Here is an aritcle I wrote for the Hartford Courant after finishing the ING Hartford marathon.
A special thank you to my running group and all those that made it possible. Congrats!!!

"Fox 61 Morning News" anchor Logan Byrnes trained for 18 weeks in a program provided by the Hartford Marathon. "We did the weekday runs alone, then met each Saturday for the long runs. It was a lot of fun." Some of the longer training runs were 15- 21 miles.

Byrnes said he wouldn't call himself an avid runner but he has participated in several triathlons and a number of cycling events, including a couple of 100-mile trips called "century rides."

A graduate of the University of Southern California, he was a trial lawyer in Los Angeles before going into TV, where he also has worked for MSNBC and "Inside Edition."

He takes us inside his day :

WOW! What a great race. I am so pleased to have been part of such a wonderful and well executed marathon. I applaud the team of planners and designers for putting on a tremendous event. A special thank you to the hundreds of volunteers, police, supporters and runners that helped make my first marathon a truly first-class experience.

Aside from the 20 mph head wind at mile 22 just to make things interesting, the weather was superb, as well. There was a slight chill in the air as we ran on pavement damp from Friday night's rain, through the beautiful architecture of downtown Hartford, along the streets of East Hartford and past the picturesque New England farms and homes of South Windsor. A truly wonderful experience.

Q: What was going through your mind when you woke up?

I woke up feeling pretty good. I'd managed to get a decent night's sleep and had slept fairly well the previous night. So I was ready for action. During my training, I had run 21 miles, several 18-mile runs, and a few 15-milers. So I thought I was prepared enough to complete the 26.2 miles. After five months of training, I was excited and eager to get on with the marathon.

Q: What was it like at the start of the race?

The energy was electrifying. Thousands of people coming together to take on a challenge that most have no interest in attempting. People were chatting, bouncing up and down trying to say loose and engaged in the moment, laughing, smiling and sharing in the camaraderie that seems to increase when you are about to embark on something very unique and special. And then ... we were off. Just a matter of 26.2 miles between you and your goal. Bring it on, baby!

Q: What was the toughest point of the race mentally?

The toughest [part] was pacing myself. I had heard that you want to make sure you don't get caught up in the excitement and go too fast. This, I was told, can be disastrous around mile 18 or 20. See we kept it slow and enjoyed all the sights and sounds of the spectators cheering. There were bands, parties on front lawns and little kids on the side of the road with homemade signs. The kids were yelling, "You can do it!" It was intoxicating how much enthusiasm there was all around us.

Q: What was the toughest point of the race physically?

The last 4 miles. This is about the point where your body just says, "No thank you, we've been doing this for the last several hours and I think we've had about enough." So you walk a little, run a little, chat with some other runners and you bear down and press onward.

Q: Anything interesting or weird happen along the way?

One of the interesting things about running a marathon is the strange products you find yourself using. Runners need energy to complete the race, so they constantly take in water, Gatorade and specially formulated gels with names like Gu and Hammer Gel. Then there is the issue of chafing. What doesn't happen at mile 15 can happen at mile 18. So runners use different kinds of lubrication to avoid this kind of discomfort, like BodyGlide and Chamois Butt'r. Volunteers are even handing out Vaseline during the higher miles. Makes you wonder what kind of event you've gotten yourself into when they are providing lubrication along the side of the road.

You also have to hand it to the guy who dressed up as Superman and ran the race, or the woman who sported a tutu and funny glasses. Just as your legs are burning and you're wondering what you've done to yourself, you see someone running along in a costume, and it just makes you smile.

Q: What was the first thing you thought of when you finished?

WHERE CAN I SIT DOWN? Boy, were my legs tired! I was relieved that I had finished the marathon, but I think I was too tired to celebrate. I found a bench and sat down next to a guy named Brian who had finished earlier and was waiting for some friends. We shared some stories and settled into that park bench like kings on a throne. We had just run 26.2 miles. Everyone is so friendly and pleasant during an event like this. It must be the sharing of finishing something so crazy and wonderful that brings the human spirit even closer together.

One day to go and I’m getting excited! All those months of training and loooooong runs will finally payoff tomorrow. Good luck to all who are participating and a special thank you to all who are coming out to cheer us on. We'll need it. If you can't make it out to see the race you can watch it live on Fox 61 starting at 8am Saturday.

Remember to drink plenty of water today and increase the carbohydrate intake for a successful run tomorrow. See you at the finish line!

Just a few days to go before the ING Hartford Marathon and I am feeling pretty good. I’ve done my long slow runs each Saturday for the past 4 months or so and they have gone well. Some of the longer ones included a 21mile run as well as a few 18 milers and several 15 mile ones. So I feel confident that if I can do those, I should be able to get through 26.2 miles. This Saturday also looks to be perfect weather for the marathon.

A few guys have told me in my running group that if I just don’t get caught up in the moment and the excitement of the race and start off too fast, I should be o.k. So my plan is to take it nice and slow and start with the 11 minute mile pace and settle in for a 5 hour run, stopping briefly at each water stop.

I wish everybody who is running the marathon, the half marathon and the 5K all the best. I’ll see you at the finish line!

As we begin to tapper down our training, and look forward to a mellower couple of weeks concerning our mileage, I took a very nice 12 mile run along the boardwalk in Southern California. I ran along the beautiful beaches of Santa Monica and Venice taking in all the interesting sights.

The boardwalk was packed. I must have seen more than a dozen groups of runners, jogging two by two in long lines with names like the LA Legers and the Roadrunners. I even slid in with one group and chatted with some members for about 6 miles. Running in groups sure does take your mind off the run, which can be nice. It was a beautiful day and a nice way to start my Saturday.

