Weekend Racing

Obviously, the Cuke Patch 5K is this weekend (Saturday / Mt. Olive / 8AM), as is the Run for Our Heroes (Saturday / Raleigh / 9AM). On Sunday, the FAST Coaching / RRO edition of the Titus van Rijn 1-Hour Track Run will take place at the Martin Middle School track at 6:30AM. The rules are simple... see how far you can run on an hour (around a track). Think that's it (as a side note, the first thing that popped up when I googled how to spell Titus van Rijn was this wikipedia article).

So, for world record Friday, I tried to find an interesting record about pickles... there really weren't any. So, then I looked up some interesting 1hr records (in descending order from truly impressive to really bizarre):

• 1-armed push-ups: 1868 (Paddy Doyle, 1993)
• Cycling without hands: 23.25 miles (Erik Skramstad, 2009)
• Pancakes made by an individual: 956 (Steve Hamilton, 2009)
• Haircuts under water: 27 (David Rae, 2007)
• Times to jump into a pair of underpants: 234 (Kevin Velaiden, 2009)

"The biggest pickle any of them had ever seen"

Whenever I think of pickles and sports and running (not that I do this a whole ton), I think of baseball. A pickle describes a situation where a baserunner is stuck between two bases and is in danger of being tagged out. When the baserunner tries to advance to the next base, they get cut off by the defensive player... when they try and get back to the base they left, same thing. The first part of this video demonstrates the classic pickle situation in baseball:

And yes, The Sandlot definitely makes my top 10 favorite movie list... hmmmm, maybe that's why I'm so terrified of dogs!

Pickle Juice

On the topic of disgusting beverages, there is a company that sells bottles of pickle juice. I like the spoof on Gatorade and all, and apparently it's now available in the sports drink section of H.E.B., but the thought of drinking 16oz of straight up pickle juice actually makes me nauseous. I mean, I like pickles and all, but ewwww... I don't care how bad my calf is cramping!

So, why would anyone drink pickle juice... is it really that much better? According to the study quoted on the PJ website, those who drank pickle juice stopped complaining of muscle cramps 37% sooner than those who drank water (and 45% sooner than those who drank nothing). Ok, so why not a normal sports drink? Well, scientists hypothesize that it's actually the vinegar in pickle juice that causes muscles to relax (vs. the sodium, potassium, and other electrolytes). Basically, the vinegar triggers a reflex that sends a message to our brains to tell our muscles to relax... the shocking taste literally distracts you from the pain!

... oh that website gets better and better - apparently they signed Jason Witten (tight end for the Cowboys) to endorse the product! Tiger Woods should totally jump on this deal, I mean he must be looking for sponsors since he lost them all! Furthermore, I think we should set our sights on sponsorship from some off-brand cereal. Forget Wheaties, I'm stopping at none other than Magic Stars...or maybe Confruity Crisp... I can almost see the cereal box now :-)

Cucumbers

So, what are the health benefits of cucumbers? The flesh of the cucumber is high in vitamin C and caffeic acid, which alleviates skin irritations and reduces swelling. The skin, on the other hand, is rich in fiber, potassium, and magnesium, which have been shown to help reduce blood pressure. In addition to the minerals listed above, cucumbers are also "very good" sources of molybdenum, and "good" sources of vitamin A, manganese, folate, and tryptophan. And, because cucumbers are mostly water, eating them leaves you feeling full.

So, what's up with the picture of cucumber Pepsi? That is for real. Apparently, in the summer of 2007, Pepsi released this product for a limited time in Japan. Wow.

4/23-24 Race Reports

The Gaals had an awesome day at the Triangle Orthopaedic Sprint Triathlon on Sat. Bri was the 2nd female overall and Marty was 4th overall (1st age group) (results). The Flying Biscuit breakfast run also was quite delicious. CONGRATS everyone and have a GRRRRRRRREAT week!

