October 19, 2010

Mount Desert Island Race Report

Spark notes: Awesome event! 2:57:59 final results. A Boston Qualifier. Enjoyed every moment. The last 6 miles were hard, but I'm confident there is room for improvement. Legs still a bit soar, but I'm ready for more! Thank you everyone for your support!

Mount Desert Island Marathon – Race Report

Saturday:
Woke up for an early shakeout just to get some pre-race never out of the system, which I’m not sure I’m even nervous for. Weird? I have no idea. Less I think the race itself I don’t tend to get nervous about it, more I think about it, I start to shake!
After running in the morning, Brittany and I got our stuff together and made our way to down to Bar Harbor. It was a storming, and very windy with some rain mixed in. That crazy weather made for some awesome photos from the Loop Road of Acadia National Park.
The Pre-race expo was just the right size, by my standards. With only two vendors, there were plenty of things for runners to look through and just browse. Plus with the small size of the expo it made it very easy to meet with a couple of other runners who I knew and then went on my way.
Spent the night in the campground I worked at for the summer. Since it had been storming pretty hard the last couple of days, there were some downed trees so we were unable to drive in. Let’s just say at 9:30 at night, still a bit windy, and just two whole people in the campground, it was a little scary that night. It was quiet and peaceful though, which made it easy for a good night’s sleep.
Sunday: Marathon Day

Woke up at 6:30 had some water with only a granola bar and walked to the top of the hill to the car since we couldn’t drive in. Drove down to Bar Harbor to make sure we had plenty of time to find a parking spot, use the bathrooms and meet up with Brittany’s parents. The start of the Course is right in downtown so it was very accessible for everyone to get to.
The start at 8am, with a shot of cannon, was spectacular, nerve racking and exciting. 3 ½ hard months of running and training had come down to this very moment and boy was I ready.
Miles 1-2: My first mile was 6:42 (perfect I said to myself). I wanted to take the first part easy and not really stress too much. Passed last year’s female winner Amanda Labelle and went on my way through the first water stop. (6:42, 6:40)
Miles 3-6: after making it up the first major hill working with a runner from New Mexico, I caught up to one of the “elite” (word for more experienced) runners, Ty Thurlow, and just sat with them.(6:31,6:23,6:50)
Miles: 7-10: Now I was running 6:20-6:30 pace I thought, didn’t pay much attention to the watch.. Maybe a little fast I thought, but not much effort was really going into this. I was running with 3 other guys. By Mile 10 I was just with Ty Thurlow and we were running a good pace. Just coming Into Northeast Harbor and completing the rolling hills. (6:42,6:41,6:31)
Miles 11-13: Came up the long hill toward the town on Northeast Harbor feeling good. At this point right around mile 12 Ty dropped off and I went on my way through the first half alone. I ran something like 1:27. A little faster than I wanted, but it wasn’t fast enough to make me hurt that much. (6:36, 6:45,6:35)
Miles 14-18: This part of the course is my favorite. I was alone until about mile 16, when I caught up with some guy who I saw at the very beginning. Sergeants Drive was a little breezy, but nothing really bad. I grabbed a GU from the aid station, and some water. I only got to take about half of the GU, which I later went on to regret. I chucked the last half of the Gu at Mile 18 just for some water, I wish I had taken the rest of the GU. (6:21,6:29,6:25,6:34,6:33,6:30
Miles 19-20: This is where my legs said “we’ve had enough.” I didn’t listen, plus with my mom, brother, my grandmother, Brittany and her Parents cheering me on from the Campground, it was very encouraging. I had passed one other guy (who later passed me in the last half mile) and at that point I was alone and in 14th place. (6:29, 6:43)
Miles 21-24.5: The Mount Desert Island Course up to this point had been enjoyable. I like to call the last few miles a total mind game. You think the last 6 miles will be a piece of cake, you’ve reached this far, what can go wrong? Heck, everything can go wrong and it did for me. I suffered immensely being by myself. At each aid station I stopped took a cup of water and Gatorade, walked and sipped on both. On the hills (there were many) I took walk break for 15 steps. This was by far the hardest part. It was really discouraging to see 11-14th placed runners get away from me during these miles. I saw them and almost knew I could catch them. This course will play with your mind and if you aren’t ready it will spit you out like a piece of old chewing gum. (7:00, 7:24, 7:02, 8:02)
Mile: 24.5-26.2: There was nearly a mile downhill before you hit 25.5. My legs were burning. Sadly I had to stop again. At this point I knew I could get under 3 hrs I just had to keep moving. The last half mile is a nice little hill, which you don’t notice when driving, but running almost 26 miles you notice the little bump and boy does it feel like a hill. I could see the finish; I could hear my name over the intercom. I knew I could do it I just had to push. I stepped over the line hands in the air and just totally in awe of what I had just done. 3:57:59 finishing time and 15th overall. Just amazing. (7:30, 7:04)
The finish: I didn’t really feel all that bad. I grabbed a bagel with some cream cheese, water, banana, smoothie, and Gatorade. Munched and drank just trying to replenish everything. There I was…A sub 3 hour First time Marathon Finisher! I was congratulated by the Race Director Gary Allen and shook hands with a few of the finishers. Met up with some family to hear what they had to say and hear their words of encouragement and awe. I quickly went to jump in the shower to beat the crowd and get cleaned up. When I got out I was still moving slowly, and my stomach didn’t feel good at all. I felt queasy. The world slowed, and somehow, I made it to the medical tent as I was looking for race results to see if I got any award for placement in my age group. Turned out I got 4th of 55!
I was dehydrated and badly. My body rejected everything I had snacked and drank within the last half hour plus some more. Luckily the medical tent was equipped and ready for action. After spending 3 ½ hours in the medical tent with 3 wool blankets and warming sheets, plus on an IV drip to get rehydrated I was finally released. Still queasy, but no burning headache from dehydration any more. I lost the bit of water and bagel I snacked on as I walked towards the car. Luckily that was the last of it.
Now I walk slowly around campus just another runner, blending in with the crowd.
I’m so glad I was able to run for Friends of Acadia, have so many people support me along the way and run my first marathon in the state of Maine. To finish and run under 3 hours in the Marathon, on Mount Desert Island has been a phenomenal achievement, and I’m glad to have shared it with so many amazing people.

