Watch the trailer of a great running documentary. Already shown in the UK on Channel 4 in January 2010. Out on DVD directly at Alex Vero.

Watch this space for a detailed review.

After a short break back home in freezing Germany I made my way to Frankfurt to compete in the 8th edition of the local halfmarathon.

This year the organizers changed the course. The former route was a bit boring but the race itself the first big test for spring marathon runners in the region. The “Waldstadion”, or “Commerzbank Arena” as they call it these days, was the venue for the race.

I warmed up in the surrounding forest and met some of the Eintracht Frankfurt football players. After their defeat on Saturday they got their recovery run in. No recovery for me. I wanted to get my little “halfmarathon” devil from the shoulder. After the disappointing race in Rome I was so keen to run the 21,095 distance again. I knew that I had a faster time in my legs.

Training during the week went well so I was confident to score fast time. I didn’t know the course but the profile didn’t look to spectacular. The second half had some short but steep climbs in it – nothing major as they were mostly bridges.

The race started in front of the main stand of the stadium. The elite start had a 5 minute head start. Spiridon Frankfurt, the organizing running club, wants to give the local elite the chance to race each other. Surpringsly 2 Kenyans made their way to have a shoot on the 500 EUR the organizers offered for the winner of the race. That wasn’t the intention of the organizers as the women at the registration angrily said. But at the end of the day it is a open competition…

With only a short delay the race started off. On the first few meters there were some twists and turns. It was elbow time as a good bunch of runners went around the sharp corners but after a couple of minutes the course was straight on into the forest. I was in the second group but dropped out of it as the pace didn’t felt too comfortable for me.

I tried to relax and it worked. Despite that I was hitting the kilometer splits a little bit under target. Wind came up and I was searching for some lads to draft. I was running between the groups and was not happy with that. The wind was heavy but not crazy. I just thought it would be better to draft along and safe barely needed energy.

The weather was cold. But despite that I choose to wear a plain singlet and arm warmers with gloves. When I met my parents (thanks for the support) I got rid of my hat. Perfect running conditions despite the wind.

The route went on through lonely business areas and on to the river main. The crowd support wasn’t great. Most of the 667.000 “Bankfurters” must have been in bed at this stage. But I didn’t worry about the crowd support, I was more worried about myself. I started to lose the “comfort zone” a bit early as I passed the kilometer 9 sign at the main promenade. At this stage the eventual women’s winner, Simret Restle, passed me out. I couldn’t respond and tried to hang on.

37:something showed the watch at the km10 mark more less the turnaround point from the river back to the stadium. Still on time and with decent pace I struggled. A bit early. At this stage I had to fight as I had no one to run with. The group in front of me was gone and I just wanted to avoid to get caught. The roads went slightly uphill. It was a constant pressure. I tried to settle back in but it didn’t work. Still pain game – still pushing.

My thoughts just went from kilometer mark to kilometer mark. it worked quite well. I was still moving. I didn’t bother about my splits as we were running out of central Mainhattan back to the forest and eventually the “Waldstadion”.

Straight roads were leading the race now. Not the best scenario for me. But what should I have done now? At kilometer 16 there was a turnaround point. When I ran towards it I could see the 2 Kenyans far up front. The field was a good bit back. The way to the turnaround point felt long – really long. And the way back was even longer.

After the long stretch the road turned left towards the stadium. I was pushing hard and started to feel better again. Shortly after kilometer 19 I had to run up a bridge. That thing nearly killed me. The tuff part was the final one around the stadium as I didn’t know where the actual entrance into the ground was.

Finally the big gate came and I entered the stadium. It was a nice feeling to enter the ground. it is one of the best football stadiums in Germany and to finish the race in it was nice.

The clock showed 01:18:32 (46th place overall – 8th AG). Finally a new PB for the distance. Still some improvements to make. The baseline is there now I have to sharpen up for some serious Boston training.

Last sunday he ran a solid 2:18:29 at the Lake Biwa Marathon. Watch Steve Osaduik working out with his crew around beautiful Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada. They also simulated the weather on raceday in japan 😉

It was about time. It seemed as if no one wanted to chase the leader. No one even tried to catch the current Über-shoe on the competitive road running market, Nike’s Lunar Racer.

But now Brooks finally issued an answer that’s supposed to hit the road racing scene by storm – The Brooks Green Silence.

Silence please!

The Look

Currently, I am sporting my fourth pair of Nike Lunar Racers. Stuck with the first generation, I am a totally happy user of Nike’s groundbreaking Lunarlite technology. Finding a light shoe that provides me with superb cushioning and such a dynamic handling was not easy. I’m completely satisfied with the Lunar racer. I like the look of
the shoe and the overall performance. It’s the ultimate partner for me, from easy morning jogs to long runs, from the 5k to the Marathon.

A couple of weeks ago, Brooks released the first serious Lunar answer – the Green Silence.

Silence? Where is the silence? And where is the green? The shoe doesn’t look silent or green at all. The very aggressive colouring makes it a true “in your face” racing flat. A shoe you want to wear.

On the left side it sports a yellow sole, on the right side the sole is red. Also, the colour of the upper is different from left to right. It’s an eye-catching mix between the famous “Hanson’s” colors yellow/red paired with a bit of black trimming. This look is hot. There’s only one thing you would want to do with these shoes – run fast!

