Farwell to the big blue ball

Farewell to the big blue ball
I have been with my big blue ball for 3 years. It is my weight room, dining room chair, guitar practice chair, and entertainment for my guests. It follows me through the house. It has been there for me.
I just realized that it will no longer hold lots of air.
It is time to replace my big blue ball.
Good bye Big Blue Ball.


Mountaineer goals
1. I need to streamline my travel. We are camping at IM. So these other races serve as travel practice. I have to get small.
2. Time to give the new Blue Seventy long sleeve wet suit a try.
3. I am going to try out my nutrition strategy.
4.Have fun
5.celebrate Nichole's birthday.

I am packed and ready to roll. I am starting to get excited about this race.

The Coventry Caribou closed down on Monday. We have no coffee shop in coventry since 1976.
Where will I read the paper? Where will I find a friendly face between workouts. Hopefully we will get a new cafe soon.

Good stuff at work
We are being taken care of. It is nice to feel valued. We take a lot of pride in the work we do.

Anyhow I will check back in Sunday or Monday....

Things that might have been

"A bad day is a day when you lie in bed and think of things that might have been"

-Paul Simon

I am sitting here in my living room. I am watching a PBS special concert for Paul Simon. The line I quote is from the song Slip Sliding Away.

I spent 12 years wondering what might have been. When I was 21 I said goodbye to the girl I loved most. She went her way and I went mine. Most days I thought of her. Most days I missed her. Most days I felt I had made a big mistake. I lived with regret. It was deep and it controlled me in many ways.

During 2003 We became reunited through the internet. It was magical. Fairytale stuff. I proposed She accepted, and we began planning.. We both had struggles with income and we were partying far to much. In many ways we had become very bad influences on each other.

She spent many days wondering what might have been and eventually returned to her former life to explore her past. This time she left me. I was lost.I had no idea what had just happened as she handed me the ring. Blamed me and left. I guess sometimes it is easier to leave when you can blame the other.

The summer of '04 I spent drinking, smoking, staying up late, drinking, and just trying to be with other people. She would return once in a while to make sure she still had me firmly wrapped around her finger.

I did not train for triathlon that summer. It was the furthest thing from my mind.

Come Thanksgiving I ran into her in a bar. Something clicked and I decided that this was not going to destroy me. I realized that this regret was foolish. I understood that this person was not worth doing this to myself.

I began working myself back into shape. I pulled the bike out of my folks basement. I started running again. I talked my friend Mickey into swimming....

HEEHEEHAHA..... Sorry, Grover and Elmo are singing Feeling Groovy.

I built a master plan that would wind up at Ironman Wisconsin in 'o7.
So far, my plan is only off by a continent.
Today I am looking forward. My backwards view was blue. No more regret No more what might have been. Today I move forward. Today I am a better person in so many ways. Today I am happy.

Something I love about this blog network is how so many of us are working toward goals and achieving them. Thank you all for sharing your story

Next up. The Med Express Mountaineer this coming Sunday.
I have been really enjoying Jodi's success this week as well as starting to put together travel plans for Wisco...opps, UK.
What I am trying to say, is that all I can think of is IRONMAN.
Right now however I have to get my mind on the race. It is a half IM distance race. I am a little worried that I am taking it to lightly. I am concerned that I am not respecting the distance.
I am following my taper plan. I am getting extra sleep. I am eating really well. But I am struggling with visualization. I am jumping straight to Sherborne Dorset in the UK. I am searching my mind for the 1/2 and I can't see it. All I see is IRONMAN. This Train is Bound for Glory.

The good news is that today I don't spend my days wondering what might have been. I am no longer Slip Sliding Away.....


Side note. Paul Simon is one of four American (folk) songwriters I pay tribute to in this post. Can you name the others?

Waiting for the high dive.

Remember when you were a kid and you stood in line to go off the high dive?. Do you remember how as each of your friends jumped successfully, your ability to back out became less and less of a reality?

