Man its been a while

But then again a lot has happened, which kinda leaves me in a catch 22 situation, I got a lot of things to do, but if I do them then Ill have no time to write.
Managed to squeeze this time out between finishing homework for my MBA classes tomorrow and studying for 2 tests tomorrow and Saturday. Things havnt been peachy after the marathon for my mentee, but I think they are getting better. All we can do is hope for the best
Anyways, the Twin Cities was good, possibly my best marathon till now. I finished in 4:24 even after having to lose around 30 mins on an impromptu pep talk for my mentee, after dragging him out of a porta toilet :)
We had a nice feature on the local CBS station visit www.wcco.com and look for running in the archived clips. I just hope more mentors sign up - that'd make me really happy
Now getting ready for Dublin, Im not sure how I will do, with all the distractions around. Lets see, I will try not to drink before the marathon, I will try not to drink, I will try not to drink ... Its gonna be tough

All pumped up and nowhere to ...........run

In taper now, and while I know I need the rest, its not knowing what to do with all the energy I have thats a problem. I should be used to this by now, with this being my 3rd marathon, but its always the same.
Paranoia steps in slowly to take the place of the euphoria of getting this far (man I should have been a writer), always afraid that I will injure myself, or eat something bad. So I now have slipped completely into the geriatric old man mode, heres what I mean
I sleep at 10:30 and wake at 5
Walk real slowly cause I dont want to stub a toe
Get real picky about what I eat
Get all worked up about nothing
Well I guess if I have as much energy when I really get old Id be a happy man. Also really happy that I dont have a girlfriend now, cant imagine what it would be to live with myself. But then its only a week to get by.
Reminded my mentee to make similar adjustments in his training, and hope that he listens, though Im not really sure he will. If i'm a hot head driven by the exuberence of youth, hes "hot head" personified. Just hope he will have a good race with me.
6 days and counting ........

Pub crawlin and more

Just got done with the Finnigans Pub crawl, its always nice to drink for a good cause (not that it isnt nice just to drink as is), but when its for the kids it just sounds a lot better.
So whats a Pub crawl mean to a bunch of marathon runners
- it gives "beer run" a whole different meaning
- carbo loading (no michelob light for these guys)
- beer breath is a bit better than runners breath
Anyways I couldnt drink (I cant wait till Oct 7 when I can) so I was the fly on the wall watching my friends gradually slip into various stages of drunkenness. I wouldnt say I wasnt involved, but when you end up making sure that they always have a pint at hand, I guess that makes you a catalyst. Well there are a bunch of stories Id like to tell, but then what happens on the crawl stays on the crawl :)
Also managed to recover enough to get my long tempo run in yesterday, hit 15.40 miles at just about 2 hours. Sweated bucketfulls. I think Im ready, now its just a little bit of taper and then its Oct 2. Got my official entry confirmation. Its a book for the Twin Cities Marathon. Its nice cause its a little more informative than just a post card. Ive spent today drinking all the water I lost last morning, its difficult cause it makes you pee - he he.
Anyways on that happee note i gotta sign out

Miles and smiles

Got another 20 miler done this last weekend. Was as hot as hell. Didnt drop below 85 F right through my run, and I finished at 8:30PM. Guess it can only get cooler now.
I ran the river by the University. Started at Lake street and made bunch of loops up and down the river, actually ended up doing around 21 M but felt good.
http://brass612.tripod.com/map.html - for great running routes
The river really lives up to its rep, its always got a nice breeze blowing, and most of your run is in the shade (at least in the evening). Passed a bunch of people so I must have been pretty quick.
My mentee missed it, cause he had a soccer game, it worries me that he hasnt done a 20 yet and we have less than 3 weeks before the marathon. Anyways, hes in excellent physical shape so we should be fine
Looking forward to the Pub Crawl this weekend, I have a pool going with whos going to get drunk the earliest. No money on me, Im only drinking water, but OCT 7 is he big day, when I can start imbibing the water of the gods again

Back from Chi Town

Hmm.. a nice weekend off. Did quite a few things that I wouldnt normally do while training, but I guess a weekend off is worth it.
Met up with a bunch of college friends, and it was a blast. Partying with no alcohol in your system seems to put it all in a whole new light. Havnt spoken to my mentee in a while, I guess I gotta follow up now, since hes just started a new quarter ar school. Still working hard to make sure he pushes himself to clear all the classes he needs to make up for
Anyways a lot of things coming up, weve got the Pub crawl which will be a bunch of fun, once again Im the Designated Driver (damn) I only hope these account for brownie points I will be able to cash in once I get off my damn medication
Also got a few games to work at, hopefully I will be up to 2800 soon, leaving me to get another 1000. I really wonder where its going to come from ......

New Shoes - and 2 nice runs

Got myself a new pair of Asics Nimbus VIs. A big change for me, moving away from Nikes the first time in my life, but as Snoop Dogg would say "If it aint fly, then you cant buy". Couldnt find anything in the Nike range that had a wider toe box. The Run n Fun guy suggested I try the Numbus, and man do they fly, never managed to break in a shoe without a blister. I guess there is always a first time. Did 2 10 mile runs, one on the treadmill and one around the lakes, and my feet never felt better. I wasnt planning on using them on a long run before I had done a few shorter ones, but I guess the way they have been going Im going to try them on a 17 miler tomorrow.
Fundraising is going well, the Metrodome volunteering is really padding my collections. Had a lot of fun working the beer port yesterday. Chatting, yelling and just entertaining a bunch of people who stopped by, until a mean lady in the other stall stopped by to complain, such a mojo killer. Anyways its was a bunch of fun, working with JJ and her friend was a blast.
My training with my mentee is going pretty well, just goes to show if you point peoples energies in the right direction, everyone can turn the corner.
Hope to see some of you guys out there running soon, there really isnt a better way to stay healthy

Lazy ??

I guess I have been lazy when it comes to updating my blog, but my excuse is all the other stuff thats been eating away my time. So lets see where do I start, finishing my term work for my semester, volunteering at the Metrodome to increase my fundraising $$$, and getting my running in. And then you add a full time job that I love and I ve got enough juggling balls in the air as a clown at the carnival.
Just got back after running the Mora Half Marathon with my mentee, was a good race, felt really good at the end. I think I could keep that pace for a ways longer. AND NO KNEE PAIN. It felt really good to come back and get a nice long race under my belt. My mentee finished fifth in his age group and so got a medal, he was pretty happy about it and wore it practically all the way back to the cities.
Terms over so I have a little more time to myself (read as more blogging time) and more fundraising time. Plan to hit up my car dealership and my appartment complex. Lets see need to hit at least 2000 by the end of the month