Running in the Center of the Universe

This show has all kinds of news about what is going on with running in the Center of the Universe! Thanks for downloading the show! Music by GarageBand and US Marine Corps Band.

Maybe more like weekend wimpy, but I'm getting out there. This show has some societal observations which maybe you've never thought about.

Six time Ironman John Pendergrass died Wednesday, 11-8-2023, at this home in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. John was a husband, father to three, grandfather to several, medical doctor, author, friend, marathon runner, and a Vietnam Veteran. He lived a full life and will be missed. His obituary can be viewed here John Pendergrass obituary. John is my cousin. John wrote two books about his extraordinary life: Against the Odds Racing Back to Vietnam

I've gone from 50 miles a week to a 2 mile run. Covering two miles is a success for where I'm at with my running fitness. That and more in this show which includes an encore presentation of episode #199 from 2014. Thanks for downloading the show, my email is ashlandave@gmail.com.

If you've stayed subscribed to this podcast, then you are appreciated and I need to hear from you at ashlanddave@gmail.com. I'm recovering from a situation I didn't think I would have as a runner. It's not tragic or anything like that. I make that distinction because I have close friends who are coping with more than I can imagine at this point my my/our lives. I've produced this show to provide some information about me and to show respect to a few of my local running buddies.

A good friend of mine, Detective Kevin Hiner of the Richmond Police Department, was recently recognized for his outstanding police work. Kevin and I have been friends for several years and he was very deserving of this award. The link below has more information about the award he received. Kevin was interviewed by local talk radio host Jeff Katz of WRVA 1140. I reposted this interview to honor Kevin and bring more attention to his work. Blue Friday Award - Lt. Jan McTernan Thanks for downloading the show.

The podcast is back with brand new content! "Burglary" at the beach, local sidewalk construction, nagging tendonitis and many other topics are covered along with some running news. Thanks for coming back and downloading the show. Music by Garageband and the United States Marine Corps Band.

Ever been called for jury duty? Ever driven over 900 miles overnight? Ever been axe throwing? The answers to those questions and other running related stuff are in this show, thanks for listening! Stories from the Center of the Universe podcast Music by GarageBand and U.S. Marine Corps Band

I've run with Ashland Bryan virtually and in reality since 2006. He doesn't live locally to me anymore but technology keeps us close. This mostly encore episode is dedicated to him. Safe travels my brother.

This show is about the 2022 Ashland Railroad Run (10k, 5k, etc) that I've been involved with a lot over the years. I also explain how awful Shingles is and where my focus is for the fall training season. And for a bonus, the tail end of this show is the recording from episode #20 (July 2008). Thanks for downloading the show!

My running buddy died. He was a good dog but he was old and it was time. The podcast is back with some interesting information. Thanks for downloading the show!

What does the Buffalo Bills have to do with distance running? Not much, but I took a trip back to Buffalo, NY for the first time since 1978. That and how it relates to distance running (again, not much) in this episode, thanks for listening! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/justa-runners-podcast/id1425548737 https://t2t.org/ Music by U.S. Marine Band and the late Derek Miller's https://www.penmachine.com/

