Soul Destroyer

The Crew

Soul destroyer come to me

Give me shelter or give me death

Soul destroyer envy me

Bring me solace or bring me death

These where the lyrics blasting through my ears as I approached and crossed the finish line.  The incredible searing pain in my legs made me wish for solace (and almost wish for death).  It was not a horrible day but it ranks high among my worst marathon performances.

I hope that my experience is a lesson to others: a Boston Qualifying time is never a given.  Even with numerous prior qualifying times under your belt hard work and effort are still require .  The requisite hard work and dedication is precisely what makes qualifying for the Boston Marathon so special.  Most people can achieve a qualifying time but it takes a very high level of dedication, commitment, and hard work.  I admire those who achieve this accomplishment.

The Sixth Time is Not a Charm

This was my sixth consecutive Flower City Challenge Half Marathon.  Training all through the winter had been remarkably good.  When I had stepped off of the treadmill and onto roads about one month prior to this race something wasn’t right.  I was concerned but hopeful that everything would be OK for the race.  I intended to push.  I hoped to run the fastest I’ve ever run that course but as race day approached my observations forced me to lower my expectations.  By the time race day came I had very low expectations but I was still full of hope that things would go well.

“Spring” Forward #8

Starting in 2007 I’ve run the Spring Forward Distance Run.  I’ve generally had very positive experiences.  This year I did not.  The weather conditions for this race were the second worst I’ve ever had.  The worst conditions were in 2011 at the Shamrock Run 8k.  Spring forward is almost twice as far and thus I suffered for about twice as long.

Second Annual Rowe Marathon

We did it again!  Approximately one year prior Amber organized the first Rowe Marathon and Half Marathon. Last year was so successful due to the help from friends that our numbers grew.  There were approximately 10 runners participating in the half and one, me, participating in the full on November 23rd, 2014.  This race started last year for the purpose of reminding me of the difficulty of the marathon distance.  My experience last year was quite different from this year.

2014 GVH Mudslog

4 years ago I set foot for the very first time on trails for a run — the Jensen Stables Ultimate XC Challenge (now GVH Mudslog).  So many runners have a religious experience about trails and they aren’t afraid to proclaim.  They tell those that run roads that they are missing out; that roads are not only inferior but dangerous and perhaps even worse than sitting on your couch.  So I tried it back then and I didn’t hate it but I certainly didn’t understand the hype.  Over the years I haven’t had much chance to run the race as I’ve had other obligations and preferences.  This year I made my return.

2014 B.A.A. Half Marathon

Last year I ran the Rochester Half closely followed by the B.A.A. Half.  Last year I had a great performance at Rochester and a lackluster performance in Boston.  This year was a different story.

2014 Rochester Half Marathon

More than a month ago I ran the Rochester Half Marathon.  The sieves of time have filtered most of the memories of the day.  What remains, the important things, at least one would hope, I will share here.

2014 Rochester Riverchase

With only a few days leading up to this race I plunked down a fairly substantial amount of money for a small and short race.  I registered for this race for two reasons.  First I wanted a spark to reignite my passion for running.  Second I was intrigued by the handicapped nature of this race.  The idea is that anyone can win the race.  It’s all about running a great race relative to your own ability.  I had a pretty good race.

2014 B.A.A 10k

(All italicized words should be read in the voice of Morgan Freeman).

Little did Gregory know that this weekend would not go as Mr. Rowe had planned it.  Instead it would be a comedic diorama for the amusement of  a gathering of supernatural beings.  The trip started almost as it normally would.  Mr. Rowe’s car did not have functioning air conditioning so the ever powerful priceline.com was used to rectify potential discomfort.

“You get a free upgrade to a Chevy Captiva!” said the clerk at Avis.

“What is it?” asked Mr. Rowe.

“It’s a mini SUV!”

Surely had the clerk known Gregory she would not have expressed such enthusiasm over renting him a heavy, gigantic “piece” of American machinery.

“Uhh…I’m worried about the gas mileage on it.” Greg stated with clear trepidation.

“It’s based on a car chassis so I’m sure it’s good.”

“Oh, well OK then.  Does it have EZ Pass?”

“Yes, of course.”

Gregory found the behemoth and rode the beast home to pick up his lady.

2014 Chase Corporate Challenge

Here we go again!  Another JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge is in the books!  I’ve run this race seven times now.  This short, but huge, race is never easy but it is almost always rewarding.  This year I was successful but it was not a PR.