My journey as a marathoner...

Mon July 27 10 miles, 69min, Belvadaire, hilly, felt abs. tired, hot and humid Tue July 28 Yankee 10-Mile Race, 51.30,3rd, (13miles total) Newburyport, felt ok Wed July 29 AM 5 miles, 37min, drills, d'town Lowell, got lost on way back PM 10 miles, 68 min, Chelmsford, tired, humid and hot Thu July 30 14 miles, 1:41min, Newburyport, good rolling hills, Newburyport woods, felt ok Fri July 31 10 miles, 66min, Hudson, out in 35 back in 31. felt strong, mid 5:20s on way back Sat Aug 1 12 miles, 1:20min, Brookline, felt really good again but took it easy Sun Aug 2 17 miles, 1:53min, Jamaica Plain, tough run, dead tired, last mile uphill 5:53 =91 miles Tough week, no workouts, 1 double, 1 good race. Very happy with the race considering I don't feel fresh at all. I probably should have done more strides/drills this week, but instead I spent the majority of the time stretching my legs. Next week I will try getting 1 or 2 workouts.

I finished 3rd in 51:30 behind Pat Tarpy(51:05) and Derese Deniboba (51:22), who both have PRs of 1:03 and 1:04 for the half marathon. After the 2nd mile, both runners put about a 100m gap on me that I was not able to close. I was stuck in no mans land where I didn't have anyone to help me get back up to the front. Howeveer, I hung in there strong and was able to start closing. I am still happy with the time. Not bad for my first race over 6 miles. I think I can do a lot better if I actually start training for the longer races, which I am really not doing right now. The goal of these races are to help get my strength back up, so far I am pleased. Race Results:( here ) Race Photos Provided by Jim Rhoades, Ted Tyler, Bob Wiles and Tom Derderian

July 20 Monday Off, travel (20 hours) July 21 Tuesday AM 5 miles, 36min, drills PM 10 miles, 69 min July 22 Wednesday 13miles, 1.23, felt strong, 15.20 from Roarke bridge to Apt July 23 Thursday AM 5, 34 min PM 10, 66min July 24 Friday WO roughly 8500m Progression run,7:08, 6:54, 6:49,6:39, total 27.30, First loop in 7.08, Last loop in 6.39 (11miles total), weak on hills July 25 Saturday 16 miles,1.49min, lost in woods, very dehydrated July 25 Sunday AM 6 miles, 42 min PM 6 miles,39min w. 9x1min on/off, felt strong again Total: 82 miles, 1 day off This week was about readjusting back in US. I must say I did a poor adjustment to the hour changes form Lisbon to US and that is hurting me quite a bit. In addition, the humidity has not helped either. I am a little tired, but hopefully next week I get back into a better rythm.

On Tuesday, July 28th, I will be running the Yankee Homecoming 10 Miler in Newburyport, MA ( link here ). This more than anything will be a good workout and preparation for future races.

July 6 Monday AM 5 miles, 31min, shorthill PM 10 miles, 70 min, strides July 7 Tuesday 10 miles, 63min, drills July 8 Wednesday WO 2k,1600,1200,800,400 w.400 rest 5.47,4.41,3.30,2.15,63 [10 miles total] Julu 9 Thursday AM 13 miles,1.32min drills PM Dr.Pete for chiro treatment,travel to Lisbon July 10 Friday AM 5 miles, drills PM WO 2x600, 4x300 w.200 rest 1.34,1.34,46,45,44,44 [9 miles total] ­ July 11 Saturday AM 5 miles,31min, drills PM 8 miles, 57 min July 12 Sunday 7 miles, 49 min, drills,pool Total: 82 miles July 13 Monday RACE Lusophone 1500, 3.55, 6th, 2.03 last 800 [10 miles total] July 14 Tuesday AM 5 miles, 35 min PM 10 miles, 70min, drills, strides July 15 Wednesday AM 5 miles, 35min PM 10 miles, 71min, strides July 16 Thursday AM 5 miles, 35min PM WO 10x300 w.200rest avr.48 July 17 Friday AM 5 miles, 35min, drills PM 10 miles, 70min July 18 Saturday AM 7 miles, 50min, pool PM light massage from team doctor July 19 Sunday AM RACE Oeiras Road 10k, 31.16,1st, 93 degrees [10...

I finally just arrived at my house in Boston. It took me a total of 20 hours from the time I left the hotel lobby to the time I entered my house. I went from Lisbon to Brussels (2 hour flight), Brussels to Philadelphia (8.5 hours) and Philadelphia to Boston (1 hour) plus all the extra waiting in the airport. I missed my flight in Philly becauseof a delay in Brussels. I was sprinting left and right in the Philly airport. The US Airways lady said I'm not fast enough because I missed my flight! Anyway, I was given another ticket and had to wait a little more in Boston for my bags to arrive as they came seperate. So I am guessing this is now my last post. I would like to thank everyone who read the posts and supported me during my training leading up to the Lusophone Games. From coaches, teammates, friends, coworkers, family and the entire UML and CV community. My blog receieved a total of 427 views from 18 different US states, 45 different cities in Massachusetts and 10 different cou...

