26.2 (because 26 miles isn't enough)

Antarctica, 2015

2012-01-22T11:00:00.009-05:00

First, Houston...I spent an inspiring and larynx-destroying weekend in Houston watching both the Olympic marathon trials and the Houston marathon. Meeting Abdi (men's third place finisher) in the lobby of the Hilton was a thrill and I will be cheering hard for him when he competes in London.Cheering hard for Jess, Beth and Heidi was equally thrilling (where the heck did Heidi go??). Jess had a

What I learned from the (FANTSTIC!) Round Church 10K

2011-08-21T20:56:00.007-04:00

True confessions from "I never liked running": more than a week before GMAA's Round Church 10K I was secretly thinking up excuses to get me out of running it. And I'm so glad I didn't give into that impulse, because the race was such a fun day of running and celebrating. Jess had recommended running 3 miles before the race to increase my mileage for the day, which keeps me on track in training

Regent's Park 10K, "Resplendent!"

2011-08-08T14:21:00.006-04:00

When I decided on a vacation in London, the only firm plan I had was to run in the monthly 10K in Regents Park. Yesterday morning I met my college friend, Joy, in the lobby of my hotel and headed toward the Sloane Square tube station to get to the race start. Checking the time, we decided to take a cab instead, and got the funniest, nicest taxi driver, who was vexed by the road closures due the

"Sweaty Betty"

2011-08-06T14:11:00.000-04:00

Arrived in London for a 10-day vacation and suitcase packed with lots of running clothes. I stayed in Chelsea the first few days, and thoroughly enjoyed my posh, sophisticated temporary neighborhood. Among the shops near Sloane Square is a women's running store called Sweaty Betty. Which gets me back to the point of this blog. One of my first days here, I struck out from the hotel heading south

NYC lottery : do I, or don't I?

2011-04-26T21:56:00.005-04:00

Several months ago, in a fit of ambition, I signed up for the lottery for the New York City Marathon. The IMG NYC Marathon has about 45,000 runners. Really fast people can qualify for guaranteed entry, really generous people can get in through charitable entry, and the rest of get in by entering the lottery.A few numbers to consider from the NYC Marathon web site:They estimate 8-12% of people in

Running with ungulates

2011-04-24T20:35:00.004-04:00

My long run was a big loop through Williston and into Richmond on a warm, overcast Easter Sunday.My original plan was to start at Liz's house and head out Mountain View, run towards Catamount and then join Route 2 and come back into Williston. At the last minute I decided to go counterclockwise instead, starting on 2A, heading East on 2 and then turning on the back road. This was a good plan

15 miles, feels like a new day!

2011-04-03T16:12:00.004-04:00

Weather can make an amazing difference! Today was 45 degrees, clear blue sky, bright sun, brisk off the ice off the white ice on the lake, fields free of snow. Very nice, indeed.I dialed up a playlist for today's run that was accidentally inspiring. A few tracks:"I'm The Best" Nicki MinaijThis fed delusions of grandeur around Mile 7, "I hear them coming for me, because the top is lonely...I'm the

Ok, let's assess

2011-03-31T23:13:00.003-04:00

At one point during the New Bedford 1/2 marathon I thought, "This might be the worst I've ever felt in a race." (Then I remembered the Montreal Marathon, and thought, "This might be the second worst I've ever felt in a race....")In retrospect, I doomed myself with too high expectations, unnecessary pressure and too much distraction. I held to pace that was at the limit of what I could do through

Gorgeous warm weather, and treadmill is here

2011-03-18T17:00:00.003-04:00

The nice guys from Earl's Cyclery delivered my treadmill on a warm, sunny spring afternoon. Ah, the irony. Even though I didn't have it around during these long snowy winter months, it'll be great for those summer nights when running in the dark seems sketchy, and the sun is too hot or the rainstorms too filled with thunder and lightning.I ran a few miles on it to try it out. So far the cat is

"My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend..."

