From DL to BQ

Six months ago, I was a broken runner.  On August 24, I completed my first of what was supposed to be three legs at the incredible Hood to Coast Relay in Oregon and had to be helped to the van knowing that I wouldn't run again any time soon due to the excruciating pain in both legs.  I was crushed and beaten down.  Running was a passion for me and it had been taken from me.  I was diagnosed with stress fractures in both legs and was sidelined indefinitely.

October rolled around and I still wasn't running, but my legs were slowly starting to feel better.  When it came time for the Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon, I supported several friends there and ended up getting some running in and knew that maybe things were finally getting better.  Then, in November, I slowly started back in a return to running program prescribed by Dr. Darrin Bright.  There were times that I wanted to just push things forward with this plan that called for a lot of walking, but I also knew that I didn't want to feel that pain again and so I was patient.

During this time, I also took up swimming as a way to stay in shape and not use my legs.  By no means am I even an average swimmer and my technique is awful, but I still manage to get a good workout in each time and I also feel stronger because of it.  I also got lots of cycling in as another way to not have impact on the legs.

When I was finally released from the return to running program by Dr. Bright, I decided to start training for the Xenia marathon in April.  I asked my friend, Cindy Warner, for help with my plan because she had successfully used one to PR both the Erie half marathon and the Columbus full marathon this past fall.  She came up with one from the Run Faster from the 5K to the Marathon that seemed to fit me pretty well and also took into account my propensity for over-training and injury.  She agreed to help hold me accountable with following the plan and so the journey began.

The first eight weeks of the plan went really well.  During that time, I made my first comeback race at the First on the First 5K in Westerville.  Since I hadn't raced in a long time, I had no idea what I was capable of.  I just went out and pushed hard and then held on at the end to finish with a 19:52 - just five seconds off my PR.  I was ecstatic.

I continued to follow the plan with solid outdoor runs and some great indoor track workouts.  Doing eight loops for a mile on the indoor track got me thinking about the Last Chance for Boston races that were coming up in February as the participants would keep circling a one-mile loop to reach their desired distance.  To some people, the thought of 26 loops (plus a .20 start) seems like pure mental torture, but after doing an 11-mile indoor track workout or 88 loops I started to believe that it might be something that I could handle.  During one of our Saturday group runs, I asked Cindy what she thought about that race.  We discussed my history of always running a great first 20-mile training run as I prepared for a marathon and my ability to go for a long distance without necessarily training by the book for it.  I am also a social runner and the thought of having people constantly around me on the loop made that a draw for me.  And, a loop course would also be the easiest type of course to get support on.  The only downsides we could come up with were that I would be under-trained and the possibility of getting injured without reaching my goal and then being forced to miss the Xenia race.

With all the information digested, I also got the feedback of a few friends who had run the race before.  Both Teri Pokosh and Ken Varian gave it good reviews and encouraged me to do it.  So, I signed up.  I decided that I would treat the race as a 20-mile training run and then just see what I had left.  The goal would be to finish the race the best way I could, but if there were any issues I would stop and not risk jeopardizing the Xenia race.  Cindy helped me adjust my training plan as I increased my long run mileage to a peak of 17 miles two weeks ago, and then I tapered this past week.  I also got another shot of confidence a week before Last Chance when I beat my goal of a 7:00 pace at the hilly Granville Winter Run 7.5-miler by finishing in 51:44 (6:50 pace) and shockingly won a race for the first time ever!

That set the stage for race weekend.  I went down on Saturday afternoon to pick up my packet and race bib.  I decided to walk the one-mile loop while I was there and get a feel for what the course would be.  One other huge aspect to my preparation for this event and for improving my training has been reading the book "Unleash the Champion" by Denny Dicke.  He teaches all kinds of techniques to make you mentally tougher and to help you push the negative thoughts out when you run as a way to have your best performance.  I'm not a huge fan of self-help type of books, but I connected with this one and followed a lot of them.  I wrote out 3:14:30 as a goal time on a piece of paper and the words "Determined", "Tenacious", and "Unstoppable" and hung them on the mirror in my bathroom to stare at every day.  I would repeat those words on training runs when things got tough.  I would visualize me finishing my race with the goal time that I wanted.  I bought into it and my performance began to improve.  The final aspect for me was to visit the actual course and imagine myself having the race that I wanted to have and I was able to do that less than 24 hours before I started the actual event.

On Sunday, February 24, I was up bright and early to knock out my core work that includes 100 situps and 100 pushups that I've done every day now for over a year.  Then, I was off to the race.  I met up with Cindy on the way as she was going to serve as my support for the day, hand me water and fuel when necessary, and try to help keep me on track and help me make a good decision about whether to continue on or not when the time came as I approached the 20-mile mark.  My pace to qualify for the Boston Marathon needed to be a 7:25 per mile or a 3:14:59 overall finish time.  My previous best marathon finish in two attempts was a 3:41:39 at the Earth Day Challenge last spring.  My goal for Sunday's race was to start out at a 7:20 pace and just keep knocking them off at that clip for as long as I could.

