With the completion of the Red Rock Half Marathon this weekend, that makes 10 long distance races under my belt. While compared to others this number may not be earth shattering, but if you would have asked me or others that knew me and my eating habits before running, I would consider this quite an accomplishment!!!

Most know my story but when I started running in 2006, I weighed 270 pounds and decided to make a life change. Now in my fifth year of hitting the pavement, I thought I’d look back and reflect on where I’ve been:

2006
Las Vegas Marathon – 5:01:24
My first marathon. With the support of my entire family cheering me on and cramps in every muscle I finish with cheers and hugs. Discouraged with the course, I vow not to run the marathon again until they change the route.

2007
Disneyland Half Marathon – 2:29:02
The first trip to the Magic Kingdom has me hooked. Running thru Disneyland, California Adventure and Anaheim Stadium will become a yearly trip for the entire family. To date, the hottest race I’ve run in. Race was nearly black flagged before the start.

Las Vegas Half Marathon – 2:00:46
Course didn’t change and I was starting to like this half marathon thing. After being discouraged by my previous half, I set my current PR that still stands (but hopefully not for long).

2008
Disneyland Half Marathon - 2:10:53
Back again for my second running. Since the Angels were in town, we didn’t get to run thru Anaheim Stadium but the weather was much more suited to running. Now used to running longer distances more often, I quickly shower and then off to the parks with the family.

Las Vegas Half Marathon – 2:18:09
I was really hoping to go under 2 hours but a severely sprained ankle 3 weeks before the race changes my plans drastically. I end up limping to the finish but “finish” is the key word in this sentence. There’s always next year…or is it?

2009
Red Rock Half Marathon – 2:18:00
Wanted to expand my race frequency, I opt for a race right out my back door. While I know the hills will be a challenge, the scenery more than makes up for the burning thighs and breakneck downhills. Will end up being a staple on my race schedule.

Disneyland Half Marathon - 2:02:13
Missing out out a Ragnar Relay team, we’re back to the family’s favorite race. From their perspective, it’s wake up, eat, wait for dad and then go see Mickey. Tried to go under 2 hours again but ran out of gas after trying to make up for lost time with heavy traffic at the start. Will settle for a course PR.

Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon – 4:40:28
Finally!!! Devine Sports out…Competitor Racing in. This move was highly anticipated and didn’t let anybody down. A new course with nearly half of the marathon run on the strip. Cold weather, extreme hunger, cramps and bonking prevented a better time but a 20 minute PR shouldn’t be looked down upon. I considered this race as a tune up for what was to come.

2010
Walt Disney World Marathon – 4:55:18
My most memorable race to date. After encouraging my sister to start running, we met in chilly Florida to run her first marathon. While I was hoping to “help” her finish strong, I was the one who had to battle bursitis while she was the strong one. Still a great running experience and can’t wait to run with her again.

Red Rock Half Marathon – 2:09:36
Another great race. Running in the opposite direction of the previous year, I overcame a lack of training due to injuries to PR the course by over 8 minutes. If you haven’t run this race, I highly recommend it.

RMFR

I’ve been waiting over 4+ years for this to happen. I’d read about. Heard runners talk about it on countless occasions and always felt left out. Never having the experience I couldn’t add anything of substance to their conversations. I didn’t want to be the one to admit it had never happened to me. I thought if you were a “real” runner it would just happen because you were a real runner.

Yes friends, I finally have my first black toenail!!! I was beginning to think that I was immune from this running phenomenon. Maybe I just picked really good shoes and socks all this time. Funny thing is, this didn’t happen until I actually purchased a little larger shoe.

It happened during the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon. That was the race I received the dual blisters of contrasting colors. As the weeks passed, I noticed that a toenail my left foot was a little redder than the others. After the Walt Disney World Marathon it was a lovely purple that I proudly displayed wearing sandals in the Bahamas. Now a couple of weeks later, it has finally faded to black. Now I have to admit that the whole toenail isn’t black. The bottom half has returned to its normal color but I’ve gone to the rule book and it counts.

Have you had your runner’s right of passage?

RMFR

With a couple of weeks left of my self-induced month long rest, I’ve had time to finalize my race wish list for 2010. Of course, this is subject to change and still needs to by signed off on by my better half. I’m trying to run at least one more race per year and this year has five events on the schedule. Please let me know if you plan on running any of these races. I loved to meet you in person (just like Team Flash in Florida).

