Wheeler Farm Loops

I bet if it had been Boston, the people would have embraced the marathon race and wanted it to still be run.

And yet New York City will still play host to a home NFL game and NBA game tonight. And no one will be protesting those.

We won't hold your New York-ness against you :)

(hopefully New York readers realize I'm kidding).

It seems like the marathon just became an easy target. True, it takes a lot of resources to close down 26 miles of roads, compared to a game in an enclosed stadium. That's why I agree w/ that the cancellation was justified. It just bothers me that there are actually people out there who were planning to disrupt the race, rather than focus their energy on something good, ya know?

awesome. it's nice to see people join together and come up with an alternative that can benefit everyone involved. all around it's just a bummer of a situation, and i think it's great that they are making the most of it in a respectful and constructive way.

also, you've run the UTAH FITTEST STATE FESTIVAL HALF MARATHON AND 5K and you know the lyrics to the state song. i think it's safe to say you are from zions.

The whole situation is just sad. You see a lot of people behaving badly in one way or another on both sides of this. I was reading where people in Bridgeport, Connecticut were egging linemen who had come to restore power to their neighborhoods while complaining that they had favored the upper income areas first. On the other hand I think it was a little insensitive and self-centered of the "alternative" runners to carry on with their own little event. What a mess..

Thanks for posting the Cassidy piece. Interesting perspective. It is curious why the race became such a target, while other events or activities did not draw the same level of media or public outcry.

Ever have the experience when running or riding a bike on the streets when the oncoming car/truck/vehicle almost seems to "try" to hit you? As if the driver consciously or subconsciously is angry or something at those who enjoy those activities. I think it may be something like that thing here.

NYRR should have camouflaged those generators! :-)

Mike Cassidy and I ran the first 5-6 miles of Boston together this year. I think he ended up dropping out. Nice guy.

I've had that experience a few times, Bret. Not very runner friendly here. I don't expect a sea of vehicles to part for me, but I'd appreciate a little room when there is more than plenty to give on a two way street with double lanes and no other cars. I've had two incidents where I reacted and got chased by some pretty big rednecks. I try to be nice, but I see a swerving vehicle as threatening to life. These are the guys Coach Bam warned me about.

(Sorry about this, Jake - I've gotta share it.)

Jason, I need to heed my words of wisdom. I nearly ended up in a tear-up with a twitcher (bird-watcher/spotter). He parked his 4x4 on the pavement near a local river and I had to shoot around it and nearly got hit by a bus.

I gave the chap, who was crouched down, what for. He stood up and I was off like a shot. He was a monster. He clambered into his truck and chased me. As he was getting out of his truck, I was on my fourth 'Hail Mary'.

Long story short - he gave it the big sorry etc. Didn't fancy a go with 130lbs of Bamster. Nice fella actually. Anyway, don't shout at people on the roads, you never know who/what might get out - it's a mad world out there.

Jake, have your folks done any base training or are they going straight into a speed phase?

Great that they're out there, running.

I've had my share of altercations w/ drivers. I try not to lose my temper anymore. About a month before joining this blog, I had a particular run-in w/ a crazy man - long story short, after he nearly hit me (his fault) and I banged on his car w/ my fists, he purposely backed his car into me as I ran behind it (hitting me), and then threatened to fight me. He was twice my size and I broke my 100m PR running away. Somewhat cowardly maybe, but anyone who purposely hits you w/ their car is probably insane and I didn't want to find out whether he was carrying a knife, etc.

hi. someone hit a runner during the utah fittest state festival.

I don't think my parents are periodizing their training. They've got two weeks until the Turkey Trot, so I guess its all anaerobic work :-)

They are both good athletes. If my Dad had started running younger, he would have been very fast. He was a basketball player. When he was in his late 40s he ran 3:17 for the marathon off like 6 weeks of training. Back problems were his downfall. My Mom ran a 21-something 5K around the same time, and I'm pretty sure she ran a BQ in her one and only marathon. They don't really care too much about races, they just like to get out and exercise.