Well, Jodi jumped today. 12:37. Awesome. Congrats Dr. IM Jodi

Just a year ago when we met, all I could talk about was my IM dream. She was looking toward her first sprint. She is now an Ironman and I am still waiting on the ladder behind Jen, Nathan, Tim and others that are now stepping out onto the board, poised for a dive into Lake Placid.

My workouts this weekend were based on race recovery and race prep. The big workout was a 4k swim. 1st time doing that. Not bad. The air was cool yesterday so the pool was sorta empty.
Later, I did a brick. Today I rode hills with Rob Reddy and the fellas going to IMLP. We rode the GCT area with some extra hills. In the PM I ran for an hour. I felt great.

I took another major step toward the UK this evening by purchasing my airline tickets....Gulp!
Airfare to the UK is expensive this year. After paying for environmental offset credits, the round trip will be $903.

Next weekend is the Mountaineer Half. I am going to take it somewhat easy this week. Which reminds me. I must go to bed.
G'night.

I have to admit

When I saw the results for my last race I was disappointed. I felt I had put in a good day and everything clicked as it was supposed to. I felt like I had raced well.

The results by the numbers were good. Swim PR, The bike was solid, and my run was strong. I felt like I was getting stronger as each discipline wore on.

Within my age group however I was no. 14 of 15 athletes. Where had I failed?. Why must I always be at the back of the pack? Has all of my hard work this winter just made me 14 instead of 15?

Well, Jen Collister reminded me how tough my AG was, and Bbop reminded me that this was just a prep race for IM.
These thoughts reminded me of my race mantra "Run your own race".
I feel better about the results now. I really did meet my own goals.
The only thing that lingers is a billion mosquito bites.
I itch.
But I will no longer bitch.
Thanks you.

Maumee Bay Race recap

Maumee Bay is Just east of Toledo, Ohio on Lake Erie. HFP produces the race as a part of their Wheelie Fun series. The race offers sprint and international distance triathlons and duathlons. I chose the International tri.

I began with my pack and bike on Coventry. I caught a bus down to the rapid station and headed downtown to meet up with Zac at Rocco's. We packed up the vanagon and headed west to Crocker park where we found Nichole. Along the way we passed my sister on the highway. We waved and yelled back and forth as she drove along with us for a bit.

Once we got to Toledo we got stuck watching 2 different trains pass. This made me late for packet pickup. Fortunately the HFP staff was cool about it. I got my stuff and we went to grab a campsite.
The park was sold out. So we headed down the road the a private camp ground. It was cheaper and the guy said "we got 80 acres, camp where you want"....Very cool. We set up camp and headed into Oak Harbor for groceries at the IGA.
As we headed out of town we were escorted by a local cop to the border.

Back at camp we chopped up the food and consumed it. Zac had lit some wood on fire, so we watched it burn. We also began slapping ourselves. We began to itch. We were being eaten alive by mosquito's. I eventually retreated to my tent. It was also full of mosquito's. I didn't sleep well as I figure I gave 3 quarts of blood to a population of bugs.

5:30 we awoke and headed for the race. I had 2 Lara bars, a banana, and some Gatorade. The van wasn't waking up so easily and gave us a little static along the way, but eventually delivered us to the transition area.

I got set up quickly, Took care of business(no problems this time), and hung out and chatted with the CTC folks.

The sprint waves went out first. I pulled on my wet suit and watched with Zac and Nichole till my wave came up. At 8:19 the horn sounded and we were off.
My strategy was to just get in the middle of it, relax, focus on mechanics and sight. I essentially did that. I was very comfortable and the swim was really effortless. My time was 30:58. Not fast, but it is an improvement. I feel good about it.
T1 was a mess. Not a lot of room to work with for the slow swimmers. I got my bike shoes, helmet, and sunglasses and got moving.
The Bike was flat, flat, flat. 24 miles of flat. I stayed aero and played leap frog much of the time with another rider. I ate some cliff blocks(really good), and finished off my aero bottle of gatorade. My time, 1:14.12 with a pace of 20.1 MPH.