Walt Disney World Marathon
Orlando, Florida
January 10
Mission Complete

6 Tunnels Half Marathon or Red Rock Canyon Half Marathon or both?
Henderson, NV/Las Vegas, NV
March 13/March 6

I need to do a little more digging on these races. I ran the Red Rock half last year and it’s great. The course is run on the scenic drive that weaves through Red Rock Canyon and the views alone are worth the $70 entry fee (until 2/21). The inclines are steep and yes your legs will be put to the the test but the organization was great and the medals were a really nice surprise.

The 6 Tunnels half looks really cool and I’ve heard good things about it. It is all the way across the valley (Red Rock is literally 5 minutes from my house) but the course route follow an old railway line that was used in the building of Hoover Dam. It goes thru tunnels cut thru the mountains and there are views of Lake Mead and Hoover Dam along the way. It happens to be a day before my wedding anniversary so I need to tread lightly on this one.

Fargo Marathon
Fargo, ND
May 22

Yes, I’ve finally committed and will be going home to run in the city I grew up in. After being lobbied by several friends for several years, my boyz and I will be going back to my roots. This will be another chance to run with my sister and I’m really excited to be running with one of my very good friends from high school who is going to run for the first time since a cervical spine fusion in 2000. They’re shooting for 20,000 runners this year so if you’re looking for a great race around this time, this one’s for you!!! Runner’s World ranked Fargo the 8th in the Top 10 marathons in the U.S. They’re also breaking off the 5K this year a day earlier and are offering participants the Go Far Challenge where you can race both the 5K and either the 10K, half or full marathon and earn a special medal (much like Disney’s Goofy’s Challange). Go Far in 2010!!!

Running With The Devil Half Marathon
Boulder City, NV
June 26

I almost ran this one last year but I think I was a little beat up. This is one of those “what are you thinking” races. The event ranges in distances from 5K to 50 miles but the kicker is the starting times. Each distance is planned to start so you’ll be racing during the hottest part of the day. This is June by the way and it’s the desert – you put two and two together and you’ll understand the race name. The marathon starts at 10 a.m. and the half starts at noon. The one good thing about this race is you don’t have to worry about getting up at 3 a.m. to make it to the corrals. Heck, you might even have a chance for a nap before the gun sounds.

Disneyland Half Marathon
Anaheim, CA
September 5 (Labor Day Weekend)

This will be my fourth year running this race and I can’t imagine not having this race on my schedule. This is the fifth year the race is being held (can’t believe I didn’t know about the first one) and they will be offering a special 5th year medal. This race will also complete my Coast to Coast Challenge – running Disney World and Disneyland in the same calendar year. The Angels won’t be in town again this year so that should mean the route will take us thru Anaheim Stadium again. It’s a crazy adrenaline rush and I’ve been know to walk that section just to spend a little more time in there.

Ragnar Relay
Valley of Fire to Las Vegas, NV
October 22-23

This is going to depend on two things and two things only. First, how is my body feeling and second, can I find a team this year. I was so excited that Ragnar came to Vegas last year. Since my fist expo when I picked up one of their brochures, I wanted to run this race. So last year, I thought I had a team all lined up and ready to go when it all just seemed to fade away. This year, I’m going to be looking high and low for a team. Whether I know you or not it won’t matter – just give me a holler and I’m there.

Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon
Las Vegas, NV
December 5

I plan to bookend my marathons this year. Last year’s inaugural Rock-n-Roll “rocked” and I expect more of the same next year. With over 23,000 participants last year, I’m fully expecting this race to boom in the next couple of years into one of the nations bigger marathons. The organization was top notch, running up and down the strip is crazy and the course is well thought out. Even though I struggled last year I still thought the whole experience was one of my favorite of the year.

So that’s it (for now). After looking over this list after I typed it, I realized that I could be doing 7-8 race this year. That’s double what I’ve ever run before so we’ll see how it goes. I can guarantee that Fargo, Disneyland and Las Vegas are in stone – the others will fall into place.

RMFR

First, let me apologize for not pounding out the posts like usual. Following the Walt Disney World Marathon and a vacation immediately after, I’ve been playing catchup at work and at home. It’s actually been nice being away from the computer for a change.

I’m worn out – physically and mentally. I know I’m not the most active distance runner. Last year I only ran 2 halfs and 1 full marathon (I guess I can throw in the Walt Disney Marathon in January since it was only 35 days after the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon). I’m not a Maniac nor do I consider myself a “seasoned” runner either, but I’m beat.

