Hood to Coast 60 Days Away: Closer

60 days until Hood to Coast, and my enthusiasm only increases. The team is being assembled. RSG will have two teams, and I am on Team A. At this point 7 of the 12 are confirmed. I think we need to kick the other 5 in the butt to get them confirmed.

My running has gone well. I'm able to run longer without taking walking breaks, which makes me happy. I haven't decided how I will do this yet out on the course, but I seem to have more stamina in my running. This actually surprises me because of all the hilly roads I'm running.

At this point though the training gets ramped up a bit. Now I look at days where I not only run longer, but I run a couple times during a day. I won't do two a days every day, but will incorporate that into my running.

While I don't know the legs I'm running yet, I am studying the map so I won't be too surprised. In that respect this is no different than other races I've run. I typically know the course map pretty well going into a race.

I feel healthy. I'm eating better and better, which is a key. My body appreciates it to be sure. Mark has concerns now and then about how I will do. The answer is you don't know, but you train to do your best, and you hope everything comes together. More often than not, it does.

The elephant in the room for some folks is how is my heart doing. I'm great! My heart is great, and I am doing all the right things. I'm confident heading into this race.

I've ordered a Hood to Coast shirt which should arrive any day now. That is when I will really know this is happening.

Thumbs up for now....with 60 days to go.


Charlie

Hood to Coast: Concerns

I'm not too far into the euphoria of being IN Hood to Coast, that I don't have some concerns.  I've never run a relay race, so this is akin to dropping my in the deep end of the ocean.

Concern #1 - my legs and feet. Depending on elevation/distance/terrain I worry about how my feet will feel after each leg. There will be time in the van where I'm sitting and getting stiff. My initial thought is to wear compression socks. Also, at each stop to get out and stretch and move, so I am not too stationary.

Concern #2 - weather. This is Oregon. My arch nemesis - rain could be there. I hate rain. I know, I know, get a jacket and suck it up.

Concern #3 - fatigue. I'm told there will be little to no sleep, how will I do on little sleep? Just how much adrenaline do I have in me?

Concern #4 - team. I don't want to fail my team by being too slow. I've been up front, I'm not a turtle, but I'm no gazelle. I don't want to disappoint.

Training is going well. I'm going to increase miles this week. I feel very good out there running. I'm officially registered, so I'm good there. So far so good, with 63 days to go.

Charlie

It's the Little Things

Every run is different. It doesn't matter if you run the same route every day, there is always something different about it. It's the little things.

One reason I love reason is I get to see the world around me. After living a life in a car, seeing the world through windows, running gives me the opportunity to be in the world, and not an observer of it. Little things happen which make me so glad to be part of the world.

Yesterday on my run I was coming up on a house where an elderly woman was on her front porch area. I saw she had a cane, and I saw she was trying to do something. As I got closer I saw she was trying to use the cane to maneuver the delivered newspaper so she could try to pick it up. She was having a great deal of trouble, and looked like she was in pain.

I startled her, as I ran up, and said, "Let me help you with that." I picked up the paper and handed it to her. She looked relived she didn't have to bend over and pick it up. She thanked me, and told her to have a great day, and she smiled.

We live in a world now where we spend a good deal of time looking down, texting, surfing, interfacing. We are forgetting to be part of the world. Sometimes it's the little things that happen that help you realize there is a world, we need to be part of it.

Charlie

Hood to Coast 74 Days Away - Why?

The question comes up as to why I want to run this race. I first heard about Hood to Coast a few years ago when a documentary came out about it. The film follows various teams and their journey. Stories include; first time runners who have no clue what they've gotten themselves into; a woman who had died briefly with a heart attack the previous year and was coming back; a family who had lost a loved one; a group of men(jocks) who love the race and running, and more. 

What I found fascinating was their desire to run, be part of a team, and see some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Most of all I appreciated the challenges each had. I love a challenge. I love the idea that it's you challenging whatever comes up on the run. Typically this is why I run marathons. While this is not a marathon, it is a kind of marathon. It's endurance over a period of time. The marathon is one long race. This is a combination of races you have to do within a certain period of time. 

Once I saw this film, I knew I wanted to run this race - somehow. Now, thanks to my company, I have the opportunity. I had this opportunity last year, but something called a heart attack kept me from running it. Anyone who knows me, knows how devastated I was about not running Hood to Coast. I've spent the last year talking to anyone about how I want to do this. Now I can.

