The spring months April and May generally feature great European city marathons such as in Paris, Rotterdam, London, Vienna and Hamburg. This year I have been fortunate enough to participate in and complete the latter two. Indeed, great running events and indeed great experiences for the soul.

Firstly, I had a great trip to Vienna, Austria, with three of my best running mates, all of them very strong and experienced runners and together we actually passed a total number of 1002 marathons on race day ! I had hoped to compete a little but I was put aside by both cramps and, well, simply better performances than my own. Especially memorable from the race was the impressive pasta party at the City Hall in Vienna (Rathaus)…

… and the scenic finish. The course is generally flat and the race has exploded in number of participants clearly making it one of the larger city marathon events in Europe.

Vienna City Marathon 2012 – pictures

Two weeks later came Hamburg Marathon and here I had really hoped to secure a new personal best time. I was, once again, sadly disappointed to that end, the clock said 3.51.57, just about 6 minuttes worse than in Vienna. But ok, out of 247 marathon times April 2012 recorded my 3, 4, 5 and 6′rd best times overall.

Hamburg Marathon is one of the faster ones and is renowed for the fantastic crowds along the route. The passing of the harbor area is the ultimate peak of the trip…

… and as a Dane it is impossible not to become quite energized by the many danish spectators cheering the +1500 countrymen though the 42 K.

Hamburg Marathon 2012 – pictures

Ok, so this is a post I have wanted to write for some time. I have begun, hesitated, aborted, startet over and aborted again. I have experimented with other shoes and will continue to do so… but at some point, I guess I’d better reach the inevitable conclusion when it comes to Running Shoes for my part: the clear winner is: ECCO BIOM.

It’s pretty simple: the ECCO BIOMs offer the unique qualities of a supporting yet easy-to-use Natural Running shoe and with a slick fit that is unprecedented. Lately I have tried out lighter “racing” shoes of other brands, this has been interesting but also supports the above: the ECCO BIOMs are the superior choice for running (marathons).

ECCO has also extended the BIOM series with a TRAIL shoe…

.. indeed yet another BIOM with an incredible fit, it’s like slipping your feet into “home”…

.. the materials are durable…

.. and the sole has a nice, firm grib onto every surface imaginable (I used them a lot this winter on ice and snow) thus making them the perfect choice for the ever so more popular Trail Running. I’m lucky enough to have hills nearby and what a delight to take out these babies for a run !

I don’t know why I thought that I needed a racing shoe for setting a new marathon PB… I’m not a Kenyan after all (at all !)… but I guess it’s not a bad thing to be able to draw a clear and univocal judgement: the ECCO BIOMs are the superior Running Shoes.

Go get’em, those ECCO BIOMs !

Being a computer geek, professionally, I work with data. A very common thing in a computer system is the maintainance and changes of STATE. If you replace the word “computer” in the last sentense, you have a perfect description of a woman. LOL. Ok, let’s just say: a human being. This post is on some thoughts on the keeping of the Human State … of Mind and on the pursuit of Happiness. Issues that matters to us all every single day.

Ok, let’s start by understanding what STATE can be. As for the Human Life we can define three states:

L1. Unborn
L2. Living
L3. Dead

I will not go into discussions whether there are more states than these, ie. if the is a L4 for Heaven or whether we repeat cycles L1-L2-L3-?-L1-L2-L3. What should be of some importance to you is your current state L2. We all tend to forget the fact that our days in L2 are finite. We DO enter state L3 at some point, beyond which all other states, issues, wealth and worries do not seem to follow us. So be grateful for your L2-state every day, do good and useful things, love someone, love yourself. You only have so many days.

Love yourself. Often we do not. We are unhappy because the outer world does not mirror our expectations. So why do we act like insects when things don’t fall out perfect for us ? We should be better than that ! Insects are driven by chemical substances, pheromones, and are as similar for many other dynamics in Nature forced into a stimulance-response pattern, attack or retreat. We Humans are a bit more subtle, we have a million different states for our mood, mind and feelings, so why not refine their usage a bit ? Anyways, let’s list a few core states:

C1. Hungry
C2. Sleepy
C3. Afraid
C4.Feeling Safe
C5. Aggressive
C6. Horny

You might think that most men just go for C1 and C6, but truth is that we could list tons and tons of additional states here. You see, the states are actually not so important, well, at least not if you have the luxury to get food and water every day. What really is interesting are the MECHANISMS that set our states. Are you happy because of something in the “outer” world or because you choose to yourself ? Do you need outer proof in order to feel happy or can you be “just happy”. Analyze what really makes you happy. Is it Money, is it your Partner, your Kids, your Family, your Friends ? And does the lack of these make you unhappy ? If so, why ?

