Lake Erie

Lake Erie

Some stats about Lake Erie from Wikipedia 

Location North America

Group Great Lakes

Coordinates: 42.2°N 81.2°W

Primary inflows Detroit River[1]

Primary outflows Niagara River

Welland Canal[2]

Catchment area l

Basin countries Canada

United States

Max. length 241 mi (388 km)

Max. width 57 mi (92 km)

Surface area 9,910 sq mi (25,667 km2)[2]

Average depth 62 ft (19 m)[2]

Max. depth 210 ft (64 m)[3]

Water volume 116 cu mi (480 km3)[2]

Residence time 2.6 years

Shore length1 799 mi (1,286 km) plus 72 mi (116 km) for islands[4]

Surface elevation 569 ft (173 m)[2]

Islands 24+ (see list)

Settlements

Buffalo, New York/Erie, Pennsylvania/Toledo, Ohio/Cleveland, Ohio

This too will pass. As I come to the end of this goal (that of swimming the distance of Lake Erie) I look forward to the next lake. I really have transformed myself into a swimmer and have really been enjoying my meditation and being in my own universe. It's a nice escape from the hardships and anxiety of life. I'll try to highlight the main things I have learned or observed since the beginning of this endeavor. I'll also give some information about, "the lake of the cat" as well. 

             I started the Lake Erie swim on Thursday February 20, 2014 and finished it on Monday May 19, 2014. The total distance length wise is 241 miles or 388 km. That's 424,336 yards of lane pool swimming I did in order to complete the distance. Lake Erie is one of the five finger lakes and the eleventh largest lake in the world. It is only the fourth largest of the Great Lakes. Great Lakes being another name for the finger lakes. It is the shallowest of all the Great Lakes with the threat of fluctuating water levels. It derives it's water from Lake Superior, Lake Michigan (next goal), and Lake Huron. Wind pushes water from one end of Lake Erie to the other causing large differences in water level which was something I found interesting. There is extensive industrial development along Erie's shore as well as moderate temperatures suitable for recreation and agriculture. It is also the most biologically productive  of all the Great Lakes with a excellent walleye fishery. Good to know if I ever decide to visit and he actually lake. I really need to get my fly fishing on again, it's been way to long. 

        One final technical note about the lake is the fact that it is know as, "lake of the cat." This was derived from a nation of Indians, known as the "erielhonan." Or the "long tails." 

         So two Great Lakes down and three to go. Swimming truly is such a joy for me and I enjoy learning about bodies of water that hopefully I'll visit one day. The only thing I think that I might not like is the structural difference between lane pools and open water. In a lane pool there are measurable markings whereas in open water there's just well, open water. The only open water swimming I have ever done that I can recall has been at cedar beach to a buoy even before my love for swimming occurred. I didn't even really know how to swim and when we reached the buoy I had to hold on and rest before returning to shore. I still remember that tired, sore feeling when I finally reached shore. It was magical. The only other time was maybe two years ago at cedar point camp ground when I was camping with some friends. So needless to say I'm a pool swimmer. 

That didn't prevent me from signing up for an open water event coming up in July. And it also didn't prevent me from purchasing a triathlon wetsuit in order to do it. I can't wait.

As I have stated before on many occasions, the best thing about swimming is the meditative aspect. You are in your own universe. Just you and your thoughts with the interrupting count intervals I throw in at set points. That's the real key for me. Those counting laps take my mind off of whatever I was thinking about at the moment. The variation in thinking to just counting mixed in with the white noise of water splashing around me is incredibly meditative and soothing. So much so I don't really consider my swimming a tough workout but rather play.

That's what I did for this goal. I played the length of Lake Erie. It's always to accomplish any goal one sets out towards especially if you have a passion for it. That's when you become the goal and forget yourself and your troubles. Here's to passion. Next up Lake Michigan.

"Just keep swimming"

-Barton

 

Negative Greenbelt

May 10,2014

I woke up cursing myself for being imperfect today. On Tuesday I went for a test run to test out how my IT band syndrome was healing. In short it was a rough run with a lot of pain. Afterwards was fine and it haven't hurt since the trails on that Tuesday. But being a veteran of trail running I have learned to listen to my body... Well, as best I can. So I chose not to run my favorite run today, the Long Island greenbelt trail run. Instead I went for a 50 mile bike ride. Had to do something.

