SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/othersports/340991_marathon24.html

By JON NAITO
P-I REPORTER

Uli Steidl has become synonymous with the Seattle Marathon. In each of the past eight years, the Shoreline man has won the Thanksgiving weekend race.

That streak will end Sunday morning. Steidl will be in attendance for the marathon's 38th running, but as a spectator, there to watch his wife, Trisha, defend her 2006 victory in the women's division.

"I've been running a few cross country races in the last two months and will run a 50-miler in San Francisco on Dec. 1," Steidl wrote in an e-mail. "The competition there will be very tough, so I can't run a marathon six days earlier."

Steidl, 35, began dedicating himself full time to competitive running late last year. He finished 12th at the Boston Marathon in April, and competed for the German national team at the world track and field championships last summer.

Trisha Steidl, meanwhile, will use the race as part of her training regimen in preparation for the Olympic trials next April in Boston.

The cross country and track and field coach at Seattle University (her husband is one of her assistants), Trisha Steidl, 30, said Sunday's marathon is an important training race, though she confesses that her competitive side relishes the opportunity to defend her championship.

"I'm not going to go in thinking that I have to win," she said. "But I know the competitive side of me. If I have somebody in my sights, I'm going to go after them. I do need to be smart about it, that I have an objective I'm trying to reach, but at the same time you can't just show up thinking this is only a training run, and understand that this race is challenging."

With their intimate knowledge of the course, as well as the success they've achieved in the marathon, the couple offered their thoughts on some of its distinctive features, as well as personal observations of their hometown race.

For Uli, the first two miles serve as a warm-up before the runners arrive at the Interstate 90 bridge, which takes the competitors to Mercer Island and back. This is the section of the race where the casual and elite runners begin to separate.

"No more spectators at this point," he said. "This is time to find your rhythm, and where the field starts to spread out. The I-90 bridge back is your only chance to see how close friends and competitors are ahead or behind."

Once back in Seattle, the runners head to Seward Park, then loop back toward Lake Washington Boulevard, which they will follow for the next seven miles.

"It's always nice to get to Seward Park because you know it's the halfway point," Trisha said. "It's a beautiful part of the course and you have people there cheering for you. The Edmonds-Woodway (track) team operates one of the aid stations there. We coached there a couple years ago, so we still know some of the kids, and they're cheering and giving you high fives."

Added Uli: "Seward Park to Lake Washington, this is where you still want to feel good. If you don't, the last seven miles will hurt."

What follows — from miles 19-21, generally the toughest part of a race for marathoners — is the course's most challenging stretch.

There is a pair of smaller climbs on Lake Washington Boulevard followed by a brutally steep ascent up Galer Street and then another climb up Madison Street.

"And they make a big deal about Heartbreak Hill at Boston," Uli said.

Echoed Trisha: "It's easy to want to take that part of the race super easy. If you go too fast up Galer then you still have Madison to contend with, which isn't as steep, but it's longer. You have to make sure you don't expend too much because you still have a ways to go to the finish."

A gradual climb up Interlaken Boulevard follows, followed by a short stretch on I-5 then onto Eastlake Avenue and South Lake Union.

"(The Eastlake/Lake Union area) is a few blocks of quad-busting downhill — if you have any quads left — followed by a flat section that seems a lot longer than it is," Uli said.

Then the final push down Mercer Street and the finish at Memorial Stadium, which the Steidls know a little about.

There are the eight consecutive victories for Uli, and Trisha's breakthrough win in miserably cold and wet conditions last year, but perhaps the most memorable moment was Uli's finish-line marriage proposal at the 2004 race.

"It's always nice at the finish, with the crowd cheering you and that final charge into the stadium," Trisha said. "It's always a great feeling when you get to the finish. That never gets old."

 

 

SEATTLE MARATHON

 

WHEN: Sunday, main race starts at 8:15 a.m.

ENTRANTS: About 11,000 expected for the running and walking events.

DEFENDING CHAMPIONS: Men, Uli Steidl, 2:27.55; women, Trisha Steidl, 3:01.40

RECORDS: Men, Robert Greer, 1983, 2:17.25; women, Isabelle Dittberner, 1989, 2:41.04.

Tags: marathon, Marathon Races

It Takes More Than Just Shoes For Proper Marathon Training

If you are planning to start marathon training you should know that it is quite a bit harder than the actual marathon. In a real marathon, you run and after you finish you can enjoy a half year or even a year off. During that time the memories of the agony you've felt are fading away and one day when you've forgotten it you decide to go for it again. On the other hand, marathon training is much worse as you cannot take such long breaks. Actually you should run the allotted miles every single day and you should try to increase them every week, completely exhausting your body.

If you are serious about preparing yourself for a marathon, you will have to get up early in the morning and start running before you've even had the chance to drink your morning coffee. Actually, you should forget about drinking coffee if you are marathon training. For breakfast you are allowed to have orange juice, milk or plain water. In case you are seriously considering a marathon, then you should start jogging around the track for two hours early in the morning. Thus, you will need to change your diet if you want to succeed.

If preparing for the big race you should forget about sugar as well. You will not be allowed to have soda, candies and everything worth eating, either. If you are in marathon training you will need proteins and will start counting the grams of fat you consume. You will have to do many sacrifices, for example ordering a wheat grass shake at Starbucks than having your favourite latte. Let me be honest with you, marathon training completely changes your outlook on the world.

However, there are also some great things about marathon training. If you are serious with it, you will get into excellent shape. Of course, this won't happen if you are cheating with a box of chocolates under your bed. Everyone wants to have more energy. You can get that by marathon training. Apart from that, running around increases your lung capacity unless you are a smoker. Did I forget to mention you should give up smoking if you are serious with marathon?

If you have never trained marathon before, you might consider hiring a pro to give you a hand. However, you can also do it yourself. Hiring a trainer is quite an expensive thing but it is worth the money if you want to achieve something more than just crossing the finish line of the marathon race. Generally speaking professional marathon training will properly prepare you for the big day and to have someone to push you and hold you accountable is very useful in certain situations. For example, it would be easier for you to get up early in the morning if you know your trainer will be at the track waiting for you to show up.

As far as money matters are concerned, it is best to do it yourself in order to cut the costs. Maybe you can find a good friend of yours who will hold you accountable. This might be a valuable idea unless you are both too lazy. Just imagine you both don't show up at the track and miss training, would that do you any good? I suppose not. Of course, in case you both need motivation you can try to push each other but this doesn't work all the time.

About the Author

Morgan Hamilton offers expert advice and great tips regarding all aspects concerning fashion. Get more information now by visiting Shoes For Proper Marathon Training

Tags: jogging, marathon coach, marathon guide, marathon training, running marathons

Tips on How To Train For An Ultra Marathon

Marathons are traditionally 26.2 miles. To some, the marathon represents the ultimate running challenge. But to others, namely people who have run several marathons, they simply aren?t challenging anymore. For these people, running ultra marathons is the answer.

Ultra marathons are basically any running event that is longer than 26.2 miles. Aside from that, the distances can vary. There are several types of ultra marathon events. Here is a list of some of them:

o Timed events such as 24 hour runs.
o Distance oriented ultra marathons such as the double marathon. Other popular distances are 50 miles, 50 km, 100 miles, and 100 km.
o Events that take place over the course of several days.
o Challenging events that take place on trails and other surfaces. Some also take place on mountains or in very mountainous areas.

Choose Your Event

Since the definition for an ultra marathon is pretty broad, the first thing you will need to do if you are interested in running one is to choose the event that interests you the most. Check out listings at your local sporting goods store or look online. You will want to pick an event that is far enough in the future so that you can have adequate time to train.

Some events, such as those that take place on trails, may present other unique challenges that would not be present in an ultra marathon that takes place on a surface such as a track or the street. The event you choose will all depend on your overall goals.

Develop a Training Plan

Your next step to running an ultra marathon is to find a training plan. Some ultra marathon events are so new that an established training plan may not exist. If this is the case, you will need to come up with your own. You can use an established marathon training plan as a base and just build on it.

If it is an event that takes place on different terrain or over the course of several days, you will have to find another way to develop the plan. Connect with other people who are registered to the event. Speak with a coach or trainer. Look for people who have run the event in the past. Search on the internet for information. The information you gather from the research will help you develop a training plan.

Be Smart

Ultra marathons are definitely extreme. That is why it is important to train smart. Give yourself enough time. Don?t try to do too much at first. Make sure you allow yourself adequate rests. Also, make sure you eat a proper diet that will have you taking in enough calories. If you train smart, your ultra marathon event will be a success.

Tags: jogging, ultra marathon, ultra marathons, ultra running, ultramarathon

Personal Goal Setting and Running Marathons

Personal goal setting is a powerful tool you can use to bring yourself success, increasing both your confidence in yourself as well as increased respect from colleagues and family members. Unfortunately, personal goal setting can be tricky and is often challenging for people who are not used to organized their goals and tracking their achievements. For this reason, I wanted to write a few words on how to successfully set your goals and improve your lives.

Everyone who is serious about personal goal setting should think of life as a marathon: if you never have been in a marathon before, running to win is not only unrealistic, but also very frustrating and disappointing. But if the first time you race you run just to finish the course, then the next time you will be more prepared and will be able to finish in a better position than your initial marathon. Eventually, if you train and race enough, you will achieve a top ten position in the marathon. This principle applies on personal goal setting too: your first goals should be easy to achieve; the next goals should be a bit harder, and so on. Eventually, when you have "raced" enough, you will be able to easily achieve your more difficult goals, and of course the rewards will be all that more satisfying.

There is no point in setting goals that are too difficult to achieve! If you are not well prepared, then you will very likely fail, and that will be an ugly low blow to your self-confidence. After all, you can't ask a man to build a house if you don't teach him how to lay down a brick first. Like at school, successful personal goal setting is a step-by-step learning process where you think about what you did right and about what you did wrong, and thus you get better at doing it day by day.

If you have a big, lifetime personal goal, you should "chop it" into smaller goals, easier to achieve, and set a reasonable "deadline" to achieve it. That way, you will get rewards sooner, and your self-esteem and confidence in yourself will grow little by little. Besides, if you complete small daily goals you will complete larger goals without even noticing it!

Personal goal setting is all about patience and proactiveness. Patience will be useful when walking towards your long term goals one step at a time and proactiveness will help you to take real action for completing your every day goals. Success doesn't happen all of a sudden: it takes planning and, most of all, action and decision. If you really want to success artistically, improve your career or enhance your lifestyle, then you should start getting serious about your personal goal setting.

Copyright ? Jared Winston, 2006. All Rights Reserved.

About the Author

If this crash course in goal setting wet your appetite then stop by Goals and Motivation and read our extensive free goal setting guide where we discuss everything from setting career goals to relationship goals.

Tags: aids marathon, best marathons, breast cancer marathons, chicago marathon results, cleveland marathon, cowtown marathon, distance running, history of the marathon, how to get kids london marathon, jogging, marathon

Tags: carlsbad 23000233 half marathon, disney half marathon, disney half marathon world, half marathon, half marathons, jogging, mini marathon, new york city half marathon, new york half marathon, quantico half marathon, walt disney world half marathon