Resolutions

28 Wednesday Dec 2016

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cup

I don’t always make New Years resolutions, but when I do, I blog them. Completing a thousand mile drive home from Texas to Colorado gave me ample time to contemplate. I came up with two goals, both doable. Enlarge the photo if needed to read my new coffee cup. You’ve been warned.

First resolution is to run a marathon in 2017. Sure, I’ve run marathons before but this time will be different. This marathon will be spectacular. This marathon will qualify me for Boston. I didn’t run any marathons at all in 2016. It was an injury year. Strained hamstrings and lower back pain. Although truthfully, I ran less to devote time to writing. Hard to do it all, but I’m going to in 2017. I’ve run within seconds of qualifying the past two years. My plan is to run the Colorado Marathon May 7th, fast enough to qualify for the 2018 Boston Marathon.

Next goal is to publish my next novel. Maybe not publish, but I’ll start writing. I already outlined the story in my head during the two day drive from Austin and just finished capturing it in notes. I’m changing up my writing goals a bit from my first book. It was important to me to experience the writing and publishing process, end-to-end, the first time around. I gave myself a target date to ensure I finished. It’s fair to say, writing a novel is one of those projects so many start and never finish. So completion was paramount to me.

For my second novel, I want to focus on two other areas of writing – quality and marketing. I want my second novel to be better than my first. I think it will be. And I want to put more energy into a marketing plan. I’m willing to take longer to write for a better book. And I’ll expect to allow for multiple months after it’s complete to perform the requisite marketing tasks. Obtaining a review before publishing could take a couple of months. I might even enter contests. I might also put more into up front research. I’m going to budget two years for this second book. I still think setting a timeline is important. My experience on the first novel was to treat it like a project, and projects have target dates.

The benefit of stretching the book process out for two years is I’ll have more time for running. I recall a good twenty years of my life where I had zero hobbies. Now I have two. Life just keeps getting better.

How to Train for a Marathon…

17 Thursday Feb 2011

Posted by Ed Mahoney in Running

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

America's Biggest Loser, Austin, Austin Marathon, marathon, training

…on four miles per day. Assuming it’s even possible. I’ll find out this Sunday when I run the Austin Marathon. The first step to establishing this training regimen is to let work take priority over your personal life. I know that sounds counter-intuitive to most serious runners. But it’s key to not having the time to properly prepare for 26.2 miles. Next step is to gain 10 pounds. Don’t forget to gain weight as you near your event. Imagine the horror of reaching mile 18 and some volunteer hands you a half gram packet of honey. Fat runners never hit the wall. At least not on America’s Biggest Loser.

Maybe that was too many sentences of sarcasm in a row. But it’s more than warranted. You tell me. Who else do you know that’s gained 10 pounds training for a marathon? I’m still glad I scheduled this February junket to Austin for a 26 mile ramble up and down Congress Avenue; I was out there running in some pretty unfair winter weather. Gaining 10 pounds isn’t as bad as gaining 15. But I’m disappointed knowing I won’t be completing my second marathon in less than 6 months in more impressive fashion. I really can’t predict just how I’ll run because I don’t have enough races under my belt to have a strong sense of my pace. I do feel a little bit more experienced. My feeling is that I’ll finish right around 4 hours. More likely over than under. My time isn’t as important to me though as being able to run the course comfortably. Failure would be having to walk. I might not admit to walking but if I finish closer to 5 hours – you’ll figure it out.

I won’t admit to wimping out over the last four months. My excuse is work. It got the better of me. Even now, I’m writing this blog in a Detroit hotel room. I had to fly out here Wednesday and will return Friday. I haven’t run since Tuesday and won’t again until the big day Sunday. I’ll have a 12 hour turn-around in my own bed Friday night/Saturday morning, and then get back on a plane to Austin. Pretty poor prep for a marathon, but we’ll see how it goes. I’ve never considered canceling. I’m confident I can run it slowly. I feel sorry for one of my RRHS cross country buddies who was going to run the half marathon. Nancy Wilson Basey got sick this week – fever, coughing, the works. She has to be disappointed and I can empathize. It helps me appreciate that at least I can still run, albeit slower than I had hoped.