A couple of warning signs that reared their ugly head:

• Bursitis – During Walt Disney, it popped up in my hip again. Funny thing is, there were no warning signs. I hadn’t felt anything in any of my training runs leading up to the event nor did it bother me in the Las Vegas event. The last time I had to deal with it, I rested for a month and that was that.
• Arches – The one thing that has been nagging me are my arches. Even before the Las Vegas Marathon I was trying to find ways to elevate the discomfort I was feeling. I have custom orthodics but I actually ran Las Vegas in my Sof Sole Custom Insoles. That change didn’t help so I’m hoping rest will.
• Brain Fatigue – As mentioned in a couple of previous posts, I haven’t been totally there upstairs as of late (relating to running). I haven’t been as gung-ho as I usually am. Running hasn’t been as joyful as it usually is and I’m hoping this break will full charge that battery.

With all that said, I know that urges are still there. In fact, the Tuesday following the Walt Disney Marathon, I participated in a 5K on Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island in the Bahamas – yes, my wife and I went on a Disney Cruise following the marathon). Even though my calves were in knots, how many times am I going to get to run an event in the Bahamas? The first mile hurt like hell but the overall run felt really, really good and I’m glad I did it.

So that’s the story and I’m sticking to it. It’s been 2 weeks off so far and I’m probably going to throw in 1-2 more. I’m trying to add a race every year and have a tentative schedule already planned out for this year and I’ll share that soon. Until then, RMFR!!!

Well, we’re officially 6 days away from the Walt Disney World Marathon. With the Holidays and my recent running rut, it’s really snuck up on me. While training has been going well, it’s just kind of been there. It’s funny looking back. During the weeks leading up to the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon, all I could do was think and write about that race. Now here we are under a week away and this is basically the first post on this race. Well, ignored no more!!! Let’s get to it!!!

This race has been on the schedule now for more than a year. What started out as a gift from my wife, turned into something WAY more. Accompanying me in this race will be my sister Kirsten – her first marathon!!! It was supposed to have been a half marathon but there was no way I was flying across the country just for a half marathon. The die was cast and the challenged was accepted. My sister would be training and running in her first marathon.

After running the Disneyland Half Marathon now the last three years, I can’t wait to run an entire marathon with Disney. From the overall organization (minus the Expos), the excitement and the Disney atmosphere – this is going to a fun race no matter what happens.

They boast that the course has no more than 100 feet elevation change and with Orlando sitting at 98 feet above sea level, it should be fast (I hope). The only things I’m really concerned about is the humidity, crowds of runners squeezing thru tight sections and being strong supporting my sister. The course winds throughout all four parks with sections on roads surrounding the resort. They’ve also put together some race videos that take you along sections of the course as well as a Google Earth 3D tour (although I can’t get the plugin to work).

The best part about this weekend is that it has become a family event. Not only will my family be joining me, but my sisters entire family as well as my parents will be cheering us on!!! Everybody came out to Las Vegas to support me in my first marathon four years ago and it’s only fitting we all regroup and do the same thing for my lil sis!!!

I’ll be heading out Wednesday and won’t be back to Las Vegas the following Thursday (the wife and I are throwing in a long belated honeymoon – almost 12 years later). No worries about the website though, I’ll have posts scheduled for you all while I’m away.

Mickey…here we come!!!

RMFR

As 2009 comes to a close, I find myself in a unique situation – I’m in a running rut. It’s not a physical rut. I don’t think I’ve ever been running better or been in as good of shape as I am now. This is all mental. I’m just not “that into it” right now. For those of you who visit this site often you can probably tell by the lack of posts recently. I consider myself “Runningcentric”. All I ever do is think, talk and dream about running. Want to go on vacation? OK, let me check the running calendar. Need help with your homework? Let’s go for a run and talk about it. But lately….NOT.

It all started on my week off after the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon. I was overflowing with excitement for that race. Training had gone well and it was the inaugural event. Even though I didn’t finish like I had wanted, I wasn’t disappointed and spirits were high. I already had the Walt Disney World Marathon on my schedule to look forward to and the fact that I would be running with my sister (her first marathon) is even better. 10 days of vacation, a cruise, Walt Disney World AND a race thrown in? I should be on cloud nine…but I’m not.

I can’t explain it. I know we all go thru let downs after races but this is the first time I’ve hit a wall in my head. Maybe it’s the Holidays, maybe it’s work or it just may be the culmination of a series of events that are out of my control. The fact of the matter is, when we hit these low points we need to keep on keeping on. Lace up the shoes and get out the door. It wall all come back eventually.

So that’s what I’ve been trying to do this last week before the race. All my training runs have no goals. I’m heading out the door with no anticipation. I don’t know which route I’m taking. Don’t know how far I’m going to go. The only thing I do know for sure is that I’m running for the pure enjoyment of it. Taking in the scenery. Taking in other runners I meet on the way and running for the moment only. It may not happen overnight and it might even take weeks but I know if I bring things into perspective, it will all come back.

