In an item unrelated to food, but related to my life beyond food, I was saddened to learn yesterday that extremely talented distance runner (and reportedly very nice individual) Ryan Shay passed away yesterday morning at the age of 28 while competing in the U.S. Olympic marathon team trial in NYC.  I had never met Ryan, but he's one of those people that lives in my subconscious, occasionally surfacing to the conscious during a long run . . . usually in the form of a full-page ad for EAS supplements featuring Ryan that I've seen for years in running magazines . . . an image that has gotten me through more than a few difficult miles.  Ryan was a former U.S. national champion at distances from 5k to 26.2 miles, winning the national marathon championship in 2003.  Ryan was an inspiration to many and was one of the reasons I set my alarm for 7:30 a.m yesterday to watch a live Web stream of the race.  My thoughts are with his family and friends.

And in related, happier news . . . congratulations to Ryan Hall, Dathan Ritzenhein and Brian Sell, who took 1st, 2nd and 3rd place respectively and will represent the U.S. next year in the Beijing Olympic marathon.  Hall set a U.S. Olympic trials record on a difficult course, finishing in 2:09:02.  The U.S. will definitely be in medal contention in Beijing.