Tokyo Marathon

Two weeks to go and the field has narrowed to just Joe. Time for a look back at February last year ..

And good luck Joe !

OK … Let me start by saying that my training has been sad beyond belief … assuming I can even call it training ! With that said, I have been blessed with an exit sign !? … I have to be in Europe the weekend of the race for an event that I cannot get out of … no way, no how. So many apologies Joe … You will not have the opportunity to blow past me Best of luck & I fully expect you to deliver a sub-4 time.

Exiting a Japanese Safari Park in a wheelchair with a broken foot, I was hoping for a better story to tell than “I fell over”. However, there was no lion. No elephants stampeded. Penguins failed to menace. I just fell down a path. Foot broke cleanly :

That bit on the left should be in one piece, like a wholesome chicken drumstick. The cleaved bit at the drumstick end is the problem. Expected to take a month to heal, though I have to get it checked weekly to make sure it doesnt actually try to navigate its way out. I hope it sticks around. I was quite attached to it.

Happy Christmas everyone ( if you celebrate it ). Especially to those at work keeping everything including hospitals working for the rest of us.

As for the Marathon… I think Murtaugh said it best. I’m too old for this shit.

I ran from the office to Roppongi and back again last night and must admit that I got a few strange looks from the revellers as I ambled past them at 10pm. But it was a very enjoyable run and it sure beat the monitory of the palace loop.

I’ve decided to run get off the run as fast as you can treadmill in order to save my knees for a few more years but also see more of this Metropolis that we call home in 2008 and what better way to do it than to run it.

Yes I’m looking forward to some long runs in 2008.

10 weeks to go, and time for a roundup of the stars of ‘07 and the contenders for ‘08.

Reza: Still in for 2008. Currently training hard in Phuket
Joe : Still in for 2008. Ran the 20Km up Mt Takao “for fun” recently…
Ed : Moved to the US of A. Unlikely to be in Japan for 2008
Paul : Injured knee, out of the running for ‘08
Christoph : Accidentally got accepted for the NY marathon. Emigrated to Singapore. Not in for Tokyo 2008.

So all hopes are on Reza and Joe !

Paul

Another week and another survey, this time concluding that a ‘majority’ of the population of the UK ( yes, including kids ) will be obese in 40 years. Given the previous survey where us hardy British felt we could garden or housework our way to a healthy life, it is perhaps not suprising.

Conclusion of this particular review was that “..human biology is simply out of step with modern life in the 21st century, with its labour-saving devices, motorised transport, sedentary work and cheap high energy foods”

My options :

• Spend less time reading these surveys and more time running/swimming/cycling
• Do nothing and hope global warming gets me first
• Write a 21st century followup to this, adding some wizards for commercial viability obviously ..

Survey detail in today’s papers