This has gotten a lot of play today in various media outlets, but I also wanted to share: Steve Jobs narrated the first “Think Different” commercial “Here’s to the Crazy Ones,” though it never aired on TV.  The actual TV spot was released in 1997, and featured a voiceover by Richard Dreyfuss. I think I would echo a lot of people’s opinion that Steve’s voice is much more fitting, though it is haunting listening to it today.

(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)

Quest for 3:15 – Chicago Training Days 93, 94, 95

Log for October 4, 5, & 6 – Training for Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 9th.  Goal for the fall and winter marathon season is to break 3:15 for the first time.

Tuesday

  • 3-Mile Moderate Run – Nathan, Paxton, and I did a moderately paced 3-mile run using Paxton’s “figure 8” loop on the streets of Bellevue. The temps were cool, but felt good, and my legs felt fresh and strong. I picked up to goal marathon pace for the final 1/2 mile just to keep myself sharp, and to continue to ingrain that pace into my mind.
  • Cross-Training – Tonight I did P90X: X-Stretch to work out any last minute kinks before Sunday. Even though stretching is not strenuous, it can cause muscle fatigue, so I wanted to make sure I gave my legs plenty of time to recover.

Wednesday

  • Rest – With taper in full force, I took today off from running and cross-training and even slept in bit. I’ve been trying really hard this week to get extra rest, knowing this will help a lot come race day on Sunday.

Thursday

  • 5.25-Mile Track Workout – Even though this was technically at track, the “workout” consisted of a 3-mile tempo run at goal race pace. Marc, Paxton, and I did most of the laps together, and finished with an average pace of 7:25 per mile. This is 1 second faster than my goal pace, but it felt very comfortable (even slow at times). I’m pleased with how good I felt, and feel ready to give 3:15 a shot on Sunday. My biggest concern at this point is the weather forecast. Ideally I would like to see race temps in the 40s or 50s, but it looks like it will be in the mid 60s at the start and rising into the 70s.
  • Cross-Training – After track, I did P90X: Shoulders and Arms. I had not been able to do this workout recently due to my hand injury, but those wounds are getting much better.

RIP Steve Jobs

RIP Steve Jobs – Steve Jobs was a MAJOR reason why I fell in love with technology, and ultimately became a technology professional. It is hard to forget the first time I used a Mac, an iPod, an iPhone, an iPad.

I’ve seen lots of articles tonight comparing him to Henry Ford or Thomas Edison, and I don’t think this is a stretch at all. I don’t think there has been another individual in technology/business in the last 25 years who is even worth comparing to the overall genius and excellence of Steve Jobs. There have been many CEOs and industry leaders who have excelled in one or two areas, but how many have excelled as an inventor, designer, innovator, manager, marketer, etc. His name is attached to over 330 patents with Apple. He took a company on the brink of bankruptcy in 1996 to become the most valuable company in the US at the time of his death. He revolutionized not one industry, but at least 3 that I can think of (Computers, Phones / Mobile, Music). He is the most compelling product pitchman I have ever watched or listened to. In a word…Amazing.

He will be missed.

Quest for 3:15 – Butterflies are Raging

We are now five days away from the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, and my nerves are going CRAZY!

  • Part of this is all the extra energy I have from the taper
  • Part of it is seeing warmer temps in the weather forecast
  • Part of it is knowing how hard it is going to be to hold a 7:26 pace for 26.2 miles*

*Last year at the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon I held this pace for 22-miles before hitting the wall hard. It it hard to forget how painful that was.

Quest for 3:15 – Chicago Training Days 91 & 92

Log for October 2 & 3 – Training for Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 9th.  Goal for the fall and winter marathon season is to break 3:15 for the first time.

Sunday

  • Rest – Sunday is almost always a running rest day for me, and I took today especially easy. After morning worship and brunch, I stayed off my feet while watching the Titans game and even iced my knee for a bit (chronic tendonitis for the past 1.5 years). Taper weeks always feel strange for me. I know that the “Hay is in the barn” as they say, but I can’t help but feel like I should be doing more. This final week of taper will only include 12 to 15 miles before the marathon on Sunday.
  • Cross-Training – Olivia and I normally do an ab-workout on Saturday night, but we were not able to get it in yesterday. We ended up doing P90X: Ab-Ripper X tonight, which I followed with a half set of P90X: Chest and Back. The swelling in my hand has finally gone down enough for me to do push ups again.

Monday

  • 5-Mile Recovery Run – Today Nathan and I did a VERY easy 5-mile run on our normal nature center loop in Edwin Warner Park and the Harpeth River Greenway. My legs feel good after the 15K on Saturday, with no lingering soreness, aches, or pains. The goals for this week are pretty simple (1) Don’t get injured (2) Get plenty of sleep (3) Hydrate and fuel properly. Part of not getting injured is to keep running, even though the distance is greatly reduced.

Quest for 3:15 – Chicago Training Days 89 & 90

Log for September 30 & October 1 – Training for Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 9th.  Goal for the fall and winter marathon season is to break 3:15 for the first time.

Friday

  • Rest – I took today off since near the end of my 2nd week of taper. If I get my planned mileage tomorrow at the Shelby Bottoms Boogie 15K (with Warmup and Cooldown), then I should be right at 35-miles for the week, which is about right. Next week should be between 12 and 15-miles before the race on Sunday.
  • Cross Training – I’m not doing any resistance training with my legs since I’m tapering. Also, it is very hard to do anything upper body with the wounds on my hands. Kind of in Limbo.

Saturday

  • 15K Tune-Up Race (9.3 Miles) + 5-Miles Warmup & Cooldown – Today was the Shelby Bottoms Boogie 15K, which is the first of 3-consecutive races over the next 3 weekends for me (Chicago Marathon, Murfreesboro “Middle” Half Marathon). The goals today included:

    1.) Partial simulation of Chicago pre-race routine (food, hydration, warmup).
    2.) Get in one last, good tempo run before Chicago.
    3.) Stay within myself regarding average pace. If anything hurts…slow down.
    4.) If my body allows it, run at a pace that would make marathon pace feel slower.
    5.) Build confidence going into Chicago!

    This is the 12th year of this race which is held on the Shelby Bottoms Greenway and in Shelby Park. The course is almost completely flat, so it is a good place to prepare for Chicago.

    Nathan and I arrived early and did a 4-mile warmup through Shelby Park, starting at an easy pace and slowly building toward race pace. We finished the warmup with 4 x 100m stride-outs to get the lungs going and our legs ready for a faster pace. The only difference with this and my Chicago plan is that my warmup will be no more than 2 miles with 4 x 100m stride-outs.

    As we finished the warmup, we finally ran into Dan and Paxton from our running group and made our way to the starting area. I had planned to start out at goal marathon pace (7:26) and then work my way down based on how I felt. However when the gun sounded a pace just over 7:00 min felt VERY comfortable, so I decided to hang out there for a while. The first 7.5 miles is on the greenway, with a turnaround at 3.75 miles.

    For the first 3 miles I settled into a pretty smooth rhythm with miles of 7:03, 7:05, and 6:59. On the way to the turnaround I counted about 25 runners who were ahead of me and were already on the way back. After making the turn, I completed mile 4 in 7:01 and was feeling fantastic. Since I was feeling so good, I started to pick up the pace a bit and began trying to pick of the runners ahead of me.

    My final 3 miles on the greenway were 6:56, 6:45, and 6:42, and I was able to catch and pass at least a half dozen runners. Once we were in Shelby Park, I could see the lead female runner about 50 yards ahead of me. I decided that I would try to catch her in the last couple of miles. I finished mile 8 in 6:40 and passed several other runners . About halfway through the 9th mile I caught and began to pass the lead female, but she accelerated to match my pace, and stayed within a couple of strides of me for the rest of the race.

    Now that I was slightly ahead of her, there was no one else I could see in front of me to chase. I finished the 9th mile in 6:25, and then tried to remain smooth through the finish. My official time was 1:03:39, which comes out to a 6:51 average pace per mile. This was good enough for 12th place overall, and 3rd place in my age group (35 to 39).

    I was happy that at the end I felt like I could have kept going and nothing was hurting me. Even though the pace was fast, it felt comfortable and controlled. This is a HUGE confidence boost going into Chicago. I was also happy that the other three members of our running group, Nathan, Paxton, and Dan all placed in their age groups. Nathan was 1st in 25 to 29; Paxton was 3rd in 30 to 34; Dan was first in 55 to 59. We all had a good day, and are ready for Chicago!!

When you’re as old as I am they give you an age group award if you cross the finish line and are still breathing

Dan Ashmead (At Shelby Bottoms Boogie 15K this AM)

Quest for 3:15 – Chicago Training Days 87 & 88

Log for September 28 & 29 – Training for Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 9th.  Goal for the fall and winter marathon season is to break 3:15 for the first time. 

Wednesday

  • 4-Mile Barefoot Run – Since I’m not running on Friday (tapering), I moved my normal 4-mile Saucony Hattori run to Wednesday night after Bible Study. I kept the pace very easy, and it ended up being a very enjoyable run (even though it was solo).

    On a side-note there doesn’t seem to be any ill-effects from my fall on Tuesday. Even though I was pretty sure I only injured my hands, I was afraid that when I woke up this morning something else would hurt.

Thursday

  • 7.25-Mile Easy Run – Normally I do track with the JSRC on Thursday, but tonight is Olivia’s birthday, so I decided to meet Nathan for an early morning easy-run through Bellevue. I also didn’t feel the need for a speed workout since I have a tune-up 15K race on Saturday.

    Even through the temps were fairly cool, there was a thick fog which made it slightly uncomfortable. Our first mile was 9:30, but we steadily increased our pace as the run progressed for an overall average of 8:32. Even with the fog, the run was very enjoyable due to the easy pace and good company.

    It is hard to believe that the Chicago Marathon is now just a little over a week away!

I just finished watching the 6-part documentary “Rising: Rebuilding Ground Zero” after it was recommended to me by @PaxtonB & @Keaton_Bell. I almost consider New York to be my second home, and this documentary was very moving for me. Whenever I think about “ground zero,” I am reminded of this picture that I took at site after the 9/11 attacks. It is my understanding that this cross will be included in the memorial museum, and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to see it again. We will never forget.

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Quest for 3:15 – Chicago Training Days 85 & 86

Log for September 26 & 27 – Training for Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 9th.  Goal for the fall and winter marathon season is to break 3:15 for the first time. 

Monday

  • Rest Day – Since I’m firmly in my taper for Chicago, I need to get my total mileage this week down between 32 and 35-miles. With that in mind I decided to take today off to prep for a tough tempo run tomorrow.
  • Cross-Training – Tonight Olivia and I did P90X: Ab-Ripper X + I did one “max out” set of push ups to track my overall progress.

Tuesday

  • 10-Mile Tempo Run – My schedule called for an 11-mile tempo run at marathon pace for today, however since I’m running the Shelby Bottoms Boogie 15K this weekend as a tune-up, I didn’t really feel the need to reach marathon pace.

    Unfortunately Paxton couldn’t run today due to illness, so Nathan and I met at the main gates at Percy Warner Park. We decided to two 2 loops through Belle Meade (one long and one short) to try and reach a total of 11 miles, with a hydration break in-between. Our first mile was 8:29, and was essentially a warm-up mile. After that, most of our miles were right between my goal marathon pace (7:26) and Nathan’s goal pace (7:50). We even threw in one around 7:16 for good measure.

    Our first loop was 7-miles, and I was quite pleased at how good my legs were feeling, and Nathan seemed to be really strong as well. However, at the end of the 3rd mile in our second loop, I tripped over a stray piece of concrete on the side of Highway 100 and fell straight forward onto my outstretched hands (my 2nd fall while training for Chicago). I quickly got up and did an assessment of my condition (WARNING … Gory Description Coming).

    My left hand was cut up pretty good, and I had a few scratches on my right hand and finger. However, other than my shoes, nothing else seemed to have hit. When I looked closer at my left hand, I noticed a small white spot on the top of one of the cuts. At first I thought it was just a fleck of something, but after trying to flick it off I realized it was the top of a rock that was embedded in the palm of my hand.

    The wound was still numb from the fall, so I quickly tried to get the small rock out before the feeling started to return. I couldn’t pull it out, so I essentially squeezed it out like it was a pimple (not fun btw). Once it was out, the wound started to bleed significantly, and I began to worry about getting it stopped. Just as Nathan and I were standing on the road trying to decide what to do, our friend Janna Dedman drove up to say hello. When she saw my hand, she immediately told me to hop in her vehicle.

    This was incredibly fortunate for two reasons. 1.) Janna lived less than 1/4 mile from where I fell 2.) She is a nurse. Nathan and I quickly hopped in her SUV and she took me to her house where I continuously dripped blood on the driveway while Janna and her husband Marc were getting first aid supplies. Janna cleaned up the wounds and applied compression until the continuous bleeding stopped. She then bandaged them up, gave me an ice pack, and graciously drove me back to my car at Percy Warner Park. The Dedmans are awesome people, and one of the many reasons why I LOVE my running group so much.

    So, my planned 11-mile run abruptly stopped at the 10-mile mark. Even with the fall, there were plenty of positives from the effort.

    1.) I’m VERY fortunate that my only injuries are to my hands. Anything more than that would have been very hard to recover from in time for Chicago.

    2.) My overall pace for the run, even with the warmup mile, was 7:40 and did not feel overly fast. I definitely felt like there was another gear there. This also makes sense, since I did a 10-mile run last Tuesday at 7:10 pace. Should be able to further test out my readiness to hold a 7:26 pace at the Shelby Bottoms Boogie 15k on Saturday.

    3.) My heart rate never went above 170, even on the 7:16 mile, and my overall heart rate average was 155. I’ve run half marathons before (last year), with an average heart rate of 175, so this is again a positive sign. I know that the longer I can hold my heart rate down, the longer I can hold a 7:26 pace.

    I plan to get right back up on the horse tomorrow for a 5 to 6 mile shakeout run, but I’m hoping to stay vertical this time 🙂

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