2025 Running-wise

Running-wise, 2025 was an A-OK year. I will qualify that by stating that I have never, not once, been accused of running wisely. Let’s begin by discussing my highlights and lowlights of the year. Then, we’ll do the numbers.

Two pretty good accomplishments were a) breaking 1:50 in a half-marathon for the first time in eight years, and b) running three (out of five) sub-four-hour marathons. I also won some age group awards. I’m also extremely fortunate to have remained injury-free for another year. More importantly, I’m happy to report that I finally published my book, Run a lot: Dan's Guide to Marathons and Marathoning. That was a big deal.

On the flip side, I didn’t get any faster (and actually slowed down some) at shorter distances. Something I tried to do, but mostly failed at, was to get out of my comfort zone. I did participate in two half-marathon races I hadn’t run before, and I ran some (new/unusual to me) evening 5Ks organized by my friend, Ladd Clifford. But that’s pretty much it; I otherwise spent too much of the year doing the same sorts of running that I’ve become used to. I believe this is part of the reason that I didn’t get faster at shorter distances. Running, just like life, is a balance between what you accomplish and enjoy while being comfortable versus when you’re not comfortable. However, consistency is a major key to success, and I’m usually comfortable when I’m consistently running a lot. And vice versa. For 2026, I’m going to try once again to get faster at 5K, 5-Mile, and 10K road races. And to become uncomfortably involved in some track events as I did in 2024.

Here are the numbers.

• Total distance: 3,290.5 miles. I did 3,541 in 2024. Life to date total: 121,177.
• Time spent on all those miles: 632 hours.
• Average Pace: 11:32. This is slightly slower than 2024, but the same as the previous two years.

Here are the full and half-marathons:

Marathons

Half-Marathons

Blown away

I mean, blown away physically, not metaphorically.

The winds are around 50 miles per hour as I emerge from warm, cozy Shortstack (that's my house's name). Some snow is falling, but not much. It's the temperatures that are indeed falling, big time. I had planned to run about 10 miles today, but as I take my first steps in the cold, I know that's not going to happen. 

It's only been two days since the great and powerful Brunswick Marathon, yet I'm not feeling too bad. In fact, I could have run yesterday, had I not encountered other issues. Although I'm not very sore, I am tired, however. More so than usual on a Monday morning.

I start by going North. The wind is at my back. Too bad I can't just keep running in this direction. Alas, I have to turn around at some point. Even going south, it doesn't seem too awful. Then it's time to turn West. Zowie -> I'm stood straight up, and it's all I can do to keep moving forward at all. I have to look down to prevent debris from flying into my eyes. 

Finally, I'm back home again. It's been only 4.03 miles, so we can call this Shortrun to Shortstack.

I have a big heart

 They tell me that I have a big heart.

WARNING: This post will suddenly devolve into potty humor.

“They” are the Cleveland Clinic folks running tests galore on me. I’m in another brain study. This one includes, among other things, an Electrocardiogram (EKG), a smell test, a sleep test, and a poop test. More on the latter ones in a minute, but first, I’ll discuss the EKG result.

Right atrial enlargement/dilation was indicated. My primary care physician was notified, and she ordered an Echocardiogram (Echo), which confirmed the result and provided much more detail. The condition may be caused by my running. Furthermore, it may be the normal way the heart adjusts to heavy-duty cardiovascular training. To ensure this is the case and that nothing further is amiss, I have an appointment with a sports cardiologist. That won’t be until March, so I’ll have to try to survive until then.

My strong belief is that this is nothing to be concerned about. I tell Debbie that it’s a good thing, not a bad thing. But she has me convinced I should continue following the medical recommendations. I’m hoping the sports doc will give me the green light.

Now, about the other tests. The smell test was kind of fun. But the sleep and poop tests, not so much. Trying to sleep with dozens of electrodes attached to various parts of my body was pretty awful. The technicians said they wanted me to get a minimum of 4 to 6 hours of sleep (I was at the Intercontinental Hotel near the downtown Clinic). I doubt that I got that much - I was that uncomfortable.

