rocking the lakefront 50k.

i came.










i ran.










i conquered!

yes, i competed in - and finished! - my first (baby-)ultra. roughly 300 of us gathered at the 63rd street beach starting line of the combined marathon and 50k. we headed north, into the wind, up past 31st street, where we turned around and headed back. after three loops, we were done! while the 20 mph headwinds SUCKED heading north, they were a blessing heading back in to the finish. i kicked it out the last two miles or so with a group of strong and experienced ultra-runners. finally, one woman and i pulled away from the pack, cruising south past the museum of science and industry at top gear. she glanced over at me and said, "see that guy up there - i think you can take him!" "no thanks," i replied. "i'm good." "nahhh... do it!" and we tried. another 10 yards and we might have gotten him. but the speed made for one of the more exciting ultra finishes. i was delighted to make the last turn and glance up at the clock - 5 hours 25 minutes. 10.29 pace! with the bathroom stops, stretching, and chit chat with the volunteers, that was certainly a better finishing time than i anticipated.

thank you drew, for being the best one man support crew a girl could ever ask for, mom, for always showing up at the right moment and screaming your lungs out for me, lisa, for hopping into the race (dress coat and all!) just when i needed you most, and ivan, for your little wave and smirk across the grass.

now bring on a 50 miler!

the music in my head - songs that got me through 50k!

eddie vedder, "hard sun"

When I walk beside her
I am the better man
when i look to leave her
I always stagger back again

Once I built an ivory tower
so I could worship from above
when I climb down to be set free
she took me in again

There’s a big
a big hard sun
beating on the big people
in the big hard world

When she comes to greet me
she is mercy at my feet
I see her inner charm
she just throws it back at me

Once I dug an early grave
to find a better land
she just smiled and laughed at me
and took her rules back again

Once I stood to lose her
and I saw what i had done
bowed down and threw away the hours
of her garden and her sun

So I tried to want her
I turned to see her weep
40 days and 40 nights
and its still coming down on me

AND

the killers, "read my mind"

on the corner of main street
just tryin' to keep it in line
you say you wanna move on and
you say I'm falling behind

can you read my mind?
can you read my mind?

I never really gave up on
breakin' out of this two-star town
I got the green light
I got a little fight
I'm gonna turn this thing around

can you read my mind?
can you read my mind?

The good old days
the honest man
the restless heart
the promised land
a subtle kiss
that no one sees
a broken wrist
and big trapeze

so what I don't mind
if you don't mind
'cause I don't shine
if you don't shine
before you go
can you read my mind?

Its funny how you just break down
waitin' on some sign
I pull up to the front of your driveway
with magic soakin' my spine

can you read my mind?
can you read my mind?

The teenage queen
the loaded gun
the drop dead dream
the chosen one
a southern drawl
a world unseen
a city wall
and a trampoline

So what I don't mind
if you don't mind
'cause I don't shine
if you don't shine
before you jump
tell me what you find
can you read my mind

Slippin in my faith
until I fall
he never returned that call
woman, open the door
don't let it sting
I wanna breathe that fire again

She said
I don't mind
if you don't mind
'cause I don't shine
if you don't shine
put your back on me
put your back on me
put your back on me

(ooooooohhhh)

The stars are blazing
like rebel diamonds
cut out of the sun
when you read my mind

i'm dying of laughter right now!

Saturday

Showers / Wind

High 55°F Low 38°F

Precip:		50%

Wind:		NW at 23 mph
UV Index:		2 Low
Humidity:		72%
Sunrise:		7:16 AM
Sunset:		5:52 PM

close

Windy with showers. Highs in the mid 50s and lows in the upper 30s.

You're on your ear, the ocean's near
The light has started to fade
Your high is timed, you found the climb
It's hard to focus on more than what's in front of you
Electron Blue
Adventure rings with a page and
When it dawns on you,
It singes blue
Your buzz beginning to wane.

Adventure has laid its claim on you
It's all you want to do.
You
You know where to run
You run Electron Blue.

And who am I?
I'm just a guy
I've got a story like everyone
But in your eyes
You looked surprised
And didn't know where to run
I looked to her
She's found the cure
Her future's already begun

Tomorrow's gaining speed on you
It's all you want to do
You
You know where to run
You run Electron Blue
You
You know where to run
You run electron blue

So bide your time
You'll feel the climb
Your high it builds like a lightning storm
It sings like pearls
You know that girl
And no one is any the wiser
So as if on cue.....
Electron Blue

24 + 10 - let the taper begin!

i made it through a 24 mile lakefront run yesterday and a 10 mile loop today to officially put the lid on the ultra training! this caps off multiple weeks of 50+ miles and, for anyone who might be keeping track (me), i logged my last 24 miler in 10.15 pace (after a 10.53 marathon last week). i guess maybe i'm ready! my legs are DEAD TIRED but i don't feel hurt.

one word to the wise:
a 24 miler + no lunch + college football + cheap pitchers of coors light = not the best idea.

other than that, all is well!

running through baghdad?

well, i ran the chicago marathon yesterday as training for the lakefront 50k and i'm guessing that since i made it through that unscathed, i'm going to be okay on the 27th!

unless you're living in a cave (or, i suppose, some place with "real" news), you've probably heard by now that the chicago marathon was a total fiasco. the race was called off around noon, one runner died on the course, and several hundred more were hospitalized. as people try to sort out what happened, the race directors are saying there was plenty of hydration on the course, while the runners out there (like me) know that was not the case. i didn't touch a drop of gatorade until mile 10 or so.

this race was utterly bizarre - even though i had alot of fun! i was happy to be doing it as a training run and not racing. i finished right where i wanted to - just under 11.00 minute pace - which may have been a little fast in retrospect, given the conditions.

this was a surreal experience, though, and one i'll not soon forget. the second half of the course was what i imagine running through a war zone to feel like: people were dropping like flies around me, puking in the gutters and laying on the curbs; runners were getting carried off on gurneys all over the place; and a police chopper kept flying overhead blaring "stop running NOW. there is NO MORE medical personnel!" from its loudspeaker. bizarro.

adding to the surreal-ness, i suppose, was the fact that i felt reasonably good. i high-fived every little kid on the course, sang the iowa fight song with the hawkeyes along the way, and stopped to kiss mom, dad, hannah, and lisa when i first saw them.

yes, i experienced the war zone that was the 2007 chicago marathon, the race that will live forever in running lore, but i didn't entirely experience it. what was, for me, a hot, fun day out on the course, turned into a matter of life and death for the people around me, before my very eyes. eerie. and a day not soon forgotten.

needless to say, i feel for those who got hit so hard by the poor conditions, those who took hits to their health, their pride, and their dreams. i take no pleasure in their pain. i do, however, give thanks for whatever i've got that made yesterday just another run in the heat: a fun day on the roads, high-fiving, singing, hugging, kissing, and finishing.