Farewell Haile Gebrselassie

The 2010 New York City Marathon will go into the history book as a day of mixed blessings and emotions. A new champion was crowned when world cross country champion Gebre Gebrmariam triumphed in his first competitive marathon. Congratulations. And thanks to the Chilean miner Edison Pena for gutting it out and teaching us all an important lesson about human spirit. Edison ran regularly, in his work boots, while trapped underground with his 32 comrades. How amazing that he was able to complete a marathon, less than 4 weeks after his fairy tale rescue!

On the other hand, this year's running of the NYC Marathon will be remembered as the final race in the remarkable career of world record holder Haile Gebrselassie. The 37 year old champion, running in his first New York City Marathon, pulled out of the race at mile 16 when his right knee failed as he was crossing the Queensboro Bridge. Gebrselassie then shocked everyone by announcing his retirement. British running legend Sebastian Coe called Gebrselassie "not only the best distance runner of all time, but arguably the best runner of any description of all time."

Gebrselassie's career spanned 18 years, and throughout that period he dominated the sport, setting 27 world records while holding numerous championships, including Olympic titles. Sebastian Coe commented that he distinguished himself as a true champion by "dominating an era." Continued Coe: "He's just done it with such style and ease."

Gebrselassie made good use of his fame and success. It enabled him to invest in Ethiopia, giving generously to lift the quality of life of his countrymen. He truly has been one of a kind.

Contrast his charismatic presence with the younger elite runners coming out of Kenya and Ethiopia. At a press conference at this year's Chicago Marathon, moderator Tim Hutchings was clearly flustered when the panel of 4 elite African marathoners fumbled their answers to his questions. "You are all so young," he remarked. When he asked if anyone had a vision for giving back to their country as had Haile Gebrselassie, the response was a unanimity of blank stares. Only time will prove whether the likes of Kenyan phemon Sammy Waijura will stand alongside Haile Gebrselassie as a champion of the ages. For sure, the world of competitive distance running is diminished by the retirement of the great one: Haile Gebrselassie.

Need a Little Motivation?

Check this out AND his message to us all.

Almost a Team

After 6 years of marathoning, and sometimes feeling a little lonely out there since I was the only runner from Texas Public Radio (my employer), I enthusiastically welcome two of my colleagues to this year's Rock'n'Roll San Antonio Marathon. News Director David Martin Davies is running his first marathon, while the newest member of the KSTX news team, Hernan Rozemberg, will bring his veteran racing form to the half marathon. Welcome, guys. Now that we are three, why not four or five? Come on Texas Public Radio! Let's get fit!

Breaking the Rules

In the world of fitness, encompassing running, swimming, biking, working out at the gym or just a regular home workout, there are numerous "rules." These are not to put us into some sort of rigid lock-step, but are mostly there to guide us to success. Look back at the past year or so of this blog, and you will find numerous guidelines, or rules, mostly aimed at runners. I've learned these from skilled athletes who have given freely of their knowledge. I enjoy sharing them with you. For example: hydration - for Heaven's sake, drink enough water when you exercise. Work to a goal - this I hear from every successful runner and I preach it loudly from my own soap box. Run regularly - it takes time and planning to become a distance runner, or a triathlete, or just to become fit and stay fit.

As you become more invested in a fitness routine, other rules emerge. A couple of them have been on my mind of late as I skirt around the rule which says we should take off 3 or 4 weeks from serious running after we run a marathon. I've always taken that rule with a grain of salt. All of you who are runners know that runners must run. It's who we are and there's not much chance anyone's going to stay away from their favorite running route for weeks, or even a month! However, the extended intent of the post-marathon rule is more easily observed. This rule tells us to not run a second marathon until 60 days have passed. Generally, I have found this easy to obey. Once I ran a half-marathon just 2 weeks after a full marathon. It was a challenge, but didn't break me. However, this year I am about to run two marathons, separated by only 5 weeks. I've talked to a few veteran runners and no one has told me not to do it. Only time and experience will tell me I'm a fool, or not, for trying it.

A second rule which I try to observe is the negative split rule. This tells runners to gauge their pace such that the second half of a race, or a workout, is no slower than the first half. It's a great rule, keeping us from going out too fast and then running out of gas at 18 or 20 miles of a marathon. And it's a rule that also must be observed in workouts because it has to be practiced and perfected in advance of race day.

That's why I was so surprised a few days ago when I went out for an 18 miler. Something got into my legs at about 6 miles and I began pushing the pace. It felt great! The day was made for running - it was cooling down, the humidity was low. I decided to just go with it. The endorphins were spinning out of control as I began to visualize myself as a "real" runner. "Gosh," I thought. "If I could hold this pace for 26.2 miles, I could qualify for Boston." Yeah. Sure. I knew the air would eventually come out of my sails, that I would pay a price over the last 5 or 6 miles of this runaway workout. But it felt so good for those "fast" 40 minutes, or so, that I just took it in stride and enjoyed the ride. And, yes, I did pay a price late into the run. Finally, as you would expect, this 18 miler was not a triumph of the negative split.

I will "ride the reins" come race day, do my darnedest to achieve a negative split. Undeniably, I am breaking the 60 day rule by running the second marathon only 5 weeks after Chicago, but hopefully that's the only rule I will break. I'm counting on the others - good hydration, good race planning and good nutrition to allow me a safe and successful Rock'n'Roll San Antonio Marathon.

Zero Week?

The old adage, still practiced by some today, is that you take extended time off from training after a marathon. The strictest interpretation of the rule is one day off for every mile run, in other words 26 days after a marathon. After I ran my first marathon 6 years ago I considered what this meant and was, as I often am, skeptical. However, testing myself, I tried running a couple days after the marathon and learned the hard way that there is at least some semblance of reason behind the rule. My legs were dead. That one mile I managed to eek out felt every bit like a 27th mile. Maybe they're right, I thought. After all, Olympic champion Frank Shorter says: "You're not ready to run another marathon until you've forgotten the last one."

Have I Lost My Mind?

The problem is: running gets in your blood. It also has much to do with your mental and emotional well-being. In the most positive sense, we become addicted to running. Let me tell you from hard experience: there are addictions which are much worse, and more destructive. If you're a runner, allow yourself a bye on this one. Running ain't cocaine, or alcohol, or nicotine. It's about as clean an addiction as you can have. Feel free to indulge.

But I digress. The fact is that asking a serious runner to take 26 days off from his or her sport is like asking LeBron James to not shoot the ball. You just can't do it.

Zero week describes a typical post-marathon regimen. No miles. That's reasonable. Remember, you have to rebuild some muscle mass which was lost in running your marathon and you also need to restore fuel supplies to the musles. Attentiveness to post-race diet is of vital importance. Do it successfully and you can get back to meaningful mileage sooner than later.

If you have to test yourself, and you are pretty much over the normal aches and muscle soreness from your marathon, go ahead and log a few miles. But don't jump right back into full steam ahead. At least that's my plan as I round into the third week post-Chicago. I ran a bit the first week, once or twice, then stretched it out slightly the second week. This week I plan to log 25 or 30 miles. But my situation is perhaps a bit different than most, for I have decided to have another go at 26.2 just 5 weeks after Chicago. To some degree, I'm making up a plan as I go. Raceday will tell whether I have a clue, or not. Wish me luck, just as I wish luck to any other runners out there who are racing again 5 weeks after Chicago. Let's get those endorphines jumping and maybe even knock down some personal records.

Chicago Marathon and Beyond

What a great time I had in Chicago, a city I've often described as my favorite large American city. It still is. I afforded myself some extra days in the Windy City, on either side of the main event on 10.10.10 and was fortunate that my sister Brenda could also be there for some museum hopping, a concert by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and some chowing down on Chicago specialties such as deep dish pizza and Chicago "dogs." This would normally be too many calories for me to consume with a healthy conscience, but one burns through plenty of calories in a marathon, so I enjoyed the moment to eat and eat and eat.