Sleep study

But that didn’t even come close to my level of discomfort associated with the poop test. I tried so very hard to follow the instructions - use the “feces collector” paper that you attach to the sides of the seat, poop, but don’t pee into the sample, don’t let the sample fall into the water, etc., etc. When finished, you use the tongue depressor (and don’t even think about using it as such afterward) to scoop the poop a fair amount of it into a small jar with a lid. Then you package it all up with an ice pack and ship it to the Cleveland Clinic via FedEx. And don’t get me started on the fact that whatever they pay the folks who open the packages isn’t enough.

My instructions

Now, imagine the worst thing that could happen in my attempt to follow these instructions. Then multiply that by, oh, a million or so. That’s how bad it was when the paper fell into the toilet as I got off the seat, tongue depressor in hand, ready to scoop. It was only one side, so some poop had not yet submerged. I tried desperately to scoop this up before it sank. But it wasn’t enough, and the little bit I got caused a huge mess.

The only thing I could do at this point was to try again. They had provided an additional feces collector and tongue depressor. Would it be okay to pile the new poop on top of the little bit I got the first time? I would need to try. After 90 minutes of additional coffee and waiting, it was time to go again. Guess what? Despite my careful best efforts, the exact same thing happened again! This time, to get enough, I scooped as much out of the water as I could. I know. I wasn’t supposed to - it would become contaminated. But what could I do? I was out of options.

Then the toilet flooded. The paper collector was supposed to be flushable, but why should that go right when nothing else would?

I took my possibly contaminated sample to the FedEx store. It was packaged nicely, and the sample had styrofoam and an ice pack. But I’m sure they knew what was inside, based on the lettering on the box. They said it wouldn’t ship until the next day, Monday. Well, it could only be contaminated so much. I hope it doesn’t smell by the time they receive it.

Now that I've probably failed the poop test, what does that say about my brain?

2025 Brunswick Marathon Race Report

I am starting my fourth of four 6.55-mile circuits. My friends and running partners, Julie Boggs and Theresa Wright, have finished running. It was great to have their company while it lasted. But now I'm on my own, and I just want to get this done.

Julie and Theresa are cheering wildly for me as I run by for the 1-mile lake loop portion of the course. I think some of the other folks are wondering what's going on. I'm finally running a little faster, and this is surprising; I usually slow down when I find myself completing a run on my own. I do miss my friends now, though. I concentrate on my pace even a little more.

It's been a great day so far. Several friends showed up for the run, and they all seemed to enjoy it. Enjoying the rest of the event is now the least that I can do. Even though I'm not able to catch up with any of the fast marathoners today, I happily accept my last-place 4:45 finish. It always feels good to finish strong.

Most of us before the start

A few others, partway through

My victory pose

My splits

Yule like this story

The main reason you will like this post is that it's short.

I'm running down Substation and turning right on Sleepy Hollow. It's early and, except for the holiday lights, quite dark. You guessed it. I'm doing my annual Christmas run. As in recent years, I have a timing deadline: I have to be done by 7:00 AM. That's when the grandkids begin to open their presents. After heading West, I turn North on Metzger, across 303, then out on Myrtle. Finally, I go up Hartneck before continuing through the new subdivision and back home. It's my New Subs 11-mile route, and it's been a while since I've done it.

That's partly due to increasing traffic, at least at certain times of day. But on Christmas Day itself? Not one iota of traffic. Even though it's cool and damp out, this quiet little run is quite enjoyable. Almost so much so that I nearly forget that I have a marathon in two days.

I do make it back home by 7, but the kids have already started without me.

I will get over it.

2025 Frosty Five Race Report

"This will not stand." For the second consecutive race, Theresa Wright passes me in the final stages of a race, like I was standing still. I say something encouraging and nice, but inside, I'm seething. I make it a point to catch back up to her, even with less than a mile to go. I begin to make up some ground, but it's tough with the black ice everywhere.

