There's Always Money in the Banana Stand

Since returning to Hanover last week we have managed to keep ourselves fairly busy. Ben, Brian and myself are preparing to race next Sunday (April 17th) in 5k and 1 mile races hosted by the Boston Athletic Association (BAA). Ben and I will be running the 5k which travels through the Boston’s Back Bay and Beacon Hill. The race begins at Copley Square and finishes at the Boston Marathon finish line on Boylston Street. On Monday we will have the opportunity to watch the Boston Marathon, which I am very excited about. Especially since it will be more than a few years before I have the pleasure of racing 26.2 miles. I prefer to live vicariously through those people who are crazy enough to train for and race that type of insanity.

My workouts continue to go very well. I’ve done some of the toughest workouts that I have ever done the last few weeks. While we were out in California I did 13 x 400 with 50 meter jog rest. Taking into account the 10-15 meters it takes to slow down after you cross the line, the rest is only about 20 seconds, maybe. It also felt like it was 90 degrees that day, so it was just plain miserable. A few days later I did 2 x 3 miles in 16:51 and 16:49 (about 5:35 per mile). I’m feeling more fit each day, so I’m really looking forward to the races that I have coming up. After the Boston 5k next weekend, I will be racing a 1500 at a collegiate meet at Princeton. After that it’s back to Stanford for a very competitive 5k where I’m hoping to dip under the USA ‘A’ standard of 15:45, which would qualify me for the USA Track and Field Championships in June.

Aside from training, we have jumped into a few new community projects here in NH. Last Tuesday we met with the track and field teams of Hanover High School to talk about our team, preparing for races, staying warm, and nutrition, among other things. We will likely be meeting with them again to run with them, give advice on training and to help out at their home meets.

We have also begun working with a worldwide program called Junior Achievement (JA). Through JA we will be teaching elementary school students about workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy. We will be teaching these classes at Unity Elementary School in Newport, NH. If all goes well we have plans to teach more of these classes. If you want to find out more about Junior Achievement, check out their website: http://www.ja.org/default.asp