SUPER HEROES

I believe Evan has mentioned this before too; runnersworld.com is a pretty good site. I’ve been visiting it more and more lately – looking for nuggets for my Olympic Trials article. I came across this article on the history of the Trials. The other day I came across an interview with Andrew Carlson, which includes a link to this entertaining track “race”. Actually, Carlson’s commentary, along with Ryan Hall’s “straight man” quips, are the best part of the video.

I’ll spare you the boring details of my running. I’ll just say that the juices are starting to flow and I’m targeting Oct 1st for the beginning of my “real” training.

Finally, every once in awhile I get an email for someone saying something like “your blog provides a great service you provide to runners…please mention us.” Sometimes I mention the emails, sometimes I don’t. Since things are slow and since it sounds like an interesting project, I thought I’d mention that this fall NOVA will be premiering "Marathon Challenge," an inside look at what it takes to run the Boston Marathon. Rather than explain it, I’ll just copy/paste the email;

In cooperation with the Boston Athletic Association and Tufts University, NOVA was granted unprecedented access to the Boston Marathon course. In the summer of 2006, we began following 13 hopeful novices as they took the first step toward completing the 26.2-mile race in April 2007. The participants come from diverse backgrounds - a young woman running in memory of her mother, who died in a tragic car accident; a working single mom; even a former NFL linebacker. The one unifying element is that none of them is currently a runner. Over the nine-month training period, exercise and nutrition scientists and doctors at Tufts University use sophisticated technology to monitor the physical transformations that the participants have undergone. The experience demands a transformation of mind and body, and NOVA cameras are there, following every step of the way. Who was able to finish the race and what type of changes did the runners experience?

You’ll have to tune in to find out.

"Marathon Challenge" will premiere Tuesday, October 30 at 8:00 pm on most PBS stations. You can view a short promo of the show here.

Hmm, I wonder how many people will be pissed that they’re training these “novices” for the Boston Marathon. I’m sure the waiving of qualifying standards will spark some forum debates soon.

Now let’s see how many people will remember this promotion 40 days from now.

Quote of the day;

“Runners who dress like super heroes always have more to say than I am willing to listen to.” - Dave Dehart