2009in2009 Club

Week 52 Results

2010-01-05T17:36:00.002-06:00

The results for Week 52 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

The Head2Head Finals were impressive; everyone seemed to have their A-Game in place and the matchup was pretty close. Congratulations to Mercury's Maniacs with the Playoff Championship!

2010 Club
Registration is closed for the 2010 Club teams have been assigned. Please check the Beginners Forum for stickied threads on teams and posting instructions.

There will be a "Year In Review" thread posted in the forums later in the week. Keep your eyes open for it!

-Glenn

Week 51 Results and more

2009-12-28T00:23:00.002-06:00

The results for Week 51 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

I'm sorry that I still haven't found a place to load the full weekly posting table. I've tried it here, but the app doesn't seem to want to load it.

The finals are heading into the third and deciding matchup between the Mighty Mighty Mothtones and the Mercury's Maniacs. For information on how the playoffs are conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Good Luck to both teams!

2010 Club
Registration is closed for the 2010 Club teams have been assigned. Please check the Beginners Forum for stickied threads on teams and posting instructions.

Year-End Stuff
The final week will end on Thursday, December 31st. A "post 'em" thread will be available then and the deadline for 2009 posts will be Monday, January 4th at Noon CST.

Have a Happy New Year!

-Glenn

Week 48 Results

2009-12-02T18:48:00.001-06:00

The results for Week 48 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

I'm sorry that I still haven't found a place to load the full weekly posting table. I've tried it here, but the app doesn't seem to want to load it.

Semi-Finals wrapped up this week and the Mighty Mighty Mothtones will face the Mercury's Maniacs in the final next week. For information on how the playoffs are conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Good Luck to both teams!

2010 Signups!
Signups have begun for the 2010 Club and the deadline is Friday, December 4. Look for the Registration thread in the Beginners Forum.

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 46 Results

2009-11-18T16:06:00.002-06:00

The results for Week 46 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

I think I've worked out the bugs in getting this site updated from work and hope to update more frequently. However, I still don't have a place to post the full weekly posting list. Bear with me.

Semi-Finals began in Week 46 and will continue this week and next as necessary. For information on how the playoffs are conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Hope you're getting ready to ramp up them miles!

2010 Signups!
Signups have begun for the 2010 Club and the deadline is December 4. Look for the Registration thread in the Beginners Forum.

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 41 Results

2009-10-15T11:18:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 41 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

Playoffs begin this calendar week (Week 42, October 12-18). For information on how the playoffs are conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Hope you're getting ready to ramp up them miles!

2010 Signups!
It's almost time to start thinking about your goals for 2010. I'll have a signup thread on RWOL next week; keep your eyes open for it!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 37 Results

2009-09-16T13:50:00.001-05:00

The results for Week 37 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

There are only three more regular weeks and then playoffs starting in Week 41. For information on how the playoffs will be conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Hope you're getting ready to ramp up them miles!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 35 Results

2009-09-02T15:11:00.001-05:00

The results for Week 35 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

There are only five more regular weeks and then playoffs starting in Week 40. For information on how the playoffs will be conducted, view the Head2Head Information page. Hope you're getting ready to ramp up them miles!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 34 Results

2009-08-31T13:59:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 34 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 32 Results

2009-08-14T23:57:00.001-05:00

The results for Week 32 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

This week (Week 33) is our final position round in the Head2Head matchups. After that, seven more regular weeks and then playoffs starting in Week 40. Hope you're getting ready to ramp up them miles!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 29 Results

2009-07-24T00:35:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 29 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Sorry for the delay in the updates here. Can't get to this site from work!

Have a great week!

-Glenn

Week 27 Results

2009-07-08T21:48:00.001-05:00

The results for Week 27 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

Don't forget to stretch!