Other members of my team have various reasons for running it. Some are just happy to have won a contest and are happy to be running. Others may have had this as a goal. Some were advised to do the race. We are all training in various ways. I've already laid out my training plan. 

Everyday I try to read up on the race so there are few surprises. I think my staff would like me to shut up about Hood to Coast. I am prone to be of over excitement about it. I have 74 days to train and stay healthy....and I can and will.

Charlie

Hood to Coast 77 Days Away - The Solitary Run

Hood to Coast is two races at the same time. First it's a relay. You and 11 other people are out there running, tacking a long and winding course from Mt. Hood to the Pacific Ocean. Each one of the team awaits the next person to come in so they can go.

At the same time this is a singular endeavor. Each leg is it's own course, of which you, and you alone are running at that time. In this respect, I think this is a solitary run.

I thought about this on my run this morning. I've not done a relay, but I have done many races on my own. This will be a race I think of as three races, for the 3 legs I'll do. Once I have my legs assignments, I can better plan how I will run each one.

On my run this morning I thought about the solitude of the race. I know there will be a few thousand others out there, but basically it will be me and the Oregon scenery. I look forward to that solitude.

Charlie

Hood to Coast - 78 Days Away: Do I Have a Plan?

Do I have a training plan for this race? Nothing on paper, but in my head yes. This is a different kind of race. I've never run a relay, so I look at it differently.

First you have to respect where you are running. Think about it, you are running 197 miles, starting at a mountain, and going to the ocean. There is any and every type of elevation and terrain on this route. How do you train for that? I've been running on the road and a gravel trail since I moved to Providence. Yesterday I talked about hills, but there are step grades that I am going to have a power walking training on.

Distance is a bit easier. Few of the legs over 7 miles. I'm going to work on getting to 6 miles in training. Because I want to run a half in the Fall, I will have some longer runs in there. For now though, this is my main focus.

I will have to run multiple times a day. This is going to be a challenge for me. So I am going to have a few days where I run twice a day. I also want to run in the evening, because that will be more of a challenge for me.  While I may need to run at 2am during the race, I won't train at 2 am.

No music! The rules say you can't run with a MP3 player, and that isn't a big deal for me. Mostly though, I want to hear what's around me. Some of the run is along busy highways, and I want to hear things coming and going. Of course being partly deaf plays a big role in this. Music will keep me from hearing all the sounds around me.

Speed? No speed. Sorry team, we aren't going to win this thing. I've been working on an even pace, and am pretty good at the 15-16 min/mile pace. Elevation will make it slower, though through the flatter areas I will "kill" it.

Team work. Because I know Christy and Katie, who are on the team,  I can depend on them for moral support and whatever team work we may need out there. We are already messaging on a daily basis, so this is a no brainer. Of course if we are in separate vans, that could be a problem.

Training plan is set....I just need to do it.

Charlie

Hood to Coast - 79 Days Away: Hills

Having done 99% of my running in Chicago and Indianapolis, the idea of running hills just has never been there. Because of my various feet issues, my doctor in Chicago told me not to run hills. No problem in Chicago or Indianapolis - hills are virtually non-existant. Not so in Providence.

This is one hilly town. Everything is rolly around here, and I have had to adjust. Now, this isn't a bad thing, it's just different. A 3 mile run here feels like a 5 mile run. I feel like I've had quite the workout when I'm done. I'd like to think it makes me a better runner.

Who knew that moving here would provide a good training ground for Hood to Coast. I can train on hills here. Granted, these are not mountains, nor are they close to the elevation changes I could potentially deal with, but it gives me some experience.

One of the things I will have to do in training is hill repeats. The College Hill area has some significant inclines, and I plan on speed walking those so I can prepare for Oregon. That's going to be tough, but it needs to be done.

Charlie

The Life We Are Meant to Have

Every year I watch the Tony Awards, and every year I find myself asking "What if?" No, it's not a fair thing to do. It's not fair for anyone to do.

In high school, when you have the world ahead of you, you think you know what you want to do, but you don't know what the world has in store for you. I've written before how I thought I would be an actor with an Oscar by the time I was 50.

I had wonderful theatrical friends like Todd Cerveris, Chris Runge, Sarah Pickett, Michael Haithcock, David Ferguson, and so many more. I wasn't a big fish in a high school small pond, but I thought I was a decent sized fish. Not getting into NC School of the Arts showed me a lot at the time. It showed me that I was someone who once I kicked down, I didn't know how to get up and go on. Instead I got up, and I said, "Ok....what else can I do?" Fact of the matter is there are days I still wonder what I can do, but it's different now.

