Great training run

I ran about 12.5 miles today. It was the first good run that I've had since the marathon. I feel good about my chances of a 1:36 half next Sunday. Hopefully the weather will coorporate.

I am so excited about the Chicago marathon that I regisered online this morning. When I regestered the site didn't request proof of time so I'll wait and see how that process works.

Chicago Marathon Registration Opens!

Registration for the Chicago marathon finally opened. I've had this race on my schedule since last summer. I was going to register this morning but my half marathon time is just shy of getting my in the B Corral. I need a 1:35:59 and my last half (12/1/2008) was 1:39:11. My marathon time was just short also (3:39:10 need a 3:35:59). I am racing the Gasparilla 1/2 marathon next Sunday so now I have a target time to shoot for. Either way I will register for Chicago the day after. It really isn't that big of a deal if I'm in the B or C start corrals. Either way I will still start ahead of the masses (registration caps at 45,000)

Start Corral A
Secure starting area set directly behind the Top 100 Start for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for Start Corral A for 2008 are as follows:
• Half Marathon time: <1:25:59
• Full Marathon time: <3:10:59
• Expected capacity: 1,500
• Avg. time to cross Start: 0:42 (seconds)

Start Corral B
Secure starting area set directly behind Start Corral A for all qualifying participants.
Qualifications for Start Corral B for 2008 are as follows:
• Half Marathon time: <1:35:59
• Full Marathon time: <3:35:59
• Expected capacity: 3,000
• Avg. time to cross Start: 1:58 (minutes)

Start Corral C
Secure starting area set directly behind the Start Corral B for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for Start Corral C for 2008 are as follows:
• Half Marathon time: <1:45:59
• Full Marathon time: <3:55:59
• Expected capacity: 4,000
• Avg. time to cross Start: 4:11 (minutes)

Start Corral D
Secure starting area set near the start line for all qualifying participants.
Qualifications for the Start Corral D for 2008 are as follows:
• Half Marathon time: <1:50:59
• Full Marathon time: <4:00:59
• Expected capacity: 4,000
• Avg. time to cross Start: 6:31 (minutes

Opening comments

If I'm going to have a blog I feel the need to express why it's needed. Below is a random list:
· source of motivation
· organize my current documentation
· document my thoughts to view at a later date
· provide an outlet to share my experience or lessons learned

My very first race was a 10k in 1981. I have been running and racing off and on ever since. I really have no idea how many races I've participated in but between running and triathlons it would have to be more than 100. After about a 5 year layoff I started running again in mid 2005 with the 2006 Disney World 1/2 marathon being my first race back. I realized how much I missed running and racing and vowed never to stop running again.

I ran the 2007 Disney World marathon. Anyone there knows that it was a hot and muggy day. It was a very bad race for me as I was forced to walk most of the last 5-6 miles. It was shortly after that when I made the decision train harder and see how good I could get. Nearly every race since has resulted in a PR.

I feel I have a good 5 years left where I can expect to improve on my PR's. So, I'm looking forward to see what I can achieve over that time.

My top goal right now is to qualify for the Boston Marathon. To qualify for my age group I need a time of 3:30 (actually 3:30:59). I fell a short at this years Disney Marathon finishing in 3:39:10. My next chance is in October at Chicago. If the weather cooperates I really feel I have a great chance.

Anyway, my intension for this blog is to document my training, my races and my general thoughts about running and racing. Thanks for reading and I look forward to any comments.