2008 Races

39th NYC: 2:47:25
Falmouth 7M: 42:20
Summer Race 4.2M: 22:30
Harpoon 5M: 29:15
Summer Race 4.2M: 22:48
112th Boston: 2:52:24
RJ Crowleys 3M: 16:16
BU Law 5K: 17:03
New Bedford Half: 1:18:07
Boston Prep 16M: 1:41:52

Hills

10 x Second Newton Hill (Oldham Road => past Temple Street)

1:48 ___ 2:02
1:47 ___ 2:00
1:47 ___ 2:03
1:45 ___ 2:04
1:47 ___ 2:01
1:46 ___ 2:06
1:46 ___ 2:02
1:47 ___ 2:04
1:45 ___ 2:01
1:44 ___ 2:08

Week 16

Sunday December 28 through Saturday January 3

Sunday -- 12 miles (1:40:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Tuesday -- Hills

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 12 miles (1:34:00)

Friday -- Rest

Saturday -- 13 miles (1:30:00)

Speed

10 x 300m(?) and equal rest
(on the road)

0:53 __ 1:26
0:51 __ 1:21
0:50 __ 1:23
0:50 __ 1:25
0:49 __ 1:23
0:49 __ 1:17
0:51 __ 1:27
0:50 __ 1:19
0:51 __ 1:25
0:48 __ 1:30

Week 17

Sunday December 21 through Saturday December 27

Sunday -- 16 miles (2:00:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (26:00)

Tuesday -- Speed

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 18 miles (2:17:00)

Saturday -- 10 miles (1:20:00)

Speed

10 x 300m(?) and equal rest
(on the road)

0:50 __ 1:23
0:49 __ 1:21
0:46 __ 1:25
0:48 __ 1:25
0:49 __ 1:25
0:49 __ 1:23
0:49 __ 1:28
0:49 __ 1:26
0:48 __ 1:30
0:47 __ 1:30

Week 18

Sunday December 14 through Saturday December 20

Sunday -- 14 miles (1:36:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (20:00)

Tuesday -- 8 miles (53:00)

Wednesday -- Speed

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 3 miles (20:00)

Saturday -- 20 miles (2:20:00)

Track

10 x 400m (100m rest)

1:22 ___ 0:40
1:17 ___ 0:39
1:18 ___ 0:42
1:17 ___ 0:39
1:15 ___ 0:42
1:17 ___ 0:41
1:17 ___ 0:43
1:17 ___ 0:44
1:14 ___ 0:45
1:12 ___ 0:46

Week 19

Sunday December 7 through Saturday December 13

Sunday -- 14 miles (1:34:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (25:00)

Tuesday -- 4 miles (26:00)

Wednesday -- Track

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 6 miles (40:00)

Saturday -- 10 miles (1:07:00)

Week 20

Sunday November 30 through Saturday December 6

Sunday -- Rest

Monday -- 4 miles (28:00)

Tuesday -- 10 miles (1:30:00)

Wednesday -- 10 miles (1:06:00)

Thursday -- 12 miles (1:34:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Saturday -- 6 miles (42:00)

Preparation

Some good advice here.

2009 Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge

Last April I ran my first Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. My goal was to raise $7000 and to run a sub 3:00 marathon. You helped me raise over $6500, and on race day I ran sub 2:53. I cannot thank you enough for your support!

Next April I will run my second Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. My goal is to raise $8000 and to run sub 2:35. I am honored and thrilled to be part of the twentieth annual DFMC.

This year, my teammates and I hope to raise $4.85 million for the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Cancer Research. 100 percent of every dollar donated will fund innovative cancer research. The Barr Program has had a tremendous impact on not only cancer research but also the scientists receiving funds. The Barr Program provides seed money to young investigators with unique and promising ideas. Indeed, scientists who begin pioneering research with Barr Program funds are almost all successful in securing future grants from other sources (generally the NIH) to continue their work. Thus funds raised each year can be used to support new projects.

Every donation makes a difference. To make a donation, please see my official DFMC page.

Thank you so much for your generosity!

2008 NYC Photos

I was not grinning the entire race:

2008 NYC Photos

2008 NYC

What a race -- so much fun.
Result: 2:47:25

Only 23 weeks till Boston!

NYC

Track me here.

Here is a good map (see the last page). Here is the elevation. And here we go!

Congratulations

To everyone who ran today, I salute you.

Glorious day for The People's Marathon. I jogged around the course with some friends to watch the race. What a thrill -- no better way to jump start the final week before NYC . . .

Week 1

Sunday October 26 through Saturday November 1

Sunday -- Marine Corps Marathon (jogging and cheering)

Monday -- 10 miles (1:10:00)

Tuesday -- 4 miles (26:00)

Wednesday -- 2 miles (13:00)

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 4 miles (28:00)

Saturday -- Rest

NYC Marathon

Start time: 9:40 am
Bib color: Orange
Bib number: 2139

See you Nov 2!

My Bib Number

2139

See you in two weeks in the Big Apple.