I dropped off the last of the game of thrones series at Justin's house then headed to cedar beach. During the ride I couldn't stop thinking about what I should be doing, running the greenbelt. It was a tough ride. My stomach was not cooperating with me for the first two hours or so. It probably was the weird healthy drink I got at whole foods. I finally got into it towards the end of the ride. 

The weather was the same it is every year. It rained a little, thundered a little and it was perfect weather for running. It wasn't the best for biking cause I hate cleaning the bike after a rain ride. Cleaning myself is no problem, usually. 

After the ride I hung out with my mom as well as did some bike tinkering before it started to thunder and rain again. We had dinner and I had the red rice beer I have every day this year, a tradition. Not much else to say about the race I never did. I know I did he right thing by not running it, but it still hurts. There is always next year and hopefully next week will be better with regards my running. Oh well, until next year....

"Wanting to run"

- Barton

Current Topic: Is it easier to date a fellow runner or a non-runner?

      

       There are two ways to look at relationships. The first being that ,"birds of a feather flock together." The other saying goes ,"opposites attract." In my opinion I vouch for the former. 

       Before I was a runner I dated someone who was. I didn't really understand the joys and benefits of running at the time and frankly thought it was boring. So there was no connection with us in that regard. To me the best way to get to know someone is by working with them. So when both parties in the relationship have that common purpose of running they are accentually a team, working for a common goal. That doesn't mean they have to run together but through words of encouragement and listening about the other persons adventures on the trails there bond is strengthened.

      That's my take. I now long for the trails in a similar way to when I'm in a really good relationship. So next time I go out scouting for a relationship I'll be sure to check the shoes of signs of mud and trail.

      - Barton

The Moment

       

      Do you know who you are? My guess is that you would like to think so. The correct answer is that you don't . No matter what you think you cannot really know yourself, I'll tell you why. It's because of the simple fact that in this life you will never truly know yourself due to the limited amount of time available to you. If we are intended to live forever knowing oneself is a day by day thing. So we only get a glimpse of who we truly are. Not to say your inner self, what makes you who you really are, is not there. It's just that we don't have enough time to be complete unless we live forever. 

      To live in the moment is what is difficult for most people, including myself. Sometimes the term ,"To be present" is used. An example is on some Fridays nights I drag myself to the meeting being dead tired and not really paying attention. I'm their but I'm not present. My focus is on other things such as sleep, food, or what I'm going to do tomorrow. These other things distract me from the moment and being present in it. 

       I catch myself on the trails sometimes. It usually happens when it's snowing out. I stop and take it in and there is where I see myself more clearly. There is no distractions in the woods. It's just me and nature and the goal is simple, just run. How can something so taxing and stressful on the body produce such peace in the moment? I think it's the fact that you are in the moment that peace comes. Your away from your worries for a little while. No desk, no mail and no phone.

       I truly have a passion for running. It puts me in the moment. We all have plenty of passions and we know that they are passions when they take us to that moment. Becoming absorbed in whatever you are presently doing is no matter what it is is something we all need. Where time does not matter and the only thing that there is is the moment. Call it art call it passion call it living. The act of doing whatever it is your doing is it's own reward. 

        Sometimes pursuing your passions means finding excuses and reasons to get it done. These can include getting up earlier or setting aside 2 hours or so for your art. It can sometimes be selfish but sometimes you need to be selfish. Balance is always best but you passions will help bring out the best in your and help you with everything else in your life. So in that case they need to be high on your priority list of things to do. Nothing worth doing is easy and living a passion filled life is hard work and takes effort. 

        Not only practicing our passions is enough. Belief in ourselves and a belief that our passions bring out the best in us is also a good mental keystone habit to develop. For example I believe swimming makes me a better overall person and that makes me want to help others an be a good animal. In order to do it I get up at five in the morning and make my way to the pool. No matter how much or how little sleep I get if I have it in my mind that I will have a great swim, I will. So if you want to develop a passion you need to believe. Believe you are happy no matter what. Make being happy a habit and way of life. 

       To make things a habit we need to start with high hopes and a strong and decisive initiative. Do not permit excuses. This was something William James said. Never talk about what you are going to do. Just do it and talk after. That's not to say don't think about what you are doing. On the contrary I believe that if you focus intently on what you are doing you will be a happier person in general. The focus you develop from practicing becoming absorbed in something will be intensified when you practice and pursue your passions. You may even develop more passions as a result. So have passion and I'll try to develop it as well.

"Focus on the moment"

- Barton

500

John Inglese

March 28, 2014

The fantastic 500

Sometimes what you think to be hard is not as hard as you thought. In some recent swim sessions I have discovered that adding sustained effort is sometimes easier than going at a slower pace. It seems contradictory but going faster is sometimes easier than taking it easy.

“Boredom is in the eye of the beholder. There is no such thing as a boring subject only an uninterested person.” Dr George Sheehan. I agree with this quote immencncely since I enjoy staring at a blue line at a bottom of a pool for hours at a time. But the real joy can be found between my ears. Getting to and going into the pool no longer presents any problem cause it is now an engrained habit for me. When I'm under I vary between going easy and fast at set intervals which makes the time fly too fast. 

On the fast intervals it is tough to think or meditate as I call it cause your going hard. I usually do a 100, 200, or 300. Stepping it up recently I just added the 200 and 300 together to make 500. The fantastic 5. 

At first it seems tough but once your body gets use to the sustained extra effort it is not as bad as it started. I still pace myself until the final 50 or 25 yards but it is still an increase in effort. I also count my strokes during these intervals which also probably contributes to the whole meditative underwater state I put myself in. 

The thing I find most enjoyable about being in the water however is the fact that I feel like a kid again. I try to "stay in my own lane", and not worry about how fast or how slow the person in the next lane is going. It brings me back to easier times cause when your a child it's all about play and  not about the stress of life. It is my "white space" I've heard it called. Time to myself where no one can reach me. I'm always happy to share a lane but even then I am literally and figuratively in my own world. Unlike most of the time when I'm just in my own world figuratively. 

 It's all about your mindset also. If you think your tired you will be. If you think your happy you will be. Sometimes all you need is a piece of candy to fix your low blood sugar level and put you in a more positive mood. I know I do. I've come to realize that about myself. I suffer from bouts of low blood sugar and if I don't keep it in check I get crazy and foggy. "Food is mood", is how the saying goes. But more important is to preserve in your heart the passion for growth. What I mean by that is to always continue to learn, love and live every moment of your life, no matter how monotonous and boring it can seem sometimes. Hard to do especially if you didn't have coffee. But in all seriousness it is really a mindset thing. Use the power of your mind to have passion for everyday living. The exciting as well as the mundane. Believe in yourself and the power of the mind. Believing you can is more important than even discipline. So keep believing in yourself and give effort in all you do.

...You are not tired.   

- Barton                                

The Buoy

Barton

March 7, 2014

"The Buoy."

"It is so good that it hurts." You may have heard of that expression at one time or another. No doubt they were talking about A.R.T. or active release therapy. A.R.T usually involves the breaking up of scar tissue and the like when your having pain in certain areas of your body. Many people use foam rollers or similar contraptions in order to fix nagging injuries. I have done them one better. I have used the same action but replaced the soft foam roller with a sea buoy. 

Unlike the foam roller the sea buoy is 10 times harder. I have used it in the past to fix my olio tibial band syndrome when I overdid my road running. I've recently rediscovered my love for the hard piece of foam. More accurately my back has rediscovered the love the buoy gives. It's not the gentlest lover but afterwards I am no longer in pain. This recent back injury stemmed from too much snow shoveling combined with pulling it in the basement at the end of a lift play. A lift play is where I try and lift weights while getting distracted with projects, readings, and any other form of distraction I can find in the basement of my home. 

Running doesn't seem to make it any worse. In fact I think it actually helps to a certain degree. I'm not praising the road as a healing agent, far from it. Now the trails are another story. But that story can only be told when all this snow and ice thaws out. The way it's going around here it may take a while. It could be 50 degrees one day and the next so cold I got to wear my snowboarding face mask. Well at least the mask got some use cause I think my snowboarding days are over. Not that I wouldn't go again, I was actually invited to go on a day trip Saturday. I just feel it's not worth it and would rather find something else to do, like swimming, biking or running. Snowboarding for me has always been sort of a social thing where the focus is on friendship. Anyways with my back being annoying I figured that wasn't the best option for me but for alls I know it would probably fix me right up, o well. We are never the person we were yesterday, each day is a new. That's why I try and live each day with passion. Steve runner/walker said it nicely on The Wine Chat Podcast where he said, "Passionate people don't wake up in the morning to get through their lives. They get up in the morning to experience their lives. To take even the most mundane things they have to do during the day and make a moment of it. It's how I try to live my life."