T2 was Chaotic. No rack space and stuff everywhere.
I hit the run and felt fine. The temps were hot, the course was flat, and I just ran, reeling in the next runner 1 by 1. I had fun, finished the run in 53:30 with a pace of 8:38.
My total time was 2:41.39.
I am happy with the results. I am not as fast as I would like to be, but I have gotten faster. My endurace is very strong. I felt like I had run a sprint.
I had a good race and did what I needed to do.

Photo's from Maumee Bay

I am still waiting for the results. I will post a full report once they come in. Until then here are photo's of the race.

Camp Trifolk

Zac and Nicholle riding in the VW Van. Vincent Vanagon is what Zac calls it.

The Race

Nuclear fear humor
Zac quote "We need fresh water more than we need Nuclear energy".
What is the long term plan for these things?

Thank you Cavs

It was a fun ride.

Anyhow, I have a race Sunday. The Maumi Bay Olympic distance. I am really looking forward to to doing a triathlon. It seems like forever ago since I last did one.

I had a gig last night. It was very lightly attended. I had a lot of fun singing just the same.

Mom is doing well and comes home tomorrow.

The dating thing didn't workout. I will spare you the details. Mostly to protect some body else's privacy.

Training is moving along at a steady simple pace.

I have to go accept this now. The Drive, Shot, Fumble, Jose Mesa, and now the Sweep. Lebron is far from done. Many more parties in the finals to come.
'07 has been so bittersweet as a sports fan from NEOhio. 3 Championship games/series with the Buckeyes football, mens basketball, and the CAVS.
Go Tri-be.

"Sunday in June" ride report

Sunday in June is a bike tour that takes riders through Ohio's Amish country in Geauga county. The ride features distances of 25/50/62/100 miles. I chose the century distance.

My day began at 6am when Jodi picked me up. Jodi is great to ride to an event with. She is always calm, friendly, and punctual. I am always very grateful for her generosity and kindness. Tho I am sure I don't show it very well with my stoicism.
That said, Thank You Jodi, you are Awesome!.

Anyhow, we arrived in Burton at 6:45 and met with other CTC members including bloggers DaisyDuc and Craig. Next we descended on the Cleveland Touring Club(the other CTC) volunteers to register. We headed back to the cars to get our selves together. Jodi was doing the 62 mile route as she is tapering for Ironman Cda in 2 weeks. So I made plans with CTC member Adam for the ride home. At 7:30 we joined the front group and departed.

The group took off quickly and I decided that the pace was not mine. I found my pace and settled in. I was feeling a little bloated and found aero position to be uncomfortable. At mile 12 was an aid station for me to relieve my abdominal pressure....I missed the stop.

Shortly after the missed rest stop I hit a bump on a bridge. My bike started making some not so funny noise. I stopped peddling, watched the lead pack disappear, and did a quick inspection. The bike was fine, just a light adjustment and I was off. I was also alone.
Being alone was not what I wanted to do. The next 20 miles were spent alone anyhow.

The scenery was gorges. Rolling hills through Amish county. Wild flowers, tree lined fields, horses, blue skies, buggies and and many amish children enjoying the day watching the cyclist pass by the farm.

Eventually I was joined by another rider for a few miles. He pulled over for a pit stop and I continued on.....The wrong way.

The course was color coded with arrows panted on the road. I was following green. Green was gone. I backtracked, picked up the correct coarse and joined the second pack. Getting off course was a blessing. I was no longer alone.

The rest stop soon arrived and I headed for stress relief. Nothing was moving. Not cool. I was struggling to take in fluids because of this. Uhggg.
I gave up and moved along. The rest of the first 62 was fun despite my personal issues. I joined a group of other triathletes and the miles just slipped by.

At mile 62 we were back in Burton. I had some lemonade and pressed on.

