Going Back to Tokyo

Time: 48:51
Distance: ~7 miles

This morning I had a traditional Japanese breakfast instead of the Western option. The meal included fish, rice, fruit, egg plant, egg, salad, sticky beans and some other unidentifiable items. It was my first time having sticky beans which are bland to bitter in taste, full of protein and incredibly sticky. I think they are coated in some sort of enzyme that makes them difficult to eat with chopsticks and funny to watch. After grabbing food I went upstairs to pack up stuff for the trip back to Tokyo. I had to figure out what to do with all my sweaty, smelly clothes from the race as I didn't have time to wash anything in the sink. I packed rather quickly and had just enough time to grab a run back along the bike path. It was nice and easy for 25 minutes out and just over 23 on the return taking a little longer route on the way back in.

I only needed a few minutes to get ready to be back down in the lobby for a trip from the New WelCity Hotel in Izumo to the local airport. Security at the Izumo Airport was very different than what we have here in the US. The team carried several water bottles through, didn't take off our shoes and probably could have boarded without a ticket. It all seemed very safe and after a short flight to Haneda we were back in the Tokyo prefecture. We hopped a bus to our hotel and arrived around 3:00 pm which gave us plenty of time to get in trouble.

View from my hotel room. The start of the new Tokyo marathon is between the two walking bridges.

The group headed out for an adventure early in the evening with Yoshi at the helm. We never really can tell where we are being taken when he starts off. The team typically gets lost at least once on the journey, but we eventually get there. This time we traveled to a district of Tokyo where we could shop and take in the night. The crosswalks were always jam packed with people getting off work and heading home. We wandered through Takashita Street which contained hundreds of little tourist shops that none of us really took advantage of. Two stores that we were interested in seeing were Nike Town and an Asics store. The Nike Town was selling shoes and racing flats that none of us had ever seen. Across the street at the Asics store the mood was much less fashion focused and dull in comparison.

Who would have thought that finding a bathroom on Takashita Street would be so hard.

We started to tire and get hungry which shifted the focus to food. We found one of those restaurants with a grill in the middle of the table where you can cook your own meat and vegetables. The booth of Ben, Steve, Sam and I definitely won out with our selection as Yoshi kept ordering bizarre meats like tongue and fatty beef. The good news was the tab was picked up by one of the sponsors which kept some spending money in our pockets. We felt the urge to find a pub and blow some yen in a hurry.

Ben spotted an Irish pub and immediately ordered 10 Guinness. The tab came out to over 10,700 yen which is well over $100 but we felt good about the decision. We wandered around some more and even witnessed a fight. Two guys were stumbling around and started kung fu fighting. In fact, one guy tried a sneak attack that involved a flying hay-maker. In the mayhem a pair of glasses was knocked off someone's face and I took home a souvenir. We also saw a guy completely passed out in the middle of the street surrounded by friends who had coned off the area. They just sat around as he rested with his face in the pavement.

270! Yea! I have no idea what this sign says. Girls? Food? Drink?

We decided to call it a night and realized nobody had any idea which direction the hotel was in. We must have walked for about an hour before finally figuring it out. As we brought the night to a close we were all amazed at how many people were still out dressed in business attire carrying their briefcases. The crosswalks were still busy and this was only a Tuesday night.

The Japanese ride fixies too.

Typical Tokyo crosswalk at 11:30 pm.

Track Race, Post-Race Banquet and Karaoke

The ekiden race ended about 3:30 in the afternoon and is followed by the closing ceremony. All the teams line up in the big dome and awards are presented to the top 3 teams, top runners from each leg and the other 5 teams that comprise the top 8. As usual, the Ivy League Select Team was not featured in the award ceremony. We finished 15th out of 22 teams and were just over 8 minutes behind the winners. Waseda set the course record running 2:10:05 for 44.5 kilometers. It helps when 4 of the 6 legs are won by a runner from the same school.

We left the Izumo dome and traveled back to the stadium where two heats of 5ks were being run. I was able to jog a few more minutes while Bobby and Paul warmed up. They ran in the second heat and crossed the line in just under 15 minutes and 15:10 respectively. The first heat was the top heat, and a battle up front took place as the leaders just dipped under 14:00 flat. We showered up and put on casual clothes before heading off to the winery where the banquet takes place.

The first time I came to Japan the banquet, from what I can remember, was an absolute blast. However, the evening ended early for Ben Stern and I because we were a little too aggressive with the "ikii" (sp?). Last year the party didn't get out of hand enough as some of the guys were in serious training blocks and didn't let loose. This year the plan was to find a happy medium.

We sat in the middle of the room instead at the front this year. There were also more Japanese people around that were divided amongst the team. I'm not fully sure who they were but they all played roles in getting us to Izumo. They also were sure to keep our Asahi cups full and food cooking on the grill. Ben, Johnny Photogs, Frank and Robert (our Irish translator) all sat the same table which was a great group.

There is a stage outside where each team gets up and does some sort of song, dance or combination of the two. The two "best" songs of the night included cheerleaders and some dude who yelled, waved his arms and flexed constantly. It was one of the weirder moments of the trip and none of the guys could figure out what was going on. The second best performance was a Japanese radish dance that involved a huge crew of athletes waving around giant radishes. It made no sense and I'm not sure if it was supposed to. While most schools perform their fight song or vegetable dance, the Ivy League team doesn't have anything special to give that is common for all of us. In the past we all just get on stage and dance around like a bunch of idiots to a song that everyone knows. This year we invited a couple guys from the Waseda squad up with us to sing the national anthem. It without a doubt sounded terrible, but it was less painful than a dance.

