Meine Klein Welt

MS Basketball Update

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MS Boys Bball 2012

MS Boy Bball 2012

Our first game of the new year yielded another win for the Eagles. Or, as we’re now known, the “Beagles.” Shorthand for Boy Eagles. Apparently we needed to distinguish ourselves from the girl Eagles.

The home court at QSI Bratislava, if you can’t tell is in a bubble gym with and astroturf surface. This always makes dribbling a little adventurous. Entering the gym involves opening an outer door, crowding into a small entryway, making sure the outer door is shut, then pushing open the inner door to the gym. Opening both doors at the same time would begin deflating the gym.

In any case, the “Beagles” shook off the rust accumulated over Christmas break, played well and defeated QSI Bratislava on their astroturf court.

We hit the ground running next week with games on Monday and Tuesday. Stay tuned for more updates.

 

Athens Marathon: Postscript

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AthensIf you missed my three part marathon series on running the marathon:
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

After Tricia found me and I regained my ability to walk, I began my slow journey around the track. I received my finishing medal, and outside the stadium collected a small bag containing a banana, a bottle of powerade, a bottle of water, and some bread/muffin thing called “Feedback.” My feedback: not great.

For some reason we had to use this makeshift wooden bridge to get to the gym. I’m not sure we crossed over anything significant. I think someone just thought it would be funny if they could make people who just completed a marathon climb up and down a set of stairs. Cruel!

Somehow I ended up in “Sponsors Village.” Not where I wanted to be, but I benefited by receiving a couple of pens, a plastic rain poncho, and some bright yellow Chiquita wristbands.

When I finally found the gym, I made a beeline towards the massage tent. Ahhhh….

If you’d like to relive my marathon experience in a fun interactive way, follow the link below. It’s almost like running it with me. Well, except that it only takes a minute and doesn’t require any actual running.
Run the Athens Marathon with Matt

Official Race Results:
Find me on this list!

Photos from the Marathon:

Please specify a Flickr ID for this gallery

Athens Marathon: Part 3

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Athens In case you missed them:
 Part 1 and Part 2

11:31: I pass the 30km mark and glance ahead towards a long, steep hill. Not cool, Athens Marathon! Not cool! The course has been a steady climb since km 18 and I know if I make it to the top of this hill, it’s mostly downhill from there.

11:46: 10 km to go. Legs are starting to cramp. Can’t quite get a full stride into the downhill. I try drinking more water and powerade to stave off the cramps.

12:00: The joy of being in single digits has worn off. My feet hurt. My legs are still cramping. I push on. 7km til victory.

12:15: There is a steep climb (or maybe any hill seems steep at this point) to a sharp downhill towards an underpass tunnel. There is a small detachment of drummers from a marching band in the middle of the tunnel laying down a beat. The beat compels my legs to stride, and I use this momentum to carry myself through the tunnel and up the hill back to the main road.

12:33: I begin my final descent into the historic stadium in Athens. The cramping in my legs is keeping me from fully enjoying this last downhill. The sun emerges for the first time all day, casting its warming rays on the last 400 meters.

12:35: I enter the stadium and the rush of the finish and the cheering fans implore me to sprint this final 100 meters. Two steps into my sprint, my legs threaten to cramp up completely and leave me a crumpled mess on the home stretch. I still manage a pace I consider “fast.” And my hamstrings hold out to the finish…barely.

12:36:40: I hear the beep of my timing chip register my finish time. My right hamstring seizes and I limp to the edge of the stadium to lean against the wall. I glance at my watch. 3:36:40. Much better the the 3:45 I set as my goal. I am cold, wet and exhausted, but most of all I am FINISHED!

Note: If you’re wondering why the clock above my head is different from my official time, it’s because I crossed the starting line about 11 minutes after the first starting group left Marathon. So really, all the times in these blog posts can be shifted 11 minutes. If you want to be technical.

