Miles, Miles and More Miles

For the week of 24-30 August

Sunday: REST - like we had a choice with Fay hanging about
Monday: 4+ from the house - 5:30 a.m.
Tuesday: 6+ from the house - 5:30 a.m
Wednesday: REST
Thursday: 10? Circle K 5:00 a.m.
Friday: REST
Saturday: Whatever Cathy needs from me (as long as it's early) for her long run

Mac, you will be terribly missed

One of the hardest things I have ever had to do for a friend I did today. I knelt before my friend Maggie and told her that God loved her. As I looked into her distraught, tear-stained face I wondered how I was going to explain that to my friend who had just lost her son. Her son Mac had drown the day before when a flash flood pulled him into a flooded and over-flowing lake from the supposed safety of "looking for crayfish." I am not sure if she will ever find comfort in those words or if she will even remember I said them to her.

On the other hand, I will forever remember her reply: "I don't feel it. I'm mad at Him." I told her that was okay. He was a big God and he could handle it. "Go ahead, be mad," I told her. "He will love you through it. Just like I will and the rest of us will love you through this." It was quite possibly the most difficult thing I have ever had to do: to tell a woman, a friend that everything would be okay, while the entire time MY SON is standing right next to me and hers is gone forever.

I looked around the room later and saw nearly all of Mac's teammates - Colin included - who had come to be with Mac's family; who were a part of Mac's swimming family. I found comfort in their being there. I hope that Maggie, Charlie, and Savannah did as well. Later they will, I know. But, now, at this moment, the pain must be incomprehensible.

Mac (in the white tee shirt) and teammates Scott, Alex and Sergey.

Mac and teammate Joey - behind the blocks.

Mac was fun, funny, witty, full of life and a great swimmer. He was "an up and coming star" of the ATAC team. Which makes his drowning all that more ironic. How can that happen to a Junior Olympic Team swimmer? God alone knows. But, it should remind us that nature has a way of grounding us and keeping our feet firmly planted on the ground. Unfortunately, that doesn't lessen the sadness or the pain, or the emptiness that Mac's family and teammates will feel for quite some time to come.

Mac doing one of the things he did best: swim like a fish - and race for the wall!

Your family and your friends and ATAC miss you! We love you.

Leukemia Survivor Wins "Marathon in the Water"

I have decided to use this AP article as today's entry for a variety of reasons.  The first, and maybe most obvious reason is the distance:  This 10K openwater swim is called the "Marathon Swim."  With my affinity for the endurance distances, and the fact that Colin desires to qualify for the 5K and then the 10K open water events in Fort Myers, Florida, over the next couple of years you have reason number one.  Reason number two is slightly more obvious that than the first - Hello, it is the Olympics!!!  And, finally onto the third and best reason is that the man who won this epic event is a LEUKEMIA Survivor!  Granted, he may never have even heard of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and their Team in Training that I love so much, but he has definitely benefitted from their research and treatments and fundraising efforts.

There you have it - today's news from the Olympic, swimming, endurance distance, leukemia surviving world.

Van der Weijden wins 10K swimming race in close finish 

By the Associated Press

Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 8:32 PM ET

BEIXIAOYING TOWN, China (AP) -- Dutch swimmer Maarten van der Weijden skirted just inside the final red buoy and grabbed gold, completing his recovery from leukemia.

Winning a three-way sprint with a better-angled finish, Van der Weijden took the inaugural men's 10-kilometer open water marathon at the Beijing Olympics under a steady rain Thursday.

David Davies of Britain and Thomas Lurz of Germany drifted to the outside at the finish and settled for silver and bronze.

Van der Weijden reached up to slap the yellow touchpad in 1 hour, 51 minutes, 51.6 seconds. 

"If there is anyone in the field that can beat me, that guy is an absolute legend," Davies said of van der Weijden. "He's a great guy. He's obviously been to the depths in his personal life and to come back is a great story. Lance Armstrong epic."

Van der Weijden was diagnosed with leukemia in 2001. He came back in 2003 and began swimming faster than before he had the disease. He now commits a large portion of his time to raising awareness for leukemia.

After the win, van der Weijden raised his arms in the air and pumped his fists as he walked around the dock. He was hoisted on the shoulders of his fellow countrymen and pointed a finger toward to sky to show he was No. 1.

Davies was at or near the lead from start to finish on the 6.2-mile course and opened up a five or six body-length lead with a few hundred meters (yards) remaining. He couldn't hold it, though.

"It's going to take a while for it to sink in," Davies said. "At the last bit, I didn't know what was going on."

Davies received medical attention after the race.

"I just wanted to lie down and have a sleep, but before I knew it I was on a stretcher," he said.

