Random tidbits/Shoe Review

A couple of Runners World tidbits I read this morning:

"Sammy Wanjiru Will Skip World Championships, Try for World Best in the Fall

Wanjiru, of course, won the marathon gold medal at the 2008 Olympics and triumphed in London in April. He had been named to Kenya's squad for the World Championships in Berlin in August but has now made clear he wants to try to break Haile Gebrselassie's world record of 2:03:59 at the "regular" Berlin Marathon. "I had already set out my programme (ie, training schedule) to run in the Berlin Marathon on September 20 and there was no way I could reverse that decision right away," explains Wanjiru, who apparently has 2:03:30 on his mind. But Wanjiru's own agent, Federico Rosa, stated later on "it is true that he will not run the World Championships marathon but also I can confirm he is not running the Berlin Marathon. We are looking for one of the later fall top marathons in USA.” Gosh...who to believe?"

Huh?!? Is Chicago in the works?!? How awesome would that be?!?! No way he is running 2:03 in NYC, just way too hilly (course record is 2:07:43), so Chi is definitely a possibility if this statement is true!!!

"Here at Runner's World we've long preached the value of good nutrition, in general, and good pre-race nutrition, specifically. We've ruminated on just the right balance of carbs, fat, and protein for performance and recovery; we've pontificated on pasta and cogitated on carbo-loading; we've rated and reviewed energy bars and supplements. When it comes to nutrition, we offer a veritable smorgasbord of stories. Turns out, we could've saved ourselves (and you) a lot of time with one simple piece of advice, at least when it comes to pre-race fueling:

Have a sub.

Hey, it worked for Wesley Korir. According to a short piece in the L.A. Times, the Kenyan walked into a Subway sandwich shop last Sunday and ordered two subs. The next day, Korir won the L.A. Marathon. In record time. Not a bad endorsement for Subway."

As most people who know me, I frequently dine at Subway - perhaps 2-3 times a week for the last few years, it is almost a disease. And the "5 Dolla Footlong" song is one of the greatest marketing jingles known to man - I want to get it as a cell phone ringer. It has been suggested that I contact Subway to endorse me due to me "investing" thousands of dollars into their food already, but something tells me Wesley Korir most likely has a leg up on me with his most recent impressive performance in L.A.

So last night, got home to see several packages on my doorstep - one from Holabirds sports (my 904's had arrived!), one from New Balance Chicago (my 903's had arrived!), and amazon.com (Punchout for Wii had arrived!!! - awesome game, btw). Unwrapped everything, and promptly fell asleep on my couch. Two hours later, dragged myself out for an easy run and to test out the new shoes. Did an out and back, 5 miles total, weather was cool and dry (similar to Chi weather last weekend), and the one week of consecutive rain had finally taken a break! Kept pace pretty conservative the first mile, and pushed it a little on the second. Picked it up coming back, and felt ok - legs were definitely tired. Total Mileage: ~5, no watch, but about 38-40 minutes. Stretched, minor corework, Cavaliers game and testing out new game afterwards - fun, fun, fun!

Here are my thoughts with the New Balance 904's:

-904's felt good around my foot - a little more snug around the base of my foot. No issues with the front, plenty wide enough. Pretty comfortable fit.

-They felt lower to the ground than the other shoes, but still provided decent cushioning. On hills, didn't have as much cushioning support as other shoes I have had (not as spongey), so worried that might be an issue after a couple hundred miles.

-904's were light, supposedly a little heavier than its precedessors but I couldn't tell much of a difference. Feet felt very light when running with them, felt especially good at faster speeds.

-904's were stiffer than I am used to, but also could be because it's a new pair of shoes.

-I typically dress conservative, but when it comes to running I LOVE loud colors (ala Andre Agassi in the early 90's). Color scheme of the actual shoe looks pretty cool, but looking down while I was running I almost felt like my feet looked like huge bumblebees!

Overall, liked the shoes a lot, but most new shoes are going to feel pretty good. Fit pretty snug (but comfortable), but still felt like I had room to run. I think I can do some major damage on a track and shorter distances, but remains to be seen for longer runs. Shoes felt good while running, but still iffy on cushioning. Will report more later...