From 62 through 82 I never saw another bike. I was out of sports drink and the entire stretch seemed up hill. At one point I crested a hill and felt like I could see the Atlantic. The view was incredible. I also was excited to finally be heading downhill. That lasted a 1/4 mile before turning right and heading up another hill. When the downhill finally arrived, the road was so bad that I wanted to go uphill again.

At mile 88, I arrived at the final aid station. I refilled my Gatorade, had some water mellon and finally rid myself of the internal issues....12 miles to go. I felt fine.

The next 12 miles were tough. Mostly uphill and very little shade....Seems like uphill was always in direct sunlight and downhill was always shady, making it difficult to see bumps, potholes and buggy grooves.

I passed a group of Amish kids being pulled by a pony. Just behind them was another kid riding a pony. I laughed.
I also saw a Buggy shop. I tried to Imagine a really aggressive buggy salesman pushing used buggys on the Yoders and the Millers.

At mile 100 I passed an athlete named Kurt. He was doing a brick run. He is also training for IM UK.

At mile 102.63 I finished my ride.

As I entered the building where lunch was being served I saw Adam and his friend Jack.
I asked, "How long have you been waiting?"
"Not long at all", they said. " You paced smart".
We ate pasta and salad and headed home.

The day was mentally demanding. Physically I felt like I had trained well for this distance. I did what I set out to do.
My first Century.

Big thanks to Jodi and Adam for the ride.

Today was a happy day in Cleveland.

If you are from Cleveland, I don't need to explain. If you are not from Northeast Ohio, let me just just say this was very special. Cleveland has a self confidence issue. Lebron James does not. Lebron James has given this city hope.

I worked last night after a nice brick. I made lots in tips, got cut during the game, grabbed a beer, and joined the crowd around the AJ Roccos wide screen.
At half time Kirk, Sandy, her brother, Nichole and I went over to Gateway Plaza(Between Jacobs field and The "Q" Arena). The scene was sureal. 50 thousand people watching giant TVs out doors. In Jacobs field The Indians played to 38K. Inside the "Q" 20k Roard as the CAVS out played the Detroit Pistons for the 4th game in a row and WON the Eastern Conferance. The arena and ballpark emptied. Cleveland had it's biggest party in my lifetime.
Nichole and I sat on the "F" and "I" from the "Who's on first?" Sculpture at The Jake. We ate Tabuli, pita and a bean and corn dish. We sat and watched the city go crazy. People are funny.

This morning brought the hangover. Everyone seemed a bit unrested. The sky was grey and the air was thick. Rain was off and on. Every one was happy. We had all shared a wonderful moment. We have all watched this kid grow up. We are all Witnesses.
This is fun. Go Cavs!

More Stuff
Performance Bike has opened a store near my home. I rode out today with a friend. I spent many of my tips on bike cleaning supplies, a couple pairs of shorts. and eight tubes.
The guy at the counter wondered why I needed so many tubes.
"Do you flat alot?" He said.
"No, I ride a lot." I responded.

Close encounters of the herd kind
I had a beautiful 90 minute run through the Shaker lakes area. at one point I came up on a fawn. She was eating ground cover and seemed very at ease with me. We were about 12 feet apart and she never ran. As I continued on she resumed her dinner.
Further down the trail I came upon a big buck. I was ready to go around him when I noticed a second buck in my path. Hair was standing up on the back of buck1. So I went a different route.
After I came out of the woods I ran for 30 more minutes in a lite rain.

Today was a special day here in Cleveland.

Exhale.