-Glenn

Week 25 Results

2009-06-25T00:30:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 25 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

If you are behind (or perhaps WAY OVER) your goal, you only have until this Sunday, June 28 to revise it. Check your summary results in the 2009in2009 Statistics table in the blog (see link above) and look at your percentage miles left ("% of miles left" in far right column). Since Week 25 is about 47.3% of the year, that leaves 52.7% remaining. If you have more than 68% miles remaining, you should look at your training plans for the remainder of the year and decide if you should reduce your goal. A lot of members have taken advantage of this opportunity (me too), so don't feel bad if you have to make a change. The point is to set a realistic goal and try to achieve it!

If you do want to change your goal, just send me a PM and I'll update your records right away. You may change your annual goal ONE TIME through June 28 (Week 26).

Run. Rinse. Repeat.

-Glenn

Week 23 Results

2009-06-10T12:43:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 23 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

If you are behind (or perhaps WAY OVER) your goal, you only have a few more weeks to revise it. Check your summary results in the 2009in2009 Statistics table in the blog (see link above) and look at your percentage miles left ("% of miles left" in far right column). Since Week 22 is about 43.4% of the year, that leaves 56.6% remaining. If you have more than 72% miles remaining, you should look at your training plans for the remainder of the year and decide if you should reduce your goal. Hey, I lowered my own goal by 200 miles, so don't feel bad if you have to make a change. The point is to set a realistic goal and try to achieve it!

If you do want to change your goal, just send me a PM and I'll update your records right away. You may change your annual goal ONE TIME through June 28 (Week 26).

Each step sheds weakness,

-Glenn

Week 22 Results

2009-06-03T12:09:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 22 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

If you are behind (or perhaps WAY OVER) your goal, you only have a few more weeks to revise it. Check your summary results in the 2009in2009 Statistics table in the blog (see link above) and look at your percentage miles left ("% of miles left" in far right column). Since Week 22 is about 41.5% of the year, that leaves 58.5% remaining. If you have more than 75% miles remaining, you should look at your training plans for the remainder of the year and decide if you should reduce your goal. Hey, I took my own advice and lowered my goal by 200 miles, so don't feel bad if you have to make a change. The point is to set a realistic goal and try to achieve it!

If you do want to change your goal, just send me a PM and I'll update your records right away. You may change your annual goal ONE TIME through June 28 (Week 26).

Run as if you had wings...or there is a large animal chasing you!

-Glenn

Week 21 Results

2009-05-27T12:39:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 21 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

If you are behind (or perhaps WAY OVER) your goal, now's the time to start thinking about revising it. Check your summary results in the 2009in2009 Statistics table below and look at your percentage miles left ("% of miles left" in far right column). Since Week 21 is about 39.6% of the year, that leaves 60.4% remaining. If you have more than 80% miles remaining, you should look at your training plans for the remainder of the year and decide if you should reduce your goal. Folks, this includes me, so don't feel bad if you have to make a change. The point is to set a realistic goal and try to achieve it!

If you do want to change your goal, just send me a PM and I'll update your records right away. You may change your annual goal ONE TIME through June 28 (Week 26).

Run clockwise just once...

-Glenn

Week 20 Results

2009-05-20T13:26:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 20 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

If you are behind (or perhaps WAY OVER) your goal, now's the time to start thinking about revising it. Check your summary results in the 2009in2009 Statistics table below and look at your percentage miles left ("% of miles left" in far right column). Since Week 20 is about 37.6% of the year, that leaves 62.4% remaining. If you have more than 80% miles remaining, you should look at your training plans for the remainder of the year and decide if you should reduce your goal. Folks, this includes "yours truly", so don't feel bad if you have to make a change. The point is to set a realistic goal and try to achieve it!

If you do want to change your goal, just send me a PM and I'll update your records right away. You may change your annual goal ONE TIME through June 28 (Week 26).

Thinking about running burns zero calories.

-Glenn

Week 19 Results

2009-05-13T13:03:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 19 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. I am no longer correcting posts even if it seems obvious. See the FAQ for more information.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks. Another member will be dropped next week if they do not post on time (Andrea N).

Smile when you run: give everyone else something to wonder about!

-Glenn

Week 18 Results

2009-05-06T12:16:00.001-05:00

The results for Week 18 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks. Two more members will be dropped next week if they do not post on time (contrarian no more & Remmy'sDad).

