Chris McIntyre » Marathon Quest

We’re Signed Up for the “I Run for the Party” 1/2 Marathon

theFerf — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:33:41 +0000

Well, we have done it again. It has been almost a year since we ran the Portland Marathon, and Amy and I decided to sign up for another race. Only this time, it’s a 1/2 marathon. More posts soon, but this is the official mark of the start of our 12 week training program.

You can follow all my training on daily mile here, or you can subscribe to my updates on twitter.

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Portland Marathon 2008 – A Success for Everyone!

theFerf — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 00:59:16 +0000

Well, we did it. Amongst the long hours of work, moving to the city and other surprises… not to mention Amy Macs knee tendinitis, 6 weeks of inactivity and 4 weeks of physical therapy… we made it! Not only did we make it, we made it look goooood.

Ok, maybe not good, but we both were very happy with the race. 26.2 miles is a hard race to prepare for not only physically, but mentally as well. How do you run that far, and more importantly, how do you plan to run that far? When we started this adventure 6-7 months ago we had no idea what to expect in terms of time commitment, training hours and miles or even how fast we would try to run this thing… so we through some goal times out (pulling them from thin air) and put them out there.

Originally I thought ~4 hours would be something I could accomplish, and I would try to drag Amy along with me. But as time wore on it became more and more obvious with our short training schedule and demands at work that this would not really be possible. I adjusted my plan to be around 4:30 and Amy adjusted her schedule to be 5 hours (although she really wanted to be able to keep pace with me). While not 100% successful, we are very happy with what the results were. I ended up running 4 hours and 38 minutes and Amy ran 4 hours and 59 minutes! Success, I say!

As of this writing it has been one week since we finished our race. I will probably run one again, but Amy was only in it for the one race. Im not sure when I will be able to begin my training again, my toe nail fell off yesterday (my big toe) and it hurts to walk, let alone run. We will just have to see how soon the pain goes away so I can start moving again. Most likely I will start training for more triathlons and half marathons and find a sweet full marathon in the next few years to test me again.

I just read that Sarah Palin ran a sub 4 hour marathon… and with that, I have a new goal time. I would like to say my goal was to qualify for the Boston marathon, but to make that happen I would have to slash about 90 minutes off of my time. Ha ha ha ha!

To all of our supporters for the last few months and those who cheered us on along the route in Portland, thanks for your support, kind words and tips. You helped make this a memorable experience all around.

Check out all of our Marathon Photos here.
The Official Portland Marathon Website

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Status Update, Where Am I?

First Long Run with My New Garmin Forerunner 405

theFerf — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 18:00:35 +0000

This past weekend Amy and I took off for a long 10 mile run. This was the first long run we did with my new Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS watch. We ran from the ocean here in San Francisco, through Golden Gate Park and back again and ended our run sipping beers and mai tais at the Park Chalet. I have to admit, this was one of the best runs Amy and I have ever been on (especially considering it was 10 miles)!

If you click on the map above or on this link, you will be connected to the Garmin website where you can review the details from the GPS data of our run. It’s not a big deal, but the data that comes from the watch is just plain interesting to look at (at least to a nerd like me). We averaged 11 minute miles for the whole run and even ran our last miles the fastest, clocking in at 9:41 for the last mile! Typically I would not be that impressed, but this was 10 miles!

Coming up in a few weeks Amy and I are planning on running the San Francisco 1/2 marathon with a goal time of around 2 hours and 10 minutes for the 13 mile race (which if you do the math, is 10 minutes per mile). This is slow for real runners, but considering this is our first long distance race, we have our fingers crossed we can make it. One month of training to go!

Wish us luck with our 1/2 marathon and full marathon training!Similar Posts:

Run for the Fallen – Today It’s Not About Me

theFerf — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 05:13:06 +0000

Amy wrote a great post about the run we did in southern California a few weeks ago with Run for the Fallen. Read Amy’s blog post, I could not describe it any better.

From WithAmyMac.com:

“Every time I head out for a run, IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢m focused on MY goals, MY progress, MY training and making it to the next mile. But today it was different. Today we traveled over 400 miles so we could run 5 miles with the Ã¢â‚¬Å“Run for the FallenÃ¢â‚¬Â team. The Ã¢â‚¬Å“Run for the FallenÃ¢â‚¬Â team, lead by Jon, is a group of 12 people that after recently losing a loved one in Iraq has decided to run a mile for every fallen U.S. soldier. There have been over 4,080 lives lost in Operation Iraqi Freedom and starting on Flag Day 2008 these runners began their journey from Fort Irwin, CA to Arlington National Cemetery. The goal is to memorialize each soldier by assigning them a mile and planting a flag and placard at the start of that mile.”

Read the rest of Amys description of our trip and experience titled “Today, it’s not about me” on her blog.Similar Posts:

Running a Few Miles for the Fallen Troops of Operation Iraqi Freedom

theFerf — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 19:08:36 +0000

This coming Wednesday (June 18, 2008 at 6am), Amy and I will be in southern California (near Camp Pendleton) to run 5 to 10 miles with the people at Run for the Fallen. I am proud of the effort they are making and am thankful for what they are doing to help heal the pain of the friends, families and loved ones of the over 4,000 soldiers who have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom. In my opinion, this is a great way to help remember those who have died protecting us.

If you are a runner and you would like to take part in what is going on with the Run for the Fallen folks, head on over to the website www.runforthefallen.org and check out their route map and other links. They have setup a Facebook Group for each day of the event (over 70 days total of running) listing the time and date of every days run, the days running map, and also the name and details of the soldiers they will be running for and memorializing that day. Here is the Facebook Page for the day of the run Amy and I will be taking part in and here are the names and photos of all the soldiers we are running for that day. Even if they are not running through your area, you should take some time if you are a runner or walker to head outside and take a few steps (or a few 1000 steps) to support the cause.

As we all run across the country, there will be an American flag and signcard for every one of the over 4,000 soldiers who have died placed at every single mile. Our friend, Tim McGovern, will have is signcard and flag placed on August 18th in the middle of Virginia on the way to Arlington National Cemetery.
TIME AND PLACE of Our Run:

Date: Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Time: 6:00am – 6:00pm
Location: South Harbor
Street: Harbor Drive S.
City/Town: Oceanside, CA

What is Run for the Fallen (from their Official Site):

ONE MILE FOR EVERY SOLDIER KILLED IN OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM.

Beginning Flag Day, June 14, 2008, a dedicated team of runners will run across America from Fort Irwin, CA to Arlington National Cemetery, one mile for every soldier killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. For ten weeks, team members will mark each mile with an American flag and signcard in an apolitical reflection of remembrance of each soldier.

Here is a Video that explains why this run was setup:

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Preparing for the 2008 Bay to Breakers

theFerf — Sun, 18 May 2008 05:49:44 +0000

Well… tonight is the big night. I am sitting around with Amy, Joe, Pam and Nick having a few frosty beverages shooting the shit preparing for the 2008 Bay to Breakers. We have our costumes prepared, we have a plan for getting to and from the race course, and now… we are drinking whiskey and lemonade drinks :D Check out the photos below to keep up to date with our progress.

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I Bought A Bike > Schwinn 2007 LeTour

theFerf — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 04:13:04 +0000

Here it is, my new road bike. It is a little odd riding a road bike considering I have ever only ridden a mountain bike, but I am starting to get used to it. I have only been out on a few rides, but it is an amazing bike. It is fast and is pretty comfortable.

The goal is to ride this a few times a week (evenings and weekends) until the shin splints go away and as a cross-training tool. The next step is to start riding it to work. Not a big deal in distance (its only 3 miles to the train) but the ride from the train to the house is the tough part. It’s uphill, foggy and dark by the time I get home in the evenings… which doesn’t sound like a safe thing to be doing to me. Not a whole lot of news here, just excited to own the bike and wanted to blog about it so I could remember it when I am old… that is, of course, one of the goals of this blog… to remind me of all of my adventures when my brain gives up on me.Similar Posts:

Status Update, Where Am I?

theFerf — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 02:43:20 +0000

It has been a crazy few months so I thought I would give another quick update. The marathon training has been going great. Logging lots of miles, until, I got shin splints. I have been not running for the last week or so and have been trying to stretch and relax a bit to ease the pain. It was probably a good thing though, because I had a LOT of work to do last week as PodShow released a major upgrade to the site, as well as a name change to Mevio.

So a little bit about the name change. PodShow, the company I have worked with for the last 3+ years, has re-branded to Mevio (found at mevio.com of course). There were many reasons for this but I don’t really need to get into all of that here. If you would like a great take on the transition from one of our producers standpoints, you can check out the GeekBrief blog with Cali Lewis. She wrote up a great post on it. I am excited about the changes happening at the office and am looking forward to where the company is going.

Now back to the marathon training. In preparing for the big race, Amy and I (as well as Nick a little bit and our friends Joe and Pam) are going to run in some other races as well. Mid May we are going to be taking part in the Bay to Breakers 12k and then the San Francisco 1/2 marathon in August before we take off to the Portland Marathon in October! Lets hope my shins heal up nicely before we get too much further :)

What else? In August, Amy and I will have been married for 7 years. At that time, we will be taking our first official vacation as a couple! We have taken a weekend here and there, or went home to Tennessee for a week but still working regular hours, so this is a pretty big deal for us. We will be taking off to Hawaii (Kauai and Maui I believe) for around 10 days and if the timing works out, maybe a trip through Las Vegas on the way back to attend the Portable Media Expo… we will have to see about that one, though.

Other than that, I guess it is work as usual. Long days and nights trying to build the best online entertainment hub on the planet :) Stay tuned for more updates and photos, I have lots of them but no time to post regularly. Nick and Amy are both up to some amazing things that I can not talk about yet… but soon!Similar Posts:

The Year of the Marathon!

theFerf — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 22:43:53 +0000

Not too long ago Amy and I went out with some friends of our (Joe & Pam). While out, we got to talking about running and marathons and it turns out, Pam has run a few in her day. As the conversation continued, Amy said she had always wanted to run a marathon (as had I)… so she decided right then and there that 2008 would be the Year of the Marathon! She has started a mission that I assume will be one of the hardest of her fitness life… and I will be running along side her.

Amy and I have always been very active (she much more than I) and look forward to this challenge. If you are interested in running with us (or biking with me) shoot me an email and lets get outside! The weather has just started being nice again outside (above 60 and sunny all week) and I am excited to get off of the treadmill. Visit my site often and check out the running log (in the right hand navigation) to follow our mileage and routes.

Lots of updates to follow, I’m sure. Oh, for reference, I am debating running the San Francisco Marathon and Amy is thinking about the Nike Womens Marathon. Additionally, we are going to try and run the Bay to Breakers 12k in May as well as a fitness gauge.Similar Posts: