn this when we looked at the results, I mean there was some ridiculous teams there! GREAT JOB EVERYONE! (results) ... and Laurel and I made the photo gallery (let me know if y'all see other members of our team, some of the pictures are hard to tell)!

Nice job everyone! And, the Farmer's Market Breakfast Run went awesome this AM... rain held off just long enough for us to finish and watch it out the window over coffee, biscuits, maple syrup... all we were missing were sprinkles! Time to get ready for the end of the season party, have a good week. #20

Upcomming Weekend

Looks like we decided to end the 2010 season with a bang! We have teammates competing in three races this weekend (all on Sat.). Close to home, Oyler is running in the Jolly Elf Trail Run (the last of the Second Empire Series). In Charlotte, Brad B. and Tim G. are competing in the Thunder Road Marathon, and some of our friends from the NCSU Tri Team are running the half marathon. Dave M. and Sean are representing TAF in the master's men's race at the USATF XC Club Nationals, while Laura, Rita, Jennifer, Laurel, and I are competing in the women's open race. And Sunday brings the Farmer's Market Breakfast run. GOOD LUCK everyone... I sure hope it warms up! #20

And, for world record Friday... the record for the fastest speed on a towed skateboard was just recently broken by Lane Segerstrom. He topped out at 78.1mph... I just want to know who thought that was a good idea?!?

Laughing all the way!

In May I posted something on a "new exercise trend" called Laughercise. So, I thought I'd follow up on how this was catching on. First hit... a whole website dedicated to Laughercize! The website is absurd, but quite informative. Turns out, you can become a certified laugh instructor (just in case this whole PhD thing doesn't work out), practice at a certified laugh location (wait, Cup-of-Joe isn't listed), or jump on a laughing cruise! So, I got to thinking: (1) yoga classes usually end with some sort of breathing exercise as a sort of "cool down", (2) it is important to cool down after any workout, (3) I hate the stupid breathing exercises, but I like laughing. Therefore, I propose we incorporate Laughercise into all of our cool downs. I suspect that it will have the same effect on me as the breathing exercises do in yoga... mainly not breathing... oh well, at least I'll be in a good mood when I turn blue! #20

O'er the fields we go...

I was expecting to find a bunch of articles describing how running on grass is sooooooo much better than running on pavement, etc... but what I found was this: running on sand or grass may increase the risk of injury. So, I read on. Basically, the "increased rate of injury" is due to twisting ankles, knees, and other joints that really shouldn't be twisted on uneven surfaces afforded by many fields. Also, slopes can cause repetitive, off-axis motion, which isn't good either. Having said that, softer surfaces are better to run on in terms of not pounding your legs, so opt for more even, level surfaces if you're not an experienced trail runner (or clumsy). Alternatively, you could just get better at falling (note: I highly recommend this option... much more widely applicable... all the coordination in the world won't help you if you forget your glasses or water gets behind your contact lenses!). #20

In a one horse open sleigh...

Every June, in the little Welsh town of Llanwtryd Wells, people and horses square off at the annual Man vs. Horse Marathon (although technically it's only 22-miles... so not a Boston Qualifier). The race started in 1980, and it took until 2004 before a human won (wahooo Huw Lobb). A human won again in 2007, but other than that, a horse has always been victorious! #20

Dashing through the snow...

On snow shoes! Snowshoeing is a great form of cross training for the winter (I mean provided that there is actually enough snow on the ground). It mimics the intensity of hill workouts, has a low injury rate (it puts much less wear and tear on your body compared to running), and requires minimal equipment (and snow shoes can last for many years... wahooo). For everything you want to know about snoeshoe racing and more, check out the U.S. Snowshoe Association website. #20

12/4-5 Race Reports

First off, the Jingle Bell Run was actually a 5K this year... out and back down Hillsborough St... marked to the exact fire hydrant... AWESOME. Second, there were 1700 people running/walking... which means 3400 ringing bells... EVEN MORE AWESOME. And finally, TAF Racing rocked... WICKED AWESOME! Keith was first across the line for us, running a 17:38, which earned him 1st in his age group (8th overall). Jennifer took off at the start, and remained out front, claiming 2nd female overall. Rita (1st AG) and I (3rd female) followed about a minute later, finishing within 1sec of each other... I'm getting Rita some super glue for her shoe laces! Dave was right with us too, sprinting across the finish line despite turning his ankle on Wed (he was 4th in his age group). The NCSU Club XC Team was also out there, and Scott H. was 1st overall (CONGRATS!). We also saw John Tate and some of our friends from the Fit-tastic and Half Marathon Training Programs. It was a great race... and Mrs. Beard made us some delicious brownies... THANK YOU TEAM MOM!. (results) #20

Upcoming Races/Runs

Ok... 70 to 30 in 3 days is a bit much for me to handle! In any event, Saturday brings the annual Jingle Bell 5K... it's a TAF-sponsored event, so come on out and run / cheer / jingle all the way! Brad is also running some crazy 25-mile route on Saturday morning. Not sure if anyone else is planning on racing this weekend... one more week until Club XC Nationals and Thunder Road! #20

And, for world record Friday, the fastest speed on a gravity powered snow sled was achieved by Rolf Allerdissen in April of this year. He topped out at 62.25mph on the Brunnenkogel at the Pitztal Glacier. I just love the wording... I'm going to start selling empty jars of air and marketing them as the world's most efficient fuel.

Coming soon to a store by you - 9.81 m/s^2!

Weight Training

Turns out, you should do weight training after a hard workout vs. on you easy days. Not quite the answer I was expecting, but it kind of makes sense. I mean, the "answer" makes a good point of wanting to leave your easy days easy. And, being that we tend to alternate hard and easy days, I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't want to go run a tempo workout 12hrs after lifting weights! #20

TAF Rule #3 - Don't Get Sick

With the temperature dropping and traveling increasing, I thought it would be appropriate to post this article about how NOT to get sick. Plus, finals are next week (for those of us still in college), so getting a full 8hrs of sleep might not be feasible! #20

Zone Training

So, I was trying to think of something to post for today and was flipping through back logs of "Ask the Coaches" when I came across this question: when targeting a heart rate workout, what percentage of that interval needs to be in that zone? Hmmm... never thought about that... I just kind of read the words and ran whatever and kind of hoped that I was doing it right. Basically, the guy asking the question had noticed that his heart rate does not reach the correct bpm until well into the interval (especially for the shorter intervals targeted by the higher zones / effort levels). Makes sense... so, do you need to "warm up" for each interval or what? Turns out, the whole point interval training is to simulate a race, but multiple times over the course of a workout (practice makes perfect afterall). So, being that your heart rate starts off lower at the beginning of a race and then gradually climbs, this is the same pattern that your interval should follow. Oh good, because I certainly wasn't looking forward to "warming up" before each mile repeat! #20

Turkey Trot Reports

Heard that the Ridgewood Turkey Trot went well for TAF (or, for at least those who didn't get stuck behind half of the field)! Laura Berry was the 2nd female overall (yeah, crazy), and I believe Rita was 2nd in her age group (9th female overall). John Royal finished in the top 3 Master's runners, Fred L. was 1st in his age group, and Keith, Matt M. and Alli all finished in the top 25 males/females. Dan H. finished just behind Rita (literally... I mean there were 1800+ runners and they finished within a few steps of each other). Dave M. and Myles ran well too, and Sean and Brian came out to pace. (results)

Team TAF was also well-represented at a few other races both in NC and "abroad". Marty finished 3rd in his age group at the Inside Out Sports Turkey trot (results). Erica ran with her mother in the Gobbler's Run 5K, and finished 2nd in her age group (results). Jennifer ran in the Cincinatti Thanksgiving Day 10K, finishing in the top 30 females (there were 10000+ runners... that's crazy... results).

CONGRATS and AWESOME JOB!!! Sorry for the delay in this post, I was waiting to hear back from everyone (and let me know if I missed someone)! #20

Santa's Diet

Even though retail stores start playing Christmas music on Nov. 1st, I like to wait until after Thanksgiving is over before I start thinking about the holiday season. On that note, it turns out that you can eat like Santa and lose weight. Not really... for most of us at least... and I think I would get sick of a steady diet of cookies and chips (although the cereal and icecream... now we're talking). The study just basically proves what we already know - if you consume less calories than you use on a daily basis, you will lose weight; math never fails! However, I did find it interesting that the "study participant's" bad cholesterol dropped by 20% and good cholesterol increased by 20%. #20

Eat This Now: Day-After-Thanksgiving Sandwich

1. Thanksgiving is great because it features two of my favorite "real" foods (sweet potato pie and cranberry sauce... mmmm)!
2. Leftover are great because they mean you don't have to cook for a while!
3. And sandwiches are great because they can be eaten for any meal!

Combine all three... GENIUS [make sure you read the Warnings :-)] #20

Thanksgiving Day

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!
And good luck if you're running today. #20

I thought I'd post some Thanksgiving-themed world records:

• Paul Kelly owns the world record for the fastest time to carve a turkey... just 3min and 19sec! Apparently this is not the first "head-to-head" turkey challenge that Paul has competed in... he is also the fastest plucker on the planet (say that three times fast), with 3 turkeys in 11min and 30sec.
• When I searched for pie, I was expecting more along the lines of "the largest xxx pie", but what I got was this -> the largest custard pie fight was held on August 13, 2009 with 648 pies being thrown by 253 people in the span of a few seconds... AWESOME!
• This was more what I was looking for... the largest pumpkin pie weighed in at 2020 lbs, and measured 12ft 1inch in diameter (and it was made in OH)!
• For all of you who raced today... the fastest marathon dressed as a vegetable was run by Robert Prothero in 3:34:55.

Mid-Week Outlook

Thursday is the day to race this week. On the local scene, a lot of our teammates are competing in the Ridgewood Turkey Trot, while others are headed to the Crossroads Plaza Turkey Trot, and a few more might be opting for the Inside-Out Sports Turkey Trot. For those of us not originally from around here... we'll also be well-represented at the Cincinnati Thanksgiving Day 10K. In any event, GOOD LUCK if you're racing and HAVE FUN (and please let me know how it went because I haven't figured out how to teleport myself back to Raleigh... or OH... yet)! #20

Gobble Gobble

Ok, for the rest of the week we're going with a Thanksgiving theme! To start things off, I googled "turkey flying speed" just to see how fast these things could go (I know turkeys don't so much fly so much as waddle... like across roads... we might have a wild turkey problem in the town that I grew up in and they might cause traffic jams). In any event, I found out that turkeys are pretty fast... 50mph... really?!? But, they don't really fly for more than a quarter mile (so all those Turkey Trots that are 5+ kilometers... the associated "kid's dashes" are much more accurate). Also found out that the "major turkey vocalizations" include: "gobbles", "clucks", "putts", "purrs", "yelps", "cutts", "whines", "cackles", and "kee-kees". Sweet... no "wahooos"... so I don't have to worry about inadvertently calling a turkey when I go run 400s around the track at home while flapping my arms (just kidding)! #20

And this was one of the first articles that popped up when I googled "turkey flying speed"... I think I am going to start annotating my days like this... will certainly make life more interesting!

Choose Your Own Adventure

After racing yet another random distance race over the weekend, a thought occurred to me. Despite being slightly disappointed that I might have to add "run a good 10K" to next year's List of Things ToDo, I realized that I could cross "PR in a distance close to 6 miles" off of this year's list. And, all and all, I would still describe it as a "good race"... ran strong, felt good, had fun, etc. Plus, they gave out the Wheaties cereal I like, the doughnuts at the end were just as good...

So, how to balance these things... hmmmmm... why not just make the race a random distance?!? Now, hear me out... what if there was a race where you could run whatever distance you felt like on that given day? I envision a "race" that is a loop, or a series of loops, that you run until you feel like stopping (there would have to be some time limit, maybe 2-3 hours, and some of the "standard" distances marked). I guess this is similar to the 24-hr race concept... or the 1-hr track run that we did in the spring... and I had fun doing the later. Maybe to make things more interesting, there could be random or impromptu "competitions"-- fastest first 400m, first person up the hill on the second lap, most consistent pace, etc.

Having a good day... run more.
Wishing that 8K was really a 5K... make it so.
Want to try out a new racing strategy... go for it.
Trying to see how long you can run without stopping, get a quality training run in with some friends, or want to enjoy the thrill of setting a new PR... just convince someone else to too.
Sound FUN... come on out for the Wahooo xK!

