Some pictures

These pictures were taken at the 25.5 mile area.  I had just started speeding up, which is why I'm alone in the picture.  The second picture has Michael in the background, the pacer who was very encouraging thru the second half of the marathon.  He's the one carrying the balloons.

So below this entry you can see my results from running the SF marathon. My first marathon I ran was the Big Sur marathon earlier this year. It is known as one of the harder marathons to do but I did better than I thought I would. I finished in 3:25 and decided that my goal for the year would be to qualify for Boston which meant that I would have to run a marathon in 3 hours and 10 minutes. On a whim, I signed up for the SF marathon not thinking that I would achieve my goal as it's a tad hilly and windy but just enjoy the run and hopefully do well. Clif Bar sponsors pace groups where a pacer will run the course in a certain amount of time. The pacers are easy to spot as they run with a stick that has 3 balloons attached. On the balloons the finishing time of that pacer is written. Even though I wasn't very confident I could pull off a 3:10 marathon, I decided to run with Jack, the pacer for the 3:10 group. It was nice running with a group and not having to think about if my pace was on as Jack was keeping track of the pace. The first half wasn't a problem as I've run a lot of half marathons at 1:35 or faster. But I was definitely wondering if I could keep up the pace for another 13 miles. At the halfway point, I was a bit in front of the pace group but a couple miles into the second half, Michael, who took over for Jack at the halfway point, as the pacer came up behind me. He was going at a faster pace than I was but I decided to try to keep up with him. It was tough and after mile 21 I was definitely starting to have second thoughts but Michael was very supportive and really kept me focused. With about a mile to go I picked up my pace and gave everything I had for a sprint finish. I had some friends who decided to cheer for me during the race or at the finish line but I finished faster than we all expected and only ended up seeing Peter, who ran with me for about a mile. I really am grateful for all the support and encouragement my friends, family, and complete strangers provide during my races. Yesterday was a perfect example of how well I can do with support from others. My training gives me a great foundation but without all the encouragement I get before, during, and after races, there is no way I could achieve those goals.

I done good!

7/29/2007   San Francisco CA
San Francisco Marathon     -    Full Marathon

Bib:	5630
Name:	John Branderhorst
Gender:	M
Age:	28
Hometown:	San Francisco CA

Place Overall:	65	out of   4250
Men:	63	out of   2805
M 25-29:	17	out of   429

AgeGrade:

67.28%

Place:  184

FINISH:

3:06:44

pace:   7:08

7.5 Miles:	55:48	pace:   7:27
Half:	1:35:44	pace:   7:19
20.7 Miles:	2:30:20	pace:   7:16

Chip Time:	3:06:44
Gun Time:	3:08:53

What are you doing?

So I've been venting a bit lately about the state of pro sports.  But there is another side to every story and I just finished reading about athletes who provide money and time to those less fortunate.  Here's the article, http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=wojciechowski_gene&id=2950420&sportCat=ncf&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab5pos1 .  I probably should have just linked it but oh well.  If you've never given of your time or money for someone in need, you really should.  I'm not lying when I say it feels good.

 

"I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver." - Maya Angelou

こんにちは

最近ブログに英語しか書いてない。すみません。私はほとんどスポーツについて書いてます。

アジアカップで日本を負けちゃって、韓国も負けて、さしぶりに中東の国で決勝です。IraqとSaudi Arabiaです。

Tour de Franceのニュースも見てるけど、あんまりよくない。何名いんちきして、面白くない。やばい、私は日本語を忘れてる！

ごめん、詳しくかけなくて、恥ずかしい。勉強しなくきゃ。。。

Asian Cup 2007

For only the 3rd time, the finals of the Asian Cup will be between two Middle Eastern countries.  Japan lost to Saudi Arabia and South Korea lost on PKs to Iraq.

 

Iraq making it into the finals is uplifting for a country that has seen so much hardship in the past couple of years.  It should have been an opportunity to celebrate but as thousands of people took to the streets, two suicide bombers took the lives of over 50 people with scores more being injured in the bombings.  To add to the bombings, a number of people have also been killed in celebratory gunfire.  Bullets really should be a lot more expensive.

 

I hope Iraq does well in the final but I'm also scared to think what will happen if they win. 

 

Suicide bombers: I just don't get it.  Can somebody please enlighten me?  I have a feeling that whatever explanation I'm given, it won't really matter.  I just won't get it. 

 

AND in cycling news, another one bites the dust.  This time it was Italian Cristian Moreni.  Unlike others, Cristian admitted to the wrongdoing and didn't request a b-sample.  I tell you what, them cyclists sure do love their testosterone.  And when caught, I love how they blame it on the steak and beer they had the night before. 

The news the past couple days has been less than joyful.
I'm a sports fan but it's becoming harder and harder to enjoy sports as all the news about them seem to be about anything but the sport that is being reported on. In baseball, we have a steroid problem, basketball has a gambling ref, football has wife beaters, dog fighting, lots of guns, and the occassional murder. Oh and in the news today, big surprise: Tour de France rider Alexandre Vinokourov tested positive for a banned blood transfusion after winning last weekend's time trial, prompting his Astana team to pull out of the race Tuesday. I was actually respecting this guy as he's been rocking it in the mountains. Even after a crash that left him stitched up in the knees and elbows, he went on to win stages. Now those wins are tainted with "Now we know why"

Well, at least I have soccer (football). The Beckhams have arrived and it looks like I'll get to go see good ole David kick some balls when San Jose ( about an hour south of me) joins the MLS next year.

In other news, I haven't reached a level where I feel the need to inject anything into me to do better at my races. I went to a meeting about Ironman (IM) training programs last night and over the period of 15 minutes I changed my mind about which race I'd like to give a go at. When I showed up at the meeting, I was set on trying Ironman Wisconsin as it's the closest IM to my family and a lot of friends. I then thought maybe I would try to get into Ironman Cor D'Alene in Idaho as a lot of people at the meeting were going to be doing that and I thought it would be nice to do a race with the people I'll be training with. By the end of the meeting, IM Brazil became the race of choice. I shouldn't have a problem getting into it as it hasn't filled up in recent years and it's in May so that gives me time to enjoy my summer and make it to my friend Brandon's wedding. So IM Brazil it is, I'll start saving up for it as just the application is $350 plus the IM training programs, flights, gear... well, you get the idea. This race will probably be the race I fundraise for with most, if not all, of the donations going to a charity. This past year I raised just over a $1000 dollars for the Susan Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Oh, and if you were thinking of giving me a Christmas/ Birthday present, save it and donate it towards my race fund. I didn't plan on my entry today to end like this but hey, it's on a good note. Start with bad sports stuff, end with great sports stuff.

And later this week, I'll be giving my thoughts on Attorney General Gonzales and why I think it's crazy that he thinks he should stay on to repair the image of the Justice Dept. I'm afraid it's just not going to happen.

Beautiful sky

Courtesy of my phone.

At Beth's wedding
Originally uploaded by john hayato

I was just looking thru my photos and noticed in this picture how Brian & Beth's photo is at the bottom left corner. I really like how this picture seems like it's part of a slideshow and that's the next picture sliding up. Or not...

My T.V. debut.
My friend Gabriel does a SF arts and entertainment spot on the local channel and I try to go and support him whenever he's filming. During this segment, there's actually some shots of me. Enjoy.

Yesterday's dinner, Today's Lunch

Can you figure out what's in it?

So over the next couple of days I'll hopefully be catching up with my blog writing. I've had a busy few weeks as friends visited, did a triathlon, spent some time back home (Michigan, not Okinawa), and enjoyed my first 4th of July in about 6 years in America.

I spent about 4 days back in Michigan to attend my cousin Beth's wedding. It was also the first time in 4 years that my immediate family was together in one place. Unfortunately, my brother in law Jeremy ended up having to cancel his flight due to awful weather in North Carolina. While home I learned my brother Mark had taken up golfing and it gave the men of the family some time to bond over 7 am golfing. Mark beat me both times and Uncle John and I tied when we played. My dad and James had their moments of nice shots but in the end had to settle for 4th and 5th. Maybe next time we get together the order will change.

Now that I've been back in SF for a week, I'm having trouble remembering all the details of the trip. We spent a day at the beach, I went for a run with my sister riding alongside me with water, beat my brother in soccer skills games, caught up with some high school and college friends. I also got to meet up with Derek and Kerrie for a day as they drove into Holland for a day. Overall the trip was a huge success as I got to reconnect with some friends and spend lots of quality time with family.