So this weekend I went to Chicago for the Lakefront 50/50. I was to run the 50k race. The weather forecast called for rain and cold temperatures. well it did rain only it was the night before the race and it stopped about 3 hours before the start of the 50 mile race. When it was time for my race to start it was cold but dry. With about 80 runners already out on the course, the 50k and marathon runners started at 8:30 am. I ran very comfortably for the first lap which was just over 10 miles. It turned out I was running a pace that would give me 5 hours 30minutes for a finish I was thinking of 6:30, but I didn't feel like I was pushing.
The course runs along the southern part of the Lakefront trail, it is quite flat. The organizers had quite a few aid stations well spaced along the course, they had a good variety food and drinks, both sweet and salty.The race is 3 equal laps and by the half way point I was still running sub 6 hour pace, though now I was mixing in some walking. On my last lap there was a pretty strong head wind but I still felt good and realized that this would be at my back on the way home. Once I reached a point where I could see the 63rd street beach house and the finish line, I was feeling pretty good and then the adrenalin seemed to kick in. I ran quite steadily to the finish, crossing the line in a time of 6:11:34 which is about 21 minutes faster than the 50k race I ran in May. I am quite pleased with this and after finishing I quietly dedicated the race to Sri Chinmoy who is the one who inspired me to start running ultras.
Oh! I finished 116 out of 178 finishers in the 50k race.

I looked at the website for the Chicago lakefront 50/50 and it seems they will now have a certified Marathon at the same time, with a limit of 200 runners. This could mean that there will be around 400 runners out there this weekend, which of course means that we will not get lonely. Everything seems to be going well as far as my preparation goes, I just have to go out there and enjoy myself. I will give a report on the race when I get back.

It is Sunday and time for Utpal and I to go for our usual morning run. Running has the ability to heal and that is exactly what we needed at this time. We ran about 9 miles ( 15k ) on a beautiful sunny morning with blue skies. It is 6 days to my race in Chicago and I have to say I feel ready to do the race. Back in May a friend died just as I was about to run a 50k race and I dedicated that race to him, now I have the opportunity to do the same thing in Chicago. I feel truly blessed.

I was fortunate to attend the very moving memorial for Sri Chinmoy yesterday October 14th.It was both a sad occasion and a joyful one.There were several traditional ceremonies. many guests that were in attendance offered tribute and remembrances. Over 1000 of his students along with the various guests closed the service by offering a rose as they walked past the open casket. His inspiration continues to grow in the hearts of everyone of us.

I was fortunate to attend the very moving memorial for Sri Chinmoy yesterday October 14th.

Yesterday Spiritual Teacher Sri Chinmoy died. He was my teacher and the biggest inspiration and source of encouragement for all my running. For the last 34 years I have tried to honour that inspiration whenever I run a race, I will continue to do this in his memory. This is all I have to say at the moment.

Well things seemed a lot better today. First of all the weather is quite warm here in New York for this time of the year. This meant that it was T shirt and shorts for my Sunday morning run. We decided to go out to Flushing Meadow and run out by the tennis center, by running this with an easy pace it became a 2 hour run.After the problems I had with my sciatica last week it was really nice running and feeling quite loose. If all goes well I can spend the next 2 weeks putting in some decent miles in preparation for Chicago. I am not sure what will happen with the 6 hour next weekend and will wait on Ray K to see what he is going to do. He had a pretty easy 24 hour last weekend running just 76 miles. Have to see what he says. Anyway I am really happy that I feel better.

After I got back from the 24 hour in Ottawa I felt really good. The next 2 Saturday's I ran some fast(for me ) 2 mile races and my recovery seemed good. Then things changed a little, it started with an ankle problem then a a stomach bug and finally sciatica. Sometimes we get all excited about running more and more, but the body decides to slow us down. I have a 50k race coming up and wanted to do some serious training, but I think what I really need is to fully recover. When I look back I can see that I have done quite a lot, since July I have run 2 24 hour races and a Marathon, then I started running fast 2 mile races. Finally my wisdom has caught up with me and made me realize that I need to take it easy between long races, if I don't my body will stop me. Anyway I have 3 weeks before the 50k in Chicago, I have to slowly let myself build up to it I have the training mileage in the races I've done, so I just have to let it happen.