Week 2

Sunday October 19 through Saturday October 25

Sunday -- Rest

Monday -- Rest

Tuesday -- Rest

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 4 miles (27:00)

Friday -- 8 miles (59:00)

Saturday -- 3 miles (19:00)

Track

12 x 400m with 200m rest

400m ____ 200m
1:18 _____ 1:19
1:18 _____ 1:16
1:13 _____ 1:21
1:13 _____ 1:21
1:15 _____ 1:31
1:13 _____ 1:22
1:14 _____ 1:29
1:12 _____ 1:23
1:14 _____ 1:31
1:13 _____ 1:27
1:13 _____ 1:26
1:13 _____ 1:33

The Ghost is the New Glycerin

I often dispute the conventional wisdom, especially regarding running. Example: you should find running shoes you like and buy several pairs. I disagree. Technology only advances; running shoes only improve. Why buy seven pairs of the same shoes when the next generation will likely be better? (Literary fans: note the weasel word "likely" and the obvious foreshadowing.)

I run in Brooks. Since high school I have had countless pairs of several different models. After ten years, I found a model and generation that was almost perfect: the Glycerin 5. I have four pairs. I did not stockpile them (four pairs is not stockpiling) because I rejected the conventional wisdom. Last winter, Brooks released the new generation, the Glycerin 6. I was thrilled. But, after running through two pairs, I am sad to say that the 6 (for me) is no improvement. A good shoe, but not great like the 5. The problem: the 6 is made for the efficient runner who cares only about cushioning -- the more the better. (Someone like Paul Pierce (6'7", 235): he runs smoothly, so he does not need support; but he is big, so he needs bounce.) I need cushioning (everyone does), but I do not want such a heavy shoe.

So yesterday I bought the Ghost. Still Brooks, but a new model. After a quick spin this morning, I will say that these shoes feel good. Light and responsive. Much closer to the 5 than the 6. See for yourself: the Ghost is the new Glycerin.

(Glycerin 5 top, Ghost bottom.)

Week 3

Sunday October 12 through Saturday October 18

Sunday -- 16 miles (1:42:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (28:00)

Tuesday -- 10 miles (1:12:00)

Wednesday -- 10 miles (1:14:00) and Track

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 10 miles (1:13:00)

Saturday -- 3 x 2 miles (12:22, 12:20, 12:05)

Boston 2009

Looks official to me. Search for Arbeit. See you April 20.

(First things first though: see you November 2 in NYC.)

Relax!

The New York Times suggests that is the key to speed.

What Arbeit Eats II

Welcome back. Here is my favorite work lunch. Could not be simpler or quicker or healthier. But the key (for me at least) is that this lunch is filling. (I should note that I run in the morning and never eat breakfast. I do not want to hear the objections. I have read all the same Runner's World articles about eating within an hour after you run.)

1 container (17.6 oz) Fage Total 0% Greek Yogurt (yes, the big pink one)
1 large peach
2 bananas
Some health cereal (whole grain, low fat, low sugar, zero fun)

Chop bananas and peach: put into container. Top with some cereal (a handful). (The cereal will lose some crunch. If that bothers you, put your cereal in a plastic bag.)

At lunch, open your Fage and stir well. Then just scoop some yogurt, grab some fruit, and you are ready to go. Tons of protein. (And carbs, if you go heavy on the cereal.)

I also bring five or six apples for lunch. This gets me through the day. (Fine: I chew gum and drink herbal tea, too.)

Week 4

Sunday October 5 through Saturday October 11

Sunday -- 18 miles (2:22:00)

Monday -- 6 miles (46:00)

Tuesday -- 9 miles (1:11:00)

Wednesday -- 9 miles (1:07:00)

Thursday -- 9 miles (1:12:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Saturday -- 4 miles (29:00)

Congratulations

Guess skipping the Olympics paid off . . .

Week 5

Sunday September 28 through Saturday October 4

Sunday -- Rest

Monday -- 9 miles (1:05:00)

Tuesday -- 9 miles (1:04:00)

Wednesday -- 4 miles (29:00)

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 9 miles (1:07:00)

Saturday -- 9 miles (1:06:00)

What Arbeit Eats

I take some flak because my diet is . . . different. (How many apples do you eat a day? Dude, that cannot be good for you.) So I decided to post meals I enjoy. Because I have no great love for cooking by myself, for myself, all suggestions will be quick and easy to make. Most important, though, I eat healthy.

Speedy Spinach Salad

1 bag spinach
1 red pepper
1 avocado
6-7 crimini mushrooms
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/3 lb sunflower seeds (raw, hulled)
Mustard

Just wash, chop, mix and stir. This salad has everything. The mustard is the key -- salad dressing is not only expensive but also not great for you. Mustard (my mustard at least) has nothing but nutrients and some sodium. Zero empty calories. If you need carbohydrates too, enjoy your greens with a fresh local organic whole grain loaf. Like Wonder Bread.

NB This salad has no wheat and no dairy. (Wonder Bread has wheat. Allegedly.)

Till next time, when I post about my favorite fast lunch!

The Great White Hill

How am I training for NYC and Boston without the Newton Hills? Good question, glad you asked. Although I no longer have the privilege of running up Heartbreak every day (which truly is a privilege), I do have a new challenge: the Great White Hill.

No, the GWH is not as famous as Heartbreak. (Fine, the GWH is not famous at all. In fact, I bestowed on the hill that noble moniker. Why are you laughing?)

