Chicago? Nashville?
A Runner's Dilemma? He must run, no matter what shape or situation he is in. The dilemma is finding a resolution despite being older, fatter, slower than when running was graceful.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

I'M A RUNNER: SARAH PALIN - Runner's World Interview

Runner's World this month landed a great interview. She knows running. Sub-4 marathoner.

Stories From Real Runners
I'M A RUNNER: SARAH PALIN
The former Vice Presidential candidate opens up about her running life and explains why she's still on the trail.

Runner's World (1-year)

Just One Mile in My Shoes

1.0 miles - 9:48/mile

total: 1.0 miles

78°F
Current: Mostly Cloudy
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity: 53%
course: neighborhood loop

Just a mile.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Easy Mile Counterclockwise on a Sunny Road

1.0 miles - 9:50/mile

total: 1.0 miles

79°F
Current: Partly Cloudy
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity: 51%
course: neighborhood half mile loop

The goal was just one mile. After I couldn't fit into a pair of pants I wore last year, I knew things were in trouble.

Nothing more.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Volunteer or Run the PADS Run/Walk 5K - September 12

I helped guide traffic last year at one corner. Will I run this year or help? Either way, I'm involved. Any area runner will know where PADS HQ is. It is where the zero marker is at the Prairie Path.

Just show up between 6 – 6:30 am on Saturday morning September 12 at the PADS HQ at the Zero Mile marker of the Prairie Path at Liberty and Childs. If you volunteer, a volunteer shirt will be provided.

PADS Run/Walk

Saturday, September 12, 2009
8:00 a.m.
PADS Support Center
703 W. Liberty
Wheaton, IL

Join us as we hit the streets of Wheaton to End Homelessness. 2008 brought us over 500 people who ran or walked with us to end and prevent homelessness in our county. Registration is now available online. Raise $125+ in donations and your registration fee is waived! TEAMS are encouraged! Call Jen Williams at 630-682-3846 x242 for more information.


http://www.dupagepads.org/difference/community_events.html

Two Miles Around the Block

2.0 miles (16:52.84 8:26/mile)

total: 2.0 miles

72°F
Current: Cloudy
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity: 71%
course: neighborhood half mile loop

When a man steps out to workout after a long layoff, he cannot help be insecure. After all, he weighs more, and that added weight is not muscle or handy capillaries. No, no. It is pure fat, as if purity were the issue here. Solid fat? Hardly. That's a contradiction. Nothing solid about it. Just fat. It is heavy to cfarry, it heats up the body, and, the most important thing -- it does not help.

That's me, and more. An especially challenging week needed flushing out, and I have time today. No rain, not yet.

I tossed on my togs.

With my stiff neck, I wondered if I would last. My goal was a humble 15:00. I ran a little more.

My splits? I dare mention them. How did I speed up that much? I need to pace better.

0.50 - 4:28
1.00 - 8:50 (8:50)
1.50 - ?
2.00 - 16:52 (7:02)

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

1.62 Miles With Dreams of Pork Chops

1.62 miles - 15:10 (9:21/mile)

total: 1.62 miles

66°F
Current: Mostly Cloudy
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity: 64%
course: neighborhood loop

Mosquitos, pork chops, pork and beans and decent run. Felt well enough.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Tomorrow Begins Tomorrow

When else could tomorrow begin?

I have a couple mid-week days off this week, and intend to put them to good use.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Allistair Cookie presents Chariots of Fur (Parody of Chariots of Fire)

Given I have not run enough to even post as of late, I looked for inspiration in a classic source. Which runners are legendary? Grover and Cookie Monster.

Allistair Cookie presents Chariots of Fur
Parody of Chariots of Fire
my review of the actual movie
my review of the actual soundtrack



Friday, May 22, 2009

RUN FOR HUNGRY CHILDREN 5K Race Results

RUN FOR HUNGRY CHILDREN
results: http://wheatonacademy.org/RunforHungryChildrenResults2009.html

May 16, 2009
at Wheaton Academy
West Chicago, IL
Distance: 5K
Racetime: 8:00 am

Race website: Run for Hungry Children
Results can also be seen at Athlinks.com

Weather at Racetime
52°F
Cloudy
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity 64%

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Run for Hungry Children 5K - May 16

I hope to be helping out.

Date: May 16, 2009

Location:

Wheaton Academy
900 Prince Crossing Rd
West Chicago, IL 60185

http://www.runforhungrychildren.org/westchicago.php

Parking available on site in marked campus parking lots

Event / Registration Fees:
5K Competitive Run - $30
5K Competitive Run (Fundraising $90 in pledges) - FREE
3K Walk - $30
3K Walk (Fundraising $90 in pledges) - FREE
Family Registration - $60
Family Registration (Fundraising $180 in pledges) - FREE

DOWNLOAD MAP & RACE DAY DETAILS: CLICK HERE

Race Times SEE COURSE ON GMAPS PEDOMETER

6:45 am – Registration/Check-in Opens
7:45 am – Registration/Check-in Closes
8:00 am – 5K Competitive Race
8:00 am – 3K Walk Follows Start of 5K Race
8:50 am - Kids' Run*
9:00 am – Awards Ceremony / Post Race Party

*The Kids' Run is a 50 yd dash for 4-7 year olds, and a 100 yd dash for 8-12 year olds. The Kids' Run is free, does not require registration, and all participating children will receive a medal.