I was very uptight this morning. I was not very tuned in to what I was doing. I apologized to the owner of the building I work in for my lack of focus.
He said, "What's her name?".
My reply, "Mom".
My worry was deep. She was having surgery to replace both of her knees. She has been living in pain for a while now. She was not happy. She did not want to live her days any longer this way. It is the 21'st century and she had a choice to change her life. All she had to do was make a commitment to surgery and rehab.
She made the choice. at 8:30 I began holding my breath for the next 5 hrs. Surgery scares the hell out of me. I was worried. She is not young.
At 3:30 my dad called to say.....She is awake and everything went well.....relief.
At 4 I left work on my bike and headed to Lerner tower at University Hospitals to see my mom.
As I entered the room, I softly said "mom?"
I expected moaning and delirious morphine induced psychobabble.
"Hi Charlie", she replied.
She was alert and normal.
We chatted for a bit, I fed her with a spoon(roll reversal), and I made sure she was comfortable.
My mom is my best friend. I was scared shit less.
She is ok and her quality of life will improve because she was willing to make a huge commitment. We have a lot in common. New knee's and Ironman. This summer my mom and I are both working towards very big goals. For a time this morning my fear was that I would be working toward my goal with out my mom. I am very, very grateful that she is well.

Anyhow, I left for the pool and learned that they were closing early. Oh well, at least I get to swim some today. I haven't been able to swim since last Wednesday.

Memorial Day Brick

Memorial day has traditionally been a brick workout for me. 27/6 miles of bike and run. That is my plan today.
This year the brick takes on more meaning. When I think of brick, I think of a kid from the Coventry neighborhood named Chris Brickle. We call him Brick.
I met Brick back in Jan '01. He was 15 and had all the direction of a 15 year old hanging out on Coventry.
He has grown into adulthood as a punk rock, ladies man, mechanic, and now US Marine. He works as a gunner in Iraq.
I am close friends with Brick's sister, Micky. She called me recently to tell me he was coming home for a month.
Last Saturday we all welcomed him home. We were all very relieved to see him. Yet we know he will return to Iraq at the end of June.
Brick is 21 today and has a lot more direction.
Stay safe Brick....Thank you.

Cleveland Heights police officer Jason West was shot and killed a few nights ago while on duty.
He seemed like one of the decent cops when he walked the beat 'round here.
Thank you.
___________________________________________

Let them in, Peter
They are very tired
Give them couches where the angels sleep
And light those fires

Let them wake whole again
To brand new dawns
Fired by the sun not wartime's
Bloody guns

May their peace be deep
Remember where the broken bodies lie
God knows how young they were
To have to die
God knows how young they were
To have to die

So give them things they like
Let them make some noise
Give dance hall bands not golden harps
To these our boys

And let them love, Peter
For they've had no time
They should have trees and bird songs
And hills to climb

The taste of summer in a ripened pear
And girls sweet as meadow wind
With flowing hair

And tell them how they are missed
But say not to fear
It's gonna be alright
With us down here

Let them in, Peter

-Words by John Gorka

Tagged. for 7 random things about my self

Veg Triathlete has tagged me for 7 random things about myself
So here goes.

7. 7 was my Jersey no. in little league. We were the Giants, I played Shortstop. our record was 13-1-1....Glory Days

6. I live less that a mile and a half between the hospital where I was born and the house that I grew up in.

5. I was homeless for a summer ('88) in Madison Wi. I had a great time. We would play street music all the time. Sleep on porches of friends or on the beach. Go on the dead tour. We really had a blast.

4. The nigtly news makes me cry often.

3. I prefer the Rolling Stones to the Beatles.

2. I was a Boy Scout.

1. I am enjoying one of the best years of my life while training for Ironman.


I will now tag BBop, Craig, and Janet...

Your it.

Rite Aid Cleveland Half Marathon Race Report

I treated this race as a an "A" race. I spent the past week really relaxing and allowing myself to get healthy. I was ready to go. I woke at 5AM. I started the coffee. I ate some cereal and fruit. I took a shower and waited for my ride. At 6:15 my ride arrived. We got downtown by 6:30 and I met up with Dane. Dropped my stuff off with the CTC tent. Headed to the port o lets and waited in line. The line was to long for the time left, so we headed to the start.

