Generic Title: Year in Review

Last day of 2013.  I got one last run and weight session in.  It gave me time to think about the past year.  Here’s what had happened…

It started by running the 20th Anniversary of the Disney Marathon in Orlando…

Medals dang near big as yo head!

As part of that, the boy ran the Kid’s Race and won his heat!

I can’t believe he has better form than I do. He also has better race photos.

I also kept my streak alive of being undefeated against celebrities in races.  You can read about the others HERE, but this time I beat Joey Fatone….

It’s the guy from that boy band – I think it’s named – My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Explored the Orlando Theme Parks with…

Moms, Pops, Boy.

Celebrated the boy’s birthday at a fire station (his choice)…

Unfortunately, the did not serve us chili.

I then ran the Too Cold to Hold 5 miler.  You can see the recap HERE – A bunch of friends joined me…

We should’ve ordered brighter shirts for TNSR.

I ran the Dallas Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon.  You can see the recap HERE…

I know it looks like Brooks threw up on me, but don’t care cause it was cold! I needed more of that tin foil stuff to wrap me up like a baked potato.

I then got to produce a bunch more videos with the hilarious Flula…

Like our dope videos or we will fight you…in a non violent way.

I got to celebrate my birthday and St. Patty’s Day in a special way, which you can see HERE…

I’d be a giant in leprechaun village.

Then I won my age group in a very special 5k that you can see the recap HERE…

I’ll treasure this one fo shizzle.

I then got to meet up with my sis and sis from another miss in Raleigh, NC…

With my sis and sis from another miss.

After a few days of fun, we were off to the Outer Banks to run the Flying Pirate Half Marathon, which you can read my recap about HERE…

My sis and I after a recent 1/2 marathon in OBX, NC.

We had a bit of fun exploring the site of the Wright Bros first flight…

Gotcha!

And celebrated on the beach…

Here’s your typical beach photo of legs and feet.

Unfortunately, the next day was the bombing of the Boston Marathon.  I wrote my thoughts on it HERE, which I got a huge response from.  Apparently I wrote what others were feeling.

At Fenway Pahk watchin tha Red Sahx play the wicked Yankees a few years ago.

I then ran another 5k, you can read about it HERE…

Takin it to da bridge!

Then my soccer team finished in second place after losing in a shoot-out after double overtime…

No smiles for second place.

I continued running with Thursday Night Social Run...

We run. We socialize. It’s cool.

I ran another 5k, recap HERE…

Posing with a patriotic trash can.

I re-incorporated trail running into my repertoire…

It’s best to run in the back so the leaders are 1st to find snakes and spiderwebs.

Got to play a ninja in a music video…

In between takes with some “Felvis” dancers (female Elvis).

I then ran in an unofficial 4×1 mile relay race, recap HERE…

At the Relay Race – We’re both rockin the Pure Flow 2 by Brooks.

I then ran my first Beer Mile race (4x 1/4 mile + 1 beer at each).  I finished 2nd overall.  Recap HERE…

A trophy, yay!

I became a part of a new run training group – Project Run 214…

Bright and early!

Got to see Mumford and Sons with family and friends…

Went to the local Oktoberfest so that I could drink free beer cheer my friends running the 5k…

My friend wore lederhosen during the race, so we decided to celebrate.

Enrolled the boy in his first hockey class…

He looks serious!

Went to the coast of Texas to teach a class on TV production and collect some awards…

Boats on the water.

I ran my first 15k race.  Recap HERE…

Say ahhhhhh!

Tested out a new mode of transportation…

Howdy pardner. You like my ride?

Went trick or treating with the rug rats…

I’m a ginja (ginger ninja).

Do not cross him.

Cowgirls are udderly cute.

I then went to the Alamo to look for my bike…

Alamo selfie!

Won two more Emmy’s for the mantle…

Emmy #6! I’d like to thank the Academy, etc. etc.

Hung out with Nitro from American Gladiators…

Right before we went through the gauntlet!

I then tweaked something in my knee…

My tape job.

Cheered for more friends running a Thanksgiving day race…

The turkey was probably sad because it was Thanksgiving – a sad day for flightless birds.

