I Saw Little Green Men

Yep.. I saw them, thirteen of them and a couple of really big ones at the end. I've been hearing about the Martin Marathon for a while now, and this year was the one to run (if, for no other reason, just to get a shirt with a Martian popping out of it). I'd have to admit, it was a really fun race. I ended up getting a PR by about 30 seconds and came in 110th overall - not too bad for an old man.

The weather was great for running, the crowds were good, and the bananas were tasty. All together, not a bad race. The Expo lacked, and the route wasn't very scenic though. If you're looking for a fun and fast Spring Marathon/Half this would be the one; at least if you're local.

Indoor Training's Comming to an End

Well, almost.

As I sit here on this beautiful Saturday morning planning to hit the Stony Creek Loop for a nice 6 mile run before work, I'm amazed how my plans for the morning have changed so dramatically from just ten minutes ago. I woke up, made coffee, opened the windows to this lovely, cloudless morning, and checked my weather station to get a feel of the temperature. Just as the aroma of the beans hit my nose the frigidness of the morning hit my brain - 12 degrees. The weatherChannel.com can't leave it at that - I might have still gone. No, it has to go a bit further; it then proceeds to inform me that it feels like 3 degrees and windy and heavy snow flurries. Back to the Gym I go.

But, I can wait it out. February is coming to a close and with March comes rain, mud, getting on the trails, and racing season for 2009. I've had some great fun throughout 2008 and am looking forward to 2009 and all of the new challenges that I hope to overcome.

I've been Mountain Biking since 1991, serious since 1997, and have never participated in one race. This year will be different; I've joined the Rochester Bike (Sport Community) Team and plan on racing with them throughout. RBS has already started training at the store, and I've been able to meet up and train numerous times. The group seems to be a bunch of good people; fun to be around and excited about biking (I think the coach is tring to kill us).

I've been running since December of 2006. I entered my first race - a trail half marathon - in September 2007, and loved it. Since that time, I've entered multiple races throughout 2008; ending the season with the Detroit Marathon this last October. I've met many great runners and running groups, and hope to do a lot of miles this year with them. These 8:00am runs need to end, though.

I've got two goals this year; Running - to qualify for the Boston Marathon, Biking - to finish the Iceman Cometh race in the top 10%. That’s it, not to much to ask for. High expectations when the coffee kicks in.