Race Registration

- Online Registration – Register online before May 11, 2009
- Mail In Registration (downloadable packet available soon); Form must be postmarked by May 9, 2009
- Race Day Registration from 6:45 to 7:45AM

Save time on Race Day with Pre-Race Packet Pickup!

Thursday, May 14, 12 PM - 9:00 PM

Dick Pond Athletics, Inc
26 W. 515 St Charles Rd. • Carol Stream, IL 60188

Male and Female Age Groups
14 and Under; 15 - 19; 20 – 29; 30 - 39; 40 – 49; 50 – 59; 60 and over

5K Race Awards
- Overall 1st Place Men and Women
- Top 3 Positions for each age group (both Men and Women)

Run for Hungry Children Fundraising
Online Fundraising available through Firstgiving.com
Pledge Forms for offline fundraising – turn in on race day (download)

Awards for Highest Fundraisers

Overall top fundraiser (all four sites) receives a $300 Southwest Airlines gift card.

Event Corporate Sponsors
If your organization is interested in corporate sponsorship of this event CLICK HERE

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Accomplished. Next.

1.62 miles - 15:00 (9:16/mile)

64°F
Current: Clear
Wind: NE at 1 mph
Humidity: 36%

course: neighborhood half mile loop

Goal: 15:00

Accomplished. Long time missing. Long time gone. Now, the next gpal? Long time back?

Next.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Truncated Workout - The Trunk of the Elephant's Child (video)

1.25 miles warmup
6x100 m striders
1000 m (400 m)
1600 m (400 m) (7:45)
800 (400 m) (3:40?)
1600 m (7:32)
600 m warmdown

total: 5.875 miles

52°F
Current: Clear
Wind: E at 0 mph
Humidity: 41%
course: Wheaton College track

Not a lot of juice in the tank today. Long week at work compounded by getting things done at home added up to one tired Tony. My 800 was supposed to be a 1000, and after my last 1600 was supposed to be another 1000.

Tired, not happy running in the back, but glad I ran.


The Elephant's Child (click)

The Elephant's Child by Rudyard Kipling (Narrated by Jack Nicholson, with illustrations by Tim Raglin and music by Bobby McFerrin)

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Vote for Jim Galen's Running Essay

Jim Galen, a very impressive collegiate runner from years gone by (9:12 two mile PR in high school), stopped by the track Thursday night to have our coach, Jim Spivey, sign a book to given to the author of The Perfect Mile.

He dropped an e-mailed JS to let him know he's in a photo/mini-essay on "Why I Run."

Here's your chance to vote for Jim Galen. I'm not sure what he wins. Right now, he's in 32nd place. Vote each day if you like (legal). Vote early, vote often!

The book: The Perfect Mile: Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It



Product Description
There was a time when running the mile in four minutes was believed to be beyond the limits of human foot speed, and in all of sport it was the elusive holy grail. In 1952, after suffering defeat at the Helsinki Olympics, three world-class runners each set out to break this barrier. Roger Bannister was a young English medical student who epitomized the ideal of the amateur — still driven not just by winning but by the nobility of the pursuit. John Landy was the privileged son of a genteel Australian family, who as a boy preferred butterfly collecting to running but who trained relentlessly in an almost spiritual attempt to shape his body to this singular task. Then there was Wes Santee, the swaggering American, a Kansas farm boy and natural athlete who believed he was just plain better than everybody else.

Spanning three continents and defying the odds, their collective quest captivated the world and stole headlines from the Korean War, the atomic race, and such legendary figures as Edmund Hillary, Willie Mays, Native Dancer, and Ben Hogan. In the tradition of Seabiscuit and Chariots of Fire, Neal Bascomb delivers a breathtaking story of unlikely heroes and leaves us with a lasting portrait of the twilight years of the golden age of sport.

About the Author
NEAL BASCOMB is the author of the national bestseller The Perfect Mile, the critically acclaimed Higher, and the award-winning Red Mutiny. A former editor and international journalist, he has also contributed to the New York Times. For Hunting Eichmann, Bascomb tracked down former Nazi soldiers and right-wing radicals in Buenos Aires, traveled to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to meet with legendary Mossad operatives, uncovered an old memoir by Eichmann on his escape from Germany, and interviewed members of the El Al flight crew involved in Eichmann’s transport to Israel, a story that has never been told. He also made numerous archival discoveries, most notably unearthing the passport that Eichmann used to escape Europe, a discovery that made international headlines.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Peanut Butter and Preserves Finishes Six Miles

6.0 miles run (53:32 - 8:52/mile)
1.0 mile walk warmdown

total: 7.0 miles
course: COD treadmill

More than a few calories were burned, and, though I went slowly, I added a victory in my day's total mileage. Longest run, and longest total of 2009.

Ate peanut butter and drank sugarless lemonade as my recovery meal, with a scoop of strawberry preserves.

Saw Dennis Secara, a fitness lab buddy I often chat with as I walk. Good man, diligently working out several times a week. Shout out to Dennis!

iPod tune of the workout Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)