October 6, 2010

10 days and pre-race nerves, and a plan!

The nerves. Yes they have hit, and hit oh so hard! The last couple of nights i sit in bed at like 11pm and think...dam...only x-amount of days. I question myself, can i run 26.2 miles? Have i trained enough? What's going to be my pace? Will i be able to pace off someone else? can i make or break my secret goals?....These questions and more keep running through my head.

I think about this all night. I think I've started dreaming about race day. So far i haven't had any bad dreams, so that must be some kind of plus. To be honest some of those questions i can easily answer immediately as i think about them, but than again I really can't count on anything come race day because i have no idea what it will be like.

So far this week i have been keeping it really low key. Nothing hard and i'm forcing myself to relax and just enjoy the fall colors a bit. I had planned something like 4 miles easy today, but i just couldn't resist a new trail that i had found yesterday while i was in Forest Vegetation class. The trail was only like a half mile long, but it led to a network of trails, both created by the Orono land Trust and by local mountain bikers, where stupidly i got lost. Instead of the planned 4 miles i ended up doing 6...no big deal really. the 2 extra miles were about 7:30 pace, so it wasn't like i was expending much energy, i though it was fun. Ended up running nearly a mile and half being lost, with part of that on the rail road tracks. Is that legal?!

So my plan...break down by miles. Come marathon day:
Miles 1-5: The first 5 miles the goal is to stay relaxed, don't get caught up in any body else's race. I would like to average about 6:50 from the start line through the first 5 miles
Miles 5-13.1: The rolling hills of Seal Harbor into NorthEast Harbor will be a challenge, but its nothing i haven't done before on 3 training runs. I i can get to the half way point in 1:28 and change, ill be happy and right on track.
Miles 13 through 20: Running along the picturesque Somes Sound should be really motivating. Last time i ran through this part of the course i had one of my best 10 milers, i just need to be relaxed on the hills.
Miles 20-26.2: What can i say, i'm going to be looking forward to these miles. I expect my legs to be crying and not to happy with what i'm doing, but at this point i hope to be running with someone, i could defiantly use them on the hills, as through 25 miles, its hill after hill, the last mile though is all downhill, which will wake the quads up and keep them screaming till the finish line.

So Time goals? Three answers: 1) I ran 20 miles in 2:10 and change, so that gives me confidence that i could possibly run 2:50 on a good day when the weather is right, 3:00 flat is the goal. Not 2:50 nor 2:55, get 3 and I'll be happy. 2) If something go wrong, weather, pain/injury 3:20 is acceptable, and i would know that i gave it my best. 3) Finish with a smile. Well of course I'll smile as i cross the finish line no matter what time, but if i can't make one of the two previous goals, a big ol' smile will save my day.

I'm not looking for a perfect race, nor a Boston Qualifier, but hey i feel like i have trained hard and it could be a possibility. Simply i would be happy with 3:10:59.

September 28, 2010

Another 20 In the books and now its Taper Madness Time

What an amazing 20 miler. I was in Rockland so i needed to come up with some route that would have hills and flat in it. Woke up about 7am and got out the door by 8am. Just had a couple of slices of toast with brown sugar on top and plenty of water. It was a balmy 55ish out! I immediately thought it was perfect for a race simulation run, and boy i think it turned out to be a good one.

I took 2 days off, with being busy and just not enough hours in one day i just couldn't find time. Through the first 10 miles my legs felt stale and just not up to par. I really don't think taking 2 days off from running helps me one bit unless i have an injury or if i really need the rest. After 10 miles i grabbed my fuel belt with my usually 2 7oz bottles of water and one GU. This week i went with Roctane Vanilla Orange, which was perfect. between miles 10 and 14 i "sipped" or chewed on my GU with some water. I find that if i do that i don't have any problems, if i do try and take the whole thing its just too much.

Like i said i wanted to treat it like a simulation for race day and boy did it turn into that. I ran 6:36avg/pace for the twenty. First 10 like i said weren't comfy, but i got through them. The next 5 i was taking in GU and water and just stayed constant. The last 5 miles and especially 18, 19 and 20 i pushed the pace. I think that will help me later one when i'm coming through 20 miles of the marathon. Today was windy also, and i expect that at MDI, so all in all good pre race/ simulation day.

I am done fundraising. I got through the Thousand and i really want to thank everyone that supported me. It was a lot of fun meeting, recruiting and raising the money.

thanks for reading! Taper now...see how this goes...

September 24, 2010

A busy week, but no excuses

Well School is hitting me hard. Trying to keep up with daily homework, Studying for Exams and tests, meetings at night, class at night and running, i have stayed busy. Some nights i haven't even had a chance to get out running until past 8pm!...i don't mind it though. Keeps me busy and away from the couch enjoying a bag of Potato chips.

I didn't mention last week that that i had the most amazing 20 miler. Even though it was my second I crushed it! I ran it in about 2:10. I just felt relaxed through it. I don't know if was where i was running (Bangor City Woods) or if the terrain was just that much flatter, but i was coasting. The first 10 miles i did 2 loops on the trail that circles around most the woods, and i also added on a a nice 2 mile out and back on an old abandoned rail road bed, that was mostly grass. I didn't really grab any water until about 12 miles, and from there i only had about 14oz of water and one GU. A mistake? maybe, but i felt fine through it all. Ill make sure to drink plenty of water though.

This week i'm looking to run about 60 miles, and so far i'm on track. I had a nice little Tempo (6 miles) on the treadmill cause i got out of work just after dark and i wanted to cruise. Stupidly i didn't bring my Ipod. so i ran 12 miserable miles on the treadmill without an IPOD! needless to say i was taxed after that.

As far as raising money. I have reached my goal of $1000! It's been an awesome experience to raise money for a great cause. As a thank you from Friends of Acadia they sent me a Volunteer shirt to wear after/before/during my marathon and i will gladly where it.

