February Wrap Up

Ok I know February is a couple days short of a normal month but seriously I feel like I blinked and it was over!
Here are a few highlights.

Surf City
I already blogged about the race but I can't have a February wrap up without mentioning it. It was such a wonderful trip and I can't wait to go back next year!!

Recovery
I took a full week off after Surf City, it was the first time I have taken such a long rest without being injured. I really think it was the best thing I could have done for myself. After Memphis I felt so broken and I had no real down time and my last few weeks of training for Surf City really suffered.

Runners High
Arland and I started running together at lunch a couple of days a week. It has really been great! We have had some really great runs. We only have time for 3 miles so we have made these runs our speed work and we have been running Lactate Threshold pace during almost every run. Some of the runs have been pretty tough but I feel SO GOOD and the runners high helps make the rest of the day so much better. Work has been really stressful and I swear the lunch running has really helped me deal with it.

Running With My Girls
We are still running together and I have had some great runs! Jane has come to my house a few times and we have been running a variation of the route Arland and I run at lunch. A couple of these runs have been perfection! One night as I was saying good bye to Jane after she had come inside to stretch and chat for a few minutes I realized I felt so good I didnt' even feel like I had run. I had the runners high but no fatigue or aches or pains... like I said perfection.
I have also had some good runs with Michele, Karen and Brenda. It has been a little while since we have all been able to run together and I have to admit I miss those runs!!!

Kylie/Kid's Running Club
We are nearing the end of the kid's running club, the Little Rocker's race is in two weeks and after than only a couple more weeks until the end.
Kylie has been struggling a bit with the running. I have been having to use a lot of persuasion to keep her going. Last week she told me she wanted to quit... I told her she really didn't but she was quite emphatic that yes she wanted to "be a quitter".
Week before last we did a "timed mile" for the kids. One of the mom's had made cute foam medals for the kids and their finishing times were recorded on the backside. It was a chilly rainy day but I was really proud of the kids they did a bit of complaining but no more than some adults I know!! LOL It was a struggle to keep Kylie going but she persevered and finished her mile in 15:36. I am really going to miss these kids!!!

River Trail 15K
The first year we did this race in 2007 we had to battle extreme cold and 40 mph winds. This year we just had to deal with rain and lot's of it. It was around 44 degrees and rain the whole time. I didn't really have any great expectations for this race, it was going to be the longest I had run since the Marathon and I still considered myself in recovery so I wasn't pushing it. I had my ipod and I started off at an easy pace and pretty much maintaned that the whole race. I started in the back of the pack so I ended up passing a lot of people, it's kind of nice to be the one passing instead of being passed. One person I never passed was Arland, he had a really good race!
Michele wasn't feeling great and I did eventually catch up with her and we ran together the last few miles.
When Michele and I finished our race we went back out on the course to find some friends. Karen was the first one we saw and we ran in with her. I just about froze to death after we stopped running but it was worth it to see Karen, Judi, and Susan C. finish their races.

Women Run Arkansas/Women Can Run.
This year Michele and I are Leaders in the Beginning Runners group. We have 100 women in the beginners group alone and that doens't include the intermediate/advanced and Walker groups.
I am very excited about the next 10 weeks. I really hope that I can help at least one person discover the love of running! Tonight was our 3rd meeting. The first night was pretty just an introduction and we didn't run/walk. Jane and Vicki are the Co-directors of the Cabot WCR clinic and they asked me to speak the first night. I was very honored but also very nervous!! There were at least 150 women all gathered in a big circle and I stood in the middle and gave my little speech. I looked down at one point and i could see my pant legs moving I was shaking so hard!! LOL
Tonight was our second workout and it was a little tough. It was very cold and windy which made the walk/run program we do very challenging. I really just wanted to run the whole time to stay warm!!
Michele and I ran back to her house after the clinic. It was a great run we ran a comfortable pace and I felt comfortable the whole run. On the way home it my car the chill caught up with me and by the time I got home I was frozen!! Luckily Arland had run on the treadmill here at home so I was able to cuddle up with him to warm up.

Brett
I have received one letter from Brett, it was a great letter and it sounds like Basic Training is making quite the impact on him. He graduates from Basic on April 3rd and Arland and I will be travelling to Columbia South Carolina to celebrate with him. I am very proud of him!!

Farewell to February, it was a good month but I'm looking forward to March and Springtime!