Big whoops...

Don't I look cute?

I mean, this doesn't look like the face of a woman who went and picked up her race packet and then got lost on her way to her very first race of her 2010 running challenge does it?

This doesn't look like the woman who ran outside in the cold, icy weather dressed like a dork (see previous post) in order to run last Saturday at the Frosty 5k does it?

Well, sorry to say that's exactly what happened. I whiffed my first race. I cannot tell you how angry I was at myself. My sister was in the car with me ready to take photos of my first race of the year, and she can tell you the colorful language I used. Please don't ask her though. It's embarassing enough to have your friends call you and ask what your time was and not be able to tell them. There may or may not have been some tears involved.

Thanks to my handy-dandy iPod + Nike, I still ran a 5k that day and my sister did take my picture. I love that kid! I will not post my time because it was unofficial, but let's just say it was right where I guessed it would be.

I'll just have to sqeeze another race in later this year. Thanks to Facebook friends, I've got lots of suggested races for later this year. We'll call whatever race that is the "January Make Up". Stay tuned...

Run #1 in the Cold and Dark

Also known as, "What the spoot was I thinking?"

OK, so if there is anything I'm known for, there are probably two things that stand out: one, researching my goofy ideas, and two, trying to do too many things at once. Let's look at these independently, shall we?

First, we'll examine researching ridiculous and/or far fetched ideas. Running, sports gear (like the sweet Road ID at right), playing bag pipes, buying a new car, buying a house, and I'm sure there's more. However, looking at this list, I guess researching things is a good thing. So it wasn't so dumb in the first place. I researched running at night and running in the cold independently. Things I learned were to wear reflective clothes, dress in layers, watch out for ice, and if you're listening to music with headphones, you should leave one ear open to listen for cars or other vehicles among other things.

This leads to the second point of trying to do too many things at once. Usually this means juggling work, sports, clubs and hanging out with all my friends. Or, if you are familiar at all with my post-it filled day planner that I finally had to replace with an electronic version, you'll have a good idea of what I mean. In this case, I decided to run outside last night because my first 5K of this challenge (which I need a good name for - suggestions?) is coming up this weekend. The only time I had yesterday (because I slept too long in the morning before work) was to run after work.

While this wasn't a terrible idea, it wasn't my most brilliant moment either.

So, I'm wearing lots of layers, have my reflective vest on and a blinking red light on my back. I can't stand it when there are runners out at night, and they are wearing all black or other dark colors. I don't know why they don't wear something that makes them more visible because accidents happen! Enough of my ranting...

So off I went with my iPod Touch + Nike going, blinking light, keys and cell phone. I was ready! Or so I thought... First, I noticed that the iPod sensor wasn't picking up my run and I was over a half mile away from home. Drat. Second, ice is really hard to see in the dark despite my nicely lit neighborhood. Third, my neighbors are nice, concientous people who are runner friendly and appreciated my reflective gear.

Once I got the hang of dodging the icy patches and reset my iPod sensor, it was actually very nice. My layers kept me warm, the air wasn't too cold to make breathing difficult, and I might have looked like a shiny, blinking figure in the dark, but I was safe. It all worked out.

Doesn't mean I'm going to do that again, though. If you see me running in outside in winter yet this season, you'll see me bright and early in the morning.

Safe running folks!

Found two new races!

Hello all!
I was reminded today at my Alumni Committee Meeting that Gary's Gallop Run/Walk is coming up in April. I love this race because a) it's for my alma mater Wisconsin Lutheran College, b) I think the race director does an awesome job, c) I get another WLC t-shirt, and d) the last 100 yards are a dash across the football field at the Krauss-Miller-Lutz Outdoor Athletic Complex!

There is a 5K run (first mile is down hill!), a 2-mile walk, and a kids' dash after the 5K. They are so cute! You can check out photos of last year's race here. The race attracts about 300 runners and walkers, families, Warriors (that's us WLC folk) and friends! All proceeds go toward WLC's athletic booster organization, the Warrior Club. So far, GG is the only race that I have planned that I've done before. Hopefully, this won't make me to sure of myself and that I can keep a good pace.

I knew I wanted to do Gary's Gallop, but I honestly couldn't remember whether it was in April or March, but now that I know, I was stumped about which race to run in March. Thanks to this handy-dandy site called Running in the USA, I found The Blarney Run.

The Blarney Run is held every spring in Wauwatosa on the weekend nearest to St. Patrick's Day. This 5K has a course for runners and a shorter course for those who want to walk. Like Gary's Gallop and the Steve Cullen Healthy Heart Club Run, parts of this race will be run on the Wil-O-Way Underwood Parkway. I think my favorite part of this race is that the kids' race is called the Twinkle Trot! All proceeds from this race go to helping the Wauwatosa Historical Society.

Anyone want to join me for the races? The more the merrier!

M-I-C... K-E-Y... I-N-S-P-I-R... A-T-I-O-N!

I'm 26 (and 3 days) old now and loving it so far! Because my friends are awesome (those that went along and those that stayed), we spent this past weekend celebrating in Disney World!

Out of the 9 people that went, 3 of us had the same birthday, one was the next day and one is in a week. Another friend, who did not travel with us, came to Disney to run the 1/2 and the full marathon (not on the same day. Overall, we had a lot to celebrate!

First, we celebrated the fact that we all made it there on the same day. We had lots of weather issues this weekend starting with our flight! We ended up making a lovely side trip to Pittsburg! It was fun though because our group is full of easy-going people. We event got some of the people on our plane to participate in "The Wave". Awesome!

