tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73497890171705301312024-03-20T09:39:20.961-04:00 Mr. and Mrs. Marathon <center>
Our journey: his from running marathons to conquering the Ironman distance, hers to chase a marathon PR</center><br>Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.comBlogger128125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-14974735163308963392019-08-04T16:02:00.000-04:002019-08-04T16:09:45.801-04:00Just thought I'd TRI something new<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This summer has been quite interesting for both of us. As mentioned in our <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2019/05/blog-check-blog-check-1-2-1-2.html">last post</a>, we had some upcoming goals. We didn't end up doing a half marathon this spring like we were hoping to do, but we have found plenty of other things to keep us busy. As I mentioned in our previous post, I got a bike! And I actually enjoy riding it! Since I got my bike in April, I started riding more and more, and I also decided to start swimming again. All of this cross training has been really good for me since I had hurt my ankle twice in the past 10 months. I feel like I'm mostly recovered from it, but it's been a nice change of pace to swim and bike, and I've been building my running miles back up in addition. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsFB7wRpJXVdqQZSBP8pVF4OjzxW-oank4PEJpLSswXi7lvTTC-WWAo_zV5HBv-azVseFaIfQBgxxUVcglBJ1jWTvk5_2NpIEcxX1qzMRaFQnApm3dzPqYCQkhyWTlJLAqHp5s2_AOzeE/s200/65668376_10214988073443220_8198679649908162560_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" width="200" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We've been swimmin'</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5mdhdS_FupxcS9V2MYzDRnQBgmhjcu-_e85NvgknsukvpRtViABLUYisNeLDr0ItZBjSgsw7VL3OCpgbsibwObZTCEdJb4GdEFIvDLBjyucR2DKDYRNowmVBGetAYEK8jC3NFCtHcl88/s1600/65240659_10214988070843155_2854078293009760256_n+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5mdhdS_FupxcS9V2MYzDRnQBgmhjcu-_e85NvgknsukvpRtViABLUYisNeLDr0ItZBjSgsw7VL3OCpgbsibwObZTCEdJb4GdEFIvDLBjyucR2DKDYRNowmVBGetAYEK8jC3NFCtHcl88/s200/65240659_10214988070843155_2854078293009760256_n+%25281%2529.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We've been bikin'</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitRrtPT8lhDQW9p2yTsHOp-GvNhW_Rexi_Nae2QxgoP8rHH7ct6W8wXFCzx_qv8_n2mDc6mWSjkrhG3XcBOSEfPckbEm0lgyMm7sLzg-4zz6CS8drS60pWYUQn8WdR6eVR9JuirU5AQks/s1600/67561436_10215139268302997_8984283834690306048_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitRrtPT8lhDQW9p2yTsHOp-GvNhW_Rexi_Nae2QxgoP8rHH7ct6W8wXFCzx_qv8_n2mDc6mWSjkrhG3XcBOSEfPckbEm0lgyMm7sLzg-4zz6CS8drS60pWYUQn8WdR6eVR9JuirU5AQks/s200/67561436_10215139268302997_8984283834690306048_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We've been runnin'</td></tr>
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<br />Anyway, you can probably see where this is going.... I was toying with the idea of doing a triathlon at this point. Alfredo had done several within the past 5 years and I never thought I'd be able to do it because I was terrified of the bike. So I was thinking maybe I'll go for a sprint. I was too scared to sign up, though. I was thinking about trying the High Point Sprint, which is a little over an hour away from us, and it was going to be far enough out (it is coming up on August 10) so I could train for it.<br />
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But Alfredo had other plans for me. Back in June, I was surprised by how my training had taken off. I was able to complete more than enough swimming, biking, and running, and I was doing bricks and everything. I felt ready for a sprint already?!?! So SURPRISE! As an early anniversary present (our anniversary is August 14) he signed me up for a sprint scheduled for July 20- the New Jersey State Triathlon. And he just signed ME up. Even though he wanted to sign himself up too, he decided to let me have this race for myself. And HE was MY Sherpa again for once.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg56Rd6JYQeusee3lqikys2-tjR3avnYZci-kYa-BTBDHIAjwLuxO0UsydOMrWiCMAyF-k55jQ0HU8eLre7Cn5URiEpbEdsXuof6PKMjpEEQRfDtzDj7rCZ-S6of99JZTvKqRis9kbSKC8/s1600/2019-07-17_21-42-02_460.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg56Rd6JYQeusee3lqikys2-tjR3avnYZci-kYa-BTBDHIAjwLuxO0UsydOMrWiCMAyF-k55jQ0HU8eLre7Cn5URiEpbEdsXuof6PKMjpEEQRfDtzDj7rCZ-S6of99JZTvKqRis9kbSKC8/s320/2019-07-17_21-42-02_460.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhua_4ZSCV6vCE7nqMldoJsFQuhWiXwsK2ZVJbM22G95ADQBXue0_ap_8EeLVU_kCnf3Eo27-H26mcSRI1PlJ_rsZDE6QHE6YG3sP0f1jGxX6TMzdHGQvn5qGY3V2aqKWlrBpFRyIFfaTo/s1600/logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="209" data-original-width="454" height="91" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhua_4ZSCV6vCE7nqMldoJsFQuhWiXwsK2ZVJbM22G95ADQBXue0_ap_8EeLVU_kCnf3Eo27-H26mcSRI1PlJ_rsZDE6QHE6YG3sP0f1jGxX6TMzdHGQvn5qGY3V2aqKWlrBpFRyIFfaTo/s200/logo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Race day has come and gone now at this point, but I'm finally sitting down to type it all up. We traveled to New Jersey the Friday before the race on Saturday. We got there with plenty of time to pick up my packet and walk through transition and see a little bit of the course. I'm glad I was able to do that, because I was really nervous about my transitions. I felt ready in each area, just not so much the transitions. I got a feel for the course and I knew what to expect. Oh, and by the way this was when the entire east coast of the United States was having a heat wave. So unfortunately, they did announce that they were cutting the distance, but it was better than the races being canceled. For the sprint, the swim and the bike were the same, but the run was cut down from a 5K to 2 miles. This way, the hope was that everyone will be done before it gets dangerously hot.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFH3uaYRjdxbimcR6MLayjF2dXo_OpdfB1DJJzlAWuJurC-PzSywKJbqei9XOlM97jtSfPON8qDlBN4EtI8FjCyNxoE2Z7X4sVWybv8cRWTo9tdk4q4wOK0BBXWaLXkl9gI7e2diHYHo/s1600/2019-07-21_18-44-01_476.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1187" data-original-width="1186" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFH3uaYRjdxbimcR6MLayjF2dXo_OpdfB1DJJzlAWuJurC-PzSywKJbqei9XOlM97jtSfPON8qDlBN4EtI8FjCyNxoE2Z7X4sVWybv8cRWTo9tdk4q4wOK0BBXWaLXkl9gI7e2diHYHo/s320/2019-07-21_18-44-01_476.jpeg" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Found my transition area! Number 795!</td></tr>
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I woke up on Saturday morning and it was already like 80 degrees, no joke. I set up my transition area, and I was feeling prepared. I made my way to the swim start, and I was able to watch the other waves start at 7:30. I didn't start until 8. I took off in the swim, and I was thankful that I had done an open water practice swim FOR SURE. Other swimmers were out there panicking, and I can totally see why. I couldn't see anything, and I kept getting kicked. But after a couple hundred meters, it wasn't so bad. My Garmin map of the swim looks like I was having some issues though....</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD_vlkOdVLzF_1IkKy9WV7GheNveT5ymYIDCoiCeyoOIGuOexdj609Vjk6CSg82TYZcsqYJneeJdfXuAsnyVhUx1Ju5ncAOvsYp0xu8fPzVXr3eIVM3AfnjM5IhszNKj8zxNqIn2v5qk8/s1600/2019-07-20_08-02-40_000.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD_vlkOdVLzF_1IkKy9WV7GheNveT5ymYIDCoiCeyoOIGuOexdj609Vjk6CSg82TYZcsqYJneeJdfXuAsnyVhUx1Ju5ncAOvsYp0xu8fPzVXr3eIVM3AfnjM5IhszNKj8zxNqIn2v5qk8/s320/2019-07-20_08-02-40_000.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Preparing to swim!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxh98FMOdXw10m7z3XpwXWVvlloM4NAmdZmThgOay6ZASXY_u9AENxzjev_VdBkMVnC2egZaKHgy_Nvr419MaF56kIucl2UVfLTkGUWe9bNbN39oQVBj0jAwHKb4UbrX-MLnkQvZ3PucY/s1600/2019-08-04_12-52-57_000.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxh98FMOdXw10m7z3XpwXWVvlloM4NAmdZmThgOay6ZASXY_u9AENxzjev_VdBkMVnC2egZaKHgy_Nvr419MaF56kIucl2UVfLTkGUWe9bNbN39oQVBj0jAwHKb4UbrX-MLnkQvZ3PucY/s320/2019-08-04_12-52-57_000.png" width="177" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is supposed to be a perfect rectangle....</td></tr>
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Anyway, then I came out of the water feeling good. I found my bike in transition easy peasy because I had practiced it the day before. I took off goggles and swim cap, put on helmet and bike shoes, and away I went! I was really happy with my transition, but the distance from the transition area to the mount line was longer than I expected so I was ready to just get on my bike. I was nervous about that too because I get anxious when people are watching me and I have a hard time getting started on my bike. I had a minor freak out trying to get on my bike, but then once I got started, I was off! The bike course was flat and fast like the website said, so I was really glad. I was able to hold my own, and I even managed to average 16 mph! That was my fastest average ever! I came back in, dismounted at the line, then took the long walk back to transition. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt7H40uAN_HCllOEo0Ue1XecenvtGnFgzogE2Aero7MhW09R8nkCnMCQiuqMutDGwf_pwTsjIhhL9_YQKwsgL5XnD4YJPDMEsfDXs0jMgjNGozm4yJ0FcM7QAygxP4_TzEBcQi8FPZ0lI/s1600/2019-07-21_18-44-10_095.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="966" data-original-width="965" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt7H40uAN_HCllOEo0Ue1XecenvtGnFgzogE2Aero7MhW09R8nkCnMCQiuqMutDGwf_pwTsjIhhL9_YQKwsgL5XnD4YJPDMEsfDXs0jMgjNGozm4yJ0FcM7QAygxP4_TzEBcQi8FPZ0lI/s320/2019-07-21_18-44-10_095.jpeg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ridin dirty</td></tr>
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Helmet off, change shoes, hat and race belt on, and I was out like a flash. A slow, sweaty, awkward flash. I was excited about the run, since that's where I'm most comfortable. I took off waaaaaaaaaaaay too fast, but then I managed to hold on pretty good. I was able to pass several people who were probably from the New Jersey area or further north, because they weren't used to this weather. But at this point it was close to 90 degrees, and that's what we'd been dealing with in southern VA for the past 2 months already... ew. It was a quick 2 miles, and then I came through the finishing chute.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-aYpdzB0lw0gOtLLcbrR7Sawh7Im5HM_OExHl6tIf7gYtjNPGUDk5FY3eErJIJGhHuSi-yCSVt5vAlv1Cl8h4tO1DNGWjVvq2tL6w8MbL8xtKHf4zEgmWHmZrkxtLRpHjTzv0KK1OgM/s1600/2019-07-21_18-44-12_526+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="991" data-original-width="991" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-aYpdzB0lw0gOtLLcbrR7Sawh7Im5HM_OExHl6tIf7gYtjNPGUDk5FY3eErJIJGhHuSi-yCSVt5vAlv1Cl8h4tO1DNGWjVvq2tL6w8MbL8xtKHf4zEgmWHmZrkxtLRpHjTzv0KK1OgM/s320/2019-07-21_18-44-12_526+%25281%2529.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the risk of sounding narcissistic I love this picture of myself.</td></tr>
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Finish line pictures and videos ALWAYS give me goosebumps, or make me cry, or both. It's always emotional to watch someone cross a finish line. But let me tell you what, nothing compares to doing it yourself. The race announcer called out my name (he even said my last name correctly!) and he added that it was my first triathlon and everyone was just cheering so loud I 'bout near lost my mind. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM37EauW1-bYtY_7n7PHIC1hMuDJ-Pkz7h0qSYGdQrsS7kzmQNv9jW-ivxG_2HuFtbak-Kzg_QTCEznKGH3embxRf_2vbWcffNrsgDp2mmY74boE1f1UwYIPeb29rNpl-n91HfaDV5VrU/s1600/2019-07-21_18-44-17_845.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1266" data-original-width="1266" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM37EauW1-bYtY_7n7PHIC1hMuDJ-Pkz7h0qSYGdQrsS7kzmQNv9jW-ivxG_2HuFtbak-Kzg_QTCEznKGH3embxRf_2vbWcffNrsgDp2mmY74boE1f1UwYIPeb29rNpl-n91HfaDV5VrU/s320/2019-07-21_18-44-17_845.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finisher!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRYuHt0d1_0G1twLhR46g-s_x_L9js3gWoykCrrkE4WuP1Dg7trlQ9SEZPvEpTjE9kepZ1wolhQ4YiFOMC0lgJf6hozsCqMAo_1YcjNCSqiOYqWomdtUFxdpF4YaF87S05JLMw3LooWY/s1600/2019-07-20_19-19-57_000.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRYuHt0d1_0G1twLhR46g-s_x_L9js3gWoykCrrkE4WuP1Dg7trlQ9SEZPvEpTjE9kepZ1wolhQ4YiFOMC0lgJf6hozsCqMAo_1YcjNCSqiOYqWomdtUFxdpF4YaF87S05JLMw3LooWY/s320/2019-07-20_19-19-57_000.png" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Results</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_JctpR5OqzFGmCZosmzjPHvZZXskMgdJTEIKqpgFtplgpoE-mvKyGGdZdjcaHtp0IMq04MF5-NBgzXql-ntstqa6xYgtHMOmOEbzITGQJKAD3dmTkASzUFD5GGeOxMniG5Ss3zk1FHs/s1600/2019-07-20_19-20-01_000.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="927" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_JctpR5OqzFGmCZosmzjPHvZZXskMgdJTEIKqpgFtplgpoE-mvKyGGdZdjcaHtp0IMq04MF5-NBgzXql-ntstqa6xYgtHMOmOEbzITGQJKAD3dmTkASzUFD5GGeOxMniG5Ss3zk1FHs/s320/2019-07-20_19-20-01_000.png" width="258" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Results</td></tr>
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Final reflections: I had a blast doing my first triathlon. I was able to finish the swim, the bike, and the run with confidence. My transitions weren't as terrible as I thought. And most importantly: I figured out which <a href="http://rubyslube.com/">anti-chafing solution </a>would be best for an event like this. No chafing! Oh, and I was concerned about my hair holding up going from swim cap to a bike helmet to a hat during the run. I French braided it and it held up too. All in all, I would say this was a great success. And now I'm still swimming and biking in addition to my running.... So maybe, just maybe, I'll want to do something a little longer...?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2w7d9iikO-SsKrw1gtv7-rfhoPPy1l0aGjb-WUvKTpE_yW8TD-u_aP7J3cx0rW__EH-bU8lJX4Sh22GHWDpPI33uzDNIPX97uYvGZV2G5prXk684epX-QD3qZTqfZ4jzXyi9m8skty7M/s1600/2019-07-22_19-41-51_715.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1598" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2w7d9iikO-SsKrw1gtv7-rfhoPPy1l0aGjb-WUvKTpE_yW8TD-u_aP7J3cx0rW__EH-bU8lJX4Sh22GHWDpPI33uzDNIPX97uYvGZV2G5prXk684epX-QD3qZTqfZ4jzXyi9m8skty7M/s320/2019-07-22_19-41-51_715.jpeg" width="319" /></a></div>
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After the triathlon, we stayed and explored New Jersey and New York city too. It was such a fun little weekend getaway!</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil4fwzNePqW2bOi9XKJpEL0Vwk3Xg0RpC-cykLAtR-hXY2uNIYZ9QYuRpYSYnMST80OXz52SOH7kjoKSOTordINBburFohemTIFF66FI22R12eX9nx_yrmHcFFgn9bWrZ7YTipmeQoIdM/s1600/2019-07-21_10-03-07_744.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil4fwzNePqW2bOi9XKJpEL0Vwk3Xg0RpC-cykLAtR-hXY2uNIYZ9QYuRpYSYnMST80OXz52SOH7kjoKSOTordINBburFohemTIFF66FI22R12eX9nx_yrmHcFFgn9bWrZ7YTipmeQoIdM/s320/2019-07-21_10-03-07_744.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just one of the many pictures we took in NYC</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br />
Oh yeah, Alfredo has been training hard and putting in a lot of speedwork to do the Martinsville Mile, coming up on August 17. He's excited to see how he can do then! As for what else is coming up, we don't have anything set in stone yet, but we have a few ideas.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ruPQsq8PS1meEWPz2fUrjKtVxq7t02wAP0Nfbfqzgb-nSWolh_U0Ld4w1WTn7q3oUIYkEAdAnfm8PoiGQYTo7Egfpl0dBViNBZCmT8q0diRyIbA2lXRIG0ECuFdX5wy_7Ccj0lhVslw/s1600/2019-07-18_21-12-58_474.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1432" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ruPQsq8PS1meEWPz2fUrjKtVxq7t02wAP0Nfbfqzgb-nSWolh_U0Ld4w1WTn7q3oUIYkEAdAnfm8PoiGQYTo7Egfpl0dBViNBZCmT8q0diRyIbA2lXRIG0ECuFdX5wy_7Ccj0lhVslw/s320/2019-07-18_21-12-58_474.jpeg" width="286" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, and Fat Harry helped me practice my transition set up <br />
before the NJ tri. I owe my success to her.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-30163042996504192282019-05-05T13:11:00.000-04:002019-05-05T13:20:56.536-04:00Blog Check, Blog Check 1-2, 1-2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Hey
hey hey, where y'all been? </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Wait,
you guys have been here this whole time? It's us that disappeared?
About that.... YIKES. Well guess what? </span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />Weeeeee're
baaaaaaaack!</span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />And
now, I am challenging us to update you on all the crazy things that
have happened since our last post that was on June 21, 2018. The kicker
will be- I challenge us to post one picture with a one-sentence caption
about each event/day in a visual timeline-like format for your
viewing pleasure. Ready? Here we go!</span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><b>JULY</b></u></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF35WudGluf3rJfIG756n6lMBsmIfUNT91DDLxT-cO9veM34fTyDrlEgCGtcrG33zqpofmDKxb_8Bc-QmFWNbKGdc0W_D9cz4y5RjZ1_P9wZKBnoyApQGOusItvfW8l_yxHpKcQJcLTo/s1600/36880752_10212697100010316_8505158105149997056_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: large; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF35WudGluf3rJfIG756n6lMBsmIfUNT91DDLxT-cO9veM34fTyDrlEgCGtcrG33zqpofmDKxb_8Bc-QmFWNbKGdc0W_D9cz4y5RjZ1_P9wZKBnoyApQGOusItvfW8l_yxHpKcQJcLTo/s320/36880752_10212697100010316_8505158105149997056_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">7/9/18: A's 12-week Ironman training plan kicked off.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEnuEeqsAvL-ONvclleX7Bf3HjsLkzm0iUdwF41a-mGvXjM6yDZnhIr8C2DR0Yc46Bi4REZskLLDGboF55OpdLDoU2QckQw1H_hFOHKrc9FVfqkR6UJVv_skZJkYgeXT-CW9pbMtirIGE/s1600/IMG_5331.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEnuEeqsAvL-ONvclleX7Bf3HjsLkzm0iUdwF41a-mGvXjM6yDZnhIr8C2DR0Yc46Bi4REZskLLDGboF55OpdLDoU2QckQw1H_hFOHKrc9FVfqkR6UJVv_skZJkYgeXT-CW9pbMtirIGE/s320/IMG_5331.JPG" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">7/12/18: A&E run DC on an unofficial running tour around <br />
the city after jamming out to a TSwift concert!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u>AUGUST</u></b></span></span></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmYIfvK3TtwghYeg_kwPdccQ9sx0yxysWJnCNoHIig-XkDYh_OmkuCgCJShwJekfmG7sAArFemILRYOAtJpXyS0m_LFrCIdEiHDb227oMo8rRlQ3rvXOPMJFOiiJoSN01w9NvubskyFWI/s1600/IMG_5330.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="539" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmYIfvK3TtwghYeg_kwPdccQ9sx0yxysWJnCNoHIig-XkDYh_OmkuCgCJShwJekfmG7sAArFemILRYOAtJpXyS0m_LFrCIdEiHDb227oMo8rRlQ3rvXOPMJFOiiJoSN01w9NvubskyFWI/s320/IMG_5330.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">8/14/18: A&E celebrate 8 years of mawwiage!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>SEPTEMBER</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABWLMhModxmMkLuPLMnP0e80SONYBTlLNE2eJj5DCCpZOZI47q1-T8kieQpstJzaj_JgIGVLdhQ630CDlSMXDNXaNhINUHS_RXQF91su7IayA1G292L0oRS8l2kgz2u-h-pW7Ir6BLAY/s1600/IMG_5328.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABWLMhModxmMkLuPLMnP0e80SONYBTlLNE2eJj5DCCpZOZI47q1-T8kieQpstJzaj_JgIGVLdhQ630CDlSMXDNXaNhINUHS_RXQF91su7IayA1G292L0oRS8l2kgz2u-h-pW7Ir6BLAY/s320/IMG_5328.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">9/8/18: A completes the Claytor Lake Sprint Triathlon<br />
to get <span style="font-size: 12.8px;">his tri-legs ready for </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Ironman Maryland coming up.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZjgfDrN_ZI7mldCuaxpzFh-cBbIo1EvAgnBHiJE_8rdb2g875bnoYJSd7JIpiIQJIvsqEMAz8OUrLXDObFj3jQa-TCPNQRrovRkLzS9bOipqxqDKyJWDPrJo1WCgp6uNDdT8Ov9LFjlc/s1600/IMG_5325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZjgfDrN_ZI7mldCuaxpzFh-cBbIo1EvAgnBHiJE_8rdb2g875bnoYJSd7JIpiIQJIvsqEMAz8OUrLXDObFj3jQa-TCPNQRrovRkLzS9bOipqxqDKyJWDPrJo1WCgp6uNDdT8Ov9LFjlc/s320/IMG_5325.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">9/27/18: A's big weekend is finally here as we travel to Maryland for his full Ironman.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIHYY6JYLtojMxuAtfXnN2Awnw5bRaZam2hOtnRj1ClXamJaVodp-m9t8hr7dBRsfEQH_BHeX5peMgT1YrUIa8TfdxPsGk1kt7mXp6M1JP4aOQqRBeEFLnl55PARAqPRpavH_cHopV7V4/s1600/IMG_5327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="701" data-original-width="701" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIHYY6JYLtojMxuAtfXnN2Awnw5bRaZam2hOtnRj1ClXamJaVodp-m9t8hr7dBRsfEQH_BHeX5peMgT1YrUIa8TfdxPsGk1kt7mXp6M1JP4aOQqRBeEFLnl55PARAqPRpavH_cHopV7V4/s320/IMG_5327.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">9/29/18: A celebrates his well-deserved Ironman finish, <br />
with the flag of his new country of citizenship <br />
draped over his shoulders (he got his citizenship earlier this month).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>OCTOBER</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhALiH_z0C6OsP7rK9RUln4-t6Md1ewjK346fZ2wwJ7afUJkQyk5GamI4HyRgNEcS_lpB70yjsae140wfv51EZukTqh_K5hQBEciMvhDJ4rIo7Iprduv0O1y7FENzMewq4JOnQXUxQr4zY/s1600/43278471_10213281996472362_786378971112538112_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="959" data-original-width="960" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhALiH_z0C6OsP7rK9RUln4-t6Md1ewjK346fZ2wwJ7afUJkQyk5GamI4HyRgNEcS_lpB70yjsae140wfv51EZukTqh_K5hQBEciMvhDJ4rIo7Iprduv0O1y7FENzMewq4JOnQXUxQr4zY/s320/43278471_10213281996472362_786378971112538112_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">10/6/18: A makes his Podcast debut with the <br />
<a href="http://likeabigfoot.com/podcast/like-a-bigfoot-podcast-114-alfredo-garcia-huerta-how-to-train-for-and-complete-your-first-ironman/" target="_blank">Like A Bigfoot Podcast</a> about his Ironman experience.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhm6yDMREoNqvpgbGTKn6uKL77nsOXaQHuAt4O-hfyEY09J-lWNq0xNlntOxc-H_R5aIBbmaO9Ne6J7aTGi9oy4Li53kuCo-bEO-SHMLtQ_PuCP_sNc0zupYCntuvIYX-rOq-mNI4VZ1Q/s1600/IMG_3563.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhm6yDMREoNqvpgbGTKn6uKL77nsOXaQHuAt4O-hfyEY09J-lWNq0xNlntOxc-H_R5aIBbmaO9Ne6J7aTGi9oy4Li53kuCo-bEO-SHMLtQ_PuCP_sNc0zupYCntuvIYX-rOq-mNI4VZ1Q/s320/IMG_3563.JPG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">10/31/18: After several months of struggling <br />
with running-related motivation for <br />
her upcoming marathon scheduled for 11/10/18, <br />
E rolls her ankle on a run and <br />
damages her peroneal tendons (self-diagnosed).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>NOVEMBER</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0EImoS20caKXJwyYvE7Ykxb_J2zPDAymAeEhwbJX3KAWbBjCmDKpxD005quAYsWm1RybhA-sK3MZ-GenuHhaPTOOLPIYIo7apIt15Xo1n4htVkqyHp4TkuZcfc9DYydGXK5_SKpaB3A/s1600/IMG_5326.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="950" data-original-width="939" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0EImoS20caKXJwyYvE7Ykxb_J2zPDAymAeEhwbJX3KAWbBjCmDKpxD005quAYsWm1RybhA-sK3MZ-GenuHhaPTOOLPIYIo7apIt15Xo1n4htVkqyHp4TkuZcfc9DYydGXK5_SKpaB3A/s320/IMG_5326.JPG" width="316" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">11/10/18: A finishes Richmond with a PR of 2:56:44, <br />
and E barely crosses the finish line in one piece.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1SDTs-4eHd2epGCR9EWcg-VGIV3V1RkMXY9MCQ083lSFXCcMQAP04Q5OifaZOtekuaT3I7FbIndPmcRc6ZGPOuZXDS3S7CA5mk1Qmy8SEnSIg-ZYGZebccGbugZjm-htGdGapYVrB3yc/s1600/cr24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1SDTs-4eHd2epGCR9EWcg-VGIV3V1RkMXY9MCQ083lSFXCcMQAP04Q5OifaZOtekuaT3I7FbIndPmcRc6ZGPOuZXDS3S7CA5mk1Qmy8SEnSIg-ZYGZebccGbugZjm-htGdGapYVrB3yc/s320/cr24.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">11/18/18: A finishes the Crooked Road 24 Hour Ultra<br />
for his first 100 mile race!!!!!!!!!!!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
</div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>DECEMBER</u></b></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnm8bVdkWeGwPQTQB13dZro_cttGpecdyMLdGvSkZnNg0_Iuru-5-GWS1eRz6J7TQ1mpzcK82qb99BUGUoo95CwhVqET6nSPGpjsD6CVRO6jGDeibr7GyRABheEaDG4_wlWrfj1vXLwM/s1600/j4j.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: 12.8px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="851" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnm8bVdkWeGwPQTQB13dZro_cttGpecdyMLdGvSkZnNg0_Iuru-5-GWS1eRz6J7TQ1mpzcK82qb99BUGUoo95CwhVqET6nSPGpjsD6CVRO6jGDeibr7GyRABheEaDG4_wlWrfj1vXLwM/s320/j4j.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">12/24/18: Jingle for Jesus 5K group run has its <br />
highest participation yet with around 50 people!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br />
<b style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-large;"><u>JANUARY</u></b></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzW9U8qVJUR1SYO1Nt63bT0uW5k6eg0WBJmrmb13xV3xKyVyFnzm3itA-DXFY9bjGQJky3ILMEi1idby3dLs02KyYw5VpstSQf_ZJt1s9V7ZmJesBsyXOJSdvc8EVmYPumxelHA60lWJE/s1600/IMG_3579.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1544" data-original-width="1160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzW9U8qVJUR1SYO1Nt63bT0uW5k6eg0WBJmrmb13xV3xKyVyFnzm3itA-DXFY9bjGQJky3ILMEi1idby3dLs02KyYw5VpstSQf_ZJt1s9V7ZmJesBsyXOJSdvc8EVmYPumxelHA60lWJE/s320/IMG_3579.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A starts Blue Ridge Marathon/Boston Marathon training, <br />
while E tries to walk/run because...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghS0n8xbXKYpw8n60-erU8HTWfIrS4DxfXb239b40TDfoSq_tDp07RPq_BXMPiL6opat0BZVojLXg8XxanxZnEdgK07eLwyRwlwt4-KEV4P64eQeyoVhuG_hXCdZyKyYuEO_hTfzKQJ2g/s1600/IMG_3603.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1544" data-original-width="1160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghS0n8xbXKYpw8n60-erU8HTWfIrS4DxfXb239b40TDfoSq_tDp07RPq_BXMPiL6opat0BZVojLXg8XxanxZnEdgK07eLwyRwlwt4-KEV4P64eQeyoVhuG_hXCdZyKyYuEO_hTfzKQJ2g/s320/IMG_3603.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...E is still hurt.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>FEBRUARY</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj0tKDu3EZs8mmZnw2MWaBEJFK8aFDQEO-1j4LelNG-WPwkdk7Q2myLvZl8gcGvk0Rd0iFiFYmYXkVmNmb8fkvczE0pzXo5evZScngviWNMROzYxtSWAQ77F2hLe_B4Of5zZmB1iXqGlU/s1600/IMG_3950.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1285" data-original-width="1285" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj0tKDu3EZs8mmZnw2MWaBEJFK8aFDQEO-1j4LelNG-WPwkdk7Q2myLvZl8gcGvk0Rd0iFiFYmYXkVmNmb8fkvczE0pzXo5evZScngviWNMROzYxtSWAQ77F2hLe_B4Of5zZmB1iXqGlU/s320/IMG_3950.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A continues Blue Ridge Marathon/Boston Marathon training.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ReG4FJVsFCVc-WMtf5YMi_U4RlJ4T7dDsxb6dAcIjkGkbT_er973RCxFxZkWwbhxqMHuXLae_9NIUtFQ1IrASETyXppd5rVViyyVE_qzfu1M7XEevQvgSH47KCuokjPY1aPdZrHC_Eg/s1600/IMG_6495.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="527" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ReG4FJVsFCVc-WMtf5YMi_U4RlJ4T7dDsxb6dAcIjkGkbT_er973RCxFxZkWwbhxqMHuXLae_9NIUtFQ1IrASETyXppd5rVViyyVE_qzfu1M7XEevQvgSH47KCuokjPY1aPdZrHC_Eg/s320/IMG_6495.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E is still hurt, but getting better and she got new shoes for her bday!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>MARCH</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxmYKHzdiJ-0VFwA00xbJJnSiSIntCbMnaKsQqe-WtpZGWZ8VimlzGWgYkuT5DKT6fSkEZ0CgPwmxykJcP8UbMAR4vuzAvtwJAJnP_VpDAYC8Z-yQc0IvwIIF5wZTkMReIekZMUm1bho/s1600/mhm2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxmYKHzdiJ-0VFwA00xbJJnSiSIntCbMnaKsQqe-WtpZGWZ8VimlzGWgYkuT5DKT6fSkEZ0CgPwmxykJcP8UbMAR4vuzAvtwJAJnP_VpDAYC8Z-yQc0IvwIIF5wZTkMReIekZMUm1bho/s320/mhm2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3/30/19: A completes the Martinsville Half Marathon <br />