My life has been a series of defining moments. The loss of my brother, not getting into NCSA, being raped, falsely testing HIV+, being a gay rights activist, working at Southwest Airlines, running, heart attack. All of these things have led me to the life I was meant to have, and am still having.

As my friends will tell you, I am not always the one who shouts my accomplishments from the rooftop. I think I get that from my parents, who kept things private. Don't get me wrong, I have a mouth on me, but when it comes to tooting my own horn, I do so in bits, and I make sure there are others who also get credit(where credit is due).

My running though has been a singular effort. That is me doing what I call, right foot, left foot repeat. That's me overcoming clubbed feet, obesity, self doubt, arthritis, heart disease and age to do what I love.

A lot of people have been very nice to congratulate me on winning the sales contest to get into Hood to Coast. Again, give credit where credit is due. That was not me. That was Josh, Theresa, Frances, Will, Sarah and I coming together to make sure runners and walkers have what they need to be active.  To be number one in the company is very satisfying, but I know this is just one contest, and there will be others, and I won't always be successful.

This though was meant to be. A year ago when I lost the chance to run Hood to Coast because of my heart attack, I was devastated. It truly reminded me of how I felt when I didn't get into NCSA. That sense of I've been knocked down, and now what will I do.

What I did was get back up, figure out the next step in life, but this time, I was still determined to get into this race. I didn't give up. I told anyone in the company who would listen that I fully intend on running this race, and somehow I have to get there. Hard work and team work got me into the race.

The hard part now is back to the singular me. I'm the one who has to put one foot in front of the other and succeed.

The life I was mean to have was where I learned not to give up on what you truly want. If could talk to 18 year old Charlie, I would let him know that the important thing is figuring out what you want to work towards and go do it and do it hard and well. Know that life is not just you, but it's about who works with you. It's about who gives you the chance to prove yourself. It's about what you do with the chance. That is how you get the life you are meant to have.

While I like to think there is a bit a reincarnation out there....really this is it. This is the life we get. Don't we owe it to ourselves to make the one we are meant to have? So now and then have the "What if?" moments. Just don't make those the moments that define you.

Charlie

The Road to.....Has Changed

In running you have to be prepared for anything. In this case, I'm changing up my running plans. I'm going to have to back out of Brooklyn. Money is a main consideration. A trip to NYC is not cheap. Too many other things(like bills) to pay for. It's ok though, I have other races to do. 

I'm beginning to think about what I want to accomplish in running. There are races I want to do before I can race no more.Some of those are well known(Boston). Others are not. I would love to run in Paris one day. If I can't live there, I sure would love to run the streets of Paris. I'd like to run a race in Florida so my family can come watch. I would like to go back and finish a Chicago Marathon. One of my must runs is very close to happening - Hood to Coast. 

For those not familiar, Hood to Coast is a 200 mile relay race in Oregon. It starts at Mt. Hood, and winds its way to the Pacific Ocean. A team of 12 do various legs. I first heard about this race when the documentary on the race came out a few years ago. At that moment this race rose towards the top of my must run list. 

My company sponsors a team every year. Last year they selected me to go, but it was a few days after my heart attack. I wasn't able to go, and it devastated me. I've made it no secret to the powers that be that I would like to be considered this year. There's a twist though. The company decided to have a contest, and winners would be on the Hood to Coast team. All you have to do is be one of the top 6 stores in the country to surpass your sales goals by the largest amount. 

My store is the newest store in the company. People are just finding us, but I challenged my staff on this. At the same time the company was offering a sales contest for full time hourly employees, a sort of bonus. My assistant manager is my only full time hourly person, so I made a deal with him. I help him get a bonus, he helps me get to Hood to Coast. DEAL!

The sales contest ended, and he is getting a great bonus. So how am I doing in the Hood to Coast contest? Going into the last weekend, my store is sitting at ..... #1. Yes, we are number one. The fight for the other 5 spots is close, but I am looking very solid going into this last weekend. I have a dedicated staff, who is doing their best. While I benefit from this, so does my store. We are only 3 months old, and we are exceeding expectations, and I could not be happier. So it's a win - win right now. 

So while I'm hoping I'm not jinxing it, it is looking good for me to fulfill this dream race. Send positive vibes....cross fingers....say a prayer....whatever you like. I feel this can happen....now it's time to get it done!

Charlie