Don't worry about what the laces look like...just keep 'em tied!

-Glenn

Bruisin' for a Cruisin' Award

2009-04-24T11:49:00.010-05:00

This is the third in a series of article about the Individual Awards.

The Cruisin' Award measures how consistantly a member runs from week to week over the last ten weeks.

Mathematically, I calculate this by dividing the average miles per week (MPW) by the standard deviation of those values. Higher values indicate more relative consistancy.

Generally, when one looks at a set of sequential data, one can see how consistant it is by determining the standard deviation (Wikipedia Wolfram MathWorld) of the set.

However, in the real world - well, running anyway - I presume that the more miles one runs the more difficult it is to have a low deviation relative to your average. That's why I factor the average miles into the score.

For example, let's look at two hypothetical runners and their miles for ten weeks:
John: 5,6,5,5,6,6,7,6,7,6
Mary: 12,13,14,15,13,13,14,12,12,13

John averages 5.9 miles per week; Mary averages 13.1 miles.

John's standard deviation is 0.7378 miles, while Mary's is 0.9944 miles. However, since Mary's average miles are more than twice that of John's, her Cruisin' Award score is also higher (7.99 for John, 13.17 for Mary).

This award recognizes consistancy regardless of whether one is above or below goal MPW. It also doesn't measure consistancy of a linear trend that is not zero (for example, if one were to increase by two miles per week).

Week 16 Results

2009-04-22T12:31:00.003-05:00

The results for Week 16 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Just run, gosh darn it!

-Glenn

No Bull: Bullseye Award

2009-04-15T13:46:00.000-05:00

This is the second in a series of article about the Individual Awards.

The Bullseye Award measures how close a runner's actual miles are to their projected miles at their annual goal pace.

As with many awards, I track how many miles above or below each runner is relative to their original goal pace. Members who are very close to that pace (i.e. near zero miles, whether above or below) qualify for this award.

Here' how it works: Each member has an annual goal. That goal is then divided by 52 to get an estimated pace (in miles per week or MPW) required to reach the goal. Given that number and the number of weeks run, one should be able to estimate how many miles a person would run if they ran exactly at that pace. I then compare the actual miles run to that estimated number to get a score (technically, I'm looking at the absolute value of the difference of the actual vs estimated miles).

For example, if a member has a goal of 1200 miles, the estimated MPW is 23.08. Therefore, a member might be expected to run 230.8 miles in ten weeks.

If a member actually ran 234.5 miles in ten weeks, their Bullseye Award score would be 3.7 miles. Alternatively, if that member instead ran 228.2 miles, their score would be 2.6 miles (a better score because they are closer).

This graph shows the top three Bullseye Award winners for Week 15 and how they got there:

In each case, you can see that these three members have had different paths to this point. trixienurse is actually the closest to goal pace (2.03 miles) and has remained fairly close to her goal pace. MizunoMan has come back from a deficit of over 40 miles. I'msoslow has actually fallen back some - from about 18 miles over to 2.61 miles below.

This award is updated each week and a person can be near the top group whether above or below projected miles. It is a fair indicator of how realistic a member's goal is, but becomes a better indicator over the course of the year.

If you'd ever like to see a chart of your own progress, drop me a line (PM or email) and I'll send you one.

⁽¹⁾Assumes a full first week.

Week 15 Results

2009-04-15T13:13:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 15 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks. Two more members will be dropped next week if they do not post on time (ACF1 and itsup2memi).

Run till you're tired, then run just a little more,

-Glenn

What's up with "Up and Away" anyway?

2009-04-09T12:21:00.018-05:00

Y'all've seen this guy on the Individual Awards list for some time now (used to be called the "Swingin' Award" back in '08), but I think there are more questions about what this means than any other. So, I thought I'd start a series of posts explaining some of the awards and other stats.

Simply stated, the Up and Away Award is a measure of how far a runner has progressed from their lowest point relative to their goal pace. Simple, yes, but probably not explanation enough!

