Northwest Running and Triathlon Race Calendar - Halloween Runs Part II

Even more Halloween Races to choose from - get your costume ready now!

Let's race!

-Green Text for Trail Runs
-Red Text for Marathons and Half Marathons
-Blue Text for Triathlons and Duathlons
-Orange Text for everything else, the normal 5k, 10k, etc

RACES FOR WEEK OF OCTOBER 15th TO OCTOBER 21st

October 20th / Lake Padden Trail Half Marathon / Bellingham, WA

October 20th / Dawn of the Dead Dash Trail Run 5k / Portland, OR

October 21st / Goat Grind Trail Run 4m / Helena, MT

October 21st / Super Dave's Down and Dirty Trail Run Half Marathon / Bend, OR

October 21st / Fort Steilacoom Trail Run 50k, Half Marathon, 10k and 5k / Lakewood, WA

October 20th / Lewis-Clark Half Marathon and 5k / Clarkston, WA

October 21st / Run Like Hell! Half Marathon, 10k and 5k / Portland, OR

October 19th / Fall Sprint Triathlon Sprint / Boise, ID (swim on Friday, bike and run on Sat)

October 21st / Beaver Fever Duathlon Sprint / Philomath, OR

October 20th / Halloween Hill Climb 5k / Sherwood, OR

October 20th / Montessori Monster Mash Dash 5k / Pocatello, ID

October 20th / Run with the Kokanee 10k and 5k / Issaquah, WA

October 20th / SHOES 5k: Operation Indonesia 5k / Seattle, WA

October 20th / Zombie Chase 5k / Rigby, ID

October 20th / Monster Dash 5k / Salem, OR

October 20th / Chelan Chase 5k / Chelan, WA

October 20th / Howl n Scream Scram 10k and 5k / Richland, WA

October 20th / Miles for Mercy 10k and 5k / Richland, WA

October 20th / Monster Dash 5k / Richland, WA

October 20th / Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Run 10k and 5k / Arlington, WA

October 20th / Walla Walla Crush 10k and 5k / Walla Walla, WA

October 20th / Wish Run 5k / Idaho Falls, ID

October 20th / Fremont Mat Dawgs Fall Night 5k / Umpqua, OR

October 20th / Here 2 Hear 10k and 5k / Boise, ID

October 20th / Regatta Run 5k / Tualatin, OR

October 21st / The Dash Race for the Kids 5k / Seattle, WA

October 21st / Run the Tac with the Pac 5k / Tacoma, WA

October 21st / Team Susie Race for a Heart 10k and 5k / Pendleton, OR

October 21st / Dawg Dash 10k and 5k / Seattle, WA

October 21st / Mighty Oaks Acorn Run 5k / Corvallis, OR

October 21st / Goblin Gallop 5k / Redmond, WA

October 21st / Komen Race for the Cure 8k and 5k / Eugene, OR

Photo once again from Best Race Costumes.

New RaceCenter NW Article Hits the Stands - Cross Country and Cyclocross

It's true, I've got another faboo new article out in the latest issue of RaceCenter NW - at a Jamba Juice near you!

Or if you're lazy as dirt, just head over to the RaceCenter Digital Edition and you'll be able to keep your ass firmly planted in your couch. You're welcome.

So let's see if there's anything worth looking at, besides the article from the R's Writing Factory of course:

-Well, the cover is cool. I'm excited about finally getting back out there for a trail race in a couple weeks, at the Condor 25k, and this cover picture gets me thinking about running on that lovely, soft dirt.

-After a bunch of pretty, full-page ads, we get Brook Gardner's Editorial on page 12. Brook makes some good points about the minimalist movement and not following fads and getting a shoe that actually works for you. Or as I've said, more succinctly, many times, "get a real pair of shoes, for God's sake - those Five Fingers will just end up at the bottom of your closet."

-Some Race Briefs: Seattle Marathon (which I won't run until they get a new RD), Nike Cross Nationals coming to Portland, Stumptown XC coming up (I hope to make it to a race), tons o' Jingle Bell Runs, Jeff Browning showing them who's boss at the Wasatch 100, and Cyclocross news. All good stuff, all informative.

-An informative article on Fueling for Late-Day Energy, for those pesky evening races.

-My homeboy Max King talking about getting your Mental Schwerve on. (I know this is a family blog and all, but does anyone else read Max King and have your brain instantly translate it as "Max F*cking King"? Mine does. I mean, the guy is just incredible.)

-Chris Bagg, tri dude extraordinaire, talks about the bennies of Cyclocross.

-USATF Oregon Stuff.

-Jeff Browning talks about the race from the cover photo: the TransRockies Run.

-Some amazing writer with the amazing name of Scott Lommers writes an article about the amazing similarities between Cross Country Running and Cyclocross. And he titles the article "Criss Cross." Yes, I thought of that. Wow. Amazing.

-JD Downing talks about snow and sports and stuff. Not interested, thanks. Too cold.

-Somebody writes an article about Scott Sports. I assume it was Brook Gardner, but for some reason he didn't put a byline on it.

-Then a Shoe Guide. And hey! There's the Nike Pegasus 29. What do you know, I just reviewed that bad boy myself!

-Then the Event Calendar and we're done.

All in all, not a bad issue. Good stuff. Pick one up so you can be one of those smart people with all kinds of helpful fricking advice.

Max King Wins at XTERRA Championships and 50K Trails Championships - And Other Links

Oregon running god Max King rolls to win at USA 50k Trail Championships - But wait! On the same weekend, Max also...

Our guy Max King also wins the XTERRA Trail Run National Championship - for the fifth straight freaking time

Still a few spots open for the Boston Marathon - got a marathon this weekend?

A photo gallery from the XTERRA USA Triathlon Championships - no, Max King didn't win the tri race...but only because he didn't enter

Andy Potts and Jenny Fletcher win Branson Ironman 70.3 - Andy's my boy; he's a swimmer at heart

Finish your races strong - or follow my plan: start too fast and die a miserable death

Jordan Rapp and Christine Anderson win Leadman 250 in Bend, OR - they moved the race from Las Vegas

Some Tri Bike Porn for the ladies out there - it's Michellie Jones' custom pink Felt (that sounds dirtier than it really is...)

Review of running water bottles and other hydration systems - I love my basic, old Amphipod.

And here are some photos of the Leadman race in Bend - looks like a pretty bike ride

Corvallis Fall Festival Race Results and Race Review

Another 2012 race and another PR in the books!

Hey, if you just want to see the results and could care less about my race; I completely understand. Here are the results for the 5k and 10k.

Now let's talk about me!

So I was on a nice little streak in 2012 coming into the Corvallis Fall Festival 10k. I had run four races and set three all-time PR's and one master's PR. So I was four for four. And since I had set my 10k PR last year, at the very same Fall Festival course, I saw no reason that I shouldn't go five for five in 2012. My PR coming in was 48:57. Nothing spectacular, to be sure. It was basically the same pace as my half marathon PR, so I definitely felt good about my chances coming in.

We actually had some rain the night before, but an hour or so before race time it was sunny and quite warm. A good day for a race!

I met my friend Manny B, coming up from Eugene, and we chatted, did a little warmup, chatted, hit the honey buckets, and chatted while we waited for the 10k start time of 9:15. Sort of late on a warm day like today, but there you go.

Now I know I've complained about this before, but I just don't understand...so I'm going to complain again. You've got a race with both a 10k and a 5k...why do you start the 5k first!?!? The 5k will always have the walkers and the kids and the joggers. The 10k will always have the more serious, faster on average, runners. So why start the 5k first? I just don't understand...

Anyway, they started the 5k at 9:10 and the 10k exactly five minutes later at 9:15. I don't need to tell you that we came up on the back of the 5k pack very, very quickly. It was never completely blocked like we were at the Red, White and Blue 5k, but you had to swerve back and forth around a number of walkers, both during the first two miles, then at the end as well when we merged back in together during the last mile. Big deal? No. But I still think you could solve the problem by starting the 10k first. Stepping off soapbox...now!

As usual, I ran the first quarter mile or so without looking at my watch. I like to try to find my pace and keep my breathing and heart rate at a decent level before I look at my pace and adjust.

And as usual, I went out too fast.

I mean, look at that first quarter-mile! I needed to average about 7:45 to set a new PR. I wanted to average about 7:30. I glanced down at my watch at about a quarter-mile and saw I was hitting about 6:15! Hey now! I looked up and saw Gerhard Behrens' back just ahead of me and then I really knew I needed to slow down. There's no way I should be running up with him at any point in the race.

I was able to reel it back in a bit and hit the first mile marker at 7:03. Quite a bit faster than my plan, but I felt OK so I just kept rolling. The second mile came in at a respectable 7:14 and I knew if I could just hang on for 6.2 miles, the PR was looking like it would go down hard.

Miles three and four are a long, straight out and back on the road that heads behind the OSU Dairy Barns and then under the Covered Bridge, until finally hitting the turn-around all the way out at 53rd. No 5k runners to worry about in this section, but it's not my favorite section, plus the sun was blazing in our faces on the way back to campus. My splits here were 7:33 and 7:28, which was just about perfect. I was feeling it a little bit, but was pretty happy that my pace was steady around 7:30.

We came back onto campus proper for mile five and my favorite section - a slight downhill and, importantly, shaded by huge trees as we made our way down to Reser Stadium. Overall, this is a very flat and fast course. That plus the late September date, which usually means clear skies, but not too hot, makes this a great course for a PR. I hit mile five at 7:36.

I was tired on mile six, and my 7:41 pace shows that, but there's a short hill in front of Dixon there and I was already dreaming of the downhill past Benton Hall and the finish line right after.

I came through the last .2 mile with a nice push at 7:14 pace to hit the line at 46:11.

The old PR was 48:57, so it was a nearly three minute slice off my old PR! Overall, I was 39th out of 216 runners in the 10k. Fourth out of 15 in my age-division...so close to that white ribbon! And 35th out of 105 guys.

So one more PR in the books for 2012! Next up is the Condor Run 25k...that's a very hilly trail run...although I don't think I've ever run a 25k before, so I guess that's a sure PR!

See you there!

Nike Pegasus 29 Review

So the new Nike Pegasus is out...and I've been nervous since I saw the first picture of the updated design a few months back. It doesn't really look like the Pegasus 28.

I'd say, if anything, it's looking quite a bit like the Lunarglide.

The sole doesn't have the block in the outside of the heel any longer. It's now just a solid block of Cushlon. Apparently still has Zoom Air in there, so the end result probably isn't much different. And indeed, it feels about the same on the foot...well, cushion-wise anyway.

And yes, I do have something to compare them to...yes, I do.

I've been a big fan of the Pegasus for a few years. Which might explain my apprehension on the changes:
-traction design is different
-sole design, as mentioned earlier, is different
-and the upper is hugely different

So after a few runs, here are my thoughts on the Pegasus 29.

I haven't used them long enough, or in any kind of wet weather, to comment on the traction design that much. I was NOT a fan of the old traction design, so any change is OK with me. I thought the old traction design was a little slippery in the rain and seemed to wear out pretty quickly.

The sole, although very different in appearance, feels pretty much exactly the same as the old one. And that's a good thing. It's very cushioned, great for long training runs or long races. It also has a big heel to toe drop. Again, that's fine with me. If you're a minimalist, zero-drop, type of person, you already know that this is not the shoe for you. But if you're old-school, and want a decent drop in your running shoe, here you go.

Now the upper. Well, it's radically different. It's very light, very thin, mesh material. And there's not much in the way of overlays. It's just light. And that's good. I mean, I like the way it feels on my foot. But...it worries me a bit too. It almost feels a little too light. Too insubstantial. I would not wear this shoe on a long trail run - I'd be afraid of blowing a toe out the front or the side. Now I have no idea if this is true - I've only worn them four times now - but that's definitely how it feels.

So overall, I think they'll be good. They feel about the same, only lighter. That's good, right? Only time will tell if the upper material truly is durable. If not, I'll be back to let you know. Until then, light is good. Every ounce off my person is an ounce I don't have to drag 26.2 miles!

Let's run!

Northwest Running and Triathlon Race Calendar - Halloween Runs!

Halloween races? Already?

True story. Get your costumes out and get ready because here they come.

Let's race!

-Green Text for Trail Runs
-Red Text for Marathons and Half Marathons
-Blue Text for Triathlons and Duathlons
-Orange Text for everything else, the normal 5k, 10k, etc

RACES FOR WEEK OF OCTOBER 8th TO OCTOBER 14th

October 13th / Detroit Lake Mud Run 10k / Detroit, OR

October 13th / Hagg Lake Hybrid Marathon / Gaston, OR

October 13th / Mink Creek Jane Austin Zombie Chase Trail Run 6m / Pocatello, ID

October 13th / Team Red Lizard Stumptown XC 5k / Portland, OR

October 13th / XTERRA Harvest Half Marathon and 10k / Kenmore, WA

October 13th / Sekani Trail Run 10k and 5k / Spokane, WA

October 13th / Soda Screamer Thirteener Trail Half Marathon / Soda Springs, ID

October 13th / Defiance Ultra 50k, 30k and 15k / Tacoma, WA

October 13th / Triple Ripple Trail Festival 10k and 4m / Orcas Island, WA

October 13th / Le Grizz Ultra Marathon 50m / Kalispell, MT

October 13th / Canfield Mountain Trail Run Series Half Marathon, 9m and 5k / Coeur d'Alene, ID

October 14th / Helena South Hills Trail Series 6.6m / Helena, MT

October 14th / Spokane Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k / Spokane, WA

October 14th / Walla Walla Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k / Walla Walla, WA

October 14th / Poulsbo Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k / Poulsbo, WA

October 14th / City of Trees Marathon and Half Marathon / Boise, ID

October 14th / Girlfriends Half Marathon / Vancouver, WA

October 14th / Albany Aquatics Last Chance Triathlon and Duathlon Sprint / Albany, OR

October 14th / Klicks Mt. Bike Duathlon Sprint / Bellingham, WA

October 13th / The Great Pumpkin Race 5k / Bend, OR

October 13th / Zombie Apocalypse Run 5k / Dayton, OR

October 13th / Domestic Violence Awareness Run 10k and 5k / Salem, OR

October 13th / ORRC Blue Lake Runs 15k and 5k / Troutdale, OR

October 13th / Big Bend Triathlon Club 10k and 5k / Moses Lake, WA

October 13th / Fire Prevention 5k / Snohomish, WA

October 13th / Race Against Racism 5k / Tacoma, WA

October 13th / Autumn Leaf 10k and 5k / Omak, WA

October 13th / Edmonds Celebrate Schools 5k / Edmonds, WA

October 13th / Fall Fest Footrace 10k and 5k / Richland, WA

October 13th / Mount Vernon Band Aid 10k and 5k / Mount Vernon, WA

October 13th / Rampage at the RAC 5k / Lacey, WA

October 13th / Sacred Heart School 5k / Gervais, OR

October 13th / Jeff Silbernagel Memorial 8k and 5k / Lyons, OR

October 13th / Pumpkin Run 5k / Missoula, MT

October 13th / Lebanon Rotary Race for Literacy 10k and 5k / Lebanon, OR

October 13th / Airfield Estates Vineyard Run 5k / Sunnyside, WA

October 13th / What Women Want Fun Run 5k / Great Falls, MT

October 13th / Mustang Stampede 5k / Ammon, ID

October 13th / Running of the Bulldogs 5k / Bellevue, WA

October 13th / Raw Deal Run 6m / McLeod, MT

October 13th / Crabfest Fun Run 5k / Port Angeles, WA

October 13th / Monster Mash 5k / Shoreline, WA

October 13th / WHHH Paint the Towns Pink 5k / Raymond, WA

Ocotber 13th / Stagecoach Run 10k and 5k / Jacksonville, OR

October 13th / Bengal 5k / Pocatello, ID

October 14th / Azrael's Wish - A Cure for Galactosemia 5k / Hillsboro, OR

October 14th / Hospice Run to Remember 4m / Springfield, OR

October 14th / Jog the Bog 10k and 5k / Grayland, WA

October 14th / Haunted Hustle 10k and 5k / Puyallup, WA

October 14th / Young Life Seattle 5k for KIDS 5k / Seattle, WA

October 14th / Free Flight Run 10k and 5k / Newport, OR

Need a costume idea? Check out this amazing website about...yes, best race costumes!

Inaugural Condor Run 25k

A brand new trail run in Corvallis, in memory of Corvallis ultrarunner Dave "Condor" Bateham, the Condor 25k will hold its inaugural edition on October 6th.

All the registration info is here and here.

Am I signed up? You know I am. I needed to do a long training run that day anyway. What better way than to do it running up and down the hills of Corvallis?

And when I saw that humbly awesome Condor 25k art up above, I knew I simply had to own that race shirt.

It's about 50% filled. Hurry up and sign up today and I'll see you out on the trails!

Portland Triathlon Almost Sold Out!

Well, that's what they're saying anyway.

So if you're interested, you better get on it fast.

Marathon Training - Week One

And just like that, we're through Week One of my marathon training plan as I prepare for the California International Marathon on December 2nd. Only a 12-week plan this time around.

Finished off the week with 13 mile run today, giving me a total of 40 for the week. The Pete Pfitzinger plan that I'm following, and slightly modifying, had me running 13 miles with 8 miles at my marathon goal pace. Well, frankly I don't think I'm in good enough shape right now to run 8 consecutive miles at goal pace during a 13 mile run. So I figured I'd try to alternate goal pace miles (7:50, by the way) with recovery miles.

It worked out pretty well. I was well under pace on five out of the six fast miles. And a couple of them were on tough terrain, especially mile four when I was going through the trails at Avery Park. Maybe a little slow on a few of the recovery miles, but the 1:52:50 total for 13.25 wasn't too bad, so I'm good with it.

Week Two starts tomorrow. Tally Ho!

Northwest Running and Triathlon Race Calendar

It must be October...first time since Spring that we haven't had at least one Triathlon or Duathlon on the calendar. Sad.

But we've got lots and lots of Trail Runs and Marathons, so time to put the swimsuit away and work on your endurance! Mush!

Let's race!

-Green Text for Trail Runs
-Red Text for Marathons and Half Marathons
-Blue Text for Triathlons and Duathlons
-Orange Text for everything else, the normal 5k, 10k, etc

RACES FOR WEEK OF OCTOBER 1st TO OCTOBER 7th

October 6th / Mt. Spokane 50k and 25k / Spokane, WA

October 6th / Yellowstone-Teton Endurance Races 100m and 50m / West Yellowstone, MT

October 6th / IMTUF Trail 100m / McCall, ID

October 6th / Silver Lake Cross Country 5k / Maple Falls, WA

October 6th / Castle Rocks Trail Run 10k and 5k / Almo, ID

October 6th / Snoqualmie Ridge Trail Run 5m / Snoqualmie, WA

October 6th / Baker Lake Trail 50k / Concrete, WA

October 6th / Condor Trail Run 25k / Corvallis, OR

October 6th / Moon Tree Trail Run 10k / Cave Junction, OR

October 6th / The Great Pumpkin Cross Country 5k / Dayton, OR

October 6th / Run Like a Girl Half Marathon / Bellingham, WA

October 6th / Colbert Autumn Classic Half Marathon / Colbert, WA

October 6th / Leavenworth Oktoberfest Marathon and Half Marathon / Leavenworth, WA

October 6th / Run for the Hills Half Marathon and 5k / Fruitland, ID

October 7th / Portland Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k / Portland, OR

October 7th / Wolf Creek Canyon Relay and Solo 28m / Wolf Creek, MT

October 7th / Victoria Marathon, Half Marathon and 8k / Victoria, BC

October 6th / Missoula All Women's 5k / Missoula, MT

October 6th / Soroptimist International Run for a Life 10k and 5k / Albany, OR

October 6th / Grant High School Octoberfest Run 5k / Portland, OR

October 6th / Race the Reaper 6m / Yamhill, OR

October 6th / Dirty Farm Trek 10k and 5k / Bellingham, WA

October 6th / Harvest Classic 10k / Longview, WA

October 6th / Shuck and Run 5k / Shelton, WA

October 6th / The D&D 5k / Moses Lake, WA

October 6th / King of the Hill 5k / Spokane, WA

October 6th / Run Wild 8k and 5k / Eatonville, WA

October 6th / Rock the Beach 10k and 5k / Cannon Beach, OR

October 6th / Opera Bozeman Run 10m and 5k / Bozeman, MT

October 6th / Apple Fun Run 8k and 5k / Onalaska, WA

October 6th / Dash for Disabilities 10k and 5k / University Place, WA

October 6th / A Run Through History 5k / Kalispell, MT

October 6th / Run 10 Feed 10 Seattle 10k / Seattle, WA

October 6th / Barber to Boise 10k and 5k / Boise, ID

October 6th / Talent Harvest Festival Run 10k and 5k / Talent, OR

October 6th / Panther Pride 5k / Portland, OR

October 6th / Live to BFit 5k / Boise, ID

Ocotber 6th / Stuff the Bus 5k / Fife, WA

October 6th / Mattie's Miracle Mile 5k / Kelso, WA

October 6th / Run for the Cure 5k / Idaho Falls, ID

October 6th / Care to Share 10k and 5k / Pullman, WA

October 6th / Race for Education 5k / Bellingham, WA

October 7th / Boones Ferry 5k / Boones Ferry, OR

October 7th / Magnolia 12k and 5k / Seattle, WA

October 7th / Oktoberfest Northwest Stein Dash 5k / Puyallup, WA

October 7th / Ignite Change 10k and 5k / Bend, OR

October 7th / Set the PACE Run for Prostate Cancer 10k and 5k / Kirkland, WA

October 7th / Run for the Angels 5k / Coeur d'Alene, ID

Running and Triathlon Links - Anxiety and Panic at the Triathlon Start Line

Haven't had a links post in a while - need to get back into it. Some good stuff here, especially if you're a nervous swimmer and triathlete.

Anxiety and panic at the triathlon start line - it happens to the best of us, although good swimmers fare better

How to blow your nose during a run - no, really

Review of the action at the Ironman 70.3 Championships in Vegas - the heat was absolutely brutal

Ryan Hall still injured and may get a coach - at first, I thought it said "couch," which also made sense

Racers who didn't have a good day at 70.3 Vegas - Oregon's Jesse Thomas was among them

Dathan Ritzenhein prepares to run Philly Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon - and is looking to run sub-60

Finally, here's the race report from the Vegas 70.3 from awesome blogger Frayed Laces - from the trenches, so to speak

The Boston Marathon 2013 rolling registration has now opened - if you're really, really fast, you can sign up now

Javier Gomez wins the big money at the Hy-Vee Triathlon - Hunter Kemper takes second

Answers to your questions about elite runners - you had questions, right?

And Lisa Norden wins the big bucks on the women's side at Hy-Vee - Sarah Haskins grabs second, giving the US the almost-big money for both men and women

Vin Lananna out (up?) at Oregon - Robert Johnson in

Mental Toughness and the Long Run

There's nothing else you can do that proves how much you want it. Nothing that shows how interested you are in getting a good time in a marathon that's still 12 weeks away. Nothing that shows how bad you want to get into the Boston Marathon.

Yes, I'm talking about the weekly long training run. Two or three hours out on the roads and trails, usually just me and the iPod, trying to put away 12, 15, even 20 miles.

It's amazing how many different ways you can think "I'd rather be doing anything else but running" over the period of two long hours.

So today I needed to churn out 14 miles. I mean, the mileage itself isn't really the issue. I know I can run 14 miles anytime, anywhere.

But then why is it still so hard to actually do it?

Let's check out the old pace chart from the run and see what it tells us:

I need to hit 7:50 pace in the CIM in December to qualify for Boston, so that means I should be doing most of my long runs in the neighborhood of 8:35 to 9:20. You can see from the map above, if you know Corvallis at all, that I pretty much steered clear of the hillier parts of town. It was basically a flat run, so I don't have that as an excuse.

I start out fine, maybe even a touch fast, but that's to be expected early, when the legs still feel good. I get into a bit of a rut in mile seven and eight, but that's not too strange for me either - that's about the halfway point. I always drop off a bit around there, until I can start to smell the barn, then I usually can pick it up. Which I do in miles 9-11, keeping the pace under 9:00.

But then I started to feel 45 years old. I started to wonder if I really wanted to do this for the next 12 weeks. I mean, really? And once you start asking those kinds of questions, you're in trouble.

So Mile 12 was 9:18, at the very top end of my needed training pace. I completely fell off the cliff on Mile 13 with a 9:49. Not that it was a surprise - I didn't want to be out there any longer. I was done.

No, the surprise was Mile 14. I was actually able to make a deal with myself. One last mile hard. Show yourself you want it. Show yourself you can do it.

I even found a mantra for Mile 14, "Lock it in," I told myself over and over.

And what do you know? It worked. I hit 8:24 for the last mile - mile 14 on the day. That was as fast as any mile for the run.

Did I feel good? Strong? Powerful and fast?

Yeah....no.

But I did it. And in the end, no matter what you have to say to yourself to get there, if you can say "I did it," than you had a good run.

Twelve weeks to go.

Northwest Running and Triathlon Race Calendar

The Bellingham Bay Marathon is getting quite a reputation for great looking race shirts. The blue one is the 2011 shirt and the green is this year's version. They're just great looking shirts. Sign up while you can.

Let's race!

-Green Text for Trail Runs
-Red Text for Marathons and Half Marathons
-Blue Text for Triathlons and Duathlons
-Orange Text for everything else, the normal 5k, 10k, etc

RACES FOR WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24th TO SEPTEMBER 30th

September 29th / Multnomah Falls Trail Run 5.6m / Corbett, OR

September 29th / Tread Lightly Trail Festival Run 8k / Helena, MT

September 29th / Enchanted Forest Wine Trail Run Half Marathon and 5k / Grants Pass, OR

September 29th / Team Red Lizard Stumptown XC 8k and 5k / Portland, OR

September 29th / Lions Strides Trail+Road 10k and 5k / Springfield, OR

September 29th / Trails to Health 5k / Raymond, WA

September 29th / Wild Moose Chase Trail Run 25k, 10k and 5k / Spokane, WA

September 29th / Race 2 the Summit Half Marathon, 10k and 5k / Horseshoe Bend, ID

September 30th / Bellingham Bay Marathon, Half Marathon and 5k / Bellingham, WA

September 30th / Kirkland Triathlon Sprint / Kirkland, WA

September 29th / Albany 2 Rivers 10k and 5k / Albany, OR

September 29th / Summer's End Fun Run 10k and 5k / Covington, WA

September 29th / Puget Sound Classic 10k and 5k / Olympia, WA

September 29th / Bite of Broadview 5k / Seattle, WA

September 29th / The Naked Foot 5k / Seattle, WA

September 29th / Ridges Fun Fun 4m / Albany, OR

September 29th / Riverbend 5k / Springfield, OR

September 29th / Great Columbia Crossing 10k / Astoria, OR

September 29th / BIG Run for Medical Teams International 5k / Redmond, WA

September 29th / The Epic Grind 10k and 5k / Gaston, OR

September 29th / CFC Fun Run 5k / Bremerton, WA

September 29th / Richard's Run 5k / Medina, WA

September 29th / Run the C Trail 10k and 5k / Lake Stevens, WA

September 29th / Hope for Haiti 5k / Helena, MT

September 29th / The Color Run 5k / Portland, OR

September 29th / Tough Mudder 11m / Black Diamond, WA

September 29th / Ramble for Recovery 5k / Roseburg, OR

September 30th / Issaquah Rotary Run at Salmon Days 10k and 5k / Issaquah, WA

September 30th / Run of Hope Seattle 5k / Seattle, WA

September 30th / Sunset Run to Drums 10k and 5k / Seattle, WA

September 30th / Beat the Burn 5k / West Seattle, WA

September 30th / Scrubs Run 10k / Lebanon, OR

September 30th / Wilsonville 10k and 5k / Wilsonville, OR

September 30th / Run for Your Mama 10k and 5k / Bigfork, MT

September 30th / OTC Masters Ten Miler 10m / Eugene, OR

September 30th / CMY5k / Boise, ID

Paralympics Inspiration - Alex Zanardi and Brad Snyder

Well, if you've been reading the R's for long, you know that my sentimentality doesn't extend too far. I usually attend the "shut up, suck it up, and get running, Princess" School of running.

Hey, some people need to make things personal and mystical and magical, even when it comes to running. And some don't. Whatever it takes.

But once in a while even I can get caught up in the raw emotion of sport and the drive to compete.

In particular, a couple stories from the London Paralympics going on right now have really made me think.

Alex Zanardi, a former F1 race car driver and CART Champ, lost his legs in a horrific 2001 crash. Yet, here he is, competing in the Paralympics. Not just competing - fighting for the win. Never feeling sorry for himself and his circumstances - just driving for the finish line. An absolutely amazing story.

Then there's American Brad Snyder, who was blinded in a bomb explosion in Afghanistan last year. Now, just a year later, he's winning gold in the 100 meter Freestyle at the Paralympics. Incredible.

Few of us face challenges of the magnitude of the athletes at the Paralympics, but we still all do face small, medium, and even relatively large obstacles on our way to our goals, in running and in life.

Let's hope we can power our way past those obstacles with something resembling the courage and fortitude and bravery that Zanardi and Snyder have shown.

Photo from The Telegraph UK.

Ironman Champ Chrissie Wellington in Corvallis on Thursday!

Yes, indeed. Ultrafantasticalsuperduperawesomeastic triathlon studette Chrissie Wellington is going to be at Peak Sports in Corvallis on Thursday, September 6th, from 6:00 to 7:00pm.

See here.

And here.

And straight from Chrissie's blog here.

So grab your copy of A Life Without Limits and head over to Peak Sports to pay homage.

Let's face it...this is the best triathlete you'll ever meet...period.

And you've got to love that smile when she crosses the finish line.

Best Running Song for September - Bloc Party - Octopus

Another repeat entry on the Best Running Song list from this band, which can't not make an amazing running song: Bloc Party.

Let's face it, much like Matt and Kim from last month, these guys just make music that's meant to run to. It's perfect.

Their new song, Octopus, from their fourth album, titled, yes, "Four" is a jittery piece of running music perfection.

And here's a nice live version from KCRW.



Rock that Run!

Past Best Running Songs: August: Matt and Kim / "Let's Go" July: Gemini / "Blue" June: Joe Jackson / "Got the Time" May: Tiesto vs. Diplo / "C'mon!" April: Grouplove / "Tongue Tied" March: Foxy Shazam / "I Like It" February: Foster the People / "Don't Stop" January: Hot Hot Heat / "Bandages" December: Camp Lo / "Luchini aka This Is It" November: Wolfmother / "Joker and the Thief" October: Phoenix / "1901" September: Matt and Kim / "Daylight" August: Collie Buddz / "Holiday" July: Pretenders / "Tattooed Love Boys" June: The Wombats / "Moving to New York" May: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros / "40 Day Dream" April: Foxy Shazam / "Unstoppable" March: Pharrell / "Fun Fun Fun" February: Puff Daddy / "Come With Me" January: We Are Scientists / "The Great Escape" December: Cee Lo Green / "F**k You" November: Tokyo Police Club / "Breakneck Speed" October: Two Door Cinema Club / "Something Good Can Work" September: Stone Temple Pilots / "Cinnamon" August: Louis XIV / "Guilt by Association" July: Devo / "Fresh" June: Saliva / "Your Disease" May: Metric / "Gold Guns Girls" April: OK Go / "This Too Shall Pass" March: The Hours / "Ali In The Jungle" February: Los Fabulosos Cadillacs / "El Matador" January: White Rabbits / "Percussion Gun" December: Deftones / "Knife Prty" November: The Kooks / "Always Where I Need To Be" October: At the Drive In / "One Armed Scissor" September: Silversun Pickups / "Lazy Eye" August: Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros / "Johnny Appleseed" July: Deathray / "I Wanna Lose Control (Uh Oh)" June: Raconteurs / "Salute Your Solution" May: Tea Party / "Save Me" April: Bloc Party / "Like Eating Glass" Ever: The English Beat / "I Confess"

The Two R's Reaches 100,000 Hits!

True story. We're over 100,000 hits on the R's. And we're still running.

Thanks for reading.