Eat This Now - Pickles

This Saturday brings one of my favorite 5Kish races of the year... the Pickle Festival! So, in preparation for this awesome event, I'll leave the "theme of the week" up to your imaginations (and I promise that the Tortoise and the Hare will NOT be competing). We'll start the 4-day series with some delicious recipes involving pickles:

• Fried Pickles
• German Pickled Potato Salad
• Ham and Pickle Casserole
• Sweet Pickle Salad (okay y'all, I hate sweet pickles so I can't attest to their combinatorial powers with apricots, but that kind of sounds like a banana and kidney bean situation to me)

... arguably, my "eat this now" series is a bit more random than Runner's World, not that this is a shock to anyone :-)

The Story of the Boston Marathon

This post will be kind of like a prequel and sequel to the actual running of the Boston Marathon, as I cannot speak to anyone's experiences over the 26.2 mile course save for my own (and the race reports pretty much do this).

As Sean, Laurel, Jennifer, Rita, and I were standing in line waiting for one of the zillions of school buses to take us from Boston to Hopkinton (I seriously think they use ever school bus in MA), Rita's gear bag tore completely in half. All she was doing was holding it, and the bag wasn't really even that full, and it split horizontally... I've never seen anything like it. So, we gathered up her things and stuck then in a trash bag, and hoped that they would have extras in Athlete's Village. Soon after that, we got on a bus, and drove and drove and drove... did we really have to run all this way?!?

We finally got to Athlete's Village and started looking for our teammates. We had seen Kirby the day before and agreed to meet in the back left corner of the left tent. It seemed like a good plan, but we soon realized the flaw in our logic... "back" really depended upon which side of Athlete's Village you entered on, and people were entering from a bunch of different places. Also, the tents didn't so much appear to be on the right and left from our perspective. So, we decided to stand at the first corner of the first tent we came to (this was also our best guess at what the back left left really was). Luckily, it was also Kirby's best guess. We talked to him for a bit, found Rita a new gear bag (they saved them from the 2008 marathon?!?), and sat and stretched. We kept our eye out for other RRO's, and soon found Kimberlie and David. Then, I saw my name go by on a pair of compression socks, and I called out to Dave and he came over to join us (yes, this was really how I identified him). While the rest of us drank water and ate cereal or energy bars of various sorts, Dave drank and Amp and a "day old" pastry from Cup-of-Joe (which by now had to be at least 4 days old)... to each his own I guess.

They called the first wave, and Kimberlie, David, Kirby, Laurel, and Sean left. A half hour or so later, they called the second wave, and the rest of us left. On our way to the start line, John Flynn met up with us. Then, we ran 26.2 miles. Then, we made it through the mile long finishing chute (I am not joking) and over to the family meeting area.

As I approached, I could see my family and Sean and wished I could get there quicker to say hello. 26.2 miles is a long way for me to run without talking (the one person I tried to talk to turned out to be from Italy and didn't understand a word of English). I finally got there, and coach asked how the race went. I told them how cool it was that Jennifer and I got to start in the second row of the second wave, although I might have gone out a little quick and paid for it later, and asked how everyone in the first wave had done. Sean told me that Kirby had run great, as had Laurel, and Kimberlie, and David, and... Finally I asked him how he was feeling and he held up his foot. The toe box of his shoe was completely soaked in blood, and he informed me that someone had stepped on his toe around 18 miles. Rita and Jennifer joined us... Rita said she might have gone out a little quick too and Jennifer said that the finishing chute is really long. But, we were all happy that we had made it and could now proudly wear our 2011 Boston gear. Laurel appeared out of no where a few minutes later (she had been patient enough to wait in the post-race massage line), and we eventually found Nikki, Rachel, and Jane (they had been cheering like crazy at the 26 mile mark). Dave was in the 'M' section of the family meeting area (we were in the 'A'), so we made our way to the subway while Jane located him.

We finally got back to my parent's house, and a few minutes later got a text message with a picture of Dave's feet... gross! So, to summarize:

1. Make it to the bus... check
2. Make it to Hopkinton... check
3. Make it to the start line... check
4. Run the Boston Marathon... check
5. Make it through the finishing chute... check
6. Find everyone... check
7. Make it home... check

The End!!!

