Marathon Training RECAP

It's been quite a ride these past 18 weeks. When I started training for the Seattle Rock 'n' Roll Marathon it was the end of winter, one of the coldest winters in Florida of my life! I remember complaining on here about the cold and wishing that I would actually "sweat" during some of the training runs. I also seriously doubting whether my Achilles tendon would hold and remain injury-free for the entire training period. Well, we went from the coldest winter in memory to one of the earliest and hottest summers in a long time and we ran through it all. My wish was granted and I experienced an entirely new level of sweating on the last few long runs. Being more soaked than when I'm surfing without ever touching the water... getting so hot that I actually stopped sweating (yeah, I know this is bad)... hearing my saturated shoes make "squish/squash" sounds with every step... you name it!

Yeah, we put in our time - sweat and shivers.

Now the hour is finally upon us and here I stand; uninjured, determined and ready. I know it's been awhile since I posted a "Thursday Stoke," and since it's Thursday this might as well be one of the best Thursday stokes!

I'm stoked to be running the Seattle Rock 'n' Marathon this Saturday! That's only 48 hours away! I want to mention a few things, all of which I'm stoked about. First of all, my goals.

Goal #1 - complete 18 week novice runner training schedule injury free. CHECK!

Goal #2 - Raise money for American Heart Association in memory of my father and to raise awareness of heart disease. CHECK!

Goal #3 - Have FUN and finish the marathon without injury. Leave it all out there on race day and get the best time possible, take as much of it in as possible and have as much fun as possible. Enjoy the run with Jenny!

I haven't accomplished goal #3 yet, but in my mind the first two and hardest two goals are met. The last goal is the easy part! All I have to do is run.

Here's some stats I pulled from Dailymile.com, which I used to track only my marathon training progress from start to finish (I'll probably keep my account active after the race).

Miles run - 403
Time spent actually running - 61 hours and that's not including all the time spent stretching, recovering and EATING like a king!
Total workouts - 63
Distance traveled around the world - 0.02 (hey, it was on .01 FOREVER!)
Donuts Burned - 255 (but I didn't eat one single donut...wtf?)
Gas Saved - 22 gallons (would someone please put 22 gallons in my truck?)
TVs powered - 840 (don't really understand that statistic)
Fastest Run - 7:26 minute pace 5-miler on June 8th
Longest Run - 20.3-miler on June 5th
Shortest Run - 2-mile taper run on June 23rd (seriously Hal Higdon, what's the point of this run?)


It really has been a great experience and I'm so happy to have had a wonderful girlfriend to share the long runs with on the weekends. I've met a great group of runner friends along the way as well.

I've also been totally humbled by EVERYONE that has donated or supported us in one way or another. We set out to raise $795 or simply $15 for each year my father was alive (he passed away of a sudden heart attack when I was 15-years-old) with a simple website HERE. Without even having to try hard we immediately shattered our goal. The donations kept coming and coming and as of this posting we are at $1,888.60. That's absolutely amazing! Nobody asked us to raise funds and we aren't running this race as "official fundraisers," but it's been a great experience. I can't even begin to thank everyone!

As you're reading this Jenny and I are traveling to Seattle. Tomorrow is the Expo and Saturday is the race. The forecast as of today calls for a low of 56-degrees and a high of 69-degrees - perfect in my opinion. Jenny would like it a little hotter, but I'm content with anything under 90 degrees at this point! I'll try and get a recap up as soon as possible. I am Bib #11050 for anyone wishing to track me.

Wish me speed and endurance!

I'm shipping up to Raleigh!

While many of my blogger friends are "shipping up to Boston" this weekend, I'll be heading out in a few minutes to Raleigh from the Gainesville airport with Jenny to visit a few of our friends for the weekend. Another song comes to mind; an old Bob Dylan song I believe recently covered by Against Me! that goes something like this, "picking me a bouquet of dogwood flowers and I'm a hopin' for Raleigh..."

Anyways, I'm excited to get out of Florida for a few days and away from the real estate business, which has been driving me nuts the past few weeks. Tomorrow we have a 13-miler on tap first thing in the morning. According to a combination of Google Earth and Mapmyrun.com it looks like we'll be able to run from the house we're staying at through the countryside to the Harris County Lake Park where there's miles of trails with our names written all over them. I'm hoping for some hills myself. I'll probably carry along the camera so expect a full recap with pictures sometime later next week after I get back!

I'll also be tuning into the Universal Sports channel Monday morning to watch the Boston Marathon. Best of luck to all you bloggers either spectating or racing/running!

Surfing..... oh man, I'm getting antsy. We've had about two weeks of onshore winds and the few windows of opportunities early in the morning with light and variable winds I've missed because of work. I've heard there's been some "going off" moments on the inside of the rocks. Now that I'm leaving town, I'm sure it'll be epic. I fully intend to hit it hard next week!

Seattle Training Report:
I'm feeling really strong. I've logged 12 miles so far this week without the weekly long run and I'm having to remind myself to take it easy and slow down. Looking back at my training log from last year it's becoming apparent that I had no idea what heck I was doing. I still feel like I'm super new and still a novice, but at least I feel like I'm more wise and smart enough not to overdo it again. Time will tell as I'm about to enter the realm of injury territory where my body will tell me yea or nay for higher mileage weeks. Hopefully, this time with less surfing, softball, tennis and other oddities in the picture an injury such as Mr. Achilles won't repeat itself.

AHA Fundraising Report:
So super stoked to have busted our goal this week. Honestly, I feel like I should have made a harder/higher goal. I had no idea we'd receive SO MUCH support without begging for it. Last I checked we busted $1,300 to support American Heart Association. Running the Seattle Rock n Roll Marathon is going to mean so much to Jenny and I and I can't begin to thank everyone that has shown support!

Happy Weekend to All and catch you on the flip side! Keep the stoke!

The Thursday Stoke!

Today I am stoked about the following things in no particular order!

1.) Raw broccoli dipped in hummus! I can't seem to eat enough of it lately!

2.) This week's swell! All week we have had swell in the ocean and mostly offshore winds or no wind at all. Monday was so windy that I found myself diggin' outside rail to keep from blowing off the wave faces. This morning was the best noseriding day yet this year! I'm totally hitting it tomorrow too!

3.) Running while not being injured. I'm knocking on wood so hard right now that I'm probably going to bruise my knuckles, but it's been so long since I wasn't injured with this dang Achilles tendon crap that I think I had forgotten truly how much fun running is.... until now!

4.) The water warming up. I can't quiet shed the wetsuit yet, but I can lose the booties and the extra top! Summer is near!

5.) All the amazing people that have donated to Jenny and my fundraiser to benefit the American Heart Association. I am truly humbled and grateful for every donation and can't believe we are so close to reaching our goal so early! I'm going to thank each and every one person that makes a donation personally as soon as I get a chance!

6.) Last weekend's 10-miler on the Hawthorne Trail! I remember when 10 miles seemed to be so intimidating and now it seems like "only 10 miles" isn't so bad. It was a beautiful run and I'm going to leave all you stoksters with this picture from the run!

Keep the stoke up!

Why we're running the Seattle RNR Marathon!

Today I attended a funeral of a man I only met once on the beach.

I feel that funerals aren't really for the poor soul resting in the coffin or urn, but more as support for the family and friends and that's the reason for my attendance.* When my father passed away there was standing room only at the service and the procession was more than a mile long. That alone meant everything to me.
Today's service was for my good friend, Bob's, father who succumbed to a long battle with heart disease last Friday. This has prompted me to start something I've been planning to do for a long time; help fight the battle against heart disease!
Just about all of us have been affected by heart disease in one way or another, whether personally or we know someone with it or whom has died from it. For Bob and myself it was our fathers that were taken from this world by heart disease.
I was only 15 when my father had a sudden heart attack with no warning one Sunday morning while out for his weekly long run. The doctors said he was gone before his body fully collapsed to the ground while running. We had no warning signs and if there were any they weren't recognized, which actually happens very often with heart disease.

My father and I with the catch of the day a couple years before his heart attack.

By raising awareness of these sometimes misunderstood symptoms and continuing research in science, The American Heart Association is fighting the battle against heart disease and this is the core of why I'm writing this post.


Many of you know I am currently training for the Seattle Rock 'n' Roll Marathon on June 26, 2010. Running this race along side me will be, Jenny, my girlfriend that stands witness to the battle against heart disease every day she goes to work as a dietitian in a cardiac wing of a major hospital. But, I want you to know exactly why I am running this race.

I'm dedicating my running of this race to my father and I find it fitting that when I cross that finish line I will be doing something he was passionate about the last few years of his life, running, and also accomplishing something he never had the chance to.... running a marathon!

This is also why I've started a fund raising effort for the American Heart Association and why I'll be asking for donations these next several months. My goal is only $795. That's $15 for each year my father graced this Earth with his sense of humor, helping hand, smile and love. Times are tough economically. I don't expect any person to donate, but it would be nice and every cent helps a great cause. Consider this; In the time you took to read this at least three people experienced coronary events and one person has died due to heart disease.

Please at least check out my fund raising page over at AHA and maybe.... at least consider a donation. You know I'll be totally stoked if you make even the smallest contribution! I'd also love to hear your personal stories if any of you have suffered a loss in the family due to heart disease. I'll even co-dedicate this race to any of my reader's loved ones that have passed away to heart disease! Here's the link to my fund raising page:

http://honor.americanheart.org/site/TR/FunRaiser/NAT-Funraiser?px=2103915&pg=personal&fr_id=1150&et=MTLc_1RSqMxkh6hwpm18Kg..&s_tafId=3031



*Note: Mark my words, when I bite it I want all my family and my friends to have a huge party, go surfing, go running, drink to much alcohol, dance and have a good time in my memory!