for the 9th year in a row.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<b style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-large;"><u>APRIL</u></b></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXSiVC716aA5E0b7yRoOEYFqI6b7G4aFgl5c2T6SXiA-2F5oVZkpoLI84EJj9wvMm7pNz0n1ooJSn8SGxGcguInnyQ7iJfK_NqXtWGq7S8_W8QQRaKfJIV3DXRApFyi-N6L_0NeNqKRJA/s1600/57602197930__B9ADD772-46AD-4D6E-95C3-A1306B1E8A94.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1160" data-original-width="1160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXSiVC716aA5E0b7yRoOEYFqI6b7G4aFgl5c2T6SXiA-2F5oVZkpoLI84EJj9wvMm7pNz0n1ooJSn8SGxGcguInnyQ7iJfK_NqXtWGq7S8_W8QQRaKfJIV3DXRApFyi-N6L_0NeNqKRJA/s320/57602197930__B9ADD772-46AD-4D6E-95C3-A1306B1E8A94.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4/2/19: E rolls her ankle and gets hurt again!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFC2rvB3bU83dxBVMR4dowMR2m4YsKVS5GhkuWNGBmGugduv9f7-cZFDKJmm9Go6FxaA0clJDRBCdvTlJ85hiMpIaMoOUnEXTN23LaHCkC-oxuqjR2BpVDN7rWKuaXsCv-NBdy80Ymdw/s1600/brm2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFC2rvB3bU83dxBVMR4dowMR2m4YsKVS5GhkuWNGBmGugduv9f7-cZFDKJmm9Go6FxaA0clJDRBCdvTlJ85hiMpIaMoOUnEXTN23LaHCkC-oxuqjR2BpVDN7rWKuaXsCv-NBdy80Ymdw/s320/brm2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4/13/19: A places 2nd overall in the Blue Ridge Marathon<br />
in the 10th annual running.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWOymE-JxfVvrSEkXvoggcWFK_5NVeT3w8hv5c4sFILCUL7728ytFD9RrzxOoarbM0V76EmaqXI2n9X0ty7Txc2pmRqBz4fBtDd0-tOc1knDuy6oI0y5xbBXXUTFYXwcRxIRUg2gOyb_o/s1600/boston2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: 12.8px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWOymE-JxfVvrSEkXvoggcWFK_5NVeT3w8hv5c4sFILCUL7728ytFD9RrzxOoarbM0V76EmaqXI2n9X0ty7Txc2pmRqBz4fBtDd0-tOc1knDuy6oI0y5xbBXXUTFYXwcRxIRUg2gOyb_o/s320/boston2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A&E go to Boston and fun was had.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDv7zFNOMArC4GBtzJNLroQrf5GOtjbG56nkqoXR3WNBs214xecnkuuGGVzPruygeLxwunlWxnLblxTigREUTiCJYcnwxinadznEmnlzHfAGnd8hqfBbK6obgaW6f6DfgER_bMUSuMWso/s1600/IMG_6397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="986" data-original-width="986" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDv7zFNOMArC4GBtzJNLroQrf5GOtjbG56nkqoXR3WNBs214xecnkuuGGVzPruygeLxwunlWxnLblxTigREUTiCJYcnwxinadznEmnlzHfAGnd8hqfBbK6obgaW6f6DfgER_bMUSuMWso/s320/IMG_6397.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E gets a bike!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>MAY</u></b></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA95C8EauVLe8RlHge_7LeVmwXGFazxLMkUiWwX2Pb4P7ILTCXRxojHOvy3g3Q1QTHFnYN1hwwaBxlfxSw-34WgXR2UGiOqgQpHugV18GSQ6tIfuDbdtWsMSnv8yueZ7Fe8W26F5irZQc/s1600/IMG_6463.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1160" data-original-width="1160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA95C8EauVLe8RlHge_7LeVmwXGFazxLMkUiWwX2Pb4P7ILTCXRxojHOvy3g3Q1QTHFnYN1hwwaBxlfxSw-34WgXR2UGiOqgQpHugV18GSQ6tIfuDbdtWsMSnv8yueZ7Fe8W26F5irZQc/s320/IMG_6463.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">5/5/19: E decides 10 months is too long to go without a blog post <br />
and finally sits down to complete this.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>WHAT'S NEXT?</u></b></span><br />
<div>
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now some spoilers of what may be coming up for us...</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBO6z1xnVgowyJfRu7AYGHfIFDYj6rgUm4Lx_3lcs6dEKK84xy4vQygDZikr7mN3QrxaLCkNa_MXQhMVGYdNU2gdGxkRb_13VX7jwyFT9YnYwRkg7NUtRp73HczbMyavtsQC6_aWek1aA/s1600/peachjam.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="357" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBO6z1xnVgowyJfRu7AYGHfIFDYj6rgUm4Lx_3lcs6dEKK84xy4vQygDZikr7mN3QrxaLCkNa_MXQhMVGYdNU2gdGxkRb_13VX7jwyFT9YnYwRkg7NUtRp73HczbMyavtsQC6_aWek1aA/s320/peachjam.PNG" width="284" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXo9pk6BdQwsBpDQ7bohGn6IRoZFq62dz_ZFE4QGjEuhgcB8m_4Wl7Extvq3C5hyphenhyphenNj51JapPTodTewRPp432BXonqOSA-IyZs7d2rQcEkcPjmN0gIfoXj8emZa636cJQLQG3n39malFsg/s1600/martinsville+mile.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXo9pk6BdQwsBpDQ7bohGn6IRoZFq62dz_ZFE4QGjEuhgcB8m_4Wl7Extvq3C5hyphenhyphenNj51JapPTodTewRPp432BXonqOSA-IyZs7d2rQcEkcPjmN0gIfoXj8emZa636cJQLQG3n39malFsg/s320/martinsville+mile.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-84005913377282206872018-06-21T21:08:00.001-04:002018-06-21T21:11:26.851-04:00Summertime Catch-up PostIt's happening again, friends. We have fallen behind on our blogging, but our running just keeps on going and going! So here we are, this summer has already been incredibly eventful, and we are falling behind on our posting. Because of this, we have decided to do a quick and dirty recap of all of the happenings thus far in the summer season. Buckle up, because we're going to go fast!<br />
<br />
<br />
<u>Georgia Peach Jam Half Marathon</u><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Tzw_3zKZWKcAKA8ypzy1mTBTdmX7_Ij_cDjfPIx90Om89RmFw0MvkX04ITveubkA3ESuh-ubC-WjIGFOCK_SvbEBtUPvYbnsNh7j_TIn-9HNSzxIiOO6Q_Vs1yhEbE9Nya7QACGbCs/s1600/peachjam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="250" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Tzw_3zKZWKcAKA8ypzy1mTBTdmX7_Ij_cDjfPIx90Om89RmFw0MvkX04ITveubkA3ESuh-ubC-WjIGFOCK_SvbEBtUPvYbnsNh7j_TIn-9HNSzxIiOO6Q_Vs1yhEbE9Nya7QACGbCs/s200/peachjam.jpg" width="200" /></a>We went to Georgia to visit my family for Memorial Day as we frequently do, and I stumbled upon the Georgia Peach Jam Half Marathon that was actually on Memorial Day. It was close by to where we were staying, and it was flat and fast and perfect! Alfredo didn't have any major goals besides to finish strong, but I wanted a PR and I wanted it bad! 2:12:33 was the time to beat, but I secretly wanted to go under 2:10, because I managed to hit 2:11 on a training run so I felt like it was totally possible. Fast forward through a rainy, but still somewhat cool race, which turned out to be pretty perfect, we both pushed pretty hard and did indeed finish strong. He finished in 1:25:59 which put him finishing in 3rd place overall! This was a pleasant surprise, as there were some strong competitors out there. I managed to finish in 2:07:14! So I met both of my goals! And I finished in 8th out of 23 in my age group, which was also extremely competitive so I will totally take it. I'm usually comfortably in the middle of the pack, so being closer the front was SUPER EXCITING! Oh and then later that day, I got stung by a scorpion. Crazy right? Anyway... moving on-- NEXT!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXkBfSk-EdeZCadDpqQch7yGbLGL_iJljLWrHIsPCZSUGl1uwzH7eIfUko5cnv5lr0fADWHVttqzmZzSJhxjy4KmwZUUgTg3Gg7za0TLy2INQv2tQoXSzzncEaK14fI2ZEEjVvah6nBg/s1600/2018-05-28+17.16.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXkBfSk-EdeZCadDpqQch7yGbLGL_iJljLWrHIsPCZSUGl1uwzH7eIfUko5cnv5lr0fADWHVttqzmZzSJhxjy4KmwZUUgTg3Gg7za0TLy2INQv2tQoXSzzncEaK14fI2ZEEjVvah6nBg/s320/2018-05-28+17.16.14.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our finish line photo!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit0uhiZzRhw5mJDpofJ1WOPI-9edu1iBWtvDGUQjcLwwrnK42GvfLx5Zep_WnvOdXStsaAa8dXsi-1sCq3GU9cIGLAG1OvUszWNsrDdbEJ8qKJo4pNrIGkVa2jeCYaWi6fR8HVb8NXU9g/s1600/2018-05-28+18.34.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="547" data-original-width="547" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit0uhiZzRhw5mJDpofJ1WOPI-9edu1iBWtvDGUQjcLwwrnK42GvfLx5Zep_WnvOdXStsaAa8dXsi-1sCq3GU9cIGLAG1OvUszWNsrDdbEJ8qKJo4pNrIGkVa2jeCYaWi6fR8HVb8NXU9g/s320/2018-05-28+18.34.57.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My scorpion friend....</td></tr>
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<u><br />Martinsville Speedway Mile</u><br />
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This was such a fun event that both of us did: The Martinsville Speedway Mile. This was an inaugural event in our hometown on a real NASCAR Speedway! Two laps around the "half mile of mayhem" was all we had to do for our first official mile distance road race. We had big goals (his: finish sub 5:15, hers hit a mile PR of sub 7:16). We turned it out and kind of met our goals. Alfredo finished in 4:59 (!!!!!!!!!) and I finished officially in a time of 7:17 and was fairly bummed, but I guess I didn't take the shortest path along the route, and my Garmin said I hit the mile at 7:06. Big difference, so I don't know who to believe. Oh well, there's always another mile! MOVING ON! NEXT!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwrXVvNIXxVDyGdLzQeaPKwsnJP9s8E_f9S_6rckBei6pohr-hE9Mdy4WanF2TgpO7xZd8oy1kZpRiF-FmGav_P4RCpZWWQTi_ERJbO2JMpZ2qjh430hc846PO6P80mZt_09Hwl0yVmsc/s1600/2018-06-02+15.54.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="841" data-original-width="841" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwrXVvNIXxVDyGdLzQeaPKwsnJP9s8E_f9S_6rckBei6pohr-hE9Mdy4WanF2TgpO7xZd8oy1kZpRiF-FmGav_P4RCpZWWQTi_ERJbO2JMpZ2qjh430hc846PO6P80mZt_09Hwl0yVmsc/s320/2018-06-02+15.54.24.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming into the finish line</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtY_H9jN0-kvRx_oJTNlSCS_hGLWBzVXeqYRmZhJfU8KZqnc3unh1xsE2UplYkj9oO19NOewouicNJpCqhs4ZbgL05hy8pNK3SGJ7P9mrZsecqLDQIGWrUS4Yjl-8z9w3X5IdXijFjIdw/s1600/msm.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="471" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtY_H9jN0-kvRx_oJTNlSCS_hGLWBzVXeqYRmZhJfU8KZqnc3unh1xsE2UplYkj9oO19NOewouicNJpCqhs4ZbgL05hy8pNK3SGJ7P9mrZsecqLDQIGWrUS4Yjl-8z9w3X5IdXijFjIdw/s320/msm.JPG" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm #1 ;)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDTlSJwbQ9PCoZGReOMvJT4CuXYHQ__ygp46o-90DidImt0ATm-Jup9o8SQ7tP7pVL1m01RX2UxdtHDGY1w8ciqdm85w54qdsb1vqYpwxUJHEu8KQTNxAcm3wnr-lN3P4LUsOnr5SCQrE/s1600/2018-06-02+11.05.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDTlSJwbQ9PCoZGReOMvJT4CuXYHQ__ygp46o-90DidImt0ATm-Jup9o8SQ7tP7pVL1m01RX2UxdtHDGY1w8ciqdm85w54qdsb1vqYpwxUJHEu8KQTNxAcm3wnr-lN3P4LUsOnr5SCQrE/s320/2018-06-02+11.05.02.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First place age group for both of us!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<u>Jamestown Olympic Distance Triathlon</u><br />
<u><br /></u>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ISMsZr4PA8iUthIH6Mv4t0-Qt0zdMouxFBuJ-Vvyo5qqgrRzP8chKl1VCJKeSWIWsjkDi3wxj2t4Y4XfzRFynt10z9x3CaLqGPi0BN8Jpy4k0yfZRiBraLfi6TFHK5f61rdkqLmVYHw/s1600/Jamestown_Tri_No_Date-with-new-circle-300x172.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="172" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ISMsZr4PA8iUthIH6Mv4t0-Qt0zdMouxFBuJ-Vvyo5qqgrRzP8chKl1VCJKeSWIWsjkDi3wxj2t4Y4XfzRFynt10z9x3CaLqGPi0BN8Jpy4k0yfZRiBraLfi6TFHK5f61rdkqLmVYHw/s1600/Jamestown_Tri_No_Date-with-new-circle-300x172.png" /></a></div>
Alfredo did the Jamestown Olympic Distance Triathlon on June 9th, so a couple of weeks ago at this point. I did not participate, obviously, since I still have the whole fear of bikes thing going on. Anyway, we traveled to Williamsburg/Jamestown that Friday for him to race on Saturday morning. He practiced his transitions the night before, then when he arrived Saturday morning he set up shop in the transition area and headed over to the swim start. The goal for the swim was to survive, and he did with a time of 33:39 for the 1500 m swim. He made his way to the transition area (which was quite a long haul from the swim finish) and quickly completed his swim to bike transition. He took off on the 40K bike course and felt strong. He finished in a time of 1:09:28, which was right on his goal of maintaining 20 mph. He had an even faster bike to run transition of just 58 seconds (!!!!!!) and then took off on his 10K run. His goal was 40 minutes for the run, and you'll never believe what his time was.... 40:00. Like, 40 minutes and no seconds. Exactly his goal. Cray-cray right? This brought him to a total time of 2:26:39, 29th overall, and 2nd place in his age group. ROCK ON! MOVING ON. NEXT!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MOSBIyeULib89DmkvHFCeG20mf2CeQi5UaRVPiEr9r5Bwx3X_UYMNBG86OawGCNvN_0fy9wedgJHv5pNe7gt_zCCrMVYlandWAYl2J6TScOQ5A9ZnRy9RKbnUwO742xgLp7xNhBqip0/s1600/2018-06-09+08.03.39-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MOSBIyeULib89DmkvHFCeG20mf2CeQi5UaRVPiEr9r5Bwx3X_UYMNBG86OawGCNvN_0fy9wedgJHv5pNe7gt_zCCrMVYlandWAYl2J6TScOQ5A9ZnRy9RKbnUwO742xgLp7xNhBqip0/s320/2018-06-09+08.03.39-1.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out of the swim</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9A4eHJC6SwzW664NkIOes8ef1oyhgKPBQotNGS4qMRkh2CuImmFieN_bwS5yFrdHbiptBlkm5uyQ82TCuGYCLIqLG0zRZO-stot64saA7jLM2beNg6nXLlRol_QSJZRNoZlH4-tcI5JU/s1600/2018-06-09+09.15.18-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1287" data-original-width="1287" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9A4eHJC6SwzW664NkIOes8ef1oyhgKPBQotNGS4qMRkh2CuImmFieN_bwS5yFrdHbiptBlkm5uyQ82TCuGYCLIqLG0zRZO-stot64saA7jLM2beNg6nXLlRol_QSJZRNoZlH4-tcI5JU/s320/2018-06-09+09.15.18-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming back from the bike</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXLMRy3rsD0ZWuC___t9TT5DQd7Fo7Kj_XgqItlFSE1niS7tBYJpjvNrGljOuDdAX-3_igvPkjAiNONqAKrRoFxLnCO2qhzoPDVrqFoSKJ4Hi-nfh_JA18ifaSTLyWXvBniwbwqirJoo/s1600/2018-06-09+09.56.18-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1384" data-original-width="1384" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXLMRy3rsD0ZWuC___t9TT5DQd7Fo7Kj_XgqItlFSE1niS7tBYJpjvNrGljOuDdAX-3_igvPkjAiNONqAKrRoFxLnCO2qhzoPDVrqFoSKJ4Hi-nfh_JA18ifaSTLyWXvBniwbwqirJoo/s320/2018-06-09+09.56.18-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finishing the run!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNKOXlnC_meP9yHSP7mZmYWi-_0Nmv2qEwalPpZeOm1rTwCsvizSV2pFKa_6pD-t4TSRJRuBD3RfG0G7InZP7SgfPKp8EbDM7BzE2HzVWP4qse7jlsDAYdfIPD2FsYrwQXDfu04gfETk/s1600/2018-06-09+10.02.26-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNKOXlnC_meP9yHSP7mZmYWi-_0Nmv2qEwalPpZeOm1rTwCsvizSV2pFKa_6pD-t4TSRJRuBD3RfG0G7InZP7SgfPKp8EbDM7BzE2HzVWP4qse7jlsDAYdfIPD2FsYrwQXDfu04gfETk/s320/2018-06-09+10.02.26-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Proud finisher!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpY4Zgpb4fnaC7atHs73HJvwi3e9Be6kW1iR0PH75uIaQPXpWve5UuocTJ5aWAO_NCI43d9V7c2TnUR6-eVqrcCjbI2p8IjTlDbLAwmZkt2j14yA5t9ixWJ735SBFXNGzaQlYrSZdog9U/s1600/2018-06-09+10.04.29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpY4Zgpb4fnaC7atHs73HJvwi3e9Be6kW1iR0PH75uIaQPXpWve5UuocTJ5aWAO_NCI43d9V7c2TnUR6-eVqrcCjbI2p8IjTlDbLAwmZkt2j14yA5t9ixWJ735SBFXNGzaQlYrSZdog9U/s320/2018-06-09+10.04.29.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUHpbqKoTuVjsa6s-Jbdyw0m84rZRDhqq9NbJ6h_O-_y5W78XdBU3JEhKHH7vIirLbbxyolEak-qo7uiJJRcdfu5UrGqes1qZUrsuit3OwEoq9plxNhQ_-2YfVQnr10_5Pt6WY2YTXil8/s1600/2018-06-09+11.35.05-1-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUHpbqKoTuVjsa6s-Jbdyw0m84rZRDhqq9NbJ6h_O-_y5W78XdBU3JEhKHH7vIirLbbxyolEak-qo7uiJJRcdfu5UrGqes1qZUrsuit3OwEoq9plxNhQ_-2YfVQnr10_5Pt6WY2YTXil8/s320/2018-06-09+11.35.05-1-1.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2nd in his age group out of 16</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk_nula7lYNWw19uTGSW_x9aSqo-IlKeBGQStNAHHWsKUrNDv2bcn-qQi-ZUR6jVcsYPwwAU99gVSicedjgoGRIZqAwvb5v6ZylfUNY9OLOCCLD77tWBeqHDMIKbKgdsRjvenOhiJ19A4/s1600/2018-06-16+10.54.44+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="877" data-original-width="746" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk_nula7lYNWw19uTGSW_x9aSqo-IlKeBGQStNAHHWsKUrNDv2bcn-qQi-ZUR6jVcsYPwwAU99gVSicedjgoGRIZqAwvb5v6ZylfUNY9OLOCCLD77tWBeqHDMIKbKgdsRjvenOhiJ19A4/s200/2018-06-16+10.54.44+%25282%2529.jpg" width="170" /></a><u>Run for Justice 5K</u><br />
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I was able to run the Run for Justice 5K just last weekend on June 16. There was a 5K or 10K option, but due to the hot weather and the level of my training, I figured I'd stick with the 5K distance. I was really really hoping for a PR (under 27:30) which I thought I'd be able to do based on my recent mile time trials. But I didn't quite consider that I'm not quite acclimated to the heat. It was a warm, humid morning, and the race didn't start until 9 AM so the sun was in full force by start time. I pushed throughout, but my Garmin lost satellite reception and made me angry and confused, and I kind of just gave up halfway through. I managed to finish in 27:45, so really close to a PR. I was happy to finish 2nd overall female though! That's definitely a bright side! Enough of that, moving on! NEXT!<br />
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<u>#RWrunstreak</u><br />
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It's that time of year again! I am once again participating in the Runner's World Summer Run Streak! (Read about <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/08/rwrunstreak-2017-and-danville-braves-5k.html" target="_blank">last year's streak</a> and<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/07/rwrunstreak-4-on-4th.html" target="_blank"> the year before</a>) It started back on Memorial Day and is going through July 4th. I am doing at least a mile every day, and I am 25 days in and going strong! You can follow my posts about the run streak on my <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ehgarciaa/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>. (I am doing most of my #rwrunstreak posts on my stories.) Alrighty, NEXT!<br />
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Oh wait, what is next? That's it for now, and we don't really have anything immediately on the docket as to what comes next. We are starting to think about our fall season and our big goal races, so stay tuned for that I guess?<br />
<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-40655273790219837322018-05-30T17:14:00.000-04:002018-05-30T17:14:29.527-04:00Blue Ridge Marathon and Half 2018<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtQeAPLUdDpMPNxCVVQmJsCh09U0lYoPx1DBKSdEwABB6_yi7LE1bXkE-y9XyhsvPUPthIVYwm3KuN9kiPa4myj6ZFfaCjbFTxEExzBoSDht_V7qC_Fxnq4XNOcpN-8ISVxwrYZ83ynEY/s1600/e001cd42-5894-4d97-b41b-274560c232dd.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="600" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtQeAPLUdDpMPNxCVVQmJsCh09U0lYoPx1DBKSdEwABB6_yi7LE1bXkE-y9XyhsvPUPthIVYwm3KuN9kiPa4myj6ZFfaCjbFTxEExzBoSDht_V7qC_Fxnq4XNOcpN-8ISVxwrYZ83ynEY/s400/e001cd42-5894-4d97-b41b-274560c232dd.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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OMG YOU GUYS WE ARE TERRIBLE. Or we
have just been really really freakishly busy for the past month. Back
in April on the 21<sup>st</sup> (so legit over a month ago) we
participated in the Blue Ridge Marathon and Half Marathon and WE
NEVER BLOGGED ABOUT IT. Life has been cray cray and mad-stupid busy
and if we weren't actually busy, we were busy recovering from the
busy-ness. Anyway, here we go-- RECAP TIME.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We ventured north to Roanoke, VA for
the expo Friday night to pick up packets. The expo has moved around a
few times, and this year it was in the Patrick Henry Hotel ballroom
area and it was very nice! It was a perfect area for it, and there
was plenty of room for vendors around as well. We are always
impressed that each year the expo seems to grow and improve.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Saturday morning we traveled back to
Roanoke, since it's only an hour away, just in time for the races to
begin bright and early. The half and full marathons (and the 10K)
start at 7:35 AM. We took off, and all races stay on the same course
til they split a couple of miles in. Of course, I didn't see Alfredo
as he started way ahead of me and kept getting further ahead, but I
knew where he was vaguely at least. Since the courses split a little
ways in, this blog post will split at this point as well.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;"><u><b>HIS: FULL MARATHON</b></u></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Alfredo here. I was really excited
about this year's race. I threw myself all-in to my training since January 1
of this year. I used my cross country season last fall as a base
building period, and then starting in the new year, I began my Blue
Ridge specific training plan. I wasn't sure how my long distance
paces would be, and I had the<a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2018/04/2-halves-1-whole-blog-post.html" target="_blank"> Martinsville Half Marathon</a> built in as
a checkpoint race back in March. I was blown away by those results,
so it was a great confidence booster leading up to BRM race day which
was a month later at that point.
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUcyylXVhnCpoaoDCldLs7PFWHbhiBXcpcmj34slbvgpl7j_HP180L8z6D1t5o-zL9l2ZKOlb4j2MZ7bOvkWfwVc4nu0mMqptbD2MQ-tN8c-7aPm8i1gzkR5vYLsVfWKt8ko1hP8C_gxk/s1600/60413769_race_0.9048828858025485.display.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="466" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUcyylXVhnCpoaoDCldLs7PFWHbhiBXcpcmj34slbvgpl7j_HP180L8z6D1t5o-zL9l2ZKOlb4j2MZ7bOvkWfwVc4nu0mMqptbD2MQ-tN8c-7aPm8i1gzkR5vYLsVfWKt8ko1hP8C_gxk/s320/60413769_race_0.9048828858025485.display.jpg" width="236" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I had a <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/marathon-weekend-part-1-blue-ridge.html" target="_blank">BRM personal course record</a> of
3:07:47 that I really wanted to beat. Another goal I
had was to hit a Boston Qualifying time on the course, which would be
sub 3:05. Even though this race isn't an official Boston Qualifying
course, I still wanted to attempt it to know if I could do it on such a
tough course! But of course, my main goal, like in all my races, is
to finish what I started. Also, I have a BRM streak going still. I
have run it ever year since its inaugural running back in 2010, so I
had to keep the streak alive!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy5cS1Aj6GsFs7luamA544dGP78njDNoqtY5a0M6gcTBT0C4zLxISKtXQXeLg5r4RVTcBRzsKs7pPMnq9mzU9-sZuzUgNXx9UyXstJrrfxjbFSq6YR_fi98-WXVNuWNzJ_VmNx7sPg_Q0/s1600/60406864_race_0.45416970429431114.display.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="397" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy5cS1Aj6GsFs7luamA544dGP78njDNoqtY5a0M6gcTBT0C4zLxISKtXQXeLg5r4RVTcBRzsKs7pPMnq9mzU9-sZuzUgNXx9UyXstJrrfxjbFSq6YR_fi98-WXVNuWNzJ_VmNx7sPg_Q0/s200/60406864_race_0.45416970429431114.display.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Over the years, I've realized that I
can't run anyone else's race, and I just have to run my own race.
That's exactly what I did this year at the BRM. I know that pacing
for this race is very difficult, and you can't just set a certain
pace and stick to it. One minute, you could be running an 8 minute
mile, and then you hit a down hill (mountain?) and you could be able
to hit a 5 minute mile. From the time they fired the starting cannon,
I had this thought front and center in my mind: RUN YOUR OWN RACE. So
as people were taking off, passing me right from the start going up
Mill Mountain, they were running THEIR own race just as I had to run
mine. As time passed by, we bypassed Mill Mountain (that's where we split
from the other runners) and marathoners headed up their first
mountain: Roanoke Mountain. It was smooth sailing, and everything
felt great. We went up, then my fun began going back down the
mountain. That's something I look forward to ever year. I always am
able to hit some of my fastest paces going down the mountains in the
BRM! But then, the fun is over pretty quick after coming down Roanoke
Mountain, because then we get back on Mill Mountain and get to go up
it to the Roanoke Star. I'm always thankful when I make it up to one
of these peaks. I feel like I'm on top of the world! But then I get
to come back down again, so that's fun too. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisthwIYAZmhyhPqNbfB91O_Nip9OJeKTNhfErDg7tzoTpaadBnrkm5-v2DrpMHGVy0uhe_epzIJRPPQNpNZqj-toHNNLSkc7XhOA7zViGt1yx5a_QK25YF8Du3Ze8A1v3TlwuiyXGl6B4/s1600/2018-04-21+10.43.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisthwIYAZmhyhPqNbfB91O_Nip9OJeKTNhfErDg7tzoTpaadBnrkm5-v2DrpMHGVy0uhe_epzIJRPPQNpNZqj-toHNNLSkc7XhOA7zViGt1yx5a_QK25YF8Du3Ze8A1v3TlwuiyXGl6B4/s1600/2018-04-21+10.43.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisthwIYAZmhyhPqNbfB91O_Nip9OJeKTNhfErDg7tzoTpaadBnrkm5-v2DrpMHGVy0uhe_epzIJRPPQNpNZqj-toHNNLSkc7XhOA7zViGt1yx5a_QK25YF8Du3Ze8A1v3TlwuiyXGl6B4/s320/2018-04-21+10.43.42.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Unfortunately this year,
coming down Mill Mountain, I started experiencing some hip and knee
pain. I had been battling some pain and soreness in these areas for
the last couple of weeks of training, and everyone kept telling me
they were more than likely just “phantom pains,” but I still
tried to rest them in case it was something more serious since I was
in taper anyway. But I'd come to realize at this point that they were
probably not phantom pains, and they were pretty real. Despite the
pain, I knew I was going to finish strong. I figured I'd already made
it halfway, so even if I was suffering, I was going to keep on
trucking! Fortunately I was able alter my gait a little for some
relief on the uphills and the straightaways. However, my fun parts
trucking down the hills were no longer fun since they were causing
the shooting pains in my legs. This also made me realize that it may
be time to upgrade my racing shoes. Unfortunately this thought came
too late so I just had to suck it up and learn from my mistake (and
order new shoes ASAP!). This hurt my time coming back down the final
mountain: Peakwood. Coming up Peakwood is always challenging, but I
usually make up for lost time going back down, but not this year. I
saw the 3<sup>rd</sup> place overall guy coming back down as I was
going up, so he was probably about a minute ahead of me at this
point. We both waved, said our “good job/good luck/keep it up”
words of encouragement, and he kept going down Peakwood, and I kept
on climbing. The nice part about this course is that the marathoners
get to run alongside the half marathoners for most of their course.
The marathoners just split in the beginning to up Roanoke Mountain,
and then at the end at mile 22 to add 4.2 lonely miles to their
course. I always enjoy running with other people, so the little extra
4.2 miles can be a real bummer. It is kind of easy to fall behind
without the added motivation of spectators and other runners. That's
when you really have to get in touch with your own motivation and DIG
DEEP. I'm sure this is just from my point of view since I had no one
around since the other marathoners hadn't come through yet either.
But I made it through and managed to stay steady. In the last 3 tenths
of a mile, I climbed the last little slope and took off on the last
downhill to the finish and gave it all I had til the end. With a time
of 3:07:12, I walked away with a new BRM course record for myself,
a BALLIN' finisher's medal, as well as fourth place overall/first
place age group placing. I did, however, fall a bit short of my BQ goal though. All in all, the day was
painful yet successful I would say. And the BRM 26.2 streak
continues! And I'm already signed up for 2019...... Am I stupid? Am I
crazy? Nah, I just got a 50% off code for completing the post-race
survey, so I'm just savvy!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HERS: HALF MARATHON</span></u></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSWUtwYvN2C36h3pDtA8yzUex65-VUE16A0oc7wj9xB-Ev48Gt81OFbvcinC11Bguij41KfI2rTckqZtYADtb9Gv_Zkhy0Ubn_YoDbz5HSQaILkNKz9tN0PsgjT7lxgXqEOROoGDzPRA/s1600/2018-04-21+10.04.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="466" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSWUtwYvN2C36h3pDtA8yzUex65-VUE16A0oc7wj9xB-Ev48Gt81OFbvcinC11Bguij41KfI2rTckqZtYADtb9Gv_Zkhy0Ubn_YoDbz5HSQaILkNKz9tN0PsgjT7lxgXqEOROoGDzPRA/s320/2018-04-21+10.04.07.jpg" width="213" /></a>Elizabeth here now, taking back over. I
was so impressed with myself that I ran the first 3ish miles of this year's course, which
included the beginning of the ascent up Mill Mountain. <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/blue-ridge-marathon-and-half-2017.html" target="_blank">Last year</a>, I
only made it a mile and a half before I had to walk. It wasn't a
sprint by any means, but I kept on chugging along. I took a brief break at
mile 3ish then I took off down Mill Mountain. I relished in the
little flat-ish section in between the 2 mountains and I got my pace
back down and kept it there. Then once I went through the tunnel at
the River's Edge Sports Complex, I knew I'd be heading up the
neighborhood hills before entering PEAKWOOD: THE SECOND MOUNTAIN!