Everyone else calls the hill 13th Street between Arkansas and Colorado. But look closer at the cross streets (from south to north -- bottom to top):

Emerson
Farragut
Gallatin
Hamilton
Ingraham
Jefferson
Kennedy
Longfellow
Madison

Q.E.D. I present the Great White Hill.
Visit and we will conquer these luminaries together.

Heartbreak Hill

The one and only. I miss you old friend.

Week 6

Sunday September 21 through Saturday September 27

Sunday -- 9 miles (1:06:00)

Monday -- 9 miles (1:05:00)

Tuesday -- 9 miles (1:04:00)

Wednesday -- 9 miles (1:05:00)

Thursday -- 9 miles (1:04:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (28:00)

Saturday -- 9 miles (1:03:00)

Week 7

Sunday September 14 through Saturday September 20

Sunday -- 20 miles (2:29:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (33:00)

Tuesday -- Rest

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- Rest

Saturday -- 4 miles (28:00)

Is this goodbye?

What about NYC? Did Boston mean nothing to you?
Best luck my friend. Perhaps we will meet down the road.

Till then.

National Parks

Last Sunday was Difficult Run. Not just a difficult run, but the Difficult Run. (Clever, right? Right?) I ran with a few others. (One ran sub 2:29 at St George 2006, one ran sub 2:39 at Boston 2008, etc.) We ran for 2:20. Lovely jaunt through the woods. I was hurting by the end -- of the first thirty minutes.

Today I explored the famous Rock Creek Park. (Excellent map -- click to zoom.) One of the largest urban parks in the world, this wooded preserve contains a wide range of natural, historical and recreational resources in the midst of metropolitan Washington, D.C. (Yes I ripped that from some government publication. Fair use!) I wanted to run the Western Ridge Trail -- in green on the map -- bottom to top, twice. Alas, I took many wrong turns. I arrived at the end of the trail (almost in Maryland) after 1:52. (Looking at the map now I see I was about 200 meters from Boundary Bridge. I will go to the bridge next time.) Getting back took much longer than I anticipated, mostly because I took a few more wrong turns. The result -- 2:57 this morning on the roads and trails. Awesome.

Summary: (1) I did not run the entire trail (not even close); (2) I never saw the Peirce Mill (although I did see the Jean Jules Jusserand Memorial. Close to the Peirce Mill, I know.); (3) I have no idea where I went wrong; and, NPS take note, (4) The trails are not well marked.

Next time: Bottom to top on the Western Ridge Trail. Three times.

Week 8

Sunday September 7 through Saturday September 13

Sunday -- 24 miles (2:57:00)

Monday -- 8 miles (1:00:00)

Tuesday -- 4 miles (29:00) and 14 miles (1:37:00)

Wednesday -- 9 miles (1:03:00) and 5 x 1000m

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- Rest

Saturday -- 10 miles (1:10:00) and 6 miles (37:20)

Week 9

Sunday August 31 through Saturday September 6

Sunday -- 19 miles (2:20:00)

Monday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Tuesday -- Rest

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 9 miles (1:05:00)

Friday -- 9 miles (1:03:00)

Saturday -- Rest

Goodbye Boston!

I am off to DC, but I will see you soon. Till that day.

Running up Hills

Even Olympians find this hard.

Cotton is the New Coolmax

Truly. I love cotton. Fastest material on earth.

Perhaps I should look for a sponsor to supply me with all kinds of low tech swag. Surely not many athletes pester the Cotton Board and the National Cotton Counsel.

The Heartrate Debate

I never follow my heart -- rate, that is. I do not wear a monitor and I do not check my pulse. I just run against the clock. And at least someone agrees with me -- the fact that he is Kevin Hanson, coach of the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project (team of Brian Sell), only makes me feel that much better.

That said, there are many ways to get fast. What is your strategy?

Rowers Have Heart

The New York Times suggests bigger is better.

Beat the Heat

The New York Times explains how.

Qualifying for Boston

The New York Times investigates the black market in official Boston Marathon entries.

Running for Dana-Farber

If you want to run a world-famous marathon for a world-famous cancer institute, then keep reading. Perhaps you know you may run for Dana-Farber in any race, of any distance, in any city around the globe. And presumably you know Dana-Farber provides 500 lucky runners (who apply to the DFMC and pledge to raise money for the Claudia Adams Barr Program) with official entries to the Boston Marathon. But did you know Dana-Farber also provides lucky runners with official entries to other races? No? Then today is your lucky day!

Join the Dana-Farber team and receive an official charity number in the following events:

Falmouth Road Race: August 10 (official)
BAA Half Marathon: October 12 (official)
Chicago Marathon: October 12 (official)
New York City Marathon: November 2 (official)

ps See you in Falmouth and NYC!

Chevalier on Clay

Rafael Nadal, I salute you.

Yesterday, Nadal hammered Roger Federer, arguably one of the best tennis players in history, to win his fourth consecutive French Open. I love Nadal.

While I am lauding one champion, I should also celebrate another king with four crowns. (Is any prize as precious as that laurel wreath?) On April 21, Robert Cheruiyot won his fourth Boston Marathon in six years (and his third consecutive). I love Cheruiyot.

Dare I ask, fair readers, which accomplishment impresses you more?

Nutrition for Peak Performance!

The New York Times advocates common sense.
(Thank you, NYT.)

Rowing in China

Coach, here is another fantastic article.
The favorite word of Igor Grinko, the head coach? Suffer.
"A hard practice means pain: legs burning, arms numb, lungs afire."
Best Line: Silver? It means nothing here; you might as well finish last.

Getting Faster

. . . on the water. This article is for you, Coach!

Anne Elliot on the Boston Marathon

The last few hours were certainly very painful . . . but when pain is over, the remembrance of it often becomes a pleasure. One does not love a [race] the less for having suffered in it, unless it has been all suffering, nothing but suffering -- which was by no means the case at [Boston]. We were only in anxiety and distress during the last two hours, and, previously, there had been a great deal of enjoyment. So much novelty and beauty! I have [run] so little, that every fresh [race] would be interesting to me -- but there is real beauty at [Boston]: and in short . . . altogether my impressions of the [race] are very agreeable.

Jane Austen, Persuasion

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday TRP

I promise I will never lose another bet involving one of your masterworks.

Elizabeth Bennet, or yours truly?

You mean to frighten me . . . ? I will not be alarmed . . . . There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.

Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice

134th Running

For those who love racing.

The Finish Line

Did you beat Lance?

Everyone asks this. Alas, the answer is No. If only.

Lance I know you are training hard. So I need to start training hard too. (Ready Coach?)
Lance you will be my rabbit -- I am going to chase you like a greyhound in NYC. And I pledge to do everything I can to return the favor next spring in Boston.
LIVESTRONG indeed.

[Caption: This is my body. And I can do whatever I want to it. I can push it. Study it. Tweak it. Listen to it. Everybody wants to know what I am on. What am I on? I am on my bike busting my ass six hours a day. What are you on?]

Free Press

Given that the Bluestocking Runner is a celebrity, I probably should not be surprised that our bet landed in Publishers Weekly. Only embarrassed that Nixon demolished me.

Arbeit Loves Austen

So who knew? Pride & Prejudice is amazing. Full report forthcoming. Gentlemen, try this line the next time you see a cute girl at a bar:

I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow.

Well said, Darcy, well said.

The Running Bet

The winner (with a guess of 2:52:00) is an old friend of mine and a serious athlete. We played soccer together for years, and attended the same high school and college. He is an accomplished swimmer (a Barracuda, a Tiger, and a Bear). And in college he raced one of my favorite Olympic events: the 1500m freestyle.

Congratulations my friend. Thank you everyone who donated -- you helped me raise over $5000! -- and thank you everyone who bet I would run faster than I did!

Arbeit Reads Austen

The Bluestocking Runner did not just win our bet -- she crushed me. I barely ran ten minutes faster than she did, let alone thirty. (Did I ever mention she won the BAA Half Marathon in 2001 and 2002? She is a rockstar. She said the Women's Marathon Olympic Trials inspired her.) See the results for the 112th Boston Marathon here.

I will begin Pride & Prejudice tomorrow, and I promise to read Emma, Persuasion, and Sense & Sensibility as well. (Mansfield Park too? Fine, I will read them all this summer. The BR and I race again on November 2 in NYC. New race, new bet, new author.) I look forward to many hours of delightful Victorian romance this summer. Could be worse.

Nixon: 3:05:25
Arbeit: 2:52:24

Classic Inspiration XIX

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead!
In peace there’s nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility:
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger;
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood,
Disguise fair nature with hard-favour’d rage;
Then lend the eye a terrible aspect;
Let it pry through the portage of the head
Like the brass cannon; let the brow o’erwhelm it
As fearfully as doth a galled rock
O’erhang and jutty his confounded base,
Swill’d with the wild and wasteful ocean.
Now set the teeth and stretch the nostril wide,
Hold hard the breath, and bend up every spirit
To his full height! On, on, you noblest English!
Whose blood is fet from fathers of war-proof;
Fathers that, like so many Alexanders,
Have in these parts from morn till even fought,
And sheath’d their swords for lack of argument.
Dishonour not your mothers; now attest
That those whom you call’d fathers did beget you.
Be copy now to men of grosser blood,
And teach them how to war. And you, good yeomen,
Whose limbs were made in England, show us here
The mettle of your pasture; let us swear
That you are worth your breeding; which I doubt not;
For there is none of you so mean and base
That hath not noble lustre in your eyes.
I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips,
Straining upon the start. The game’s afoot:
Follow your spirit; and, upon this charge
Cry "God for Harry! England and Saint George!"

William Shakespeare
King Henry, in The Life of King Henry V, act 3, sc. 1.

Classic Inspiration XVIII

Sir, in my heart there was a kind of fighting
That would not let me sleep . . . .

William Shakespeare
Hamlet, in Hamlet, act 5, sc. 2.

The Race

Classic Inspiration XVII

The struggle itself towards the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.

Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus

Resting

Again, I seem to be . . . different. Everyone on the team has been raving about taking the last two weeks before the race easy. Have I? No. This is my least favorite time. I even dislike the word (a homophone of this delightful rhinoceros relative). I want to run hard -- I want to race! Are the Kenyans resting this week? Yes? Then I need to exploit this opportunity and run more! More speed, more distance! I need to carpe diem! (Although even at my peak I probably ran less than those champions are running now . . .)

