Sandy Runs

Better late than never... Back in mid-May Scot and I ran the Marine Corps Historic Half in Fredericksburg VA. It was his first time running this race, as he doesn't often do half marathons. It was my second time; I ran it in 2012. We registered late after realizing that neither of us had anything planned this weekend, and it would be a good training run (hilly) for Scot's upcoming mountain marathons. He wore an elevation training mask for the entire 13.1 miles. The mask restricts air flow, thereby decreasing his intake of oxygen. He used the setting to mimic 6,000 ft altitude. A somewhat decent race pic of me after I conquered Hospital Hill We drove down to Fredericksburg on the Saturday before the race to pick up our packets. Scot also needed to have his elevation mask tagged to show that he had permission from the race director to wear it. Typically, masks are not allowed for security reasons, so Scot was lucky to be granted this privilege. At the expo we ran into Sid...

As of May, I have now finished marathons in 8 countries. It took me a while to run in our neighbor to the north, but Canada is now checked off the list! I had heard great things about the Ottawa Marathon , so when I found out running buddy Angela was going, it didn't take long for me to offer to share travel costs with her. Later, Scot chose to join us. He's a bit of a Canadaphile, so he couldn't stay away. It was his third marathon in Canada and second in the province of Ontario. With Angela before the marathon We all flew Canadian airline Porter , but Angela arrived a couple hours after Scot and me. Porter is interesting. Their hub is in Toronto, where they pretty much own the small Toronto City airport, right on the water on the edge of downtown. There is a nice lounge with free non-alcoholic drinks and basic snacks (the shortbread cookies were YUM). Porter also serves free snacks on its flights, as well as free alcohol, and serves all drinks in real glassware. Pr...

For the first time in a really long time, I have not only created a training plan for myself, but I've also been following it fairly well. I was feeling so out of shape, and registering for the uphill, at-altitude Mexico City Marathon was the kick in the butt that I needed to get to work. I've been running multiple times a week, even when I don't have a race scheduled. I've incorporated hill repeats and speed work into my routine. I'm actually making it to my weekly running club , getting in my Tuesday night 3 miler even when I arrive late. I'm going to the high school track with or without my running buddy Rebecca. And I'm making sure I make up a missed run within a day or two so that my plan stays relatively consistent. Beautiful view from the Four Mile Run Trail during my 5 miler Sunday evening; if you zoom into the center of the photo, you can see the full moon rising Strength training is another thing I've incorporated. I finally found som...

I've been feeling overwhelmed with getting my life organized, and some big decisions that need to be made. For these reasons I've gotten behind in posting my race reports. I'll start with the most recent race and then work back to catch up on the ones I've missed. Great swag! The first Saturday in June I ran the Baltimore 10 Miler for the first time. This race was the second out of three races in the King Crab Challenge series. The challenge includes the Frederick Half Marathon , which I ran in May, the Baltimore 10 Miler, and the Baltimore Half or Marathon in October. I was lured to this race by the awesome swag. They had a nice long-sleeved half-zip pullover (which it's too warm to wear now, but just wait until fall), and a penguin medal. Penguins in Baltimore, you ask? Why yes, in honor of the penguins at the Baltimore Zoo, the race staging area. Rachael and I drove up to Baltimore early race day, as we had arranged to pick up our packets that morning ...