August 13, 2008 at 7:19 pm (Uncategorized)
I haven’t been posting quite as much because work has been nuts, among other things that tend to cloud my little insignificant world. Meanwhile, it’s raining today, pouring actually… and I think I want to run…so…
I found this:
http://running.about.com/od/coldweatherrunning/tp/rainyrunstips.htm
I thinkI’ll bring Zasha. She could use a bath anyway.
July 15, 2008 at 1:41 pm (Uncategorized)
At first the revelers jogged slowly, their early morning beers sloshing over the sides of their cups as they moved through a sea of white with splashes of red.
But as they turned the corner onto Bourbon Street, they broke into a full run and screamed — the “bulls” were catching up, speeding toward them with flailing baseball bats.
Hundreds of people woke up early Saturday to be chased by weapon-wielding women on roller skates, in a second annual New Orleans Running of the Bulls. With horns decorating their helmets and baseball bats clutched in their fists, about 30 members of the Big Easy Rollergirls roller derby league were the “bulls,” dressed in red and black and chasing runners on a half-mile route through the French Quarter.
The event’s organizer, or “el padrino,” Mickey Hanning ran in the real Running of the Bulls in 2002 at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, Spain. He and another friend who ran in Spain were talking last year about the bull run, and Hanning decided to bring the event to New Orleans.
But, given that it’s illegal to give angry livestock free run of the French Quarter, Tracey Bellina, Hanning’s friend and a Big Easy Rollergirl herself, supplied the idea for the bulls. With Hanning’s wife Beth and friends Dylan O’Donnell and Kurt Eischen, they organized last year’s inaugural run for almost 200 people.
For the second running, they decided to publicize the event much more — and get the appropriate permits from the city — in hopes of making the run an annual tradition.
“This year,” Hanning said before the event, “we’re blasting out as much as we can.”
A member of the Big Easy Rollergirls swings a plastic bat at a runner during the “Running of the Bulls” in the French Quarter of New Orleans on Saturday, July 12, 2008. Runners, dressed in white with crimson belts and bandannas, started gathering around 7 a.m. outside the Three Legged Dog bar. Some went all-out with their costumes, sporting capes or Spanish-style hats.
The rollergirls held weapons ranging from wiffleball bats to wooden bats.
“They seem pretty agile and vicious,” runner Brian Leen said as he eyed the bulls. Leen, of New Mexico, was on vacation here and found out about the event through friends.
Many runners said they were looking forward to being hit. But Toni Leming joked that she was going to duck down a side street during the run.
“Embarrassingly, I’m scared,” her friend Rebecca Zabel agreed. “I don’t want to get hit.”
“It’s just a bunch of girls,” Leming said.
“Yeah, but they’re on skates and they have bats,” Zabel replied.
After an English version of the bull run’s traditional Spanish blessing, the runners set off at 8 a.m., the same time as the Spanish bull runs.
Starting at a slow walk in a tight-packed crowd, many still holding their drinks, they sped up to a jog, cheering and shouting “Ole!” Family, friends and confused tourists with cameras lined the sidewalks as the runners moved slowly down Conti Street.
But the runners took off as the bulls came up from behind.
“Everyone’s screaming and getting loud and you start hearing bats hitting butts,” Hanning said. “It was awesome.”
The bulls skated by quickly, swinging their bats at every bottom in the way. One woman hurriedly scooped up her small dog, who was dressed in a gold and white bullfighting cape, and dashed to the sidewalk.
“When they came, they came fast,” said runner Charles Carlson. “Hard and fast.”
One bull, Cindy LeBrun, who skates as “Queen CinSational” for the Marigny Antoinettes, said some runners didn’t feel they got hit enough. So she stood at the run’s finish line and hit people as they came through.
“I said, ‘Last chance to get hit,’¤” she said. “Even after it was over people were begging to get hit.”
Another bull, Victoria Coy, who skates as Lush Fatale in the Confederacy of Punches, said she enjoyed dealing with one runner in particular. He started hitting back with a rolled up newspaper, so she slowed down and hit him for a while, she said.
“We’ve got pretty solid bats and we were wailing,” Coy laughed. “People were kinda freaked out.”
Lush Fatale, aka Victoria Coy and a member of the Big Easy Rollergirls, chases runners during the second annual “Running of the Bulls” in the French Quarter. The Rollergirls were instructed to bring harder weapons after people complained last year they didn’t get hit hard enough because some bulls were carrying pool noodles.
After the run, the crowd headed to the Gazebo Cafe. Between runners, bulls, spectators, and the latecomers who joined the after-party, Hanning said he thought about 1,000 people showed up to some part of the event.
Many runners said that to get hit, the best strategy was to move slowly and keep toward the back of the crowd.
“When I was walking, it was like whack, whack, whack,” said runner Kathy Davis.
“I got at least half a dozen (hits), but two were by request,” said Alex Kolker, who was sporting a slightly smeared, painted-on handlebar mustache.
Mateusz Komers, who ran last year, said he was among those who complained that the bulls didn’t hit hard enough.
“I suggested to the founders that the bats should be much stronger,” he said before the race. “I’m going to stay as close to the bulls as possible so I can get beaten.”
At the after-party, he joked that he regretted that suggestion.
“I take it back, the bats were very strong,” he said. “I got hit like four times.”
Runner Kathlyn Perez described the event as “quintessential New Orleans, that people would get up at 7 a.m. to drink, dress like fools and run around the French Quarter.”
Staff writer Diana Samuels can be reached at dsamuels@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3486
July 15, 2008 at 1:28 pm (Uncategorized)
Today’s Run:
It felt lovely to get out there. The dogs were really happy and I even had company! They were filming on Frenchmen so I had to make kind of a detour down Elysian Fields and around to Esplanade - not a big deal since my stopwatch showed that I needed to boost my time anyway!
July 8, 2008 at 6:56 pm (Uncategorized)
I found this while dabbling on the completerunning.com site… :
July 8, 2008 at 2:01 pm (Uncategorized)
Well Louisiana is hot. I’m getting more and more used to it as the years here progress, and as identified by my actual tan lines which are pretty dark thus far this summer. I remember my first summer in Louisiana (as compared to Massachusetts) where I swear I spent every ounce of daylight time indoors - what a waste - and I wonder why I gained so much weight that year! It didn’t help that I was living with an over-zealous mid-westerner-pot-head and an overweight fast-food junkie-movie-critic… whew the good times. Anyway…
I want to start running on the lakefront. My office-mate Jon started biking along the lake recently. He said he feels a bit awkward beause everyone else biking out there has high-tech bikes and gear and he’s got an ol’ huffy and some white nike’s he wears to bartend on the weekends that well, aren’t so white. I definitely give him points for sticking with it, though let me tell you - he LOOKS like a biker. He’s a cutie 
“Sometimes you feel like a runner, sometimes you don’t”…
At first when I had my subscription to ‘Runners’ World’ and I’d get it and bring it to read on the bus, I always felt like people would look at me and laugh, saying “ha - you - a runner?!?” … but now I read it with pride. Actually if you can pick it up, there’s a really great article in there about a boy from India named Budhia who started running when he was four. It’s sad of course because he is from the slums, constantly mistreated and surrounded by lying adults and neglect - but in my eyes if there’s hope for one Indian boy then there’s hope for a few more. Sometimes I wish I could adopt the lot of them and just steal them to America so at least they’d be guaranteed an education and regular repas.
Meanwhile I’ve had a foot issue this week. I’ve been getting bits of running in here and there, but this past weekend (Essence Fest) was absolutely insane at work (I work in the Acct dept at House of Blues) and so I didn’t get much running in, or sleep. I STILL haven’t committed to the C25K thing.. I just need someone to do it with me - yes it’s an excuse, and a bad one.. but damnit that’s how I roll.
Two more weeks of this daunting summer semester. If I can get through it and pass every course it will be like I’m running a marathan anyway.
I saw an ad for the Mardi Gras Marathon here in February. They have a full marathon, half marathon, and 5k. I am DEFINITELY in!
Oh check out the Indian kid runner: Budhia Singh
A bientot!
June 26, 2008 at 6:19 pm (Uncategorized)
I’m moderating the C25K program a bit and adding four workouts instead of 3. The only catch - the 4th has to be some form of cross-training (i.e. not running)
This is going to be my weekly chart starting Monday the 30th (June):
Week 1
Workouts 1-4
| Workout 1 | Workout 2 | Workout 3 | Workout 4 |
| — | — | — | — |
I went to the Gap yesterday and bought myself a pair of moisture-wicking running pants - oooo. I can’t wait to try them!!
June 24, 2008 at 7:25 pm (Uncategorized)
Okay so I keep getting yelled at by veteran runners who say I’m starting out too quickly and too fast pace/distance and I’ll end up getting hurt… they all keep pointing me to this C25k - Couch to 5K plan… so that I can consistently run a 5k once the plan is complete. I guess I’ll do that… and post my progress here for each workout I do.
You can view the whole plan here:
http://coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml
I feel like I could do this in my sleep right now… but I’ll humor these veteran runners who keep yelling at me. i KNOW they know what they’re talking about and are just looking our for my best interest… Anyway.. day one workout 1 - here I come
June 24, 2008 at 6:56 pm (Uncategorized)
…I think I’m digging this running bit.
I find myself jumping into a low-pace run when I do things like go to Canal or run to the grocery or take the dogs for a walk.
At first I really minded the loads of sweat pouring down my back and neck and face and what-not, but now I just sort of shake it off and stop for water when I need to.
It’s a nice feeling to know “YES I CAN do this!”.
June 18, 2008 at 7:29 pm (Uncategorized)
Today I did my first 5k equivalent.
Mile 1 was on a treadmill.
Mile 2 was running on a track.
Mile 2-3 was on the stair climber thing (okay maybe it doesnt count but it DOES count for distance)
I wanted to treat myself to a smoothie afterward but the smoothie place was closed…so I treated myself to a sushi lunch instead and it was YUMMY!
June 18, 2008 at 12:21 am (Uncategorized)
Bonjour -
All the excitement is over and I now officially have a structured schedule for the next month and a half. As such I can put more work into running - which I’ve been doing, just not as zealously as I began. Today I got my training log which I’ll post on my fridge (yay)..
I need a schedule that I’ll stick to -
The past three weeks I’ve averaged my 3.0 mph walking time to 120 minutes per day. It’s been like that for quite a while - no wonder why I have been at a weight loss plateau.. that and all the ice cream I’ve been consuming. I think if I didn’t walk those 120 minutes per day I’d have gained 120 pounds by now with how I’ve been eating…
Really though - I only have twenty pounds to go. I need realistic goals, and cross-training activities. I think I’ll start going to the UNO gym twice per week for now - let’s say twice this week, tomorrow and Thursday (I have to work on Friday). I need to do something other than running on the track though - maybe I’ll venture into some weight training like I used to do.
Key words of the day are structure and discipline.
 | Marie on Rain |
| Marie on Run, NOLA, run |
 | Isha Brown on Run, NOLA, run |
| Isha Brown on Good Morning! |
 | Sheamus on Today I am proud of me |
