That's it, I'm picking a race

Okay, enough putting things off. I'm going to try and run the Haliburton Forest 100 mile race on September 6th of this year. I said that I would decide in March--so there it is, I've decided. The timing of the race is nearly spot on, it's relatively nearby, and, well, it doesn't have many hills.

Honestly, I'm a little nervous about having time to commit to both running and fundraising. It's likely I will be out of the country at least once this year and traveling to conferences at other times. I also don't want to ask too much of all those who were so generous last year. However, I keep getting emails from people who have lupus so I feel that I have some momentum in terms of support. Besides, and perhaps most importantly, my son Elliott will only take naps for me if I am pushing him in something with wheels. And his jogging stroller is way more comfortable than a shopping cart. :)


Now if only we would stop having all these snow and ice storms...

Taking a break

Well, here we are amidst another snowstorm. Not much news to share since the snow and low temperatures (can you say -25 degree windchill?) have kept me on my little stepper machine more than outside. I did devise a way to watch TV, instant message, surf, and use the stepper at the same time today. That really seems like an unhealthy amount of multitasking. Hey, Elliott was taking a nap so you do what you can with those moments.

I've decided to take the month of February off from blogging. There is some interesting stuff going on at work that is keeping me busy and I'm starting to get burned out on winter so I haven't been all that motivated. So why push it? Here's my plan. First, any running I do during February will be fun and not associated with any training plan. Second, I won't keep close track of any of it. Third, by the end of the month I will have picked a 100 mile race for this year. See ya'll in March.

Oh, one more thing. There was an update to the Paint Creek 50k results. I got bumped to 4th, but that's cool. Congrats to everyone who ran!

              1. Tim Collins = 5h 11m
              2. Mike Dobies = 5h 21m
              3. Craig Mulhinch = 5h 28m
              4. Brian Thomas = 6h 01m

Paint Creek 25k/50k Results

Hey, maybe a few inches of snow works to my advantage.  I placed third in the 50k!  Check out the results below:

             15 Ran the 25K
             13 Ran the 50K

    *25K: 1. Jack Hund = 2h 35m
              2. Lisa Taylor = 2h 42m
              3. Ron Dober = 2h 42m
              4. Harold Curley = 2h 43m
              5. Jim Zittel = 2h 44m
              6. Tony Mattar = 2h 48m
              7. Gabriel Kohn = 2h 55m
              8. Frank Jobe = 3h 07m
              9. Emiko Tawarada = 3h 20m
            10. Bruce Geffen = 3h 20m
            11. Tim Looney = 3h 20m
            12. Michael Swaney = 3h 20m
            13. Wayne Hanlon = Finished
            14. Walt Storrs = Finished
            15. Al Durham = Finished
                                (No Time Sent In)

    *50K:
              1. Traildog = 5h 21m
              2. Craig Mulhinch = 5h 28m
              3. Brian Thomas = 6h 01m
              4. Ultratrailman = 6h 08m
              5. Angie Failla = 6h 12m
              6. David Ostafinski = 6h 25m
              7. Marit Janse = 6h 35m
              8. Bill Fuchs = 6h 35m
              9. Tony Mazur = 6h 48m
            10. Bruce Purdy = 7h 08m
            11. Jim Chiado = 7h 08m
            12. Dick West = 7h 19m
            13. Dan Dewey = 7h 39m

Paint Creek 50k

It was a great run yesterday. The weather was cold, but there wasn't any wind so it was rather pleasant. In fact, the gentle snow made it rather picturesque. The race was very laid back. Starting time depended on, well, when you wanted to start and you were responsible for tracking your own time. Finisher awards were passed out ahead of time from a cardboard box on a nearby park bench. They were tins of cookies--can't complain about that! The only aid station consisted of a card table halfway through the out and back. No one crewed it, but it was well stocked and the potato chips really hit the spot during the second loop.

The route involved a couple of significant hills appropriate for walking. The majority of the run was either along a rail trail or through some tree-lined, country-ish suburban roads. We saw several multi-million dollar homes including, according to someone I was running with, one owned by a high up Flagstar bank executive. Funny, they own my house too. The other people on the run were very friendly and had the pleasure of running and chatting with Eric, Trixie, Brian, and Mauro much of the time. Trixie made the lottery for the Western States 100 mile this year--cool. In true competitive fashion, we all stopped whenever anyone needed to tie their shoelace or slipped on the ice.

My one adventure involved saving a very cold short-haired terrier who almost got hit by a couple cars. Deftly avoiding being urinated on by the anxious canine, I picked him up and took him to the nearest house. He had a collar, but no tags. The women who answered the door was a little nervous about bringing a stray dog into a house with some small children, but was sympathetic to my explanation that I was in the middle of a race and might have trouble carrying the little guy for the next four miles. So finally she took him inside with the plan to call animal control. He was shivering pretty badly at that point so I'm glad he found a warm place for the time being.

Many runners, including the group I was with, decided to call it quits after one loop (25k) so I turned on the old mp3 player and got caught up on the latest Scott Sigler novel. The rail trail sections were partially packed down, but you still had to trudge through some pretty deep snow so it was slow going. Still, I felt pretty solid the entire run. With a steady supply of Gatoraide, energy bars, and the occasional Starbucks Espresso double-shot (a new favorite of mine), I never "hit the wall." I did feel a little nauseous about 2/3 of the way through, but that was quickly fixed with a salt tablet and a few handfuls of potato chips. My final time was 6:01:48.

Thanks again to Dan and everyone else who put the run on. I look forward to running it next year.

All ready for tomorrow...

Well, I'm all set for the Paint Creek 50k tomorrow. I haven't done much running in the past week--more due to the frigid temperatures than anything else. Elliott stays pretty warm when he's all bundled up, but I'm not really comfortable taking him out in weather in the low 20s or upper teens.

Last weekend I picked up this mini stepper thing at Meijer for $50. It's sort of like this, but a different brand. It actually works pretty darn well for its price. I've put about 3 hours on it and other than adding a little WD40 to cut down on some squeaks, it has been quiet and solid. Now, while I do work up a sweat it doesn't provide the same workout as a treadmill or a real stairmaster. Still, I'm cheap and the price fits my budget. It's quiet so I can crank out an hour or two at night after the little guy has fallen asleep. Finally, it's small so I can keep it in the living room and I don't have to make my way all the way to the basement to workout (ironically, I am that lazy). Anyway, it certainly doesn't replace running, but its a nice way to conveniently get time on my feet when that old Michigan winter isn't toddler friendly.

Anyway, wish me luck tomorrow and I'll post a report soon.