Midwest Marathons

A wonderful run with Larry and the Gals today. 6.87 miles. Sandy, Judy, Jenny and I. Christy put up with Larry all by herself earlier. Sheri and Al were smart and came later so they could have Judy all to their selves! Great to see Sheri back out again!

I log my miles on breakingthetape.com. It makes figuring out year end totals and how many miles I have on a pair of shoes very easy. One graph that is fun is the one that shows monthly totals. Go to 2007. Can you tell where I was fighting my injury?

Here is some information on registration for the "Big 3" Midwest Marathons that I thought you would find interesting, especially the change in Grandma's. Thanks to River City Running Club's newsletter.

OK, so what do you need to be watching for if your plans include one of the big three? First up on the calendar is Grandma's. Unlike in previous years when only regular mail entries were accepted and the prior year's entrants would be mailed an entry form a few days in advance, this year Grandma's has gone to on-line registration only. Registration begins at midnight on January 17. With this new system, I'm going to guess that the field will be filled in less than a week since out-of-state runners will not have to wait for the mailed entry form.

Although the Chicago Marathon won't be held until October, registration opens on February 1! And every year it fills earlier, and despite the problems that occurred with the heat in 2007, this race will likely fill in about a month or so in 2008.

If you're thinking about the Twin Cities Marathon, a date has not yet been set for registration to open, but it will probably be in early May as usual. Like Grandma's, this race is limited to about 9000 runners and will fill in about a week or so.

Patience!

I am sure Tom has been checking my blog every 5 minutes just waiting for me to post even though he said it has been a bit boring lately! I guess I am learning like all big stars do that fans can be quite demanding!

Although, Tom once made the mistake of telling me once how much he was bummed when he wasn't mentioned in my blog even when he ran with us. I truly think it was one of the few times he said something completely serious - or am I just being naive?

My posting was delayed because it took me a while to recover from my extra half hour of running with Mike. It wasn't the running - it was listening to Mike! Geesh!

At Larry and Judy's recent Christmas gathering, Larry inspired me (when doesn't he?) He was sporting his "flame" shirt and pants. No - not THAT kind of "flame" the fire kind. It inspired me to find a new Sparta "uniform" for GB this year. I found it! I think our fellow competitors would be overwhelmed at how "HOT" we look! Okay - maybe just Larry can pull this off!

On a some what related note which is 'drawing attention to yourself' The Complete Running Network has an article on 'Men in Tights". I know this can be an uncomfortable topic for men - no pun intended, but it is does offer men some great tips on choosing which tight works for them.

Was this post more exciting for you Tom?

10% rule being challenged?

I know, I know.... the title of this post should have had the words "Green Bay Packers" in it, but I am saving that until next Monday!

I brisk run this morning with the cousins and Jenny. The cold wind took me by surprise. I am not sure if it was the cold run or the lingering excitement from the Packer victory that made the pace faster than usual. (I can hear Jill thanking her lucky stars that she didn't roll out of bed and join us.)

I learned yesterday that I might have a slight addiction problem with Wii's Super Mario Galaxy game. Apparently, I was experiencing the need to satisfy some unrealized desires from my adolescence since my parents never got us an Atari or InteTelvision game. If you ever need to know how to get past the first Galaxy - I am your person!

Since the training season is quickly approaching, I thought you would find this article on whether or not the 10% rule works interesting. The 10 percent rule states you should increase your training mileage or intensity no more than 10 percent each week.

Ice Be Gone!

and it was! The roads were pretty ice free this morning. It was Jill who made it happen. She put on her traction shoes, which of course means Murphy's Law kicked in and she didn't need them.

A very humorous run with Jill and Mike this morning. I have to be careful though. Since I don't know all the Sparta history and since they love to give each other grief, I never know if it is something I should be laughing at or not. Apparently, Mike as the JV (not VARSITY) boys (he wished it was girls) basketball team. He said Christy is to blame.....

I needed the comic relief this morning. I told Mike and Christy I was feeling a little down this morning. Yesterday afternoon during the Ellen DeGeneres show there was a commercial call for the attention of anyone born between 1925 and 1968 (the latter being the glorious year I was born). It caught my attention b/c I couldn't imagine a class action suit that would cover such a broad category. Well, it wasn't a lawsuit, but it took a while for them to get to the point (kinda like those "head on" commercials). I soon realized they wanted you to buy "Peace of Mind" Insurance which ensures the loved ones you leave behind will have enough money to pay for your funeral!!!! WHAT!!!! Have these people not heard that 40 is the new 20? Geesh! What a blow!

Bunny Rabbit

It was so warm today that a bunny even thought spring was coming... we saw him running to tell his friends. Or maybe that was the groundhog coming out a month early!

A nice run with Sandy, Jill and Jenny.

New feature on the blog. On the upper right hand corner you will see a spot to e-mail subscribe. I believe this will inform you via e-mail when I have posted something new. This is in direct response to Bryan who was complaining about going to the blog and being disappointed that I hadn't posted anything new. Just goes to prove that I listen to my readers!

