From Clutter to Clarity

I admit that I have been a little funky and scattered as of late. There are a few things going on that I am trying to get a handle and the proper perspective on. I have been fighting a cold and respiratory thing now for a little bit which is more annoying than anything else at this point. It did force me to walk about 75% of the NYC marathon last weekend which was a little disappointing. But I quickly remembered that a finish is all that mattered and our team, Grassroot Soccer raised close to $150,000 for AIDS/HIV education through the GRS program. That’s a big win. Even though it ended up being a walk, it was a great and memorable weekend.

I’m feeling better too. Not “better” – better. But I am feeling very much improved and should be back to normal in a day or two. I feel better mentally and I’m looking forward to moving into the winter to enjoy some care free mountain biking and trail running. While I have already committed to a couple of races in 2011, I am waiting on the rest until I sort through some things and make some decisions about what I want to do and where I want to do them. It seems there are a lot of new racing options for me in 2011 and I am excited about that.

One thing I know for sure is that I need to do a few different things next year. I’m getting stale with a couple of events so I will mix things up a little bit. I want to add events such as an adventure race, an ultra marathon, an off road triathlon, etc. I’ll call it “racing of a different flavor”…. Or something like that. Certainly more to follow on that.

This Sunday, November 14^th I will be appearing at the Philly FIT BASH as a ‘celebrity judge”. My buddy Jami Appenzeller, the magazine’s publisher, called to ask me to help judge a number of fitness workouts based on various categories. It should be a lot of fun. Although, I don’t quite get the “celebrity” part.  All of the BASH details can be seen here: http://phillyfitmagazine.com/

I have at least one more race left this season (and possibly more than that). It’s the 8K being held the weekend of the Philadelphia Marathon. The 8K will be on November 20^th and the half and full marathons will be the next day, Sunday November 21^st. More on that can be found here: http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com/

The interesting twist on this is that Philadelphia Magazine contacted me because they are doing some kind of a feature story on inspiring runners who will be racing that weekend. I’m not sure what to expect, but there will be some kind of blurb on me as well as a number of other runners coming out shortly. As I see something, I will post it.

Don’t forget the new book is now available. I’m pretty excited about  the contributions of those who helped with this project. Be sure to click on the BOOK link and check In Search of Center.

That’s about it for now. Today is Veterans Day. Thanks to all who have served this great country. My thoughts and prayers go out to those courageous souls we have lost over the years and to their families.