Category Archives: Uncategorized

What happened after breaking 3 hours in the Marathon, or What do you do when you achieve a goal you worked towards for years?

In May of 2004, I finally broke three hours in the marathon. I actually blew it away. Ran a 2:55:52! I had no idea what to do after that. I always had running goals, but for some reason after the three hours, I was struggling to find a suitable goal. I did run several moreContinue reading “What happened after breaking 3 hours in the Marathon, or What do you do when you achieve a goal you worked towards for years?”

Olympia, Washington May 16, 2004

It had been five years since I first thought of running a marathon in under three hours. It had become very elusive. I had tried everything I could with training techniques, diet, mental preparation, strategies during the race and so on. I had been working on the breathing technique that I had read about andContinue reading “Olympia, Washington May 16, 2004”

Trying to break three hours in the Marathon

My first marathon was in 1997 and the Boston Marathon was my fourth race. I had reduced my time each race and finished in3:05:11. It seemed to me that the magical three hour mark should be within reach. But as in life, good things seem to take time and effort. The next race I scheduledContinue reading “Trying to break three hours in the Marathon”

The Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon takes place right around tax time on Patriots Day I believe they call it. Hard to believe that in my first three marathons I had taken 42 minutes time off my initial race time and now was running in the famous Boston Marathon. One thing that I had not done was travelContinue reading “The Boston Marathon”

Chewing Qat in Ethiopia and Coffee Celebration

I had the good fortune of traveling to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia several years ago for four days. Talk about exciting. For this entry I will mainly discuss the chewing of qat, which I experienced and the coffee celebration which I only observed. Both are very social activities in the Ethiopian culture. Both provide stimulants,Continue reading “Chewing Qat in Ethiopia and Coffee Celebration”

Second and Third Marathons

After my first marathon, I didn’t have any major goals but knew that it couldn’t be any more unpleasant than running on a cold day in Seattle. I chose to run a marathon in Olympia, Washington called the Capital City Marathon because it is in the capital of the State of Washington. It was inContinue reading “Second and Third Marathons”

First Marathon – Seattle

I can’t believe how little I knew before I ran my first marathon. I had been training all alone and somehow thought that if I ran some long runs on the weekends, I would be able to make the 26.2 miles on race day. I ran a fair amount in training, but didn’t really haveContinue reading “First Marathon – Seattle”

My Daughter Saved My Life

I have been through a few dark periods in my life. I literally did not think I would make it through them. There have been at least three that I can count off the top of my head in which I felt suffering outweighed living and I didn’t know how long I could continue. TheContinue reading “My Daughter Saved My Life”

Managing a 35 Acre Private Island in the State of Washington

I remember the day they asked me if I wanted the job as the caretaker of this island. As I walked back across the island so that I could phone my wife and tell her, I looked up in one of the beautiful fir trees and there sat a huge bald eagle. They are big,Continue reading “Managing a 35 Acre Private Island in the State of Washington”