Remembering

Good morning.

Here we are, 9/11.

I can think back to that life changing day so clearly. In Chicago it was a beautiful clear sunny day as I headed to the office in Oak Brook when I received a call from my brother. He told me a plane had flown into one of the twin towers in New York.

I was like, "how could that happen?" Well we all know how events unfolded. Then he said that the building fell down. I was like, "you mean the area that was hit?" "No, the whole building." "What!"

Then I was mezmerized at the scenes on the TV. At the time I worked on the 7th floor of an office building. I actually felt like getting out of the office so I left. I decided to head to Cog Hill and play golf. I needed to get some air.

Cog Hill is under the O'hare flight path. Usually you would have planes coming and going. Not on that day. The air was clear of all traffic. There was no rumble of planes passing by. It was surreal.

I will never forget that day. And today I will keep those families affected by this terrible tragedy close to my heart.

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Training is going well. I'm in a mini taper for next weeks 1/2 Ironman, Branson 70.3. I've been reading up on the bike course because that is the greatest variable.

There will be some great climbs but also some very fast downhill sections as well. People talk of hitting 40-50 mph on the descents. Wow. Maybe I should wear my motorcycle jacket.

Yesterday I went for a 1 mile open water swim in Lake Michigan. The conditions were some of the toughest yet. It was the kind of swim where you don't try to go fast but just try to keep moving forward with good form. Breaths must come quickly. As I would turn my head left for needed oxygen, many times I was aware of water about to cover me again. Just a sip of air is all I needed. Sometimes water would get in my mouth but from experience I would stop inhaling and breathe it out under water and wait for the next attempt.

It was interesting to say the least. The swim took 38:29 and I was pleasantly surprised. I was expecting a time over 40 minutes because of the conditions and the fact that I was not pushing the pace.

The I came home and did my speed session for the week. It was an 8 mile effort that went very well. The fresh cool air makes a huge difference in running performance. I did not struggle at all at the 7:40-7:50 paces. It just felt fluid and easy. I finished strong and got a little queezy near the end as my lactate threshold reached it's limit.

Split Time Moving Time Distance Elevation Gain Elevation Loss Avg Pace Avg Moving Pace Best Pace Avg HR Max HR Steps Calories
1 0:08:49 0:03:55 1 0 5 8:49 3:55 6:37 124 136 0 64
2 0:07:56 0:03:49 1 10 0 7:56 3:49 6:30 136 145 0 66
3 0:07:48 0:04:19 1 2 0 7:48 4:19 6:18 137 144 0 64
4 0:07:28 0:04:02 1 0 15 7:28 4:02 6:01 141 145 0 63
5 0:07:20 0:03:31 1 16 0 7:20 3:31 4:46 145 154 0 65
6 0:07:20 0:03:40 1 0 2 7:20 3:40 5:14 152 161 0 67
7 0:07:24 0:03:11 1 0 4 7:24 3:11 6:16 155 160 0 67
8 0:07:01 0:03:26 1 0 10 7:01 3:26 6:17 158 165 0 67
9 0:00:08 0:00:03 0.02 0 0 7:24 2:43 6:27 164 165 0 1
Summary 1:01:19 0:29:56 8.02 28 36 7:38 3:43 4:46 142 165 0 524





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" Beyond the very extreme of fatigue and distress, we may find amounts of ease and power we never dreamed ourselves to own, sources of strength never taxed at all because we never push through the obstruction."

* It takes courage to push yourself to places that you have never been before... to test your limits... to break through barriers. And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” - Anais Nin