Ah 30+ degrees

You got to love Wisconsin. When I ran on Thursday I and to wear 3 layers and ended the run looking like the abominable snowman. Today I ran with one layer and was thinking about taking off my thin gloves! Although I don't want the snow to melt or become hard and crusty, It would be nice to get some of the slop off the roads.

A nice 7.2 mile run with Jenny and Bryan this morning. I could tell that I haven't run more than 5 in a while, or maybe it was not having any food in my stomach.

It was so cold that.....

the Walgreens sign wasn't working! Yes, it was a frosty morning, but the cousins and I did our run.

Okay, this isn't running related, but I saw this tab on another site. The caption was "Bartender's Revenge". The 'nothing' is circled, but I am hoping that it is the whole bill that is the 'revenge'. Either that or I am realizing that I am living in a totally different world than these people. $48.00 for ONE Heineken!!! Now, if that was a Miller Lite, I would understand.

First run of 2008

A nice, but cold and blustery first run of 2008! It actually wasn't that bad, except for coming out of the park. We did the Stampede route so we were protected most of the time. It was a great way to start out 2008 - although it would have been nicer to have a bigger group (hint, hint) to entertain us with their New Year's Eve experiences.

Of course there is no better way to start the new year than to be talking about chocolate. Throughout the run I was wishing I had the new Clif Shot Hot Chocolate Recovery drink, even though I don't think it counts as a run long enough to require a recovery drink. It isn't bad on calories either. About 2 pts worth for those of you familiar with Weight Watchers. I may have to go on a long run just so I can try it. I wonder where I can get some free samples!

Last run of 2007

Jenny and I enjoyed the last run of 2007 together, all by our lonesome! I am sure that others are just waiting for 2008 to start their new running regime. Then again, only Jill and I are signed up for a run tomorrow..... hmmmm. New Year's resolutions don't seem to be getting off to a good start and the new year hasn't even started yet!

Anyway... I am looking forward to another year of running with the Sparta Morning Running Group 9even Mike) as well as the "normal" runners who like to run in the daylight. It has been a GREAT year! I am really looking forward to 2008!

A little help from friends

I was feeling quite sore this morning after two afternoons of skiing with the kids. I am feeling muscles I didn't know I had! Thankfully Jill and Mike were there to distract me from my aches and pains during the run. Plus some streets are still snow covered, which slowed the pace down.

We managed to piss off only one guy this morning. Apparently being in a nice warm car versus out running in 18 degrees wasn't enough to save him from feeling slighted that we were running on his side of the road and not in the hard crunch, ankle turning, slush. So, just to put us in our place, he gave us two loud blasts of his horn (definitely not the friendly peep, peep - way to go!). I am sure the people sleeping soundly in their beds in the surrounding houses were equally happy that he put us in our place! We were shaking in our boots after such scolding! Especially Jill. Come to think of it, it was probably one of her Worker Comp victims!

Well, unfortunately Mike was not out skiing yesterday afternoon - so I don't have any humorous stories to lighten up you day!

Running with Jill

An early morning run with Jill. Still slippery, but the depth of snow has gone down. I was a bit worried about how my legs would feel after skiing last night and a couple of knee twists - mainly due to awkward dismounts form the T-bar, not due to spectacular falls. Speaking of spectacular - ask Mike about his encounter with the T-bar. The judges scored it a 9.5!

Post Christmas Run

Christy, Jill and I enjoyed a nice post Christmas run today. It was especially nice since we ran at 6:00 instead of 5:00. The only annoying part was all the darn cars! It took me a while to figure out why there were so many more than usual!

I was watching some Chicago Marathon video this weekend and it was pretty exciting to watch! So many people. I have heard the registration will start Feb 1, instead of January 1. I will watch the website to make sure we don't miss it!

Larry and Judy

I enjoyed a nice 6.7 mile run with Larry and Judy this morning. In their honor, I was going to cast them in their very own Christmas Special (no - not the Nativity). However a glitch in production required me to cast additional players - so I decided to make it the Credit Union Movie.

p.s. sorry for the picture quality - it was a low budget film.

Challenged!

Well, apparently I have a challenger for the position of "Official Morning Sparta Running Club Blogger". I don't know if he has filed his papers yet, but Mike appears to be quickly building his blogging resume by putting out a ONE LINE blog. First - future voters - please be aware that sending out an e-mail saying it is a blog is actually NOT a blog! It is a true example of a candidate misrepresenting himself! I don't think I need to discuss the lack of quality a one line blog demonstrates. I know my constituents are smart enough to see that!

On a running note.... we missed Christy this morning! Hope all is well with you! It is very unusual for you not to show. We just hope this wasn't one of those times where you were reading the minute numbers on you clock as the hour number!

Lastly - We all have to come clean and admit there were a lot of comments this morning about the temperature threshold of a couple of runners! Come on! It was 38 degrees! Down right BALMY! You know, if you don't sign up - you can still show up1

Have a Merry Christmas everyone!