RaceReady News

I've been a consistent runner since 1988 and have been faithful about keeping a running journal. A few months ago I got curious regarding how many total miles I have run over the years. I got out the yearly journals and did some calculating. To date, I have run over 43,870 miles! Those 15 years of over 2,000 miles per year do add up.

I looked at the odometer in my current car, a 2001 Honda Civic, which is a good car by the way. The odometer just turned over 39,200 miles. The car is in good shape and gets the required maintenance, oil changes etc. My aging body needs the maintenance, too. If I wish to continue to have more mileage on my body than on my current automobile, which by the way I do, it is definitely time to cross-train!

I've developed a good routine which works well for me. I'll run long on the weekends and then swim Monday. The non-impact of the swimming is a welcome change of pace. Also, it helps work out the upper body which runners tend to neglect. I try to swim once or twice a week. Thursday mornings I've been doing a Spinning Class (bicycling to music for those of you who need a definition of Spinning.) It's a great mid-week workout and I've found that it helps with my leg-turnover in my running, which has been slowing down as I've gotten older. I also hike more frequently these days, and will substitue a nice hike instead of a run when I think my body is on the verge of "running overload."

The Cross-Training routine has worked well for me these past few years. It's nice to have the variety. However, the most important reason I cross-train is so that I can keep on running into the future! It's apparently working!
Gotta run!

Posted by mary button at 5:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It's that time of year when the holiday catalogs are arriving by the dozens! I guess I really shouldn't complain about receiving so many catalogs when we have just mailed our RaceReady Catalog to the 18,000 customers in our data base. (Don't worry - if you are one of those 18,000 we will never trade or sell your information.)

I've noticed a trend with the offerings in this years Catalogs: Gadgets! Big theme is IPODS. I didn't realize there were such an abundance of IPOD types and carriers. I also get a kick out of expensive kitchen gadgets. Think your StarBucks coffee is costly? You too can make your own expresso at home for $1495. If that is over budget, how about your very own hot dog cooker for a mere $49? Ah, the joys of the modern kitchen!

One of the aspects of running, walking & hiking that has always appealed to me is that they are gadget free sports! The only necessary pieces of equipment are some shoes, some clothes and some ground. These days many marketing folks would like you to think otherwise. This weekend when we were training in the Park, we bumped into several folks with fancy-smancy walking sticks and fanny packs, fuel belts etc. Perhaps the logic is that if you plunk down beaucoup bucks for this "equipment" that you will enjoy the sport more. I don't know about you, but I would rather us go back to the good old days when if you needed a walking stick you picked one up from the ground and then put it down when you were finished with it. What a simple concept. As for water, I don't personally need to be weighed down with all that carrying paraphernalia either, when I am only out for a few hours. I've found that carrying my water bottle in my hand works just fine, thank you. As they say, "to each his own!"

Posted by mary button at 3:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A few weeks ago I was "bitten by the Marathon bug" again! In past years I would run 2 or 3 marathons per year. It seemed like I was constantly training for or recovering from a marathon. Last December I ran Tucson Marathon. It was my 26th marathon and since a marathon is 26 miles, I thought it would be my final adieu to marathoning.

Then I had a brilliant idea. Why not run another marathon up in Napa Valley? It sounds like an ideal course with beautiful scenery, gentle rolling hills, and a relatively small field of 2,000 runners. The seed was planted. Next I convinced Gerry what a wonderful idea it would be to run Napa, and so now I have a training partner!

This was our first real "training" weekend. We ran 4 + miles on Friday morning. Saturday morning we ran nearly 13 miles on the "flats" of Griffith Park with our friends Janet & Kiki. This morning we ran 9 miles in the park.

It was a beautiful clear day. When we reached the top of Mt. Hollywood, we were rewarded with a spectacular vista and could even glimpse Catalina Island, 60 miles away! So, we covered nearly 26 miles over the weekend. Now, although I am feeling a bit tired, I feel that I'm on the road to Napa!

Posted by mary button at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Despite the 80 degree weather we have been experiencing this past week, Thanksgiving is less than a week away! This year we will visit with Gerry's family in Southern Illinois. This has been our tradition for the past several years. Gerry comes from a big family and grew up on a farm with mom dad & 7 brothers and sisters. These days there is no longer a farm, but his parents live in Edwardsville IL. Thanksgiving Dinner is held at his sister Ginny's house, just outside of Alton. We have a wonderful feast, and usually there is at least 25 people, including parents, brothers & sisters, neices and nephews.

