Cool medal!


I spent the past weekend on a little island about an hour flight from Okinawa mainland. I was there to visit some people ;) and run a half marathon. It's the 2nd race since the New Year I've partaken in and thus far this season is off to a good start. On January 8, three days after returning from India I ran in a Trim marathon. For those of you who don't know what a "Trim" marathon is, it's a race where you put down what time you think you'll do the run in and whoever is closest wins. No watches are allowed to be worn. I had written that I'd finish 19.2 km (roughly 12 miles) in 1:50:14. I put a slower than usual time because the previous year I had run really slow and I knew that this race would come after 3 weeks in India. I came back from India 3 kg (about 7 pounds) lighter and finished the race in 1:28. Needless to say, I didn't win anything. Well, the following week I passed on a race because I had a soccer game in which we won 10-0. I should have done the run as the game was quite boring. That brings us to this past weekend. My birthday weekend for those of you who didn't know that I am now 27 years old. My preparation for this race was quite different from usual. Friday night after flying into Ishigaki, I proceeded to a restaurant for some food and a lot of drinks. Saturday I slept in due to a headache and then went for a drive around the island. My friend and I had lunch at about 4:30 and that was pretty much all I had to eat except for part of a tuna sandwich later that evening. Sunday greeted me with strong winds and a sprinkle. The first half of the 21.0975 was tough!!! After a couple of kilometers I realized the errors of my ways. Breakfast would have been a good idea. Well, all in all I ran a great race. It took me 1:32:09. Good enough for 18th place overall and 4th in my age group. I plan on only getting faster and also smarter about running. More to come. My next race is February 12; a half marathon. I will hopefully break into the 1:20's. For now, God bless and train on!
P.S. Here are some pics of the people I hung out with in Ishigaki.
Finishing line (John and Maria)

Happy Birthday to me (Allan, John, Atsuyo)