So for this weekend. Homework, running, lots of traveling and some more running mixed in there. This is the end of the last hard training week then i have about 2 weeks of down time? is this enough taper? too little? Not sure, im just following a plan. I feel like i'll respond pretty good.

September 13, 2010

Sunday September 12th! 33 days!

Ok...this whole year i have only raced 3 times before today. Sad i know. I have to change this...well the marathon will contribute to this lack of races, but i vow for the month on November and December to have some fun with 5k's.

Today I had 16 miles on tap so i had some fun with a local 5k, which was a fundraiser for a Local Boy Scout who is working on an Eagle Project. Me as an Eagle Scout knows how hard it is and work that needs to be put into in so i made my contribution by running his 5k.

I warmed up with 7 miles (crazy i know) then went on to run the 5k in 17:25 for first! my second win ever! and proceeded that with a really nice cool down of 6 miles. I have to say today was a lot of fun and the weather was perfect with low-60's and cloudy.

The last 3 miles of my cooldown?! was pretty painful. I had to deal with side stitches on my right said and could only run like 90sec without stopping again and stretching it out. Anyone have some pointers for this? i really don't want this to happy again.

Thanks for reading and This past week was a great training week, 55 miles total! maybe going to his 60 next week!

September 10, 2010

My final "tough" workout and 36 days to go!

From here on out it starts to get a little easier. The pace, well i'm going to pick it up since my tempo distances are getting shorter, but last night i finished 4x1600 on the track wit 800 recovery. Boy did it feel good!

My plan said to do a 3 mile warm up and 3 mile cool down, but after school till 12, work till 5 and not getting to the track till 6 i thought it was in my best interests to just relax a little and slow the cool down and shorten it a bit.

The workout:
2 mile warmup
4x1600 with 800 recovery (5:27, 5:34, 5:33, 5:32)
3 mile cool down
Total: 11 miles

To say the least i was very pleased with the workout and generally excited about it. Today as i type this my legs are a little soar,and tired, so ill be taking today easy with probably 7ish miles. Flag football was going on in the infield and there was a group of older people, mid 40-60's? doing some 600 repeats. There were moving and it was motivating not to be alone for the whole workout. On a plus note as well the weather was cool like 65 cool and damp. So i was able to stay comfortable through the whole thing.

Last time i mentioned i had gotten some new shoes. Lunar Fly's + to be exact. I have to say last time i tired Nike i found them very uncomfortable, but these seem to be pretty nice. There are very lightweight, which i enjoy very much and the overall shoe it quite "cushiony". I think i might still stick with my ASICS DS trainer series though, but these could turn into my tempo/workout/racing shoes.

So far nothing much has changed with fundraising. I would like to spread the word a bit more and get that final push in. I am 77% of the way there so i'm not far from reaching my goal! All it takes is a small donation from a few people and i'm there. Please help spread the word if your reading this! Give people a link via email, facebook, and twitter to my blog and to my fundraising page! Thanks!

September 7, 2010

coasting right on through

where the heck did summer ever go? It didn't even feel like i had one. Well i really didn't, so i guess that answers it's self. The weather this past week has been wicked hot and put a major damper on my easy week, made it feel much like a hard week of training.

Finally got moved into my new apartment for the school year and its just a sweet set up. Living in a camper for the whole summer put things in perspective and now when i see the stove i feel so thankful for it. I just have to cook each and every night on it. Brittany cooked a spaghetti lasagna the first night at the house and it was so good. All i have to say it's so much better then eating on campus, quieter, and much for roomy.

As for running like i said the heat caused a major blow to it the past week. I only got in about 30 miles, which should have been a nice recovery week, but it didn't turn into that. Each day with the temps in the 90's and wicked bad humidity, my legs, lungs and body didn't want to move, plus not sleeping well that week made it hard to get going sometimes too. By the end of the week it started to cool, and with a little nagging hurricane coming up the coast, rain and cooler temps moved in.

This coming week will be a big turnaround. For one i got a new pair of shoes, which is always fun. These aren't just my normal asics, i went with some nike's. (I'll delve more into my adventures with them later this week. Secondly i'm more settled into school routine now so i can regularly get out and run.