2011-03-08T21:09:00.009-05:00

Remember the scene in Ferris Bueller's Day Off when Ben Stein's character drones, "Bueller? Bueller?" during attendance and Simone answers, "Um, he's sick..." and then launches into an endless list of connections who relayed that Ferris threw up at 31 Flavors last night? I was a on a treadmill at the gym tonight next to that girl.Not her exactly, but it was her incessant voice, yakking yakking

Well, that's not normal

2011-02-26T21:52:00.004-05:00

Last weekend one of my favorite people, Joy, was visiting. And it happened to have been an incredibly cold weekend. A clear skies, blisteringly bright, deathly cold kind of fun.Joy and I both have Reynaud's, and the weather gave us a chance to commiserate about the problem of having crappy circulation that leaves our fingers turning white at the faintest exposure to cold. But Joy has it worse

You are what you eat (please say it isn't so)

2011-02-21T22:36:00.003-05:00

Heidi let me know about a marathon nutrition lecture tonight at the UVM College of Medicine, and I enthusiastically signed up. Nutrition is one of my biggest stumbling blocks in marathon training (aside from long stretches of not running...)The lecture was helpful - a good review of things I'd heard but not actuated, and an equal dose of practical nutrition science. She said 2,300 calories a

I dreamed a dream

2011-02-17T22:00:00.003-05:00

Ok, so here's the kooky dream I had:It's marathon race day, presumably VCM but it looked more like start line at New Bedford, MA. Amid the masses of people gathering before the race, I kept crossing path with people whom I closely associate with running - Beth, Hiedi, Erika, Jess, and lots of others. Then my mom and my sister were there, and then I realized my sister was running the race also. (

Love the gym, hate the gym

2011-02-12T16:19:00.000-05:00

When the weather guys talk about Arctic conditions for days on end, I adore my gym membership. I think of how warm and lovely I will feel running in a tank top-running dress on the treadmill, not a care in the world about layers, Balaclavas or ice-resistant contraptions strapped onto my shoes.One evening this week I headed to the gym tired but determined not to the fight compulsion to go straight

Nice neighbors

2011-02-08T15:53:00.003-05:00

Like many parts of the Vermont, bicyclists and runners are no strangers in the Champlain Islands and I'm always appreciative of the well-trained drivers who carefully give a wide berth to those of us on the edge of the road. The waves of massive snow storms and berms of plowed snow make being courteous a bit harder for drivers, but they still make the effort to give us space.Today when I headed

Oh, did I mention I'm a runner (again)?

2011-01-31T21:01:00.009-05:00

Today is the first official day of my training for Vermont City Marathon 2011. I'm getting started a few weeks late because I was in South America getting caught up in civil unrest* and then I got a cold** but now I'm ready to go!A quick recap of a few memorable runs I've done lately:New Year's Eve, Waitsfield: Siri, Jamie and I headed out the door of Renee's house and logged 3+ beautiful,

Dry Heaves 5K

2010-06-21T16:54:00.005-04:00

It's a shame no one has sponsored a race by this name. Here are the entry qualifications:violent food poisoning the night before the racesleep must only be intermittent and/or on the bathroom floorfits of nausea while driving to the race the next morningdelusional stubbornness about dropping out of racesEssex Junction Recreation and Parks held a Father's Day 5K yesterday, and I had long ago

Capital City Stampede 10 K

2010-06-14T13:44:00.004-04:00

Always enter races that are distances you haven't tried so you can claim a PR!The Capital City Stampede in Montpelier was the first 10K I've participated in, and it's an awesome distance. Not so short that it's meaningless, not so long that it fills me with dread.About 100 people came out in the rainy rain to race from Onion River Sports, out to the high school and down the bike path and back

Lovely, lovely Vermont City Marathon

2010-06-01T21:54:00.006-04:00

Race day dawned cool and cloudy, nearly perfect weather for running. Walking through Battery Park at 7:00 a.m. on Sunday, groups of runners hovered together like cluster flies -- the Team In Training purple-shirted runner, the UVM College of Medicine yellow-shirted runners, scores of individuals looking for a few minutes of peace, plenty more looking to pump each other up for the start. Earlier

Vermont City Marathon is almost here!

