Saying Goodbye to 2007

Another year has passed us by, and I now look back and reflect if ever so briefly on the year that was 2007.

Since this is a running blog I focus mostly on the year in running, but I've tossed in some other memorable items that are special to me and will live in the year 2007.

I ran the fewest races in a year since 2003, completing only 8 of them.My first race of the year was a 30k and set the tone for 2007 when I PR'ed and then sliced 13 minutes off my marathon PR in Cincinnati in May. Even though I will look at the Flying Pig as a disappointment overall, many factors came into play on that one including the loss of our dog Mesa just days before leaving.

A week after returning from Cincinnati I ran the Komen Race for the Cure with my buddy "Pro" and finished with my slowest 5k time ever. Mostly because I had severe tendinitis in my ankle and because I was running with him and had no concern for time.

I also set a PR in the 10k at the Daily American in Somerset on the same day I flew to Boston. A few days later I saw my first baseball game at Fenway Park.

On the 4th of July I smashed by 15k PR by over 13 minutes and was running as solid as I felt I had ever run. Two weeks later I ran a great 5k (not a PR) in Indiana and felt I was peaking on July 21. That would turn out to be somewhat true as another injury be felled me the next week and I would suffer through a horrific month at the beginning of training for the Philadelphia Marathon.

In October I ran a 15k in Delaware, which became a new state for me to run in and although the conditions were very poor (hazy hot and humid) I was able to mentally get myself set for the Philly Marathon. That race would define 2007 missing a BQ by :04 seconds and set my sights on 2008 and what lies ahead.

As the year winds down to its final few hours I think about the new injuries I've worked through, the knowledge I've gained and the year older I've become. I look back at a year that was both challenging and rewarding in so many ways. In addition, I ran my 5,000th mile all-time and refereed in my 1,300th and 1,400th hockey game all-time. I accomplished so much more in my professional life and our family gained another dog (Vee).

With midnight nearly here I begin to think about what I'd like 2008 to bring. Sure, I've got plans already to run in Frederick in May. I have Opening Day tickets to the Pirates in April and have already booked our vacation in June. But like every other year there is much to be unexpected and that is what makes life worth living.

I look forward to the possibilities, working through difficulties and becoming a stronger runner and person. I wish all who might come across and read this good health, good luck and a Happy New Year. Until tomorrow when I post some of my goals for the new year, stay safe.

A Season Ends; Year is Next

With their 30-17 loss to the San Diego Chargers, the Oakland Raiders season came to an end in uneventful fashion at 4-12. Something I have not talked about much on this blog is the fact that I am a lifelong Raider fan.

Part of the reason I went to Direct TV this summer was in large part to be able to get Sunday NFL Ticket and watch the team I've rooted for since I was six years old. Back then, in 1976, the year after the Raiders won their first Super Bowl, I became a Raider fan because of my uncle Tom. He has been a die hard longer than me, and one day at my grandma's for lunch I witnessed an argument between he and my dad that my uncle clearly won. It was that day I decided to go with Uncle Tom and began bleeding silver and black.

This season was special because I saw 15 of the 16 games (the lone exception being a loss against the Vikings because I was in Philadelphia running a marathon; go figure). I watched 13 of those games with Uncle Tom and with the season ending I am sad. It ends a weekly ritual that I will look forward to in 2008.

With the end of anything it makes you wonder about the past and the future. Tonight I began thinking about next year and what will be different. It is the end of one thing and the beginning of something else.

Much like the end of 2007 tomorrow night I will once again think back to a 2007 that was pretty much a successful year. I will also begin thinking of the future and what will 2008 bring?

Until tomorrow when I close the books on 2007 and Tuesday when I open the pages to a brand new year......

It's a Wonderful Life

It's Christmas Eve and my annual ritual of watching It's a Wonderful Life will take place tonight. It is my favorite movie of all time. Yes, it's sappy and yes, it's cliched but the bottom line is what better time of year to realize just how wonderful life is.

Running absolutely has added to the wonder of this particular life and I am grateful for the ability that I have been given. Tonight and tomorrow, it's not about Boston or time or speed work or hill repeats. I will rise tomorrow morning and go through the tradition of exchanging gifts with my wife. I'll have a cup of coffee and perhaps a cookie or two (hey, it's the holidays). Then I'll head out on a nice and easy 5-miler to start off the new week of running that will close out the final week of 2007.

In the next eight days I will run for the joy of running and I will reflect back. But for the next 24 hours I will enjoy my time to rest, relax and recharge.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

5k Finally

After a couple different ice storms and delaying it by three days, I finally went over the 5,000 mile mark of all time last evening. I did it on the treadmill in my basement. No fanfare. Nothing special. Just running in front of the television by myself. I kind of expected that it would happen outside someplace, but it ended up being in the comforts of home.

I had planned on doing it Thursday until an early morning ice and rainstorm hit just before waking up. So I planned on doing just enough mileage to get to 5,000 on Saturday morning until I was offered a chance to go to see Pitt/Oklahoma State. That meant it would be Sunday morning. But another wicked ice and snowstorm hit late Saturday and carried into Sunday. I thought it would subside by yesterday early afternoon. When it didn't I went through with my normal routine of watching the Raiders game and then shortly after the men in black lost to Indianapolis, 21-14 I went to the basement for my epic milestone.

A whole new meaning to the term 5k. 5,000 down, who knows how many to go.......

1,400 and 5,000

As we inch closer to the Xmas Holiday season; which is perhaps my favorite time of year, I am inching toward a couple of personal milestones of significance. It is sheer irony that these two milestones will happen within a couple of days of each other.

If all goes according to plan this week I will officiate my 1,400th hockey game on Thursday evening at Planet Ice Arena. Then, on Saturday I will run a special short run that will take me past my 5,000th mile of all time.

When I began officiating back in 1996 I initially had no aspirations or goals of any kind. Shortly after, I decided that I would like to referee in 1,000 games. Having surpassed that milestone I have established 2,000 as my next goal. In a stunning similarity I never intended on much when I began running, but after awhile the marathon became the goal. Now, obviously the Boston Marathon has become my ultimate accomplishment. In the meantime I have accidentally come upon this number that I find fascinating. I will have run across the United States and then some since 2002. Now that I'm hear, I have plenty left to go and would not only like to get to Boston but 10,000 miles seems like a nice realistic number for me to shoot for in the future.

Fred + Rick = Boston

After nearly three weeks of considering what to do next, I have made up my mind. I'm going to Frederick, Maryland for the Frederick Marathon the first weekend in May.

I have not made it official yet as I await the pending USATF Certification that will make it a Boston qualifier, but I'm nearly 100% certain that's where it will be.

I gave strong consideration to "Last Chance at Boston" in Columbus, Ohio (February) and the B&A Trail Marathon (March), but I want to make sure that I'm not limited in training and with unpredictable winter weather, I have settled on Frederick. It seems to be a little less than flat, but that should motivate me to work on the hills.

I plan on hitting hills heavy and doing much more speedwork than I'm used to in preparation for this one. I'm awful close, and am as confident as I've ever been. I just need to put in the work. Whether or not it's a hangover from Philly or that I'm simply working too much I've been tired and feel sluggish and not completely getting all of my runs in. Perhaps I needed to take more time off, so I'm playing it by ear. With a marathon selected and the holidays coming up, I'm going to take it easy. I'll run, but I'm also going to rest. Yesterday was 10 degrees and I am in a stretch of three consecutive nights of refereeing, so I didn't run yesterday. I need my batteries re-charged, but I remain focused on the goal. But I need to be smart. I look forward to the challenge that those two guys will provide me with. And I'm planning that they (Fred and Rick) will get me to Boston.

149 days to go.....