A Runner's Glance Back at 2009

Running!  Who knew I liked it so much?!  O.K.  I guess that's not really a genuine statement, since I've had a spotty, if not fond history with running most of my life.  On a few occasions, I've stepped out the front door and ran a few miles, keeping up the routine for a week or three.  Some reason or excuse would surface that allowed me to drop out of the race, figuratively.  Why I never stuck with it seemed a mystery to me, until this year.  I needed to remove the "figurative race" and replace it with a real one, a bunch of them.

As a result, I've accomplished quite a bit in this last year.  I raced in not one but two 13.1+ mile courses, the Minneapolis Half-Marathon and Ragnar Relay Great River Race, as well as three 5k's and an 8k.  I really committed myself to success!  I missed the last half-marathon I had signed up for, Monster Dash, on account of hip bursitis, most likely caused by over-training.

This next year looks promising!  My hip is back to almost-normal, and I've been running during lunches on Tuesdays and Thursdays with friends in the Saint Paul downtown area.  I hope to run at least one 5k or 10k each month starting with the Polar Dash 5k on Jan 1.  There's a 15k in the last week of February in Florida that a friend of mine suggested.  With my wife's gallivanting about the country this last year, I feel that some travel is due to come my direction sooner or later.

My focus run this year is Grandma's Marathon.  It's something I've wanted to do for quite some time now.  If you live in Minnesota and are a long distance runner, it has crossed your mind no less than a few dozen times.  I'm no exception, obviously.  Registration begins in mid January, and although they didn't fill registration last year, the same may not be true for this year.  I'm anxiously awaiting the 14th!

I might consider running the Minneapolis Half Marthon again in May as a training race.  The Minneapolis Duathlon is in August, and it sounds like a fun change of pace from just running.  I ride my bike to and from work in the nicer months of the year.  Finally the Monster Dash Half Marathon is in late October, the race I missed this year.  Four of these races fall under Team Ortho's Marathon Marathon Series, which if I sign up for by tonight, I'll get some fancy Merch.  Woohoo...


Rather than focusing on Merch, I want to make sure I'll be healthy to race, and perhaps mix it up a bit with different races. There are so many events across the country that it seems a shame not to try them.  Ever hear of the 50/50?  50 marathons in 50 states?  I also think it would be awesome to run as a pacer for my ultra-marathon friend, Adam!  His run is in August, I believe.  If I'm in shape for it, and if he would have me, I'd love to do it. (Hint, hint.)

Am I crazy?  Probably, but there are worse things to be crazy about.

Keep Moving Forward!

Chad