There is a lot to be said about our states and it is a very complex matter. First of all, please realize how quickly your state may change. You hear a piece of music that reminds you of your Childhood or a lost love… and your state changes. You scent the fresh-cut grass cycling home from work… and you are back to the summer holidays in School. You hear dissonant violins in a horror movie… and are scared as hell. Oh yes, the media and movie guys know how to manipulate your states. The question is: do you ?

Surely, the Human Psyche is playing tricks on us. You see, we might think that we have narrowed down a certain state and why and why not we are in it… only to find (later in Life) that the REAL determining state is a completely different one. You could for instance again and again choose partners that leave you and put you in a sad state.. only to realize that the real state triggering this is your own state of being in/handling loss to which you are familiar and feel safe in. Or you might eat too much food making you feel happy for a short while… but actually being escaping the real issue you have: the lack of self love. Or just love. Thinking about it, I consider Love/being loved to be the universally one true state we all long for.

I’ll write more about “State Management” later.. also with respect to Running. Meanwhile, ask yourself some questions.

What state are you in now ? And why ?

One of my favorite books is the “Meditations” by the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. It’s fascinating to contemplate that the most powerful man in the World actually was a Philosopher. “Meditations” was written almost two Millenniums ago but is still ever so relevant. Just take this quote as an example:

If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment

So easy to read and agree with, so hard to practise ! I guess we forget again and again that we filter the “Truth” ourselves, as brilliantly captured in the movie “Memento” and so powerfully explained in the sort-of scientific teachings of NLP (Neuro-linguistic Programming) and in the more spiritual ones by Seth/Jane Roberts, especially the book “The Nature of Personal Reality”. As described by Leonardo da Vinci we Humans are left with the powers of our Senses. NLP and Seth elaborate that we each create our own subjective, personal interpretation, an inner representation, based on the “data” from our senses. We tend to think that our experiences is the “Reality” or “Truth”. They are subjectively but not objectively, cf. Marcus Aurelius. Do dwell on this for a minute !

The Vision is perhaps the most powerful and persuading of our Senses. If we have seen something, it must have “happened” and it should be possible to establish a common Reality with others witnessing the same events. Right ? Wrong ! We are still filtering, we are still being Subjective. Intriguingly, take this piece of new technology as your aid: a camera that takes completely unfocused images ! See this example  and play around with the picture (click around): https://www.lytro.com/living-pictures/2325

Woo ! Imagine that our Mind could do the same. Refocus.

You were right, Marcus Aurelius !

So a Happy New Year to you !

It is magic, isn’t it, how a simple new digit may change our outlooks towards Life. I guess that is one of the special things about the New Years Evening and the transition into January – that we put aside the disappointments from the Past and really believe that the Future will bring us new stuff. Well, it might.  The interesting issue here is the mechanism itself: we adopt a change in our entire system. By the definition of a New Year we surrender to something that may fall so difficult in so many other circumstances, times and situations in out lives: we reframe our Worlds, we alter our interpretations and we twist our mind-sets on what is possible. Indeed, all these virtues are available each second we breathe. We should use them more often !

So why does it fall so easy on New Years Eve ? Perhaps the answer is: the context. It is “OK” to start again, you could even say that we feel that we are given permission to change,  that it is OK to change direction and to set new goals. Indeed, Context is a great factor in our subconscious mind and I tend to believe that our interpretations of Life and especially our feelings are extremely driven by our abilities to perspectivate, i.e. to choose our Centext instead of feeling doomed or destined by it.