Fundraising hasn't had much change at all this past couple of weeks. Still sitting at 77%, but its closer to where i though i might be. It's comforting to know that so many people care about something that can make a difference. Please check out my fundraising page and keep following me here!

August 22, 2010

Get up that Long Winding road! 8-16 through 8-22


what can i say, sometimes i'm just plain stupid, and i just gotta do something for the fun of it. This week another good one in the books despite missing my 16 miler because i thought i would have to rush home for some camping gear, turned out i didn't, but i still made the most of this week running 47.8 miles.

My hamstring has been bothering me a bit and quite tight in the mornings. Running in the morning is hard cause i'm pretty tight, but i think with a little streching out i should be fine.

Tuesday: 10 miles on the "quietside" of the island. I have to say very enjoyable run near seawall with the ocean breeze, very refreshing.
Wednesday: 5.5 miles around witch hole, which was nice very warm out though.
Thursday: what can i say. 7 miles along the water. Couldn't resist! hit up seawall again (pictured above) for a tempo. 10 miles total.
Friday: 5 miles nice and easy saw a porcupine in the middle of the carriage road which gave me a nice surprise. Decided i didn't want any trouble and just turned around.
Saturday: Climbed day Mountain. Well ran it. 9.25 miles total Elevation was 583 feet (180m). May not be much but sure was a nice climb of 1.5 miles. boy....7 miles of all hill ( Mount Washington) sounds like a real challenge. Next goal is to conquer Cadillac, the highest mountain on the island.
Sunday: Up at 6am ( not fond of this by any means) running at 6:30. 8mi total. Doing it again tomorrow

Very happy with this week disappointed in missing my longish run. 16 doesn't even seem long now that i know i can do 20 miles. sad.... Well 20 next week, along with Katahdin on this Tuesday. Should be lots of fun.

By the way..now im 67% of the way there towards my fundraising goal! I owe a huge thanks to Rich Gibson From Washington state. He has been extremly kind to me and really appreciate. I couldn't raise this money with out the support of rich, my family all my friends and acquaintances! Thanks so much! Remember this is my fundraiser page!

August 15, 2010

20 miles, that was easy! - 62 days!

This week like i promised to myself was an awesome week and i made the most of it. The weather on most of my runs was so perfect and i couldn't have asked for better. I really tore it up this week totaling 52.8 miles. I started this week of a little soar because i played some soccer with Brittany On Sunday evening because we were lucky enough to have a night off together. So that set me back during the week, but i still got in a great 4 mile hike. I think it defiantly helped the legs out. I'll just do a quick review of the week, then jump into the real meat of it all, my first 20 miler!
Monday: 4 miles nice and easy
Tuesday: off, legs were soar and quite tired from Soccer and the 6 miler on Sunday
Wednesday: 8 miles easy very cool and relaxing run.
Thursday: 2mile warm up 3xmile repeats with 800 rest (5:20, 6:27, 5:26) Met a really nice guy Named Bob who was doing some 400's and 600's that really helped push me through my last repeat.
Friday: 8.8 miles easy
Saturday: 4 miles easy perpetration/shakeout for the long run Sunday.
Sunday: 20 miles!!!!! avg pace: 6:40

My long run was killer. I know i went out fast, and i think my body realized it finally at 10 miles and slowed down. The weather was perfect with it breezy and 72 out. Brittany was kind enough to drop me off and pick me up at the start and finish and even fill my fuel belt for me. Through the first 10 miles i really felt good and just kind of got right through it. The hills were tough, but hey thats what the marathon course is going to be like.

I had a GU at 12 miles and i have to say i'm not sure if it helped me or not. I did take water with it and that was a relief. I also had some Camelbak elixxir with me, but i don't much care for it. I'm going to try Gatorade on my next long run. The elixxir dry's my mouth out wicked fast.

Coming in about 16 miles I had run out of water and I handed off my Fuel belt to Britt and she filled it up and met me down the road and gave it to me. At that point she said i look like pretty tired and that was one of the first times she ever saw me like that.

