After running the 25K River Bank Run at a snail’s pace, I went with a group of guys to move a hot tub and lay sod. Boy am I sore now! As I recover at home, I wonder what will be my next milestone event. I haven’t raced in 10 years, but I want to improve. Right now, I’m considering:

Reeds Lake Triathalon

Grand Rapids Marathon

I’m open to any other ideas. I know I need a lot more distance, speed and hill work though.

My 15 mile run today was the longest of the year. I ran through heavy snow and got hit by a lot of slush from passing cars. I fell once and almost fell a half dozen times. Still, it was good to get out there.

Treadmills are for wimps! Like Bill Faber, I put on the facemask and ran in sub-zero temperatures today.  Here’s a picture of me after six miles.

I’ve run a dozen miles, in the dark, uphill (and barefoot) since my last post. Still, I’m only 0.1 miles ahead of Bill Faber. That guy is a machine! He’s relentless in his pursuits … including his demands that I remove our running log from December 2006. So, I’m caving! I’ve moved last year’s columns.

I’m not used to running in this cold. I think I need to get a face mask. I’m pretty warm when I’m moving, but the wind really cuts into my face. I’ve never had any problems running with my 60GB iPod until the weather dipped below freezing. Now, it stops or sputters every few miles.

What a beautiful, sunny day for a 6.5 mile run. Lately, I’ve felt like Forrest Gump after he had run for years. Perhaps it’s my scraggly beard and the fact I’ve been running on ice. Today, I felt like the younger Forrest – when he first took off running. I ran as fast as I could for the last three miles. It felt like a race pace.

To celebrate, I’ve decided to shake things up on my blog. No more being confined to all “Home – ” titles. I mixed it up today!

My six mile run this morning was freezing! I returned with frost on my beard. This moved me ahead of Bill. Looks like he’s resorted to tracking 1/10th miles. My newest injury is a (possibly broken) left toe. Caught it on the coffee table and it went completely backward.

As I read this blog, I can’t believe how interesting it all sounds. Facial hair and toe issues. No wonder my entires have such a large following!

After a series of longer runs, my Nike Air shoes are no more. The outside edge blew and I had to go get a new pair this past weekend. I ran 4.0 mile Sunday and 4.0 more tonight. I’m finding it hard to get motivated and take the time to run this week.

Working from home again today. I ran 6.0 miles yesterday and need to do another 5.0 to keep up with BP! These runs are taking a long time. I feel healthy, but SLOW. I’ll update the spreadsheet after I run. I wonder what my total miles will be for the first week and month of 2007…

Update: I ended up running another 8.0 miles today. A very hilly route.

I finished the year with a (cold and rainy) 9.0 mile run.  That puts me over 60 miles for the month. Not a huge month, considering over 28 miles were in the last five days! Still, it was good to end the year with a longer run.

Tonight, we’re going to a New Year’s Eve party. I’d rather do 10 more miles, but I guess I need to be social. Resolutions? They are rarely kept, but here goes…I resolve to be a better husband, father and runner.

I’ve taken some time off from the blog. Bill Faber put together a spreadsheet to help us prepare for the Riverbank. To see our daily miles, I added this chart:

Click on the chart to go to the table! I’ll keep adding my miles there and posting any new thoughts (rare) here. The only thing new to report is that I have NO injuries and a NEW haircut.