Volunteering at Super Bowl Village

The Super Bowl Village is a free outdoor event that started last Friday. Indianapolis is unique in that this started so early, allowing the locals to go down and enjoy it before the huge crowds arrive from out of town. Usually the festivities don't start until just a few days before the game. We worked Friday and Sunday nights, and last night was our last "official" shift. We may work additional shifts as needed, but our commitment is now done. The Village covers several blocks and is right in the middle of downtown.

In some of the photos you'll see a lot of Indy cars. These are retired cars that have been painted in all the teams' colors and themes. For a couple of days, they were all parked right in front of the Monument, which is the literal center of town. They are now scattered all over the city, so I'm glad I got to see them all in one place before they were moved.

There are two free stages in the Village, and there's usually someone playing at one or the other. Last night the Village People played, which was amusing. And yes, it was the original band. They were all old farts, like us.

For our last shift, we worked at the zipline, taking harnesses off of people after their ride. It was really fun to see their huge smiles! As much as we could, we'd ask if they had a camera and wanted a picture of themselves in the gear. Most of the time they were very happy to have their picture taken. I think the family with Grandma was the best - Grandma was maybe 4 feet tall and was holding a pinwheel (like the pig in the Geico commercial).

As volunteers, we got an added unexpected bonus: a free ride after all the paying customers were done at 10pm! This is a huge benefit; online tickets have been sold out for days, and if you want to buy a ticket for the same day, you have to be there several hours before the ticket office opens. Even then, you will still have about a 2-hour wait to ride, if you are lucky enough to get a ticket. We were able to just go right in, climb straight up, and hop off.

The zipline is done off an 80' temporary structure that they built just for this, and it goes down Capitol Ave for two blocks, right over a lot of the activities. People on the ground cheer and whoop as people go zipping by overhead. It's lots of fun to just watch the entire scene. One woman (who was definitely heavy enough to get all the way across) managed to get herself stuck about 50 yards from the end, and some poor guy had to hand-over-hand go fetch her and pull her the rest of the way. The way she was carrying on, you'd have thought she'd been stabbed or something. It was humorous to watch the crowd standing right under her taking pictures. I think she was secretly enjoying the attention.

More photos are posted at the links below!

General pics of the Super Bowl Village

Ziplining pics

Bike floggings and FTP

I am not a cyclist. I survive the bike portion of triathlons, but I am not a cyclist. I am actually quite pitiful on the bike, but less pitiful than I used to be. At least now I can survive tough workouts like the one below.

[Workouts are done at a small fitness studio with seven Computrainers set up in a row. There are a couple of large flat-screen monitors on the wall that display the outputs of all seven trainers. You can watch your output, or get depressed by looking at the output of some of the other cyclists who really are cyclists. It would be painfully boring, if not impossible, for me to do this alone in my living room. In addition, the equipment is expensive and I don't want to pay for it.]

-- Warmup --
5 min zone 1
15 min zone 2
2 min zone 1
5 min FTP
3 min zone 1

--- Repeat 5x ---
3 min 110-115% of FTP
2 min zone 1
2 min 110-115% of FTP
2 min zone 1
1 min 110-115% of FTP
2 min zone 1

FTP means "Functional Threshold Power", or how hard can you go for a particular period of time. This is measured using a power meter - in our case, a Computrainer. A Computrainer is a power meter that is built in to a typical bike trainer, and sends data to a computer where you can see your output in real time.

FTP is calculated by doing a time trial, usually for 20 minutes, while hooked up to a power meter. You go as hard as you can for 20 minutes, with as steady an effort as possible. 95% of your average power output is your FTP.

So why care about FTP? Because this gives you a measurable number for planning a workout. The best way to improve is to train using intervals of varying degrees of effort, not pushing hard all the time. For improvement on the bike, you want to work out using different percentages of this number, both above and below. For example, my current FTP is 141 (low because I'm just not that strong on the bike, yet). This means that my zone 1 (easy/resting, <57% of my FTP), is anything with a power output of 79 or less. This zone is where I go to rest and recover from harder efforts. Zone 2 is slightly harder, and is good for warming up. And so on.

