Patrick's Run Blog

Great new running game

2012-01-31T17:36:00.001-08:00

This game is not for those who are absolutely opposed to having a possible smashed face.

This game is for those who like an exciting new way to get some good speed work over the course of a 6-10 mile run....and possibly a smashed face.

These are the steps to the game:

A) Figure out what trail you'll be using.

B) Figure out how many miles you'll want to cover.

C) As undesirable as this part may sound; do some math to find out how long you'll need to cover the distance before it gets dark.
Make sure you do the math wrong. Whatever your second grade teacher taught you about addition and subtraction, yep, just throw it out the window.

D) Now here's the fun part: Leave for your run waaaay too late, don't bring a headlamp and race the sun. Try not to stub your toes, trip, fall, break any bones, get impaled on a tree branch, scrape a knee, elbow, hand, wrist, face, or anything not mentioned. If you do happen to trip, which you will, just pretend you're in the Matrix and don't let yourself fall. And if you must fall, do so gracefully, or at least not around anyone. It's just embarrassing.

*note - eating carrots while running WILL NOT help you. In fact, the only thing that will help you is partying til you puke, I mean running til you puke.

There are various ways to play this game, McGlade Meander of Madness, that what I just named it, just now. It works solo best, but play it with a friend too!

If you have no trail at your disposal, don't fret. You CAN play it on the road following the same rules except you must wear all black and follow the mindset from Dodgeball: "if you can dodge a car, you can dodge a ball." Dodging cars is more dangerous than not tripping over rocks and roots but if you must have a road alternative, I suggest just not playing this game at all.

- Don't play this game. It's a bad idea. Trust me. I learned my lesson...even though it was kind of fun.

-- Patrick

Utah: To run or not to....never mind.

2012-01-21T20:43:00.001-08:00

The past couple of days I have had the extreme pleasure of being in Utah for Outdoor Retailer Winter Market. It's kind of like a giant multi day race expo except where instead of racers, retailers are the ones scoping the latest and greatest gear. I was brought out with SmartWool because they were launching the socks that I tested while running across the US.

I arrived late on Wednesday after a long day of work and a longer flight but awoke early on Thursday to do some early morning sight seeing via my running shoes. I didn't know where I was going so I just stuck to the roads of the city but as the sun came up was greeted with a very nice sight.

It's blurry because it was raining a little bit.

On that same run, I passed the University of Utah and the Olympic torch from the 2002 winter games.

It's just behind the pic of the guy doing skeleton. I got that pic because my brother is on the Olympic Skeleton team and trains in Lake Placid.

I've just realized this is going to be a very long post....

So, there needs to be a little back story as a preface for my next event.

Recently, I submitted my book, Six Miles Per Hour, to the publisher. This is pretty exciting for me. In the book, there is a part where I was hunkered down in my tent and sleeping bag after a hard day's rockin freezing my buns off and reading a book. I mentioned the book I was reading, The Boy Who Climbed Everest, in my own book. The Boy Who Climbed Everest is by Bear Grylls. You know? Man vs. Wild. So last week, I was kind of freaking out because the thought crossed my mind...what if Mr. Bear didn't want to be mentioned and he decided to sue me?? He'd wouldn't get very much but it might take selling some of my stuff to pay him all the suing money because I didn't get his permission! I might have to sell my running shoes, or my banjo!! Hence, freaking out.

I decided the best thing to do would be to try to hunt down his email address and ask him. This is harder than it sounds, but I did find his publicists email which I though might be the next best thing. I wrote her an email but, to no surprise, never heard back. Maybe it's because I forgot to put "B1G M0N3Y" in the subject line.

Fast forward to Thursday. I was walking down the aisle of the expo and I see a long line so I get behind the last person and then as the person in front of me what we were lined up for. "Bear Grylls is signing autographs."

No freakin way!

So I waited my turn in the line and got up to him and told him I had a question to ask him. I explained my little predicament and asked him if it would be alright if I mentioned him in the book.

"I'd be honored. That's quite an achievement."

Got my pic with him, thanked him, and was on my way.

By the way, that dude chugs coffee just like I do!

At the expo, they also had dogs in backpacks.

And not in backpacks. They were still cute.

This guy came up to my belly button.

I also met Scott Jurek. He's also coming out with a book. If you don't know of him, Google him. He has too many accomplishments to list here.

Thursday night was SmartWool's release party. The coolest part was the bar. It was made of ice and, yes, those are actual socks frozen into the ice.

The PhD is also carved. Not written.

At the party I was introduced to Joe Ballant. He's a fellow SmartWool Ambassador and a pretty cool guy.

Friday morning brought an early morning up Canyon Rd with Mark. I was glad he knew the area because that run was a lot more scenic in terms of mountains than that of the previous day.

I don't ever eat fast food but they had a Carl's Jr. And I make an exception for that and In-and-Out burger.

I went with a lettuce wrapped burger to give it a try. It got sloppy.

This is the aftermath.

Friday evening I met up with Joe. We ended up going to his band's practice space for a little bit on Friday night to jam.

Giant Mormon temple.

This was a cool looking art exhibit in the middle of the city. It's a bunch of sticks in the ground at different angles but it looks cooler in person.

Saturday morning I went out for one last run before I left for my flight. On Friday's run with mark we were surrounded by mountains (being in a canyon and all) and I saw all these trail heads but we stuck to the roads. Saturday I did a little more exploring.

I left my room at 6:58 while it was still dark. I ran through the city streets lit by store fronts and street lights. It was very quite and unseasonably warm at about 48 degrees. I ran comfortably uphill the whole way to the first trail head I saw. Stepping onto a trail I've never run is always exciting. It was uphill as I had hoped and climbed steadily toward one of the many peaks I could see. It was light enough to see, but not light enough to call it sunrise by any stretch. The trail continued getting steeper and steeper and the switchbacks began. I was ver surprised at how dry the trail was because of all the rain I'd seen in the past two days.

Sure enough, the trail got more muddy as I climbed higher. It was more than likely because of the melted snow, but the mud was incredibly slick, deep, yet sucked at my shoes like a tar pit. Higher and higher I climbed. I remembered Mark's advice,

"I don't advise running alone because of all the mountain lions."

It was a little late, but I probably should've let someone know where I'd be. As I climbed higher, I viewed more peaks in the distance. Snow capped, jagged beauties. Still, I kept running up. I reached a very loose rocky section that was the steepest yet and the wind whipped me from my left. I reached the summit of that small peak and saw another neighboring one that was even higher.

So I ran on.

Higher and higher and higher and higher. I couldn't get enough of the view even as I was still climbing. As I approached the summit, giants revealed themselves in front of me. In front, the beautiful Wasatch mountains. Behind me just to the right, the city lights of Salt Lake City spread out like a blanket. And to the right of that, the Great Salt Lake itself. If I had to leave that spot in the next year it would be too soon. Unfortunately, my body temperature disagreed since it was quite a bit colder that when I started.

So I turned around and ran back.

Utah kind of rules.

-- Patrick

Believers or not (a shameless plug)

2012-01-16T16:03:00.000-08:00

So, if you've talked to me in the past 3 years about running or what I run in, Smartwool has come up in the conversation. I am a shameless addict, and now formally a "Smartwool Ambassador." They were one of two companies to respond to letters I wrote to companies when looking for sponsors for the cross country run, and signed me up as a tester immediately. I wrote to them initially because I love their socks. Katie got me my first pair as a Christmas gift several years ago, and they went right to my "must wear" list. True story, I actually have a "must wear" list.

I've had many experiences with Smartwool socks over my short running "career" if you want to call it that. Once, I didn't wash them so many days in a row they stood up on their own. Seriously gross to think about. Most of these experiences I totally forgot I was wearing the socks...but then again isn't that the goal of good sporting apparel? If you're thinking about what you're wearing, it's probably because a tag is stabbing the back of your neck like a colonial barber, or your shorts have somehow turned from soft nylon to sandpaper between your legs. Or, your shirt has somehow started shaving layers of skin from your nipples.

Or even the annoying bunching of socks around the toes, or maybe they don't stay up, or maybe they don't keep your feet dry...these are totally serious problems; that were solved by Smartwool.

My family, though very supportive of all my running, thought I was all hype about backing these socks to the point of sounding like a sock nerd. They thought this, until I bought my sister a couple pairs for Christmas this year. Now, she gets it.

My dad? Same story, except with skiing socks because he is a member of the Massanutten ski patrol.

Katie was having some trouble thinking of a Christmas gift for her mom. I knew she ran, so I suggested a pair or two. Two is all you really need since you don't have to wash them very often. Of course, she loved them.

This plug is almost over, don't worry.

They won't turn you into Geoff Roes, or Usain Bolt. (If you don't know who those people are, Google them. You'll wish you hadn't. Because normal people will never be that good.) But! They will keep you comfy for as many miles as you wish to run.

They fit perfectly in all the right places...if only they made running shorts...

Could've sworn I posted one recently...

2012-01-12T14:09:00.000-08:00

It seems that my phone has deleted my most recent post without me knowing. Oh well...

Hellgate was bad. I've learned a lot from being injured. The first thing is that time off isn't always bad. I learned to stretch properly...something I've never been too good at or too keen on. And I also learned that training for ultras is highly advised. The Hellgate 100k taught me the last one. After 34 miles, I had had enough. I started the race severely out of shape for running a 100k, or even a 50k for that matter. Though I dropped out, I didn't think of it as a failure. It was far from that. I learned about what this sport truly asks of your body as well as your mind. I had started running about 2 weeks prior to the race with no pain, and that was not nearly enough to get me through the race. Plus, I wasn't having any fun!

Onward. Since the race, I've gotten back to running for fun. The rest of December was about running for fun. I already knew I was out of shape so I stopped being frustrated about where I was fitness-wise and just enjoyed being outside and running again without injury. January, so far, has been about ramping up mileage and getting back to the mountains. I've had several solid runs in the 3-6 hour range and while I am a bit sore afterward, I know that will go away the more I do it. I am enjoying being up and moving quickly on the trail again.

In other news, I was sent a pair of Hoka One One shoes to try out.

http://www.hokaoneone.com/

At first glance, they look like platform shoes from the 70's. Really really strange looking. Running in them took me a little bit to get used to, but they're starting to grow on me. They have this whole 'rocker' thing going on with the outsole that sort of propels your foot motion forward soon after foot strike. They also only have a 4 mm drop between the heel and toe, which I'm a huge fan of. I haven't been in them that long so I can't go too in depth with how I feel about them, but initial impressions are good.

Hopefully, I'll be posting more regularly.....?

Coming along

2011-11-27T18:03:00.001-08:00

I've started running again painlessly. It's a good thing too...considering the Hellgate 100k race is in two weeks. Needless to say, I'm a bit nervous about it but I'll give my best to the next two weeks. I'll train as hard as I possibly can for about 10 of those days and then make sure I'm well rested on Friday, December 9th at midnight when the race starts.

I'm mostly just relieved that I'm able to run with no problems now. This is due to an incredible amount of stretching, and no running. In all, I took 2 solid weeks with no running at all and that was the longest I've ever taken off.

On Thanksgiving, I ran the Turkey Trot in Fredericksburg. It was a 5k PR for me 17:56, which put me somewhere around 6th for my age group. The leaders were out there. Way out there and I didn't stand a chance.

As far as staying in shape during my no running time, I've been biking on a stationary bike and walking on a treadmill quite a bit. The treadmill was nice because i was able to find one that turned up to a 30% grade and so i was able to ascend a couple thousand feet in a relatively short, yet intense, period of time. Luckily, neither seemed to hurt my injury. And hopefully all that hiking will help me tackle the 13,500 ft of gain at Hellgate. Here's the elevation profile courtesy of
Keith Knipling.

We'll see how this goes...

-- Patrick

Running injuries

2011-11-09T16:25:00.001-08:00

Since I started running, I have to be grateful for the fact that I've been relatively injury-free. My miles to injury ratio has been very good. Unfortunately for me and every other runner out there; no matter what you do or how you run, sometimes you just get injured.

I started keeping a closer eye on my mileage and time spent running in recent months. Before, I did this solely to keep track of the mileage I put on each pair of socks I was testing for Smartwool. In the month of September, I took 19 days off. The vast majority of the mere handful of runs I did go on were far under an hour. And lasted fewer than 5 miles at a time. I can't remember taking that many days off since....ever.

Enough complaining. The good news is that I believe the break is good for me. You can't possibly improve all the time. Training and fitness rises and falls and this will probably give my body a good break so I can come back and train hard.

Who knows...maybe I'll run across some other country in the next couple of years.

Random picture of running in Moab last spring

-- Patrick

Back in action?

2011-11-03T16:31:00.001-07:00

Since Grindstone, my running has been sporadic at best. I developed a bit of an IT band issue and it has caused me to take a few more days off than I would like. The good news is that cycling and weight lifting doesn't hurt and it doesn't seem to irritate it.

My brother introduced me to rolling my legs and IT band with a roller and it seems to work really well. Well enough to run a spur the moment 5k in Fairfax on Saturday and win. That was kind of cool. But unfortunately, the band hurt pretty badly afterward.

I have been in Steamboat Springs, Colorado for the week for Smartwools sales meeting since Sunday.

They are releasing the socks that I tested during the cross country run next fall so they had me come out for the fun. It's been really cool out here. Plus, I've gotten a chance to see the new apparel coming out next year and it is crazy awesome. Smartwool definitely has athletes in mind when they are designing their clothes.

Plus PLUS, in my free time I've been able to run up the mountain of the ski resort since that's where all the meetings have been. I ran Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and all three days the IT band was pretty achy. I took Wednesday off but when I ran today I went faster and longer and there was no pain. Does this mean it's all healed? Probably not. But I do think it's a step in the right direction.

In other news, I got into the Hellgate 100k in December. It'll be interesting to train hard while keeping an eye on my IT band.

-- Patrick

Grindstone 2011

2011-10-11T15:37:00.001-07:00

This was my year. Finally.

Driving out to Swoope, VA I was incredibly nervous for the start of the race. When I arrived, I set up my tent, just like I had done in past years. I relaxed and caught up with friends, just like I had in past years. As far as preparation goes, this year and last year were very similar. And I think that's what scared me most. The big difference is that this year, I watched what I ate all day and only ate things that I knew that I had eaten before running before.

As the c

lock approached 6 pm runners started gathering under the big "GRINDSTONE 100" banner. This banner would serve as our starting line as well as our finish line welcoming us back to the boy scout camp after adding 101.85 miles to our legs' odometers. At 5:50 everyone was making final preparations for their journeys. At 5:55, Clark Zealand, the race director welcomed us to the start and told us "Good luck." At 5:58, Dr. David Horton led us in a prayer. And at 6:00, we were running away from the banner.

The lead pack of about 6 guys took it pretty easy going around the lake and into the woods. Most of us knew each other, and we took the time to just relax and do a bit of catching up. Before we hit 3 miles, Neal Gorman had vanished from sight. Too far in the distance and too fast for anyone to think about catching up. The pack dispers

ed and everyone was running alone. I was very surprised to see that everyone was running their own race right from the beginning. Even though I made a sl

ight wrong turn very early in the race, I was only off course for about 5 minutes. Since it was still day light, I was easily able to turn around and find my way again.

Before 2 hours had passed, I turned my headlamp on and was climbing the unbearably steep Elliot Knob Road. The word "road" implies that it is paved and easily a

ccessible for cars. This "road" is one that I wouldn't feel comfortable driving a jeep on in four wheel drive. I would be afraid it would roll backwards all the way down the mountain. After punching my bib number at the top to prove I was there, I descended .3 miles to the trail head to run down the rocky trail to the 2nd aid station at mile 15...ish. I was running well and feeling good; until I rolled my ankle. It was frustrating, but it only hurt for a minute so I resumed running well. This section has lots of large loose rocks and large rocks held in place by other large rocks. All told, I rolle

d my ankle 4 more times in this section. Each hurting more than the last.

The good news is that it was slowing me down and making me more cautious. When I got to the aid station I believe I was in 8th or 9th. Passing through very quickly, Dr. Horton was there and said I looked to be running very wisely. With the added assurance from him, I was off down the trail to climb another mountain, run down another m

ountain and find the next aid station.

Until this year, I never realized how truly run-able the Grindstone course is. I was moving effortlessly down the trail only stopping for a brief minute every time I rolled my ankle. I did it more times in this section than the previous

and it was really starting to annoy me.

Reaching the 22 mile aid station, I located my drop bag and saw that Horton was again at this one. Upon seeing me, he announced to everyone there, "This is a TRANSCONTINENTAL RUNNER! He ran across the United States!" Since it was dark, and in the middle of the race, it was okay not to stop too long. I heard my friend Bobby

yell out, "Who did it faster?" For those of you who are unaware, Dr. Horton is a running legend and he took part in the 1995 Race Across the United States placing 3rd in 64 days...roughly half the time it took me. Let's just say that if his running resume was translated somehow into a political resume, he'd have been the president several times over. Just google him.

After stuffing my face with food, and stuffing my pockets with the Gu's from my drop bag, I was on my way to tackle yet another mountain. This section I remember from past years as my downfall. It feels like a flat section with a slight uphill grade that just keeps going up. I walked the entire thing last year and I remember how long that took. This year I decided to just relax and run. "Relax and run." That's what I told myself countless times in this race. "Just relax. Don't stress. Just run."

That long slight uphill section was soon over and I was running along the ridge toward the trail that would carry me down the mountain and to the next aid station at mile 30. I don't think I

've ever been so relaxed an

d worry free on a mountain trail alone at night. The moon was very bright and had I only been walking, the light from the moon would have been enough. I kept my headlamp on though because I was still moving swiftly dodging logs and rocks and rolling right along. Before too long, I reached the aid station at mile 30 and only stopped long enough to cram my face with food and a cup of soup. I was there for less than a minute.

I enjoyed getting through the aid stations quickly. This was the first race where I made a conscious effort not to spend much time there and it felt good to be constantly moving forward. Another 5 miles down the trail was the 35 mile aid station. North River Gap. This aid station held a certain amount of my anger because it was the aid station I dropped at 2 years ago. From here, it's only 15 miles or so to the turn around. I cruised into the camp, was weighed quickly. I was down 2 pounds which is pretty

standard for me, but is also good to know for my own nutritional knowledge. Packing my pockets with more Gu, I started down the trail so I could start the longest climb in the race. I wasn't wearing headphones this time in the race. I'm not sure why I decided against it but I'm glad I didn't because on the way up the climb I heard some interesting activity. Just to my right, there was a bush while I was hiking an especially steep part. And as I passed it, something huge rustled in the bush and took off down the mountain away from me. I still don't know what it was, but it was

enough to scare me.

Then, a little while later, I heard one coyote start howling in the distance and then more and more and more chimed in on both of

the surrounding ridges. That scared me enough to go a little faster and try to catch someone to hike/run with.

During this long, scared, hike I caught up with my friends Mario Raymond, Keith Knipling, and Jason Lantz. Unfortunately, Jason was having lots of stomach problems and ended up dropping

out later. I would run with or back and forth with Keith for the next 30 miles or so. We cruised through the aid stations until with made our way to the top of Reddish Knob.

Reddish Knob has a paved street that winds around it in a spiral until you reach the top. The very top of it has no trees but is a paved parking area an

d has very pretty views. Last year, I

reached the top of Reddish just as the sun was coming up. This year, it was still very dark but the outlines of the nearby mountains were prominent and interesting. The moon was dark yellow and setting and there were more stars than Keith or I could possibly count. We each touched the reflector that we had to touch at the top, pointed out the big and little dippers and then made our way back down the road.

Upon reaching the bottom of the paved road, there is crew access where my Dad had been waiting. I passed him the first time to go up the trail to check in with the aid station and hit the turn around point. When Keith and I returned to the crew area 3 miles after I saw my Dad the first time, I stopped but Keith kept going.

I was there for less than 2 minutes but in that time, my Dad changed the batteries in my headlamp, I packed my pockets with Gu, ate and brushed my teeth. (That much gu makes your mouth taste weird.) I thanked him and told him I'd see him soon.

From here, I would retrace my steps almost exactly back to the finish. During this retracing, I saw the entire field of runners in the race. They streamed back a very long way. I reached the Little Bald Mountain Aid station at mile 58 ish and some people I knew coming through on

their first time. We each exchanged pleasantries and I continued on.

It was still dark as I left the aid station and I was starting to get tired of the constant darkness. I just wanted it to be light again. People were still

on their way up the climb I was now flying down. They looked like they were in pain moving slowly and frustratingly up the mountain that I was now moving effortlessly down. We each gave each other encouragement as I passed them going the opposite way. I was about 3 miles away from the North River Gap Aid station when I was finally able to turn off my headlamp.

As I approached the aid station there was a younger guy also named Patrick in a green jacket cheering on Keith and I. He asked me if I was Patrick, and I told him I was. He was supposed to be my friend Matt's pacer an

d said that Matt had to drop out last night

at this aid station but he still wanted to run. I couldn't turn down the offer to have a pacer, so Patrick ran ahead to get

ready. It was bittersweet to have Patrick with me. I enjoyed him as a pacer, but it also meant that Matt had dropped out, and no one wants to see anyone else drop.

When I arrived at the aid station I quickly located my Dad and tossed him my headlamp. He gave me more Gu and I weighed myself once more. No change. After a ho

t cup of soup, several cookies and a potato substance, Patrick and I moved out of the aid station and didn't look back.

I was starting to get a little tired at this point and so I let him do most of the talking. It felt like we were running well and before too long we were at the next aid station cramming our faces and leaving before a minute was over.

The following aid station was one where my Dad was and Patrick had the option of stopping, but he wanted to keep going, and I welcomed the company.

Katie said she would come out for the last few aid stations of the day as well as the finish, but I wasn't anticipating moving as quickly as I was

, so I was starting to worry that she might drive all the way and miss it. Luckily, my Dad was on top of it, just like he always is, and got a hold of her.

Through the following section, I caught up with M

att Hart, who was hurting pretty bad from the looks of things. We had left Keith behind, and Mario had caught up and looked disgustingly strong for where we were in the race. We continued to battle back and forth for awhile but then he took off down Elliot Knob Road the second time and that was the last we saw of him. The trail following Elliot Knob Road is slightly technical and tripped Patrick pretty good. He just bounced up and kept going though. When I tripped and fell soon after though, I didn't bounce. I just wanted to continue lying there. Running into the last aid station I saw Katie standing and clapping for me

. It was very good to see her. 95 miles into the race, I was not feeling so great, definitely not smelling so great, and not feeling the most coherent I've ever been. But it sure was good to see her. I sat down for the first time in 95 miles and ate and drank. I only sat for about 2 or 3 minutes but it felt good. I had 6 more miles left in the race and I wanted to get it over with.

I left the aid station somewhat hobbling. My an

kle hurt so badly. After I was able to get myself running, I loosened up and felt good again. The course to the finish undulates over hills and paths until you enter the Boy Scout camp the same way you left. Though, it felt a lot longer than when I was on my way out. The trail winds it's way to a sign that says, "1 Mile." I booked it. My watch read, "21:20:03." and I really wanted to beat 21:30 for no special reason. I ran over the dam that crossed the lake and then took the left on the gravel road. A Honda Civic carrying An

dy Jones-Wilkins pulled up next to me and he yelled out the window, "Almost there!" He was supposed to be racing as well but he came up injured with plantar fasciitis.

I rounded the curve of trees and saw the finish line ahead of me.

Katie, my Dad, and the other 4 guys who had finished ahead of me were on the left of the finish shoot cheering. Clark Zealand was standing under the finish line welcoming me back from his tough race.

I finished in 21 hours 28 minute and 58 seconds. 5th place.

Tomorrow...

2011-10-06T18:04:00.001-07:00

Well, tomorrow is Grindstone: The race that treats me like a mortal enemy who just insulted its mother's cooking and its sister's attire. I'm not sure I've ever been so nervous for a race in my life. I have no reason to be. What's the worst that could happen? Not finish?

While this is far from the "worst case scenario" of the 100 mile mountain race, my history with the race has me shaking in my boots.

Perhaps my biggest fear is going into a tough race with minimal crew and no pacer. My dad will be my one-man-crew as always, and he really does a great job. The guy always seems to have everything ready at all times. I had set up one , but due to a stress fracture, he had to cancel. Luckily, he gave ample notice for me to look for another. And I found one...until he came down injured as well on Wednesday. I can't blame either of them. And I can't possibly hold it against them with any kind of feeling other than hoping they recover quickly for their own gains. But without a pacer, I'll have to rely fully on my own mental capacity to start calling myself a wuss and get going faster even when I don't want to.

Having a pacer waiting for you is great. You look forward to getting to the aid station where they are allowed to start running. And when you get there, they are like a fresh batch of energy. It flows out of them and you can see them running effortlessly and in turn, it makes you feel better and energized. It's like starting a daily training run with an old friend. Both of you fresh and starting new.

At the Old Dominion 100 I ran without a pacer and it was very noticeable even to me in the differences in my running. In past races where I've had a pacer, the sections following where you pick up a pacer go quickly. And my mile times from the last aid station to the finish rival that of the beginning of the race. I've had pacers tell me they had a hard time keeping up in the last couple miles of a 100 miler. Though, I think they were just trying to be nice.

At Old Dominion, I realized this is a mentality issue. I was slow from the last aid station, I walked a lot, and my time showed that. The finish was very unexciting and even in the last mile I had no reason to "pour on the sauce." I couldn't get around the mental side of finishing strong. I just didn't care.

This race will be a test of mentality. I'm stronger...I think. And faster...I hope. All I need to do is figure out a way to just relax and just run. As long as I'm relaxed, and my head is clear, I run effortlessly. After all, it's just running in the mountains.

What's the worst that could happen...?

Too long

2011-09-29T17:17:00.001-07:00

It has been way too long since I last posted. Too much has gone on to name everything so I'll paraphrase and stick to the present and future.

Since I posted last I've run the Disney Half and Full on a Saturday and Sunday respectively. PR'd in the half, finished the full. Moved back to Virginia from Colorado. Ran the Boston Marathon and PR'd by about 10 minutes running a 3:00:37. Clearly, the time was bittersweet. I'll get 'em next year. (and I know this because I'm all signed up) Ran Promised Land 50k 6 days after and ran 5:20 something which was good enough for 8th place. I ran the Old Dominion 100 and placed 7th in a time of 21 hours or so. I forget. Cool Race. I am a tree climber now by profession. And I climb trees with chainsaws. No joke.

In other news, I'm writing a book. Yes, it's about the trip, and no it's not a "running book" in terms of miles per day, calories eaten, stats and such. I met too many cool and interesting people not to share the stories in the form of a book. It's all written, and my friend Mitch is helping me edit it. Hopefully it will be submitted for publishing soon, but I will keep everyone up to date...on here...because I'm going to start blogging more than once every 7 months.

Present. I still run as much as I can, and I can feel myself getting faster. I used to do this little exercise on the treadmill before my trip. I'd start at 6 mph on the treadmill and run a minute on that speed and then increase 1 mph every minute. A couple of years ago I'd have to hold my hand so that I could be ready to grab the bar in case I flew off the back of the treadmill by the time I got up to 10 mph. But yesterday I was up to 12 mph and it wasn't "comfortable" by any means but even going that fast I didn't feel out of control or like I was getting ready to become a human bullet flying off the back of the machine. I guess that's cool?

Future. I'm running Grindstone....again. In a week. It should be interesting this year, but I'm not sure why. I've got serious issues with this race. It hates my guts, and I hate its guts. So maybe this year I'll finish it without barfing constantly through the first 52 miles and I'll be able to properly part ways with that event.

I'm going to try to get into Badwater next year, so we'll see how that goes.....stoked to try to get in.

Maybe I'll try to make next post more interesting, I'm just getting back into the swing of writing a blog.

Vid of standard run

2011-02-10T13:02:00.001-08:00

Making first tracks on a morning run after a snowstorm. Cold but incredibly enjoyable.

YouTube Video

-- Patrick

Finding a groove

2011-01-19T11:54:00.001-08:00

So far, my time in Aspen has been spent working, working, and more working. Due to high holiday traffic and under staffing we were incredibly busy. Unfortunately this left very little time to go out and see what this town is all about and little time for running.

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to be able to join the Arthritis Foundation's Joints in Motion training team in Orlando for the Disney World half and full marathons. While they were both very fun as far as experiences and meeting people go, from a strictly running standpoint it was a but frustrating. The Goofy Challenge is where participants ran both the half and full marathons on back to back days. I chose to take it on thinking it wouldn't be a problem but realized after the half marathon that I am not in the same shape I was in a year ago. I had pushed pretty hard in the half and had set a new PR for myself by about 10 minutes but didn't feel like I normally do after a half marathon. That being said, the full marathon was difficult from the start and while it was still 15 minutes faster than my slowest marathon, it was hard. Mickey and all his pals were strategically staged along various points on the course and made the whole experience a lot of fun.

It took me nearly a week to fully recover but am back up and running more than before. I have found a trail up the side of a snow covered mountain that makes for not only a difficult and productive run but also some incredibly amazing views of all of the town of Snowmass, especially at night.I'm able to start from my apartment and run up for about 45 minutes to an hour depending on the depth of the snow. The first half of the run is on a paved path that is covered in about 3-5 inches of packed snow and takes me up from my apartment to the trail head near Snowmass mall where Divide Rd splits off. The trail itself is well packed and about 8-12 inches wide. The tricky part is if you step or off the trail, you fall into hip deep powder which in turn, trips you face down in the snow with no hope of catching yourself because your arms just fall right through the snow as well. Climbing up the switchbacks the trail keeps ascending higher and higher until you reach a bench which is mostly covered in deep snow. The final couple yards the trail somewhat disappears and you have to slog your way through the hip deep powder in order to touch the bench. This last part isn't as pleasant as the rest of the run when I'm wearing shorts.

Coming down is quicker of course, but not by much on a good day. Sliding around is usually minimal thanks to a set of microspikes that fit right over my normal running shoes. Between this run and running home from work in the evening I should be able to train just fine for the Boston Marathon in April and any races following that once I figure out where life is taking me next.

This morning I took off early and found that it was snowing quite a bit. With 2-3 inches of fresh snow on the ground and new snow being added by the second I started my normal climb up the path that would take me to the trailhead. Everything was very quiet and soothing and even my footsteps were muffled by the new snow.

No one had been on the trail since the new snow and I was glad to beat everyone to it. I opened my mouth wide every couple of minutes to break up the ice that was forming in my beard. Upon reaching the top I looked down on the town of Snowmass and everything was peaceful, white and looked clean and fresh. I turned around and headed back down and noticed some blood in the snow. Since I hadn't seen any other living creatures today I figured it must be me. I didn't realize it was my own ankle that I had accidentally kicked open until I looked down at it. There wasn't anything I could do so I continued home only slipping off the trail twice. I really enjoy runs when they are especially difficult either because of weather or terrain and today was no different. I reached my front door with ice in my beard, eyebrows, eyelashes, and caked around my legs and feet.

I'm not sure I'll get tired of running here.

-- Patrick

One year

2011-01-17T05:55:00.001-08:00

It has been a busy year. That being said, I haven't kept up the blog anywhere near where I would've liked to. I get busy and sort of forget about it. Aspen in incredible. Living in the mountains is an experience like no other and I'm constantly questioning whether this is reality or not. Then I realize how much I've been working, and I snap back to reality pretty quickly. I work at Buttermilk Mountain in the ticket department and am fortunate enough to live in Snowmass Village in employee housing. If they didn't have employee housing there is no way a guy like me could afford this place. Even groceries are astronomically expensive here.

I am lucky enough to have found a good trail that is packed snow as well as living 6 1/2 miles from work. So there is no shortage of opportunity to run even if I do have to squeeze them in. It occurred to me earlier this month that last year at this time I was somewhere in the southwestern portion of this country with only one goal everyday. It seems like the trip across America was forever ago but one year just isn't that long. While I am happy I completed the run, and at times am still not sure if I am completely recovered from running 2,553 miles on pavement, I have decided that there is no way that that was my only long running trip. I'm not sure I miss the pavement, but I do miss the trip, being "on the road," and the simplicity of life when all you have to worry about is where your next meal is coming from. I would love to do a long trail at some point, and will probably just figure out when the time is right.

For now, I'll keep running, focusing on getting faster and stronger and try to figure out what direction to take my life.

Aspen

2010-11-20T16:50:00.001-08:00

Well, a lot has been going on. I drove to Aspen, Colorado and am living here now working at the resort. It is very different here than Virginia and am absolutely stoked to even be here. The mountains here are incredible.

(taken from part of Rim Trail)

Since there aren't heaps of snow here yet I've been able to give running a try. The second day I was here I tried running, made it 10 minutes up the road and couldn't breath anymore. I couldn't breathe in and it was almost scary. I stopped running, contemplated just walking but instead turned around and ran back to the apartment I'm living in and called it a day.

I was slightly frustrated at how living at 8,000 feet was affecting me. So, the next day I tried running again and was able to go for a nice 2 hour run with spectacular views. It was far from easy but somehow was still able to log about 15 miles in the 2 hour period.

Dropping by the ranger station in the area I was able to find out about some of the trails around here. Unfortunately most of them are under feet of snow at the moment which wouldn't be so bad if the roads to the trails weren't also under feet as well. My 92 honda accord isn't the greatest car to traverse those kinds of conditions.

Fortunately I as able to find the rim trail which starts about a quarter mike from my apartment. Yesterday I tried it out and it turned out to be a great trail that has a good amount of ascent, decent, and amazing views. Climbing up to the rim initially proved to be tough on the lungs but the amount of elk tracks were enough to take my mind off of my lack of speed and my extra effort.

As I approached the top a view of neighboring mountains welcomed me to the top. Turning left at the top I started on the trail that varied from dropping off steeply on both sides to being thick with trees. It winded along the ridge until it pointed downward steeply and started climbing again. I followed the trail until it made it's final decent to Snowmass Village where I followed the road back to the apartment a total of about 3 hours.

Today myself and my two roommates decided we wanted to get a head start on skiing and since the lifts aren't open, we would have to get ourselves to the top. With skis strapped to my backpack we climbed about 500 ft short of Sam's Knob (10,620) to about 10,080 ft put on our gear and skied back down to the car.

I think I'm going to like it here.

-- Patrick

pics by Bobby Gill

2010-10-06T12:16:00.000-07:00

mile 65

mile 1

Grindstone 100

2010-10-06T10:38:00.001-07:00

Where do you start in a race like Grindstone? I guess last year would be a good place. Last year I DNF'd at 35 miles so this year I was back for some serious redemption. I guess my stomach didn't get the memo that I wasn't stopping because it decided to wreak havoc on my physical capabilities and my energy levels starting from the second mile. No joke. Mile 2.

The race is interesting for the simple fact that aside from being 100 miles with 23,200 ft of elevation gain and 23,200 ft of elevation loss, it starts at 6 pm. Everyone runs all night.

My personal encounter with the race this year was like nothing I have experienced and nothing I ever want to experience again. As we took off down the trail from the Boy Scout Camp where the race started the light of day began to dim. 2 miles after the start I felt a gurgling in my stomach that signaled a need to let go of whatever I ate prior to the race. Crap #1.

Not too worried about the placing or time at this point I continued down the trail with the ever dimming light of day and tried to post pone the use of a head lamp as long as I could because I knew I would be using it for quite awhile through the night.

Before another 20 minutes passed I needed to go again. This became an annoying pattern for the first 22 miles. I got the aid station with my brother, Kevin, as my crew. I told him what was going on and let him know my energy was going down the tubes because of the issues. He gave me some Tums, some more electrolytes, filled my bottles and got me on my way.

Into the night, and down the trail, I continued releasing demons every 20-30 minutes. The terrain was awesome. Last year the fog was so intense you couldn't see a thing. This year, the stars were incredible. The mountains are a perfect place to see stars because of the lack of city lights. I was enjoying the long downhills as those were the sections where I actually felt like I was moving. The uphills were a bit frustrating simply because my energy levels were down and I wasn't climbing well.

Before too much longer I stumbled into the aid station at mile 35, my stopping point last year. This year I felt worse. A huge headache accompanied my constant stomach cramping and because it was about 2 in the morning, I was very tired. I asked Kevin to wake me in 10 minutes. When he did, I ate some stew and a few crackers. Gu was out of the question and was actually adding nausea to the list of ailments.

I left the aid station feeling somewhat better now that I had a few calories in my system. I soon caught up with a guy named Chris. This was his first 100 and his friend had dropped at the last aid station. We enjoyed much of the incredibly long climb together. Unfortunately, as the calories burned off, so did my energy and before too long I simply couldn't keep up. Many people passed me on this climb as I would stop along the side of the trail to relieve myself again and again.

Soon, my pace was nothing short of pathetic and I kept looking behind me waiting for a baby to catch up to me crawling on hands and knees. With a throbbing headache I puked up the stew and crackers that remained in my stomach just as a guy was passing me. After hours of climbing I reached the top of Little Bald Mountain and began my decent to the aid station. The fastest I could muster was a slow shuffle down the hill.

When I finally did reach the aid station I collapsed in a chair. I wasn't thinking straight, I wasn't seeing clearly and my head would not stop pounding. An aid station worker came up and asked me what I needed. I think I asked for soup because that's what he brought and it was delicious. The broth warmed me and as I sat by the fire I started to nod off to sleep. The same volunteer came over and wrapped a sleeping bag around me and handed me another cup of soup telling me to keep eating. I told him of my trouble and he brought over some more soup and Mountain Dew. I don't remember anything after that until I woke up hearing my friend's voice. Dave was saying bye to the aid station and I was opening my eyes still wrapped in the sleeping bag. I asked a guy sitting next to me what time it was because my watch decided it would be a good time to stop working in the middle of a race. He told me it was 6:00. I had slept for 30 minutes. A volunteer saw that I was awake and brought me some more soup and Mountain Dew. I decided to get moving down the trail because I wasn't even half way there.

I thanked the volunteers profusely and began running down the trail. My stomach still gurgled but my legs felt new, my energy felt new, and I felt great!
Now running strong, I approached the 50 mile turnaround. First, though, we all needed to summit Reddish Knob. Upon reaching the top of the mountain I stopped and just looked around.

The sun was just starting to peek from behind the mountains to the east and was illuminating the mountains to the west which was West Virginia. Soon afterward, I caught up with Dave and took full advantage of the fact that I was feeling better and knew I should run well while I had energy because I might not be able to keep food in my system. That's when I threw up again. I saw my Dad soon after and there was a crew access point just short of the 50 mile turnaround. Not wanting to stop on the short side of 50, I only stopped at the crew station the second time I saw it. My dad and Kevin had swapped positions, Kev was back at the tent sleeping and now my dad was out here. He had brought some of his famous bean soup for me and it was nice and hot. After eating that, several slices of bread, and a cup of strawberry applesauce, he helped me change my socks and shoes and sent me on my way. I felt like a million bucks.

I was climbing well now and energy levels were through the roof. Before too long, I reached the next aid station, grabbed another cup of soup and was sent on my way. Running downhill strong upset my stomach a bit and I, once again blew biscuits and lost the rest of my calories through other methods. Though, this would be the last time I did either in the race. My tally was 14 relief efforts involving pants around my ankles, and 3 barfs. Thankfully, the tally remained there.

Upon reaching the same aid station I had my 30 minute nap, I sat and ate to try to regain the precious calories I had lost recently. They had made this heavenly concoction which started with a half of an English muffin topped with a mixture of scrambled egg, sausage, bacon and cheese. It was a delight. Snagging one of those, I started down the trail to see the kind of beast that had nearly killed me the night before.

The temps were still cool, but were warming up nicely. The high grass on either side of the single track trail brushed my filthy legs as I passed them. The top of this mountain looke completely different the last time I was there.

I started down the mountain and was taken aback by the steepness and wondered how I ever got up this last night in the condition I was in. Needless to say, I was a bit impressed with myself, but was still a long way from the finish line. On the way down, I passed several people along with Dave. As time would wear on and my energy levels plummeted he caught up with me again near the aid station and we ran into the 65 mile aid station together.

At the aid station was my dad, Kevin my friend and pacer Adam and my mom. My mom had driven out to the race to support me for the time she could. It was awesome to see her and gave me a giant lift. I was back to feeling quite defeated as I flopped into the chair. Out of energy I asked my dad for a 10 minute nap. Afterwards I ate, stocked my pockets full of Gu and took off with Adam. It was awesome to run with him. He kept me quite entertained and laughing the whole time. Soon I tried a Gu and it stayed down. I was back and it felt great. I could eat between aid stations and so I could continue to run well. I passed several people and one guy called me Lazarus because I came back from the dead.

Adam and I ran well together. We were roomates in college and he was always a faster runner than I was. I liked running with him because it gave me someone to silently compete with. Today, he would be running farther than he ever had before. The miles went quickly and we ran very well. I was shocked at how well we were moving and how quickly the mies went. More aid stations passed and soon it was time to pick up our head lamps and enter the second night of running. We had 13 miles to go and I really did not want to be running at night again. I was getting tired but continued to push so that we didn't have to run more dark sections than we had to. Unfortunately, we needed to turn on our headlamps about 6 miles from the finishline.

Reaching the last aid station we had 5 miles to go. I was very tired but Adam, never failing, brought to light this little gem and put things into perspective. It went a little something like this.
"I'm so tired." I said
Adam, "Would you like a straw?"
"What?"
"Do... you... want.. a straw?"
"Um...sure, why?"
"So you can suck it up?"
My dad, and I both had a laugh and Adam and I left the aid station after eating several packages of Scooby Doo fruit snacks.

Making our way toward the finish line I couldn't help it. With about 3 or 4 miles until the finish line I ran hard. Adam and I ran hard through the woods at night hoping to break 30 hours for a finish time. Then we saw the finish line and ran even harder. I saw the clock and it said 27 something but I didn't really care. I finished Grindstone and hugged the totem pole, hugged Adam, and hugged my dad. We went inside and ate and ate and ate.

A hot shower had never felt so good niether had crawling into a tent and going to sleep. My final time was 27:46

-- Patrick

grindstone pre-race and thoughts on the real world

2010-09-24T13:27:00.000-07:00

Most pre-race posts are made to give the audience a run-down of who's entered in the race and who I think will take first, second, third and so on.

There are a bunch of fast people running the Grindstone 100 this year. And I'm sure they will have fun battling it out up front.

For me, Grindstone is a remption race for me this year. Last year I DNF'ed and it was my first one so it stung. There were several completely logical reasons for it, but it didn't make it hurt any less. In the two weeks prior to the race last year I ran a 12 hour race where I pushed hard and ran 71.5 miles and the week before I ran a mountain 100k and pushed hard. Going into Grindstone I wasn't recovered. Physically I had an ache in my foot/ankle that started hurting within the first 5 miles. Mentally this drained me. Also, because I had pushed hard in the previous two races and it had come out to my favor, I pushed early on in Grindstone. I had won the 12 hour and I had come in 2nd in the 100k. I went out harder than I should have for my amount of recovery. I ran mountains I should have walked and tried to stay up with people who had properly "tapered" for the race. This combined with the reasons listed above I was physically and mentally done with the race at mile 35. Especially when I was told after the first weigh in that I was down 6 lbs, which translates to: "you're dehydrated."

This year is a new year. I finished the 2553 miles across the country, finished the Western States 100 as well as a 50k. While compared to the amount of races I did last year, this year should have been a drop in the bucket. I'm afraid it has not been. Since I got back from the cross country run, I have had little aches and pains that have popped up and stayed with me. I believe it to be a result of pounding on pavement for between 3-7 hours everyday for the first 4 months of the year. Normally they subside after I get going and warm up, but they have put a damper on the amount of enjoyment I get from my runs because I am constantly wondering if I am ultimately doing myself a disservice by continuing to run on them.

I got through Western States just fine, and I plan on finishing Grindstone in an unspectacular time simply to prove to myself that this race can not beat me two years in a row. Finishing under 24 hours is of course always one goal because it's running 100 miles in a day, I'm not going for anything particular time-wise.

Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to run this race. It is a great experience starting at 6 pm to level the playing field so everyone runs in the dark. I'm simply stating that after Grindstone, I believe I am going to slow down a bit and make sure my body is working properly and is properly recovered before jumping back into higher mileage weeks just because that's what I feel like I "should be" doing. I'm 22. I'm still young and I'm not trying to set myself up for destruction by the time I'm 40.

Getting back to the real world after being on the road for 4 months has been a bit tough to say the least. I couldn't believe that yesterday marked the date that I had been done for 5 months. That means that if I had followed my gut and simply turned around when I got to the water I would have reached the Pacific Ocean a full month ago. It feels like a long time ago that I finished but time has really flown. It is also a time in my life where I'm supposed to be figuring out what to do with the next 90 years of my life. (That's right, I plan on living to be 112) So far I'm unimpressed with the real world and I now know what they mean when they say, "You gotta find something you love doing because if you do, you'll never work a day in your life." Let's just say, I've yet to find that.

I started an office job in June and have already decided that office life isn't for me. Sitting for 8 hours a day has given me a new perspective on why some people are as grouchy as they are, why some people are as obese as they are, but makes me wonder how there aren't more shooting sprees in the hours between 5 pm-9pm.

Because of my general distain for being in a town with traffic 24/7 and an office environment, and because of my desire to do something cool while I still can I'm moving to Aspen, Colorado. I got a job at the ski resort and will work there for the winter. I'm really stoked to be living in the mountains and to get out of Virginia even just for a little while. I think skiing will provide me a good physical actvity that will allow me to still exercise and lay off a heavy volume of running.

Anyway, Grindstone starts one week from today and will have a full run down of that race as it comes.

40 miles and a waterbottle

2010-09-13T05:24:00.001-07:00

Last weekend I ran the Ring. Well, I'll be honest, I started the Ring. The Ring is a free race that takes place on the Massanutten trail. 70 miles of rocks. The beginning went pretty well. I started off and didn't feel very good or strong. But I was running well enough and was enjoying the break from the heat we've had lately. The first place to refill my water bottles was mile 13 and the second spot was mile 25ish. I felt terrible by mile 25. I just sat there for a bit. I reached that aid station in second place but wasn't so sure of the outcome at that point.

After some calories and water and encouragement from Katie, my dad and Kevin, my brother, I left the aid station for the next aid 9 mostly uphill miles away. As soon as I left I zoned out and tried to forget how badly I was feeling. It was very strange. I had energy, my legs felt fine, and yet my stomach felt funny and I just felt generally "off" of my normal stoked-just-to-be-in-the-mountains self. Upon reaching the third aid station I decided I would continue until I wasn't having fun anymore. Unfortunately, the next section was incredibly rough and the sharp rocks that we had delt with all morning were really aggrivating the bones in my feet. When i reached the third aid station at mile 40ish I decided I wasn't having fun anymore and if I kept going I would probably start running funny in order to protect my sore feet which could prepare the sure recipe for injury. With Grindstone just around the corner for me, I'm not trying to do anything to jeopardize that.

In other news I was sent a water bottle that i was able to personalize! It is sick! It is a Sigg bottle and it is BPA free and keeps my water nice and chilly.

Sick water bottles

This is the website where you can find about a million different designs of water bottles and other personalized stuff. And if they don't have what you're looking for you can just design it yourself. Pretty good idea.

Anyway, Grindstone is in a couple weeks and I'm stoked for it. This year, that race will be finished.

-- Patrick

Updayte

2010-08-17T05:18:00.000-07:00

I realize I haven’t posted in quite awhile. Most of that is because I have been very busy and haven’t really had time to post. Since the run, I’ve gotten a job. I work for a company that sends direct mail for non-profit companies. I’m in an office.

As you can read from an earlier post, I ran Western States and had a blast in the process. Since I have a real job now, I can’t just go out and run whenever I feel like it, and don’t have a break in my day available to run. So I am forced to use the hours of the day that every other working schmuck uses. I wake up early to run sometimes and run after work most of the time. Working around a solid 9 hour block of work right in the middle of the day really cramps my style. I’m being dragged kicking and screaming into adulthood.

The good news is that I can run on weekends, barring large commitments, usually wherever I want because now I have gas money to get places, which is very nice. Two weeks after Western States I ran the Skyline Challenge 50k that is put on by the Hinton brothers. They put on a fun race of about 170 people that is out in the sticks of Gore, Virginia. The race was just the way I like it: lots of elevation change and pretty technical trail. When it started, several of us went out strong setting the stage for a quick race. After the entire field made a wrong turn within the first mile, we knew that this could be an issue all day. After the first major climb I was in the lead and saw an arrow that led me back down the mountain. At the bottom…there were no markings. 5 minutes go by, no one had come down and I knew I wasn’t running fast enough to have a 5 minute lead on everyone this early in the race so I figured I missed a turn and headed back up the climb I just came down retracing my steps. Upon reaching the top again, I saw several runners coming up the first climb and turning right where I had turned left. I was right near last place. Bummer. I ran hard to try to gain ground but I got too excited with the trail and 4 more wrong turns, and six hours and change later arrived at the finish line in 24th place. Oh well, it was still fun, the trail was very pretty, and I had a good time at the picnic afterwards.

Next was the REMR. The Really Early Morning Run aka Baconfest. It is a run put on by my friend Mark Guzzi who loves running almost as much as he loves bacon. We started at 2 am, ran a marathon or so, and then had a large breakfast including 3 lbs of bacon afterwards.

In the name of spending time on my feet, the next run was two weekends ago and I decided to get a group together to run part of the Bull Run Run 50 course. Starting at 4:15 am and not sleeping the night before made it fun to romp through the woods at night. Race Director for the Adventure Trail Series Races, Alex Popadopalous, (pronounced exactly how this is spelled, though probably not spelled correctly) came out as did Dave and our friend Brittany. Brittany is attempting Grindstone as her first 100 miler. 30 miles later, we finished.

In between engagements, I try to make it out to the mountains. I get to go this week and am stoked. Next on my race list is the Ring which is a 70 miler all on the Massanutten Trail on Labor day weekend. Should be rocky with though climbs. It’ll be a good last training run before Grindstone on October 1-3. After that, who knows. I need to save some money, so I will probably not race for the rest of the year so I can save up some money for races for next year.