Weekend Outlook

Not sure if anyone is racing this weekend, or if, in fact, there are any local races to run! I think most of us are recovering from some tough spring races and/or preparing for some yet to come. Either way, maple syrup is a great recovery food, so I believe it's time for a Farmer's Market Breakfast Run (or maybe just breakfast)! I think the plan is for Saturday... more details to come in an email I'm sure. And, for a non-running related record (because London and Boston saw plenty of those), the largest Easter egg hunt was held in Florida back in 2007. 9573 kids (and maybe some adults) searched for 501,000 eggs in Cypress Gardens Adventure Park... not sure if "searched" is the correct verb there!

Peeps in a Microwave

Well friends, since I'm banking posts and have no clue when the "Boston Report" will appear, I figured I'd at least entertain y'all. Being that peeps are virtually sugar coated in sugar, my searches for peeps and running, peeps and cross training, peeps and anything that could be remotely fitness-related proved fruitless. Therefore, I leave you with this video, which is unrelated to anything except peeps.

Jump, Jump, Jump...

The Hare doesn't like to lose, especially to the Tortoise. So, he decides they need a re-match of sorts. While recovering the next morning over coffee and Boston creme donuts, he begins to list out all of the things that rabbits are better than turtles at. Jump Around comes on the radio, and the Hare realizes that this is the answer to his question - rabbits hop a lot... turtles, not so much (their shell kind of weighs them down). Sweet thinks the rabbit. To make the competition more interesting, he decides to incorporate all three jumps - long jump, triple jump, and high jump.

He calls up the Tortoise and explains how he had given away a GU to a fellow runner who wasn't looking so good, and that the PowerGel at the 17-mile mark had really upset his stomach, and this was the reason he fell apart at the end (this wasn't true at all). Then, he tells the Tortoise about the new challenge, and the Tortoise agrees. When he hangs up the phone, the Tortoise looks up how he should best prepare. He learns that a lot of the strength and conditioning drills are things that he wanted to incorporate into his training anyways to improve core strength, power, and flexibility. Wondering if he needs to do anything more in terms of specificity, he looks up some technique drills, and finds a whole lot of information about training for track and field events. Hmmmm... looks like fun!

4/16-18 Race Reports

Prior to the chaos that was Saturday afternoon, Mike Chappell finished 3rd OA in the Mission Outreach Benefit 5K (results)... I'd say two PR's in under a week pretty much spells AWESOME! Tim G. competed in the Beaverdam Tri, finishing in the top 10 and 3rd in his age group (results)... WAHOOO!

The Boston Marathon also saw some WICKED AWESOME performances from RRO / FAST Coaching. It was a perfect day (hence the multiple records that were broken... CRAZY), and I think everyone had a fun time (at least before, after, and partially during the race). Needless to say, we certainly earned those finishing medals after surviving the hills of Newton! David Kirby ran a 2:59:56, going sub-3 for the second time in under a month! Sean (4563), John Flynn (12751), and Dave (10131) also ran great races... not sure if Dave or Sean will win the "whose feet look the worst" contest! On the women's side, Laurel had a fantastic race, crossing in 3:15:39. Rita (14415), Jennifer (9590), and I (9075) ran strong, and David Meeker (3491) and Kimberlie Fowler (2336) crossed the finish line together (at least I am guessing by their times). Also, congrats to our friends Tim Meigs (2:38:36), Lisa Howell, and Joey Anderson on turning in some great times... and the Carolina Godiva Track Club for placing in the top 10 master's teams (individual results; team results)! Sorry if I'm leaving anybody out... I know there were more RRO people who ran, but I'm not sure of everyone's names (let us know how you did). I'll post a race report soon!

CONGRATS EVERYONE!!!

The Tortoise!!!