A special thank you to Ray Campbell and Shaun O’Rourke for getting me through a loooooong 21 miles. I have never run that far in my life, and now I know why. WOW!

It didn’t take long for the rest of the pack to leave us in the dust. But, on such a beautiful morning, what’s the rush!? The first couple of miles generally seem to be the most difficult for me, and this day was no different. My shins started to hurt, my legs ached and just the thought of running 21 miles was daunting. I had to stop a few times early on and do a little extra stretching which seemed to help. Then, after a few miles, I started to find my rhythm and we settled into a nice slow pace.

The run took us thorough some beautiful areas. We passed by quaint New England homes, babbling brooks, pumpkin patches and majestic horse and sheep farms. I usually run with music. But since I was running with the group, I left the I-Pod at home. It was a nice change of pace to run and chat with friends instead of hearing the pounding beat of house music. The conversation also helped take my mind off the more than four hour run.

When I got home, I hobbled up stairs, drew a cold bath, dumped in buckets of ice, plunged in to cool my aching muscles, and wondered what I had gotten myself into. I mean really. If you have to take a bath filled with ice water, something just isn’t right, right?

Just so you know, the ice bath was suggested to me by a number of marathon runners as a way to help your muscles recuperate quickly. I then collapsed into bed for a very lazy Saturday afternoon.

When I started the marathon training, I knew it would require an extensive time commitment. The weekly runs take a long time. The Saturday long runs take a long time. But what I didn’t factor in, was the time needed to rest and relax after the long runs. It is really difficult to do anything else after the long runs, aside from just lounging around.

Nevertheless, I am proud of my new accomplishment and I’m starting to think that I actually have a pretty good chance of completing the 26.2 mile marathon.

It seems the more I run, the more difficult it is to run. There are days when I can run 15 miles and I feel fine. Other days I run 4 or 5 and I’m wiped out.
Today was one of them. I was scheduled to run 12 miles this weekend for my long slow run. But my legs were in pain from the beginning.

I ran 8 miles a few days ago and that felt fine. I’m wondering if my legs never recovered fully from that run and that’s why today was so uncomfortable. I ended up doing a slow 6, walking part of the time. Hopefully this will get better.

That was rough. I had run 15 miles on a few occasions before, but the scheduled 15miler yesterday (Saturday) was especially difficult. I wasn't into it from the beginning. But then again who looks forward to running 15 miles. OK I know some of you do.

I started at about 8:30am hoping to get an early jump on the 92 degree day that was forecast.
The first several miles were not particularly enjoyable, but by mile 5, I started getting in the grove. So I decided to run 8 miles up, turn around, and head back for a total of 16 miles. Not a good idea. By mile 12 I had drank all four bottles of Gatorade on my fuel belt, and downed two power bar gels. Let's just say with a few miles left, I was tired and THIRSTY!

My legs were burning, my running visor was dripping sweat from the brim, my mouth was dry and I was not a happy camper. I finished the 15 mile run, but then had to walk the last mile to the car since I had run 8 miles away from the car in the begining.

That last mile was brutal. I finally made it to the car about 3 hours later, downed an entire bottle of Gatorade, drove home and soaked my legs in an ice cold bath. Then I hobbled into bed and stayed there for most of the day. I was wiped out. How am I going to do 26 miles in less that two months? Ugh

I'm starting to get anxious!!! Are you? We are now just 2 months away from marathon day and I'm felling the excitement increase. I feel pretty good in general. But 26 miles is a long way to go... let a lone run.

I've been following the training schedule fairly closely. There have been some weekday runs that I missed because either I felt too sore or because of a busy schedule. But I've made sure to get in the Saturday runs. I was told those are essential. In fact, on a few occasions I even ran more miles than the schedule required because of the days I missed.

I've done several runs in the 13 to 15 mile range… and one in California that felt pretty good.

One strange thing I have noticed is that while some of the longer runs felt comfortable, some of the short runs, say 3 to 5 miles were difficult. I think it had something to do with how I was feeling that day, how fast I was running, the weather or the amount of hills on the route. I guess some days you feel like running and some days you don’t.

I was in Southern California recently shooting some segments with famous celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck at Spago in Beverly Hills.
He is a terrific guy and we had a lot of fun buying organic produce and then cooking.
But I still need to get my marathon training in.
I had a great 15 mile run on the beach path in Santa Monica, through the Venice canals and boardwalk, down along the yachts in Marina Del Rey and back again. It was spectacular; just a perfect morning with lots to see along the way.
It’s amazing, when you run that far; you get a greater sense of the different neighborhoods that you run through and the unique characteristics and people that make up those eclectic communities.

How about my two Co-workers Rachel Lutzker and Nicole Jacobs!!! (Applause Please)
Neither are runners. Yet both are setting out to do the half marathon (13.1 miles.)
My marathon group was scheduled to run 12 miles; the half marathon group was scheduled to run 9. So I figure I’ll run the 9 with them then run another 3 after that.
We all met at the fountain in Glastonbury at about 7:30 am and after a little stretching off we went. It was a big turnout. It’s always fun to see 30 or more people running down the sidewalk and watching driver’s reactions.
The run was smooth and comfortable. We kept a nice 11 minute pace and talked most of the way… which of course news people seem to have no problem doing… talking that is. (Wrap it up!!)
After the run we celebrated with a coffee and bagel. Well done team! Nice job.
Then of course I still had more running to do if I wanted to stay on schedule. So off I went. The enthusiasm of Rachel and Nicole must have stayed with me because I ended up doing 6 more miles instead of 3 for a total of 15. What was in the coffee?