Birthdays and the Human Advantage

"The important work of moving the world forward does not wait to be done by perfect men."– George Eliot

Just how tough are we? And why are we hombres tough? Some  factors contributing to our ability  to be  tough and the  opportunity to be  successful  include the following: 1  Our archaic brain and its   ability to regulate hunger, thirst, sleep/wake cycle, temperature, and  the fight , flight or freeze  responses, defending territory, keeping safe etc.  2.  Our old brain-the limbic system and its functions like mood, memory, hormone production control: the amygdala, which is primarily responsible for fear, fight or flight responses and anger 3.  The new brain-the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and its higher cognition, abstract thought, use of tools, comprehension of language and social behavior functions 4.  All our neurons and numerous neurotransmitters etc.  5    Our hormones such as the hGH and its functions related to developing thicker skin, stronger bones, and increasing muscle mass , tissue regeneration-healing of wounds,   higher energy levels etc.

Run Faster
Faster than Usain Bolt: At 30 mph, hippos have a more impressive top speed than the fastest man in the world. Bolt can only reach 29mph

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1208479/Shocked-gamekeeper-runs-life-ton-hippo.html#ixzz2F3gMMLpL 

 And do not forget our ability to travel-run or walk long distances with limited amounts of food and water.  We have approximately 3 million functional sweat glands, to thermo regulate efficiently and outlast and run faster than our competition.   We also have main water conserving hormone- arginine vasopressin (AVP) or anti—diuretic hormone which is a big advantage for us .  Per Institute for Natural Resources.With all these advantages, it is not fair to compare   some of us to the horse with its small brain and limitations. In other words, take advantage of our human evolution to be all that you can.

From  Secretariat: So Frank thinks we are faster then our competition. We are not even close to the top ten.
Many people consider the greyhound to be the second fastest animal. They can reach average race speeds in excess of 18 metres per second (59 feet per second) or 63 kilometers per hour (39 mph), which would place then just outside this top 10. However, at maximum acceleration, a greyhound reaches a full speed of 70 km per hour (43 mph) within the first 30 metres, traveling at almost 20 metres per second for the first 250 metres of a race. The only other animal that can accelerate faster over a short distance is the cheetah, which has been measured to reach speeds of nearly 100 kilometers per hour over 3-4 strides from a standing start.

	Animal	speed (mph)	speed (km/hr)	notes
1.	Cheetah	61	98	On June 20, 2012, 11 year old Sarah the cheetah shattered the world record for the standing 100-meter dash, clocking a time of 5.95 seconds. That is an average of 38 miles per hour (61 km/hr). During the run it was radar-timed at a peak speed of 61 miles (98 kilometers) an hour. See a video.
2.	Pronghorn antelope	60	97
3.	Lion	50	80
4.	Thomson's gazelle	50	80
5.	Wildebeest	50	80
6.	Springbok	50	80
7.	Quarter horse	47.5	76
8.	Cape hunting dog	45	72
9.	Elk	45	72
10.	Coyote	43	69

Tom Christofk

Tom Christofk

On another note, this Sunday we are having a birthday run in Cool. Meet us at the fire station at 9:00 am. After the run, Linda and I are hosting a potluck brunch. Incidentally, this birthday run has been going on for over 15 years which means that Tom Christofk has now caught up and is as young as Secretariat.

I met Tom and Laura roughly 15 years ago during ride and tie competitions. At that time I began running in order to participate in these events. Then I learned that Tom, Secretariat and other competitors were involved in running ultras and endurance riding including the Tevis Cup. So they were my models. I admit that ride and tie is my favorite sport.  I want to thank Tom and Secretariat for their assistance and blame them for what I’m doing today. It’s their fault- especially Secretariats.

Keep moving and run as your life depends on it.