As long as I described what I calculated correctly... the Tortoise finishes in 3:29:36, and the Hare runs a 3:30 exactly (yay... they both met their goal)! The Tortoise passes the Hare with just over a half mile to go, which was the real reason why the Hare picked it up again at the end.  Either way, that ice-cream sundae looks delicious!

... I'll post a race report soon to let y'all know how the real Boston Marathon went :-)

The Tortoise & The Hare Run Boston

The Tortoise and the Hare want to run a 3:30 at Boston. The Tortoise plans to run steady 8min pace for the whole 26.2. The Hare thinks this is cutting it way too close. The two start together. Wanting to bank some time, the Hare runs a 6:30 pace for the first 5 miles. Then, as the course flattens out a bit, he settles into a 7min pace for the next 4 miles. Starting at mile 9, he begins to feel fatigued, and realizes he forgot to eat his GU at mile 8. Despite the rebounding properties of blackberry GU, he slows to a 7:30 pace for the next 3 miles. Then, he passes Wellesley College and gets "distracted" by all of the cheering, and barely manages to average a 10min pace for the next 1.5 miles. However, this cheering gives him renewed strength, and he is able to drop back to 7min pace for the next 3.5 miles. At mile 17, he decides to eat another GU but drops it, costing him 15-sec (i.e., his pace slows to 7:30 for 0.5 miles). Then, the hills hit. He is able to average an 8:30 pace for the first 1.5 miles before he starts walk-running. At this point, he slows to a 10min pace for the next 10K. Finally, he sees the "1 Mile To Go" sign, and starts jogging consistently for the next half mile, averaging a 9.5min pace. Then, with a half mile to go, he finds renewed strength, and crosses the finish line 4min and 15sec later.

So, who wins assuming the Tortoise sticks to his plan?!?

A Wicked Exciting Weekend

We have a number of teammates competing this weekend on the local race scene. Tim G. (and maybe others) are competing in the Beaverdam Tri, and Mike C. is running in the Mission Outreach Benefit 5K. There is also the House Your Neighbor 5K/10K taking place on Saturday, as well as a number of races / fun runs and bike rides at the Umstead Earth Day Celebration. Looks like it should be an AWESOME weekend.  So, GOOD LUCK, have FUN, and let us know how it all turned out.

Oh yeah, and on Monday there is this little race called the Boston Marathon that a bunch of us are running in. But, we have to make it to the start line first. So, for the final instalment of the "Countdown to Boston" series, here's my tips on surviving in Boston:

• Quincy Market, which is a really cool place, is not in Quincy... it's in Boston... and also referred to as Faneuil Hall
• The routes in the subway system are referred to by color... but don't refer to the commuter rail as the purple line
• In order to ride the subway, you can purchase a "Chahlie cahd" (this is a card that you put a certain amount of money on and can continue to use) or a "Chahlie ticket" (a one time deal)... the 'r' in these words is really more of a suggestion
• Boston Clam Chowda is a delicious cream based soup with potatoes and clams and celery
• Bostonites put "jimmies" in their funfetti cake and on ice cream, whereas the rest of the country uses sprinkles (with the exception of some areas of CT that use "shots"... they're all the same... the things you learn while working in an ice cream stand)
• Wicked is an adjective meaning very (so it would be incorrect to just describe Heartbreak Hill as wicked)... but no one says wicked wicked (so Heartbreak Hill isn't wicked wicked either)

And, for World Record Friday, I actually have two records for y'all (only because I love the specificity of the titles) - the fastest marathon run while skipping (with a rope) is 4:28:48, whereas the fastest marathon run while skipping (sans rope) is 5:55:13. The former was set by Chris Baron in 2007, while the later was set by Ashrita Furman in 2003. And, apparently Canada is the country to skip through 26.2 miles in!

Legends of Boston

Course Records
The men's open course record (2:05:52) was set last year by Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot. The women's open course record (2:20:43) was set in 2002 by Margaret Okayo.The men's wheelchair record (1:18:27) was set in 2004 by Ernst Van Dyk. The women's wheelchair record (1:34:22) was set in 1994 by Jean Driscoll. 