The rest of the banquet turned to drinking, trading clothes and not causing an international incident. We walked around with bottles of Asahi and offered its contents to anyone who had an empty cup. The other teams would return the favor and then we would all take pictures together. I hope to post some at a later date but have none at this time. I ended up trading a hat for a Chukyo University shirt while other guys did the same. I think Paul managed to snag a Toyo University jacket which was the biggest win for the evening. The beer ran out earlier than it should have which meant the party was winding down and it was back to the hotel to drop our stuff.

The guys weren't ready to call it a night so we grabbed Robert (Irish translator) and headed off to find the nightlife in town. We hit up No. 1 Bar and Salsa, but both places were deserted. We still had a fun time and Robert showed us his karaoke singing skills. The performance of the night had to be when Bobby sang something by Creed. He made a spot on impression of whatshisturd's voice which made a terrible song hilarious. We called it a night around 12:30 am with everyone saying sayonara to Mike who left early the next morning.

22nd Annual Izumo Ekiden

Time: 84:07
Distance: ~11.5 miles

Shakeout: 9:27 for ~1 mile
W/u: 27:48 for ~3.6 miles
Race: 19:00 for 6.2k (13th fastest overall)
C/d: 9:25 for ~1 mile
C/d II: 18:36 for ~2 miles

**I am posting this but check back later (especially if you use an RSS feed) as I'm going to update the race recap in a bit more detail. We are traveling to Tokyo today and hopefully I will have internet access later this afternoon.

Race day started with a few easy shakeout miles along the bike path with Sam Luff. We saw other teams out doing the same thing. I felt good which is sometimes a bad sign as I tend to run better when I feel terrible on the shakeout and warm up. Back at the hotel I ate a decent breakfast consisting of coffee, toast, eggs, cereal and fruit. It's much more than I normally eat on race day, but I figured I wouldn't get the sash until around 2:00 pm.

Everybody loaded up on the bus around 11:00 am and headed to the Izumo Dome where the race would eventually end. All the guys racing had guides that help us get checked in and on the start line with no troubles. They were along for the ride as well. We dropped off our two alternates (Bobby and Paul), the manager (Ben Stern), Johnny Photogs and Frank Tinney who would be running the lead off leg. The rest of us remained on the bus and we were dropped off one by one at the start of our respective legs.

I hung out in the parking lot of a grocery store for an hour trying to get some rest. I've been getting really tired around noon here because it means that it's close to midnight back home. I was able to doze off just a little bit and stay loose under a tent. The race commenced at 1:05 pm and all of the 4th leg runners huddled around the tv to watch. The pack usually takes it out really hard for the first few kilometers and this year was no different. I missed the opening 1k, but saw the leaders had gone through 2k in under 5:30 which means they were running 2:45/k pace. I had to go warm up at this point, but I later learned that the leaders went through 4k in 11:06 and 5k in under 14:00. Frank didn't have the best leg, in fact it was terrible, but he owned up to it after the race. (Frank finished with a time of 25:52 which was well off the 23:07 run by the first athlete from Waseda University. Our buddy Comas Ondiba, who pushed the pace early, finished 2nd in 23:24).

My warm up consisted of me running really slow along the course. I ran out 15 minutes and came back in around 13. I purposely kept the pace really easy and was feeling good doing so. Last year I had a terrible race on this leg and effectively took us out of the top 10. I wanted to run close to 19:00 and finished in 20:00. This year the goal was to run 19:00 and keep us in the race.

When I got back I found out the Ivy League team was getting worked by nearly every school. Our goal is always a top 10 finish and looking at the race packet we felt that this was a great year to do so. I didn't see any of Michael Maag's leg and the tv coverage cut to the leaders just before Zac got the sash. Turns out that Mike passed 1 runner bringing us to 18th overall, and Zac ran down 3 teams bring us to 15th overall by the time I grabbed the white sash. Mike ran 17:36 for 5.8k (12th fastest) and Zac went 23:55 for 7.9k (11th fastest). The winners of those two legs were Yutaro Fukushi of Nittai who ran 16:45 and Yuki Yagi of Waseda with 23:15.

I was 15 seconds back of Chukyo University when I started my leg. I knew there was a team close behind too. I tried my best to run the guy in front down and I picked a couple of points and counted out the lead. I think the gap closed to around 12 seconds at one section but at the end of the leg we both ran 19:00. I felt the best I had in weeks chasing the runner as my stride was really smooth. It might have been the fact that the wind was at my back, regardless I was pleased with how I finished the stage. I ran 53 seconds before coming to a k mark on the road. My next thousand was covered in about 3 minutes. I knew the halfway mark would be about 10 minutes into the leg and I could calculate the remaining distance from there. I glanced at my watch several times telling myself that the pain was almost over with 5 minutes of running left.