And I do mean everywhere. It seems there had been heavy fog, which turned into heavy frost on the streets of Hudson. Footing has been treacherous the whole way. It is all any of us 800+ runners can do but remain vertical. (By the way, Frosty is appropriately part of the race name, and Vertical is appropriately part of the race organization team. Just pointing that out.) My pace is fluctuating wildly, depending on the ambient footing, which is almost but not quite uniformly bad.

Do I manage to catch Theresa? Nope. I do get fairly close, though. But I guess it did stand. My time is 43:03. Not nearly as good as last year's 41:41, or the previous year's 40-something. Blame it on the frosty frost. At least I won my age group.

Dan and Theresa

Crunch

Danny-Boy is running loops around Claggett Middle School Track. He'd run with friends and was now attempting to complete an eighteen-mile run just like he did last week. But this time the crunchy ice and snow are not so nice. Will Danny be able to successfully finish his long run amid such adversity?

It's not like he hasn't been running a lot. Two days ago, Danny-Boy had run the Christmas Lights Run in Akron. He'd had tons of fun seeing the lights with all his friends. But that evening eight, along with all his other running was beginning to add up.

With friends at Stan Hywet Hall during the Christmas Lights Run

Danny-Boy gets back off the track with several miles yet to run. He simply can't do it. But he does manage to complete his run by going out and back by Roscoe Ewing Park.

This was a tough one. D-B is happy it's over. He's more happy that he made it.

Long or bust

It's time. Time for a long run, after two weeks of lollygagging. 

It's an early start. Running eighteen or more miles takes time. It takes even more time when you're running slowly because of tough conditions. Running friends come and go, but they're all completely done and on their way home when Danny-Boy is only eleven miles into his eighteen. Seven more. Where, and how, to do them?

Although the City of Medina had made an attempt to plow its all-purpose trails, there was still too much snow and ice. The roads were somewhat better, but there were still some bad spots, and traffic had been building. Danny-Boy heads over to the Claggett Middle School track.

He doesn't hold much hope for this surface to be runnable; there's ice and snow everywhere else. Sure enough, the track is completely snow-covered. Danny-Boy gingerly starts a circuit. The snow is mostly crunchy, but thankfully not slippery. Danny-Boy deems it good for the remainder of the run. Round and round he goes.

He's not moving fast; the pace is slower than before. But at least it's steady, and improving, just a bit. Danny-Boy successfully completes the run. It wasn't easy. Nothing is, these days.

Nope

"Nope" was the first coherent thought of the day. A 5-6 mile group run had been planned for the Lexington Ridge Clubhouse. But from my vantage point, everything was covered with new, overnight snow. I'll just run at home, I think, I won't risk my life to drive down to Medina.

Nope. I'm running in the hood, and it's not going well. There's ice, slush, hard, packy snow, soft, fluffy snow, slippery, sloshy snow. And probably a bunch of others that I can't think of. All this, combined with the cold wind chill, is causing me to reevaluate my life choice. I manage to get five miles in, but the fastest is over fifteen minutes. Some running, eh? Hey, maybe I'll ditch all this and head over to the rec center for some nice, warm indoor running.

Nope. I'm running around and around on the sixteen-laps-per-mile fitness track. After two very boring miles, I simply can't take it anymore. I migrate to the treadmill.

Nope. I can only do one mile on the mill. It's nice to have a couple of TVs to look at, but it's much warmer here, and I don't like having other people around me. Back to the (relatively cool) track.

Yep. Two more miles of sixteen laps each later, and I'm truly done. Got my ten in today, but it took hours and hours and hours. There has to be a better way.

Hey, I know. Move to Florida.

Baby steps

Danny-Boy is taking baby steps as he loops around and around his neighborhood. It's an attempt (a poor one) to remain vertical for ten entire miles. The temperature is actually slightly above freezing for the first time in, oh, eight or ten months. But the cold, freezing rain is still nasty. And there are icy spots on some of the roads. Will he remain horizontal-free for the entire run?

It's the tenth day of this awful December, and treadmill-less Danny-Boy is having a very rough time. He does, however, manage to return home without entertaining the hood with a face-plant. May the rest of the winter be as fortunate.

Rumors of my treadmill's demise...

True to its Name (before and after)

Rumors of my treadmill's demise have been greatly accurate. After 23 years and 9,963 miles (not including Debbie's walking), the old True 550 finally bit the dust. Winter, it seems, is tough on all of us, this December in particular. I spent four days in a row on it, and that was the last straw. The motor began smoking, and I wasn't able to fix it. With a little help (it weighed in at over 300 pounds), it was taken out of the basement, and it's now in that True graveyard in the sky.

Don't worry. Another mill has been purchased and is on the way. More on that later.

Today's "long" 15-miler

We are all well aware that 18 miles or more is a long run, so you don't need to remind us, Danny-Boy. 

But there are exceptions. Right? RIGHT???

Nope. 18 is 18. Doesn't matter how tough the run is; you either achieve the mileage or you don't. You ought to know that, Danny-Boy.

But there was ice, snow, cold, and fast friends who were also having difficulties. Besides, 15 is close enough to 18, isn't it?

Sorry, but no. It don't make no nevermind, DB.

Okay, I guess I get it. This means that today's run was a failure. I guess I'll just go and cry.

Ice-Nine Redux

The subject of Ice-Nine has graced this blog in the past. In case you forgot, here is my description from a 2018 post:

Ice-nine is a fictional material that appears in Kurt Vonnegut's novel Cat's Cradle. In the story, it is invented by Dr. Felix Hoenikker and developed by the Manhattan Project in order for foot soldiers to no longer have to deal with mud. The project is abandoned when it becomes clear that any quantity of it would have the power to destroy all life on Earth, since the entire planet would become frozen regardless of temperature. 

A global catastrophe involving freezing the world's oceans with ice-nine is what we seem to have this morning. It's cold out, and it's slick. The roads hadn't been so bad driving down to Medina, but now that I'm meeting with my friends, things aren't so hunky-dory. Even the Lexington Ridge Clubhouse parking area is treacherous. As we head out on the road, it gets worse. We're all shuffling slowly, except for 4WD Otis. He's happy as heck. The rest of us, not so much. With only a mile to go, two of my friends make full-body contact with the road. Ouch. Otis wonders what the problem is. Somehow, we all make it back. I'm hoping we're all okay.

The best news about today's run is that it's over and that there were apparently no major injuries. AND that it wasn't me who fell... For a change.

Lube: it's not just for breakfast anymore

What's that smell? Oh, nothing. It's just something metallic burning inside the treadmill. Good thing I am nine miles into my ten-mile run. My old True machine might possibly just make it through one more workout. Or not.

It's my fourth mill day in a row. That's because the weather's been frightful. And winter is just beginning. I usually go stir-crazy after milling around so much. I'm about there now. 

Once the odor becomes strong enough, I begin to worry. Is this the end of days (for the beast)? Please, treadmill gods, help this 24-year-old baby get through one more year. I stop and add some lube. Not for me, for the mill. I do this by spreading pelletized wax under the hot (too hot) belt. Then I walk-jog another mile.

Now the smell is less metallic and more like burning wax. An improvement? Who knows. Snow is in the forecast for tomorrow, so I may be milling at least one more time. Then, we will see.

Buckeye Woods Fun Run

The annual Buckeye Woods 50K is no more. It was fun while it lasted. Rather than let the tradition die completely, a few of us (Turkey Tom and The Usual Suspects) did a run run on the old course. And fun it was. Really!

