The Long and Winding Road.

With taper in full bore, I write these words... Due to unrelated running issues, my time in front of this computer has been limited. Hopefully it will change soon.

Taper time is alway greeted with relief and fear. Most of the hard miles are in the stable and the horse has been hosed down.(relief). However, it brings on a different set of circumstances. (fear).

Am I ready for 26.2? I'm sure this goes through the minds of all middle-of-the-packers. Did I train hard enough? What about that Tuesday 8 weeks ago, when training called for a 6 mile tempo at a 7:29 pace, and I ran a blistering 8:02? Or the 20 miler when I could only muster up a weak 18 miles? How about the cross-training days, when I either skipped a workout altogether, or made a flimsy half-hearted attempt, just to say "I did it"?

Point is--I feel I'm not ready for this marathon... Oh I'll run it, but my goal of under 4 hours looks bleak. 4 hours is a long time to do anything... A football game last under 4 hours... A double feature at the movies, is under 4 hours... The time between breakfast and lunch is about 4 hours.... A nap on the couch is 4 hours (I take long naps).... Woman having conversations on cell phones while driving last... wait, that's more than 4 hours... But you get my point, 4 hours is a long time to run.

So while most sane people will be watching football games, movies, waiting for lunch to arrive, taking naps, and talking on cell phones. Old runron will be out putting one foot in front of the other, convincing myself I'm having a good time.

Well friends, time is short, and my ego is getting shorter as the seconds click off the big clock to the right.

Maybe a miracle will happen, and I can join my friend, Rob Henderson in Boston for some race he's all worked up about. But that's another day in another story.

See ya on the road, runron.

Taper Time... Or is summer over?

You probably haven't heard me say this before, but man is it hot... The big clock on the right tells me I have a little more than 19 days before I feel the cool crisp air of Tennessee... Finally, thank you.

I'm either getting old, or tired, maybe both, but this is the hardest training program I've done... Now, it's almost over and I can see the end... Which got me to thinking.
I think this is it.... runron will retire from running marathons.

To run 26.2 miles takes a lot out of a person, and I'm not built for the brutal mileage required to prepare for such a task.

However, I do like to run, which I'll continue to do...I'll do the 5K's, 10K's, 15K's and maybe a half-marathon in the future.... But a full 26.2? I'm done after this one... It's just not in me... Running is supposed to be fun, and it is when taken in small dosage... but these bites of 20 milers cause me to overdose and I'm afraid of burnout.

Some may think I'm a quitter, and that's fine... But I've thought long and hard about this... I'm doing what I need to do.

I think guys who run two or three marathons a year are a special breed.... my hats off to you guys... guys like Steve Runner and the Cranky Runner. you two are my age and run like you're 20. I know how hard that is, because I've tried.

So don't feel sorry for old runron, I'll be fine, and I'll still be out on the road, just not in 3 hour bites like I did this morning. I still post about the heat and what bothers me. Maybe even post more due to extra energy.

That's my thoughts now as I sit here, just after a 20 miler. Of course all this could change if I run a 3:20 marathon and qualify for Boston.... Naw, I'm done.

See you on a shorter road, runron.

All is well

Sorry for the delay guys... unfortunately I have another life, which brings me stress and a whole list of other things I can't stand.... If were up to me, I'd run all day and blog all night.... But real life gets in the way.

Now on to the complaint of the day.... Is summer ever going to end? I know I'm in Florida but this is ridicules. As I type a ten mile tempo run waits me... It's in the nineties for the love of Pete!

What are the marathon Gods thinking? It's not just here, I read about Chicago this weekend and saw pictures on T.V. of runners looking more like a death march, than a marathon.

Heat kills and I was sad to hear it took a fellow runner in Chicago.... It kinda puts things into perspective... We walk a thin line of training well, to complete collapse... No 20 miler is worth dying over, but to run a marathon you must put a few of them in... I don't know anything about the man that died, except he was 35 (9 years younger than me)... I'm sure he trained well and put the mileage in, maybe it was his first, or his 100th marathon, I don't know? My hope is that he died doing what he enjoyed.... Which in the end, isn't that all we can ask for?

