Nadal beats Federer AGAIN

Looks like Roger Federer finally has a rival who can consistently beat him. At the Monte Carlo Masters tournament last week, Rafael Nadal beat Federer in the final to improve his record to 4-1 against him. I personally think Nadal is the world's best clay court player, but he gives Federer trouble even on hard courts. I think Federer vs. Nadal will be a rare matchup off clay, though. Because Nadal is number 2 in the rankings, he will always be in the opposite draw as Federer. That means the only way they could face each other would be in the final. And Nadal is just not consistent enough to make the final at Wimbledon or the US Open. I'd love to see it happen, but it's not likely. Different story on clay, where Nadal is king. I am looking forward to a Federer-Nadal final at Roland Garros.

Last Sunday (probably at the same time Nadal and Federer were playing) I ran a 5 mile race called the Revolutionary Run at the Valley Forge National Historical Park. The goal I had set for myself was 35 minutes, although I hadn't raced 5 miles in almost a year so I didn't know what to expect. Weather was a little chilly, but no rain. I got 65th place out of about 1000 finishers, and my time was 33:18. I was happy with that. My mile splits were 6:48, 6:48 (13:37), 6:41 (20:18), 6:52 (27:10), and 6:06 (33:18). I like that last one. This race was the inaugural one, so there were some problems (which I've seen at lots of other road races). Everyone was lined up at the start, and there was a guy speaking into a megaphone which very few people could hear. Then the start was delayed by about 10 minutes for some reason that was inaudible to me. It took me 10 seconds after the gun to reach the starting line. Somehow I think I passed more people than passed me. Anyway, it was a fun event regardless, and I'm happy with my time. Maybe I'll try a 5k in a few weeks.

Tornado hits Iowa City

When I was reading the news yesterday, I saw that Iowa had gotten hit with some tornadoes, but it didn't really make an impression on me because that's not a rare occurrence. Then my friend Shea sent me an email telling me about all the buildings that were destroyed, and I finally took notice. There are lots of good photo galleries at the Press Citizen and at the University's website. The downtown area is a mess with roofs ripped of buildings and upside-down cars in the streets. Kind of makes me glad I don't live there anymore.

My running is going well enough that I decided to try a road race, so I signed up for the Revolutionary Run 5-miler, to be held next Sunday in Valley Forge. I haven't run a race since the JFK in November, and not a 5-miler since last June, so I'm not sure what to expect. I think I'll do pretty well.

The Cubs beat the Pirates last night to boost their record to 6-3. I listened to the Phillies game while I was in bed, and they ended up beating the Rockies in Colorado (long after I fell asleep). It was a high scoring affair, which was no surprise considering the venue. I just found out today that Andy Roddick lost yet another match, this time to Tommy Haas. Ordinarily I'd shake my head in disgust, but I'll give the guy a break since I don't expect him to do anything on clay. If he can't start to win matches once grass court season gets here, then I'll know he's really heading downhill.

I am posting this from my grandparents' place in Baltimore, but I expect to be back in Philly tomorrow evening. No big plans for Easter other than a trip to church. And an oil change and tire rotation for my car.

Baseball!

Lots to report this time around, mainly due to the fact that I haven't posted in about a month. Baseball started on Monday, and I have been following the action as closely as possible. Living near Philly, I get to listen to all the Phillies games on "The Big Talker" 1210 WPHT. They managed to get swept by the Cardinals, then lost a game to the Dodgers to begin the season inauspiciously at 0-4. Jimmy Rollins had his hit streak end at 38 games, which is still very impressive despite falling way short of DiMaggio's record of 56. The Cubs are now 2-1 after splitting 2 games with the Reds and winning the series opener against the Cards. I can't follow them very closely, so I rely on the internet to check out the scores of their games.

Roger Federer remains the dominant force in tennis, which should come as no surprise to anyone who follows that sport. He beat James Blake to win Indian Wells, then took out Ivan Ljubicic to win in Miami. So now the clay court season has arrived. It will be very interesting to see how The Fed fares on clay. I expect Nadal to perform incredibly well and predict he will face Federer in the final at Roland Garros. Andy Roddick remains one of my favorite players, but I have no idea why he's been choking lately. I don't expect anything of him on clay courts, but it would be awesome to see him in the Wimbledon final again. Of course, that largely depends on his being in the opposite half of the draw as Federer. If he goes in as a 4 seed, he could meet Federer in the semis. But that remains to be seen.

Rain here in Philly today. Not a good day for running. I hope to get in a run tomorrow when it's a little nicer. I am still looking for a local 10k to run sometime. I have considered the Broad Street 10 miler in early May, but as of now I'm still undecided.