Dropping Names

So, as I strolled into the starting area before the 2007 Chicago Marathon, I looked to my left and saw a very familiar face. I said hello, and that he looked familiar, and he introduced himself as David Willey, Editor-in-Chief of Runner's World magazine. He is a very pleasant guy, we chatted about relaxing our race-day goals in light of the heat, and I suggested that they create a year-end compendium of training programs which incorporate some of the stand-alone training techniques which they feature every month. He very politely said he thought it's a good idea, and we wished each other luck.

Turned out that David had a worse race than I did, despite (or because of) a more ambitious goal (3:20 vs. 3:40).

I waited a couple of weeks and sent David an e-mail expressing my "condolences" (more like commiserating, really) about the race, and he wrote me back, asking for some informal reflections about Chicago. Lest I get too excited thinking that I have a foot in the door to my dream job of being a running journalist, he explained in a follow-up that he's seeking input from as many people as he can, and they'll feature a few highlights in the January 2008 issue. Incidentally, I was very disappointed about the lack of even a mention of Chicago in the December 2007 issue, but - as David pointed out - the December issue went to press before Chicago was even run.

Not sure what I'll say, but will try to come up with a fresh perspective. Feel free to post comments if you have any thoughts you'd like to share.

-ESG