Gonzales Hotel Info

The hotel reservations in Gonzales are at the Sleep Inn and Suites. The address is:

Sleep Inn & Suites (TXA93)

2138 Water Street, Gonzales, TX, US, 78629

* Phone: (830) 672-1888
* Fax: (830) 672-1884

This is on the North side of town.

See y'all on Friday Night!

Happy Holidays

How the year has rushed past us! It seems only months ago that we were all together for the TIR, but in fact it has been more than 9 months. That's many miles ago in runner time. Here's hoping everyone's miles have been good as we begin to look to the not distant horizon of the TIR 2011.

As is always my practice as captain of our team, my priority is to invite everyone who raced with us last year to race again this year. However, we inevitably end up with some shift in personnel and I find myself trying to track down replacements at the last moment. This year I am hopeful that everyone can give me an unqualified commitment to run with the team the weekend of March 5-6. Please take a look at your calendars and let me know if you spot a conflict which will impact your participation.

Last year's team:
Alan Pekarik
Marie Pekarik
Liz Levin Pittel
Fred Ramirez
Dorian Ramirez
Jonathan Hager
Steve Hager
Maeve Goetz
Holly Brackin
Arturo Aldama
David Horne
James Baker

Participant costs should be about the same as last year. Fuel costs will vary. I will again solicit a donation from the Mid-Texas Symphony. They have been consistently generous to us the past 3 years, and I would imagine they will be reliable this year too. Brenda the Wrunner Wrangler already has a block of rooms reserved in Gonzalez for the Friday before the starting cannon. She's also got another super van reserved as van 1. Additionally, consensus seems to favor the mid-point motel rooms. Unless I hear significant protest, we'll do that again this year.

This blog makes a good central location for communication, and it will continue to serve us. However, since many of us are already Facebook subscribers I am considering setting up a Mid-Texas Symphony runners page so we can communicate daily and less formally. It would be cool to see the running and other activities of our team shared with each other. I believe the only non-Facebook teammates are Alan, Marie and Liz. How about it guys and gals? Are we interested in this? I'm happy to start the ball rolling, thus allowing everyone to learn of Holly's bowling nights, Steve's recent success at getting his daughter to run a 5K with him, Arturo's running with the deer, plus race reports from everyone.

Enough for now. Please, everyone! Let me know your status for this year's race. Thanks, and happy running.

B2B 2010 - What a Day!

It all started just fine, this year's B2B. Oh, the team sort of stumbled into Corpus on Friday. It's inevitable now that we come from so many different places: San Antonio, Caldwell, Houston and Corpus. And all us out of towners drove through varying degrees of inclement weather to get here. Thankfully, Corpus was mostly dry when we were finally all accounted for Friday night. The forecast called for possible showers on race morning, but no one predicted the stormy weather which actually materialized.

Race morning. Up at 6am and out the door by 6:20. I dropped Maeve at the starting line/2nd leg handoff and then drove from the island to the Flour Bluff bus depot. It was cloudy, a blessing, though I regretted Ed, running the first leg, would not get to watch the sun rise out of the Gulf of Mexico. But as I rode a bus back across the causeway to the island, to post myself for the start of my leg 3 (back over the bridge, 4 miles of bridge running), the horizon broke and the sun appeared, though wrapped in clouds. Once I was at my handoff zone I sat, caught my breath, ate a bagel, drank my morning coffee and watched the storm clouds gather and thicken. "How much of the race will we run before the rain comes?" I wondered.

Ed's in there somewhere!

A live radio feed ran on the PA system. There was a report of complications at the start. The tide was high and water was advancing toward the dunes. Turns out it brought with it a lot of seaweed. The running track was narrowed by all this, making what is always a congested leg 1 even more so. Nevertheless, I heard a report later that the lead runner ran leg 1 (a bit more than 4 miles) in 21 minutes. Ed Brackin, the leg 1 runner for team Mid-Texas Symphony needed 51 minutes before he could hand the baton to Maeve. By now, the wind was beginning to rage and everyone watched the rain, by now just offshore. Leg 2 was all headwind, probably 20-30 mph, and a light rain began to fall.