Along with Vladimir Dyatchin of Russia, Lurz was one of the pre-race favorites, having won the world title in this event in 2004 and 2006.

"I knew Maarten finished well, so it was important to stay with him," Lurz said.

Dyatchin, who won back-to-back world titles in 2007 and 2008, never contended and was disqualified after touching 12th.

Despite the rain, the race was held in ideal swimming conditions at Shunyi Rowing-Canoeing Park.

With the air temperature at 21 degrees Celsius (70 Fahrenheit), it was a decent contrast with the 27 degree (81 Fahrenheit) water. The water at the indoor swimming facility in Beijing is about 26 degrees (80 Fahrenheit).

The 25 competitors swam four laps each around the artificial body of water, with coaches riding close by along the shore on bicycles.

Van der Weijden won the 25-km race at this year's world championships and was fourth in the 10-km. His flexibility in adapting to different tactics and speed across various distances makes him a contender in almost any open water race.

Davies finished sixth in the 1,500-meter event inside the Water Cube on Sunday but is still relatively inexperienced in open water, as seen by his wide finish.

"I need to learn to swim straight. I know that sounds silly," Davies said.

Copyright 2008 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Goofy Training and Beyond ... Week of 8.17-23.208

Sunday: 10-12 miles in Killearn Lakes with "The Group"

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 4+ miles from the house (5:30 a.m.)

Wednesday: 5+ miles from the house (5:30 a.m.)

Thursday: Rest

Friday: 7-9? miles from the house (5:00 a.m.)

Saturday: Oh, I don't know how many miles...

Miller Landing Madness

Sunday: Our 17th Anniversary!!!!! Hooray for us!

Ride, if I can get one in before Mike wakes up...

Breakfast on the Track - updated 8.19.2008

I have never run a "timed mile" in my life - that I know of. I am sure that I ran "the mile" in elementary and middle school P.E. just like the kids do today. But, I don't remember those times, and I am sure that they mean ABSOLUTELY nothing to my running endeavors of present. That being said, my older son has been training with a group here in preparation for the middle school cross country season. That group, as a rule, runs this little, local event called Breakfast on the Track every August right before school starts. It is sort of a wrap-up to the summer track sprint series, and it is a good pre-season gauge for the cross country coaches as they are forming up their teams.

So, this morning we set the alarms for a practice school day run, and headed to the track. Colin had been placed in the 5:40-6:00 minute heat by the coach, and I had placed myself in the 8:00-9:00 minute heat based strictly on my best times in my own runs. I know that the mile is an all out kind of event, but not having any real idea about how fast I could go, I stayed in the safety net of the known. We placed Aidan in the undefined heat so that he would at least get to run, and at the same time not be discouraged by being run over by other people. That therefore spread us out pretty well throughout the morning: Colin, heat 3; me in heat 8; and Aidan in number 10.

Colin finished well in 6:20. We were impressed that he held onto a consistent pace and that he had a bit of kick in the last 150 meters or so; and had a fairly decent attitude at the end. He claims his ankle was bothering him, but we still think he could have finished closer to 6:00. Oh, well... At least now he has something to work from and use as a base line time.

Above: Colin's heat lining up. Cameron Wong, runner friend super, is to Colin's left. Colin is "hiding" behind the shirtless man front/center.

Right: Colin as he nears the finish (6:21).

I turned in a 7:20 with which I was extremely pleased. I might have been able to finish a bit quicker, but one of the boys in my heat is the son of my friend Brenda, who died last November. As I pulled up to pass him I eased back just a bit to chat him up and keep him going (because I don't think he wanted to one little bit - and he finished in a rockin' 7:35). Even so, I might have gotten there in 7:10, but I am "good" with 7:20 and that I did it with no speed work outs.

I was FIRST in my age group (40-44) and second in my heat (of course, I find this out AFTER we have left and missed the awards presentation).

Whatcha gonna do? Thank you Sarah Docter-Williams for retrieving my "trophy" and listening out for me!

Aidan, well he was Aidan. Since he does NO running, and all he wanted were pancakes BEFORE his heat, a 9:00 finish and first in his heat was just what he needed. He thinks he won, and I'm not going to tell him any differently. He did - win his heat that is!

I found these pictures of Aidan looking like he was enjoying himself. And I am so glad they were posted on the GWTC web site. Because... I have to tell you that originally I had placed a photo here that I titled the "I told you so..." photo. About 2/3 around the last lap Aidan began whining about his stomach hurting. Well, he had already consumed a slice of watermelon and a pancake, and NO juice or water. The horrible sounds disappeared when he realized he was first in his heat. Thank goodness! And, NO he did not hold my hand for the entire mile. Only when he started whining.

Gotta love 'em to the finish no matter what, or they'll never learn to love a sport!