Overall the week was great, the long run i conquered and made it through, and now i'm only 62 days out till the race. Fundraising is going well now being at 57%. Getting closer and closer!

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to comment.

August 9, 2010

Another week gone by.. 68 days left



So this week was a down week with only 35 miles total, but it was a good week in the books. I'm feeling good and ready to pounce upon my 20 milers that are coming up. I feel like some people wouldn't think im going to be ready for my Marathon. So might say, hey your not doing enough mileage, or your missing some key long runs. (I've only skipped on) but hey, I'm Listening to my body for one and I'm also working two jobs over the summer, so I've got to balance a lot for the whole summer.

I really want to jump in some kind of local race, but there just isn't any time, with me working weekends mostly and there is never an opportunity to run weekdays because no other person could attend. Ah the life, ill just have to wait.

Fundraising wise i had a nice little boost over the past couple of weeks. First my my mom, who is awesome. Second my mom's best friend Candace, and finally a couple i work with here at Mount Desert Campground. Things are looking good. 57% of the way there!

Tuesday: After a huge breakfast in town, i went out and did 8 miles on the roads. The last two miles became quite windy.
Wednesday: 8.5 mile bike ride with Brittany. very nice peadal, and a great weather
Thursday: 9 miler on tri lake tour. Went around Jordan, bubble and the south Side of Ealge Lake.
Friday: easy 6 miler
Saturday: Moderate 6 miler. First mile or two was a warmup followed by some quicker miles (6:00, 5:58, 5:48 miles)then took the last mile easy.
Sunday: Britt's parents were up, went out and did a 6 miler around Hadlock pond,plus up to the amphitheater. good stuff

With 68 days left I'm feeling lucky to be able to expierence this and can't wait for the challenge ahead. Thanks for reading and please check out my Fundraising page!

August 3, 2010

been salacking

running and posting!...yikes. Skipped my 18 miler on Saturday/Sunday cause i attended a concert and my legs were feeling rather crappy.

This week is looking to be an easy week and just relaxing mostly. Planning on coming back hard next week.

So far i'm 55% of the way there for my fundraising. Check it out and help me out! ---> My Fundraising Page

I have also become quite big on checking out The Marathon Show. It's a great blogtalkradio show that is for marathon runners and has a great variety. A maine runner, Gary Allen, was recently on it. Lots of fun i i suggest you download it on Itunes (its free) The MarathonShow

thanks for reading!

July 19, 2010

Week 2-- 89 days left of training

so this week has been a bit off and i hope this doesn't really happen again. I did the 12 miles last week in my new Asic Ds Trainer 15's, but without the regular in-soles i use. Which i think messed me all up. It set up for a bad week, but everything worked out ok

Monday: 7 miles easy in somesville. Really nice, quite hot at the end. My right leg was starting to bother me.
Tuesday: woke up to the leg hurting, worked my way through it going around Long Pond In seal Harbor for 4.5 miles. Leg was throbbing at the end
Wednesday: running day off, went out and did 13 mile bike ride down to NEH from the campground.
Thursday: completely off, hit up the beach for a nice relaxing day. Quite the rip tide at Sand Beach
Friday: 6 miles easy, feeling better after new in-soles, but still not 100%
Saturday: 2x mile repeat with 800 rest. much better. Hot day though
Sunday: Distance PR! 14 miles. East Side of Eagle lake followed by Bubble pond to Jordan than west side of Eagle. I did have to walk a few times. Those hills are scary!

all in all a good week. Need to keep going at it and stay consistent.

July 11, 2010

Week In review

This past week was one of the hotter one's of the summer so far. Defiantly feeling it in the legs as i take my first rest day of the week. I've worked up to now 6 days a week, and will probably do 6 days a week for another, then switch to 7 for a couple of weeks before easing back into 5-6 again. Not interested in pushing it to hard or anything like that, I just want everything to go smoothly.

