8 On The 8th Olympic-sized Race Report

This weekend, I participated in Nancy's Olympic kick-off event, the 8 on the 8th in the 8th month of '08. Like her other virtual races, this was an incredibly fun experience. My run wasn't that great. In fact it was kinda painful. Let's just say that training for a 5 minute mile is not very conducive to running a good 8 miles. I made it through, though, in 1:03:32. Better than the virtual 8 mile race back in December.

Rather than bore you with a report on 8 miles of discomfort, I thought I'd have a little fun with my Mac's iMovie program.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Lifestrides Productions proudly presents a sequential image, stereophonic, multi-media event...

I hope nobody minds that I used your pictures. I wanted to include everyone, but I couldn't find pictures on some of your blogs or you hadn't posted your results before I finished the video, so I apologize if I missed anyone.

If anyone is interested, I uploaded the video to YouTube. Here's a link.

Move a Million Miles for Ryan Hall

You may remember my post from about a week ago asking if anyone is interested in logging their miles to support Ryan Hall as he prepares for the Olympic Marathon. Here's a link to a motivational video from Ryan himself explaining the purpose of the movement. I've gotten a few responses regarding logging your miles as part of a group. So now the question is what should we call ourselves? I kinda like the simplicity of "RBFs." What do you all think? Unless anyone has a different idea, let's go with that. All you have to do is type the group name in the "Group Affiliation" box, and submit your miles. Thanks for running with me.

Mile attempt #4 and other stuff

Today's attempt was sort of spontaneous because my running schedule was off with the holiday on Monday. I enjoyed a nice easy run on Monday without having to get up early before work. I've been doing my mile attempts on Tuesdays, so I thought I'd do it on Thursday this week. But last night, I felt like I really wanted to run. So I went out today after my wife got home from her run. I did my mile warm-up out to the start and took off. My first quarter mile was right on pace, but I knew I wouldn't be able to keep it up all the way, so I slowed down a smidge and was at 2:39 at the half. Apparently I slowed down another smidge or two because I ended up with a 5:29. I was pretty surprised with that time because I felt like I was going faster and pushing harder than I did last time. I blame it on my workout from last Saturday. I did three 1-mile repeats at 6:00 pace because I have a 5k coming up on June 7th, and thought I ought to get some speedwork geared toward that. I guess I can't improve every time.

Stay tuned for attempt #5.

Wow, I just looked at that paragraph and realized how boring it is! But, I'm too lazy to go back and rewrite it. I will share some other random thoughts, though.

1. Lani and I will both be doing the above-mentioned 5k on the 7th. This is a run we have been doing every summer for the last 6 years or so. It's become sort of a tradition. I've done it every year, and Lani has done it 3 or 4 times. She hopes to really see what she can do. I think her best 5k is about 33 minutes, but that was when she wasn't the runner she is today. I think she'll be closer to 27 minutes. Expect to see a race report from her early June. They also have tons of big prizes randomly given away after the race. We've never won anything, so cross your fingers for us.

2. I've been seeing a lot about the USATF Stretch Study lately, and can't decide if I want to do it or not. I read about it last summer, and I still have the same hesitations now. I would really like to participate, but I am afraid that I'll be put into the stretching group, which would require me to stretch prior to a run. I never stretch before a run, and I am afraid of what might happen. The purpose of the study, after all, is to look at the rate of injury between the stretching and the non-stretching group. What do you think about it?

3. I've only received one response to my solicitation to start a running blogging group to Move a Million Miles for Ryan Hall. It's just a simple way to show support for Ryan as he prepares for the Olympic Marathon. All you have to do is log your total weekly miles on the website. If anyone is interested in doing it with me and Shilingi-Moja, just post a comment.

4. We are looking forward to our summer. School is almost out (Friday is my last day before summer vacation) and I am definitely looking forward to some time off from work and more time to be with my family (and more time to run, too). In addition to the 5k on the 7th, I'm also planning on a 10 mile race on the 14th. Lani and I will also be doing a 10k on the 4th of July. Should be a lot of fun.

Get movin'!

I was amazed watching the coverage of the men's Olympic Trials Marathon last October. Those guys can really move! Since then, I have tried to keep up with what is going on with the U.S. marathoners. About a week ago, I read a post from Shilingi-Moja about a movement to support Ryan Hall as he prepares for the Olympics. It is not a fundraiser or anything, just a way to show some support and encourage people to live a more active lifestyle. I thought it was pretty cool, and signed up. The goal is to Move a Million Miles by means of any human-powered activity (e.g., running, biking, swimming, walking, etc.) before the start of the Olympic Marathon on August 24th.

I got an email this week saying that there are currently over 1600 participants covering over 200,000 miles. As of today, every participant would need to move 5 miles per day to reach that goal. Not too bad, but I sure don't run 5 miles a day every single day. Needless to say, more participants are needed. So, click the link, sign up and start logging you miles and support Ryan Hall and the rest of the U.S. Olympic team.

If anyone is interested, there is an option to report miles as a group. Maybe we can start a group of running bloggers. Post a comment and we can come up with a group name. Pass the word along, and let's start adding up the miles.

Anybody else getting nervous?

Last night I had a hard time going to sleep because I was starting to feel nervous. I feel like this is my first marathon. It's been a year and half since I qualified to run Boston, and I haven't run a marathon since. Maybe it's due to the fact that this race is across the country and the entire trip is an adventure. Maybe it's the excitement of "Boston." Maybe it's because I've had to deal with injuries this time around. I don't know, but I'm a little nervous. But definitely excited! It's going to be a fun (but rushed trip).

We are flying out Friday night on a red-eye. Hopefully I'll be able to sleep on the plane. Lani and I plan to jog the Freedom Trail in Boston Saturday morning and get a little sightseeing in along the way. After that, we'll meet up with some of Lani's high school friends and check out the sights in the town where she used to live. Then, we'll get a bite to eat with them and hang out.

On Sunday, we'll go to church where Lani went when she lived there, and spend the day with some folks she knew back then. I'd love to check out the Olympic Trials in the morning, but I don't think there'll be enough time. Later on, we'll head over to the expo, pick up my bib, etc. and eat at the pre-race pasta dinner. After that, we'll head back to the hotel and try to get a good night's sleep.

Race day, I'll catch the bus to the start and run like I've never run before! Lani plans to look for me at about the half-way point and then meet me at the finish. I'll get my stuff, stop by one of Lani's friends' and take a shower and then get to the airport. Whew!

If you'd like to track my progress on race day, just type in my number (#5096) on the Boston Marathon website. You can also watch the race online.

I've become a little obsessed with thinking about the race tonight. Here is a video tour of the course:

And here is a Google map of the course I came up with (it's not exact due to the one-way roads near the finish, but it's still pretty close, and you can zoom in really close):
View Larger Map

2008 Olympic Trials Marathon

I know this is old news for just about every one out there, but I wanted to share this video. Maybe you've seen it, but I hadn't. I don't really watch TV, so this is the first I've seen of any of the coverage for the marathon. I know these guys are fast... but WOW! These guys are really moving! It is amazing that they can keep that pace for 26.2 miles. And they make it look so easy! I can't do that for even 1 mile (although, I plan to break a 5-minute mile sometime in the not-so-distant future). So, sit back, relax (in a state of awe and amazement, of course) and check this out: