Takin' a Test Drive

OBJECTIVE
6 mi.@ 8:09

ACHIEVED
6:14 mi.@ 8:14

5:16 AM 56° 77% 6 mph

Some of you know I'm not a "Nike guy". This happened a long time ago when I was in an anti-consumerism phase. Yes, it was me who would black out the ubiquitous Nike swoosh on my baseball and softball cleats. I also resentfully wore Nikes for basketball. Later, I just evolved from wearing Nike altogether. The problem has always been that Nike makes good products that usually somehow feel and fit better than others and last longer. Why do they have to pay their celebrity-athlete endorsers so much? Okay, I'm not going down that path .... Neither you nor I have time for it right now.

I'll have to admit that I'm most likely a victim of slick advertising and promotion. Yes, I bought a pair of Nike Lunar Trainers. They look good and they're light. They seem fast. My new pair was delivered yesterday so this morning was their maiden voyage.

They were okay but I'm a bit underwhelmed. Perhaps it was my expectation that Pegasus' wings would sprout from the shoes and I would literally be flying in them. No such luck. They have a different feel to them. It seems my foot is at a different angle wearing them. This in turn tilts my knees inward. All of this is very subtle and I'm sure I'm not describing it very well.

Anyway the jury is still out .... I plan to race in them on Saturday.

My legs are still sluggish and I'm generally feeling flat. Today's run was ho-hum.

Did you see who won the Boston Marathon yesterday? It was Deriba Merga of Ethiopia. Yes, if you read my entry yesterday, you know I correctly picked the winner. I first became aware of Merga watching the Olympics last summer. He ran a courageous race in tough conditions. Entering the Bird's Nest with a little over 400 meters to go, he was comfortably in third position; a bronze medal within his grasp. A crazy thing happened on the backstretch of the track. It was as if he literally seized up. He was still moving but barely; it seemed. Suddenly his countryman appeared on the track and just reeled him in like he was standing still. It wasn't like his teammate had some daunting kick. It was more like Merga's gas tank was empty within sight of the finish line. It was almost surreal to watch the drama play out. He finished an agonizing fourth.

I was happy to see Merga come to Houston for January's marathon, which he won. He had also run very strong in a few intervening races at shorter distances. I was happy to see that he won in Boston yesterday.

Ryan Hall blistered the first 10K of the marathon but may have used too much too early. He finished third.

On the women's side, American hopeful, Kara Goucher, finished third. (Yes, I picked her to win.)

I really believe the expectations heaped upon Kara and Ryan were very unrealistic and probably unfair. Both the women's and men's field were world class with a dozen legitimate contenders in each race. But it all comes back to marketing, doesn't it? I started this entry on a consumerism rant. Let me conclude there as well.

Ryan wears Asics ... prominently. Kara runs in Nike. They're everywhere ... the covers of running magazines, websites, etc. etc. The expectations were pushed disproportionately as the purveyors of goods vie for our attention and dollars. It's enough to make me sick.

Oh, I forgot to mention I picked up 4 pair of Asics socks on a whim while trying on shoes last week. How is it that I walked in the store with my only intention to try on shoes and walked out after dropping $26 on socks? ... damn you, Ryan Hall!

PRE RUN
corn Chex w/1% milk

POST RUN
SlimFast
Later, Kashi GoLean cereal w/1% milk