Monday, March 24, 2014

We have a winner.

Last Monday I started my contest to win free entry into the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon.  I am happy to announce that Kelly Heller won the contest!!!  Congrats Kelly and thank you to all of you that have entered.

Training continues to go well despite the weather.  I competed recently in St. Malachi 5 miler.  This was my 4th year doing this race, but it was extra special to me as the new lady was cheering me on at the finish line.  It was hard for her to be there to support me and it meant so much to hear them cheering me on at the finish.

Despite Spring beginning last weekend, it continues to feel like winter.  This past block of training,  I've been focusing on running and riding.  Those are my two favorite workouts to combine and it seems to help with my running.  According to our 10 day forecast,  we should see a warm up in a couple days.  Hopefully this forecast holds true as I am sure we are all anxiously awaiting Spring.  It won't be too much longer before we are cheering on those Cleveland Indians.  So, hopefully mother nature gets it together and the weather improves.

Today marks 54 days till the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon.   It's time to finish strong with your training and not to get your head down with these inclement weather conditions.  Lots of fun things to look forward too as race day approaches like taper, picking out your race outfit, new race shoes, and seeing everyone on race day.




Monday, March 17, 2014

Win free entry to the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon

Hey everybody

I hope everyone's training has been going well.  This has probably been the most frustrating winter I can remember.  Good news is that we've had a couple 50 degree days recently and a few more coming up in our 10 day forecast.  Speaking of news, lots of big news recently from the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon.  For those of you who aren't aware.  This year's race will feature all new routes!!!  Recently, the organizers for the race reach out us runners for on feedback on route changes.  It was an overwhelming response that the race switch to an all Westside route.  It was really nice of them to take our opinions and change the route based on our feedback.   I'm a 2-time Rite Aid Cleveland Marathoner and admit there will be pieces of the Eastside portion that will be missed, but I think everyone will be pleased to see more of what the Westside has to offer.  I've been a resident of the Westside for 17 months now and know that it will be an amazing setting to host the 2014 Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon.

To celebrate the new routes, the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon has graciously awarded me to opportunity to give away a FREE ENTRY to either the 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, or Full Marathon!!!!!!

This contest will last until Monday 3/24/14 and is only open to those who have not registered.  To enter:  please leave a comment with your name, direct message me @Beal88 on twitter, direct message me on Facebook, or leave a comment on my Facebook post.

I had wanted to post some route photos, but my phone is being a jerk and won't upload them to my computer.  So, below is a link to the website where you can find the routes.  Hopefully I can get them uploaded and add them later.  I also hope to bike ride these routes prior to race day to provide some feedback.

New routes

Good Luck!!

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon Training: Weeks 7 and 8

The past two weeks have been pretty frustrating to say the least.  Old man winter still has a firm grip on Northeast Ohio.  It seems like we keep going from days with negative temps to days with snow storms. This has been the worst winter I can remember.  I guess I should be happy that I am focusing more on shorter distances this Spring instead of endurance races.  I'd be staying away from sharp objects if I was trying to do long runs every weekend.  I still have been able to ride outside yet this year.  Being prepared for Barry Roubaix this year has turned from reality to a dream.  One bright spot over the past two weeks is that I been doing more outdoor runs.  Even got in some sweet hill work this past week.

Enough with the negativity.  There are some positives to look forward too.  March is finally here which means we will finally see temps creep into the 40's and 50's every now and then.  High school swimming is now complete, so many of your local pools will be free during the afternoon.  It feels pretty good that the worst of it is now over.  The focus over the next 2 weeks will be getting back on track with training and weight loss.  Also, I will be getting back into the pool and getting outside as much as possible.

Look for a new post next week where I discuss the new race route and give away a free entry!!



Total miles:  104

Training time:  8:54

Calories burned:  9,954