Dave

Those were beautiful engagement pictures (for anyone who hasn't seen the rest). You don't have to be fast to be a runner, but I freely admit it's much more fun.

That was my fault - SORRY! (need to take the administrator training class )

All sorts of disjointed thoughts about this. Most of them learned firsthand, because I'm a dope. Sure, the Loop is so much smaller now, but of course we still love you and reading about your adventures. The world has plenty of room for runners of all types. I ran 20 mpw for decades without getting running injury. There are only three types of marathoners - injured, recovering from injury, and soon to be injured. There's a price to be paid if you want to run that much, and we've all paid it. There's no rule that says you have to run a marathon even once. And you've done plenty. You don't have to prove anything to anyone.

So would I. But you need to step up your dream game.

More snow and cold temps. Ice all over the place. Only one actual run last week - 5 miles that was mostly OK. Did have to run on some crusty grass for a way, then duck into a neighborhood so I could use the street. Three stair sessions, including 45 minutes as my Saturday long run. Another storm coming in tomorrow morning, but it's supposed to turn to rain by afternoon and then the daily highs are going to push 50 by the weekend. Hoping that'll be enough to clear things out and I can safely get outside. First four build up weeks on the plan were supposed to be 30, 35, 37 and 33. What happened was 6, 9, 22 and 5. Seems I'm a tad behind. No worries, really. The stairs seem to be keeping me fit and my 12 week plan is aggressive enough that I can trim a fair amount and still be ready by the end of May. My heart of course wants to attack 3:20 again, but my head knows better. They're likely to be debating things right up until Memorial Day Weekend. Supposed to be at 37 miles this week, with a long run of 12. The first is not happening, but if the weatherman is correct, the second is doable. It'll be a slow 12, but it'll be 12. The Saturday after that is the Snowbuster Pikermi, which will also be slower than I prefer, but we'll see what happens. Not important. I knew this would happen when I decided to take winter off-ish. I knew I'd lose some miles. I'm still going to complain about it, though. That's my right as a runner and a human being. Speaking of the Snowbuster, make sure you have next weekend circled on your calendars. Invite all your runner friends - the more the merrier. Wedding plans continue apace. The kids should have the announcements out this week or next. Mrs. Dave is still having major issues with her lack of control over the process, being unable to find the dress she wants. We got my suit last weekend. Suppose I needed another one anyway. I have a few that don't really fit anymore, so maybe I can convince her they should be donated. The other current crisis is transportation. We've got T-Rex to agree that she needs to stay home and work on her anxiety this spring, so she'll be with us. In exchange, we plan to make a short trip to Idaho, letting her visit school friends and picking up her warm weather clothes. Major complications for getting there and coming home afterwards, not to mention the expense. Detroit to Seattle, Seattle to Rexburg, Rexburg to Detroit. We're getting uber-creative with flights, car rentals, shuttles, stage coaches, canoes, and trail running. So far, it's all hovering just at or under $2,000. Not sure this is all worth the couple hundred we might save with one plan over the others. Going to be quite the adventure.

Who knew?

Estranho mesmo. Quem sabe as coisas que occurrem nas cabecas das corridores?

We're runners, aren't we? There's no rule that says you have to do marathons to be a runner, and you certainly don't need to be in marathon training for bloop. Keep the joy and share it. I'd like you to the bring the braids back, though.

I never liked Sweet Mags before, but this exchange has made me a fan.

The info is also linked to Loopville, so a drop in there will remind you, too.

With Groundhog Day behind us, and with spring beginning it's annual battle with the end of winter (losing so far, at least where I live), it's time for the annual Snowbuster Festival of Races. This is the fifth year, and I don't know about anyone else, but I'm really hoping the Snowbuster will actually bust the snow this year. Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky. The thought of more days of weather and slippery conditions keeping me indoors for stairs or that silly cross training stuff is not attractive to me. When I look at the winter that's been 2018-19, I will freely admit that it hasn't been nearly as snowy and cold for as long as most of the recent ones. It's really only been the last 2-3 weeks that have been bad. Regardless, I have zero tolerance for it. I was over winter before it even started, really. Anyway, the rules are simple. You run a race (organized or not) on the designated weekend. This year, it's March 1-4. Since this was originally a half marathon event, a half marathon race is preferred, but I'll convert anything that's at least 5K. You send me your distance and finish time. You PM me your address (which will not be sold to google, btw). You send me pics that prove you did a little something extra, because this is the Loop and you should be doing something a little weird (other than running a race in winter). I compile the data, convert all distances to a pikermi (13.1 miles)(half marathon), and publish the results. I send finisher awards to your house. Everyone wins. The size and range of age groups depend on how many entrants we get. Invite your friends who aren't here. The more, the merrier, I always say (really, I always say that). We all revel in the joy of running and employ our collective mental power on Mother Nature to GIVE US SPRING! And, hey, if you've never done more than lurk until today, please consider joining us this year. We could use your help. That's pretty much it. Note those dates again. Friday, March 1 - Monday, March 4. As always, I play fast and loose with the rules. If this is a bad weekend for you, run a little earlier or later and I'll make it work. The important thing is that we're running and we're tired of waiting for the snow to go away. I also don't care if you don't have snow. You should be in better shape than those of us in the frozen tundra, so going 13.1 ought to be a piece of cake. I miss being able to add a line between blocks of text. Since last week, I've run three times, had two strength sessions and ran the basement stairs once. Five miles (Tuesday), five miles (Thursday), six miles (Saturday). On Tuesday, I thought about starting Tempo Tuesday early, but decided I wasn't feeling that ambitious. Thursday I had technology issues. Stopping at a light I realized that I'd forgotten to turn Autopause back on after my last stair session. Trying to mess with the settings during a run always turns out badly. On Friday Mrs. Dave reminded me to get a shingles shot, so I did that on the way home. The tech mentioned that a rare side effect is fatigue. I don't usually get the rare side effects, so I thought nothing about the ten miles I intended to run the next day. Until I started running on Saturday. Bleh. So I went six miles and it was no picnic. Yesterday I wanted to run outside but there had been two inches of snow Sunday night and - true to form - not many walks had been cleared. So I went to the stairs, noticing a significant improvement in my stamina since the last time I did them. This exercise stuff works, kids. What else? We had a dinner invite on Sunday, so we decided to contribute a couple of pies. The list said 5 blueberries, so I grabbed five packages. Apparently the "5" meant 5 cups. Each package has more than that, so I had 9 cups. What to do? I made an extra pie, of course. Also, of course, I got some apples and made an apple pie, too. Pie for dessert, more pie later. Double win. Today'll be XT. Snow/sleet/rain all day. Messy commute into work today.

Fast company. And nice dogs.

10K may be my least favorite distance. Funny how the old knees respond so well to mileage increases. Mine do the same thing. Best of luck getting ready for Beantown 2019.

That Alice is a real self-motivator. Killer hills.

I'm also a GK fan, and she nailed the national anthem.