training…

Did I mention that we signed up for the Marine Corps Marathon 10k (6.2 miles for those English distance types out there)? 

I think I did.

We’ve done it before.

 
That’s 2007.  I can tell you that these days those shorts are not that loose and flowy and those sunglasses are on someone in Austria or the Balkans.

We even convinced Kate to join us again – though I do seem to recall that she instigated the first go around.

She suggested this training regimen:
 

I’m scared of it. 

You’re supposed to be able to run that first week of running as pre-training.  Please… I’ve only run 4 miles at one stretch once in my life.  Much less 4 times in one week.

But it is giving us motivation to up the running however.  I’m currently fairly comfortable with about 3 miles at a 10 min mile pace.

The schedule is from Cool Running and found here.  It’s the “beginner” training.  I think I need “pre-beginner.”

If you want to know what a “fartlek” is, go here and scroll about half way down the page.  I didn’t know either. 

thanks sus!

Dear Susan,

I’ve always been grateful for the work you put in as coach of our alumni softball team but until I joined you as a “co-coach” of sorts, I didn’t realize just how grateful we all should be.

I’ve been around since the beginning and have always lent a hand when I could (as one of the original seven of us – Armstrongs, Rohlings, Braddock, Diego and myself – I’ve been around a while) but I never knew just how much work goes into getting the season ready and then keeping it rolling. I don’t even want to think about the fun that is in store in the run up to tournament.

Shirts, waivers, alumni verification, and just getting people to respond to e-mails and evites starts the year. I know that I’ve been lax in responding to things in the past but, wow, there are just people who don’t like to respond to anything in a timely fashion.

As for the rosters which I have taken over for you, if the current roster file format is an improvement over previous years, you have my apologies for having to deal with it (and its 24 hour post-game requirement) all this time. It’s a pain in the butt!

Scheduling is a major hurdle that you have down to a science. I didn’t get involved in it except to be copied on what seemed like a million e-mails. I was so glad then that you were able to handle everything. And then we had to rain out our game last week and you had to go on vacation and leave me to deal with rescheduling.
 
Now, I am eternally grateful that you took care of the scheduling back in March/April. Because I have hardly been more frustrated. The coach of the opposing team began the discussion to reschedule promptly on Thursday, the day after the originally scheduled game, only to fall of the face of the Earth and not finally confirm again until Sunday evening (less than 48 hours to the seemingly agreed upon game time of Tuesday) complete with a more than ambiguous typo (Tursday – is that Tuesday or Thursday?) which he didn’t address until even later. Getting a team together with the proper number of girls in a day and a half – well, that’s difficult. You might think that with a shorter lead time people would respond but not so much. Even after at least 3 e-mails begging. I’m also not sure if we are even following the CAN rules for rescheduling since I know that I didn’t contact the commissioner and I don’t know if the other coach did (I’m so hoping to not get in trouble!).

And it looks like we will very likely get rained out again which might be preferable at this point since I have realized my mistakes in trying to reschedule. Chief among them was to not warn the team of the possibility of a Tuesday game back on Thursday when the make up was proposed.

So… Susan, thank you for the six years of work that you’ve put in to begin, sustain, and run this team. And come back from Europe before I lose my mind!

M

edited to add: the game did get canceled.

dc flora

After hiking nearly 6 miles on Saturday, we went into DC for some Dayton softball practice on Sunday. 

Practice was fun – it’s always fun to get the season started and it was another beautiful day in DC.  My right forearm is still sore (it’s Thursday) from throwing.  Apparently I need to get an earlier start on the season.

I didn’t get any pictures from softball but I had to stop and snap a few of a neat tree outside the EPA on our way back to Metro – it’s half in bloom and half leafed out.

the olympics (part 2)

But on to my thoughts on the current Vancouver (which I can actually pay attention to now that the hockey game is over)....

The Canadians have put on a great show beginning right off with the opening ceremony. My favorite parts were the whales appearing to "swim" across the floor of BC Place and Shane Koyczan's Slam Poem "Define Canada" (or "We Are More" depending on what you read). I
tried really hard to find a decent video of it but just about every link (other than NBC's which requires some upgrade to your browser - no thank you!) I find for the video either leads me to "this video is currently unavailable" or "this
video has been removed at the request of the IOC." Maybe in the next few days. For now, click here for the text of his awesome poem. I just really liked that they reached out into the Vancouver community, celebrated the entire country and the talents of its residents, and just did what they wanted without trying to top Beijing.