Those neighborhood hills are really draining, considering you have to
do some rolling hills before you go up the final mountain, then you
have to go through them again once you come down Peakwood. But this
year, I was pacing pretty well. Last year I completed the course in
2:38:19. I had the goal in the back of my mind to at least beat last
year's time, but I also wanted to break 2:30. I knew that would be a
stretch for me on such a tough course, but I ran beside the 2:30
pacer for a little ways up Peakwood, but then she had to leave me. I
was crushed. Devastated. And I wanted to give up. But I knew I would
still have to go back down Peakwood. I definitely regained some time
going back down, and lo and behold, I caught back up to the pacer at
around mile 12. And then I passed her. And I finished in 2:28:28! Goals
met!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
NOW: Other random pictures from race day to tide you over until we do our blog post recap of the Georgia Peach Jam Half Marathon that we did on May 28 (Memorial Day). We'll get around to it... eventually.... </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh-ULVmoz6BZoVZ1jSd_HInkdivPody-Z9OASE6Ly548vJjAkukRwumta012jMa2UfRZsru_O-8d_Y7islvpKisYNOkF43mZxaQtIMqh7aUpWP6beeyNAI6w05Pinmwp9NHY6rQYt3eRU/s1600/2018-04-21+10.42.16-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh-ULVmoz6BZoVZ1jSd_HInkdivPody-Z9OASE6Ly548vJjAkukRwumta012jMa2UfRZsru_O-8d_Y7islvpKisYNOkF43mZxaQtIMqh7aUpWP6beeyNAI6w05Pinmwp9NHY6rQYt3eRU/s320/2018-04-21+10.42.16-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unfortunately, this year we have a similar complaint--<br />
Photographers and volunteers were in the way of the finish line. <br />
Again.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUqKgJewrBgY6C2qzdVhMt1kGoB6PqE_UKMIvtKn1HVXiKZgEZcLnFtw01yc571fkFnaxUvNj9TK0H7PaDeIAkbV5tAybUO0hi6gFI1HTt9WQw0qFDTwTaoNtAZnsx45RbdbB7Qc2UP1g/s1600/2018-04-21+10.42.18-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUqKgJewrBgY6C2qzdVhMt1kGoB6PqE_UKMIvtKn1HVXiKZgEZcLnFtw01yc571fkFnaxUvNj9TK0H7PaDeIAkbV5tAybUO0hi6gFI1HTt9WQw0qFDTwTaoNtAZnsx45RbdbB7Qc2UP1g/s320/2018-04-21+10.42.18-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He couldn't even stop running til he got past them!<br />
They need to BACK UP from the finishing chute!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAis59zNdGMVeeA2nACHtobHYb3RPawBQEKih7MsNe2Yfk1Kow6BYkv45EPKgLbmQQIEAnPCMg0hh3FT7Relcn5gYVghhze0vCb9X13JgK8K3XPwMFvsqtdeC6qRroQbE34QIuRm8aOXg/s1600/2018-04-21+14.25.24-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAis59zNdGMVeeA2nACHtobHYb3RPawBQEKih7MsNe2Yfk1Kow6BYkv45EPKgLbmQQIEAnPCMg0hh3FT7Relcn5gYVghhze0vCb9X13JgK8K3XPwMFvsqtdeC6qRroQbE34QIuRm8aOXg/s320/2018-04-21+14.25.24-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1st place age group award!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qXnOgsAeqUy3qbQUdbUcWwufm9mrcnchgnA58W0PfwmhI9i4UF5k-z3knH69USW6M4rGurasRDcVhdZhm2XU4_KmCFlzPyDZY1UWvTwtcdtywIYxM9QhJPPwAVL2XHl8Mq74v7jb4vk/s1600/2018-04-21+14.27.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qXnOgsAeqUy3qbQUdbUcWwufm9mrcnchgnA58W0PfwmhI9i4UF5k-z3knH69USW6M4rGurasRDcVhdZhm2XU4_KmCFlzPyDZY1UWvTwtcdtywIYxM9QhJPPwAVL2XHl8Mq74v7jb4vk/s320/2018-04-21+14.27.01.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close up of his award</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwKsRizADgNnwCgZjBS94v9sdcZJ4vs16weGhtX_k-LbxSjgiHFXsirCHOzS6iH-2BeS3QNs3loQOA9B9vaROq1d9N3Z6J3z0cRvGg7Bwy_wjCVngoT3u_SZcM057P3Jr6tAiw66mypU/s1600/2018-04-21+14.36.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwKsRizADgNnwCgZjBS94v9sdcZJ4vs16weGhtX_k-LbxSjgiHFXsirCHOzS6iH-2BeS3QNs3loQOA9B9vaROq1d9N3Z6J3z0cRvGg7Bwy_wjCVngoT3u_SZcM057P3Jr6tAiw66mypU/s320/2018-04-21+14.36.51.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A with a buddy of his who's run every BRM since 2010</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4HA4n837A95dwmzKoaOHOAg1mBZ4e3StjiDX4bdUmhHEq6AwborZYdpVD7k7vgnDarYyW-16bKzUWs6daw5XoKyxibUBLtAryQ4eFbJNA6_oj9KqowGsna3n3xMFOl22b15qWOfI6LnQ/s1600/2018-04-25+21.00.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4HA4n837A95dwmzKoaOHOAg1mBZ4e3StjiDX4bdUmhHEq6AwborZYdpVD7k7vgnDarYyW-16bKzUWs6daw5XoKyxibUBLtAryQ4eFbJNA6_oj9KqowGsna3n3xMFOl22b15qWOfI6LnQ/s320/2018-04-25+21.00.58.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aren't we presh?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinQHxMNlgl2QtH9_NAnM9e6fU_uvIEP7r2ooN56YIUx8pkvqOm74SGJ5XPu7HATaTSFCKsK8d0c8BL-MYy3HHqav7jMJvtfhTv7CIxGzcfBlBMzaBEQItnd6weGrhd5Fzpgmodf-WxcWM/s1600/2018-04-25+21.01.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1152" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinQHxMNlgl2QtH9_NAnM9e6fU_uvIEP7r2ooN56YIUx8pkvqOm74SGJ5XPu7HATaTSFCKsK8d0c8BL-MYy3HHqav7jMJvtfhTv7CIxGzcfBlBMzaBEQItnd6weGrhd5Fzpgmodf-WxcWM/s320/2018-04-25+21.01.13.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Melvin (left) is another Martinsville/Henry County runner<br />
who loves the BRM! Just like us!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOa4riJu9ULvuFvcZRh51jxQMJ2JWSEpYgWvapMyUvF2mLwwDUJhz7x8BhNmdIDpDtGavmQ8Kg1J-e3qWk0L9ZH-EIuspkmwcHPIHDsyKKH38GHJjADgFAsxbAOU_pqBbZrVrYL_iizz4/s1600/2018-04-25+21.01.20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="767" data-original-width="768" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOa4riJu9ULvuFvcZRh51jxQMJ2JWSEpYgWvapMyUvF2mLwwDUJhz7x8BhNmdIDpDtGavmQ8Kg1J-e3qWk0L9ZH-EIuspkmwcHPIHDsyKKH38GHJjADgFAsxbAOU_pqBbZrVrYL_iizz4/s320/2018-04-25+21.01.20.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this ice bath shot haha</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB-GJUxO0xhL2BwBKjDoJBJBEDAaueSlkBrXZDFFtrPoEayKXTniUmyDiX5LqEiGNsxDr1R4_joT2aA4kdubYRtTEYNPX46PuEcgR2i6wsBNpOrVpHNcOftdEcYR4gHyO8XwJiwEYDKMQ/s1600/31357599_10155989744649845_4444913138403377152_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="365" data-original-width="960" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB-GJUxO0xhL2BwBKjDoJBJBEDAaueSlkBrXZDFFtrPoEayKXTniUmyDiX5LqEiGNsxDr1R4_joT2aA4kdubYRtTEYNPX46PuEcgR2i6wsBNpOrVpHNcOftdEcYR4gHyO8XwJiwEYDKMQ/s400/31357599_10155989744649845_4444913138403377152_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love that BRM used A in their cover photo on Facebook! <br />
Love this shot!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-10520011570569222732018-04-15T20:16:00.000-04:002018-04-15T20:16:30.163-04:002 Halves = 1 Whole Blog PostMr. Marathon here. But more recently, it's been Mr. HALF Marathon. I did 2 half marathons in the month of March. And they were 2 very different experiences, but eventful nonetheless.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;"><u><b>THE SLEDGE Trail Half Marathon</b></u></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE87lX1WLbQ8NjwhFSjd6Y82di9oLKqQ72XWMunDHGLSfTgFEJVpvQddnBftAxCFu8MfsdtBJm7d8KN7WGHn38ZxJwAiVdV9wAf6GeF80f7im_bz38tx9QGslud197Iv-f_lRKJSrZtuI/s1600/90d68ab1b56247b6cb911c6679bac01b-rimg-w720-h372-gmir.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="720" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE87lX1WLbQ8NjwhFSjd6Y82di9oLKqQ72XWMunDHGLSfTgFEJVpvQddnBftAxCFu8MfsdtBJm7d8KN7WGHn38ZxJwAiVdV9wAf6GeF80f7im_bz38tx9QGslud197Iv-f_lRKJSrZtuI/s320/90d68ab1b56247b6cb911c6679bac01b-rimg-w720-h372-gmir.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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On <strike>March 3 </strike> March 10, I ran The Sledge in Danville, VA. (It had to be rescheduled due to high winds and downed trees from the day before.) I had taken an off week from my marathon training to have a 1 week taper for March 3. However, since it was postponed, my training did not allow me to take another easy week. So I had to hit the week hard and just see what I could do on tired legs that next Saturday. Needless to say, about 1 mile into the race, after hitting the first small hill, I knew it was going to be a looooooooong 12.1 more miles. My legs were feeling very shaky, tired, heavy, and overall taxed. So regardless of my placing, this was truly a 100% training run for me. It still ended up being a fun race because I normally don't run trails and I really do like them!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik6tw7v5sw1j_UBErkWoRxSFvmBPl3ic1TSI3IuZcB3AGhJXKQfEXzyV5e0jJ2QLNVT22X3jBYCTRjHCEJZJXSN0eo9W3DHp9C92i0bZZN5o1y3VNxwoAMY0b-1Q-gSyXU91lVOIx4xh4/s1600/2018-03-10+10.18.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1502" data-original-width="1502" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik6tw7v5sw1j_UBErkWoRxSFvmBPl3ic1TSI3IuZcB3AGhJXKQfEXzyV5e0jJ2QLNVT22X3jBYCTRjHCEJZJXSN0eo9W3DHp9C92i0bZZN5o1y3VNxwoAMY0b-1Q-gSyXU91lVOIx4xh4/s320/2018-03-10+10.18.08.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The best part about this race is that I have created a lot of friendships within the Danville running community, and it was nice to see so many familiar faces out there running, volunteering, and spectating. I really do enjoy events where a whole community can come together like that. Anyway, back to the struggle. I managed to stay steady, even though the hills were extremely draining, and there were plenty of them. As in, the whole race was hills. Yes, with the uphills, you get downhills! I love downhills.... just not that particular weekend. Since my legs were completely drained from the uphills and all my training, I was unable to use the downhills to my advantage like I usually do. Throughout the whole race, I stayed in 2nd place, just waiting to get passed. But surprisingly, that never happened. I crossed the finish line still in 2nd place overall with a time of 1:37:48!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ak_6JsH1cm58sFt0RhXJrP9ZH9BgyBjUf96MpG69wThOkNzn_T9LUoA9G91gMp7HHbsXImb_lJygcFngH3Sc1Mh_RhMOrCRnrUFjdzVOMlp9oEVh08Ln50h5l1s0OM_ZUZlvt8as8VQ/s1600/2018-03-10+10.18.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ak_6JsH1cm58sFt0RhXJrP9ZH9BgyBjUf96MpG69wThOkNzn_T9LUoA9G91gMp7HHbsXImb_lJygcFngH3Sc1Mh_RhMOrCRnrUFjdzVOMlp9oEVh08Ln50h5l1s0OM_ZUZlvt8as8VQ/s320/2018-03-10+10.18.10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<u style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon</span></b></u><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeqcgtOcBaJMH3yvj29_33Dn_2QU4F1JTfDiP9deseC7jetq31dOILtLq25dGFN74oNTP6w7Z0zUw0a0gCHzdXwiGNDkOMeVc41z9D-dNXspFKQ97QDbHTrgI-t7lUqzYz9zNJ8yYpJg4/s1600/logo_2018halflogofinaljpg_171115_094136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeqcgtOcBaJMH3yvj29_33Dn_2QU4F1JTfDiP9deseC7jetq31dOILtLq25dGFN74oNTP6w7Z0zUw0a0gCHzdXwiGNDkOMeVc41z9D-dNXspFKQ97QDbHTrgI-t7lUqzYz9zNJ8yYpJg4/s1600/logo_2018halflogofinaljpg_171115_094136.jpg" /></a></div>
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A short 2 weeks later, I was ready to run one of my favorite races again. On March 24, I got to run the Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon in my hometown. This race was the real test for me, since it's on a challenging hilly course, but I have run it plenty of times and I train on the course very frequently. I had trained up for this race to be a "check in" of sorts before I do the Blue Ridge Marathon on April 21. I was really hoping for a personal record, but I honestly did not know what to expect.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6jdjLS4JT_1DSCeLaPvE6suh5_c4hgPhaan_VCBHn1BH3G9vuzZXKqow9rOjnx-f41dLcYS1zde2KVgjifUJJu7W1MnbFI-E_w9Z4eUDVD_fpW3TIuc68LaBpAhGxs3oOBFlm7fMqhVg/s1600/2018-03-24+07.56.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6jdjLS4JT_1DSCeLaPvE6suh5_c4hgPhaan_VCBHn1BH3G9vuzZXKqow9rOjnx-f41dLcYS1zde2KVgjifUJJu7W1MnbFI-E_w9Z4eUDVD_fpW3TIuc68LaBpAhGxs3oOBFlm7fMqhVg/s320/2018-03-24+07.56.02.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I took a pre-race GU....<br />Birthday cake flavor since my birthday was 2 days later!</td></tr>
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Every single week, my training has been incorporating cross training, strength training, speed work, easy runs, and tempo runs. So I knew that I had a pretty solid base, but there's always that doubt in the back of your mind. I knew I was going to get to find out my true fitness level at this point. I did packet pick up the morning of the race. At the start, it was 30 degrees. It felt cold, but I still dressed in shorts and a tank because I figured (or hoped) that I would get warmed up pretty quick. As the gun went off, I had a goal to stay at about a 6:05 min/mile pace. However, I knew it would be difficult gauging this pace because of the uphills and downhills throughout the course. I knew I'd have to relax the pace going uphill and then kick it going down. I felt a lot better than I did 2 weeks ago at the Sledge. Over the years I have learned to run my own race, and that has helped me drastically. After half a mile, I settled into 2nd place. I knew that it was still early, so I just continued running my own race.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvAQsmIoMMxNz6tNADFiBYiBfWHjm4dXDZ8wxivGJVrz17UV1N1iJMI-lxB_DjFsvmWMaz3e5JEAyf4n1YHhSVnAaF1iqTh5M8WyAWxvTKoxqKtfqQQYYIlMBrGWNA6nf7FbsHW5DOG4/s1600/2018-03-24+08.03.16-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvAQsmIoMMxNz6tNADFiBYiBfWHjm4dXDZ8wxivGJVrz17UV1N1iJMI-lxB_DjFsvmWMaz3e5JEAyf4n1YHhSVnAaF1iqTh5M8WyAWxvTKoxqKtfqQQYYIlMBrGWNA6nf7FbsHW5DOG4/s320/2018-03-24+08.03.16-1.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">right at the beginning... like half a mile in</td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmWpfSfSUihjxVvIbAbFXLvv6vXcWZEzRgsBku2lv2m28hHKF4gxU9xFxd_-rspjNn8maoJkMWlLjklQvMMj9BgL-Qj-r1UUPIf0qahIXF3zad9k7Tklz9u6BXUBIPy9uWmW6_wz70jAI/s1600/FB_IMG_1523830979775.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="524" data-original-width="524" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmWpfSfSUihjxVvIbAbFXLvv6vXcWZEzRgsBku2lv2m28hHKF4gxU9xFxd_-rspjNn8maoJkMWlLjklQvMMj9BgL-Qj-r1UUPIf0qahIXF3zad9k7Tklz9u6BXUBIPy9uWmW6_wz70jAI/s200/FB_IMG_1523830979775.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Someone caught me <br />struggling with my shorts!</td></tr>
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I felt great and strong running up and down the hills except for having a small snag with my shorts pocket. Long story short, I fought with the zipper and the zipper ALMOST won. I had all my Honey Stinger gels in the back pocket and had to wrestle them out. At this point, the guy who was in 3rd place was right on my heels. But I didn't stress about it because we had a quarter mile until the next big downhill. With this downhill, I opened the gap again, which I was able to see because we passed the turnaround point at around mile 8.5. I was feeling good, and at this point, I still didn't know what my finish time would be. After passing the 10 mile marker, I looked down at my watch at noticed that my overall time was 1 hour 1 minute. All I had left was a 5K..... a very UPHILL 5K. But I was on target for a PR so I knew I couldn't let up now. I stayed focused all the way to the finish line. When I was finally able to see the clock, reading 1:20, I took off sprinting and gave it all I had left and I ended up finishing with a new PR of 1:21:07, beating my old PR by 2 minutes and 4 seconds! I cannot express how ecstatic I felt! I went into this race not knowing what I could do, and came out with a great confidence booster. As soon as I crossed the finish line, I didn't have too much time to celebrate though, because I had to go out and finish the remainder of my 22 mile long run for that day.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzNPibPl-8g13EsGMNWmPHqdDTn4rvNc2gEhQYlkczlyMZNGtpiGKzL01IRnbnHtybl__Ec5wue-RGNhhPhgYbX0bgKtMW332CfzYuq0xw69UnHjreE0UqzjtYGpSLVoMITk3X3kTEcSA/s1600/IMG_20180324_220204_847.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="873" data-original-width="982" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzNPibPl-8g13EsGMNWmPHqdDTn4rvNc2gEhQYlkczlyMZNGtpiGKzL01IRnbnHtybl__Ec5wue-RGNhhPhgYbX0bgKtMW332CfzYuq0xw69UnHjreE0UqzjtYGpSLVoMITk3X3kTEcSA/s320/IMG_20180324_220204_847.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvpBq4HW3R0_ihckV02SJWmDsHSrUyz7lieH995DMj93-KQJPKBK1_cREfB_qFwdU2JlFPnFws-PNKrtLkhvdxig0c_YnWb5ZP95509igFMXo8s7dhlhrllsJ8CcgZEOlsYRltKMojDA/s1600/2018-03-24+11.19.26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="445" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvpBq4HW3R0_ihckV02SJWmDsHSrUyz7lieH995DMj93-KQJPKBK1_cREfB_qFwdU2JlFPnFws-PNKrtLkhvdxig0c_YnWb5ZP95509igFMXo8s7dhlhrllsJ8CcgZEOlsYRltKMojDA/s320/2018-03-24+11.19.26.jpg" width="89" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2nd place<br />OVERALL!</td></tr>
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Since these races, I have kept up my training and now I am ready to tackle the <a href="http://www.blueridgemarathon.com/race-details-events/foot-levelers-blue-ridge-half-marathon/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw8MvWBRC8ARIsAOFSVBVKY8QHcbmOHkWTaPmlc7eAizBvW9yn50pibFtBGpXX0Uhx3AeFbCEaAlAAEALw_wcB" target="_blank">Blue Ridge Marathon</a> on April 21... this Saturday! And my lovely bride is doing the half!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHaOrR_2dTCbl-DOp-Yg_VDeD9utv1LsYXfqqi-hE4Gm_uskz_JAZRnA21vqKSZ28Uq-H9Lf4JrCAC2miusX7g0Xd78xawBP15veBeSBZXzxHlEfqO8wz26VKLJGCjqDo8GAWbt3Rykc/s1600/Marathon-Logo-2018-1-640x582.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="582" data-original-width="640" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHaOrR_2dTCbl-DOp-Yg_VDeD9utv1LsYXfqqi-hE4Gm_uskz_JAZRnA21vqKSZ28Uq-H9Lf4JrCAC2miusX7g0Xd78xawBP15veBeSBZXzxHlEfqO8wz26VKLJGCjqDo8GAWbt3Rykc/s320/Marathon-Logo-2018-1-640x582.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-67128750763861492452018-03-21T12:27:00.001-04:002018-03-21T12:27:25.960-04:00"Slow and Steady" Wrightsville Beach Marathon bonus postRight now I am 4 days post-marathon. I went for an easy 3 on the treadmill last night, and I felt ok. I can now climb stairs without hobbling and go from sitting to standing/standing to sitting without my quads rebelling. But I have one thing still nagging me from race day this past Saturday.<br />
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As I was running along one of the straightaways through the town area with plenty of spectators, I heard a lady shout "THAT'S IT! GOOD JOB! SLOW AND STEADY!" and I was shocked. Appalled. Confused. Enraged.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn6Lbjg95rZd44cfzvDBtoFw79A797ztLIcXLWNT44rc8DsKc1xkAoIm2IlPHQvcsFYzsO7gZomzMsQdEVajYaOb2yCEN_s2TklsZ-e14ZOJ1YXcQb-byA5Rs6keybp5PhsElu6dsCO24/s1600/2018-03-21+12.16.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1334" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn6Lbjg95rZd44cfzvDBtoFw79A797ztLIcXLWNT44rc8DsKc1xkAoIm2IlPHQvcsFYzsO7gZomzMsQdEVajYaOb2yCEN_s2TklsZ-e14ZOJ1YXcQb-byA5Rs6keybp5PhsElu6dsCO24/s320/2018-03-21+12.16.07.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Slow and steady? Who are you talking to, lady? I don't know if this lady was talking to one runner in particular, like someone she was there to watch, trying to give them a friendly reminder to go slow and steady, or if she just chose her words rather poorly, but I took it as a personal attack. Slow???? I am pacing perfectly. I was spot-on for my achieving a personal best and my dream-big goal for this race. Who was she to call that slow? I knew I needed to just calm down and let it settle.<br />
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Well, I have thought about it. And I'm still mad. Even if she was talking to one runner in particular, even if she herself is a runner and thought it was actually good advice, I was really just baffled that someone would say that. And I stewed about it for my remaining miles on race day, after my race, and I've thought about it every day since then.<br />
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I felt the need to correct her at the time, but I didn't as I was a little busy. I still feel the need to say something, but of course, I have no idea who she is and so I obviously will never be able to express these thoughts to her directly, so I'm laying this out here for anybody and everybody. Runners are a... ummm.... "different" breed of people. When we run races/events, we all train so hard, and we spend huge amounts of time and energy dedicated to our training. Sometimes we get so involved that we really do eat, sleep, and breathe running. Like, almost literally. And when we race, it is (hopefully more often than not) a life-changing experience. Especially with a dream-big goal race like mine was on Saturday. And to hear somebody belittle that, even if it was unintentional/accidental is enraging.<br />
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So whether you're a 2-hour marathoner or an 8-hour marathoner, an ultra-runner or a sprinter, an athlete or a spectator, or anybody in between: run your own race. And run it <strike>slow and steady</strike> at your own pace and strong AF.<br />
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-66316330277529104662018-03-19T19:40:00.007-04:002018-03-19T19:41:23.593-04:00Wrightsville Beach Marathon Madness 2018<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiph1tOZstjiCasNLGOYNr5RgqmR56PyL5HBxksomsHOZ5YhQY98wSkzMWM_V2C6ImiO2z9bnrl74Bsr_JrM7EtM_KIJW6pVkBUeuw50Xp_W1QAcMhM06Bdav_KDMCAkMz7WViuzAfeHFY/s1600/race3095-logo.by9Lwm.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="147" data-original-width="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiph1tOZstjiCasNLGOYNr5RgqmR56PyL5HBxksomsHOZ5YhQY98wSkzMWM_V2C6ImiO2z9bnrl74Bsr_JrM7EtM_KIJW6pVkBUeuw50Xp_W1QAcMhM06Bdav_KDMCAkMz7WViuzAfeHFY/s1600/race3095-logo.by9Lwm.png" /></a></div>
You've heard of March Madness right???? Well unfortunately I am not super into college basketball (Don't hate me! Stay with me!) so I found <i>Marathon </i>Madness instead. I have been training since the first week in December to get ready for the madness because I set out with some pretty exciting goals.<br />
<br />
After the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/11/outer-banks-marathon-2017.html" target="_blank">Outer Banks Marathon</a>, and only cutting 2 minutes off my previous time at the<a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/marshall-university-marathon.html" target="_blank"> Marshall University Marathon</a>, I was ready for some big changes in my marathon time. I worked with my unofficially official running coach (aka my darling husband) on creating a 16-week plan to help me meet my new goals. Goal A was to finish, Goal B was to set a personal record (get it under 4:54), Goal C was to get my time in the 4 hour 40 minute range, and Goal D (for Dream BIG) was to get my time in the 4 hour 30 minute range. It was a pretty cool process to develop my own personalized training plan. The plan that I had for Outer Banks and the MUM had a great progression of long runs, so I kept the long runs pretty much the same, but per coach's orders, I had one 22 mile long run instead of only going up to 20 miles like in my previous plan. We also totally revamped my weekday workouts to include 1 goal HALF marathon paced run (~9:50 min/mile) ranging from 3-10 miles, 1 speedwork session (4-6 miles of 400 m all the way through mile repeats), 2 easy runs of 3-6 miles, and a strength session. And lemme tell you-- SPOILER ALERT-- IT WORKED.<br />
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Fast forward 16 weeks and over 450 miles of training. The time has come for me to travel to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington to pick up my packet for the day I've been working so hard for. I had no idea what I'd truly be capable of on race day, so I tried my hardest to not get too much in my head. Alfredo and I made our way the expo and I picked up my bib and my PAJAMA PANTS (!!!!!!!) and we looked at all the vendor booths, then we finished up and headed to the hotel to check in. We called in dinner from Olive Garden (can't mess with pre-race spaghetti ritual) and we ate and turned in at a decent time for my 4:45 wake-up.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">have to get my Flat Lizzy in order <br />the night before!</td></tr>
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I woke up the next morning with plenty of time to get ready and make my way to the start. We were only about 10 minutes away from the starting line in Wrightsville Beach, but we left at 6:00 AM to be sure we made it in time for the 6:40 AM start. Since Alfredo was letting me run this race, he was able to chauffeur me to the start line and drop me off. He was going to ride his bike along the course to meet me at the different mile markers! I made my way to the starting area after I was dropped off and of course had to wait in line for porta-potties (AS ALWAYS......). They were delayed by about 10 minutes starting, but that's ok since it allowed more time for using the porta-potties. I ended up making my way to my place in the corral right as they were giving final pre-race instructions! And before I knew it, we were off!!!!<br />
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My first 3-4 miles were kind of forced. I never understood why people say it takes them a few miles to warm up. Usually my first miles are the fastest and then I slow down. But on race day, I definitely got that feeling. I finally got my groove after a few miles and managed to keep my pace right on target from then on (around 10:30 min/mile). It definitely helped seeing Alfredo every few miles along the way!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwZastDhKO_BAtd2105gTiJP5FrfAlg9FTEYSIR4eogO_0QNtlOza4HfFEMKm4l9tQcOUvBijoVNrY3Se1gFNXaNu_7yWPczmTNCtqsYQeT4P3MGufUKlqZx2IR0PWJw-meqydKnb24s/s1600/2018-03-19+18.39.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="992" data-original-width="993" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwZastDhKO_BAtd2105gTiJP5FrfAlg9FTEYSIR4eogO_0QNtlOza4HfFEMKm4l9tQcOUvBijoVNrY3Se1gFNXaNu_7yWPczmTNCtqsYQeT4P3MGufUKlqZx2IR0PWJw-meqydKnb24s/s320/2018-03-19+18.39.41.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Around the half mark</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr0pMJrpRYQnUdhhtBMrt0QpmgQL3C41h_5GHuQq7FIBvn2i24oKmwgm03ymCmZMSq8C6t7U-BFfyEdMYxxMLFiUgTeLtualhcGCFe3rzVmsI0eFNshyphenhyphen0x4Efiup31GP1PFxO75HD49s/s1600/2018-03-19+18.39.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1202" data-original-width="1202" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr0pMJrpRYQnUdhhtBMrt0QpmgQL3C41h_5GHuQq7FIBvn2i24oKmwgm03ymCmZMSq8C6t7U-BFfyEdMYxxMLFiUgTeLtualhcGCFe3rzVmsI0eFNshyphenhyphen0x4Efiup31GP1PFxO75HD49s/s320/2018-03-19+18.39.46.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crossing the bridge at mile 15ish?</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXG4Xfw8jYJqYBOojVt6PoPK-BWgxO9vK8GxHUQ1KGv1euz0OPox3RBxpDyhhuwpctcHIeY8NUZJ_4_0BqIQfdMLHvUUiBVSBrE4Cn8IEEXqwYQgaS56q8ZVtumcV4fdgHWGiT_7ju-kI/s1600/2018-03-17+09.40.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1165" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXG4Xfw8jYJqYBOojVt6PoPK-BWgxO9vK8GxHUQ1KGv1euz0OPox3RBxpDyhhuwpctcHIeY8NUZJ_4_0BqIQfdMLHvUUiBVSBrE4Cn8IEEXqwYQgaS56q8ZVtumcV4fdgHWGiT_7ju-kI/s200/2018-03-17+09.40.38.jpg" width="145" /></a>I was feeling footloose and fancy-free for most of the race honestly. I was surprised at how well I was feeling, and how well I was pacing still. I passed the half marathon mark feeling great, passed some more mile markers, and before I knew it I was at mile 20! And still on pace?!?!? Around this time, we entered a little park that was surprisingly hilly for being so close to the coast. And then I saw the mile marker for 23 soon after I saw 20, and I realized that this was one of those places that the course does another loop on. I was starting to slow down, and I was getting pretty anxious about how my body would feel on the second loop. By this point, my Humas and my Gu were not doing me any favors. I didn't feel like I could physically eat or drink anything else besides regular water, but I knew I had several miles left to go. As I made my way around the park, I was sipping on my handheld water bottle and trying to fight down a Huma. I grabbed some Gatorade at the water station at around mile 22 before starting my second loop in the park. I was having a major issue trying to run through the water stops (I was desperately trying to run the whole thing) and I kept getting Gatorade up my nose but that's neither here nor there.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvN4fwd56Mhd4HPG1f3ZFnmHnKAPTyLNVKwxahltgSSoIhULlj-SxL2Ki9mMK8JamyUFcdHGAz5wvtGnnwqQccHjDTd0SP0HWNvgYlQ_MQJbf1oDlOYgOIAv7OMXnaBEZ1VnpjQwUHKro/s1600/2018-03-17+10.23.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1434" data-original-width="1538" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvN4fwd56Mhd4HPG1f3ZFnmHnKAPTyLNVKwxahltgSSoIhULlj-SxL2Ki9mMK8JamyUFcdHGAz5wvtGnnwqQccHjDTd0SP0HWNvgYlQ_MQJbf1oDlOYgOIAv7OMXnaBEZ1VnpjQwUHKro/s320/2018-03-17+10.23.01.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entering the park at mile 20</td></tr>
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Fast forward to mile 24. I had run the WHOLE DAGGONE THING at this point. And as I saw Alfredo, my scrunchy crying face starting to form. "I gotta walk. I can't keep running. But I'm afraid if I walk, I won't be able to start running again," I said to him, fighting back my tears. He told me, "Don't you start walking. You can keep going! You're almost done!" and I was honestly pretty disappointed because I was fully expecting him to tell me to take a quick break. So I took a gulp of my water and kept on trucking.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUQu5G55kWOs0GgngHdpnz0XYoXOhcvJ6PfM_xbzo25nxLbowd3DRwNPt5NUhyphenhyphenDgscmnKp6hz7-BLNiFk3Ga0b0w6ZamzKtb2YXXLYZBQNkCVEeYtH63ilT4rLqxFD9QROn5sF4QJhK1w/s1600/little+legs.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="480" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUQu5G55kWOs0GgngHdpnz0XYoXOhcvJ6PfM_xbzo25nxLbowd3DRwNPt5NUhyphenhyphenDgscmnKp6hz7-BLNiFk3Ga0b0w6ZamzKtb2YXXLYZBQNkCVEeYtH63ilT4rLqxFD9QROn5sF4QJhK1w/s200/little+legs.gif" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actual footage of me crossing the finish line<br />jk of course this is Full House</td></tr>
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Then reality hit me as I was approaching the UNCW campus where the finish line was. I passed mile 25, crunching numbers in my head. I knew I would make my A, B, and C goal at that point based on my time. I kept going, even though I felt like my legs were dragging through molasses at this point (BUT I WAS STILL RUNNING.... NO WALKING!). I rounded the corner (and realized that I missed the 26th mile marker? or it didn't exist????) and there was the finish line. My time was still in the 4:30s range. SO I KICKED IT. I told my legs, "GO, LITTLE LEGS, GO GO GO!" and I knew I was going to make it. My scrunchy crying face was trying to form again (but out of joy this time, don't worry) but I told it NO GO AWAY I NEED TO SMILE RIGHT NOW and I channeled my inner Shalane Flanagan and let a F*** YES fly and crossed the finish line (STILL RUNNING) with a time of 4:38:34!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PyV_hiDuhVpy6ibbWIt9pjqraV-NSVEr9M8PibX0osn3k0WAGdFBBDPqQc5MWS7IIqB6njvWk5uiq714qjslVrAba4wJSMVrMFIbU4ndYSDWAPa7qxTcLhnQSFTK4VGyPuzncl_VQog/s1600/shalane.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="480" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PyV_hiDuhVpy6ibbWIt9pjqraV-NSVEr9M8PibX0osn3k0WAGdFBBDPqQc5MWS7IIqB6njvWk5uiq714qjslVrAba4wJSMVrMFIbU4ndYSDWAPa7qxTcLhnQSFTK4VGyPuzncl_VQog/s320/shalane.gif" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shalane is my HERO!</td></tr>
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<br />Goal A: check.<br />
Goal B: PR'd by 16 minutes. So needless to say, check.<br />
Goal C: blown outta the water.<br />
Goal D: I DID THE DARN THING.<br />
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After I crossed the finish line, I rang (and broke) the PR bell, got my snacks and water, and shuffled back to the car. Unfortunately there were no finisher medals due to a shipping situation, so that was a bummer, but the race director said they will be mailing them out when they get in. So there should be an exciting mail day in the near future at least.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finish line!</td></tr>
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As for what's next, I would really like to try to continue chipping away at my marathon time, and now that I know what works (and what doesn't) in training, I can hopefully keep improving. I'd love to get a sub 4:30 marathon next. So... instead of calling this "The End", we're going to say "To Be Continued..."!!!!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtDdl3hKPnrVZMhpCoo6KecnsL5dwcv0nc6qF8Zi2qSJh6iw5n48A-bGULWBrNlT0wjb1R9sYIoFBWZygWFjHlb7YiqsoMEVWMItet1LnMLzzwk4rS9Ng4vL7bktxydjTnNUEJ4rVijMw/s1600/2018-03-18+18.52.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="987" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtDdl3hKPnrVZMhpCoo6KecnsL5dwcv0nc6qF8Zi2qSJh6iw5n48A-bGULWBrNlT0wjb1R9sYIoFBWZygWFjHlb7YiqsoMEVWMItet1LnMLzzwk4rS9Ng4vL7bktxydjTnNUEJ4rVijMw/s320/2018-03-18+18.52.24.jpg" width="197" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PJ pants!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RZblyjSrvolMVHDFQxeIGOtuw2qBwlJ-O7NqLnpB-ueQ2w1kd5bpE1QAnp2Lz-tthLHjwmnGY1Q5t3INqggVqtuvUDowOBsdMSPj7np3Q8bN7TuJp3ca4QhC6rq7YXzyOixrE7YQWWI/s1600/2018-03-19+18.39.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RZblyjSrvolMVHDFQxeIGOtuw2qBwlJ-O7NqLnpB-ueQ2w1kd5bpE1QAnp2Lz-tthLHjwmnGY1Q5t3INqggVqtuvUDowOBsdMSPj7np3Q8bN7TuJp3ca4QhC6rq7YXzyOixrE7YQWWI/s320/2018-03-19+18.39.49.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can't go to the beach and NOT go to the beach right?</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-29077007521890351682018-01-02T16:59:00.002-05:002018-01-02T17:20:10.313-05:002017 Year in Review / 2018 Preview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's that time of year again. Time for us to recap last year, and to make plans and goals for the upcoming year. 2017 saw lots of ups and downs, and highs and lows for our running.<br />
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In the beginning of last year, I was rebuilding my mileage after recovering from pneumonia. Alfredo was just beginning his Boston Marathon/Blue Ridge Marathon training. We didn't have a whole lot going on the first few months of the year, but Alfredo did the first race of the year (the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/martinville-bulletin-half-marathon.html" target="_blank">Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon</a>) in March.<br />
