Standing Room Only

Today's schedule calls for rest. So I've decided to stay off my feet as much as possible. At the moment - as luck would have it - I'm on a full bus where I'm one of the "standers". Not a good start.

I'm starting carbohydrate loading today. I didn't follow the carb depletion plan like I did for St. George. I've read enough on the topic in the meantime to think there's no benefit to depletion if you load properly 2-3 days prior to the event. My daily target for carb intake is 600 grams. The goal is to supersaturate with carbs so I step to the starting line with 800 grams of high octane fuel (carbs) on board. Of course there's no real way to know short of medical lab testing. I'll let how I'm feeling around Mile 20 be my indicator.

Phoenix is expecting a big turnout - something like 33,000 split evenly between the half and full. The weather is supposed to be excellent.

Houston is expecting around 25,000 this weekend. The weather may actually be better in Houston, probably cooler but most likely more humid. A high-powered field will be running in Houston so watch for some good times. The half has been designated a USA championship. Olympians Brian Sell and Dathan Ritzenhein will compete along with Meb Keflezighi and others. For the women, Kate O'Neill, Desiree Davila and Magdalena Lewy Boulet should be at or near the front.

Also in running news, Haile Gebrselassie will be running the Dubai marathon tomorrow. This will be his first major effort since breaking the world record last September in Berlin. His record time 2:03:59 - try wrapping your mind around that! I can't run a 4:44 mile let alone string 26 of them together back to back. The course has been set up favorably for him to break the record again and there's a $1 million bonus to anyone who breaks the record in tomorrow's event. Keep your eye on the sports ticker for the results on that one. I believe Haile has said he can go 2:03:20 - 2:03:30 on a perfect day. He has 6 pacesetters, the weather is supposed to be perfect, there are only 4 turns on the flat course, and the field includes a dozen runners who have run under 2:10.

Enough running news for now. I want to document of my state of mind and mental approach in a later blog entry. Stay tuned ....