The workout above is a great example of a steady 30-minute warm-up before the hard effort begins. Start easy, increase the effort a little, do one short burst to wake the body up, then rest a bit. The real work begins with the first 3 minutes of hard effort, and continues for the next hour. Three minutes may not sound like much, but it is, especially the 5th time around, after 48 minutes of interval work.

On a side note, training with a group is the only way to go for me. Even if it means occasionally overhearing things that make me wince. For example:

Outrageously fit/strong 50+ male cyclist #1: What do you weigh now that the holidays are over?
Outrageously fit/strong 50+ male cyclist #2: Around 150. Trying to get it down a little. What about you?
Cyclist #1: Oh I'm at 144 right now.
Me, thinking: Dear god, that's what I weigh. Are you kidding me?

Sigh.

Many thanks to Whitney and Chad at The Fitness Lab for the guided floggings.

Happy New Year!

Wow, what a weekend! Where to begin? With the crazy ride back to Indianapolis (home)? With all the runners I met from all over? With the two very different races? I'll just jump in and go.

So I get an email some time in December about a pair of races on the same weekend, one in Mississippi and one in Alabama. They’re being promoted as a two-fer: two races, two states, two days. The 50 States Marathon and 50 States Half Marathon clubs love these things. The organizers are offering 20% off registration to those who do both, and a special plaque or something in addition to the medals all finishers receive. Hmmm, sounds intriguing. I’ve done many races a week apart, but have never done back-to-back races of these distances in the same weekend. Wonder how I’d hold up?

I signed up for the Mississippi Blues Marathon on Saturday, in Jackson MS, and the First Light Half Marathon on Sunday, in Mobile AL. I think this was 3 weeks before race weekend, some time after Thanksgiving. I’m well into my holiday binging, and only running maybe 3-4 miles at a time a few times a week. Oh well. I’ll wing it. We'll see what this experiment yields.

The Races

I don’t really do any reconnoitering on either course, beyond finding lodging and procuring the last semi-affordable rental car left in Mississippi. The Jackson race sold out at around 2500 people, with 750 or so doing the full and the rest doing the half. I lucked out and got a room within walking distance of the start/finish line, and had fun chatting with other runners from all over the country, many of whom are also doing the back-to-back. We laugh at our craziness (or stupidity, or whatever it is), and look forward to the weekend.

This race benefits aging blues musicians, who never really made any money at their trade and are now struggling in old age. It also was a wonderful tribute to the area known as the birthplace of the blues, even including a harmonica (a real one, not some cheap piece of garbage) and a CD of blues in our swag bag. Definitely the coolest swag I’ve ever gotten!

The marathon course turned out to be extremely hilly, on par with the Seattle marathon. Oboy. However, the weather is glorious, starting at a very humid 54 and warming/drying to the high 60’s. Hotter than many of us are used to in January, but very survivable and not really an issue. I wasn’t sure what kind of time I would do, since I was concerned about not blowing up my legs before doing the half on Sunday, so I just went with what I felt. There were no clocks on the course, and I (in typical fashion) walked out and left my Garmin in the room. That worked out fine, as it forced me to go with my gut and not try to adhere to any subconscious desires to go at any particular pace.

The marathon was difficult, but it didn’t suck, at least not enough to wonder why I was doing this to myself. Water stops were every 1.5 miles, and no matter how hard it felt at times, I was still surprised at every stop. Had I really gone another mile and a half? There were timing mats every 5 miles (but of course no clocks), so each timing mat was a major accomplishment. The hills were unrelenting, and my strategy was to walk up and jog down. After about mile 20 I had to look around and chuckle, because I’m sure we all looked like the Bataan death march to the volunteers. Lots and lots of walking. It was actually kind of nice to be in a race where no one really cared about lofty time goals; we were more focused on enjoying the experience.