I might need to lay off the caffeinated sports beans after dark. #20

11/20-21 Race Reports

Add a few more ticks to the "TAF is Awesome" column:

• Keith rocked Raven Rock on Saturday! On a course which Oyler previously described as an EKG, Keith finished 7th overall (3rd AG)... WAHOOO! (results)
• Sean, Dave, and I headed to Wilson on Saturday for the Nash Street 10K, where TAF Racing once again dominated the podium! Sean was first across the line for us, finishing 2nd overall! He and the first place runner were neck-and-neck, both sprinting through the finish with the clock reading 29-something (which totally rivals Bobby Mack's time from last week)! I was next across the line for us, finishing up as the 3rd female overall, and Dave followed shortly thereafter. So, do you want to know something interesting? Despite the fact that we were all in the same race, we ran 3 different courses. Sean (and the 1st and 3rd runners) "choose" a course that was closer to 5 miles, I (and the 1st and 2nd females) "selected" to run closer 6 miles, and Dave had the unfortunate luck of being directed on a course that was in the 6.4 mile neighborhood. So, needless to say, we all set new "random distance" PR's... in three different distances... CONGRATS GUYS! Ok, ridiculousness aside, we DID compete well (in whatever race we happened to run)... and Sean totally would have set a legitimate master's PR in a 10K. Oh well, it was still fun, and met some cool people (the guy who finished 3rd was one of the runners from NC sitting beside us at the finish)! (results... I know they extrapolated Sean's time)

A few of us met up with Laurel today in Roanoke Rapids. We ran on the greeway there, which was beautiful, and apparently undiscovered by the locals (I think we saw 5 people the whole time... and I think two of them were the same person!). So, that concludes our weekend adventures. GREAT JOB everyone and enjoy the week (mmmmmm... I can taste the apple pie already). #20

Weekend Outlook

Now that we've got the "long" races out of the way... Saturday brings the Nash Street Mile and 10K, as well as the Raven Rock Rumble 5- and 10-mile Trail races. We have teammates competing in both... should be a nice day and the leaves are finally changing (wahooo)! On Sunday, some of us are meeting Laurel for a run (even more wahooo)! Closer to home, Mike H. (NCSU Tri team) is running a 50K in honor of his grandfather. He is running loops around main campus, so if you can, go out and cheer him on. Think that's about it! #20

Unfortunately, we missed out on Guinness World Records Day (it was yesterday). New thing to add to the TAF ToDo list... find a world record and break it for next year! Being that I had 9hrs of zombie lab to think about what record to break: (1) greatest number of sprinkles in one standard-sized funfetti cupcake, (2) largest gathering of people jumping up and down while screaming "wahooo!", or (3) longest sentence completed without taking a breath!

Focus

Turns out, we spend nearly 50% of the time thinking about something other than what we are currently doing. This does not surprise me... in fact, personally speaking, that's conservative. I am reminded of this fact every time I do yoga. One of the things the instructor constantly says is "Focus on the present. What are you feeling now? Think about the..." Whenever they say this, I'm usually mid-thought on something else... and for about 30sec, I "remember" to think about yoga before I "forget" and start back thinking about anything and everything else. However, being that the yoga instructors appear to be so calm while I am anything but... well, perhaps there's something to this whole "focus" concept. This study pretty much confirms my hypothesis - people become frustrated/unhappy when their mind wanders too much. Interesting... but I now think I can count distance running as a form of "therapy" because it is totally acceptable to not focus too much! #20

Spectating... because somebody's gotta do it

I think good crowd support is key to racing your best. I mean, when there is no one but the guy wearing shorts that are too short in front of you and the other guy in Vibrams slapping his feet on the ground behind you... well... I'd give anything just to see some people sitting on the porch blaring Eye of the Tiger or something (seriously, I miss those guys from the Tir na nOg run). It's always nice when little kids high-five you... as long as you don't think too closely about how many people they've high-fived as you lick GU off your hand because you are incapable of opening it like a normal person. Or the older people that tell you that they wish they could still run as fast as you... the others that say "looking strong" when you know you look like hell... or the "coaches" in the crowd that tell you your place and distance to the next mile marker. So, I want to first thank all of the people that do come out to cheer. And then, as I have a difficult time spectating (I hate standing still and not competing), I found this "training plan" online (it cracked me up... and why does everyone insist on mis-spelling wahooo?!?). #20

Wahooo

I decided to google this term the other day because it was more interesting than doing whatever work I was supposed to (note: this post has nothing to do with running). Turns out, there is a Wahooo Swim Monitoring System, which has apparently established "a new standard for aquatic safety and drowning detection". The Wahooo SMS might come in handy at the Wahooo Water Park Bahrain (looks fun).

Woo-hoo is apparently the more accepted spelling of the term. According to Merriam-Webster, it is used to express exuberant delight or approval, and its first known use was in 1981 (seriously, (1) no one said this before the early 80's and (2) there's a dictionary definition for this term?!?). Also, "Whoo hoo" was apparently an advertising campaign introduced by Washington Mutual in 2008.

Back to work (boohoo)! #20

11/13-14 Race Reports

I'm pretty sure that dictionary.com needs to add a 4th definition for awesome... TAF Racing:

• On Saturday, at Beach 2 Battleship, James and John G. completed their first half ironmans. James was 2nd in his age group, and 56th overall! Ed did the whole thing, completing his first ironman in 11:40. Ok y'all... that's just CRAZY... CONGRATS... WOW... I don't know how you did it... I'm pretty sure the last thing that I wanted to do Saturday morning was jump in the ocean and swim, then jump on a bike and ride in the wind... and then go run over a few bridges! CONGRATS again... I'm just going to keep saying that over and over (but I'll spare y'all the details for reading it).
• On Sunday, Dave M. and Lisa H. both decided to have a go at the 26.2 mile distance. Dave ran the Harrisburg Marathon, keeping a strong pace until mile 18 when the hills hit, and still finished in a great time despite the fact that I think that both of his feet were covered in one huge blister (well, I guess two huge blisters... seriously, I don't think there was a square inch of either not covered in band-aids, gauze, and tape!). Lisa ran the OBX marathon, setting a new PR and finishing 6th in her age group. I think this now marks a PR at like every distance for her since September! AWESOME JOB GUYS! (OBX results)
• A bit closer to home, some of us ran the Old Reliable 10K, where TAF Racing also dominated the podium. Laura B. was the overall winner on the woman's side, setting a new PR for a road 10K in the process. Also on the list of PR's, Rita ran like "a mile" PR, placing 1st in her age group (and 6th woman). Sean and I both took 1st in our age groups, and Keith was 4th in his. Perry and Andrew ran great races too. TAF ROCKS! (results... and look who made the News and Observer... plus several shots in the album too)!
  
• In other news, John Crews won the OBX Marathon. Laurel went out to cheer / run with some of our friends at the Richmond Marathon (which was also dominated by local Raleigh runners).WAHOOO!