The runner for the lead team handed off to his leg 3 runner at 51 minutes. By the time I took the baton from Maeve at about 8:30 (the start was at 7, it was raining a little harder, lightning was zapping across the sky and a strong crosswind, eventually a headwind, was blowing. I labored across the bridge, not exactly what I had trained for. By mile one of this 4 miles plus, every runner was drenched. Can anyone say duck? I handed off the baton to Holly and she handed off her 8 year old son Mathias. Ed wasn't back yet from his leg 1 adventure.

By now the rain was a heavy coastal rain. Mathias and I walked back to the parking lot, debating whether to find his mother's car or go to mine. Eventually I won. By now we were beyond trying to tiptoe through the deep puddles. It was more like wading. No dry clothes, no towels for drying off, and my shoes were squishy and waterlogged. At least we were out of the rain, which was beginning to subside. Mathias had questions about everything; I love his curiosity. Finally he decided to play games on his mom's iPhone while I waited to hear from Ed. It took a couple of semi-aborted phone calls before I finally got word from Ed. The buses from the end of leg 1 back to Flour Bluff had gone askew. Lots of runners, no buses, lots of soaked runners. Friday night I had told Ed my experience a couple of years of hitching rides on the backs of pickup trucks and finally he did that himself.

By now, Ed's iPhone quit on account of the soaking it had sustained. Mathias had Holly's phone. Communication was breaking down. Maeve called. She was back at Flour Bluff, sheltered in the Walmart out of the rain. I picked her up and we waited for Ed. At this point Maeve connected with the running buddy she had ridden with from San Antonio. She headed out with him, preferring a moving vehicle to my vehicle in waiting. I parked by the bus terminal, anticipating Holly's return from her leg 4 which I figured was surely done by now. Still no Ed, until now. He had borrowed a phone and let me know he was at the Walmart. I drove over and picked him up, then we drove around looking for his car. He didn't know where Holly had parked it, so we played the honk the horn on the remote game until we got lucky and located the car. Still no Holly, but of course she had no way of calling us since Mathias had her phone.

Monetary panic set in as Ed looked at his watch and said: "I've got half an hour to get back to the hotel and check out."

"Go!" I say. "I'll wait here for Holly." And I waited and waited. I called Holly's phone but got such a garbled connection with Ed that there was no point in conversation. I waited some more, looking for what I supposed would be dismay on Holly's face when she didn't find her car where she left it, nor her son whom she had left in my care. Time ticked on. I tried to call Jonathan, tried to call Fred, tried to call Dorian. Nothing. I finally gave up and came back to the condo on the island. It would be easier to do my tracking after a shower and dry clothes.

Turns out Ed and Mathias, returning from checking out of their hotel, had stumbled into Holly as she got off the bus. Only I had no way of knowing and by now phones seemed useless. A multi-threaded game of phone tag began, not to be resolved until past noon. That's when I at last connected with Holly and Ed, found they were reunited but that poor Holly was still in her soaked running outfit. I invited them out to the condo for a hot shower and change of clothes and also finally connected with Fred. I felt like a platoon leader must feel when all his men are located after a battle.

The afternoon eventually turned sunny. Holly, Ed, Mathias and I headed over to Port Aransas to visit with David Horne and get a ride on his 30 foot "Baywatch" boat. It was exciting to be out on the water, speeding along up to 49 miles per hour (David's sons are determined the boat will eventually travel at 50+ mph).

So....that was Beach to Bay 2010, unlike any of the previous 4 we have run. I still haven't seen our official time, but Fred told me it was about 3 hours 41 minutes, about 3 minutes off our 2007 record. If not for the setbacks of the weather, we would have broken it. However, the important record is the one which says we all had a great time despite so many weather induced complications. Earlier, as this all unfolded, I thought what a miserable experience this must be for the newcomers Ed and Holly. By mid-afternoon, as wind blew into our faces while we boated over to Rockport and back, we were all smiles. I actually think Ed and Holly will come back if we need them next year. Yay, team Mid-Texas Symphony and thanks to the entire team for a race well run.

B2B Assignments

We've got a great looking team for this year's Beach to Bay and enough speed to threaten our team record of 3:38:10 (2007). For the "record", team Mid-Texas Symphony first ran B2B in 2006, with a finish time of 3:43:04.

