SWULY

Cooling down at Olympic Stadium...

There are some things you hope live on when you leave a place. This being a running related web-journal, I always hope to leave a team better off than when I got there. However, this being an other-side-of-running-related-web-journal, I also hope to leave a team better off with awesome non-running characteristics as well.

I think at Columbia I did a pretty good job. When my brother left Columbia in ’05, he claimed that he wouldn’t have been able to make the team with the times he ran in high school. I had some stud times in high school, but I felt pretty similar when I left the campus. Now all my school records are gone, so my legacy has been left to remain in other ways (all I have running wise on the current team is my Penn Relays Title – hopefully they can get that on me too). Things like eating contests – Koronets anyone, bird rating scales, those are the thigns that remain. And now, the Columbia team is even cooler than when I left. They have names for each month with a way to live each one. While I often take part in a self-proclaimed Man Month, these kids do it every month. Currently we are in Swuly.

Swuly is all about getting jacked muscle wise. A lot of core is supposed to take place and a lot of picking up heavy things just to prove you can. While it isn’t ideal for me to be doing a ton of lifting at the tail end of the season, I salute the month, and have been doing some push-up wars by myself after my runs just to keep tone. Plus, I’m going to be heading to the beach in Michigan only a week from now so need to get my beach muscles ready.

Had a nice workout on the track yesterday…2x(4x300) at 45-43-41-39 with 90” rest and 9min rest between sets. It wasn’t easy, especially in some wind, but felt good to run 39 even though it was hard. Will be doing mini-workouts every other day leading up to the race in Dublin on the 21st.

Going to learn about Vincent Van Gough now. Let’s Go!

A-Train: my little sister's nickname.

Racing Trains

“We might not be the best people” – Jack
“But we’re not the worst!” – Liz
“Graduate students are the worst.” – Jack and Liz
-30 Rock

Now not all graduate students are the worst. But we certainly aren’t the best either. Sometimes grad school can get a little tedious and boring. But other times it can be great.

One course has really stood out. “The Reported Memoir” has allowed me to write about my favorite subject: myself! But in all honesty, it has been fun to try to write a story that you think you know so much about, but end up finding that you really didn’t know a thing.

Back in my freshman year at Columbia, I raced the subway. It is this topic that acts as the driving force of my first official memoir. Here is an excerpt from the still unfinished story, but enjoy…
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Choo, Choo, Choo. Smack, Smack, Smack. The six-car train barrels forward carrying its’ passengers to their destinations.

Stomp, Stomp, Stomp. Gah, Gah, Gah. My feet and exhale breaths carry me along, unwavering.

At about 12 feet tall and 227 tons, the R62A rushes forward unrelenting, ready to smash anything in its path.

At about 5-foot-10 and 135 pounds, I delicately glide over the sidewalk, avoiding even dips in the sidewalk that could falter my stride.

Dreadfully, the green lights begin to turn against me as their hues turn a yellowish orange. The signal men who were smiling at me earlier saying, “Oh go ahead, you’re fine,” have turned into a red, blinking hand warning me, “Stop you idiot, you’re going to kill yourself.”

Idiot I may be, I am going to beat this subway. My cadence quickens, light feet, clear mind.

Nearing the intersection at 113th, I see a car raring to cross Broadway. A quick glance left; the light is green. A quick glance ahead; the driver is looking down. A quick decision; I’m going for it.

“Oh shit,” I realize as I cross in front of the car and see that the driver has just looked up. My right arm extends, my hand in the same position as the one in the walk signal that had warned me against continuing. I Heisman pose my way across the street, the driver slams his foot back onto the brake, and I continue on as a honk from behind rings in my ears.
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In running news, it was an alright week. Struggled through a mile repeat workout, which reminded me how much I hate mile repeat workouts. Now, off for another week of running and only 2 weeks away from the race out in the Bay Area. Gonna be fun.