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April was a big month! We did the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/rock-n-roll-raleigh-marathon-and-half.html" target="_blank">Rock n Roll Raleigh</a> Half and Full Marathon in April after I was fully recovered and he was in full-swing training. Later in the month, we traveled north for him to run the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/boston-marathon-2017.html" target="_blank">Boston Marathon</a>, then 5 days later we did the<a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/blue-ridge-marathon-and-half-2017.html" target="_blank"> Blue Ridge </a>Half and Full Marathon.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2mCkKmyQ-UGhr4sG30d1xrih6lYiu-Gq2jTEsBpWTKJ2UA0bjC4LSetQDbfGnBTQRSdrms_9vzfcLekzwO4afkA7VaoSrYmTvG-Ty7JikivNA6aoNFK5K_0t6z62J16JgNYY1rXCUqCA/s1600/51318613_race_0.557724000943454.display.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="466" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2mCkKmyQ-UGhr4sG30d1xrih6lYiu-Gq2jTEsBpWTKJ2UA0bjC4LSetQDbfGnBTQRSdrms_9vzfcLekzwO4afkA7VaoSrYmTvG-Ty7JikivNA6aoNFK5K_0t6z62J16JgNYY1rXCUqCA/s200/51318613_race_0.557724000943454.display.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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In May, I hit a PR for the 8K distance in the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/05/super-run-8k.html" target="_blank">Super Run</a> and placed 2nd overall female! Then at the end of the month, we ran the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/06/run-for-kids-5k_4.html" target="_blank">Run for Kids 5K</a> during Memorial Day weekend. I hit a PR and we both placed in our age groups. We also kicked off the<a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/08/rwrunstreak-2017-and-danville-braves-5k.html" target="_blank"> Runner's World Run Streak</a> for summer 2017.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NcazSUdekoNULNyRwvaKTLkKDG2qxa3cKR3bUaGrdTMRnkNzyZx2HXw1p-j18vk4kl0z0N9QhBON_wm8UaD7SKmSMspRzIi5hWH5VU_hIWRt9mRPJDHY4LDZXsEymC6F5vQWdiduYkU/s1600/2017-06-01+22.25.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1256" data-original-width="1600" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NcazSUdekoNULNyRwvaKTLkKDG2qxa3cKR3bUaGrdTMRnkNzyZx2HXw1p-j18vk4kl0z0N9QhBON_wm8UaD7SKmSMspRzIi5hWH5VU_hIWRt9mRPJDHY4LDZXsEymC6F5vQWdiduYkU/s200/2017-06-01+22.25.42.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The summer was more eventful running-wise than we predicted. We ran every single day from Memorial Day to the 4th of July and beyond for a 70 day run streak, and during the streak we did some races. We did our first <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/06/baltimore-10-miler.html" target="_blank">10 Miler</a> in Baltimore, and he won the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/08/rwrunstreak-2017-and-danville-braves-5k.html" target="_blank">Danville Braves 5K</a> and made his baseball pitching debut (lol).<br />
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Fall came round and we had plenty of goals for our running. He began his final season of cross country at Averett University, and I had begun training for the Outer Banks Marathon. We took our training very seriously and hit the ground running (hah). We also lucked into doing the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/09/hokie-half-marathon.html" target="_blank">Hokie Half Marathon</a> in September, and Alfredo had completed 2 meets for cross country, which we never even did a blog post for! YIKES. During his second meet, he even set an 8K PR of 28:50, beating his previous PR by one minute and seven seconds!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_NISZAXgvxLC3xdpjoADgzQYSGe9RTrkojNIqC1EWBt2fxF2OJknylc6XMrjwBAyodVPyE_J1UPsyn8MAl-vQa64SF6EfbFXZX9T-V0n6wP8RifJOfpFwoxi9iB71rIehRu_06ehdQE/s1600/cross+country.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="455" data-original-width="472" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_NISZAXgvxLC3xdpjoADgzQYSGe9RTrkojNIqC1EWBt2fxF2OJknylc6XMrjwBAyodVPyE_J1UPsyn8MAl-vQa64SF6EfbFXZX9T-V0n6wP8RifJOfpFwoxi9iB71rIehRu_06ehdQE/s320/cross+country.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cross Country highlights</td></tr>
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In October, he had another meet, and I did the Danville Half Marathon as part of a 20 mile training run, and I ended up hitting a PR of 2:12:33. I never ended up doing a post for this event either, because it was such a traumatic run. Ok so I'm being a little dramatic, but it was a terrible run. Then later in the month, I sprained my foot then made an awesome comeback just in time to finish marathon training strong. He finished his cross country season at the end of October at the USA South Conference meet. To top off a great month, he also found out that he was accepted as an Elite Honey Stinger Sponsored Athlete! Wowie!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiE3_f1kgA7iMYd1JpX_Zyta83bPmpxsgnzhBsAWVYX_dZYhoy2Iv1ife-qi17YSNAMgWZPywu_ybKa1CN1pdm1dIQVYaEel732vVgqq93yy0T5IFL3qBA0aOG6qkJ1P-BgKHdEQpoxSM/s1600/danville+half.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="515" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiE3_f1kgA7iMYd1JpX_Zyta83bPmpxsgnzhBsAWVYX_dZYhoy2Iv1ife-qi17YSNAMgWZPywu_ybKa1CN1pdm1dIQVYaEel732vVgqq93yy0T5IFL3qBA0aOG6qkJ1P-BgKHdEQpoxSM/s200/danville+half.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Danville Half Marathon</td></tr>
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November was tons of fun! Earlier in the month we traveled to the <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/11/outer-banks-marathon-2017.html" target="_blank">Outer Banks</a> for our marathon weekend in November. It was great, we both set PRs, and he came in 3rd in his age group. Later in the month, we ran <a href="https://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/12/thanksgiving-runs-2017.html" target="_blank">2 Thanksgiving runs</a> and had tons of fun.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ccYcMVzsp9i61hAHETPpMMq9e5ZBkb_xMc9IUMmU85U44Sc3PBqo90dUNB8ez2IYi8p6S23ktg-0M0g5lRYuyLavM9mDQgBKVV_tf6VGJNlHQERZazPzb3q7ekWByf2qUq8N-DTStY0/s1600/monthly+miles+collage+2017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="439" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ccYcMVzsp9i61hAHETPpMMq9e5ZBkb_xMc9IUMmU85U44Sc3PBqo90dUNB8ez2IYi8p6S23ktg-0M0g5lRYuyLavM9mDQgBKVV_tf6VGJNlHQERZazPzb3q7ekWByf2qUq8N-DTStY0/s320/monthly+miles+collage+2017.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My collage of monthly mileage totals</td></tr>
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Then December. I had my highest mileage month of 124.11 miles, a result of kicking off my marathon training. I jumped right back into marathon training after just a couple of short weeks off. I decided to do this because as happy as I was with my marathon time from the Outer Banks, I just know I can do better. Throughout my Outer Banks training, I kept on thinking to myself, <i>Dang, I should have done this, </i>or <i>I should do this differently next time. </i>So, here I am. Doing the things I should have done, doing them the way I think I should have done them. I know I can do better, and I hope that I can meet my new dream-big goal for the marathon. I think I have decided on the Wrightsville Beach Marathon on March 17.<br />
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As for Alfredo, he's got some dream-big goals for himself this upcoming year. First on the agenda is the Martinsville Half Marathon. At this race, he wants to set a half marathon PR, which will keep him on target for the next goal of running a sub-3:05 marathon at Blue Ridge on April 21. Just in case you didn't know, this is America's Toughest Road Marathon! So this will prove to be quite the challenge. And finally, drum roll please.....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO6nfUPKb8qZQf9rh3qXCjWFoxVSfFysq2aMynne9pLJapb9Tj352eeQSzdPCVQb0TCMOf9AATp_PvVpgi6OfT7j_F6B-vL3AUuWqVomMcZO7voGBWWWs9hZ-yMtwWc6pG6z06VsW8zUg/s1600/IronmanMD.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="157" data-original-width="325" height="96" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO6nfUPKb8qZQf9rh3qXCjWFoxVSfFysq2aMynne9pLJapb9Tj352eeQSzdPCVQb0TCMOf9AATp_PvVpgi6OfT7j_F6B-vL3AUuWqVomMcZO7voGBWWWs9hZ-yMtwWc6pG6z06VsW8zUg/s200/IronmanMD.png" width="200" /></a></div>
This year, the year 2018, will be the year that Alfredo Garcia Huerta will (hopefully) conquer the IRONMAN distance at Ironman Maryland in September! And to add some more pressure on himself, he has another goal that would require full attention and training. He not only wants to complete this Ironman, but he also is going to try to qualify for Kona, the Ironman World Championship. This is a crazy goal, but he is willing to put the in the work that is necessary to attempt this goal. Yes, people may think this is crazy. Yes, it may not happen on the first try. But he is willing to do what it takes to get there. In order to qualify for Kona, a triathlete must place top 3 overall (or top 3 in age group) in an Ironman-sanctioned event.<br />
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So here we go..... we're taking on 2018 head on! Wish us luck!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSOQQTdDClWeU91otBUbI1_wSln0bQWqlnWnyEhvGn3enYnZ47KUPda9Jb4VHEo6RtmZA50-zjP-4MGkzD5_qq7Q9O7sFPgtUQ-ocoN26i5HaHs9P5BdNTViIum-pZXtubccuEDFnTE0/s1600/run_alfredo_run.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSOQQTdDClWeU91otBUbI1_wSln0bQWqlnWnyEhvGn3enYnZ47KUPda9Jb4VHEo6RtmZA50-zjP-4MGkzD5_qq7Q9O7sFPgtUQ-ocoN26i5HaHs9P5BdNTViIum-pZXtubccuEDFnTE0/s320/run_alfredo_run.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alfredo's best nine posts from Instagram in 2017</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My best nine posts</td></tr>
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<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-28967541651270701152017-12-03T16:23:00.001-05:002017-12-03T18:32:27.724-05:00Thanksgiving Runs 2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Well I had the goal of getting this post out before the end of November. Clearly seeing as the date is December 3, I have failed. Regardless, here is our recap of our Thanksgiving runS (yes we did 2!) for this year.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u>One Tough Turkey 5K (Danville, VA)</u></b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghVDhNdCloaNJ67yejow2USsq0PgxtdLlN6b_OfyufisFYmQGmoRRFtyBV1Wy0NuNMMxKInWG_k8pOi-6C-YlcqDyQwzdmO2T79GcysQlOj4Y66CC5E7tpZZj2DBU-Ls2pSyPxkZHZ8qk/s1600/2017-11-19+07.55.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="830" data-original-width="830" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghVDhNdCloaNJ67yejow2USsq0PgxtdLlN6b_OfyufisFYmQGmoRRFtyBV1Wy0NuNMMxKInWG_k8pOi-6C-YlcqDyQwzdmO2T79GcysQlOj4Y66CC5E7tpZZj2DBU-Ls2pSyPxkZHZ8qk/s200/2017-11-19+07.55.46.jpg" width="200" /></a>First on November 18, we did the One Tough Turkey 5K in Danville, VA. This small, low-key run was held at Angler's Park, which is a place that both Alfredo and I run fairly regularly, but the route for the race is all of the hills in that one little area all at once. Hence, the TOUGH turkey. The concept of the race is interesting, too. It had no shirts, finisher awards, or entry fee. All that was required is that you donate a can of food to participate! I didn't feel ready for this just a few short days after the Outer Banks Marathon, but hey, a free 5K? Gotta do it! And to make it even better, the running store where Alfredo works was hosting the race. So of course, I ended up doing it. Even though I knew those hills would get me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabN1lxznBnqjrtSLgYZ42Zt0GYdzMoEmtu7Yikqp8QOYfvVmhZ7gbsiobGJSRqQ0gOJ1Ff5kwlVCttVaaYY6MywIfQpa7Bw8FuqWi7EMFRVVj57PoeUUMS9AgUcOjHnVWhV9E9gpA5ek/s1600/OTT.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="504" data-original-width="191" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabN1lxznBnqjrtSLgYZ42Zt0GYdzMoEmtu7Yikqp8QOYfvVmhZ7gbsiobGJSRqQ0gOJ1Ff5kwlVCttVaaYY6MywIfQpa7Bw8FuqWi7EMFRVVj57PoeUUMS9AgUcOjHnVWhV9E9gpA5ek/s200/OTT.JPG" width="75" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">Showing off<br />
1st place trophy!</td></tr>
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The run started at 8:00 am, then after just a short distance, the course began up a hill. A huge hill. One that I feel like even my car struggles up. (Ok so possibly some over-dramatization. Maybe.) But regardless, the whole first half was straight up it seemed. The second half was rolling hills (rolling mountains?), which was kind of confusing. I was wondering how we went straight up hill the first half, and in the second half we had some downhill, but there was also some uphill left? Even though it was run on a loop and we were ending up exactly where we started? Whatever, it will never make sense to me, even though I have examined the elevation map. WHATEVER. Moving on, Alfredo ended up winning with a time of 18:46, and I met my goal of running the whole thing, which may seem like I set the bar kind of low, but I knew those hills would make me really want to walk. I ended up doing that and exceeding my expected finish time of 33 minutes, and I managed to surprise myself and break 30 minutes with a time of 29:56 (unofficial). And it was all for a good cause-- feeding those who need it during the holiday season!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib6p_1SfQbQsrwlp0S_rWdTcI-dLV7-kyjNUH-voScQ04I2SH795tMaykzwohkIxv_vC2aQu5z2BWmsU2d2bur-9XnKyqkGnw5ix9U3Q4QYo_eaeWBTXZNBGcLcKfvpx2eeUjf4FPEJ5Y/s1600/23658805_1451006261684706_3010083043875067233_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib6p_1SfQbQsrwlp0S_rWdTcI-dLV7-kyjNUH-voScQ04I2SH795tMaykzwohkIxv_vC2aQu5z2BWmsU2d2bur-9XnKyqkGnw5ix9U3Q4QYo_eaeWBTXZNBGcLcKfvpx2eeUjf4FPEJ5Y/s320/23658805_1451006261684706_3010083043875067233_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">This is what he did when he came back for me<br />
and the photographer said "Act like it doesn't hurt!"</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgUqr5A3hbDhLROpmRQVBH773mvJwWN02r-UYyYS2kLFVpUgberfj23E143Qp_GqZu-wJFfVsi8Pt5UwZpIhsTDo2yKmLaEOyEQkaFYjwuzQqLXisCMtjGMCZtEr5pwrE7FfMxidZ9vD4/s1600/23622139_1451006328351366_6853938595745773208_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="635" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgUqr5A3hbDhLROpmRQVBH773mvJwWN02r-UYyYS2kLFVpUgberfj23E143Qp_GqZu-wJFfVsi8Pt5UwZpIhsTDo2yKmLaEOyEQkaFYjwuzQqLXisCMtjGMCZtEr5pwrE7FfMxidZ9vD4/s320/23622139_1451006328351366_6853938595745773208_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">He's such a ham....</td></tr>
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<u><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Gobble Wobble 5K (Auburn, GA)</span></b></u><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysfhBRGOK9W6j8nyBoJ1MheHoskCzfgtKQhaiZHU1IWSU3gJQLCwcHF3Aa_YC0C5oP2E_N88C8w7jaNZbqwsJCDHlGqrX5SiupA8scJ9AWeX90Y6qK0zLwoarZIbHAakIAS2A7cxCa_4/s1600/gobble+wobble+shirt.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="267" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysfhBRGOK9W6j8nyBoJ1MheHoskCzfgtKQhaiZHU1IWSU3gJQLCwcHF3Aa_YC0C5oP2E_N88C8w7jaNZbqwsJCDHlGqrX5SiupA8scJ9AWeX90Y6qK0zLwoarZIbHAakIAS2A7cxCa_4/s200/gobble+wobble+shirt.JPG" width="175" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">The event shirt was super cute!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The second Thanksgiving run we did was in Georgia while visiting my family. We found the Gobble Wobble 5K in Auburn, GA. This one was on Thanksgiving Day, November 23. This run was only 20 minutes or so from where we were staying with family, so we didn't even have to get up super early for the 8:00 start time! We got up, ate breakfast, and were on our way. First of all, I checked the weather forecast while we were still home in Virginia, and it was saying high 40s/low 50s that morning so I packed a couple different options in case the weather changed. I packed short sleeves, long sleeves, shorts, and capris. I felt like between these articles of clothing I would be able to dress myself for a Southern, late-fall morning. I WAS WRONG. It was only 43 degrees, which doesn't sound like that much of a drastic difference, but it was very cloudy. I opted for the long sleeves and capris, and I bout near froze! Usually my fingers regain feeling after a mile or so, but fingers stayed frozen until I went to go get my big fuzzy jacket from the car!!!<br />
<br />
Anyway, Alfredo ran this one too. He started at the front of the pack to take off on this unknown course ahead of us. The race was held in Little Mulberry Park, which was a cute little park with a paved walking trail that went up through the woods and around a pond and a lake. It was surprisingly hilly, but nothing we couldn't handle. We went up, we came down, we went up, we came down, etc etc, and we went around the various loops of the park. Alfredo came in a solid 3rd place overall with a time of 18:32. Unfortunately, this race only recognized 1st place overall, then 3 deep in age groups, so he ended up placing 1st in the 25-29 age group, which is almost better??? Great time regardless!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwGGeDI8S0URPR2l7h7GNDjqpgX_k6iS1vwyayVGRbYol6o5gHHCXc4HWCNkMUIt4rpNMy39fm8v4yhbpZp5fGxbX9pxDMyM_qN_R4RUnv-6DlXfX-G1Ji3SeEXOp-TR5y9GkAbLk0IE/s1600/2017-11-23+09.26.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1497" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwGGeDI8S0URPR2l7h7GNDjqpgX_k6iS1vwyayVGRbYol6o5gHHCXc4HWCNkMUIt4rpNMy39fm8v4yhbpZp5fGxbX9pxDMyM_qN_R4RUnv-6DlXfX-G1Ji3SeEXOp-TR5y9GkAbLk0IE/s320/2017-11-23+09.26.12.jpg" width="299" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">1st place age group medal</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I ended up finishing (frozen solid) with a time of 28:04. I was pretty surprised by that time, as I was expecting closer to 29 minutes since I was still recovering from the marathon and I was recovering from a particularly hard few days at work. Would it have been nice to finish in under 28 minutes? Yeah, but I was still happy with what I was able to do! Also, I came in 5th place in my age group out of 29 people, so I was near the top! So even though I didn't place, I am still happy with that.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGmf-MmR6a6D0m0DwX-vIWnUN_1U4Ni5S30FmOu-363oHQumP5kUk6mHfDJhVAeW3_7paAOvTjiNk86ELzPu-pZFqto1bfSszEoy93Gybo8u6JwgQPWqUtDIr5nPGbfOOx3_mXOfjxACc/s1600/20171123_083237_1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="369" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGmf-MmR6a6D0m0DwX-vIWnUN_1U4Ni5S30FmOu-363oHQumP5kUk6mHfDJhVAeW3_7paAOvTjiNk86ELzPu-pZFqto1bfSszEoy93Gybo8u6JwgQPWqUtDIr5nPGbfOOx3_mXOfjxACc/s320/20171123_083237_1.gif" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me crossing the finish line (blue shirt)</td></tr>
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Then we got to go to see my family and eat tons of delicious food at our Thanksgiving lunch! So what a great day it was, indeed!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqdlgtZ7qgaNxkbK-gEpryfRVSWFojW7wW-5PcjKiWtgshHKzElH_XcmilbAW480CSg7zLkjzMKykoI5cKUKI7H_NNhV2toApqHjPJORGODMuKR3JyMqyejGDH9p2qyANpNf6bxEinKLw/s1600/2017-11-23+09.28.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqdlgtZ7qgaNxkbK-gEpryfRVSWFojW7wW-5PcjKiWtgshHKzElH_XcmilbAW480CSg7zLkjzMKykoI5cKUKI7H_NNhV2toApqHjPJORGODMuKR3JyMqyejGDH9p2qyANpNf6bxEinKLw/s320/2017-11-23+09.28.43.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Look we made a new friend!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7x5jvgLg63Z7iOsV6U_NYLuPlo0Ob2ybjxkmCD57XpDkPEDSwSJ936l8WQzJJ_9suEpTNarP5_viOaSrAtUtbCs5hi-9ntBIaBx2pcEQU-28p05RtZHuPaX29-3Q1LEhrpG4pPQYiSo/s1600/2017-11-26+11.59.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7x5jvgLg63Z7iOsV6U_NYLuPlo0Ob2ybjxkmCD57XpDkPEDSwSJ936l8WQzJJ_9suEpTNarP5_viOaSrAtUtbCs5hi-9ntBIaBx2pcEQU-28p05RtZHuPaX29-3Q1LEhrpG4pPQYiSo/s320/2017-11-26+11.59.51.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Our new kitty, Norbert, didn't run any 5Ks<br />
but he did participate in Thanksgiving<br />
by having his own feast--<br />
apparently he likes pumpkin??</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-51711716792136487062017-11-20T19:22:00.004-05:002017-11-25T14:37:40.341-05:00Outer Banks Marathon 2017<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF4kdCfKzc36Zm4_F4vlbsGmPVAQtwvWbZ3YqzYwFBQjajpEBq5cbzMmlZm_9A74uuZrJhn8j0o3a1fK8mUAbtDXpL_4E3xS7FGRShUNiGnO0-puHcUfiwYXPrRkkx_WEJzCKYCEvqvAU/s1600/marathon-logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="332" data-original-width="350" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF4kdCfKzc36Zm4_F4vlbsGmPVAQtwvWbZ3YqzYwFBQjajpEBq5cbzMmlZm_9A74uuZrJhn8j0o3a1fK8mUAbtDXpL_4E3xS7FGRShUNiGnO0-puHcUfiwYXPrRkkx_WEJzCKYCEvqvAU/s200/marathon-logo.png" width="200" /></a>As you may recall from previous posts, I was torn between the Richmond Marathon and the Outer Banks Marathon as my fall race. Ultimately, I decided on Outer Banks due to a few different factors, like the date and the course (specifically elevation!). The moment we'd all been waiting for (ok... <u style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">I</u> had been waiting for) was finally here! November 12: RACE DAY!!!!!<br />
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But let's back up a couple days. Let’s do a RUN through of the weekend of events, shall we?<br />
<br />
On Friday, November 10, we hit the road after work to make it to the OBX that night. We were fortunate enough to be able to stay with a friend at his family’s beach house down there! We got in kind of late, but we were rested and ready for the expo and other preparations on Saturday.<br />
<br />
On Saturday, we got to sleep in and relax a bit, then we hit up the expo and got our swag. After the expo, we went to check out a couple of spots on the course. We wanted to see the trail section of the course that we were warned about, which was at the Nags Head Nature Preserve. We checked it out, and were only mildly intimidated. But it allowed us to make a plan of attack for race day. After we checked out the area, we went to a local park to do a shakeout run. We only did about 2 miles, plus the distance to and from the park. When we finished our shakeout, we took some downtime. We rested/napped for a little while before it was time for dinner. Fortunately for me, I had won a gift card to a local restaurant at the expo, so we got to hit up the Tomato Patch in Corrolla Beach for a cheaper dinner!!! So that was nice. We loaded up with spaghetti (me) and a calzone (him). After dinner we went back to the house, got ready for the morning, and hit the hay.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCKnCZKIUmWf8RISkkLvADJWqrAkudZdW88fKlOp2afKR_UPB9z9G4WneTHhpvaP4XutOTuvSBltLLSs3SsM32gI_lmvJvlP_GnfdaK-utXOdu5L_NsJ8qtnod5H25OlXadhoo0XRjt8/s1600/20171111_183142.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="817" data-original-width="817" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCKnCZKIUmWf8RISkkLvADJWqrAkudZdW88fKlOp2afKR_UPB9z9G4WneTHhpvaP4XutOTuvSBltLLSs3SsM32gI_lmvJvlP_GnfdaK-utXOdu5L_NsJ8qtnod5H25OlXadhoo0XRjt8/s320/20171111_183142.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Post-shakeout run</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3DyDo1zn1AM8dZga6fnzgx85L_yvEJq5vd8D3NDe25WxRxWep2cBi2V_cRe8y8xX-6jNE7JtpkNX7wO1AsQ5oa0kfu-CDyCWacQrzYbqoL9XLzWl3kpVRGjXy2kZdcLnsZblO6vTFqXk/s1600/2017-11-11+15.52.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3DyDo1zn1AM8dZga6fnzgx85L_yvEJq5vd8D3NDe25WxRxWep2cBi2V_cRe8y8xX-6jNE7JtpkNX7wO1AsQ5oa0kfu-CDyCWacQrzYbqoL9XLzWl3kpVRGjXy2kZdcLnsZblO6vTFqXk/s320/2017-11-11+15.52.08.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shirt + bibs</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Sunday morning! Race day! I woke up (too) early and started my pre-race rituals to be ready for the 7:20 AM start. We were fairly close to the start line (like 10 mins!) so we had plenty of time to get ready. We ate our oatmeal and bagels and bananas and headed over to Kitty Hawk for the start. He got in a 1.5 mile warm up, and I got only enough warmup to get me from the car to the porta-potty.... anyway.... then we made our way to the actual start and got in our corrals, ready to start!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK6OFU_d-4GcNUHLsyzpXKSG1s6hCSGPA6iswHjuDbRc88Hb0_jsGlCH-f0w2Sy4WRkGvrbpiVHY5t-90BSGiT0dLd6uMb4W7h-0_SyFbJs4LCKdY6zk-w-bkPTZXHqjvNFEDmVIw8uJk/s1600/2017-11-12+06.25.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK6OFU_d-4GcNUHLsyzpXKSG1s6hCSGPA6iswHjuDbRc88Hb0_jsGlCH-f0w2Sy4WRkGvrbpiVHY5t-90BSGiT0dLd6uMb4W7h-0_SyFbJs4LCKdY6zk-w-bkPTZXHqjvNFEDmVIw8uJk/s320/2017-11-12+06.25.53.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for race day! Or something!</td></tr>
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<u><b><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><br /></span></b></u>
<u><b><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HIS RACE RECAP:</span></b></u><br />
Alfredo was very unsure of how he would perform at this race. He has been working very hard for his college cross country season in training for the 8K (spoiler alert: he did very well, post to come!). But he hasn’t been training distance as much as he would have liked. He got in two 20 milers with me at my pace, one 20 miler by himself at his own pace mostly, and a few 15 milers. These runs were all for the sole purpose of building endurance to hold a fast pace for shorter distance, which really affects the way he was running them. So with this, he didn’t know what to expect. He was telling people he felt like he could do sub-3 all the way 3:15, or anything in between. So stepping up to the start was a crapshoot. His goal was to stay at a comfortable pace of 6:40-6:50, and if the pace felt too hard to maintain he would slow up. The mindset was to go in, have fun, enjoy the race, and do his best.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiZr5kuuqBBaYFiQ62XAlxpecQBwRCXGX71u9SPUTma0MZvENJfu8mgpda2TFzGul0FljiPiM5MMEZEHCM1FuVnabnE4taNfZ4Xi9UK8Y4SqaM_z2FKXoP77vgVBQlfMWy7DgZTQrJqqM/s1600/2017-11-16+21.55.39.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1120" data-original-width="611" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiZr5kuuqBBaYFiQ62XAlxpecQBwRCXGX71u9SPUTma0MZvENJfu8mgpda2TFzGul0FljiPiM5MMEZEHCM1FuVnabnE4taNfZ4Xi9UK8Y4SqaM_z2FKXoP77vgVBQlfMWy7DgZTQrJqqM/s320/2017-11-16+21.55.39.png" width="174" /></a><br />
When the gun went off, he immediately settled into his pace, and as runners, we know how hard it is to maintain pace and hold back when people are passing you with the adrenaline of race day pulsing through your veins. But, he was able to restrain himself and let people go do their thang. He kept telling himself, <i>Run your own race</i>. Despite him feeling like he could have gone faster in the beginning, he stuck to his plan. Mile by mile, his body was still feeling great. It also helped that he made a running friend who was pacing with him until mile 9, so it made those first miles feel effortless. After that, his new running friend convinced him to stay on pace and go on ahead. And so he did. This was the section through the Nags Head Nature Preserve with the trails. After getting out of the woods and getting to the half marathon checkpoint, he noticed that the clock said 1:29 and some change. So this was the part that got to him the most because he knew that in order to beat his first goal, he needed to run that again, and that was very stressful. His body was still feeling good, so he still continued persevering. At this point he began passing other people who had begun slowing down, because he was sticking to his target pace, just like he had been throughout the whole race.<br />
<br />
Fast forward to mile 19. He started feeling like he had to actually push to maintain target pace, which was ok still. Around this time he was able to see the first place woman, which made him realize he was maintaining a very good pace, and his plan was actually working. Then, mile 22 came along and the bridge came into view: the bridge that everybody was talking about. This was going to be the hardest point on the whole course. He knew that he needed to slow down going up the bridge, but not too much, since he knew he could pick the pace up going back down. After that, it was only 2.2 miles left. And he found out that these miles were the hardest. Mile 24 seemed to be pretty hard on him, but he got through it. Mile 25 was a challenge since he was so close to finishing, and he was having a hard time holding the pace. Even after seeing mile 26 and being able to hear the announcer at the finish line, it was still difficult to pick the pace up, until he saw the finishing chute, that is. When he saw the clock in the finishing chute, it read 2:58:20, and the first thing that came to his mind was, <i>I have to make it under 2:59!</i> His body was able to give him an extra kick to run as fast as he could at this point. He was very surprised that he was able to dig a little deep and pull a little extra energy out of nowhere and cross the finish line with a time of 2:58:50, which gave him a PR of less than 30 seconds but he was super excited because he was not expecting that.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWhd8gTN-rdY1AW4VcueTR9xFkZL6wh7P1C5iIPIVRdATpCDJkookyjsjV03OXf7b7GQi6a5FqjnDCbd09a529TFLbNBRd2YlXyjc-J7WwX-r7HaBs21v5vgM5Q7Gm8vLikr9l7Xja5XQ/s1600/3289.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWhd8gTN-rdY1AW4VcueTR9xFkZL6wh7P1C5iIPIVRdATpCDJkookyjsjV03OXf7b7GQi6a5FqjnDCbd09a529TFLbNBRd2YlXyjc-J7WwX-r7HaBs21v5vgM5Q7Gm8vLikr9l7Xja5XQ/s320/3289.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<u><b><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HER RACE RECAP:</span></b></u><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDBJs8s6dd1xcxSbMS4X0MRnQy5K07uGBDQGJEn8Tz764iQrY8IGSzsEAVTFRXizUjHnQcl7uMeM3nWed-GEDZAWfIOOep6g11KDFLlXBIZq7XYktbrOwGpXHhuv2RClfg3lKBxgxtuM/s1600/2017-11-16+21.52.03.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="822" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDBJs8s6dd1xcxSbMS4X0MRnQy5K07uGBDQGJEn8Tz764iQrY8IGSzsEAVTFRXizUjHnQcl7uMeM3nWed-GEDZAWfIOOep6g11KDFLlXBIZq7XYktbrOwGpXHhuv2RClfg3lKBxgxtuM/s320/2017-11-16+21.52.03.png" width="219" /></a>I started out feeling fine, and I had a goal pace set for me to stick to. I wanted to hit 10:45 min/mile average for the first part before going into the trail section between miles 10-13. I totally did this (no thanks to the fact that I dropped one of my Humas and almost had an anxiety attack because of it) but when I hit the trail I kind of forgot everything I had set out to do. I tried too hard to keep my pace through the trails and so that definitely wore me out. I also had irritated my foot sprain from last month, probably from running on different terrain than I’m used to. Anyway I popped out of the woods and hit the half checkpoint, right on target! I slowed a bit, but I managed to keep my overall goal pace until about mile 18 or 19. When I hit the 19.3 checkpoint I was already slower than my goal pace, but I kept on trucking. I knew I just had to keep on running, tackle the bridge and I would be at the home stretch. So I did. I kept going with any other goals in mind besides my ultimate goal of 4:45. I wanted to finish the darn thing first of all, and I wanted to go under 5 hours again like I did at the Marshall University Marathon, and I wanted to PR (under 4:56). I was still on pace for all of those things, so that kept me motivated. After going over the bridge, I found my hubby waiting for me, ready to help me run in the last 2 ish miles. And I managed to keep on going to cross the finish line in 4:54:53 which met all my other goals! I PR’d by 2 minutes!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjandmp4wc2FPMhU2wGfz5yA0a5Rbg_I3qOhSyFUU6ETtnAjF8KtbuOvMew_i1gKH2k9KptmlPUS0n1pVxSYwEQzlQ247zWLYQJ7S9GPF79d3_B0ZuvDcgGSE0M5izeyHyB65DHtTHBfKQ/s1600/2017-11-16+21.50.46.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="795" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjandmp4wc2FPMhU2wGfz5yA0a5Rbg_I3qOhSyFUU6ETtnAjF8KtbuOvMew_i1gKH2k9KptmlPUS0n1pVxSYwEQzlQ247zWLYQJ7S9GPF79d3_B0ZuvDcgGSE0M5izeyHyB65DHtTHBfKQ/s320/2017-11-16+21.50.46.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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All in all, we really enjoyed this race. The fact it was point to point was nice because we didn't have to repeat any portion of the course. There were plenty of water stops, and tons of "party stops" along the way (official and unofficial stops) that had sugary options and other race staples. We really liked it, and it still had that small town race feel even though it was a decent size. It was well organized and well sponsored too. We highly recommend it for any future marathoners that want a warmer fall race late in the season. As for what's next, we're not sure. We are already scouring the race calendars to figure out where to go from here. But don't worry, we'll keep ya posted!<br />
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Now for the miscellaneous pictures!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi019DFkquDVw04CegSygqreb3TKCj2KAgNB4KgdR0q_7aYLdkfIWhBcJkj_7Zh3i-lHg2IDueY8hbv5vGMxYrGlsICmufE3zwfqO4Fur-Yhj_OsfpyqvcUivOWUu4DtsBMU7x2EfT8kvE/s1600/20171111_130424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi019DFkquDVw04CegSygqreb3TKCj2KAgNB4KgdR0q_7aYLdkfIWhBcJkj_7Zh3i-lHg2IDueY8hbv5vGMxYrGlsICmufE3zwfqO4Fur-Yhj_OsfpyqvcUivOWUu4DtsBMU7x2EfT8kvE/s320/20171111_130424.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Driving around on Saturday- <br />