On Saturday morning, our tradition is to participate in the annual Great River Road Run. It is a 10 mile race that starts and finishes in downtown Alton and this will be the 46th annual race. Gerry's uncle Mike Brazier is the only runner who has participated in every single one of the 45 River Road Runs. We're fairly certain he'll show up again this year for #46. We're looking forward to the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. It's a great time to get together with the family, and do a great race, too!

Posted by mary button at 3:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Question: Some friends and I are training for the "Goofy" race at this year's Disney Marathon. 1/2 marathon on Saturday and a full marathon on Sunday. What training suggestions do you have?
Thanks,
Corrie

Answer: Basically, you are training for an "Ultra", which is a distance greater than the marathon distance. Doing 39.3 miles over the weekend is a challenging goal! I would approach the training the way you normally train for a marathon, except I would try to include a few more longer runs than you usually do in your marathon training.

To survive the "Goofy" I would suggest taking a very "serious" taper before the race weekend. Also, I would really take it easy on the 1/2 Marathon on Sunday. Be certain to stay well-hydrated and eat a good meal with carbohydrates & adequate proteinwithin 2 hours after the race on Saturday. Maybe you can take a nap Saturday afternoon, or at least spend the afternoon in a relaxing manner. On Sunday I would start the marathon at a very conservative pace, as your legs will be tired. This should be a fun challenge for you and your friends, so enjoy the experience, but be careful and don't push yourself. Have Fun in Disney! We'll see you at the Expo prior to the race. Cheers, Mary

Posted by mary button at 3:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question:
I'm a new runner. And I ran two marathons this year. My last marathon was in June. And I started training for another one in February. I'm up to 12 miles on my long runs. However, the marathon sold out early. And I might have to run in January. My question is does this give me enough time to adequately train?? The marathon is on the second week of Jan.
Thanks,
Trish

Answer:
It is now mid November. If you can increase the distance of your long runs by a few miles every 2 weeks you should have enough time to train to finish a marathon, considering you are an experience marathoner and not "starting from scratch." I suggest that you do a 14-16 mile run in November. I would suggest that you do a run of 18-20 miles in December and also a run of 20-22 miles in December. If your marathon is in mid to late January, you will also have enough time to do an additional long run in early January and still have time to taper. If the marathon is in early January, then you may not have enough training time to get in that extra run. Either way, you will probably be "under trained" for this 3rd marathon, but with a strong mind and your running base you should be able to finish. I would not set high expectations for a specific goal race time since you will not have very many long runs under your belt before the race. Have a GREAT third Marathon! Mary

Posted by mary button at 3:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Gerry & I are fortunate with our Expo traveling because we have the opportunity to see different cities throughout the country. Although most of the time is spent on the Expo floor working, we try to treat ourselves to a nice run in the area we are visiting. Usually this is a long run on Sunday.

Often we will do the official race, especially if there is a Half-Marathon distance involved. We've done several wonderful Half Marathons over the years, including: San Francisco, Grandma's (Duluth, MN), Indi-Mini (Indianapolis), Flying Pig (Cincinnati), Tucson, Philadelphia Distance Run, Carlsbad and many others.

We both really enjoy trail running. Although doing races is fun & exciting, it is also great fun to escape the crowds and find ourselves running on a beautiful trail. Our favorite out-of-town run is along the Seventeen Mile Drive. We try to do this run when we're "in town" for the Big Sur Marathon Expo. We usually stay in adjacent Pacific Grove when we travel up to the Monterey Peninsula for the Big Sur Marathon. Pacific Grove is lovely! It's a gem of a town - scenic & peaceful. We start our run on Sunday morning at the Pacific Grove Gate (near #4)

and run up toward Pescadero Point (#18). We can run on trail most of the way and pass several breath-taking overlooks. Usually we run for over an hour before we decide to turn around. This is truly one of those runs that we always enjoy. It is our just reward to run here, and we anticipate this run whenever we're on the Monterey Peninsula. (Note: Although they charge cars to go through the Entry Gates of Seventeen Mile Drive, it is free if you are on foot!)

Posted by mary button at 3:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)