A few of us got together on Sunday night to celebrate this weekend of awesomeness, and I made a great discovery... "icecream cherries" on pizza! Yes y'all... the Fly'n Hawaiian pizza... all it was missing was sprinkles... we'll add it to the "TAF To Do List": (1) Dominate XC Club Nationals, (2) Plan an awesome end-of-the-season-party, (3) Make "icecream cherry" + sprinkles pizza (at this point, I guess it's really more of a cupcake) for the aforementioned party! #20

Recovery

Seems like we've been doing a lot of long races lately, so I thought it would be appropriate to post something on how to best recover from these efforts. While this article is geared mostly towards training, a lot of the same principles apply:

• Remember the "bell-curve" (warm-up, swim/bike/run hard, cool-down)
• Flush out lactic acid, etc. from your muscles with dynamic stretching, hydrotherapy, or simply by taking a walk... this also helps to preserve range of motion and alleviate stiffness... elevating your legs helps too
• Drink lots of water (your muscles need to be lubricated)
• Refuel (whole grains, beans, leafy greens, and healthy fats from fish, avocados, and nuts promote an anti-inflammatory response in the body)
• Relax

The only "don't" listed was "pop pills"... they tend to give you a false sense of "I'm really ok" when your not, causing many to "challenge" themselves before being fully recovered and ready. My recommendation ( if anyone cares) - compression socks and Icy-Hot (still haven't perfected the not freezer-burning myself with real ice)! #20

Wow Wow Wow

Just heard from James... he finished the Beach 2 Battleship Half Ironman in 5:15... 56th overall and 2nd in his age group... AWESOME!!! #20

Weekend Racing

Well, there are a lot of races going on this weekend to say the least! On Sat., James and Ed are competing in the Beach 2 Battleship half and full Ironmans respectively. Good luck guys... that is just awesome! Brad B. is also racing in the Richmond Half Marathon. On Sunday, Dave is running the Harrisburg Marathon. I think Lisa (and maybe others) were planning on racing the OBX Marathon. Closer to home, I think a couple of us are doing the Old Reliable 5K/10K. So, WAHOOO and HAVE FUN! #20

For this week, I thought I'd abandon "world record" Friday in lieu of "completely bizarre" Friday (and lets face it, most of the former could be included in the later). Ok, so a lot of us have had some close encounters with stray dogs, squirrels, maybe a few copperheads out on the trail... but I never thought I'd have to worry about a white-tailed deer! Nor am I sure that the creators of "The Middle" ever thought that they would be predicting the future (from episode 1.24)!

Veteran's Day Report

It was an eventful morning to say the least. Since it is actually lighter out now at 6AM vs. 6PM, a couple of us decided to give the Ridge Rd. morning run a try again. So, in keeping with my new plan to begin every day listening to Eye of the Tiger (note: this song turns even the most mundane activities into pure awesomeness), I sang along from my apartment to the parking lot. After finally psyching myself up enough to get out of the car, I turned off my MP3 player and... well... the music was still playing. And, because it was 5:42AM, my first thought was... "Sean was right! I do have music playing in my head! I am insane!" Luckily, Jennifer heard the music too, as did Rita, Brad B., and Oyler. Good... I'm not crazy... but the guy rocking out to whatever the heck he was listening to in the Ridgewood parking lot at quarter to six in the morning might be! On that note (hahaha), we departed.

The plan was to run for a bit and then head down Hillsbourough St. to see if we saw Brad S. (he told me yesterday that he and a few buddies of his were doing a 50K from the Capitol to Chapel Hill starting at 6AM). Down Gorman, through campus, back to Hillsborough St... ummmmm... why are there a bunch of police cars out? We were all a little concerned, and even more concerned when we heard a whole bunch of shouting. Ok, it is Veteran's Day... was there some sort of protest going on? Then, we saw them... about 100+ ROTC members and other military / retired military personnel running down Hillsborough St. shouting and chanting and carrying flags. AWESOME. I mean I can count on one finger the amount of runs that I've been on when I've seen something like this. We looked for Brad, but it was hard to spot him in the sea of people (note: when Brad told me his plan yesterday, I was thinking there were going to be like 3 people... I just hope not all of them were running 31 miles). Also, it was still kind of dark out at 6:15.

Luckily, Whole Foods was open when we finished our run, so wahooo for coffee (know my 8:05 lab section was happy that I had caffeine... no need to make the zombie lab simulation too realistic). I think I can safely say that this is the most eventful Thursday morning run that I've ever been on... glad I got to run with my friends at a ridiculous hour and see a whole bunch of people running and chanting down the street! Hopefully Brad S. will let us know how the next 29 miles went.

Happy Veteran's Day!!!

The foot bone connected to the...

Apparently the knee and elbow bone... funny, that's not the song that I learned! A lot of leg injuries can be traced to over-striding (i.e., when your foot touches down 10-12 inches in front of your center of gravity). This can place upwards of 3x your weight on your joints. So, how can you prevent this? First, make sure you are landing mid-foot as opposed to on your heels. However, even this won't solve all of your problems- elbow angle is also important. Wait... what... my elbow is not connected to my foot! But, there is a relationship between the rate at which you swing your arms and your foot strike... or as coach would say, "your feet follow your arms". This is why you should pump your arms more at the end of a race... just try and unsynch your arm swing and footfall (but not during a race... unless you want to slide across the finish... actually, one of my teammates did this in college and beat the girl she was neck and neck with... but that was on grass and not a street... ok, enough with that tangent). Furthermore, changes to arm swing affect where you land on your foot. Coincidentally, this is why you shouldn't run with weights, either arm or leg. #20

The Importance of Cool-downs

I know that the last thing I want to do after racing or speed workouts is run some more... unless there's a locopop at the end of it of course! But, well, you should. In fact, you should cool-down a lot... like 40 minutes a lot... at least that's what Sally Kipyego suggests! The Oregon Track Club routine is a bit easier... they only cool-down for about half that time. In any event, both the "Kenyan" (Kapcherop Training Camp) and the "American" (Oregon Track Club) routines incorporate drills and dynamic stretching to flush out your legs, increase range of motion, and reset muscle memory. I highly recommend reading this article, it contains a lot of good information. Guess I better better get to ABC-skipping! #20

helps when you don't confuse AM and PM when you "bank" posts... sorry for the delay :-)

The Battleship Report

4:30 AM
So, my cell phone isn't like every other cell phone... it does not automatically update for daylight savings time... I was halfway changed into my uniform before I heard Rita and Alli say, "Meghan, it's only 4:30." Sorry for the early start guys... was good practice for an hour later when we actually did get up!

5:50 AM
Meghan - "At least we're not in Raleigh, it's 32 degrees currently. It's 38 degrees here, but it feels like 31."
Gavin - "Not the direction I was hoping for."
Meghan - "Oh, don't worry, fitness and comfort index says it's 'comfortable'. But, we should wear 'multi-layer'."

We left, all in 'multi-layer' at 6:15. It was cold, just like weather.com said, but at least it wasn't raining.

The Start - 10 Miles
We found Tim G. and Rusty at the start. We also found the "guy from the Blueberry Festival", Rita's coach from high school, and I think about 7 other people that somehow knew Rita! Gavin made his way to the front... luckily he was wearing neon yellow so we could still see him. The gun went off, and we started running.

The first couple of miles featured a lot of uphills... well... up-bridges! It was windy, and cold, and running over grates on a bridge is somewhat challenging. We were happy to get into town... but running on the bricks was no bargain either. At least a lot of people were cheering... and the Christmas decorations were out. We turned a corner right after the 4mile mark and were confronted with an uphill. What?!? No fair... they totally hid that... I do not appreciate surprise hills! Luckily, we didn't have to run all the way up it... the course took a turn and flattened out for a bit.

After a while, we entered a park. There were a lot of curves in the road, which made the "finding the shortest path" game more interesting. I'm pretty sure the guy that was insisting on running right on my shoulder thought I was insane, or maybe it was the fact that I was wearing bright red compression socks. Anyways, "Mr. too short green shorts" passed us around mile 7. Rita and I had to stare at him for the next 5 miles.... this was very unfortunate.

The Last 5K
I think we all started to slow down around mile 10. This brought me to my latest theory - given that the race distance is greater than or equal to 5000m, the last 5K will always be awful! We hit the bridge just before the 12-mile mark... not much had changed since the first time we had run across it, it was still cold and windy... but running over the grates was even more difficult this time around! Gavin said this is where the guy he was running with tried to surge ahead... Gavin caught him at the bottom of the bridge... silly wasting your energy sprinting over a bridge. As for the rest of us... Rita and I saw Tim G., who had a screw stuck in his shoe... pretty sure that would make running over grates even more challenging. Alli saw Rusty on the bridge... and also made the mistake of looking down... it was a long way down!

Luckily, we could follow the highway signs for The Battleship the rest of the way. I started to pick it up when I saw the battleship, and finally managed to pass "Mr. too short green shorts". We were in the home stretch... and a minute later, we were in the home stretch... and a minute after that... where the heck was the finish line?!? No joke, there appeared to be no finish line... there was no big banner... just a timing mat... ok, there was a small banner... I didn't have my glasses on.

Post-Race
Gavin was first across the line for us, and nearly first across the line for the whole race (2nd overall)... good thing he decided that morning that he might try and run! About twenty minutes later, I was next (6th woman, 2nd AG), followed closely by Rita (10th woman, 3rd AG) and Tim G. Alli G., in her half marathon debut, finished strong, as did Rusty. We saw Jacci, she had run a PR, and thankfully gave us a ride back to Alli's car so we didn't have to wait for the trolley. We stopped at a coffee shop that Rita and Alli had spotted along the course... glad they were paying attention because I am not very observant (we had apparently passed Alli's car when we were running too, another detail which I failed to notice). It was a GREAT RACE and a FUN trip. AWESOME JOB everyone! (results) #20

High Fructose Corn Syrup

It's in everything.
It's going to bring down American society.
It's pure evil contained in a bottle.

This is what a woman told me at a party the other week as she popped piece after piece of cheese into her mouth. I couldn't help but think that she was missing the point. Arguably HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) is not good for you, but I have a hard time believing it's as awful as some people claim. So, being that I know very little about what HFCS actually is, I decided to look it up. The production process is described in detail in this Wikipedia entry: (1) mill corn to get corn starch, (2) process starch to get corn syrup (which is mostly glucose), (3) add enzymes to convert the glucose to fructose, (4) distill / blend to achieve the desired sweetness. Ok, so it's basically just liquid sugar?

With respect to the "it's in everything" phenomenon, it has slowly been substituted for sugar because (1) it is cheaper to produce in the U.S. and (2) it is easier to blend and transport because it is a liquid. Both of these things seem reasonable to me, so I really don't understand what has people all up in arms. And then I stumbled upon the real problem. The reason why obesity is such a problem in the U.S. is not because of high fructose corn syrup... it's because we are eating more sweet foods. Sweets, by nature, are high in calories regardless of what is used to sweeten them (with the exception of the 0 calorie artificial sweeteners of course). It just so happens that this increase in consumption corresponded with a switch to HFCS. So, in conclusion, high fructose corn syrup is probably not going to kill us... but I might go ahead and eat an apple instead of candy corn just to be on the safe side! #20

11/6-7 Race Reports

We gained and hour and lost 40 degrees this weekend... what a trade! Dave and Erica got the weekend started off right, running strong races at Free to Breathe. Erica was 2nd in her age group, and Dave 4th in his... and they both set 4.34K PR's (results)! But, have no fear, David Kirby decided to make up the extra distance with a 50-miler yesterday... he ran 9hrs 16min at the Mountain Masochist run!

The Battleship Half Marathon went well this morning. Gavin got 2nd overall, I'm pretty sure Rita and I placed in the top 10 females, Alli not only completed her first half marathon, but ran awesome (crushing her goal time), and Tim and Barry ran great races too! Jacci from the Half Marathon Training Program also ran a huge PR. I don't know what the official results are (we were way too cold and in need of caffeine), but I'll post a full report soon. I heard City of Oaks went well too... Dave and Brad are expert pacers! GREAT JOB this weekend everyone... what to do with this whole extra hour?!? #20

:-)

The first thought on my mind when I woke up this morning was... check weather.com. Now, this does seem reasonable being that I am racing tomorrow... but that came secondary. What I really wanted to know was how the website would resolve the time change in the hourly forecast (yes y'all it's been a very long week). In an effort to be more efficient, I did check the forecast for Wilmington, NC first. THERE ARE TWO 12 AM's LISTED! Now, this is what I figured would happen, but just seeing it written that way made my day... that and it's supposed to be cool, but not rainy, both in Wilmington and in Raleigh. Should be perfect... GOOD LUCK if you're racing or pacing tomorrow! #20

Other miscellaneous results from the Team

Sometimes results don't always get to Meghan or Sean in time for the weekend recap, so here are some that I've noticed...

Perry was 2nd overall at the DHHS 5k held at Dorthea Dix on Friday October 15th...

