Triskadecathalon training continues

ORN: 3.64 miles in 40:03 on a cloudy 19° day. I will not tell you the strange, awful things the cold did to my body because you might be eating as you read this. You're welcome. The weather is supposed to turn downright wintry tonight and tomorrow, with inches of snow and/or ice and/or sleet in the forecast. I may have to run in snow! Of course, that would involve a reversal of 30 years of weather forecasting around here. If they call for snow, we're almost guaranteed not to get any snow worth mentioning or it will melt off immediately.

The Guitar Heroes over at the Complete Running Network have done the running world another service. In this great article, the author "Donald" coins a term I think I will strive to put into regular rotation -- triskadecathalon. Bemoaning the half-marathon's second-class status and clunkiness as a term, Donald offers triskadecathalon as an alternative. Triskadecathalon sets the half-marathon apart from it's lengthier cousin as a distinct event worthy of standing on its own. Hell, 13.1 miles is not half of anything! It's a hard, but highly rewarding, distance. When one says half-marathon, or worse mini-marathon, it's almost like proclaiming loudly and proudly that one doesn't have the intestinal fortitude to run a full marathon. "Triskadecathalon" takes the race out of the marathon's shadow, sets the achievement on its own Roman-style pedestal, and allows the user to be smug with their command of a dead language. I'm always excited when I get to be smug about something.

As I mentioned in Saturday's post, I am really loving my Saturday long runs. The camaraderie of the running group is a bonus, and running in the park and through the neighborhoods is always a pleasure. However, I am getting a lot out of the time disconnected, off-line alone-time, ticking off the miles, letting my mind wander. While I was nowhere near getting a runner's high Saturday, I briefly entered this totally taoist state of no-mind and got some perspective on some longstanding personal issues. It's hard to get that kind of mental workout with a 4 year old constantly wanting something and Google Reader constantly beckoning. During my run Saturday, I would drift off into space, and before I knew it, ten minutes passed by. It wasn't that my mind was turned off -- as if I was watching TV -- but rather that it was turned inward. Disconnected from bodily, temporal worries, my brain defragmented and recompiled, if only for a few moments. It was awesome. If I could do 8-10 mile runs every day, I betcha I could become totally transcendent and start a kickass religion founded on running, drinking beer, eating barbecued beef ribs, and sleeping late. Maybe someday.

When I remember to, I like to post the songs I listened to on my iPod. If you have any questions about them, feel free to email me or sound off in the comments. Me encanta la música. Here is today's playlist:

1. If Only Tonight We Could Sleep - The Cure
2. Sour Grapes - Descendents
3. Please, Please, Please - James Brown
4. Born of a Broken Man - Rage Against the Machine
5. Mellow Mood - Bob Marley
6. Life on Your Own - The Human League
7. Hypnotic House (Mortal Kombat) - The Immortals
8. I Hate My Band - The Real McKenzies
9. Skulls - Misfits
10. Grace of God Go I - Flogging Molly
11. Rag And Bone - The White Stripes
12. Someday - Operation Ivy
13. Sketches of Xochi's - The Articles