We found a reasonably priced hotel about 3 miles south of the "loop" and then invested $28 apiece in a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) pass. The Chicago South Loop Hotel sits right on the State Street bus route and is within an easy walk of both red and green lines trains. Of course, a great city is also a city made for walking, and we did a lot of that, too. However, I had come to Chicago to run and was happy for a couple of evenings to get out and run the streets of Chi-town in anticipation of the main event. My spirit soared as I ran near Soldier Field, imagining Gale Sayers and Walter Payton as my running partners.

Race day dawned, as is often the case, much too early. A cup of coffee and a bagel later, we were headed to the Grant Park starting line. First the bus to catch a redline train to downtown. Half hour later we were funneling toward the starting line. Excitement was palpable. Brenda branched off to observe and report on the race. I had managed to get media credentials for us both. As I waited in the predictably long lines for a final toilet break, she scoped out the media tent and enjoyed a nice breakfast.

Even before the sun had opportunity to heat up the day, it was obvious this would be an unseasonably warm day for Chicago in mid-October. The normal range is 44-61. Today, we were starting at 61. The saving grace was that the air was dry. Of course, the electricity of the event would distract everyone for the first 10 miles or so. It is for this collective energy of 75-80,000 feet on the pavement that so many of us love a big race. The numbers in Chicago were huge. Over 45,000 had entered. 38,132 actually crossed the starting line, while 36,159 eventually finished the race. I find that astonishing. Astonishing too was the mass of runners on the course. Astonishment expressed a 3rd time describes the fans and supporters who lined the entire course. This was a race to remember.

My goal was 4 hours 40 minutes. I had trained pretty diligently for this and honestly felt a 4:40 was within me. However, by the half marathon mark it became apparent that this would not be a day for achieving lofty goals, despite the fact that 4:40 was still within striking range. My gut feeling played out as the temperature climbed and the pack of runners slowed. At times I had to slow my own pace to that of the numerous walkers, especially through the water stations. It was obvious there were a lot of first time marathoners here and that many were falling victim of the warm weather. I passed numerous runners from the 4 hour and 4:30 pace group while giving thanks for having pressed through the summer training season in South Central Texas. This served me well through the tough miles from the 18 mile marker onwards and also spared me "the wall" which most runners hit at around 20 miles or so. I kept my feet in motion, walking only through the water stations. But none of this was good enough for the 4:40 goal or even for a new personal record (PR). I finished in 5 hours 7 minutes 10 seconds with still another 12,000 runners behind me. For the record, the race was won for the 2nd year in a row by Sammy Wanjiru, who finished in 2:06:24.

There is, of course, a degree of disappointment in not achieving my goal. On the other hand, it was such joy to spend time in Chicago and then to run as part of such a large field. For me, running is a physical challenge but also an emotional experience. I am moved knowing that so many people struggled through months of training to get to the starting line, then left it all on the streets as they tested their will and physical determination. My eyes were filled with tears through the first mile. At the end I was too exhausted for such emotion, but the experience will live on in my memory until I die.

Now. About that unrealized goal. That's why we continue to train, to run and to race. There's always that next time. Next time for me will be November 14, 2010 when I line up for my hometown race: the Rock'n'Roll San Antonio Marathon. Could this be my 4:40? Vamos a ver.

Final Observations from This Sister - Chicago Marathon

The Chicago marathon is definitely a great experience. The fans were EVERYWHERE. Much unlike the first San Antonio Marathon I observed my brother run. The transit for fans was wonderful. Hop on the subway and be zipped to the next point. Everywhere I looked, there were fans providing encouragement for runners.

The media were treated VERY well. I could get into just about anywhere. The media center at the Hilton hotel was first class. Internet connections, multiple monitors in which to view the race leaders, plenty of interviewing opportunities.

I'll leave with this one comment: The Chicago Marathon Rocks!