I ended with the 13th fastest time on the leg, but had I run 18:57 I would have been the 10th fastest. It's hard to make up time and push yourself when you're essentially time trialing way back in the field. There were 6 guys who ran between 18:58 and 19:04 so I can take pride in my mediocrity. The winner of my leg was Hiroyuki Sasaki of Waseda in 17:54 which was also a course record. Are you seeing the theme here with Waseda? Of the 6 legs in the ekiden, they would win 4 of them and set an overall course record of 2:10:05 for 44.5 kilometers.

Sam Luff ran the next leg and he didn't lose or gain any places. Sam finished in 19:59 for 6.4k (17th fastest). His leg was won by Wataro Ueno of Komazawa in 18:30. Our anchor was Steve Sundell who has run the final leg two other times. Steve ran respectably but couldn't pass anyone either. This is similar to the first year I came to Japan and we went from 3rd to 12th on the third leg and stayed there the rest of the race. Steve's time was 31:54 for 10.2k (12th overall). His leg was won by Shota Hiraga of Waseda in 30:00. I'll note that last year Daniel Gitau ran a foolish 28:17 for this distance.

I will recap more about the 5k alternate race, post-race banquet and night of karaoke later. I will however offer some insights to Japanese distance runner and marvel at how efficient their strides are. While Kenyans appear really fluid and lanky, the Japanese have no wasted motion in their arms, torsos or legs. All their momentum is going forward which is really something to replicate. Also, they are incredibly light weight. My guess is the average weight on a Japanese team is 120 pounds and it's not because they are all that short. Third would be the choice in footwear and most runners opt to train in flats or a shoe that is really lightweight. The shoes aren't necessarily of the minimalism concept, but they are definitely lighter and less shoe than in the states. The Japanese also really like their Phyten, magnets and other blood flow boosting paraphernalia. It's definitely not doping/cheating, but almost every athlete sports some sort of necklace, bracelet, waist belt or magnetic band-aid looking devices. Finally, the Japanese can go to the well like no other athletes I've ever seen. If the Kenyans "train hard and win easy," the Japanese "race hard and look in agony." Countless athletes collapse at the line completely spent from their race. The face of some of the runners 4k from the finish line look like it's going to be a terrible day yet they manage to hang on a run ridiculously fast splits.

Here is great recap from Japan Running News that is a must read.

Watching Races Online

Last night I went to bed while nodding off to the live feed of the Chicago marathon. I eventually passed out, but awoke to learn that Japanese based Kenyan runner and Olympic champ, Sammy Wanjiru, had won the race over Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia. Also sometime after midnight I got up because, guess what, I couldn't sleep. It was great that Chicago had live coverage of the race and even better that the athlete tracking was top notch. I was able to quickly find out about the results of the race that I cared about:

• Scotty Downard ran a PR of 2:26:52
• Jerry Faulkner looks to have had a fast start, solid half, but rough finish. It would have been great to see things come together for this guy who put in a lot of work during the Oklahoma summer, 2:39:05
• Chad Crockford rolled to a 2:53 finish while his wife, Danielle unfortunately DNF'd
• Fasil Bizuneh had an aggressive start and didn't make it to the finish line
• Sage Canaday formerly of Cornell and now of Hansons just missed the trials qualifier with 2:19:18

Well done to those who ran PRs and good job Chicago for having your marathon together.

This brings us to how to view the Izumo Ekiden online. I will refer to Brett Larner's blog, Japan Running News, on how to do so. It requires a bit of a download, but in the past I've been able to watch some other ekiden races.

Also, while you're visiting Japan Running News, take a look at the two teams that he highlights. Look at their personal bests for 5,000m and 10,000m! Further try to ignore his dig at the Ivy League team which has never placed in the top 10 for several reasons. I can't help but disagree on his argument about having Oregon or Stanford come over to race as that's not the purpose of the trip, type of team that is fielded or time of year that is convenient.

Izumo Ekiden Opening Ceremonies

Time: 33:46
Distance: ~4.8 miles

It was the same routine this morning for breakfast. I was one of the first down to the hotel restaurant and we were all served the same dish of eggs, undercooked bacon, Texas toast, salad, soup, and yogurt. I continued with the heavy coffee drinking too. Also at breakfast we got to chat briefly with the Yamanashi Gakuin University manager. Last year their team placed second overall and they have a tiny Kenya dude named Cosmos Ondiba. It was also last year that Yamanashi gave the Ivy League guys a pair of sunglasses and two stuffed animals that sit atop my bed. Meagan affectionately calls them Franny and Freddy.

Our run was also at the same time where the team went out for an easy jog along the bike path. The pace on the way back picked up considerably, but I think we were all feeling fresh. The goal tomorrow, as with every Izumo Ekiden, is to get top 10. However, the highest the team has ever placed in 12th and we've done it twice.

The rest of the morning and early afternoon included a lot of lounging around. I watched more MTV music videos and checked up on sporting scores. Lunch was a buffet downstairs for several hours. The guys on the team stayed exceptionally long telling boring stories of glory days and it was great. There wasn't anything else planned other than the opening ceremony for the race.

At 4:00 pm we met down in the lobby and were introduced to our guide/interpreter for the race. They follow us around and make sure we don't mess things up on race day by not understanding the language. After we funneled into the building attached to the hotel where a theater holds the team and all the important officials. The old mayor, new mayor, delegates of the Japanese NCAA equivalent, and presidents of both Fuji TV and Fujitsu are there. This race is apparently watched by close to 20 million people in Japan. I'm not sure if something was lost in communication, but that's what Yoshi told us.

