Category Archives: personal

Calling Catholic Bloggers

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Life’s been busy, and it’s only going to get more so. I’m up to my eyeballs in graduate research and my first child is due August 25. Consequently, I’ve backed off blogging a bit. I haven’t stopped, nor do I intend to. However, my posting frequency has been too low to really sustain an active readership. To make up for this I’ve been syndicating content (with permission, of course). I intend to continue doing so, but I find myself in need of original content. A recent comment has made me keenly aware that Catholic content is sorely lacking. When Shaun Pierce got too busy to maintain Powerblog! by himself, he put out a call for co-bloggers and found able help in Jim Powers. So I am following suit.

Are there any devout Catholics who’ve thought about blogging or established Catholic bloggers looking for a bigger soap box out there? If so, drop me a line. It’s a non-paying gig, and all applicants will be vetted and go through a trial period if accepted. I can’t just let anyone write here, ya know. 😉

2008 Mothers Days 5K and Fathers Day 10K

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Oops. I’ve neglected to report on my participation in the Race for the Cure 5K on Mothers Day. Well, my 26:59 finish (8:42 pace) wasn’t my worst, but it certainly wasn’t my best. I certainly haven’t been training as much as I should. In my defense, though, it should be noted that there were a lot of walkers blocking my way. I expected that for the first half-mile or so, but I was passing walkers for what seemed like the whole race. Why they don’t participate in the designated walk or at least position themselves at the back of the race starting line is beyond me. At least I didn’t have to dodge any strollers or dogs this year.

Like the Mothers Day 5K, my Us Too Fathers Day 10K was neither my worst nor my best 10K. Officially, I finished in 56:10 (9:03 pace), but the start wasn’t chip-timed, so I trust my stopwatch more. According to that, I finished in 55:55 (9:01 pace). It may seem like a small difference to non-runners, but I think fellow runners can appreciate the difference 15 seconds makes. Anyhow, considering I hadn’t run farther than about 5 miles (and that only a couple times) prior to this race, I can’t be too disappointed. I think I paced myself well for the first 2 miles, but near the beginning of the third mile my buddy, who’d kept pace with me, started to pull away as I battled the heat and sluggishness. He maintained the pace we’d been running all the way to the end, finishing in 49:45 (8:01 pace). If he’d stayed back with me, I’m sure I would have finished faster, but it would have been at the expense of his time.

I won’t be able to run the Brentwood Firecracker 5K this year because I’ll be at a baby shower my in-laws are throwing for us. I’d like to run the Run Around the Square 5K on August 23, but that’s just two days before my first child is due. Likewise, my participation in the Ikea Half Marathon on September 6 depends on whether my wife goes past her due date or not. At the very least, I’m planning on running the Great Race 10K on September 28. Of course, I’ll also be hashing on Mondays when I can. 😉

2008 Run for Their Health 5K

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On April 12, I participated in the Run for Their Health 5K in Schenley Park. Formerly called the Run With HAART, this race is hosted by Pitt medical school students and benefits Kenyan children with HIV/AIDS.

As in Just a Short Run Half Marathon, I wasn’t was well-trained or properly prepared for this race. I finished in a slow 27:25 (8:51 pace). Pictures can be found here.