The Joe Nation 2007 NYC Marathon Log

5.1, eh? I'm falling behind.
Better hit the streets Sunday.

Thanks for the information about Clive and the skiing school at Mt. Loon. When I was a kid I hitchhiked all over New Hampshire and Vermont but I don't remember Mt. Loon. So I looked it up. Beautiful snow!! I think Route 93 was a two-lane road in 1965, I walked a lot of it trying to get from Montreal to Boston.

Realjohnboy wrote:

Yes. but not with any where near 72 pounds of gear. Remember I manage three floors of hardware store in Mid-Manhattan so I am up and down stairs twenty or thirty times a day, plus I climb ladders on the main floor to get to the stock on the upper shelves.

In fact, that was one of the factors getting me to get back in shape. Ten years ago I was running, biking and swimming on a regular basis, then I made the move to NYC with my wife and I just stopped working out. That brought on eighty pounds of slab-assed flab which, of course, made it just a little difficult to trot up and down the aforementioned stairs and ladders.

And after 9-11, I got to thinking about being able to walk, run, sprint to safety. Twice since that day the power has failed in New York forcing people to walk miles to their jobs or homes. I was out of town on BOTH occasions, but the idea that I might have to walk 13 miles to get home got me going too.

We like stair races in New York.
Here's the local staircase race. No firemen, just really skinny people.

Did a sprint to finish the week 1.0 -- 9:28.
I like this sprint. It's uphill for a half a mile and downhill to the finish.

Joe(I just stopped gasping)Nation

What I need is more horsepower. It took me forever to pass all these guys and they were just moseying along in the Springlike weather.


I've signed up to do four races in the next two months:

March 11 The Colon Cancer 15k
(I know I'm nuts, but I need a challenge right now...)

The Scotland Run (4 mile) on April Fool's Day appropriately.
April 22nd Four Mile adidas Run for the Parks
April 29th Four Mile RunAsOne


The rule in New York City is
"If there is no more room on the bench, you sit above the bench."


Joe(Alright, get ready)Nation

Nice pix, Joe. Do you actually carry your camera as you run?

I hauled my butt out of bed and ran down to Spot Pond. I followed a course
that goes around Spot Pond and Wright's Pond. It's pretty route, kinda
woodsy, and not much traffic on a Sunday Morning. But it was a bit of a
challenge this morning. The first half is a gradual, rolling downhill, which, of
course, makes the second half uphill. The course is 6.39, longer than I've
run in a while.

Thanks for starting this thread, it's giving me the incentive I need.

Last night Setanta and I went to an Egyptian restaurant with some friends.

<hang on - I'm getting to the bit JoeNation inspired>

After we left the restaurant, we walked to the nearest subway to ride toward the car to get home.

<wait>

Set suddenly twigged to the fact that when we'd travelled in, we'd got off at a subway a couple of kilometres away and walked to the restaurant. "Why didn't we come to this station on the way here?". mmmmm "oh, we just arranged it that way"

eh(I don't always reveal my intentions)Beth

...devious...

WELL, tain't Spring anymore. When I got up yesterday morning at 6AM, I glance at the temperature (actually, it's the first thing that comes up on my home pages) -- 46F.

Great. I said, not cold at all. I was planning a 5 mile loop before starting work at 11:30.

I puttered. I paid some bills. I balanced the AMEX account (God-damned, that's a lot of Starbucks!!) About 8:30, (figuring it would take 30 minutes to get to the park, some time to stretch, about an hour to run and another 30 minutes to ride the train to the gym which is practically next door to work, that would get me to Starbucks! -damn them!- about eleven) I put on some shorts and a long sleeved t-shirts, got my light running jacket and then re-checked the temperature.

34F.

What the ??

Apparently, I later learned, we here in beautiful New York City had been visited by a "fast moving wedge of Canadian air", I'd rather have been visited by a fast moving wedge of Canadian cheese, but no. So, I got my thick sweatshirt and my gloves and my wool hat and I headed out. The winds were steady at brutal to agonizing and overhead the gray mass of clouds moved like some huge herd of mythic animals. The runners were glassy-eyed with cold. 5.25 in 56:29.

Last week's total was 17.2 slightly more than I had planned, but with the 15K coming up this weekend (rain predicted) it might be a good thing.
==
Camera? Yes, I almost always have one with me, either in my fannypack (which is where I keep my Palm and my phone and my keys and an extra shirt) or I shove it into my jacket pocket.
====
We did that train to the restaurant thing in Paris, but not on purpose. We asked at the desk for Metro directions to a section of the city where we had picked out a restaurant via the web. "Tres facile, mon ami." So we walked about six blocks up the street, took one train three stops, transferred to another for about four stops and then negotiated the streets with our little map until we reached the address.

As we looked over the neighborhood in the dimming light, my wife said "Hey, isn't that the tall building across the street from the hotel?"
Yes, it was. We were about ten blocks East and three blocks South of where we started.

After a really nice meal, we walked back.

Joe(But, Monsieur, if you had only mentioned the address....)Nation

RunningAhead has you a mile (OK, 0.9 miles) ahead of me, Joe.
And you've got a 15K coming up? Yikes.

Take a look at the forecast for mid-week. Double yikes.

Did a fiver at lunch. That's a couple more than I would normally have
done.

4:45am
I have about four minutes before I have to head out for the gym, no running in the park for the next couple of mornings by the look of the forecast (right now it's a wicked 17F with the wind howling across the roof over my head) The plan is for five on treadmill today then 3 or 4 on Wed/Thurs, I'm supposed to run to the vet's to pick up the cat on Friday and I thought (I thought) that I would run a lap, go pick up my 15K tee-shirt and number and then jog over to get the kitty, but ...... now the predicted HIGH for the day is 29.

Joe(so many plans aft gang agley)Nation

The temperature in Chelmsford is 4, with a wind chill of 15 below.
I'll be working out inside today.

Hope you had fun on the hamster wheel, Joe.

Ha. I can do better than that, Joe Nation. My aunt Madge was a very smart lady, but a bit mercurial. She came out of an office building in NYC, hailed a cab, and ordered the driver to take her to the Waldorf. He turned to her and said "You want me to drive you to the Waldorf?" She snapped back "Yes, surely you have heard of it." He sighed and shrugged like NY cabbies do so well, and drove 30 feet, made a right turn and stopped 30 feet farther in front of the Waldorf. "Five bucks, lady."

Heh, heh, heh.

Okay... So I was supposed to be ON the train at 4:55AM but I HAD to answer one more A2K question. ....so I got out FINALLY at 5:20AM. I cabbed it to the gym (the temperature was 17F with a ZERO windchill!!)
and I ran 3 miles on the frigging treadmill, then did some weight work.

I think I have figured out why I hate treadmills so much (the one I had this morning kept shutting off, but that's not it.) I hate them because it is so easy to get off of them.

Let's say I start out thinking I want to run four miles on the treadmill, I set the angle, speed and time and get going... about twelve minutes in, bored silly by trying to figure out how someone like Soledad O'Brian gets to be a news anchor (has she ever done an indepth interview?) and tired of fiddling with the speed thingie, I start thinking that maybe three miles would be okay.

Now, if I start out to do four miles in the park, by the time I'm fifteen minutes from the start I'm TOO FAR away from anywhere to stop without having to do the distance all the way back....so it doesn't matter, I have to finish. Yeah, I know, the park is a circle so I could just cut a right and head to the nearest subway station or just grab a cab, but I never do. Maybe it's being out of doors.

Anyway, I'm bushed tonight. Resting until Friday when I shall do about four miles to prep for Sunday.

Joe(Night night)Nation

Joe--

You've pegged the big difference between a Real Treadmill and a Symbolic Treadmill.

Of course, Real Treadmills are no longer used in the prison system.