One of my teammates prompted our Coach to ask me my definition of a very slender candle. I reluctantly explained that I would simply tell him that I was running less than I actually was. In his eyes I saw curiosity, pity, and alarm. He almost smiled, then said, "Seriously, rest."

Anything you say, Coach. But training for NYC starts April 22!

Week 1

Sunday April 13 through Saturday April 19

Sunday -- 7 miles (48:00)

Monday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Tuesday -- 7 miles (48:00)

Wednesday -- 2 miles (19:00)

Thursday -- 5 miles (42:00)

Friday -- Rest

Saturday -- 5K (as fast as possible)

Classic Inspiration XVI

Run mad as often as you chuse . . . .

Jane Austen, Love and Friendship

Classic Inspiration XV

I want to see how much I can stand.

Max Weber

The Bet (Revised)

To make the bet more precise, the Bluestocking Runner and I decided to race against the clock. Regardless of when we start or finish, I must run at least 30 minutes faster than she runs. That is, my official time must be 30 minutes faster than her official time.

How confident am I? Today I borrowed Pride & Prejudice, Emma, and Persuasion from my sister.

Check out this profile of the BR in Runner's World (only the country's premier running magazine). Check out my profile in . . .

Week 2

Sunday April 6 through Saturday April 12

Sunday -- Rest

Monday -- 2 miles (18:00)

Tuesday -- 7 miles (49:00)

Wednesday -- 2 miles (19:00)

Thursday -- 7 miles (49:00)

Friday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Saturday -- 3 miles (30:00)

R.J. Crowley's 3 Miler

In my last race before April 21, I ran three miles in 16:16. Not horrible. Much more to say, but I need to rest.

Arbeit Runs NYC

Sunday, November 2, 2008.

Run with me! Apply here.

$5000

I just broke $5000! Thank you to everyone who has donated. Now, can I raise another $2000 in the next two weeks?

Boston Prep 16 Miler

About 20 meters from the finish line -- is this not worth a thousand words?

(Follow the link and click on the image to see full size.)

Place Your Bets!

I have one final incentive for you, my loyal readers and donors. Win a prize if you guess how fast I run the Boston Marathon on April 21!

Here are the rules:
With every $20 donation, send me your best guess as to what my official time on race day will be. The slowest time that is still faster than my official time will win. That is, do not overshoot. (For example, if I run 2:54:00, 2:51:00 will beat 2:55:00, and 2:52:00 will beat both.)

Send me your guess and shirt size (XS-XL) by April 18.

ps Here is some help. I must run 3:10:00 to qualify for 2009, and I will do everything I can to qualify. I want to break 3:00:00. If I feel good, I will go after 2:55:00 (to qualify again for New York). If I feel fantastic, I will go after 2:50:00. (Use the McMillan Running Calculator to see the marathon equivalents of my official race times.)

New Bedford Half Marathon

Looks about . . . eight seconds too slow.

Tufts Track Run (1 Apr)

400m x 4 x 4.
1 min rest between intervals.
400m rest between sets (about 2:30).

400m __ 400m __ 400m __ 400m
1:29 ____ 1:29 ___ 1:28 ___ 1:27
1:25 ____ 1:26 ___ 1:28 ___ 1:27
1:26 ____ 1:25 ___ 1:26 ___ 1:27
1:27 ____ 1:27 ___ 1:26 ___ 1:23

and now that spring is here, we ran outside at the wonderful Tufts Ellis Oval!

The Bet

I just made a wager with one of the fastest marathoners on the Dana-Farber team -- none other than the Bluestocking Runner!

Our wager is, of course, based on the race. As a Boston qualifier, the BR will start in the first wave -- a few corrals and several minutes ahead of me. (Her number is 6066; that is, she is runner 66 in corral 6. My number is 22175.)

We are racing gun time, not chip time. That is, whoever crosses the finish line first is the winner.
If I finish first, then she must read Gravity's Rainbow.
If she finishes first (by far the more likely scenario), then I must read Pride & Prejudice.

As if I needed more motivation!

Classic Inspiration XIV

Whatever lip-service we may pay to Reason, . . . to moderation and compromise, nevertheless there remains the lion. A lion in each one of you. He is either tamed -- by too much mathematics, by details of design, by corporate procedures -- or he stays wild, an eternal predator. The lion does not know subtleties and half-solutions. He does not accept sharing as a basis for anything! He takes, he holds! . . . You will never hear relativity from the lion. He wants the absolute. Life and death. Win and lose. Not truces or arrangements, but the joy of the leap, the roar, the blood.

Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow

Classic Inspiration XIII

The first quality that is needed is audacity.

Winston Churchill

Week 3

Sunday March 30 through Saturday April 5

Sunday -- 22 miles (2:45:00)

Monday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Tuesday -- Tufts Track Run

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 7 miles (49:00)

Friday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Saturday -- 12 miles (1:30:00) + R.J. Crowley's 3 Miler

BU Law 5K

A big thank you and congratulations to the Student Affairs Office and the BU Law Running Club! Today was the first annual BU Law Race Judicata 5K, and it was awesome. Organizing a road race is hard, and everyone involved did an outstanding job. Registration was easy, the course was fast (we ran down the Esplanade along the Charles) and we received all kinds of swag. For $10, we got shirts (emblazoned with the Running Club's symbol: Justice, in full sprint, holding her scales and torch), a BU Law nalgene, bagels, bananas, water, Gatorade, and the Student Government President spinning the turntables for us post race. Plus the winners got some cool prizes.

