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Day 6 and 7…

January 27, 2013 in Buffalo marathon, Checkers AC, Marathon, Running

Day 6 – this is the day for that once a week long run.  While it was a balmy 11 degrees outside with spots of black ice, it camaraderie among the Saturday morning crew more than makes up for it!  We are a group of a dozen or so with the common purpose and goal of enjoying running.  We have different paces, distances, methods but at the end of the day (run), its all about sharing the self satisfaction among us.  Sometimes we head out to the local joint for breakfast but today was just too cold for that. For me, the long run is about pacing myself.  The object is to maintain the same speed throughout the entire run; to save as much as possible for the end.  As boringly slow as it seems, it does work!  Here were my splits… Split Time Distance Avg Pace Summary 1:53:00.5 12.01 9:25 1
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Day 5…

January 25, 2013 in Buffalo marathon, Checkers AC, Marathon, Running, Uncategorized

Another rest day but good for cross training day so this time it was 50 laps or 1,250 yards or approximately 0.710227273 miles in the pool.  Some day…some day, I’ll be as good as Mark Spitz but for now, being Georgie Guppy will have to do. Tomorrow is going to be the first long run of the training plan – 10 to 12 miles at 9:30 pace.  Hopefully, the weather will cooperate.  And then tomorrow night is the annual Checkers Holiday Party this time at the Hotel Lafayette. And on the feel good news homefront, Steph has been cleared to toss the crutches from her fractured hip and resume what she calls a normal life.  Amazingly, I have not grown a single gray hair over the last six weeks! Sentiment of the day…”It will hurt.  It will take time.  It will require dedication.  It will require willpower.  You will need to
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The goal…..

January 20, 2013 in Buffalo marathon, Checkers AC, Marathon, Running

Starting tomorrow….  

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Honorable mentioning…

January 14, 2012 in BEA/Hearing Journey, Checkers AC, Cochlear Implants, HLAA

A very good couple friends of mine were endowed with being the feature article in the January/February 2012 issue of Hearing Loss Magazine. I met Tina and Tom at the HLAA convention in Washington DC last summer. They took a time out from their wedding planning to attend the convention. I also had the opportunity to try some gymnastic acrobatic with Tom. The full article can be found on the webpage of Cindy Dyer, a fabulous photographer and the one who put the articles together. click to enlarge And here is the article about me in the Seen & Heard section of that issue. click to enlarge

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Around the village

January 2, 2012 in Checkers AC, Ionraic, Marathon, Running

The resolution run as this informal get together of fellow runners to kick off the New Year is called. After yesterday’s hill workout, I welcomed this opportunity to enjoy an unseasonably mild winter day with a 3 mile run through Williamsville. The run ended at Glen Park Tavern where we all gathered for a good time with friends, beer, wine, Belinda Stoll’s delicious homemade cookies and to celebrate Diane Sarde’s birthday. Tonight…Body Pump at Gold’s Gym – a great opportunity to work those muscles, build up balance and lose the flab.

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The hills of Chestnut Ridge

January 1, 2012 in Checkers AC, Ionraic, Marathon, Running

This was the very last run of 2011 on what traditionally is called the New Year’s Eve run. But this was also the first time I ever tackled the hills of Chestnut Ridge Park. These hills are not really in the park although there a quite a few which can make for a good hard workout. The hills I am referring to are outside the park and are part of a 9 mile loop (see map below). Now mind me, I have done quite a few races which had hills. The most notable one is the Bunny Hop which is in April. The Chestnut Ridge hills are not for the beginner nor the faint-heart. There has been talk about conquering the mother hill. For the life of me, all of the hills were mothers…actually, mother$R@##$@#!@! The net elevation gain is 693 feet but when they say hill’s are a runners
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A new beginning…

December 27, 2011 in Checkers AC, Ionraic, Marathon, Running

Today is a new beginning of sorts. A little over six years ago, I started running. Over the years, I gradually increased the number of races and distance and, reduced my times. After doing the same races and distance since then with an occasional half thrown in, I decide I need a new challenge. This actually became two challenges. The first is to do triathlons – races which tested one’s endurance in swimming, biking and running. Thus far, I have signed up for two…the Musselman Half-Iron on July 15th and the PITA on September 23rd. I am sure there will be an occasional sprint especially before Musselman in order to get used to the whole she-bang. The second challenge….my first marathon. Yup, all 26.2 miles of it. I have this little oval decal hanging from my bulletin board that says “26.2″. I’ve decided it no longer belongs there. It’s rightful
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Guts and determination….

August 2, 2011 in Checkers AC, Running

My all time favorite quote comes from the late famous distance runner, Steve Prefontaine. ‘Most people run a race to see who is fastest, I run a race to see who has the most guts.’ The pictures below are from the Mud Race.  This is a race that takes you through the woods, up and down steep hills, over muddy paths, into mud and creeks and offers every possible challenge for a runner. Here, I am struggling to pass a kid half my age.  Even though he beat me by a few steps, the crowd behind me didn’t have a chance.  Yea…I was determined…YEA, I had more guts than them!  And to the dude that gave me the chance to go for it all…thanks pal but next year…YOU’RE MINE! (photos courtesy of Diane Sardes, the greatest running photographer on this planet!)

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Hot and dewy!

July 20, 2011 in Checkers AC, Running, Sports

Hot and humid? Dread that stickiness? Did you know that when it rains, that is 100% humidity and most of us runners would welcome a nice cool rainstorm to work out in. A few years ago when Bob Carroll was the Checkers AC coach, he used to tell us to be careful when the dewpoint was over 60. In fact, I had to ask for a clarification and his response was…“Once you get over 60. If the dew point was over 65 I wouldn’t let Becky race.” Ok, so what is the deal with dew-point? Why that and not humidity. Dew-point is the temperature of air which is needed for condensation or dew (at that particular temperature). If you take a glass of ice water and it develops condensation on the glass surface, the air on the glass has condensed to its dew-point and created dew. Dew-point actually measures how
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What us runners want…

June 8, 2011 in Checkers AC, Running

This has been a topic of discussion lately so I thought I would add my two cents especially since I have 165 races under my belt. I have seen some fabulously planned races and I have also seen some really poorly planned races. I won’t name which ones because I don’t want to feel like promoting nor do I want to be critical of the newbie race director who tried so hard. If you are a new race director or you have a great idea for one, the following should be on your plate.  This list is not to be considered all inclusive nor is it in any particular order other than what comes to mind. Your committee should include experienced runners or someone who has directed a race before. We know what we like and we know what we want. If you make me happy, you’ll make 100s of
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