We lined up at the starting line at 8 a.m., the horn sounded, and we were off!  Since the clock started on the horn, I had lined up right in the front and was among the first 10 people to head out.  A couple of faster guys took an early lead with a guy in an orange Boston Marathon jacket sprinting to the front.  I figured if he had the jacket and he seemed to be near my age that he would be a good guy to keep in my sights as I ran the loops.  I tried to settle into an easy pace and tried not to let the excitement of the start get me going too fast.  We did the first .20 and then crossed the spot that would eventually be the finish line when we passed 26 more times.  When I finished the first mile, I realized that I had gotten off to a faster start than I planned to as I posted a 6:57.  I dialed it back for Mile 2 to a 7:03, but then hit a 6:58 for Mile 3.  Right as I hit the Mile 3 mark, I caught up with my friend, Melanie Kopp, who was doing the half and trying to PR.  I had told her prior to the race that I would see her at Mile 3 and Mile 12.  I met my goal for the first part of that.

I managed to back the pace down a bit for the next two miles with a 7:15 and a 7:13.  As I approached Cindy at Mile 6 after a 7:03 lap, I had finished my first water bottle and told her that I would take a Gatorade G1 pouch on the next lap to fuel.  I grabbed it after posting a 7:08 lap for Mile 7 and proceeded to drink it through the next two laps at 7:08 and 7:12.  I hit Mile 10 at a 7:06 pace and thought to myself that I was now halfway done with my 20-mile training run.  Mile 11 came and went in 7:12 and then it was time to see if I would catch up to Melanie on Mile 12.  Once again, I caught her right at the mile marker as I finished that lap in 7:11.  I ran alongside her momentarily and told her how well she was doing and that she had lots of time in the bank to PR the half.  I thanked her for pushing so hard to make me go hard in my race and told her I was proud of her and to finish strong and then I took off again.

As I hit Mile 13 in 7:18, I realized that I had run the first half in under 1:34, which would be a new half marathon PR for me by nearly a minute.  My goal coming into the race was to be consistent each mile and hit the halfway point at 1:37.  I didn't dwell on this potential time gain because I knew that the tradeoff could very well be a big crash waiting for me late in the race.  I focused on my positive mental training that I had been doing and tried to settle in for the second half of the journey.

I continued to try to keep the pace as close to 7:20 as I could.  Miles 14 through 20 went by like clockwork in 7:20, 7:16, 7:13, 7:12, 7:20, 7:15, and 7:18.  Somewhere during the middle teen miles, I passed the guy in the Boston jacket and I vowed to not let him pass me back.  By the time I crossed the finish line, I had actually lapped him as his quick start came back to haunt him.

As I approached Cindy after Mile 20, I commented to her that the training run was done and now it was time for the icing on the cake.  She had been good about making me drink part of another bottle of water around Mile 13 and then a second G1 pouch at Mile 16.  My stomach was starting to give me fits, but it would have definitely been worse if I hadn't done the fueling even though I didn't want to.  Big thanks to Cindy for being stern about this and keeping me from derailing that part of my plan like I had in my previous two marathons.

As I knocked out Miles 21 and 22, I knew that I was starting to fade slightly but I managed to keep the pace at 7:28 and 7:25.  I'm not a big Eminem fan, but his song "Lose Yourself" came on at this point and it was the perfect song as I knew that I was now just a little over four miles away from reaching a huge goal.  I knew that I needed to dig down deep and push through the stomach pain and tired legs that I had going on and finish out what I started.  Melanie had also joined Cindy in cheering me on and they were doing a great job of pushing me towards the finish even though I could tell by their faces that they were just as nervous as I was that it was going to be really close as they could also tell that I was starting to slow down.  I finished Mile 23 in 7:38 and I was starting to calculate in my head how much cushion I had for the final three-plus miles as I was really starting to hurt.  It was at this point that Cindy yelled at me that I needed to make it through the next mile and that she would jump in and try to run me in the final two.

Mile 24 seemed like it took forever.  The crowd of runners had really thinned out as most of the half marathoners were done and some of the full marathoners were starting to really show signs of the wear and tear that the distance can take on one's body as I saw numerous ones stretching on the side of the course.  I finally got to the point that I could see Cindy and Melanie again and I was thankful to know that I would have company for the final two laps.  Mile 24 took 8:01.

As nice as it was to get someone to run with me for Mile 25, it was also my worst mile of the whole race.  My stomach was really revolting at this point and I nearly come to a screeching halt around the first turn as I dry heaved.  Cindy was in drill sergeant mode because she knew I didn't have much margin for error (although what she didn't know but I did was that I had two more minutes than she thought because she was looking at the half marathon clock which started two minutes before the full marathon).  She told me that I just needed to keep pushing through and that if I had to throw up to just do it all over myself and keep moving.  And here I thought she was my friend.  LOL  I somehow managed to make it through that mile in 8:16.

Then, it was finally time for the last lap plus the final .20.  Cindy thought I had roughly 10 minutes to get it done while I really had more like 12 minutes.  She kept encouraging me (insert barking orders at me) to stay after it.  (In fairness, while at the time I was thinking it was harsh, she was doing the right thing.  She knew that if I came that close and missed my goal that I would be not only sore from the running but mentally devastated.)  I manged to pick up the pace to an 8:07 for that lap.  Then, I could see the finish and I kicked things into gear to make sure that I got there in time.  I covered the final .20 at a 7:36 pace and hit a 5:46 pace going to the finish - which was my fastest pace during the entire race.  Once I saw the clock and knew that I was going to meet my goal, I started to ease up just a bit so I wouldn't totally collapse when I crossed the finish line.  I HAD DONE IT!!!! 3:13:33!!!  A new PR by 28:06 AND a Boston qualifying time!  :)  I was even more surprised when the person at the finish line handed me a plaque and said that I had won the 40-49 age group.  I later found out that I finished 8th in the entire race.