Most Wins
DeMar, ClarenceClarence DeMar (men's open) won 7 times between 1911-1930,  Ndereba, CatherineCatherine Ndereba (women's open) won 4 times between 2000-2005, Ernst Van Dyk (men's wheelchair) won 9 times between 2001-2010, and  Driscoll, Jean !Jean Driscoll won 8 times between 1990-2000. The U.S. has the most Boston Marathon wins in all categories, although 2005 was the last of these victories. 

The Americans
Greg Meyer was the last to win the open male category (1983; 2:09:00), and the fastest time belongs to Alberto Salazar (1982; 2:08:52). Lisa Larsen Weidenbach was the last to win the open female category (1985; 2:34:06), and the fastest time belongs to Joan Benoit (1983; 2:22:43). Knaub, JimJim Knaub was the last and fastest male in the wheelchair category (1985; 1:22:17). Cheri Blauwet was the last to win the female wheelchair category (2005; 1:47:45), and Jean Driscoll was the fastest (1994; 1:34:22).

Patience Young Skywalker

Even though the Boston Marathon is "downhill", it's not exactly an easy course. Why? Whether it's the normal going out too fast because you're excited to race, the little kids cheering you on, the Wesley girls "shouting" just before you hit the halfway point (more for the guys in the field), or the fact that the first ~2/3 feature a 400+ ft drop in elevation... it's really easy to unintentionally "bank" too much time. Then, just as you are beginning to get tired, the hills hit. So, how should you run Boston?

• Mile 0-10: the beginning few miles are really congested, so have fun, take it easy, high-five the little kids... whatever, just make sure that you are within range of your goal pace
• Mile 10-13.5: establish position and hold your ground... find a group that's going your pace and/or make some friends that have the same goal as you
• Mile 13.5-16: stick to your plan... although this section features a nice downhill, the next bit is all up and there's no sense rushing into it
• Mile 16-22: maintain a constant effort level... don't panic on the uphills and work the downhills
• Mile 22-25: stay focused and move into position... even though you are feeling tired and beat up, you're not going to be able to gain ground at the end because it's crowded
• Mile 25-26.2: give it everything you got and look good for the finish

So... where are the hills?

I was always under the impression that the Boston Marathon was really really hilly. Growing up, I heard all about Heartbreak Hill, and swore I would never run up it. After I registered, I clicked on the course map (this is not the link from the BAA website, because I can't open that one, and this one is much cooler) because, despite growing up ~20min north of the city, I had never seen the first 23 or so miles of the marathon course (yes, the first time I saw Heartbreak Hill was when I ran up it). And, to my utter surprise, I found out that there is actually a 480ft net drop in elevation from start to finish... and it looked like you spent more time running downhill than uphill. Sweet, maybe this wasn't going to be as bad as I thought! So, to answer the question posed in the title of this post:  

• The first 4 or so miles of the course are definitely downhill, then there is a short climb to mile 5, then again downhill for the next 2 miles, and a short uphill to the 8th mile.
• For the next 6 or so miles, it's mostly flat, with some slight ups and downs.
• There's a short uphill at the 15th mile, followed by a good downhill to the 16th.
• Then up and up and up (yes, there are 3 hills), all the way to the top of Heartbreak Hill, which is a little past the 21-mile mark.
• Then down and down and down until the 25ish mile mark.
• The last mile is mostly flat, giving you a chance to "sprint" it out to the end.

Ok, in my opinion, Heartbreak Hill (88ft, 0.4miles) isn't nearly as bad as it's built up to be. Sure, it's the last of three hills, and those hills aren't easy, but neither is running at the WakeMed Soccer Complex or from Umstead to the Art Museum (167ft, 2.25miles). And, none of these hills compare to Turkey Creek. By comparison:

• Main Campus Dr. (161ft gain, 1.34miles)
• Leonard St. (121ft gain, 0.75miles)
• Turn-around at Ridge Rd. (118ft gain, 0.6miles - until Glen Eden)
• Final City of Oaks Hill (89ft gain, 0.53miles - from Cates to Nazareth)
• Centennial Pkwy (85ft gain, 0.45miles - from Avent Ferry to Oval Dr.)
• Clarke Ave (72ft gain, 0.46miles - from Smallwood to Oberlin)
• Washington St. (72ft gain, 0.38miles)

Marathon Monday

Seems like an odd day for a race. I mean, it's kind of cool that they both start with the same letter... makes it easy to remember... but that's not why they did it. The Boston Marathon is run on Patriots' Day. Never heard of this holiday? It's ok... most people who grew up outside of MA and ME never have (although I never realized this until I went to college in CT). Patriots' Day commemorates the Battles of Lexington and Concord, which kicked off the Revolutionary War so to speak. In addition to the Boston Marathon, the Patriot's Day 5-miler is run in Maine, and the Red Sox play at Fenway Park. Oh yeah, and there is a re-enactment of the battle on the Lexington Green and Concord Bridge at the appropriate times (neither one of these places is that exciting to visit, although we took numerous field trips to each in elementary and middle school). 

Ok, although it's convenient to hold the race on a holiday insofar as traffic logistics, potential volunteers, etc., there are a lot of holidays that the race could be held on. So, why Patriots' Day? Well, similar to the whole Pheidippides running from Marathon to Athens thing, the original "makers" of the Boston Marathon wanted to commemorate a similar heroic trip, namely that of Paul Revere. However, when they tried to retrace the route from Boston to Concord, the 19th Century equivalent of the Big Dig was going on (really, it's never stopped) and the bridge from Boston to Cambridge was closed. So, they chose a different route, following train tracks for mile after mile. They eventually stopped in Ashland, which served as the official start of the race until 1923 when the course was lengthened to comply with the Olympic standard.

4/9-10 Race Report

I have three words to describe this weekend's results... WAHOOO WAHOOO WAHOOO (okay, that's more like one word repeated 3x, but oh well)!!! In descending order of distance:

• The NOT an 8-person team (aka The Endurance Junkies) comprised of Tim, Brad B., Brian, and 3 others killed the ultra division (and I believe the overall competition) at the Palmetto 200, setting a new course record for a 6-person team. The ran a 23:16, which equates to an average pace of 6:45!
• Mike Chappell ran a 1:30:07 at the Flying Pirate Half, which is a huge PR and earned him 3rd in his age group (and 20th overall)! (results)
• Keith was 4th overall (1st AG) at the Mountains-to-Sea 12 Miler, running a 5min PR! Greg Jackson (21st OA) and Jerry Beckman (30th OA) also ran great races! (results)
• Devin Swann and Tim Surface were 1st and 3rd respectively at the Tar Heel 10 Miler. And, by my count, Laura Frey and Jennifer Curtin were 2nd in their age groups, and Katie Leger was 3rd in hers! (results)
• Rita Beard was the 1st female in the 10K at the Cary Road Race, running a PR in the process. David Meeker (1st OA) and Kimberly Fowler (1st Female, 3rd OA) followed her lead in the 5K... in fact, the podium saw a lot of orange singlets with Tom Karnatz and David Meyer both grabbing 1st in their age groups! (5K results; 10K results)
• James (3rd OA), Sean (1st AG), and I (1st female) continued the trend at the Kay Brewer Memorial 5K... and thank you Oyler and Nikki for coming out and cheering! (results)

Ok y'all, that's INSANE! AWESOME JOB everyone and CONGRATS! Sorry if I missed anyone... oh, and I got 2 text messages this weekend from 2 different runners listed above telling me how AMAZING compression socks... and I heard at least 2 other "recent converts" sounding like me rambling on about the benefits of this product with "real testimonials"... I LOVE IT!!! When I finally graduate... :-)

Weekend Racing

It's going to be a busy weekend! Starting today (and ending sometime on Saturday), Brian, Brad B., and Tim are running on NOT AN 8-person team but a more difficult SIX man configuration in the Palmetto 200 Relay. On Saturday, we have teammates competing in the Mountains-to-Sea Trail Race, the Tar Heel 10-Miler and 4-Miler, the Kay Brewer Memorial 5K, and the Cary Road Race. Sunday brings the half marathons... I know we have teammates racing in Flying Pirate down in Wilmington, and I'm not sure if anyone was planning on Raleigh Rocks here in Raleigh.

