Every Race is an Adventure!

I ran a few easy miles at lunch today. I felt surprisingly good. I'm guessing the pace was around 8:00/mi.

I'm torn about whether to run Boston 2007. I qualified at SG last year, but decided to wait another year to see if some more of my running buddies could qualify. I qualified again at TOU this year, and some running buddies like Kerry, Tom, Nathan, and Kurt also qualified this year as I hoped. But other hopefuls, like Larry, Kevin, and Cory, did not.

And then there's the cost. Our finances have been a little tighter the past couple of years. I'm not quite sure where to place running Boston on my list of financial priorities. The hotels and airfare seem pretty expensive. Are there any experienced Boston runners out there that have some good money-saving tips?

My first preference would be to take my family, but that's not going to be feasible. My second preference would be to take just my wife Karen. While she would love the trip if we were going with family or friends she knew well, she doesn't want to go and be alone or with unfamiliar people in an unfamiliar (and crowded) place. She told me it would probably be better if I went alone. It would be cheaper, too. So I guess now I'm considering whether to go alone.

I know Tom and Kerry are looking into making Boston plans. I don't know yet whether Kent and Kurt might be going. It sounds like Nathan is considering waiting until Boston 2008 to wait for Cory to get qualified. Maybe I'll just wait and ponder a while longer and find out more about what plans others are making.

I was planning to run at lunch today but the overnight laundry service at the fitness center didn't have my clothes returned. Apparently their dryer is broken.

I ran the Lake View course at lunch today. The weather was great, cool and clear. I didn't push very hard and averaged 8:00/mi. I still feel a little lingering soreness and stiffness, but on the whole I feel pretty good.

I haven't played basketball all summer trying to avoid injuries that might have interfered with my marathon plans. Today I opted for morning basketball with my 19 year old son Andrew and the old gang. I'm a little rusty, but it was great. I was reminded again that running conditioning and basketball conditioning are not the same, and that being 5'7" is more of a disadvantage at basketball than it is at running. I had fun anyway.

Larry called me yesterday to plan a run for this morning. My body didn't feel up to it so I declined. It turns out I ended up staying up until about 2:00am trying to catch up on episodes of Lost from last season with my wife and teenage daughter so we can watch this season's episodes that we have recorded on our DVR. My two college-age children are all caught up, and my high school senior son is on a separate "catch up" schedule with a friend. It will be great when we're all finally caught up so we can talk openly about everything (and stop staying up late trying to get caught up).

I also helped a family move for a few hours. I helped load the moving truck three times, and unload it twice. With the old and new homes both being two stories with basements, I got a lot of stairs in along with my weight lifting. That will have to be my workout for today.