A Little More

I won't be able to post everything I originally intended to do before your big race, mostly because just running out of time, and the Thursday night pre-race dinner, then the Expo on Friday and going to my friend's 25th wedding anniversary and getting up at 8 am Saturday to start the process of readying myself for race-day has just not left a lot of time to do everything I hoped to. So, this be my last post.

First, their is "ritual." Those of my closest run-comrades that have roomed with me know my "Last of the 300" Spartans ritual. I do my 3-4 mile run followed 45-min later by my final carb-load meal, usually for Chicago, my famous pasta sauce over whole-grain rotinie, rigatoni, etc. Then, there is the final shower and tending to the long-hair, getting my race gear ready and out for dressing up early morn, then trimming and filing the toe-nails, then soaking them in the soaking salts with wintergreen and spearmint oils added to it. Then I go to bed early by 6 pm and just get up at 3 am to get dressed and do the final assembly of gear and gear-check bag. It is ritual, just as the 300 Spartans did before their final battle against the Persians. I hope you have your ritual in the making also.

Second, just need to say thanks again for the gracious gifts you afforded me Thursday at Pier 74. I need to clarify a few things and confess I am not as much an expert about the Who as I might have led Sophia to originally believe. There were two albums I favored as a youngster - those being the Who Live at Leeds and Who's Next albums. I probably should have been more cognizant of the "Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy" 1971 release as Sophia duly drudged up, but it was not an album I ever bought or listened to much, focusing more on the raucous style of the Who so well captured on that Live at Leeds release.

The "Who's Next" album is considered by many the Who's best work, and although that Live at Leeds is my number one, the latter is a close second. And, it was last year in training at the onset of one of those mega-long runs the Novices needed to do that I preceded with the "Who" contest sending out a inquiry of an explanation for the title to the song "Baba O'Reilly" that you all will recognize by that chorus that goes, "Teenage wasteland, It's only teenage wasteland." And, as I denoted in the contest, later album versions including that track did label it as "Teenage Wasteland."

But, little did I know the fruits of "googlin" and it was a simple matter for some to respond (Wikipedia has a nice expose on the subject) the answer the song's original title was based on guitarist Pete Townshend's two most influential friends - keyboard support for the Who's studio work by a fellow with the last name O'Reilly and Pete's personal Guru named Baba.

I awarded the prizes prior to the start of our long run, but the contest had nothing to do with running, but then it eventually did. My initial intent was just for it to serve as a "diversion" to the mission to run 20-miles in long-run training. But, the story comes full circle when Coach's "10-minute ladies" finished there marathon last year hearing the exact same tune, Babo OReilly that was the subject of my diversionary contest.

When I ran Rock-n-Roll Half this past August, what did I hear at the start line a little before the start - nothing but Baba O'Reilly followed by other tracks and said Who's Next album. And, I have heard that as well as other tracks from that Who's Next album at either start or finish of other races. Not sure why they always fall-back on that album, but keep it in mind as you run Chicago this Sunday. You might here songs from that album waiting for the start, or if you are lucky, you will hear Baba-O'Reilly in your ears as you sprint to the finish line! If so, you are definitely experiencing a special moment, but if not, go with the special moment of crossing the line, the end of something started 26.2 miles before, and 18-weeks ago distant!

peace all,