John Royal was 1st in his age group at the ATT 10 miler on Oct 23rd.

Gary Franks was 2nd in his age group at the Ridge to Bridge Marathon on Oct 30th...running a 3:05:11!

I thought I had more, but guess I don't...good job guys!

-Brad

Weekend Racing

It's the weekend of half marathons! And we get an extra hour of sleep on Sunday! What could be better?!? For those not racing at the 13.1 mile distance, there's always the option to run a "fun-sized" half on Sat. The Free to Breathe 5K is at 9:30 AM at our favorite race location- Centennial Campus... have fun running up those hills! Dave and Brad are pacing half of the City of Oaks marathon on Sunday, while Rita, Alli G., Sean, Gavin, Rusty, and I are headed off to Wilmington for the Battleship Half Marathon. Some of our other friends are probably running in one of those races too, so come on out cheer / help out! Good luck if you're racing, and have fun! #20

And, for world record Friday (I'm still on a Halloween theme here), the fastest time to carve one tonne of pumpkins is 3:33:49. This record was set on Oct. 29, 2008 by Stephan Clarke. So, is anyone else slightly disturbed by that picture?!?

Practice Makes Perfect

Got a race you really care about... run a "tune-up race" beforehand. A tune-up race is basically anything that isn't your goal race, but the article suggests that the former be shorter (although this seems less critical for 5K's compared to marathons). Tune-up races are good because, no matter how hard you push yourself in training, you can never match your "race effort"... adrenaline kicks in when the gun goes off! Plus, tune-up races allow y0u to refine your "racing strategy"... like when to chase down a pack or when to let them go. Also, the more you race, the less nervous you tend to be at any given race. Anyways, the article is pretty interesting, and gives some do's/don'ts, suggestions, and alternate workouts just in case you can't fit in a tune up race. #20

What do barbers and blood pressure have in common?

They both start with the letter 'b'. But, I did have something else in mind. Turns out, barbershop-based monitoring, education and physician-referral programs can help customers better control high blood pressure problems. Yes... I said barbershop... and by barbershop I mean the place where men go to get their haircut... I had to read the first two paragraphs twice to make sure I wasn't missing something.

Now that is just AWESOME! The scientists who conducted the study also hypothesize that such programs could save hundreds of lives annually. Wow, just wow... I would never have expected results to that extent! #20

This Just In...

The more you exercise, the less sick you'll be! And, when you do get sick, your cold won't last as long. Seriously y'all... click on the link... it's Nicole it's Nicole it's Nicole wahoooo!!! #20

The Lazy Cooker

Yup... that's me... on a good day. I'm always looking for quick ways of making something that is somewhat nutritious, so I was super excited when I came across this: canned salmon adds nutrients and flavor to quick meals. It's a good source of protein, omega 3's, vitamin D, and calcium... and better than tuna because it doesn't carry the mercury risk (I am already crazy enough). They suggest adding it to soups and sandwiches, making crab cakes, or adding it to pasta dishes. Personally, I have tried it with tomato soup, tomato sauce, salad, and Raman noodles... made them all taste better! Oh, and I would recommend adding the salmon pre-microwave... I like to pretend that this brings out the flavor more, but really it's just that I don't like eating things that are markedly different temperatures when they are all in the same bowl. #20

We don't need no education...

Scientists at Harvard have stumbled upon a formula to prevent runners from "hitting the wall"... BRILLIANT!!! Apparently, Benjamin Rapoport adopts a similar strategy to me while trying to distract himself from the fact that he is running 26.2 miles... MATH. While I stick to figuring out what percentage of the race I have completed, what my current pace is, how much that will change if I start crawling... Rapoport has dedicated his efforts to coming up with The Marathon Formula:

Mc = d*m*fc(i)

where Mc represents the amount of carbohydrates needed, d is the distance of the race (km), m is the mass of the runner, and fc(i) is an intensity factor (related to how fit you are). There is an online calculator available for figuring out what you should be able to do. Ok, here is where things get interesting. When I plug in my metrics, it tells me a "conservative marathon" for me is what I just killed myself to do at Steamtown. And, if I "really push myself", I can run at a pace well over a minute faster than I can for a 5K... and qualify for the US Olympic time trials. AWESOME, that is totally realistic... I'll get right to eating those 15 bowls of pasta!

I'm guessing the formula might need some tweaking, but it is a good first start. The article definitely got me thinking more about the importance of carbo loading, just maybe not quite to the extent discussed (I'm pretty sure I would throw up at around mile 3 if I ate that much 12hrs before)! #20

10/30-31 Race Reports

TAF Racing hit the podium a bunch of times this weekend. On Saturday, Brad took 3rd overall at the Seaboard Festival 5K (results). Alli G. ran an awesome at her Championship Race to make 2nd Team All Conference. Today, James sprinted to the finish of the Monster Dash, placing 2nd overall (1st AG) and setting a new PR. He narrowly edged out the 3rd place runner in the most exciting finish in the event's history. Laura Barry was 1st on the women's side (8th overall), smashing the previous course record by over a minute. Sean, racing as himself (and not Gavin in skinny jeans... that would have been difficult)... placed 1st in his age group (6th overall). Matt M. followed shortly behind him (3rd AG; 7th overall), I was the 2nd woman (1st AG), and Marty (dressed as superman) was right behind me (1st AG). All of us placed in the top 15... good times (results)!

We also saw a bunch of our friends from the Half Marathon Training Program and Fit-tastic at the Monster Dash, and they ran great races too! Brad, Lisa, Bri, Kari, Rita, Erica, Jennifer, Tom, Nikki, Sam, Matt C., Mr. Smythe, and the NCSU Club XC Team came out to help / cheer. Our other friends from TAF who actually had to work today (Alli G., Anna, Jon, Matt T., Mike, and Joey) were also out there, and Mike's son took 2nd in the mile. The NCSU Tri Team also competed in the mile dressed as a bobsled team! Lead by Nicole Lewis, they ran together... in a cardboard bobsled... with helmets and goggles and matching tri tops... it was awesome! Not surprisingly, they won the team costume award. If I'm leaving anyone out, I apologize... it was great to see everyone! CONGRATS to all those who raced and HAPPY HALLOWEEN! #20

... I'll link pictures when they get posted!

