My dear, dear friends (from left): Kara, Kerry, Rhonda, Julie
“…I wanna sing with all my heart a lifelong song
Even if some notes come out right and some out wrong
Cause I can’t take none of that through the door
Yeah, I’m living for more than just a funeral
I wanna burn brighter than the dawn
Life is short; I wanna live it well
One life, one story to tell…”
I heard those lyrics {compliments of the band “Switchfoot”} as I drove home from Richmond this past weekend. I was still beaming from ear-to-ear, after the day that I had experienced; & that song in particular really spoke volumes to me. I want to live my life to the fullest—both personally & in running—and as cliché as it is, have zero regrets. Many people will never understand why we run, & that’s totally okay. But fellow runners can truly appreciate the pure joy & sincerest excitement that comes with not only having a good race yourself, but also seeing dear friends have fabulous races too!
On Friday, I spent the first few hours of the day with my twins, but by 10am I was heading out to start the 90ish minute trek to Richmond. After a Starbucks stop {naturally!}, I picked up the BRF, Julie, who I’d get to spend the day with. Chatting the entire way, the drive time flew by. After picking up our race packets {quick, easily, & painlessly—thanks Richmond!}, we headed to a trendy lunch spot in Carytown, called The Daily {very tasty food & awesome open-space ambiance!}. My gracious host for the night, my dear friend Christian, is to thank for that lunch recommendation! After dropping Julie off at her hotel for her to enjoy some much needed R&R, I headed to Short Pump for some therapy of my own… shopping! The night ended with a home-cooked spaghetti meal by my host & his +1; followed by a hilarious comedy movie on the couch. Quite the perfect day!
Race morning started at 6am—and since Christian’s apartment is literally at the start of the marathon, I would only need to walk a block or so to my 8K starting line. I quickly ate a Luna bar & chugged 2 cups of water; & then headed out for a quick warm-up. I had no idea how my body would race, since just weeks earlier it had “failed me” at the Wicked 10K. I had tried a few times to write a recap of that race, but I just couldn’t. I was overly defeated & felt like a plateau was approaching. Richmond, as well as recent easy runs, have removed that negative energy from my mind & have replaced it with positive & hopeful thoughts for future running.
The forecast for the day, especially the early morning hours was cold {low/mid-30s}. I had a sweatshirt to toss at the start, but otherwise was wearing my race gear {tank, shorts, calf sleeves, gloves}. Since I’ve been in RVA for the past 2 years on this particular weekend, I knew the sun would be a factor—so my shades were tucked away in my sweatshirt pocket. At 7am sharp, the race begun with a simple—“GO!”. Off we ran & to the barricade went my donated garment of clothing… sunglasses & all {I would not frantically realize this until 2+ miles into the race}.
I won’t bore with all of the details of my race—since this weekend was about so much more than my measly ‘ole 5-mile run—but here is the quick{ish} synopsis. Spoiler Alert: I PR’d by 32 seconds, finishing in 37:16 (7:29/mile); good enough for an 8th in age group placing!
Mile 1: Went off without a hitch, except a 15-20 second stop {shoe came un-tied}. Time—7:36.
Mile 2: Wind became a factor; looked forward to the upcoming turnaround. Weirdo man kept yo-yo-ing with me… there was NO way he was letting me more than 3 feet in front of him—he must have surged 8 times to stay just ahead of me. Bulk of uphills in this mile. Time—7:37.
Mile 3: I realized I had left my sunglasses {Ray-Ban’s, so not cheap… & didn’t I already mention my retail therapy excursion from the night before?!………. ooops.} Spent some time trying to figure out how I could get my phone out of my SPIbelt, call someone at the start…all while not dropping pace. Decided to just run faster & get back to the start myself to retrieve said item. Time—7:43.
Mile 4: Encountered streets with stone-like pavement, which definitely altered cadence; but thanks to subtle downhills, it proved to be just fine. Time—7:20.
Mile 5: God bless that amazing Richmond finish line! In one mile, you lose more than 110 feet of elevation & are rewarded with a fantastic finishing time. Time—6:58.
The shades, fully recovered from the tossed sweatshirt.
As I said before, the focus of this weekend wasn’t my 8K—that was just an added bonus! Instead, I was in Richmond to watch 2 of my dear friends run the marathon. They both set out with different race goals & differing levels of experience. Julie hadn’t run a marathon in nearly a decade; whereas this was Kara’s first time tackling the 26.2 mile distance. Richmond is just so very special to so many of us; so it was very nostalgic to see Julie take to the streets were she ran her first marathon, as well as Kara run her first marathon there just like I did 2 years prior. The course isn’t flat or necessarily ideal, no, there are rolling hills & a very windy long bridge; but there is something magical about Virginia’s capital & its marathon weekend!
Similar to last year, I brought my bike so that I could travel the streets quickly. All in an attempt to reach different points along the course, all before the runners I was spectating would reach those points… this worked out well…. most of the time. Although, I did ponder once, “If I had slower friends, this biking adventure would be slightly easier!” HA! I had my “hosts” to bike with for the beginning part of the marathon, but then was solo once the cold & being sick got the best of my biking companions.
In the end, I caught up with Julie & Kara at 3-4 spots along the course, including the finish line. As their coach & friend, I am BEYOND proud of the races they ran!! On a windy & cold day, they showed amazing determination & pure grit. Both ran well below 4 hours {for their privacy’s sake, I will defer posting their exact times & such}. Julie even achieved her primary goal of qualifying for Boston—we will see next September if the “cushion” will be enough to get her to Bolyston Street. Kara didn’t quite achieve the BQ goal, BUT, this was her very first marathon & I know one day she will definitely check off that box on her running bucket list!
A race recap would be incomplete without mentioning my running buddy Kerry—she even said so herself, ha! Kerry rounded out the race distances we covered by completing the half marathon. Most of her race was run intentionally conservative, per her PT; but she’ll definitely start ramping up the training after the New Year when she begins training for her 2nd Boston Marathon!
All in all, it was a fantastic weekend, full of smiles, PRs, hugs, & friendly conversation. Definitely one that I will cherish for years to come.
Up Next For The Running Blonde: Norfolk Harbor Half Marathon (previously called Harbor Lights), in just a few days on the 20th! This is my goal fall race, so I will definitely take all of the good vibes anyone wishes to offer!!
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