Pi, WGN Blackhawks Live, and double trouble

Happy Pi Day to all!  I know many of you are celebrating today by running 3.14 miles.  I wish you all great Pi runs!!!

I, on the other hand, usually prefer to celebrate Pi Day the more traditional way.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore...

Actually, I must be a mathematical guru because I've done a traditional Pi Day celebration at least once every few weeks for most of my adult life.  ;-P

Speaking of my life's biggest passions, I was fortunate enough to snag two tickets to a WGN Blackhawks Live radio broadcast event this past Monday.  The two featured guests: Blackhawks forwards Daniel "Car Bomb" Carcillo and Pittsburgh native Brandon Saad.  (Patrick Sharp was originally scheduled to attend, but Sharpie went down with an injury last week so Car Bomb took his place.)

The event consisted of dinner, photo opportunities with the Hawks guests, autographed pictures, and then the live viewing of a WGN radio show with audience-submitted Q&As.

Brandon Saad has become my new favorite Blackhawks player, so I was especially excited to get to meet him in person.



From L to R: Daniel Carcillo, me, and Brandon Saad

Based on what I saw during the event, Brandon is pretty reserved and very down to earth.  During the radio broadcast, he talked about his brother, George, being his biggest influence when growing up.  He described his game-day road routine as just resting and maybe watching a movie. He said he has a weakness for ice cream.  Then when asked if he went out and splurged on anything after finally making it to the NHL, he just said he got an apartment.  (Adam says that Brandon is a true Pittsburgh guy, basically one that never forgets his roots and where he came from.)  I think Brandon is really going to become a huge fan favorite in Chicago, especially amongst the ladies.

Daniel Carcillo, wow!  Car Bomb has a self-described reputation for being a rough, physical player that opponents really dislike.  Therefore, I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that he is actually incredibly personable and outgoing.  Carcillo talked about the influence in the NHL and in his career from Gary Roberts, divulged details about his "collapsible" fake teeth, told us about his pet rabbit amidst his Italian family, and shared that his favorite food was bone marrow.  Wow, just wow.  So unique!

The live radio broadcast

I loved seeing how normal the guys were in person (aside from collapsible teeth, of course).  If you saw either of them walking down the street in regular clothing, you might not even recognize them as NHL hockey players.

Overall, the event was awesome but went by way too fast!  I could have sat and listened to Brandon and Car Bomb answering fan questions and sharing details about themselves all night.  It is making me very excited for the Blackhawks Fan Convention in July where there is ample time to hear from the Hawks players and ask them questions, e.g.:

"How you score from the left side?"



OK!  Now on to running updates.  Here's a "run"down of what's going on:

• I have made it my goal to do speedwork at least once a week.  I did some interval training last Wednesday and last night, and I'm getting into my groove with it.  After such a long period of time away from speedwork, it feels good to crank myself into another gear.  I am excited to see the fruits of the speedwork, hopefully soon!
• I am attempting to whittle down the number of pairs of running shoes I have.  Therefore, I'm trying to focus more on wearing just one pair of shoes at a time as opposed to wearing whatever random pair catches my eye.  My practice is to retire my running shoes at around 300 miles, and I've got a pair at 255 miles right now.  It's actually become surprisingly motivating to log miles on the one pair and watch the odometer get closer and closer to 300.
• I just won a free entry to the Chicago 13.1 Half Marathon on June 8, huge thanks to the Chicago Running Bloggers and Maggie!  I ran this race last year and had a great time, despite being so wiped out at the end that I turned down the Lou Malnati's pizza they were serving at the post-race party.  But not to worry, I am bound and determined to make amends for that this year.

Speaking of the Chicago 13.1, I didn't really expect to win the entry but its race date is the day before the PAWS Run For Their Lives 8K on June 9.  The PAWS race, given its cause, is an absolute must-do for me, so there is no way I am going to forgo it.  But given my history of injuries, there's the thought that maybe it's too much for me to run a half marathon on Saturday and an 8K on Sunday...

I have never done two races in the same weekend.  My physical therapy and cross-training efforts have paid off, though, so right now I definitely feel I could do it.  (Last year I was planning to run the Mad Dash to Madison 5K and the PAWS 8K the same weekend.  However, shorter distances are obviously more manageable and the Mad Dash ended up getting cancelled anyways). 

Maybe I don't "race" the PAWS run?  Or, PAWS also offers a 4K walk, and Adam said he'd be willing to participate in the 4K walk with me.  That would be fun!  Decisions, decisions.  Thankfully there's a lot of time to think about it, and the PAWS race offers a lot of flexibility.  To be determined.

Again, happy Pi Day to all as well as a very happy Thursday before St. Patrick's Day weekend!