2008 Capitol 20,000

Yesterday was the 4th annual Capitol 20,000. Yes, the 20,000. For the last 3 years Duane, Toby, and I have run two laps at the Capital 10,000. We've been joined by some others a couple times (Sadie, Jennifer, Duane's dog Maverick).

This year's addition was the hardest ever for me since it came less then 36 hours after returning from Sadie's and my honeymoon in France and also because I had run a total of 35 miles this month. That's not exactly the best way to peak for Boston.

Toby and Dan decided to do their extra lap before the race this year. Duane joined them and thus completed the 1st Cap30k. I kept with tradition and did the race first and the easy lap 2nd.

The race was really tough due to the humidty and my fatigue. It really helped that it rained off and on throughout the race and kept us somewhat cool. Duane and I ran the race portion in 44:12. I felt pretty good the first few miles, but by the time we got to Mopac I was starting to work real hard. I slowed down a little but was able to run a respectable time considering my training. After the race, we met up with Travis for the 2nd lap. He had a good race running sub-40/min. It was pretty tough getting started again, but we took off up Congress Avenue again.

The 2nd lap is always cool because the streets are deserted, but still closed off for the most part. It's mostly people taking down the waterstops and band setups. We usually catch the last place walkers somewhere on Enfield around Lamar. Once we do that we slowly start catching the masses of walkers. By the time we get to Cesar Chavez it gets really crowded and you start weaving through everyone. It's weird to be running through a big crowd of walkers.

The 2nd lap was really hard for me. I think we were running around a 9 min pace, but it seemed much faster. The hills took a lot out of me and by the time we got to Mopac my foot was hurting. I must have laced my right shoe too tight, because the tendons on top were really sore. We stopped at water stops and took it pretty easy. We stopped at the S. 1st St bridge so that we didn't cross the finish line a 2nd time. The 2nd lap was unnofficially 55 minutes including some stops for water and loosening my shoes.

This was the toughest version of the 20k, but I'm glad we kept the streak going.

I'm A Married Man

Sadie and I were married on Saturday. I couldn't be happier to be sharing the rest of my life with such a wonderful woman. Our wedding seemed to go just as it was planned. I was a little overwhelmed to see how many of our family and friends came to celebrate with us. I'm not used to being at the center of attention (Sadie was THE center of attention, of course), but I managed to get through our vows without messing up and was able to dance without tripping.

We tried to take it all in so that we could remember our wedding with some clarity. In the short time I have to write this, a few highlights that I remember were:

1. Our vows that seemed to go on forever. Sadie and I both got the laughs during out turns.
2. Walking in at the start of the ceremony. Everyone seemed to be staring at me since Sadie hadn't entered yet. I tried to smile and make eye contact with as many people as possible.
3. Seeing so many people from different parts of my life all in the same room. There were family members, running buddies, golf buddies, college friends, work friends and people I know through Sadie all together.
4. Our first dance. We danced to George Strait's "I Cross My Heart". I can two-step okay, but I was too nervous to try any spins or twirls. We just kept moving in a big circle and I tried to stop stepping on Sadie's dress.
5. My dance with my mom. We danced to "Rhinestone Cowboy" and it sounded like everyone was singing along and having a good time. This was one of my favorite songs when I was a little boy. There's a good back story to why we picked it.
6. The champagne toast. Duane gave a wonderful toast that nearly had me crying. I had no idea what he was going to say about me, but it left me feeling great to have such a good friend.
7. Our exit. Everyone lined up with sparklers and we ran through them to our car. It was a beautiful ending to a great night.

All in all it was a great day. It started with a round of golf with two of my college friends and teammates, Clay and Brian, along with Brian's dad Tim. The middle of the day was spent getting ready for the wedding and hanging out in the Groom's House with all the guys and my family. It finished with the perfect wedding to my new wife Sadie. The newest Mrs. Jones. She's the love of my life.