But the Olympics are all about athletics, right? Oh yes, they are. I love watching Olympic sports because they always include events that we wouldn't know anything about otherwise like parallel giant slalom, snowboard/ski cross, moguls, Nordic combined, speed skating, and many others.

We were always pulling for the Americans but "Go Team North America" was a phrase often heard as well. "If we couldn't have it, the Canadians should" is what we figured. It doesn't hurt that Will loves Canada.

So a few of my favorite moments:

	We'd heard a lot about the lack of Canadian gold on Canadian soil so watching Alexandre Bilodeau win their first gold on the moguls was pretty awesome. Moguls are also just really cool. I don't know how they can do that to their knees.
Both of Shaun White's half pipe runs were amazing. It was just so great that even though he had the gold medal wrapped up before he even took his second run, he put forth great effort, did his fancy new trick, and beat himself.
	The 2 South Koreans took themselves out of the 1500m short track speed skating race giving Apolo Ohno and JR Celski medals. Of course, afterward the South Koreans tried to blame it on Apolo. JR Celski is just such a cutie. After that we didn't care who was skating as long as they beat those meanie South Koreans.
Joannie Rochette is just an inspiration. I don't know how many people can lose a parent and function well much less have the composure to skate and win a bronze medal. AMAZING!
	I was kind of obsessed with ice dancing and it was great to see the Canadian team, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, win and a young (if pinchy-faced) American team, Meryl Davis and Charlie White, get the silver. I have to admit that I was cheering for the Canadians because they're prettier.
The men's curling final with the Canadians against the Norwegians in yet another pair of crazy argyle pants was actually really interesting even though I wasn't watching it as intently as Will was.
	And last but certainly not least, the gold medal hockey game. Holy cow. That was a nail biter for sure. To get the goal with less than a minute left in regulation to put the game into overtime was just amazing. Unfortunately the Canucks got the better of us but perhaps they should win their game in their country?

And a final favorite moment from the Closing Ceremony - the mime raising the last leg of the cauldron from the floor making light of and acknowledging the glitch from the Opening Ceremony. Gotta love a whole country that can have a laugh at its own expense.

Well, the games are very close to being finished (it's taken me a while to write this, most of the time spent trying to find the "We Are More" video). We'll now have to wait until London 2012 for more Olympics. Can't come soon enough!

(Picture credits: Shane from Vancouver Sun article linked above and all others from Vancouver 2010's Facebook page or ESPN)

the olympics (part 1)

As I sit and watch the USA v Canada gold medal hockey game... my reflections...

As always, I have thoroughly enjoyed watching the Olympics over the last 2 weeks. I love the Olympics - always have.

Katarina Witt, Elvis Stojko, Kristy Yamaguchi, Kurt Browning, Brian Boitano and the French guy who would do back flips figure skating through my childhood - I even remember when they actually had to do "figures" which they quit doing in 1990 (last seen at the '88 Olympics).

Dan Jansen and Bonnie Blair back in the day.

Way back when in the days when you got an election year, Summer and Winter Olympics all in one year! And then the subsequent 6 year break in Winter Olympic Games. I have to say I like getting my dose of Olympics every 2 years instead of 4.

I wish I could say that I remembered the Miracle on Ice but I was only about 3 weeks old.

And that's just the Winter Olympics; I'm equally as obsessed with the Summer Olympics. I have distinct memories of watching Olympic tennis matches in the middle of a summer afternoon with a tennis obsessed friend in '92.

The archer lighting the cauldron in Barcelona. Muhammad Ali in Atlanta.

Amazing Opening Ceremonies and joyous Closing Ceremonies.

I even had the opportunity to visit the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland in '04 - the best 14 francs and rainy day ever spent. One of my favorite days spent in Europe.

Taking a break in the art gallery.

The first birthday present I ever got Will was a poster from Atlanta's games from the museum (which is sadly in the basement right now due to our lack of wall space).

It is actually a life goal for Will and me to make it to an Olympic games. We almost tried to make our big vacation for 2010 a trip to the Vancouver games but would have had to make too many decisions on the heels of returning from our honeymoon.