We’ll see how that goes…

-- Patrick

Western States 100

2010-06-30T13:38:00.001-07:00

I'm not completely sure where to start on my Western States experience. There is a lottery to get into the race, and a qualifying time at a 50 miler or a completed hundred miler under your belt before you are allowed to enter the race. It is one of the oldest hundred milers there are so there are an incredible amount of people who enter the lottery to race. It was my first time entering and I got in, so I didn't want to pass it up.

Returning from my cross country trip left me a little bit nervous about the distance I hadn't covered since last August and being on roads left me nervous about the trails for 100 miles. So when I got back I immediately hit the trails and started training hard. A semi-failed attempt at a 24 hour race the week after I finished left me a little shaken on the mental side of things but it was all the more insentive to get back on the trails and work harder.

When my dad and I flew out to Reno, NV on Thursday I felt ready for the race and generally stoked that I was about to partake in a race as legendary as States. We flew into Reno and drove the 30 min or so to Lake Tahoe where we were staying that night and the next. I had never been to Lake Tahoe and to be quite honest, sitting on the plane ride back to Virginia not knowing the next time I'll be back is a bit disheartening. It is absolutely incredible there. I am truly jealous of anyone who lives there, or Squaw Valley, CA or in any big mountainous region similar to those.

Thursday my Dad and I went to a casino's buffet and after we destroyed the place we found the hotel in Kings Beach, Ca, which you can see the state line of Nevada from, and crashed after a long day of traveling.

Friday morning I woke up at 5 because I was still on Virginia time and realized it wasn't all the way light yet so I threw on some clothes and ran down to the lake and was able to snap some pics of the lake while it was very still.

My dad had gone out driving very early when he got up so we met up and grabbed some breakfast and headed out to Squaw Valley, where the race starts.

It was the home of the winter Olympics in the 60s, and when I saw it I understood why.

Let's just say I liked it and move on. We also met my grandpa there. He was out on the road in his trailer with his wife Doris and when he found out I'd be racing in Squaw he came out for a visit in his new trailer. I hadn't seen his since Plains, Texas on Feb 12th so it was great to see him.

I attended the equivalent of a road race's "packet pick-up" except this was no ordinary "packet." We formed a line where we received a technical shirt, fleece jacket, Moeben sleeves, bumper stickers, and other various promotionaly items all donning the Western States name and a backpack to put it all in. Then we lined up for the medical check-in. In long races sometimes they have a weight check-in at the aid stations so that you know how well you are keeping up with your nutrition. They were also doing research on how long distance running effects some of the chemicals in the human body, or something like that. I weighed in at 161 with a blood pressure of 132/86 and a heartrate of 83...I was a little bit excited to be there as my heart rate showed.

We had some time between that time and when we had to be back for the pre-race meeting so my dad and I went kayaking on Lake Tahoe. I know, rough life. It was really nice out on the water, a little breezy because there was a storm on the way but pleasent nonetheless.

When we returned to Squaw for the meeting I saw the faces of the elite runners, which I wouldn't see again until Sunday at the awards ceremony, as well as the man that started it all: Gordy Ainsleigh, the first man to run the race intended for horses. He ran again this year at the age of 63.

After the meeting my dad and I took the tram up to the top of the mountain that would be close to the 4 mile mark on race-day. It was 360 degrees of awesome up there. Surrounded by snow, we walked around a little and got a feel for what it felt like to be at 8200 feet. It was also the site of where some of the Olympic events were held. As we got talking to one of the workers I found myself asking about prices of rent in the area and the potential for employment there.

Afterward, we talked with Keaton, an old friend from highschool who lives in California and would be pacing me from mile 80 to the end, and made plans to meet up for dinner with three of his friends, one of which was running the race as well. We met for pizza with Grandpa and Doris and we killed a few delicious pizzas and each went our separate ways to make last preparations for the morning.

-- Patrick

The race

2010-06-30T13:09:00.001-07:00

I woke up on Satuday at 2:58 am, took a quick shower, because I don't like to start really long run already dirty, and grabbed the stuff I had layed out the night before. By 3:55 we were in the parking lot of the Squaw Valley resort and I was walking into the building to receive my number. #318. It was chilly, maybe only in the 40s and of course still dark. I stood around with Dad, Keaton, his friends, Dave Snipes and Grandpa, staying warm, trying to relax, and snapping a few pictures.

Finally, people started lining up at 4:55 and at 4:59 Gordy Ainsleigh stepped up to the microphone and said, "You are about....to enter...the Holy Grail...of trail ultrarunning." With that, we counted down the last 10 seconds the gun went off and the blob of 400-some runners made their way forward.

The four mile up to the top of the first mountain was great! Snow all around and when we got to the top someone had carried a gong up there and was smashing the thing like crazy. It was very loud and added a sense of excitement to start off the day. As we crossed the top I looked back over all of Squaw Vally, the surrounding mountains, and Lake Tahoe in the distance. The sun was illuminating everything in an orangish glow and it looked like a postcard. It almost made me want to stay at the top and hang there for awhile, then again, it was cold an I had another 95 or so miles to go.

Up until almost the 13 mile mark we were in snow and crossing streams and bigger streams. Keeping dry feet was not an option. But then again, if I wanted a nice comfortable day, I probably wouldn't have entered a hundred miler.

The majority of the day was spent monitoring my nutritional needs and staying conservative in my pace. I wanted to break 24. That's all.

At mile 80 I sat down and felt terrible. The climbs were tough, it downhilla had been tough, I was blistered and felt beaten. I knew I would keep going but just needed a minute to myself. So my dad helped me change my socks for the third time and Keaton was there ready to roll and got me some crackers and cantaloupe, pretty much the only food I ate other than Gu. After about 5 minutes of sitting there my dad said I had 5 more minutes of sitting and then I had to get up. So, I went to sleep. The second I put my face on my hand I was out cold. I slept for 5 minutes while my feet air-dried. From there Keaton and I made our way toward the finishline - twenty miles away.

Having a familiar running buddy with me was priceless. Having him along to crack jokes made the last twenty fly by. The second to last aid station was "No hands bridge" and was mile 96 ish. We had 3.4 miles to the finish and was right on the line of whether I was going to make it under 23 hours. If I was, though, I'd have to pick up the pace in this last section.

Keaton pointed out that it was do-able and made me go for it. We ran a lot faster than what we had been doing. Up hills, down hills, steep hills and tiny hills, Keaton made me run them all. If he could tell I wasn't doing so well, he'd say, "Alright you've got one minute to walk then we're running again." In actuality though, I took him up on the offer once for the full minute he rationed me.

When we reached the last aid station I didn't stop running and just called out my number so I didn't have to stop, they cheered and it made me feel good and like I was doing something right. We hit the last little hill and then the last downhill that led me onto the final lap around the track at Placer High School in Auburn. From the last aid station I sprinted and for some reason went even faster once I hit the track. I've never been a fan of track workouts but that lap might have been my fastest yet. My time was 22:59 and some change in seconds.

I'm writing this after a full day of non-stop hassles from the airlines trying to get home in time for work tomorrow. But unfortunately, we're spending the night in the airport in New York, and I won't make it to work on Tuesday....technically today.

It wasn't a very restful weekend. By the time we get on the plane tomorrow I will have gotten 9 hours of sleep over 3 days but hey, I got a sweet belt buckle in the process.

Mountain day

2010-05-25T15:22:00.001-07:00

In recent news, I got a job. I start one week from today, so, to
celebrate, I went to the mountains to run. I ran part of the Massanutten 100 course and some extra stuff just for fun. I went up to the top of Kennedy Peak and took a video.

YouTube Video

After taking one nasty spill on the rocks early in the day, a total of 3 hours and change of mountain running, 96 oz of water, a handful of Gu's, one YooHoo, seeing several squirrels, various birds, a fox, and no human beings; I decided to call it a day.

I have gotten my trail legs back and I am ready for the Western States 100 mile endurance run in late June. I'm really stoked.

As far as getting back into real life, I'm getting there. I do miss the fact that everyday it was my job to run far. I do not, however, miss the running on the road. Trails are much more interesting to me.

Since I've been back a lot of people have asked me what country I'll run next. While I would love to travel to other countries to run, I think I'll stick to trails. I'd love to do a long trail; but then again, who knows. Not me, that's for sure. All I know is I'm still running, and still loving it. The other thing I know is that I need to work. This unemployed thing has got to go. That's why it's good news I've got a job.

-- Patrick

Mmt 100 pacer

2010-05-18T13:04:00.001-07:00

On Saturday I went to the massanuttens to pace Dave at the Massanutten Mountain Trail 100. He was allowed a pacer after mile 63 at the Camp Roosevelt aid station. It was a new course this year and there were some tougher spots in the beginning that were at the end in past years. I got there around 5 and waited for him to come through. In the mean time, I talked with lots of people at the aid station. It was good to see some of the people I hadn't seen in quite awhile.

Dave came through at about 8:30 pm and ate and refilled his bottles. We grabbed our headlamps and hit the trail. For the next 9 hours we would only be seeing the tunnel vision of the trail our headlamps provided for us. As we made our way through the winding trail and up and down the mountains we caught up on everything. He was in good spirits and was running well.

Then on our way up the trail we saw a rattlesnake moving very slowly across the trail. Dave was leading, of course, and he stopped abruptly. There were a couple of runners right behind us and Dave saved all of our lives by pointing out the snake and making sure it didn't get mad and start biting us all.

At aroud 3 am it started raining which made the already cool 50 degrees even chillier. Dave said it was because he was listening to the iPod shuffle that his friend snuck "it's raining men" onto and everytime that song comes on during a race it actually starts raining.

We reached an aid station at mile 88 at about 5:30 am and there were bacon sandwiches ready to be eaten. So we sat down for awhile to rest and eat. Soon enough, Dave was ready to hit the trail again to make his way to the finish line. It was getting light now and we didnt need the headlamps anymore. I could tell there was a renewed sense of energy in him because he was running faster and stronger. Leaving the last aid station was very difficult. We had 6 miles left and after running 95 miles, 6 miles is an eternity. (the race was actually 101 miles)

Long story short, 14.25 hours after leaving mile 63 we rolled on through the finish line. It was a total of 29:30, way ahead of the cutoff time and looking very strong.

YouTube Video

-- Patrick

Week or two after

2010-05-11T16:42:00.001-07:00

I meant to update this before now but being away for 4 months means you have to catch up on a lot if stuff when you get back. I have been very busy finishing up things with the run, sending out resumes, looking for a job, catching up with old friends, and of course, running. Last Saturday I ran a race in Triangle, Va. It was called the 24 Hour Endurace trail run. The idea was to run around an 8 mile trail loop as many times as you could in 24 hours. The temp got up into the mid 90s and I had completely forgotten how to run on trails. I was falling all over the place. After 56 miles I called it a day it took 12 hours or so and I was done.

It was discouraging to have my first time back on trails be a race that I didn't do well in. But that's just the way it goes.

Running wise I'm doing better, running strong and getting out on trails as much as possible. All systems go for the Western States 100 mike run at the end of June.

Job wise, I had my first interview on Friday and I got the job! Stoked.

-- Patrick

I think I'll go home now.

2010-04-25T06:54:00.001-07:00

Sorry about taking so long to get the posted.

Where do I start with the finish?

I guess I could start at the beginning. I had 18 miles to do. And it was in the mid 80s and lots of sun. A perfect day for running.

My brother started running with me and said he would run until he got tired and then have my dad pick him up. He did the whole 18 miles on a whim. Way to go Kevin!

As we got closer and closer to the ocean the mixture of salt from the air, humidity, and heat from the day was stifling. Kevin didn't wear Sunscreen and he now has blisters on his shoulders from the sunburn. Sore muscles, sore skin. I've got one tough brother.

The finish was huge. After the bridge getting onto the island, with 4.5 miles to go, I was joined by my friends Adam and Thomas, my brother was still running, and my sister Colleen. Later down the road my cousin, Chris, joined me after inhaling a burger. We had one police car in front of us and two in back.

Katie and a ton of my friends came drove down from Virginia for the finish.

There were more people lining the beach than I could count. I passed through the Fleet Feet arch two paper finish lines, several signs, and flags. Ahead of me was the Atlantic ocean. I was there. I was done.

I crossed the sand and tore off my shoes. Right next to the water's edge stood Katie and all of my friends. Those last few steps before the water were a blur. A combination of relief, and pure joy washed over me when I jumped into the Atlantic Ocean. Besides, it was awarm day so jumping in the water felt really good.

I came out of the water and people cheered. I hugged my parents, my friends, my family, Katie, everyone.

Later that evening there was a party at the restaurant, Fannie's. All the food was donated and we were on the third floor with a 180 degree view of the Atlantic Ocean. Tons of people came out to the party and we all had a great time.

As soon as I see some of the pictures I will post them.

There were three goals for this trip.
1) Finish
2) Raise Awareness
3) Raise $50,000

While I didn't accomplish the third, I'm not counting this as a failure. More people now know about JRA, we were able to raise $21,000, I was able to see the country in a way not too many people do, and I met people I would have never had the opportunity to meet. I am incredibly thankful for the last one.

I'll keep posting on this blog because it is a "running blog." I'll keep posting any stories or adventures I have as well as stories from the races I do. Besides, I have the 24 Hour Adventure trail run this Saturday.

I have decided this won't be my only long run. This was far too fun to never do something like this again. I don't know what is next, or when it will be, but this won't be the end. Now I need to find a job and go back to real life.

I hope to keep in touch with everyone I have met and everyone who has followed me.

Thank you.

-- Patrick

Tomorrow.

2010-04-23T06:11:00.001-07:00

Everything revolves around tomorrow. Everything revolves around tomorrow. 18 miles left. One short day's run.

I am so lucky to have been able to do this run. I have met incredible people that I would've never has the opportunity to meet. I have seen things that I would have never seen otherwise. Seeing the country at 6 miles an hour was the perfect speed. A cruise control running trip to see the country and tell people about kids with arthritis. I'm not done yet. I'm close, but not yet. People are congratulating me about finishing. While I do appreciate it, I haven't done it yet.

People have helped me in so many ways I can't even name everyone or everything people have done. Thank you everyone for supporting me and following this blog and sending encouraging me. Your words have helped me get this far.

Last night my dad and aunt flew in and I enjoyed spending today with them walking around Savannah and figuring out specifics for tomorow.

Good day. Nice people.

-- Patrick

Savannah

2010-04-21T17:57:00.001-07:00

Today I ran to Savannah. I can smell the ocean. It felt strange to get there because I reached water. It's not the open ocean, but there is a huge port where giant ocean cruising ships are docked; so I know this channel goes directly to the ocean.

I thought I'd take this opprotunity to shamelessly plus the ol sponsors. The two companies that sponsored me for this trip were Gu and Smartwool. Both helped me accomplish this run.

Thanks to Gu, I haven't lost a single pound (which is a good thing), and my nutrition has been stable and my energy levels are still sky high. Maybe I'll turn north... Even crazier: I still like the taste of all of them!

Smartwool socks kept my feet warm and dry or cool and dry. They not only could be worn multiple days in a row, but they didn't smell. The big impressive thing about these socks is I have run 2,531 miles and I have every last one of my toenails. For the avid or ultra runners out there, you know how impressive this is.

Both companies took a big chance trusting a 21 year old guy who said he was going to run across the country. So thank you both!

Besides the obvious good part of getting to Savannah, I had a run-in with a snapping turtle. So I stopped and played with him.

-- Patrick

3 days

2010-04-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

A long weekend. That's all I've got left. I'm camping tonight outside the Bryan County fire station. They were really cool about it. That's actually the most exciting thing to happen all day. The rest of the day was mostly dull, just running and being tempted to knock out the remaining miles in one go. I think it's supposed to thunderstorm tonight. If it does, I'll try to get a good video of it.

In other news: since I am running across the country as a fundraiser, and I'm almost at the end of the country, that means the fundraising is almost over as well. Sunday is the last day for donations. You may do that at
Way.to/patricksrun4arthritis

If you would like to donate after Sunday, please feel free to donate directly to the Arthritis Foundation. Arthritis.org

Tell all your friends. Donate a buck.

End.

-- Patrick

Crossroads

2010-04-19T18:26:00.001-07:00

I started this morning in slightly cooler weather. It wasn't long until I passed a very familiar road, which was strange considering I have never run across the country before. It was Route 1.
I know exactly where this road takes me. It takes me three miles from my house in Stafford. I have driven on Route 1 so many times and never gave it a second thought. In training for this run I ran from Richmond, VA to Stafford, VA all on Route 1. 70 miles overnight while pushing the baby jogger; I know the road well.

In the 40s, my grandpa Pete McGlade drove the entire length of route one. Not all of it, if any, was paved and he passed the exact spot I ran today. Just 60 some years apart. Let's just say it was hard not to turn north.

