Architecture on the Run

What does a trip to the moon and training for a marathon have in common?  No, I am not thinking of a marathon on the moon or any sort of funky anti gravity training techniques but a trip to the moon and a preparing for a marathon actually do have something in common if both are to be deemed successful journeys!

Earlier this week our marathon training group had the pleasure of learning from a local running legend and a world record holder in the number of marathons ran in less than 2hrs 20 mins, and the winner of 40 marathons in his running career, Doug Kurtis. He graciously shared many of his secrets to his long term success of running hundreds of marathons. Many of these tips were specific to an individual selection, determination, and performance. However there was one tip that I believe is the most crucial and no distance runner can do without and expect to perform at their personal best. That tip was to do certain training such as the long run and speed or hill workouts with a training partner or group. Golfers understand that if they want to improve their game they need to golf with golfers that are better skilled at the game then themselves. The same is true of running. 

This past fall as I was training for my marathon in November I ran a total of 4 separate 20 milers. The first was my toughest and was also one where I ran most of it alone. For my second 20 miler I  ran 10 miles on my own as a "warm-up" to a 15k (nearly 10 mile) race. I finished that 20 miler among other racers. For my third 20 miler I ran with Chad, a young and very fast runner from our training group (well for at least the first 15 miles). But this training run was a part of a larger organized 20 miler that included many runners in a local park and thus there was always somebody running nearby me.

But my  lat 20 miler of that season promised to be the toughest as most of my running friends were either competing in the Detroit Marathon that same weekend or had already finished their long runs. Except for one :)  One of my regular running partners, Jessica was training for the New York Marathon which was scheduled for the same day as my marathon, The City of Oaks in Raleigh NC, so our training schedules coincided. The other challenge to this particular training run was the fact that the best training weather was past us for the season and the park where we run would likely be void of other runners. 

Nevertheless, Jessica and I met in the early morning darkness, a bit overdressed for the cool, drizzly rain conditions and started our 20 mile journey along the paths and over the many huge hills in Kensington.  Our pace was a bit slow at first but as we chatted away comparing notes about the conditions, racing, expectations for each of our marathons, her young kids, my young grandson, running shoes, and similar running related topics, we forgot about the conditions and pace. We did not notice the fact that we challenged the toughest long and steep hills at a pace of nearly a whole minute faster than our marathon pace, we only seemed to notice that before we knew it we were done with our last 20 mile training run of the season! My how time literally did fly by for each of us! That was not hard at all, OK, we were each a bit tired but we each had just completed an excellent 20 mile training run that only took 2 hrs and 44mins in what otherwise were not the best weather conditions over a challenging route too! I know I would never have been able to complete that run on my own that day!

So what does this have to do with a trip to the moon?  Plenty!  Earlier this week I heard a report that this week marked the 41st anniversary of the Apollo 14 moon trip.  The first picture to enter my mind was not of the moon, astronauts, or rockets, but rather the picture of a very large control room circa 1970's with scores of rocket scientists at their workstations. Remember, the computers and technology available to these engineers was roughly the same as the first computer many of us might have had at our work desks or home! 

To get a manned spaceship to and from the moon and any other successful trip to space for that matter involved a tremendous and supportive team effort of collaborative skill and intelligence. America's success in space would never have ever occurred if not for the successful collaboration of those who planned, calculated, and engineered the tasks here on planet earth. 

So perhaps the lesson learned here is that whether it be running a marathon or travels to the moon and back or beyond, before any of us can expect to achieve personal victories we need to collaborate with those next to us to help them reach our common goal too.

This has been a bit longer of a read today, so an extra special thank you goes out to those who took the time today to read the entire posting today.

Thanks again and be sure to Run Happy today :)

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A few days ago I posted a note to our local training group about winter running tips. One of my tips was to always try to finish your run with the wind at your back. Even non runners can imagine what it might feel like to run a few miles dressed to accommodate below freezing temps. It will not be long until you begin to build a sweat and your body's heat clings to you because you are running with the wind. 

Now imagine what happens when you stop and turn around to return to where to started. The cold wind is not only in your face it is also working to remove that comforting and perhaps over heated layer of warmth away from your body too! To make matters worse you can add 5-7 mph (your running pace) to the effective wind velocity too!  In no time at all what started as a feel good winter run will end as a nasty chilling winter run regardless of how to dressed to prepare!

There is a similar comparison in architecture. Obviously buildings do not run down any road, but they are exposed to winds and elements of nature everyday.  Careful attention to the placement, siting, or orientation of how a building is located on a piece of property will have a huge and permanent affect on the energy performance of that structure.

Imagine a house designed to take into consideration year around of the evening sunsets over a special view such as a lake. It would likely include a considerable extent of windows or openings to capture the view. The problem is that these same well intended openings will become easy targets for the prevailing winter winds (in Michigan) and without special attention to detail will become cold spaces or at best spaces that are costly to heat and thus waste precious energy.

Beyond winds, sun angles, micro climates, shading devices, material selection, and similar items all need to be carefully considered if a building or house is to take the best advantage of nature and have any hope of becoming an energy efficient structure.

On your next run through the neighborhood take a mental inventory of how many prototypical (or "builder" homes) there are in your neighborhood that fail to take into account basic strategies of design to positively influence the energy performance for the life of that house. Then zip up or your outermost layer and enjoy the balance of your run. :)

Thanks for taking the time to read this today.

Run Happy

Lee

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How about that!  They say you can find almost anything on the web, even an architect who is one day ahead of schedule to publish a blog on his website in 2012!  Most architects are notorious for being on schedule. I guess it's just a part of the creative process. But then again, maybe not, for the practice of architecture is changing almost daily and attempting to keep up with all of the changes is impossible. Especially if the architect still intends to put out an excellent design that is perfectly detailed and documented, and can be constructed without a "hitch", oh and what about schedule and budget?

The purpose of this blog is to provide the reader with insights and guidance to the practice of architecture today. My career had included involvement on the largest project in North America (City Center Las Vegas) to a small Sun Room addition. I have witnessed the days of true "blue prints" to the ever changing landscape of CAD and cyber design. I have lead teams of diverse professionals and students in the classroom/studio too. This can be a very fun and enjoyable profession, yet it is not without significant strife.

Most people never have an opportunity to work with an architect during the course of design and construction. Accordingly most people do not understand what an architect does or how the architect goes about their services. Only a small percentage of the people who do experience the architectural process ever really truly understand the value of the architect. This is due in part to the architect and to the general misguided conception of what architects do that exists in our world today.

OK, time to stop here for as I type these words my mind is being flooded with ideas on expanding each of these topics. Let me say before signing off that you can look to find insights on the topics of:  Environmental Design, LEED,  BIM, Residential, Commercial, Interior Design, Site Planning, RFI's, Contractors, Materials, Energy, Wall Assemblies, and more exciting topics here in the days, weeks, and months ahead.

Thank you for stopping by to read this and I hope to see you here again soon! 

Lee

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