Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

So if you (like most of my readers to date) follow my Facebook postings, you already know this. But it's so big that I'm sharing it twice!

For the first time, I will be running TWO marathons in a calendar year! Okay, I know people who have done more than that, but this is a first for me. But if you're not one of them, and/or are one of those people who think that running 26.2 miles is just crazy talk, you may be asking yourself, "How can he commit to two marathons in one year?" Well, one is scheduled for April 29, and the other is scheduled for October 7, which leaves 23 weeks to recover from the first and train for the second. Given that most marathon training programs are 16-20 weeks, this is impeccable timing!

Since I've told you when it is, you must be thinking, "Oh, the Portland Marathon's October 7; he registered for that!" Au contraire, my friends! I registered for the Chicago Marathon!

"But Austin, when there's a great marathon right in your backyard that day, why would you travel 2,000 miles and two time zones to run one?"For several reasons, friends:

1. Chicago is among the five World Marathon Majors (the other four are Boston, London, Berlin, and New York). One of the items on my bucket list (which is seven pages long -- yes, I typed it out) is to run all five of these races. Since I ran New York in 2011, I'm already 20% of the way there
2. I've already run the Portland Marathon (twice -- in 2009 and 2010).
3. I love using running as an excuse to travel. I've run four marathons, three of which were over 1,000 miles from my home.
4. One of my best friends (who we'll call Limpsy, Starbucks seems to think that's her name, even though it's actually Lindsay) is running it. 
5. Limpsy's 26th birthday is the day after the marathon. And when one of your friends lives clear across the country from you, you can't turn down an opportunity to celebrate a birthday with them!

Oh, and bonus item #6: One of my friends is currently enrolled in grad school in Chicago, and I thought she'd be finishing up this year. While that part may be the case, I found out that she'll still be in Chicago until 2013!

Stay tuned! More surprises to come.