Well friends and fellow runners there you have it. The last Saturday before school begins for the year, and we are still at it: swimming, biking, running, and eating strong!

Have a great day, a fabulous weekend, and a spectacular school year! See you on the streets!

Purple Power: Team In Training Rocks!

This weekend holds in store the Information and registration meetings for the Winter 2008-09 Season of Team In Training. Based on the flyer I got in the mail, this season's event choices are:

December 21, 2008: Jacksonville Marathon/Half Marathon; run or walk
January 10-11, 2009: Disney World Half Marathon & Full Marathon; run or walk
January 18, 2009: P.F. Chang's Rock-n-Roll Marathon/Half Marathon; run or walk

Information Meetings Time and Location(s):
Friday, August 8 NOON, at Premier Fitness Center (3521 Maclay Boulevard)
Friday, August 6:30 p.m. at Cabot Lodge, 1653 Raymond Diehl Road
Saturday, August 9 10:00 a.m. at Cabot Lodge, 1653 Raymond Diehl Road

Friday, August 22, 5:30 p.m. at The Renaissance Center, Macomb Street

If you have ever wanted to participate in an endurance event, but have lacked the will-power or drive to stick with it, this is THE way to go. Not only do you get to raise money for one of the most deserving organizations ever, but you will meet people who will become just like family to you. You can not know what awaits you with TNT. Having participated actively twice (and on the fringes inbetween...), I can only say that the experience of being a Fund Raising Participant is one of the most rewarding feelings in a lifetime. However, the experience of being a team leader and HELPING a complete team of others live that same experience is beyond nearly anything else you can imagine.

I highly recommend this program. I strongly urge you to think about it, pray about it, talk to others about it, and then join Team In Training for the journey of a life time.

Checking: One, Two, Three, Reality

I try to NOT run long during the summer. I don't do heat well. But, this year when I first toyed with the idea of running the Marine Corps Marathon with some of the group, I knew I would have to slog it out and suffer through the heat. What I didn't count on was that even though it was hot, I'm getting better at it. Hooray for the small things! So, as I now realize that my hopes of a MCM medal are not going to come to fruition this season, I plan to keep up the mileage so that I can be that "companion runner" I have told so many other people about. I'm already trying to figure out a way to juggle things to run an 18-miler with Cathy the weekend of the 23rd, and how I can possibly be there to run her 22-miler on October 4th or 5th.

I suppose that I should have known in the beginning that without a good reason, I wouldn't make it to the finish line. I registered for MCM for me and for no one else. I guess right there we know why I won't be in D.C. in October. Instead, I have transferred my registration to a great runner and a wonderful friend who is in the process of "exorcising a demon." His own words ... There is my cause, helping Chuck get to the finish line in a BQ (Boston Qualifying) time. I hope he knows how much better I feel about this now that there is a reason behind my initial registration.

While we're sitting around trying to re-plan out the "marathon" season, let's do a quick review of the events that have been on the calendar for a while. Some things, as they always do, have to be put aside for another season. Some things simply have to be let go, and yet others are added to the list.

July, 2008

7.4.2008 Freedom Springs Triathlon (for me really a DUathlon - I don't "do" the swim...)

Colin finished in 1:06:30 - down 10 minutes from last year! Fourth in his age group (behind ONLY USAT Southeast Team members)

7.19.2008 Take Colin to Jacksonville for the JAX TRI Series Sprint #2 (and then spend a week in St. Augustine with my family!!!)

Colin finished in 1:02:36 - Won his age group outright! That's my boy!

August, 2008

8.2-3.2008 Area I-IV Championships Swim meet

Colin won his age group, and Aidan swam, well I might add, in his first "big" meet. They were awesome!

8.23.2008 TriStates 100 Century Ride - Dothan, Alabama OR

Run with my dear friend Cathy on her 18-miler for Marine Corps. Or, run with Colin and the Raa Cross Country Training Group at the Miller's Landing Madness. Yikes!

8.24.2008 Celebrate 17 years of marriage to my wonderful husband!

September, 2008

9.7.2008 This week begins a standard 18-week marathon training plan for Richard's "Goofy" in January, 2009

9.27.2008 Take Colin to The Beach Blast Triathlon in Mexico Beach, Florida and compete in the Sprint Duathlon division

9.30.2008 Celebrate Michael's 45th Birthday!!!

October, 2008

NEW 10.4.2008 Run the Half Marathon Leg of the new "AmeliaMan" 70.3 Triathlon as a member of the "Dixie Chicks" Team

NEW 10.11.2008 Ride the Spaghetti 100 (maybe...)

10.25.2008 Boston Mini Marathon (Boston, Georgia)

10.26.2008 (my 41st birthday) 33rd Marine Corps Marathon I am officially REGISTERED, but have transferred my entry to friend and running coach extraordinaire, Chuck Davis.