I ended today in Claxton, which by the way, is the fruitcake capital of the world. I was stoked! So I went into the store that said it baked the famous fruitcakes and bought one. The thing is, I don't like fruitcake....bummer.

Today I ran for Mackenzie Moore from Maine, all of the kids that go to CHAT (children have arthritis too) camps, Christine Citera, Macy Coad and Meredith Burtron.

3 days
-- Patrick

Work week

2010-04-18T17:34:00.001-07:00

Today marks 5 days left. That's a normal work week or school week. It's hard to think about the fact that I only have that long until I have finished crossing a country on foot.

I've taken things "one day at a time" pretty religiously for the past 3 or so months because the mere thought of having thousands or even hundreds of miles left to go was enough to pull me down to the point where running was impossible and simply moving in the general eastward direction was all I could manage. This day to day mental management of the whole big picture is the way to tackle big situations.

The fact is, I don't have to think like this anymore. I have tomorrows run, Tuesday, Wednesday, I'm off Thursday, and the last run on Friday.

A total of 102 miles left. I've run more in a 24 hour time span; and believe me, the thought has crossed my mind more than once to just finish the distance in one shot. But I'll behave.

I'm close. And it hit me today that I don't have to take it one day at a time. I can think about the end and not picture it as a distant future event where uncertainty rules its outcome. I'll be there on Friday at 2 pm.

Today was the last day Dave ran with me. We ran to Vidalia. Home of the Vidalia onions and they won't let you forget it.

It was great running with Dave this week. He's a tough guy who kept up with no problems (at least none he told me about). I have to admit, I was a bit nervous about him picking up day after day of longer distances but he did great.

Thanks Dave.

Today I ran for Shea Sullivan from California and Kimberly Crowe from Alabama. Both have JRA.

-- Patrick

Have you hugged a fat boy today?

2010-04-17T17:05:00.001-07:00

I've decided that it just wouldn't be a proper country crossing without a run in with a HOG rider.

Today was an interesting day. All we knew is that we were leaving Eastman for Alamo today and camping tonight.

We had forgotten that last night the channel 13 WMAZ news had shown a segment on the run. The reporter came out yesterday to our point along highway 28 and done the interview right there.

Apparently, that's the main news station because right from the beginning of the run people were honking and waving.

One guy stopped and gave us powerade.

Then we met Sherwin. He was riding his motorcyle and saw us, turned around and pulled off the road and waited for us.

As he approached us I have to admit I was anticipating some trouble. He was a rather large man riding a Harley with a leather vest and patches with "Born to Ride," "Loud pipes save lives," and "Ride or Die" all over it. He would've had no problem roughing us up a bit if he wanted to.

He turned out to be a great guy who had seen us on the news. He told us about his shop, Fat Boy Camo, and said if we stopped by he'd give us shirts. We couldn't pass it up. 5 miles down the road we came up on his shirt printing shop and stopped to talk with him some more.

Sherwin and the shirt he gave me.

We got talking about where we were staying tonight and we told him we were camping in Alamo but didn't know where.

Long story short, he knew the people that own the funeral home in town, Townes Funeral Home. And they let us, not only camp in their yard, but also let us shower in the home.

I feel very refreshed and preserved after showering there. Maybe they mix the water with the preservative the Egyptians used....maybe. Maybe not.

Regardless, we had a great time meeting the copious amounts of people today.

And today, I ran for all 140 families of JRA kids in the entire state of Oregon. Maybe I'll have to run in Oregon.

-- Patrick

Get ready to rumble

2010-04-16T13:56:00.001-07:00

So far on this trip I think I've kept things pretty positive. No more. Today's post will be my list of complaints for this trip.

Número uno: Rumble strips

Número dos: refer to numero uno.

Okay now that we got the complaints out of the way, on with the day.

Rumble strips were the name of the game today. One loooong strip of wake-me-up for the drivers in Georgia. And one loooong piece of annoying-ness for myself and Dave.

In other news, when I started this trip way back in January the list of my "followers," as blogspot calls them (even though that sounds slightly cult-like to me), was at about 15. Now that I'm one week from the finish of this little skip across the United States, my follower number has jumped to 98. That's pretty cool, BUT wouldn't it be cooler if it were 100? Let's see if we can break 100 before Friday the 23. So tell your family, friends, guy collecting change outside the local 7-11, to follow this blog and let's break 100.

Also on the list of things to do in my last week before finishing:

So far, everyday of running has been to spread awareness of Juvenile Arthritis. This is no secret...I hope.

BUT since this is the last week, I will be mentioning kids names on the blog everyday. So if you want your kids names, or your names (whether you have arthritis or not) email me at pdmcglade@gmail.com and just put your name; first, last, both, or nickname in the subject line and I'll include it that day or the next day depending on when I get the email.

Little recap:
-Rumble strips- boooooo!!
-One more week to go
-Tell your friends to follow this blog
-Email me names to mention on the blog

7 days and counting

http://trackmytour.com/1220
This is an active map of where I've been and where I am.

-- Patrick

Water skiing in April

2010-04-15T19:07:00.001-07:00

Since awhile back we pushed the finishing date back to the 23rd, I've had some off days to burn up. This was one of them. BUT it was only my second to last off day. My next and last one is Thursday the 22nd.

Today was great! The past two nights, Dave and I have stayed with the Collins family in Georgia.
We started off the day with going out on their boat and waterskiing. We had a blast!

Dave.

Me

Afterwards we came back to the house and relaxed for awhile. We had some time to kill so i started to mow the lawn...unfortunately the lawn mower decided it didnt want to finish so it quit working! Wierdest thing, but we couldn't get it to work.

When the kids came back from school we went back out on the boat and had some dinner at Fish n Pig.

Goooooood. 8 days.
-- Patrick

Short run

2010-04-14T17:46:00.001-07:00

Today's run was 18 miles. The highlight was a hose after about 8 miles where Dave and I were able to get soaked and cool off for a little while.

We ended in Hawkinsville, Ga. It was a very uneventful day.

9 days. Down to single digits.

-- Patrick

Takeover

2010-04-13T19:06:00.001-07:00

10 days.

-- Patrick

No title

2010-04-12T15:33:00.001-07:00

Today's big happening involved a friend of mine, Dave. He decided to come down and run for a week with me while pushing his own baby jogger with his stuff. He will be doing the same miles and the same route.

It'll be good to have a running buddy until Sunday. Then he goes home, but at that point, I'll only have 5 days left. Today marks having 11 days left.

It's really starting to hit me that this is almost over and I'm almost done. I am very ready to see my family and friends again, but I have to admit, I've started looking at the north bound roads as more than just un-needed detours and more as potential roads to take me to other states I have not run.

Maybe this won't be my only long run after all...

Physically, I'm fine. At the end of the day I'm hungry, but still feel fresh. Mentally, I'm ready for a break where I can see some of the familiar faces I miss.

-- Patrick

Prank

2010-04-11T19:00:00.001-07:00

Today I was running 30 miles from Columbus to Buena Vista, Ga. John Teeples also joined me for the entire day and it was great to have the company. My other friend Dave Snipes was on his way down from Virginia to run the next week with me so I was planning on meeting him at the place I'm staying tonight.

We were about 3/4 of a mile from the end of the day and a police car comes up behind us and turns on the siren asking us to pull over. He gets out of the car and asks for ID. I yank mine out of my bag but John hadn't brought any with him.

The officer starts telling us that he got complaints about two runners littering all over the highway. I showed him my trash bag. He said they were bottles that we were accused of littering.

I showed him that we were using bottles of our own and camelbacks. He goes on and on just giving us a really hard time. Then a car pulls up behind him and Dave jumps out.

He put the cop up to it and they got me good.

-- Patrick

Two weeks

2010-04-09T20:16:00.001-07:00

If you haven't noticed yet, my count down is really starting to take over my blog.

I'm in Georgia now. I crossed into this state today and that also means I'm back on eastern time. Sort of feels a bit like home already.

Today's run was a nightmare. Traffic was insane and so were the drivers. Ever played chicken with a semi? I'll give you a hint: they win. I had to duck into a driveway, wait for a break in the traffic, and then sprint. The good news is I got some speed work in.

Tomorrow is a day off.

Two weeks.

-- Patrick

The day I lost my mind.

2010-04-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

First things first. Check out this website and post some love for arthritis research!

http://www.startingwitharthritis.org.uk/

There is a guy on there, Phil Packer who is doing all he can for help out. He broke his spinal cord on duty and now is doing a marathon to raise money. Pretty ispiring stuff. Check it.

Today it rained. And in case you were looking for a nomination for the underestimation of the century, well, that was it. To say, "it rained" is like saying that Adam Sandler movies are "good." Let's face it, they are awesome.

I ran for 3 and a half hours. And 99% of that time was spent underwater. I probably would've stayed drier if I had put a treadmill in the shower and turned the nozzle to the insano fire hose pump your brains full of high quality h2o setting and gone for a little jog in there.

It was somewhere between Tuskegee and Marvyn that it happened. I was running up a hill and there was a river of ankle deep water going the opposite way that was covering my feet. In between coming up for air, the 6 foot high tsunamis that dump trucks, logging trucks and other various semis tossed my way, and the large caliber bullet-sized drops that so graciously allowed my view to not exceed 20 feet in front of the jogger, I started laughing.

It started out a creepy laugh, and turned into a great bellowing laugh that quite frankly, I didnt know I had in me. Amidst the water world that the day had become, the flashes of lightning and the stomach churning claps of thunder, I was having a blast. Physically, I felt great and was running smoothly and comfortably at a pace that far exceeded my norm. Mentally, it was the most fun I had in quite awhile. Should I have been outside holding a metal stroller during a thunder storm? Probably not, but don't tell my mom...

15 days...

-- Patrick

Tough.

2010-04-07T18:18:00.001-07:00

Today I ran for the miners. Keep them in your thoughts.

I started today with a breakfast with the team leaders for the Arthritis Foundation's walk in Alabama. The walk is May 7th at the Montgomery Zoo. Check it out. I talked to them about the run and it went well.

From there, Mr. Hemphill drove me to my starting point for the day.

Today was cooler but had 97% humidity. I was sluggish all day and quite honestly, didn't feel much like running. After awhile I saw the end of today's run, and another 27 miles are in the bank.

After the run, I met Congressman Mike Rogers and was able to talk to him for awhile.

In case you didn't know, brown sugar and soy sauce on salmon is an excellent choice. Just thought I'd throw it out there. I had it last night. Awesome.

16 days.

-- Patrick

Run. Talk. Meet. See. Runn

2010-04-06T19:15:00.001-07:00

Well, the title sums it up. Today started nice and early to squeeze in as many miles as I could before 10 am. I fit 17 in and then was picked up by Mrs. Hemphill, a local Arthritis Foundation worker and my host for last night and tonight.

First stop of the day was to meet the people over at the Montgomery baseball team, the Biscuits. I don't know about you, but I love that name. I didn't meet any players, but the people in the office were very nice and even gave me a shirt! Even better, it was a running shirt so I can wear it instead of sending it home! Woo hoo!

Next stop was at the local NBC station for a tv interview. A little girl, Meredith, joined me for the interview. She has arthritis, but that is not what gets your attention when you meet her. She is incredibly well spoken and intelligent. It's like talking to an adult in a pint sized person. I'm really glad she shared the stage with me because she was much more comfortable up there than I was. Be on the lookout for her someday when she has her own talk show. Maybe I'll be a guest...

Onward. We went to Chris' Hotdogs for lunch. This local eatery has been around since 1917. A gajilliom famous people have eaten there and I can see why. The dogs came fully slathered in slaw, cabbage, or saurkraut. I couldn't decide exactly what was on it but it also had a killer sauce. I had to eat it semi quickly because I worried if I ate too slowly the bun might get so soggy I'd need a spoon. Yea. It was THAT good.

We had some time in between engagements so we saw some of the local sights. We went to the capital, saw the Civil Rights museum, the church Martin Luther Kings preached at, and the Rosa Parks museum. We didn't go into the museums but we saw them, so it counts.

MLK's church

From there we went and met the mayor of Montgomery's assistant at city hall. He was very nice. I did two radio interviews after that.

I was wiped. So much talking and I still had 10 more miles to run. The rough part was that it was now 3:30 and the heat of the day had caught up with me. I'm not sure exactly how hot it was but Mrs. Hemphill's car said it was 92. Hottest day of the trip so far.

I finished out the miles and called it a day.

Tomorrow is another busy day and another toasty one as well.

I'm going to be keeping a counter of the days left from now on.
17 days left.

-- Patrick

Busy. Busy.

2010-04-05T19:38:00.001-07:00

Today started with a 26 mile run. That was just the start. I met up with the Crowes and Mrs. Ducker. They drove me to the YMCA where they let me take a shower and get un-smelly because it was toasty today and very humid, so I was sweating up a storm.

From there we went to Pine Level Elementary School. I spoke with 450 kids!!! They were great and asked some funny questions... "Do I use the bathroom?" That might have been my favorite.

From there we went to the mayors office. I was given a proclamation saying that today was Patrick McGlade Day. He said it meant that I could do whatever I wanted. Speed, rob a bank, or jaywalk. I wanted to take him up on the jaywalking offer but had no reason to cross the street.

The next and lat stop of the day was dinner at Ryan's. Luckily, it was a buffet. I enjoyed visiting with the families that came out for dinner.

Tomorrow is another VERY busy day.

18 days left.

-- Patrick

Family

2010-04-02T21:48:00.000-07:00

Today started with a 27 mile run and ended 200 miles away. I'm staying with my uncle and aunt in Huntsville which is 200 miles from where I ended today.

I met up with my aunt today about 8 miles from my finishing point and putnmy stroller in her car. Running without the stroller was like running without shackles. It was very freeing and I felt fast once again.

I was cruising down highway 14 around Selma and I see a group of people up ahead. I got closer and realized it was the Watsons who I had stayed with last week! They were heading to their family's house for Easter weekend. It was great to see them.

The rest of the day was spent with my cousins and family. Good times.

-- Patrick

Car crash

2010-04-01T20:28:00.000-07:00

Today started out like any other day. Little did I know, my trip would take a drastic turn and head down a road I never saw coming.

I was seeing the countryside at my standard 6 miles an hour and turned it on auto pilot. The old legs were churning out the miles with no effort at all. I was completely oblivious to the actual happenings around me, not that there was an overwelming amount of activity. The only thing that seemed to matter was the weather. It was another perfect day. High of 83 and clouds hadn't graced me with their presence the entire day.

I was humming along a particularly straight section of road when I heard a logging truck coming up behind me. This is very common as they travel quite frequently on every road I happen to be on. I ignored the sound because I run into traffic and knew he would be at least 15 feet to my right.

As the truck got closer I glanced back and noticed a car in front of him. I paid no attention to this very minor detail because it simply didn't concern me.

Closer still, I heard the truck's engine slow as I assumed he was approaching the car in front of him. Then I heard the engine roar to life as the driver pushed the accelorator to the floor. I glanced back out of curiosity and notice him changing lanes to pass the car in front of him. I moved closer to the 2 inch area they call a shoulder but couldn't move off the road because of the large ditch just to my left. I glanced back one more time to see the truck 5 feet directly behind me. I did all I could to and jumped.

The front of the truck hit me straight on and immediatly I was pinned between the grill of the monster and the handlebars of the jogging stroller I've been pushing. The stroller was accelorated to the same speed as the truck and was now the only thing keeping me from becoming roadkill. I pushed the jogger forward just enough to sit atop the handlebars and essentially surf on the stroller in a lame attempt to get the driver's attention. Of course, that didn't work. I simply was not tall enough.

I knew that jumping off my life line would result in certain injury, but how long could I really ride a fully packed stroller?

I recalled a specific Bond movie and decided my best bet would be to climb on the underside of the truck and pull myself up at the driver's window. It was my only shot...

As I began my scramble I was being sprayed with rocks, twigs, and other various roadkill and wondered if that would soon be me. After what seemed like an eternity of climbing hot metal, I made it to the cockpit of the bozo who initially hit me. He slammed on the brakes when I popped my head up at his window. I wasn't expecting it so I was thrown forward and barely grabbed onto the side mirror in time.

He climbed down from his truck ad started yelling at me and I explained what happend. He felt so bad, he offered me a ride. I then explained what I was supposed to be doing. He then offered to drive me all the way to Tybee Island. Unfortunately, I couldn't resist.

I'm writing this on the beach of Tybee Island. It's nice here. Sorry if I disappointed anyone.

...April fools.

-- Patrick

Sunny with a chance of pie

2010-04-01T07:08:00.001-07:00

Sunny in the mid 70s without a cloud in sight. A great day for running. I got several ride offers but today, unlike when it was raining or snowing, it was easy to turn the offers down.

When I got into Greensboro, I walked through the town and there it was. A shop of pies. PIES!! It wasn't my choice. I had to try it.