This episode has the interview with David Williams (aka "Down Under Dave") who wrote a book about his life and ultra running adventures. The book is really good! Dave graciously made himself available for an interview and he's really funny and has an outstanding outlook on life. More information about the book can be found at the following links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn5yEcuJyhs https://www.amazon.com/Unstoppable-Runner-David-Williams/dp/1761091638/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=an+unstoppable+runner+book&qid=1638487887&sr=8-1 And here is Karen's Iron Man distance race report, it's very detailed and pretty cool: I’ve wanted to do an Ironman distance triathlon for a long time but was intimidated by the amount of time training would take. I already have a full-time job and training would be like adding a part-time job. However, sometimes friends get you to do crazy things. I have a group of friends who have been together since about 2012 when we joined forces to do Ragnar Chicago. We started the weekend as acquaintances and after 36 hours and 200ish miles, ended the weekend as dear friends. We’ve gone on to finish five more Ragnars as an ultra-team (six runners and one van as opposed to 12 runners and two vans). In 2017, someone saw (ok, it was me) there was a relay race across the state of Iowa (west to east). Within about two weeks, we had eight runners and found a driver to get us the 339 miles across the state. Half of us live in norther Indiana, the other have in Indianapolis. We keep coming up with events to participate in so that we have something to train for and participate in together. In 2015, Julie and I met up for a run and she asked if I wanted to do Muncie 70.3 with her and her sister Pamela, one of the Indianapolis tribe. I was in. Julie and I trained together in Northern Indiana and met up with Pam when time allowed. Many of the Ragnar group showed up to cheer us on, just as we did with Pam and Tina completed Ironman Chattanooga in 2017 (this was for Pam’s 50th) For Julie’s 50th birthday last year, she threw out hiking the Grand Canyon (rim to rim) in one day. Once again, it didn’t take us long to commit. We persevered against COVID scares and some other issues. We traveled to Flagstaff and on October 7 we completed the hike, starting around 4:30 a.m. and finishing around 5:30 p.m. We made it back to Indiana safe and sound, with the exception of a bit of trail rash on Pamela from a fall she took and a badly sprained ankle, Melinda, ironically, our driver suffered. She hiked down the trail about a mile and we as we were hiking back up, just past one of the tunnels, she stepped off the trail, canyon side, and went down. Unfortunately, what goes down, must go up and she persevered up. 2021 was my turn to hit 50. While planning for Grand Canyon, the goal of completing an ironman distance was swirling in my head. Pre-COVID, I found out a friend’s husband, Matt, was training to do Ironman Louisville, which would be on October 9. As Ironmen usually are on Sundays, I did the math and realized Louisville would be on my birthday in 2021. That would be pretty cool. Then COVID hit, Louisville was cancelled for that year, and then cancelled permanently. Since Matt had put in all the training and didn’t want to waste it, he organized his own event. Then Muncie 70.3 announced they would have a 140.3 event this summer. It piqued my interest, but I really didn’t want to spend the money. The town I live in is located on the north shore of the second largest natural in Indiana. Perfect for swimming. Outside of that, we are surrounded by corn, soybean, and wheatfields. Perfect for biking and running. The more I thought about it, the more I thought I could follow Matt’s example and stage my own Ironman distance triathlon. I could do it by my own rules (accept assistance from spectators, have friends/family participate with me) and if training went off the rails, the weather was bad, or doing the full wasn’t going to work,...

My last run was August 28 which was a half marathon. A heel injury has prevented me from getting out on the road but I think I'm on the mend now. I discuss that and more in this episode! Thanks for listening! ashlanddave@gmail.com

Sig Sauer customer service, Olympics high jump and race walking, sad deaths, Spring marathon plans and more in this show. Thanks for listening! ashlanddave@gmail.com

Team Wolfpack has a half marathon coming up but who in my running group is really going to run it? That and more in the show, thanks for listening! ashlanddave@gmail.com

Being a weekend warrior with only doing the group run will eventually catch up to you. Ashland Bob figured that out and so did I. I had no idea a comment I made one day would resonate with Bob and circle back to me in my own training. I talk about that and a huge stack of stuff in this episode which includes the email bag and some comments on the pandemic. Thanks for coming back and listening to the show! Contact me at ashlanddave@gmail.com and let me know where you hail from and what kind of running you do. I love to hear from listeners of the show! Links mentioned: http://whitefishpointmarathon.org/ Ashland Dave interviewed on Dr. Jami Dulaney's podcast Ashland VA Rail Ran (live view of downtown Ashland VA) https://www.sportsbackers.org/events/ashland-half-marathon/ https://themurphchallenge.com/

Seems like lots of things are getting cancelled including ultras! But there's still plenty going on in the Center of The Universe! Thanks for listening. Contact me at ashlanddave@gmail.com. Fall Line trail link: https://www.falllineva.org/

The ultra I planned to run in 2020 has been rescheduled (I think). That and more in this episode of Running in the Center of the Universe podcast. Thanks for coming back to the show (I know I had many months off)! Music by Garageband, U.S. Marine Band, and the late Derek Miller's Penmachine.

Dave is back with some new running inspiration thanks to Keith Cartwright. Keith is a distance runner in the Center of the Universe and Dave interviewed Keith about his recent ultra running accomplishment. Keith looks at distance running a little bit different than some and it's really refreshing to hear him talk. Enjoy the show! Music by the late Derek Miller's Penmachine. Keith's podcast is http://www.twotim47.com/ https://www.georgiajewel.com/ Previous show with Keith is at https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/dntpit/podcast239keithcartwrightmegger.mp3