Sandy Runs

Today is a great day! I met my $2,500 fundraising goal for the NYC Marathon in November. I'm registered for the race, free and clear! I hope to raise a few more funds since this charity is near and dear to my heart (and head), but I can breathe easier now knowing that I'm in the marathon. We did it! This achievement really isn't mine alone. I need to thank the many people who donated to my fundraiser for Migraine Research Foundation . Some donated small, some donated big, and I was honored by a substantial donation from my employer. But all of my sponsors are equal in my mind, and I will wear their names on my shirt when I run in New York. I'm thanking everyone publicly, as their names were already made public on the fundraising site . I'm also respecting the wishes of those who prefer to remain anonymous. Here they are in alphabetical order, all my lovely supporters: Anonymous (Asia) Anonymous (Chicago) Anonymous (DC Metro) Barefoot Bandito B...

After registering for the Mexico City Marathon I blogged about my need to train . I must take preparation seriously for this challenging race at 7,200 ft elevation and mostly uphill. I drafted a plan to include hill workouts and speed workouts into my routine, to do strength training and long runs or races every weekend. It's not an unreasonable training plan, but I wasn't following one for at least a few months before I started this new one. I'm now more motivated than I have been, and training is going well. One of my local trails is the W&OD trail, and is only a half mile or less from home;  the trailhead, Mile 0 has a big hill and that's where I ran hill repeats last week Hills: Not only did I force myself to do hill repeats during a training run last week, I also ran a hilly half marathon last weekend (and have another scheduled for the upcoming weekend). Instead of allowing myself to walk the hills, as I have in the past, I made myself run them, ev...

On Sunday I ran the Frederick Running Festival Half Marathon in Frederick MD. It was my first time doing this race, and it's part of a series I signed up for. The King Crab Challenge races comprise the Frederick Half in May, the Baltimore 10 Miler in June and either the Baltimore Marathon or Half in October. These races are close enough to home that I don't need to spend money on hotels or flights, and the drive to each is only about an hour. Finisher's medal and carnation from Frederick Half I arranged to pick up my Frederick packet the morning of the race, so I got up early and hit the road by 4:30 AM. Parking was easy in a grass lot across the street from the fairgrounds where the pre- and post-race events were held. I found Sid at the packet pic-up and got a quick pic. After getting my bib I had some time to relax in the car before heading to the start area. I looked for friends who were supposed to be running this race, but found no one. It was quite crowded ...

A week ago I ran the Capital City Half Marathon in Columbus OH for the first time. I've run several other races in and around Columbus, but this one was new to me. I picked a good year to run it, as this edition was also the host to the USA Track & Field (USATF) Half Marathon Championships , and several elite runners took part. Desi Linden took 2nd place for the women; she'll also be on the team representing the US in the Olympic Marathon in Rio this year. It was pretty cool to say I shared the same course with the elites, even if they finished way ahead of me. My weekend started Thursday night when I few into Columbus late and stayed with my mom. On Friday she went with me to the race expo. There were a number of vendors, but nothing that either of us wanted or needed to buy. We didn't get to see any of the elite athletes while we were there. Later, I had a quiet happy hour with my stepmom Kim and then dinner with friends Shelly and Nikki at my favorite Mexican rest...

I have to do it this time. I need to train. I can "wing it" at a half marathon without much training, and I can finish a full marathon with a generous time limit without putting in a lot of effort. But this is no longer good enough for me. It never was, but I've been dealing with some personal things that have made it difficult mentally and sometimes physically to be consistent with my training. I'm working on those things. And I need to also work on my overall fitness and my pace. I can do endurance, but at a slow pace. I want to get back to a moderately faster pace. And I have a marathon coming up that will make this necessary. Mexico City, situated 7,200 ft above sea level (credit: lonelyplanet.com) Scot and I will be crossing the border for the Maratón Ciudad de México at the end of August. This will be my 9th marathon country. Many people do not know that Mexico City sits 7,200 feet above sea level (that's 2,200 meters for you metric folks). That...