It's April tomorrow!

Gulp! Only 19 days to the start of the race. What was once years, and then months, away is now just around the next very sharp corner. Today was officially my last day at work; my co-workers sent me off in their usual wonderful style. All I have left to do now is running, packing, eating, taking care of my dogs, and attempting to stay healthy.

I know race director Ingo Schultze (behind me in this photo) is having problems arranging accommodations in Italy. He's a great guy, and I hope he can work something out. Camping is our fallback strategy, which is fine with me unless the rain gods decide not to cooperate. At this point it looks like I'll be spending my 54th birthday weary and under canvas. Cool, eh?

Four weeks to go...

For the last two years, time has moved very slowly towards the start of this race. Now it seems to be picking up the pace. I have several big things I need to get done before the start - a family wedding in New Jersey, retiring from my corporate job after 23 years, getting all my equipment together and carefully packing it, running a decent number of final training miles, and then travelling to the UK for a few days to see my family, before flying on to Bari in Italy.

My chief nutritionist Claire has recently switched me to a veggie "Engine 2" diet. I feel surprisingly good - plenty of energy, and a certain "lightness of being". And it's all very tasty. I gave up alcohol last July, and now goodbye to meat and dairy, at least until the race gets underway. What an ascetic life!

Some interesting news with 5 weeks to go

Wow! Race Director Ingo has just announced that the 2009 Trans Europe Footrace will be accompanied by 3 scientists and a mobile MRI machine from the German Research Foundation and the University Hospital of Ulm. They will be scanning participants regularly and doing what sounds like some fascinating research. Scans will include musculosketal system, brain and mind (or whatever's left of it!), heart and cardiovascular system, and body composition. Very cool stuff. I hope it can help me contend with - or at least understand - issues like the shin splints I had to deal with across France.