We all want to be HAPPY, don’t we ? Well, I think that Happiness is a point-of-view and as such an interpretation of what actually happens in the outer world. So where do the Context blend in ? Let me give you an example: yesterday, the entire Globe celebrated the New Year, many were probably both drunk, horny and happy and thus most people have a positive feeling connected with “New Years Eve”. For me, this evening is in the light of another Context: this is the Evening on which I in 1973 saw my Father die at age 31, makeing me an Orphan just aged 7, a situation I fully understood on that very evening and how this was to define my entire life. So: same evening, different contexts -> different feelings, thoughts and degrees of Happiness.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not begging for pitty here, I am trying to prove a point, perhaps one of the most important ones I can pass on to you: learn to Perspectivate, learn to understand the importance of your sensation of the Context of any given situation or argument you might be in. Understand your Life in a larger context Timewise, i.e. in the vast span of Eternity and in the modest and perhaps random age of the Civilizations. We are all merely Dust in Time and Space and exactly therefore is Context everything in our short lives. Everything. So be aware of yourself, of your Centexts and of your Choices, first and foremost your mental ones,  they will define your feelings and thus your Experiences. Get it ?

Personally, I jump into 2012 with many and great hopes for the Future. Running-wise I will now interpretate everything I do, eat and train from the perspective that I am a 3.15 Marathon Runner. This is a very different position as compared with just a few months ago. I choose this Context for myself  and thereby I define some of the important aspects in my 2012 must-do’s.

Also, I choose to welcome saying good-bye to a few People that obviously don’t belong in my Life, People whom have abused my Trust and my Love. I know I did the “right” things and should not go down due to the Others misbehaviour.  So, I will choose the positive version knowing that “I can Love”, and leave the victimized version behind. I will choose the Context of not having met the really important people and partners yet. I have changed my interpretations and as such killed the love and the friendships that I thought I had – but never really had. In that Context the loss is now a gift. Thank you, Life, for making me understand.

So hello 2012, bring on Happiness, great races and lot’s of Love. For all of us.

The last Part of this series concludes on the best marathons in 2011, i.e. I give my you my take on the best marathons in 2011, i.e. amongst the ones I have participated in myself. Best does not necessarily mean ‘objectively best’ but does also emphasize the magnitude of the experience including ‘other’ factors such as city/nature facilities etc. not to mention my own performance.

I have divided the marathons into four groups and as always, you find links to the races via ‘My marathons’ in the menu.

Overall
1. New York City Marathon (USA)
2. Vancouver (Canada)
3. Thorshavn (Faroe Islands)
4. Madrid (Spain)
5. H.C. Andersen (Denmark)

City marathons
1. New York City Marathon (USA)
2. Vancouver (Canada)
3. Madrid (Spain)
4. Barcelona (Spain)
5. Copenhagen (Denmark)

Nature runs
1. Thorshavn (Faroe Islands)
2. LGT Alpin (Liechtenstein)
3. Rudersdal (Denmark)
4. Pihlsbech #100 (Denmark)
5. Furesø (Denmark)

Small races
1. Dr. Nielsens (Denmark)
2. Wedding Marathon (Denmark)
3. Holstebro (Denmark)
4. Kalundborg Vintermarathon (Denmark)
5. Sydkyst (Denmark)

These are lists based on my personal experiences, of course. To mentain memory of the best races ‘ever’, I  have a category of the ‘all-time best’ marathons as well. Here, the big marathons do live up to their famous names !

Best ever
1. New York (USA)
2. Zermatt (Switerzerland)
3. London (England)
4. Rome (Italy)
5. Chicago (USA)

Performance has been a key word in several respects in 2011. The year opened with a series of talks on the book ELSK AT LØBE,

the most prominent being the evening at POLITIKEN where my co-author prof. Bente Klarlund Pedersen and I entertained several hundred people. The book contains a 7 step Marathon Management programme to secure a good marathon experience and I have personally applied several pieces of the advice myself, especially the stuff about an “optimal weight”, the metabollic fittness and the scientific core facts on why you have to train with high intensity.

Actually, I had proclaimed a 3.45 result as the goal for 2011 but honestly I thought that such a figure was quite unrealistic on my race list which after all said 207 marathons on plus-4 hours to none sub-4 entering the year. So imagine my delight when I finally booked the first sub-4 ! As written several times before, this came about in my marathon no. 218 and in stunning Vancouver, Canada, well paced by my friend Vagn Kirkelund.

