I shared this with a lot of you via Twitter the other day, but I felt it was good enough to post something here for those of you that do not do the Twitter thing.
Oliver Blanchard shared this information on his blog this past week and it really got me to thinking, does running really have an affect on an employee, or is it just characteristics of being a great employee that lends to someone who also is a runner.
Read the original post here
What is your opinion?
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com - subscribe - follow
Run the Reagan 5k - My first race back
My first race back after a long injury, and what better race to come back to than the spot of my first Half Marathon, just one year ago.Last year on this day I lined up to run my first Half Marathon, the Run the Reagan Half Marathon, but today I lined up on that same road to run what in many estimations was my second first race.
After a long 8 months with a broken collar bone, today marks my first race back. I was looking forward to this day, but in many ways was also kinda apprehensive and worried. The fact that my last 5k I ran was the one that I was tripped in made lining up for this race somewhat worrisome.
The day started out great at 6:30. That is one of the beauties of a local race (the starting line was about a 5 minute drive from my house) There was 60% chance of rain with 50 degree weather. It had rained much of the night so I was hoping most of it was past.
This race also marked another first, it was the first one I volunteered at. Since I was not yet ready to run the 10k, or the Half Marathon, both of which were running first, I decided I could help with the race. Our church supplied all the volunteers for the post race refreshment so I signed up to help.
I was a bit down when I went by to talk to many of my friends that were running the half marathon and 10k, I really wish I was further on in my training. The half marathon, and then the 10k took off and I did my duty of helping set up the food and water.
9:00 came and so did my wife and kids. We had it planned that our middle daughter, Payton (13), and our son, Brady (7), were going to run the 1 mile fun run, and I had planned on running it with them. We lined up just before 9:30 and everyone was excited to get this race going. It was a little chilly and it had started sprinkling a bit. I was very proud of both of them for doing such a great job. I was especially proud of Brady Who ran the entire race without stopping. A little bit of a criticism for the race organizers - the 1 mile run was only .8 of a mile. I was a bit surprised at the time when we were coming up on the finish line and so I looked down at my MyTach and it clearly stated we were only at .8 of a mile. Even so, it was a very enjoyable race, and I was very proud of both of my kids. Payton finished before Brady and I, we came across the line in 8:18.10:00 was now just around the corner and everyone was lining up for the 5k. It was a hugh crowd that had come out to run this race. I weaved my way to the front of the line to ask a question, then backed myself into the crowd a bit to take my position. As can be understood, I was a bit nervous and was paying a lot of attention to those around me.... especially those behind me. I DID NOT want another broken collar bone.
The race took off just like many other races that I have run. I took off easy and tried quickly to get into a comfortable pace, but right at the front of my perceived ability, all the while carefully watching those around me to make sure nobody was getting too close.The first mile, then the second mile, and then the third..... wait, was that third mile actually a mile? Nope, not again race organizers.... you cannot tell me that is the mile 3 marker when we still have that far to go to the finish line. I once again checked my MyTach, and sure enough, we were only 2.8 miles in.
I finished off the rest of the race to my family cheering, as well as many familiar faces along the sidelines cheering me on as I was heading for the finish line. One of the coolest things was then going through the food and water tent to all the cheers from my friends from church. Oh, and guess what? I was hoping for a time somewhere around 28 minutes for my first race back....... I finished in 26:26! Just 3 minutes slower than my 5k PR set back 9 months ago!I finished off the morning by changing back into my volunteer shirt and getting back to work. What a very enjoyable and memorable first race back.
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com - subscribe - follow
A last minute addition I just remembered that made me chuckle..... a friend of mine that was running the 10k had his wife and three kids there as well. They were all blessed to see what some (even women) do before a race.... when duty calls :)
UPDATE: I just checked the results (female results) and I finished 7th in my age group (very happy about this) and also 103 out of 490 overall men (very happy about this as well) and 124 out of 1204 overall (yes.... I am happy about this as well)
T Minus 1 Till Race Day
Just 1 day away!My first race since the injury is now just one day away. I am really looking forward to tomorrow when I will be running the 5k Race which is part of the Run the Reagan group of races.
The Run the Reagan is a 1 mile, a 5k, a 10k, and a Half Marathon. Last year this race was my first Half Marathon that I ran (and only because of the quickly following injury)
This year I will be running the 5k as my race of choice because of where I am in my training at this point. I also have signed up my 13 year old daughter, Payton, and my 7 year old son, Brady to run the 1 mile fun run. I will be running this race with them and dropping out at the finish line, and then will be shortly thereafter running the 5k.
Another very cool part to the day is that our church will be in charge of the Post Race Food and Water Tent. I love Race Day events so much that I signed up to volunteer all morning before the race I will be running, and then again for the rest of the day following my race. No, I am not looking to shatter any records with my 5k race. :)
Till tomorrow!
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com - subscribe - follow
My MyTach GPS Sport Trainer
I have had my MyTach GPS Sport Trainer for going on two months now and am really loving it. One of the things I have mentioned before is how much I now love just getting out and running and not being concerned about having a set plan on where to go or where the mile markers are. This, I understand, can be both good and bad. Good from a freedom standpoint, but bad from a security standpoint since nobody knows exactly where I will be running in case something happens.I finally installed the software on my computer for the watch. I have been really loving everything it offers without the software, but really wanted to dig a bit deeper and pull my logs down to my computer so I could look at them a bit more and critique them a bit more..... yes, I AM a geek!
I have just started looking at the software. It looks like it has so much to offer. I have a lot of learning to do to figure out what I want to do with it. I am sure I will not use all the features, but I do want to know what is available to me.
Last night when I installed this software the first thing I did was download all my data so far from the watch. I was excited to see what was going to happen and how it was going to work. I did get the data into the program but have not figured out the best way to look at it as of yet. I figured out how to export the data as well into a GPX file that I understand I can use different places to do map overlays etc. I found GPS Visualizer, but I am sure there are many others out there that let me import my GPX file and keep logs of my runs with map or aerial overlays etc.
Do you have any suggestions on websites that offer this kind of service?
This morning I got up and got ready for my run. I hit the wrong button on the watch and it started. I stopped it pretty quickly, but then went to try to delete the workout.... I accidentally deleted all the workouts stored on the watch..... good thing I had downloaded them to the computer last night!
So, what is your take? Do you have a GPS watch? If you do, what do you use to keep track of all your data? Do you use any websites that let you import from GPX files and keep track of your runs and routes with the ability to do map or aerial overlays? What about elevation?
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com
A Second Life
Firefighter Matt Long had life by the horns until the day he got crushed by a 20-ton bus.
The videos say it all:
The videos say it all:
WOW!
WOW! I am really happy with this mornings run. I had some work issues I had to take care of first thing this morning when I got up at just before 5:00 AM so I had limited time once I was ready to run at 5:30.
I decided I was going to only do 2 miles because of time I had left to run and then get ready to leave. I started off strong and decided I felt good and since I was only going two miles that I would push the speed a bit. I was happy with the first mile at 9:07 pace, but feeling very spent..... and then imagine my surprise when I pulled a very impressive second mile at 8:38 pace..... for where I currently am at in my recovery, that is quite impressive if I do say so myself. I can just say.... WOW, I am happy!
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com
Running Around The World
I was just busy catching up on my reader when I came across a post over at I'll Run for Donuts that intrigued me. It was a write up about a new documentary called Beyond The Epic Run about a couple who ran around the world.In February, 2000, a couple left home in Switzerland to run around the world...alone. A small crowd of friends and family gathered in the morning hours in the shadows of the Matterhorn in Sion, Switzerland. They were there to send Serge and Nicole Roehteli off with great fanfare to begin what would be an epic journey. With Nicole as his sole crew support, following him on a motorcycle towing a small trailer, Serge was setting off to run over 25,000 miles, on six continents and through 37 countries.
I am a long way from being an Ultra-runner of any type, but the thought of it just draws me in. This is the same reason why I just started to read Dean Karnazes' book, 50/50: Secrets I Learned Running 50 Marathons in 50 Days.
Why not take a few minutes to watch the trailer and see a little bit of this movie for yourself. Immediately following this clip you will find a clip with Dean Karnazes' thoughts about Serge.
In the spirit of my Runners That Twitter post (with over 80 runners and counting) I suggest that you also follow @EpicRun on twitter as well.
Been Running
Over the past few weeks I have been running.
I know, that is quite a broad bit of information, but that about wraps it up right there. I have had good runs, not so good runs, and bad runs..... but all of them were just that..... runs.
It sure feels good to be back running. It was a really long time of little, but mostly no, running. I have gotten back into somewhat of a routine. I am running at least Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, and have gotten my shorter runs to about the three mile stage.
My longest run since coming back from the surgery was this past Saturday when I put in a 4 miler. Yes, I am aware that is not a very long run considering last year at this time I was one short week from running my first half marathon (link) and was putting in long runs of 12-14 miles on Saturdays. That being the case, I am in effect starting over and so I need to be, and I am happy with where I am currently.
Did I mention that I am planning my first race? Yes, I am planning my first (again) 5k in just a couple short weeks. Guess which race I am planning on running? I am planning on running the 5k race at the Run The Reagan. This was the half marathon I did last year.
Stay tuned, and watch as my miles start to build again.
Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com