Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Close the gate on 2008

It has been an usually busy year with news stories from the economics crisis, an unmaned landing on Mars, the Olympics to Obama's election. Is it that I was simply paying more attention or was there a lot going on this year?

Well here we go again and no doubt we are in for another eventful ride this coming year. Hold on everyone.

I want to see us all happier, healthier and stronger this time next year. Happy New Year!

Tomorrow I'm going to go to Tokyo with my extended family. I'll be there for 4 days watching my niece compete in the national basketball tournament. She is good, one day she'll play for Japan. Anyway the games are played mostly at night so I will find time to run while I'm there around the Imperial Palace most likely. If you're in the area give me a call and we can meet up for a run, my keitai 09081443698.

Tonight they predict snow in Osaka so I'm going to crank up the gas fireplace hook into a bottle or two of red wine and reflect on the year that was and plan a bit for the coming one. Hope you have a good evening too.

All the best.

And stay tune for more infantile humour ;)

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

The 70s



Came across this old video today. Gone are the days when the boys in the band mostly had facial hair and could be mistaken for the guy at your local plumbing supplies store.

Check out the lead singer's moves. It it just me or does he look like David Carradine from "Kung-Fu, " with hair, or Toasty?

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Joy and Woe, but not too slow.

I finished my marathon a couple of hours ago and now back at my hotel killing some time before my ferry leaves to go back home tonight. This race turned out as expected to be healthy mix of woe and joy. First for the good news I PBed with a 3:03:06. The weather was almost perfect not a cloud in the sky with the temperature ranging from 3 to 15 degrees. The course was flat and beautiful in parts with heaps of spectators giving us lots of encouragement. Just a note about the people down in Miyazaki, they have been extraordinarily friendly and helpful I really love this place.Food is excellent too but that's a separate blog.

Now the bad news, I F*#"! up at the start of this race. When the gun cracked I headed off doing a loop of the stadium and just as we were about to go out to the open road I over heard two guys talking saying they were doing the half, I panicked and ran back to the start. I thought I was in the wrong starting line but when I got back to the start I asked a guy and he said that they, the half and full marathon, were starting together. Not only did I feel like a fool I had lost 4mins and 20 seconds.

Anyway I started making my way through the crowd clocking some good 1k splits but it wasn't until the 20k mark that I had caught up to the sub 3 runners. Even though I was passing people until the end, and I don't remember anyone passing me, I couldn't, in the end, make up this lost time.

Actually at the 35k mark I thought I could but the last 7k was run along the beach and over 4 bridges and my nemesis the wind really put the brakes on things. That last 5K was bloody hard and I only got through by swinging my arms like crazy pumping them to keep my legs going against the wind.

So I'm thinking that I may have been robbed of a sub 3 but it was mostly my own dam fault. I won't complain, although I feel a like a dill, I won't give excuses. I didn't get the sub 3 chip time and that is the end of it!

Still, as usual, I did get a lot out of this race. Now I'm fully confident I can go sub 3 and I know how to train to make it happen. During the 10K from 20 to 30 I felt the best and strongest I've ever felt during a marathon and I want to get that feeling again.

As for my preparation for this I didn't do a few things I said I would, like stop drinking during the build up, run 100k weeks for at least 8 weeks, get my weight down, body fat %, and lose my little gut. So I don't really deserve it, but I have some things to work on for next race.

Well, in balance I'm a happy fella. I still have a goal, I PBed and I did my best on the day. Can't ask more than that!

By the way if you think I'm going to stop blogging when I get this sub 3 you're wrong. I have a good 5 years in me yet and I fully intend to reach my potential.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Joy and Woe

I had a 20 minute jog in the fog this morning. It's my last before heading down to Miyazaki by overnight ferry to run a full marathon on Sunday. It is a spectacular winters day today and watching the sunrise, seeing how it cleared the fog while jogging alone in the crisp morning air once more brought home to me the joy of running. With this experience and that of a few bad ones recently I remembered a poem that sums it up beautifully.

Man was made for Joy and Woe
And when this he rightly knows
Through the world he safely goes
Joy and Woe are woven fine
A clothing for the soul Divine.

William Blake

If running teaches us anything it is just that. That life is nothing without the highs and lows and on Sunday I'll be enjoying them both. Maybe that's why I love running marathons so much as you can get both the highs and lows and push through both knowing that neither will last. A perfect metaphore for life done in around 3 hours.

Well, under 3 for me, I hope!

Thanks in advance.

The above poem might be a bit high brow for you lot so I've included one below to suit the more earthy types. See start and end of song, Bloody good stuff!!

Monday, December 01, 2008

The horror continues...

Keep the light on while you’re reading this, it is really scary, but, believe me it happened.

I had just walked in the house after my Sunday long run and went to the upstairs shower. I was pulling my sweat drench clothes off over my head when I heard a noise. I backed up to the wall in fright as my wife and kids were out shopping and I was sure I was home alone.

What the hell was that? It sounded like someone talking. I stuck my head out the bathroom door and looked down the hallway. Nothing, I continued to strip for the shower when I heard it again. This time it was louder a definite voice. I jumped backwards into the shower recess my heart and mind racing.

It sounded close, and there it was again, a muffled voice. Sweating, my eyes the size of saucers I swung my head around looking for the source of the sound. Then my eyes stopped on my armband and IPod mixed in with my wet clothes. Relieved I pick it up off the floor, I was thinking it must still be on. But when I looked closer it was off, the red tag showing and no light. Besides, I had heard a voice and I only had songs uploaded on that iPod. Just when I was thinking I must be mistaken, it must have switched itself on, or something, there it was again. And it was definitely coming from my off iPod. I put it to my ear and I could just make out a forced, wheezing voice.

"Scotty… Scotty"

Bloody hell that voice…. It was Eddies’ my recently deceased running mate!

I threw out my arm in horror almost dropping the iPod. But the voice returned. Gingerly I press the iPod against my ear.

"38 minutes that’s a good 10K time" the voice wheezed,

Is this Eddie, I spluttered.

"1:22 is a great half marathon time too. But…."

But what mate? What are you trying to say??

"But…But 3:05 is a fucken soft marathon time!"



Well, that certainly is the truth!!

Wish me luck for my upcoming marathon PB attempt ;)