I had been a couch potatoe for nearly all of my life up until 1993. Then I took up running for about a year until both of my knees were experiencing so much pain I had to give it up. Time passed and in 2003 I was inspired by my wife Lynn Palmer to get into the NASA JSC physical fitness program in September of that year, and began to slowly start jogging. I ran my first 5k race in Toronto in August 2004 and after many fits, starts and injuries finally ran my first 1/2 marathon on May 1, 2005 in Vancouver BC. The following are some photos from race venues and locations where I have run.
APRIL 2008: HALF MARATHON #5 - SOUTH AMERICA
This half marathon began with temperatures around 59 degrees but rapidly escalated to the high 70's Fahrenheit but the end. Though the course was quite flat, there were cobblestones and pot holes to circumvent. Traffic was kept at bay and the pre-race expo was well organized. Runners received a great tech shirt. However, there were some noticeable areas that caused issues for runners. Water stops were located each 5km. For half marathoners there was plenty of Gatorade, but no water. For marathoners especially those running slower, Gatorade disappeared from most locations and runners had to buy water from local stores where they could find them. Homeowners watering their yards were cooperative in giving some runners a drink from garden hoses. At one water station there was a fist fight over the little Gatorade there was. At the finish line, workers were dismantled guard rails even before the race ended. Once you finished there was no problem getting Gatorade but water was nonexistent. Bananas and oranges were expected but for late comers (marathoners) they were long gone. For half marathoners there was no sign of fruit at all even 2 hours after the start. After the race ended there was no information available for individual running times.
Santiago is a nice place to run, but the Santiago Marathon/Half Marathon needs some major logistical improvements for the future. Also, starting one hour after sunrise is a bad idea when a sunrise start offers enough light for runners to see and cooler temperatures. Traffic control was good but according to the news that afternoon motorists were angered as they were held up for hours at many streets in the middle of the capital.
MARCH 2008
Running at a resort in Cuba was not like running other places. But along the golf paths it was fairly safe. Outside the resort there were no sidewalks or shoulders to run on and plenty of places to trip.
NOVEMBER 2007
OCTOBER 2007
SEPTEMBER 2007
AUGUST 2007
MAY 2007: HALF MARATHON #4 - EUROPE
Only 2 months after my 3rd Half (age 59 still), on May 6, 2007 I ran the Geneva half marathon. On race day morning, the skies miraculously cleared after heavy rain the previous day and also night. The race started at 10am and by the time I finished the temperature was 67. It was definitely not the most comfortable weather; I placed 35 out of 69 in my age category and my time was 2 hours 00 minutes 15 seconds.
Mt. Kilimanjaro-->
MARCH 2007: HALF MARATHON #3 - AFRICA
My 3rd half marathon was the Kilimanjaro Half Marathon at age 59 in Moshi, Tanzania on March 4, 2007. This was the hardest one so far due to the first 6 miles increasing from 5000ft to 6000ft altitude and then the reverse going back. In addition the temperature was in the low 80s Fahreheit. I came in 258 out of 507 male runners overall in a time of 2h 10m. The elite Kenyans and Tanzanian runners passed me and completed the half in 50% or less of my run time as usual. Mt. Kilimanjaro at 19,340 ft was visible constantly during the first part of the run.
DECEMBER 2006
OCTOBER 2006: HALF MARATHON #2 - NORTH AMERICA
SEPTEMBER 2006
MARCH 2006
Benghazi, Libya on March 30, 2006. This is the 2nd international "Eclipse 5k run/walk" co-coordinated by Lynn and me and took place following the total solar eclipse on March 29. We mapped the course using GPS along the Lake of July 24. Hotel Uzo is in the background. It was also our second trip to Libya.
FEBRUARY 2006
NOVEMBER 2005
OCTOBER 2005
MAY 2005
MAY 2005: HALF MARATHON #1 - NORTH AMERICA
APRIL 2005
FEBRUARY 2005
DECEMBER 2004
NOVEMBER 2004
MAY 2004
DECEMBER 2003
DISCUSSION
While I do not have a photo of a very scary running incident, on August 21, 2007 I had finished running just 5 loops inside the underground parking garage at the Steamboat Grand Hotel in Steamboat Springs, CO when I ran directly into a black bear the size of a Honda. It was 5.09 am and the temperature as 50 degrees just before sunrise. Luckily we were both as startled by one another but as I came around the corner I stopped a mere 5 feet from him. I took off quickly the same way I came and tried to enter the hotel through one of doors in the parking garage. Unfortunately I was not staying at this hotel and had ducked into the garage because it cold outside and much warmer inside. Each access door into the hotel itself required a hotel key. Therefore I had to really run quickly out another garage exit not far from where the bear first entered. It was a dangerous and close encounter that I was lucky to survive.
The most important lesson I have learned is to run safely so as not to become injured or to cause injury to others. So it was surprising as a novice runner to have found some irritating and unsafe aspects of participating in large races. In particular, many runners have a certain lack of awareness. When in a herd I find groups of runners blocking the way preventing others from passing safely. Walkers are notorious for this. Why do they walk abreast forcing runners to go around them? In addition, some runners bump into others either because of lack of coordination, being inconsiderate or perhaps due to being tired. Still others move in and out of lanes causing a threat of collision to runners moving at a different pace. On streets as a spectator I have had runners holding American flags nearly stab me with them as they strode down the sidelines (NY Marathon November 2005). Other runners will straddle the curb and even run up on the curb.
Stretching is very important and should be done at the proper time no matter what.
Runners are sometimes distracted by the oddest things. Its only when you look closely that you can see the weirdness...
When the temperature is too hot, finding a lawn sprinkler or other source of water can be vital. Here is a 10 mile race where there was actually a person assigned to hose down the runners.
Another challenge is running in races where there are huge masses of runners. The herd moves slowly at first and valuable seconds are wasted at the start line if you are not in front. Of course, being in front means slowing down the faster runners, so there is merit in putting the faster runners in the lead and progressively slower ones at the back. One advantage is to simply wait til the masses have left the starting line. If using a chip, it almost doesn't matter when you start since your chip is activated when crosses the mat at both start and finish. Just wait a while for the herd to depart the start line and thin out. Then you can begin. The best way around this is to run in smaller races which is a lot more fun anyway. Just some thoughts from a novice runner.