Today was a long day. Woke up at 6am to shower and get my mind together for the 10km race. My teammates Nelson and Adilson were taking part of the Lusophone 10km while I was doing the Oeiras open road race. We had breakfastat the hotel at 7am and then left with the other teams in the athlete bus at 7:30. The race wass approximately a 20-30 minute drive away. It was very hot today in Lisbon, 93 degrees according to weather.com website. The last time I can recall running a 10k in this kind of weather was in Pomona,CA freshman year where I collapsed at the finish to a slowish 35min. Today was not the case though. I felt ready and the weather didn't have any significant impact. I took first in 31:16,not a PR but ranks no.3 ( results here) In the Lusophone race Portuguese runner Rui Pedro Silva (PR 28:01, 1:02 HM)) ran 30:14 followed Brasilian Daniel Silva in 30:30 (ran 28:40 at Brasilian champs last month) and Portuguese Ricardo Ribas (PRs 13:39, 28:50) in 30:46. Unfortunately, Nelso...

Im right now at Colombo mall´s Western Union typing this last entry before my race tomorrow, which will be at 5am US Eastern Time. I had a 7 mile easy morning run today and I am taking the afternoon off to rest and recover for the race tomorrow. After the morning run, I went to the pool to relax my legs there and do some extra static stretching. We had breakfast and a long team meeting to go over the positives and negatives of the trip here. I then had a light massage from our team doctor. FYI, I will not be in the championship race of the Lusophone Games because I pulled out to give opportunity for another CV athlete to compete as the country can only have 2 athletes in the race. However, I am in the open road race of Corrida de Oeiras . This race is being organized by the Portuguese Olympic Comittee andwill be on the same course, 30 minutes later, also 10km. My legs felt great today and I hope, if everything goes well, I can bring home a victory!

Today Lela decided to wake me up extra early. At 7.30am we were out for our usual morning 5 miler. I was feeling so so, maybe a little tired from the workout on Thursday. I made sure I did some extra stretching and dynamic drills. We had our usual breakfast at the hotel with lots of laughs and funny stories from the guys. At 11, I had an interview with Sasha Issenberg of Monocle Magazine , who is including myself in a featured story for its Aug/Sep issue. I then took my afternoon nap, watched the Tour until my brother and my cousin, Luis Carlos, (who attends college in Portugal) come to hang out with me. They went to ther pool,m except me because it happened to be extremely windy in Lisbon today. After that we walked and found a quick bite. At 7pm, I was joined by Antonio Zaferino, Cape Verde´s first ever olympian. He has participaed in 4 Olympic games and 15 world championships events. We ran 10 miles at a casual pace, 70min. We talked a lot about the negatives and positives of the CV...

Tuesday Woke up at 8am to run an easy 5 mile shakeout with Lela. We then had breakfast at the hotel which was extremely good. After that we visited the famous Expo 1998, a cultural exhibition project where Portugal spent millions of dollard to build. We had to get on three subways and 1 bus just to get there, lets just say the public transportation here in Lisbon was not well designed. We had lunch there and then wacthed the Cape Verdean Judo team compete (they earned two bronze medals). When I returned to the hotel, I watched Portugal v Mozambique soccer on tv. I went for a good 10mile run that I hammered and most likely ran more than 10. My legs were too fresh from the race. I went ot the mall again with my brother and I met one of my 7th grade classmates that i had not seen or spoken to in more than 10 years. I guess that was the highlight of the day. Later at the hotel, the team and I just had our regular chat about how we can improve the sport of running in CV. Wednesday Woke up a...

Today I made sure not to miss breakfast at the hotel. I had some good waffles, fruits, yogurt and some delicious capuccino. We had a quick team meeting to go over some plans. I met Rosa Mota (Olympic gold medalist) on my way to the meeting and the team took some pictures with her. We had lunch about 2pm. From 2 to 4pm, I stayed in my room relaxing and getting my mind ready for the race. At 5pm, we took some race pictures in front of the hotel Lobby. At 6pm, we headed to the track. My race was scheduled for 745pm. I did my usual routine about 50 to 60 min before the race, which included a 16min warm up, some dynamic and static stretching. The meet was being run under all IAAF guidelines. The meet had a warm up track that was connected to the competition track by a tunnel. We were called to check in 20min before the race, where they had to go through all my stuff for safety reasons. We then were assigned a staff member to watch over all our stuff. The meet was very well organized and we...

