Run, Karla, Run!

There are lots of runDisney races out there—the Walt Disney World Marathon, the Tinker Bell Half Marathon, Disney’s Princess Half Marathon, the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon and many more—and thousands of people who run them. If all those Disney runners are anything like me, I’m guessing they’ve got a few Disney tunes on their iPods to help get them in the mood. What are your favorite Disney songs to run to?

In the spirit of sharing, here are mine. These are the Disney songs that have gotten me into the runDisney spirit, and made me feel like a kid again as I’ve trained for the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon. Read the rest of this entry →

Wanjiru breaking the half-marathon world record at The Hague in 2007. Photo by FaceMePLS.

Like everyone else, I was shocked to hear that Sammy Wanjiru of Kenya, the reigning Olympic marathon and World Marathon Majors champion, died Sunday in a fall from a second-floor balcony in his home in Nyahururu, Kenya.

To call it sad is an understatement. He was the bright, shining young star of the sport. That his personal life often fell short of the dazzling man he was on the pavement, and of the hero-worship he inspired, is also sad. Reports of his death have involved more talk of his personal woes than of his running. That his life ended tragically, under questionable and preventable circumstances, and in a manner that only highlighted his humanity is, quite simply, heartbreaking.

But for those of us that did not know him, except as that brazen young kid who not only talked the talk, but walked the walk of a champion, I’d like to remember his legacy as a runner. Read the rest of this entry →

I listen to a lot of music from the ‘80s—a lot—especially when I run.  Since I’m in an ‘80s cover band, The FADES, I’m often learning “new” tunes. Running gives me extra time to drill them into my head.  But more than that, I love the ‘80s as a musical genre (otherwise I wouldn’t be in an ‘80s cover band), and there are many, many, many songs from the ‘80s that are great for running. I even listen to ‘80s tunes that The FADES don’t cover.

So in honor of Running Rocks: NYCRUNS Presents Lady Southpaw and The FADES, an awesome running party this Sunday, March 20 that my band is playing, I thought I’d share my favorite ‘80s running mix. Enjoy! Read the rest of this entry →

Hey New Yorkers! Can’t get enough of the New York running scene? Want a podcast to listen to while you’re running laps around the reservoir? Check out The New York Running Show, a weekly chat about New York running. Run by Joe Garland of Run Westchester fame, the show features a rotating panel of New York runners and bloggers, including yours truly.

Past topics have included a New York City Marathon postmortem, winter running, what a Brooklyn Marathon might look like, the club racing scene, suggestions for NYRR and lots more. Tune in Sundays at 8 p.m. and join the chat room. Or you can listen online anytime or download the show from iTunes.

The Marathon Show has included me in The Most Interesting People of 2010! Host Joe Taricani put together a spectacular group of runners from around the country–Illinois, Florida, Washington, Virginia, North Carolina, Mississippi, New York and more–who have run marathons for charity, for PR’s and for fun including some who ran just one marathon, like me, to a duo who are running 106 marathons by Dec. 31 to nab the Guinness World Record for most marathons in a year. Thank you to Joe for including me among such amazing runners. Be sure to check it out!

Photo by Chris Chidsey

I asked and you answered—power songs.  You know them instantly—those songs that always pump you up on a run, the songs you never skip when they pop up on your iPod, the songs that somehow get you to push just a little harder, even if for only three and a half minutes.

“I don’t pick the songs,” Tony Garcia of Fullerton, Calif., wrote about his power songs. “The songs pick me and my body responds.”

So if you need some extra inspiration for your winter runs, look up these songs as you cash in those iTunes gift cards that will inevitably find their way into your Christmas stockings and Hanukkah loot. These are the power songs that you the readers picked, or rather, picked you. Read the rest of this entry →

With only four days until the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 7, my excitement is ramping up exponentially. So I made a New York City mix—a love note to the city I adore, and love to run. These are my favorite songs about New York. There are lots of standards, some show tunes, rock songs, folk, rap and more. It seems everybody loves to sing about New York.