Happy New Year and RMFR!!!

Regarding the previous (2 Marathons in 36 Days) brings up a question. Should I throw in another marathon in the next 54 days to qualify as a Marathon Maniac?

For those of you who don’t know, you probably have seen them. You can’t miss them at races in their red and gold singlets – many of them declaring how many marathons they’ve run. At the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon I saw at least 5 Maniacs and one was running his 100th marathon.

The Marathon Maniacs are exactly that. Runner’s that are maniacs about running marathons. The group was started by Steve Yee, Chris Warren and Tony Phillipi in 2003 and now boasts more than 2,000 members. Like the Boston Marathon though, there are certain criteria that need to be met. You can check out the entire list HERE but for the purposes of this post, we’ll examine the bare minimum to become a member.

BRONZE LEVEL

Now I probably don’t qualify mentally as a Marathon Maniac – maybe a Running Rube – but if the timing works out, this is definitely within my reach. What do you think, go for the gold (Bronze) or is it time to take some time off?

First off, this post in no way is meant to be bragging. I know there are plenty of runners that do much more than this and by much more, I mean WAY MORE (i.e. 50 in 50). This actually happened by accident – well O.K. not an accident but more so by circumstance.

A year ago this Christmas, I talked my sister into running her first marathon at the Walt Disney World Marathon in January. I’ve been running now for 4 years but I’d only run one marathon and that was at the end of 2006. Worried that I would fail supporting her thru 26.2 miles, I decided on running the full Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon (more so for confidence than anything else). After a great year of training and racing, it didn’t even dawn on me that the races were merely 36 days apart.

The biggest hurdle in this whole thing has been the training. The shortest training program I’d done preceding a race was 12 weeks. After a week off following the Las Vegas Marathon, that left me with only 4 weeks of training. With over 750+ miles and 3 races under my belt this year, I know I have the strength for a 4 week schedule but it still doesn’t seem like enough. Using the trusted Runner’s World SmartCoach, it whipped out this maintenance schedule:

Week     Mon.     Tues.     Wed.     Thur.     Fri.     Sat.     Sun.
1             6 mi.                   5 mi.                            10 mi.
2             6 mi.                   5 mi.                            12 mi.
3             5 mi.                   5 mi.                            14 mi.
4                          3 mi.                    5 mi.     3 mi.              RACE

The absence of a 20-miler kind of freaks me out but the last thing I want to do is be overly fatigued or worse yet get an injury before my sister’s race. This is definitely one race I wouldn’t miss for the world!!!

Have you done a short training session for a race? If so please share what you did.

RMFR

So many times we get caught up in our training runs that we forget how enjoyable running can be when we put all that other crap else behind us. Such was the case with me last week.

Coming off what I considered a somewhat disappointing Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon, I was entering a runner’s low. I took off the whole week before starting up training for the Walt Disney World Marathon. I needed a recharge and it came with snow.

Las Vegas occasionally gets snow every winter and this year has been no different. Instead of putting in a short easy run to get the muscles firing again, I put on the trail shoes and headed up to the white fluffy stuff. Overnight, mother nature had deposited a nice dusting of snow up in the foothills. Since running in snow is something I don’t get to do that often, this was a situation I had to take advantage of!!!

I had my Garmin but didn’t look at it once. Instead I let myself blend in with God’s creation and tried to take everything in. I stopped. I walked. I even thru a couple of snowballs. When I reached a point to turn back, I took photos. I even took the time to call my dad and share with him the beauty that surrounded me. This was running for the pure enjoyment of it. I didn’t care what my mile splits were. I didn’t have any goal except to be one with the moment. Yes, my batteries are recharged and I’m going to try and remember that running IS enjoyable. If it’s not any fun, why do it?

RMFR

Before I get into the review of the Rock-n-Roll Las Vegas Marathon, I would like say my thoughts and prayers go out to Eric Reitman’s family and friends. Eric collapsed shortly after finishing the half marathon and was rushed to an area hospital before passing away later that evening.

I waited all year for this event. Devine Sports that put on the previous 3 Las Vegas Marathons was mailing it in. When I heard The Competitor Group was coming in and making Las Vegas one of their Rock-n-Roll series of races I was “all in” – and they didn’t disappoint.

With temperatures in the low 30ºs I opted for wearing running pants and long sleeves (ol’ blue) with Under Armour underneath. Luckily (or not) the temperatures didn’t get any higher than the mid 40ºs and I didn’t need to worry about shedding gear.

