In October, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on heroes.I dont remember when I first started running with my dad. There were the early-morning wake-ups to go skiing, the bike rides with strudel as the proverbial carrot and voyages in our inflatable boat that was called?The Challenger.Now, in my late 30s, its the running that has stuck. At 70, my dads pace has slowed, but hes still as religious -- compulsive, as he puts it -- about his running schedule.Every other day, in sun, fog, snow or sleet, my dad pulls on his running outfit -- a mixed-media affair that weve tried to update over the years -- turns on the morning news and begins his physical therapy routine that lasts for about 40 minutes.Then the soft knee braces go on. Followed by the running shoes, sunscreen, and his sweat-stained baseball hat, where the peaks of perspiration have created a mountain range of salt summits across the front.Eventually -- sometimes under duress, or his annoyed shouting from the road -- Ill head outside, and well be off.As we settle into rhythm, the chatting begins. Small talk is not his thing. Sometimes its politics. Elizabeth Warren was at a local fundraiser and was as impressive in person as she seems on television, my father explained. Sometimes its neighborhood news. A tourist had a dog on the beach but got comeuppance when the cops were called, he would retell me.More often than not, its my career. In fact, the trajectory of my adult life can be traced in jogs with my father, and not always fun ones.Among the first was when I was in the throes of a job that had dragged me under. As we rounded the corner of my parents street, the sound of gravel and sand underfoot, I defended my well-paid job as a celebrity reporter.We get in a certain track, my dad told me, professionally. If this wasnt the track I wanted, Id better move on.The toughest jog I ever took with my dad was a few years later, when I had found work, but was struggling.It was August, and steamy. Rivulets of sweat were rolling down my temples, my breath was easy, despite the heat. I couldnt talk to my dad?about how often I was crying alone.I didnt want another nudge to move back East where, my dad said, there was more opportunity. And more educated people. And family. Instead, I just kept moving in the thick summer air. We were on the sand now, bathed in sweat, at low tide.It was time to sprint past the Yankees flag planted in a neighbors yard -- another local affront, but a good end-of-run finish line. We ran hard and high-fived and congratulated ourselves.Six months later, we ran together again. The Santa Monica air was cool and dry, and the sky had that mix of blue and gray that California gets on winter days. We jogged up the tree-lined side streets to my local park, where you could make a few laps or cut them short.He was thrilled with it -- the picnicking families, the planes landing nearby, the bright bougainvillea draping the route like curtains. As we panted along, I told him that things were finally getting better. I was on medication that made me feel like myself again. I was freelancing on top of my day job, and best of all, I had ideas and plans and energy.Over the years, I stopped running on my own as often; between injuries and, frankly, boredom, I lost the will to trot myself around the pretty blocks of Santa Monica, which had begun to feel monotonous. I still made sure to pack my running gear every time I visited my parents.There is, in that repetition, not just a comfort, as I had always seen it, but a profound drive. Jogging isnt my fathers only habit: there is piano -- thats nightly, for two hours before dinner, not including lessons and recitals. And writing, on the mornings hes not jogging, and newspaper-reading, every day, after writing or jogging.At worst, my dads routine is an infuriating rigidity that has overridden all kinds of other things -- earlier dinnertimes, for starters. At best, its pure dedication, a devotion to making time to breathe and think.For me, its been the subconscious push to keep going when its cold and rainy, when Id rather stay in bed, and when theres a wrong turn and no end in sight.Whether my dads running habit is a function of a strong work ethic or a fanatical compulsion doesnt really matter. In a literal sense, jogging with him for 30 minutes every other day has been the comforting habit I get to come home to, no matter what season it is.Nike Air Max 90 Nederland . 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Victorino is batting sixth and playing right field after missing two games because of back tightness.ESTERO, Fla. -- A sizable contingent of Ohio State fans came to the Gulf Coast Showcase in southwest Florida, where the weather happens to be just a bit nicer than back home.Those fans will be free to watch a certain football game Saturday afternoon.Kelsey Mitchell scored 10 of her game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter, and No. 8 Ohio State used a late 11-0 run to pull away and beat Florida Gulf Coast 79-66 on Friday in the tournament quarterfinals. The win means the Buckeyes (4-1) play on Saturday night -- instead of playing a consolation matchup in the afternoon, which would have been during the Michigan-Ohio State showdown back in Columbus.Ive been at Ohio State three years and I never got a chance to experience `The Game, Mitchell said. Hopefully we can give back, watch them, cheer them on.Mitchell got better as the game went on, still having a big night despite not getting her first basket until the second quarter. She had 19 of her 25 points after halftime.Shes going to be the first pick, FGCU coach Karl Smesko said. Whenever she comes out shell be the first pick in the WNBA draft. Shes that good.Shayla Cooper finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Buckeyes. Stephanie Mavunga added 13 points and 12 rebounds for Ohio State.I thought it was a great challenge for our team, Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said.Taylor Gradinjan and Nasrin Ulel each scored 13 for Florida Gulf Coast (2-3), which trailed by one at halftime and was still within five points early in the fourth.The Eagles -- who are playing this weekend about two miles from their campus -- were 12 for 37 from 3-point range and 8 for 30 from inside the arc.Im a little bit mixed emotions right now, Smesko said. Im disappointed because we didnt work as well together as I thought we should of. But then at the samee time I saw us do some things well and move in a positive direction.dddddddddddditchell had five of the 11 points in the decisive run for Ohio State, starting it with a layup and adding a 3-pointer. The Buckeyes held a 52-31 rebounding edge, 25-11 in that department after halftime.Ohio State led by as many as 12 in the third, but Ulel -- who logged six scoreless minutes in her lone collegiate appearance entering Friday -- made three 3s in the final 2:30 of the quarter, and FGCU was within 54-48 headed to the fourth.Knowing we were in Florida, playing a team like Florida Gulf Coast, we could never get comfortable, Mitchell said.BIG PICTUREFGCU: Gradinjan left the court briefly in the first half while getting her left leg bandaged. She also had to be taken out early in the fourth quarter, favoring the leg slightly. ... The Eagles need only look at last season when figuring out how to overcome a slow start. They were 1-2 last year and finished 33-6.Ohio State: Mitchell is now the Buckeyes career leader in 3-pointers made, getting No. 271 to fall late in the third quarter. She passed Caity Matter, who made 270 from 2001-05. Mitchell didnt know she was even nearing the record. Aw, thanks, she said. ... Even though they trailed for only 1:18, the Buckeyes were tested -- there were six ties and six lead changes.HOMECOMINGS, SORT OFThis weekend is taking Smesko back to his roots. Hes a native of Ohio, and theres a chance he could face his alma mater -- Kent State -- when the three-team, eight-team tournament wraps up on Sunday.UP NEXTFGCU: Either No. 11 Syracuse or George Washington on Saturday.Ohio State: Either No. 11 Syracuse or George Washington on Saturday. ' ' '