JJ: Publicly Stating a Goal

On Sunday I'm going to run a sub-1:45 half marathon so I can secure my "preferred" starting position at this year's Chicago Marathon and, hopefully, avoid some of the annual mayhem at the start of that race. After several months of lugging my 185 lbs. around the park, chasing Activeness's Jan and a couple of other speedsters during our Sunday long runs, I'm confident that I can maintain an 8:00-minute per mile pace for the 13.1 miles. Heck, that's the pace those guys run when they slow down to tie their shoes. ... I've seen them move faster than that while reading the Sunday paper and wolfing down bowls of oatmeal and sipping their Starbucks. But I digress: The point is that when race day comes along, it's good to have had fast training partners who have let you sit on their wheel. - John