Sandy Runs

I set some ambitious goals for myself at the beginning of 2016. I was not 100% successful at meeting those goals. One of the reasons was that I had some challenging obstacles to deal with in my personal life. Stress causes some people to run more. It causes me to withdraw. I did have some success. I've listed each of my 2016 goals below along with the outcomes. One success: finishing the 2016 Ottawa Marathon on a hot, steamy day 2016 Goal: I will earn a new marathon PR. It will probably be in the fall, and I still need to pick my goal race and train for it. Outcome: This did not happen. Though my training went well in the spring and into the beginning of the summer, I slacked off after that.  2016 Goal: I will run in at least 3 new countries, achieving full membership status in the Marathon Globetrotters . I'm currently at 7 countries, which gives me provisional (non-voting) membership. I need to get to 10. I will earn Japan in February and Canada in May. I need...

I'm over a month late posting this race report. I've had a lot on my mind lately. This wasn't supposed to be my last race of the year, but it turned out the way. Unless I register for a New Year's Eve four miler, which I don't expect to do, my 2016 race season is over. With my medal after the race This year was my second for running the Hot Chocolate 15K Columbus . Here's last year's race report. This year I chose to do it again because it was a nice race and I could stay with my mom. Unlike last year, it was FREEZING cold this year. My mom decided not to come out and spectate, and she slept in instead. I would have done the same if I were her. The expo was at the Columbus Convention Center again. Also in residence at the convention center was some kind of ballroom dance contest or exhibition. There were people walking around in overly made-up hair and makeup, and tacky ballroom dance costumes. And there were dress and shoe vendors in the hallways....

I ran a half marathon on a weekday, five days after the NYC Marathon . I didn't even have my sights on this local race, but Jody mentioned it and it didn't take much nudging for me to jump on board. Then I found out that Andrea "Rhode Hazard" was going to run too, and offered her a place to crash the night before the race. The Cross Country Trail Marathon and Half Marathon are part of Altis Endurance Sports , a series of races that mostly take place on non-technical trails. This one was in Springfield VA in Lake Accotink Park. It was close to home and there were several people I knew running that day. Altis races are no-frills. There is a cotton shirt and a simple but nice medal. There are well-stocked aid stations that include candy, cookies and other treats to provide carbs and sugar to the runners. Timing is by "gun", not chip, and the courses are typically multi-loop. With Jody and Andrea before the race For Cross Country Trail (named for the...