The weather was excellent (windy though) and I ran 17:03.

Thanks again everyone!

25 Days and Mile 25

Many DFMCers have described the overwhelming emotion upon reaching Mile 25 (where Beacon crosses over the Mass Pike, just before Kenmore Square). This is where the Dana-Farber crew cheers; this is where our Patient Partners stand waving the posters and signs we made together earlier in the spring. Many stalwart runners freely admit to weeping as they pass their friends, old and young.
Will I cry? Hard to know what I will be thinking or feeling after 25 miles. But should I cry, I will be in good company, real and literary. Literary? Here are the protagonists from my two favorite novels. (Everyone should read Moby Dick; my younger readers may want to wait a few years before beginning Gravity's Rainbow -- I had to edit even the quotation below.) The moments that bring these men to tears are in many ways the pinnacles of their stories.

From beneath his slouched hat Ahab dropped a tear into the sea; nor did all the Pacific contain such wealth as that one wee drop.

. . . and now, in the Zone, later in the day . . . after a heavy rain he doesn't recall, Slothrop sees a very thick rainbow here . . . and his chest fills and he stands crying, not a thing in his head, just feeling natural. . . .

The Elusive Runner's High

The New York Times discusses a new study showing that endorphins do flood the brain after long intense exercise.

Endorphins attach to areas of the brain associated with emotions, in particular the limbic and prefrontal areas. The limbic and prefrontal areas are activated when you see the object of your affection or "when you hear music that gives you a chill of euphoria, like Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3." That is the best description of the runner's high -- that is exactly the feeling.

Best Line: "You could really see the difference after two hours of running. You could see it in their faces."

Classic Inspiration XII

Aye, aye! and I'll chase him round Good Hope, and round the Horn, and round the Norway Maelstrom, and round perdition's flames before I give him up. And this is what ye have shipped for, men! to chase that white whale on both sides of land, and over all sides of earth . . . . What say ye, men, will ye splice hands on it, now? I think ye do look brave.

Herman Melville, Moby Dick

Week 4

Sunday March 23 through Saturday March 29

Sunday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (24:00)

Tuesday -- Waltham Hills

Wednesday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Thursday -- 4 miles (34:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (32:00)

Saturday -- BU Law 5K (17:03)

My Bib Number

22175

22 is the Dana-Farber corral (yes we start at the back).
175 is the magic number. 175 minutes is 2:55:00, and I must run Boston this fast to qualify for New York.

Tufts Track Run (18 Mar)

400m, 600m, 800m x 5.
200m rest between intervals (1 min).
400m rest between sets (2 min).

400m __ 600m __ 800m
1:29 ___ 2:12 ____ 2:53
1:28 ___ 2:13 ____ 2:59
1:28 ___ 2:14 ____ 2:56
1:29 ___ 2:13 ____ 2:57
1:29 ___ 2:11 ____ 2:52

Classic Inspiration XI

And of all these things the Albino whale was the symbol. Wonder ye then at the fiery hunt?

Herman Melville, Moby Dick

Week 5

Sunday March 16 through Saturday March 22

Sunday -- New Bedford Half Marathon

Monday -- 3 miles (29:00)

Tuesday -- Tufts Track Run

Wednesday -- 3 miles (29:00)

Thursday -- 4 miles (35:00)

Friday -- Rest

Saturday -- 18 miles (2:10:00)

My Race as Whale Hunt

The Beginning


The Middle


The End

New Bedford Half Marathon

Yesterday I ran the New Bedford Half Marathon with several other runners from the DFMC. We had great weather for racing: about 40 degrees and overcast with no precipitation. The course is fast. Big hills at miles 3 and 12, but otherwise pretty flat. My goal was sub 1:18:00 (5:57 per mile). I ran 1:18:07 (5:58 per mile). Eight seconds over 13.1 miles is nothing, and I have no good reason for missing my goal. Upward and onward though, April 21 is fast approaching!

ps I recommend the New Bedford Whaling Museum and Moby Dick.

Road Rage

I rarely post about my runs, but I have to post this. I ran three miles today in my old Brown Crew sweatshirt because all my high tech gear was wet. At the end of my run, I take a left at a small four way intersection (from Corey Ave to Summit Road). I had the light, so I cut across the intersection, and continue on my way. And then this horn starts blaring behind me. I move to my right (the road is more than big enough for a car and a runner) and look to my left. As this big Mercedes rolls past this ninety year old man and his ninety year old wife both glare at me and both give me the finger! Both! And as they drove away I saw in their window a bright Harvard decal and thought: Damn, I hope I have that much venom when I get old. Then I ran past them at the next light and blew them a kiss. Go Bruno.

Classic Inspiration X

I assess the power of a will by how much resistance, pain, torture it endures and turns to its advantage.

Friedrich Nietzsche

Tufts Track Run (11 Mar)

One pyramid: up and down.
All rest was 200m (1 min).