There were nearly twice as many people (27,000+) as the year before and you could feel the excitement in the air from the minute you arrived at the starting area. For those of you running in this event in future years, duck into Mandalay Bay to stay warm before the race!!! With so many people, I was worried about crowding in the corrals but overall it wasn’t bad (at least in the back). In the future, I would hope they would monitor the corrals or at least set up barriers between them. I met a really nice couple from Canada and chatted while we struggled to stay warm. That’s one of the really cool things about races is that you can strike up a conversation with just about anybody!!!

They promised “something never seen before” at the start. For most of the crowd, I think it stayed that way!!! Parachuters drifted in the dark sky with lights on their feet and landed near the start (ummm, OK). Anyway, the local broadcast of the event was displayed on the huge Mandalay Bay video board. For us in the back who couldn’t hear anything (note to the organizers, put speakers in the back corrals) it was cool to watch the elites and first waves of runners take off.

Spanning Las Vegas Blvd. was a huge stage that housed a Blues Brothers band with showgirls and white tigers flanking each side of the start line. The wave start implemented by the race was genius. Even though it took me a half hour to start, it eliminated a lot of the crowding you usually get at the start of the race. It also helped when we reached the hairpin turn that brought us back on the other side of the strip heading north.

As with most races, runners were shedding gear along the first two miles. The funny part was that about the same amount of runners were scrambling for gear on the road to put on!!! You’ve never seen so many uncoordinated outfits in one race.

Running up the Las Vegas strip is just plain cool. I could describe each hotel and attraction but they’re all spectacles in their own way. To be honest, there was so much going on in the first 4 miles it’s sort of a blur. The one thing that stood out was all the Running Elvi and the runners getting married at the Paris Hotel. By the time I got there, the Elvi were already serenading the couples.

With both sides of the strip closed to traffic, it was fun to see the elites coming at us in the opposite direction. I had heard a lot of complaints that seeing runners coming at you would “demoralize” the other runners. It was just the opposite. As the front runners of the marathon and half marathon passed, they were cheered and encouraged by all of the back-of-the-packers. I hope they got lift from us because I saw a bunch of running forms improve in our mass of humanity – mine included!!!

Once the route entered the older downtown area things were starting to thin out a little. At this point, the marathoners and half marathoners were still running together. With 20,000 doing the half, I was eagerly awaiting for the course to thin out.

At about 10 1/2 miles, we broke from the strip and started our trek out west. Las Vegas is a valley with the strip at the bottom which meant a good part of our middle distance was slightly uphill. Once we hit Twain Ave., it didn’t take long to get used to the incline and I don’t think it bothered too many runners.

At the halfway point, I was slightly ahead of my goal pace in 2:07:23. I’ve never been “on pace” in my life and I immediately had thoughts of grandeur!!! Thoughts of a 4:15 finish were in reach – but not for long.

Miles 13-15 ran south on Decatur Blvd. Some small climbs but nothing as steep as I run in my training runs. At the beginning of this stretch, I was fine. By mile 15, I could have eaten a small child!!! I have no idea what happened but I was starving. I even thought about running into one of the many convenience stores along the route to eat something…anything!!! I had already gone thru 3 gels and was loosing energy fast. Mile 15 was the turn back up the valley on Hacienda. By this time, the fast runners were flying down the hill already, it gave me a small and short lived boost up until the Rainbow hairpin turn. BONK!!!

For me, the rest of the race was a will of putting one foot in front of the other and restraining from trying to steal food off of spectators on the street. There was a gel table after mile 18 but at that point I couldn’t eat anymore GU or Cytomax – I needed way more and it was going to come for another 8 miles.

Big props to all the bands, spectators and volunteers that came out. On more than one occasion I saw a few stages with a crowd of runners rockin’ away.

At the 20 mile turnaround, I had slowed way off my pace and was hoping just to make it in under my previous 5 hr. mark when I was stricken with every cramp known to man. At mile 24 I was able to grab a banana from a half marathoner walking towards us and a Pabst Blue Ribbon from an “uncertified” aid station. Gotta love spectators who show up on the course with beer. Seriously, those 3 people were able to snap me out of my hunger coma.

I was able to put it into high gear for the last mile and cross the line in 4:40:27 – a PR by 21 minutes. Although I had my sites set higher, I was proud to push on thru my lack of fuel and energy. The most important part was I didn’t get hurt. With the Walt Disney World Marathon 30+ days away, my sister would have killed me if I did something where I couldn’t run her first marathon at her side.

I know this is a long post so I’ll make this short. I’d just like to thank the Competitor Group for bringing a Rock-n-Roll to Las Vegas. Everything was great and I can’t wait until next year!!!

RMFR