I suspect this will be my last post before the race. Thanks to everyone whose been lending me support. Especially my understanding wife, Karen, and my brother, Steve who is picking up my race packet as well as me from the airport. Next blog post will be Sunday night.

Denver Marathon 2010

17 Sunday Oct 2010

Posted by Ed Mahoney in Marathons, Running

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

26, Denver, Denver Marathon, Ed Mahoney, marathon, run, Running

I ran the Denver marathon this morning. My first marathon in 30 years. I’ve slowed down from when I was 18, but I’m still kickin’. Ran it in 3:36, about an 8.5 minute pace. Have yet to get my formal time, but I’ll update this link once it’s posted. I’ll admit I wasn’t too excited about this run. I signed up for it after the IPR to continue pushing myself after that run in September. I certainly wasn’t nervous like I was for the IPR. I knew after completing that run that a marathon was doable. So no butterflies at the starting line. But a really nice sense of accomplishment at the finish line.

The weather was incredible. It started out cool enough that I wore warm-ups before the start. It felt like around 50^o, but there wasn’t any wind. I wore a pair of Nike dri-fit running shorts that had pockets the perfect size to hold my iPhone without it bouncing around. And I went with the hi-tech, long-sleeve race jersey I bought as part of the race gear. Hi-tech race jerseys are made of a fabric that keeps the sweat off your skin. It was much lighter than what a cotton shirt would have been. I was looking to wear something that was a single layer so that I wouldn’t have to discard anything. I rolled up my sleeves at the 5K mark and was comfortable throughout the run. I also wore my Nike running hat but didn’t need it for warmth. I wear it to keep the sun off my head. But this course winded through tree-lined streets in stunning Denver parks and neighborhoods. I wasn’t exposed to direct sunlight until the last 3 miles. And I doubt it warmed up beyond 70^o. Fairly ideal running temperatures.

The course was flat enough. There’s a small hill after 3 miles when you cross Broadway going up 17th St. After that are what I would describe as slopes, but nothing to noticeably affect my pace. Well, until after 15 miles when slight slopes suddenly felt steep. I did begin to slow down on uphill segments at that point – a clear sign of fatigue. I signed up for a service that text me and my friends with pace and times at certain splits; 5K, 10K, 11 miles, 13 miles, 20 miles and the finish. The records indicate I ran well under an 8 minute pace for the first 10K, then slowed down to an 8.5 mile pace (my overall average) up until somewhere between 12 and 15 miles. By the 20 mile mark I had slowed down to a 9.5 mile pace and ran a 10.5 mile pace for the final 6 miles. Although I can tell you that it was the last 3 miles where I began to really wind down. I noticed my stride shorten a bit at 20 miles but extremely at mile 24 and even more during the final mile. My hamstrings were tightening and I fully expected my right hamstring to cramp up during the final half mile. I’m surprised it didn’t but slowing down must have kept it in check.

I felt quite comfortable the entire race until the final few miles where I began to chafe from the salt buildup and, while I never hit the wall from energy depletion, my legs became weighed down from exhaustion. I was never in danger of walking and with only a couple of miles remaining it was easy to stay positive. I did experience a stitch around 17 miles that worried me for a spell. Forgive the graphic description, but a knot started in my right nut and shot up under my rib cage. It only lasted a quarter mile or so. I suspect it stemmed from a combination of drinking at an aid station and running up a hill. Never had a stitch in my balls before. Speaking of that, my groin became pretty sore near the end as my legs grew heavy and my hamstrings threatened to cramp. I’m happy all the pain was so close to the end of the run. Would have been work otherwise.

I think I’m done with road races for the season. Work is getting so busy I can’t find time for long runs during the week and can only do 8 and 10 milers on the weekend. My New Year’s resolution was to start up road racing again, after foregoing them for two decades. I ran four; the Bolder Boulder 10K, the Garden of the Gods 10 Miler, the 17 mile Imogene Pass Run and now the Denver Marathon. Mission accomplished.