Athens Marathon: Part 2

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Click here for Part 1

Athens

9:05: People are throwing off the sweatshirts they used to keep warm in the starting gates. Men on the side of the road are collecting these in large plastic garbage bags, no doubt to sell them at the nearest flea market. While passing the 1 km marker, someone shouts, “Only 41 more to go!” There is a collective chuckle amongst the crowd of runners.

9:45: Am now passing the 10 km marker. Only 32 to go. Only? There is music and cheering from people lining the road. I silently curse the man cooking rotisserie chicken. I think about stopping for a snack.

10:15: Just over 16 km in I notice a sign pointing towards Mάτι. Mati! An entire Greek town named after me! Legend tells of a mighty warrior named Mati who once fought off the entire Persian army with a spear in one hand and a fist in the other. Or at least that’s the story I made up in my head as I ran by.

10:45: I pass the half-way mark (21.1 km) at 1:43:17. I’m feeling good. I can do this all day!

10:48: I pass the naked statue commemorating Pheidippides, the original Marathon runner 2501 years ago. Tricia and I have a small argument about the placement of the statue. “So, the statue was halfway through the race.  No, the statue was between the halfway mark and the 22 km mark.  So, at the halfway mark, then.  No, it was after the halfway mark, at least 1/2 a kilometer.  Why do you have to be so literal all the time!”

11:11: The winner crosses the finish line. Boubker Abdelkerim from Morocco. I’m still plugging away somewhere near the 26th km mark. Only 16 kilometers behind the leader.

Stay tuned for more marthoning!

Athens Marathon: Part 1

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AthensAfter I ran the Vienna City Marathon in 2006, I swore I’d never run another marathon. I love running, but marathons are long and painful. And I couldn’t walk normally for almost a week.

Fast forward to spring 2011. If I’m going to run another marathon, it might as well be the original course where the actual first marathon took place, right? Inspired, I began training for November 13th. The following marathon of blog posts will walk you through my day.

5:00: I’m awake. I shower then put on the clothes I carefully laid out the night before. I strap on my fannypack filled with powerbars and gels, pulling it tight. I’m nervous, but ready.

5:45: I kiss my wife and head out. Before I leave the hotel, I grab a couple of pieces of bread and a not-quite-ripe banana to munch on. Turns out Melba toast is very popular in Athens.

6:00: I arrive at the parliament building where other runners are being herded into shuttle buses. This is how we get to Marathon.

6:15: I find a seat next to a window and wonder why I didn’t bring something to read for the 45 minute drive. It is at this point I realize my iPod is still at the hotel. Crap! People are too loud for this early in the morning. I say a silent prayer of thanks when the man who sits next to me doesn’t speak to me. I stare out the window and think about the race.

7:00: We arrive at the stadium in Marathon. Upon exiting the bus I notice the wind has picked up and it’s started to drizzle. It is about 10 C (50 F). I’m cold, wet, and I’ve got 2 hours to kill. I spend this time staying hydrated and trying to stay warm. At one point I lock myself in a port-a-potty to get out of the rain.

8:15: I put my sweatshirt and pants in a bag and throw it in the back of a truck. I have to wrap the cord around the bag a few times and tie it because it has started to rip along the seam. The loss of my outer clothing does not make me feel any colder. Or so I think. I decide to jog a couple of laps around the track to warm up. That’s better.

8:45: I finish another couple of laps around the track, use the bathroom one last time, and make my way up to the starting blocks. The race announcer is very lively. He keeps telling us gleefully, “It is never cold in Greece!” but my shivering frame disagrees. This phrase you keep saying. I do not think it means what you think it means.

8:50: The race announcer informs us that the gusting winds are blowing over barricades in some sections of the course. He encourages us to watch out for each other. “This is a race of joy!” he says. He then reminds us again that it is never cold in Greece.

9:00: The starting gun fires and the first and fastest runners are off! Starting block 5 begins 10 minutes later. I hear the high-pitched beep of my timing chip across the starting line. I take my first strides towards Athens.

Stay tuned for Part 2.