Recapping 900...

Sandy's rolling out and, aside from massive cabin fever, we fared the storm really well.  That cabin fever, though, drove me out into the chilly sprinkles to stretch my legs and breath some fresh air this evening.

First off, on Saturday I passed the 900 mile mark.  Why didn't I talk about this on Saturday?  Because I crossed the mark while participating in the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Light the Night.  Saturday was about the survivors, the fighters and the families grieving.  Actually, hitting the 90% mark on my goal during that event really brought so much more meaning to it than just hitting 900 on an average jaunt around Capitol Hill or down Bay Head Road.  Nothing wrong with those...every mile counts...but it just seemed more meaningful. 

So now I'm truly "running" the home stretch and am actually targeting a finish one full month ahead schedule, so long as my shin hangs in there. 

Today was not a record breaking day, or even noteworthy in the grand scheme of the past year.  It was merely a short run to stretch the legs as the diva slept in the car with my husband after a great afternoon of playing at the indoor playground in the mall. (whew...that was quite a sentence) It was a couple miles to cement my October achievement and to test my shin.

What was noteworthy about the run is that, in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, you can't take for granted those sunny days where running is easy....and you shouldn't discount the value of having a treadmill in the basement to provide moments of sanity when stuck inside (perhaps I should finally consider making the investment).  Happy trails!!!

Stats -
Miles:  2.53
Time:   22:03 (average pace of 8:43 per mile)
Location:  Bay Head
Feeling:  my shin is a little painful, but bearable

Lighting the night...

Earlier this year one of our neighbors, Kaitlyn, lost the fight against a lymphoma.  Around the same time, our next door neighbor's 7-year old granddaughter, Sophia, was diagnosed with leukemia.  Whether you've been touched by someone affected by the diseases or not, its hard not to wish for the discovery of a cure for these cancers, particularly for the victims whose time ends far too soon. 

That's why, when our neighbors invited us to join them for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Light the Night Walk we absolutely said yes.  Yes, we would walk with Team Kaitlyn.  Even the diva went out to walk in support of the Dzurneys and in memory of Kaitlyn (she also got a balloon...which she loves).

The walk started at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and snaked down toward city dock before returning to the stadium.  While a somber occasion, it also was a great and joyful coming together of families and communities to raise money for research.  The atmosphere was celebratory, and a bit raucous if you were close to that large group of younger children. 

Above all, it was inspirational.  The rainbow of ballons told the story.  Gold stood for the courage of the grieving families.  Red stood for the strength of the survivors and white stood for the hope displayed by the patients currently battling cancer. There was no sense of defeat in the crowd...only a great commitment to find a cure.

 

Thank you to the Dzurney family for inviting us to join you in walking in Kaitlyn's memory.  She was a strong force that made a real impact in such a short period of time. 

Stats -
Miles:  4.3 (plus 2.75 for the Light the Night Walk for Leukemia and Lymphoma)
Time:   38:32 (average pace of 8:38 per mile..no time on the second half)
Location:  Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and Downtown Annapolis
Feeling:  there's nothing more humbling than running for a cure

Getting my Army Ten Miler on...

Today I hit the pavement for my sixth or seventh running of the Army Ten Miler.  (I'm still trying to figure this one out....through all the runnings under other names, I've truly lost count.  But I like this race!  It's one of the few races I will venture into DC for time and time again.  It celebrates the heroes, it celebrates the survivors, it celebrates running and it celebrates achievement.  Who wouldn't want to be a part of that?


The start of the race was slightly different from previous years.  The race coordinators doubled the number of corral starts, which I think was a good idea.  If you've run this race, you know that there is a tendency toward a crowded course, jockeying just to maintain a reasonable pace.  With the added corrals, it was a little better.  Folks still ran with faster corrals, but they were few and far between.  It was easy to hit my pace and maintain it.

Let me backtrack....I didn't hit my pace, really, until the second mile.  Why?  Well shortly after the start, I ran into Patty Schloesser walking on behalf of the Fisher House Foundation.  Who, might you ask it Patty?  Only one of my favorite wife's of a former commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell.  I had the great pleasure of working with Patty for a couple of years while her husband was the commander.  I've rarely known a milspouse to work so tirelessly and take more of the stress of the military families on her own shoulders than Patty.  So of course I had to walk with her for a little bit to catch up.  That was awesome.

That was probably the high point of the race.  Much of the remainder was typical Army Ten Miler.  Bands at regular intervals, people with their motivational signs spread throughout the course, lots of water stops.  There was a funny new jiggle on Capitol Hill.  It was rather sad not to run in front of the Capitol building for the first time on this course, not sure why the change.  But it did make up for it by stretching the distance on the other side of the bridge to regain motivation after the life sucking bridge crossing.

Another strange occurance....in my humble opinion....the crowd seemed quiet.  This is usually a loud race with spectators pushing you through even the toughest sections.  Not the case this year.  Usually roaring sections were so quiet you may have been able to hear a pin drop.  It wasn't too quiet to break concentration, but still notable.

Anyway, when the finish line finally appeared, I pushed forward and dug deep to find the burst that would get me across the finish line for a new ten miler PR. So what were the results?  Overall I finished 6536 out of 21,912 runners.  Among all women, I finished 1436 out of 9747 runners and within women age 35-39, I finished 249 out of 1806.  My best Army Ten Miler finish yet.  I can't wait to make it even better next year.  Happy trails!!!

Stats -
Miles:  10.11
Time:   1:26:58 (average pace of 8:35 per mile)
Location:  throughout Washington DC, Pentagon
Feeling:  everything worked well, no pain