On Wednesday, June 27th I had my second team
workout. My Placer Team in Training
group met in Granite Bay at Douglas Ranch Park at 6pm. At this point I had been home for about a
week and was having some major sinus issues.
I went from a high desert with no plants to a valley with a lot of
green. The team only ran a little over
3.5 miles, but still those miles were difficult. It was hot and my sinuses weren’t
cooperating.
After the run, as I was headed home, I spotted a trail and
decided to try to get a bit more mileage in for the day. I also decided it was a good time to make a
video. Check it out HERE…
On Saturday, June 30th (yes, only 3 days later)
we had our next team workout. This time
we met at Winchester Park in Meadow Vista, California. We were all forewarned to be prepared for
some training on hills. I, sadly, thought
that the training began at 7 so I left Yuba City at 5:30. Much to my surprise, however, no one was
there when I arrived at 6:40. It was
then that I remembered something about the workout perhaps not starting until
7:30. I leaned my seat back, grabbed my
blanket, and took a wonderful 30 minute nap!
After a talk from our two coaches (Coach Nancy and Coach
Laura), along with our mentors, we were off on our training run. Quickly I picked back up with my running
partner from Wednesday’s run, David. Today we were also joined by Tom and
Lisa. It was great to talk to these
three, learn about their marathon journey, and to gain inspiration. Lisa started running only a few months before
me and has lost an incredible 80 pounds!
Her husband, Tom, is training to complete Lake Tahoe’s inaugural Ironman
in September 2013. It’s the first
full-distance event to be in California since 2001. Both Tom and Lisa serve as Leukemia &
Lymphoma Society ambassadors.
At about mile 4 of our 8 mile run we lost Lisa. Then at about mile 7, David stopped for some
water and Tom and I continued on. Tom
finished only slightly in front of me. I
was the first female to finish the full 8 miles. It was a great run and the hills were an
awesome challenge!
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| Lisa, David, myself, and Tom after our 8 hilly miles at Winchester. |
The next day, July 1st, I met Heather at her
house at about 5:45am to then head to San Francisco (3 hour drive) for the Polo
Field 5k race. It didn’t start out as a
very good day for me.
1) I woke up late. My
alarm was set for 4:45am. I was supposed
to be at Heather’s house at 5:30. I didn’t
wake up until 5:37! As fast as I could I
threw on my clothes that were fortunately already lying at the end of my bed,
grabbed my bag, and ran out the door. Heather called me on the way and I began to
profusely apologize for my tardiness. In
all senses of the word, I was exhausted!
Not only did I have an 8 mile team run the morning before, but I drove a
total of 4 hours because I then drove the opposite way to spend the day with my
boyfriend and his family. I went to bed
at 9:30pm, but still was exhausted 7 hours later!
2) We made it to the race registration area, had about 30
minutes before race time, and then I realized that my good friend who visits me
every month just so happened to rear her ugly face! Grrr… Fortunately we were able to temporarily
remedy the situation. I was, however,
wearing my brand new running shorts and my good friend didn’t take to them very
well. :/
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| Heather and I after the race. |
Somehow I was able to pull myself together, push myself
harder than ever before, and pull out a new 5k PR! (For those of you who don’t know, that’s
means I earned a new personal record.)
My previous 5k PR was set on December 31st and was 25:48. This time I came in at 3.14 miles (as opposed
to 3.10 miles) with a time of 24:45! New
5k PR by over a minute! I’ll take that
for sure! Here were my splits 7:31,
8:21, 8:04. My average pace was 7:54. Now, if only I could hold that for an entire
26.2 miles, I would be able to qualify for the Boston Marathon. ;)
After the race Heather and I ran across the Golden Gate
Bridge before changing, eating lunch near Fisherman’s Wharf, walking for a bit,
and then driving back to Yuba City. Despite
an interesting start to the day, all in all it was absolutely fantastic!
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| Running across the Golden Gate Bridge. |
Did you know I’m
training to run 26.2 miles and I’m doing this for the Leukemia & Lymphoma
Society (LLS)?! Please consider donating to LLS by supporting my 26.2 mile
marathon. One of the ways you may support my 26.2 mile run is by pledging a
dollar amount for every mile.
$1/mile = $26.20
$2/mile = $52.40
$3/mile = $78.60
$4/mile = $104.80
$5/mile = $131.00
Thank you in advance for your support!
Together we can and will find a cure.
I became interested in LLS due to my Uncle’s battle with
blood cancer. Thankfully he is in
remission. It is his strength that gives
me motivation to wake up, run, and fight for a cure. My Uncle Gene doesn’t take a single moment
for granted. HERE is his latest VIDEO he
took while paragliding in Washington.
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| Uncle Gene |