Survived a North Texas ice storm…

All that white stuff looks like fun snow, but is actually pure evil ice.

Which forced me to the dreadmill to continue my training…

That took forever.

Helped a friend run the final few of his 30 mile run for charity…

At the mile 27 station.

Celebrated the holidays with family and friends…

All our ornaments on the bottom half of the tree.

And ate a buttload of tacos…

Mmmmm, tacos.

BTW, my knee is feeling pretty great.  I’m almost done training for next week’s Dopey Challenge (5k, 10k, 13.1, 26.2) at Disney World!  Can’t wait to get these 6 medals!

My neck feels heavy just looking at them.

In between we just kept on trying to keep on.  Hanging out at home with the fams and dogs.  Making videos.  Yoga-ing.  Working out.  Cooking.  Laughing.  Oh, and blogging.

 

How was your year?  Did you make the most of it?  How’s your 2014 looking?  Big plans?  Holla!

Destination Running: San Antonio, TX

So while I was in San Antonio over the weekend winning a couple Emmys (see how I snuck that in there?), I was able to stick to my Dopey Challenge training schedge and squeeze in a run.

So grateful for Emmy #6! I’d like to thank the Academy…

If you’ve never been to San Antonio, it’s a pretty cool town.  Lots of history there.  Of course, you know about the Alamo…

Looking for the basement at the Alamo.

But did you know that there are several other “Alamo-style” missions from the same time period around the city?  Probably not, because they didn’t have big battles like this one did.  I looked into running a route that would take me to them all, but it would’ve been too far for me in the short amount of time I had.

I also thought about running around the city proper, as there are plenty of historical landmarks all over the place.  Including this old church….

San Fernando Cathedral – they say the oldest building in Texas.

That church above even hosts the burial tomb of Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie, among others.  So there’s plenty of stuff like that to see around the city.

But instead, I decided to run along the River Walk.  What is the River Walk?  It’s probably one of the coolest features of the city.  The San Antonio River flows about a story below the city streets.  It’s lined with hotels, restaurants, bars, and shops.  There ain’t a lot of room on the sidewalks, because all that stuff in the previous sentence are right on top of it!  Click on the link earlier in this paragraph for better info and pics, but here’s a quick one I snapped…

Don’t worry if you fall in, it’s not deep much.

For my run, I needed to get in 7 miles.  I did so on a Sunday at 7:30 a.m.  Not many tourists on the river walk that early, which is good, because like I said, sidewalks are skinny as a 4 year old.  Buuuuut, there were several several runners, which colored me surprised and happy.  I don’t think they were all visitors to the city, I think most were locals.  That’s cool.  I’m glad I got to run a popular local spot.

Tour boats boating tourists on tours.

Anyway, since we were below the city and under several trees, bridges, overpasses, etc. my gps watch was having a Charles Dickens of a time tracking me.  But I knew about how long it would take me to run that far, so I switched my watch to “elapsed time” and kept on going.  I was very pleased to learn that it went for several miles.  I was able to get my out and back 7 total miles in no problemo!

My only regrets were that 1) I didn’t have a picture taking device on me, and 2) I was running and could stop to really experience all that I passed.

Here’s why – I passed by tons and tons of artwork, historical landmarks, and other cool things like waterfalls and grottos.  Since it was a few miles away from the heart of the touristy area, most people never walk that far.  They, like me, probably have no idea all that stuff exists.  I just wish I was able to stop and check it all out.  But experiencing it with passing glances will have to do for now.

All in all, a cool place to run!!!

What about you?  Ever been to San Antonio?  Did you find your bike in the Alamo?  Where’s a cool place you ran while on a trip?

Weekend Whirlwind: Emmys, Running, and American Gladiators!

I’ll try to keep this brief and let the pictures do the talking.  Friday I ran 17 miles and felt good.  Saturday I ran 2 miles and felt like bricks.  But after that run I got on a plane and flew to San Antonio for the Lone Star Emmy Awards Gala where we were nominated for 5 Emmys!