Happy listening, happy running, and when you’re facing the Queensboro Bridge at mile 15 of the marathon, just remember what Simon and Garfunkel sang in “The 59^th Street Bridge Song” (another name New Yorkers use for the Queensboro): “Life—I love you. All is Groovy!”

If you have a favorite New York City song, list it below! Read the rest of this entry →

Tune into The Marathon Show to listen to a panel of runners, including Karla, discuss the ING New York City Marathon. The show is available for streaming or download on BlogTalkRadio and iTunes.

You know them instantly—those songs that always pump you up on a run, the songs you never skip when they pop up on your iPod, the songs that somehow get you to push just a little harder, even if for only three and a half minutes. I’m talking about power songs.

On Sunday, I subjected myself to almost four hours on an elliptical trainer in lieu of my last 20-mile long run before the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 7. I’m flirting with a knee injury and my doctor told me to play it safe. If not for my iPod and tried and true power songs, I might have gone mad.

So I began to wonder: What are the awesome, amazing power songs other runners turn to when they need an extra boost? Read the rest of this entry →

Call them the best. Call them memorable. Or just call them. Whatever they are, these moments defined running in the first decade of the 21^st century. What makes them so great? These 10 performances got people buzzing. My opinion is completely subjective and emotional. I have a thing for runners who fall to the ground in tears (see Nos. 4 and 5), and admire the hubris of runners who not only walk the walk but talk the talk (see Nos. 1 and 9). But I also polled some die-hard runners in the know. Like me they follow the sport—and by follow the sport I mean DVR-ing things like the Rotterdam Marathon. And these moments made short list after short list.

So who made the cut? Drum roll please.

11). Honorable Mention: You ran a race and raised money for charity in the process

The last decade has been a collective best moment in the history of running. The U.S. is in the midst of a second running boom with year over year records in road race participation. In the marathon alone, the total number of finishers has gone from 299,000 in 2000 to 463,000 in 2009 according to MarathonGuide.com. Finisher totals for all road races in the U.S. were 6,482,500 in 1997. Ten years later in 2007? The number of finishers rose by almost 2.5 million to 8,875,000 according Running USA. And more racers have meant more money for all those associated charities. According to the USATF, the amount runners have raised for charity has increased from $520 million in 2002 to $714 million in 2006. Between entrance fees for benefit races and charity partnerships for major races, the running boom is making an impact on more than just the participants. So here’s to all of you runners out there who helped make this collective moment truly one of the high spots in running this decade. Read the rest of this entry →

Along with the best of the decade, the “naughty aughties” have been notable for many a moment we’d rather forget. But as the old adage goes, forgive but never forget. So here’s a look back at the scandals and heartbreaks that shook the running world in the past decade.

5). Antonio Pettigrew admits to doping

Though he never failed a drug test, like so many other track stars caught up in the doping imbroglio that plagued the last decade, Pettigrew (pictured left) confessed in 2008 to using performance-enhancing drugs. As a result, he and his 4×400 relay teammates were stripped of their gold medals from the 2000 Olympics. But it wasn’t just Pettigrew. His relay-mates Alvin and Calvin Harrison (pictured second left and second right) had already been slapped with four- and two-year suspensions respectively for their own doping offenses. And relay alternate Jerome Young was banned for life in 2004 after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Only Michael Johnson (pictured right) escaped the scandals unscathed. The U.S. men have won the 4×400 relay every Olympics since 1984. But this put a blight on that record. It certainly wasn’t the first we’d heard of doping in track and I’m sure it won’t be the last.

Read the rest of this entry →

Usain Bolt celebrates his Olympic victory. Photo by friskytuna/Flikr.

The end of the “aughts” is upon us, and it’s been quite a decade for running. Here are the 10 runners who thoroughly dominated their fields in the past 10 years—The Best Runners of the Decade. My picks are completely unscientific and subjective, and I’m sure they will incite at least a little grumbling. But these 10 runners have dazzled the world with feats of strength worthy of Festivus, and racked up the hardware to prove it. Drum roll please… Read the rest of this entry →