I trudged up the last hill to a respectable finish of 5:13. I typically do a marathon around 5 hours, so was pleased to be that close to my norm, especially given the hills. A wonderful volunteer handed me an enormous and truly awesome medal, I listened to a few minutes of some good blues, and back I trudged to the hotel for a shower and food.

On the way to the hotel, I met a nice couple from NY who were flying back home that afternoon, and they told me about a runner they met who was looking for a ride to Mobile. He had found one, but that person had to work and couldn’t leave until very late at night. They wouldn’t arrive in Mobile until some gawdawful time like 3am or so. Unacceptable. We exchanged phone numbers and invites to check in when in each other’s city, and he contacted the hitchhiking runner. Turned out the guy had found a better ride, so I didn’t have a traveling companion. But it was good to meet Keith and Andrea, and I’m sure we’ll be staying in touch.

Showered and packed, on the way to Mobile, and I 'm ready to gnaw my arm off when I finally see a Sonic (there weren't many quick eating options). Those burgers are a little bit of heaven after a marathon. Not quite a Whataburger with jalapenos, but they do in a pinch.

Got to Mobile, found the packet pickup, ate my free spaghetti dinner, then was ready to find my hotel . Turned out there was some college bowl game that weekend in Mobile, with a Mardi Gras-type parade just as I was trying to leave packet pickup. I was far too tired to stay and watch, and was trapped. I got a very nice police officer’s attention by driving the wrong way down the only clear street, and he led me out of the mess. Turned out he was working the race Sunday, so he understood why I was so desperate to get out of there and get to bed.

Sunday morning comes, and I have no idea if I will even be able to run; feet were still a little tender and would have been happier propped up on an ottoman, and my quads were definitely feeling the marathon from Saturday. Overall, however, I felt quite good and ready to go. Figured I'd just do what I could do, as this entire weekend was one big experiment anyway.

Saturday's race was to benefit aging blues musicians; this one benefited a local facility for special needs adults, L'Arche Mobile. The medals were each handmade by the residents, so each one was special. Those of us that did the back-to-back also got a handmade "plaque" with a bio of the person who made it on the back. This was a very nice touch and I think everyone appreciated it.

The race was blessedly flat. It was the first no-chip half marathon I’ve ever done – they noted times at the finish and tore the strip off the bottom of our bibs and strung them in order, to piece together later. No clocks on this course either, but this time I remembered the Garmin. I had to laugh when I got there about 45 minutes before the start and they were just taping the street to mark the start line. The obligatory Southern Belles were there in full drag, keeping things in perspective. The gear check was somebody's SUV. Considerably more relaxed than the norm!

As it happened, I was able to manage a respectable trudge with occasional walk breaks. Like the marathon, water stops were about 1.5 miles apart, and I was able to trudge most of the way between them, until the last three miles. At that point I had to take more walking breaks, simply because the legs were tired. It hurt as much to walk as to jog, so I tried to jog as much as I could. Of course, when I say "hurt", I'm not talking about agonizing pain or anything; the quads wanted a break and I had a few hot spots on my feet, but nothing severe. However, I was extremely grateful to only be doing a half instead of another full. I am nowhere near ready to attempt two marathons in a weekend. I bow down to all the folks that are.

Finished in a satisfactory 2:28:something, only about 10-15 minutes off my typical half-marathon pace – not bad for the first attempt. Received my medal from one of the residents of L'Arche Mobile and considered the day a success. It doesn't get any more special than that! (No, that's not me in the photo.)

The People

Never met so many 50-staters (and Marathon Maniacs) in my life. These are people who do a marathon in every state, some of them multiple times. There's also the Half-Fanatics (like me) who want to do at least a half in every state. These people have scoped out all the opportunities to knock out at least two states in a weekend, and it's fascinating to listen to them talk. When I got to the packet pickup in Mobile Saturday afternoon, those of us doing the back-to-back were either wearing the very cool tech shirt from the Mississippi race, or wearing the medal, so we were easy to spot. I shared a table at the complementary pasta dinner with a couple of guys who had raced that morning, and one of them was also from Indiana, about 45 minutes south of Indianapolis. He knew of two other people who were there from Carmel. Unbeknownst to me, he pointed me out to one of the other Carmel residents, but I had left before she came to sit down. Sunday morning she found me at the race start and introduced herself. It turned out that she lives very close to me, and her son is a pilot with Republic, and we were both flying standby on family passes. Small world!

There are not a lot of flights out of Mobile, so many of us had time to kill at the airport Sunday. The race was originally scheduled to begin at 7am, which would have allowed many of us to get to the airport just barely in time for the morning flight out. Unfortunately the start time was moved back to 7:30, and that 30 minutes was just enough to cause many of us to miss that morning flight. The next flights weren't until 5, 6, and 7pm, so the airport quickly filled with runners. I think we all actually had a wonderful time meeting each other, comparing experiences, and finding out who was certifiable (the people who did a double, like me) and who still had their wits about them. I met a law-student with a full-time job from Columbus, OH, a very fun woman from CA who wants to do the Mississippi race again (we exchanged info), an older gentleman from Syracuse, NY who was a master at finding back-to-back races, and a cancer survivor from south Texas who was running just to say "eff you" to her cancer. The hours passed quickly, and finally it was time to leave. Elaine (my new friend from Carmel) and I easily got seats out of Mobile.

Got to Charlotte, and of course our connection was at the farthest point possible from our gate. We hoofed it over there, and it was...oversold. Nice. And there was no hope of getting on the first flight out the next day either, or several others for that matter. Great.

Ok, what about Cincinnati? There's a flight leaving in 20 minutes. Nope, it's full too.

Hmmmm, Louisville? Any seats on Louisville? Yes, there is! But of course, the gate is back where we started from, and it's leaving in 15 minutes or less. Yikes. We both run the entire way back, and find the gate agent literally seconds from closing the door. Between gasps for air, we explain the situation. Well, there's one seat in coach and one seat in first class. Score! The wonderful ticket agent back in Mobile had given me a first class upgrade just 'cuz. We're on! (Oh, and that run to the gate? Damned near killed me and my aching feet.) Elaine's son thankfully wasn't flying Monday, so he very kindly drove down to get us. Since we both live in the same area, she gave me a ride home. At last I was standing outside my apartment door at 3am, very happy to be there.

Summary

Both races were very enjoyable, and I would do both of them again. I'd like to do the Blues half, and this time stick around for the Blues Crawl Saturday night. It went to several different venues to hear good local artists, and I was sorry to have to miss it.

The entire weekend had a very relaxed feel, as the vast majority of people were simply there to have a good time. The 50-States people are not hot for fast times; they're enjoying seeing a new place, meeting new people, catching up with other 50-Staters, and experiencing the locale. I saw quite a few runners pull off to take pictures now and then, and no one was stressing about PRs or other esoteric goals. The main goal seemed to be to have a good time and leave it at that. It was a very refreshing and rejuvenating atmosphere. I highly recommend it!

Race Inventory for 2011

Wow, what a year it's been! Knowing that August 28 was going to be the ultimate test of endurance, I raced as much as possible throughout the summer. I tend to use races for my longer workouts, as it helps stave off the boredom and keeps me honest, and managed to find something almost every weekend from the beginning of May through Labor Day – not bad. Even better was remaining injury-free!

Here's the short version.

• 12 half-marathons
• 2 marathons
• 1 half-iron tri
• First full Ironman
• 1 200-mile relay
• 8 triathlons of assorted distances (two winter indoor tris not listed below)
• 1 sprint duathlon
• 8 assorted running races

I used a couple of the half-marathons as long recovery walks/jogs, and took advantage of the opportunity to walk them with people dear to me. That was a nice break and a welcome chance to relax. Below is a more detailed list of the year's events.

