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Carmel Marathon (PW and a Two Year Comeback in the Making)

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This last Saturday, I ran the Carmel Marathon. It was a PW or close to that, but it also marked my return to marathons a my comeback after a rough year and a half. The Two Year Saga Carmel was the race I was training for in 2019-2020 and my first canceled race due to Covid. The race was nice enough to defer the runners to its 2021 race. However, after I hurt my knee (not running related) and my dad got severely ill, I decided to defer the 2021 race to this year. As fate would have it, my dad passed away during the race and I am glad I wasn't out there running when I got the news. The rest of 2021 did not get any better. In July, I had an almost-fall on my bike and hurt my glute/SI joint. I had months of PT and massage therapy, and the pain went away for the most part but it wrecked my marathon training for both Chicago and Monumental in October and November, respectively. I deferred Chicago and continued training for Monumental, but the long runs were sporadic as I was still dealin
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Winter Trail Frosty (WTF) Quarter Marathon RR

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It's been a while since I've added a race report to my blog. That's mostly because I haven't done many races since the ones I ran in May/June. 2021 was a bad year for me, dealing with three non-running related injuries, the death of one of my cats and to boot, the death of my dad. After training for two marathons in the Fall, I chose one due to it having better weather (Indy Monumental) and ended up having a calf tear at Mile 5 of the race and a DNF at mile 9. Fortunately, after the race, I took time off to move us into our new home (nearby but still stressful) so by the time I was ready to start training for my next marathon (Carmel in April, which I am still debating whether to run or not), my calf was completely healed. Knock on fucking wood. I was hoping 2022 would get better but the first thing I did was fell during my first run in our new house but fortunately, apart from a bruised shoulder, nothing major hurt. My miles until February were dismal and I feel like I
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Chase the Checkers, Kiss the Bricks Half Marathon RR

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On Saturday, May 8, 2021, I ran the Chase the Checkers, Kiss the Bricks Half Marathon in Indianapolis, IN. The race was a one and only race created by one of our local race director companies, Racemaker Productions. It was created solely to substitute the Indy Mini which was postponed once again due to Covid. After my dad's sudden illness and death from Hodgkin's, I was glad I had deferred the Carmel Marathon and that the Indy Mini was not happening this year. I had barely run since February and my knee had been injured after jumping on a step during a Tabata workout. I started PT in late April to work on the scar tissue and other issues with the knee and the knee had improved substantially. After noticing that race day for this half marathon was going to be gorgeous and after running two 8 milers as long runs, the crazy Docket Rocket returned and thought a half marathon wouldn't be too crazy, so I signed up for the race last minute. Coach and I arranged the week a bit to m
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Choose to Move 5K (Old People's PR) RR

On Saturday, I ran the Choose to Move 5K, a race benefitting the Indiana Parkinson Foundation. Although the race has been around for 4-5 years (except for 2020 which was virtual), I had not heard of the race until a week before the race. Ironically, the race course is part of my daily running routes and the same course as the Gobbler's Jog 5K I ran in 2019. The race was very well organized, with packet pickup the morning of the race only, and with Covid-19 requirements, like masks when no social distance is possible, as well as all outdoor events, packet pickup, etc. The race was chip timed. My PR for the 5K is 24:02 but those times, I feel, are sadly gone. Between my asthma, my medication-related weight gain, and age, my 5K times have been dismal in the last decade and they have only gotten slower as I do more marathon training. However, since arriving in Indiana, I have been doing more shorter races (first because the weather here is not the surface of the sun and second because
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Brew Haha 5K

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On October 31, 2020, I ran the Halloween Brew Haha 5K, another live race! It was a gorgeous day for a run, and more so for a race. It was also nice to be running a live race after being cooped up and working from home for months. I've been very careful selecting smaller races with minimum travel (local races specifically) that follow the state requirements and guidelines during Covid. This one was a good one to choose from. Since I was never able to wear full costumes in the Miami Halloween races due to Halloween being hot and humid, I wanted to wear something I couldn't wear in Miami. The weather cooperated, bring low 30s, and feels like high 20s on that day. Slightly windy and sunny; perfect running weather. As I struggled with my allergy shots and asthma through October, and being mentally and physically drained, my running suffered. I switched from running to run/walking to help me breathe through the worse of the asthma/allergies. I switched from allergy shots twice a week
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Mission 22: Run for Hope 5K

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On October 11, 2020, I ran a live race! It's been quite a while since I've run one and although I went to the Indy Women's Half Marathon live race, I ended up DNFing the race as I wasn't feeling well with my allergies and after six miles I was literally done with the race, lol. It also felt weird being around the thousands of runners there so I think that might have played a bit with my mind as I never felt comfortable in that race at all. But the Mission 22: Run for Hope was substantially smaller race than the Indy Women's Half and was also for a great cause. Mission 22 supports veterans by providing veteran treatment programs, memorials, and community social impact, especially to those veterans that have suffered from traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries. It was a 5K, a distance you know I hate, ha, but being of a great cause and held at the Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park, which means the course was hilly and gorgeous in the Fall, it was a chance for m
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My Covid Era Running Challenge

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  It has been a while since I've posted anything here. Ever since my last race, we have been part of a weird and scary year, and although we are almost at the end of the year, nothing much has changed since. I have been working from home since March 12, and although I have been able to go to the office one day or two for specific purposes, the federal government does not expect us back for at least six more months if we are lucky. It's has been quite a year! With the pandemic, many races have been canceled, including all marathons I was training and planning for. Indiana fared relatively well during the worse months of the pandemic and we were able to reopen in stages (this is no longer the case). With that, races started happening, smaller ones at first, then somewhat larger ones. The first ones occurred during the Summer, when it was hot and my lungs had no intention of running outside at all. But that does not mean there were no challenges to attempt. 100 Mile Week Challenge
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