super sunday 5k/10k registration now open.

that's right, online registration is open but probably not for long. i'm about to blast an email to everyone who ran last year (and some who did not) and i'm expecting this race will sell-out pretty quickly. check out supersunday5k.com for more info & watch this video-thingy i made.

boston 2010 training has begun.

dare i say it after one measly week of three runs? hell yeah! last sunday i ran the jingle bell run 5k in a snowman costume (which was hard and counts for at least 4-5 miles.) then i ran 5 miles with the niketown crew on wednesday night. then yesterday, i returned to the brookline marathon sports' weekly saturday morning run and threw down my longest run since the boston marathon: 7.2 miles. one week total: 15+ miles

okay, this kind of weekly mileage is probably child's play for you, but it's a big deal for a guy who's only run 3-4 times since september... especially a guy whose legs don't even hurt today. so i'm going out on a limb to declare that i vow to run at least twice per week through the end of february, then three times per week into april culminating with a SUB-FREAKIN'-3:00-BOSTON on april 19th!

it's on!

just in case you're wondering... the holiday 5k is ON! the race starts at 11am, so the snow will probably be a distant memory by then.

day-of registration IS available and opens at 9am.

visit www.runagainstcancer.com for more info

running on my muffled mind.

november is here, which means i'm thinking about running again... and hopefully i'll do more than just think about it within a week or two. and with the return to running comes my return to bostonrunner.com. but a few things have changed since i last posted from arizona back in march...

for starters, i've now become quite the tweeter. it's just so damn easy... micro-blogging. on top of that, i've launched a new start-up (racemenu.com) which keeps me busy a solid 25 hours per day. so as much as i love to speak my mind, you'll be spared a bit for now.

so if there's a soul who actually reads this site and wants to stay tuned, just follow me on twitter and you'll get the daily dose. and hopefully there's an easy way to feed twitter posts into the main blog area here... any suggestions?

Indoor Cycling - How Much Would You Pay to Play?

Finally! Boulder Indoor Cycling, Colorado's first indoor velodrome, opened in January. It's only the second indoor facility in the USA and a huge win for fans of track cycling. Especially us East Coasters... we've been riding down the boulevard of broken dreams for years. From Pennsylvania to Massachusetts, plans for an indoor track have blossomed like Spring flowers and then quietly wilted away. Boulder's success gives us renewed hope.

This Nor'easter melodrama began in 2003 when Northampton Cycling Club acquired the dismantled Vandedrome for $1. Despite efforts by some of New England's finest, it sat in a warehouse collecting dust for five years. Then in July 2008, Major League Cycling - a bunch of Amish farmers from Lancaster, PA - acquired it with grand plans to tour across the country. Okay, I can't attest to their cultural and religious beliefs but with the exception of Jon Chodroff, isn't everyone from out there an Amish farmer? As much as I want them to succeed, I have no idea how those plans are coming along but this page does not suggest we'll see a rebuilt Vandedrome on tour anytime soon.

Oh, how the plot thickened in late 2006 thanks to Dave Chauner's group in Philadelphia. After they announced plans to build an indoor velodrome near Valley Forge, I was ready to load a U-Haul and move back to Philly. Hell, I even registered for (though never took) the PA Bar exam. Yeah, $800 down the crapper! Last I heard, they're shopping for a new location after losing the old space due to a lack of financing. Thanks to Bill Clinton, Fannie Mae and George W. Bush for totally f'ing our economy and squashing what seemed to be a dream come true.

Don't fret, New England, there's still hope. Tony Eberhardt and Laurie Daley of the New England Velodrome in Manchester, NH have whispered about building an indoor track for several years. I haven't spoken to them in months, but knowing Tony, he'll never throw in the towel on that dream. And he can do it with some help.

So it looks like this story may still have a happy ending. But we can forget about any municipal funding for at least a few years; it's gonna' take private money to do it. In Boston, it'll cost you anywhere from $75 to $200 monthly for a gym membership. Surely it's cheaper in the burbs, but you're still gonna' plunk down at least $30 per month.