But let’s have a closer look before we hit the road. Sticking out is – no pun intended – the tongue. Forget about the tongues you know, the Green Silence’s is different. If you are by now used to a slim and skinny lunar racer tongue, you will face a completely different approach. The tongue forms part of the actual shoe instead of being separately stitched in. Together with the crooked lacing, it definitely catches the eye first. All in all, the shoe looks light, solid, compact and reliable.

The Sole

That said, every running shoe is ultimately defined and judged by its sole, the part that actually protects one’s feet from the ground. Here, the Green Silence sticks to the “one block” technology for which the Lunar is now known. Brooks calls this “MoGo”. No pattern, no section, just one big foam block.

article for mzungo.org

Harajuku (原宿 “meadow lodging”) is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan.

Every Sunday, young people dressed in a variety of styles including gothic lolita, visual kei, and decora, as well as cosplayers spend the day in Harajuku socializing. The fashion styles of these youths rarely conform to one particular style and are usually a mesh of many. Most young people gather on Jingu Bridge, which is a pedestrian bridge that connects Harajuku to the neighboring Meiji Shrine area.

Harajuku is also a fashion capital of the world renowned for unique street fashion. Harajuku street style is promoted in Japanese and international publications such as Kera, Tune, Gothic & Lolita Bible and Fruits. Many prominent designers and fashion ideas have sprung from Harajuku and incorporated themselves into other fashions throughout the world.

Harajuku is also a large shopping district that includes luxury international designers, Harajuku native designers, and affordable shops catering to youths.

MORE…

The clock showed 1:21:something. It was the clock at the halfway mark on Pulanski bridge. 21 kilometres into the New York City marathon 2009.

Now the clock is showing exactly the same time again. The sad thing – it is the clock above the finish line in Ostia. Strange but true. No improvement in my half marathon performance. Shocking outcome at the 36th edition of the Roma-Ostia Half Marathon. The Cristoforo Colombo road didn’t lead me to a new PB; it leaves me with bad memories on a performance that was far away from what I expected.

The day began perfect. Our hotel was in walking distance from the Palalottomatica, in Rome’s Eur district. Liam, Eugene, Niall and I had only a short journey to reach the start area. I warmed up and had the usual pre-start preparation. My bib number was 49 and that meant that I was assigned to the elite starting section up front. Enough space to get the last stretches and strides in. No waiting in the crowded start sections.

The pre-start hectic was typical for Italy. A pure mess with press and hyper people everywhere. The elite women had a 9 minutes head start (The time difference between the men and women course record). I stood beside the road and watched the girls cruising on towards Ostia. Pretty cool to be in such a close position to the “real” elite field.

Then it was up to the main field and me to get going. I was standing in the second row so it was easy for me to run free straight from the start. After a downhill stretch the road went up again and turned right onto the motorway towards Ostia. Based on the McMilian calculator I should come in with a 1:17 finishing time. Uli and I agreed to shoot for that. I was confident to get the time. Training went well despite a busy week at work.

The first split I got was the one at 2k. It was bang on. So I stuck to that pace and tried to find my rhythm. I couldn’t find it all. Couldn’t hold the group and couldn’t settle with the pace. The first part is a tricky one. I never felt comfortable and relaxed. I couldn’t manage to relax my legs on the downhill sections and the uphill stretches killed me. Beside that the wind caught me all over. As I didn’t have a group to run with I was mainly on my own and the breeze from the sea was a tough one – too tough for me! I suffered badly and couldn’t stick with it mentally. Shortly after the 9k sign I looked up and far, very far, away I could see the sea. Tough going.

The course is not spectacular at all. A straight motorway that leads towards Ostia. A little out and back beside the sea and you are there. I arrived in Ostia as a mentally broken man. The turnaround point at Km19 on the promenade was another crucial one. You’ll get hit by the head wind. And there was some wind. So still tough going. I reached the finish line and was without any energy. I suffered a lot for a disappointing time.

But no time to complain. This race was just another step towards Boston. Let’s Hope the 1:21:something remains – as my split time during the second half of the Marathon!

And once again i´m happy that the bulky triathlon days are over.

Packing today as i have to be out of the bed on Saturday morning at 3.30am to get the 6am Dublin – Rome flight!

Devo andare…

109k with 7 runs
8 weeks & 1 day until Boston Marathon

Monday – Easy 11k
Tuesday – Easy 14k
Wednesday – Moderate 16k (Hill Run Tallaght)
Thursday – Easy 7k
Friday – Easy 13k
Saturday – Easy 12k
Sunday – Easy 36k

Very solid week for me that ended with a good long run today. Went out for 1 hour on my own along the Liffey and then teamed up with Shane for additional 2 hours in the Phoenix Park. I’m feeling comfortable in the long runs these days. Felt relaxed during the complete session.

The overall fitness seems to be good and the weekly Hill run session proofed it for me. This week I ran solid up and downhill. It gives me confidence in my form leading up to Boston.

I’m looking forward to next weekend when i travel to Rome for one of Italy’s biggest half marathons – Roma Ostia. I haven’t made a plan for the race yet. The course should be fast as far as I can see on the profile. Surprisingly nobody ever ran under the hour on the course. Doesn’t really mean it is that fast.

Quote of the week: Believe in yourself, know yourself, deny yourself, and be humble (John Treacy)

That’s how you cover a break – Arturo Barrios versus Simon Chemwoyo at the São Silvestre 1992!