Race	When	Time	Where
Rock N Roll Half Marathon	Nov 13	3:40:15	San Antonio TX
NYC Marathon	Nov 6	4:59:57	New York NY
Big Hit Half Marathon	Oct 30	2:09:41	Louisville KY
Indianapolis Half Marathon	Oct 15	2:20:24	Lawrence IN
Bourbon Chase 200-mile relay	Oct 7-8	30:09:36	Lexington KY
PA Heritage Trail Half Marathon	Oct 2	2:34:53	Battle Ground IN
Indianapolis Women's Half Marathon	Sep 3	3:26:18	Indianapolis
Ironman Louisville	Aug 28	15:48:29	Louisville KY
Urban Dare Indianapolis	Aug 20	2:19:56	Indianapolis
Eagle Creek Sprint Triathlon	Aug 20	1:23:39	Indianapolis
Muncie August Triathlon	Aug 13	3:36:08	Muncie IN
Tri Indy (Duathlon)	Aug 7	1:35:15	Indianapolis
Eagle Creek Trail Half Marathon	Aug 6	3:04:44	Indianapolis
TNT Trail Run 5K	Jul 26	30:52	Indianapolis
Eagle Creek Sprint Triathlon	Jul 23	1:26:24	Indianapolis
Summit Lake Optimist Tri	Jul 16	3:47:33	New Castle, IN
TNT Trail Run 5K	Jul 12	34:26	Indianapolis
Border Challenge Olympic Triathlon	Jul 10	2:38:24 missing 1 bike loop	Jeffersonville IN
Round Barn Bike Ride 67 miles	Jul 9	~4.5 hours?	Brownstown IN
Freedom 5000	Jul 4	untimed	Austin TX
TNT Trail Run 5K	Jun 28	35:32	Indianapolis
Morse Park Summer Triathlon	Jun 25	1:36:24	Noblesville IN
TNT Trail Run 5K	Jun 14	31:52	Indianapolis
Carmel Half Marathon	Jun 11	2:19:38	Carmel IN
Hospital Hill Half Marathon	Jun 4	2:43:10	Kansas City MO
Boston's Run to Remember	May 29	2:27:11	Boston MA
Geist Half Marathon	May 21	2:23:21	Fishers IN
Rev 3 Half Iron Triathlon	May 15	7:56:51	Knoxille TN
Indy 500 Half Marathon	May 7	2:12:16	Indianapolis
Sam Costa Half Marathon	Mar 26	2:19:13	Carmel IN
Austin Marathon	Feb 20	5:06:54	Austin TX
Planet Adventure Winter Run 5K	Jan 29	35:35	Indianapolis
Bop to the Top 36-floor Stair Climb (Triple Challenge)	Jan 22	28:45	Indianapolis

Paula's travel adventure

[Note: Paula was flying from Seattle to Denver, on her way back to Indianapolis, when they had an emergency landing in Yakima, WA. It made for quite an interesting (and long) day for her. Here's what she has to say about it.]

Has anyone ever been on a plane that had to divert? I've experienced missed approaches and delays/cancellations for weather or maintenance but in 45 years of flying, have only diverted twice.

http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2011/12/14/smoke-smell-forces-emergency-landing-in-yakima

What makes my story more interesting is I was riding in the cockpit so observed all the preparation and activities that goes on during an emergency. I teach "Crew Resource Management" to new dispatchers -- now I have firsthand experience of an excellent demonstration of how well it works.

We left the gate in Seattle at 8:40am for a routine flight to Denver. The take-off was smooth and the view from the cockpit, as always, was wonderful. We climbed through a cloud layer and could see snow covered mountain tops poking out of valleys of heavy clouds. Clearance had given us instructions to climb to 37,000 feet and all was well. About 20 minutes into the flight, one of the Flight Attendants (FA) called the cockpit and reported a burning smell in the aft galley. The Captain (CA) asked several questions about what the smell was like, was the coffee pot working, was there any smoke, did anything change after shutting coffee pot off, etc. There was also another pilot sitting in the cockpit who was commuting to work. After discussing the situation with the FA, the CA sent the other pilot to the back to help troubleshoot. While he was gone the CA called the dispatch office to discuss the situation with dispatch and maintenance, while the First Officer (FO) starting collecting weather information for possible diversion airports. When the other pilot came back to the cockpit the decision was made to play it safe and land. The CA did not want to cross the mountains again to return to Seattle and Spokane was at least 45 minutes away so the decision was made to divert to Yakima, which was on our flight path.

