Tag! You're it!

This weekend I ran the Cherry Hill 10 Mile Relay in Prospect Park, Brooklyn.  The most difficult thing about this run was getting to Brooklyn. Being that I'm from Queens, I don't go to Brooklyn.  Ever.  Under any circumstances.  It is something that is in my blood, inherently built into my genetic make up.

And yet, on Sunday morning, after very little sleep, a little too much Sapporro, and just a touch of jet lag, I got on the train to go to Prospect Park.  And then I got lost.  

Alas, the relay was fantastic.  It was fun being part of a team (Go Chicks with Kicks!) and only being accountable for 3.2 miles of a 10 mile race.  Do they do marathons as relays?

On a side note, let me just publicly extend my thanks to all of you who continue to donate to this wonderful cause!  We are getting so much closer! 

Stay tuned for more updates!

Bronx Half Marathon!

On Sunday February 8th, I finished a half marathon. I ran the NYRR Half Marathon Grand Prix in the Bronx. It was a FABULOUS day for running, complete with weather in the mid fifties and mostly sunny skies.

I always wonder why they start those things so early in the morning, but then I realized that if they started them any later, we would all melt into puddles in the sun. It was very warm, even warmer with my NikeFit fleece lined running tights on. I must invest in something between spankies and fleece for the next race.

Running the half is unreal because you relaly test how mental running is. New York Road Runners doesn't really dig iPods or headphones, so I 've kind of learned to run without music. Other people's conversations and the thoughts rolling around in your mind are the soundtrack to your race, and I prefer it that way. (And, let's be honest, my playlists kind of suck!)

I realize that I'm a sucker for motivational phrases when it comes to sports. Before rugby games, Doobie would always give these amazing speeches, channeling James Van Der Beek, 50Cent, and the girls from Bring it On. I'm fairly certain I continued playing rugby so I could continue to wear the somewhat lude yet also motivational t-shirts. I cry when I watch high school sports, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE high school sports movies. (I live for Varsity Blues. Seriously. "I.DON'T.WANT.YOUR.LIFE")

Some of the choice t-shirts I saw were:
- Just Do It. (A classic Nike Favorite)
-Today I Kicked Assphalt (Philadelphia Marathon 2008 shirt)
-I Run This City (promotional NYC marathon shirt)
-26.2 Miles to Hell and Back (featuring the Brooklyn Bridge, another motivational shirt)
-No One Ever Drowned in Sweat
-You Run Like a Girl? Good for You!
-Our Sport is Your Sports' Punishment

Running the half was amazing, and it made me even more excited to run the full. I'm not the fastest. I'm not the best. I'm not even close. But I'm excited to be doing it at all.

Slow and Steady doesn't win the race, but it does finish it.

The Tale of the Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Running Day and the Could Have Been a Whole Lot Worse Running Day

Due to a bronchitis scare, stomach issues, and family drama, I hadn't gone running in a very long time. When I went out for my group run on Saturday morning, I was hoping to accomplish 12 miles, or maybe at the very least 10. My running buddy was absent on Saturday, so I ran with my marathon mentor. The first few miles were fine, and it felt good to be quickening up my otherwise very slow pace. But then it happened. We did top of the park.

The top of Central Park is located in an area known in various locals as "the heights." Heights indicate -- you guessed it-- hills. We ran up what is known to Central Park peeps as The Great Hill. It is this incredibly long windy hill that ascends like crazy and winds. I made it up the hill, but it broke me. I could run no longer. I had to keep stopping, and walking, and eventually I just gave up. It was the first time I had real trouble with the idea of completing a marathon, and wondered if I could do it. It was the terrible no good very bad running day.

The next morning I was signed up to run the NYRR Gridiron Four Miler. It was a BEAUTIFUL day for running -- it was the first race I had ever run when the temperature was above 15 degrees. What a difference! Though it was a little bit more difficult than a four miler should have been, and my pace slowed down a little bit, it renewed my faith in my ability.

This Sunday I am going to be running the Bronx Half Marathon! I'm a little terrified, because family stuff and work stuff has kept me from running, but I'm hoping to knock it out.