It's hockey season again and our beloved Edmonton Oilers were out of the gate with a perfect 4 - 0 record. We started planning the parade route, asking the Detroit Red Wings to send the cup to the engravers, and the champagne was on ice. I know it is early, but when something is as sure as this you might as well get ready. Well in the last week our record has slipped to 4 - 4 with a good chance it will be 5 - 4 after tonight. Damn it! The only cup we have a chance of winning this year is the athletic cup.
I was living vicariously through all of you who completed a fall marathon. Congratulations to all of you on great efforts. I love reading all the great reports of the triumphs and the tragedies. Running a marathon is still probably one of the most difficult things to do. While an Ironman is extremely difficult it is very different from a marathon. It's like you have three chances for success and if you get everything right, it's the trifecta! With a marathon you have one chance and one chance only to get it right on that day. So if you don't achieve your target it is sometimes very disappointing. With the triathlon there is usually one part of the race that turns out well. For example in Arizona this year, while my time over all was virtually the same as in Coeur d'Alene the previous year I swam and rode very well. My marathon was a disaster but that was due to conditions.
In a marathon when your target starts to slip away it is like a slow leak in a tire. The pace just slowly drops off and you gradually see your goal time dissipate into the air. SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS and it's gone! So again three cheers for all the fall marathoners and enjoy your recovery.
Training has been very enjoyable and there are obvious signs of progress. While my runs have been shortish (6 to 9 miles), I have been running like a dog off a leash. Everyday when I get out my legs are feeling fresh and strong. Today was a perfect example as I started off on a run not sure I even wanted to go. So I thought I would do a couple of laps of the track and if I still was not feeling motivated I would call it. Well after 5 miles I was at 32:26 and finished with 7.4 miles in 48 minutes! That has pretty much been the story all week. I have also had 2 swims of 1,700 and 2,250 metres and 2 bike rides of 17 and 12 miles. Pretty low mileage overall but I have felt just great. The trick will be to keep things on an even keel until I start training in earnest which will not be until January sometime.
Have a great day!
3 comments:
"In a marathon when your target starts to slip away it is like a slow leak in a tire."
Classic! And very true, as I can vouch from my experience in Dublin.
Blazing speed! Nice!
Hockey is one of those sports I really want to like, but don't have enough of an emotional reason to really get into it. I suppose I need to head down to bean town and go to a few Bruins games for a jump start.
Enjoy the relative break in the training, January will be here before you know it. No doubt you'll continue to rock it.
You're so right about running a marathon. A lot of people asked if running a marathon would be easy now that I've done an Ironman. My answer is "Heck No!" The Marathon comes with it's own pain and challenges, especially when you have a speedy time goal in mind!!
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