1 Day til the Big Run

Tomorrow I run the Mac Bridge. 5.8 miles. I am ready as I'll ever be. I missed a good week of running due to my Vegas trip, but got back on track when I got back. My goal is 63 minutes or less. We'll see. I'll post my time soon.

Reed's Lake Trail

Friday evening was a beautiful day in Grand Rapids, so I headed over to Reed's Lake in East Grand Rapids to run. The first time I ran this course the previous weekend I got a little lost and wasn't sure which road to take to make it all the way around back to my car. So I ended up going half way and returning the way I came. The roads can get tricky in between. So after consulting the trail map earlier this week, I was ready to do it again. The course all around is 4.3 miles. The trail actually consists of paved sidewalks, trails and roads. You pass by million dollar homes and many active people out and about. Here is just one of the amazing homes you pass by:
I just like to pretend I live in the neighborhood. Surely I would rather run outside here than on a boring treadmill for that long. The course proved to be a nice one with 2 big hills (had to stop and walk up one hill, quite steep as my heart rate was shooting through the roof). My time was 44:30 for 4.3 miles. Can't wait to do it again to improve on my time, but looks like we're going to have snow/rain this week. Bummer. Treadmill it is.

I am training for the Mighty Mac Bridge run on May 24th. It is a 5.3 run with a 5 degree incline the first half of the bridge. Here's what it may look like:

Why is my bed shaking? Last thing on my mind was an Earthquake!

Well, during the 5am hour on Friday April 18th (later determined at exactly 5:37am), my bed was shaking. I was either awake or woken up already. I was thinking at first, why is my bed shaking (felt like someone put a quarter in one of those beds to make it vibrate). Then I thought, what in the world is my neighbor doing (I live in a condo where the walls are shared with neighbors)? Were they getting happy, moving furniture? Then my heat was kicking on and could really hear a lot of clatter in the vents, and just thought, hmmmm….maybe that’s how it always sounds and I didn't ever notice it. Then the whole building started shaking, then I thought, what is going on, maybe a few units down something exploded and there is a fire? (I was thinking of those Indian Town Condos that were on fire a few months ago). Well, I didn't hear any sirens or anything, and the shaking of the building had stopped. I kind of just laid in bed for awhile. The whole thing lasted for about 20-30 seconds. Got up and worked out, and then watched the news and they reported an earthquake in West Salem, Illinois. People from a 350 mile radius reported feeling it. The last thing on my mind was an earthquake. I was excited to learn that I felt an earthquake, in Grand Rapids, MI! No other co-workers of mine really felt it. My mom and dad reported no feeling of it in Bay City, nor did my brother in Tennessee. Here is what Mlive had to say: http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/04/earthquake_centered_on_illinoi.html

Earthquake centered on Illinois/Indiana border felt in Michigan

by The Grand Rapids Press staff and wire reports

Friday April 18, 2008, 6:12 AM

A strong earthquake that rattled parts of southern Illinois and Indiana early this morning was felt in the Grand Rapids area, about 320 miles away.

The quake, given a preliminary magnitude of 5.4, occurred about 6 miles from Mount Carmel, Ill., and about 131 miles east of St. Louis, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It took place about 2 miles underground and struck about 5:36 a.m., USGS said.

"It shook our house where it woke me up," said David Behm of Philo, Ill., 10 miles south of Champaign. "Windows were rattling, and you could hear it. The house was shaking inches. For people in central Illinois, this is a big deal. It's not like California."

The quake also shook skyscrapers in Chicago's Loop and tall buildings in downtown Indianapolis. It was felt in Milwaukee and Cincinnati as well.

Irvetta McMurtry of Cincinnati said she felt the rattling for up to 20 seconds.

"All of a sudden, I was awakened by this rumbling shaking," said McMurtry, 43. "My bed is an older wood frame bed, so the bed started to creak and shake, and it was almost like somebody was taking my mattress and moving it back and forth."

Lucas Griswold, a dispatcher in West Salem, said the Edwards County sheriff's department received reports of minor damage and no injuries.

Quake strikes during weathercast AP Video

"Oh, yeah, I felt it. It was interesting," Griswold said. "A lot of shaking."

Indiana State Police spokesman Sgt. Todd Ringle in Evansville, about 38 miles from the epicenter, said there were no immediate reports of damage.

A 5.4 quake can cause considerable damage.

Grand Rapids police dispatchers felt the building shake around 5:30.

Lt. Larry Frye said a couple of dispatchers who work on the fourth floor of Grand Rapids headquarters called him to find out if he felt anything in his lower floor office. He did not notice any tremors.

The USGS received reports from all over West Michigan, including Grand Rapids, Ada, Caledonia, Holland, Wayland and Trufant

The quake occurred in the Illinois basin-Ozark dome region that covers parts of Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas and stretches from Indianapolis and St. Louis to Memphis, according to the USGS.

The organization's Web site said earthquakes occur irregularly in the area, and that the largest historical earthquake in the region -- also a magnitude 5.4 -- caused damage in southern Illinois in 1968.

Three of the most powerful quakes felt in North America struck in the region.

In 1811-12, a series of quakes along the New Madrid Fault in Missouri, near the border with Tennessee, measured 7.8, 8.0 and 8.1, which is 10 times more intense than the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. They devastated the sparsely populated area, and reportedly caused the Mississippi River to flow backward for a time.

The quakes, occurring from from Dec. 16 to Feb. 7, were felt as far away as Boston. Damage was reported as far away as Charleston, S.C., and Washington, D.C.
The earthquake is being monitored by the U.S. Geological Survey.

-- Press writers Dan Hawkins, Dave Odette and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Ghetto Neighborhood

Today I get home and my neighbor greets me as I am getting out of the car. "Have you seen the news?" I hadn't as I just got home from work. She told me that there is a standoff at the apartment buildings next to us. A robbery and assault that happened at 4pm. We see a policemen (not the one pictured), and start talking about it, then he yells "PLEASE GET INSIDE!" We're like, ok! So I go inside, turn on the news and watch the updates. Apparently police have surrounded the building because one of the suspects is still inside. Then I see this SWAT guy outside from my deck. Every sound in my condo I am racing to the window because I swear they are gun shots, but nothing, the Swat man is still standing there.

Here is what WZZM has to say:

Grand Rapids - Police have an apartment building surrounded in the 3800 Block of Rowland Drive, SE. Our people on the scene say officers from Grand Rapids and Kentwood have their guns drawn and are demanding the people inside get out.

Grand Rapids Police say the person living at the residence was apparently robbed and assaulted but managed to escape. The two suspects remain inside. Police are using a megaphone and are demanding the suspects leave the building but so far they have not responded.

Brand New Blog - Where to start?

Well here is my first post. This weekend is our first nice weekend of Spring in Grand Rapids, MI. 61 degrees! After this post I plan on running outside for the second time this week. My friend Laurie and I will be running the Mighty Mac Bridge on May 24th. Its about a 5.6 mile run, and the first half is at a 5% incline! Fun! Not! So I have been trying to find routes with hills to get my legs use to the hill, right down my road on East Paris to Cascade is a perfect route, but not that beautiful to run, too much traffic. Well, I might as well get off to my run because if I sit here at the computer it won't get done.