The Beatin' Path

Tim McGraw Hosts “Saturday Night Live” Tonight!

Tonight is gonna be something else.  I’ve set my Tivo to record the show.  The alarm on my cell phone is set for fifteen minutes before the start of the program.  I don’t want to miss anything.

After all, it isn’t often that a country music artist is tapped to host Saturday Night Live.  Almost never, actually.  Johnny Cash did it.  So did Willie, Dolly, and Garth.

Now, it’s McGraw’s time.  He is set to take the reins this weekend as the first country artist of the millennium to host the sketch comedy series, just one week before he appears alongside Vince Vaughn and Reece Witherspoon in the new film Four Christmases on November 26.

“I’m looking forward to hosting the show,” said McGraw.  “I’m not exactly known for my comedy, but then again, if you’ve been to one of my shows, you might feel differently.  Hopefully hanging around Vince Vaugh, Reese Witherspoon, and Jon Favreau is good training.”

No, the Dancehall Doctors will not be there; Ludacris and T-Pain are handling the musical guest duties.  No, I don’t know if Faith is going to be there or not, though it would be cool. I’ll be watching to see what happens, just like you guys, so I'll see you at the show...sorta.

Visit the website for Saturday Night Live and watch exclusive web promos for tonight’s show.

Gettin' a Buzz at the NYC Expo

You just can’t help it.  You’ve logged a lot of miles to get here, many of them alone.  Put in a lot of work and made a lot of sacrifices.

So finally getting into New York City, anticipating the Sunday marathon, and making your way to the three-day marathon expo that precedes the race is a thrill in and of itself; we are here…and we are many.

Roughly 50,000 runners will take to the streets on the day of the race.  Twice that many will wander through the convention halls of the expo.  Half of those are from other countries, all traveling to share in this international celebration of athletic pursuit.

All sorts of businesses are represented, each displaying their contributions to the running world – running shoes and running trips and running clothes and running watches and running foods and running stuff for running folks at every turn.

Huh.  There’s the Runner’s World booth.  Appropriate.

Team McGraw has its own campsite among the other charity programs.  We share our mission to support brain tumor research through the Tug McGraw Foundation.  We share news of our successes as an endurance program, promote upcoming running events, and make new friends within the running community.

 I often find myself sharing bit and pieces from the road, gathered from rolling and running all across the country.  A runner will mention they’re from…Cincinnati.  “You’re from Cincinnati?  I need some chili from the Camp Washington Chili Bar!”  Milwaukee.  “I love that trail that runs from downtown towards the Children’s Museum and splits in two along the water!”  Maybe they’re from Salt Lake.  “Cheese fries from the Training Table!”

And then…there are always those that want my assistance as we walk through the list of songs I’ve recorded with Tim McGraw to find that elusive favorite song that a runner is still searching for to drop into his “almost perfect” iPod playlist for race day.

 “Yeah, what you are thinking of is ‘How Bad Do You Want It.’  From 'Monday Night Football'…yeah.  Have a great run; YA GOTTA BELIEVE!”

Everyone that walks by is restless, anxious, stoked.  Taking in the shared excitement of why we are here, how we got here, and what we are preparing for as we count down the remaining hours.

The buzz is everywhere…and we all feel it.

---

(It is to be my honor to have represented Allen Shellenberger, brain tumor survivor and drummer for the rock band Lit, with my running of the New York City Marathon 2009 on November 2 as a member of the Team McGraw charity endurance team.  To honor Allen and support brain tumor research and improved quality of life through the Tug McGraw Foundation, CLICK HERE.)