Here we go...

A couple articles I found pertaining to tomorrow's big race. First one talks about Deena Kastor and basically that she is ready to tear it up tomorrow! Next two articles are about Sammy Wanjiru - this one is pretty much his bio, and this one is an interview not too long after his Olympic victory. The dude is pretty impressive, and I would be shocked if he didn't win tomorrow.

So landed in Chi on Thursday night, met up with Shane and took the El into the city. Caught up with a few friends for dinner and drinks in Lincoln Park, then waited for Tim to get in before calling it a night. Nonstop rain, just ugly weather. Friday, woke up to more of the same, got over to the Expo after great brunch at a place in Lincoln Park called Orange. The place serves fruity pebbles with pancakes - absolutely amazing!!! The expo was pretty crowded when we got there, and got to check out some pretty cool exhibits. The highlight was getting the meet the great Deena Kastor, who is so nice and easy to talk to (pics later). Afterwards, hit up a quick run on Lakeshore with Shane and Tim in the spitting rain. Got in 3 miles easy with them, then met up with Pat and Crystal for dinner downtown before heading out for a short nightcap.

Today, the weather has absolutely cleared up and it is GORGEOUS outside but pretty chilly. Probably bum around and chill out before the big race all day, and get in a small run with the group. Weather will be freezing cold in the morning, but the forecast for tomorrow looks perfect - high 49, low 40, everything I could have asked for. So it comes down to less than 24 hours...

The rest of my list...

5: Road Racing - at this point,a good portion of why I do all these crazy workouts these days. It's good to have a goal point down the road to aim for, and I have created training segments for almost every type of race possible. Fun to do, and I would encourage everyone to sign up for a local 5K and get in a few miles - at the very least, you get good exercise and a free tshirt!

4: Awesome Apparel and Shoes - to be a runner, it helps to look the part. All running companies have designed some pretty awesome apparel, and at this point running clothes has taken over about 75% of my wardrobe. But some of the most comfortable things to wear are my running stuff, and I love that running shoes are the most comfortable and lightest shoes that I have.

3: My IPOD and MP3 player - My training partner away from my training partner. For mid mileage runs by myself or at night, nothing gets me into a better zone than music. No way I could run as much as I do without it.

2: My training partners - Pat and Crystal, no way I could be here right now without you guys. You have made training a billion times easier, you have run a billion miles with me over the last 2 years, you have fed me a billion meals, and we have had the same running conversations a billion times. Thank you for everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1: Boston - well for me, you have to aim for the stars and I am trying to land the biggest fish of all. When I started running a few years ago, this goal was not realistic and seemed impossible, but here I am on the cusp of my own personal glory. There is a good chance I won't hit it as there are so many external factors out of my control that will dictate how I run tomorrow, but I certainly won't go down without a fight :)