As Cindy and Melanie each grabbed an arm and helped me stumble and stagger into the area for post-race food, I began to tell them about the other people who had helped me on the course.  There was a guy who stood near Cindy who gave me a high five for at least the first 14 laps and then later I saw him in the race as a relay participant.  There was the girl on the exact opposite side of the course who gave me a high five through each of the first 16 laps and then apologized that she had to leave.  Finally, there was the heavy-set 20-something man who was walking the half marathon.  I think I passed him 12 times and each time I told him how much he was inspiring me to keep pushing on.  I'm sure it was just as hard if not harder for him to do his race as it was for me to do mine.  It was nice for me to be able to reiterate that thanks again to him in the finish area as he came in just after I did.  All of these things are the kind of things that make me enjoy doing these kind of events.

After changing into dry clothes and drinking some water, it was time to head to Outback Steakhouse for something I had been waiting three years for - Aussie cheese fries!!!  I hadn't had a tater tot, french fry, or hash brown during that span as I tried to use that as motivation for me to help push towards this goal of a BQ.  The Bethel Road Outback was right by the race and since I have a huge history with Chris, the owner, and the great folks there it was a no-brainer to stop.  The cheese fries were SOOOOO GOOD!  And to top it off, Chris paid for my meal!  Wow!

On the way home, the magnitude of what I had accomplished began to finally hit me as I started to get phone calls, text messages, tweets, and Facebook posts from my family and friends as they began to hear about what had happened.  I have the best people in my life...I really do.  Several people said they wished they would have known about this so they could have been there to cheer me on and I know that my family wanted to all be there.  But, I kept it quiet and low key because I didn't want to put any pressure on myself as I was trying my best to just think of this as a training run and that proved to be the right choice.  I'm extremely thankful for all the love and support of so many great people!  I am truly blessed!

Inspired to Do More - Columbus Marathon 2012

Well, the 2012 Nationwide Children’s Hospital ColumbusMarathon is in the history books and for me it will go down as one of my favorite races yet.  The weather was perfect, the 18,000 runners and walkers were inspiring, and the huge crowds and Children’s Champions were encouraging and supportive.  What more could you ask for?!

Going into race day, the plan for me was to support my friends, Teri Pokosh and Cindy Warner who were running the half and the full respectively, since stress fractures had sidelined me for the past two months with no running as I worked to get healthy again.  Sure, my legs were really starting to feel better and I wanted to get back out and run, but I knew that I needed to keep being patient so that I could fully recover.

So, on Sunday morning, I packed up my bike and met up with Teri and Cindy and got ready for what I knew would be a fun-filled, exciting day.  We met up with a bunch of other running friends prior to the start and then as the start time approached it was time to hop in the corrals.  I had locked up my bike about half a block past the starting line, and since I had a bib of my own because I was registered for the race I jumped into the corral with my friends and waited with them for the race to get under way.  Our friend, Melanie Kopp, who was also doing the full, joined us and it was fun to listen to all of them talk through the butterflies and pre-race jitters.  I tried to offer as much encouragement as I could and pretty soon it was time to send them on their way as the starting line fireworks erupted and 18,000 people began their journey.

Teri, me, and Cindy before the race

Just past the starting line, I made a quick right turn and hopped on my bike and began my own adventure as my goal was to get to as many miles as possible to cheer my friends on.  Sometimes this required going around a block, riding down alleys or across open fields, or just slowly going down the sidewalks while avoiding spectators.  Some of the trickier spots were going around the port-a-pots since runners would dart in and out of them.  I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to get through the first six miles of the race with very little issues.

Then, around the 10k time checkpoint, the biking started to get interesting.  There were no sidewalks and no open fields to get around.  I hopped off the bike and carried it as I walked along a very narrow curb as I tried to stay out of the way of the runners.  I made it through eventually and then the course opened up some more as I again kept tabs on my friends.

However, the real fun began somewhere between Miles 6-8 when my rear tire went flat.  I noticed the flat when we hit the cobblestones of German Village, but I just kept on going because I knew that I had to get back to Nationwide Arena to where my vehicle was parked and I figured the race course was the best way to get me there.

As part of my plan to ride support, I was carrying some of Cindy’s fuel and some spare water so she wouldn’t have to worry about getting stuff on the course.  Well, when I realized I was having problems, I gave her what I could and let her know that I would do the best I could to come up with a backup plan.

By Mile 10, the plan really became a jumbled mess when the chain on my bike came off.  I knew then that it was going to take a miracle to be able to provide any more support on the course.  I asked a policeman who was working the event the quickest way to get back to Nationwide Arena and I set out jogging with the bike beside me.  My hope was that I could get to the halfway point and at least offer some encouragement before Cindy set out for the tough second half solo.

As I arrived at Mile 13 and locked the disabled bike to a tree, I received the text alert that Teri had already finished her half marathon in 1:43.  I knew that I had to be close to catching Cindy going by, but as the seconds and then minutes ticked by I realized that I had to have missed her.  It’s tough in the crowds to find people, but afterwards I discovered that I had missed her by roughly 30 seconds.  Bummer!

I unlocked the bike and wheeled it to my vehicle where I found Teri recovering from her great race.  I stowed the bike and then set off to find the shuttle to the ‘Shoe to try to catch Cindy going by there.  I had trouble figuring out where the shuttle was and by the time I did find it and saw the long line waiting to board it I realized that I probably wouldn’t make it out to the Mile 18 mark in time to cheer her on.  I knew that was a risk I couldn’t take if I wanted to see her finish the race.

So, I headed back to my vehicle again.  I knew I really only had two options left.  Wait around at the finish line for an hour for her to come in or head out on the course and cheer her on.  The decision was a no-brainer as I quickly peeled off a couple of layers, laced up my running shoes, grabbed a Quaker granola bar and a Gatorade G1 pouch for fuel for me and a bottle of water to take to her and I set out.  Before I knew it, I had knocked out two miles at a sub 8:00 pace.  Where did that come from on no training and two months of running inactivity???

As I ran the course in reverse, I got to watch all but the top five marathoners finish and it was amazing to watch how hard these men and women worked to finish so strong.  I offered up encouragement to each and every one of them as they went past including my friend, Ken Varian who was running so strong.  I’m sure they had to wonder why a guy with a marathon bib was running the opposite direction.

As I closed in on the Mile 23 marker, I started thinking about how far I should go out as I knew that I would need to have the strength to run with Cindy to the finish at whatever pace she was running when I found her.  I paused three times around this point to cheer for my friends, Dan Bosch, Doug Owsley, and Melanie, who was still smiling on her way to a PR and just missing a BQ (Boston Qualifying time).

Melanie smiling the whole way!

I decided to go ahead and go one more mile to Mile 22 as I started to wonder if somehow I missed Cindy in the crowd.  However, just past the mile marker I saw her coming in the distance.  As she ran by where I was, I hopped in and started to run with her.  She didn’t even know that I was there for the first 25 feet or so, but as soon as she did you could see a big smile cross her face as she realized she was going to have company for the rest of the run.

The next four miles clicked by as we began to pass people who were hitting the wall.  I vividly replayed the previous year’s race in my head when I walked most of the final six miles on the same course as I gave in mentally and then physically, so I knew exactly what the people who were struggling were going through and I offered as much encouragement as possible to everyone we went by.  Despite pain in her right leg, Cindy just kept gutting it out and her pace never faltered by much.

As we closed in on the Mile 26 sign, I realized by the elapsed time and our current pace that it was going to be really close for Cindy to BQ (she needed a 3:55).  The crowds were really thick through here and I hollered at them to let the runners hear them.  They responded with great cheers and I think it really picked up the spirits of everyone as we turned right to head down Nationwide Boulevard to the finish.

Turning the corner, I decided it was time to let Cindy know just how close this finish was going to be.  The coach side of me got stern and hollered at her that she needed to get her butt in gear if she wanted to meet her goal of the BQ.  I told her she had worked way too hard over the past few months and more recently the past nearly four hours to come up just short.  It was really cool to see the fire rekindle as she found one final burst of energy and hit a 6:13 pace heading towards the finish as she crossed the line in 3:53:50 to meet her goal by 1:10 and set a new PR by nearly five minutes!

Cindy on her way to her BQ!

As I’ve had a few days to reflect back on the events that transpired on Sunday, I’m continually inspired and amazed by what all took place.  Watching everyone work so hard will continue to motivate me to be a better runner.  I’m filled with great pride for all of my friends that did so well.  And I was able to see first-hand the difference that being a little more mentally tough and pushing through the wall can make.  While I didn’t gain the experience of running the full marathon like I originally had hoped to do, I gained so much more experience by soaking it all in.

I’m also pleased to report that even though I ended up running 13.5 miles after not running once in two months that my legs feel great.  In fact, I went on Wednesday after the race to my doctor, Darrin Bright, and I’ve now been cleared to start a return to running plan.  I can’t wait to get back out!  And, I plan to be back for the 2013 marathon in Columbus.

Be Our Guest - Beauty and the Beast

Ashley, Carla, and Kylie getting ready for the show to start

Tonight, I had the opportunity to take my family to the Palace Theatre in Columbus to see NETworks presents Disney's Beauty and the Beast and what a fun night it was.

When we arrived, our girls (ages 11 and 7) were excited to see that we were sitting a mere seven rows from the stage.  They had been to two previous Broadway shows (Mary Poppins and Wicked), but both times our seats had been in the balcony fairly far back.  They could not wait for the show to start so they could see the actors up close and personal.

The plot of the show follows the script of the Disney movie by the same name, so my girls were able to just sit back and enjoy the action as they already knew the story.  They remained attentive throughout the entire show which lasted a little over two and a half hours yet never seemed that long.

The show was extremely enjoyable and very well done.  Every single character played his or her role very well.  Hilary Maiberger as Belle nailed the lead role and has an incredible singing voice.  She seemed perfect in the role.  She also had good chemistry with Darick Pead, who played Beast.  Jeff Brooks stepped into the role of Gaston for the night and I cannot imagine the main actor being any more believable.  In fact, if this was his first time to move up as understudy, I'm guessing he'll get a lot more chances.  Hassan Nazari-Robati (Lumiere), James May (Cogsworth), and Erin Edelle (Mrs. Potts) were also excellent in their roles as servants turned household objects in Beast's palace.

Belle (Hilary Maiberger) and Beast (Darick Pead)

If you are looking for a fun date night out or a good evening for the whole family, this show is for you.  It's only in Columbus through Sunday, though, so don't miss your opportunity.  You can find all the showtime details and ticket information by going to the CAPA website. 

2012 Hood to Coast Relay

Cresting the second of three hills on Leg #6

Wow, I can't believe that it's already been six weeks since I took part in the 2012 Hood to Coast Relay on August 24-25 as a member of Random Acts of Running, one of the 1,068 teams of 12 people each in a race that started 6,500 feet up on Mt. Hood in Oregon and ran nearly 200 miles to the Pacific Ocean in Seaside, Oregon.  This race consisted of many ups and downs for me personally over two days, but it is definitely an experience I will never forget.

After a great time leading up to the race that included an amazing complimentary dinner at the Outback Steakhouse in Tualatin where the staff went all out to treat us as celebrities and my love affair with the chain just continued to grow, we packed up our vehicles and tried to get a good night's sleep for the adventure that awaited us.  Fortunately, we didn't have an early starting time, so we knew that we should be plenty rested heading into the two-day event.

As part of Van #1 for our team, we needed to finally load up and head to the starting line for our 2:45 p.m. start.  However, on the way, we stopped at the local Krispy Kreme store to pick up a dozen donuts and some chocolate milk that they had graciously agreed to donate to help fuel us on the trip.  If you know much about me, you know that I love my donuts and see them as a great reward for all the running that I do.  This proved to be a great treat and I'm thankful to Krispy Kreme for donating them to us and for all the love they gave us on Twitter during the race.  Interaction with brands is priceless and it's why I'm a big fan of several you see mentioned in this post.

Random Acts of Running posing in Krispy Kreme

A look at all the goodness we had to leave behind.  :)

Our elite runner, Peter Arbogast, fueling up with a glazed donut prior to his run. I later showed the group how to eat one in a single bit.  :)  Yep, it takes skill and years of practice.

With the donuts and chocolate milk secured, we continued the drive to Mt. Hood.  Pretty soon, we found ourselves on the actual course for the race - just going in the opposite direction.  As we passed the exchange zone for the end of Leg #6 (my leg), I began to get excited and started studying the course that I would be running in a few hours.  The rest of the group did, too.  We knew that we had some challenges ahead of us, but we were excited to get the adventure under way.  As we got closer and closer to the starting line, the views just kept getting better.

The view of Mt. Hood from the parking lot as we approached the starting line.

We spent a little time at the starting line getting ready for the race and just soaking in the energy of all the teams around us.  I even ran into a couple of Central Ohio friends there, Brandon Button and Molly Stout.  It's always great to see a familiar face, but especially 2,000 miles away from home.  Molly's team was actually starting the same time as our team and she was running the same leg as me, so I knew that we might see her a couple of times.

Peter, Brandon, and I

O - H - I - O at the start.  Me, Molly, Sarah (a Twitter friend on Molly's team), and Peter.

Just before it was time for our first runner to take off, our van of six runners took a moment to all go to the starting line together and capture a picture to commemorate the start of what would be a great journey together.

I'm not sure there's a more picturesque starting line anywhere

When 2:45 rolled around, we all cheered as Sarah Suever, our first runner, took off straight down the hill on Leg #1.  She cruised over those 5.64 miles at an 8:18 pace and the race was on!  Before I knew it, Ryan Halley, our captain, had knocked out Leg #2 at a 6:29 clip, Brett Milliken hammered out Leg #3 at a 6:20 pace, and Amanda Smithberger rocked Leg #4 at a 7:34 pace.  As we dropped Peter off to do Leg #5, the butterflies were really stirring big time in my stomach as I realized it was almost time for me to get to work.  I had been waiting nine months for this opportunity and it had finally arrived.

It had been 11 days since my previous run as I had battled shins and just rested the legs in hopes that I could somehow pull out the three legs I was assigned for the race. However, after a brief little jog on the top of Mt. Hood earlier in the day as we waited to start the race, I knew that I was in for a lot of soreness if my legs even allowed me to attempt these runs.

I arrived at the exchange point for Leg #6 and eagerly awaited the arrival of Peter, who had the unenviable assignment as the #5 runner - the toughest assignment in the race.  I bumped into Molly briefly at the exchange and we encouraged each other.  Then, I saw Peter cruising up the final hill towards me and I began to get geared up to go. He handed me the relay bracelet and I was off!

I cruised through the first mile in 6:38 with a max speed of 4:49 during the initial acceleration. I passed one person during this stretch and then set off after two others who were in the distance on an uphill. I eventually caught both of them before the third mile ended as I covered those miles in 6:53 and 7:20 to stand at 20:51 after the first three miles for a sub 7:00 pace.

Approaching the exchange zone

This was where my legs began to really fall apart as it was just a constant struggle to manage the pain of what I thought at the time was really bad shin splints with the lack of fitness that I had to run that pace with all my time off as I started to really suck wind.  However, I started thinking about all of my Daily Mile friends along with those following on Facebook and Twitter who were cheering me on. I also thought about my goal to not walk at any point in my next marathon and I just kept pushing myself to finish the leg and then worry about what was next.  In the back of my mind, I also was trying to stay as close to the time of my friend, Carrie Jarvis, who had run the same leg a few hours earlier, and I knew that if I slowed down too much that Molly, who is super fast, would catch and pass me.  So, I just kept going.