Vancouver Marathon 2011 – pictures

Then came some months where no improvement seemed to occur all until the fairytale race at H.C. Andersen Marathon where I had the fortune to establish a brilliant cooperation with Anders Brandt. I think that those 10 fast kilometers we shared together laid the cornerstone to both our PB’s (Anders with 3.45 and I with 3.54) and it expanded my mindset for sure on what is possible.

H.C. Andersen Marathon 2011 – pictures

Thus, a series of sub-4 results now followed and even an elusive new PB 3.42.39 was booked in Amsterdam, this time under the secure guidiance from Mogens Pedersen. Three weeks later it was even possible for me to go sub-4 in New York running as Spiderman and my race list now features seven sub-4′s and 9 of my 10 best times are from 2011 (and 12 of my 14 best times – no. total races is 238). Cutting 24 minutes off your PB can’t be too bad, can it ?

Amsterdam Marathon 2011 – pictures

So what and whom have inspired me to this performance stunt ? Well, the facts in the book are for sure major drivers. But indeed so many of my already strong and well-performing friends are sources of inspiration too, some are already mentioned here and I could add a few more: some of my young facebook friends that run insanely fast and always criticize me for being too slow (Jonas Berg, Jeppe Farsøht), my VIP-guests at LøbeMagasinet Rudersdal Marathon Frederik Lassen (Danish Champion in 24-hours) and Erik Steffensen (an art professor that at age 50 is now running 5 k at 19.19 and the like) and some of my new friends on the Faroe Islands (Pól Sundskarð, Guttorm Sørensen and the very talented young Marnar Djurhuus).

I think Performance will continue to be on the agenda in 2012 – having declared 3.15 as the target !

In Part II of this series I will account for my races in Denmark. In case you didn’t know we have a zillion marathon races in Denmark each year, many of them being small local events. However, we do also have marathons with international class and appeal, first and foremost the two biggest events: Nykredit Copenhagen Marathon and H.C. Andersen Marathon in Odense. Although I really treasure many of my other Danish races, these two take a very special place and this year is no exception. Although I was a bit disappointed with my performance in Copenhagen I was extremely delighted with the organization of the race and also very pleased with the new route which I find very scenic and representative for our Capital.

Nykredit Copenhagen Marathon 2011 – pictures

“Organization to perfection” is also the phrase that comes to mind about H.C. Andersen Marathon. This year proved to be quite if not catastrophically rainy on the race day, nevertheless I managed to book a new suberb PB in Odense (more to come about this in Part III). You may browse the wet pictures here: H.C. Andersen Marathon 2011 – pictures

Before these events I had run the usual classic winter races in Kalundborg, Holstebro and the infamous Dr. Nielsen in Vejle and also seen some improvement in my form at Sydkyst Maraton in Greve where I actually ran my 2′nd best marathontime at the time. But the races that I will remember the most are probably those three where I was lucky to celebrate some of my friends on days very special to them, namely the Marathon Wedding (!) for Peter Buhr and wife Lotte,

Wedding Marathon – pictures

marathon no. 100 for Morten Pihlsbech and Susanne Gren,

2*100 Marathon – pictures

and marathon no. 500 for Anders Munch Madsen, the latter also being my own event at LøbeMagasinet Rudersdal Marathon on beautiful Zeeland.

LøbeMagasinet Rudersdal Marathon – pictures

The friendships are an important part of all this running and it is for the same reason sad to note that 2011 saw some abuse on that account, i.e. so-called friends clearly overstepping the “unspoken conventions”. Who knows, perhaps life needs to include some idiots in order for us to spot the fine people in our lives. Thus, I am actually pleased to scrap the garbage, cf. #1 in this fine list of advice: 30-things-to-stop-doing-to-yourself, but it is of course a little confusing if “trust” is not a common part of the marathon community anymore.

I will indeed enter 2012 with some rage in mind and body, but even worse: with sadness in the heart. Not so much for saying “f*ck-off” to these few assh*les, not at all, no, I am more concerned that other friendships may be at stake. I foresee divisions. I liked running more 4-5 years ago when the friendships were clean.

My marathon year 2011 has come to an end, perhaps a bit earlier than normally but various events have led me to this decision. I will train speed for the remainings of December and then look forward to see my marathon friends next year. Friendships is one of the great assets of the sport, right ?