First things first! Beach to Bay is May 15th. We gather the day before. Hopefully, most of us can meet at packet pickup late in the day for bib and chip (for leg 1 and leg 6 runners) distribution, last minute instructions and to have a good time. Packet pickup, as always, is at the Holiday Inn-Emerald Beach Hotel.

Here are proposed leg assignments:
Leg 1 - David Horne
Leg 2 - Maeve Goetz
Leg 3 - Holly Murphy Brackin
Leg 4 - James Baker
Leg 5 - Jonathan Hager
Leg 6 - Fred Ramirez

Here's my thinking on the assignments. David is a great runner, he can drive to the Bob Hall Pier starting line without having to go through Corpus, and he's got more experience than most of us in running on the beach. Maeve could be our anchor, but Fred asked for that assignment already and he's a gutsy finisher. Maeve can burn it up on leg 2. Holly is running her first B2B, so I thought maybe the bridge on leg 3 would be fun for her. Eventually, if we keep coming back, we'll all get to run that leg. In the past I've run leg 1 several times, thinking in a sense it is the toughest leg (the captain swallows the bitterest pill) given the unpredictability of the surface, the two way traffic, and the congestion. I've never run leg 4 and I hear it is also a tough row to hoe, so I'm trying it this year. Jonathan has been our anchor each year he has run with us, but since Fred requested the anchor leg we'll let Jon put on his show on leg 5.

Please let me know any issues or concerns and
Happy Running,
James

Capitol 10K Results

Just thought I would post recent race results for the Capitol 10K in Austin. This is the largest 10K in Texas and the 5th largest in the country. I recall a few years ago when they were recruiting the heck out of the race, determined to make it the largest 10K nationally, but even Austin failed at that one. Nevertheless, it's a nice field, around 18k runners and walkers. Of those, 7598 were timed finishers. The winning male was Keith Pierce, from Cedar Park, who finished in 30:33. Desiree Ficker, of Austin, was the first place woman in 35:36.

My personal goal was to go sub-one hour; I finished in 59:08. I didn't see Liz, but did look up her result, which was 56:25, 13th in her age group. Way to go Liz!

My next race will likely be the Blue Bell 10K, in Brenham, next Saturday (4-17). That is, if I can get myself up early enough to make the hour and a half drive to the starting line. I just might do it, since they promise all the Blue Bell ice cream you can eat at the finish line. Overindulgence? The elite runners I talk to always say you can eat anything you want after the finish line and you might be surprised how many of these athletes admit that ice cream is one of their guilty pleasures.

Beyond next weekend, there is the Beach to Bay relay in Corpus Christi looming on the not too distant horizon. Our Mid-Texas Symphony team will be represented by Jonathan Hager, Fred Ramirez, Holly Brackin, David Horne, Maeve Goetz and me (James Baker). Hopefully, we'll have a good day for running. This is always an enjoyable race, the largest relay marathon in the country.

I would be interested in anyone else's running plans and results. Last time I heard from Arturo Aldama, he was plotting a full marathon in early May, though he was undecided which race it might be. Good luck Arturo and happy running to all.

TIR 2010 Expenses

2010 TIR expenses

1. Race registration = $900

2. Van 1 rental = $305.13

3. Van 1 gasoline = $126.87 ($60.71+$66.16)

4. Van 2 rental = $288.23

5. Van 2 gasoline = $66.60

6. Sealy hotel = $169.48

7. Team shirts = $117 (13@$9ea)

8. Thank you gifts = $10

9. Additional TIR shirt for Brenda = $15

Total expenses = $1998.31

less donation from Mid-Texas Symphony = ($250)

Balance = $1748.31

Per person = $145.69

**************************************************************************
Reimbursements
1. James = $1042
2. Brenda = $432
3. Maeve = $169.48
4. Alan = $354.83

Steve, Jon, Holly, Liz, Arturo, David, Dorian, & Fred each owe $145.69
Alan & Marie are owed $63.45 total ($354.83-$291.38)
Maeve is owed $23.79
James is owed $896.31

Being a Wrunner Wrangler

As I returned to work after an extended weekend of shuttling runners in the 203+ mile Texas Independence Relay, I posted the team picture and the picture of the winning van to the front of my Dilbert-like cubicle. A few of my co-workers looked at the pictures, asked, "How many miles?" They kind of shook their heads and walked on. There were more co-workers who would stop by, look at the pictures, then wonder why I do it. At the risk of sounding uppity, this is why...

