Redhook 5k

This late-start race (11:00) seems to always fall on an unusually warm day. This is of course good news for those celebrating Memorial Day weekend in a non-running fashion, but for the past three years has always made the 3.1 mile race slightly uncomfortable, to say the least. Of course, after the hell that was the 90 degree heat of last year's Chicago Marathon, I suppose I have nothing to complain about. I managed a chip time of 25:35, but with splits all over the place. I crossed the first mile marker at just shy of 7 minutes (6:59), a commendable split but one I knew I would pay for in the next two miles. I was actually quite pleased to cross the second mile marker at 16:20, because even though my pace had dropped significantly to just over a 9 minute mile, it still averaged out to keep me right on pace for my 25:13 goal (my stepdad's chip time from 2007). The last 1.1 miles dragged me up several grueling hills, however, and were exacerbated by the heat, causing me to slow my pace and cross the finish line about 20 seconds over my goal. While disappointed, I still knocked 25 seconds off my 5k time from last weekend. I even made it out of the chute and back as a spectator in time to see my sister and stepdad cross the line in 28:57, a great time since their goal was 10:00/mile and the heat made each mile go that much slower. I was sure to pump her up afterwards with a quick reminder that the marathon (161 days away) was a mere 9 times what we had just run. We polished off our race with some free Redhook Longhammer IPA (Steve's favorite beer!), and with that, marathon training season has officially begun.

A Pleasant Surprise

I should really start sticking around at the end of races since I missed out on my $25 prize!

http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080520/SPORTS/805200342/-1/NEWS11&sfad=1

Winning age-group divisions were:
14-and-under — Exeter's Nicole MacAulay (22:35) and Durham's Mamoon Herz-Khan (21:00).
15-19 — Stratham's Chelsea Blanchette (22:05) and Stratham's Elias Kahan (17:56).
20-29 — Stratham's Meredith Tinkham (26:07) and James King (17:20).
30-39 — Durham's Monika Calitri (22:00) and Exeter's Eric Beidleman (18:21).
40-49 — Newfields' Chantal Defeo (22:12) and Newmarket's Tim Roache (18:03).
50-59 — Exeter's Marianne Barbin (24:07) and Exeter's Jeff Goddard (19:22).
60-69 — Dover's Mary Ulinski (27:33) and Newmarket's Roger Reeser (23:45).
70-and-over — Mary Ann Olsen (1:07:29) of Somers, Conn., and Hampton Falls' John Parker (29:58).

Apologies for my failure to update since the toe incident; graduating and the subsequent move back to the East Coast made it necessary to put posting on the back burner for a bit. But for all those tracking my progress, I have several brief updates. On Thursday, May 1, I ran my first 5k of training season with a friend who is training for Chicago. She finished in 26:50, and I was a few seconds ahead, although for some reason no official time was recorded my finish. Regardless, it was enough for a 7th place finish (no need to point out how small the field was or how uncompetitive the quickest woman's time). The following Sunday I ran a 4 mile race benefiting the Chicago Community Counseling Centers, and finished 11th with a time of 34:08, an almost equivalent pace to the preceding 5k. After a week off to engorge myself in the festivities of graduation, I got back to training with my final run on the Lakefront Path (at least for the foreseeable future), a steady 7 miles that was quite cathartic considering the amount of time I have spent there over my college career (more time than in the classroom, perhaps?) Upon returning to NH, I dragged my boyfriend to a 5k benefiting the PTO of my former elementary school. Perhaps the competitive nature of our relationship or the nostalgic setting of the race led me to knock about 50 seconds off my previous 5k time and complete the race in 26 minutes even. Hopefully I can keep up the good work as this Sunday marks the 11th annual Redhook Brewery 5k, a race my stepdad and I have been running for the past few years. This year, my sister joins the ranks as part of her training for her first marathon (also New York), and it could up the ante as far as competition. With a little luck and a lot of rivalry, I hope to shave a few more seconds off my 2008 PR of 26:00. I'll be sure to update with finishing times for all three of us as soon as I'm done gloating over my new PR :)

Thanks to everyone whose continued support has helped me reach $260 in fundraising, just over 10% of my final goal!

After a week-long hiatus, my toe is close enough to healthy to be back on track with running. After an easy three miles today, I have two races coming up- a 5k tomorrow evening and 4-miler Sunday morning. I'll see how the nail-less toe holds up. According to the countdown feature on my heart rate monitor's wrist unit, the marathon is only 186 days away!

Today I reached a fundraising milestone as I now have over $100 in donations! Unfortunately, this coincides with a damper on my running as I underwent a procedure to remove my big toenail on Monday... should be all healed up and ready to run again next week, though, and I'm looking forward to it as the weather grows more pleasant each day. Thanks everyone for your continued support!

Three donations in my first 24 hours... very promising :) Thanks guys!

Well, it took three years, but I've finally secured a way to mitigate the usual barrage of questions I receive when the topic of marathoning comes up: It's how many miles? Why would you run that far voluntarily? Are you crazy? The list goes on.

True, I may be crazy. But this year I have a reason for running to offer the sane. I will be raising money for the New York Road Runners Team for Kids. Every year, Team for Kids raises millions of dollars through the efforts of so-called "crazy" marathon runners. Generous donations to the organization benefit over 50,000 children in 200 schools and community centers in New York City, across the country, and in impoverished areas of South Africa. Money raised implements fitness and nutrition programs where they would otherwise be unavailable in an effort to thwart childhood obesity and build confidence, self-esteem, and mental and physical strength in the children that will be tomorrow's adults.

In 2008, I have set a goal of raising $2,500 for Team for Kids. My fundraising efforts will culminate on November 2 at the ING New York City Marathon. It will be my third marathon, and I trust that working with Team for Kids will make it the most rewarding one yet. I have committed to months of training for this goal, but I will not be able to fulfill it alone. I need the help of friends and family, who through generous donations can help me reach my fundraising goal, and whose unwavering support will be carried with me across the finish line after running 26.2 miles. It is my fervent hope that the fruits of our fundraising labor will instill in the children benefiting from Team for Kids the passion and purpose that I have found in running. Perhaps one day they will draw on the skills and experiences they will learn through fitness programs paid for through Team for Kids in order to raise money to secure the health and happiness of the generation behind them.

All donations, no matter how small, will be deeply appreciated by the Team for Kids Foundation. Please help me meet my goal by passing on the word to friends and family.