I spend most of my days yakkity-yakking and communicating with people in any one of a thousand ways -- phone, e-mail, blog, columns, face-to-face, etc. and sometimes I just want to be alone. I just want to be quiet and have the inner peace to think. I've found the solitude that I crave in my daily runs. It's MY time and I guard it fiercely.

Through the years, I've gently turned down offers from friends and neighbors to run together because well, I just liked being alone.

HOWEVER, marathon training and the monster long runs that come with it is a whole 'nother story.

The thought of another 14 miler on the treadmill -- or worse, in the 15 degree weather -- all by my lonesome sent me scrambling for a friend.

I just so happened to get an email from ERC friend and Erie Marathon co-director, Mike Vieyra on Tuesday. I asked if he knew if any ERC members were still meeting at Presque Isle on weekend mornings for group long runs. He said he wasn't sure, but that he & a friend were planning to run around P.I.S.P. on Saturday and I was welcome to join them.

Two friends to make take the LOOOOONNNNGGGG out of my long run? I couldn't pass that up.

I parked at TREC bright and early Sat. a.m. and met up with Mike and Michelle as they came running by (they had run down from Nautilus). Mike did the introductions on the run (how else would runners meet, right?) and we fell in step together.

Not counting races, it was only the third or fourth time I've run with other people and, well, I loved it.

They made me run harder, faster and longer than I ever would've run alone. By "made me" -- I mean, I chose to run harder, faster and longer because... well, I sure as hell wasn't going to stop or force them to slow down or wait on me!

The conversation was fun and distracting. And, I'm proud to say I was even able to contribute to it despite the effort of the run.

And, I was making an effort (though it didn't feel so bad at the time). Today is the first day I've been able to walk normally since Saturday afternoon because I was so sore. Which is good because I've got that stretch goal of qualifying for Boston in the back of my head now.

I can't think of a better way to get there than by following a couple of runners who routinely qualify and are on their way to Boston in a few weeks. (Michelle's actually done Boston 7 times, I think).