2010-05-27T11:46:00.004-04:00

Vermont City Marathon is Sunday, May 30, 2010The last week has been a mix of marathon-envy and feelings of relief that I’m not running the full distance. A tour of recent running highlights:- Dinner with Beth, Heidi and Jess. Heidi has crammed so many responsibilities and commitments into her schedule and now days before the race she’s questioning whether a foot injury has returned. At least the

Coffee = Hydration

2010-05-16T22:09:00.006-04:00

I read in the June issue of Running Times an awesome column on 'hydration moderation'. It was geared toward high school students who've been raised in a world where a water bottle (and a cell phone) are extra appendages, and even non-athletes are constantly chugging water and Gatorade.But there was a gratifying take-away for this coffee-slurping office worker:"the average-size adult needs eight

Running Groups

2010-05-10T17:56:00.002-04:00

I have been in a funk, and haven't had much to say about running lately. As I've tried to figure out how to get my groove back, two people have recommended that I join a running group. Here for your entertainment are the specific suggestions made by my friend Bill, a former runner, about how to find just the right group and make a good impression:1. Don't join a group of annoying people.2.

VCM Relay Team!

2010-04-24T00:17:00.003-04:00

So back in January when I thought I would be running the full Vermont City Marathon, my friend Maria thought it would be fun to enter the relay and have her relay team run alongside me for the the full race - motivation, camaraderie, company. Apparently I needed those things far before the race itself, because I my training was... lame, nonexistent and I decided not to run VCM after all.But

To Gu, or not to Gu?

2010-04-19T22:39:00.003-04:00

I've had a cardboard box of 24 Gu packets that seemed spawn its own replenishing supplies, it lasted so long. But now, it sits empty in my recycling bin, taunting me to consider whether I will run distances long enough to require more Gu anytime in the near future.I went to the Marathon 201 class tonight, despite having stopped training for the marathon weeks, and felt a twinge of embarrassment.

Half-marathon, full birthday!

2010-04-11T21:55:00.003-04:00

Run Vermont's Unplugged 1/2 Marathon started yesterday morning in cold, windy conditions -- even a sprinkling of icy rain droplets. By mid-morning, the sun was out in full, the breeze off the lake was still brisk but the air had warmed up nicely. Around Mile 6 I was soooo relieved Jess had convinced me not to wear the heavy running tights and jacket. (The jacket might have been nice around mile

Eeny Meeny Miney Mo...

2010-04-04T21:26:00.004-04:00

... run the marathon, yes or no?This week I decided, no. I have been putting this off for months, but these are weeks when I would need to ramp up the volume of miles and the length of my long runs, so I couldn't put off the decision any longer.I've been unfocused, undisciplined and emotional since last October. I wanted to train for another marathon because I thought it would give me structure,

Rear View Mirror: New Bedford

2010-04-04T20:31:00.008-04:00

The New Bedford 1/2 Marathon was two weeks ago, but I've been a lapsed blogger since then. Here's to making up for lost time:Going into the weekend I had a sartorial crisis. It began with an innocent-seeming email from Beth that said, 'Have you picked up your singlet yet?' We, and Heidi and Erika, were going down to New Bedford with the GMAA team -- team bus, team hotel, team dinner. All of

Have you seen this person?

2010-03-08T14:36:00.016-05:00

I got out of Vermont for a weekend to visit Keith, one of my favorite friends from college, in Washington,D.C. He’s tapering for his first marathon, National Marathon on March 20, and a big focus of the weekend was talking about running, running, and recovering from running. On Saturday, we took different routes for our long runs: Keith did 12 miles, including a long hilly stretch of the race

Don't Tase me, bro!

2010-02-28T14:29:00.005-05:00

I had this brainstorm during my long run today: what if Garmin and Taser teamed up to make a GPS watch that zings you when you fall off your pace?I spent some quality time this morning actually reading the instruction booklet that came with the Garmin my mom gave me for Christmas (thanks, mom!). There's a "Virtual Partner" setting that let's you set your intended pace, and then the watch tells

Workout, interrupted.

2010-02-26T12:42:00.000-05:00