Week 18 Part B - "Closing Time"

"You don't have to go home but you can't stay here."

- The words of thousands of bartenders every evening at closing time

It's Time to Close This Chapter of My Marathon Career

Where It All Began

My journey started out over six months ago in Tallmadge Meadows Metro Park where I began my marathon base training.  As I left town this past Saturday morning, I kept a promise to myself and stopped one more time at the point where it all began.  It was important for me on Saturday to remember why I once again started back down the road to being a "marathoner."  You don't get to have the title of a Marathon Runner unless you finish the course.

The Plan

The Hal Higdon Intermediate 2 Training Program was the basic blueprint.  I needed to push myself to get back to any kind of semblance of credibility to run 26.2 miles at the age of 65.  It would be so rare for anybody of my parents generation to have done something like this. I felt myself on the tipping point of accepting old age and a more sedentary lifestyle status, or embarking on trying to be a George Sheehan fit animal.  After six months, I am still in that struggle but much closer to the success of reaching my goal in October, than where I was in April.  

Writing the Blog was part of The Plan.  I needed to hold myself accountable. Publicly accountable.  There could be no turning back once it was in print and committed to in writing.  

Supporting Cast

First and foremost there was Mari. Her fun nicknames are in the distance.......way ahead of me in the distance. She has gotten faster during this period.  Not because of me. She has truly committed herself to the same mission that I have.  Her efforts serve as guidance and leadership for me and will continue to do so in the future.  Now that's a teammate.

Running coach David Cooper was a God send. Having him to talk to during my training and running the entire Columbus Marathon with me was more than I could have hope for on Sunday.  There will be more about this later.

Dick Beardsley, Randy Thomas, marathon greats, and cousins Marie Derby, Lydie Sprissler, Sheilah Colpoys and I got reconnected in the training process. This is good stuff. These folks are human benefits from the program that I had not anticipated. There was also he chance to reconnected to my dear friend Beanie and her daughters as well as so many others along the way. It was the visit to Beanie and the seventeen mile run in the heat the next morning in August that was the positive turning point in my training.

The Hailer Family got closer.  From Boston to Ohio, it was all good.

Julie Oliver. Buckeye Gym. No further words necessary. 

Then there were you, the readers and friends.  No way I could have made it back this far without the individual comments and true support and interest in the Blog. There will be approximately 5,500 reads by the time I pull it down. It's far more than I could have ever expected.

THE COLUMBUS MARATHON

Sunday, October 18, 2015 could not have been a more perfect day for a marathon.  Sure it was cold at the start but it was manageable.  There was no wind. There were plenty of porta potties and even an accommodating hotel to hide inside from the cold before the race. These are important primal considerations and pre-marathon race considerations for all runners.

The walk from the adopted hotel to the start line ended with Mari heading to Corral C.  David and I headed to the join wretched refuse of bodies in Corral D (slower runners). David belonged in Corral B but was with me by choice.  A true gift as it would turn out. It was in Corral D we met up with "Jersey Mike" the 5:30 pace group leader.  That was my first mistake.

Here we are:

The first two miles were easy.  These miles as my friend Connie Kolita likes to say, "Are always marathon lies." You are never as good or bad as you feel during this period of a marathon event. Being my running coach and personal pacer this day, David says, "Run your race, not his."  He was referring to "Jersey Mike." Great advice.  It wasn't working for us. We let Mike and the pace group go close to the three mile mark. David and I settled in to my Jeff Galloway approved two minutes of running and thirty second of running plan.  The first thirteen miles were fun.  Lots of fun. There were jokes with the crowd and fellow runners.  If I was a half marathon participant, clearly I was holding back to conserve energy. There were plenty of spectators to joke with along the way.  There was laughter, music and signs.  Like this one:

There were other signs:

• "Run like you stole something."
• "You're doing great....err, OK."
• "Kiss me."
• "Slap this sign for power!"
• "Worst parade ever."
• "Smile if you're not wearing underwear."
• "Go random stranger."
• "Run fast, I just farted."
• "The end is near, repent......no finish."  

It was all in good nature. Like every marathon you think, "13.1 more miles of this? No problem."  The thoughts of course are great, but they too are lies.

As David and I approached the split where half marathoners went off to their finish and the marathoners continued up High Street, I told him, "This is now a different race. It's going to be something you haven't experienced. I held back trying to exhibit my envy of the folks completing the half marathon.

WE ARE THE BACK OF THE PACK." Yep, we were indeed part of the wretched refuse.  To the dwindling crowds that awaited us, we were the tired and huddled masses. The only problem was that we weren't really "masses." We had already seen the earlier marathon finishers making the turn to the finish line well ahead of the body of the half marathon pack just as we were proceeding out to the second half of the course.  This was a new experience for David, and it was normal operating procedure for me.

First hearing and then seeing my long time friend Sarah Cupples, former SARC President and her friend at the fifteen mile mark truly made a positive difference in my attitude. The short words of encouragement meant so much.

Race officials had changed the course from the last year. This was the mile mark where I had planned on continuing my reputation as "Uncle Cookie" stopping at Subway.  Instead, as we were going by an first aid station I kiddingly asked a worker if they had any cookies and she responded, "We still have half a glazed donut." Going more for the comedy aspect with David, I said, "Sure." The humor lasted a hundred yards and then it was back to business.  The race thinned even more going around the Holy Ground known as Ohio Stadium or as it is known to the true disciples of The Ohio State University, "The Horseshoe."  

The unexpected bonus of this race, if not the true inspiration of every mile, were the Children's Champions.  Each young patient was with their special tent and surrounded by cheering family members were armed with a huge foam hands that were slapping "high fives" with every runner.  At every passing mile, these young heroes meant more and more to me.  As the hours of the race slowly moved on, these young folks and their families never left. One by one. Mile by mile, there they were. These cute children and families with much bigger challenges than any of us will ever face.  It meant everything.  The funniest moment of the race came at 22 miles when David went to high five a kid and found out that it was a young lady who was a growing health success story.  We didn't see that one coming.

Tell me this little guy doesn't warm your heart. This is Gunner from mile 9. He has spinal muscular atrophy.

My right quad muscle really starting hurting at 18 miles along with my right knee. It was more walking than running for a couple of miles.  I felt great but the leg flat out hurt.  Every marathoner has a story like this from a race.  These things happen.  David silently started walking ahead of me forcing me to focus on him as a target and to pick up the pace to try to catch him.

Then, almost as if brought in from central casting in for a movie, at the twenty-four and half mile mark, standing there cheering was none other than Mari with her half marathon medal around her neck.  She finished second in her age group and ran under two hours and three minutes on a crowded course.  Impressive!

Fortunately for my ego, we first saw her we while we were running.  (More of a survivor's shuffle but definitely a version of running). I could tell by the expression on her face that she was impressed with my positive attitude at this point in the race.  David and I ran almost all of this final portion of the race.  The leg hurt real bad. The joy of being near the finish and sharing the experience with my friend overshadowed the negativity emanating from the right leg of my body.

As we were preparing to cross the finish line, the viewing stands were virtually empty.  Workers tearing down barriers were offering their encouragement and support. The sounds of the metal barriers being stacked together for collection was reminiscent of the glasses being put away at the end of a long night in a virtually empty bar around closing time.

 Little did the few folks left at the finish line know that David Cooper was a really fast, and a really good runner. The finish line announcers had stayed a little longer. It felt good to still have them there but their announcements were only being heard by us, and had a broader audience of only the clean up workers and some kindly volunteers and some family members who were waiting for the few folks like us.  The lady who was sharing in the announcing looked down at me and asked in a joyful voice over the microphone, "Did you two just meet today?" "No," I replied. "We're best friends."  The look from the announcer revealed her immediate understanding.  David had sacrificed his race to guide his friend.  She knew what I knew.  It was a gift.  Nothing more needed to be said. Ah, the power of non-verbal communication.

Perhaps the best moment was the sincere jubilation that Mari expressed as she waited where we came out of the secured area.  She more than anyone has known of my health concerns.  The Boss looked at me and stated what had been less than obvious to me even though this was my thirtieth marathon. "This is just like your first marathon.  You finished." Again, she was right.

6:21:15 - That's my time. I own it. I love it. The time means I finished. That was the objective. I was back. My thoughts as I walked from the finish line to what was left of the post race food area were of Tracy Finn, Gideon Oswitch, Doug Wheeler, Lynn Anderson, my lovely daughter Lindsay, and so many others who sent me unexpected messages of support on the day before to the closing moments right before the race.

Dick Beardsley, St. Hal Higdon, and now even the gifted David Cooper who had never taken this long to run a marathon have come to understand one thing.  To be out on the course for six hours takes determination and drive and a little stupidity.  My finisher's medal is the same one everyone else gets who crosses the finish line.

When I began this journey, I said that I wanted to run Columbus under five hours.  I realized early on that such a lofty goal was a fool's errand for me.  Finishing was the objective a long time ago.  827 miles from Tallmadge Meadows in April to shortly after two o'clock on Sunday afternoon.  As I crossed the finish line, I knew I left everything on the course. With "A little help from my friends," we raised over $1,000 for the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank.  If that was all that happened that would have been awesome, but there was so much more.  Relationships and friendships were renewed.  Life is a little better. That I believe would be the true definition of success.

I know myself better now than I did at the beginning of the year.  I know exactly what I have to do to improve my running performance.  Like all other things in life, it comes down to how I execute my plan.

I will not run another marathon unless I can lose another twenty pounds.  I weigh too much to do marathons at this age.  I will be back lighter, stronger, but just as happy as I am today. That should be achieved sometime around April 9, 2016, just in time for my sixty-sixth birthday.  If Vegas is taking odds, I think I have proven to myself. Don't bet against me.

As Tracy Brown and Jerry Bunn, running partners from an era long gone by from the late seventies would say regarding our running efforts, "It's time to bury the peg." I'm just getting started on this next big thing in my life which is becoming a fit animal. This is just Part 1. Based upon my donut experience at sixteen miles on Sunday, I think I have some work to do!

My future running plans are to run one half marathon each month until April 18, 2016, then run the Boston Marathon course on that date about two hours after the last runner leaves Hopkinton, Massachusetts. If you research the true history of the Boston Marathon, both my brother Phil and I will be running Boston the way it was truly done in the old days.  Except in this case, it's just a couple of old war horses chasing a dream one more time in hopes of really finding a unicorn.  Didn't qualify Boston? Run with us! It's the same course and definitely the true "Spirit of the Marathon."

The final image is from Mari and I hiking on Monday in the Cuyahoga Valley trying to try to stretch out our legs.  It was a perfect fall late afternoon walk among some amazing colors. There was a gentle silence except for the soothing sounds of the woods.  It's was all a metaphor for the rest of my training.  My future quest will be done in relative radio silence. No Facebook or Twitter. For now, the quest to be a fit animal to measure up to George Sheehan standards has to be done with few others and in relative quiet.

Sharing with you and being public these past six months has been a great place to be, but now its over. "I don't have to go home, but I can't stay here." One thing I do know.  I couldn't have gotten here, without all of you. And for that let me just say, "Thank you."

Week 18 Part A - "It's Showtime. Remain Calm."

"It's Showtime. Remain calm. You're ready."

- Patricia Wolfe, Musical Director

Fiddler on the Roof

Wapakoneta Community Theater - Fall 1984

Yesterday morning, "The Woman to Whom I'm Related By Marriage" woke me up and said, "Why don't you go out and get a couple of miles in?" Before I could remind her that it was an off day on the schedule, she continued, "It'll be good for you." Silently I got dressed. After all, it was "Bosses Day." I put on my Brooks Ghost 6 running shoes without saying a word to TB. I was definitely "pissed" at being pushed out the door.

I got in the car and drove to Peninsula, Ohio. Its about fifteen miles away in the Cuyahoga National Valley.  On my way, I opened the roof of my Jeep. I couldn't help but feel a sense of gratefulness as I drove on the winding roads through the fall foliage that was just stunning at every view. It was an awesome feeling to experience the sites, sounds, and the morning fog and dew of the Valley.  Glad it was my idea......kind of......  Ok, it was TB's.  Say it with me one more time Ginny Hoffman, "She was right!"

Here's some of the visuals I experienced yesterday morning.  This first one almost looks like a Monet painting.  

Here's a bridge on the Towpath. Talk about a calming effect:

A lock on from the old Ohio-Erie Canal with a Towpath bridge overhead:

On the bridge for the Towpath that goes over the Cuyahoga River in Peninsula.

An old lock:

A view of the Cuyahoga River:

A mist hangs over the boardwalk through the marsh:

The sun burns though bringing a crisp and clear fall day:

Totally by accident, I ran into a lady that I was going to call in about one mile when I got back to my car.  It's Kim Carbaugh.  Kim is one of my favorite people in the world. I hadn't seen her in well over a year.  Maybe two. We used to do long runs together in our Galloway training group years ago.  Her husband is a successful teacher who is beloved by his students.  Both care more about others than they care about themselves and are terrific parents. Both Brian and Kim elevate everybody they meet.  I was just going to call her to get some Instant Karma for Sunday. This was better. Kim is about as graceful a runner as you can see.  She also has a pacemaker.  She's an executive at the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, an organization that does exactly what the name implies.  Like I said, "She cares more about others than she cares about herself."  My confidence for Sunday spiked after this brief encounter.

Colorado? No. It's Ohio:

Now the story of two people I will be thinking about tomorrow. The first is Tucker.  I have seen Tucker everywhere running in the Akron area.  When I say, "Everywhere," I mean everywhere and not as a metaphor.  Tucker is the Forrest Gump of Akron.  This week I finally pulled over to the side of the road to introduce myself.  We had seen each other off and on through the years and just now introduced ourselves.  He's been wearing the same headphones for 25 years.  He told me he runs for two and half hours everyday.  I should have said, "Hi," in 1991 when I first got to Akron.

This is the picture that will be most in my mind tomorrow.  This is my sister Paula. "The Best Artist in the World." She is a creative and terrific person.  She's not fast. She never will be. What she is though is a marathon runner.  She ran as a charity runner for Goodwill Industries in the Boston Marathon a year ago. Paula finished way in the back of the pack.  If I am not mistaken, I believe that is a Boston Marathon finisher's medal around her neck. She's a marathon runner.  Dick Beardsley, Jeff Galloway, "K.V. Switzer - Number 261", and everybody who appreciates the effort would be proud! I know I am.

Below is me in 1984 as Teyve in a community theater production of Fiddler on the Roof in Wapakoneta during my fastest running years as an adult. I was taking a risk to be the lead in a musical which was something I hadn't done since junior high school.  I was asked about six weeks before the first show to be the replacement for the guy who was going to have the lead role but moved out of town.  Talk about living on the risk curve. Pat Wolfe, the sincere and hard working and no nonsense director of the production came up to me backstage before the first show. That's when Pat said, "It's Showtime! Remain calm. You're ready."  Every show was a sell-out of 350 people. We got a standing ovation at the end of the show that first night with tears in most people's eyes. In fact, that happened at the end of all eighteen performances.

Well, this is me in 1984 in Fiddler on the Roof singing, "If I Were a Rich Man:" (Yaga diddle diddle dum!")

My Fiddler days are of course in contrast to me on a trail on Wednesday. There were two deer crossing in front of me. Because I was alone and in a great mood, I started singing at the top of my lungs the Jimmy Fallon and Will Ferrell song, "I Got My Tight Pants On." I even threw in a, "Sing it with me boys," in the direction of the deer.  They looked at me with blank stares and moved on.  I was totally amused with my humor in this moment of solitude.  Just one problem.  I wasn't quite as alone as I thought.  Down below the tree line were two golfers on the golf course that was boarding the trail......... ahem... come to think of it, what the heck do I care? .... I don't know them.  They don't know me. It's my training run. So I sang louder and ran on.

Jimmy Fallon and Will Ferrell:

Go to GOOGLE and type in: "Jimmy Fallon and Will Ferrell Tight Pants" and watch the video.

You will then understand the relationship that I have with daughter Lindsay and youngest son Alex.

By the way, I really was wearing tight pants on Wednesday:

Well there you have it kids.  From the sincere to the ridiculous over the past eighteen weeks. I have so many of you to thank for the encouragement and support.  Thanks to those of you who donated to the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank in my honor.  The training has never has been hard work.  It's been challenging, but its been both fun and rewarding. I know the Subway where I will be stopping tomorrow to get my chocolate chip cookie. Got to keep the Uncle Cookie tradition alive.

It's not about speed.  It's about a whole experience of fun, laughing, effort, personal enjoyment, and of course accomplishment.  It's marathon day.  Let the good times roll.  

Come on sing it with me: "Everybody's talking 'bout my tight pants. I got my tight pants......" 

(You didn't actually think I was going to get all melancholy and serious now did you?)

"IT'S SHOWTIME!...Remain calm. I'm ready." Ho! Ho! Ho! :-)

Week 17 - "Life's Been Good to Me So Far" -

"I can't complain but sometimes I still do. Life's been good to me so far."

- Joe Walsh

It has gone fast. Here I am with Week 17 of St. Hal Higdon's marathon program in the books.  I am in a good place.  The mind is good.  The body is stronger than when I began. As my neighbor in Vermilion says with a smile, "It's nice to see..... less of you." The weight loss is almost on target. It's been a lot of miles. Things are as they should be.

The Boss posing in front of the "I Love Lucy" mural in Downtown Jamestown, New York:

Yesterday I ran in the Lucy Town Half Marathon in Jamestown. My Facebook friends already know that TB won her age group in impressive fashion.  We had different race objectives. My goal for the race was to practice my marathon run/walk doing two minutes of running and thirty seconds of walking. The purpose of the walk portion is to conserve strength and work different muscle groups in my legs according to running guru and former Olympian Jeff Galloway. It works for me.

Sunday was supposed to be an eight mile training day according to St, Hal's schedule, but as in the previous posting, The Boss would have none of that. She wanted me to do more. This next part comes hard to say............."She was....ahem......right." Now its time to taper.

My favorite American guitarist, music personality, and philosopher:

I began yesterday's race easy, standing almost last in line at the start.  Heck, what did I care? To quote Joe Walsh one more time, "I'm an analog man in a digital world," when it comes to running.  I like races to start early in the morning so that we runners stay out of the way of motorists and the sun in the summer. I like wearing running shoes until they're worn and I don't want to wear them anymore. I like not wearing a running watch in races just like in the 1970's and before. I still haven't gotten over New Balance changing their logo. I've never been a fan of Nike shoes. I'm sure they're great, I just don't wear them. I like pull tags on numbers instead of chips on shoes or on the back of race bibs. Didn't the Duel in the Sun happen at last April's Boston Marathon? The sport of running has moved in a different direction. To each their own. I'm getting better the more I get stuck in the past.

St. Hal advises his marathon race disciples to start slowly. Yesterday I knew Columbus was on the horizon in less than a week. Wearing myself out in Jamestown a week before Columbus was not on the radar. I also knew I felt really good and that I was here, and "this is now."  I decided that it was time to make the most it. While I started slowly, I picked up my pace at the halfway point.  I felt myself getting stronger. I started picking off runners. I was being competitive. Its been a long time since I've even thought like that.  It felt good. Really good.

At ten miles my thoughts were, "5K? No problem." As I crossed the finish line, I kept running.  I wasn't even close to being toast. This is good. My time, 2:41:11 by the clock.  In reality on a stand alone basis, no question in my mind, a time of 2:30:00 was very possible yesterday. However, you are what your time on the clock says. I did something else yesterday that I had not done in a long long time.  I ran a negative split.  I ran the second part of the course faster than I ran the first part. Nice.

It's now down to nutrition, the taper routine, and as much rest as I can get. My goal is to finish smiling on Sunday.  Sincerely smiling.  And when the pain sets in and the legs and the body get tired, I'll need to remember the benefits of the lonely miles. It will be an honor to once again be part of the fraternity and sorority of marathoners who paid as much or more of price than I did to be at the starting line in Columbus. That's when the voice in my head and the music in my soul that sounds suspiciously like my man Joe will take over and remind me, "Life's been good to me so far." It really has. Thanks to all who have made that possible.

Week 16 - "Mari"

Mari

"She's always a woman to me."

- Billy Joel

I have had a lot of fun over the past sixteen weeks running and writing. Sometimes those comments have been in fun about Mari.  She has been referred to as:

• "The Boss" or "TB"
• "TLMH" - The Lovely Mrs. Hailer
• "The Woman to Whom I'm Related By Marriage" - Stolen from the Tony Kornheiser Show
• "The Assassin" - A generous reference to her competitive running style.
• "Mari" - Her nickname from school that she would like to bury but I can't let go of for 47 reasons, or 47 years of my knowing her if you prefer.

When it comes to running, the two of us are like Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson in the movie "A Star is Born."  I had the gift and then let it go.  She became the running star, and deservedly so.  Instead of me being exactly like John Norman Howard, Kristofferson's tragic character in the movie, and ruining my career, relationships, and life with drugs and alcohol, I chose Oreos.  Fortunately, Mari kept me from getting behind the wheel of a Swan Milk delivery truck and crashing head long into the wall at the local ACME Fresh Market in a drunken sugar high from mainlining Double Stuff, Fudge Covered, and Triple Stuff Oreos and while trying to score some more.

A picture of me in Oreo recovery:

Actually, this is me at twelve miles this past Sunday, on a fifteen mile run, that was suppose to be a scheduled twelve mile day according to the Hal Higdon schedule.  Why fifteen when it was only supposed to be twelve?  Well, Mari was not impressed with my twenty mile effort last week.  That was the run where I stopped to get an ice cream cone at fifteen miles and then kind of mailed in the last five and declared victory. 

Sunday was as if I was a running version of Kevin Costner in "Field of Dreams." In my head I heard the voice say, "Go the distance." The voice sounded suspiciously like my wife's. I heeded the voice, Twelve miles was not an option. For all men not married to Mari Hailer, Hal's Week 16 schedule's final training day distance for the week was for chumps. I'm not making this up.  Mari wanted me to do twenty miles.  I went fifteen, or three more than my schedule,.......and I felt guilty that I didn't go further.  

When I did get home, I told her that that my legs were dead from Saturday's Roc the Croc 5K in Westlake where I improved my race time by three minutes over last year's race. I went on to explain that I "only" went fifteen miles. She just smiled and said, "Good job."

"...but she'll bring out the best and the worst you can be, blame it all on yourself cause she's always a woman to me......" - more Billy Joel.

Here's a photo from the Kent to Silver Lake Trail last week.  Mari was running in one direction and I in the other. This was the meeting point.

Mari has been an inspiration to my running going all the way back to my cross country days at Ohio Northern University.  It was sophomore year at a four mile meet on campus.  At about one mile into the race, I saw Mari talking to a really handsome and nice guy who she once dated by the name of Brian.  I didn't like it...at all.  I took the lead in the race wanting to get back to the finish as soon as possible. I didn't win but it was one of my best times of my two year college cross country career.  

I first saw Mari at the freshman welcome dance at "Northern" in September of 1968. I never had the courage to ask her out. Me? Yep. Me. She eventually asked me out four months later.  That of course was her first mistake.  

When you're eighteen, you can only base your choice of friends in college on who you knew in high school.  You have a choice. You either want to continue in that stream of lifestyle and friends that you knew, or you want to start over and change.  I stayed the same.  My dates in high school were always with some pretty wonderful young ladies who I remember to this day.  Each of them had various great qualities like good grades and high life standards and life values. Mari had all of those qualities in one person for me.  I count myself as lucky. Make that very lucky. 

Mari has been challenging me throughout the training schedule for Columbus. She's been supportive and been very much like a coach.  She of course has lead by example. She has the running resume to prove it. She set the course record this year at the River Run Half Marathon for 65 and over females. Mari still holds the record at the Roc the Croc in Westlake, Ohio 5K for 60 - 64 year old category. She is competitive as can she can be in a race. If you are close to her in a race, you better bring your "A Game" if you want to pass her.  No wonder why I call her, "The Assassin." 

My actual running coach David Cooper has been supportive and motivational for me. My strength coach Julie Oliver from Buckeye Gym has hung in with me.  Even they are impressed with Mari's drive to continually improve.  Now in his 50's, coach Cooper is no different; Julie likewise in the world of fitness and health. Both coaches are like Mari in that they are always looking to improve if they can. They know all about Mari and her positive affect on my running.  Add the encouragement that I have received from some running greats like Dick Beardsley and Randy Thomas, as well as running club members and friends, and I find myself successfully within the final two weeks of my training program. 

I am well over 700 miles of running since the end of April.  I am almost ready for Columbus.  Almost.  There's still work to do. There's the Lucy Half Marathon this weekend.  That'll be five more miles than what's called for on the final day of the week seventeen Hal Higdon schedule.  It'll be a good day to practice my Jeff Galloway run/walk system for Columbus. It's the race prescription for marathon day. "Run for two minutes and then walk for a minute, and then repeat as needed for 26.2 miles."  

I am sure Mari will be waiting for me at the finish line on Sunday. When I say the magic words as I finish, "That was five miles more than I was supposed to do," she will say enthusiastically, "Good!" I will know that she is right.  Her words can cut like a knife.  She brings out the best and the worst I can be.  The latter I'll blame it all on myself. When it comes to the runner I'm married to, she's an assassin on the roads to some, but the truth is, "She's always a woman to me." 

Week 15 - "Four Days on Planet Steve"

(SPECIAL NOTE:  This entry is five days late because there was a lot going on in my life.  According to my brother Phil, life is always in motion on "Planet Steve."  The following is an autobiographical account of four awesome days in words and pictures.)


"When you wake in the morning, have a smile on your face, enthusiasm in your voice, joy in your heart, and faith in your soul." - Dick Beardsley

I got hammered by life last week but all in good fun.  I felt like a whirling dervish at times as the week unfolded.  In addition to my running schedule of 50 miles for the week, there was:

• Preparing and presiding over the Summit Athletic Running Club (SARC) board meeting,
• Working for the wonderful folks at Peoples Bank,
• Picking up Dick Beardsley and Phil Hailer from Hopkins on Thursday and getting them to where they needed to be, (Which by the way was a lot of fun),
• Attending the Akron Marathon VIP reception on Thursday evening,
• All week was spent getting ready for the Friday morning Akron Canton Regional Foodbank breakfast that I was chairing presented by the running club,
• Helping staff the SARC booth at the Akron Marathon Expo for most of the day with Dick,
• Playing music at the two mile mark cheer station for the marathon at 7:00 a.m on Saturday,
• Going to the 6.75 mile and later the 11.75 mile marks to cheer and get pictures of friends and loved ones,
• Visiting briefly at the marathon finish line and then get Dick back to the house to clean up and then off to the airport,
• Getting a seven mile run in on Saturday afternoon in the metro park near Hopkins Airport after I dropped Dick off to catch his plane,
• Going out to Applebees for dinner with Phil and The Boss,
• Getting up Sunday morning and do a 20 mile run.

Am I missing anything?  Oh yes I did.  I missed my son Alex proposing to his girlfriend when he finished his first marathon.  There was other stuff but the above list is enough.  I felt like this guy:

It would be superfluous to put into words what can be said in pictures, so here's Thursday through Sunday with less words and more of your thoughts:

Putting signs out Thursday morning:

Phil and Dick, who became best friends within about 30 seconds of meeting each other. This is after lunch on Thursday at Winking Lizard in Peninsula, Ohio. Dick was blown away by the beauty of the lock and trail:

A visit to the Lindsonator's branch of Peoples Bank in Munroe Falls. This is what trouble looks like:

From the breakfast on Friday at Canal Park in Akron overlooking the Akron Marathon finish line with Dick with Karissa DiVincenzo, SARC member and events planner for Brouse McDowell in first picture.  Tracy Finn and Melodie Sams, SARC members in the second photo, and Paula "Bz" and Jane Wolfe, SARC members in third:

The on the field race general Brian Polen, Akron Marathon Race Director:

Three greats in their own right at the Summit Athletic Running Club expo booth, Olympic Gold Medal Winner Frank Shorter, SARC member Judge Linda Teodosio, with Dick:

Anne Bitong, executive director of the Akron Marathon stops by the SARC booth:

Linda Nahrstedt and Sara Drew, SARC members, with possibly the "World's Funniest Human Being," Rob Klein and Dick at the SARC expo booth:

Chillin' with the boys at the SARC expo booth:

Three inspirational giants together, Dick, Dre, and Zeke:

Ginny Hoffman, SARC member and the wife of my good friend Dr. Mike Hoffman who is the official oral surgeon of WeezersandGeezer.blogspot.com. Photo was taken in the Expo lobby. Ginny is a Boston qualifier and like The Boss is to me, Ginny plays "The Road Runner" to Mike's role as "The Coyote" on the roads. "Beep! Beep!":

Lunch with Dick and Phil, and who did we run into? None other than Father Norm. Two legends in human motivation together at The Lockview Restaurant in Downtown Akron.:

Phil and Dick hanging with DEVO after lunch figuring out how to deal with problems as they come along. "Whip it good!":

Saturday morning at 5:30 a.m. with Phil, The Boss (TB), and Dick:

Saturday morning at 7:10 a.m:

Ed Sturkey, an officially adopted Hailer brother at the two mile music stop. Ed drove all the way to Hingham, Massachusetts to be at my dad's wake and funeral in January 2014. I love this guy.  A true friend. He truly is, my brother.:

Here come the leaders at guess which mile mark:

My running coach, close friend and backbone of the behind the scenes workings of SARC, David Cooper:

Dick Beardsley at 2.0 miles running the half. In the words of Warren Zevon, "An excitable boy they all said.":

Cheri Crum, a dear friend from Buckeye Gym, on her way to a blistering first leg performance for the PEBO ROCKS relay team:

Becky Ryba waving at two miles.  She's a solid and consistant runner from a family that means a lot to me:

Michelle Gessler-Rodriguez who was part of a Galloway group I joined years ago:

SARC member Paula "Bz." stopping by the aid station. Always smiling!:

SARC member Bonnie Calcei at 11.75 miles. Solid runner.  Determined. A true athlete.:

Family concert buddy, habitual positive person, SARC member, and six time Boston qualifier Tracy Finn looking strong at 11.75 miles:

Dick waving at 11.75 as he blows by with his surgically repaired legs.  To quote Darth Vader, "Most Impressive!":

The Boss on the right in blue on her way to a 2:05:11 according to marathon records for the half marathon:

Youngest son Alex at 11.75 miles running his first marathon:

Phil, "Mr. 70 Marathons" Hailer, looking old school with his cotton blend old school Red Sox t-shirt:

Your humble host hamming it up for Chuck Armao and his camera at Canal Park while waiting on Dick and TB.  Every year I wear a Jim Brown jersey out of respect for the greatest football player of all-time:

SARC member Paul Organ after running a half marathon and volunteering late into the night in helping to set up the starting line. Then he comes back three hours before the race to help some more before he ran. This what a first class person looks like.:

Champions to me, Dick and TB:

Two of the classiest people you will ever meet, Jeannine and Steve Marks co-founders of the marathon at the finish line.  They will be the first to tell you that it takes everybody to pull the Rubber City Series off, but let's be honest, it started with these two:

Away from the stadium finish, Dick and SARC member and long time marathoner Ralph Lowery who was working behind the scenes to help clean up while others are enjoying the festivities at Canal Park.  It's an example of the dedication of any Akron Marathon race volunteer:

Alex the and Heather, the future "Mrs. Alex." She hears Jason Aldean.  He hears Teddy Pendergrass. Together they are great!

Alex and Heather with their favorite player "Tom Brady?":

Nephew and uncle as marathon finishers:

Where I spent seven miles on my Saturday afternoon on Valley Parkway near Cleveland Hopkins Airport:

Below is the text I sent to Alex while on the trail, not realizing he still had two miles to go when he read it.  I called him when I was done with my run.  He told me that my words helped him get through the last two miles. I cried after we ended the call. Here is the text:

"I am incredibly prod of you. This is YOUR moment. Color me proud of you. Love, Pops"

Sent from my IPhone

"Sunday Selfie"on a 20 miler at about thirteen miles into the distance on Kent to Silver Lake trail.  Any rumors that I stopped at my friend's Dairy Queen store on Fishcreek Road in Stow to get a small twist cone dipped in chocolate at the fifteen mile mark.......are true.  Once an Uncle Cookie, always an Uncle Cookie.  

I was inspired by all in Akron, and I will take my mental images of all and their energy with me to Columbus on the 18th.  What I'll remember most when the miles hurt is this message of hope and positivity expressed by Dick Beardsley to Melodie Sams' in his "Duel in the Sun" book that I opened today's offering with:

Well there you have it.  A Thursday through Sunday look at the story of "Planet Steve." It was a great place to be in the Universe. Now its time to return to earth.  Fine by me.  I've got a marathon to run in about two weeks.  I'm bringing all of you with me in my heart when I run.