400m __ 600m __ 800m __ 1000m __ 1200m
1:25 ___ 2:00 ____ 2:43 ___ 3:27 _____ 4:14

then 600m rest (4 min), and back down

1200m __ 1000m __ 800m __ 600m __ 400m
4:11 _____ 3:31_____ 2:49 ___ 2:05 ___ 1:18

The Pinnacle of Fitness

The New York Times contends, "As a symbol of health and wellness, nothing surpasses the simple push-up. . . . The push-up is the ultimate barometer of fitness."
Forget hitting the road -- I need to hit the deck!
Here are the US Army standards.

CRASH-B Photos

The Race

My coach, 1976 Boston Marathon Men's Champion

Week 6

Sunday March 9 through Saturday March 15

Sunday -- 15 miles (2:00:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (29:00)

Tuesday -- Tufts Track Run

Wednesday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Thursday -- 6 miles (45:00)

Friday -- 3 miles (30:00)

Saturday -- Rest

Classic Inspiration IX

First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.

Epictetus

Week 7

Sunday March 2 through Saturday March 8

Sunday -- 20 miles (2:25:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (20:00)

Tuesday -- 7 miles (55:00)

Wednesday -- 3 miles (21:00)

Thursday -- 7 miles (51:00)

Friday -- 7 miles (50:00)

Saturday -- 3 miles (30:00)

Pumping Iron

I never lift weights. Should I?
The New York Times suggests doing more than push ups and sit ups might be a good idea. Many elite athletes -- from rowers like Mark Flickinger to runners like Ryan Hall -- devote hours a week to strength training.
Nevertheless, not everyone believes getting huge means getting fast. When runners ask Kevin Hanson, a coach at the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project, about leg exercises, he responds: "You let me know if you think we are not working your legs enough. . . . There’s a lot more we can do to beat you up. But you don’t have to lift weights."

Classic Inspiration VIII

The labor we delight in physics pain.

William Shakespeare
Macbeth, in Macbeth, act 2, sc. 3.

CRASH-B Sprints

Is my coach, the 1976 Boston Marathon Men's Champion, a Charles River All-Star Has-Been? Yes. He raced a hard 2000 meters today at the World Indoor Rowing Championships in a proud debut for the official 2008 Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge singlet. I want to give him some much deserved credit. Nice racing, Coach!

Week 8

Sunday February 24 through Saturday March 1

Sunday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Monday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Tuesday -- Rest

Wednesday -- 4 miles (32:00)

Thursday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Friday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Saturday -- 4 miles (31:00)

Classic Inspiration VII

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

. . .

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run --
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And -- which is more -- you'll be a Man, my son!

Rudyard Kipling, If

Tufts Track Run (19 Feb)

8 x 1000m, 400 rest.

1000m ___ 400m
3:40 ______ 1:54
3:40 ______ 1:54
3:41 ______ 1:52
3:41 ______ 1:52
3:38 ______ 1:52
3:34 ______ 1:49
3:29 ______ 1:49
3:18 ______ 2:10

Classic Inspiration VI

Any coward can fight a battle when he’s sure of winning, but give me the man who has pluck to fight when he’s sure of losing. That’s my way, sir; and there are many victories worse than a defeat.

George Eliot, Janet's Repentance

Week 9

Sunday February 17 through Saturday February 23

Sunday -- 2 miles (20:00)

Monday -- 7 miles (58:00)

Tuesday -- Tufts Track Run

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 4 miles (32:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (32:00)

Saturday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Classic Inspiration, Valentine's Day

Why must she be scampering about the country . . . . To [run] three miles, or four miles, or five miles, or whatever it is . . . ! what could she mean by it? It seems to me to show an abominable sort of conceited independence, a most countrytown indifference to decorum.

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Muscle Fatigue

The New York Times suggests my legs are not tired -- rather my skeletal muscles have leaky calcium channels.
Although an "antifatigue" drug worked in mice, one doctor urged caution: "[W]e have to ask whether it would be prudent to . . . circumvent[] this mechanism. . . . Maybe this is a protective mechanism. . . . Maybe fatigue is saying that you are getting ready to go into a danger zone. So it is cutting you off. If you could will yourself to run as fast and as long as you could, some people would run until they keeled over and died."
I am far too soft to be in danger, but some people do not need drugs to push that hard. Although overexertion did not kill him, elite marathoner Ryan Shay comes to mind.

Tufts Track Run (12 Feb)

8 x 800m, 200m rest, 200m fast, 400m rest.

800m __ 200m __ 200m __ 400m
2:58 ____ 1:07 ___ 0:40 ___ 2:05
2:50 ____ 0:58 ___ 0:40 ___ 1:53
2:50 ____ 0:53 ___ 0:40 ___ 1:43
2:49 ____ 0:54 ___ 0:42 ___ 1:47
2:46 ____ 0:53 ___ 0:41 ___ 1:47
2:48 ____ 0:52 ___ 0:42 ___ 1:49
2:50 ____ 0:53 ___ 0:42 ___ 1:45
2:50 ____ 0:52 ___ 0:39 ___ 1:58

Tufts Track

Every Tuesday night, DFMC runs at the Tufts University track. Last night was my first time there. Running with the team was great, and afterwards we went to Red Bones. See my results from last night above.

The Colder the Better?

