Who all is here and what are you doing? (Read 14390 times)

OK, group, Eric has done a great job on this site and now it is up to us to put it to good use. I, for one, am curious about who is using it and what kind of stuff (running-related) you're into. My name is Lynn, and I live in McKinney, TX (just North of Dallas). I am a 48 y/o male that has been running regularly for about 3 1/2 years (this time). I say "this time" cause I listened to a knee doc who told me I couldn't run anymore back in 1988, so I stopped. After 12 years off, I decided that running was better for me than anything else I could think of, so I started back. Since then, I have run 9 marathons, 2 trail 25 milers, 1 sprint adventure race, 1 trail marathon, 7 50K's and 4 50 milers. I love trail running, and have raced in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Wyoming. My most outrageous adventure to date was the Bighorn Mountain Wild & Scenic Endurance Run not far from the Montana border in Wyoming. A splendid run through some amazing mountains and river canyons not too far from Sheridan, Wy. I guess I love the trails because it get's me out in God's creation. Now it's your turn...what get's you jazzed up??? Lynn B

Did you just call me senile? Oh well, I can't really say what makes someone want to do a 100 miler, I haven't tried it yet, helped a few friends through their attempts (both successful and unsuccesful). "I have no desire to run anything longer than a marathon"...yeah, that's how it starts . What I think is really great about the ultras is that that is what got me into trail running. It is really different, dodging armadillos rather than cars, etc. I will say that it is an "older" crowd than at the road races, so maybe in a few years, you'll think again! As for the distance, "you're better than you think you are, you can do more than you think you can". ...now can anybody tell me why I came in here? Lynn B

Great topic Lynn! It's a great way to get to know who is using the site. I am a 31 y/o male in St. Joseph, MO (about an hour North of Kansas City). I am a soccer player at heart and when my mind drifts off during a boring meeting I think of the soccer field. I moved to St. Joe about two years ago and there were no soccer leagues for adults. My brother-in-law saw I was getting pudgy and bored so he talked me into doing the Chicago Half Marathon. Joe, my B-I-L, is a very good runner and has kept running since high school. My first run last summer was a 6 mile "jog" according to him. I enjoyed it and continued to train. However, jumping in too fast and running too far caught up with me. About 2 weeks after my wife and I bought our plane tickets and booked the hotel, I felt a sharp pain in my right knee. Nothing serious, just tendonitis. The trip to Chicago to watch Joe run was nice though! I took the rest of the year off to make sure my knee healed and was ready to go. I started running again this year a few weeks ago. Ironically enough, I found a soccer league to play on. Last Sunday I had a game and strained both of my quads. I feel fine and will start running again tomorrow evening. I know I want to do some 10k's this year. I don't know if this is my year for a half marathon though. That might be my goal for next year.

Hello Johnny, nice to meet you! Just take it one step at a time. When I started out, I could barely cover 3 miles and had to take walk breaks at that! It really helps to find some kind of motivation that you can commit to a few months down the road. I spent about 6 months fighting it on my own, then I decided I would sign up for a marathon 6 months out and pressured myself to be prepared for it. By the 7th month, I had notched 4 marathons and was signed up for my first ultra, a 50K trail race... Having great trail options so close would be dangerous for me, as I don't know if I would get anything done at all! Good luck with the running and keep us posted as to how you're doing. Lynn B

To quote Austin Powers: "Allow myself to introduce...myself. " I am a 26 year-old grad student at Michigan State. Home would be the greater Cleveland, Ohio metropolitan area. I'm a converted swimmer. I started swimming around age 11, continued through high school and got the opportunity to swim in college at the Division III level. I graduated and stopped being active. 2 years ago I realized I had put some pounds on and not doing anything with my life decided to run a marathon. I did that reasonably well (3:26 and change) and decided to continue on. Last fall I ran a 3:04:42 in Detroit and I'm going to be running Boston in 2006. Ultimately I want to do an Ironman someday. Being on a strict grad-school budget, a high performance bike will have to wait until I can afford it. I am contemplating doing an ultra in summer of 2006. Anyway, I'm looking forward to see how these forums develop and getting to know everyone. ~~Mark

Hello fellas, nice to meet you. I look for ward to watching your progress. Good luck with your goals. Regards, Johnny

I'll be at Boston in April 2006 (BQ'd at Ogden two weeks ago). Perhaps I'll get to meet Mark when I'm there (and whoever else from this forum ends up there).

Congrats on your BQ! I'm hoping that I'll be at Boston 2006 as well, and no, I won't ever BQ in my current age group. I'll be happy if I can do a 3:30.

Note to Eric--I've got the additional 20 years you referred to, and I'm not quite senile enough yet to do the Ultra. Maybe in a few more years

And congrats too on not being senile ;-) However, the fact that you said "maybe" is making me consider otherwise eric

And congrats too on not being senile ;-) However, the fact that you said "maybe" is making me consider otherwise eric

Good point. Problem is, I can't the "maybe" out of my mind. As in maybe in a couple of years, as I have my races lined out through 2006. LynnB - Fact is, I have never ever considered a trail marathon. All mine are/have been on asphalt. I take it I would need to do some general trail running to get my feet/ankles acclimated first, correct?