To begin, let me state that I will never be a runner. Doesn't appeal to me. A nice walk I can get into, but running? Forget it. However, my brother, James, started running several years ago. When he set his sights on his first marathon, I think I volunteered to come down and help him out by getting him to the race start, checking on him throughout different race points, and just generally being a concerned sister. Secretly, I thought he was a little crazy, but I already had a lot of respect for him. At that time, he had already battled, and won, alcoholism and nicotine addiction. I already looked at his successes in those battles with awe and pride. Perhaps he was replacing these self destructive addictions with another one? At least this one (running) was, somewhat, healthy. Spending time looking at the race route and planning the "hits" to make to give James energy bars gave me a mission. It appealed to me as a sister and appealed to my more analytical personality. I had a "job".

Fast forward a few years. On a fairly regular basis, I am the race support for my brother. Race support blossomed into an annual trek to Corpus Christi for the Beach to Bay Relay marathon, where I no longer ran race support for my brother, but was now responsible for a running pack. I had 6 runners to coordinate and care for. It became a challenge to ensure that this pack had little more to care about than running their leg and handing off the baton. The introduction to the inaugural Texas Independence Relay began in a Corpus Christi condo the night before the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon. The story has been told numerous times, but I was silly enough to throw down the "challenge". "If you get a team together to run it, I'll drive." I really thought it was a crazy feat that wouldn't come to pass. It almost didn't, but three years later...

What do I, as a non runner, get out of the Texas Independence Relay?

1. Taking the business of anything but running out of the teams hands. The captain does a lot of work, but I am the behind the scenes coordinator. I make sure there are places to rest/relax, rent the main team van and generally dealing with all the details. Coordination of any event provides satisfaction and I definitely get that satisfaction from coordinating, as well as the frustration that goes along with it.

2. Directing and corralling 12 individuals into a team. No, I don't lead team building exercises. This group of runners is a mix of co-workers (it IS team Mid-Texas Symphony), relatives of co-workers, and a few additional runners who filled out the team the first year and keep returning because there are now friendships. Any way you want to dissect the team, there are fairly dramatic mixtures. Type A and Type B personalities, Analytical with Artistic temperaments, linear and non-linear thinkers, etc. I really don't do a lot of direction/corralling, but ensuring that the team vans get to the designated hand off points (and knowing that the analytical minds in Van 2 can understand my routing) is satisfying.

3. Sense of responsibility for each team member. Although I am not driving both vans (there are two team vans), I do try to take care of all the runners. Whether that means ensuring that there is sufficient down time: time to eat, time to rest, time to do whatever, I have a sense of responsibility for them. When driving my van, I try to be mindful (sometimes bossy) of providing runner support while they are running their leg. Sometimes I follow them closely, sometimes that means telling the captain to provide water, sometimes it is mixing up Recoverite, but all in all, it means I care about their well being. I feel their pain when running at night, getting lost on a leg, etc. If I fail in my job, the team fails.

4. Being part of something larger than myself. In my day to day activities, I am mainly responsible for me. So, being part of this team of runners, even if I am on the periphery , is a great feeling. I cheer the runners, decorate the van and have fun. I asked the runners in my van if cheering really helps (kind of seems hypocritical for me to cheer when I don't run). They all responded with a definite affirmative.

5. Finally, self-satisfaction in a job well done. When we get to the finish line, their job of running is done. They have the runners "high" and I know that I still have to get them safely back to their cars. I love watching them celebrate and my celebration comes when I hit the bed on Sunday night and can sleep peacefully, knowing that there were no major mishaps, no injuries, and hoping that I wasn't too bossy and that everyone had a great time.

Just thought I would add this to the Mid-Texas Symphony runners blog so that the team members can know how much I appreciate coordinating and driving for them. Additionally, if there is anyone who has ever wanted to be involved in a venture such as this but is not a runner, rest assured that there is immense satisfaction from being on the sidelines and that the sideline crew is VERY appreciated by the runners/teams. I look forward to the part I play, although it may not always seem that way.