Mon: 7 miles around eagle lake. Quite the Hot one so i didn't run till later since i had the evening off from the Restaurant.
Tues: Attempted a workout. I bike 1.75 mi to the MDI high School, warmed up and got lost on a 2 mile out and back, did 2x800 (2:48, 2:41). I had planned on 4x800 at least, but the heat was insane. Biked back to the campground.
Wed: 2 loops around Jordan Pond nature trail. Took a nice head first dive into the root system off the board walk, and scratched my knee, but it got better and i got up and ran again.
Thurs: Ran Seven Bridge (which is really only 6 bridges), no idea why they call it that. (ill let you know later on)
Fri: 5 miles wicked easy on the park loop road. hot out there, but i felt surprisingly good. I think it was just the idea of being on pavement again. Thinking this would be a great spot for my long runs of 14-18 miles.
Sat: 12 miles. Loop around Eagle lake then ran Witch Hole loop and added some at the end. Felt alright through the first 6 miles, then it got a little harder and i was really feeling it in the legs. First off i need someone to run with and second i need to slow my long runs down. Finally hydration is a problem I need to find something that works better than the belt we bought 2 weeks ago. Since there is no water on the courses usually, i need to bring something with me.

Spark note version! 40 mile week, good stuff. Looking to slow down the long run and go longer next week and looking for people to run with on Saturday or Sunday for a long run.

30% of the way there! Thanks everyone!

July 8, 2010

Keep on a trucking

So with the heat the whole east coast has been getting, Bar Harbor has been surprisingly cool. Sure it got up to 85 for a couple of days, but today was beautiful with partly cloudy skies and in the mid 70's.

With working two jobs, i'm struggling to answer my own question here. Should i place my long run on Sunday like i have always done, or place it on when i have a day off from the Campground, like tomorrow morning?s It's not that i don't mind running longer mid-week, it just kind of interrupt my normal routine. On the other hand, this week is special, well the weekend. The 3rd place game of the world cup game in on Saturday, followed by the Final game on Sunday. Both games take place in the middle of the day here on the east coast, and i need to work both Jobs over the weekend. Oh the dilemma.

So my current training has been pretty lax, up until this week. I have been averaging about 35 miles a week for all of June, with my pace on most of my runs about at 6:30 (+-). Look at a number of sites i get different ideas and just try to plan accordingly. I don't think I'm going to follow one single running plan thats out there, but combine many of them, and listen to what my body can handle. By no means does that mean i won't push myself to new heights. Cause i believe that is one goal of mine for this Marathon, and any in the future.

Thanks for reading, and remember to check out my Charity page. Please comment and let me know. http://www.active.com/donate/friendsofacadia/EMauricette

July 7, 2010

Friends of Acadia My Beyond the Finish Line Chairty

So, you may ask what is Friends of Acadia (FOA) and why am i running for them as my Charity. There were 5 or 6 other choices, but i felt they were the most important to me. I'm not saying some of them weren't worth anything or something like that, but being stewards to the outdoors, FOA make it possible for future generation to enjoy the beautiful National Park that is in out back yard here in Maine.

FOA is an organization that is an independent nonprofit that help improve the excellence of Acadia National Park and island through protection beyond what the government can do. You can find out more about them at wwww.friendsofAcadia.org.

By the way, yes i have worked with them before. It was actually just this past May worked with them. I took a "may term" through the University of Maine, that partnered with FOA to help improve the carriage roads on MDI. I took part in a Vista restoration project on one of the loops.

Thanks for reading! Currently as i post this I'm up to 20% of the way there, only $800 to reach my goal! Please continue to help me out, take a look at my donation page here http://www.active.com/donate/friendsofacadia/EMauricette Keep on checking back on my blog for further updates on training and just tidbits along the way!

July 6, 2010

My First Marathon!

So, it's official. I have received the email from active.com that i have paid my $75.00 entry free for the MDI Marathon. I'll be running for Beyond the finish line Charity program. My charity is Friends of Acadia.

I'm going to make it a goal of mine to update at least twice maybe three times a week, but I'm not sure yet with being so busy at work both in the morning and at night. I need some time for running in there.

Please visit my Charity page here http://www.active.com/donate/friendsofacadia/EMauricette