Saying goodbye to 2010 and Helloooooo 2011!

Happy New Year everyone! Guess I can close the books on the last few races of 2010 and look forward to what I have planned for 2011.

Race recap:

Locomotive Half Marathon 9/19/2010 - This was a fun, albeit challenging one. Wasn't prepared for the hills, but overall Reann and I did well! My time was 2:57:06

10th Annual Silver Comet Half Marathon 10/30/10 - Another good day overall, felt good and surprised myself by shaving 4 minutes off last year's time! 2:42:34

4th Annual Peachtree City 25K/50K - I ran the 25K with Jonathan and we managed pretty well, but I think we both thought we were stronger than we ended up being. Although I did do one extra loop, making it over 20 miles for that day! 25K time was 3:47:25

2010 Atlanta Half Marathon Thanksgiving Day - The day started warmer than I thought it would be. The hills did me in on this one too, just did not prepare well for it, plus had no idea there would be that many throughout. Reann and I definitely earned our turkey dinner anyway! 3:08:39

Now on to 2011. With only one race registered for at this point, it's my main focus. Working with fellow runner Tracy who modified a marathon training plan for me, am now in week 5 and managed a 12 mile run earlier today, in the rain no less! Working on increasing my distance and endurance leading up to the marathon in March. Going to get back into a good cross-training plan as well starting tomorrow, I really need the strength training, mostly for core and legs.

My volunteer duties were pretty well met in 2010, and 2011 is shaping up to be just as good, if not better, than last year.

Here's to 2011!

Races (registered for):

Publix Marathon 3/20/11

Races (hoping to get on the calendar):

Warrior Dash - May

Peachtree Road Race 10K - July

Grandfather Mountain Marathon - July

Mystery Mountain Marathon (or Half) - October

Silver Comet Half Marathon - October

Peachtree City 50K - November

Volunteering duties:

Atlanta Fat Ass 50K - 1/9/11

Red Top Rumble - 2/6/11

SweetH2O Sweetheart Half Marathon - 2/13/11

GRR 100/50/50K - 3/5-3/6/11

SweetH2O 50K -4/16/11

And I'm sure a host of others as the year progresses...

Lastly, I want to give a big THANK YOU to all the members of the running community I got to know better this year, as well as those I met this year. You are all a huge inspiration to me, because of your successes and challenges, I am able to reach farther for my own successes and challenges. Here's to a healthy 2011 for us all!

And one last "ATTA GIRL" for two fabulous friends of mine - Marci and Jen. These two ladies started running and both decided to do their first half marathon in 2010 and both finished with fabulous results. You ladies rock!

Call me crazy, but...

Signing up for 2 more half marathons, one of them only a week away, is my idea of...well, fun I guess. :) At least it motivates me to get out there, the less time I have to think about a race, the better off I usually am.

Sooo, coming up we have:

9/19/10 Locomotive Half Marathon (benefits Cystic Fibrosis) Reann's doing this one too!

10/10/10 Mystery Mountain Marathon and 12 miler (volunteering)

10/23/10 31st Annual City of Douglasville Moonlight Run (volunteering)

10/30/10 Silver Comet Half Marathon

11/14/10 4th Annul Peachtree City 25K/50K (I'm doing the 25K)

11/25/10 Atlanta Half Marathon (on Thanksgiving no less, Chels and Reann are doing it with me, we'll be earning our turkey dinners!) Will be Chelsea's first half!

2/6/11 Red Top Rumble 11.5 Mile Trail Race (either running or volunteering)

3/5 - 3/6/11 GUTS Reactor Run 100 miler (volunteering)

3/20/11 Georgia Marathon (my first!)

The people you meet

If anyone had told me 2 years ago about all the people I would meet after I started running, I would have laughed. Not to say I'm shy about meeting people, it's just that after living down here in GA for 6 1/2 years, the people I'd met thus far had mostly been through work and there weren't many.

Since August of 2008, when I first started putting my feet to pavement, I have been lucky to have met some pretty wonderful people, many of whom I now consider family. How did it start? Well, I quit smoking in May of '08, and told the trainer I was working with that I wanted to run a 5K, so she got me running on a treadmill (which I can't stand doing anymore), and then got me out running on pavement. Danja has since become a very good friend, and I love her to bits!

My training led to my first 5K, the Moonlight Run in Douglasville, and that's how I met the Rogues. The Douglas County Rogue Runners, what a fabulous group to join! After completing the 5K, I started getting out occasionally with them on their group runs, but I wasn't completely confident in my running ability. I soon learned with them that it didn't matter, seeing my progression as I gained ability was something they loved. They introduced me to trail running as well, and in combination with the races the Rogues put on, I've met some other very cool people in other clubs. Runners, marathoners, and ultra runners - what a fabulous and diverse group of people!

Thanks in large part to these runners I've met, I've not only completed 5K's and 10K's with improved times, but also half marathons. I gain experience with each race, and the support from other runners really motivates and keeps me at it. Now with a 25K in my sights, and a full marathon coming up, I know I can call on any one of these people for advice, support, training runs and friendship. One thing they may not all realize is that through their own races and challenges, they impart so much wisdom, humor and honesty about what they go through, that it helps me, challenges me, to push myself further than I may be comfortable with.

Rogues are: Johnny B., Cindy R., Linda P., Jennifer M. (x2!), Jennifer S., Scotty P., John and Desiree L., Terri E., Jonathan W., Orlando B., Michael (Crump) C., Steve C., Patrick O., Sherri C., Tracy H., Jack G., Karen H., Dave and Alicia M., Alex A., Lee B., Enithie H., Jeff F., Roger B., Mark G., Billy L., Amy K. and the list goes on as new members join.

GUTS members: Sally B., Kena Y., James T., Christian G., Tony G., Jason R., John C., Marty C., Charles R., Spurgeon H., Wayne D., Sean O., Elizabeth, Nick, Chris, Janice A. and the countless others who's faces I know but names I don't...yet!

And then the various other runners I've met: Kate B., Stefanie N., Margaret C., Jon R., Graham G., David H., whew! Lots of great people!

Can't forget about the Peachtree Road Race blogger from the AJC, Lauren D.! If you read any of the blogs she posted leading up to the race, you'd get a kick out of her insight as I did. Wish I could've seen her during the race, but I think we just missed one another.

You all are such wonderful inspiration to this still fairly "newbie" runner, and I thank you all for being you!

See you out on the road/trails soon!

AHA!

The Peachtree is just a few days away, and I am so happy it is! Not that I'm ready to tear it up and set a PR (I may just do that, but don't want to jinx myself!), but this is a party in the Atl every year, so planning on having fun with it. It will be the second time for Reann and I, for Chelsea it's her first.

I've added a race to my calendar also, the Peachtree City 25K on November 14th. Slightly longer than a half marathon, and with the benefit of having other Rogues either doing the 25K as well (Jonathan) or the 50K (Billy), this will be a fun one.

As for volunteering, I did so at the Blake Gammill races on 6/19, and am planning on volunteering at two GUTS events - Hot to Trot 8 hour on 8/7/10 and their GRR100 on 3/5-6/11. Great opportunities to meet more of the GUTS crowd!

Here we go:

7/4/10 41st Annual Peachtree Road Race 10K
8/7/10 Hot to Trot 8 Hour (volunteering)
11/14/10 4th Annual Peachtree City 25K
3/5-6/11 GRR 100 Miler (volunteering)
3/20/11 Georgia Marathon

So now what?

It's the middle of June, and I only have two races on the calendar, and one of them isn't for another 9 months! It's been a crazy couple of months but here I am. Need to buckle down and get back into the running and getting myself back in shape.

5/22/10 Warrior Dash, Mountain City, GA - Well the drive up there was worth the price of admission. It was mine and Chelsea's first time up that way and we sure didn't want to head back to Douglasville afterwards! This was a fun time, between the water walk, tires, obstacle walls, cargo net wall, junk yard, mud crawl and fire jumps, we got our butts kicked! Definitely one we're going to do again if it's back in the Southeast next year.

Coming up in 2 weeks is the Peachtree Road Race, Chelsea and Reann are doing it with me, should be another fun time!

I know that one way to challenge myself is to sign up for a race I know will kick my butt, but at this point I'm going to focus on the running itself, build the distance back up and then see how I feel. By August I should know if I'm ready to another race (or more) this fall.

7/4/10 Peachtree Road Race, Atlanta GA

3/20/11 Georgia Marathon, Atlanta, GA