Looking for the basement at the Alamo.

Then got all gussied up for the brew ha ha.

I wanted to have a duck lipped selfie.

Then went to the ballroom for the festivities where I met a couple guys in nude tuxedos.

This one is for the frosted fitness blogger lady!

Ran into some of my friends who were also nominated for Emmys.  Here’s my buddy Emily Reppert – host of Chevy Hometown Kids on Fox Sports Southwest.

I almost wore that same dress…man, would that have been embarrassing.

Out of the 5 nominations, we took home 2 Emmys!

Pretty cool night!

Since we won 2, I got to make 2 speeches.  I think my jokes were funny.  Others might not be as amused.  haha.

Saying something important, I’m sure.

The next morning I ran a 7 miler around the city.  Had breakfast with a friend, then flew back to Dallas. Ran into Nitro from American Gladiators at the airport.  2nd time I’ve run into him, so figured it was a sign to have a chat with him.  Very nice guy.  Now he promotes the Gladiator Rock n Run.  Worlds colliding!

Right before we went through the gauntlet!

Once home, the wife and I went to get some veggie burgers.

So my veggie burger wouldn’t get lost, they branded it.

I then met up with a bunch of my runner friends for a big tree lighting ceremony.  I brought one of my Emmys, people liked taking photos with it.

We don’t always run, we sometimes have other fun.

Yes, it was a Christmas tree lighting.  I don’t know why they did it, it’s not even Thanksgiving yet!  But they lit up the whole square as well.  All the trees are lit, looks nice!

I’m so totally lit right now.

Obviously, it was a tremendous weekend.  I’m still processing it all.  But I’m also very thankful.  I work hard, and appreciate the recognition.

I had to give the golden lady a kiss.

Anyway, how was your weekend?  Which American Gladiator would you like to meet?  Tell me something good that happened to you recently! 

17 Mile Run and Emmy Anticipation

Since I had to rearrange my run Disney Dopey Challenge training schedule this week, that meant I had to do my long run of 17 miles early on Friday before work.  That meant I had to get up pretty darn early.  But I kind of liked it.  I got to run in a part of town I normally don’t because of high auto traffic.  But there were not many cars on the road when my feets hit the streets.  It was kind of cool running through a normally bustling area, that’s temporarily all quiet and asleep.

It was also somewhat cool this morning – temps in the 40’s!  I went out with shorts, tech tee, gloves, and a headband to keep my earsies warm.  I must say, the temps must’ve helped, because the 17 miles seemed relatively easy.  I could’ve kept going.  And my pace increased as I went.  Nice!

I also ran through a part of town I had never run through before – “Why not?” I figured, I’ve got to keep adding miles anyway.  It took me through a new (to me) park that I got to explore the trails of.

It also took me down a dirt road which ended at an old graveyard.  The cemetery was built in 1850 and lots of the grave markers were from around that time.  It’s in an isolated field still to this day.  Now keep in mind that the suburb of Dallas that I now live was nothing more than farm land and a whore house (seriously) until about 15 years ago when the population and construction exploded (they quickly kicked out the cat house).  Back in the 1850’s there couldn’t have been more than a handful of settlers in this area, trying to hack it on their own (and avoid Comanche raids).  I paid my respects and moved on.

All in all, a pretty glorious run!

At Disney’s Emmy display after the marathon in January.

Now I can enjoy the Emmy Gala tomorrow without worrying about trying to squeeze in a run!  Some of you have been asking, so here’s the deets:  The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has a few regional chapters in the USA.  Texas is so big, it has it’s own – The Lone Star Chapter.  So this is a regional competition.  Most of the winners are from the local PBS, ABC, NBC, CBS, Univision, Telemundo, etc. etc. etc. networks.  Every once in a while, one of us smaller guys gets a win.  I’m lucky to have several nominations, and four actual Emmy’s with my name on them.  This year, we’re nominated for five!  We could come home with anywhere from zero to five.  You never know when it’s up to judges.

Please sir, may I have another?

