Taking the plunge

Gulp. I've begun training for my first full marathon, which if all goes well, will take place in early November.

I won't lie -- 26.2 miles sounds daunting. In January, I had decided to tackle a marathon by the end of the year, but chickened out after the San Diego Half Marathon last spring. When I had finished that one, I couldn't imagine myself being just halfway through.

And yet, here I am, ready to go for it. I've done enough training and reading that I'm convinced -- not delusional, I hope -- that it's doable. Oprah did it. Drew Carey is a runner. And while I can't stand their politics, even George W. Bush and Sarah Palin have respectable marathon times.

I'm trying to time things so that the bulk of my training occurs in the September-October timeframe, when my wife and daughter are in Brazil. I've tentatively selected the Santa Barbara International Marathon but am waiting for my wife to confirm her plans before I settle on mine. As part of my training leading to the full marathon, I will definitely be running the Zombie Runner Half Marathon on Labor Day. (Despite the name, no Zombies are actually running. The name comes from the store sponsoring it.

Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I want to feel justified calling myself a runner. Maybe I just want the 26.2 sticker on my car.