When a decision like this is made, all sorts of people get involved. The cockpit crew notifies ATC of the issue and for a new routing, pulls out landing charts for the airport, does a PA announcement to the passengers, and - in this case - gets the plane ready for an overweight landing (we had lots of fuel and were going to land at an airport with a short runway, so special care is taken to get the speeds, rate of descent, etc. correct). ATC notified Yakima tower and declared an emergency to make sure that fire and rescue were available as a precaution. The FAs re-stow galley items, gets the plane ready for a landing and gives instructions to the passengers (NO, there was not a plan to use the slides). Dispatch is contacting customer service and Yakima station to get ground handling – Yakima is serviced by Horizon so their ground operations said they would take care of the plane. Maintenance is contacting an approved contractor in Yakima to meet the plane and investigate the problem.

The calm way that the crew discussed the situation, made a decision and acted on it was amazing to watch. My heart rate did not even go up. Now if this became a REAL emergency (actual smoke, fire alarm...) things would have moved much faster and we would have gotten on the ground ASAP.

Yakima weather was very overcast with low clouds so it was an instrument approach. We did not see the runway until less than a mile away. As we landed (around 9:30) I saw the fire trucks and every ambulance Yakima has (all 6) standing by. Most excitement the city has had this fall. We got to the terminal, Horizon brought up stairs and firemen came on board to check out the galley. No smoke or fire so everyone got off as quickly as the FAs could get them to move without taking any bags.

Before, I was just an observer in the cockpit. Now that we landed I asked what I could do and was immediately put to work. We took all the non-alcoholic beverages and ice off the plane into the terminal. The airport set up tables and we got drinks ready to serve everyone. Meanwhile maintenance and some of the crew are pulling out panels in the aft galley looking for the source of the problem. Nothing could easily be found so a more thorough inspection was needed and the plane was grounded. Within 90 minutes of de-planing dispatch was setting up a reposition flight from Denver to come get the passengers, customer service was frantically re-booking or delaying flights to handle the missed connections, and a call was made ordering 45 pizzas. (The manager was ready for the call as he heard about the diversion on his police scanner. WOO HOO, made his sales quota!)

Around 11:30 the pizza showed up and I switched from drinks to offering up slices of pepperoni, Hawaiian, veggie, or cheese pizza (brought back memories of being a short-order cook). After everyone was fed we let them back on the plane to collect their carry-ons. This could not be done sooner because Horizon had a plane arriving. In Yakima everyone walks on the tarmac to get to/from planes so we had to make sure passengers did not get mixed up. By 12:30 everyone had eaten and retrieved their carry-ons so I went back to the plane to wait with the crew – and eat pizza.

By then I knew I had missed my connection and was probably going to get stuck in Denver for the night. I'd already talked with my manager and arranged for someone else to work for me. There was a slim chance that if I could get to Denver before 7pm I could catch a Southwest flight. The 'rescue' plane from Denver was due to arrive in Yakima around 3:30 so just maybe it would work out. I wasn't concerned about getting home for work, but I was bringing Carla some Dungeness crab and it would only be good if I wasn't too late. Luckily it was in my carry-on so I left it outside (Yakima was COLD) while we waited. We figured between my crab and the wine on-board the crew and I could have a good snack if we got stranded together.

Horizon only has one set of portable stairs so when the other plane got close, the crew and I closed up the broken plane and went into their operations office to get new paperwork and wait. Nearby, they had parked the baggage carts with the luggage from the cargo holds. I could see my checked bag and asked if I could just take it with me. After thinking about the various regulations we decided I could if I took it through TSA screening at Yakima. Well, with a packed bottle of vodka that was not an option. What I really wanted to do though was grab one of the tens of boxes of oysters, crab and salmon that was among the cargo going to Denver (just kidding – about grabbing a box).