Peter coming back to help run me to the finish...in flip flops nonetheless

The leg ended up being more hilly than I anticipated, but I knocked out the next three miles in 7:39, 7:28, and 7:29 before closing the final .70 at a 7:31 pace with a 5:41 burst at the end. I was utterly spent by the time I handed off to Brad Petersen to go on to Leg #7, but I had finished my first assignment. It wasn't the 7:09 pace I had predicted months ago when healthy, but I just missed by seconds (7:16 pace) and I was pretty pleased. I had to be helped to the vehicle as my legs were total mush and shaking, but I had accomplished my first goal of completing at least one leg.

The face of total exhaustion and pain right after I finished

Once I got back in the van, I began to realize that the pain I was feeling was not something that was going to subside any time soon.  Not that day and probably not in even the week to come.  I knew it was bad and that was confirmed in the days ahead when I was diagnosed with a stress fracture in each leg to the point that the muscle was pulling away from the bone.

Fortunately, I had taken a boot with me since I had been having issues with my right leg and that had seemed to help take some of the pressure off.  By the time we stopped at Amanda's house for an amazing spaghetti supper that her husband, Luke, had so graciously prepared for us, I could barely stagger out of the vehicle.  Going up stairs to shower or use the restroom required crawling and I ended up just collapsing on the floor in a heap and staying there for what seemed like two hours, but was probably more like 45 minutes.  I knew that I was in for a very long night being cramped up in the vehicle and I was also feeling really bad about the fact that now my team was facing the challenge of figuring out what to do about my remaining two legs that needed run.

We met back up with Van #2 after they had pounded out Legs #7-12 in better than expected time and it was time for our group to do its thing again.  We switched the order around enough so that Ryan ended up with an 8.82-mile second run, while Peter did two runs in the second round as he absorbed my second run on top of his own to do 11.31 miles in a short span of time.  I do admit that I wallowed in self-pity (and a lot of pain) for awhile and really questioned why I was there.  I just shut down and went into a shell and didn't say much.  I'm a team guy and I really felt like I had let the team down.

However, the more I watched my team rally to the occasion, the more I began to feel better.  The entire group just continued to pick up the slack and didn't complain and I stood by and watched with amazement and appreciation for great teammates as there was nothing else I could do. Or so I thought.  I started to look for little ways to help.  I hobbled to the exchange points with the clipboard to jot down times.  I gave up my jacket to the waiting runner so they could stay warm until they needed to start their leg.  I tried to be an encouragement just as much as I possibly could.  And I kept just soaking in all the amazing sights around me.  So many people working so hard to do things that individually would be impossible but together were doable.  I learned a lot of life lessons over the next few hours.

There were plenty of challenges the rest of the way.  Due to congestion on the roads, what should have been a four-hour opportunity to sleep in an open field never materialized to much more than about 20 minutes.  The final 12 legs of the race it was a constant adventure to try to get the next runner to the exchange point before the previous runner arrived.  It often meant that the a runner would have to run an additional mile or so to be there in time.  It must have been a good warm-up because our van just kept busting out amazing mile after amazing mile.  Brett ran my leg and his leg over the final round to finish with 12.55 miles in the round and he was stoked to do it.  In fact, I'm not sure on a healthy day I could have done what he did.  Once again, just super impressed with my team.

Kade coming to the finish and you can see me in neon green under the arch

When our final six legs were done, we headed to Seaside and the finish line.  We made one stop for a well-deserved meal where I chowed on a plate of french toast.  Then, it was on to the beach to wait for the arrival of our other van.  When we finally saw Kade Chambless, our final runner, approaching with her trademark smile on her face, we all began screaming and cheering her own until she crossed the checkpoint.  Then, we lined up to cross the official finish line all together and get our official team photos taken and be presented with our medals.  Somehow, I hobbled boot and all through the sand across the line and grabbed my medal.  Wow, our team was amazing.  We were predicted to finish in just over 27 hours but had come in at 25:55:38 which was good enough for 97th place out of 1,068 teams.  Even better, we were 14th out of 360 teams in the mixed (6 guys and 6 girls) division.  Great job, Sarah, Ryan, Brett, Amanda, Peter, Brad, Becky Peach, Spencer Dries, Taylor Bailey, Claire Bailey, and Kade!

Here's five of the six members of Van #1 at the finish...the stranger who took the pic cut Ryan out of the shot. :(

Some other thank yous that I need to make sure to mention include my running friends who called me or texted me while I was on the trip and encouraged me even when I was down and hurting.  You guys are amazing!!  Thanks also to the MVNU athletic department for allowing me to take a rare couple of vacation days during the fall season to soak up this amazing experience that I haven't come close to describing in this post.  Seriously, I could write numerous posts about numerous sights, but let's suffice it to say that every runner should have this event on their bucket list.  You won't regret going.

I also need to thank several other brands in addition to Outback Steakhouse and Krispy Kreme who made this trip possible.  We received two of the latest sets of Knuckle Lights that were just available weeks before the race and they are amazing to use in the dark.  I highly recommend these over headlamps because you control the direction they shine AND they are much brighter.  In fact, I used them this morning at 5:45 a.m. on a foggy bike ride.

We also received a donation of the SC Johnson to get free XXL size Ziploc bags.  Let's just say that when you are traveling for more than a day in a vehicle filled with sweaty runners that being able to zip up your sweaty clothes and running shoes in an airtight bag really helps keep the vehicle smelling a lot fresher.  So, a big thank you for these!