we got a sneak peak of the Wright Brothers Memorial</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmATNA9Si4y2ZUxvsiJ_cTNrRnGhsc-ewqeuicU9Bj6CvT0In3R8y79GGqArVJFCrd2WY4xDUSRl6AU_z3bXNxvdZbL3WlUXWEcqX2V2xLOGJVg2mZvOf4yKkLwvfnr2b1pGymZxPxkSg/s1600/2017-11-16+21.55.17.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="585" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmATNA9Si4y2ZUxvsiJ_cTNrRnGhsc-ewqeuicU9Bj6CvT0In3R8y79GGqArVJFCrd2WY4xDUSRl6AU_z3bXNxvdZbL3WlUXWEcqX2V2xLOGJVg2mZvOf4yKkLwvfnr2b1pGymZxPxkSg/s320/2017-11-16+21.55.17.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">After CRUSHING the bridge! (approx mile 24)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAAkGXwk2NFDoOIUmJt7WGjJHKnlwj9g_nW7tpTKl7rg3DREBHTByygYayUXRpR9B6xaX7MSgSEXjinttrOCsAnECHJMpOUnYTM8U-C7U958BvAq3qITkgxa6qY3DNgKCxJlKr-c3MDwE/s1600/2017-11-16+21.51.47.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="741" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAAkGXwk2NFDoOIUmJt7WGjJHKnlwj9g_nW7tpTKl7rg3DREBHTByygYayUXRpR9B6xaX7MSgSEXjinttrOCsAnECHJMpOUnYTM8U-C7U958BvAq3qITkgxa6qY3DNgKCxJlKr-c3MDwE/s320/2017-11-16+21.51.47.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My boo came back for me! Like always!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkXJ1pscIOGLMr77HxhzIgZhAMlHy2AZ3lS69kdiGamVDycX-_Mv3M4afMbNcDKGUInWYt1A95lkrUagIktZ6KGg86IZVU1f9VBEnD3b_g7ZENhBdPNQMmwm64Ovf1dKz_ht-QsQmAWvI/s1600/2017-11-16+21.53.37.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1134" data-original-width="783" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkXJ1pscIOGLMr77HxhzIgZhAMlHy2AZ3lS69kdiGamVDycX-_Mv3M4afMbNcDKGUInWYt1A95lkrUagIktZ6KGg86IZVU1f9VBEnD3b_g7ZENhBdPNQMmwm64Ovf1dKz_ht-QsQmAWvI/s320/2017-11-16+21.53.37.png" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alfredo and Joel- <br />
11th and 10th place marathon finishers!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-iwiuME5Z3okL9tmqUAfeMXp7btJev6lFKKgk73LQLzVCiVRv6OwYz53OsjgCMehortQZx3lDOalZRMfPKiM3x3kUIBVpMw6DXMnNmetOMhqSDa1OrQyyW-lW0cn687DFXdwOl3Br1Wk/s1600/2017-11-19+07.53.33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="577" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-iwiuME5Z3okL9tmqUAfeMXp7btJev6lFKKgk73LQLzVCiVRv6OwYz53OsjgCMehortQZx3lDOalZRMfPKiM3x3kUIBVpMw6DXMnNmetOMhqSDa1OrQyyW-lW0cn687DFXdwOl3Br1Wk/s320/2017-11-19+07.53.33.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LOVE THIS PICTURE!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_GeO2dQ1XmpE774ongJAER8hdbZpkt8AaND8d4aX0yiOogRpCFOcuu55iFrqztHgx48_lk6ToFdZpCp8L15L2qlXPfvBeT51JcpTBhfviEeYFctezVw2OJ_VKEqH2rB4Xe1XFWY0g5l8/s1600/20171111_144159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_GeO2dQ1XmpE774ongJAER8hdbZpkt8AaND8d4aX0yiOogRpCFOcuu55iFrqztHgx48_lk6ToFdZpCp8L15L2qlXPfvBeT51JcpTBhfviEeYFctezVw2OJ_VKEqH2rB4Xe1XFWY0g5l8/s320/20171111_144159.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He loves his Honey Stingers! <br />
Especially now that he is an Elite Sponsored Athlete for them!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg049WkPufAGwntsj3dYnx2YnoqnN1wteOaQ-Zd7vMvLqL0bEnHuK1X2hvwiCJdm1RwlKn488cq1IH_WsqwhMLIwDJjK1mjWWAW2AM0cMhr40qUnOhW_fbdTs8Piz_AvELW5zca7hE_mNQ/s1600/20171112_140157.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg049WkPufAGwntsj3dYnx2YnoqnN1wteOaQ-Zd7vMvLqL0bEnHuK1X2hvwiCJdm1RwlKn488cq1IH_WsqwhMLIwDJjK1mjWWAW2AM0cMhr40qUnOhW_fbdTs8Piz_AvELW5zca7hE_mNQ/s320/20171112_140157.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had a photo shoot on the beach on the way back from the finish line!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD1dOGrgeq0orexz90EDatVjutu6SuMchfk1QuPeO5kpaud7pr729CcmArebAH9UqtFzWQQLWUDE-mXYfZoxg1h3mLgNg0ivARXGOfH28a2vVaW26O00xpbySvaKq4yCGFCPlJkKcbQb8/s1600/20171112_140318.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD1dOGrgeq0orexz90EDatVjutu6SuMchfk1QuPeO5kpaud7pr729CcmArebAH9UqtFzWQQLWUDE-mXYfZoxg1h3mLgNg0ivARXGOfH28a2vVaW26O00xpbySvaKq4yCGFCPlJkKcbQb8/s320/20171112_140318.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8RLoYavwz-WQjaiUSYD9HVJrvFcoQzmyNYd6kIAqOKcDyFEfOM0l0O8Ho3-Tq8O1vYgeuz4G1MMc4uWjZh9tzB8qjh_gZOygSdGNZmE1l_b8sLE4INdWT-LjwyklZGa6_pgYBE-BI7M/s1600/20171112_140445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8RLoYavwz-WQjaiUSYD9HVJrvFcoQzmyNYd6kIAqOKcDyFEfOM0l0O8Ho3-Tq8O1vYgeuz4G1MMc4uWjZh9tzB8qjh_gZOygSdGNZmE1l_b8sLE4INdWT-LjwyklZGa6_pgYBE-BI7M/s320/20171112_140445.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqeFnfKz1YE7Htgfp6wLlTmhshsXYWzfBsCAqZ2WES2OJtwChR7nB5pDgLXKovxlziyY0ucaJHpOL8Yoem7UMO0_kuKnsmf-IiZjdF9BDiwAvWeKXUz5FLWjI_2W5EfgjmDPc4A45Z8-k/s1600/20171112_150746.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqeFnfKz1YE7Htgfp6wLlTmhshsXYWzfBsCAqZ2WES2OJtwChR7nB5pDgLXKovxlziyY0ucaJHpOL8Yoem7UMO0_kuKnsmf-IiZjdF9BDiwAvWeKXUz5FLWjI_2W5EfgjmDPc4A45Z8-k/s320/20171112_150746.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joel had to get in the ridiculously cold water<br />
because he bet that Alfredo couldn't PR! YIKES!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUnI4froiG9W-mrFNILIPX03up_jP2pewlOA-rZBVyd3rdibFGnO-Xzr-eHIH3ZrSUUHoQkjN8sYKu8J4ZVHsNJrWmiRIZujWQ_TilB1jtz0i39MLcO6nl3aek2yWKGNUhjGXaQ8-sVps/s1600/20171113_185456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUnI4froiG9W-mrFNILIPX03up_jP2pewlOA-rZBVyd3rdibFGnO-Xzr-eHIH3ZrSUUHoQkjN8sYKu8J4ZVHsNJrWmiRIZujWQ_TilB1jtz0i39MLcO6nl3aek2yWKGNUhjGXaQ8-sVps/s320/20171113_185456.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alfredo's medal with his 3rd place age group pin!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-14765493070521171222017-09-30T21:36:00.000-04:002017-09-30T21:36:49.556-04:00Hokie Half Marathon <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiIAn2tp4Fmcw0FdTDzeuFKiAz4okEkPm3BvwLfFyM0_m27jJ4AQDGeyCFsvnk3AHeKzlqsEMe0OIZ6jJ1wyQabe9v4xCAss3X_Jq-Loj2jCv83c2GWcR9F8ekdzmD6t9Inlaxwt2fMZw/s1600/Hokie+Half+Marathon+and+5k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiIAn2tp4Fmcw0FdTDzeuFKiAz4okEkPm3BvwLfFyM0_m27jJ4AQDGeyCFsvnk3AHeKzlqsEMe0OIZ6jJ1wyQabe9v4xCAss3X_Jq-Loj2jCv83c2GWcR9F8ekdzmD6t9Inlaxwt2fMZw/s320/Hokie+Half+Marathon+and+5k.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
So, September is almost over, as it turns out. Tomorrow, to be exact. And I have realized that we didn't do a recap of our biggest event in September! OMG. So here goes:<br />
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We were planning to travel up to Blacksburg, VA on the weekend of September 17 to visit our running buddy friends that moved there not too long ago to spectate the Hokie Half Marathon. Turns out, some other friends of ours got hurt/sick and couldn't run the Hokie Half Marathon that they were already signed up for. Long story short, we ended up wearing bibs that said MIKE and NICK even though our names are neither Mike nor Nick. They were able to transfer their registration to us so we were able to not only spectate, but we were able to run the half marathon!<br />
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We went into this race with very different expectations, respectively. I am in the middle of marathon training and I had (spoiler alert: unrealistically) high expectations and hopes for a personal record since I had PR'd in April. People had told us that the course was surprisingly flat (psych), so I was like "I'M GONNA GO FOR IT!" Mr. Marathon just wanted to use this as a fun training run since he is focusing on the 8K distance for his cross country season (post on his first 2 cross country meets coming soon.... clearly I'm failing at being a blogger LOL SORRY).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhocp9d_c2EQHkAxI_omq_iEvUwlWs8fzbQbkLLxvYNt02zyfE5wkLA0nCWgGNEV-VK7HYZmnQPa0QrehhhDJRoi5YPpHktfVHW_WJmWGqDFORnSurdU6H_d_ol0xVJOcJSb3rbwR9ZxW4/s1600/2017-09-17+06.34.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhocp9d_c2EQHkAxI_omq_iEvUwlWs8fzbQbkLLxvYNt02zyfE5wkLA0nCWgGNEV-VK7HYZmnQPa0QrehhhDJRoi5YPpHktfVHW_WJmWGqDFORnSurdU6H_d_ol0xVJOcJSb3rbwR9ZxW4/s320/2017-09-17+06.34.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Race morning!</td></tr>
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We ended up traveling on Saturday for packet pick up for the Sunday race. We arrived fairly late, picked up our packets, and met our friends for dinner. I had my usual pasta, and mister had a pizza. I was real jealous. Then we headed back to our friends' house to get some sleep because we knew that the 7:00 AM start time would come really early. It was dark and cool when we got to the starting area on Sunday morning, and the sun was just coming up as we lined up in the starting corrals. I was supposed to start with Wave 2 at 7:02 but I accidentally got swept up in the Wave 1 runners... oops.<br />
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For me, this run started out amazing. I was maintaining right at my goal pace (actually faster by about 10 seconds per mile) and I was feeling great! It was at about the mile 6 water stop that everything fell apart. And I can pinpoint the exact second that it did. I always carry my handheld water bottle. I do it so I always have access to water and I carry my inhaler in the pocket of my water bottle in the event of an asthma flare up. This means that I don't get water at water stops. I will stop and get Gatorade in the second half of a half usually, but we were still at mile 6 and I was doing just fine. This particular water stop had tables on both sides of a rather narrow trail, so I didn't really have anywhere to go if I didn't want water besides straight down the middle. So that's what I did. Except, there were 2 people who had gone off to their respective sides to get their hydration, then they both decided to merge into the middle at the exact same time, and neither of them seemed to notice me. So they sandwiched me in between themselves, pushing my shoulders in and giving me an intense pain in my chest. Yes, it hurt, but not super badly. I was still able to breathe, but I was having some pain from it. The real issue occurred when this made me emotional. I get very emotional very quickly. My emotions began to run off without me, which set off my anxiety. I began thinking tons of anxious, irrational thoughts. <i>I'm not going to be able to keep my pace anymore. They have ruined my race. I can't breathe right anymore. My inhaler can't help this. Oh crap, now I'm going to cry. Crying makes it impossible to breathe too. And once I start crying I can't stop. AHHHHHHHHHHHH. </i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSqdkK-UJ73XKXYfnEaP9Ho2BAzQvXnXcgDkqHC55gRG5mLzNVRLUGFq-wfbHUQwGgeY4cL8s7NokUz7h_KOaf2IQN8B4Qn6sKI-VSZzL3H4Us40IHbELTWo4qWA5MAX8wCvBUrqrMwpg/s1600/2017-09-17+09.12.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSqdkK-UJ73XKXYfnEaP9Ho2BAzQvXnXcgDkqHC55gRG5mLzNVRLUGFq-wfbHUQwGgeY4cL8s7NokUz7h_KOaf2IQN8B4Qn6sKI-VSZzL3H4Us40IHbELTWo4qWA5MAX8wCvBUrqrMwpg/s320/2017-09-17+09.12.49.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Be thankful that you can't read my thoughts in this picture...<br />There would be a lot of censoring needed....</td></tr>
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It also just so happens that the hills pick up in the second half. There were also several spots of gravel trail in the second half which really slowed me down. It took everything I had to keep myself calm(ish) or at least to keep myself from crying. I came close several times but I managed to maintain my composure (outwardly at least... refer to the thoughts above). I ended up finishing begrudgingly with a time of 2:16:51, which was 3 minutes off from my PR.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidKse4MvI6Y540Bn1OK6ywYO8lnOhSkrpUp6eqFoPeQwt1J5INOWU8QmtryVBZ_Op8w4tJTbS-2t_QwWZIFhEeqSc2axN8WgCTg5xhh38fyJ4ftULOpgK1aYsuexPCuNMl5hMWpbTbD8E/s1600/FB_IMG_1505959687886.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="667" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidKse4MvI6Y540Bn1OK6ywYO8lnOhSkrpUp6eqFoPeQwt1J5INOWU8QmtryVBZ_Op8w4tJTbS-2t_QwWZIFhEeqSc2axN8WgCTg5xhh38fyJ4ftULOpgK1aYsuexPCuNMl5hMWpbTbD8E/s320/FB_IMG_1505959687886.jpg" width="320" /></a>Mr. Marathon was running all footloose and fancy-free for the first 7 miles. He was just taking it easy like Sunday morning (oh wait it was Sunday morning...). But then, a spectator told him that he was in 39th place overall and he decided that he was going kick it. He wanted to pick his pace up since he was feeling so great, so he took off. He passed people left and right, and managed to move up about 20 places according to his calculations based on the information given to him by that spectator. Unfortunately, the spectator had apparently been wrong about his placing earlier because he ended up in 25th place rather than 19th place, which is what he was expecting. But still, he managed to finish with a time of 1:29:12, which was an awesome time that he wasn't expecting (he had told me he was aiming for an hour 45 minutes that morning)!<br />
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All in all, we had great fun with friends, we ate great food, and we ran some miles. It was a great weekend, and it was a fun way to get a long run in for my marathon training and it was an easy way for Mr. Marathon to get in a long run for his cross country training. He has had 2 meets so far this season (like I said- post coming soon.... ish) and he will have at least 2 more meets this season, possibly more. I will continue marathon training for the OUTER BANKS MARATHON (YES I HAVE DECIDED!!!!!!!) but other than that, I don't have anything major on the docket before then. So stay tuned for more ridiculously late blog posts about things that happened several weeks ago!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE70cVjZTrDkNXa6ixSBENwzQGUqA7S4cdAPgn_cWaUMEtbC4kDnlsGSp6tKg8N86z_wOto6sGKT3cdXygz7uVxd7P9t09hfql4SNyrNaxuGhXqGcyd8Wy5mJTpPioFTZAop6g4ZK85a4/s1600/2017-09-17+12.49.30-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1076" data-original-width="1080" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE70cVjZTrDkNXa6ixSBENwzQGUqA7S4cdAPgn_cWaUMEtbC4kDnlsGSp6tKg8N86z_wOto6sGKT3cdXygz7uVxd7P9t09hfql4SNyrNaxuGhXqGcyd8Wy5mJTpPioFTZAop6g4ZK85a4/s320/2017-09-17+12.49.30-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hanging with the running buddies in Bburg</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrmFmvMX3ZSz09MgvnT_o5AxPwXsFXg4e_-tZSb9p7dT1aI8Y1gv0GSBsYRFG-mZAo7Gi6iufg98Y7TTGDx_jqyylxIvCWpnH-FHQNg6fskqKlY4q5g7X-IQzvSwdzwt7QXVxqHrrLLZk/s1600/2017-09-17+19.54.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrmFmvMX3ZSz09MgvnT_o5AxPwXsFXg4e_-tZSb9p7dT1aI8Y1gv0GSBsYRFG-mZAo7Gi6iufg98Y7TTGDx_jqyylxIvCWpnH-FHQNg6fskqKlY4q5g7X-IQzvSwdzwt7QXVxqHrrLLZk/s320/2017-09-17+19.54.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swag.... and an identity crisis! All in one!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-31456226550733947982017-08-06T18:03:00.001-04:002017-08-06T18:08:25.447-04:00#RWrunstreak 2017 & Danville Braves 5K<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5u2JoOd3aA1HgrBSXV3KnHi5-BvgV4r4eGDzYxJiN7d0XPfc0zilmEZ_wN6S8jm7WtciX9NixU8aw4x4jExqfsIiVRHOfmWCIWlbGx8EhNgTu02nHyz_tZblTJNtc7a49aCA9RZEbc3k/s1600/logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="750" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5u2JoOd3aA1HgrBSXV3KnHi5-BvgV4r4eGDzYxJiN7d0XPfc0zilmEZ_wN6S8jm7WtciX9NixU8aw4x4jExqfsIiVRHOfmWCIWlbGx8EhNgTu02nHyz_tZblTJNtc7a49aCA9RZEbc3k/s320/logo.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/07/rwrunstreak-4-on-4th.html" target="_blank">Last year</a> between Memorial Day and the 4th of July, I had completed the Runner's World Run Streak (or the #RWrunstreak), which was just a little challenge set out by Runner's World to encourage runners to run at least 1 mile every day between the two major summer holidays. This was meant to help runners keep running through the summer. It is so hard to get motivated when spring racing is over and fall training hasn't quite started. So I needed this kick in the rear to get me into gear! Last year, Mr. Marathon did not join me due to a busy schedule. This year, we both completed the 37 days in the challenge, and then some! We both have officially (as of today) made it 70 days!!!!!!!! Let's look at the mileage:</div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HIM: 335.5</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HER: 249.65</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>Danville Braves 5K</u></span></div>
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Mr. Marathon also completed a 5K during his run streak. This race was on July 15 in Danville where he works and goes to school. This race was hosted in conjunction with Danville's local minor league baseball team on a Saturday morning before the Braves played that night. Mr. Marathon has been working on speed training so he was very excited to see what he was capable of at this point. He went out racing and hit the road. His biggest competition were 2 teenage guys who were leading for most of the race. He hadn't been feeling that great, so he was having a hard time breathing, which is kind of important for running. DUH. He ended up pulling away in the last mile and one of the 2 guys was still right by his side. The course finished unfortunately on an uphill, which he was thinking that would be where he would lose the race. However, the other guy apparently had the same thought. Halfway through the hill, he wanted to slow down, but just as he was thinking that, the other guy stopped because he got light-headed (Mr. Marathon looked back to make sure he was ok!), and a course volunteer went over to help him. This gave Mr. Marathon the lead and the extra motivation to kick it and finish strong. He took 1st place overall with a time of 18:50! A great time! Even better, the overall male and female winners were given the privilege of throwing the first pitch at the Danville Braves game that night! So that was a fun experience! And he got a cool bat trophy as his award. All of this, just to find out 2 days later that he had BRONCHITIS..... for the past FOUR WEEKS. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>Back to the Run Streak</u></span></div>
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This all being said, we made it past the 37 day mark, then I wanted to go further than last year (42 days), and then we decided to just keep going until the end of my summer before I start teaching again this school year. This is the end of our intentional, official #RWrunstreak. If we keep on streaking from this point on, it will be unofficial and unintentional. We made this conscious decision because today is a very important day for me. It is Day 1 of my MARATHON TRAINING PLAN! I am now IN TRAINING for a fall marathon! I am still undecided which one. I am torn between the Richmond Marathon and the Outer Banks Marathon. They are on November 11 and 12 respectively, so my 14 week training plan kicks off today regardless. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>Pictures! </u></span></div>
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Last year, I took a picture and posted it on Instagram every single day. This year, I tried to take a picture most days, but some days I was just not feeling it. Sometimes I took a billion pictures and hated them all at the time so I didn't post them. So here you go, you can get some inside scoop, never before seen photos of my #RWrunstreak! A picture for every day!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Days 1-25</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Days 26-50</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQAWDhyrshrvL_-mS-Q1qdsBlBUxe_6WVsM6hgv9CxywTHPwyj9fC3k77Qs425-3svcuyZjCb0VKQNxNqa334UbdvwUfLkyYaMl63rsnbmMa2Tj41leSgQN7kYRaRaK1a_0PoFHg8P98/s1600/Days+51-70.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQAWDhyrshrvL_-mS-Q1qdsBlBUxe_6WVsM6hgv9CxywTHPwyj9fC3k77Qs425-3svcuyZjCb0VKQNxNqa334UbdvwUfLkyYaMl63rsnbmMa2Tj41leSgQN7kYRaRaK1a_0PoFHg8P98/s320/Days+51-70.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Days 51-70</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-37021357361520022072017-06-20T21:23:00.000-04:002017-06-20T21:23:19.190-04:00Baltimore 10 Miler<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ2j5xpGZN1DGf94hX60eLzbG4BoyuybCvLow0zhVy0pC3SV-EDBq9b4YTGR2Pt4KbKdIJkAohwUK55-WgbudnGLXHb9tLUVZYatrBK5vyGDLVbuGOmfOfLHG8bwLv6MFqpjXQfRDNl14/s1600/20170603_170453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZAAIAweNaeTZK10dGFjMB6_gw6tJAlIxhvEklCyJly1EiDZTB8ARoYJlPvGxCI5l9Zg5CVcoLAyoXD8WiXWWsmrExTDkFdFUyOAvKYuUTkeWHhbgm9XAigE3JWp6StrKCMxiGCk2aZOs/s1600/balt_logo_v2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZAAIAweNaeTZK10dGFjMB6_gw6tJAlIxhvEklCyJly1EiDZTB8ARoYJlPvGxCI5l9Zg5CVcoLAyoXD8WiXWWsmrExTDkFdFUyOAvKYuUTkeWHhbgm9XAigE3JWp6StrKCMxiGCk2aZOs/s1600/balt_logo_v2.png" /></a><br />
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Earlier this month on June 3rd, Mr. Marathon and I headed north to Baltimore, Maryland for the first time ever! We had signed up for the Baltimore 10 Miler after I found it just browsing races one day. And I got sucked in by the fact that I had never officially done a 10 mile race before, and the promise of some awesome swag. We made the drive on the Friday before the Saturday race, and boy was it full of traffic! We aren't used to traffic in our sleepy little small town, so driving through both Richmond, VA and Washington DC/Northern VA was a very stressful situation. But we made it after quite a few hours, and fortunately we were approved for race day bib pickup so we didn't have to rush on the night before.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01XTDLFlCuGj_lqUjs7hx_ufnZoJuj3k39OpQwuWl55woq1YwqI53_EnB9AurB2LXxAWP9hX58Jnj1a6d_alHSEChJrsL9s6ZeTjf3H220egvYpdjgnOjPfXHZ6w_ID-b9xFH6HyxYQU/s1600/premium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="851" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01XTDLFlCuGj_lqUjs7hx_ufnZoJuj3k39OpQwuWl55woq1YwqI53_EnB9AurB2LXxAWP9hX58Jnj1a6d_alHSEChJrsL9s6ZeTjf3H220egvYpdjgnOjPfXHZ6w_ID-b9xFH6HyxYQU/s400/premium.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swag-tastic jacket!!!!!</td></tr>
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Race day was upon us and we were instructed to be at the zoo where the race started and finished by 6:30 at the latest so that meant we had to leave from where we were staying by like 5:45. That made for a very early morning! We made it in time, and got ready to go. It was a beautiful morning, a little cloudy and cool. Both of us went into this race with some time goals. I wanted to keep my overall pace below 10:00 min/mile which would put me at finishing under 1:40. Mr. Marathon wanted to finish between 1:05-1:10.<br />
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This race was advertised as a challenging but fair course, and that it was indeed. I managed to take off right at target pace. My first 5 miles were all under 9:40 min/mile pace, and I was right on track for my goal. The first half did have a lot of rolling hills, but was noticeably more downhill. So, I unfortunately knew that the second half would be more uphill. I finished the first half in 46:50. I plodded through the next half with most of my miles hovering between 10:00-10:37 min/mile. There were 2 major hills that really slowed my pace but overall I managed to keep my pace under my goal and I finished in 1:38:50 with an average pace of 9:53 min/mile!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikbGaTVnm8VcZJBG_bQFVb3HwAN-ec-SMHql4UDHsoaiFQf9XbolUh2_Y-8AxIBba3-RE6JSyh2qSmAPtQZMXiTZA_XRdPMCx99LfXd9xhBw5Dc5iritS9yvRz3xXulsnhxZ1VNmxXAGM/s1600/19366131_10155202393110664_8746495525260481930_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="865" data-original-width="560" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikbGaTVnm8VcZJBG_bQFVb3HwAN-ec-SMHql4UDHsoaiFQf9XbolUh2_Y-8AxIBba3-RE6JSyh2qSmAPtQZMXiTZA_XRdPMCx99LfXd9xhBw5Dc5iritS9yvRz3xXulsnhxZ1VNmxXAGM/s320/19366131_10155202393110664_8746495525260481930_n.jpg" width="207" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">My race photos are always like this...<br />
*eye roll*</td></tr>
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Mr. Marathon has been focusing more on short distance and speed, so this 10 miler wasn't really about hitting a certain pace, but as I mentioned before, he thought he was capable of getting 1:05-1:10. He pushed very consistently throughout. He did mention that the course was challenging, and agreed that the first half was ok, but the second half was tough and noticeably more uphill. When he took off, he didn't quite feel like he was pushing just yet, but after a mile he realized that he was going all downhill, meaning he was going to have to finish up this same hill. That was slightly terrifying. But it didn't finish up that hill. Even better, we hit the hill coming back at mile 8, and then the course continued around a looping area of parking lot and driveways... which were all uphill. So essentially the last 2 miles were uphill. And yet he still ended up finishing in 1:05:47, which he was absolutely thrilled about!<br />
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After the race, we got to spend time with my dear friend walking around Annapolis, Maryland exploring the city! And now- PIX!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pre-race cheesin</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6rOVDBECKP3oDgPQ9uZEMwMKrfugaSyWlwjd_E7i8pAf6wL_kDybr5tnHzKiKrp3Pq4M3BfRaZ6DjLL1OzqJBqMQiwau0dAEEn8AbxUYkrLaaS6Zd5dpmAww8VLxHvZdoEKWOVItE5M/s1600/19366099_10155202393485664_7882278396078098118_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="677" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6rOVDBECKP3oDgPQ9uZEMwMKrfugaSyWlwjd_E7i8pAf6wL_kDybr5tnHzKiKrp3Pq4M3BfRaZ6DjLL1OzqJBqMQiwau0dAEEn8AbxUYkrLaaS6Zd5dpmAww8VLxHvZdoEKWOVItE5M/s320/19366099_10155202393485664_7882278396078098118_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Crossing the finish line with my boo --<br />
he came back for me after he finished! *swoon*<br />
Ignore that rando photoboming us lol</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That moment when you open your camera <br />
and it's set on front facing and you don't expect it</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Li4ASYqY3SL4GldLElgJjO9pGqzofyeiWtQOvxPc6eOC3dNylDTGN1MZY6Z6L5nlm1BcRdqInSi78Z-NWDrOEjF8EChvHQ1LJCq7yEVXx2yzY_IznW_vr8txQACX9dky1xObn0vtkkg/s1600/2017-06-04+17.54.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1009" data-original-width="1008" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Li4ASYqY3SL4GldLElgJjO9pGqzofyeiWtQOvxPc6eOC3dNylDTGN1MZY6Z6L5nlm1BcRdqInSi78Z-NWDrOEjF8EChvHQ1LJCq7yEVXx2yzY_IznW_vr8txQACX9dky1xObn0vtkkg/s320/2017-06-04+17.54.53.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sightseeing in Annapolis</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The little harbor in Annapolis</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDi_x0IeTnJc0fyO0-5q4X26fMG_wM9ZWzAOvNCv_Kw7I08a2X5v68qx7irpmoe9KF0tvFTh6dCFt91yMevWyuxBqko_-ssqKouxVVRvOlYooZZuOrIhd5TACQxk1NdWVn7Ylk07Pm-Q/s1600/2017-06-03+18.51.11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1440" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDi_x0IeTnJc0fyO0-5q4X26fMG_wM9ZWzAOvNCv_Kw7I08a2X5v68qx7irpmoe9KF0tvFTh6dCFt91yMevWyuxBqko_-ssqKouxVVRvOlYooZZuOrIhd5TACQxk1NdWVn7Ylk07Pm-Q/s320/2017-06-03+18.51.11.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Posing at the harbor with Mr. Marathon and my dear friend!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ2j5xpGZN1DGf94hX60eLzbG4BoyuybCvLow0zhVy0pC3SV-EDBq9b4YTGR2Pt4KbKdIJkAohwUK55-WgbudnGLXHb9tLUVZYatrBK5vyGDLVbuGOmfOfLHG8bwLv6MFqpjXQfRDNl14/s1600/20170603_170453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ2j5xpGZN1DGf94hX60eLzbG4BoyuybCvLow0zhVy0pC3SV-EDBq9b4YTGR2Pt4KbKdIJkAohwUK55-WgbudnGLXHb9tLUVZYatrBK5vyGDLVbuGOmfOfLHG8bwLv6MFqpjXQfRDNl14/s320/20170603_170453.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The capital building in Annapolis</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-84671690969145849162017-06-04T21:03:00.000-04:002017-06-04T21:03:21.831-04:00Run for Kids 5K<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_7feyb4xvXjxjJFWbxg5YUhDY_PE8cwF6tkJCWeFXTYqZpxmNnzvDkAl_AbJQM4-3hqR1Cth0gytq-6bcqiNFlDVfAxVTzTEtxbbJ6X5pkT-REeOibYtuyDgyp3QcTtpafIT6vbDWXLo/s1600/01f05077-e475-411e-950d-f355709afa5b.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="895" data-original-width="999" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_7feyb4xvXjxjJFWbxg5YUhDY_PE8cwF6tkJCWeFXTYqZpxmNnzvDkAl_AbJQM4-3hqR1Cth0gytq-6bcqiNFlDVfAxVTzTEtxbbJ6X5pkT-REeOibYtuyDgyp3QcTtpafIT6vbDWXLo/s320/01f05077-e475-411e-950d-f355709afa5b.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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This past Memorial Day, we traveled south to Georgia to spend time with my family that lives there, and to celebrate my grandparents 67th (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) wedding anniversary! While we were in that neck of the woods, we found a 5K to try out!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdfYN8xNs7-PjxXapbPGcBRXEmLQCNeXw7ui5MZ7CuinRPmM7JVyZytDxE_wwdlwfuNgrT38tTmStsf0HTpj7-65Grkz8vvga49z9c_2L7IJBA-m1hxxggfJptiKk-C_SL3ydOc24RFk/s1600/20170527_084056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdfYN8xNs7-PjxXapbPGcBRXEmLQCNeXw7ui5MZ7CuinRPmM7JVyZytDxE_wwdlwfuNgrT38tTmStsf0HTpj7-65Grkz8vvga49z9c_2L7IJBA-m1hxxggfJptiKk-C_SL3ydOc24RFk/s320/20170527_084056.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Because both of us have decided that we want to focus on shorter distances, we wanted to use this race as kind of a "baseline" race to know where our fitness level is. We arrived in Georgia kind of late on that Friday, so Saturday morning came really quickly and we were running (lol) on not a whole lot of sleep. We woke up early that morning and hit the road for the 30 minute drive to Monroe, GA for the Run for Kids 5K, which benefited the local Boys and Girls Club. It boasted being "flat and fast" so we thought <i>How bad could it be?</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Zolbb4CFyQEjv28il2FNKpbuLgNzZeHnSuRnYN4axF1eBnOiouBri3xH9zcpSvFGjw6evwB6EDray5pDUrW1w98uKdlqhMIu20U6JwntEkDwqvMwKtLPq53a1Ru6PaOI7MdCFJhSJsk/s1600/2017-05-27+13.08.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="969" data-original-width="969" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Zolbb4CFyQEjv28il2FNKpbuLgNzZeHnSuRnYN4axF1eBnOiouBri3xH9zcpSvFGjw6evwB6EDray5pDUrW1w98uKdlqhMIu20U6JwntEkDwqvMwKtLPq53a1Ru6PaOI7MdCFJhSJsk/s320/2017-05-27+13.08.03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It was a beautiful morning, sunny and 68 degrees. We lined up and took off at 8:00 AM sharp. We noticed pretty immediately that it wasn't as flat and fast as we had thought. The course was pretty simple though. It was just an out and back one way then an out and back the other way, and it finished in the park the same way it started. Along the way it had some, ahem, "rolling" hills. It wasn't drastic elevation change, but enough that it shouldn't be considered flat. Either way, it wasn't too bad. I overcame poor eating choices from the previous day and being overly tired from not enough sleep, and I met my goal! I know I said we wanted this to be a baseline race, but I felt trained up to get close to my current record. I managed to hover around my goal pace for all 3 miles, and then I crossed the finish line with a shiny new PR of 27:30, which means I cut off 22 seconds from my previous record that coincidentally I ran at <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2014/12/jingle-jog-5k.html" target="_blank">the last 5K we did in Georgia</a>!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNf0UPNrus66oqVLqdA-VsloOiqxY0bOJsis8eDsAYkeAgj8Chocq1dYwIO095CDa034lH_v5_dck7tB5XyDJH9gWrEL6xFLS_Ko0THVssPbz5he3pCjZ9i4cSwjVsHwvIa-kBcI4RhU/s1600/20170527_082711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1399" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNf0UPNrus66oqVLqdA-VsloOiqxY0bOJsis8eDsAYkeAgj8Chocq1dYwIO095CDa034lH_v5_dck7tB5XyDJH9gWrEL6xFLS_Ko0THVssPbz5he3pCjZ9i4cSwjVsHwvIa-kBcI4RhU/s320/20170527_082711.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finish line shot! My time was actually 27:30 though FYI</td></tr>
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Mr. Marathon got a good feel for how much he is able to push at this point. He was tired from lack of sleep the previous night as well, and he was tired from some tough workouts during the week before the race. He was tired and sore, but he still pushed and went all out on race morning. He was hoping for a sub 20 minute finish time, and he managed to hit his goal! He finished in 19:05, which he was very happy with. We both met our goals, but to top it all off, there was tons of pizza at the finish! Oh, and we both placed 1st in our age groups! And last, but definitely not least, we got to spend a great Memorial Day weekend with my family!<br />