On to next year! The Gonzales hotel reservations are already made for Friday, March 4, 2011 (4 rooms - two doubles and two kings), the mondo van has been reserved and I already have begun thinking about how to "up" the decorations on the van. It would be awesome to win best decorated van for two years in a row!

A Contest Won and a Set of Lost Keys

Congratulations to Brenda for winning best decorated van for the Mid-Texas Symphony team. She's already plotting which awards category she will attack next year. Please don't make us run as cheerleaders next year so we can win the spirit award!

There is no question the TIR is a marathon endeavor; in fact, almost 8 marathons back to back. We also know that once the adrenalin wears off post-race (this usually hits about 20 miles out of Houston), it is still a long way to our respective finish lines. That's why Brenda and I decided to stay Sunday night in Gonzales. Brenda dropped off a little past 7 o'clock and I lost conciousness around 8. I don't recall even once rolling over for the next 10 hours.

We rose Monday morning to the rain which had so mercifully spared us during the race. Unfortunately, the rest of the early morning did not turn out so merciful. I gathered what I could carry and headed down to pack my car. That's when I began asking the question, where, pray tell, are my car keys? They were no longer jangling in the pocket of my warmups. Must be in the glove box of the van, I thought. NOT. Over the next 45 minutes I went numerous times through every pocket, all to no avail. The keys were gone. Lost. Scattered between Gonzales and the San Jacinto Monument.

Brenda asked at the hotel desk about getting a locksmith. The two employees looked at each other and concluded: "Oh, he died a few years ago." OK. Where can I rent a car? "Not in Gonzales," they said. "You'll have to go to Seguin."

At that point, I just needed to get to my house in San Antonio, get my spare keys, and then get back to Gonzales. What about Greyhound? "Oh, they haven't come through Gonzales in years." Brenda couldn't take me to SA. She was running on a mileage limit and also against time to get the van returned. Our brother Kenneth was none too excited when we called him and explained my predicament, but he agreed to lend a hand. Brenda dropped me in Austin, where I got into Kenneth's car. We drove to SA, where I had a quick reunion with my 4 dogs, then back to my poor stranded car in Gonzales. I repaid him with a tank of gas and a stop for barbeque at the City Market in Luling. What a day!

And what mileage for the extended weekend! San Antonio to Schulenburg (where David Horne left his truck for quick getaway on Saturday). That's 103 miles, then another 47 miles back to Gonzales. We all know the 203 miles of the race. Houston back to Gonzales was 169 miles. The Gonzales-Austin-San Antonio-Gonzales triangle was an additional 230 miles, plus another 80 miles to finally get back home. Grand total = 832 miles. Now that's an ultra-marathon!

Thanks for the Great Race!

I can't begin to tell you how blessed I feel that we have this team of runners which has such a great time doing the TIR. Maeve, who could be on any number of faster teams, likes our non-competitive nature. Yet we all know there is a racing streak in each of us. I love the way Jonathan leaves it all out on the course, and his dad too. Thank you, Steve, for waiting until race weekend for the ultimate stress test of your healing heel. How about Holly? Most improved! I think Holly and the rest of us all took to heart what was required to meet our goal of sub 30 hours. I figured the greatest improvement in pace had to come from us mid-packers, but was amazed to see even Alan, Maeve and Jonathan tightening up their lines. And thanks to the newcomers Arturo and David, who learned on the job how this works. It was great having your contributions!

Thanks to Liz (let it go, that you got turned around on the trail, in the dark; you're one of our most reliable runners and this team would not be complete without you), to Dorian and Fred, to Marie. I think it was only Dorian and I who saw Fred come in racing another runner, spilling his guts in the spirit of team and competition. Wow! And then to see everyone with such a good spirit of sportsmanship, congratulating the runners around them, both from our team and others. I think we've got it right in terms of chemistry and I'm counting on all of you being back next year. Imagine it: a little over three years ago, few of us knew each other and now we have friendships which come into full blossom each time we reconvene. I hope that is as meaningful to you as it is to me.

Brenda, the Wrunner Wrangler, thank you for all you do for the team. You might not log even a mile, but this team would be lost without you. I know I wouldn't have the time to manage the details like you do and I'm not sure I would have your patience when your brother keeps asking you to do the impossible. "Let's just look at one more rotation," I say. You say "no mas" and then you surprise me with the next solution.

