Six and Soaked

Ernesto ran six miles today in a steady downpour. Unemployment has really jump-started his training as he's hoofing it 5x a week in preparation for the upcoming LA Marathon. Nothing like a heavy rain to separate the hard-core from the somewhat-committed.

Marathons

Ernesto, Nick and a few other TNT chums are training for our hometown marathon. From what I hear, the course will be point to point, starting at Dodger Stadium, traveling through Hollywood and ending in Santa Monica. I'll be training to watch it on TV, but I wish them all well. Big writing day yesterday, cranking out another draft on my long short story. (Only 55 pages now.) I'll put this one aside now and work on something shorter. Perhaps a postcard.

Write and Walk

Chi walk, that is. It's a method of locomotion that involves your feet landing under your body and not in front of it, thereby eliminating knee and joint stress. Alas, there are many moving parts to the method. But I"m not in a hurry.

Big old short story - 60 pages - is nearing the end of another draft. My word count approaches 13K, kicking me into novelette range. Its a tale I developed in workshop a few years back, sent out once or twice, came close to placing, then lost interest and put it away. This time its placing. (Remember: fiction pays by the word.)

Noble CIM

When injured last fall, I had to withdraw from the California International Marathon. The kindly folks there said they'd put me in this year. Alas, I'm in no shape to run, or walk, but CIM carried me over anyway. Perhaps 2011?

A New Runner and New Thin Man

Yesterday, fellow writer (and now runner) Bernadette completed her first 5K without stopping. That's 3.1 miles on a course I ran four years ago and know contains literal ups and downs. Bravo, Bernadette. (I run vicariously these days, eliminating the need for expensive shoes.)

At the in-laws yesterday for dinner. One 23-year-old family member dropped 100 pounds in a year. The last time I saw him, he was wider than Lake Huron. He accomplished this feat with nothing more than a gym membership and a diet of mostly salads. A shout-out to young Ezra for losing the equivalent of a small child.

Did the Brain Secretly Jog?

Pinky clearly didn't. An NYT article tells the tale of mice, humans and the brilliant effects of running on brain power.
h/t: Cynthia Yockey

Running, Walking and the Astounding Bob Petrella

Friend Emil continues to run like a man afire, having completed more marathons in four months than I did in four years. This Sunday he'll be dashing off from Staten Island with 40K other runners in the New York City Marathon. I'm sure he'll overcome sundry running dings to finish strong.

I now walk a mile 3x a week, on an all-weather track or grass. So far no pain. I do more warming up and stretching out than actually movement. It's like a barbecue where you have a plate with Cold Slaw, chips, and a hamburger bun covered in ketsup, but no meat. Not for awhile.

From Nightline to a soon-to-be-filmed 60 Minutes, Bob Petrella's amazing memory continues to attract media interest. I'm off to see Bob for lunch today to learn more about my past.

No Snark Intended

Just a subtle reminder.

h/t: Tom Ruegger.

Run Down

One year ago I commenced training for the 2008 California International Marathon, a race run on a net downhill course (which usually translates into fast times) CIM was intended to be my ticket to Boston. Training lasted three weeks. Then my knee introduced other plans. Looking back in my training log, I see that Sunday, August 17 was hot and humid. I ran a very hilly 16.8 mile course with a 7x1 run/walk ratio and no run/walk for the last two miles. I finished up in 2:42:45 which is around 9:41 a mile - a bit fast for a long training run. My last two miles were 8:25 and 8:45. At physical therapy yesterday, my therapist offered to write up an evaluation of my progress before I go see the doctor again in mid-September. If all goes well, I might begin modest running in October. CIM is still on the list, but maybe for 2010 - bearing in mind that anything could happen during that time, even good things.

Area 51 Marathon

Out in the Nevada desert somewhere near cryptic Area 51 sits the start-line for a midnight marathon, pitting runners against the dark, flying saucers and black helicopters. Running machine Emil gave it a go and returned unprobed with this race report.

End of a Running Era

And the beginning of a better one as I completed my last run on the old knee. And a good one it was, too.

Mile 1: 12:07 with 1x2 run/walk ratio.

Mile 2: 10:56 " " " " .

Mile 3: 9:58 " 1x2 & 1x1 run/walk ratio.

Mile 4: 7:56 with no r/w.

That's a negative split with a sub-eight mile at the end. I can live with that for the next several months. So long Rose Bowl and surrounding hills for the duration. See you in the fall.

Scary, though. Now I have no excuse not to be completing writing projects. Not that I can't find a new one, but self-awareness will nag cruelly.

