I'M BACK!!!!!!!!!

Holy-Mother-of-Killer-Ocean-Swell it's been a hell of a long time since I've posted!

A mix of life, work & relationship have all resulted in a massive and abusive neglect of this blog. Everything in the world of TallGuySurfing is good, but I've got to catch this thing up a bit so here goes...

In a nutshell - since last Fall (My last post on the Cologne Marathon in Germany) here's a breakdown to bring you up to speed:



* I ran the Savannah Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in November, 2011, only a month after Germany, and had a much better race. I was in the company of greatness (Team Hot Legs and my cousin Mark) and it showed as I finished strong with a time of 4 hours and 4 seconds. Yup, that's right, I missed my sub-4 hour goal by 4 seconds. I was so happy with how good it felt to run strong and finish strong that I didn't even care. It was the first marathon I ran without stopping to walk once.

* In February, Jenny and I ran the 26.2 with Donna Breast Cancer Marathon (I ran the half and Jenny the full) with Team Hot Legs again. This race is becoming an annual event for us and we love it. I PR'd the half marathon with a time of 1:45:20 despite it being insanely cold (upper 20s at the start). I think I actually run better in really cold weather although I hate it with a passion. Jenny absolutely killed it in the marathon by running a PR and re-qualifying for Boston. Another notable highlight for me - at about mile ten I found myself running next to Bill-freaking-Rogers of all people! I did a double take as the legend passed me and continued on running like a madman (I mean, he kind of looks like a madman when he runs). I decided that I would run with him until I realized that he was speeding up (negative splits) and after about 3/4s of a mile I decided this was not a good idea for me. I watched in awe as he ran away from me down the course. I will not forget that moment.

* On March 14th, I proposed to Jenny and she said YES! During one of our last marathon training runs after work at dusk on the beach. I felt like everything was plotting against me that day. Issues at work were trying to keep me late and Jenny kept trying to change our running route through the day until I told her very uncharacteristically, "NO." A little while before our run two different surfers were attacked by sharks so news vans and helicopters were in the middle of our route making it noisy and confusing to run through. Jenny was happy during the run and all I could think was, "what else is going to try and stop me?" We finished the 4-mile run and I stopped Jenny right where I wanted her, told her I loved her and that 4-miles is significant because it was the distance of our first running date, dropped down on one knee and popped the question. She was so happy she swallowed her gum. I had a good friend, who sometimes works professionally for National Geographic as a photographer, hiding on the boardwalk so we got some amazing pictures of the event!

* A few days later, I returned to the full marathon scene, this time in Raleigh, North Carolina. The chosen race? The Tobacco Road Marathon, which is basically a double track trail (gravel mostly) over an old converted railroad line. The course is extremely flat by North Carolina standards and straight, which equates to FAST. I was determined to beat my Savannah time and join the sub-4 hour marathon club. I did it. I ran my ass off and finished with a time of 3:57:22 again finishing strong. I even lifted Jenny up off the ground in a huge bear hug at the finish line.

* April was insane! First off, Jenny got to finally run the Boston Marathon. It just so happened, also, to be one of the hottest races in history. I think the high was 87 degrees and by the time Jenny started it was about 82 degrees. My mother and I accompanied Jenny to Boston and we set up our spectating cheering station in front of our hotel at Mile 24. I couldn't help but think that I probably would DNF a marathon by mile 24 if it were 87 degrees and sunny as I watched all the amazing runners pass. When Jenny reached us, she was looking stronger than most, but it was obvious how taxing the heat and hills were on her. She finished strong with an amazing time considering the circumstances. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to be at the finish line as I had to catch a plane. A few months prior I was invited by some family members to join them for a private river rafting trip through the Grand Canyon and there was only one open spot meaning Jenny could not go. After some hesitation we both decided I should go on the 22-day trip because it's an opportunity I might never again get. After a massive amount of planning it turned out that I had to leave Boston almost the moment Jenny passed me at mile 24 to be able to reach Flagstaff, Arizona, in time to get to the river on schedule.

I simply don't have time (work, fun and wedding planning demands my attention) to write race reports on all those races, but I am going to try and pick up this blog by writing excerpts from my journal I kept as we paddled 230 miles down the Colorado River. I plan to start posting them day after day on this blog as if in real time although it really happened a month ago. Enjoy the story ... coming soon!