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This past weekend, we traveled to Baltimore, Maryland for a 10 mile race, but we will get around to a recap for that one soon enough. For now, enjoy some more pictures from our 5K!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxkJjxQ7G1vXe5irlSenPGiai1aIwuzZahenoRH_xxtxhVT8IRtwp_tEQ-xryVQL2EyEFSwvETkmHjPnpFrQLe27r63EkxgmsXYVKbxcUWMpeT_F5ZYzGA7b8R4aDCnMGwbUvmEaYkFEA/s1600/2017-05-27+13.08.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1177" data-original-width="1177" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxkJjxQ7G1vXe5irlSenPGiai1aIwuzZahenoRH_xxtxhVT8IRtwp_tEQ-xryVQL2EyEFSwvETkmHjPnpFrQLe27r63EkxgmsXYVKbxcUWMpeT_F5ZYzGA7b8R4aDCnMGwbUvmEaYkFEA/s320/2017-05-27+13.08.13.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last turn to the finish!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEY7K1C-G7DpiT60nKVE3VQQW5-7epwCbBGe5VgG3iGoT4E-kK2XSkNukaasmDc4d9roq3R8nTCfUs6boqxysjHNqDIAcZ0vyn8SZ313dYxy7qpe4xwg3KUz3eOIerFdvu4WZFZqrBec/s1600/18670954_10209694995559581_2716585897962308894_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="854" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEY7K1C-G7DpiT60nKVE3VQQW5-7epwCbBGe5VgG3iGoT4E-kK2XSkNukaasmDc4d9roq3R8nTCfUs6boqxysjHNqDIAcZ0vyn8SZ313dYxy7qpe4xwg3KUz3eOIerFdvu4WZFZqrBec/s320/18670954_10209694995559581_2716585897962308894_n.jpg" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I'mma just hang out like this while<br />my wife takes a pic for my Instagram"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIPH-AOWAlCFISEzVKfXfgXYQzjxElnkizq203WlmUBSdCdrCGkNnzsEiXj6zRQTaL8267ehk4x03gqeh7ihyphenhyphenIcj_EQDPbV23N45pIS0bdHCee15G34b3AmDL2P6C7MkXMNcYhjNPKta0/s1600/20170527_084354.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="1600" height="123" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIPH-AOWAlCFISEzVKfXfgXYQzjxElnkizq203WlmUBSdCdrCGkNnzsEiXj6zRQTaL8267ehk4x03gqeh7ihyphenhyphenIcj_EQDPbV23N45pIS0bdHCee15G34b3AmDL2P6C7MkXMNcYhjNPKta0/s320/20170527_084354.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That was a lotta pizza for such a small crowd!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfq18Ca2bjgo6XrQIeC8cNt-gqU0ShV3ENk0PhKbVvMGwW6SwOjHgqBI4JFS5oFcmwNVKhIlP-V2nFQ3GpQrdSuQ0Rw8rBGlh12Iw-_fjQylmr4-2Awri_5BEDWsE1QFoX-P_Zk4JEz0/s1600/20170527_090729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfq18Ca2bjgo6XrQIeC8cNt-gqU0ShV3ENk0PhKbVvMGwW6SwOjHgqBI4JFS5oFcmwNVKhIlP-V2nFQ3GpQrdSuQ0Rw8rBGlh12Iw-_fjQylmr4-2Awri_5BEDWsE1QFoX-P_Zk4JEz0/s320/20170527_090729.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1st place 25-29 F age group!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGMbuFzT7JzgjU0x1Ha52o-_aUJxLL7kwsG-Pf8-XXQF1HZMqWe1HVxYL9lK1MZcQ0wBx7Sz3krjcbiXfCtPlRdgv_ICw5w-ye3mmUAuGODK9yuJZMPVrqSWfYt1O0RzJaxraRrFcipvY/s1600/20170527_090740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGMbuFzT7JzgjU0x1Ha52o-_aUJxLL7kwsG-Pf8-XXQF1HZMqWe1HVxYL9lK1MZcQ0wBx7Sz3krjcbiXfCtPlRdgv_ICw5w-ye3mmUAuGODK9yuJZMPVrqSWfYt1O0RzJaxraRrFcipvY/s320/20170527_090740.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1st place 25-29 M age group!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrPdvV3jMZtTrZJ0ZRfBvLN5zLSwa4sKwAcf6YwKr-5ECG-BsH3Sh3VFIILGodi2l5la90Xfq_ATXNv8gIrAik8Hdz2ovIn2pWpgTUdWFm2iZ7UGdjEk2GJ3-hg6JGH6NdiyaWWH9xtg/s1600/20170527_091412.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrPdvV3jMZtTrZJ0ZRfBvLN5zLSwa4sKwAcf6YwKr-5ECG-BsH3Sh3VFIILGodi2l5la90Xfq_ATXNv8gIrAik8Hdz2ovIn2pWpgTUdWFm2iZ7UGdjEk2GJ3-hg6JGH6NdiyaWWH9xtg/s320/20170527_091412.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Showing off trophies</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHwfwhXdGkkoz5PFDLuxN_IiTlKbzePLtik2kR92x7N2TtYmzveckJxLq7k8Bx4M5n9hv71Xs6wq-thQuFLvgOUP5zV8GuIWRHHwnyVK4snm0EVWFh5X66xz_srQ0CHBvZ5dqNMV3uyKg/s1600/2017-06-01+22.25.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1256" data-original-width="1600" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHwfwhXdGkkoz5PFDLuxN_IiTlKbzePLtik2kR92x7N2TtYmzveckJxLq7k8Bx4M5n9hv71Xs6wq-thQuFLvgOUP5zV8GuIWRHHwnyVK4snm0EVWFh5X66xz_srQ0CHBvZ5dqNMV3uyKg/s320/2017-06-01+22.25.42.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trophies with the event shirt</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-698551634060126172017-05-07T20:20:00.000-04:002017-05-07T20:20:35.241-04:00Super Run 8KYesterday was a big day for me! I had set a goal at the beginning of this year to update some of my current personal records, the 8K being one of them. I haven't really run many 8Ks, so I hadn't set a PR in that distance since 2012 when I ran the<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2012/11/anthem-richmond-marathon-and-hca-va-8k.html" target="_blank"> HCVa 8K</a> in 51:54. I really wanted to run another to see how much I'd improved since then.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1qNNKD-2tlQdfFJOc7GD5BBf_OLNkhNY4poDiIHxzx7_0ZfpiZvve2TwdCLQ89eY_ovOucaPkOLph2Sg-G4ovpBGWU-L-npMyLPx5rBINK9OJXc-xj5Apt50gChPkDOC5u-OJF31eNZg/s1600/logo_logo_super_run_600jpg_150303_095009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1qNNKD-2tlQdfFJOc7GD5BBf_OLNkhNY4poDiIHxzx7_0ZfpiZvve2TwdCLQ89eY_ovOucaPkOLph2Sg-G4ovpBGWU-L-npMyLPx5rBINK9OJXc-xj5Apt50gChPkDOC5u-OJF31eNZg/s1600/logo_logo_super_run_600jpg_150303_095009.jpg" /></a></div>
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So I decided to run the Super Run 8K in my little hometown. This race is just wonderful! It's the celebration event for the end of the spring season of the Girls on the Run and STRIDE running teams from local elementary and middle schools, and since I am a Girls on the Run coach this race was extra special to me. I had 4 girls running the 5K, and spoiler alert: they totally rocked it!!!!!!!!!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2sQOVEirnWcru5UzKVBYbjd21MY2EbqAZVjfC40KgAkKs5j90ZhXgCL0hGIRZ0zSDB_q4Mwppv016hW3zbsTkbLT8J7E1gmzMrxgcChA7uXGu4sMeSTPvzDFk_k-V4LXioYmYE9CdZE/s1600/2017-05-06+09.09.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2sQOVEirnWcru5UzKVBYbjd21MY2EbqAZVjfC40KgAkKs5j90ZhXgCL0hGIRZ0zSDB_q4Mwppv016hW3zbsTkbLT8J7E1gmzMrxgcChA7uXGu4sMeSTPvzDFk_k-V4LXioYmYE9CdZE/s320/2017-05-06+09.09.59.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Girls on the Run coaches: my friend Mary and me</td></tr>
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After we all gathered and took some pictures first thing in the morning, we all made our way to the start line. I took off a little bit too fast (I got excited sorry!) and I finished the first mile about 30 seconds too fast for my goal pace. My goal was to just PR, but of course I wanted to see just how fast I could go. I found my groove for the next couple of miles, despite some hills. I have run this course a few times before so I knew about these hills, so it was no surprise. However, the last time I had run this course, I got a stomach cramp around mile 3.5. I blamed it on my nutrition that day, so I was hoping on race day if I ate my usual breakfast I wouldn't experience any cramping. Unfortunately, I began cramping around that same time. I ran through it and kept pushing because as I approached the turnaround I got to see all the other runners coming back. I noticed the first several men, then I saw one woman, then I got to the turnaround, and I hadn't seen any other women. Granted, there was a small turnout for the 8K as the 5K is the main distance for this event, but still, I was 2nd place female! I saw another woman a little bit behind me, so I knew despite my cramping, I had to keep pushing to maintain my spot!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY7IcIjmTxsRI0XnI7xv5XHpoh2DY-6xScqzyozNdqgix5TtRPFfSTnn8gs0r2IV09qmfhWRMR0-9hq4Pr0XtmLrXLIPKQiv0eiwMvKbF2K5A-cKHUCRZDDfcyynIZS0TWeap5fiznF_4/s1600/2017-05-07+06.34.00.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY7IcIjmTxsRI0XnI7xv5XHpoh2DY-6xScqzyozNdqgix5TtRPFfSTnn8gs0r2IV09qmfhWRMR0-9hq4Pr0XtmLrXLIPKQiv0eiwMvKbF2K5A-cKHUCRZDDfcyynIZS0TWeap5fiznF_4/s320/2017-05-07+06.34.00.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"THE FUTURE IS FEMALE" Love it!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVyOJr74IMz-1RaQbnjAXuMDhIYHedN6QPdObacoZm9BfKxDrDqtc_2jzV9UDZPVsN20ESspyH_wIyo-E7mxClwbw86P1KcDp2PzRPPALjH5XqzBtYAI2iiGElI7Rit71huZ1IVzOc74/s1600/2017-05-07+06.34.45.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVyOJr74IMz-1RaQbnjAXuMDhIYHedN6QPdObacoZm9BfKxDrDqtc_2jzV9UDZPVsN20ESspyH_wIyo-E7mxClwbw86P1KcDp2PzRPPALjH5XqzBtYAI2iiGElI7Rit71huZ1IVzOc74/s320/2017-05-07+06.34.45.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I pushed through to mile 4, then I made my way back to the last road before the final turn toward the finish. My cramp was coming and going, but the woman who was behind me still hadn't caught up. I kicked it up at the end around the last turn. I ran the last straightaway to the finish line without even looking down at my watch. I was expecting a PR at this point, however I was not prepared for what I saw: a time of 46:29! It was a PR of 5 minutes and 25 seconds!!!!!!! I would have been thrilled just with this time, but it made it even better that I managed to place 2nd overall female.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUsJ3M4kffPPqTXa9hqsxLBQhtHT2bG03JLeOBlXTZ1HQ-7OrLfc_abUlJrNpl4njKLmVmmsO4FNyFGTSENeFhoxnhc7HAoPZV3htJ7NTy1QSySpJHs027ARvkAVEJ50HASbdCYzgeoU/s1600/2017-05-06+15.04.17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUsJ3M4kffPPqTXa9hqsxLBQhtHT2bG03JLeOBlXTZ1HQ-7OrLfc_abUlJrNpl4njKLmVmmsO4FNyFGTSENeFhoxnhc7HAoPZV3htJ7NTy1QSySpJHs027ARvkAVEJ50HASbdCYzgeoU/s320/2017-05-06+15.04.17.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mildly unflattering finish line photo....<br />I expect nothing less from myself!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnAYHZbNkmptQM7cObhV-cbgVz7NWHaCtjppBdwf6XkqUc7_urZdCCB3MMDpkTo3_G6m-qeg1blxQOVtR-cMWWgSCgQKH69xltOVl6eP3LylhxSyBSIlVdbbCe9JPS-c1RANcGkQVP5k4/s1600/2017-05-06+14.28.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnAYHZbNkmptQM7cObhV-cbgVz7NWHaCtjppBdwf6XkqUc7_urZdCCB3MMDpkTo3_G6m-qeg1blxQOVtR-cMWWgSCgQKH69xltOVl6eP3LylhxSyBSIlVdbbCe9JPS-c1RANcGkQVP5k4/s320/2017-05-06+14.28.03.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The only picture of me on the podium....<br />we were about to get down haha!</td></tr>
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Now, it's time to get sappy. I haven't raced short distance in a while, but I am just so happy with my time and the effort I was able to put forth during this race. If you recall, I got sick back in November with pneumonia that put me down and out for quite a few weeks. Then I got sick again in February after just coming back to running after the pneumonia and I was out for a few more weeks. I was so nervous that I had lost all my fitness, endurance, and speed. But I ran so much during March and April training for my half marathons (<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/rock-n-roll-raleigh-marathon-and-half.html" target="_blank">RnR Ral</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/blue-ridge-marathon-and-half-2017.html" target="_blank">BRM</a>), and luckily for me, it brought my speed back to where it was (and then some)! As for what's next, I have a few more goals that I would like to accomplish coming up here soon, including a goal for a 5K and a 10 miler!!!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9r6EmTEm8XdWNweLNZ2JvgYWLOuojjzeCWSpoQCEWu8IzAzUkSAuAia0rOXX4SxxFIoeBDPhIb29c3S9wi2FHkDCJ9FIlSWJx-yzafEbn_S3FfpWCoFdhhpJclIZlo3phIwXrG-sXdY/s1600/2017-05-06+09.10.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9r6EmTEm8XdWNweLNZ2JvgYWLOuojjzeCWSpoQCEWu8IzAzUkSAuAia0rOXX4SxxFIoeBDPhIb29c3S9wi2FHkDCJ9FIlSWJx-yzafEbn_S3FfpWCoFdhhpJclIZlo3phIwXrG-sXdY/s320/2017-05-06+09.10.12.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Two of my coach friends and me!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dLgtHhWwwTgomrlOwxRUPPHjBSQRrtPYauwNEYJD5kW6EQwtuWcsy_ungDbD4G58fGOIOH5XXK0wDzDagP7dSu1loR6WfmH8GN7GJLpRMKSzvWuCs5YvVC574EDuWevd2XC0qLPPEU4/s1600/2017-05-06+20.07.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dLgtHhWwwTgomrlOwxRUPPHjBSQRrtPYauwNEYJD5kW6EQwtuWcsy_ungDbD4G58fGOIOH5XXK0wDzDagP7dSu1loR6WfmH8GN7GJLpRMKSzvWuCs5YvVC574EDuWevd2XC0qLPPEU4/s320/2017-05-06+20.07.02.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Had to get a picture of the race shirt with my bib!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-s-N7UfEv7HvD_rJKjAp4S58OvbLkLev8hwd_DGutSP2ht3o8C6c9RBepBNys9Pkys486FCNmcYQdKjWeKSv_JnC_cLHOlNpapubKeVVkiiVL3dgJEbmv2Idv4Z_zr0vYzEm1f2yzok/s1600/2017-05-06+20.10.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-s-N7UfEv7HvD_rJKjAp4S58OvbLkLev8hwd_DGutSP2ht3o8C6c9RBepBNys9Pkys486FCNmcYQdKjWeKSv_JnC_cLHOlNpapubKeVVkiiVL3dgJEbmv2Idv4Z_zr0vYzEm1f2yzok/s320/2017-05-06+20.10.30.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">.... and my kitty Fat Harry had to be part of the photo shoot!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-39767722788233155782017-04-29T21:45:00.001-04:002017-04-29T21:45:43.024-04:00Blue Ridge Marathon and Half 2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLiKemVM4tbq-Ukpd7X_9vUWMj4RMdbNGRgACOlneEslgq77YPkfDdwWXuWhKUbFRVkI0KZ79w-KRGqHWRwu4GJ48ZpJh0Llt_CBFXNUEY946phrDSRKAhd9V1ba3bpUCszVMx8ResAEs/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="85" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLiKemVM4tbq-Ukpd7X_9vUWMj4RMdbNGRgACOlneEslgq77YPkfDdwWXuWhKUbFRVkI0KZ79w-KRGqHWRwu4GJ48ZpJh0Llt_CBFXNUEY946phrDSRKAhd9V1ba3bpUCszVMx8ResAEs/s400/Capture.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Last Saturday, we had another his and hers race extravaganza! Mr. Marathon has been tackling the Blue Ridge Marathon- America's Toughest Road Marathon since 2010! Read about years past <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2013/04/blue-ridge-marathon-americas-toughest.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2014/05/brm-5x.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2015/04/brm-2015.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/blue-ridge-marathon-throwbackthursday.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/marathon-weekend-part-1-blue-ridge.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Last year, I decided to join him and do the 10K. Last year, we received entries as we were official BRM bloggers. I jokingly said if we got entries again this year I would bump up and do the half. LOL right? Well, SOMEONE entered us in the "Running is for Lovers" contest, with the prize being two free entries to any of the BRM races. He entered our adorable picture from crossing the finish line together at the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2015/02/publix-ft-lauderdale-a1a-marathon.html" target="_blank">Ft. Lauderdale Marathon</a>. So obvs we won. And so I <i>had to </i>bump up to the half this year!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimjTWyPynGFa-NISbzwZGsnQjNLhwrHA64w0afZThTb_DcZ4siY_r7mSvrw20NZe19arWkIEamG_bAYN6RZwbdCV5Yc3weSjo_QZ_uIvYLzA7u9EhMJ0EqGtARbCX1cz7deVoGe_zZTvU/s1600/16708383_10208823031801032_972374054556576534_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimjTWyPynGFa-NISbzwZGsnQjNLhwrHA64w0afZThTb_DcZ4siY_r7mSvrw20NZe19arWkIEamG_bAYN6RZwbdCV5Yc3weSjo_QZ_uIvYLzA7u9EhMJ0EqGtARbCX1cz7deVoGe_zZTvU/s320/16708383_10208823031801032_972374054556576534_n.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#runningis4lovers !</td></tr>
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We went to packet pick up the night before on Friday, then ate our pre-race pasta. On race morning, we headed to Roanoke, VA to RUN THOSE MOUNTAINS! All 3 distances (10K, half, and full) took off at 7:35. So now, because this was a his and hers race extravaganza, we will have a his and hers recap.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXQdK8fw0UJCLMV47e5auPhvTZ43gEWrEQ2CaX37_NLQsW9_UThjrZ6LVr841dEwYr5CJqNxrfNKra4ZIiQ2wDi2Nx6VNhb341xlKFc2GJCP4FOdbh-wMfaM1yQ9KBVUrj4ByzSBeBOzk/s1600/18157742_10155221057934417_6687902033964064766_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXQdK8fw0UJCLMV47e5auPhvTZ43gEWrEQ2CaX37_NLQsW9_UThjrZ6LVr841dEwYr5CJqNxrfNKra4ZIiQ2wDi2Nx6VNhb341xlKFc2GJCP4FOdbh-wMfaM1yQ9KBVUrj4ByzSBeBOzk/s400/18157742_10155221057934417_6687902033964064766_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u>HERS</u></b></span><br />
I went into this race with not a whole lot of expectations. This half is part of America's Toughest Road Races series, and it boasts 1,897 ft total elevation gain and 3,790 ft of total elevation gain/loss. I had told myself a few months ago when I found out we had won entries that I would incorporate hill repeats into my training, but yeah, that never happened.... yikes! So because I hadn't gotten much hill training, I really didn't have high expectations. I just wanted to be able to finish the half before my mister finished the full. Anyway, the first part of the course goes through downtown Roanoke and it only has some rolling hills for the first mile or so. Then, I started the ascent up Mill Mountain. This part of the course is the same as I did last year at the 10K, so (fortunately/unfortunately) I knew what to expect. The climb up Mill Mountain was tough last year, but what made me the most nervous was that people kept telling me the second half of the half marathon (Peakwood) was tougher than Mill Mountain. So I tried to keep some gas in the tank going up and coming back down Mill Mountain.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Half marathon elevation map.... eek</td></tr>
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Turns out, everyone was right about Peakwood being worse than the first half. Even though the elevation gain is more drastic up Mill Mountain, Peakwood is a more gradual kind of torture. And it faked me out a couple of times. We climbed, climbed, climbed, and then we would go downhill for a hot second, then climb some more! And to make matters even better, it started raining pretty steadily at around mile 8 for me, which was almost at the top of Peakwood. At the turnaround at the top of Peakwood, I was so relieved to have some more downhill. After enjoying a few miles of downhill, there was more uphill and I was thinking<i> WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THIS MESS. </i>But nevertheless I did the darn thing. The little overpass bridges in downtown Roanoke that seemed like nothing in the beginning seemed steeper than Peakwood coming back in. But I finished in 2:38:19, which was before Mr. Marathon finished his full. GOAL MET!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNwPiEfIo0hKOLUkNxZ7MR1yg_ojEm90GSujG1mwe6gvysYlvjaVSvgsu2ggpQ7BrUJ9Sow9yNhoqauk989l5aRW2eexGJUITndFK128i9GwPE5Z3BicPTY3h5ZCK4ojeFN5TAy9bRZ18/s1600/2017-04-22+10.13.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNwPiEfIo0hKOLUkNxZ7MR1yg_ojEm90GSujG1mwe6gvysYlvjaVSvgsu2ggpQ7BrUJ9Sow9yNhoqauk989l5aRW2eexGJUITndFK128i9GwPE5Z3BicPTY3h5ZCK4ojeFN5TAy9bRZ18/s320/2017-04-22+10.13.51.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
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<u><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">HIS</span></b></u><br />
As mentioned earlier in this post, Mr. Marathon has run this race every year since 2010, which is its inaugural year. He loves it so much (lol?) that he keeps coming back for more. He knows the course like the back of his hand, but each year and each race are drastically different, this year being no exception. Last year, he ran Blue Ridge on a Saturday, then 2 days later on that following Monday, he ran the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/from-blue-ridge-to-boston-marathon.html" target="_blank">Boston Marathon</a>. This year, he ran the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2017/04/boston-marathon-2017.html" target="_blank">Boston Marathon</a> on Monday and Blue Ridge was 5 days later on the following Saturday. So this year, he was drained from a tough race at Boston, but was still looking forward to his favorite race.<br />
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This year he decided to tackle BRM with one goal in mind: to finish it to continue his streak. This race isn't like any other race for him. And no, it's not because it's America's Toughest Road Marathon (which it is if you recall), but instead it's because this race is the race that started everything for him. This race holds a special spot in his heart. He took off like every other year at the front of the pack, however he knew his limitations. He knew in order to survive it, he was going to have to change his game plan from previous years. In years past it's been his goal to run without stopping. But this year he was planning to fartlek (run to a certain point and then walk for a bit to recover) up any major hills. He started this about 4 miles in. Sometimes we forget that we are our biggest competition and in a race, when someone passes you, we can't help but to chase them down and pass them as they passed us. But not that day. As he walked up the hills, people passed him, and just like any other race, he cheered them on as they passed him, but he refrained from attempting to chase them down. Now with this plan in place, he would take full advantage of all downhills to balance out his walking up the hills. And mile after mile, he did this, evaluating every step of the way. Nevertheless, he was cracking jokes and keeping a great sense of humor throughout the race like he always does!<br />
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However, this didn't mean that he wasn't going to push himself. Closer to mile 22, things began to hit hard. But he stayed with it, continuing his fartleking. He also found some extra motivation in a new friend he met along the way. This individual began his final leg of the relay as Mr. Marathon was side by side with him. This guy said "Don't you worry about me, I'm just doing the relay," and he made him realize that he was putting in effort, and it was nice to have a complete stranger recognize and acknowledge that. They ran together until one of the last major downhills that was very wet from the rain, so the other guy was a little bit more cautious and careful. But Mr. Marathon was not. He just let it rip down the hills to try to carry him the last mile and a half. With one mile to go, he said "Thank you" to a police officer who was at an intersection directing traffic and the officer said, "Not a problem, just focus on the race." And yet again, that made him realize that other people were recognizing his effort. So for the last mile, he carried this feeling with him and was able to finish strong. Another BRM in the books with a time of 3:31:02!<br />
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As for what's next on the agenda, we are looking to doing some shorter distances in the near future. What races exactly? We don't know yet. I'm looking into an 8K and a 10 miler (I realize that's not exactly shorter distance but it's shorter than a half right?) and he is looking into working on 5Ks and 8Ks. But don't worry- whatever we decide on doing we'll keep ya posted!Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-71867649004579437642017-04-22T20:44:00.001-04:002017-04-22T21:55:16.249-04:00Boston Marathon 2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This whole past week has been a whirlwind and a blur! But let me start with a week ago today. Last Saturday, April 15, Mrs. Marathon and I traveled back to the north for the Boston Marathon once again (read about <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/from-blue-ridge-to-boston-marathon.html" target="_blank">last year's Boston Marathon here</a>). We flew out of Raleigh in the afternoon, had a layover in Newark that night, then flew into Boston pretty late on Saturday. We got our rental car, headed to our hotel, and hit the hay!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdZguFcV_yBdo-JqEs45ybiIuHqd1-auxZQ5i7cX5AGDJYsEJzq_k5_S9o_1ebNsrlCyGw-BFeay2RLmvmAX_aKxjnuzQPreuqVHftDZXH5kOUQRCdxMrmvH2LmaK4_qxPQnap7cCn498/s1600/2017-04-15+20.22.11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdZguFcV_yBdo-JqEs45ybiIuHqd1-auxZQ5i7cX5AGDJYsEJzq_k5_S9o_1ebNsrlCyGw-BFeay2RLmvmAX_aKxjnuzQPreuqVHftDZXH5kOUQRCdxMrmvH2LmaK4_qxPQnap7cCn498/s320/2017-04-15+20.22.11.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">During our layover/dinner break in Newark</td></tr>
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Sunday was a fun adventure day of exploring the expo and the downtown area around the convention center. We didn't really want to wander far so we wouldn't get lost, and so I could save my legs a little. After picking up my stuff, eating lunch, and meeting 2 Olympians (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) we headed back to the hotel and rested, then ordered in dinner (room service!) and went to sleep.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOCIKb_M2hjPrJvMzCKGtEWpZkeoWM4EVvrKRJ53Q7j5_EQKWmwTVHDkiR6Kj69gbiGLn2VHlUpB9gGy0L6MT0BuncrFWW6U1xIM0zN8y2jqAK_p9xzXC43XT730gRZafb8kS2w858zg/s1600/2017-04-16+10.50.26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOCIKb_M2hjPrJvMzCKGtEWpZkeoWM4EVvrKRJ53Q7j5_EQKWmwTVHDkiR6Kj69gbiGLn2VHlUpB9gGy0L6MT0BuncrFWW6U1xIM0zN8y2jqAK_p9xzXC43XT730gRZafb8kS2w858zg/s320/2017-04-16+10.50.26.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shalane Flanagan (who is an Olympic Marathoner!) <br />
doing a Runner's World interview!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQa3y_PYsDVXtD1U8vXxfTeno5ALCzJODv-VjfeHNQN6jnlafM9Omw7n81Urt4QNEEfvlgr6sPxzRZ27oNUUTHFEx0NsnUulIO9_GwZBd9l28_vrkShSFGls_rdKuXqxPizZxmqJ3Kfoo/s1600/2017-04-19+21.10.17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQa3y_PYsDVXtD1U8vXxfTeno5ALCzJODv-VjfeHNQN6jnlafM9Omw7n81Urt4QNEEfvlgr6sPxzRZ27oNUUTHFEx0NsnUulIO9_GwZBd9l28_vrkShSFGls_rdKuXqxPizZxmqJ3Kfoo/s320/2017-04-19+21.10.17.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We met Shalane Flanagan!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbHFYyRSa_mna_0em7H8ukjj5WIspp4ZN_fGtj9g_z5N6VHNOoo-NbY3joj49378M6xoxJk2z53qL6F-GtefxwmW46vV0RsN-xhLQv3oALf16ig6CwrMvErEuFmFe0bhO-Cww3XzUnlQ/s1600/2017-04-16+10.49.05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbHFYyRSa_mna_0em7H8ukjj5WIspp4ZN_fGtj9g_z5N6VHNOoo-NbY3joj49378M6xoxJk2z53qL6F-GtefxwmW46vV0RsN-xhLQv3oALf16ig6CwrMvErEuFmFe0bhO-Cww3XzUnlQ/s320/2017-04-16+10.49.05.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">We saw Galen Rupp (bronze medalist in the Rio Olympics Marathon)<br />
doing a shakeout run on Sunday down Boylston Street!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm754BDkDU4e27230jo8SV4XC57J7_Fo6bqmtaBimW9JuL6-VtfTeUNzmfUPbAnP5PQLQHbvrFJIcs6yKo7MxRy2LxVoxD6a4ngMs0ZkuxGYdhjHaYguOFhcbEbv_IHmW5JwmuZnUOMxM/s1600/2017-04-19+21.18.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm754BDkDU4e27230jo8SV4XC57J7_Fo6bqmtaBimW9JuL6-VtfTeUNzmfUPbAnP5PQLQHbvrFJIcs6yKo7MxRy2LxVoxD6a4ngMs0ZkuxGYdhjHaYguOFhcbEbv_IHmW5JwmuZnUOMxM/s320/2017-04-19+21.18.35.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">....THEN I MET GALEN RUPP!<br />
He was just walking down the street and I asked if I could get a picture!<br />
Also pictured: the shoulder of ALBERTO SALAZAR <br />
(Galen's coach/world class long distance runner!)</td></tr>
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Monday morning, I got to sleep in compared to last year when I had to get on the T (subway) by like 5:00 AM to catch the shuttle from the finish area to Hopkinton. However, since we rented a car, I got to leave the hotel by 7:30 to make it to the start line by 8:30 to be ready to be called to my corral by 9:15 for a 10:00 start.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1at427xW-BjsSHuKbmniT4p3vxE5i4cTzls6GHv3T9dT4S6NJsuxhDEsCcPCOqaFWOU1eLz-FohbGNwjlfaEBrS9feaRReG7617w3gqHGrHni9ZEQRIqgQGUsTLJdmzGdtYEIk6h6T6k/s1600/2017-04-22+19.58.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1at427xW-BjsSHuKbmniT4p3vxE5i4cTzls6GHv3T9dT4S6NJsuxhDEsCcPCOqaFWOU1eLz-FohbGNwjlfaEBrS9feaRReG7617w3gqHGrHni9ZEQRIqgQGUsTLJdmzGdtYEIk6h6T6k/s320/2017-04-22+19.58.56.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A friend saw me in the crowd at the start line on TV!</td></tr>
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<b>Fast forward</b>, I get lined up with my corral and the gun goes off. The masses of people are released and we were off! The first few miles felt pretty good. I was running a 6:30 min/mile pace, which isn't crazy fast for me, but in my head I knew I had to slow it down to about a 7:00 min/mile pace to save something in the tank for later. I knew I was approaching some hills, and so I managed to slow down to about a 7:15-7:30 pace and kept trucking. I figured that eventually my body would warm up and I would then be able to speed up. However getting to the half marathon mark, I was very tired and my legs had felt every mile. I just did not feel comfortable at all. So at this point, I was happy that I had dialed the pace back, but at the same time, I was feeling a little upset since I was hoping to feel a lot lighter on my feet and a lot faster. I continued to wait for the surge of energy to carry me to the finish or that runner's high that everyone talks about (spoiler alert: didn't get one).<br />
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I had kept up with my nutrition really well before the race started and during the race, hydrating with Gatorade, water, and <a href="https://www.skratchlabs.com/" target="_blank">Skratch</a>. But unfortunately, every single mile beat me up. I felt every step that I took. I never caught a break from it. I usually zone out and keep up with my pace no problem, but after about mile 16, I knew that the fastest way to the finish line was just following the people in front of me. And so I did. All I wanted was to cross that finish line and be done. I know it doesn't sound like my normal attitude, but under the circumstances, this was a success that I didn't give up. I only walked at 3 water stops, and even though I was debating stopping at a medical tent, I knew I couldn't. I had to finish, and I had a flight to catch at 5:00 PM, with a return rental car at 3:00 PM. At the rate I was going, I was going to finish after 1:00 so I knew I didn't have much wiggle room. And fortunately, I guess, if it wasn't for this schedule I had to keep, I probably would have lost that last little bit of motivation I had left. I just could not find my groove during this race. As I ran, I just told myself I was proud of myself that I was even there. I don't say that very often, honestly hardly ever. But I was the one suffering and I was the one running, and I couldn't help but to look up at the sky and say <i>"Thank you,"</i> because of the privilege I knew I had. I was just proud of myself for keeping on keepin' on.<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju4Kv_1u06SnhngnH8l6t1eZzgOBiQ-rPX-jDqSnA25Zl5k_UthjjZYfOAYze3h2B_0WPodpz34vEadxdi47aqy0mmC_aOcUaZL-7QHaZpMmX1G7xRa_KbPUYh0MQ_8cUJTD-Yushp_5w/s1600/2017-04-17+13.18.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju4Kv_1u06SnhngnH8l6t1eZzgOBiQ-rPX-jDqSnA25Zl5k_UthjjZYfOAYze3h2B_0WPodpz34vEadxdi47aqy0mmC_aOcUaZL-7QHaZpMmX1G7xRa_KbPUYh0MQ_8cUJTD-Yushp_5w/s320/2017-04-17+13.18.00.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">I saw my wife on Hereford St!</td></tr>
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<b>Fast forward to the finish.</b> I crossed the finish line in 3:19:12. I grabbed my medal, my food, and my mylar blanket, and I was THANKFUL! However my body came to a halt and then I felt everything: my legs, my stomach, my whole body was rebelling against those 26.2 miles I had just completed. It felt like I walked a mile to the family meeting area (ok so it was maybe half a mile, max) and then the nausea kicked in. I finally made it to the family meeting area, sat down, and waited for my dear wife. The whole time I was waiting (which was almost 45 minutes due to the fact that she had to walk all the way around the finish line area which was several blocks!), I was hunched over resting my head on my arms which were resting on my knees, just waiting for SOMETHING to um, come out of my body. And once the missus made it to the meeting area, we spotted some porta-potties and let's just say I felt better. To quote the girl who came out of the porta-potty beside me, "The guy beside me was like barfing!" And I agree with that. A lot!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpQSRO4BR8W8q3Y7vgeQMOHQgKjJxPdQREyDXcaI-XAcJFf4js7KiaXNaQkgUzYkdRkY5pOk9K7lOlVexABZY8Y5clKf3HVhBpwiHoDob_dvgrgj_pnBLVCxIFjRDmzEE7sQJYpLd0s0/s1600/finishine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpQSRO4BR8W8q3Y7vgeQMOHQgKjJxPdQREyDXcaI-XAcJFf4js7KiaXNaQkgUzYkdRkY5pOk9K7lOlVexABZY8Y5clKf3HVhBpwiHoDob_dvgrgj_pnBLVCxIFjRDmzEE7sQJYpLd0s0/s320/finishine.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finish line!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-ZsRxxGQN-nM0fInmSaZksrghP2_gDQgz-MG3ujOupPEXFstSUUL42ZYtU9KPVAtdA9CaVdEP2hcvuBJnKB2j0BFIBFpavH_AXDlSbhy58bisqvFJnJ9D9zDx2AZX04XfajP5ABLnpI/s1600/2017-04-22+19.59.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-ZsRxxGQN-nM0fInmSaZksrghP2_gDQgz-MG3ujOupPEXFstSUUL42ZYtU9KPVAtdA9CaVdEP2hcvuBJnKB2j0BFIBFpavH_AXDlSbhy58bisqvFJnJ9D9zDx2AZX04XfajP5ABLnpI/s320/2017-04-22+19.59.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">My mother-in-law took this of me on TV, crossing the finish line!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">DONE!</td></tr>
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So then we embarked on our 2+ mile trek back to the parking garage. Yes, 2 miles. At LEAST! Big city parking is crazy! We made it to the car check in at the airport right around 3:15 and made it to the airport and through security with about 30 minutes to spare. Then we loaded up the plane (after a couple of gate changes and a slight little delay) and took off for HOME! We got to the Raleigh-Durham International Airport at 7:30, which put us getting back to our home sweet home in Bassett by 10:00 PM. It was a great trip, even though it was very quick and I had a tough race. We still enjoyed ourselves with an amazing weekend. It was awesome to be a part of the whole Boston Marathon experience once again!<br />
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<b>Fast forward to today. </b>We both did a race up (and down) some mountains! Tune in to our next post! Coming soon(ish)! But for now, more pictures from the Boston Marathon taken by Mrs. Marathon who was spectating along Hereford Street right before Mile 26!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15arlHCXi7W_XkYIOvn4KRWBjags1o3ATgF7XVVlK3KnhkwtCRXbSSFB2GNKEQ4b_74xmdRx8M7mX_t4kAbpcT-AcQsafTE_JrgMjSe9pN4qvUh9t8VEKMFe2CZgrLWfKGfj9hnD0K9s/s1600/2017-04-17+11.51.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15arlHCXi7W_XkYIOvn4KRWBjags1o3ATgF7XVVlK3KnhkwtCRXbSSFB2GNKEQ4b_74xmdRx8M7mX_t4kAbpcT-AcQsafTE_JrgMjSe9pN4qvUh9t8VEKMFe2CZgrLWfKGfj9hnD0K9s/s320/2017-04-17+11.51.49.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Women's winner!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wJTXOIOf6SveD6DB2FjDbhbYe1SyMsManmqGJCOmXt08advQSFyNKfdxsxuClnnHfnRjjan0C8Kk5OYsH6TKTCxEfHDAjdYTSESL7NpdjIsuy2_1qKUICqC_qF8UxR9-Wpc0OrRsFBg/s1600/2017-04-17+11.52.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wJTXOIOf6SveD6DB2FjDbhbYe1SyMsManmqGJCOmXt08advQSFyNKfdxsxuClnnHfnRjjan0C8Kk5OYsH6TKTCxEfHDAjdYTSESL7NpdjIsuy2_1qKUICqC_qF8UxR9-Wpc0OrRsFBg/s320/2017-04-17+11.52.56.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jordan Hasay- 3rd place overall, first American woman,<br />