My first slice was pear and blackberry. Immaculate. It was so good, I had to try another. I HAD to. One kind of pie was calling my name. Peanut butter, honey and banana. I said to myself, "That pie will be mine. Oh yes, that pie, will be mine."

I made it mine. I probably would've paid a bajillion dollars for it. It was that good.

Bottom line: if you find youself walking the streets of Greensboro, go to the pie shop.

You will not be disappointed.

-- Patrick

-- Patrick

Alabama

2010-03-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

Not a single cloud in the sky and highs in the 70s. That's about as good as it gets. I forgot to mention yesterday that I'm in Alabama now. I entered yesterday.

This is my last state before Georgia. Plus, at some point 2 days ago I crossed 2000 miles. I'm really slacking on keeping up to date on the milestones.

http://trackmytour.com/1220
up to date map of where I am.

-- Patrick

Quick funny story

2010-03-29T20:04:00.001-07:00

I'm running along in Macon this morning and this truck pulls into the parking lot ahead of me. He waits there until I get a little closer and he rolls down his window.

"Hey I saw you on TV!"
"Yep that was me in Louisville."

He asked if he could take my picture and I agreed that it would be fine. He and his son were dressed all in camo because they had just finished hunting. They got out of the car and went to the back of their truck. He then pulled out a huge dead turkey from his truck and draped it on the ground!! I was stoked! I crouched down next to it and got my picture taken.

Me and turkey

Robert and Jay Hunter

-- Patrick

Company

2010-03-28T19:14:00.001-07:00

I left Louisville today. (Or Lousv'll as they say it there) I left from the steps of the Methodist church there in town where we had the pasta dinner a couple nights back.

When I left, I was joined by the same two guys who ran the 10 miles into town with me and also a girl who won Jr. Miss for Winston county. She now goes onto the state competition and the plan is to woop up on the other girls from Mississippi and win. From what I gathered, Jr. Miss is like proving you're a Renaissance man...except for high school girls. You have to be good at everything!

I think I'll stick to my running and maybe it'll win me the talent portion of the competition...I'd win the spelling bee too. Me a exelent speelllr!

Good luck Faith!!

Brian and Bubba, the two other runners stuck with me for the first 15 or so miles and got to the county line. I enjoyed the company of these guys because they just liked to laugh, which was great for the morale of the cloudy day. We had a good time an parted ways when Bubba's wife Candice came to pick them up.

Bubba, me, Brian

The rest of the day was fine and I finished. I'm with the Millers tonight in Macon.

And that's all I have to say about that.

-- Patrick

Goat vid

2010-03-27T21:10:00.001-07:00

You can even hear the little guy screaming for help!

-- Patrick

Baby goats and catfish fry

2010-03-27T20:35:00.001-07:00

Today was another off day spent with the Forsters. They really have a lot going on in this town. We went out to see some baby goats in the morning and they were really cute. We had to chase them down in order to hold them so I assumed the position of chief chaser. I even caught one hunt on video.

We then went out to their cabin where we spent a lot of the day relaxing on the pond in canoes and on the dock.

Clearly, it was a very high stress day and I'll be glad to escape the rat race of the country.

Everyone I have talked to has mentioned these mounds that the Choctaw indians made. But then they follow it up quickly with, "oh, but it just looks like a hill, you don't want to see that."

Well, I had the opportunity to see it, so I took it. They were right. It was a hill. But if I hadn't seen it, I would've always wondered.

When we returned to the cabin we started a fire and more Forsters came and we had catfish, hushpuppies, fries, and Cole slaw. Southern cookin at it's best. I enjoyed everyones company.

Another great day in Louisville, but tomorrow is back to running.

-- Patrick

Busy busy busy

2010-03-26T20:22:00.001-07:00

Today started off with a trip to the radio studio. The local radio station had me on their show and it was great! They had also done a lot to help promote the pasta dinner we had tonight so that was a great help as well.

The radio segment went well and a lot quicker than I was expecting. And I don't think I said, "um" too many times. Which is good.

The radio room

Next we were off to Winston Academy. I spoke with the seniors and they were a very nice group of kids, and seemed interested.

Next, we went to the restaurant called The Bypass. They were doing a fundraiser for the run and donated a portion of the meals to the run. I liked meeting the people that came out to that.

The hotel next to the Bypass.

Somewhere in that morning we went to Mary Lou's Biscuit Bar.
I was looking at some of the signatures on the wall and I saw this one.

He and his two friends ran almost the exact same route two years ago! Crazy.

Next was Louisville high school. I spoke with the athletes of the school. Mainly the football team. They were a funny group and were completely around me so I kept spinning around so I could see all of them. They were also very interested in my 40 yard dash time...I haven't even been timed in the mile since about 8th grade. They were the state champs last year in football so good luck to you guys this year. Not that I know a whole heap about football, but based on the size of some of those guys...my money would be on Louisville.

The end of the day brought with it the pasta dinner fundraiser. This idea was fantastic. The whole town came together to donate the food and sell tickets. We had a great turnout and by the end of the evening we had about 140 people come out and raised $2500 dollars! Not too shabby!!!! I was able to meet everyone there, and while I did feel a bit like a polititian, I was glad I was able speak with everyone. They were all so nice and welcoming.

It's hard to explain how it feels to be welcomed like this to a town you've never been to and have complete strangers come out of the woodwork to go above and beyond to help some "running nomad." It is a very different feeling. It's the kind of thing that restores faith in humanity.

Thank you Forsters.

They are the reason everything here was organized the way it was.

-- Patrick

Rain and fire trucks

2010-03-25T21:10:00.001-07:00

Today started out less than ideal, but ended with a bang. The beginning of the run was pouring rain but was in the upper 50s so it wasn't really too bad. At least it wasn't a cold rain.

The roads were incredibly interesting with winding curves and trees and forests on both sides. Sights like these make the miles and hours just click on by without any effort. Mentally, today was cake. Actually, all of today was cake.

Speaking of cake...actually, I have nothing to follow that up, I just started thinking about cake. Did you know that my mom made all of the kids in my family their birthday cakes with no milk? And since that's the way we grew up with it, we still like our birthday cakes to be made without milk. It was because I was allergic (I mean deathly allergic) to milk until I was 18. Crazy story for another time...

34 miles of smooth rolling hills and minimal traffic.

10 miles away from Louisville it was sunny, and warm and humid and I was met by two runners, Brian and Bubba. It was great to have the company and their presence made the last 10 miles go by in a flash. Then we were met by three of the highschool cross country boys. They were really nice (and fast) kids and the last 2 miles were spent with them as well.

Soon after meeting up with the XC boys we came to an intersection that was blocked off by the police...FOR US! Then as we made our way through the intersection a police car turned on its lights and pulled in front of us. As we followed it, two fire trucks pulled in behind us.

Our whole parade was 3 police cars, two fire trucks, 6 runners and a baby jogger. It was really a lot of fun. As we rounded the curve to city hall I saw a crowd of people on the side of the road and they all started cheering! It was unbelievable. Mike and Betty Forster were the ones who organized all of that, and the activities for the next couple days while I'm in Louisville. They really did a great job.

As I stopped in front of city hall a news reporter jumped up and put a mic in my face and his first question was, "Why are you running?" Well, all I could think of was the part in Forrest Gump when he was asked the same question and he just said, "I just felt like running." But I held it together and gave a real answer...

After the reporter I met the mayor. He said a few words and gave me a key to the city.

WHAT???? A key to the city??

That's right. The key to Louisville, MS.

Across the street there was a church and the preschoolers had come out and were holding a sign that said, "Run Patrick Run," it was pretty cute so we took a couple pictures over there.

Afterward, we all came back to the Forsters where we had real Mississippi barbeque. Whoa. Good.

-- Patrick

Video

2010-03-25T18:04:00.001-07:00

-- Patrick

Forgot about yesterday

2010-03-24T20:21:00.001-07:00

Yesterday doesn't matter. Short boring day.

Early morning mist

Today was a bit more exciting. While still on the short end in terms of mileage, the run was good.

I did pass a sign that said "Attala county" and I immediately started to go uphill. I thought that was ironic. (a talla county? Get it?)

Lots of ups and downs to keep it interesting and tons of trees were a welcomed sight. I finished quickly and met up with Mr. Watson.

He showed me around the town of Philadelphia, Ar. We ate at an old drug store.

Two words: Milk shake.
While I was a bit skeptical that a milk shake could bring all the boys to the yard, this one would've brought me back to te yard.

Afterward, we launched his kayaks into the Pearl River and we went floating down. It was really calm and nice to be outside without seeing a major road under my feet. But we did see a cottonmouth snake. Not my favorite part...

He also showed me a place called Neshoba Fair Grounds where they have a huuuuuuge fair every summer. They have all these cabins where people stay for horse races and concerts and speakers. BUT people only live there a month out of the whole year.

brightly colored cabins

Good day.

-- Patrick

Vid from the day

2010-03-22T13:10:00.001-07:00

- Patrick

Wild weather

2010-03-21T18:07:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was a bright sunny day in the mid to upper 60s. It was great weather and warm enough to run sans-shirt. I even got a little sunburned, despite applying sunscreen. AND reapplying twice.

I don't think I've ever seen the weather change so quickly from day today. Today was cold. And get this...it snowed! I opened the door today and saw it sleeting out. So I hurried back inside and put on my snow stuff. I opened the door again, and it had stopped.

I got on the road ready for a day of interesting weather. As I turned east a gust of wind scooped me up and pushed my jogger forward. From there, all I had to do was steer the thing. The intense wind pushed it for me today! It was the perfect speed: fast.

The only problem with the weather was that every now and then it would sleet really hard for about a minute and a half. I'd get the backs of my ears pelted and the side of my face stung.

Toward the end of the day it actually started snowing. Weird.

-- Patrick

Eventful.

2010-03-20T17:58:00.001-07:00

I guess I should start at the beginning. Today was great. I ran 9 or 10 miles to the Mississippi river bridge. I knew that I was meeting two people there, but it turned out 7 people came! It was so great to run with people. I always forget how great it is running with people until I run with them again.

This was the most people I have run with since before I started this trip.

They were a great group of people and I can't express how much I enjoyed running with everyone. We took the new bridge. There are actually 2 bridges. The new one isn't open yet but the police that escourted us across let us in and so we took it!

Picture from inside the back of the police car.

I'd like to think I was the first one who was crossing the country to cross the Mississippi on the new bridge...but I don't know that for sure so I guess I can't say that.

Of course, with crossing the Mississippi River comes the border of the state of Mississippi, which is good.

Unfortunately, the big group and myself parted ways at the sign and I got back on the road on my way going east.

The rest of the day was flat. Flaaaaaaaaaaaaat. AND there was gravel, which the stroller didn't resond too well to. I just walked those sections because running would've been a nightmare. 37 miles felt great today.

-- Patrick

Lake Village

2010-03-19T18:19:00.001-07:00

Where do I start with Lake Village?

Let's start with where this place is. It's right on the Mississippi River and Lake Chicot. (pronounced shico, it's French)

Yesterday it was great to meet so many people and it was very nice to have so many people come out to where I ended. Last night a bunch of teachers came to Brianne's house, where I'm staying, and we had home made pizza. Yes.

It was really nice talking to the teachers. They are part of the Teach for America program. It's really an admirable program and the teachers are incredible people. I feel lucky to have met all of them...even though I can't remember any of their names.

Today started out with a ride out to the Mississippi River bridge to see the guy who is crossing the country in his buggy dragged by his horse cross the river. It was great!! He started in Corpus Christi....a year and a half ago!! It doesn't sound like he is in any hurry. But it was kinda cool that I caught up with a horse.

Next, Brianne and I went to Lakeside High School and talked to a couple of Mr. Pratt's classes and they asked some very interesting questions.

"When I get to a lake or river, do I swim across it?"
That was my favorite.

From there we went to Lake Port Plantation which is an old plantation house they've restored from the old cotton days.

I didn't realize how crooked that picture was until now.
It's a very nice house with 10 or 12 foot tall doors. They also had a commissary in the back where they used to sell food as well.

Peanut butter. 25 cents.

Lard. 80 cents. I didn't know they were making Oreos back in the day but I'm sure they were just as good.

After that we went on a tour of the Chicot Lake on a boat! It was a great day to be on the water.

Nice house and some cypress trees.

Busy day. Good day. Nice place. Great people.
-- Patrick

Absolutely crazy

2010-03-18T16:33:00.001-07:00

Fist of all, thank you for the comments. They were incredibly encouraging and it's just what
I needed.

If I look at today, it should've been great. I got 23 miles done. The weather was about as perfect as it gets. The road was clean. And sailing was smooth.
...almost.

Last night I woke up at 1 am to a growling noise. Except it was inside my tent! My stomach was going nuts and I thought, "well, from past experience, I'm either hungry or I'm sick."

Unfortunately, soon after that I made a dash for the exit and barely made it outside before my lunch made a second appearance. Yep! That's right, food poisoning. For the rest of my stay at the "resort au natural," AKA: the woods, I was in and out of the tent all night viewing things fly out of my body I never thought I would. It left me a broken, desheveled mess. I was pitiful. I felt every cell in my body working to rid myself of whatever foreign object decided to enter there unannounced.

I dosed in and out in between spewings and the grand total for sleep for the night was somewhere around 2.5-3 hours.

Realsizing that today's run was going to be somewhere between painfully slow and pretty near impossible, I started very early. I gave myself 7.5 hours to complete the 23 miles before 3 o'clock when I was meeting the Chamber of Commerce of Lake Village.

I started out right after seeing stomach acid and feeling the burn of the substance tear through my esophagus one last time. I had nothing in my body and no energy.

After awhile I passed a convenience store. I got 2 Mt. Dew's for the carbonation and the fact that at 290 calories a pop, this is what I needed.

First on went down smooth and I felt a little better. I tried running a bit. I could only manage a modest pace for no more than 10 minutes before pure exhaustion set in and was forced to walk.

Today was mainly a walking day with a bit of running thrown in for good measure and sanity. I got to Lake Village an hour and a half ahead of schedule. When I got to the intersection, two cops came up. I was thinking, "oh great, this is just what I needed."

They told me they'd escourt me to the ampitheatre. They were expecting me. Whoa! Definitely wasn't expecting that.

A bit later, St. Mary's school came outside and I was able to talk to them. Great kids. One kid could turn his foot all the way backwards. Crazy.

Both of the black shoes belong to the same kid.

-- Patrick

Close but not really

2010-03-17T19:16:00.001-07:00

They say in a 100 mile race, you're not halfway until around mile 75. Some would argue the halfway point is more around mile 95. I guess this thing is no different.

Staying positive.

-- Patrick

Stuff?

2010-03-16T17:07:00.001-07:00

Hey first things first, if you're on facebook, join this group. It's a Tybee Island (and me) fan page. We're trying to get a ton of people there for one big last fundraiser for this run!

http://m.facebook.com/pages/Tybee-Island-Welcomes-Patrick-Fuzzy-McGlade/251068816273?rcc4470ef&refid=46

In other news, I got new SmartWool socks.

Who says penguins are the only things with "happy feet?"

Today started with a trip to Gardner-Strong elementary school. They were great kids and asked some very interesting questions... "How much can I bench press?" Can't say I've gotten that question before.

The run went well, and was surrounded by water for most of the day. I believe I was around the delta region today.

I haven't reported the weather in a little while, so I guess I'll do that. Today was 65 and overcast. The past couple days have been in the 50s in the morning but have heated to 75 by mid afternoon. Perfect running weather. Sorry to everyone stuck in winter.

I was barked at a lot today and wished that at least one of those dogs would shut up and just run with me. Would've been a nice change.

-- Patrick

Cool thing to happen #1 gazillion

2010-03-15T18:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here in my tent and I hear a car pull up so I'm thinking to myself, "Please don't be the cops, please don't be the cops."

A person steps out asks if anyone is in there. I get out of the tent and Mr. Medlin is standing there. I'm camping in Medlin's Hardware's lot tonight. He and his wife had brought me dinner!! It was awesome!! A home cooked meal, mmmmmmm. AND as if that wasn't cool enough, it was shake n bake chicken! My mom makes shake n bake. Mrs. Medlin apologized because it wasn't fried chicken, but they are watching their cholesterol. I love shake n bake! There was corn, salad, bread, and a tiny pie as well.

They stayed and talked for a while and she said she saw me earlier in the day. At first, she thought I was homeless. Score!! But then she said my legs don't look much like a homeless person's legs. Double score!!

Coolest random thing to happen in a while.

-- Patrick

Short day

2010-03-15T17:17:00.001-07:00

Today was very short. 20 miles. I started in El Dorado where I spent the night at the Union Square hotel. It was very nice. Yesterday I was also visited by the Kuo's and Mrs. Chesser. We went out to dinner and it was great meeting them and their kids.

