STAR SPANGLED DAY

RUN: 13.1 MILES / 2:58:10 / 3:2 RUN WALK

We headed out the door at 6am and found heavy fog. Actually -I was happy to see that it wasn't too sunny and the temp was 56. Perfect for me. So far ,so good. Parking worked out well -right at the finish line so that my dad who is 84 could sit on the back of my Murano. I packed my 2 bottles of water in my fuel belt and 1 pack of clif bloks.
From running the course last year ,I knew the challenges ahead. I started the 3:2 immediately. I hit the first hill after mile 1 and it continues to 2. The photo shows how it was running up into the fog. The water stations were at every mile and each one was run by a different unit in competition with each other. My favorite was the reserves' oasis with the wet sponges and music.

After mile 6 , I lost rack of the miles and the time because I had no specific goal and just wanted to enjoy everyone and the run. I came down the final hill and someone yelled, "Great job you're going to break 3 hours" Holy shit!! The finish was awesome. The last .25 miles was inbetween c114 planes that were on display. There my dad and son were waving at me! I crossed the line at 2:58. There was a general there waiting to put on my medal. Just then a group of fighter jets flew over. I couldn't help but to be overwhelmed by the patriotism.

I have no pig fact today--but I am ready to begin the first phase of my training now for the flying Pig.

ALL THE WRONG STUFF

RUN: ZERO

Today was a travel day to Ohio. Bino(my son) and I got up at 4am and finished packing to hit the road by 5. We thought we'd beat the AM Chicago traffic and we did. As soon as we hit Indiana things thinned out and we headed across rt 30. We came to our regular Burger King stop in Valparaiso and both got a Whopper for breakfast.

After 5 hours of driving, through fog, we got to dad's house in Sidney. It was so good to see him. He is 84 now and amazing to me. There is a calmness that comes over me when I get back home and spend time with dad. It is so peaceful. After unpacking ,I needed to head for Wright Patterson AFB (45 min.) to pick up my packet for the USAF half marathon tomorrow morning. On the way there we were hungry again. Lunch was a Big Boy sandwich,fries,cole slaw and a Chocolate shake.

The runners expo was excellent. I got a new pair of gel-nimbus for only $69, Clif blocks for the run, a STICK for when my ITB hurts, and a new sleeveless shirt. On top of that the goodie bag was awesome. This is the most well put on race I've ever been to. While walking around other races were advertising and guess who was there----THE FLYING PIG MARATHON. I'm starting to think it's destiny They gave me a luggage tag,Pig nose and a registration form. I just got to do it!!!

On the way home we stopped at SuperWalmart. For some reason Sidney has the best Walmart and I always spend too much money. This time was no exception. I even found some stadium seats for football games on sale.

Well-you know after that- we were ready for supper. We went to THE SPOT to eat. This is the restaurant in Sidney where Dave Thomas cam and met Rob Lowe's grandfather and got the idea for Wendy's. President Bush has also eaten here because of their Old fasioned Sugar Cream Pie. So I had another hamburger, fries , pie, and diet coke.

I began finally thinking about tomorrow morning and the half. Last year in the middle of marathon training I ran 2:51. Two months ago in SF I ran 3:02. I haven't trained alot since then so my guess is that I'll run between 3:00 and 3:15. And that could be a miracle considering my food intake for the day. I knew I could make it but the question also was my run walk ratio. I usually do 4run: 1 walk. I noticed the Penguin is doing 3run : 2 walk. I'll try that for tomorrow. It feel like less pressure.

Goals for Saturday's Half:

1. Finish
2. Enjoy the experience

"BRING ME TO LIFE..WAKE ME UP INSIDE"

RUN : 30 MIN.

Finally for the first time in 5 days ,I saw a glimpse of the sun at sunset. The grayness of the days has made things very melancholy. I coulldn't even muster up any excitement over the cooler temperatures. After several delays, I finally got out to run with Dakota. My legs were still alittle tired from the yoga experience but otherwise things felt good. The last 10 min. of my run the sun finally poked its head out at me and my MP3 played "Bring me to life,Wake me up inside...". I felt I was saying that to the sun to get my motivation going.

I leave tomorrow for Ohio. And have to go to the Air Force Base on Friday for my packet pick up. Then the race is Sat AM. I'm not nervous-I'm not really anything. I'm most excited about all the good food. Frisch's Big Boy Sandwich-Old Fashioned Sugar Cream Pie- Hussy's Fried Chicken.


PIG FACT OF THE DAY:If you were born in one of the following years, then you were born during the "Year of the Pig"1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019 . I am running the Flying Pig Marathon in 2007 (Is that good luck?)

FITNESS YOGA #1

YOGA: 60MIN.

I'm not sure if I like yoga. I do know it would be good for me as my flexibility sucks. I'm used to being very busy and not stopping. It was hard to slow down and hold still for an hour in a darkened quiet room with calming music. My mind keep going to things I could be doing at home and should I be doing this rather than running. There was a cardio class next door that looked like they were working alot harder than me. My friend said I was making faces the entire time.
I will continue to go and maybe add a short run to it. This is part of my phase 1 for my marathon.

On another topic- Ironman Wisconsin. I have been following Iron Wil since the spring in her training for the Ironman. It's been quite the journey(one that I'll never attempt). I followed her online on Sunday and when I went to bed I knew she was on the marathon course. I said a prayer for her. In the morning my heart was broken to find out she was unable to complet after 133.4 miles. My heart went out to her. I hope she's okay.

REFLECTIONS