I was feeling a bit rushed and anxious to get lined up with my pace group (3:30). That did not happen. The horn sounded, and we were off.......Kind'a. The clock was ticking and we waited 2 minutes to cross the start. Not to bad.
The first 2 miles were slow. Jack(center of photo) and Mirana caught up to me and we started chasing down pace groups. I stuck with Jack through the first four miles before I started rolling off 7:30s

Along the way we passed RW editor and the 1968 Boston winner, Amby Burfoot. Friday during the expo I went to a speaker session of his. He was quizing us and rewarding good answers with lifesaver mints which he claimed would help us during the race. I let him know I had my mint on board, chatted for a moment and pushed forward. It does something for the condidence to pass a Boston winner.

Just past the halfway point I realized that I was on target and getting faster. I also realized that my inability to use the lu was going to be my doom if I didn't deal with it. Luck was on my side as a port a john was being vacated as I approached it. I got in, took care of business, and jumped back into the race.
I had lost 2 and a half minutes. It was time to get busy.
I caught Jack quickly, and soon caught up to Craig(left side of photo). By mile 9 I was with the 3:40 group. I squeezed out a powergel and kicked it up a notch.
My HR had been steady at 161BPM. Now it read 60?..81?...172...54.........forget it. I decided to ignore it and chase more runners down.
I thought I saw E-Speed and DaisyDuc ahead of me. I decided to try to catch 'em. As I ran up behind them I said "hello CTC"......It wasn't them. Oh well, I still had moved further up in the race and was on closing in on my goal.
At mile 11 I heard Dr Jod(formerly known as Jodi) yell my name from the side of the road. That gave me a nice pick me up and a smile. I ran over the bridge, passed the Jake, said hello to Lou and turned into the last mile....
During the final mile I began to feel the effects of chasing all day...If I could maintain a 7:45 I could finish with my goal of 1:45.
I was tired and my mind was beginning to wander. I thought for a moment that the wheels were coming off.
Screw that.
I set this goal in December and worked hard for it. A late start and potty stop hadn't kept me from m goal. This race was almost mine and it was time to focus and run.
I ran it in 7:46.
My chip time,
1:45.01

Goal accomplished!

At the finish I ran into a lot of friends. Jack, Craig, Cathrine and I got some coffee, And we headed back to the finish line to wait for Dane.
Dane(pictured) went out with the 4:40 group. At 4:30 I found a good spot to see her finish and waited. At 4:36(chip time) she cruised in. She looked fresh and happy.
I was proud of her. She rocked. Dane is now a Marathoner.
I had a great day. I am going to sleep now.

Also, big congrats to DaisyDuc and her Boston Qualifying time.

Pre race thoughts, a look back.

Now in it's 30 running,The Cleveland Marathon/Half and 10k holds a lot of history for myself and many other area runners. Let me take you through my biggest memories of this race.

1993- My first 10k. The start was at 21st and Euclid, in front of CSU. The Marathon began 20 minutes ahead of the 10k to allow the race to thin out enough for the elite runners to pass the slower marathoners without any congestion.
As we waited and watched the marathoners line up, the announcers voice began to raise. Dire Straits "Heavy Fuel" roared from the speakers, the gun sounded, and a few thousand runners took off on a 26.2 mile journey. My imagination soared. I wanted to run a marathon one day. My dream seed had been planted.
My 10k barely registers in the ol' memory bank. The desire to go longer however was born. I also bought the Live Dire Straits CD and continue to use that song to get pumped up for a run.

1998-My first 26.2. I worked as hard as I have ever worked for anything. 4:41.39. At the finishe I smiled, cried, beamed with pride, and hurt. I was changed. From that moment on I had a belief in myself and a knowledge that with work anything could be possible.
While training for this race I cross trained with the bike and swimming.

1999-PR 3:53. Carried a 3:30 pace before 18.....Bam! The wall. Still PR'd. '99 holds all of my best races. 'cept for 70.3.

2002-I ran a relay with Jen. She had us on a 3hr pace. I fell apart. finishing in 4:05. My confidence was shot. This was my first long effort since my '01 heat injury at the Columbus Half. If the sun shined, I melted.

