River Run 5K

We ran a 5K as a family. Sophia jogged most of the course.  I begged her to get on my shoulders, but she begged me to put her down because she wanted to RUN! Assen and Sophia did a great job and I am very proud of them.  We have a PR (45 min) to break for next year! Saw Robin, Salinas, Ross K and Ben F.

Dam to Downtown Iowa City 10K

Went to check out the race in the morning and took some pics and video.  I saw Tom Ries and Phil Young leading the race. These guys looked tiredless running effortless! It was freezing! I wonder if that helped Tom run faster (?).

Sophia can spell letters when she reads words and she can also write them down!  She amazes me! This girl is going to go very far! She was the only student at Gymnastics today (go figure). She also asks me to read words in Spanish to her. She wants to learn! 

Coach Jack Daniels

I watched a video in youtube where Dr Jack Daniels talks about four important things that a champion has: ability, motivation, opportunity, and direction. I was very impressed with his thoughts. Do I have an ability for running?  I guess so.  Maybe my ability will not let me be the best, but I am certainly not too bad!  Motivation?  definitely I do. Opportunity?  Yes! direction? yes, there's plenty of direction on the internet!  I am a champion!

Obama visits the University of Iowa

Obama came to visit us for a second time.  He talked about student loans and how he knows how difficult it is for a student to get into this kind of debt.
Ran four and a half miles this morning, even though I felt kind of sleepy and tired.

Nueva Ruta

RunningWild had a new running route for us. It is 10 miles, and it goes north to iHop and then goes by Camp Cardinal Blvd, turns left on Melrose and goes down all the way to the river. Then, it goes by City Park and back to the store. It looks like a great route. I ran a few miles with Ben. Andy and Jackie showed up just before we were getting out. I ran about six miles with a pace around 8:20. Felt pretty good, but not good enough to do a race next week.  I should probably take a break from races.

Sistema de Voluntariado

One of the several things I admire of my fellow Americans is their voluntarism. A quality I have acquired and valued everyday. We can volunteer our hands to do some work and our mind to contribute with ideas. I enjoyed riding my bicycle on the beautiful bike trail (Clear Creek trail).

Recovery Run

Got out this morning and ran slow for four miles. Running in flat surface was not a problem, but I could feel sore muscles running uphill. Can't wait to see the pictures of the race posted.

Finished watching the movie (Cansada de besar sapos). It was a funny movie, and it was interesting to see a new generation movie. I enjoyed it. I liked Ana Serradilla, she is very cute.

Go! St Louis Marathon

Arrived to the marathon (Go! St Louis Marathon) just in time (I shouldn't let this happen again).  I was not able to get into my corral.  But, it was not a big problem.  I found my pacer (3:45) and then I passed him (bad idea?).  Then, he caught up with me.  Followed him for several miles.  Then, I realized this pace was way above my capabilities, so I had to slow down.  Focused on keeping a good pace and finishing.  The last three miles seemed endless (my pace went down to about 10 min/mile).  It was a very tough course.  Long hills. The last mile, I was in total pain.  I started feeling cramps in my calves.  I slowed down just enough to avoid the cramps --pain!.  Finished!  3 hrs 50 min 54 sec (chip time). I was happy with my chronos.  I totaly agree when people say the real race starts at mile 20. Those last 6 miles were very tough.

There were 1600 marathoners. I came in 270th place (19th in my age group). The winner was Julius Kosgei and finished in 2:28:38 (pace: 5:40).  Incredible!

There were 8738 half-marathoners.

The race was very well organized.  Lots of water stops and gatorade. Sponges with cold water felt great on my neck. Some miles seemed longer (the ones with no spectators). Ran with a few people with a similar pace. It was fun!

What an amazing experience!  Can't  believe I was able to overcome such pain. Spectators had a lot of funny signs!  It would be nice to make an album with all of those funny signs!

Now, I understand when people say a marathon will change your life.  You will never be the same person again. So much truth! I gained a very deep respect for all marathoners.  They are very special people. I am glad and proud to be one of them!

Visited Jason and Sonya in their house. Met their beautiful blond daughter Catalina. She is six and goes to kindergarten. Had a great supper with them and enjoyed some good wine.

Day before the St Louis Marathon

Ran for four miles at a marathon pace.  Trying to get a feel for the marathon pace.  Garmin is set. My body is ready.  Four hour drive to St Louis. Reservations are ready.  Luggage is ready. Plan: run at a 8:35 MM pace. Stick with it. Follow the pacer.

Latino Book Club

I enjoyed lunch with a few Latino friends yesterday. We discussed some issues about our Mexican culture and Latino issues. A video that shocked me was when they interview the Mexican presidential candidate and ask him about whoich books are the ones that have caused an impact in his life.  The poor man was not able to answer the simple question.  We thought about organizaing a reading club within our Latino community!  We could read one book a month and get together to discuss it.  I really liked the idea.

Easter Sunday

Ran my last long run before the marathon (12 miles).  Should I follow the 3:45 pacer?  Should I be more conservative and follow the 4:00 pacer?  That wil be the question of the week. I am daring, so I plan to follow the 3:45 pacer and bear the pain!  Think navy seal!
Ran the first four miles with Karen.  Sophia wanted to join us, so she came along riding her bicycle.  Wow!  at four years of age she can keep up with us!  She will be a great athlete some day.

Sabado Alegre

Ran four miles easy. Getting ready for tomorrow's 12 miles, last long rung of the program.

The kids hunted easter eggs last night at the neighbors yard. They ran and had so much fun. Assen had a large bag full of eggs.  They had candy inside. 

Jueves 5 Millas

Had a pretty good night sleep. Karen made a little noise when she was getting up when getting ready to go outside and woke me up. Felt tired and the thought about sleeping in passed my head. Got up immediately and got ready to go outside. Started running easy and went down on Melrose Ave. Ran into another runner and exchanged the "good morning!" The wind reminded me of Mexico City's.
Checked my training program and saw I have 12 miles to run on Sunday.  I should follow the program as close as I can.  I have no commitments for Sunday morning, so I should plan on it.

Miercoles en Iowa City

It was hard to get out of bed.  Thought about skipping one more day of running. Ran about four miles with Karen. Pace was slow (10:40). I hope I can go to sleep early tonight, so I can recover from the trip. Recived my RunnersWorld magazine and bought a Mexican version in the airport.

Lunes

Feeling pretty good after the race.  I wonder if the naproxen I took helped me feel better.

10 M Tune Up Coyoacan

Got up really early and went to Viveros de Coyoacan. There were plenty of taxis in the streets. The cab didn't take much time in getting me to the race, not much traffic on a Sunday morning.  It was a magnificent race (Tune Up Coyoacan 10 M, search for #335). Excellent organization. The race started at 7:30 for the 5M and at 7:45 AM for the 10M. There were all kinds of vendors (I bought a couple of running shirts). Felt tired after Mile 1, I know, I started probably too fast).  I ran each mile slower until mile 5.  Then, I tried to speed up a little bit. There was plenty of water and gatorade. Fruits and doughnuts at the end of the race. Everyone received a medal.

The winners in the 10M race:
1466; Guillermo Ramos-Espinoza, 56:30
1852; Ernesto Becerril-Bustamante, 56:36
2219; Mauricio de Leon-Martinez, 57:32

Great race in the beautyful streets of Coyoacan. Great atmosphere and perfect weather. The best part was running surrounded by many great Mexican runners.