Each week, I record how many miles above or below each runner is relative to their original goal pace. I keep a record of the minimum and maximum results for each week. Those runners with the highest differences between maximum and minimum results are shown in the award.

If, for example, your goal was 1040 miles for the year and you ran exactly 20 miles every week through 10 weeks, this number would be 0 (zero), because you would be right on pace (1040 miles = 20 MPW for 52 weeks)⁽¹⁾.

Now, suppose you have the same goal, but run the following:
Week 1: 8 miles (12 miles below pace)
Week 2: 20 miles (12 miles below)
Week 3: 22 miles (10 miles below)
Week 4: 22 miles (8 miles below)
Week 5: 20 miles (8 miles below)
Week 6: 22 miles (6 miles below)
Week 7: 22 miles (4 miles below)
Week 8: 20 miles (4 miles below)
Week 9: 20 miles (4 miles below)
Week 10: 24 miles (0 miles - at goal pace)
Total: 200 miles

This would mean that after ten weeks, you're right at your goal pace for that week, just like in the first example. However, since the lowest point you had was 12 miles below pace in the first & second weeks, you're now actually 12 miles above your lowest point relative to goal pace. That is the number I measure for Up and Away.

This graph shows how far above or below a few runners were from their own goal pace for each week of the year so far:

The top two runners (TheHammer and bhbrtn) started above goal pace and have continued to record more than their projected weekly goal miles, with only a couple of exceptions (see the downward dips). Even though TheHammer has recorded more miles above goal pace than bhbrtn (337 vs 323), the difference between his highest and lowest points is less than bhbrtn (288 vs 323).

The other two runners (candichappell and Bob!) show a different progression. Each were below pace for the first four weeks. Then, by week five, they both began running above the goal pace and made up for their earlier deficits. At their lowest points, candichappell was 50 miles below pace; Bob! was 100 miles. At their highest and latest points, candichappel is 149 miles above pace; Bob! is 78 miles. So, their Up and Away scores are the differences between these numbers (199 and 178, respectively).

Additionally, the Up and Away award always looks at a member's progress as of the current week. So, if a member runs below goal pace in the current week, their score will drop.

If you'd ever like to see a chart of your own progress, drop me a line (PM or email) and I'll send you one.

⁽¹⁾Assumes a full first week.

Week 14 Results

2009-04-08T12:57:00.003-05:00

The results for Week 14 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks. Two of our members were dropped this week due to missing posts (12NCs and Reinvented).

Pick up those knees,

-Glenn

Week 13 Results

2009-04-01T12:52:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 13 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks. Two of our members are at risk to be dropped next week if they do not post: 12NCs and Reinvented.

There is no finish line...

-Glenn

Week 12 Results

2009-03-25T12:40:00.002-05:00

The results for Week 12 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

We did lose a member this week due to non-posting (Heyoo; five weeks of missing posts). Make sure you check out the weekly Nag List on the Beginners Forum to make sure you're not missing any weeks.

I'm still trying to get out of IR (probably shouldn't have run last week).

There is no finish line...

-Glenn

Week 11 Results

2009-03-17T14:58:00.004-05:00

The results for Week 11 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post.

Unfortunately, we lost several members this week. Two members were removed due to non-posts (donverdon and Sulvar). Flgirl (Mile Crunchers) was diagnosed with arthritis (she's only 38) and her doctor has recommended against running. wollymon (Blood, Sweat and Beers) is still recovering from injury sustained at the end of 2008. BK runs (Homestar Runners) broke her ankle...OUCH!

Let's wish them all the best and hope we hear from them on the boards.

Yours truly is in his last week of self-imposed IR and I can't wait to hit the streets again.

Stretch your legs and stretch your goals,

-Glenn

Week 10 Results

2009-03-11T15:26:00.003-05:00

The results for Week 10 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, go on to the Week 10 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles along with your current ones.

Two members were removed this week due to non-posts (GARED and missummer). New rules will take effect in Week 11 regarding non-posts; check the FAQ and Instructions for more information. Just post on time and you won't have anything to worry about!