and it was her debut marathon!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAM9JKP5fgJKGKVzNuT_A5FWc53QSisp3R6O01SHMUMMzbHZX4ObVI8WsnE7k23PKYEpINh5lGmGP6vcLA7nvS6a_8T1dzTehVp-y8yLUIzynG672pzLPxUXhE8dKSPO23xLKDtLsBAc8/s1600/2017-04-17+11.54.53-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAM9JKP5fgJKGKVzNuT_A5FWc53QSisp3R6O01SHMUMMzbHZX4ObVI8WsnE7k23PKYEpINh5lGmGP6vcLA7nvS6a_8T1dzTehVp-y8yLUIzynG672pzLPxUXhE8dKSPO23xLKDtLsBAc8/s320/2017-04-17+11.54.53-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Olympic Marathoner Desiree Linden!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKrp9pDSIzIzr5HvmV64LdSu0h7YL03UGN_Wpug_WA4JsRfV2kyM9WBszjtUbIXg36N9s-W7xLqs-QI6QFVqSHAO3RcMU-FVtLuuMRhSSzQjRs2UBUPGoGKfMUF0Y81_6fo8mdo60j968/s1600/2017-04-17+12.07.37-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKrp9pDSIzIzr5HvmV64LdSu0h7YL03UGN_Wpug_WA4JsRfV2kyM9WBszjtUbIXg36N9s-W7xLqs-QI6QFVqSHAO3RcMU-FVtLuuMRhSSzQjRs2UBUPGoGKfMUF0Y81_6fo8mdo60j968/s320/2017-04-17+12.07.37-1.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Men's winner</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFO9rQCgg23yN5UDnzDkNKgHHUdlzK2WWJJGuGdBu8FkJKi4LEKLqCGMHIDj1D2lK94xqDT1tkg77XicNrSshmwjYGfBHSY25Iswn7CMzVIl7inxq2DZioN4KIjhuleCwcdnH1bcmTLc/s1600/2017-04-17+12.07.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFO9rQCgg23yN5UDnzDkNKgHHUdlzK2WWJJGuGdBu8FkJKi4LEKLqCGMHIDj1D2lK94xqDT1tkg77XicNrSshmwjYGfBHSY25Iswn7CMzVIl7inxq2DZioN4KIjhuleCwcdnH1bcmTLc/s320/2017-04-17+12.07.58.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My BFF Galen Rupp (2nd place overall)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLXOQAquMVKiRhYe_wdvmkNLHv3vj3P4Ikm06mmTeLToF7nMEDXDI8Eh_wZaaFphVzDbneR_x2AVumcJZMm_UnbDv9A7NH36ecgZvjEtkzFg-j6vOeS2fop1-IJA1_5Pb-C_bFm9DESFw/s1600/2017-04-17+12.14.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLXOQAquMVKiRhYe_wdvmkNLHv3vj3P4Ikm06mmTeLToF7nMEDXDI8Eh_wZaaFphVzDbneR_x2AVumcJZMm_UnbDv9A7NH36ecgZvjEtkzFg-j6vOeS2fop1-IJA1_5Pb-C_bFm9DESFw/s320/2017-04-17+12.14.43.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Olympic Marathoner Meb Keflezighi </td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-81980558639673392672017-04-08T20:21:00.000-04:002017-04-08T20:27:33.252-04:00Rock n Roll Raleigh Marathon and Half Marathon<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgKWkuU5a6YJ51-vusFJLSkyaJY2Hknze6zJ3Tv_Tf156KpE5xOauaDBB-gVN1_-mU7CzfiAl5dqgvLp1klqu36HPAfuKr8e99ztTDITm_ZeKgpdAtciEDwaLqG_NsOOrNgyi6P1mkWE/s1600/2017-04-04+17.39.57.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ItDcmnD-uO1PikLEwy3zOiamHGCIhnVWpHng-Ij8BwHxrA51iLbCnGe4BL9iHRtdKojn3N137L4KhAW7qOUjJJxOOv6XPH0ciH_IvshzjpxiUow_OqN6n-ZP16OrOWffVBJdyFk0dRs/s1600/Humana+Rock+and+Roll.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ItDcmnD-uO1PikLEwy3zOiamHGCIhnVWpHng-Ij8BwHxrA51iLbCnGe4BL9iHRtdKojn3N137L4KhAW7qOUjJJxOOv6XPH0ciH_IvshzjpxiUow_OqN6n-ZP16OrOWffVBJdyFk0dRs/s320/Humana+Rock+and+Roll.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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Last weekend we traveled south to Raleigh, NC for the Rock n Roll Raleigh Marathon (for him) and Half Marathon (for me). This has been my goal race for the past several months. I was trained up to go for a personal record (PR) since I haven't PRd a half since the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2014/10/myrtle-beach-mini-marathon-2014-we-ran.html" target="_blank">Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon in 2014</a>! I desperately wanted to beat my time of 2:19:55. For Mr. Marathon on the other hand, this was simply a training run. On his personal training plan that he designed to prepare him to run the Boston Marathon and then the Blue Ridge Marathon in the same week, his long run was 22 miles. Because I so desperately wanted to do the half, he figured why not just go ahead and go the extra mile (ok the extra 4.2 miles) and have fun at a marathon? So that's exactly what he did.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQS8RvmvOdCqnWU4coFluosaYdjzOTGOu0MM0JpvrJYgyb4kzJ5eb1n2-c2zoFH0Hq_B1N8lm8BNp9O_lBeeg0XHq4-1xKktmr7xm_wvLtgCy9GKZ536p7eG_YXJlmInjZo0LxDz5KjOA/s1600/20170401_190848.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQS8RvmvOdCqnWU4coFluosaYdjzOTGOu0MM0JpvrJYgyb4kzJ5eb1n2-c2zoFH0Hq_B1N8lm8BNp9O_lBeeg0XHq4-1xKktmr7xm_wvLtgCy9GKZ536p7eG_YXJlmInjZo0LxDz5KjOA/s320/20170401_190848.jpg" width="213" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlkdbYFYUFEFmnSAH-3l-Q7yktPm_Xz_YmNkDDM0rO7DD1Ro7FDZMOugrZmIsBCvagv0rZNylBQnOaA-WpLUTUckDc7EffVqIeWJalDiJOxCHfAMtJGEVQXX2vdKlt9CpFOpDmyqw1Ck/s1600/2017-04-01+19.00.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlkdbYFYUFEFmnSAH-3l-Q7yktPm_Xz_YmNkDDM0rO7DD1Ro7FDZMOugrZmIsBCvagv0rZNylBQnOaA-WpLUTUckDc7EffVqIeWJalDiJOxCHfAMtJGEVQXX2vdKlt9CpFOpDmyqw1Ck/s320/2017-04-01+19.00.02.jpg" width="213" /></a><br />
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We both hit up the expo, got dinner, and settled in fairly early at our hotel that was less than 5 minutes from the start line. We woke up pretty early to make it back downtown for the 7:00 AM start the next morning. It was a chilly morning, but we knew it was going to warm up to mid-50s, possibly even low 60s so we were dressed in tanks and shorts... without any throwaway gear (oops forgot to pack it!). But nevertheless we were ok! We took off, Mr. Marathon at 7:00 AM on the dot with corral 1, and me at 7:12 AM with corral 10 (even though I was supposed to be with corral 9, but apparently I was a little too far back...). We were off and we ran all around downtown Raleigh!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBzhqxOQNqbmPkBGlNdOmcgIlXMODs2OT_WxstB2Kr4zTJPtXq5osvYq9xYZXFVSXFxd5UM5k0jQ1GAV4NnTDqt6IaBHWjX3p9DahnXr1YSNAd-nvWPv4Cm-rL_73YQrW7mY2IaOsCRAg/s1600/2017-04-04+17.39.17.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBzhqxOQNqbmPkBGlNdOmcgIlXMODs2OT_WxstB2Kr4zTJPtXq5osvYq9xYZXFVSXFxd5UM5k0jQ1GAV4NnTDqt6IaBHWjX3p9DahnXr1YSNAd-nvWPv4Cm-rL_73YQrW7mY2IaOsCRAg/s200/2017-04-04+17.39.17.png" width="133" /></a><br />
I really enjoyed the course for the half. It definitely had some rolling hills, which I expected, but the course had a good variety of scenery. I got to see downtown, a lovely park, NC State University's campus, and ... other ... neighborhoods (?? I was delirious at this point sorry I don't recall, but it was awesome). During the beginning of my race, I managed to maintain 9:50-10:10 minute miles for the first 6 miles, and I was shocked when I got to the halfway point. I was on target for about a 2 hour 14 minute half marathon! I was feeling good- strong and consistent. I had a couple of "off" miles, at 10:30-10:40 minutes/mile, but overall I was able to keep my pace low 10 min/mile. As I made my way back through downtown Raleigh, I was still feeling good and I was able to finish up strong with a time of 2:13:11!!!! I was so happy to finish with a 6 minute 44 second PR!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5KCAR3h7DWqw-acFXGDb65BXLKiw69g40mK-43Z8i3K1jnnZFbGRy_gDho__KG4zg69NeJ_NvdUf5x-0Ale1FSbw_g9ua0qUcoltkh0wvClJ9UIAuuMIgK2XeNH7cZXQvR-utpE6WbQQ/s1600/2017-04-04+20.37.23.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5KCAR3h7DWqw-acFXGDb65BXLKiw69g40mK-43Z8i3K1jnnZFbGRy_gDho__KG4zg69NeJ_NvdUf5x-0Ale1FSbw_g9ua0qUcoltkh0wvClJ9UIAuuMIgK2XeNH7cZXQvR-utpE6WbQQ/s200/2017-04-04+20.37.23.png" width="133" /></a></div>
Mr. Marathon took off around downtown Raleigh with the goal of getting his last long run before the Boston Marathon. He planned on enjoying this run and having a great time while getting his miles in. He spent most of his time joking around with other runners, talking to the other runners, laughing up the hills, and oh- of course running too. His boss was running the full marathon as well and caught up to him at mile 7, and they ran together until mile 18. Mr. Marathon was planning to slow down his pace, but having someone else running with him just made him stay at a steady pace. There were plenty of rolling hills along the course from beginning to end, which made it a little challenging to maintain a steady pace throughout. After mile 18, he was running solo again, but still in good spirits and joking with everyone around him, except the runners around him that were NOT in the mood for his shenanigans at this point in the race. It takes a very special kind of person to tolerate being around him at this point, believe me! Humor in the last part of a marathon is not always well received. And by no means does this mean that he is not putting in effort, but him cracking jokes and using his sense of humor was just his way of staying motivated and positive. At mile 19, something else happened that helped him stay motivated and positive. At a water stop, there were volunteers giving out Hawaiian leis, and they were in competition with each other to see who could give the most leis out. So Mr. Marathon decided to help them out. They were offering him one, but he decided to take all of the leis... from 2 different people! As they laughed, that was the seal of approval and the little bit of extra gas in the tank to get him to the finish line. People from then on were very confused. <i>How is he running with all of those leis????? </i>Regardless of how many leis he had on, he finished feeling pretty good in a time of 3:10:38! And of course he looked good doing it!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHcLKbJyDNvpwI5UQlxtF61FZ1LPEYNjrdBHdz6J4mRrg0d9ZHGa52W8TXcch05zRPrsI9pdwJu_UGKN8r-1V_lRTbM5dQhLMBSji6nRx3q2Sivfb2tVnPoSX8qZ1QUT6kRxVuYOFOtsc/s1600/2017-04-04+20.36.26.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHcLKbJyDNvpwI5UQlxtF61FZ1LPEYNjrdBHdz6J4mRrg0d9ZHGa52W8TXcch05zRPrsI9pdwJu_UGKN8r-1V_lRTbM5dQhLMBSji6nRx3q2Sivfb2tVnPoSX8qZ1QUT6kRxVuYOFOtsc/s320/2017-04-04+20.36.26.png" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's a little game- guess how many leis he's wearing!<br />
If you guess correctly you'll win a chance to run with Mr. Marathon!</td></tr>
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We really enjoyed our time in Raleigh, and now we are looking ahead at what is coming up. Boston is in just 9 short days, and the Blue Ridge Marathon (for him) and Half Marathon (for her) is in 14 days. Can't wait! Until then, here's some more pictures of our race weekend!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfW_HVHpF_gVzaHj_3H6VdMhpJTjHMx00uXbb32NJpm4dgyw9tVlCMDyi1Zf-rZzisstd7MdTjthS-4ouLYjmIUOIZ3Jg8YFctWupnDTvJKhadUJkYlrmLxsjbuDXW-gGQFP0jThkCqc/s1600/2017-04-01+17.12.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfW_HVHpF_gVzaHj_3H6VdMhpJTjHMx00uXbb32NJpm4dgyw9tVlCMDyi1Zf-rZzisstd7MdTjthS-4ouLYjmIUOIZ3Jg8YFctWupnDTvJKhadUJkYlrmLxsjbuDXW-gGQFP0jThkCqc/s320/2017-04-01+17.12.00.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun at the expo!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_sl3Cu0ymvDOy_-gX-qCdnweXAqWf5zBUIPVeTNKg_zPA0KFwdlFQd-FP1Q36y7NY0z592ubdnqScNdURKd-MUA7CoatefykLct-n_MNu2pwUxIhEmAVt9DcSF7b2G4D9_4qZfjgrnwc/s1600/2017-04-04+17.40.11.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_sl3Cu0ymvDOy_-gX-qCdnweXAqWf5zBUIPVeTNKg_zPA0KFwdlFQd-FP1Q36y7NY0z592ubdnqScNdURKd-MUA7CoatefykLct-n_MNu2pwUxIhEmAVt9DcSF7b2G4D9_4qZfjgrnwc/s320/2017-04-04+17.40.11.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">I'm kind of obsessed with this picture.<br />
I was telling everyone I HIT A 6 MINUTE PR!!!!!!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-nBgLiOQROeYUfFfYs92UP2RX93likqgR973KQf2j7N5X_eF5pmB_OTsDPf4KY5c-hofX6A9t4PZxO4uWU2hS47965JawO2jxWHnJOrcMHki-mym9rC0moYDEGe-mHa_KohdFlCPDoYc/s1600/2017-04-02+10.10.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-nBgLiOQROeYUfFfYs92UP2RX93likqgR973KQf2j7N5X_eF5pmB_OTsDPf4KY5c-hofX6A9t4PZxO4uWU2hS47965JawO2jxWHnJOrcMHki-mym9rC0moYDEGe-mHa_KohdFlCPDoYc/s320/2017-04-02+10.10.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRSfk1PNAh0NSOOgzJYgPERGFri0Opdu2aSsROvD0Jg7S7fuUoFVb4dsto3dMym0vWQex-XD22TvcKVSYl3jVNuZ44H40YfUNlMioKX-cKkguG_tN6p26K3eKKa8-nesKaWC5Zkjcqp_8/s1600/2017-04-02+10.10.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRSfk1PNAh0NSOOgzJYgPERGFri0Opdu2aSsROvD0Jg7S7fuUoFVb4dsto3dMym0vWQex-XD22TvcKVSYl3jVNuZ44H40YfUNlMioKX-cKkguG_tN6p26K3eKKa8-nesKaWC5Zkjcqp_8/s320/2017-04-02+10.10.41.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finishing strong with all those leis on</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3n1B_PttgHhdULswDVdCCev6JbjGDyn0fqNRtFjhddyUsaoG4PPiuijJKbkRCf_s96QsleigcHPHU4VHqbxe1vTWeGUSrHprMLs5hyphenhyphenWwQ7haEtIV36tIAOmS6AtBHPHs9amQh1ciX2_w/s1600/2017-04-04+20.35.17.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3n1B_PttgHhdULswDVdCCev6JbjGDyn0fqNRtFjhddyUsaoG4PPiuijJKbkRCf_s96QsleigcHPHU4VHqbxe1vTWeGUSrHprMLs5hyphenhyphenWwQ7haEtIV36tIAOmS6AtBHPHs9amQh1ciX2_w/s320/2017-04-04+20.35.17.png" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Cheesin</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilbP8jPBAMD3RLRqGDiMVxdsw97w7DhZLuOvaNHxdMgRMnv5997DfHREP5tgG4reOCRu6I_5jRx0PjTsdpvgkz1hDEGaZ8jFMQhtrNBIVQCccvBpvBMzT_7Vj0Wyww8EBLy_k2RTOn7T4/s1600/2017-04-02+10.32.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilbP8jPBAMD3RLRqGDiMVxdsw97w7DhZLuOvaNHxdMgRMnv5997DfHREP5tgG4reOCRu6I_5jRx0PjTsdpvgkz1hDEGaZ8jFMQhtrNBIVQCccvBpvBMzT_7Vj0Wyww8EBLy_k2RTOn7T4/s320/2017-04-02+10.32.10.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With his awesome boss!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh-hNP2gREuHIBV_wyh57_sTXTJ569UHHPBmg87C70ksvBRpA1nA5bHp6VVuc1_yDMs0gLtVsT2GinTXdHsqncAVs4RD_mJJZviHrug1YrMZmAnnwsCSGmNisOLQHR06wjXVuGXa-v5M0/s1600/2017-04-02+10.32.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh-hNP2gREuHIBV_wyh57_sTXTJ569UHHPBmg87C70ksvBRpA1nA5bHp6VVuc1_yDMs0gLtVsT2GinTXdHsqncAVs4RD_mJJZviHrug1YrMZmAnnwsCSGmNisOLQHR06wjXVuGXa-v5M0/s320/2017-04-02+10.32.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aw aren't we cute?!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgKWkuU5a6YJ51-vusFJLSkyaJY2Hknze6zJ3Tv_Tf156KpE5xOauaDBB-gVN1_-mU7CzfiAl5dqgvLp1klqu36HPAfuKr8e99ztTDITm_ZeKgpdAtciEDwaLqG_NsOOrNgyi6P1mkWE/s1600/2017-04-04+17.39.57.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgKWkuU5a6YJ51-vusFJLSkyaJY2Hknze6zJ3Tv_Tf156KpE5xOauaDBB-gVN1_-mU7CzfiAl5dqgvLp1klqu36HPAfuKr8e99ztTDITm_ZeKgpdAtciEDwaLqG_NsOOrNgyi6P1mkWE/s320/2017-04-04+17.39.57.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">They wouldn't let me back into the finisher's area...<br />
so this is how we had to have our picture taken.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtd6wgKv9KHPKLY-e3GQIqFe5fVxf1iqvYENlOwox6LIq8qGQ0JglDBJ6uechZi-HoBrKb9LPdX1QA0LIzGdwsbxiByjwzp3hs7Z3JPPP_tQh8bCWTfOKJj7rLMEjLkBbOcta4pdZgyUM/s1600/20170402_110626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtd6wgKv9KHPKLY-e3GQIqFe5fVxf1iqvYENlOwox6LIq8qGQ0JglDBJ6uechZi-HoBrKb9LPdX1QA0LIzGdwsbxiByjwzp3hs7Z3JPPP_tQh8bCWTfOKJj7rLMEjLkBbOcta4pdZgyUM/s320/20170402_110626.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Post race posin'!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-48989393710430429112017-04-01T11:32:00.000-04:002017-04-08T18:22:32.044-04:00Martinville Bulletin Half Marathon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4qagNWEytnAAvk6F283eK6i8imPpbqINIOgEKwc09hxH3SRpSHFOxsbFZ3NIYh00oFxIDSrHIigHSmrWxVZzbkR9lYSQUxbWHcqK7vFcMsHxClTizey3VqaZ0VA0C7oE_3a2uZI80mLw/s1600/half_marathon_new_logo_2017__800x193_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="77" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4qagNWEytnAAvk6F283eK6i8imPpbqINIOgEKwc09hxH3SRpSHFOxsbFZ3NIYh00oFxIDSrHIigHSmrWxVZzbkR9lYSQUxbWHcqK7vFcMsHxClTizey3VqaZ0VA0C7oE_3a2uZI80mLw/s320/half_marathon_new_logo_2017__800x193_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Mr. Marathon here! Last Saturday, March 25, was my final race as a 26 year old! I ran the Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon (formerly just the Martinsville Half Marathon) which I have run every year since its inaugural running in 2011 (read about previous years here: <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2013/03/martinsville-half-marathon.html" target="_blank">2013</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2014/03/martinsville-half-marathon-2014.html" target="_blank">2014</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2015/03/wazupwid-our-month-long-hiatus.html" target="_blank">2015</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/03/martinsville-half-marathon-2016.html" target="_blank">2016</a>). I love this race because it's local and it always falls right around my birthday! This year, it was the day before my birthday so it was nice to celebrate my last day as a 26 year old doing what I love..... running!<br />
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I prepared to run Saturday morning, ate my oatmeal, and headed for the start line. The weather was low 50s and cloudy, so absolutely perfect for a run! I toed the line with 90 of my closest friends and was off and running by 8 AM on the dot. I told myself that the Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon was going to just be a training run, trying to get a rhythm and push myself a little bit. I wanted to find the limit on my comfort zone with my current level of training. I knew it wasn't going to be as good as last year, but I wanted to figure out my fitness level. I had to do 18 miles that day according to my plan that I had created, so I did 1 mile warm up, 13.1 race, and 4.8 cool down to get me 18.9 total miles.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMZHW2ZNDNiW-9a2vYxF0rerYAlxcFAzy5jtS1E6qoqWYZ2F_xtv5vnYPiZBDt443qu8cKErOr7KY7TAoCV32-uPV47A6BPcON4DQeqAfPMyxq-ANBOg9ZbYAEMNF4EiVx-2eX4Xeu6DA/s1600/2017-03-25+08.01.46+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMZHW2ZNDNiW-9a2vYxF0rerYAlxcFAzy5jtS1E6qoqWYZ2F_xtv5vnYPiZBDt443qu8cKErOr7KY7TAoCV32-uPV47A6BPcON4DQeqAfPMyxq-ANBOg9ZbYAEMNF4EiVx-2eX4Xeu6DA/s320/2017-03-25+08.01.46+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
While running in the beginning, it felt smooth and comfortable, but then I had to alter my stride due to some cramping early on at mile 3 again (just like at the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/marshall-university-marathon.html" target="_blank">MUM</a>). I was kind of glad that the cramps hit at that time on this course because I knew I had some solid downhill miles coming up. But after about a half a mile they didn't go away. They just got worse and spread to both sides of my abdomen and the right side of my chest. When I hit the downhill, I just tried to remain steady because at that point, I was in 3rd overall. I figured maybe I could try to maintain my place, but the fourth place guy was right on my tail so I knew I couldn't give in to my discomfort at all without sacrificing my place. In the back of my head I knew this was only a training run so I didn't have to push too hard so I could be sure to avoid injury since I have the Boston Marathon and the Blue Ridge Marathon coming up in just a few short weeks. However my competitiveness made me think, "<i>If the guy behind me wants third place that bad he's going to have to work for it."</i><br />
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Fourth place guy remained behind me until we got to mile eight and a half. Then when we got a turnaround, I got to see just how far (I mean how close?) behind me he was (100 meters and closing in) I was able to draw out my stride going downhill to try to increase my lead. I still had 4 and a half miles of uphill left. Normally I like to slow down uphill to catch my breath, and I usually let loose and gain speed on the downhills. A few minutes later at mile 10, I was able to hear his footsteps right behind me. I knew he was planning his strategy to catch up to me and pass me. At this point I felt like I was the little engine that could. <i>I think I can, I think I can... stay ahead of him! </i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKk1qwE9jjzg3d-mOWfzlfJAkzhC5B2MCH6a2ObYwhqDsCpXBaiqi0jtW2aXIU86Fy0NJSy-w-19H96FehX_xjMWLYDy4fZRCV5_p8zndpOI2QSCwm5kIU2Bai4bcnzWCQQndIRhyd5ik/s1600/b4b072ed96eabcf2970ef28e8848293fe977c96ccea526b753f67851760c2cc8+%25281%25292.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKk1qwE9jjzg3d-mOWfzlfJAkzhC5B2MCH6a2ObYwhqDsCpXBaiqi0jtW2aXIU86Fy0NJSy-w-19H96FehX_xjMWLYDy4fZRCV5_p8zndpOI2QSCwm5kIU2Bai4bcnzWCQQndIRhyd5ik/s320/b4b072ed96eabcf2970ef28e8848293fe977c96ccea526b753f67851760c2cc8+%25281%25292.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actual photo of me at mile 10.... jk of course</td></tr>
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Every step I took going uphill took a lot out of me. But like I said before, if the guy behind me wanted third place overall bad enough, he would have to put up a fight for it. I felt as though I was simply prolonging the inevitable-- I felt like he was going to pass me, but I just didn't know when. As we made our way closer and closer to the end, I just knew he was going to pass me. He stayed consistently behind me step after step, mile after mile, and before I knew it I had one mile to go. That last mile came with 2 slight downhills and some major uphill so I knew I had to take advantage of what little downhill I had. With only half a mile left, the lead bike (who is also my brother-in-law) came back and guided me to the finish line while I was still in third place.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWk4n6v4-pLfIt-GmJTTBBl5imDGa6ypYpUG8BMNGmwlYPgoeTGVBty6PYnTCxs7QLI0MeeXiPL6nIM6z3TqoURE7cThu1ee93EobR3G1txm3rFB6EvsVqXxPnXXHtAZE_76TB7c3Ncc/s1600/2017-03-25+09.20.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWk4n6v4-pLfIt-GmJTTBBl5imDGa6ypYpUG8BMNGmwlYPgoeTGVBty6PYnTCxs7QLI0MeeXiPL6nIM6z3TqoURE7cThu1ee93EobR3G1txm3rFB6EvsVqXxPnXXHtAZE_76TB7c3Ncc/s320/2017-03-25+09.20.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see fourth place guy right back behind me!</td></tr>
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I had to know how much buffer I had between fourth place guy and myself, so I asked my bro-in-law, very out of breath, "How... far... behind...?" and he proceeded to tell me "6 minutes behind," which is how far behind I was from first place, but I just had to know how far behind me fourth place was. I asked again, and he told me he was only about 100 feet behind me! So my heart sank as we were less than half a mile from the finish line. I was afraid he would be able to catch me in the last little bit. All I could do was stay steady and hope for a burst of energy close to the end. As I was less than a quarter of a mile from the finish, I saw a lot of 5Kers finishing up with the crowd cheering for them and for me, and that gave me the last little bit of energy to spring to the finish... in third place overall! Fourth place finished just 16 seconds behind me!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgmzOuetqXa6bvnpmvVp2MHOYmke4zOgbI18HGpLb2uJ_z5WWX3dnJSwg8xkKET_cQm_K_0PAi-Jh2hLPKuN29gj5K8IgBcsfAvQloRuOmmdgKUhXRypeg3dTLssrRcTuuOh4DyYu6Wz8/s1600/2017-03-25+09.24.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgmzOuetqXa6bvnpmvVp2MHOYmke4zOgbI18HGpLb2uJ_z5WWX3dnJSwg8xkKET_cQm_K_0PAi-Jh2hLPKuN29gj5K8IgBcsfAvQloRuOmmdgKUhXRypeg3dTLssrRcTuuOh4DyYu6Wz8/s320/2017-03-25+09.24.03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I was very surprised with my performance! I reflected on the race afterwards and thought to myself about how every race is different. I know that I can't compare my abilities and strengths to other races because they were completed under different circumstances. Every year, even every day, we can change, and we have to adapt to these changes and keep in mind that your worst race is somebody else's best, or even their dream time. So be proud of yourself no matter what! This is something I've learned being a part of such a small, tight-knit running community in our area. We have so many people who are different, and have different abilities, goals, and dreams. But the most important thing to remember is to celebrate accomplishments with those around you. I can't wait to see what next year holds, especially since I'm already signed up for next year's Martinsville Bulletin Half Marathon! But as for right now, I am focusing on what tomorrow holds, as we are traveling today to Raleigh, NC, for the Rock n Roll Raleigh Marathon (for me) and Half Marathon (for the missus)!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh70f1hUIppsz1ih3mknjdrTkhhNWJJIsmC2rLGm8AgWJzd3vZYg8Wvnr-muoP-TQ2qCuBz2TzLvSITLLu2QTnI5Bg-_QgN6QC-xJGoM9V36DlHp1-GxJ6UvuaBy3UQnjMKM-HU1dST88o/s1600/17424707_10209167022120575_3646191991338790058_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh70f1hUIppsz1ih3mknjdrTkhhNWJJIsmC2rLGm8AgWJzd3vZYg8Wvnr-muoP-TQ2qCuBz2TzLvSITLLu2QTnI5Bg-_QgN6QC-xJGoM9V36DlHp1-GxJ6UvuaBy3UQnjMKM-HU1dST88o/s320/17424707_10209167022120575_3646191991338790058_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-ZMN9ej_7f3CkeLUiiM3Ea_APn4j68vbt-UUD6B4KxO0qDBIzwIF7LSmXM6Dr8WMMLtK41hs4MJm5tD_m1u1NMtsLyrhQXov-ZNOy3UO13t3LGDTbvAIKPetPX87hVbyLSVwQr-jMz8/s1600/2017-03-25+09.42.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-ZMN9ej_7f3CkeLUiiM3Ea_APn4j68vbt-UUD6B4KxO0qDBIzwIF7LSmXM6Dr8WMMLtK41hs4MJm5tD_m1u1NMtsLyrhQXov-ZNOy3UO13t3LGDTbvAIKPetPX87hVbyLSVwQr-jMz8/s320/2017-03-25+09.42.01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-66683254582802787212017-01-01T10:50:00.001-05:002017-01-01T10:54:15.080-05:002016 Year in Review / 2017 PreviewLast year, we had a fun time<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/01/2015-year-in-review-2016-preview.html" target="_blank"> reminiscing about our 2015 and making our plans for 2016</a> around this time. So we decided to do it again!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJx-XDps30HW0l7svrqZQI_4sUhGvKhMhJgqjLIYW8TT-1JSkywQcoLWDVPW5Iji-IJpat-Ddf_lXMoIrnEuf-L79_gYjig1q_JJIkBI-EcyR_L7cDAvkH_vD8_LFb2MHhTSHlrfjcIZE/s1600/100milesamonth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a>2016 was a tough year for plenty of people, that's no secret. It seems like there are infinite memes on the Facebook about how much 2016 sucked.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8lk754Zo8F2XBnfneu98C152ZHlIfC9Rq6B7MS41sq9kYQ1Mjd9Ozp-JkVlSrJoEmRw8Ut8x4vMs9FIW6kMuabPLwRVXqyuQXiuk_hfeYPZLdSXSk2Im0RkIfNkhYAdeANavJmkTYK9E/s1600/2016-12-31+22.33.35.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8lk754Zo8F2XBnfneu98C152ZHlIfC9Rq6B7MS41sq9kYQ1Mjd9Ozp-JkVlSrJoEmRw8Ut8x4vMs9FIW6kMuabPLwRVXqyuQXiuk_hfeYPZLdSXSk2Im0RkIfNkhYAdeANavJmkTYK9E/s320/2016-12-31+22.33.35.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vKP3a15U4hzOCZooVgzkccfOpbtRYg-QfwKep6Dwfzivn_k9GkDrcF_Qg7ufZWsfEqXEPDSK_bQuZwF9bOYJ0UqaKjAaRVp-vOgx9l53wnucBs5QdWaJZOPx4wUP25zqaQY40ZJVjuw/s1600/2016-12-31+22.34.21.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vKP3a15U4hzOCZooVgzkccfOpbtRYg-QfwKep6Dwfzivn_k9GkDrcF_Qg7ufZWsfEqXEPDSK_bQuZwF9bOYJ0UqaKjAaRVp-vOgx9l53wnucBs5QdWaJZOPx4wUP25zqaQY40ZJVjuw/s320/2016-12-31+22.34.21.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Since we are fans of MMA... <br />
Mr. Marathon's brother is an MMA fighter!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_JPIgg6i3ErQnGnxDVqsa09FsiNWo9XWnlE_EOHeIispmOT2ECK0IKf_Wt2CWxEAZmIWJDbJWQx9XQaJ5_dB086j3YpcDnZPZCTSOTOabasdc_hhwdfQmDUGwdHKfHcMghF7_yGVAfQY/s1600/2017-01-01+09.15.44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_JPIgg6i3ErQnGnxDVqsa09FsiNWo9XWnlE_EOHeIispmOT2ECK0IKf_Wt2CWxEAZmIWJDbJWQx9XQaJ5_dB086j3YpcDnZPZCTSOTOabasdc_hhwdfQmDUGwdHKfHcMghF7_yGVAfQY/s320/2017-01-01+09.15.44.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For all the fans of Grey's, Scandal, etc. HAH!</td></tr>
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But for us, we actually had a pretty decent year. Let's review, shall we??<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6-h-8UZgE7PcgVukJLUwMM_jgvdee4lKThXHrg1ZvQUE1vn0PAdWYWwaRaEnd4hlxtzsTldJu6LOCCyeE9exTTBgk4gsh9L1YFaMrWvw75kq4xRuP-1r7W35zWaMt6srV7DpV8xf8mQ/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6-h-8UZgE7PcgVukJLUwMM_jgvdee4lKThXHrg1ZvQUE1vn0PAdWYWwaRaEnd4hlxtzsTldJu6LOCCyeE9exTTBgk4gsh9L1YFaMrWvw75kq4xRuP-1r7W35zWaMt6srV7DpV8xf8mQ/s320/Capture.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just a collage of some of our fun run-ventures of 2016!</td></tr>
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In the winter, we traveled to Charleston in January for the Charleston Marathon (and both hit personal records!), he ran 105 miles in one week for the the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/02/whats-your-wall-4.html" target="_blank">What's Your Wall?</a> challenge again, he <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/02/nail-rail-9-miler.html" target="_blank">nailed the rail</a> and I ran it, and we got to do the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/03/martinsville-half-marathon-2016.html" target="_blank">Martinsville Half Marathon</a> again. Then in spring, participated in the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/marathon-weekend-part-1-blue-ridge.html" target="_blank">Blue Ridge Marathon & Star K 10K</a> then hopped a plane to <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/04/from-blue-ridge-to-boston-marathon.html" target="_blank">BOSTON</a>! Then we had a really busy month of <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/06/busted-soles-running-vines-933k.html" target="_blank">May</a>! In the summer, I did the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/07/rwrunstreak-4-on-4th.html" target="_blank">Runner's World Summer Run Streak</a> (and then some!) and we got to do a new <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/07/rwrunstreak-4-on-4th.html" target="_blank">4th of July race</a>! Fall rolled around and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/10/goodbye-summer-hello-fall.html" target="_blank">he did some running</a> and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/usa-south-cross-country-conference-meet.html" target="_blank">Spartan</a>-ing, and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/10/great-goblin-gallop-5k-2016.html" target="_blank">I did some running</a>. In November, we did our <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/marshall-university-marathon.html" target="_blank">second marathon of the year </a>and I achieved my marathon goal (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), I got pneumonia that sidelined me for several weeks, and he completed his second <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/12/crooked-road-24-hour-ultra-2016.html" target="_blank">24-hour ultramarathon</a>! My pneumonia also derailed my 100+ miles a month goal, but I made it November 2015-October 2016 (12 consecutive months) before I had to cut back in November and December due to doctor's orders.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJx-XDps30HW0l7svrqZQI_4sUhGvKhMhJgqjLIYW8TT-1JSkywQcoLWDVPW5Iji-IJpat-Ddf_lXMoIrnEuf-L79_gYjig1q_JJIkBI-EcyR_L7cDAvkH_vD8_LFb2MHhTSHlrfjcIZE/s1600/100milesamonth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJx-XDps30HW0l7svrqZQI_4sUhGvKhMhJgqjLIYW8TT-1JSkywQcoLWDVPW5Iji-IJpat-Ddf_lXMoIrnEuf-L79_gYjig1q_JJIkBI-EcyR_L7cDAvkH_vD8_LFb2MHhTSHlrfjcIZE/s320/100milesamonth.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here are my monthly totals during my 100+ mile/month streak!</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: center;">And now for our total running mileage from this calendar year:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HIS: 1,762.56 total miles in 2016</span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXafSv43RwIC7u5HlPwIac0am-oFwQ56oCjemibKwm5M4KB7lJx-ko9KjELcFAzbfCe4cVL05IbPd1vtqBEi-2xFGlVM_9ZfEl_RvLFYIiBo8Um8nquh6qRZHeA2NkSw6jsODVC8M1ttg/s1600/2016-12-30+19.05.37.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXafSv43RwIC7u5HlPwIac0am-oFwQ56oCjemibKwm5M4KB7lJx-ko9KjELcFAzbfCe4cVL05IbPd1vtqBEi-2xFGlVM_9ZfEl_RvLFYIiBo8Um8nquh6qRZHeA2NkSw6jsODVC8M1ttg/s320/2016-12-30+19.05.37.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Hubby's "Best Nine" (most liked) pictures from Instagram in 2016</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;">HERS: 1,122.68 total miles in 2016</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBpCrJC9zeJPqiVlDxn7pLuHxkMjS4WOGEGw8gq2vHcykLkI-rapZ1oWhR4yGMYPlvSyBpRdKKoKAXXsdnlFG_xwIr3C7E3K1ZEvdmsTvBqa0OD2WgDrrNHoe9XWtQnuyPViHGBxwp1w/s1600/2016-12-27+11.03.26.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBpCrJC9zeJPqiVlDxn7pLuHxkMjS4WOGEGw8gq2vHcykLkI-rapZ1oWhR4yGMYPlvSyBpRdKKoKAXXsdnlFG_xwIr3C7E3K1ZEvdmsTvBqa0OD2WgDrrNHoe9XWtQnuyPViHGBxwp1w/s320/2016-12-27+11.03.26.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My "Best Nine" from Instagram</td></tr>
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PHEW! I'm exhausted just recapping all of this! As this year comes to a close, we realize just how much we have accomplished this year, in running as well as other aspects of our lives. Mr. Marathon is halfway through his Bachelor's degree, and I got a job teaching at a new school this past August!<br />
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We are so proud of all that we have done in 2016! In 2017, we have a few plans already in place. We will be traveling back to Boston for mister to run the Boston Marathon (4/17/17) again, and he plans to do the Blue Ridge Marathon (4/22/17). We also have plans to stay active, have fun, run a lot, exercise as much as we can, and take on other challenges/races as they come.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR-TBgfj4gEBK7gvMvFMRUhB2vobEl1huFm02v6Fb4F3jqHqD2M_F1Ky0z0qyywJ21g5zGt32xmjm5a01mRfUXb_RZSIMWvXTXvMh0NX3_lY9qeeh8dNUBsb0Ie1IQ7JhmVQ4GQS6lOFE/s1600/boston+logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR-TBgfj4gEBK7gvMvFMRUhB2vobEl1huFm02v6Fb4F3jqHqD2M_F1Ky0z0qyywJ21g5zGt32xmjm5a01mRfUXb_RZSIMWvXTXvMh0NX3_lY9qeeh8dNUBsb0Ie1IQ7JhmVQ4GQS6lOFE/s320/boston+logo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">We wish you all a very happy new year and many happy miles in 2017!</span></i></div>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-68344555587403090232016-12-10T21:12:00.000-05:002016-12-10T21:12:55.384-05:00Crooked Road 24 Hour Ultra 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A lot has been going on lately! Both of us have been super busy with the end of the semester, finals, and school coming to a close before Christmas break! But before Thanksgiving, we were supposed to tackle the Crooked Road 24 Hour Ultra on November 19! I say supposed to because one of us (ahem... ME) got pneumonia and couldn't participate. The other one got to go, and so we are finally getting around to doing the blog post... 3 weeks later. Whoops! Anyway, here we go!<br />
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Mr. Marathon had to leave me at home for this event, and I was just devastated. I was at home, coughing and being miserable. I was diagnosed with a sinus infection, bronchitis, and pneumonia on the Friday, the day before the event. We had come up with a game plan, and by game plan I mean I would stay at home eating soup and being sad and he got to go run in the event. He drove up to Rocky Mount which is about 30 minutes from where we are, and he got there ready for the 8:00 AM start on Saturday morning. The weather wasn't bad (yet) and they were off!<br />
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So as the race started, there were a few people who started at a nice pace. Mr. Marathon was not tracking his mileage with his GPS watch, but rather he was just keeping up with the time. He was just keeping pace with the guys at the front of the pack. He said it felt fast, but why not?? After a few laps (each lap was 1.2 miles) the other guys that were up front started slowing down, and Mr. Marathon managed to stay steady. His first break was at the half marathon mark and he took a rest lap and just walked it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-jEF2mOnTRfzEDDM4UNpxhg8VJKMA3GAbEWNkb-vwWOAjFwNHBJczFcVAJbhKROGtREIArriqjTVMFnT2m29SwaLQcRevwP_KlZ65qaPq0SYFgAGW1orKPt-Us1bIK-W87H_3ahu4Kk/s1600/2016-11-21+20.58.35+%25282%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-jEF2mOnTRfzEDDM4UNpxhg8VJKMA3GAbEWNkb-vwWOAjFwNHBJczFcVAJbhKROGtREIArriqjTVMFnT2m29SwaLQcRevwP_KlZ65qaPq0SYFgAGW1orKPt-Us1bIK-W87H_3ahu4Kk/s200/2016-11-21+20.58.35+%25282%2529.png" width="200" /></a></div>
