I was supposed to run the Shamrock/Va Beach marathon on this day,
but some last minute work in Tokyo scrapped that plan. Secretly, I was glad
for the break, though I would not have skipped the run willingly. Both Myrtle
Beach, and Las Vegas sucked the life out of me, and I just was not looking forward
to the run.
I made my Japan travel plans and wondered if there were any races during the
2 weeks that I was scheduled to be there. I needed to put in at least
a long run on this particular Sunday, and I figured a Half Marathon or even
a hard-run 10K would do the trick.
When I was in Japan the first time, I made friends with Masayoshi Nakamura
and the Kunitachi
Jogging Club. Coincidently, the Executive sponsor of the project I was working
on, Shuji "Sam" Shimakage, was in this club. A further coincidence
is that Sam ran the Austin Motorola Marathon when I ran it... He
is in this picture, with some of the Kunitachi Jogging Club members, lower
left in the Motorola tee-shirt.
Anyway, I wrote to Nakamura-San, asking about races in Tokyo. He copied Shimakage-San,
who found the Tokyo Imperial City Walk/Run Marathon for me. Nakamura-San graciously
filled out the paper work (and paid the 1000 Yen entry fee -- about $9), and
voila. Masayoshi (running the 20K) and Momoko (Running the 10K) picked me up
at my hotel and brought me to the race. It was great seeing them after 2 years,
and I was glad they came out and ran with me.
This was a tiny race -- 100 marathoners and about the same number of 10K &
20K runners. Many Blind and otherwise disabled runners and their guides.
| |
|
|
| This run took us around the exact center of Tokyo, the Imperial Palace.
It is a 5K loop around the walled city, with the Start/Finish at the southernmost
gate. |
 |
A 5K loop means 8 mind-numbing laps. At the 40K mark, you pass the Start/Finish
and run 1.1K along the course, and turn around, back to the Start. That
was cruel. |
| |
Photo: Masayoshi Nakamura |
|
| |
|
|
 |
This was a very well run for a small race, and it was a lot of fun. The
Race Director, Akira Usami, 3-time olympic winner, cheered us on. He is
riding with me to the finish, here. As the only foreigner, I was treated
as a minor celebrity. |
 |
| Photo:Masayoshi Nakamura |
|
|
| |
|
|
| I also met Eco-Marathoner, Hajime
Nishi, who has cataloged 255 marathons, using a 46 element scorecard,
including Environment, Communications, Management, Safety, Convenience,
and Fairness. |
 |
He has been everywhere, and I look forward to seeing him in June, at
Deadwood SD. Its a small world. |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
 |
|
| |
Photo: Christian Matthews |
|
Updated April 26th, 2003