Anyway, here’s a couple of the ones that we have nominated this year.  In this first PSA I actually play a runner, but please don’t critique my form as I was extremely stiff from PR’ing in a Half Marathon the morning of the shoot.  You may also recognize my quirky style of writing in the voice over script…

The other video I’ll share with you is one I’m very proud of.  I used to produce training videos for firefighters and paramedics, so I’m glad to still be able to work with them from time to time.  For this video, we shot some of it in Texas and also utilized some footage I had shot in New York City at Ground Zero…

If you can’t wait until my blog recap of what went down, then follow me on the tweeter as I’m sure to be updating it during the Gala.

They’ll also be streaming the event live on their website, which I have linked earlier in this post.

In the meantime, please send good vibes our way!!!

What about you?  What special plans do you have this weekend?  When was the last time you got dressed up?  Any long runs? 

Weekend Long Run on a Weekday

If you follow this blog, then you know about my training predicament this week.  For the first time this season, I’m having to adjust my schedule.  Thanks to all of your advice, I’ve made a plan of action.  And so, for the first time in my life, I’m going to have to do my normal weekend long run on a weekday.

I’m going to get up super early to run 17 miles.  It should be interesting.  Luckily with the time change, the sun comes up earlier, but I know I’ll still be in the night darkness when I get up.  Running with my old constellation pals.

My running buddy, Orion!

I won’t be able to run at my normal long run spot, so I have no idea what my route will be, just going to wing it.  I kind of like not knowing where I’ll be going.  It’s good to have variety in your workouts.

And the weather is supposed to be in the 40’s.  A rarity in Texas.  I can’t wait to run in humane conditions!

That said, usually after a long run like that, I’m pretty useless to be around.  I only want couch.  But being a school morning, I still have to go to work afterwards.

Don’t be fooled by the fancy photo, I’m actually not wearing pants.

I work as a TV producer dude, and luckily I don’t have any shoots after my run, just an edit session and some script writing.  So at least I get to spend most of the day sitting.  Butt I do see a buttload of tea in my post run morning future to keep me going.

One extra bonus (redundant?), I get to eat something other than my normal Irish Oatmeal for breakfast.  Usually I save my cheat meal day for after my long run.  Ya know, like pizza or tacos.  So I plan on rewarding myself with a little something naughty after the run.  Hooray for that!

Migas Taco from Torchy’s Tacos. You may be in my belly soon.

I must say it has been weird, as you should know, the long run is not all about the day of, it’s about the days leading up to it.  Proper hydration, proper nutrition, etc.  And I must also say it was quite weird having a rest day in the middle of the week.  And it’s always awkward when I’m stiff from running, and so I kind of do a Frankenstein’s Monster walk around the office, which results in having to answer questions about my gait.  But we do what we gotta do, right?

What about y’all?  Ever have to crazy manipulate your training sched to accommodate something else?  How often do you mix up your routes?  What’s your go to cheat reward meal? 

 

Need Advice – Dopey Challenge Training Week 9

Help!  I’m not sure what to do this week.  I have followed my training plan religiously, but this week there is a hiccup, a good hiccup, but a hiccup nonetheless.  Hiccup.

Here’s what my week is supposed to look like:

Sun – Cross (done)

Mon – Rest (done)

Tue – 4 mile + weights (done)

Wed – 7 miles (will do)

Thur – Rest + weights (hmmm)

Fri – 2 miles

Sat – 7 miles

Sun – 17 miles

The hiccup is that I I fly to San Antonio for the Emmy Awards Gala Saturday morning and fly home Sunday Morning.  My flight Saturday is around 10 am – I’ll have to leave the house by 8 am.  It’s an about an hour flight.  Then travel to the hotel and lunch, I’m assuming.  I have to be at the awards gala by 4:30 at the latest.  So I only have a couple hours free that afternoon.

After last year’s Emmy’s. Fake mustaches bring good luck!

I fly home Sunday around noon, so will probably have to leave the hotel by 10-10:30.  Will most likely be partying it up Saturday night at the gala, so an early Sunday 17 mile run is most likely out.  Travel always beats me down, so running Sun afternoon when I return may also be out.