And bless everyone for the tough assignments so well accomplished. Most of you knew we were battling several sets of special scheduling needs and everyone took their leg assignments mostly without a whimper. This is a tough process and Brenda and I both thank you for rolling with the sometimes unconventional punches. Believe us when we say it was the only way and that it was all for the good of the team. Thank goodness for Fred's well made argument for the Sealy motel stopover and for the fact Fred, Dorian, Maeve, Jon and Marie were willing to double up on some legs within one active cycle of each van. This beyond the call of duty was what enabled it all to fall into place. Now, next year let's hope there will be fewer hoops we have to jump through. It would be great to have everyone with us from start to finish, though I have a feeling Maeve's track meet will probably always be something we will just have to live with. Thank you, Maeve, for the compressed 4 legs you ran for the team.

It was all worth it. We realized our sub 30 hour goal with a finish of 29 hours, 42 minutes, 48 seconds. That's an 8:48 pace. Congratulations to everyone for a weekend well run.

BTW.....I will be calculating our total expenses over the next several days and will communicate the final divisions by week's end. Oh! Also check out the post I wrote to my iExerciseRadio blog. Click on the link on the right side, or browse to iexerciseradio.blogspot.com.

Doubling Up

In the previous post, Brenda mentioned some runners having to double up within a van cycle, i.e. run a leg, rest while the rest of your van-mates run, then run another leg before getting the more substantial rest afforded when your van goes inactive. Those of us who are veterans of the TIR know this is just a variant on what we are already doing, that is running three, or even four, times within a 30 hour span. The up side of Fred and Dorian pulling two legs within one active phase of van 1, and of Jon and Maeve doing the same later in van 2, is that you get that lift of knowing you're halfway done. In fact, as things work out, you are at that point 3 quarters of the way home - only one more leg to go. I won't sugarcoat it any beyond that. The bottom line is that our quartet of Fred, Dorian, Jon and Maeve who are pulling 4 legs each are allowing the rest of us to invest a bit more into our lesser mileage spread over 3 legs. Actually, when you look at the grand totals, the triple leggers in some cases are the mileage masters. Liz will log 20.63 miles and Arturo 18.85. What this tells me is that every runner on the team is making a substantial contribution. Your captain wants to thank you all.

They say "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions" and I have had the best of intentions these past weeks of running some daily doubles in order to emulate the field experience of the TIR. I should have done it last week, but only on Wednesday did I finally do a double. It actually felt pretty good to log a 4 miler in the morning and then a 7 miler late in the evening. I will strive for another 5 miler Thursday morning, testing my anticipated mileage of 16.87 this weekend. I'll take Friday off. I know we all have our methods of preparation, modified by the realities of jobs and other obligations, but I doubt any of us runs as varied a schedule as Arturo, who works for Mexicana Airlines. He recently gave me a glimpse of his routine (which I imagine is anything BUT routine), saying he would be in Mexico City, running at altitude, and a few days later in Vancouver, I assume running through the crowds of the Olympics' final weekend.

I look forward to this reunion of our band of runners and the opportunity to renew friendships while cultivating new friends. Happy running and see you all in Gonzales for the big weekend.

Meet Y'all At The Hotel

The hotel reservations in Gonzales are at the Sleep Inn and Suites. The address is:

Sleep Inn & Suites (TXA93)

2138 Water Street, Gonzales, TX, US, 78629

* Phone: (830) 672-1888
* Fax: (830) 672-1884

This is on the North side of town.

See y'all on Friday Night!

Are you Ready?

The race notebooks are completed, I have a few van decorations done and I am trying to get a few extra zzz's before Friday. Not having much luck with the last item, but looking forward to another driving marathon.

When you see the van driving/assignments, it will look like Van 2 is taking a leisurely drive through the countryside. Although Van 2 does have it kind of light the first day, the new "thought" behind the hotel stopover in Sealy, TX has both vans testing their runners. This will be the first time that we have assigned some runners to run two legs without the van having downtime. This doesn't mean back to back legs, but it will definitely test endurance. For example, when Van 1 goes active at 6:00 pm on Saturday evening, it will do a haul of 8 legs. With only six runners in the van, that means that two "unlucky" runners will be running two legs. That falls on Dorian and Fred, the younger of the Van 1 bunch. This 8 leg stint is what will give van 2 the rest they need for their long haul, which starts after midnight on Sunday. Van 2 will be short a runner or so, but they also have a few younger legs than Van 1. The task of running two legs without the van going into a "rest" falls on Jonathon and Maeve. Of course, this gives Van 1 some needed downtime and rest. Whew!

