December 15, 2009

December 21st is the start of the new year for me (Winter Solstice). Not just a new race season, but each day the sun is out a little longer and the spring will rush up on us before we know it.


Time to start thinking about the when and where for vacations, house projects, getting the yard ready for the spring foliage growth, etc. So much to do and so little time. Each week my list of things to do grows by a few items, while time allows me to strike only a couple from that list. It isn’t a time management issue at all, but more of an overwhelming (at times) list of things that seem to fall in my lap. The many hats I wear day to day really need to be sewn together to make one big sombrero! It sure keeps me hopping though, and allows for an exciting year.



Last summer’s fence project was a doozy. The wind storms had snapped off the old fence at the bottom of the 4 x 4s, so my neighbor & I rebuilt it. I had only built one 20 foot section of fence about 5 years earlier with a friend, so I was going off of memory to do this right. It turned out great & looks pretty darned good. It did use up a lot of time resources and quickly became labeled as a “pain in the behind” project. But heck, I have a nice looking fence now! Too bad I have to build another entire section of fence yet—that will be more of a pain, but it too will look great when all is done.



One project that will be using up some time this spring will be the 2010 B.A.C. A charity event taking place late spring, which I will run along with another coach from Florida. The details are nearly complete, so stay tuned if you’re a triathlete and participate in Ironman events—because this will be designed specifically for those type of athletes. What does B.A.C. stand for? You’ll just have to wait a little while longer. Possibly the next blog entry. Since I write about two of them a month on average, it will be the next or the one just after that.



On another subject, when I raced on the cross country running team in university, we had a wacky team captain. Outstanding runner, so much talent, but a year after I left the town where I went to school, I totally forgot the guy’s name. I ran across that name on the internet yesterday, it sounded familiar—but I wasn’t sure who it was. I Googled his name and clicked on “Images” and found an interview with him. While I didn’t recognize him at first (Tracey Lokken), the name sounded as if I should know him. Later in the interview he became more “animated” and the 20 years that have passed since I knew/ran with him peeled away. There he was…Tracey, the same old Tracey, just looking a little older. Little did I know he kept running and worked hard; enough to become the 2009 US National Master’s Marathon Champion. Pretty impressive! His first ever marathon was more impressive—at 2:23! “That thar is a speedy old guy!” Good on ya Tracey!