The opening ceremony includes a performance which has been drums in the past, but this year it was female dance group. It was a cool but sort of weird routine that incorporated some traditional music, but mostly pop stuff. The rest of the ceremony is speeches, the Japanese national anthem and all the teams parade across the main stage. It gives the Ivy League time to pick out which school has the best uniform in hopes of trading for their kits during the post-race banquet. Our Asics warm ups are not of the highest quality and the whole team was sweating bullets which made for a very uncomfortable final 15 minutes. Upon leaving the ceremony we had free time until dinner which was back down in the hotel lobby.

We kept things relatively simple tonight as most guys ate some sort of beef dish. I had a stew like dish with the most tender meat I've ever tasted along with miso soup and rice. Later a group of us walked in the direction of Jusco which is similar to our Target. We got distracted and went in a Family Mart store for some Pocari Sweat, ice cream and other treats. On the way back to the hotel we dropped in a shoe store called Shoes Love Land which had all sorts of interesting styles. Nobody bought anything, but they would definitely be some interesting conversation starters if you were to get a pair.

Mall Rats in Izumo

Time: 45:49
Distance: ~7 miles

W/u: 21:19 for ~3 miles
W/o: Cruise mile, 800, 2 x 400
C/d: 15:06 for ~2 miles

Last time I left you the team had an interesting meal down in the New WelCity Hotel restaurant. All of us returned to our respective rooms to try and find some sleep. I failed miserably as I woke up at midnight, 2:00 am, 4:00 am and finally decided to get up at 5:30 am. I'm not sure why, but I think this is the worst adjustment to Japan time that I've had to make. I along with Yoshi and John "Johnny Photogs" Deputy were the first three down to breakfast on Saturday morning. The two Americans ate the western style breakfast while Yoshi had a more traditional Japanese spread which included fish, rice, radishes, egg and soup.

The rest of the team joined us downstairs eventually and we got to have a good running conversation. And by running, I mean it was all about running. Johnny Photogs is the official photographer for John Hancock during the Boston Marathon. He also knows the owner of the Boston Red Sox (who just purchased Liverpool) and many other big time sponsors of sporting events. He was here last year taking photos to document the trip and this year he's playing more of a chaperone role since Jack Fultz (former Boston Marathon winner) wasn't able to come due to health complications. Mr. Fultz has been coaching this team for over a decade so I'm sure the race officials will find is peculiar that Ben Stern is filling the void.

After breakfast we returned to our rooms and prepared for our runs. We drove over to the track stadium and ran a few laps around the athletic fields before getting to work with a light workout. It was cool running in a team atmosphere as Frank, Mike, Sam, Zac, Bobby and I all ran a mile together, followed by some 800s or 400s. The goal was to stretch out the legs and feel fast for Monday's race.

Splits:
4:51.20 (90), 2:18.37 (89), 66.56 (92), 65.06 for 13:54 total and 2 miles total.

I felt decent, but not fantastic. That will certainly have to change come Monday if I want to run respectably. It's been decided that I'm running the 4th leg again this year which is 6.2k in distance. Last year I ran 20:00 minutes which is about a minute slower than I wanted and felt absolutely terrible doing it. However, I got deathly ill two days later which is my poor excuse. I presented my case for the second leg which is the shortes (5.8k) but was shot down as Ben really wants the two Princeton Towers to lead off. Right now the line up is going to be Frank (8.0k), Mike (5.8k), Zac (7.9k), me (6.2k), Sam (6.4k), Steve (10.2k).

When we were done training it was time to head back to the hotel for a quick shower and then lunch. We all piled into our bus and drove over to You Me which is a huge mall. It's the first time that I've been in You Me, but I've seen it a couple of times before. We wandered around until we decided to eat at the Food Court. It was very similar to an American food court but all the places served Asian cuisine, minus the McDonald's that some guys chose to eat at. I'll admit that I had a McFlurry. While we were eating a girl from the states came up to us and asked if we were American. Her name was Sarah and she was doing a year abroad, living with a host family and teaching at a high school. She almost never sees English speaking people in Izumo so she took the opportunity to hang out with us. Sarah has only been in Japan two months and doesn't really know the language which means she sometimes goes days without speaking. It sounded a little lonely, but she was fun to chat with for the couple of hours we were at the mall.

The next stop on the day was the Taisha Shrine which is a must see when you come to Izumo. It's one of the oldest, if not the oldest shrines in all of Japan. I've been twice before, but it's always relaxing to visit the sacred grounds. It's also amusing to throw coins into the big ropes hanging in front of some of the buildings. I can't really describe what I mean by this without photos, so you will have to wait until I'm back and on my other computer.

The final important activity of the day was to go on a course preview. The race starts at the gates of the shrine and runs downhill through the city. Each guy took a turn at the front of the bus scoping out the leg he will run come Monday. By this time I was getting sleepy and took a brief nap on the bus. I also fell asleep when we got back to the hotel and missed the first 30 minutes of dinner. Whoops. When I did get down to the restaurant most of the team was eating steak strips that we each got to cook ourselves on a small filled with sauce. I ate quickly so I didn't hold up the team. Yoshi handed out our bib numbers, fumbled through some of the requirements for race day and released us for the rest of the night.