This morning I had no reason to hurry out for the run so I spent the morning poking around the town of El Dorado. Nice little city. Plus, I found a bakery that had cream cheese and strawberry filled croissants. That thing was so good. If you get the chance to have one, take it. You won't regret it...unless your pants are already getting a little bit on the tight side...

The run was uneventful. I walked a lot because I wanted to take up more time so I wouldn't have to sit around Strong, Arkansas with nothing to do. Bottom line, no matter how much you walk, 20 miles just doesn't take that long.

Strong isn't a very large town. I don't know where they get off calling themselves strong. There has been nothing I've seen so far to prove that. I expected some hulking guy holding up a truck or a house or at least a gallon of milk and a bag of flour at the sign that told me where Strong started. But it was not so.

I'm ready to finish this thing. I still have 39 days until the end. This Friday it will be 5 weeks. I know it will go by quickly but the truth is, that day cannot come soon enough.

-- Patrick

Pic of my Dad

2010-03-14T17:50:00.000-07:00

-- Patrick

Happy birthday Dad!!!

2010-03-14T17:44:00.001-07:00

Today is my Dad's birthday, so, I thought I'd dedicate the first day running in a week to him. It was a 33 mile day, and since he hasn't been anywhere NEAR 33 for quite some time, I thought I'd point out the obvious fact that there is no connection whatsoever.

Let's get started then:

Name: Desi
Birthdate: March 14, 5 BC
Favorite food: chocolate covered dinosaur eggs (he was fed them as a child). He prefers t-rex eggs but he'll eat brontosaurus eggs too.
Favorite color: he hasn't decided yet because up until the 70s, everything was just in black and white anyway so, I think he's still getting used to colors.
Most famous accomplishment: I'm pretty sure he was the guy that invented the wheel...or fire.

Anyway, if you see him, wish him a happy birthday and slap him on the back. But not too hard, we don't want to hurt his back. (We know how those old people can be) ; ) Happy Birthday Dad!!

Alright, enough with the old jokes and roasting my old man.

Today's run went well. It was green. I appreciate the greenery. Arkansas might not have a whole lot so far but it is more interesting to look at.

In other news, I'm sure you'll all be as relieved as I was to find out that the Huddle House has not lost all form of dignity in this recession.

Though, if I were to have a kid...AND let the Hud House munch on the little morsel...don't you think that I should be the one to get paid? After all, I just gave them a kid and they got a meal out of the deal. Maybe Arkansas is a little different than I thought. Oh well, I guess I know where I'm not having kids....unless the little buggers get annoying. Maybe the Huddle House should offer a daycare service on the other side of the sign, just to balance out the services.

I ended in El Dorado. I assumed I would receive a brick of gold when I entered the city; it being the lost city of gold and all. But no gold was to be had, or seen, for that matter. Then I found out this city is pronounced "Doraydo." Yes. I agree. It is wierd and I would rather have the gold but oh well.

They have telephone booths here. Cool.
-- Patrick

Days off with my woman

2010-03-12T16:10:00.001-08:00

Katie came to visit me! Woo hoo!! The bad news is she had to go home.

We decided that since we were in a part of the country neither of us had been before (and probably never will again) we'd take a little trip down to Shreveport, Louisiana.

If you've never been, well, I can't say you're missing a ton. Not that it's not a nice little city, there just weren't a whole heap of sights to see.

BUT!! There was a casino. El Dorado, they call it. Home of penny slot machines and a surprising amount of people over the age 65 winning, or losing, large amounts of moolah. A place in the world that still had cigarette machines and where, on a Wednesday evening, the majority of the cities population was residing.

We figured we should challenge lady luck and try to beat her. Eighteen dollars between the two of us later we decided maybe gambling wasn't for us. Katie had to drag me out of there kicking and screaming though. Plus, we chose what slots to play based on the cartoon characters on the outside of the machine. Needless to say, we didn't know what we were doing and El Dorado didn't exactly give an intructional seminar on how to get serious about slot machines. I'd rather just find out where you're supposed to bump the machine to make the wheels stop so you win.

In other news, we were in a part of the country that sells BBQ sauce by the jug!!

The pic doesn't look that big but that thing is bigger than my head.

-- Patrick

Yesterday

2010-03-08T07:29:00.001-08:00

I ended where Katie found me on the side of the highway 7 miles west of Magnolia. I was going to try to make it all the way to Magnolia so she didn't have to drive any furthur than the 13 hours she already had. Yea. 13 hours. Yikes!

I am in Arkansas now which is awesome. No offense Texas but you're too big. Lay off the donut shops and Dairy Queen and, you too, can be the size of a normal state. Now that Katie is here it is time for a little break. This is the last break before I hit the Atlantic. Good news. I believe I'm down to 5 weeks left.

Since yesterday turned into a 50 mile day, it has made this my heaviest mileage week ever. 240 miles this week. Previously, my weeks were in the 210 range. Most people even when they are training hard for a marathon are doing around 70-100 mile weeks. The famed Kenyan marathon runners are doing between 70-90 miles a weeks. The difference is their miles hover somewhere between the speed of sound and light.

-- Patrick

Last night in Texas

2010-03-06T16:12:00.000-08:00

Texarkana. It's where I am. I met up with my dad's friend Bruce Lachney this morning and it was great to meet him. He had a car. I had a jogger. He offered to take it and I put up no arguement. So, I didn't have to push it today which was great because there was lots of construction and the shoulder was puny.

The miles today went very quickly. Mr. Lachney met me in Texarkana and we had lunch.

Unfortunately, my blisters returned yesterday on the 40 mile day. Along with a third joining the gang. So today, I did surgery to repair the damage. I did, however, realize why I just started getting blisters. My shoes are too small. They were the right size but then swelled up. It's a good thing today was the last day on that pair and my next pair, I bought a size up thinking this might happen.

The good news is that I still have all my toenails.

Tomorrow I get to see Katie!

-- Patrick

Uneventful day

2010-03-05T18:35:00.001-08:00

40 miles on a really nice day. Two newspaper interviews.
I am still in Texas BUT not for long. Good news.

Maybe tomorrow will be more eventful.

-- Patrick

I did what???

2010-03-04T16:43:00.001-08:00

I didn't really do anything bad. It's ok. Today started out at Paris high school. They were all really nice, except they asked a lot of questions about hygene. I thought I was clean but their volume of questions about showering and shaving made me think otherwise.

It was a 30 mile day. I ended in Clarksville and am staying in the Courthouse Inn. It looks like a doll house! It's crazy.

I was given a tour around town and I saw the courthouse. It was restored to it's original furnishings and it looks like something out of a movie.

A video. For your viewing displeasure.

-- Patrick

Paul

2010-03-03T18:57:00.001-08:00

Today was a 40.5 mile day. A good day and I feel accomplished. My knee wasn't giving me any trouble throughout the day and things generally went well. The weather was nice. Sunny, slight breeze, upper 50s to low 60s. And the best part was I found a friend.

I have a history of run-ins with dogs on this trip. Well, today was no different except today's run-in turned into a run-with. I was just humming along and then I heard this tapping behind me. I look down and I see this little white dog with a black head. I told him to go home and that he couldn't come with me. I didn't see where he came from
and he wasn't wearing a collar or tags or anything. When I stopped to tell him to go home again he just sat down, looked at me and wagged his tail. I thought if I just ignore him he'd go away. I started running again and he stayed right there with me.

I started to get a little nervous i might be needing to find a place for him to sleep tonight because he was staying with me. I decided since he wouldn't leave me, I'd name him for the day. I named him Paul. After Paul Bunyon. The way I see it, Paul had an Ox and I had a dog. Does it make sense now? Nope. But that's just the way things go sometimes.

Paul followed me for 20 miles. That's right, 20 miles. The dog could run. He would stop and sniff something and then come running back to me full speed. When we got to Paris I started to think of ways I could sneak him into the hotel so I could give him a bath. I had the plan all worked out. It would be great! Just me and my runnin dog Paul. Well, we got to Paris and you know what they say, "Paris is the city of love." Well, Paul agreed because he found himself a mamasita and ditched me. I guess he forgot who shared his water, granola bar, and crust from a pb&j with him. (I figured since after 20 miles I like food and water he would too) Turns out Paul like pb&j. So, now it's just me and the road again...and the stupid baby jogger.

I got a video of him but it turned out to be too long to post. Bummer.

Another highlight from the day was I got 2 blisters. Wierd, since I hadn't gotten any the entire trip yet. Im betting it was because I was wearing my oldest pair of socks. Those things probably have a bajillion miles on them. Probably due for a new pair.

Cool church in Paris.

-- Patrick

Run long enough and it'll all go away

2010-03-02T14:55:00.001-08:00

Alright, first things first. Happy 3rd Birthday Macy!!

Today started off rough. When I got out of bed this morning, my knee didn't work. I could only bend it about 10% of normal and couldn't put any weight on it if it were bent at all. Wierd.

Of course, this lack of mobility is not ideal for running...or walking for that matter. But I packed up my stuff and hoped for the best. When I started the day it was cold and windy. I would've liked to run to try to stay warm but when I tried my leg literally wouldn't hold me up. It was ALMOST funny; except, it wasn't. I kept walking for awhile and my frustration kept growing. Every couple minutes I try to run again and still, I would be forced to stop.

Normally, I can run through these little problems. Today, it wasn't my choice. I would hobble for a minute or two and walk. Hobble for another minute or two, and walk. As the day went on and the blood was flowing a little more, things got a little looser. Pain subsided and I was able to tolerate more and more running mixed with walking. By the end of the day I had about 90% mobility and was able to run without stopping. Ta-da!

I did cut the day short by 10 miles and only got 20 miles in. So tomorrow I will make up the difference but I think it will be back to normal tomorrow so it will all be great.

I think the knee issue was a result of my feet and legs being numb yesterday and my stride falling down the drain. That's the only thing I can come up with.

-- Patrick

Back on the road

2010-03-01T17:38:00.001-08:00

After four days of no, or minimal, running and time spent with family around Dallas I got back out there today. It was great weather all weekend. Mid 60s, clear, sunny and minimal wind. Today was not the weekend.

I believe Chevy Chase said it best in the classic movie, Christmas Vacation, "Worse? How could things get any worse?? We're at the threshold of hell!!"

Cold, rainy, and windy. All day! The good news, it wasn't a thunderstorm. More good news, it was above freezing. Although, if it weren't, I might have been dryer. Snow sort of rolls off the ol jacket.

Then the cops showed up. No kidding. The guy gets out of the car and asks what I'm doing. So I tell him, and he takes my info back to his car to "check me out." I'm sure I'm looking quite dangerous and a huge threat to society at this point considering I'm just sort of standing there shivering and soaked to the bone. Turns out someone called it in to report me. ...I guess I was looking rougher than I thought. He let me commense running after he asked if I had any guns. GUNS. Plural.

"A gun rack? A gun rack? I don't have A gun nevermind MANY which would necessitate a rack." -Wayne's World

Other than that, I got 4 ride offers including one oversized man driving a light blue huge truck who was stroking his toy poodle while asking me if I needed a ride. Needless to say, I turned them all down...especially poodle boy.

-- Patrick

Strange effects

2010-02-27T17:06:00.001-08:00

I couldn't take being sedentary for one more day, so today I went to the gym with my uncle. I didn't do anything out of the ordinary for one of my standard workouts. The difference was the difficulty I had with it.

I hadn't done the workout in two months but I didn't think it would be the way it was because at the conclusion of most days run I do a pile of push-ups, sit-ups and other various standard exercises just to keep the blood flowing. Now, I know push ups aren't exactly going to give you a Hercules looking chest or arms the size of cannons; but I hadn't noticed a size change in my arms and my weight hasn't changed too much. I'll just go ahead and say it. MAN I got weak! I'm not giving the world an open shot to beat me to a pulp, but it is something that I believe is a result of lack of weight training.

So, what does this mean? It means that for all you runners out there trying to get in awesome shape and really strong, simply running and even pushing a 70 lb baby jogger during the process, just doesn't cut it.

I'm not sweating it now because I knew when I started this there would be a good chance some sort of physical transformation would take place. But so far I hadn't noticed anything different until today.

Other than that, I've spent my days relaxing with family or playing with their dog Riley who looks much like my dog, Roxie, except not morbidly obese and doesn't resemble a lumpy furry sausage. But my dog's a cute lumpy sausage fat dog. And we love her and her addiction to cheese and green beans.

Riley

Roxie

-- Patrick

Got my face adjusted

2010-02-25T15:34:00.000-08:00

Since I'm taking the next couple days off, and I'm just over halfway, I thought this would be a good time to get an adjustment at the chiropractor. He pressed and torqued my face and head with the argument that my face needed adjusting and he was realigning my cranial bones. In my family, with a brother and a little sister who have more energy than a chihuaua after drinking a Red Bull, these are fighting words. But apparently, he was serious and now my face is fully adjusted.

When he saw my address was in Virginia, he asked what I was doing out in these parts. When I told him, he laughed. It wasn't a quick little chuckle. It was a full on belly laugh. And was it short lived? No. It was the kind of laugh that is sedated forcefully out of respect for the bearer of the news and then appears out of no where. The kind of laugh you can't hold back. Like when you're sitting in church and the lady in front of you is literally falling asleep and her head is bobbing dangerously threatening whiplash. And no matter how much you try to stop laughing, no amount of glare from your mom can stop the fact that you need to laugh. I have to admit though, it was a bit contagious. I found myself trying not to laugh because, well, I was the reason for the laughing fit.

After he gathered himself he apologized for laughing so much he just had never had anyone seriously say they were running across a country. I assured him I was serious, and so he laughed some more.

I also brought my whip to the bike doctor to get an adjustment. The bike shop guy asked me what "possessed me" to run across a country.

...you know you've had an event filled day when the entire post is about some guy laughing at you.

People!!

2010-02-24T17:08:00.001-08:00

First off, I believe everyone needs to watch out. My little sister Bridget has gotten her driving permit. So if you see a blonde girl around the Stafford area driving with her hair on fire just pull over and let the hurricane that is Bridget run her course. You will be ok if you remain in your car.

Just kidding. Congrats Bridget!!

Today started out with breakfast with Michael Smith, 50 States Club marathon runner and Ironman, and Chris Phelan. Chris was, at one time, the 8th fastest marathoner in the US. Now he writes for the Phast Times, a magazine around the Dallas Fort Worth area.

Chris, Michael, Mike

I started running this morning with Mike Gaytes, Ironman triathlete and ultrarunner. It was great to run with someone and he was very interesting to talk to with his experience as a crew person for a Badwater racer. We passed an interesting looking bar with a great sign outside.

What do ya think ladies?

After 14 miles, Mike and I parted ways and I made my way through Denton and their shoulder-less roads. After seeing a few too many single middle digits exposed and aimed at me, I decided to run with traffic for the next quarter mile. Was it safer? No. But at least I didn't have to see people flipping me off anymore.

For the last 5 miles, I was joined by Vicky, Vicki, and Angie; all Dallas Running Club members. It was great to run with so many interesting people today. Good conversation really makes the miles cruise on by. And I had no shortage of good conversation today. Thank you everyone!

Angie, myself, Vicky, Vicki

-- Patrick

What day is it?

2010-02-23T16:15:00.000-08:00

Today was just another day. Nothing crazy, nothing awesome, nothing terrible. Although I think yesterday, posibly last week there was a truck carrying nails that crashed and slid the entire length of my run today. Tons of nails on the road.

The slant of the road was pretty steep today and my ankles did not appreciate it.

It was chilly and overcast and was snowing at the start. But soon the snow and intense wind let up.

I wish something insane happend like a lion escaping from the zoo and followed me but it didn't. Or Jif or Skippy peanut butter and Smuckers jelly gave me all I could eat pb&j for the rest of my life. Or if someone offered to do a freak experiment on me where they turned me into inspector gadget. That'd be cool. But alas, the only person to keep me company today was my man, Axel Rose.
Thanks Guns and Roses.

-- Patrick

Questions

2010-02-22T19:27:00.001-08:00

Okay, there have been a couple questions in the past couple days comments. So I'll answer them in one foul swoop.

The stroller is working fine. I had to do some minor repairs a couple days ago. The front wheel wasn't going straight and the back right wheel was falling off. Sounds like a big deal but I just adjusted the front so it would go straight an cleaned the back wheel connector so it snapped in and wouldn't fall off. All systems go.

My days off: well, since my mom reads this, yes I will take them completely off. The truth is though I haven't taken three consecutive days off of running in a very long time. So if my brain can handle that, then sure. But if anyone in the Dallas area invites me on a run, well, I'm not sure I could say "no."

Today was cooooold. I camped out last night and it went well, stayed warm. Today was overcast and freeeezing. But, another day is behind me.

I met Clint and Paul on the way. They are biking from Maine to San Diego for breast cancer. They were nice guys but in order to stay warm we didn't visit long.