Anyways, I will make a few posts on my phenomenal 2011. This year I managed to cut 24 minutes off my PB and to finally achieve a sub-4 hours result. The latter came about in my marathon no. 218 (!) in beautiful Vancouver, Canada, and by the graceful coaching by my friend Vagn Kirkelund, a very strong runner currently on the Danish National Team for 24 hours races.

Vancouver Marathon 2011 – pictures

My international year started off in Barcelona, Spain, a race I have now visited three times and this year was for sure the best experience and also my best performance though the streets of the Catalunyan capital (Barcelona Marathon 2011 pictures here). The next race abroad was also in Spain, this time Madrid Marathon (Madrid Marathon 2011 pictures) which was an interesting, varied and quite tough run to complete ! The night before I had the pleasure of watching “Il Classico” between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona at Santiago Bernabeau (1-1) and I could easily make a habit out of combining marathon running with visiting other great sports events.

Ok, then came Vancouver in May and later the mountains of Liechtenstein in June, sadly in rain but an awesome challenge in which I did rather well, I think, cutting off at least an hour compared with my previous and very similar mountain marathons.

LGT Alpin Marathon 2011 – pictures

Then came summer and thus a pause in marathon travelling. The next marathon was “partly” on Danish soil but then again not, namely the breathtaking Thorshavn Marathon in the Faroe Islands. Thorshavn Marathon is easliy one of the most beautiful marathons I have ever participated in, do check out the stunning pictures: Thorshavn Marathon 2011 – pictures

Then came October and the much anticipated Amsterdam Marathon. An unusual high number of Danes had found their way to this event and my friend Mogens Pedersen was amongst them. What luck for me that was ! Mogens simply assisted me to book the “unheard” finish time 3.42.39 and we had a great time in the Dutch capital. Amsterdam Marathon is for sure one of those races where you can expect to break your old records if you’re well prepared.

Amsterdam Marathon 2011 – pictures

Last exotic marathon was then the biggest of them all – New York City Marathon !!! It was my second attempt through the five borroughs and this year I managed to secure a sub-4 even running in my Spiderman suit. New York City is just such a cool place to be, so I can only recommend a trip to this perhaps “most wanted” marathon in the world. See for yourself: Spiderman runs New York City Marathon 2011 – pictures

In the next Part I will look into some of the best Danish races during the year (i.e. on my list).

Some experiences makes you transcend your own life and give rise to a rebirth of your spirit and soul in ways you would not imagine possible. For some  this could be doing the laundry, for others like myself it could be visiting great places like New York, that is New York as in New York, New York, United States of America ! Wooo !

So, I did !

Running the New York City Marathon was of course the main purpose of the trip but indeed just being in New York City is a great, blessing and loveable experience. There is so much to see, the skyline, the shops, the parks, the hectic but also friendly atmosphere. For persons like me New York widens one’s perspective and I come home renewed, refueled, reborn ! I come home with a great sense of humility of what the World has to offer and how much we should enjoy every single opportunity in life to experience stuff, to improve, to love, to give and to share.

To you, I give you this: the pictures from the awesome New York City Marathon 2011 (link below), a race which itself gives a lot to charity and outlasting moments of both pain and joy for those who participate, for those lucky and brave to endure the 26.2 miles through the five borroughs of New York. For me, the day started with the ferry trip to Staten Island passing the Statue of Liberty…

… and reaching Staten Island with this poetic view. A beautiful start of a very memorable day.

The race begins with the task of passing the Verrazano Bridge…

… followed by nuking Brooklyn….

… the tough Queensboro Bridge…

… Manhatten and the First Avenue, the latter completly stuffed with spectators and a outrageous crazy atmosphere…

… the Bronx…

… and back on Manhatten the Fifth Avenue, Columbus and the great finish in Central Park.

Surely, Time passes you by in New York (City Marathon) like a flash but believe me, the impressions are imprinted for the remains of your life. It is called: perspective. It is called: wisdom. It is called: love.

I love NY.

All the visuals are here: Spiderman runs New York City Marathon 2011 – pictures

and in English: Spiderman runs New York City Marathon 2011 – pictures (US version).