10.31.2008 Celebrate my in-laws' 50th Wedding Anniversary

November, 2008

NEW 11.7-11.2008 Party with The "Entire Family" for the in-laws' 50th Anniversary

11.27.2008 Tallahassee Turkey Trot 15K

December, 2008

12.6.2008 Ten Mile Challenge

12.6.2008 Jingle Bell Run (3K)

12.21.2008 Jacksonville Half Marathon???

Goin' Goofy: So It Begins

This past January, as a Team in Training Team Leader, I finished the Disney World Half Marathon on Saturday the 12th, and then the Full Marathon on Sunday the 13th. On any given SANE day, I would say that I don't do marathons. But, the team needed an extra runner on the course that weekend, so I did it. Wow! If you actually complete both of those events, Disney calls it "Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge." I didn't register that way, so I didn't get the medal or the shirt, but I did get the right to say "39.3 is the new 26.2!" Well, our friend Richard (who we unexpectedly and tragically lost one week after the Disney Marathon) wanted those rights. He said as we finished this year, that all he wanted to do next year was The Goofy. So, in his honor a LARGE, really large group of us Team Tally runners have legitimately registered as Goofy Participants. We won't be able to change the fact that Richard isn't physically there with us, but we will be able to say that he carried us all 39.3 miles of the weekend plus the hundreds of miles (all 800+ of them) of training of the journey to that Goofy Finish Line. A shiny medal awaits him there.

It will be a challenge to get through all of this training without the flood of memories and without the "Live out loud" personality we all got so accustomed to having near us as we ran. We will live to run and run to live so that we do Richard's memory and wish the honor it deserves. The link below is a slide show of Richard's "Larger than Life" way of living. Thank you, Robin! Again ...

This weeks puts the Team Tally Goofy Group 23 weeks out from Disney if you count backwards, and put Sunday the 11th as the first day of Zero Week. I am running on a modified Hal Higdon plan for multiple marathons. I am training, although I'm not sure why since I have transferred my entry, for the Marine Corps Marathon on October 26th. I suppose it's so I can keep the group company on their long runs. Or, maybe it's because the run is on my birthday and I'll run that far anyway, just on my own. Who knows. Anyway, with that in mind my schedule for this week and next looks like this:

8.3.2008 - Rest (Area I-IV Swim Meet
8.4.2008 - 4+ mile run
8.5.2008 - 6+ mile run
8.6.2008 - 5K run
8.7.2008 - Morning Run with
8.8.2008 - Rest ... The Olympics start today!
8.9.2008 - 15 miles (maybe) with MCM

8.10.2008 - Rest
8.11.2008 - Ride
8.12.2008 - 4+ mile run
8.13.2008 - 6+ mile run
8.14.2008 - 4+ mile run (or run with MCM Girls
8.15.2008 - Rest
8.16.2008 - Run with MCM Group

Most of these, if not every single one, will begin VERY early in the morning. I usually put feet to the pavement no later than 6 a.m. And once school starts, I'm going by about 5:30 a.m. especially during the week. Weekend runs will be dependent on the group and location. However, if you wanna come along, let me know so I have enough of "whatever" for you.

The Bitter Sweet of "Goodbye"

Well, I have to admit it, I didn't make the farewell run or dinner for Lisa. I got to know her just a bit when she was training for the Marine Corps Marathon last year, and then got to know her a bit better as Colin was training for the Red Hills Triathlon. She is leaving this weekend to move back to California (San Francisco area) to be close to all of her family. She is happy to go, but sad to leave the "family" that she came to know and love here in Tallahassee. She knows that we will be here whenever she should so choose to come and visit. And, that we will always welcome her back with arms wide open. I wish her mountains and oceans of luck and happiness as she travels and returns. She deserves them.

And, then another of the group is leaving later this month. Erin, our very own Disney Character (Pluto in a former life), is moving to Central Florida. Job opportunities really fueled this move, but again, the move takes her closer to her family and she wants them close as she and her husband plan to begin a family of their own. Not quite as faraway as California, but far enough to not be able to make the morning runs with the group on a regular basis. Fortunately, I think I might actually be able to lay eyes on her before she leaves. I hope...

I don't have a good picture of Lisa, I imagine she will send one soon. But, below is a picture that I "stole" from Erin's blog. Erin is in center just before the start of Red Hills Triathlon (4.5.2008). Yes, the same Red Hills that Colin did... With her are my very near and dear friend Cathy, and new found friend Emma.

I have added links to their blogs because I feel that they have a lot to offer from their unique perspectives and experiences in the endurance athlete world. Great girls, both of them. No, make that women moving on in the world. Love them!