Friday Spotlight: Octopifungus
What's this? A Friday Spotlight! Let's have a look-look.
Today's featured athlete is the owner of one of those usernames you just can't forget. Popping up about a year ago in the r/running sub you couldn't help but to be curious. Now's our chance to figure out who she is and why she's got such a crazy username. Ladies and gentlemen it's.... u/Octopifungus!
Let's do this.
###The Runner:
First Name?
Aliza
Age?
43
Where are you from?
Boston
Occupation?
Security Engineer
###Running Q&A's:
What are your PR’s?
5K - 26:16
10K - 56:54
Half Marathon - 2:10:42
Marathon - 4:40:39
What is your distance PR?
26.2
What’s your highest recorded weekly mileage?
61 miles
What’s your comfy pace?
About 10:10 or so for the longer runs. I prefer them over short runs but I have time crunches
How long have you been running?
First round was about 15 years ago. I blew up my knee and stopped. I picked it back up in April 2015 when I was training for an OCR and my boxing coach told me I would die on the course if I didn’t start running. Yeesh.
Tell us why you began running?
I started running because I was challenged by some friends to do it an obstacle course race. At the time I was only doing yoga and boxing for daily exercise and thought it looked fun. I actually did pretty well and qualified for OCR world but then I started having wrist pains and was diagnosed with carpal. Ugh. So I turned to running full time
Most memorable running moment?
Greg Soutiea is close with my friend and he found out my running routes coincided with his. He suggested we run together. I am worthy!!
Do you have a running mantra?
This fucking POS headwind. This is constantly in my head as I run near the beach. No matter what direction I run it is always headwind.
What time of day do you prefer to run?
I prefer mornings but can only fit that in on the weekends.
Any big races coming up?
I’ve got the Berlin Marathon in Sept and was thinking of fitting in a half in between depending on how I am feeling. I need to avoid injury
What are your short-term running goals?
Run more. I’m not fast but I can grind miles.
What are your long-term running goals?
Hoping to maybe get to http://triple7quest.com/ in 2019 but not sure. It is lot of time and money to commit.
What’s one piece of running advice you’d give to the younger version of yourself?
Why didn’t you get off that damn treadmill and get out there? I was exclusively treadmill and it hurt me in road races.
What is something you need to work on to become a better runner?
Rest. I don’t rest enough. I’m so stubborn about it and it is wrong. I really need to take a week off to heal up.
What is your current shoe choice?
Nike Free RN Distance.
Trail? Road? Track? Or Treadmill?
Road although trail is nice when I can get out there. I have to drive to get to them.
What is your ideal running weather?
Cold is good. I prefer 20s with snow flurries but not sticking. No wind!
Do you have any social media accounts you’d like to share? [Facebook, Strava, Twitter]
I’m on Strava although I won’t add you unless I know you from here (add your user name to your profile!) or in real life.
###Just For Fun:
What’s your spirit animal?
The quokka! Someday I will get around to seeing one. They seem so happy and relaxed.
What hobbies and interests do you have besides running?
I snowboard, practice yoga, box, and race cars. I had a supercharged VW GTI VR6 I ran a 12.85 but had to stop as I didn’t want to put a roll cage in. I ended up selling it when we moved and I feel so sad still. I am also an avid reader of fantasy and love to travel
Do you have any hidden talents?
I attract bird poop. I don’t know why. They’ve pooped on me while I was driving and it went through the sunroof and on to my shirt. I’ll be running at a good clip and they will get my arm.
Biggest pet peeve?
For running it is owners who can’t control their dogs. Otherwise I can’t stand unruly gawky tourists.
Dream job! What would it be?
Someone to pay me to travel the world and blog about it. I love traveling and wish I could go more often.
Favorite Quote or Poem?
"Care about what other people think and you will always be their prisoner."— Lao Tzu
What is your favorite movie?
The Matrix. Every time it is on I will stop to watch. It blew my mind away when I first saw it in 1999 and it still amazes me.
What is your biggest character flaw?
Overextending myself. I try to do too much instead of being more mindful.
What songs have you been listening to recently?
I’ve been obsessed with Ramin Djawadi and his Game of Thrones music. I really wanted to go to the live concert but the seats I want are so $$. I love his Pacific Rim soundtrack as well
What are some of your favorite non-running subreddits?
/r/boston, r/xxfitness and r/relationships
###One Last Question:
What is the origin of your username?
My name comes from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clathrus_archeri which is a fungus of nightmares. I am a big fan of Lovecraft and the image of these grasping digits made me think of the creatures in The Shadow over Innsmouth.
That's it folks! Have a great weekend and enjoy the miles.
####Thanks for reading everyone!
#Please tag u/Octopifungus when asking a question in this thread.
Previously Featured Spotlight Runners:
Posted Feb 3, 2017, 12:47 PM UTC