There and Back Again, a Runner's Tale

"So you're going to go through with it, then."

"I am, I've been planning this for a long time. It'll give me something to talk about for the next nine days - or ninety-nine, more likely. Anyway, at least I'll have my race."

Traveling "there and back again" assumes a) you know where you're starting from, b) you have a vague idea for a destination and c) once finished, you'll want to revisit where it all began. Having not trained for a marathon since Vancouver 1996 (03:02:00) I decided this spring to return to my beginning/ending and strike out on a fresh path in an attempt to see how fast I can run 26 miles 385 yards, my destination (again).

The 2006 ING Ottawa Marathon proved to establish the foundation, 2:45:29.4. And now, I've set out to find that place, there. For weeks now, I've been running around the peninsula preparing for the Grand Old Party. Tempo sessions at Beacon Hill Park following in hoof tracks long since faded, countless miles on the gridiron and painfully seductive sessions at the hands of my masseuse in an attempt to change, becoming fast(er).

To borrow a phrase from John L. Parker, "The Trial of Miles; Miles of Trials."

At 7:00 a.m., December 3rd, I will be toeing the line to compete in the 24th annual California International Marathon. This is my account of the lead up to the race and subsequent journey in my efforts, there.