It's so hard to say goodbye

I keep thinking how I should replace my running shoes, but then every time I get dressed to go running, I choose this pair again and tell myself I can get just one more run out of them.

Alas, the day of departure draws on apace...

Florida vs. New Jersey: A Case Study

How to dress yourself for a 30 minute run in 50 degree weather, state by state.

Specimen A, hailing from New Jersey where winter isn't exactly a hardship but can nevertheless be felt, he is comfortable conducting his exercise regimen with a simple addition of a long sleeve shirt for extra warmth.

Specimen B, hailing from the subtropical state of Florida, will differ in her approach to a chilly evening run from that of Specimen A.  Taken out of her natural habitat, Specimen B will shield herself from the assailing elements, defending herself against certain frostbite, wind burn and hypothermia by any means necessary.

Specimen A will insist on taking a picture for the greater scientific community, whereupon specimen B will begrudgingly oblige.

Saturday Cooper River Run

Sunset run along the Cooper River tonight.  Roughly 4.5 miles.  Every time I finish I feel great, and I wish I could up the mileage.  It's been ages since I've done more than 5 miles.

I'm averaging just two runs a week right now, almost exclusively on the weekends.

Up the mileage.  Increase the frequency of runs.  Shouldn't be too hard once the cold weather abates, no?

Movie Monday: Philly RnR Half

Every once in awhile I'll look for videos of races in Philly on YouTube.  And every once in awhile I'll find a decent one that I care to share.

Here's a video that does a nice job of capturing not just the thrill of race day, but the City of Brotherly Love itself.  It focuses on the 2012 Philadelphia Rock n' Roll Half Marathon from last September.  Looked for myself in the video but didn't see myself.

Registration is already open at: http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/philadelphia.  So watch the video, get inspired, and I'll see you in September.

Running in New York

I'm in New York for the weekend with Stevie to see some friends and take in a show.  Naturally I brought my running clothes with me so I could go running on a frigid St. Patty's Day morning in Astoria.

Running across the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in New York City

Someone get me a modeling contract ASAP.

It was 33 degrees, and to pack light I only brought one long sleeved shirt and no pants, so it was rather frigid while crossing the bridge and back this morning.  All in a day's work.

Then we went to see "Nice Work If You Can Get It" on Broadway, an old-school screwball musical comedy that was supposed to star Matthew Broderick, but we only got to see his understudy.

Finally on to the Molly Wee, my favorite bar in Manhattan (probably because it's the only Manhattan bar I've been to more than once), for some St. Patty's Day festivities.

Paul, Stevie and me at the Molly Wee

Every time I come to Manhattan I marvel at how I live an easy 1.5 hour busride from one of the greatest cities on earth, and yet I rarely make the trip up, and every time I do make the trip, I vow to come up more often.  We're already planning on coming back up during my spring break in a few weeks to see another show.

Remind me to bring another layer of clothes.

A conversation about the Tough Mudder

Talking with Ben recently about the Tough Mudder.

Ben: Have you signed up for it?
Me: Yeah, just signed up.
Ben: I know some other guys who want to sign up.  Maybe we could do it as a relay.
Me: Um... I don't think they let you do it as a relay.
Ben: Yeah, but it's 12 miles.
Me: Ben, it's called the Tough Mudder, not the Wuss Mudder.

You could argue that relay teams would allow more people to experience the thrill of a big event like the Tough Mudder, just like marathon relays.

But I would argue that if you want to participate in the event, then you put in the time and train for it and earn the experience.

Saturday run

Gorgeous run today around the Cooper River.  Not a cloud in the sky and temps in the fifties.  First time in months that I could run in just short sleeves.

4.5 miles.  Certain bodyparts were still sore from dodgeball the other night.  Worth it.

In the living room after my run

Dodgeball Results

First and foremost, our school raised over $8,000 for Babe's Kids, a division of The Canuso Foundation, which raises money for cancer research and provides support and assistance to those affected by cancer.

The tournament consisted of 22 teams playing three minute long games on two courts, pausing intermittently for speeches and raffle awards.

Team Ballsheviks in action

Team names included more ball-related puns than I could count, including "All Dodge and No Balls," "Balls of Fury" and "The Ballsheviks," and those are just the ones that made it through the administrative censors.

The balls on one court were blue, and when some went missing in the stands at the end of one game, the student MC announced, "if you've got blue balls, we need them.  Anyone here have blue balls?"

My team, unfortunately, didn't fare as well as I'd hoped.  In our first game we went up against half the football team.  We worked them to a draw with me as the last guy standing on my team, but then lost in sudden death over time.  In our second game we drew a team with slightly less gunpower, but still lost. It was a double elimination tournament, so that was it.  We were out.  We drew considerably easier teams for our two consolation games and managed to win them both, but unfortunately our dreams of dodgeball domination had been dashed.

The other teachers on my team and me.  That's a sword deflating a dodgeball on our shirts.

As a former athlete, my competitive side was coming out, and it was super frustrating to lose our first two games, but I still had - dare I say it - a ball, and I can't wait for next year's tournament.

Movie Monday: Tough Mudder

I've been meaning to do this for years, and I finally registered for the 2013 Tough Mudder in Pennsylvania. It's on June 1st, and I am beyond excited.

I signed up for the first wave at 8am because I've set the ambitious goal of running fast enough to qualify for the World's Toughest Mudder the following December.  At the very least, I hope to see if it lives up to all the hype.  

And this:

I would hardly call marathon running boring.  I'll be interested to see how the Tough Mudder compares.

And in case you're unfamiliar with the Tough Mudder, here is a promotional video: