It’s the second-to-last Monday of Operation Jack! This is kind of like when I was graduating from college. I was excited to be done, but I knew I’d miss it. But I still have to finish up these last two exams. I’m not done yet! I ran in Tucson this weekend and have some things from this weekend to share.
First, just in case you’ve never been here, welcome! I’m a father of three and a marathon runner. My middle child, 7-year-old Jack, is severely autistic. I wanted to do something to use my running to make a difference, so I’m attempting to run 61 marathons this year to raise money for a charity I’m a part of called Train 4 Autism. So far, I’m through 59 of the 61. On target!
Went For Broke And I Broke
I tried to P.R. yesterday. I knew it was a longshot, but I didn’t care. I went in with the “go big or go home” mentally. I failed miserably and had an extremely difficult run, but I’ll never wonder what I could have done. As an endurance runner, sometimes you want to fail just so you know you really wrecked yourself. And in a masochistic way, I’m pleased with my run yesterday. But wow, did it hurt! You can read my recap here.
Facebook Status Of The Weekend
My goal time yesterday was 2:59. I ended up blowing up and running a 3:19. My flight back to Los Angeles was scheduled to land at 3 p.m., but it was one minute early. So, I took advantage of the opportunity to update my Facebook status.
How funny … my flight landed at 2:59. I think it should have landed at 3:19 today.
Nobody Can Accuse Me Of Not Taking Care Of My Superstitions
Well, I don’t have a ton of running superstitions, but I looked at three solid indicators heading into Sunday’s race, all involving my PR run, the 2007 Tucson Marathon.
1. Of the four previous times I ran the Tucson Marathon, I only flew in once — my PR race! I drove the other three times. And yes, I flew in this time.
2. I booked a room at an inexpensive motel for this trip without even really checking it out. I mean, for $45 and with a national brand (although honestly, I don’t remember the brand, even though I was there yesterday), I’m good! When I rolled up on Saturday, I realized it was the same place I stayed at in 2007 … for my PR race!
3. The night before my PR race, I had dinner at Pei Wei on Ina Road in Tucson with a runner friend of mine, Jennifer Valentine of Boulder, Colo. On Saturday night, I ate at … Pei Wei with Jennifer! She ran a PR in that 2007 race, too, so she was down for some good luck.
Unfortunately, I think we got a dash of struggles mixed in with our meals. She wanted to run sub-1:20 in the half yesterday and went 1:22. But she’s an amazing runner … 1:22 on a bad day! She’s chasing some lofty goals next month and this was somewhat of a tune-up race. I’m really excited for what’s in store for her!
Anyways, I had everything lined up for this one, obviously. Unfortunately, as is clear when I compare my 2007 Tucson and my 2010 Tucson, I hadn’t run 58 marathons in 2007 prior to my PR race. In fact, I had run eight prior marathons. Heading into yesterday’s run, I had run eight marathons since October 23.
After A Marathon, By A Fence!
I was with my dad after the race yesterday. If you didn’t read my blog a couple of weeks ago about looking for the car after my first marathon, you MUST READ IT! And then you’ll find the humor in this picture.
The best part? My dad took the picture!
Operation Jack Marathon and Satellite Run
Let’s go, what are you waiting for? SIGN UP!
– Operation Jack Marathon
– Operation Jack Satellite Run
I’m Doing Another Q&A Session Tomorrow
I already have a bunch of questions, but if you have any that you want to see answered, leave a comment and I’ll answer then in a subsequent Q&A blog.
And that’s all for today, folks! Have a great Monday, see you back tomorrow!
Cracking up over this fence picture and what you wrote under it! Okay, for once, I think you’re funny.
Ha ha, that fence picture is pretty hilarious!