We also enjoyed some chewy granola bars from the great folks at Quaker who sent us a very generous supply for the trip.  I can attest to the fact that I personally inhaled quite a few and it was great to have that as nourishment to keep us going towards are better-than-predicted performance.

One more thank you goes to Chipotle for donating a free burrito card to each of the 12 runners so that we could refuel after the race.  Thanks to Joe for making this happen and to the brand for always interacting with customers.

Hood to Coast shirt, bib, and medal

As you can tell, we had a blast, we ate well, and the team performed amazingly.  To me, that makes this trip a hands-down success.  I'm still in the process of recovering from the stress fractures that were already there before I went, but my hope is one day to return and successfully complete all three of my assigned legs.  I do know that I am a better person and runner from having gone on this trip!

Headed to the Hood

Today is a day that I’ve been looking forward to since last November. That’s when I found out that I was going to have the opportunity to participate in the self-proclaimed “Mother of all Relay Races”, the almost 200-mile Hood to Coast Relay in Oregon.

Up to this point in my running career, my races have consisted of 5Ks, half marathons, and two full marathons with a few other mid-range distances mixed in. I haven’t ventured into any of the obstacle type events like the Warrior Dash or Color Run and have focused strictly on races that consist of just me and the open road.

Well, that will all change today when I hop in Van 1 of Team “Random Acts of Running” and we drive up Mt. Hood to Timberline and its 6,500-foot elevation. That will start an adventure that will see our team of 12 people each do three legs of roughly six miles each before we finish about 27 hours later on the Pacific Ocean in Seaside, Oregon. Along the way, we’ll see lots of interesting sites and have lots of interesting adventures and I can’t wait!!!

All the planning and preparation has been done at this point. Now, it’s up to us to just go out and doing our running. With all of the elevation drops and gains, it won’t always be easy. But, we are going to give it our best shot and see what happens.

Our team of 12 consists of six guys and six girls, so we’ll be competing in the mixed open division, where they have predicted that we’ll finish 28th out of 361 teams in just over 27 hours. Really, time is irrelevant in an event like this. It’s all about the experience. There will be elite teams like the team traveling all the way from Japan with their national media and expected to win the race in 17 hours. And there will be teams that will take twice that long but have just as much fun. We’ll see plenty of costumes and decked out vans and I hope to get lots of pictures along the way.

Here’s a brief introduction of our team. Most of them I met for the first time last night when the Outback Steakhouse in Tualatin so graciously hosted us for a pre-race team meal. A big thank you to Jon Lakefish, the director of franchise marketing, and Dave Seeley, the managing partner of the Tualatin store, for giving us a one-of-a-kind dinner that none of us will soon forget. And, a big thanks to our server, Miranda, who handled all 15 of us (our three volunteers were included) with ease. It really was a perfect evening!

Van 1 will get the race started at 2:45 p.m. PST on Mt. Hood with Runner #1 Sarah Suever. Sarah is a 14-year-old high school student from Ohio who runs cross country and plays soccer. Her first leg is a beast as she’ll descend something like 2,000 feet in five miles. While to some that might seem fun to go that fast, it’s labeled as one of the very hardest legs on the course. She will then legs 13 and 25 before enjoying the final 11 legs in the van.

Runner #2 in Van 1 is my good friend, Ryan Halley. Ryan went to college at MVNU and later taught there as well. He currently teaches in the business department at George Fox in the Portland area and he was my invitation to this team. He’s also the captain of the team and has organized all the details necessary to make this adventure possible. I appreciate he and his wife, Jess, and their two kids for letting me stay at their house while I’ve been out here. Ryan gets to do leg 2, which drops 1,500 feet in just over five miles and then legs 14 and 26. He’ll probably also do a lot of the driving for Van 1 while trying not to drive off the road laughing at the antics that are sure to ensue. This will be Ryan’s second straight year doing Hood to Coast.

Runner #3 in Van 1 is Brett Milliken. I met Brett for the first time last night and he’s a young guy in his 20’s from the Portland area who looks to be a strong runner as well. He gets the award for the best mustache out of group of 12 and he’s wearing it well! I look forward to getting to know him better over the next two days and I’m sure that he’s going to do a great job with legs 3, 15, and 27.

Runner #4 in Van 1 is Amanda Smithberger. Amanda actually went to MVNU for a short time and was a member of our women’s soccer team. She is married to Ryan’s cousin and they live in the Portland area. Amanda has done Hood to Coast two previous times, so her expertise will be invaluable to us as she knows what to expect. She’ll be doing legs 4, 16, and 28.

Runner #5 in Van 1 is Peter Arbogast. Peter is a friend of mine that I’ve gotten to know that past two years through various running events in Central Ohio. He lives in Marysville and is definitely the most decorated runner on our team. A few of his highlights just this year are running the Boston Marathon and just last month completing the Burning River 100 – an ultramarathon half the distance of Hood to Coast that he did on his own. The man is a rock star and there is a reason that he is doing what is considered the toughest three legs on the Hood to Coast course as he runs legs 5, 17, and 29.

