In a very real sense, you and I are “the hope of the world‿.  We had some fun last year and some good times.  We made new friends, we enjoyed successes on the road, we had some amazing experiences both together and apart. The lesson to be learned from last year, and the year before that…is that next year, and the year after next…has the opportunity to be the best year of our life and the best year in the life of those around us. There were some terrible things that happened last year as well, but when we live our lives as good animals, behaving with social responsibility, then we are spreading hope…and that ensures that the years to come can always be better that those which came before.  Happy New Year! 

Show Links:

The song “Auld Lang Syne‿ was by the band Caledonix from Germany http://www.caledonix.de

Handwritten letters and cards, email messages and our written words written throughout the year and especially during the holidays are a way to keep in touch, to maintain that fellowship that we have with each other.  It’s the stories that are contained in those messages that help to educate and inform us, they help us to relate to each other and put our own experiences into perspective.  In this week’s episode, I’ll read to you some of the email messages that I have in my “in box‿, and invite you to hear the stories of other runners who are living their lives and experiencing their unique experiences all over the world at the very same time that you are.  We are members of a community where the cost of entry is your contribution of thoughts, opinions and observations with each other.

How can running slowly help us to achieve better performances later? It is particularly challenging to go from the relative intensity of pre-race workouts to a speed and pace that is much, much slower. However, if you come to the realization that many runners stagnate on a plateau of performances because they run too few miles, and these miles that they do run are are run too fast, then you open yourself up to the possibility of significant running improvement. Proper base training requires patience and discipline, and this week's guest host, Steve's running advisor John Ellis, explains how the hard part of this period of training comes with the dedication to running "easy." 

Show Links:

http://www.billrodgers.com

http://getguts.com 

Fdip Blog of the week: http://atlantatrails.blogspot.com 

The song “Starting Over‿ was by the band “Dark Horse‿ from the UK.  Check out their great music at http://www.isound.com/darkhorse

Today I will tell you the story of a great and compassionate warrior from the Oglala Latoka tribe named 'Makata Taka Hela'.  Billy Mills bravely faced loneliness and isolation in his college years, and went on to serve the country he loved in the United States Marines.  He is a warrior for justice, an advocate for the young, and a person of character and honor who respects the earth and speaks on the virtues of understanding across all nations, both those defined by governments, and those identified by their people: over 550 tribes within the continental United States. Billy Mills is not only a Running Legend, he is an American Legend.

Show Links: 

http://www.indianyouth.org www.thefinalsprint.com

Fdip Blog of the week:  http://runningandphilosophy.blogspot.com

“As Sure as the Eagle Flies‿ was by Mo Pair from Austin, Texas.  http://www.mopair.com/

“Ewa-shakin-tae‿ was by Joseph G Vincent from British Columbia, Canada http://www.unsigned.com/josephgvincent

The Philadelphia Marathon is a fantastic race, run through and about an incredible city.  This was the best marathon performance of my life where my dreams for a sub four hour finish were possible and within my reach.  I have run 16 marathons prior to Philly, but was able to accomplish something on this day that has eluded me before.  In running through the streets of Philadelphia I gained a new confidence, increased my stamina and improved my endurance to ensure that I would never hit the “wall of doom‿ again. 

Show Links:

http://www.philadelphiamarathon.com  http://bluedawgsrunning.blogspot.com

The Song “Ordinary Day‿ was by Great Big Sea from St. John's in Newfoundland, http://greatbigsea.com

On Thanksgiving Day here in the United States, and in holidays around the world, we feel compelled to offer thanks for the receipt of our good fortune.  It’s a uniquely human need that we have to offer thanks for the good things which occurred to us in the previous solar orbit.  I’m taking a break from my podcast this week, but wanted to thank you for your thoughts, prayers, kind words of congratulations and encouragement.  Thank you for being a fellow runner and a friend, and thank you for helping me to come ever so closer to reaching my dream.

Consider using this holiday season as a way to invite someone to become a runner. If to show appreciation or admiration you want to give someone a gift, consider giving them the gift of running by means of some item that is related to our sport. There are many products out there perfect for holiday giving, and they need not be all that expensive or difficult to find. To give someone a gift that encourages them to run, you are showing a special kind of caring through your action…and as we wind down the year, through this holiday season, it is a time for us to share the love, joy and peace of the season; by inviting others to run. Show Links:

Zurlocker@hotmail.com

http://www.motionlingo.com/

http://www.drymaxsports.com/

http://my-skye.com/

http://www.roadrunnersports.com/

Fdip Blog of the week: http://cameronkjack.blogspot.com

The song “Re-Gifting for the Holidays‿ was by “The Alice Project‿ from New York. Check their great music at http://thealiceproject.com

You wouldn’t fill the fuel tank of an airplane with half the fuel needed to land it safely on the ground. You wouldn’t lift off in a spaceship that had a leak in it’s main propulsion rocket, and you certainly wouldn’t fill the gas tank of your car with chocolate pudding if you ever expected to successfully drive our of your parking lot. You need to fuel your body with the correct balance of carbs, fat and protein at a time prior to your race event that benefits your performance without leading you to some destiny with the glycogen wall.

There is just so much to do in this world, so much to experience, and it would be so terribly wrong of us not to do so. As runners, we have an opportunity, every day, to rise above the tedium and experience life to the fullest; and having a list of things to do before you run your last mile is a way to keep yourself focused not on the finish line of your life: but on the joy of your life’s race, while you’re in it.

With three solid hours of sleep, the depressing notion that my beloved Boston Red Sox had lost a crucial game in extra innings, and the understanding that I was about to run my 16th marathon, fellow runner John Ellis and I crossed the chip mat at the starting line of the Bay State Marathon in Lowell Massachusetts, and I ran the best marathon of my life. What happened next was not magic. It wasn’t some kind of impossible stroke of luck, and it wasn’t completely unexpected: to be a runner is to accept the same kind of challenge that a profession ball team accepts when they compete in the World Series. It’s all about overcoming barriers to success and celebrating those successes when the challenge is overcome.