2 days until Cherry Blossom

Cherry Blossom is a big race for me and I’m excited / nervous for it. Although it doesn’t qualify me for anything, it’s a big race for a couple of reasons. This is a team race and I really owe GRC a big performance for all the great things this club has done for me. This race also represents an opportunity for me to show I’m on the right track to make it back to the Olympic Marathon Trials. If the conditions are favorable I’d like run 49:30 and would be happy with anything sub-50. 49:30 is the pace I’d need to run to hit the qualifying mark in the half marathon and running that pace now would give me some confidence that I could hit the time when I run the Grandma’s Half in June. I have never run that fast for that long, but my volume and quality have been solid and I’m ready for a jump.

Besides the camaraderie of being on a team like this, getting back to the Trials is what keeps me going right now. I haven’t talked about this much, but before the trials in November 2007, I had to choke back tears. To those that know how emotional I can be (e.g. wedding and HEPS), that may not come as that big of a surprise, but I was overwhelmed as I stepped out from the staging area onto Rockefeller Center. The bright lights shone down as I found Em and my family and just kinda lost it. I was so thankful for their support. There is a quote I heard from (I believe) Prefontaine that says, “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” I think that quote applies here but not a gift of talent but of support and opportunity from my loved ones. I want to make the most of what my parents, wife, extended family, teammates, and coaches have given me from day 1 in this sport. For every competitive runner, their individual goals vary based on ability, but they just as important to the individual as long as he / she works as hard for it. I want to feel good about what I have done with this opportunity that was so generously given to me. The fun starts two days from now!

Training has gone well. Last week I ran 92 in singles including a 6 x mile workout where I closed the last lap in 58 for a 4:29 (BTW, Sam looked great out there!). This week I continued the run up to CB with a lighter week and nice tune up workout of 2x1K and 4x500m. Can’t wait!