Deja Vu

Besides being the title of one of my top 5 music albums, the title also reflects where I once was about a year ago. Back then I was pretty optimistic about my retirement and "walkabout" trip to Europe. I had no idea that within a few days of a January 5, 2009, blog-post things would get turned upside down...big time! But now after open heart surgery on January 13, 2009, things appear to be on track both physically and logistically. I can now relax again and reflect more on the reality of my plans to run three of Europe's most famous marathons (Rome, Paris, Madrid) and tour the countryside. Here's a recap of how the Eurothon trip and blog were born.

Regarding the blog title, my buddy Bill Parady, who blog-chronicled his 2009 Arizona Ironman training adventures, suggested I model my blog after a book written by Mark Twain: A Tramp Abroad.

The book was published in 1880 and details a journey by the author, with his friend Harris (a character created for the book), through central and southern Europe. While the stated goal of the journey is to walk most of the way, the men find themselves using other forms of transport as they traverse the continent. As the two men make their way through Germany, the Alps, and Italy, they encounter situations made all the more humorous by their reactions to them. The narrator (Twain) plays the part of the American tourist of the time, believing that he understands all that he sees but in reality understanding none of it.

I was sold on Bill’s idea modified the book title to reflect what I had in store for “Harris” and myself. My "Harris" turns out to be my buddy and running mentor Bob Bowker (known as the Silver Fox because of his flashy full head of silver hair) . Bob had planned to go with me in 2009 but he too had a medical setback but with prostate cancer...but now we are both "all cured up" and looking forward to the great adventure. Bob is here in Anchorage this holiday season visiting family so we're going to get together to run and work on the trip.

From an earlier blog post: "So how did I get this wild idea of running some of the great European marathons? The idea came to mind in 2008 after reading an article in Runners World about must-run marathons of the world. The top 10 list was packed with familiar venues, Boston, New York, Berlin, London, Rome, Paris, Chicago, etc. I was thrilled to see that some I have already run were on the list (New York, Boston, Chicago) but what really caught my eye were the dates of the London, Rome, and Paris marathons…in 2008, they were scheduled to be all 2 weeks apart. So, my mind started to work…why not combine a 2009 trip to Europe with running the London, Rome, and Paris marathons? I had already fulfilled a lifelong dream of visiting some of the ancient ruins of Greece in 2002 (to celebrate my 50th birthday) and combining it with running the Athens Marathon, so I figured I’d also fulfill another lifelong dream of visiting some of the great cities of Europe and throw in a marathon or two or, in this case, three."

In 2010, Bob and I will run Rome and Paris together and spend time enjoying the sites and sounds of Italy and France. BONUS: My Ironman buddy Bill Parady, his wife Salome, and some of his friends will also join Bob and I to run Paris! The more the merrier! What's new for 2010 is that instead of Vienna, I'm running Madrid. I learned this past weekend that my cousin's ex-husband is Spanish, lives in Madrid, and is the retired Spanish Ambassador to China...and he has offered an invitation to visit with him while in Madrid...another bonus!

A quick note about my training. Now that my meds are all set, I have the confidence to really get into my training. The warmer weather we've been having lately has allowed me to run outside now and then. The Dome facility is nice but nothing beats running outside and training on various terrains and up/down hills. So far, I'm on target with my long-distance runs,in fact, I'm slightly ahead of schedule...hooray!

That's it for now. My next entry will describe the details-to-date of our trip including the cities we'll visit and the things we'll see. Remember, train hard, run far!