Knee Op and Animated Bureaucrats

Lots of paperwork, sign this and that, all for an operation that's supposed to take an hour. Then off to the drug store for antibiotics and heavy-duty pain pills.  Tomorrow, I have blood tests, x-rays and a physical.

Ran three miles today, completing the last mile in 7:57. I haven't run a sub-eight mile since last August. This will be a positive memory to take into recovery.   

In addition to massive legal documents, my paying job has a well-defined chain-of-command that includes the story editor, two producers, head of the division, another guy, and a guy overseas. The gate guards are also on the distribution lists and add such comments as, "needs more guard characters," and "why doesn't this scene have a check-point?" 

Short story lengthens on. I think I need to kill off characters quicker. Nothing personal, but they're holding up the ending. 

A Farewell to Legs

Ran three miles yesterday, walking two-minutes for every one minute of running. For the last mile, I dropped the walking and focused on moving quickly, feet underneath the body, with rapid turn-over. I logged 8:39, my fastest individual mile since last September. No knee pain yesterday or today.

Surgery this Friday. If running is out for the next several months, it'll be easier having completed at least one decent mile.

Today was the L.A. Marathon. A couple friends ran, but I haven't had time to check results.

Happy Memorial Day! I think of departed veterans Kurt and T.J. Imagine you knew a man from Cleveland, Ohio. He had one sibling, an older sister. During Vietnam, he volunteered for a dangerous assignment, operating far behind enemy lines. After the war, he battled drugs and alcohol. Eventually, he sobered up and went to work for a vending machine company, traveling around Los Angeles in a van fixing candy, coffee and soda machines.

Now imagine you knew two men with the same criteria. That would be Kurt and T.J. Kurt served in Marine recon, operating in Laos along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. T.J. was a 4th Infantry Division LRRP (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol), creeping around North Vietnamese base camp areas in the Central Highlands. Their Vietnam service overlapped by around six months. (July 1967 to January 1968.)

Once I introduced them to each other at a party, figuring they'd have tons to talk about, but after a few polite minutes they went their separate ways. In any case, I'm honored to have known them and appreciate the sacrifices they made.

PS: I was going to put up more films, but have too much writing. So: Saving Private Ryan, Anthony Mann's Men in War, Band of Brothers, and We Were Soldier's Once, plus A Bridge Too Far complete a few of my war genre favorites.

Running Rocks in Hard Times

MDW sent me this on hitting the road when money erodes.

Airborne

Busy writing that short story. I must always remember the reader - picky bastards. Too many characters or too much information triggers the Snooze button.

Whenever I feel sorry for myself about running, something happens to snap me out of it. I'll visit my friend K's blog or stumble upon something like this.

h/t: Hot Air

Knee Rehab and Writing

A few more days before I hear back from my paying job. Meanwhile I'm ascending the scale poundwise as I prepare for a torpid month of recovery. Last time off my feet, I blimped out in depression. This time, I'd better unblimp as my repaired knee will thank a lighter me once it's run time again.

Dashed through my research and started the short story anyway. Despite being fed up with prep work, I believe it helped. The interactive outline method, coupled with questioning the characters has lent my writing more heft. I really want to layer this story instead of blasting out a tale heavy on action but light on anything else such as themes, metaphors, symbolism or other boring things.

This time I'm more willing to wait and see what emerges. And maybe have a couple of snacks while I'm at it; bag of pretzels, a power bar, apple, turkey dinner; the usual.

A Running Machine

That's Emil, ladies and gentlemen. He just finished the hilly La Jolla half-marathon (13.1 miles) in 1 hour and 56 minutes. A Team in Training alum, I used to bump into Emil at various races, the last being 2008 San Diego Marathon. He has seriously upped his game this year, competing every month in distance events. I run vicariously through Emil and wish him well for the both of us.

Via Emil: Palos Verdes is next week. This week's endurance event was La Jolla. Please stop bombarding me with corrections. -:)

Final Boston Marathon Thoughts

Big props to Kara Goucher and Ryan Hall for finishing third in their respective divisions. Goucher led 800 meters from the finish, but couldn't hold against world class competition. Hall faded when the front runners surged, but fought his way back, picking off runners to close behind the second man in what was a very deep field. This is the best finish for Americans since 1985, when the top three female and second-and-third male slots were won by the U.S.

Goucher wept in disappointment, but this was only her second marathon. She should be proud. Nothing but upside for USA distance running. 

And nothing but congratulations to Kiley Akers and Kate Freeman for finishing their first 50-mile race. (I thanked them at the retired blog, now I'm thanking them where people will see.) Kiley coaches the fall and spring San Gabriel Valley, Team in Training marathon squads. Kate was my coach for two TNT marathons. Nice to see them set big, scary goals and reel them in.