Before sleep most of the team went down to the "onsen" which is more or less a spa. You first have to ceremonially wash off before entering either the mineral water or bubble water. Basically it was a bunch of skinny athletic Americans chilling naked with older Japanese dudes. We were pretty proud of ourselves if you know what I mean. By the time we left I was exhausted and ready for sleep. I made it another few hours watching MTV and more recent Snoop Dogg videos before finally passing out.

Tomorrow is going to be relatively low key with the race's opening ceremony being the highlight.

Second Run in the Rain

Time: 33:18
Distance: ~4 miles

When I fell asleep the NFL's Arizona vs. San Diego game was being aired on tv. When I got up the game was over, but I found an MTV station that was playing a collection of Snoop Dogg songs. They were also unedited which I found strange. Zac Hine and I went out for a short run in the rain this time running in the opposite direction from this morning. It was dark and the roads were wet so we were extra careful when crossing numerous intersection. The other direction is definitely the better way to go.

Dinner was served just after our arrival back to the hotel. I should have taken some pictures of the meal but I didn't. I couldn't have uploaded the photos to my mini-computer anyway. I can describe that most of the team got the same meal which included crab, "roast beef," all sorts of fish (cooked and raw), shrimp, rice, miso soup, funky root vegetables in a sauce, small clams, salad, caviar and mushrooms, and a salty dish that none of us could stomach. I'm probably forgetting some items on the tray, but you get the idea. All of the dishes were served in really small portions that left you satisfied, but not full. There was no ice cream this time, nor was there an adventure into town. It was still raining and everyone was content to head up to their rooms to sleep.

I passed out for a few hours, but it's currently just after midnight on what is now Saturday, October 9th.

Sea of Japan

Time: 64:36
Distance: ~8.5 miles

"I slept like a baby, woke up every two hours and cried," that's basically how you could describe my first night of sleep. I may have slept the worst of the entire group, but I bet I accomplished the most work. During the night I watched terrible Japanese television shows, maybe it wasn't terrible, but I couldn't understand and the graphics were at least bad. I will say that while the people of Japan look incredibly fit and healthy, there are no obese people that I've seen at least. I suppose there are sumo wrestlers, but I'm yet to see any of those guys. Besides, aren't they athletes in the same way Albert Hainesworth is an athlete? My point is that a lot of the late night television is similar to ours in the US which is of course... infomercials. Meagan would love it. I saw two adds for fitness machines and both were for core strength, and another for "removing that unwanted hair." Clearly the Japanese want to be us, but do it better.

When I felt like it was a reasonable hour (4:30 am) I got up and made some Starbucks Via and unpacked my clothes. I decided to go down stairs around 6:30 and wait for the first person to arrive at breakfast. It was Yoshi who I have met three times before. I believe he works or volunteers with the Japanese equivalent to the NCAA. I ate the "American breakfast" which consisted of toast, eggs, fruit, salad, and soup. I also drank an obscene amount of coffee.

An hour after breakfast the team convened in the lobby for our run. We ran from the New WelCity Hotel to the Sea of Japan. There is a bike path that runs through the city and makes it very convenient to travel by foot or bike. Everyone touched the sea before heading back. Some guys took an "onsen" (sp?" which is a natural hot bath while I watched the Giants defeat the Braves 1-0. Take that Billy Shue!

Lunch was buffet style so everyone was able to find a little of something that they liked. The big hit of the meal was the ice cream which Ben was convinced had a little butter in it. He might have been right. It was so rich and delicious. Afterward some guys went upstairs to watch a movie, others walked into Izumo and I took a nap. It's raining here so getting out to see the sights has been put on hold.

Posting from Izumo, Japan

I am in the future. It's currently Friday, October 8, 2010 and I am 13 hours ahead of all you folks on the east coast. I'm a time traveler. Want to know my secrets?

My flight left Charlotte at 9:00 am on Wednesday, October 6th destined for Chicago. I made a few last minute phone calls, business emails and met up with Team Ivy League prior to boarding United Flight 881 to Narita Airport in Tokyo. It's a great group of guys which includes: Steve Sundell (Columbia), Zach Hine (Cornell), Ben Stern (Princeton), Robert Hartnett (Columbia), Sam Luff (Cornell), Michael Maag (Princeton), Paul Morris (Columbia), Frank Tinney (Princeton) and myself. The first three listed have all been on the trip before while the others are all new comers.

During the eternal flight from Chicago to Tokyo I read parts of What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell, took naps, listened to podcasts and watched movies. I viewed three of the four movies that played during the flight which were Cyrus, Dinner for Schmucks and The Back Up Plan. The first two had their moments, but the third was utterly awful. J. Lo isn't even hot these days which you combine with her terrible acting and an even worse plot... Ben and I agreed that we were even more bored watching the movie than just sitting watching the map of our airplane slowly cross over the US, Canada, Alaska (basically not the US), water, Russia, more water and then Japan. During the flight I was sure to get up and walk around as much as possible. I spent most of the time at Michael, Frank and Robert's (Bobby) seats because they scored an exit row, granted both Mike and Frank top 6'4" which means they will be two of the tallest guys in all of Japan.

We finally arrived at Narita around 3:00 pm, walked through customs, grabbed our luggage and were greeted by a guide. She told us that we had to wait for two mystery guests who arrived around 5:00 pm. Our team plus the photographer (John Deputy) walked around the airport eating Bagel & Bagel sandwiches. We found an observation deck where we killed 30 minutes watching planes take off and land. Very cool if you were three years old. When it was time we walked back down to meet our guide and the guests. It got to 5:15 pm before the guide came over and asked for Mr. Stern in a cute Japanese accent. Turns out we were waiting for a guy that was on our flight the entire time and arrived with us. It made for a funny, awkward Lost in Translation moment (I'm not a fan of that movie either, but thought I'd sound cool by referencing it). I felt it was a better comparison to the Dos Equis commercials featuring the "most interesting guy in the world." Ben is so important that he waits for himself to arrive late.

All of us had a bus ride across Tokyo to the old Haneda airport where we would be flying to some town that was not Izumo. The flight was about 90 minutes long and we were all exhausted. I did, however prior to the flight, score a cafe misto at a Starbucks that was overpriced but not half bad. Upon landing we hopped a bus that would drive us an hour to our hotel in Izumo.

So it's now a little after midnight, but I'm wide awake. I've showered and can't smell myself anymore. Tomorrow I will update more on the trip and fill in the last few workouts prior to coming to Japan. Keep reading...

Leaving for Japan

Time: 42:12
Distance: ~5.3 miles

Before heading to the airport this morning Meagan and I put in some dark miles through Freedom Park. We shuffled our way to a Short Loop. Today's travel calls for a flight from Charlotte to Chicago (easy), a second from Chicago to Tokyo (tortuous) and a third from Tokyo to Yonago (not so fun either). There will be many naps, some reading and movie watching. I'll basically lose Weds. and Thurs. to travel. Catch you in Izumo...

Sea of Japan

Time: 89:20
Distance: 12.45 miles
Map

The team was up early this morning and out the door in a light rain for our run. The party last night didn't get too out of control which meant we were in good spirits for some easy miles. We decided to run west and see the Sea of Japan (Pacific Ocean kinda). Ben and Dave were spearheading this run as they are both in a base training phase with their respective post-collegiate training groups. The rest of us were along for the ride and enjoyed seeing the sights, hearing the sounds and smelling the smells (?).

Izumo Ekiden First Review

The team finished 13th overall.

I ran terrible. Embarrassingly bad. I covered 6.5k faster two years ago. Not sure why I suck so much. I think I was the 15th fastest for my leg and let 3 guys pass me. I had no response for their silent shuffles when they scurried by.

The dude from Nihon University has really good eyesight. Like really good eyesight. He covered the 10.2k distance in 28:17 and made up a huge deficit in the process. He was seeing with 20/15 vision today.

Nihon won, Yamanashi second, Toyo third.

The opening split was covered in 22:30 for 8.0k which is a new record.

It was hot (22-24 degrees celsius) and a little windy (3.5m/s).

Time to shower and head over to the winery to drown my sorrows.

Race Day Morning

It's the morning of the race and I'm wide awake. In fact, I was wide awake several times throughout the night and at one point I got up for about an hour. I'm not sure why I slept so poorly. When I decided to get up I turned on the television and found a channel airing the Chicago Marathon. I watched Sammy Wanjiru looked controlled from about 15k to 25k which is when I was able to fall back asleep. I had already checked the result and saw that he won in a new CR breaking Special Ks' (Khalid Khannouchi) 2:05:42 by one second.

Check out the blog Japan Running News for a great preview of the race. It also says that you can watch the race online but for those who are in the states the start time is around midnight.

The states GAORA is showing a live NFL game. The guys from the northeast on this trip should be delighted to see the Patriots are leading the Broncos 17-7 at halftime.

Race report later.

Also, Tarpy won a bit of coin at the Hartford Half taking first place (money) and being the first New Englander (more money). Good pay day for 64:42 minutes of work.

This Is a Hot & Cool Spot

Time: 29:10
Distance: 4.02 miles
Pace: 7:16
Map

The day started off at 5:30 when my eyes opened and they weren't going to be persuaded to go back to sleep. I was up 90 minutes before breakfast and spent the time browsing the intertubes. Down at breakfast we were treated to more runny eggs and bacon/ham.

The team gathered in the lobby an hour after eating for a course tour. Each of us took turns at the front of the bus trying to visualize, to the best of our ability, what the race was going to be like. We struggled to find some of the kilometer markers but made the most of our time. The lineup for the race will start with Ben True on the downhill 8.0k opener. He will hand off to Dave who will run over two overpasses on a 5.8k segment. Next will be Zac on a shortened 7.9k flat leg. I will run fourth over 6.2k and hand off to Murat who runs 6.4k. Luke will bring it home on a 10.2k final segment.

Once we were through with the course tour it was time to get in some training. We were bussed to the track again where most of the teams were present. It was similar to going to a cross-country meet where true distance running is the focus. However, there was more of a track feeling to it because we were on the oval watching guys do strides and cut shapes. It's hard to explain the scene but imagine a track practice with 15 teams, no sprinters or field events and no females.

A group of us laced up the shoes for a short run followed by some light drills and strides. I'm feeling good and look forward to running hard tomorrow. I plan to run conservatively which will be hard to do as the tendency will be to go out fast. If all goes well I'll be around 3:00 for the first kilometer, 9:00-9:10 at 3k and will be able to negative split on the second half. A final time of 19 minutes would be a decent result.

After our run we drove to a noodle house and had a great lunch of ramen. But, not the kind of ramen you ate as a poor college student. This was delicious served in a big bowl with onions, pork and a light broth. Lunch was brief and then we returned to the hotel for a nap or tv watching. Our next scheduled meeting was at 4:00 pm when we met with our student guides. They are responsible for getting us to the start of our respective legs tomorrow and have the privilege of watching/carrying our gear. The introduction process was terribly awkward which consisted of the standard smiles, nods and bows.

When I was here two years ago the record was set on the opening leg. An athlete ran 22:50 for 8k which is flying. All the buzz last year when Jailhouse, Owen and Ari (former Brown teammates) were on the trip, was about a runner from Nihon University who ran 28:28 on the final leg. That's not 28:28 for 10k. That's 28:28 for 10.2k which is like 27:40s for 10k on the roads. Rolling. Nihon is back this year and they hope to repeat. When our manager returned from the press conference, he reported to us that members of the media wanted to know about his fitness this year. The best quote of the day came from the response of the Nihon coach who said something along the lines of, "[the athlete] runs very fast when there is someone in front of him. He pushes himself when he can see other runners ahead. And, he has very good eyesight."

I'll rush through the opening ceremony where each team is introduced on stage. I was named team captain and got to carry the placard across the stage for all to see. During the introductions Dave and I were sizing up which teams had the best warmups. There is a squad, I think Daiichi Institute of Technology, that has these green and orange unis that resemble the University of Miami. It makes me wonder if they get arrested a lot. Yamanashi Gakuin University has some really classy white tops that are very clean and Toyo University looks good with the blue.

After the ceremony, Yamanashi presented our team with a gift bag contain some stuffed animals and a pair of sunglasses. Jack Fultz knows their team manager because a couple of years back the Ivy team trained near Mount Fuji at their school. It was a very nice gesture and a complete surprise.

Dinner is in a few moments. I'm having the eel with tempura. I'll close this post out with the second best quote of the day taken from the front of Sega World:

Pleasant time is necessary for your lifetime.
This is a hot & cool spot, as you know.
Come on now!!

True words to live by.

Busy Day in Izumo

Time: 22:51
Distance: 3.01 miles
Pace: 7:36
Map

I'm going to be posting my workouts backwards in order to keep the most recent stuff fresh.

This afternoon the Ivy League team had lunch with the new Mayor of Izumo and members of the Japanese collegiate organization (I believe IEAUJ). The lunch was at a French restaurant like it was 2 years ago, but this time the mayor had changed. The previous mayor was a charismatic guy who was able to express his love for the Ivy League and running with broken English. The new mayor chose to speak through a translator which was fine but seems very formal. The lunch was amazing with several courses and lots to drink. Gifts were exchanged along with awkward nods and smiles.

After lunch we all went to the Taisha Shrine that I wrote about the last time I was here. However, this year the largest and oldest part of the shrine is under construction and obstructed from view. That being said, we did get to the Izumo museum that explains why the city is where the "Gods and legends" originated. A few months ago during an excavation some artifacts were found which are now in the museum. It is important for our team to learn a bit about the city that is so graciously hosting us. During the the self-guided tour we received PS2 devices to listen to the explanations of most display cases. I learned some but it was hard to take everything in when the labels are all in Japanese.

Next, we drove to the community athletic area where there are two outdoor tracks, an indoor swimming facility, soccer fields, baseball fields and more. The main outdoor track is one of the top 5 facilities Lucas Meyer has ever seen. I'm not sure what those other 4 would be, but the stadium is pretty cool. Our team went on a short double run and did a few strides on the grass and track.

I was getting pretty tired by the end of our outing and was ready to return to the hotel. At dinner three of us got the "Izumo Gozan" meal which had a little bit of everything. From what I can recall it had sashimi, beef, pickled vegetable, miso soup, crab, rice, salmon on salad, cold pork?, and a few small plates that resembled endangered species. I at least tried everything. More than half was good, a quarter was edible but not my favorite and the remainder only got the first bite.

Sega World

Time: 48:50
Distance: 6.58 miles
Pace: 7:18
Map

Today is our first full day in Japan. It started with a really long breakfast down in the hotel lobby. I didn't sleep great but it was definitely better than two years ago when I found myself wide awake at 2 am. I was one of the first patrons at the hotel restaurant along with John Deputy, Yoshi and Ben True. We ate the "Western" breakfast that consisted of runny eggs, undercooked bacon, toast, salad, corn flakes and yogurt. I'm not complaining about the food, but rather accurately portraying what was on the plate. Definitely not the best breakfast I've ever had, but perhaps better than the alternative of fish and rice that is part of the traditional Japanese breakfast.

I sat down in the restaurant for over two hours drinking coffee and letting my stomach settle while others ate. We decided to go out for our morning run around 10 o'clock. I served as run director because I knew where the bike path was since I was here in '07. We ran along the "river" as Jack, our coach, described it. I think Dave and some of the other were a bit let down because in reality it's no more than a 10 foot wide, 2 inch deep canal. It does open up a bit more and run out to the sea, but not for several miles.

It felt good to shake the legs out in a group of talented guys. I think all of us felt better than we had expected. Sitting on the plane, traveling on buses and walking through airports was not fantastic. We were all glad to be out in the fresh air getting the heart rate elevated. The run ended in enough time for us to clean up and put on our costumes prior to meeting the new mayor of Izumo.

Planes and Buses, Planes and Buses

Time: none
Distance: none

Today was an entire day of travel. An. Entire. Day.

Meagan dropped Dave and I off at the Charlotte airport for our 9:51 am flight to Chicago. Once in Chicago we hopped on the plane bound for Tokyo and met up with Zac, Jack, Luke and John. It sounds like we were it at Bible camp or something with all of those names. Our flight departed at 12:05 on Thursday and wouldn't land until 3:00 pm on Friday on Japan. The flight alone was just over 12 hours. The time difference is 13 hours. Jet lag central.

During the flight I sat in the same row as Jack Fultz and we were able to talk strategy among other things. I watch several movies including most of Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (I'll give it a 6), The Proposal (6), State of Play (7/8), and one more that I can't remember. I also finished the book Sway (very similar format to most marketing/advertising/negotiation books. Come up with a few cases to illustrate a theme. Find several mini-cases to illustrate the theme. Summarize research papers. Conclude with summary of first case study and how it illustrates the theme), and started another book Then We Came to the End.

I didn't sleep much on the flight, but there would be time for that later.

Upon getting to Tokyo we did the whole customs thing and then wasted time in the airport while waiting for the west coast guys (Murat and Ben). Once we were all together we took a bus from Narita (international airport) across town to Haneda (domestic airport). It was already getting dark around 5:45 pm when the bus left and completely black when we arrived at our destination around 7:00 pm.

We jumped on a 45, 60, 75, 90 minute flight to near Izumo? I don't remember the flight because at this point my body was shutting down. Our team was seated at the very back of the plane and almost immediately my eyes shut for the duration. Normally the team flies to Izumo but for whatever reason we stopped in ??? which was a 90 minute bus to the Wel City Hotel in Izumo.

We finally got to the hotel around 11 pm on Friday October 9th. I essentially lost Friday to roughly 26 hours of travel. The mood will improve in the morning when we get to spend our first day in Japan without the worries of making flights and catching buses. I look forward to meeting our hosts and exploring more of the city.

So far the guys on the team are great. We have enjoyed sharing stories about coaches, races, travels and the Ivy League in general. Basically we walk around with our noses sticking up in the air. Not because we are elitist Ivy League grads, but because we feel huge compared to some of our new Japanese friends.

Izumo Taisha

Time: 30:03
Distance: 4-5 miles

We went to the oldest Shinto shrine in the world. It was over 2,000 years old and is a popular to get married. While we were there the team and I got to see a bride in a traditional Japanese bridal gown. It had a sweet looking hat. The tour was pretty relaxed as guys were getting excited for tomorrow. After visiting the shrine we went on a course tour in the bus. Each of us took turns sitting in front trying to get familiar with the part of the course we were going to run. Max starts off with an 8k, hands off to Tarpy who runs a 5.8k, to Jon Marcus for a 8.5k, to me on a 6.5k, Courtney runs a 5.0k and finally Steve Sundell runs a 10.2k for a total of 44k. My leg didn't look too challenging. It finishes with a 600m downhill. Slight downhill. The only concern will be the wind and the direction it is blowing. Today it was blowing in the runners' faces.

After, we went to the Izumo athletic complex and went on a short run around the fields. We got a look at the other teams who were jogging on the track. We got there a little late in the day b/c they weren't around for long. I ran a few 100m strides with Tarpy and then ran 2 x 200 with splits of: 29.88, (60), 30.59. Legs were feeling good and I was ready to roll.

The Day Before

Time: 30:02
Distance: 4 miles

Woke up early and felt like getting a light run in. I ran what I think was west from the hotel in search of new territory. Got to cross the red bridge that was visible from our hotel. I didn't get to see to much but it was nice to get a short run in before breakfast. Later today we are going to hit up the Izumo Taisha which is the oldest Shinto shrine in the world and tour the race course.

Izumo, Japan II

Time: 41:09
Distance: 6 miles

Again I woke up at some awful hour and went out for a run. I wanted to go the other direction on the bikepath but it ran in towards the city and I didn't really want that. I looped up towards a busier street that had a Mr. Donut store and the Sega arcade. I found my way back to the bike path and headed out the way we did the previous day. It wasn't a great run but I got to see some of the early morning life of Izumo. I also got to see a few Japanese runners out for a jog in their full warmups and flats.

I had planned on going on another run but after lunch I nixed that idea. We ate with the mayor of Izumo who was a very charismatic dude. He had lived in New York and worked for the consulate at one point in his career. I think he has been the mayor for 12-13 years and he basically will have the position until he retires. At the lunch we ate some food that was from the Shimane Prefect which is where Izumo is. The beef was amazingly tender and the wine was tasty. At one point during lunch I gave Courtney a one yen piece and he dropped it in Max King's beer. This meant that Max had to finish his drink and pass on the yen. It ended up as a little drinking game that was at first hidden from the mayor and the administrators of Japanese athletics. However, before leaving Tarpy (I think) got up and filled up the mayor's beer glass, Stern soon followed and dropped the yen in it. The mayor who likes to drink was a good sport and started to laugh. Then he chugged his beer.