Julie Boggs, Michelle Wolff, Shannon Barnes, Theresa Wright, and some guy

2025 Medina Turkey Chase - Guest Post by Turkey Tom

Editor's note: from time to time, we here at Dan Horvath's Running Blog invite guest posts. This is one such instance. Turkey Tom done good.

~~~

Julie Boggs (Left) and Turkey Tom (Right)

"You have to act silly and run very slowly." Those were the job requirements set forth by Race Director Beth. "I was born to do this," I answered.

Race Director Brian helped me get suited up. We didn't want a wardrobe malfunction today, and the suit presented many such opportunities. Most importantly, I wanted to stay vertical for the entire run. I saw several of my friends prior to the start. They were surprised to learn that I was THE Turkey today. Evidently, we did a good job of keeping my identity secret.

Before the four-mile race, it was time for the one-mile kids' fun run. I started and finished the run, but I didn't do the middle. That's the hard part. It was fun to encourage the kids as they came into the finish.

The start

I gave myself a bit of a head start for the main event. But eventually, after oh, ten yards or so, the lead runners caught and passed me. I didn't think I would be the overall winner today, anyway. The deal at this race is that, if you beat the turkey, you win a shot at $100 off a pair of running shoes. During the race, several folks were surprised to see me. And, of course, to pass me. But pass me, they did. Several asked if I was "THE" Turkey. I said yes and gave them the thumbs-up. This, even though turkeys don't really have thumbs. And by the way, I didn't trip, but those turkey feet made running a little challenging.

Among those passing me were running friends Mallory and Michelle. We talked a bit and caught up. But catching up wasn't something I was doing well today. Having fun, yes. Catching up, no. Eventually, we finished. I let them get ahead of me so that they would have a chance at the drawing. Ain't I great?

Form Fartlek

Form Fartlek was the order of the day. I was at the track and my running partner du jour, Debbie Hicks had just left. I had a few miles to go, so the fartlek began. Here is a description of the activity. It's an excerpt from my book, Run a Lot.

Fartlek, aka Speedplay, is a distance runner's training approach developed in the late 1930s by Swedish Olympian Gösta Holmér. In its widely adopted contemporary forms, fartlek training alternates periods of faster and slower running, sometimes over natural terrain. It differs from traditional interval training by being less structured. To put it another way, traditional intervals can be thought of as speed work, whilst unstructured off-and-on speed running can be considered speed play, or fartlek. It can be done on roads and trails, and it may seem a little less exhausting. Most speedwork is best when done with friends; there is power in teamwork. Not to mention that misery loves company. This is especially the case with fartlek training.

From Galloway's book, I learned to do 'Form Fartlek' running. This is somewhat more structured than traditional fartlek, but it's also not the same as other interval training. The fast portions are done at close to lactate threshold pace, but it's not the same as tempo running either. After the warmup, I alternate fast and slow half-mile segments. The fast parts are faster than an easy training pace, but slower than 800-meter repeat pace. The easy parts are faster than interval recovery laps. The key point is that while I'm running the fast segments, I concentrate on my running form. Just thinking about it helps make it happen, but you can also apply some ideas about how to concentrate more on your running form.

Efficiency trumps sheer effort. Improve your form, and the speed will come naturally.

There. I successfully made it through that description of fartlek training without the slightest hint of a joke. I am known to have high ethical and moral standards. All types of toilet, potty, and other scatological humor are strictly off the table. (Maybe on the seat, but most assuredly not on the table.) So don't look for any fart humor here, I would never, ever say anything at all like, "I fartlek in your general direction." (See Monty Python and the Holy Grail if you haven't already) It would be beneath me. 

cissalC llaF Race Report

You know the feeling. You're walking in a grassy area, and the ground that had been relatively solid suddenly goes, squish. Yep. You stepped in dogshit. Dan's race is done, but this is a good metaphor for his day. Let's consider Dan's race in reverse order so that it might have a happy ending.

Dan has some chili, but it's cold. He shouldn't have waited so long, but he had been talking with friends, and he had to get his second AG award. He gets to talk a bunch with racer extraordinaire, Alan Dravenstott, whom he hasn't seen in a while. He also recounts Theresa Wright's excellent race with her and her husband, Gary. He sees several other friends, new and old, including Roberta Gangl and Rob Lisy, both of whom he hasn't seen in a long time. The Fall Classic is a race where everyone knows your name. And they certainly know Dan's.

