Day 24-25 Don't Hassle the Hoff

Ok. I admit it. Blind links to music videos of David Hasselhoff probably aren't a very nice thing to do. On Friday, I was feeling a bit pernicious and let some poor judgement get the best of me. Hopefully your retinas have recovered, and didn't get in the way of any holiday running.

Onward to run, run, and run some more!

I'll go back to the more straight forward approach of Vince-rolling the slap chop.

24 - 2.0 in 22:56. Top of the hill in 8:39

25 - 1.0 in 12:01

Day 21-23 Day or night!

Thanks for all the encouragement from folks on the last post. I like the advice of trying some "shorter" trail runs that take place in Colorado as preparation for something a bit longer. I've still been limping along with one mile runs, but there is some, get it going attitude bubbling beneath the surface.

I saw an interesting article on the whole running in the morning vs running at night issue, that has some "science" or at least scientific talking heads commenting on it. I've actually made it 50/50 so far for morning runs vs night runs. I will say lately that the stars and meteors during the night runs have been pretty entertaining.

Plus, to help you get in the holiday spirit, you should probably watch this...

21 1.0 in 12:02

22 1.0 in 11:15

23 1.0 in 12:05

Day 16-20 Game on!

I don't really want to write this post. Its mostly just stupidity. Everything about it rings failure and abject ridiculousness. Nonetheless here goes.

I'm not a Jim Collins devotee though I have read a few of his things. I do like a term I've heard him use called a BHAG or "Big, Hairy, Audacious, Goal". So here's mine.

I want to run Hard Rock.

This is ridiculous. Yes. I know this. It is kind of like saying, I'm going to start at center for the Detroit Red Wings, tomorrow. Or I'm going to teach myself to fly by flapping my arms really fast. There is no chance of this. However I'm going to give it a try. Even if I fail, I think the trying will be good for me. Failing is OK. Failing at least means you are trying, right? Besides, I need something to shoot for, and why not shoot for the moon? (The moon on the fourth planet of Alpha Centauri in this case.)

Why do this? When I was thinking about starting running again, when I was pondering doing something hard, like doing a running streak, I ran across an article about the Hard Rock 100 trail race. I was amazed. I thought this has to be one of the most difficult things I could imagine. I told myself instantly there was no way I could do this. And yet there was some part of me that quietly, meekly said "I WANT to do that." So I say today in a temporal, fleeting way, in a post that I will delete tomorrow, Game On!

What will this require? It will take two to who knows how many years to accomplish. Here are my current required steps as I see them:

1. Be X-50. Where X = my current weight, I need it to be down fifty more. This is not an exaggeration. Considering I'm -50 since I started this running thing, it might be doable. It is definitely necessary to be able to run that far and have my body hold out.

2. Run a 50 miler. My plan was to try and do Rocky Raccoon in Feb. but with the back injury the training plan was thrown out. I'm going to look for, train, and do a 50 miler, hopefully in the spring of 2010.

3. Do whole body training. Its gotta be more than running. Maybe hit some weights, do some cross training, etc. Complete commitment to the goal.

4. Run trails. Run hills. Run mountains. Run for a long time. Some of that doesn't sound too bad?

5. Runa 100 miler. It has to be one from the qualifying list for Hard Rock. The audacious goal for this would be late in 2010. August? Leadville 100? Thats crazy. Just like everything else I've written in this post.

6. Enter the application for Hard Rock and win the lottery. Literally. Its a capped race and you have to get in by the luck of the draw. 2011 would be nice. Last year, having one ticket in the lottery meant you had an 18% chance of getting in.

7. Run the race.

Please have no worries. Tomorrow when I'm sick of and don't want to run one mile, this will all fade away. And you can just let it pass from your mind. Don't let the craziness disturb you.

However...I might have to listen to the voices...

Day 12-15 Stuck in a rut

Blah. Blart. Yug. Narf. Thus describes my never-ending string of one milers. I am feeling the need for a crazy goal coming on. It doesn't help that the last few days have been a wee bit cold, as expressed by these uber trail runners who live in the same area. -12 degrees + some 30 mph winds + snow getting blown UP into my nose + my exposed skin freezing in under thirty seconds = some short runs.

I'm not sure what the crazy goal will be, but I need something to get me out there running up that stupid hill for more than 1.5 miles...

Day 10-11 - Double Digits

Ten is more than nine. It requires two digits to notate instead of one. Ahh the sweet smell of success. However I'm not smelling the sweet smell of success over on the body part competition. Hurry up and vote! As my high school government teacher used to say, "vote early and vote often." This was followed by accounts of how as a young political type he would get a list of the recently deceased and then drive an elderly gentleman to every precinct in town to "assume" identities. All I know is that the Big, uhh oh-so-natural, Hair must win! Popeners ftw! And speaking of inspiration, I think I need some. Either that or this horizontal thirty mph snow and 4 degree weather has got to go....Come on old man winter, bring it! A treadmill that is...