My whip, Paul, and Clint

-- Patrick

2010-02-21T14:35:00.000-08:00

Back on track and ended in Bryson. Super short day; almost annoyingly so. 13 miles. I also made the mistake of doing it too quickly because now i'm just sitting here debating on trying to sleep or trying to stay awake.

I'm camping tonight. First night on the trip so far. It's cold but at least it's stopped raining. This is going to be short to reserve battery life.

-- Patrick

Day of the dead

2010-02-20T17:01:00.000-08:00

Today was strange. 40 miles on an overcast day in the upper 50s lower 60s. I saw lots of cows but every other animal I saw today was dead. And there were A LOT of them. Let's just say there was a section that required weaving. It was very strange. I didn't take any pictures though.

It was very very humid as well. Also wierd.

Other than that, it was a pretty good day. The road was curvy and had more hills than the past couple of weeks. I ended in Graham, TX.

..this part wasn't curvy.

I've got a lot of time during the day to think. And today was a thinking day. No universal truths or answers to life yet. Sorry.

-- Patrick

Half way and PUDS

2010-02-19T17:34:00.001-08:00

So today I crossed the halfway point. Yipee!! This is what I did on the line.

Warning: Some material may not be suitable for children. This is rated R for Really bad dancing.

On a more reasonable note, it was a 33 day and I ended in Throckmorton. Say that one 5 times fast. I got Drockmorn for my last one.

Anyway! Lots of PUDS on the road today. (pointless ups and downs) but the little climbs and falls did make the really really really straight road a little more interesting. The cows today were much more active and decided to join me for a little bit. It was pretty cool, I guess I ran with the bulls. (Cross that one off my bucket list)

Also! I found the spot where the grass really was greener on the other side of the fence. But due to dumb connections, the picture will not post.

In other news, I saw an armadillo! And it was alive...unlike the hog, coyote, owl, and dog I also saw today.

Song to get stoked on:
Ali in the Jungle by The Hours
You may recognize it as the song Nike uses in their commercial with all the streams of people that they play during the Olympics.

Keep it real.

-- Patrick

A day of nothing

2010-02-18T17:28:00.001-08:00

...except reading and rest. I'd like to replace days like today with days of some progress.

-- Patrick

Increasigly good mood

2010-02-17T17:45:00.001-08:00

Things are going well. So well in fact, they can only go down. Yes, it's a bit of a pessimistic thought but I'm serious. I haven't gotten lost. Nothing hurts. I get to the end of a 30+ day and I feel like I just started. I'm not even sore in the morning. Everyone I meet is really nice. The scenery is getting increasinly green. AND it hasn't rained in awhile. All of this is of course followed up by a brisk knock on wood but that is that.

Today I stopped into the town of Rule. It ruled. Pun intended? It has a little under 700 people and I stopped by the school and spoke with the seniors. It was a lot different than when I visited the middle school but still, it ruled. Everyone was really cool, and they ruled too. When I left Rule, it didn't rule. Okay, I'll stop now.
Rule.

Before that, I ran into some really friendly donkeys, a horse and a llama.

-- Patrick

Short day and good people

2010-02-16T19:05:00.001-08:00

It seems that these days I am fortunate to meet so many people. This is good for several reasons. One, it let's me follow up on one of the goals of the trip: to tell as many people as possible that kids get arthritis. And the second reason is that I am able to see people. I'm able to view the people that ordinarily, I would never have been in a position or have been fortunate enough to meet.

If I had decided to drive across the country I would never met half the people simply because I would not have been in the same situation. Running has allowed me to get a better idea of what the people of this country really are like. So far I have met a decent sized section of the country and the people have been different. I've met a mom who happens to be a parol officer who has a daughter with arthritis in Redlands, CA and I've met a Dad who has worked for Mobil in the oil fields for 25 years in Jayton, TX. Both were incredibly different in every way possible. Each were some of the nicest people I have ever met in my life. And I would have met neither had I not started this run.

I'm learning things out here. And it is good.

Allow me to introduce you to my rig:

23 today and my body is holding up well.

-- Patrick

Long and short

2010-02-15T15:56:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was supposed to be a 25 mile day and today was supposed to be a 27 mile day. Well, I was able to have a building to sleep in last night if I went an extra 11. So I did. Yesterday turned into a 38 day, which made today a 14 day.

Yesterday was tough. Not so much the distance but the freezing cold wind. Straight into my face. After talking to people today I found out the wind was 30 mph with over 50 mph gusts. Fun.

Today was sunny and warmer. The wind was slightly less but still there. Because of yesterday's extra miles, today was shortend but I went into Sassy's Restaurant, and had an AWESOME meatball sub and sweet tea and then, was picked up by a family for the night!

The mom thought I was her son because, apparently I look like him. When she heard what I was doing she said it was exactly the kind of thing her son would do. So, she took me in.

-- Patrick

Saturday

2010-02-13T14:59:00.000-08:00

Today was slightly uneventful. It was a good day, I felt strong and relaxed. It was a short day, 25 miles. I usually prefer to get around 30-35. Hitting 30 makes me feel more like I got somewhere in the day.

I pulled into Post, Texas after taking a glamour shots of my stroller for some empty-land entertainment.

I saw this sign welcoming me to Post, except it was welcoming ME by name so that was pretty cool!

I guess cool things happen when you stay with the Mayor!

-- Patrick

Utter craziness

2010-02-12T14:33:00.001-08:00

Alright so today was an awesome day. It was clear, ie no snow; it was warm, ie higher than 38.5; AND I found out one of life's great mysteries.

I was cruising along, energy levels feeling good, thanks to GU. And I saw bison! Real, live, in the fur, curved little horned, BISON. It was awesome. The bad news, they were too far away to get a picture. When I ran past a bunch of horses first they all looked at me, like they do, and then they started running next to me! It was pretty sweet. As soon as I pulled out my camera to take a picture though, they bolted. I guess I'm not the horse whisperer I thought I was.

Next I saw Prarie Dogs! The little things were zipping around and screaming at me. But alas, too small to get a picture.

Unfortunately, this was the third cool thing I saw today that I couldn't document.

I got into town disappointed because while I saw flat empty land for most of the day, I saw some things worth taking pictures of, and I couldn't. Then as I was taking off my shoes and socks, there it was.

The most intruigingly cool, and mysteriously disgusting thing to grace my eyes in quite some time. (...and I look in the mirror at LEAST once a week so that's really saying something.)

Sitting up. In perfect form. Right there on the floor were my socks. Standing upright. On their own. I only thought one thing. "Get the camera before the things walk out the door on their own."

Luckily I was swift with the camera work and was able to document the memorial to sheer dirtiness.

Thank you Smartwool for designing something so awesome that it will stand on their own before they start to smell.

-- Patrick

Video

2010-02-11T14:00:00.000-08:00

http://trackmytour.com/1220

That's where I am.

-- Patrick

Texas

2010-02-10T16:40:00.000-08:00

That's right. I'm in Texas now. Plains, to be exact. Frigid at the start and first half. Then I crossed into Texas. Within a half hour the sun came out and it warmed up about 10 degrees. It was wierd but I welcomed it. I might have even done a little dance just to welcome the sun. Who knows? It's not like anyone saw me; I'm still in the middle of nowhere! And if you ask me, I'll deny it.

Today, was kind of bitter sweet. Yes, I crossed into Texas but today was the last day with my Grandpa. He's on his way home now and from here on out, it's me and my shadow.

Today I ran not for Maggie, but for Maggie's family. They need your support now, so please keep them in your thoughts.

-- Patrick

Day off

2010-02-09T18:59:00.001-08:00

Day off. Tomorrow is my one way ticket into Texas....where I will be for the next eternity. Tomorrow is also the last day with my grandpa's support in the RV.

Maggie, the 12 year old girl I've mentioned before, isn't doing well. Think of her and her family.

-- Patrick

Straight roads and physical update

2010-02-08T18:11:00.001-08:00

Today's run was straight. Straight and flat. Sounds ideal, yes. But ideal conditions take away everything that I love about running, and more specifically endurance running. I love the idea of enduring more.

Some people run for time or for a new "PR." (personal record) Others run to lose the weekend calorie surplus or the last holiday's extra serving of pie.

I run to think. And I run to see.

Running is the perfect time to get things straight in my head and figure out what is really going on in my life. Now, these days, I have plenty of time to figure out the answers to life's questions because I get to run between 4-6 hours per day. But at the same time, there is not a finish line you reach where you have it "all figured out."

So, where does that leave my purpose for running?

One answer keeps coming up when I ask myself this question. (Which happens to be several times a day for the past month or so.)

Who cares? I love running. I love the effect it has on my psyche. I love seeing the things I see while running whether it be the mountains of New Mexico, or the vast nothing-ness of a desert, or even the things that I've seen everyday while running the same 7 mile trail loop over and over and over back in Richmond because that's all I had when it came to trails around a major city.

I run for the journey. Not for the finish line...although, I'm sure I will welcome the end of this cross country journey.

My body feels good, no chronic aches or pains. Everyday I wake up fresh, wonder where my legs will take me today and at what point I will start to hate running. And every night, I go to sleep wondering why I don't hate running.

There are many different takes on running and why you do or do not take part in it. None of them are wrong, but this is why I run.

-- Patrick

1000 miles

2010-02-07T16:27:00.001-08:00

That's right. And that's it.

-- Patrick

Out of service and into Roswell

2010-02-06T15:15:00.001-08:00

Yesterday I ran downhill with the wind at my back. Because of these handicaps, I thought it only fair that I add on a couple miles to even the playing field of the day. I started in Ruidoso Downs in about 33 degree temps without a cloud in the sky.

Three miles into the run I passed the Early Development Childcare Center. They were waiting for me and I stopped to say hi to the 3-4 year old kids. They were really cute and gave me beef jerky, a donation, and Gatorade.

Throughout the day I passed through 4 little towns and ended the day 37.5 miles later in Riverside, in about 65 degree temps. Out of cell range. No bloggin.

Today started at about 40 degrees and ended somewhere in the high 60s. Take that east coast! You guys are buried in feet of snow and I'm romping around in shorts and a t-shirt!

Today's scenery was slightly less interesting than the past two days. The wierd and mostly annoying thing about today was the road wasn't in the greatest shape. As many of you know, I normally run trails, so I'm not picky when it comes to the conditions of what I'M running on. BUT there are no semi trucks on the trails I run. And the semis today would pick up the little loose rocks from the road and throw them at me at around 60-75 mph. (the speed limit was 70) I got beamed in the forehead 4 times, 3 times in the right knee, once in the left knee, twice in the ribs, and 5 times on my knuckles. Let's just say the semis have got some precision problems when it comes to the strike zone.

Regardless, I rolled into Roswell after about 33 miles and passing 8 people out for weekend jaunts on their bicicletas.

I'd like to take this opportunity to say hey to everyone from Stafford. Shout outs go to, almost, every band to come out of Stafford.

It seems these days I'm under a "Time Crisis" and I'm just trying to "Attain" the "Goals We Set." But all I can do is put myself in a mental "Full Nelson," look at it like it's "Not My Own," enter an "Altered State" and continue the "Suburban Sprawl" "Today and Everything After."

-- Patrick

Tall mountains and great people

2010-02-04T19:14:00.001-08:00

First, I'd like to wish Maggie a happy 13th birthday. It is actually tomorrow, but still, Happy Birthday Maggie!! Finally a teenager!

Today's run was fantastic. I started at 4500 feet and topped out at 7591 ft passing Apache Summit and then the last 10 miles or so were downhill where I ended in Ruidoso Downs at around 6700 ft. The mountains, and scenery made the time and the miles fly by.

Somewhere around 14 miles I saw a bridge over Rt 70, where I was running. On the bridge was this sign that said, "Run Patrick Run!" and it had all these foot prints (and one set of hand prints) on it! It was great, and really gave me some motivation to run some more. I took a picture of it but for some reason it didn't save, so I took a picture of it later when it wasn't on the bridge anymore.

After the run, we met up with the Brillantes for dinner. It was really nice to see them again. Their daughter, Fellicie, was diagnosed when she was just a baby! She's doing well and was really great. Gabby, her older sister, is really cool too. She skateboards, so look for her in the X games in a couple years.

Much of the Brillantes extended family came out as well and everyone was so nice.

Good people, good running, good food, good day.

-- Patrick

Video 2/4

2010-02-04T15:55:00.001-08:00

-- Patrick

Off day

2010-02-03T17:39:00.001-08:00

Normally, I'm not a fan of off days. Today, was not any different. I feel that, while my body is getting a good rest, I am on a mission. I have a job to do and on off days, I'm not doing it. I've had it set in my head since January 1 that for the next four months I would run at least a marathon per day. So needless to say, I'm a bit antsy on days off.

The good news? Today it was raining and was generally miserable. A good day to do something inside. Something like go to a space museum. So we did.

There is a really good space program and museum in Alamogordo so we decided to check it out. It turned out to be pretty good.

Big rocket.

That meteorite is about the size of my melon but weighs 138 lbs! Crazy.

This here is called a rocket booster. I want it to put on my back. I'd like to set some kind of speed record in my lifetime. Take note, Christmas is just around the corner.

-- Patrick

Alamogordo and Tularosa

2010-02-02T15:19:00.001-08:00

While the title suggests I have taken up learning Spanish, they are the two cities I went through. I also passed Holloman Airforce base and heard (and dodged) jets pretty much all day.

It was 30 miles of mostly straight roads with slight turns northwest, then straight north, then a little west actually. I ended the day heading east through, and that's the important part.

Alamogordo was the first city I passed but I stayed on the outskirts so I wasn't completely immersed in the city. This wasn't the case when I went through the Village of Tularosa. I ended up walking through the 4 block town just because I wanted to see everything.

The Historical district looked like a town out of the old west. It was pretty cool.

I also passed a cool looking house and yard and thought I'd get artsy with it.

As I was leaving the town, I saw a big pepper made out of little peppers. ...looks like pain to me.

When I got back to the rv at the end of the day, the Brillantes were waiting for me too! It was great I got to meet them. They were in town at a doctors apt. and they passed me. I wasn't supposed to meet them until Thursday but I got to meet them today.

Last little bit of info: today I've been running for a month. One down. Three to go.

-- Patrick

Feb 1

2010-02-01T17:12:00.001-08:00

First things first. I'd like to appologize to the Las Cruces metropolitan area for putting your Ihop out of business. I didn't realize "all you can eat pancakes" wasn't actually a physical challenge.

In other news, my grandpa and I saw the sunrise from where I stopped yesterday/ started today. It was quite a sight.

This is what the same mountain that I took a picture of yesterday looked light with the new sun hitting it.

Onto the run. 35 miles. 5 miles down to start, rolling hills and flat for the rest. Not many sights except for the bomb that went off a couple hundred yards from me.

That's right, a bomb. Actually, I was next to a missile range, so I'm assuming it was planned, but I like to tell myself it wasn't planned and I'm lucky to be alive!!

The other unusual thing today was the border patrol. I was strolling along and the border patrol informed me I needed to go through the upcoming inspection station. They just asked if I was a citizen. No interrogation. No big lamps shining in my face asking what I was "really" doing. Rather dull. Sorry I couldn't make the story a little more colorful.

I ended at White Sand National Monument. And what do you know, it's actually white sand.

...that's not the monument by the way.

-- Patrick

Video and coordinates

2010-01-31T16:06:00.001-08:00

Let's see if this works. I was told abot an app that let's me drop points on a map. So I tried it today and I'm not sure if the link will work. Let me know if it doesn't.

http://trackmytour.com/1220

-- Patrick

Down long. Up long.

2010-01-31T15:56:00.001-08:00

I started today's run like any other. Except today I was going down. I went down for a very long time, about 10 miles actually, right into the city of Las Cruces. It kind of reminds me of my home town, Stafford, except it is more spread out, has WAY more Mexican restaurants, and has an awesome view of mountains... Actually, it's nothing like Stafford.

I made my way through the town and found Route 70, like I was supposed to, the wierd thing is that it turned into a highway. I thought I was done with dodging cars and trucks flying onto entrance and exit ramps.

As I made my way further away from the city the traffic thinned. Then I saw it. The stripe of black that was going straight up the mountain just happened to be the road that I needed to take. Bonus!!!

I had about 9 miles left in the 30 mile day when I got to the base of the straight up road that would deliver me to the top. I had planned on walking it because, well, it's a huge mountain.

About that time, a sweet song came on the old headphones and got me just stoked enough to keep running. So I put it on repeat and listened to it a total of 13 time while I ran the whole way to the top. I was glad I did too because nothing; I say, NOTHING makes you feel more like a man than cruising steadily up a mountain while you listen to semi-trucks struggle up the same slice of road.

This is the backside of the mountain in the first picture. And the pass I went through was at 5,719 ft. called St. Augustine pass.

-- Patrick