Finally, at 3:15 the new plane arrived. I stashed my crab (well wrapped) in the ice bin to keep cold and we started boarding. Dispatch had faxed a passenger list so TSA checked IDs to make sure the correct passengers re-boarded. After fueling, checking paperwork, re-loading all the bags and people, etc. we left Yakima at 4pm (7pm Indy time which was when my connecting plane was landing). Once again I was in the cockpit and could hear the passengers applaud at some information the FAs gave them. The rest of the trip was uneventful and we landed in Denver at 7pm, 6 ½ hours late.

To take care of all the missed connections Frontier brought in a bigger plane to fit all the Atlanta connections on, Detroit and other flights were delayed, passengers were rebooked and 80 hotel rooms awaited those who could not get out that night. Passengers also got meal vouchers and a $200 flight coupon. But, as a non-rev I was on my own. As I left the plane I knew I had no chance catching the 7:27 Southwest flight. Then I looked at the flight board...it was DELAYED to 7:45! I raced from Terminal A to Terminal C. Southwest had 50 open seats so I did not have to sit in the cockpit this time – and keep the crew awake while I snored.

I left Seattle at 8:40am and landed in Indy at 12:50am. I am always glad to see Carla but that night was especially nice. Someday my checked bag will catch up to me.

Thanks for reading,
Paula

Oh, do you wonder about my first diversion? Going to a wedding in Seattle in 1973, the plane diverted to Boeing Field due to a hijacking of a plane at SeaTac. But that’s another story...

[And Carla was very happy the crab made it back home in time. Sure was delicious! Oh, and it was nice to have Paula back in one piece too.]

Keep moving

Someone posted this video on Facebook. It ends with the simple phrase, "You will do this." It's a short video, a little over two minutes. As a tri-geek, I never tire of watching it. However, it has a lot to offer non-tri-geeks.



Even though I completed my first Ironman almost three months ago, I still watch this with a sense of awe. I think, wow, those people are amazing. Then I stop short, realizing that I am now one of those people. Really? How is that possible? I'm just some 50-year-old woman with a desk job, learning about menopause, living in the middle of the cornfields. Not anybody special.

I watch the accounting of the distances: 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, full marathon. 140.6 miles, all human-powered, all in one day, under 17 hours. Damn. Did I really do that?

Not only did I do it, I had a fabulous day and, for the most part, enjoyed the experience. How can that be?

I guess this is what can happen when you embrace the Ironman motto, "Anything is Possible". It really is true. Anything IS possible.

What a wonderful way to look at life! For me, it's a physical/mental journey, testing the limits of my endurance. For others, it's singing, writing, starting a new business, losing weight, building a career. For all of us, it's (sometimes quite literally) putting one foot in front of the other, always moving forward.

Follow your dreams. You won't regret it.

A great day at NYC Marathon 2011

This past weekend I had the honor of running the NYC marathon. It was truly one of the most fun races I have ever done, and definitely my best marathon experience (this was #7). The course was easy and fun, the weather was perfect, and the spectators were the best around!

Due to the size of the race (46,795 people finished), getting to the race start is quite the logistical challenge. The race starts on Staten Island, and the bridge has to be closed sometime after 8:00am or so. There were three wave starts, at 8:40, 9:40, and 10:40. This meant that most people had some serious time to kill once they got there.

I was lucky that my B&B was 5 short blocks from the No. 1 subway, which went directly to the ferry station. Another gawdawful-early alarm, on the subway by 6, at the ferry by 6:45, loading at 7:00, and we are on our way. The Au Bon Pain at the other end of the ferry ride was a blessing - I still had 3 hours before my race, so it was safe to drink a good cup of badly-needed coffee. From the ferry, we walk to some buses, take a 20-minute bus ride, then walk about another mile to the start villages. By the time I found a spot of ground for myself and settled in, it was 8:40 or so.

