Ready for Spring!

I feel like I don't have much to report, but since I've not updated for a while I'll give it a try. My running is erratic: 8 miles one week, then 22 a couple of weeks later. Motivation is lacking right now, but I'm not sure why. Even today's spring-ish 55 degrees feels chilly to me. I'm so very ready for spring and some warm, sunshiny days. The cold, gray weather just sucks the life out of me. Remind me again why I live in the Midwest? This Florida-born gal thinks that 80 degree temps are ideal running weather! By the way, the picture above was taken at the BARA Photo Scavenger Hunt a couple of weeks ago. We had a list of items/places/people that we needed to photograph and this was the one that went with the caption "I can't believe that we all fit in here!"

I've added a few more races to my spring plans, so you'd think that would add a little boost to my motivation. In just over a week is the Mag7k, should be fun but it's more an opportunity to have fun with the local runners, get a little pizza, and find out what fabulous participation prize I'll be taking home! In April I've got the IU Mini (4/2) and the Indianapolis Komen Race for the Cure 5k (4/16) on the schedule. Both of these are sentimental races for me. The IU Mini 2007 was my first half marathon and I've not been able to run it since. I'm excited to finally revisit this race even if it's a different course and got to preview the course last weekend. It'll be a tough one for me, time to run some hills! The Race for the Cure was my very first 5k and the reason that I started running in 2007 in the first place. I know that I never expected to continue running once it was over, but so glad that it gave me the boost that got this habit started. I ran my 5k PR of 27:27 in 2009, but I don't think I'll come close to that this year.

The last weekend of April/first of May will be a busy one for our family. We'll head to Cincinnati on Friday, April 29 to get ready for a fun weekend of Flying Pig events. The kids are training for the 5k which will be on Saturday, while Aaron and I will be running in the half on Sunday. This will be my third Pig HM and Aaron's first. I do plan to improve on my Pig PR, which if I get my act together shouldn't be out of reach. I think that running the IU Mini is a good route to get me ready, so I'm optimistic. Of course, my previous times weren't anything exciting. In 2009, I ran a 2:30:13 just 24 hours after running the Indy Mini and in 2010 I finished in 2:22:29. My HM PR is 2:11:27 but I think that's going to stand until at least this fall. We'll just see what happens.

Then the crazy stuff starts to happen. Somehow, I've allowed myself to be talked into running not one, but two relay races this summer. I missed out on running Red Eye last year with all my buds, so I have been planning on doing that one since last July. Then along comes another local relay in its inaugural year and we decide to do that one, too! June 3/4 is the Cork'n Run Relay. That one is a 200-mile, 12-person relay that starts in Starlight, IN at the Huber Winery (beautiful...went there for a wedding last summer) and then traverses southern Indiana as we visit wineries on our trek northward. We'll be running through Salem, French Lick, Bedford, Nashville, and then ending in Indianapolis at the Vintage Indiana Food and Wine Festival.

The second relay will be July 23/24 and is run here in Bloomington as 2 loops of a 50-mile course. Our teams are still being finalized, so I'm not sure who I'm running with but we'll be paired up with another team that has similar paces. That'll be helpful since that means we'll be running in pairs, reassuring especially once it gets dark!

There will definitely be some Mag7 races in the mix somewhere but until I know my work schedule, I'm going to hold off on registering. I'm trying not to even look at the schedule too much out of fear of getting my heart set on one and then being stuck at work instead! Fingers crossed that it all plays out well though. I had my best fall season after a summer of Mag7 races, it looks to be a good training strategy for me.

Tonight: Track workout with BARA!