Coming in 2020...

Updated Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019

Just posted some goals to get back into better physical (and mental!) health for the coming year:

• Get up to 45 states in the "run 10K in all 50" challenge.

• Add 10 more N.H. towns to my program to run at least 5K in all the Granite State's cities, towns, and unincorporated places.

• Less quantifiable goals such as get into the gym, get on the bike, take the dogs running, don't eat at night, get enough sleep, and so on. Common sense, really. (A sign we're in big trouble.)

Will I weigh less than 200 pounds in September 2020? We shall see.

And now, off to In-n-Out Burger in Millbrae, Calif. (I'm not kidding!)

Updated Saturday, May 5, 2018

Just added State No. 37, Utah, to the list of those I've run at least 10K in. More than 2/3 of the way through!

So a few notes about the past few months and what's coming up:

• Back to the gym:: I've been somewhat successful at working a workout into my schedule. Things went well January into February, but then I got busy and the consistency started to falter. Then my mother died, which made the second half of April pretty much a lost cause.

But I'll be back into it starting Monday, when I get back to N.H.

• Running: Still hoping to do six states in the 50-state quest. With Utah in the bag as of today, that's five more to go. The day trip to Minneapolis was scrubbed in favor of attending graduations that weekend, but it's still possible for me to meet this goal.

Strange that in the past month, warm-up runs have left more soar than usual. I don't want to run myself into an injury, but I sense the way to get through this is to keep pushing myself through it.

Will try to combine running with trips around the state for silent film gigs and our wholesale food business. That should add at least 10 new communities to my quest to run 5K in all N.H. cities, towns, and unincorporated places.

• Hiking: Still hoping to add a minimum of six peaks to my roster of N.H. 4,000-footers.

• Biking Weather finally changed last week (after a long wet spring) so got the bike out and started this. Same goals as stated below.

So all I need is time and a little ambition to stick with this. And luck. We'll see.

Updated Sunday, Jan. 14, 2018

It's my 54th birthday, and time for an update on fitness/adventure goals for the coming year.

First, an update: after a very successful fall of running and biking, early November saw me come down with a monumental chest infection plus the fracturing of my right big toe.

So not only was my toe put on ice, but so was most of my aerobic activity. For the next two months, I had to go slow.

But now, just returned from a two-week visit to Myanmar, the cold is gone and the toe seems healed.

Yes, I wrenched the tissues in my right foot by stepping in a pothole on the last day in Myanmar, but damage seems light.

So here goes with what I'd like to do in 2018:

• Back to the gym: One of the most satisfying ways to start a day is to get to the gym early, shower and dress there, and get to the office well before anyone else.

So that's what I'll do, starting today. (Even though it's a Sunday.) And I'll try to do this pretty much every day that I can.

And also, I'm looking into the local Title Boxing club to make that part of my workout routine as well. I miss it, and they're open at 4:30 a.m. so I can get in there early, too.

And I'll try to keep this going through the first quarter, and reassess when the weather warms up.

• Running: Once the weather warms up, I'd like to resume running—with the dogs at home, and in N.H. towns and also in the 50 states.

For New Hampshire, I'd like to add 20 towns this year. Very few road races are scheduled in places I still need, so I expect all of these will be self-administered.

To build up the numbers, I'll try to do some on-the-road combines on the way to silent film gigs. A good strategy is to use the Brandon, Vt. series as a way to get towns in northwest N.H. along the way, and get a cheap motel in Rutland to shower for the show. (I can still make it back home that night.)

For the 50-state challenge, with only about a dozen far-flung states left, the days of "one every month" are long gone.

I can probably pick up a few in the south with cheap airfare day trips, but these would have to be on weekends as my work schedule doesn't allow much flexibility Monday-Friday.

I'll probably get Idaho when I visit San Francisco in May. I have a day trip booked to Minneapolis in June.

And I'm still hoping for one or both Dakotas in September, but the Sioux City, Iowa festival apparently isn't running any silent film program this time around. So that might not be happening. We'll see.

Anyway, if I can do six, that would be something!

And along the way, it would be great to include some longer-distance races just to keep in the game. Let's say three half-marathons to make it a good year. :)

With the new stretching routine I've been using, my knees/feet seem to be able to handle longer distances. So I'll keep doing that.

The trick, as always, is to avoid getting sick or injured, which always throws me off.

• Hiking: My goal of summiting all 48 peaks in N.H. above 4,000 feet stalled out a few years ago at 33. With just 15 to go, it shouldn't be too much of an ordeal to finish this.

So let's try to get at least six this year, possibly working them in with trips up there for our company's wholesale food business.

I'm afraid my desire to summit Mount Rainier in the state of Washington will have to wait for another cycle. Just too busy to get to it this year. :(

• Biking: The question here is, to buy or not to buy? My Giant Defy isn't a bad bike, but it just can't seem to hold the higher gears no matter who adjusts or tunes it.

I can live with this, but it does annoy me. So I'll be thinking about a new bike in the next few months.

Either way, I'm looking forward to long-distance rides on those hot summer days where I journey across the landscape for hours and arrive home exhausted. Yes!

Let's try to do at least one ride to the Seacoast (for fried clams at Ceal's!) and one ride from the Seacoast, possibly after visiting a friend in Portsmouth for brunch.

Also, I still would like to get as far as Bellows Falls, Vt. one summer day. Maybe do the hotel thing and come back the next day?

And other adventures as they occur.

The challenge will be to keep at this while so much else is going on in my life: work, and performing, and creative projects, and so on.

But I have reasons to stick with it this year, and I'm hopeful it will come together.

Jeff R.

Updated Monday, Dec. 26, 2016

The good news: I've somehow managed to keep the streak alive.

Every month since last December, I've added at least one state to the list of those in which I've run a minimum of 10K.

And if all works according to plan, I should be able to keep going at least through spring of 2017.

I have confirmed plans or definite opportunities for January through May.

After that, it gets a little dicey, as many remaining states don't lend themselves to day trips from Boston.

But we shall see.

The not-so-good news: Though not exactly slothful, I have been unable to do much else since last report.

It's mostly a function of time. As in the old Calvin & Hobbes comic strip: the days are just packed!

I did manage to do two New Hampshire towns this fall.

So if I do five more, that would take me to #150. Not a bad goal for the off-season, meaning now through the end of March.

Bike riding was good this summer, but not as intense as it could have been.

And I've completely gotten out of the habit of hiking, not completing a single 4,000-footer this year.

Need to work on changing that in 2017. :)

Updated Tuesday, May 10, 2016

The good news: Can't believe I've managed to run in a new state every month since last December!

Just got Nevada this weekend, which takes me up to 23, nearly the halfway point.

And it also gets me close to adding 8 states this year, one of my goals. (See below.)

The bad news: Still not very systematic about cross-training and other activities.

Haven't added a single community to the "N.H. 234" project this year. On the bike some, but weather is only changing to allow for that.

So looking ahead, I hope to build out from the base I've maintained and make some real progress through this summer and fall.

Sad to say, but changes to the calendar at www.coolrunning.com have made it more difficult for me to plan races.

It used to be easy to scan the listings by town, but the format has been "improved" and it's no longer possible.

Well, I need to get over that as it's a lousy excuse for not getting back into the race scene.

Plus the weather is changing, so I can do more on the bike, and more outside in general.

So this month (May), I'll try to grab some N.H. towns, and maybe try a hike or two near the end of the month.

I traditionally do a long bike ride on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, so that's coming up as well.

Half-marathons? Well, not just yet. But might be able to coordinate one or two this summer with quick out-of-state trips to keep the streak going. We'll see.

Will check in again soon. I hope.

Updated Friday, Dec. 18, 2015

And with comments on Friday, March 4, 2016.

Okay, here's a list of things on the calendar.

• Well, not much right now. But I'm finishing the year in fairly strong fashion, running 5 to 7 miles regularly and with no ill effects.

And the weather has remained mild and with no snow. So I've yet to retreat to the gym for indoor workouts just yet.

So for the first time in a couple of years, I find myself back to adding towns to the "New Hampshire" project, and also states to the "50 states" effort.

Hope to keep that going throughout 2016. The key will be to avoid getting injured, which means not overdoing it.

For New Hampshire, races are still on the agenda, although I've pretty much conquered all places in New Hampshire that hold them.

If you know races in obscure Granite State locations, send a note to jeffrapsis@gmail.com.

Sometimes races are held on Old Home Days or as a "Project Graduation" event in small communities. If you know of one, pass along word so I don't miss the one chance in my life to run in, say, Goshen.

Quick goals for the coming year:

• Add 25 towns to the "New Hampshire" project. Not much to show for this as of March.

• Add 8 states to the "50 States" project, getting me to 25 and half-way there. Got two: Vermont in January and Nebraska in February. Can I keep up one per month?

• Participate in at least four "stretch" events such as a half-marathon or triathlon. None planned yet.

• Do at least a half-dozen long bike rides of 50+ miles. Would like to do a point-to-point from my house to Bellows Falls, Vt., and another to downtown Boston. Waiting for weather to warm up. In the meantime, getting bike serviced next week.

• Climb to the summits of eight more 4,000-footers in New Hampshire, thus getting me closer to the complete set of 48. Don't see much of this happening until May. Lack of snowcover means trails will likely be dry earlier than usual.

Sounds reasonable. So we'll see.