Most of us ate while we waited, and enjoyed the morning sun. Hung out and people-watched, got the bag checked, then it was our turn. This race was so big that those of us in the back (I was in corral 60 of 66) couldn't even see most of the wave. We didn't get to run on the top level of the bridge, which was a little sad, but we still got a good view of Manhattan from the lower level. It looked so far away! Are we really running all the way back?

Crossed the bridge, then ditched the warm fleece jacket I had picked up from Goodwill. The day was warming up fast, but the temperature was perfect. It peaked at 53 and the breeze was just enough to keep us comfortable. The course was split for the first eight miles to accommodate the large number of runners. Spectators were everywhere, making all kinds of noise, waving, holding signs, keeping us entertained. Wow. I'm really running in the famed New York marathon? Are you serious?

There was an aid station every mile, shortly before the mile markers, with porta-potties. I'm still waiting for menopause to kick in, so I had to use the porta-potties more than normal. With a crowd this size, there were always lines. Oh well, at least there were plenty of options. I had to stop at mile 4 and 17, and it was a little frustrating to watch all those people run by, but I didn't have any expectations of doing a PR today anyhow.

Felt great at the halfway point. Took a picture to prove it.

Made it through Brooklyn and Queens with their wonderful supporters, before crossing another bridge at miles 15-16, into the Manhattan for the first time. Running up First Ave into the Bronx was great fun. The streets were lined with people cheering and screaming, and it was easy to stay focused. How could you not feel good with so many people cheering for you?

The miles just slid by, ticking off faster than I expected. Reached mile 18, normally the dreaded Wall for many people, and didn't slow down. Is it possible that I can feel this good? What's wrong with me today? I'll take it! Crossed back over to Manhattan around mile 20, only 10K to go! Some poor guy near me was saying "Is it over yet?" He was hurting. He just groaned when I suggested we were close enough to walk the rest of it if need be.

I carried a little camera, and stopped a lot to take pictures. The pace felt slow, and I consciously slowed down when I found myself panting. Sometimes there was no choice, when 2-3 people would walk side by side or jog slower than I wanted, but that was a sort of break too. I walked all the aid stations but ran between each one, and didn't take any other walk breaks until around mile 22 or so, then I just took a few very short breaks. This is a heck of a lot easier when it's not preceded by a 112-mile bike ride!

The run down to Central Park was long, but beautiful. Between the crowds and the gorgeous fall colors of the trees, there was plenty to look at. I passed someone who had "40 Years Old Today" on her shirt, wished her a happy birthday, and said "It only gets better!" I'm not sure she believed me.

Mile 24 was shortly after entering the park, and I realized that I might actually do this thing in 5 hours, my typical time sans photo stops and potty breaks. Wow, really? How is that possible? I totally screwed around sightseeing, taking pictures and potty breaks for 24 miles, how can my time be that close to normal?

Pushed the last two miles, didn't stop for any more pictures, and barely did it: 4:59:57. Just enough to get my name printed in the New York Times Marathon Results secion, albeit in the bottom inch-and-a-half! Hey, it counts.

Post-finish was a bit of a cluster...yes they gave us the moon blankets (and even provided a piece of tape to tape it in place around your shoulders) and a bag of water/Gatorade/food. Unfortunately we were then herded into a funnel to get to the gear check trucks, and it was too crowded to walk and warm up. We shuffled along for what felt like a mile, and runners were dropping like flies. We were all wet and cold and unable to really move, a recipe for bad cramps. They did have plenty of medical people there, but if we'd been able to actually walk, there would have been far fewer people going down. I was lucky and my gear truck was one of the first few, so I could get out of there.

Found Shirley, my lone Honey Badger crew member, put on my warm clothes that I had checked, and immediately went for a burger, cheese fries, and a shake. The perfect way to cap off a glorious day (with a hot shower after, of course)!

The results: