Blog

In the past month, I've had two very exciting races at the BAA 5k and the Broad Street Run. Things are going well, but I wrote this piece at the end of April, before my bigger break-through of the two. It was inspired by being a member of the bridal party for one of my best friends on April 21 and by a fun conversation with the rector at my church. Today is my 4-month anniversary. The honeymoon is over and we're still here, together. We met in Germany on Ash Wednesday in 2003, over nine years ago now. Not quite seventeen years old, I had just e...

It was a strange sensation to feel like I was on top of the world as I lay collapsed on cold concrete. For about the first thirty seconds after my race this past weekend, I lay on my back just past the finish line, feeling my chest rise and fall, tasting air that seemed new. Everything seemed new. Every time a runner chooses to join a new program or work with a new coach or move to a different location, or in my case, all three, there will be doubts about the fit of the new situation. Maybe the new coaching style won't mesh with the runner's pe...

This past week I was fortunate enough to take my very first transatlantic trip to beautiful Northern Ireland in order to take part in the 22nd annual Armagh 5k Road Race. For years, ZAP has been sending athletes to Ireland to either gain some international exposure or run a “rust buster” race during late winter in preparation for spring track. In my case, I was racing for the first time since May of 2011. Contrary to racing breaks in past years, this one was not due to injury. Coach Pete Rea and I had discussed, prior to coming to Z...

Yesterday I received a letter in the mail.  It is a simple message but something that greatly tied into a lot that I have been thinking about lately.  The letter is as follows:  “Zika, Pete, Ryan I need to ramble a bit… I feel inspired! Last week I saw an email headline about ZAP reaching 1,500 fans on Facebook.  This is great! I don’t know why but it is great! Later, I reflected on a conversation I initiated with Pete during an October Wednesday evening run about tithing and donations.  My thoughts ...

New York City has become a popular place to spend New Year's Eve for many reasons. First and foremost, the famous "dropping of the ball" happens in Times Square, the heart of Manhattan. Secondly, the city that never sleeps literally does not sleep on New Year's Eve (and it makes sure you don't either, even if you have a flight at 8:00 am on New Year's Day). Thirdly, due to a television show that enjoyed widespread popularity in the 1990's, many people, women in particular, have acquired a warped idea of what New Year's in the big apple would b...

As anyone who has ever trained as a distance runner on any level knows, injuries are almost an inevitable part of the process. When someone is trying to push themselves to that next level it is often a difficult balancing act between what you want to do in training and what your body allows you to do in training. Most of the time your body will win that battle! I have often heard the analogy of the ‘red line’ where on one side of the line is health and the other side of the line is injury. My goal as a professional runner is to trai...

I heard something I thought was funny on television the other day. It goes something like this, “Put your hand on a hot stove top and a second feels like an hour. Go on a date with the hottest woman you have ever seen and every hour feels like a second. That’s relativity.” If that’s the case then running has been an incredibly hot woman this past 6 months. You know what I’m talking about; tall, voluptuous, legs for days, long dark hair, olive skin, and a smile that could end (or start for that matter) a small war. ...

The holidays make me nostalgic and slightly weepy, so I apologize if this blog gets a little mushy. .. Down here in Tallahassee, I do not have a regular church to attend. I rely on recommendations and random Google searches to find services, which can lead to mixed up times and interesting situations. Yesterday, I found an evening service that started at 5 pm. I carefully wrote down directions and noted the address, in order to minimize confusion and ensure that I made it there on time. I pulled up to the church and found that it was a slightly...

Here I am, sitting on a hard double bed in a Days Inn in Tallahassee, Florida. I’m in place where my daily routine involves waking up around 7, eating from a limited yet exciting continental breakfast. Which flavors of oatmeal packets will they have today? At some point after 8, I gather my things and head out to pile into a car with a couple other Zapsters and head to one of the many awesome running venues that are the reason why we come here to Tallahassee. We run for a while, and then drive back to the hotel. After we change into dry c...

I've always been irritated by the type of runner who constantly claims to be at a level higher than their performance indicates. As an athlete, I am good as the performances I am able to bring to the road, track or trail. With that in mind, I am now a 2:44 marathoner. It saddens me to even type those numbers, but that is, to date, my best and most serious attempt at 26.2. As you read this, you may be rolling your eyes, tsk tsking my bitterness at a marathon time that is still good enough to get me to the Olympic trials. Perhaps you've never bro...