2005- My return to long course. Ran the half in 1 :54. My confidence was reborn. Half IM dreams became serious plans.

2006- Personal worst. Overweight and beaten by the wind I came ploding in at 4:54.
The real Joy was in mentoring Sheila as a 1st time marathoner. She crossed the line in 4:10 or so.

2007-Back to the half so that I don't interupt IM training. My goal time is 1:45.
I coached Dane this year, and will be waiting for her finish after my race.

I just ran for 12 minutes and feel great. I did some pickups and ate lunch. My clothes are laid out. I am ready to go.

You can track my race by following the link http://www.doitsports.com/results/MSG-signup.tcl?sub_event_id=194589
My Bib# is 5549

Hope everyone has a great race and achieves their goals.

Holy Bolonia?

Not really. Not much holy 'bout bolonia.

However I did notice my countdown was at 95 days. I lost track of time.

I rode into work with the bike to work crowd. It was great. we had a large presence and I felt so safe tucked in amongst other cyclist. Very mellow easy ride. Not the stress fest that is my normal ride to work.
We ended up at Rocco's for Coffee and Bagels.
Well, I was also at work. I set up the bike food, and got to work.

After work I went for a run. I was pushing the HR. I wanted to take advantage of the heat and add pickups in the sun.
Midway into the run I remembered how important fluid intake is. I was frothing at the mouth and my hamstrings were tight.
I mostly backed off.

I rode to the pool and swam free and easy for 40 minutes. Steve took a look at my stroke and let me know that it had really improved.
That was good for the confidence.

I decided yesterday to go on a two week midwest tour following my fall marathon. I have a new CD ready, and I need to go sell it. I am not a big fan of the road life, but I have to to it. I will keep you posted. I try not to make major decisions during a taper, as I am mostly crazy.

Taper time

This is the first real taper week for me since I started training. I look forward to feeling fresh and ready come Sunday.

Here is my schedule for the week:
Monday-Off...Cavs game
Tuesday- 30 minute run/Commute to pool/ 2000 yrds, lots of drills,
Wednesday-30 minute run-Commute to work
Thursday-Commute to pool-2000 yrds, Drills, Main:Fast 50s w/long recovery
Friday-Off
Sat-1 milerun, stretch, EASY ride.
Sunday- run 13.1 miles fast, Goal, 1:40-1:45
Monday-chill

As for the diet I tend to go heavy on protein the first half of a taper week. I just made a tofu salad with a scoop of hemp seed. I know now how good hemp and Dill go together. Really tasty. Go little proteins and heal what I have hurt.
Come Thursday I switch back to heavier carb intake.

Friday I shave the skull. It is time. Yesterday while at my folks, my mom questioned why I wore spikes of hair....
Helmet head.
I haven't decided on the ol' leg shave yet.
Not sure if it is time.


Anyhow, I am off to watch the Cavs...

Road Rage?

Today while riding to work I felt a car buzz me very closely. I let out the standard "F_CK YOU!".

As I rode to the stop light I noticed my to close for comfort friend was in idle close enough to the curb to park. I squeezed around her and gave my "GIVE ME SOME ROOM HERE" glare.

The women driving the car was screaming at me through her sun roof. She let me know that I should not be in the road.

I yelled "I have every right to the road".

She continued to scream. I could not understand her.

I shouted, "Do you want to kill me?".

She yelled back, "YES!".

I pulled my bike toward the center of the lane and mumbled "Now it is my lane, deal with me".

The light changed and she pulled into the next lane and sped away.

I can be a punk sometimes. I wish that I had not contributed to this womens rage with my anger. I wish that I did not feed the rage inside myself, as it hurts me most.

I have known to many people who have been hurt by cars while on their bikes lately. I get upset by drivers that have no regard for others on the road.
I need to find a more peaceful approach to these situations. I feel badly that another rider further up the road may have been put in danger partly due to my behavior.
I need to be more mindful of my reactions to jerks.
Later in the ride a got a flat. It really didn't bother me. I just fixed it and continued on my way.

Next week is bike safety week in Cleveland. It is also ride to work week. AJ Rocco's is the destination cafe. If you ride to work, you get free coffee and bagels.
Please however watch your temper.

May 4th

On May 4th in NEOhio our memories always return to Kent.
What happened on the KSU campus 37 years ago touched so many people in very direct ways.

My freind Jennifer's Cousin, Allison Kraus was one of the 4 Dead. Jennifer recently gave birth to a daughter and named her Allison.

My friend and fellow folk singer Jim Snively was working as a policeman in portage county at the time. Jim recounts the fear and confusion of the National guardsmen.Most of whom were the same age as the students.

My father covered the trial for NBC. While interviewing jurors it was revealed that jury intimidation had acured. His report forced a new trial.

I was asked to perform origianal music in '97, '98, and Y2k at the commemoration. This was always a huge honor.
In '98 I had run the Cleveland Marathon(my first) the day before. I was in a world of hurt. When I arrived at the stage, I was excited to find a ramp to the stage. The stage had to be wheel chair accessible to accommodate the main speaker Ron Kovic (Tom Cruise's character from Born on the 4th of July). Later in the program, Kovic declared we all march across campus to demand something or other from the KSU President. Kent is hilly with a million stairs. With each painful step I had to search for gratitude that I had legs.

In 2000 I performed just prior to Crosby, Stills, and Nash.....WOW. That was a trip.

BBop wrote that he was headed over to Kent today. Maybe he will give an account of the days happenings. I know Cindy Sheehan will be speaking. The May4th Task force will also be ringing the bell 32 times this year to remember the students killed at VT last month.

I don't know if we will ever know what happened at Kent. Was it an act of panic in the midst of chaos? or had an order to fire been given?.
All we really know is that four students were killed. Descent had become deadly. The ongoing American struggle for freedom took a step backwards. Fear had won.

We can no longer be afraid.
Peace

Something Clever

Not really, I've got nothin' today.

I will just give you a basic update.

The training is going well in all areas. When I swim, I do what I am told. On the bike I ride at every opportunity. In my run training I just finished the final long run (3hrs) before The Cleveland half. I have a 90 minute planned for Sunday and a 60 minute the following week.

I have been very fortunate with my overall health, only suffering a couple of flus in mid Feb and mid march. I turned my ankle after on big snow. I babied it and recovered easily. I have had a little hamstring nag for a while, but it doesn't progress at all.

The diet goes without struggle. Vegan works very well for me.

One cup of coffee a day has done wonders for me. Regular sleep and greater focus are the first benefit. I am sure my kidneys are happier.

I am trying early morning runs midweek. So far so good. I will miss staying up late for "King of the Hill". That show cracks me up.

I have been on a few dates lately with the same person. That has been good. I have really become a hermit this winter. It is nice to share a connection with somebody. It has been a while.

All of my race entries are paid. I have ordered my race jersey, shorts, and long sleeve Jersey from CTC. I have plane fair in the bank. Zac, Nichole and I are getting ready to book. Just waiting for prices to drop a bit more.

Tribe is in 1st place, the Cavs move on to the semi finals, and the Browns have me excited.

Things in Cleveland are good. I have no complaints.

Well, I do have one thing that really bothers me.
So, I am off to another Peace Action Meeting.

Be well.

Three

3 was the first pick the Browns had in the draft.
3 picks for Clevelands best draft since Lebron
3-0 Cavs over wizards
3 runs in the 8th as the Indians take a 3 game series against the 3rd place Orioles
3000 yards in the pool this morning
3 swimmers in my lane.
3 miles on the bike to and from the train station.
3 powergels in my fuelbelt
3 o'clock meet up with Dane for long run.
3 hr run on the towpath this afternoon
3 weeks till Rite Aid.
I am ready.