Monkeyserver.com

I took part in the Raleigh Rocks half marathon this past weekend. My excitement had been growing, but so had my dread. Having run 10 miles recently, I figured I could finish, but I also figured it was going to be miserable.

I was happily surprised. The run itself didn’t get too tough until about mile 10. People had generally told me that the adrenaline would carry me through the last few miles, it they were pretty much right. The last 1/2 mile was just me telling myself I couldn’t stop now.

So I just ran with all I had left, and I finished in just under 2 hours. Which is what I was shooting for, and it was actually fun. (results)
So am I going to do it again? I’m not sure, I think I may try another half marathon, and a full marathon isn’t entirely out of the question. But I think I’m gonna take it easy on running for the next few weeks, I think I’ve earned that.

BTW, the nerd that I am, I actually managed to twitter from the race… see the tweet. I actually have been getting great support from fellow twitterers, mostly from Maddy Hubbard.

I’ve had my nike+ipod for just under 2 months now. It’s definitely a motivator and a great combo. The website is slick too. However, some recent technical glitches have tarnished the shine on this new toy.

A few weeks back I ran the Krispy Kreme Challange - that was a blast. Sadly, when I pulled the nike+ connector out ever so slightly trying to stop the run — Data Lost. That sucked. It was my first road race ever and I thought recording it for posterity via the nike+ would have been a nice touch.

Update: just saw the results, I squeeked in under the 1 hour time limit, finishing #457 at 59 minutes. I’m psyched!

Recently, I’ve joined a challenge with my cousin, Matt, to see who can run 50miles first. Nothing monumental, and his physical ability bar far surpasses mine, but still something to keep me motivated and have fun with.

I just finished another grueling 7 mile run yesterday. I never thought I’d be able to run for more than an hour at a time, but I’m doing it. I hooked up my ipod to my computer to download the latest triumph and ensure my lead against Matt.
Nothing.

Damnit, another run lost to the abyss. I’ve been pretty careful to not pull the adapter out since the Krispy Kreme debacle, so I don’t know what happened. I checked, and all my nike+ history is gone from my ipod, hopefully it’s not really all gone.

Update: I did a reboot and a few re-synchs, changing settings and managed to get the data back. But I’m not sure a less geeky person would have gotten it working…

Either way, I can still run, it’s great to keep me going - but that glow just isn’t there anymore.

As I eluded to in my last post, I’ve been into running recently. I’ve never really been a huge fan of running. It seemed pretty pointless to me. However, lately I’ve been going to the gym regularly, free membership for those who go at least 8 times a month is a good motivator. Going to the gym has been pretty good, though I usually hit the kickboxing class, which is great.

Anyway, a buddy of mine sent an email asking if anyone was up for a half marathon. I laughed, then I thought, “What the hell, I could do that.” I told him I was in.

A week later I was out running on duke golf course. I have to be honest, my new ipod (thanks Dan and Justin!) has really helped. I also go Nike+ipod, which is sweet. It keeps track of my pace, mileage, and helps me keep going. Aside from that, the website is v. cool.

Honestly, that is awesome, and that’s just a taste. I mean, if there is ever a way to get me into something, it’s definitely to create some gadget that goes along with it, especially if it involves letting me listen to my music at the same time.

Since the new year I’ve been quite busy at work. We had a release on the 14th which went well, and now we have another one this Monday. It’s been a lot of work preparing our Client Services and Sales teams for our new pricing options. Happily, most of the work is now done.

But it’s definitely taken its toll. I’ve been working a fair number of nights and just haven’t been able to get stuff done. The house is a bit messy, and my home office is a disaster. But I hope to have a bit more time to get things in order around here.

Aside from that drudgery, I have some interesting news. I’m now training for a half marathon. That’s right, I really don’t know why i would do that, but I am. It’s in April, but I’ve already been running quite a bit lately, and I’ve even done a 5 mile run, which is a record for me. I have a bit more fun and cool about running to talk about, but that will have to wait for another post.

Take care all!