Dan, Alan, Theresa (photo: Gary Wright)

The finish line magically appears at 1:53:24 after the start. It's been a tough one for Dan. Real tough. Somewhere between mile 13 and mile 13.1, Hope and John Hnat pass Dan like he was standing still. It's a great run for them, especially Hope, who had been injured earlier in the year. Of course, John (at the start) had been talking Dan up and sandbagging it all as usual.

Rob passes Dan in the final mile or two. Dan isn't surprised. Theresa passes Dan with two or three miles to go. After a few encouraging words, Dan tries to stay with her. It's not even close. She is moving, passing everyone by. Dan? Moving isn't a good word for what he's doing at this point.

The nice thing about this race, other than everyone knowing your name, is that the double-out-and-back course allows everyone to see each other on several occasions. Dan sees Alan go by a couple of times, and he's really moving along in second place. He sees his other friends as well - you know, the ones who will pass him later on.

Dan has to stop and tie his shoe near the one-mile mark. It may be the first time this has ever happened to Dan in a race. Not a good omen. He had been concerned about his recent lack of training. Thus, expectations had been low from the start. Such matters were discussed in Dan's pre-race blog post.

Dan's loot

2025 Half Marathons

The will to prepare

It’s packing time. The Fall Classic Half Marathon is just a couple of hours away, and I don’t have a thing to wear. Okay, that’s not true; I just have to decide what. Temperatures should be in the forties, which is perfect for running, but not so great for hanging around before or after the race. Some of the fundamental questions are:

How many layers? Short sleeves or not? Compression arm sleeves or not? Hat? Gloves?
What extra stuff for before and after? And don’t even get me started about gels, water, caffeine, etc.
All of this preparation brings me to one of my favorite quotes. It’s more about training than packing, but both are forms of preparation.

The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare

The quote is a variation of a saying attributed to several coaches, including Bobby Knight ("The will to win is not nearly so important as the will to prepare to win") and Vince Lombardi ("Everyone has a will to win, but very few have the will to prepare to win"). Another version is attributed to Tanzanian runner Juma Ikangaa: "The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare". The core idea is that desire alone is not enough; true success comes from the dedication to prepare and put in the hard work beforehand. This highlights that the effort put in before the actual event—the hard work, practice, and planning—is more critical than the wish to win itself. While most people want to win, far fewer are willing to put in the time and dedication to prepare.

Ikangaa, a sentimental fan favorite, finished second at the Boston Marathon three years in a row, from 1988 to 1990. He famously trained extremely hard, but was disappointed when he didn’t win. When he finally did win the New York City Marathon in November 1989, he explained his success with his famous quote. Reading between the lines a little, we can guess that Ikangaa always felt that he had the will to win, even when he didn’t. What may have changed when he crossed the line first is that he had worked even harder to prepare. (Read: to train.)

My packing preparation is now complete. I should be fine as long as I haven’t forgotten anything vital. I don’t think so. My training (preparation), however, is a different story. When I signed up for a bunch of half marathons early this year, I had been thinking that this one might be my best chance for a speedy time. But now I think it could be the slowest. 

Until now, it’s been a pretty decent year. My marathon times have been in line with recent years, and my half-marathon times have improved. Most were consistent, but the Hofbräuhaus Half at 1:47 exceeded all expectations. But my training in recent weeks has been almost non-existent. So expectations for today’s race are low. Very low. But that’s okay.

Steamrolled by women

"Hey, there's an old guy running with some beautiful women," goes the remark as the respective groups pass by one another. "They are probably saying the same about us," goes the further observation. This is, in fact, quite likely the case, and it's not the first time Dan has been in this position. But here's the thing: he likes it. 

Then comes the steamroller. The all-purpose trail through the Cleveland Metroparks had just been resurfaced, and the steamroller was there for the taking. It wasn't actually taken, but a photo was.

Steamrolled again. This time by Theresa Wright

It turns out to be quite the eventful long run. Dan needs to do more of these.

Dan and friends