Weekend Racing

In case you haven't been reading the blog all week... the Monster Dash is this Sunday (2PM, Cameron Village). It's a TAF-sponsored race... so if you're not running, please come on out and help, cheer, eat candy, etc.! Packet pickup is today (4-7 at The Athlete's Foot) and tomorrow (2-6 at Great Outdoor Provision Company). The Seaboard Festival 5K is on Sat., and the TAF Half Marathon Training program is meeting for a long run. GOOD LUCK if you're racing... have a SPOOKTACULAR time! #20

And, for this week's amazing story, we're staying local again. Margaret Hagerty, and 87-year-old from Concord, NC, is planning on running her 81st marathon this year at Kiawah. She made the Guinness Book of World Records back in 2005 when she became the oldest person to complete a marathon on each of the seven continents! And no, we're not related (I spell my last name differently)... but I wish we were because she is just AWESOME! #20

Halloween is WICKED AWESOME

Aside from getting to wear a costume, there are other things that I love about Halloween (ok, this list/post is pretty random, but the links are related to running, exercise, nutrition, and ummm):

1. Pumpkins... they're fun to carve, good for you, and make good bikes
2. Apples... they're a much better addition to salads (arugula anyone?!?) than bananas, and candy apples are awesome (especially funfetti ones... wow wow wow!!!), and so is apple crisp, and apple pie, and really apple anything... plus, climbing trees is good cross training
3. Candy... funfetti... all the simple sugars that a runner could ever need!
4. Leaves... I guess they're nice to look at, but they're even better for JUMPING IN!
5. Running away from monsters, zombies, etc.

How to make the BEST running costume

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to encourage others, make people laugh, have fun, win a prize, or simply get your picture taken! How are you going to do this?... by making the BEST COSTUME EVER for the Monster Dash! If there was such a thing as an expert on costumes for runners, I'm pretty sure this guy would be it! In his "how to" he offers the following suggestions:

• Be big, bright, and tropical
• Be original, thought provoking, and funny
• Use lightweight and cool runner-friendly materials

Ok guys... we were superheroes last year... so what should we be this year?!? #20

Racing "In Style"

Mark Remy noted a few months back that there was an increase in the number of people who were running marathons in costumes. He chalked this up to:

1. A general lack of costume parties (he wasn't invited to the awesome TAF 80's party)
2. Wanting to stand out from the crowd (being that Boston filled up in 9hrs and 3min, I'm pretty sure he's right on the whole "blending in" phenomenon)
3. Racing times are getting slower (true... but I did run one of my fastest 5K times dressed as The Flash... guess I need to start training harder)
4. Costumes aren't more common, there are just more cameras to capture them (yes... but I'm pretty sure that of the 18 runners that competed in the first Boston Marathon, 0 were wearing costumes)
5. Those aren't costumes (AWESOME... Darth Vader totally IS running the marathon)

So, I did some additional "research"... found that it's a tradition in some races (ok, mud run and costumes, why didn't we know about this?!?), it's fun, and superheros have more energy. I can't wait for the Monster Dash! #20

Bananaman

Apparently, you can run fast dressed as a superhero... like 3:36 marathon fast!!! Darren Stone... sorry, Bananaman... raised £1,400 for the St Margaret's Hospice in Taunton, England during this year's London Marathon. In "real life" he is a semi-professional soccer player who runs a cafe. #20

... Team TAF could totally take him at the Monster Dash (FYI, the theme of the week is Halloween & Running)!!!

10/23-24 Race Reports

Lisa Howell took first in her age group at the The Colony Lost and Found 5K in Manteo... wahooo! Not sure if anyone else raced this weekend. If you did, let us know and CONGRATS LISA! #20

Weekend Outlook

Training... racing... enjoying this AWESOME weather... Run for Healthier Babies is on Saturday. Also, the TAF Half Marathon Training Program is meeting for a long run. Not sure what everyone has up for the weekend...

And, for Friday's story of someone doing something completely amazing, I bring you news from someone we actually know... Brad's Dad! Mr. Smythe completed his "run a marathon in all 50 states" quest last week at the Des Moines Marathon... CONGRATS!!!

For real?!?

Suffice to say, the Brooks Cavalcade of Curiosities is... well... completely bizarre. One of the weirdest and most memorable of the "side shows" is the human Jesus Lizard. Basically, the Jesus Lizard's claim to fame is that he/she/it can run across a pool of "non-Newtonian substance" (i.e., the Brooks DNA). Ok, so I was under the impression that this was pretty much just weird, and that the people who dreamed up the cavalcade probably also enjoyed a good game of Ultimate Frisbee. Then, to my utter surprise, one night when I was watching the Discovery Channel they started talking about The Jesus Lizard. This caught my attention... enough to look up and actually watch the TV versus just listening to it. And... well... there was an actual lizard on the screen! Wait... so this means that there is AN ACTUAL JESUS LIZARD?!? They DIDN'T MAKE THAT UP?!? The Jesus Lizard walks on water?!? Wow... wow... wow... maybe these people should study the Jesus Lizard's technique! #20

9.81 m/sec^2

It seems unfair to me that going down stairs / downhill hurts more than going up stairs / uphill after a difficult workout or race. I mean, gravity is working in our favor on the way down... have to fight it on the way up... so, what's the deal? Turns out, going down a slope requires an eccentric muscle contraction (muscle lengthens), whereas going up requires a concentric muscle contraction (muscle shortens). It is the former that results in lactic acid build-up, and is currently "of interest" because people with degrees higher than mine have noticed an increased rate of muscle soreness and injury. However, just because it hurts more going down stairs doesn't mean that you are actually working harder (this is apparently a relatively common myth... not sure why... guess they haven't had to draw zillions of free body diagrams). #20

!!!!!!!

Look Look Look... the "featured article"... guess who's the author!?!

p.s. I will be jumping up the hills at tonight's practice! #20

Sneakers

First... the Boston Marathon filled up in 9hrs... that's just insane... wow... only took 25 emails, 10 text messages, 2 phone calls, and who knows how many facebook posts to get Team TAF registered!