I’ll be masquerading as Runner #6 to finish out Van #1. My combined mileage for the three legs will be just shy of 18 miles and I’m hoping that I can pull this off despite not running in almost two weeks as I’ve been resting up a bad case of shin splints. I get to do legs 6, 18, and 30 and will hand off to first runner in Van 2 each time, which means that my exchange zones will be filled with both vans from each team running the same pace. That should add to the hoopla and hopefully carry me through.

Van 2 Runner #1 will be Brad Petersen. Brad, who is running his second Hood to Coast and is a Portland area resident, is the captain of the second van and has been tremendous in helping Ryan with all the details that go along with this event. I guarantee that Van 2 will have fun with Brad and his fun-loving personality. When we left him after the Outback dinner last night, he was still trying to convince the rest of his van to get mohawks with him. I’ll look forward to seeing today if anyone did. Brad’s also a great runner and it’s going to be an honor to be sandwiched in between the two fastest guys on our team. He’ll run legs 7, 19, and 31, which is the second-toughest assignment of the race.

Van 2 Runner #2 will be Becky Peach. Becky is from Virginia and is the mother-in-law of the original organizer of this team, Megan Peach, who ended up dropping out when she had a baby. Becky is looking forward to this race even though she has the single-toughest leg for her second one when she has to climb nearly 800 feet in five miles on a gravel road. She’ll do great as she knocks out legs 8, 20, and 32.

Van 2 Runner #3 is Spencer Dries. Spencer is one of the four Colorado runners who round out our team. He’ll team up with Brad to keep the four ladies in Van 2 entertained while posting good times knocking out legs 9, 21, and 33. He has some relay experience with the Wild West Relay under his belt and he’s also been training for longer endurance races.

Van 2 Runner #4 is Taylor Bailey. Like Spencer, she is an avid cyclist and triathlete. She will be running legs 10, 22, and 34 and I know she’s going to do a great job. She is also one of our two ICU nurses along on the trip and we hope to not need their services.

Van 2 Runner #5 is Claire Bailey. Another of the Colorado runners, she will be running legs 11, 23, and 35. She designed the cool team bandanas that we got last night at our team dinner.

Van 2 Runner #6 is Kade Chambless. She will be running legs 12, 24, and 36 and gets the honor of leading our team across the finish line. She is the second of our nurses in Van 2.

Here's our team picture from after the Outback dinner last night:

If you want someone’s entertaining take on the two van assignments and the legs of Hood to Coast from previous experience, check out these links. Van 1 description Van 2 description

Well, we are coming down to the wire with last-minute packing, some light eating, and feeling the butterflies in our stomachs as we’ll be heading out the door soon to head up Mt. Hood. However, we do have to make a stop at Krispy Kreme on the way ‘cause everyone knows how important it is for me to have donuts on race day. I’m not sure what access I’ll have to post along the way, but I’ll try my best at least on Twitter and Facebook. Good luck to my other friends running in it as well and I hope to see you at some point along the way.

RunFest...Be There!

Mark you calendars!!! This Saturday, July 7 from 1-4 p.m., the Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon will be holding an event called RunFest (click for all the specifics and to RSVP) at Landmark Aviation located at 4130 East Fifth Avenue in Columbus.

This will mark the third straight year for this free event that will hopefully draw in excess of 1,000 runners and walkers. There will be giveaways, sneak peeks at this year's race shirts and medals, booths offering training advice and healthy living tips, free food from some of Columbus’ favorite food trucks, the full line-up of Nationwide Children's Hospital Patient Champions and more!

OK, that's the nuts and bolts for RunFest with plenty of links to surf to your heart's content. Now, here's my take on why this is such a great event and an important step in your marathon or half marathon journey. And it has nothing to do with the fact that I'm one of the meet-up hosts, but more on that later. ;)

For most us, we started out running or walking on our own and may even do most of our workouts that way. I'm fortunate to have a group of friends (the Mount Vernon Running Buddies) that I run with almost every day and it's a great way to stay accountable, get advice, and get the support needed to attempt these longer races.

Well, events such as RunFest are great ways to find out that you are not alone in your running or walking endeavors. Just like on race day, you'll see people of all shapes, sizes, ages, and abilities coming together with a common interest. And, there will be plenty of experts around to ask training-related questions as well as event-specific questions. If you haven't decided to commit to one of the two races, what better way to make that decision than to stop by RunFest, check out the course map and finisher bling, and then take advantage of the final day of registration savings by signing up for this year's event before the cost goes up $10 on Sunday.

In addition to talking to experts, enjoying free food, and signing up for giveaways, you also get the opportunity to meet six people with various backgrounds who have been designated as meet-up hosts for this event. I'm very humbled to be one of these six people and I'm looking forward to meeting the other five for the first time myself. From my very first involvement with the Columbus Marathon via its Twitter account before I ever ran my first race, I've been thoroughly impressed by the great interaction that makes this large race feel like it was being put on especially for me. While I enjoy pushing myself to post the very best time possible, I also really thrive on the social aspect and all the great friends that I have made as a result of running in this race twice so far (half in 2010 and full in 2011). I've found that every runner and walker has a story and it has been a blast to hear a lot of them the past two years since I started my own journey. I would consider it a privilege to meet as many of you as possible on Saturday and would love to hear your story about what motivates you to run. So, stop by between 1:30-3:30 and look for the 6-foot-6 guy and introduce yourself. :)

See you at RunFest on Saturday and then at the starting line on October 21! Feel free to comment below or connect with me on Twitter to let me know you are coming.