Then he started back at it. As he was running, he decided his next break would be at the marathon mark. Throughout the run, since the event had a very nice fueling station right beside the course that all runners ran by during each and every lap, he could grab Gatorade, water, and snacks of all kinds and just keeping on running. As he approached the marathon mark, he decided to take a 15-20 minute break to really get some good fueling in rather than just eating on the run. He got to take some layers off because the weather had warmed up into the 60s! People were running in tank tops and shorts, or even shirtless!<br />
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It was time for him to get back to running until he hit the 50K mark. At this point in the day, it was late morning, and he was already beginning to notice some aches and pains, specifically in his foot, knee, and hip. He had noticed these aches and pains beginning to pop up since before we ran the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/marshall-university-marathon.html" target="_blank">Marshall University Marathon</a> in mid-October when our training was still pretty intense. Despite his aches, he kept on going.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyPdv0-ZI4j0TnPMuU0Ou0vRCzDRhMz_QNp99vNZ6Hy2s6EJSWUSjpwHWUshPLP51d-BPAHNpBgvbZ4MAIsJbemtxwJVa0Flu_ZPDts7foU_SS0Tb1xKx43UINOgEQuXRmrSj7RLgQsS0/s1600/15387639_10208275257627020_969886122_o+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyPdv0-ZI4j0TnPMuU0Ou0vRCzDRhMz_QNp99vNZ6Hy2s6EJSWUSjpwHWUshPLP51d-BPAHNpBgvbZ4MAIsJbemtxwJVa0Flu_ZPDts7foU_SS0Tb1xKx43UINOgEQuXRmrSj7RLgQsS0/s200/15387639_10208275257627020_969886122_o+%25282%2529.jpg" width="199" /></a>After the 50K mark, on towards the 40 mile mark, the wind started to pick up and the temperature started to drop significantly around noon. He had to start putting back on the layers that he had just taken off. The aches and pains were definitely there and started to get to him. Fortunately there were some familiar faces that had arrived. As he was walking past the aid station, or more importantly the SNACK STATION!, a little kid ran up to him and grabbed hold of his leg. <i>Why does this kid look so familiar???? </i>he asked himself. Turns out, it was his nephew! Then he looked up to the parking lot and saw his mom, his sister, and his niece! Not only did they bring their presence, but they brought FOOD! Hot soup and hot tea... mmmmmmmm! So he got to camp out in the back of their car and enjoy this awesome surprise! He had to put on a brave act and pretend that everything was fine so his family wouldn't worry about him. He said his goodbyes and hit the trail running again.<br />
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For the next 10 miles, he was trying to rest up but definitely keep moving. He finally hit 50 miles at around 6:00 PM. The aches and pains were still very much present and hurting him pretty badly, so he took a break before he did any more. After about 15 minutes he started trying to run/walk but mostly run to stay warm! He was feeling very drained and needed some energy or rest. So he passed by the snack bar (lol) and grabbed a handful of cookies. And by a handful of cookies, I mean like 12 (full size) cookies.... WHAT. He said he "needed the energy".... Anyway, this was at 55 miles, and so he snuggled up (with his precious cookies) in my car that he took (since it was big enough to blow up the air mattress in the back!) and he took a nap that he did not officially consent to.... Ok so then he woke up from this surprise nap shivering with handful of cookies. Bless his little heart. He looked at his watch and noticed that it was around 7:40 PM and he Facetimed me! He was very disheartened due to all of his aches and fatigue, and he really wanted to stop. At this point, I was trying to be encouraging to help him make it to the distance he ran <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2015/11/crooked-road-24-hour-ultra-with-dash-of.html" target="_blank">last year</a> (64.98 miles). I didn't really know what he was enduring, but all I did know was that I was freezing cold inside our house because of the cold wind that had moved into our area, so I can only imagine trying to run in it.<br />
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After we hung up, he was feeling discouraged because he was hurting so bad but he knew he had to keep going to 65 miles. That was the new goal at this point. It was about 8:15 PM, and it was dark and windy and cold and miserable. That made it all that much harder to get out and run, but he did! He changed into his tights (he had been wearing shorts up until this point!) and put on a few extra layers on top and a beanie and some gloves and got out and got walking to try to warm up (lol) his body.<br />
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When he made it to the 100K (62 miles) it was 38 degrees with 28 windchill! Brr! You also have to keep in mind that the weather earlier in the week was in the 60s pretty much every day. This was a rude (and very cold!) wake up call! His body was warmed up and he was trying to stay moving and wasn't going to stop until he reached his 65 miles. His body was still hurting, but he noticed that it was aching less when he tried to run as opposed to just walking. Granted, aching less doesn't mean it didn't hurt when he was running. Just a more tolerable pain.<br />
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As he hit 65 miles, he was walking with a few jokesters who were very encouraging in great spirits despite the conditions. They were carrying on having a jolly old time! So Mr. Marathon was able to keep on keeping on. At this point he decided to hit 70 miles as his new goal. As he was running he was thinking that he stopped at 62 miles last time so he should stop again at 72 miles. He hit the 72 miles mark with about 4 and a half hours left. He knew that he had to stay moving if he wanted to hit the 100 mile mark, which was a goal that was in the back of his mind this whole time. He got a burst of motivation and decided that he was going to run! He felt that he was running at like a 5 or 6 min/mile pace (his usual). Remember, he was not tracking his distance or pace with his GPS watch. But since there were people keeping up with laps and timing and yelling out lap count, they also yelled out his pace... and he was moving at a 10:05 min/mile pace. Which is a little different that 5 or 6 min/mile pace. He couldn't believe it, since he was pushing SO HARD, He decided to continue and just keep pushing and giving it all he had, even if it was a 10:05 min/mile pace.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jrmbyeR4OtmqX96uvEOsMMXtj203JHbxq8AGuJS6orXZaMnoCatr2cECd6GygHPZgnvgVyKmzTntBILE0GadNRjA1ZtNvP-KMmaMnMQVEFoGUuLSOVFeaGZHUtjSs7B2TpV0lEgdTC8/s1600/15491846_10208275730838850_950097906_o+%25282%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jrmbyeR4OtmqX96uvEOsMMXtj203JHbxq8AGuJS6orXZaMnoCatr2cECd6GygHPZgnvgVyKmzTntBILE0GadNRjA1ZtNvP-KMmaMnMQVEFoGUuLSOVFeaGZHUtjSs7B2TpV0lEgdTC8/s200/15491846_10208275730838850_950097906_o+%25282%2529.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He did a vlog series on his <a href="https://www.instagram.com/run_alfredo_run/" target="_blank">Instagram </a><br />every so often... check it out!</td></tr>
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Finally, he decided to stop and calculate how far he was and how long he had. He was at 81.5 miles. He did the math and he had 3 and a half hours left. And his body was hurting bad, still. He knew that he wouldn't be able to maintain the 10ish minute miles, and with 18.5 miles left, so he knew he would have to maintain at least an 11:30 min/mile pace. (He had plenty of time to do math to occupy his brain!) He knew he wouldn't be able to keep that up, especially since he hadn't even gotten to take a break from the last 10 miles he finished. He had to think: <i>What's going to be harder? That I stop now? Or keep going and come just shy of 100 miles after going through all of this extra pain?</i> At this point, he decided to valiantly bow out and accept his great accomplishment of completing 81.5 miles. This is 16.5 miles more than he did last year, and the total mileage was just a little over the equivalent of 3 full marathons! He also wanted to get home to his sickly wife (cough cough). So he said his goodbyes, and arrived home at 6:00 AM Sunday morning. He took a hot shower immediately trying to thaw out a little bit, then went to SLEEP!<br />
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Final thoughts: He fell short of his crazy far-fetched goal of 100 miles that he says he could have probably reached if he had started more conservatively earlier in the day. However, the aches and pains that he had would have probably still hit him because of the hard races that he had leading up to this event (<a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/usa-south-cross-country-conference-meet.html" target="_blank">cross country races, Spartan race,</a> and the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/11/marshall-university-marathon.html" target="_blank">MUM</a>). He is glad that he was able to recognize his limitations and not push himself to the point of serious injury. This just prolongs the 100 mile. Til we meet again, Crooked Road.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Long sleeve tech shirt with the logo!</td></tr>
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<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-2635409564375132822016-11-11T20:31:00.001-05:002016-11-11T21:03:09.902-05:00Marshall University Marathon<br />
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We are so excited to share this recap with you! We traveled to Huntington, West Virginia this past Saturday for the Marshall University Marathon (MUM). On Saturday, we left our house late morning and took the beautiful 4 and a half hour drive through southwestern VA and all the way through to WV. Mister and I both really enjoyed the fall foliage on the drive and saw beautiful scenery in the mountains. We also loved going through tunnels that went THROUGH MOUNTAINS!! Um, cool!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going through a mountain tunnel!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhXQD79L3K6ZhNnGq2tU_ozocLoXDlRzaU4WXfREiszkoOGNrkg5Ep_acawUqP2EOJVH0qrQLbdGsZ4TqjyegNhjKY8OQKFh8TlqUxna2vnfm3sb0G5NiUfWURRWj7LS7bLy4Ci9x2i8/s1600/15034381_10208032489237962_1333183046_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhXQD79L3K6ZhNnGq2tU_ozocLoXDlRzaU4WXfREiszkoOGNrkg5Ep_acawUqP2EOJVH0qrQLbdGsZ4TqjyegNhjKY8OQKFh8TlqUxna2vnfm3sb0G5NiUfWURRWj7LS7bLy4Ci9x2i8/s320/15034381_10208032489237962_1333183046_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the mountain tunnel</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2nHDQ8PkXDaEkbCkN-hzmznJFitsHipeBoJ4FYYlVaR1dGjbI01yPM4b-B2L5adv0ed8_xUE88gF3AQxw0i7NX1vcBGYrDBqt5bCC2Ke_AEIdQXUIfwVT0W3sYJn-N0-n7CZbp9Mg_Kc/s1600/15033896_10208032497278163_2114132630_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2nHDQ8PkXDaEkbCkN-hzmznJFitsHipeBoJ4FYYlVaR1dGjbI01yPM4b-B2L5adv0ed8_xUE88gF3AQxw0i7NX1vcBGYrDBqt5bCC2Ke_AEIdQXUIfwVT0W3sYJn-N0-n7CZbp9Mg_Kc/s320/15033896_10208032497278163_2114132630_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There were lots of cool bridges in WV</td></tr>
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Anyway, we arrived at the expo that afternoon and picked up our packets and all of our SwAg! This was one of the deciding factors in choosing this race, y'all. As full marathoners who signed up before September 1, we got an awesome jacket and a duffel bag! We also paid a little extra to get the tech shirt as well (and I got a women's fit! Yes!). The shirts are adorable. The jackets are SO FLY. And the duffel bags are so neat and a great extra touch! Also at the expo, there was a pasta dinner for runners, and that was so awesome! After we picked up everything and ate pasta, we checked into our hotel and took a surprise nap (my favorite kind!) until it was time to eat some more. We picked up an order of spaghetti from the local Olive Garden and ate it, prepared our stuff for Sunday morning, and went back to sleep for the night.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYFYooNVCWy8_C9MyFIOVvPF6NUwOJHoO08B5385J0sGb2mjF15S_wmiFxefl9U178Yl6b4Q9XCG7zbVPYVYskxa7DH11CGpAILvTg4gJXQfct6DeC_Z35_iH9sl1MglP_chpcyZV_SxU/s1600/2016-11-05+16.11.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYFYooNVCWy8_C9MyFIOVvPF6NUwOJHoO08B5385J0sGb2mjF15S_wmiFxefl9U178Yl6b4Q9XCG7zbVPYVYskxa7DH11CGpAILvTg4gJXQfct6DeC_Z35_iH9sl1MglP_chpcyZV_SxU/s320/2016-11-05+16.11.18.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swag-tastic!</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi4a7Irl0U1-0XFSm36CbZ7TgNBQqZrl44kvVDFprYfbDX7Y75rq2IveR-nCT_jKkIa9JCcwK504wAhNktX_y5cFghY6j50jdIk65dfrmvXGZRuLz5WL7CkrQb-axu7A0HBbz_r5KDSVQ/s1600/15034133_10208032498438192_2142217575_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi4a7Irl0U1-0XFSm36CbZ7TgNBQqZrl44kvVDFprYfbDX7Y75rq2IveR-nCT_jKkIa9JCcwK504wAhNktX_y5cFghY6j50jdIk65dfrmvXGZRuLz5WL7CkrQb-axu7A0HBbz_r5KDSVQ/s320/15034133_10208032498438192_2142217575_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Humongous salad trough at the pasta dinner!</td></tr>
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On Sunday morning, we woke up very confused since the time changed overnight. But we got ourselves in order, got ready and headed to the Marshall University Stadium for the race start! We got parked and lined up pretty quick for a 7:00 AM start. The cannon went off very suddenly and away we went!<br />
<br />
It's amazing how all the runners in a particular event can have such different experiences. For example, hubbs and I ran the exact same course, but we had totally different races. Stay with me, k?<br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;"><b>HIS EXPERIENCE</b></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ7WT1kuknhV0U4k0Ci058WqgsameRVk-KvT88fIkti81lYluMWFqLIc61srI-QHtFE-bt0oo901T7Cx8V6DVqgU3sjcyo_Ju4-Xk4bqx4mRvmzDglefBl58sepbkr44qR9qsF3_pHEXw/s1600/race_3229_photo_48407452.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ7WT1kuknhV0U4k0Ci058WqgsameRVk-KvT88fIkti81lYluMWFqLIc61srI-QHtFE-bt0oo901T7Cx8V6DVqgU3sjcyo_Ju4-Xk4bqx4mRvmzDglefBl58sepbkr44qR9qsF3_pHEXw/s200/race_3229_photo_48407452.jpg" width="133" /></a>This run was a little tough for Mr. Marathon. He felt ok at the start but quickly started cramping at mile 3. He had a huge mental struggle at this point. Should he stop and walk? Should he wait on his beautiful yet slower than him wife? Should he just give up and DNF? After walking for a brief little bit and refueling, he decided that he was going to finish. So that left him with two options- run with me or run it out on his own. There was one key word in both of these options: RUN. He knew he was going to have to run the rest of this race that was still ahead of him. So he decided that he was going to pull himself together and try to take control of the race and keep on keeping on! And that he did. Despite this early setback, he managed to turn out 7ish minute miles for the remainder of the race even though he couldn't get rid of the cramps officially until mile 18! He was so glad that he didn't just give up. He managed to get himself back on track for a 3:04:09 finish! This is still a Boston Qualifier and still an amazing finish time!<br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace; font-size: x-large;"><b>HER EXPERIENCE</b></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhayP6QxGZpIY8yWa7A9hkZ1mvgVlM8AnT2wIWHwVkjPn9YQAvJcIOc0E4c7c27seT5XweXo2nEE7vLxucxwY_UoEuLhsm0UdZIhzy5e26pKrOhucBALIoDQ3WsBBYOo-41Q_tASbKCpI/s1600/mum1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhayP6QxGZpIY8yWa7A9hkZ1mvgVlM8AnT2wIWHwVkjPn9YQAvJcIOc0E4c7c27seT5XweXo2nEE7vLxucxwY_UoEuLhsm0UdZIhzy5e26pKrOhucBALIoDQ3WsBBYOo-41Q_tASbKCpI/s200/mum1.JPG" width="133" /></a>I started out feeling ok, but also completely and utterly terrified. I had been training for 20 weeks officially, but since last November with my 100+ miles a month. I had built a really great base for myself. Since running <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/01/charleston-marathon-2016.html" target="_blank">Charleston </a>in January of this year, I knew that I wanted a personal record really badly, but I also wanted to get my time under 5 hours. Um, that's ridiculous though right? Cutting off over half an hour is crazy far-fetched. Right? I was going to go for it, though. So I knew my paces and I had the confidence of my training with me. I managed to start on pace, and continue on pace all the way through the end of the first loop (this race was a half- 1 loop and full- 2 loops of the course) and I was still on pace and feeling awesome. I managed to keep up with my pace, and I was starting to get confused by miles 18-20. <i>Um, am I doing this right now? Is this for real? Is my Garmin working? Or is it broken? Am I really STILL on pace to meet my crazy far-fetched dream-big goal? </i>So I just kept going. At mile 20, I had the realization. If I could keep this up for just 10K more, I would get my marathon under 5 hours. I looked at the volunteers guiding us to the next water stop and I said "Hey guess what?? I'm going to get my first sub 5 marathon today!" and they clapped and cheered for me and I rode that high all the way to the finish line. In under 5 hours. In 4:56:51 to be exact! It definitely helped that my loving amazing supportive husband came back for me despite the fact that he was tired from running this course and giving it all that he had. He came back for me and met me at mile 24 to help me run it in. And I did it. I met my goal of breaking 5 hours in the marathon.<br />
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I have talked about this before as well. So many runners and even non-runners may think this is "slow". But I'm not about to compare myself to others in this regard. If you look at the fact that I have come from a <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2014/11/overcoming-disappointment.html" target="_blank">6:19</a> marathon all the way down to a 4:56 marathon with some intense training and commitment, I hope you can celebrate the accomplishment in that with me. I also hope you can be happy for me that I cut off 37 minutes and 10 seconds from my marathon time in January. I have not stopped training since Charleston, and I am so happy to say that it paid off. I cried crossing the finish line at the MUM, not because I was in pain or sad that it was over (lol), but because I accomplished something so huge for me. I thought this goal of mine was far-fetched, crazy, and impossible. And it was.... until it wasn't. As I said recently on a post on Instagram channeling my good friend Walt Disney-- "Do the impossible. It's fun."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPfLIvI4oZI_q0ExPHpVDNuHRATOVyhgT3Z69aoluznoXyN1Jzz8ma8oa80vb1Zb__FBnwgJtVfdKzrjIZdR7_gyLlsYhwNeobVaGaqtZOfO9Iy3zXMTAgbVt_V8dTUlGOc-oljS__Uq8/s1600/dotheimpossible.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPfLIvI4oZI_q0ExPHpVDNuHRATOVyhgT3Z69aoluznoXyN1Jzz8ma8oa80vb1Zb__FBnwgJtVfdKzrjIZdR7_gyLlsYhwNeobVaGaqtZOfO9Iy3zXMTAgbVt_V8dTUlGOc-oljS__Uq8/s200/dotheimpossible.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ok so this is what the internet says Walt said</td></tr>
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And of course, more photos from marathon weekend!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAR5uy9UcNyTIYFfn5jRglRcS3VAnh8d-NJnXEMNurwjnpmZJQiQkh9SypHBrrFnth6qRYNNgP5lZhsAA-Ly4EyubUoDBASTSasg3IeZO-vVDK2OVPf_rhBl7PDUQB5Bhzl9_qP9OqR4/s1600/14639893_10207980203530852_8581285500623824601_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAR5uy9UcNyTIYFfn5jRglRcS3VAnh8d-NJnXEMNurwjnpmZJQiQkh9SypHBrrFnth6qRYNNgP5lZhsAA-Ly4EyubUoDBASTSasg3IeZO-vVDK2OVPf_rhBl7PDUQB5Bhzl9_qP9OqR4/s320/14639893_10207980203530852_8581285500623824601_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hittin up the EXPO</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWAyeoCK3gmjo9tByoPvMoRvwRYMw46KoeU-CuJ8zKXQzB1A2-vY7Xeqc784E6p1hqHnapl0qce8RVgLJU63ADN4Dt2tBsrT1GIsLCEAgMD7cusIFI_AeJ5ZvEaTVTfHMdlVXqcSk7tzc/s1600/race_3229_photo_48407525.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWAyeoCK3gmjo9tByoPvMoRvwRYMw46KoeU-CuJ8zKXQzB1A2-vY7Xeqc784E6p1hqHnapl0qce8RVgLJU63ADN4Dt2tBsrT1GIsLCEAgMD7cusIFI_AeJ5ZvEaTVTfHMdlVXqcSk7tzc/s320/race_3229_photo_48407525.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Running through the park along the Ohio River</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzKzfmWUBGJILYqmHE_D_hxPrJhFwfdyqYab8ZgOaGjdui8aWhg6USg73WZ0fwjk690y7xalym_ftEhbFIWrq9vC7bE5pEhY-tlR28Sn7mLcP9wPIDDfbf2dSmxlyvlEmPkRcZeEEnHo/s1600/race_3229_photo_48452272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzKzfmWUBGJILYqmHE_D_hxPrJhFwfdyqYab8ZgOaGjdui8aWhg6USg73WZ0fwjk690y7xalym_ftEhbFIWrq9vC7bE5pEhY-tlR28Sn7mLcP9wPIDDfbf2dSmxlyvlEmPkRcZeEEnHo/s320/race_3229_photo_48452272.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't know about you! But I'm feelin (mile) 22!<br />
Channeling T-SWIFT</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPiFv2kKpc2KtSReLfNHAnY2I4kN1ZqkCwusODHiKJFw5KmB7zSyBnloQg28Avb7nXatbEu92b5qYeS1i_1YzI4MY4cPsn5EpOIkzoyZfuwLBjFSn1f18FtsdJMORuoESCmrNPytEEfvA/s1600/race_3229_photo_48464620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPiFv2kKpc2KtSReLfNHAnY2I4kN1ZqkCwusODHiKJFw5KmB7zSyBnloQg28Avb7nXatbEu92b5qYeS1i_1YzI4MY4cPsn5EpOIkzoyZfuwLBjFSn1f18FtsdJMORuoESCmrNPytEEfvA/s320/race_3229_photo_48464620.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finishing in Marshall Stadium!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkWl_aYLBNcCpRRdIr2DgbFk1iFz5Y4aNl-v1s0xHqwEx0hBV7rxDCdUiffGvhO5ckRCWdBou5vT62lzaMKtFa6ptz1l3cTPbk7P5IuqKGRXFNrl-ZXGZ4DR2zRy_cPRM7NC1pGVMdas/s1600/race_3229_photo_48433678.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkWl_aYLBNcCpRRdIr2DgbFk1iFz5Y4aNl-v1s0xHqwEx0hBV7rxDCdUiffGvhO5ckRCWdBou5vT62lzaMKtFa6ptz1l3cTPbk7P5IuqKGRXFNrl-ZXGZ4DR2zRy_cPRM7NC1pGVMdas/s320/race_3229_photo_48433678.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He came back for me!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOJbiUxUhP7yzbY9jJuS7WAUXvWSCUzlnesrhp6tJ2Ry5CcGpi1rp_CNT29Mw1Zc7Pxt6hZhvXF2EB5KYkgYCGNpaXM2cskAdrPUDFkUTl-WNjNhR6NcEoKt825QSW7wtybAuzNst6-fE/s1600/15008028_10208032499358215_395291112_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOJbiUxUhP7yzbY9jJuS7WAUXvWSCUzlnesrhp6tJ2Ry5CcGpi1rp_CNT29Mw1Zc7Pxt6hZhvXF2EB5KYkgYCGNpaXM2cskAdrPUDFkUTl-WNjNhR6NcEoKt825QSW7wtybAuzNst6-fE/s320/15008028_10208032499358215_395291112_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBBlnpln0cdm5Qw4_C-xUw0AZx6tjtZ3jaB5vCqln6wv5ATg-OFD3DIs7CoKeYQn_gCwh13Egftfiipa0Im94NS8WrlvRA2YwEHJxOYqDSU715AxqY7GyID4HRZTVVPBy4p7ZPMu-a_ys/s1600/15053424_10208032499878228_740543314_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBBlnpln0cdm5Qw4_C-xUw0AZx6tjtZ3jaB5vCqln6wv5ATg-OFD3DIs7CoKeYQn_gCwh13Egftfiipa0Im94NS8WrlvRA2YwEHJxOYqDSU715AxqY7GyID4HRZTVVPBy4p7ZPMu-a_ys/s320/15053424_10208032499878228_740543314_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The majestic buffalo statue</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjthTzFiaBFApNIvWNdt6mjPprvreWvhDGB57fcE5UDHMR0q6cqbnge3DiJPE3QK6rLCuQQeXA7Vt7wYZjiupeHfBA5_f5w9_FsMGaxRRk6JbevClJtFt8x6yesVhdhSgBQyP_OcwNhX4o/s1600/14963461_10207991309528495_1978474311_o+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjthTzFiaBFApNIvWNdt6mjPprvreWvhDGB57fcE5UDHMR0q6cqbnge3DiJPE3QK6rLCuQQeXA7Vt7wYZjiupeHfBA5_f5w9_FsMGaxRRk6JbevClJtFt8x6yesVhdhSgBQyP_OcwNhX4o/s320/14963461_10207991309528495_1978474311_o+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My finish line photo! I'm holding the football like an idiot<br />
BUT I'M A HAPPY IDIOT!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We finished!!!!!!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-29683317111742319672016-11-06T20:09:00.001-05:002016-11-12T16:41:56.358-05:00USA South Cross Country Conference Meet & Carolina Spartan Beast<div class="MsoNormal">
As I typed this, we were en route to Huntington, WV for the
MARSHALL UNIVERSITY MARATHON (MUM)! I just didn't get a chance to post it because we didn't have internet on the road and my computer was dying in the car.... so now we're home and it's finally getting posted before we post about the MUM!</div>
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Now, last weekend was quite exciting for Mr.
Marathon. I thought he was crazy to do all of what he did the weekend before a
full marathon, but whatever, he did awesome.<br />
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<o:p> </o:p>On Friday, we both traveled separately to Georgia for the
USA South Conference meet for cross country on Saturday. He had a good run on a
challenging course and managed to finish at 30:57 in 17<sup>th</sup> place
overall. His team finished 5th out of 8 teams. Then after the conference
meet, we headed just a little further into Georgia to visit with my family
before making our way back to South Carolina for the Carolina Spartan Beast
race. He was in the competitive heat on Sunday, and he took off at 7:45 AM. The
course was 14.2 miles with about 35 obstacles. This was a race he had done last year,
but it was 2 miles longer this year. And he managed to finish 2 minutes faster
than he did last year with a time of 2:24:30, putting him in first place
overall for Sunday’s competitive heat. He was interested in comparing his time
with the Elites that competed Saturday morning, and his time would have put him
in 4<sup>th</sup> place out of the Elites!!! Um WHAT!</div>
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Then we traveled back from the weekend shenanigans and I
still had to do my last “long” run before the MUM: 8 miles. He was so sweet
because he offered to run my 8 with me when we got back home. So this put him
at a weekend total of 32 miles. Crazy guy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So he took all this past week to recover (don’t blame
him!) and I have been tapering and cutting back on my miles. Stay tuned for our next post about our awesome run at the MUM this morning!!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cross Country meet</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Whrzr_gYOXD57z7-XWv-WmnoJwZlgc-2z0Vp2M5IlieMTOJVa7pJFEL-_G4GRW8yIsoiq4OkSdJl3fqe-LAAdS3xR7IOTPcG7TzUdSLkBLhKx1P8W_Sru3UG5UfHyHaTXd6LKTMjerI/s1600/14975787_10207991240166761_1181505286_o+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Whrzr_gYOXD57z7-XWv-WmnoJwZlgc-2z0Vp2M5IlieMTOJVa7pJFEL-_G4GRW8yIsoiq4OkSdJl3fqe-LAAdS3xR7IOTPcG7TzUdSLkBLhKx1P8W_Sru3UG5UfHyHaTXd6LKTMjerI/s320/14975787_10207991240166761_1181505286_o+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pre-Spartan (note that they are all still clean!) <br />
with Mr. Marathon's brother, friend, and him </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyRMsKyw-hVTlQRYPor-RwHQlho2oulhcYuZu97a-41Xlm06pp7a9Vy_T_apif0iNBXm0XPFqMjfnT7PHwDS4LFWWkcE9FVbZPVQp0BIqohXiMMhg0C6lAe9cYmN4sBLhu8q-phY5HB3g/s1600/14970876_10207991247486944_77074500_o+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyRMsKyw-hVTlQRYPor-RwHQlho2oulhcYuZu97a-41Xlm06pp7a9Vy_T_apif0iNBXm0XPFqMjfnT7PHwDS4LFWWkcE9FVbZPVQp0BIqohXiMMhg0C6lAe9cYmN4sBLhu8q-phY5HB3g/s320/14970876_10207991247486944_77074500_o+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The only picture I got of him on the course<br />
(I may or may not have fallen asleep on the job...)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brotherly love!!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1MArrCkRTihyPGLGJCGW-9Kd_EglnWsLEP1MM-H6miurK81uBlzYdbFqqU-7UxQ_qkQpxRjRoKR16ThYnzAMvm9e5MHOYfwseBml8TpzuTJyQDIbewKSn7jTXgWkpWpvmyhghOYITVc/s1600/14959163_10207991238566721_226169846_o+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1MArrCkRTihyPGLGJCGW-9Kd_EglnWsLEP1MM-H6miurK81uBlzYdbFqqU-7UxQ_qkQpxRjRoKR16ThYnzAMvm9e5MHOYfwseBml8TpzuTJyQDIbewKSn7jTXgWkpWpvmyhghOYITVc/s320/14959163_10207991238566721_226169846_o+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finish time/place- 2:24:30, 1st place overall!</td></tr>
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Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-4943408932254231832016-10-26T20:47:00.005-04:002016-10-26T21:00:59.348-04:00Great Goblin Gallop 5K 2016<i>Flashback to October 22, 2011.</i> It was my first 5K! I ran it in 39 minutes and I thought it was the hardest thing ever!<br />
<i>Fast forward 5 years later. </i>I ran the exact same 5K on the exact same date: October 22, 2016. I ran the whole thing, and I completed it 11 minutes faster than 5 years prior (read about the other years we did this race too: <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2012/10/goblin-gallop-5k.html" target="_blank">2012 </a>and <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2013/10/goblin-gallop-5k-take-3.html" target="_blank">2013</a>). I had a great race this past weekend, and I finished in about 28:23 (according to my Garmin.... still waiting for official results). What made it even better is that almost our entire Sunday morning running group (the "Breakfast Club") showed up to race!!!! It was so much fun spending time with the Breakfast Club and supporting a local race. Unfortunately, Mr. Marathon was working that morning and couldn't be there, but the Breakfast Club (and Mr. Marathon's entire family!) showed up to race. Oh, and I placed 1st in my age group, so that was pretty groovy too!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">The Breakfast Club!!!!</td></tr>
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I started reflecting after this year's Goblin Gallop. Five years ago, it took everything I had to do 3 miles. Three miles was my long run. My weekly training was something like 2 runs a week of 2 miles or less, and I was averaging 13 minute miles, even pushing my hardest. Fast forward to present day- I am running 20-40 miles a week currently, training for the Marshall University (full!) Marathon, and my training paces are averaging around 9-10 minutes per mile for most runs. Now, this may not sound impressive to many of you, but looking back I am so proud. 5 years later, and I haven't quit. Doing something for 5 whole years without giving up, just taking some breaks and suffering from some injuries and burnout. Staying committed for 5 years to something as physically and mentally demanding as running has been quite a challenge.<br />
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So I encourage you to take a moment to reflect. How long have you been running? Has it ever seemed impossible? Do you ever take a moment to appreciate how far you've come (or gone)? <b>Be proud of yourself.</b> Running is hard-- believing in yourself doesn't have to be.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIiw1zo8W_ARW-XTV8z8jA2QRRrjWgL6IgFs7ExMuziXuo61ysYXtyuqu-or2qDSYIsutZWW_AWRbTxdm-LUUDwzldYXS2en1-r5fYNTAZhjxwrv8xvX3lgaotiW1_v9_9K2wE9W_QEVI/s1600/2016-10-22+11.14.52+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIiw1zo8W_ARW-XTV8z8jA2QRRrjWgL6IgFs7ExMuziXuo61ysYXtyuqu-or2qDSYIsutZWW_AWRbTxdm-LUUDwzldYXS2en1-r5fYNTAZhjxwrv8xvX3lgaotiW1_v9_9K2wE9W_QEVI/s320/2016-10-22+11.14.52+%25282%2529.jpg" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">High fiving! 1st and 2nd place in the 25-29 age group!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1st, 2nd, and 3rd place 25-29 age group</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfuYRgigqmml6H6Utgqiez_BYIvo63konyRrqrmGJAV6MuiIfRU31Y7pCahwyT8lv_QSJVU7DCtHmcmfrdewL2gfczRHPgHgYC4JujSyDEqTwRVE8_jdfr-JNbLrYG8kJn5MQGcsc8OXo/s1600/Garcias.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfuYRgigqmml6H6Utgqiez_BYIvo63konyRrqrmGJAV6MuiIfRU31Y7pCahwyT8lv_QSJVU7DCtHmcmfrdewL2gfczRHPgHgYC4JujSyDEqTwRVE8_jdfr-JNbLrYG8kJn5MQGcsc8OXo/s320/Garcias.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with part of Mr. Marathon's family....<br />
What a good-looking bunch!</td></tr>
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Oh, and we are 11 days from the MARSHALL UNIVERSITY MARATHON!!!! EEEEK!Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349789017170530131.post-75074571999486889962016-10-02T21:02:00.001-04:002016-10-02T21:02:18.054-04:00Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall!Since the <a href="http://mrandmrsmarathon.blogspot.com/2016/07/rwrunstreak-4-on-4th.html" target="_blank">4th of July</a>, we have been running amok! We have finished out the summer running strong, and we just cannot WAIT until the fall weather officially kicks in, which should be soon! We have been a little busy with running and non-running related events, so what's been going on since the 4th of July in our running lives, you ask?<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">Harvest Moon 10K</span><br />
Mr. Marathon decided to run the Harvest Moon 10K back in September. He had a good run and managed to finish 2nd place overall in 39:16 with a surprise PR of 20 seconds from this same race 3 years ago!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He sure knows to add pizzazz to his finish!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">Averett Cross Country</span><br />
Mr. Marathon has also started his 2nd season with Averett University's Cross Country team. He has had 2 meets so far, and he managed to squeak out a PR for the 8K at his meet this past weekend! He finished in 29:57-- a PR by 39 seconds!!! Wowie! He has a couple more meets left in the season so we will see how they go.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">100 Miles a Month</span><br />
I'm not even sure if I've talked about this here on the blog, but I had a goal set to do 100 miles a month each month in 2016. So far, I have successfully gotten my 100+ miles each month! Now I just have to keep on rolling through October, November, and December!<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">Marathon Training</span><br />
Oh, and we have decided on a fall marathon to tackle! We will be heading to West Virginia for the Marshall University Marathon on November 6th! We are looking forward to it. We are 5 weeks out and in full swing with training. I have already gone up to a 20 miler this cycle and have 2 more 20 milers planned... gulp! Things are on track for us to rock out the MUM! Can't wait!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our first 20 miler of this cycle last month...<br />Can't wait until the next one...???</td></tr>
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<br />Mr. and Mrs. Marathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10616111905661613654noreply@blogger.com0