Bad back idles joggler

Bummer. The back muscle that I pulled the other day took a turn for the worse and I'm now incapacitated and popping Advil for dessert.

Yesterday was horrible. The pain in my upper back near the right shoulder blade (the erector spinae illiocostalis cervicis, for you anatomy geeks) grew worse and worse by the minute and no position felt comfortable. I got a massage from the Great American Backrub, but it didn't do much. Last night I could barely sleep.

Things do feel a little better today, but I still can't move my head around properly. My brand new joggling Sport balls sit idle in my backpack, taunting me with their irresistible jugglability.

This is the same muscle that I injured about four months ago while doing joggling tricks. I think lifting a heavy armoire on the weekend reinjured it. But I'll survive. There's no way I' m missing this race. I'll joggle it wearing a back-splint if I have to.

Sport Juggling "Joggler" balls have arrived!

Dianne called me at work today to let me know that my new custom-made Sport Juggling Co. balls had arrived in the mail. "They are awesome ... so pretty," she said.

I had forgotten to bring my old beanbags to work, so my run home was just a regular old run with no joggling. It was my first non-joggling run in quite some time. I found myself automatically looking up at hydro wires and street signs to use for juggling tricks. Just when I was starting to get a little bored, I ran into a couple of guys I used to compete against in local road races, who were also running home from work. It was great to talk to them and not have to worry about juggling.

By the time I got home I was really itching to juggle the new beanbags. I was not disappointed. The Sport balls looked incredibly sleek and cool – bright white with "Joggler" in red stitching – and I was hooked right from the first toss. Of course I went straight back out for a test joggle, and man oh man were they a smooth ride! The Ultraleather exterior was soft to the touch, but firm enough for a good, accurate throw, and the 85 g weight was ideal for a comfortable cascade with minimal muscular taxation.

Overall rating for Sport balls: Beauty, eh!

Juggling at Niagara Falls

My apologies for the lack of posts this past week. I've been away in Niagara.

I did some juggling for tourists (and my daughters – that's Annika in the pink coat in the photo) at Niagara Falls.

On Sunday, I went for a really good long run from my mother-in-law's place in Niagara-on-the-Lake along the Niagara Parkway. My legs feel a bit creaky and I have a strained muscle in my back from lifting an armoire, but I think I'll be well-prepared for the marathon.

Around the Bay start line

This photo by John Chou was taken just before the start of the Around the Bay 30K. I love the look on Joseph Nderitu's face (#3).

Joggling Around the Bay

The Around the Bay Road Race 30K Joggling Extravaganza

I treat the Around the Bay 30K with reverence. It's been around for 113 years. Several running legends have raced it and then gone on to win the Boston Marathon.

So when I lined up for the race on Sunday with three yellow juggling beanbags, I got the funny feeling that I sometimes get when I joggle through a cemetery, or when I joggled in the Boston Marathon last year, that I was debasing a grand tradition by throwing juggling into the mix.

Those thoughts just turned to embarrassment when race announcer came over the loudspeaker saying: "I see The Joggler is here. The Guinness World Record holder for the fastest marathon while juggling, set at last year's Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon."

When the gun went off, I blasted out near the front with a good, clean, drop-free start. I found a good groove and settled into a manageable pace that I figured was about a four-minute kilometre. At 3K I had my first drop. Sometimes it's nice to get it over with early. While I was picking up the stray beanbag, a big pack of runners went zooming past me. I quickly resumed my joggling pattern and caught up to them.

The comments from spectators kept me entertained. I heard: "That's impossible!" and "You have GOT to be kidding!" And of course the requisite "High five!"

At 10K, I saw a clock for the first time and it read 37:45. Was I hallucinating? The pace felt pretty comfortable, so I decided I'd try to maintain it.

Around the halfway point, we ran over a bridge with a fairly wide grating, and I suddenly realized that if I dropped a ball, it would fall right through! Panic! Toss, catch, toss, catch, don't drop don't drop please please oh please don't drop! I didn't drop.

Through Burlington, I hit the rolling hills and tried to focus on pushing the running pace, keeping the juggling nice and relaxed and maintaining a good arm swing. At the top the famous Cardiac Hill at 25K, I still felt strong.

The final three kilometres were downhill into downtown Hamilton and as I cruised down the street, I began to wonder whether I would finish the entire race with only one drop. That, naturally, was when I dropped a ball for the second time.

I launched into a little cursing fit, which I'm sure was a good show for the spectators nearby, then picked up the ball and was on my way again. But I had joggled 25K without a drop – a personal best.

Just before the finish I got nervous again and had two more drops – both less than 50 metres from the end. The last drop was right inside Copps Coliseum. I didn't mind because it allowed me to savour the finish for an extra few seconds.

Finish time: 1:54:44 and a 30K joggling world record. 

Joggler in Around the Bay Road Race video

This photo was taken by Cathie Coward from the Hamilton Spectator. I have a funny look on my face because I think I was singing "Run Lola Run" at the time. I sometimes sing while I joggle to help me relax, but it doesn't make for very good facial expressions in photos. Here's the link to the story on the Spec's website.

In this video of the Around the Bay Road Race from the Spectator, you can see The Joggler at the start. I'm wearing yellow and running at the front in the bottom right. It's really hard to tell that I'm juggling. I had to watch it a few times to be sure it was me, and then pinched myself to make sure that that this whole joggling thing wasn't just a dream.

I will try to write a race report shortly. Thanks to everyone who cheered along the course. And thanks especially to Dianne for bringing the kids out to watch their eccentric dad joggle into the history books (not sure which history books yet – perhaps The Complete History of Endurance Joggling?).

Around the Bay course record ... for joggling

1:54:44! (four drops)