Take It Easy - marathon theme song?

Adapted from Jackson Browne hit, "Take It Easy". (actual song begins at 2 minute mark).

Well I'm a-running down the road trying to loosen my load

I've got twenty-six miles on my mind
Four with too many hills, five into the wind
Two across a bridge that makes me whine.

Take it easy, take it easy
Don't let the sound of your own feet drive you crazy
Lighten up while you still can
Don't even try to understand
Why you run marathons over and over, so take it easy.

Well I'm a-nearin’ the corner in Crystal City
With such a fine sight to see
It's the mile 23 sign, my lord,
Starin’ back at me.
Come on quads, don't say maybe
I've got to know if you’re goin’ to cramp and scream
We may run slow or we may win
But we will never be here at MCM again
So c’mon legs just let me get back to Rosslyn.

Well I'm a-runnin’ mile twenty-five trying to loosen my load
Got a world of trouble on my mind
Lookin' for motivation to keep on goin’
But it’s just a little hard to find
Take it easy, take it easy
Don't let the sound of your own feet drive you crazy
Come on quads, don’t say maybe
I gotta get up the hill to finish and see my baby.

You know we got it easy
We oughta take it easy

Ode to the Barefoot Runner

OR, Why Pete Likes to Run Barefoot

Pete’s story begins in days of lore, when Pheidippides ran from the battlefields of Marathon to Athens (25 mi) to announce the Greek victory over Persia in the Battle of Marathon (490 BC).

This professional runner/courier had previously gone 240 km (150 mi) in two days prior to his last run.

With his last bit of strength, Dippy, as he was more commonly known, squeaked out the words “Joy to you, we've won”, and promptly died. These words, centuries later, became a hit for the band, Three Dog Night (Joy to the World).

Pete was there (see photo of Pete on left - he still wears that outfit some Saturday mornings). It’s a little known fact, not even Wikipedia has it correct (and I used to believe everything I read on the internet). Pete ran alongside Dippy, both of them wearing the preferred running sandal of the times, Nike Air Sparta. Dippy, who had purchased his sandals at the local discount bazaar, soon saw them begin to disintegrate over the rough terrain. Pete, a loyal compatriot, gave Dippy his sandals. Running barefoot didn’t bother Pete due to his previous intensive training on the Erie Canal mule path. He actually preferred barefoot running and was known to ride his chariot in similar fashion.

You may wonder why Pete didn’t perish at the end of the grueling run? Pete drank olive oil along the way to stay hydrated and Dippy apparently thought that was crazy. In current times Pete has switched from olive oil to pickle juice.

Pete also paced Abebe Bikila during his first Olympic marathon victory in 1960. Abebe is a legend for finishing the race barefoot. He learned it all from Pete.

Obviously Pete has lived a long and interesting life. He has many more long runs ahead of him, including this weekend’s Toronto Marathon. We wish him well and hope all the water stops have pickle juice.

USA Olympic Marathon Trials

Well, I didn't win the $250,000 from LetsRun.com for correctly predicting the top ten male and female finishers in the trials marathon. I did have two of the three top men and women, but in the wrong order (Hall & Meb, Goucher & Davila).

The top four men with their times were; Meb Keflezighi (a pr) 2:09:08 to win over Ryan Hall (2:09:30) with Abdi Abdirahman (2:09:47) barely hanging on for an 8 second win over Dathan Ritzenhein, (2:09:55). The top six men went through 13.1 miles in 1:03:25 before "slowing".  Meb's 2:09 averages out to 4:55 per mile.

The top four women were; Shalane Flanagan (2:25:38) beat Desiree Davila (2:25:55) with a strong surge over the last mile and Kara Goucher was third in 2:26:06. Amy Hastings broke the old Trials record at 2:27:17 but didn't make the team. Deena Kastor (age 38) was 6th in 2:30:40. Unlike the fast start of the men's race, the women began at a modest 6:15 or so pace before gradually picking it up. Flanagan's 2:25 comes to an average of 5:34 per mile. Shalane won a Bronze medal in the 2008 Olympics in the 10,000 meters, so she definitely has the speed. Melissa White (Naples, NY, SUNY Geneseo) finished 13th in 2:34:33.

The Houston course seemed interesting and great for spectators. The weather was perfect for marathoning, beginning with a temperature of 43 and ending up around 50. With NBC and the USATF agreeing to not allow any live coverage via television or the web, viewers were left with a two hour highlight show in the afternoon. Actually it wasn't the full two hours since a hockey game went over and NBC cut out over ten minutes of coverage.

The announcers were knowledgeable, but the lack of telling us what mile the runners were at on the course was maddening. NBC kept showing the elapsed time, which really doesn't mean much in a race where top three is the only real important factor. Viewers were left with figuring out the miles ran based on the pace they kept telling us the runners were going at. Once in a while you could pick out a mile marker on the road and know where they were. Also, as usual, they never mentioned anyone past sixth place in either the men's or women's race. Especially with a tape delay the station could have at least had something scrolling across the screen. Even NASCAR and golf gets that.

Keep treating the sport like minor league and it will fulfill that prophecy.

Bengal Tigers, Molly the Dog

During running races there is a saying that "it felt like an elephant jumped on my back", meaning how heavy your legs got and there was no choice but to slow down.

Apparently UK wildlife photographer, Paul Goldstein is going to run four marathons during the month of April with a Bengal Tiger on his back.
Mr. Goldstein is raising money to assist in saving Bengal Tigers from the rampant poaching going on. The money will buy equipment and patrol vehicles for the parks where tigers are supposed to be protected and encourage more tourists to visit, adding to the local economy.

In a related story, MW is planning on running three races, the Spring Forward 15k, Lilac 10k and the Lake Placid half-marathon with Molly on his back. Molly is Mike's 10 pound dog. MW likes to pretend he doesn't like Molly, but I rarely see the two apart. It's fine if MW wants to take Molly on car trips and run with Molly in a carrying pack that most parents use for a child. Problems arise at the SUNY Brockport pool however, as most swimmers don't appreciate MW and Molly sharing a lane while doing the doggy paddle. It's also bizarre when MW hooks his Wizard of Oz bike basket to his Trek road bike, loads in Molly and races Eileen around town. MW is raising money for his Scotch Whiskey fund.

Fall Marathons

Did I miss the memo on the renewed interest in marathons? Jan has been training and me, semi-training, for the Wineglass Marathon in October. We found out last week that registration closed, a first for this marathon.
Looking for alternates, I discovered today, August 9, that the Mohawk-Hudson marathon and half-marathon are closed. Two weeks ago Steamtown closed. These are three marathons that never sell out.
Are baby-boomers checking off items on their bucket lists? Are the times allotted for marathon "running" too long (up to 7 hours) so more people find finishing doable?

The search continues, with cost also being a consideration, for example Philly, is up to $125. Still a few bargains out there that are open, such as Harrisburg at $55, Columbus Ohio at $75. Richmond Suntrust in Virginia is also open, but is currently $90.
It will be an interesting decision on which to run.