I’d like to run in San Antonio as I found some routes online that look like fun.  But I’m not sure if the timing will workout.

Yosemite Sam would be proud of my moves. He would then be sad that they no longer serve “Pie Alamode.”

So what should I do?

Should I move the 2 miler to Thursday?  I think maybe I should.

Do the 7 miler on Friday?  Probably, right?

What about Saturday – wake up super early to get the 17 in? (it’s probably going to take me 2.5 hours to finish)  Or try and hustle and squeeze it in once I land?  Or should I do half in the morning, and do the other half when I land?

Or should I do part of the 17 miler on Saturday and part of it Sunday morning?  Like do 10 on Sat and 7 on Sun morn?

I called my good friend (and expert runner) last night and she told me all that matters is that I spend the time on my feet, and that it’d be OK to break it up.  I’d rather do it all at once, but may not have a choice.  She also said that since we’re still a couple months from the races, that mixing up one week now won’t affect me too much down the road.  Good advice.

What would you do???  Please advise!!!

What a Weekend!

So much happened this weekend that it will probably take all week to write about it all.  Today I will give you a summary:

Friday – Went to visit a friend who works at a Sports Chiro joint (pun intended) inside a Tri store.  Got to test some recovery equipment and attend a talk by an Olympian and world champ triathlete – Jarrod Shoemaker.

Saturday – 4 mile run.  Then took the toddler to his first hockey practice.  Oh yeah, Mike Modano was on the ice too playing with the kids.

Me and Mo.

Sunday – 14 mile run.  Then got the new iPhone.  Then an awesome patio lunch.  Then took the toddler and went to a pub where we met my dad and watched the Browns play like an actual football team.  Also, saw the Indians and Rangers make it to the post season!  Also, the Steelers still suck, and that’s a good thing.  I also ate a naughty snack as I heard that a new world record was set in the Marathon!

What else?  Oh yeah, this weekend I got nominated for FIVE Emmy Awards!!!  Did I mention that I’m a TV producer when I’m not running?  Here’s a pic from last year where we added #7 to the trophy case!

Don’t be fooled by the fancy photo, I’m actually not wearing pants.

I’ll give more in depth descriptions of what went down as this week progresses.  For now, just enjoy this picture of the 4 year old in his first ever hockey gear!

He looks serious!

More to come, stay tuned!  Until then, let me know how your weekend went!!!

Great Run Opportunity (and Other Stuff)

OK, so on Saturday June 8, we are leading a social run in Allen, TX at 8am.  We are starting/stopping at Pure Movement Dance and Fitness Studio.  One of my cool friends is the co-owner…I know people.  But that’s not necessarily why we’re running from there.  They are also hosting a big health/fitness event that same day.  See the flier below…or is it flyer?

Click on it to make it bigger. Or not, whatever.

I love hanging out with my like minded health conscience friends.  Especially when we’re encouraging others to get fit.  And so as part of this morning, after our run, they are offering us a yoga session by an amazing instructor for only $5.  Pretty cool deal. And if you follow my blog, then you know how important I think yoga is for athletes – especially runners.  Check out my post on it here: Yoga for Runners

If you’re in the area, join us.  If you’re not in the area, get to the area.  Minimum run will be 2 miles, max run is up to you as we are running laps around Celebration Park…the more laps you do, the more mileage.  It’s 1.5 miles around and exactly 1 mile from Pure Movement.  Here’s the course: Saturday’s route

I hope you can join us.

Other than that, I need to make a correction to my last post.  I said I had done 4 videos with Flula.  But I lied.  I had forgotted the very first video I made with him.  It was on a show we used to do called “The Dilly-O”.

Silly show, yes, but it must’ve been working because the series did win Two Emmys!

Fun night that was.

And one more thing I forgot to write about this week.  My soccer team made it to the championship game of our league.  The semifinal went to double overtime, then a double shootout.  I made my penalty shot to help them win.  But in the final, we also went to double overtime and double shootout, and I also made my penalty, but this time we lost.  Oh well, still had fun.

No smiles for second place.

OK, I think that’s it for now.  Keep it fit people!

Peace!