That is also how I try to live my life as well. I try to love what I am doing. I also try and do what I love. Being in the moment has always been hard for me. I'm always thinking about the next thing. One of the problems is I have a lot of time to think. Maybe it's not a problem but a blessing. All I need to do is think it is positive and it will be. The power of positive thinking is something to keep in mind. Seeing the glass is half full can be tough but it's well worth the training. 

In regards my physical training the buoy has always been a great help when I have been coming back from an injury. I've been eating good and swimming more so I haven't had a real serious running injury in a while. Besides the preventative maintenance the buoy provides it also feels good. It hurts sometimes but the after feeling is great. Kind of like stretching when you sit at a desk all day. Now that I rediscovered my buoy I'm sure I'll make it a daily lunch break routine.

"Still floating"

- Barton -  

First annual uno solo run 2014

John Inglese Jr.

February 22, 2014

Uno Solo Run

The self supported marathon 

I'll start by saying that this was not a self supported marathon. Yes, I ran it by myself. Yes, I supported myself with the fuel and motivation. I say that it wasn't a self supported marathon because I received a hundred bucks to do it.

It all started when I signed up for a trail run months ago. I tend to sign up for things and stress the details later. So a week before the race I discovered that the area where I would be was not the safest. So I canceled my hotel reservation and told my mom that if I ran a marathon around our area she had to give me a hundred bucks to cover for the entry fee of the ultra. And that's how the Uno Solo run began. 

I actually just recently ran a real self supported marathon last month so this was not so different. Each marathon is a discovery and that's why I'm writing, to reflect on what I have learned on the journey. 

One of the most impacting observations I discovered was what I call, "the water effect". It seems whether I'm grabbing a cup of coffee, running a marathon, reading, or any other activity around a body of water there is a sense of peace and enlightenment. I can feel the positive mood creep into my self when I'm near this life sustaining element. I also got excited when I got near the beach because I thought I saw a dolphin in the shallows. Turns out it was just a tree, maybe my endorphins were playing a trick with my brain. 

While gazing at the clear, sunny and 'warm' ( I say warm by meaning around 50 degrees instead of the recent 20 degrees and below) day, I stumbled onto a pack of runners.  Not only once but twice. The second time they even said to run with them but I was in one of those running modes where I just needed my alone time. 

I have discovered that during those tough running moments there are a number of things I do to make the moment fly by so the good, elated moments seem to come quicker. One thing I have always done was say a sentence in line with my foot falls and or my breathing rate. A good one I use is, "I can do it". Sometimes when it's really quit I start to just listen to my breathing. Doing these things helps me to focus on the act and not think about things like I usually do. Thinking is good but it's nice to break it up and just focus sometimes. 

It's is amazing the thoughts that come up in your mind when out on the open road or trail. I have a lot of notes and reminders I plan to share be it my blog, essays, or maybe even I'll start a podcast. Whatever medium I use the thoughts come to me in clear, concise intervals and during the act of running my brain is not cluttered. It's organized and calm which is the opposed of my body at some times during the act of running. 

I'm not always calm and happy when running. It can be exhausting, gut wrenching, pure torture. But I got the secret... Smile! It is so simple and yet so complex that when you smile no matter what's going on your instantly more positive. This transfers over into all other aspects of life making you a more pleasant person. Being pleasant can go a long way and spread the positive vibes you give off. 

Upon completion of the Uno Solo run I met my mom at the same starbucks I did the month prior. I grabbed some victory red mango until she arrived and got my usual cup o joe. Dark coffee, Red wine, and Frozen yogurt are three things everyone should enjoy. Before I got my coffee I wanted to get a little more comfortable so I grabbed my change of cloth's from my moms car. I've done this before and it's always interesting changing cloths after a long endurance event. Thinking back that was probably the hardest part of the marathon. Not only cause I'm tired and sore but because it's telling my mind that the fun is over and back to being in the real world again.

Running with no particular route in mind is also something everyone should enjoy. Exploring and discovering new things brings out the best in who you are. You have to forget yourself and the worry that is part of everyday life and just go. It goes by so fast. I usually tell myself that during a run. "Once it's over it's over", so I try and enjoy the moment. Even if I'm at a low point during the run. I hope to run more of these and hope to encourage others to do the same and really find themselves. I'll continue to keep searching for myself as well.

-Barton- Still smiling :)