And for World Record Friday (and because I've been thinking more and more about Marty's Aquathon series now that it's getting warmer)... Christophe Bertaux can claim the fastest 20m run while wearing standard scuba-diving flippers, posting 3.5sec in March of 2000. I think he might have been better off leaving his flipper in the transition area and changing to sneakers, but who am I to judge?!?

Brad's "events"

May 1, 2011
The first of the four is the Titus van Rijn 1 hour run, schedule for Sunday, May 1st at 6:30 a.m. at Martin Middle School. No fee run, black cherry soda to be provided as is the tradition. You keep track of your own distance, but make sure I get it before I leave.

May 30, 2011
The first in three-event series of PFT (physical fitness test) challenges. This is the Air Force PFT, a 1 minute push-up, 1 minute sit-up and 1.5 mile run. Location is the West Millbrook Middle School track at 8:00 a.m., Memorial Day Monday. $5 for one event, $9 for all three

June 15th, 2011
The second in the the PFT challenge on Wednesday, June 15th (the day after the Army Birthday), the Army PFT, a push-up, sit-up, and 2 mile run test at Shelley Lake at 6:00 p.m.

July 10th, 2011
The final PFT challenge event on Sunday morning, July 10th, a pull-up, sit-up, and 3 mile run test. Series overall winner awarded at conclusion. This will start at 7:00 a.m.

Questions, email Brad Smythe at bdsmythe78 at yahoo dot com.

Don't Run Boston

It's actually the name of a race that takes place the day before the Boston Marathon in Milton, MA (dang... the 50K is sold out), but we'll get to that in a second. Next week will kick off the "Boston Countdown" series, which will include facts about the Boston marathon, the city itself, and whatever the heck else I feel like posting until we get to April 18th. But, in an effort to be semi-unbiased, I will devote one whole blog entry to why you should run the Boston Marathon. I think that's fair... 5:1 is better than 5:0 afterall... so here goes:

Sure it's old... sure it's famous... but so are a lot of things that now collect dust on the shelves of museums. So, I say we find a new marathon... we'll be "trendsetters" of sorts. I mean, we were already way ahead of the game on the whole compression sock thing, so we have history on our side. As a starting point though, it might be easier to pick a race that others already like (people might not take you seriously when you tell them that "Boston is a thing of the past" when you're wearing neon yellow compression socks). Most agree that New York, Chicago, Honolulu, Big Sur, Disney, and Marine Corps are good U.S.-based marathons (and some sites even rank them higher than Boston). Worldwide, London, Berlin, Stockholm, Rotterdam, Paris, and Amsterdam rank high on the list.

• Running Planet (U.S. only)
• America's Best and Top 10 (U.S. only... top 25)
• About.com (U.S. only... fall, spring, winter, fast)
• Runners World (worldwide)
• Marathon and Triathlon Vacations (worldwide; North America)

And, to help you out with some reasons why, here are some "good" ones:

• You wanted to try and break some random costume-wearing marathon record at London (because this is apparently the best race for such an endeavor), which is the day before
• Meb Keflezighi isn't running it
• Three starts just triples the chaos (and who wants to start running 26.2 miles at 10:40?!?)
• Close to 80" of snow is, well, a "wicked" lot of snow for one winter
• You might not make it to the end (ok, this is just ridiculous)

Maple Syrup Gu

"I continue to say that nature is the best chemist, and that maple syrup is becoming a champion food when it comes to the number and variety of beneficial compounds found in it." [Dr. Navindra Seeram]

Sweet! Literally... now sciencedaily.com has posted something about the health benefits of maple syrup. Researchers at URI discovered 54 beneficial compounds (including 5 "new" ones... 2 of which can be synthesized to fight fatal diseases) in pure maple syrup from Quebec. Twenty of these compounds play a key role in human health, and have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. This can help with everything from fighting cancer, to bacterial infections, to diabetes. Wait... what?!? Yup, that's right, maple syrup phenolics inhibit two carbohydrate hydrolyzing enzymes that are relevant to Type 2 diabetes management. Time to start carbo-loading with some pancakes!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Lactate

While it's critical fuel source that helps you to run fast, a build up of this compound causes that "muscle burning" sensation at the end of a race. Basically, the faster you run, the more lactate you produce. While consumption also rises, there's a point at which the former exceeds the later and lactate begins to build in your system. This interferes with Ca++ uptake, which results in weaker muscle contractions and causes you to slow down. Therefore, in order to prevent this, you need to become more efficient at "clearing" lactate (i.e., keeping production and consumption in balance).

Tempo workouts and "cruise intervals" can help... and this article presents two tweaks that make these workouts even better. Basically, although tempo runs slowly improve your lactic threshold, there are some problems with scalability (i.e., improvements are diminished as the pace climbs). Furthermore, because the pace is constant, clearance is relatively constant... but real improvements in efficiency are seen when clearance oscillates and the body has to figure out how to get back to that steady state. So, in order to "fix" these problems with the traditional tempo workout, you can (1) change paces (i.e., alternate slightly faster than tempo pace segments with slightly slower than tempo pace segments) or (2) change interval distance (i.e., alternate longer intervals with shorter intervals).

Owwwwww!

39% of distance runners experience a muscle cramp during a race... the other 61% either just started running or haven't run a lot of races. But seriously, what causes muscle cramps? I have heard this question come up on many runs, and Kevin Miller has the answer! Although many might blame dehydration or an electrolyte imbalance, exhaustion is usually the problem. If you experience a muscle spasm that doesn't disappear in a fewish strides, stop and stretch. However, preventing them would be best, so try adding plyometrics to your routine. Oh, and drink pickle juice during the race!

4/2-3 Race Reports

BIG RESULTS this weekend - Keith was 1st OA at the Tarboro Community Outreach 5K (with a new PR and course record; results), Brandon was 1st at the Fuquay Bengal 5K (results), and Jennifer was the 2nd female overall and Jarett was 1st in his age group at the St. Timothy's Spring Sprint 5K (results)! Dave was the 1st master's runner to cross the line in the 3.6-mile Run for Our Troops 5K (results) before joining us at Camp Rockfish to help clear some trails. NICE JOB YOU GUYS... guess all this marathon training is paying off!

Laura F., Rita, and I helped pace our friend Charles West in the Umstead 100. Crit also paced one of her friends, Brad paced his brother Matt to a sub-24hr 100-miler (CONGRATS Matt), and Oyler volunteered at the HQ tent along with some of our other running pals. It was a great event, and those who even attempted, let alone completed, the 100-mile distance have my eternal respect!

As for Camp Rockfish, it's a really cool place with some great folks. We were able to clear over a mile of trail... and I have a new appreciation for single-track. They have a 5K adventure race there on May 14th that sounds cool... thanks to everyone who came out!

Weekend Outlook

Camp Rockfish

Saturday is a busy day for us. We have teammates competing in the St. Timothy's Spring Sprint and Tarboro 5K, as well as pacing a lap or two of the Umstead 100 (not sure if any of our teammates are running in this event, I think Brad's brother might be). A group is also headed to Camp Rockfish on Sat. to help clear some trails to help them get ready for their summer camps (Sean and Gavin have more info if you're interested in helping).

So, in the spirit of environmental friendliness and World Record Friday... the record for the most plastic bottles recycled in an 8hr period was recently broken by a group of school children in Shanghai. The Shanghai Education Commission and the Water Business Unit of Nestlé organized the event for World Water Day (which was March 22nd), and managed to recycle 8,799.9 kg of plastic bottles. This broke the previous world record by a whopping 6330+ kg!