Ok... back to this "regularly scheduled" blog post! When I was in undergrad, I thought the coolest internship would be in a biomechanics lab at a running shoe company. So, when I'm "watching" TV, I sometimes read running shoe reviews for old times sake:

• Lightweight Training/Racing Shoes (road)
• Lightweight Training/Racing Shoes (trail)
• Comprehensive Spring, Summer, and Fall 2010 Shoes
• Trail-Specific Shoes and more Trail-Specific Shoes

... I now think the coolest job EVER would be developing sensors for compression stockings! However, the majority of the public does not agree with me (if this whole grad school thing doesn't work out, my new plan is "fake executive"). #20

10/16-17 Race Reports

Looks like I was wrong about it being a quiet weekend... WAHOOO TEAM TAF:

• Dave M. took first in his age group at the Neuse River Bridge Run Half Marathon despite the wind and the hills (and running a half marathon two weeks ago)! He also saw Mark and Donna from the Half Marathon Training Program out there, and both turned in great times! (results)
• Looks like James, Nicole, Ed, and our other friends on the NCSU Tri team did awesome at the Pinehurst Tri on Sat. NCSU claimed 1st and 3rd in the relays, and had a bunch of great individual performances! (relay results, men's results, women's results)
• Marty Gaal ran in the Atlantic City Half Marathon on Sunday, running a negative split for a 1:32:29... not sure I've ever negative-split a race! (results)

Ok, back to work... didn't get much accomplished this morning other than filling out the Boston registration form like a zillion times! See you guys at some run and have a great week! #20

BOSTON Registration

OPENS TODAY AT 9AM!!!

The Weekend Outlook

Nicole, James, and some of our friends from the NCSU Tri Team are teaming up to compete at the Pinehurst Triathlon on Sat. (either as a relay or individually). I'm not sure if anyone else is racing this weekend... GOOD LUCK and HAVE FUN if you are... think it is going to be a "bye week" for most of the rest of us! #20

And, because we're getting close to Halloween... the record for the largest gathering of superheroes was just recently broken at the DreamWorks MEGAMIND event. Will Ferrell was joined by 1580 Caped Crusaders on Oct. 2nd, crushing the previous record of 1501... AWESOME!!!

The Steamtown Report

Although the results pretty much speak for themselves, they are only part of the story of TAF's domination at the Steamtown Marathon. This is the rest (note: most of this report is going to be written from my perspective being that I am me and no one else):

The Morning

The windshield of the car was covered in ice... granted, it was 5:20, but below freezing?!? Thanks to our early start, we were able to get on one of the first buses to Forest City High School. Everyone was kind of nervous, but you had to laugh at the R-U-N-N-E-R-S cheer being shouted as we got off the bus (but I do want to go ahead right now and thank all of the volunteers who got up so early and stood in the freezing cold). We got into the gym and set up camp, "reserving" one of the mats to sleep on. The next 1.5hrs was pretty uneventful... we tried to find Gary, John G., and John T... talked a bit to the woman sitting next to us (she was quite excited that I had an extra pair of neon pink gloves)... ate some nutritious and delicious PowerBars... etc.

The Start

At 7:50 we began moving outside. Rita and I wished Keith, Sean, and Dan good luck... run fast... see you in 26.2 miles... etc. The start was, well... how many races are started by cannon fire?!? It was really cool. Rita and I soon began running down the first hill, and within 0.1 miles spotted John T! We agreed that it was going to be a good day because (1) the cannon was awesome and (2) we found our friend.

Down, down, down we went. Sometime soon after, we passed a store named Tobacco Road. Cool... just like home... our friends were even running at the ATT today... it was going to be a great race! We ran into Dan around the 1 mile mark, and continued to run together for a bit. Rita pulled ahead of the two of us by the 2 mile mark, and continued to gain on us. By the 10K mark, I was on my own...

The "Middle" Miles

I could see Rita up ahead of me for a bit (red shirts and white compression socks are easy to pick out in a crowd). After 6 miles of downhill, we leveled off for a bit, and then went down some more (albeit at a less steep grade). I dropped my inhaler about mile 11, and completely lost sight of Rita (the red shirts in front of me were not wearing white compression socks). The course began to level out at this point, and we spotted the clock from The Office around the halfway point. However, no one was handing out Jello-shots nor wearing a Run for Rabies shirt.

We entered the "Rails to Trails" section a little before the 15 mile mark. The leaves were turning... the river was 10ft away... it was nice to be off the roads for a bit... I looked at my watch at the 2hr mark and thought, "At 10 o'clock on 10-10-10 I am running a marathon. This trail is beautiful, I feel good, my friends are running well... this is perfect, like the number 10." We left the trail shortly before the 18 mile mark. The next 2 miles were nice, we looped around a soccer field and a park and there were lots of people out cheering (although the best spectator award definitely goes to the "old guy with the boombox").

I think we all began to get tired somewhere around the 20 mile mark... the beginning downhills were starting to take their toll. By 22 miles, I know I was pretty dead.

The Last 5K

I thought about the Daves and their 5K on Sat... tried to tell myself that I've run 5K's when I felt worse... this made me laugh because it was a blatant lie and I knew it. The hill around mile 24 felt like a mountain, but at least there were lots of people out cheering and encouraging us on (Persist... Persist... R-U-N-N-E-R-S... Gooooooooo Runners). We got a bit of a downhill after that before heading up the "finishing hill" (yup, someone had a sign that said that in case we hadn't noticed). One foot in front of the other... left, right, left right... Sean said someone told him that he had "three more blocks"... he ran three blocks and there was still no finish...this is pretty much what the end felt like... there but not quite there.

Post Race

FINALLY made it, made it, made it... WAHOOO! I was very happy to see everyone again, and even happier to learn that everyone had run AWESOME! Sean had met up with Gary somewhere around the 20 mile mark, and the two ran together for a bit. Gary sprinted the finish... and both ended up PRing with times in the 3:09's. Keith was next across the line, running a 3:15 in his first marathon ever. Rita crossed shortly thereafter, taking 20min off her previous best to run a 3:17. I was next in 3:20, and Dan followed with a 3:27. Rita and I both finished in the top 5 in our age group, and Rita was in the top 20 woman overall!

We enjoyed watching our fellow marathoners crossing the finish line from the comfort of folding chairs. We talked to Mr. and Mrs. Beard between gulps of All Sport... took some pictures... and eventually made our way back to our cars.

This concludes the Steamtown Report. As a bit of trivia, 101010 in binary is the number 42, which we all know to be the answer to life, the universe, and everything from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. You want to know what else 42 is the answer to? The distance of a marathon in kilometers. Coincidence? Nah! #20

Trail Running 101

Trail running can be fun. Plus, trails are softer than roads, and it's always good to mix up your training routine. This article features advice from Bobby Mack himself (and Gina Lucrezi)! Here is my summary (although you should definitely read the whole article):

It's important to train on trails if you intend to race on them. Start off on smooth, unpaved surfaces (like the American Tobacco Trail) before moving to slightly more uneven terrain (like grass fields), and finally to single-track trails. As you move to more uneven surfaces, expect your pace to slow. Also, pay attention to the trail in front of you... don't zone out... or you'll probably fall... and if you do, get up (because apparently you can still win a race if you fall three times... you just have to be really fast).