Month: October 2012

Renee

To race or not to race

I am supposed to run the Tyranena Half Barrel this weekend. I love this race. It’s a great end of the season race. I had planned on just having fun running with Sara. It was supposed to be perfect weather like last year. I was supposed to be well trained.

Instead I have an injured hamstring that HATES hills and it’s supposed to be gross and rainy. Regardless of the weather forecast I have no business running 13.1 miles, but I want to do it. I already know I would have to walk the hills. And there are some quite large hills on this course. Normally I would suck it up and run through the shitty weather, but I have been questioning my running of the race all week.

I don’t know what to do. I don’t know when I will decide. The race doesn’t start until 11:30 so it will most likely be a race day decision. I will still go. I will still drink beer. I will hang out with the wonderful Angie. I know I will still have fun.

Mo and Kelsey are coming into Milwaukee to play and to run. I’m pretty sure half the Milwaukee and Madison runners I know will be there. I want to see everyone. I want to have fun at the Tyranena Brewery, but most of all I want to be able to run 13.1 miles again.

So friends, see you Saturday. I may or may not be in running gear.

Aside Renee

Lakefront Marathon: Spectator edition

I wish I wanted to run. I wish I wasn’t injured. I wish I hadn’t gotten sick right before the Madison Mini. I wish I knew how to get back on track.

I won’t go on and on for several paragraphs whining and bitching because even I don’t want to read that crap. Instead I will talk about last Sunday, the Lakefront Marathon.

This past weekend I cheered for friends running the Lakefront Marathon. I forgot how much fun it is to spectate at a marathon. I forgot how much fun it is to support your friends. I haven’t spectated a marathon since Marine Corps in 2010 where I spent all day out cheering for and celebrating with friends.

This was a race I was supposed to run. I was supposed to attack 26.2 again. Several weeks ago I decided not to run it. I was going to run it with my totally amazing friend Sara. When I decided not to run it I promised her I would be out there to support her. It was such a fun day to be out cheering and supporting. Sara shaved 20 minutes of her time and broke 4 hours. When I received the email with her finish time I almost cried. In fact, I teared up and couldn’t wait to give her a giant hug.

In addition to Sara having a good day, so did a whole bunch of other friends. It was a cold day to spectate, but I wouldn’t trade anything for being out there cheering.

I just wish it had inspired me to get my ass off the couch. I guess it kind of did. I’m just so damn annoyed with my hamstring that I don’t want to run 2 miles. I want to run 12. That is until I start running. Then I don’t want to be anywhere but my couch.

Renee

Happy Birthday Marie!

Happy Birthday to one of my best friends in the whole world. To the friend who is basically a sister to me. A friend I cannot imagine my life without. Thank you UW Housing for assigning us as random roommates all those years ago. Happy birthday to the friend who lives 2000 miles away, but I can call any time of day or night.

Renee

TP’s Adventures in Wisconsin: Beer and Running

Thai Phi has visited me three times since I moved home. She has been to Wisconsin three times in her life. What a great friend. And then on this trip she told me Wisconsin was one of her happy places. I’m still shocked I didn’t cry when she said that.

We had a great weekend of sitting on my porch drinking beer, running at Lapham Peak State Park, visiting the Wisconsin Cheese Mart and drinking more beer. It was a fantastic weekend and I will someday figure out a portal between Milwaukee and DC. Someday.

Select photos  from out adventures. Also, I need to run the trails more.

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This was a great distraction from the fact that I have’t run more than three miles at a time in over two weeks.