The March into March(or Danny has plans for you)

With March nearly upon us I decided I'd give everyone a run-down of Iron Girl and (almost)Ultra-Running Boy's schedule as well as a few things that you should all take into consideration.

First things first:
Before the start of March: As the February winds to an end, so does your chances of winning a two-night stay at the Mount Washington Hotel. Well, you can still register after February 28th, but the entry fee does go up. Winter Wild is a fun enough race in itself but for $25 more you can also ski the rest of the day. AND you will be entered in the raffle to win, amongst other things, the chance to stay for two nights at an awesome hotel. REGISTER HERE. 

Before March 15: Another impending deadline is March 15th for the lottery to race Mount Washington(my top ten reasons to run it here). Since proposing to Amber at the Summit in 2008, this will be the first year that I won't be running it. But you still can! Make sure to throw your name in the lottery now!

March 1st: Snowshoe Nationals! If you have qualified you already will be there, but if you haven't it is still worth the drive as there is a citizens race as well as an uphill snowshoe challenge on Sunday(which I suspect Amber will try to win as well). And you may even see a furry little critter running around.

March 9th-This winter get you down? Well not so with Amber. A week after the Snowshoe Nationals, she will be heading up to the Great White North to compete in a winter triathlon. No this is not like the Winter triathlon we did at Gunstock a few years ago which was comprised of a mountain bike, skate ski and run all on snow. No the Canadians make it more challenging than that. They make participants do a 5k snowshoe run, then speed skate for 12k(over 7 miles) then skate ski 5 miles! Mind you, Amber has NEVER speed skated in her life before and this is her skate skiing:

Suffice it to say, this will certainly be interesting and may be worth the 5 hour drive north just for the laughs. But in all honesty, knowing Amber's drive and tenacity, she will somehow make herself into a competitor.

March 12th- Pike's Peak Marathon Registration Opens. If you haven't heard of it, check it out or talk with Kevin Tilton about it. It looks brutal. Nacho(of the Sweetie Pies) is looking to do it this year. I'm going back and forth about entering into that or doing the Grand Teton Marathon a week later. Either way, if you are thinking about it, keep this date in mind because it sells out FAST!

March 15th-Winter Wild Championships at Bretton Woods. Rich Lavers and I will again be directing this race where there will likely be a course record set this year based on all the fast guys racing it. But even if you're last to finish, don't you worry: there will be food provided by Bagel Works and plenty of amazing raffle prizes to be given away. As I mentioned before, prices go up after February but you still can register right up to the morning of the race.

Just one of many cool scenes from Winter Wild

March 16th- After giving away all of our prizes and likely ushering in a new course record holder, I will be scrambling down to New Bedford Mass to race the half marathon the next morning. This will be the second New England Grand Prix race but the first I will be competing in and hopefully representing the Gate City Striders well. This is definitely a PR course as my two fastest 1/2 marathon are both on it. Per usual, I will probably be spending the night before the race hanging out with my parents eating good old Portuguese food.

March 22-23-Actually a down weekend! As amazing as it sounds, we probably will be using this weekend to train, visit my brother's beautiful little girl who will be two months that weekend, visit my sister and her fiance in their gorgeous new place, or maybe do something on the cheap right here in Concord. Here are a few ideas that I have come up with for under $16.

March 28-31-Aww the last weekend in March and with it comes Amber in peak triathlon training before her first race of the season in mid-April. Her training and work hours will probably be fairly equal to her sleep hours that week. And thus, I have decided to head out of town. I'll be heading down south to race the Knoxville Marathon. My plan is to hike some peaks in the Smokies on the Friday, explore Knoxville on the Saturday, race Sunday and then spend Sunday night and all day Monday with my brother in Atlanta. It should make for a very fun long weekend.

And there you have it folks. I've just given you a month's worth of fun fitness ideas to carry you through the spring. Not in the mood for fitness? Then how about writing? It's not technically in March but you will probably have to apply then if you want to get in. The National Writing Project in New Hampshire in conjunction with Plymouth State University is offering a FREE week-long course in July entitled Teaching Social Justice Through the Lens of the Holocaust. This is a graduate level course that is totally free. If that isn't enough, they even provide meals and the texts! If it wasn't the week of my sister's wedding I would totally be doing it myself. Although the website is still under construction, you can learn more at the Plymouth State webpage or at the Home of the Holocaust Educators Website.


Who said this blog was all about Swimming, biking and running? See reading and writing too! Seriously though, Amber used to hate Scrabble because I would always beat her. Well, what did she do? It appears she picked up a Scrabble dictionary which she must be reading surreptitiously in her spare time(maybe while on the trainer). Bottom line? She beat me by 102 points last night. 102 points! She has made it abundantly clear that I am not better at anything and will have to settle for the also ran award yet again:)

Notice the incorrect spelling of axle? Well so did I. Only to be corrected by Amber that it was axel as in a triple axel in figure skating. I guess I do need to be watching more television! AND that x was on a triple letter score. Add insult to injury why don't ya!

On another note, did anyone see the list of Boston Marathon's Prohibited List? Here it is:

• Backpacks, any similar item carried over the shoulder, or handbags of any size
• Glass containers
• Any container capable of carrying more than 1 liter of liquid
• Strollers, including baby strollers
• Suitcases & rolling bags
• Personal hydration system products (such as CamelBak®, Thor®, etc)
• Weight vests or any sort of vest with pockets (Note: lightweight running vests are allowable)
• Costumes covering the face or any non-form fitting, bulky outfits extending beyond the perimeter of the body
• Props (including sporting equipment and military and fire/gear and signs or flags larger than 11 inches x 17 inches)
• Any item larger than 5 inches x 15 inches x 5 inches

I think the most funny restriction is the "non-form fitting outfits". Apparently BAA has given us a license to thrill and expose ourselves but we cannot wear basketball shorts while running. The costume restriction also means I will probably not be dressing up like this for Boston this year:

But seriously, no hydration systems? Some of those charity runners will probably be suffering from that. Also this means no pre-race warm-ups or change of clothes as the BAA says: "Additional layers of clothing may be worn on B.A.A. shuttle buses and in Hopkinton for warmth before the race. Clothing that will not be worn during the race must be discarded in Hopkinton and will be donated to a local charitable organization." Better find yourselves some cheap clothes you don't mind tossing. At least its for a good cause. 

Well that's it for now folks. We will keep you posted on the outcome of all of these fun things and hope you can get out there and enjoy some it yourselves. Enjoy and be well!



P.S. As I was doing my final spell check before I published this post. Axel was highlighted as being spelling incorrectly! So there, you stinkin' figure skaters!