nashville marathon

when i started this blog, i had big plans to talk about things other than music and books. one of the things i imaged blogging on was running, but clearly that's not materialized - probably because, unless gifted with a humorous take on life, running is actually pretty dull.

that said, i've been running. this saturday i went to nashville and ran the country music marathon, my second marathon. it was pretty awesome, despite being awful. anyone who does long-distance running can probably relate, and i think the extreme of both experiences is what keeps us coming back. i'm hoping to run another full race either this late fall or early next spring.

nashville was great - its one of my favorite cities, and i love visiting. it was a joy to run through most landmarks, remembering my many previous trips to the city, and to think of those fun times with old friends.

my mixed review of race weekend:

PROS
-al gore sat behind me on the plane. seriously a life highlight. unfortunately i'm too timid to have talked to him, but i did eagerly listen to him talk to the woman sitting next to him. and he let me deplane first. awesome!
-nashville.
-cutting 15 minutes off my previous finishing time.
-surviving this race of doom, and knowing that i will likely never run in as difficult conditions again.
-awesome shirts!
-seeing finishers all over town and watching line-dancing at crazyhorse (dancing being clearly out of the question).

CONS
-it was close to 90 degrees when i finished, meaning just over 5 hours in the blistering heat.
-headwinds? i thought this was just a problem in biking - i was wrong. the wind was nice at first to keep us cool, but it was pretty ridiculous at times.
-did i mention the 90 degree thing? i'll confess to treadmilling it when the thermostat passes 70, so i definitely was out of my element.
-hills, hills, hills.
-super-sunburned face because i forgot a hat - oops!
-allergic reaction to my sunscreen & lingering hives that are driving me crazy.
-nine hours in the airport.
-having to watch the swine flu briefing in a crowded airport (more on that later).

life is sadly back to the old grind, except for the soreness and itchiness. i took a short run today, and after the initial pain and awkwardness, my legs feel a lot better.

everyone should run a marathon. seriously. talk to me about it, they're the best.

allergic legs:

my heart breaks without this

i miss bike&build.

on riding and running

every week i try to make myself ride at least 100 miles and run at least 10. even though i usually find myself doing the lion's share on saturdays, i've managed to meet my goal for the past few weeks. therefore i've learned that its a reasonable goal - the kind that is best defeated by sheer laziness.

i'm about a month into living in northern virginia, having spent the past two years living just down i-95 in richmond. the differences between fairfax and richmond in riding and running is pretty drastic. when i was training for the marathon in richmond, each run was a defiance of death by auto. there are almost no available sidewalks outside of richmond proper - leaving runners such as myself in henrico county to amble along the very shallow shoulders of three-lane highways. riding in richmond, however, is great - there's a strong cycling community and lots of people ride, and though i'd often be on huge divided highways, the traffic is generally light and drivers friendly.

northern virginia is a runner's paradise. there are paths along every major road, sidewalks nearly everywhere, and plenty of company. riding, unfortunately, is another story. while there are lots of "bike paths" available, they're really not suitable for road bikes (and definitely not for my rather worn front tire). fairfax county has done a very nice job trying to accomodate cyclists but the traffic defeats me. there are so many drivers at every hour of the day, and they expect riders to be on the paths. perhaps i've just lost some confidence since this summer, but i end up riding almost all of my 100 miles on a stationary because the roads are too intimidating for me. i suppose if i had a hybrid or a commuting bike i'd be much happier on the paths, but i think i'm more likely to invest in a trainer and continue watching tv while i ride. perhaps a group would help me get over my crowded suburban riding anxiety? or maybe this is a great opportunity to switch back into more running?