The Interview

Thanks to Jennifer :-) at the Life is a gift. RUN. blog for these interview questions. Since you posed these questions to me over a week ago it gave me a good think. It was an interesting excerise to do.


1. When not running and blogging, what else do you like to do in your spare time?
Spare time? :-) I do like to travel. I like to experience new things so there have been very few places that I have gone back to for vacation. But, having said that, I like to travel to familar spots for long weekends like Boston or Florida. The one thing I like doing on vacation more than anything else is waking up and reading a newspaper and having a cup of coffee first thing in the morning. That, to me, is relaxing.
I used to be a more avid watcher of sports but not so much anymore. I'll follow sports but mostly can only keep up a conversation about baseball.
Still, after 20+ years of marriage, I like to hang out with my wife and play with our dogs. My dogs will absolutely crack me up sometimes.
I'm boring, aren't I?

2. What is your favorite race and favorite distance to race?
Do I have to pay attention to the verb here? What 'is' my favorite race? Or what 'was' my favorite race? What the heck. I'll answer both. What 'was' my favorite race was the 2006 Disney marathon for a variety of reasons. Leading up to that race, I was sent over to England (twice) for business. I had to do a 12 mile long run through central London and, a few weeks later, had to do a 16 mile long in the English countryside. But, the race itself was none other than I ever experienced. The course was set up well. The volunteers were wonderful. And, even though it was my second marathon, it was the first that I didn't finish limping in. If you ever did this marathon, you will wind up comparing this marathon to all others that you will ever do.

What 'is' my favorite race, year after year, is the Falmouth Road Race in August. I love the beach and the course is right along the water. It is a beautiful course to run. There are a lot of name runners that participate such as Frank Shorter, Joan Benoit, Bill Rogers and Catherine Ndereba and Deena Kastor from time to time that you get to meet and talk to. Interestingly, it is not a very good course for me. Though beautiful, there isn't a lot of shade and I have had some interesting times out there. Still, a great weekend when I can get up there.

Favorite distance? I've come to like the half marathon but I think, deep down, I'm still a sprinter so probably the 5k.

3. What is your greatest athletic moment? (Doesn't have to be running)
I thought and thought and thought about this. Not because there were so many, but because there were so few. :-) Let's just say that the one sport I lettered in high school was bowling (Which is true). The one I kept on thinking back on was the one I have few details on and have nothing to prove it ever happened. In grade school, I was the anchor of a sprint team (not sure of the distance) at an indoor meet at the Philadelphia Convention Center. I remember taking the baton and flying past someone who was in front of me and breaking the tape to win. We only won the heat, not the race, but it was the only time I remember breaking the tape. I've won championships with teams in volleyball, softball, basketball, etc. but I don't recall being 'the guy' that won the event for the team.

4. Have you learned anything about yourself since starting your blog?
I realized how much of my life is about riding on the coattails of Steve Runner. :-) I started writing this blog about 2 years ago. I promised myself, if I was going to do it, I would commit myself to it and post at least once a week. Barring vacations, I've been pretty good at doing it. I've also sort of fulfilled one of the things I wanted to be when I grew up and that was a columnist for a newspaper. I never pursued it because I didn't think I had the talent to maintain a living out of it. The other thing I find myself doing is looking at a situation and saying to myself, 'this would be a great post!' Or, looking at other blogs for ways to be more creative with my blog. I thought I would get tired of posting after a year but, surprised myself how much I continue to enjoy writing.

5. Since you gave up potato chips for Lent (brave soul) what is your replacement for their crispy, salty goodness? :-)
I would have a small bag of potato chips for lunch almost everyday at our cafeteria. And, I went cold turkey. I'll have the small bag of apple slices instead of the chips that went with the sandwich. And, it was tough for a few days. But, now it's not so bad. But, I also gave up snacking between meals. The snacks I eat are generally healthy. In the right amounts. I may have gone over the 'right amounts' from time to time. And, that has been more difficult. I haven't been great with this. But, it does make me think more seriously of what I eat.

To play along:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. (I get to pick the questions).
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

(Notes: I'm off to Florida for a long weekend with my parents and catching some spring training games. I thought about doing a 10k when I was down there but, having gone out last Saturday on a 3 mile tempo run, I realized that I'm not in race shape yet. I got a LOT of work to do to get back into shape. I started playing with my new Garmin 405. It certainly not as noticeable to wear as the Garmin 101 is when you are running, which is a good thing. Also, picked up a pair of the Brooks Adrenline 9's today. So, if anything, my running might stink but I'll be stylish this year.
Last Friday, I was asked to give a speech to honor our fourth grade teacher who is retiring this year. Ours was the first class she ever taught. )
RIP--Tweety