I'm not a writer or a runner, I fail miserably at both. But I do know I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other... And place one finger at a time on the keyboard... And try to make sense of it all.... If you were in this brain, you'd realize what a daunting task it would be..

Just a 15 miler this weekend.... With that and the news of a cold front coming to Florida.... All should go pleasantly this week...Of course a cold front means temperatures will dip down into the eighties...Brrr..I need to pull out my winter gear..

To Brian, Thanks for your concern. I am alive and look forward to the Marathon... Maybe I'll see ya on the road.

To the rest, likewise, runron.

Back on track.... I think

Finally, finally...I got my first 20 miler in. I think I've found a second wind... Or maybe a last wind, but definitely one of the two.

It's about time I quit whining and start doing... I suppose running like anything else has it's ebbs and flows...And I've been stuck in ebb with not much flow... Until yesterday.

Call it runner's high, or whatever hocus-pocus you want, but something clicked on my ten mile run and it felt effortless... Well, as much as a ten mile run can... Anyway, my pace was under my predetermined time and it really geeked me up for my marathon. Which is coming on the downside of my training.

It's time to forget about who owes me money... It's time to forget about the heat... It's time to forget about the pain that shoots from my chest and down my left arm...

Because it's time to get my game face on... I got a marathon to run..

See ya on the road, runron.

(Some of my words above were written for effect, so don't worry mom, there is no pain shooting down my arm.... yet.)

A month of Sundays

What's my problem? It's been so long since I've had a good run, I don't know what one feels like anymore.... I've been holding off, not wanting to write a post until something breaks in my marathon training... But the only thing breaking is me.

Seems lately, all I use this forum for is complaining... Which I do so well.But that's not the point... See--the legs are tired, the mind is tired, and the rest of my body is shot... I can blame it on age, heat, or even burnout I guess. Although, I'm considering one other option------ Stress.

I don't know who reads this slop I put up here. And right now I really don't care... Because sometimes I just have to vent... Click out now... I'm going on a rant.

There are 3 people who have put me in a foul mood... They will remain nameless (for now). I'm self-employed in a trade that's a little thin right now, meaning work is slower than normal. I've been through this before and I always manage to get by. So this may add to the stress, but it doesn't make me see red in the middle of a 18 mile run, like the 3 unmentioned people above.


They owe me money. Lots of money... Money I need to get by in these thin times... I provided a service the 3 separate individuals, handed them a bill and waited... And waited.. and waited... The first guy, (and its been over 6 months) said he's waiting for a closing. I'm not buying it.... The second guy,(and its been 3 months) said he was waiting for an inspection, then later said, he needed to close on some other property. Property that's not related to my job... The third guy, ( and I have to love his honesty) said he took my money.... One more time, he said he took my money to hire a lawyer so he could file bankruptcy.... He took my money to file bankruptcy. The sound of that sends me up the wall.

I've spent thousands of dollars in material, used my time to fabricate said material, and installed said fabrication... For what! For free... These 3 have lied, cheated, and stole from me... If you can't afford me, then don't hire me... And that's why I'm BREAKING DOWN!

Because of 3 losers, who don't pay their bills, is why I break down on a 18 miler... When you start messing with my running, you'll find out you're messing with the wrong guy!

Running is supposed to relax you, calm your nerves, you know work out your stress. However, when training for a marathon, you put your body through stress. You're not out for a Saturday jog, no sir... Your pushing to the max on long runs, tempo runs, and the lovely speed workouts... Stress, stress, stress... Then pile on mental state of survival, it's a wonder I can still walk up-right, let alone run....
I didn't want to write about this. I actually didn't want to write anything... That's what they've done to me. Put me in such a bitter mood, to where I don't feel like writing a post...

I'll get over it, unless I need to hire a lawyer to file bankruptcy.. Oh wait, someone already used my money for that...

My wife bought me some stress-free aromatic hand soap... I am washing my hands like I'm an obsessive compulsive.

That's my take anyway.
Maybe I'll be on the road, runron.