I woke up late today again and missed breakfast. Luckily one of my teammates brought me some food over from breakfast. After that I decided to go for a walk around the city and I watched the Portuguese Juniors national championship. I headed over to get lunch with the team at 2pm. Trainingwise, the day before racing is a rest and prep day. I went for an easy 7 mile run and did some light stretching and dynamic drills at the track. Then I watched some of my teammates compete in different events. I went to the Colombo mall again with my brother to grab some pizza. Later in the evening I massaged my legs and took an ice bath. I had a quick interview with the Cape Verdean national radio about what I expected from my race. I soked my legs in the pool later at night, watched some tv, prepared my running gear and then went to bed.

One thing you guys should know is that CV athletes all have good sense of humor. They make jokes all the time and laugh, but they definately make me feel at home as they are very welcoming. I already have some strong friendships built here. I overslept today and missed breakfast which was from 7 to 930. After hearing people knocking at my door, I woke up half a sleep and the entire team was there. They were worried about me since I don't have a roommate. They said they were calling me for breakfast earlier but I didn't answer because I was sleeping. So fast forwarding, I walked around the city and then had a 5mile morning run at about 11am. I did some drills afterwards as well. I was really happy that actually found a 3km loop that goes around the University of Lisbon athletics field that I was able to use. It is soft for running in some parts and I will nto get hit by a car. I had lunch with the team at 2pm and then everyone gathered to watch the CVxPortugal soccer under 21 so...

Greeting everyone! Sorry for the late posts, I am stealing internet time from one of my teammates because I still haven't figured out the internet in my room. My flight left Boston at 530pm on Thursday to Philadelphia, where I connected to a straight flight to Lisbon. I arrived at Lisbon at 830pm LT on Friday. The total flight was a little over 10 hours.As I was landing I noticed Estadio da Luz, where my favorite soccer team plays, Benfica. Took a bout an hour to get by the Boarder patrol because of the long lines. I was welcomed by some Games staff at the airport and left with the Guinea Equatorial team in a Bus to the Marriott hotel, next to the University of Lisbon. I unpacked and went for a run around the hotel at about 1130pm. I noticed it probably was the worst idea to run on the streets of Lisbon'lets just say the drivers here are nto as nice as in US. Seems like the streets are formula 1 racing tracks and if you are not on the side walk, then you better run quick! I got...

The president of the Cape Verde Athletics Federation just released the names of the 25 athletes representing the country at the games. link here I will be running two events: the 1500m on Monday, July 13 at 7:15pm Lisbon time and the 10km road race Sunday, July 19 at 9:30amLT. Also in the 10k race is Nelson Cruz , who trains in Portugal and finished 48th in Beijing Olympics for CV.

June 29 Monday AM 5miles,36min, drills PM 8 miles w/ 2mile of 300hard/100easy alternations in 9:37 on track June 30 Tuesday 12 miles, 1:27min, drills, strides July 1 Wednesday AM 5 miles, 36min drills PM Workout 5x800, avr.2:17 w/ 200 rests and one 400 rest, tot.15:58 for 5k, 11 miles total July 2 Thursday 10 miles, drills, 64min July 3 Friday AM 7 miles, strides, 49min PM 5 miles, 34min July 4 Saturday John Carson 2-Mile Road Race (1st-9:20), 12 miles total July 5 Sunday 17 miles, 1:50min =92 miles total Listed above is the last week of training before leaving to the Lusophone Games. It was good to get a win on my first race back, even if it was by the slimmest margin, a win is a win. I've lost many races by a single-second (especially to a man named Nate Jenkins), so whenever I win one, I am happy. However, I'd like to congratulate both of my teammates Greg Wilson and Jeff Veiga for getting 2n and 3rd, great efforts, especially for Greg. My legs didn't necessarily feel f...

Here is a log of everything I did around race day. Lowell Sun Story Results Photos by DoubleJRunning Day before race 10:00pm double checked my race numbers, prepared my uniform and warm ups 10:30pm bed time, set up 2 alarms to make sure I wake up on time Day of race 6:45am woke up slowly after hearing my first alarm, brushed teeth and drank some water 6:50am said my prayers and thanked God for allowing me to race again healthy on this day 7:00am walked outside to DD, got a multigrain bagel, a gatorade and a shot of expresso coffee 7:15am did some light dynamic and flexibility drills outside of my apartment 7:45am took a cold shower to wake my body up 8:00am got all my race stuff, triple checked my uniforms and walked out of the apartment 8:15am teammate Jeff Veiga picked me up in front of the Dunkin Donuts on University ave. 8:30am arrived at race location, chatted with Coach G and some friends 8:40am checked to make sure I knew where the starting line was 8:45am bathroo...

For those of you that are not very familiar with the Lusophone Games, please read the story written today by Chris O'Donnel, the media director for UML Athletics: here I also promissed Chris that I will be doing constant updates to the blog for anyone who wants to follow me during this experience. I will post pictures and videos of training sessions, racing and sight seeing in Europe. Hope you enjoy the blog. Feel free to post comments or questions.