All I can say is: Power to the runners! Y'all will need it.

See y'all on Friday!

TIR Rules Against iPods

Our individual attitudes towards running with or without ipods varies. I, for one, almost always run with tunes channeled into my ears. Of course, for training it is a moot point whether we do or don't as long as we remain alert to what is going on around us. Race policies vary while the reasoning for ipod bans are also varied. Generally I hear from race directors that it is an insurance issue, though I've never bought fully into that since we almost always sign a waiver relieving the race sponsors of any liability. More certainly, the various overseers of our sports of running, cycling, swimming and triathlon come down consistently against the use of ipods, iphones, portable radios, etc. during races. Some contend that these give competitors unfair advantage, though I have failed to find that particular power song which will enable me to run a 2:30 marathon. Given the popularity of ipods and the recent innovation of Nike+iPod systems, many race directors simply look the other way. Such is not the case of the TIR. As we learned the first year when we were supposedly penalized for Denise's ipod infraction (I don't think that penalty was ever officially assessed), the TIR seems serious about using ipod police to enforce their rules. For your information, here is the official notice which was sent out to team captains. I would encourage all racers to become familiar with the ipod rules as well as the other rules of the race. Thank you.

Here are the rules of the event. Please convey them to your team. We've received clear and ample feedback suggesting that we handle the enforcement of the rule prohibiting running with Ipods differently. So, this year, we will be implementing a "3 strike" approach. There will be an Ipod SWAT team roving the course. When they see someone wearing headphones, they will stop the runner, confiscate the device (which will be reunited with its owner at the finish), and the Team Captain will be called to be informed of the violation. The consequences of the second infraction will be the same, except this time a 60-minute time penalty will be added to the team's final time. The "3rd strike" will result in the team's disqualification. Please make sure that your team is well aware of all the rules and how Ipods will be handled.

Less Than One Week

OK runners. We're getting close, probably not a bad time to begin anticipating the weather we might encounter on race weekend. For now the extended forecast varies only slightly from Gonzales, in the west, to Houston, to the east. It looks like running temperatures ranging from mid 50s to lower 70s. Rain seems to be a possibility, though only ranging from 30% in the west to 20% as we get nearer to Houston. Let's hope winds will not be a factor.

Whether it rains, or not, it's probably a good idea for us each to pack a second pair of shoes. Of course, a spare pair of socks, or two, is always a good idea too. Everyone will want to bring a change of running clothes. We will hope the Saturday night stopover motel will have plenty of hot water for showers. Brenda has already requested extra towels.

Everyone will be responsible for their own special clothing needs. If you don't think it'll rain on you, don't bring rain gear. I doubt the weather will require any cold weather garments, though I am sure we are all pretty good at making sure we've got layers. Like last year, everyone will get a long-sleeved team shirt. This is not something most would want to run very far in, but a lot of our runners put them to good use last year as a pullover after running night time legs. I encourage everyone to run with a hat and to use sunscreen when appropriate. We should have plenty of reflective vests for night legs, but if you have a system you use at home go ahead and bring it. I will try to have an assortment of head lamps and flashlights for the night hours.

As the week ahead revs up and speeds along, let's communicate with each other our travel plans so we know when everyone is getting into Gonzales. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone; hopefully we will all arrive at a time when we can go for a bite to eat. I have just assumed there's little interest in the Friday night dinner and bash the TIR is throwing. If I have misjudged this, let me know and we can make some reservations for whomever is interested.

Leg Assignments and Mileage Summaries

It's finally here. I am assuming David Horne is going to join us. Everything seems promising. Thus, here are the leg assignments. I am blacking out phone numbers and email addresses, but am leaving sizing information on shirts and socks. Please check the sizing info for accuracy. Click on the chart for a better resolution. Thanks.


Here you can check your total mileage and some estimations based upon my best guess on your 10K times.