Yours in running,

-Glenn

Rule Changes

2009-03-09T10:25:00.004-05:00

With unanimous consent of the team captains, there will be a couple of rule changes that will be made effective Week 11 (March 9-15, posting by March 18).

1) If a member is not on IR or vacation and does not post for four (4) consecutive weeks, they will automatically be removed from the club.

This modifies the current rule regarding consecutive non-posts from five to four weeks. As implemented, if a member has three consecutive weeks outstanding and does not post on-time in the fourth week, they will be removed from the club before individual and Head2Head results are calculated.

2) Additionally, if a member has five (5) outstanding missing weeks, the member will automatically be removed from the club.

This means that if the member accumulates five weeks of missing posts, they will be removed from the club if they do not post on-time for the fifth week. Removal will take place before individual and Head2Head results are calculated, as above.

If you will be away for an extended period, notify me or your team captain in advance so that you will be exempted from posting and prevent the above rules from being applied. Examples are Injured Reserve, vacation, military duty.

Week 9 Results

2009-03-06T17:32:00.003-06:00

The results for Week 9 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, go on to the Week 9 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles along with your current ones.

We lost another member last week (MamaKat), but Lacer will be back from IR next week!

The Team Captains are voting on some proposed rule changes regarding missing posts. I'll let you all know if the changes are approved.

Keep pumping them arms!

-Glenn

Week 8 Results

2009-02-25T21:46:00.004-06:00

The results for Week 8 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, go on to the Week 8 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles along with your current ones.

We lost another member last week (parunningfool).

Right Left Right Left!

-Glenn

Week 7 Results

2009-02-22T15:39:00.003-06:00

The results for Week 7 have been posted!
There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, go on to the Week 8 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles along with your current ones.

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

We lost another member last week (SunrisenMelody). Kayano, team captain of the Peregrines was diagnosed with colon cancer. Please keep her and her family (RunnerNic16 is her daughter) in your thoughts and prayers.
Right Left Right Left!
-Glenn

Week 6 Results

2009-02-12T22:39:00.005-06:00

The results for Week 6 have been posted!
There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 6 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 7 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Feb. 15).

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

I wanted to add that we're losing two good members. EricLambert has a torn ACL and will be out 4-6 months; PR-A-hole is leaving the RWOL forums. I wish them both well and that they're able to continue running.

Left Right Left Right!
-Glenn

Week 5 Results

2009-02-04T13:01:00.006-06:00

The results for Week 5 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 5 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 6 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Feb. 8).

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

Get Hoofin' it!
-Glenn

Week 4 Results

2009-01-28T12:42:00.004-06:00

The results for Week 4 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 4 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 5 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Feb. 1).

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

Y'all have a Great Week on yer Feet!
-Glenn

Week 3 Results

2009-01-21T12:28:00.004-06:00

The results for Week 3 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 3 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 4 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Jan. 25).

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

Y'all have a Great Week on yer Feet!
-Glenn

Week 2 Results

2009-01-14T12:43:00.007-06:00

The results for Week 2 have been posted!

There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 2 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 3 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Jan. 18).

Just a reminder: please be sure to use your registered username and the correct posting format for your mileage posts, otherwise, your miles may not get imported into my database. See the FAQ for more information.

Y'all have a Great Week on yer Feet!
-Glenn

Week 1 Results

2009-01-08T13:09:00.005-06:00

The results for Week 1 have been posted! There is a link on the right that will take you to the results post. If you haven't yet posted your mileage, you can go to the Week 1 Post 'Em thread and enter your miles - or - wait until the "Week 2 Post 'Em" thread becomes available (Sunday, Jan. 11). Slowly, the forum is becoming manageable and I'm getting a better handle on get y'all's posts recorded and reported. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions about your miles or the results. Have a great Week! -Glenn

RW Forum Change, Part Deax

2008-12-30T10:24:00.010-06:00

I know, I know. It's been less than twenty-four hours since RunnersWorld introduced the new forums, so there is still a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth going on. As I type this, RWOL admins are working hard to fix various bugs and restore/improve features, but here's what I know so far:

Only Original Posts (OPs) were migrated from the previous system; no replies to them were migrated. This means that NONE of the 2008in2008 individual posts were saved.
No Personal Messages (PMs) were saved and you cannot send a private, personal message to any user or collections of users. Now, you CAN send a message to any user whose profile is public, but the comments might be publicly-viewable. Or not. And some users may block messages from forum members not defined as "friends." And you can't send a message to several users simultaneously. Bottom line: I cannot broadcast messages to all team captains, nor they to their teammates.
HTML and forum tags are not allowed. This will make posting results difficult, as I have scripts that generate the results using tags (ex. [img] or < src=" ">). However, I have found that one can copy and paste HTML output directly into a post with little difficulty. RWOL admins have posted that HTML is allowed, but I have yet to have success with this. Hopefully that will be resolved soon.
Graphics of any kind will not display in-line with text. This make displaying anything from smilies to pictures a little problematic. If you're familiar with the usual Results Posts, every user had a different smiley next to their results. Having graphics not display in-line effectively doubles the length of these results posts.

However, the good news is that I've been able to modify my code for capturing mileage posts and it appears to work correctly. I'm also writing code to publish the results here on the blog in case I'm not able to do so at the forums.

RW Forum Change?

2008-12-22T01:01:00.007-06:00

If you've been in the RW Forums, you may have read NotMark's post about the forum change, scheduled for Monday, December 29. The new platform is Pluck's SiteLife and while it appears easy to use, does not appear as robust as Eve (RWOL current platform). What does this mean for the 2009in2009 Club? I don't know just yet. But I will say that I spent many hours developing new code to retrieve mileage posts and write forum-post scripts (e.g., weekly awards/results) which all may be for naught. I think I can quickly write code that will generate true HTML pages, in which case the Weekly Results - well, ALL results - would be found here. ~~However, I'm not sure yet how I'll get your mileage posts.~~ Update: I tested my data retrieval macro on a sample SiteLife Forum site and it worked fine. The fact that the forum change will happen the week before club start makes this all very precarious. I'll keep y'all updated as soon as I hear anything.

2009in2009 Club - Introduction

2008-12-08T19:11:00.001-06:00

Howdy, fellow Runners! Here is a preview of the 2009in2009 blog. I've patterned it after the 2008in2008 blog that TheDarkKnight created. It's still a work in-progress, but I hope to add many more features as we get closer to the start of the new year. I'll routinely update two main tables: Statistics & Mileage Data. These will contain summary and detailed information on your postings. I'll also update the Links section to point to threads in the Runner'sWorld forums that are related to the club. Feel free to offer up comments on the site.

2009in2009 Head2Head Challenge

2008-12-08T19:00:00.012-06:00

The Head2Head challenge is a friendly competition of teams formed from those 2009in2009 club members who want to participate. The idea is to give you some additional support from your fellow Club Members (as teammates) and to provide another incentive to post in a timely manner.

Eight (8) teams have been formed with twenty-three (23) members each and with approximately the same total goal mileage per team (which at the start of the year was an average of 30626.5 miles).

Each week, teams will compete head-to-head in a round-robin format. I will record wins & losses for each team and records will be posted in the results thread following the week's matchup. Each team should select a captain to track down non-posters in the results thread.

At the start of the year, we will score only the top 75% of posters (18 out of 23, rounded up) for each team. However, if ALL team members post by the weekly deadline (12:00 Noon Central Time on Wednesdays), the team will receive a 10% bonus in scoring. In this case, even if a runner posts “zero” miles, they benefit the entire team![1]

Unlike the Miles&Miles game, new members will not be added to teams as runners are lost. Since it is likely we will lose runners during the year, the following rules will be applied:

1) The top 75% of runners – rounded up - will be counted towards the team score. This cutoff number is based on the number of team members of the smallest team. For example: if the smallest team has 20 members, the scoring cutoff is 15; if later on, the smallest team has 14 members, the cutoff is 11.
2) If the smallest team has half or less the number of members of the largest team, it will be immediately disbanded and members distributed to the remaining teams in such a manner as to best maintain parity among teams (i.e., number of members per team and average goal mileage per member).
3) There will be no trades of team members after the start of the 2009in2009 Club.

Hopefully this game will create more of a reason to keep up running and posting. If you have an objection to the team that you have been "drafted" to you may request a trade, but only before January 1. To do so, get in contact with another similar goal mileage runner you wish to swap teams with and let me know. Of course, both runners must agree to the trade.

The Game Plan
There will be a regular season consisting of the first 40 weeks of the year and a playoff bracket for the final 12 weeks. Over the course of the regular season a single team will face the other 7 teams at least 5 times and every 8th week there will be a "Position Round" (like in bowling leagues).

After the regular season, teams will be seeded into an 8-team single elimination bracket based on their regular season record. If there is a tie, the team with the highest cumulative point total will be seeded higher. Each series will be played out as a "best of 3" over a three-week period until a champion is declared at the end of Week 52 (or Week 51 in the event of a 2 game sweep).

[1] In the 2008in2008 Head2Head Challenge, the benefit of the 10% bonus was best exemplified during the second week of the playoffs. One team had all members post and, with their bonus, had a score of 290.0. The other team had a score of 266.7, but needed one member to post to get the 10% bonus. That member posted by the deadline and as a result, increased his team’s score to 293.4 and gave them the win! Even if he had posted zero miles, his team would still have won.

In another instance during the playoffs, one team had 212.5 miles. The other team had 201.4 miles and needed one more member to post to get the 10% bonus. Had that final team member posted in time – even with zero miles - the second team would have won with a score of 221.5.

2009in2009 - FAQ

2008-11-20T13:07:00.014-06:00

Q. What is the correct posting format?
A. Please post in the following format:
RWUsername,Week#,Miles

Note that all values must be separated by commas. Avoid any further text on the first line of your post. You do not have to “bold” your text.
Example: If I ran 26.4 miles in Week 6, I would post:
ZubenElGenubi,6,26.4

Q. Why is the posting format so strict?
A. I use several VBA macros in Excel that help me “read” the data from the posting threads and update the database. Without these tools, I would be unable to quickly process all the data from the dozens of club members each week. Any deviation from the above format means that either a member’s post may be missed or I have to manually edit the database. This takes time and prevents the results from being posted in a timely and accurate manner.

Q. When is the posting cutoff?
A. All weekly mileage needs to be posted by Wednesday at 12:00 Noon Central Time. This gives club members three (3) full days to post their mileage.

Q. How do I update my mileage if I missed posting?
A. There are three ways:

1) Simply post “late” in that week’s posting thread.
2) Send me a PM with your weekly miles using the correct posting format.
3) If the next week’s posting thread is already up, you may post your missing weeks there. Just add an additional line with the previous week(s) mileage. For example, if you missed Week 4's thread wait until the Week 5 thread comes along and your post will look like this:
Username,5,46
Username,4,32

Q. Can I make changes to my goal?
A. Yes, but you may only change your goal ONE TIME between January 1 and June 28, 2009 (Week 26).

Q. What if I get injured or sick?
A. If you know you will not be able to run for an extended period of time due to any medical reason, please send me a PM and I will place you on Injured Reserve (IR). This will preclude you from having to post each week and will also allow your team to still possibly gain bonus points when all other members post on time. If you are ready to return from IR, send me another PM and I’ll reinstate you.

If you are not on IR and do not post for four (4) consecutive weeks, you will automatically be removed from the club. There are no exceptions!

Q. What if I am unable to post because of vacation or travel?
A. Send me a PM letting me know in advance and I will exempt you from posting. You must specify the Week # and/or dates you will be unavailable. Upon your return, you must still post your miles for that period as described above (“missed posting”).

If a member has five (5) outstanding missing weeks, the member will automatically be removed from the club.

Q. I think my stats might be incorrect. How can I check this?
A. You can check your full year statistics on the blog in the 2009 Mileage Data post. If you notice an error please send me a PM and I can correct it right away. Also, it's important to check your data regularly to make sure it corresponds with your own running log.

2009in2009 - Instructions

2008-11-20T11:13:00.008-06:00

Welcome to the 2009in2009 Club! Here are instructions for posting your weekly mileage and reviewing your statistics. Further questions and answers can be found in the FAQ.

YOUR 2009 GOAL
Challenging but attainable goals are critical to your success in running and in life. All of your stats in this game are based on this goal so it is very important that it reflects the reality of your abilities and training schedule for the year. You should take into account training related to races (ex., base building, pre-race, taper, and recovery) as well as rest or vacation time, or if you have been prone to injury. The idea here is to set a challenging, yet realistic goal.

You can revise this goal as often as needed before the start of the game, but you may only change the goal ONE TIME between January 1 and June 30 (Weeks 1 through 26).

POSTING YOUR WEEKLY MILES
Each week – on Sunday – I will post a thread titled **2009in2009** Week nn - Post 'em. When you see the thread simply post your mileage for the previous week ending on Sunday. Note: if your weeks go Sunday-Saturday just post that time period. It's not important as long as it's consistent. The format for posting your mileage is:
RWUsername,Week#,Miles
Example: ZubenElGenubi,6,26.4

In order in insure proper data download you must make sure to spell your username correctly, use commas to separate the data, and enter it in the correct order. Avoid posting anything else on the first line. You may post additional info or comments below your data entry line.

POSTING DEADLINE
The deadline to post for the current week will always be Wednesday at 12:00 Noon Central Time. If your data is not posted by this time, your mileage will not be included in the weekly awards or count towards the Head2Head Challenge for your team. Late posts will eventually be recorded and individual stats updated as time allows.

RULES REGARDING ON-TIME POSTING
It is very important that you keep your mileage records up-to-date with timely posts each week. Not only does this benefit you with the latest calculations to help you with your progress, but it also helps your team in the Head2Head competition. With that in mind, there are two rules regarding on-time posting that are important to note:

1) If you are not on IR and do not post for four (4) consecutive weeks, you will automatically be removed from the club.

2) If a member has five (5) outstanding missing weeks, the member will automatically be removed from the club.

If you will be away for an extended period of time (ex. Injured Reserve, vacation, military leave) send your team captain and/or me a message or email in advance. You will be exempted from posting during this period. Unless you are injured, you will still be required to post any miles run during your absence.

WEEKLY STATS THREAD
After I have compiled all of the data, I will post the results in a thread titled *2009in2009 - Week nn - Results/Awards* Here you will be able to track your progress towards your goal and get some interesting individual statistics along with weekly awards. The stats posted to the thread are a simplified version of what you will see in the blog, but will show the mileage for the week, average weekly mileage, miles above or below goal pace, and most importantly, the weekly mileage needed to reach your goal. Along with these stats there are some fun individual awards based on how you've been running lately.

AWARD DESCRIPTIONS
*Evel Knieval Award: To the person who runs the highest percentage over their previous 10 week's average mileage.
*Repo Man Award: To the runner who runs highest over their goal weekly mileage but is currently behind goal pace.
*Warren Buffet Award: To the runner who has banked the most miles (measured in weeks) over their goal pace.
*Cruisin' Award: To the runner with the most consistent mileage over the previous 10 weeks.
*Bullseye Award: To the runner closest to their projected miles at goal pace for that week.
*Bob the Builder Award: To the runner who has increased their weekly mileage for the most weeks in a row.
*Raising the Titanic Award: To the runner who has dug themselves out of the largest mileage hole and is back above goal pace.
*Up and Away Award: To the runner who has added the most miles over their lowest mileage point (actual miles vs goal pace miles) during the year.

THE WEBSITE
Each week, usually by Friday, I will update the 2009in2009 blog with everyone's current stats. Here you can review your data to ensure its accuracy and see a table with all of your fellow clubmates statistics.

If you still have questions, please check the FAQ section of the blog first, then send me a PM if I’ve still got you confused! I’m always looking for new award ideas or ways to keep club members motivated.