So my question for all you New England cyclist is this: how much would you pay for monthly access to an indoor velodrome? Sure, it would make sense to have different membership levels based on how frequently you go or peak versus off-peak hours. But let's keep it simple for now; assume the track is within a half-hour drive and you'd want access all year long. How much would you pay to play? Please respond by commenting below. With some luck, the feedback might actually make a difference really soon.

Meanwhile, congratulations and thanks to Paul Wells and the gang in Boulder for actually making it happen. You've given us New Englanders hope that we too can have an indoor velodrome.

142 Miles - By The Numbers

Until today, the longest training ride I'd ever done was 112 miles. That was one month ago, my third day here in Tucson. That was a small group ride out to the top of Kitt Peak w/ Rebecca M., Adam M., Shawn M. and Dan V.

Well, I've now got a new record, one which I suspect will stand for much longer than a month.

Today's ride by the numbers:

142 - length of today's ride in miles
229 - length of today's ride in kilometers
7:25 - total time in the saddle
19.2 - average speed of today's ride
169.3 - weight immediately before today's ride
155.8 - weight immediately after today's ride
5,180 - total elevation gain in feet
91 - miles I rode with a group
51 - miles I rode alone
80 - minimum number of riders on today's Shootout group ride
7 - other New Englanders on today's Shootout
12 - minimum number of Canadians on today's Shootout
20 - meters to go to the Shootout sprint sign when I ran outta' gas
2 - riders (both Canadians) that beat me in the Shootout sprint
10 - riders that did the Madera Canyon extension
220 - calories in the Honey Bun I ate at mile 62
190 - calories in the pack of PowerBar Gel Blasts I ate at mile 102
220 - calories in the Honey Bun I ate at mile 112
112 - ounces of sports drink I consumed on today's ride
54 - temperature (F) at the start of today's ride
85 - temperature (F) at the end of today's ride
8,904 - calories I burned according to MapMyRide.com

Five Weeks Left... But Who's Counting?

That's right folks, 5 weeks from right now, many of us will be reveling in the glory of having run the Boston Marathon. How excited are you? (twitter users, use tweet tag #boston2009) I'm very excited going into this year's race... and think I may finally eek out a sub 3:00 finish. (if so, it'll be very close)

A few interesting news tidbits related to the marathon today:
1. B.A.A. Announces New 'Invitational Mile' Races
This was a pleasant surprise, since I'm working on plans for a 1-mile "dash for cash" along the streets of Boston later this year. The B.A.A. race simply adds credibility and exposure to the distance.

2. 23-Month Old Qualifies For Boston Marathon
Heart-warming story... especially the guy's training routine w/ an empty carriage!

Rest day for me today, after a 4-day block of long, intense mileage. Yesterday I raced the Hungry Dog Criterium up in Phoenix, AZ. Since the prize list was ridiculously weak and I'm here to TRAIN, I opted to let it all hang out in this race. To that end, I hit it hard from the gun and lead a strung-out field the first few times through the start/finish line. (note, laps were less than 1km)

There were 10 Team Waste Management riders along with at least 6 Team Landis riders and two more teams with at least 4 riders, so I had my hands full covering attacks all day. Not to be out-done, I threw down a few of my own but none evolved into a group with all teams represented.

The fast pace (27+ mph) and constant attacking was starting to get to me about 2/3 way through the 70 minute race, so I chugged my remaining water, stretched and hoped for the best. Luckily, no cramps for the finish... which was a full-on field sprint. I got into the Landis lead-out with 4 laps to go and was sitting in 2nd with 1 lap to go. Unfortunately, the guy peeled off too soon so I had to shuffle things around a bit. Ended up 5th wheel into the final turn until one of the Waste Mgmt riders lost control and slammed into me; man, I hit him so hard he bounced across the road. Everyone stayed upright but that momentary tango moved me back to 10th-ish. I could hear flyin' Ryan behind me "pedal Alain, pedal as hard as you can" but I was admittedly a bit spooked from the near-miss.

With ~150 meters to the finish line, I was only able to move up to 8th place. Not the best finish, but considering how much time I spent off the front, I was very pleased. After the race, I went out for a 35 mile ride and thought about my father the whole time - cancer took him from us on March 15th, 1990.