Disney World was filled with princesses, fun rides and more importantly princes - ha ha! No, seriously, Prince Charming = hot! But I digress... After braving a day of cold and rain and one more ride on Space Mountain, we headed to Hemmingway's for our surprise birthday dinner. I'm pretty sure that was one of the tastiest meals of my life! I'm tempted to try and recreate the crab cakes that I ate.

Epcot followed and friend Julie ran the 1/2 marathon with a good time despite the rain and freezing temperatures. I thought it was really funny when one of the "cast members" (all people who work for Disney are considered Cast Members) said, "I bet you're from up north, aren't you?" "How could you tell?" I asked. "You're all dressed appropriately for the weather!" So true... We hit all the rides and went to every country. Holly and I took a picture in front of all the signs. Holly had never been there before and was probably the most excited of everyone! Besides getting our photos taken with signs we also got EVERY classic Disney character. I promise the photos are a hoot (I also promise that I found my camera cord despite the lack of photos).

The next day we slept in and relaxed while Julie ran the full marathon. Yup, she ran both. When you do that, it's called the "Goofy Challenge". Aptly named, huh? Anywho, Julie did awesome and Holly, Annie and I were so inspired, we decided that we're going to run the Marathon in 2012. This way, I can run my 5ks and we'll have LOTS of time to train. Just watching the people run both days was so inspiring. I think it's awesome when people just reach for their dreams and get them! If anyone wants to join us, we'd love to have you!

As we were waiting in a LONG, LONG line to get through security, I noticed how many people were still wearing their finisher medals and marathon shirts. If I finished, I would TOTALLY wear the shirt for a week, and the medal for a month. They were all talking about how much fun they had and how they were so glad to have done it. I'm so there people!

Pictures and fun anecdotes later - this traveling birthday girl needs to hit the hay!

I heart technology!

My whole family has embraced my working out, and I got some really sweet workout gear (and other goodies!).

First off, you have to understand that I really (REALLY!) love my birthday. My birthday is exactly two weeks after Christmas so I have to wait all year for presents and jam pack them all into a short period of time. I know that Christmas isn't about presents, but I still have enough of a child in me that I like the surprise of finding out what's in the box!

I digress...

Anyway thanks to the awesome new iPod Touch that I got (thanks mom and dad!) and the iPod+Nike sensor (thanks Lisa!), I am even more inspired to run because I have fun technology to track it! Tonight I hit the YMCA, turned on the new gadget and watched the Biggest Loser Season 9 as I ran. The iPod+Nike worked it's magic and recorded it all! For instance, my handy-dandy iPod can now tell me that I ran 3.28 miles in 45:18 with a pace time of 13:46 and burned approximately 461 calories.

Now, all I need is to find the cord for my camera and I can add pictures to this blog and show off my new clothes and whatnot! (edited on 1-19-10, you can see I found my camera cord)

OK, all that post-workout bliss has now crashed into "Oh, look there's my comfy bed...Zzzzzz"

Race sign ups!

Hi all!

Sorry for the delay in this entry, but I had a lot of celebrating to do! Christmas was filled with family, food and a lot of Beatles Rock Band. Then gallivanting around town with the girls (Erie came home for a visit!) and more food and fun. We rang in the New Year with a Pajama Jam and some awesome, retro, side ponytails. Capping the Holiday Week was an early birthday dinner with the fam. Thanks to them, I've got some spiffy new workout gear including winter running pants, indoor wear-ables and one of those iPod+Nike running sensors. I can't wait to try them all out!

I know that I said I'd run the Samson Stomp a month ago or so, but I may have to change my January Run to the Frosty 5K in Waukesha. Since I get to go on a birthday trip to Florida (where I'll be cheering Julie on at the Disney Marathon and having lots o'fun), I'll be missing teaching Sunday School this week. The Samson Stomp is the very next Sunday, and I don't think my co-teacher, Mary, would like me too much if I made her take that Sunday alone also. One big bonus to this, besides an extra week to train, is that the Frosty 5K is in the afternoon so it will be warmer. How much warmer? No idea. I'm sure I'll be bundled up like crazy anyway.

The Frosty 5K is part of the Waukesha JanBoree, an event that has been highlighting all the fun that Winter has in store in Wisconsin with a special focus on Waukesha for the past 25 years! There are events for kids, teens and adults. They've got everything from skiing to ice fishing to Freezin' for Hunger to Geocaching to a Saturday night pub crawl!

In February, I'm going aim for my first 8K with the Steve Cullen Health Heart Club Run/Walk in Wauwatosa. Here's what the Medical College of Wisconsin says about the race:

The Medical College of Wisconsin Cardiovascular Center is affiliated with the Steve Cullen Healthy Heart Club Run/Walk, which annually supports research to benefit heart diseases.

The Cullen Run/Walk began 14 years ago in memory of former Milwaukee Alderman, Steve Cullen who died of a sudden heart attack at the age of 40. His father, at age 41, and two brothers, ages 53 and 51, also died of heart disease.

The Cullen Run/Walk has grown over 40% in participation over the years, successfully raising awareness of the importance of heart healthy lifestyles for our participants, their families and friends and contributing over $100,000 to cardiovascular research.

The Steve Cullen Healthy Heart Club Run/Walk includes an 8K run or 2-mile family-fun run/walk following a scenic path along Underwood Parkway in Wauwatosa, beginning at the Wil-O-Way Underwood Recreation Center, 10602 Underwood Parkway. Easily accessible from I-94, Highway 45 and Highway 100, the course passes a golf course, crosses a river and goes through one of Milwaukee County's prettiest parks. Sponsored by the Cullen family and the Badgerland Striders, the event includes famous Cullen Family & Friends Chili, refreshments, food and live music for the entire family.

All proceeds go to heart research at the internationally recognized Cardiovascular Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin.