2009 NYC Marathon Timelapse from mdkmc on Vimeo.
Brooklyn photographer Mehmet Dokumcu set up a camera near the 10k point of last week's marathon and then did some time lapse magic to condense the whole race down to a minute. Kinda fun to watch.November 08, 2009
5k at Yankee Stadium
Not only is Yankee Stadium the home of the 27-time World Series Champion New York Yankees, but now it's also going to be the host of what promises to be a unique 5k for charity. On Sunday, November 15, participants will run the stadium's concourses, ramps, and stairs and then finish with a lap around the warning track. Spectators can watch from the bleachers. The event benefits the Damon Runyon Foundation, and 100% of all donations are used to support their cutting edge cancer research. (Low administrative and fundraising
costs are paid by Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets and from their endowment.)
For more info or to register, check out their website.
Here's a little more about the charity and why I like them so much.
We support the rising stars of science, emerging leaders who have great potential to achieve breakthroughs in how we diagnose, treat and prevent cancer. The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation selects the most brilliant early career scientists and provides them with
Damon Runyon's goals as a cancer research fund are to:
-Identify the best and brightest early career scientists into cancer research
-Accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into new diagnostic tools and treatments
-Enable risk-taking on bold new ideas
November 06, 2009
Actress, 78, run down on mobility scooter
via www.nypost.com
An elderly woman in a Rascal scooter was run down by a truck in the bike lane and the NYPD says the driver will not be charged. Had he been driving on the sidewalk presumably he would have been charged. Until the authorities take traffic laws seriously, and punish those who break them, incidents like this will continue to happen. Bike lanes are not for passing, double parking, or anything but bicycles.
November 03, 2009
For Some, Meb's Not American Enough
When Meb Keflezighi won the NYC marathon Sunday, headlines screamed that it was the first American victory since the 1980s. Yet for some, including CNBC Sports Business Reporter Darren Rovell, Mr. Keflezighi is not American enough. According to Mr. Rovell, Meb "is technically American by virtue of him becoming a citizen in 1998, but the fact that he's not American-born takes away from the magnitude of the achievement the headline implies... Keflezighi's country of origin is Eritrea, a small country in Africa. He is an American citizen thanks to taking a test and living in our country. ...Nothing against Keflezighi, but he's like a ringer who you hire to work a couple hours at your office so that you can win the executive softball league."
First of all, we're a nation of immigrants. Where do we draw the line on who we call a "real" American? What if Meb was born here but his parents were immigrants? Or their parents? What if his family emmigrated the day before he was born? Then would it be OK with Mr. Rovell if Meb draped himself in old glory?
I certainly understand why some people take issue with athletes who become world class runners elsewhere and then choose to become American citizens as a business decision. For instance, Bernard Lagat was born and raised in Kenya, won medals in the World Championships and Olympics for Kenya, came here for college and became an American citizen in 2004. I root for Lagat, but can't feel all warm and fuzzy as an American when he wins. Meb is different. He did not come to this country to be a runner, and this country did not bring him here because of his athletic talent.
In fact, Meb's family came here as refugees when he was a child. He was not a runner in Eritrea. He is the product of an American high school and an American college (UCLA). If Rovell wanted to use an accurate analogy, Meb would not be the ringer brought in to play for the softball team, he would be the accountant who is hired based on his credentials and earns his keep, who came to the softball team practices and became the star through a combination of talent and hard work.
Meb Keflezighi is a true American success story, and the ignorance of a CNBC columnist, or anyone else who ignores the facts does not change that.
Imagine How Slow She Would Have Been If She Hadn't Walked
Like many others, I posted a comment at her blog. And like many others, my comment was shot down by the author, who has no background in exercise science or athletics. While TPP may control her blog, I control mine and posted about the topic without her editorial comments. For those who can't be bothered to read what I opined at the time, I simply stated that while walking breaks are appropriate for those who are unprepared to run a marathon, the idea of a well trained runner going faster by incorporating walking breaks is in defiance of logic and science. But the Galloway and his cult like to give bits of anecdotal evidence (some of which is accurate and some - like their claim that Ronaldo da Costa used Galloway's method in his marathon wins - is patently false) to support their argument. Here's one they might want to leave out of the argument:
NYC MARATHON
November 1, 2009
Tara Parker-Pope
Finish Time:6:58:19
Pace:15:58/mile
As an postscript, it's interesting to note that TPP has now changed her tune. Walking breaks are no longer the way to do your best marathon or go faster as she has previously claimed. Now she says "The main benefit of the run-walk method is that it eases your body into exercise, makes marathon training less grueling and gives muscles time to recover, reducing the risk of injury. Walk breaks are an ideal way for new runners and older, less fit and overweight people to take part in a sport that would otherwise be off limits.
"The downside is that just as you are out on the marathon course about 50 percent longer than the average runner, your training time is much longer, too — four and five hours a weekend for long runs.
In other words, she is agreeing with what i said all along.
Posted at 07:33 PM in Coach's Comments, Myths | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)