You've got to be F#@!* kidding me!

"Here I go again"- David Coverdale, Whitesnake

Got some great news last week. I will be running(or attempting to run) the 2011 Boston Marathon for the Alzheimer's Associations. They only have a limited number of race numbers so they go through a screening process(everything but peeing in a cup) and determine the best candidates. Really a great group of people. At our first meeting you had to share your story which was a bit tough. Everyone had a pretty sad one which made me think maybe that's why they chose us. Hell, in hindsight, I would rather have a happier story and no number but that's not an option.

Looking forward to running with these guys. Some of us met up for a ten mile run which was cool. Ankle felt great on the run but sore the next day, man I hate my Peroneal Tendon and apparently the feeling is mutual.

As my dad's disease starts to take away some of his memories I hope that the memories of these short shorts are the first to go.

Here is a picture of my dad from 1981. Amazing, the guy looked old back then and as a result he doesn't look that different thirty years later(see the earlier picture in the blog). His hair was jet white by the age of thirty, perhaps having something to do with having 6 kids(5 in 5 years), ahh the Irish Catholics. Come to think of it, maybe he wasn't just running but running from us.

Dressed like Johnny Cash I get thru 13.1 and yes I am too cheap to actually purchase the race photo.

Ok so I have been kind of lame with my posts but I am coming back strong. Ran the Chilly(should be called Hilly) Half Marathon on sunday and it could not have gone better(well actually it would have been better if I won the thing but that wasn't going to happen). I trained for this using the FIRST train method which is training for people who don't dig running. You only run three times a week and then cross train two(which I used hockey for, not sure that Ryan Hall would approve hockey as cross training). I thought it was worth a test and maybe a way to avoid injury. I kind of blew off some runs (that thing called work got in the way) but still ended up hitting my goal of running at my full marathon pace (8mm at 1:45). Felt great and wasn't tired at all, actually could have pushed myself much harder but didn't want to risk it. The ankle is a bit sore a couple days after but I feel like that was a good start to my marathon training. The NikeFrees still rock but I think it's more mental than anything.

Perhaps they should test some of the runners in the Toddler Trot for HGH.

Family fun day at the YMCA was actually pretty fun except for the fact that I ran a road race at 9 am the morning after a 9 pm hockey game where we had only one sub. After the first mile my quads reminded me why that was not a great idea, needless to say no records were broken.

But that was only one of the three events the Daley team participated in. Declan ran the second leg, the 5-6 year old race. He finished in the middle of the pack but considering that he didn't ever veer from his outside lane(I need to talk to the Y about a staggered start) we were pretty pleased with the result. Mady closed it out with the toddler trot. Another good showing other than the fact that some miniature Zola Budd cut her off half way thru the race(we issued a protest immediately after the race but have yet to hear on the ruling).

Good day all in all. The kids got ribbons and I got reminded that I am getting old.

Nike+ is crack for runners.

Now as I mentioned before I am a sucker for anything Nike(and Apple for that matter). So when you combine the brains of Steve Jobs and Phil Knight you get coolest thing to happen to running in a while. In fact it almost makes up for those short shorts that Salazar and Rogers wore in the early eighties.

It’s so addictive that some days the only reason I run is so I can check out the progress of my profile on the Nike+ site. In fact one day I erased the info on my ipod before I uploaded it to the site and as a result I was bummed out for hours (Kate, my wife was laughing at me while I was muttering about it). I fear that I’m getting that runner weirdness thing the more I run. Gotta play more hockey.

How much is a ten dollar tshirt worth?

Called dad on a Tuesday to see if he wanted to run a race in Newton on Saturday, before I could even give him the details he said yes. He didn’t care where it was or how long it was he just wanted in. There seems to be this odd fascination with ugly race T-shirts among runners. Most races give them out when you pick up your number and the shirts are usually littered with giant logos and some lame graphic for the race. And no matter how hideous the shirt is the runners love them and wear them like a badge of honor. My dad has a closet full of them and even when they are full of holes he refuses to toss them (check it out he is wearing one in this photo from the race).

For the record the one we got from the Newton 10k was pretty nice, it was a New Balance dry fit tee. And while it has a bunch of logos on it’s better than most.

The race was really well organized and even though it was a bit hilly for the old man he got through it and we were able to continue our domination of the 70+ age group with a second place finish. We didn’t stick around for the awards ceremony, the T-shirt was all we needed.

Today I don't hate running

I have never really loved running. I always saw it as a way to either 1. train for another sport which I do love(hockey or lax) or 2. get away from the police during my youth. But today I actually love running. I ran another race with dad, this one was the Hyannis 7.2 miler. I wasn't sure how he was gonna handle this one but he killed it. His time was by no means his best, at this point I keep telling him to forget about his time. But the old man looked strong and everytime he had the opportuniy to pass someone he would blow by them. It's funny, even though he was the oldest guy in the race by 6 years he still took pride in sprinting by people like he wasn't even tired.

He even sprinted thru the finish just to make sure he finished ahead of me(check out the above pick).

Normally when I run I am so focused on my pace that I don't always enjoy myself. Today I watched my dad at the age of 76 still do something he loves. I could tell afterward that he was proud that he can still beat people much younger than him. And for that, I love running.

Race with Dad

Ran the Barnstable Village 5 miler with my dad. He is running a lot slower than he used to but hell at 76 it's pretty impressive he is out there at all. Pretty hilly course but it didn't seem to bother him. It's was so cool just running with him that I forgot all about my knee and ankle(or maybe it was Frees)

Lets try this again.

Getting back to it after the long layoff. After still having some pain in both my ankle and knee I took about 6 weeks off from hockey and did a bunch of PT. Also decided to go a different route with the shoes, no more chunky ugly-ass Addidas with inserts, I’m going with Nikefrees. The bright green makes me feel like Usain Bolt even though I’m a slow white guy.

I have always been a Nike snob but I have to admit that I do feel better with these bad boys. Starting out on the track for a while until I get used to them.

Why Boston is up 1-0.

My dad, an ex marathoner and avid runner to this day, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s a few years ago. As a way to cope with his diagnosis I decided to start running myself and train for the 2009 Boston Marathon. I hadn’t run in years but figured that I was in good enough shape as a result of playing hockey a couple times a week for the last ten years.

Apparently I was wrong.

At mile 22 of the Boston Marathon I blew a tendon in my right ankle. I felt great the entire race and was going down hill just past BC when I heard a pop. It was loud enough that I heard it even with my ipod cranking. At first I thought someone had thrown a rock at my ankle and then when I went to put pressure on it I couldn’t even touch the ground with my foot..

Marathon OVER!

I hopped on one foot over to the sidewalk where people tried to encourage me to keep going but I knew that something was seriously wrong. Even if the finish line was 100 feet away there was no way I would have made it. So like some sad sap they tossed me in an ambulance and took me to Newton Wellesley Hospital. I then spent the next four months in a cast. No more running, no more hockey. Needless to say I was pissed off.

It took a while to recover and while I had thoughts about running in 2010 I wasn’t ready yet. Now I feel like I may be ready to get back at it. My goal to kick Boston’s ass in April 2011 and have my Dad watch me do it.