I keep hearing this from runners on and off the Dana-Farber team. But I do not feel this way. Although I prefer cold bright winter days to hot humid summer days, I will always take forty degrees over four.

Week 10

Sunday February 10 through Saturday February 16

Sunday -- 18 miles (2:10:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (24:00)

Tuesday -- Tufts Track Run

Wednesday -- Rest

Thursday -- 5 miles (39:00)

Friday -- 3 miles (24:00)

Saturday -- 15 miles (1:45:00)

The Dana-Farber turns 60!

Happy Birthday Dana-Farber.
Founded in 1947, the Dana-Farber has a fascinating history.
To learn more, check out Dana-Farber in the News.

Classic Inspiration IV

Ruby wine is drunk by knaves,
Sugar spends to fatten slaves,
Rose and vine-leaf deck buffoons;
Thunderclouds are Jove's festoons,
Drooping oft in wreaths of dread
Lightning-knotted round his head;
The hero is not fed on sweets,
Daily his own heart he eats;
Chambers of the great are jails,
And head-winds right for royal sails.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Heroism

This looks official

Search for "Arbeit" here to see confirmation of my entry in the 112th Boston Marathon.

Week 11

Sunday February 3 through Saturday February 9

Sunday -- 7 miles (54:00)

Monday -- 3 miles (24:00)

Tuesday -- 5 miles (41:00)

Wednesday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Thursday -- Rest

Friday -- 6 miles (48:00)

Saturday -- Rest

Welcome to the Jungle

For those coughing "Arbeit is a gazelle, he is breakfast."

In Africa

Every morning a gazelle awakens knowing he must outrun the fastest lion if he wants to live.
Every morning a lion awakens knowing he must outrun the slowest gazelle or he will starve.
Whether you are a lion or a gazelle makes no difference -- come sunrise you had better be running.

Anyone can do this!

The New York Times suggests running a marathon is easy: "[O]ne man took up running at 62 and ran his first marathon, a year later, in 3 hours 25 minutes."
(He qualified for Boston with 35 minutes to spare. Odds I achieve the same margin and finish in 2:35:00? About the same as my odds of winning.)

Boston Prep 16 Miler Photos

Boston Prep 16 Miler Challenge

If this race intrigues you, let me know. You could easily persuade me to make a trip to Boston next winter to run the race again. Seriously. You might even have fun!

Boston Prep 16 Miler

Today I ran the Boston Prep 16 Miler in beautiful Derry, NH. Quite a race. Here is an unofficial map of the course. Notice that the mountains in the emblem track the elevation gain (see the bottom of the map). So the course has some hills. And today we had snow as well, making the roads (unplowed) somewhat treacherous and the experience much more authentic (or so I was told). I wanted to break 1:40:00 (6:15 per mile). I ran 1:41:52 (6:22 per mile). Not horrible, but not my goal.
Unexpected Encounter: I ran into a friend from college whom I had not seen since commencement. (She drove all the way from Rhode Island!)
Best Line: If you look at the official results you will see that Furukawa beat me by eight seconds. He passed me with two miles to go and I just could not catch him. Right after crossing the finish line we shook hands. He said "Great race" and I said "Great finish. How many marathons have you run?" His response: "Including Ironmen?"

Week 12

Sunday January 27 through Saturday February 2

Sunday -- Boston Prep 16 Miler

Monday -- Rest

Tuesday -- 3 miles (22:00)

Wednesday -- 4 miles (31:00)

Thursday -- 4 miles (32:00)

Friday -- 4 miles (30:00)

Saturday -- 5 miles (36:00)

Classic Inspiration III

In Endymion, I leaped headlong into the sea, and thereby have become better acquainted with the Soundings, the quicksands, and the rocks, than if I had stayed upon the green shore, and piped a silly pipe, and took tea and comfortable advice. I was never afraid of failure; for I would sooner fail than not be among the greatest.

John Keats, Letter to James Augustus Hessey

Seemed like a good reason to me . . .

The New York Times explodes a myth and makes me glad I bought that second pair of gloves.

Week 13

Sunday January 20 through Saturday January 26

Sunday -- 7 miles (51:00)

Monday -- 7 miles (48:00)

Tuesday -- 6 miles (56:00)

Wednesday -- 6 miles (56:00)

Thursday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Friday -- 7 miles (53:00)

Saturday -- Rest

More Classic Inspiration

For I have lost the race I never ran,
A rathe December blights my lagging May

Hartley Coleridge, Long Time a Child

Some Classic Inspiration

Now bid me run,
And I will strive with things impossible,
Yea, get the better of them.

William Shakespeare
Ligarius, in Julius Caesar, act 2, sc. 1.

Week 14

Sunday January 13 through Saturday January 19

Sunday -- 16 miles (2:03:00)

Monday -- 7 miles (54:00)

Tuesday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Wednesday -- 3 miles (26:00)

Thursday -- 8 miles (62:00)

Friday -- 14 miles (2:03:00)

Saturday -- 8 miles (1:10:00)

Week 15

Sunday January 6 through Saturday January 12

Sunday -- 12 miles (1:30:00)

Monday -- 6 miles (50:00)

Tuesday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Wednesday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Thursday -- 3 miles (25:00)

Friday -- 7 miles (58:00)

Saturday -- Rest