I am still amazed at the amount of effort that goes on my gym. Three floors of huffing and puffing, pulling/pushing, lifting, stretching, bouncing, twisting, rolling around on a big ball, running on the treadmill or pretending to ride a bicycle. I try to imagine what a 16th Century Irish peasant would make of all the work being done, ---all these people must be powering something or making something or being punished for some great infraction of Royal rules. I'm sure he or she would be stunned to learn that the participants are not only there expending all that effort as paying customers but that the owners of the establishment haven't figured out how to connect all that work output into reducing the light bill.

Rain is now once again in the predicted weather for Sunday. I am planning to run at a pace slightly above saunter.

Joe(plans like that never work out)Nation

Ive just eaten about 6 hazelnut pierouettes(sp?).Im strangely drawn into Joes world of excessive exercise. (Begins eating a dish of pistachio pudding ).

Ive begun (in your honor) my program of 10000 steps per day and tomorrow Im gonna cut back on anything white , except fish, cauliflower and egg whites. Im over 208 and I was 190 two years ago. Im gonna go the "Geocaching" route . I dont think I can develop an interest in marathons, but I can plot corses and follow them through all sorts of terrain. I like being in woods and along dirt roads and hills.
My daily 100000 steps will be increased to some higer number until I can plot meaningful distance courses like the canal route along the Susquehanna, or Gages March, Great Minquas Path, or walking the slave escape route from the Western SHore to the Quaker lands of Kennett Square.

No crowds to freak me out.I really get nervous and afraid around masses of unknown people . When you hike (as long as you dont dress like some hoser with shorts that contain more pockets than a pool table) you can do it and blend , Ican even look very scruffy if I omit shaving for a few days.
If I ever do a repeat of Arnolds march on Montreal , ill be sure to wave as I pass the city .

Farmerman: Your plan sounds not only excellent but fun, especially the part about being in the woods and hills. I really miss that being in the city. As previously noted here, I am drawn to the wilds of Inwood Park. Later this Spring I am going to explore the other parks in the area so that I can have more variety in my routines and maybe find places that aren't frequented (at least at mid-day) by the fringes of society.

Nothing white? No parsnips? Natch. No endive? I am losing you.
Abzorella no mozzarella, but what color is a banana?

Joe(No milk?)Nation

Apparently I have only taken a Drs guidelines and have not thought it out completely. Note to self, check out milk, bananas, and PARSNIPS?? I guarantee that parsnips wont be on my list of allowed whites, neither turnips (only raw) I cannot stomach parsnips and cooked turnips, very vile vegetables. Did my 10000 this AM , , took me about 35 minutes, trouble was I was about a mile and a half from home so I compiled some reference points for distances.

I have to take my camera because this route took me through afield where the AMish farmer has moved heifers. Heifers are naturally curious and I was like the Pied piper with the herd of about 20 nubile young cows following me.

So Joe, it's a balmy 20 degrees today (not counting wind chill). You gonna be running outside? Or are you still gymbound?

No run yesterday. I used my lunchtime to open a "Burial Account".
Do I know how to have a good time or what?

The temp should be above 20 today (but only just), so I'll try to log two
or three miles.

YES!

I'm determined to do some in the park tomorrow morning after I drop Maxie off at the vets. (She's having dental surgery. meOW!) and then I have to go to the NYRR townhouse to pick up my number and shirt for Sunday's 15K Colon Cancer Run.

I ran the four mile last year and this year I said "What the hell.." It's a race filled with emotions, most people wear someone's name on the back of their shirt-
Running this for Dan--
This is for my Dad, miss you, Popsie---
For all my brothers--
and my favorite,
"Yeah, good-looking, I'm running this for you.

The weather is looking better by the minute, three days ago they were saying 'Rain, temps in the mid-forties' now it's Mostly Cloudy with high in the mid-fifties."
Do you think they are lying??

George: windchills here have been topping (bottoming?) at -17F.... it's been a very quiet two days here.

Farmerman: Please bring your camera along. I would have loved to see those heifers trailing along and I want to see the canal.

Joe(I'll be running for Gary Nathanson. r.i.p. 2005)Nation