2015 = Great Year!

2015 was such a great year for me. 

Although, I didn't run a lot of races, I still had a great year running. I can't wait to see what 2016 has in store for me. :)

Total miles for the year (as of right now unless I run tomorrow the 31st): 509 miles


Did you have a great year running? What are your goals for next year?

I passed!

After a crazy few months, I finally completed my personal training course. I am happy to announce I passed the final with a 91%. I am excited to start my new career in 2016. :)

2015 Fast Pace 5K Recap

As of lately, I am not a big fan of 5K races. I feel like by the time I get going the race is over, but since I have been working a lot on my speed, I decided to give this 5K a go.

This particular race is to help raise awareness for Prostate Cancer. Since this hits close to home, I was excited to run it. They even had a screening there for the guys.

The race started right on time. We had a nice down hill start. I knew from other friends who have ran this race before to not take over too fast. I held back even though I wanted to fly. I am glad I did.

A few people said they didn't like the course and found it was harder than last years. Since this was my first time running this particular race, I had nothing to compare it to. I felt the course was great. Loved the rolling hills in the middle and the slight downhill finish at the Cumming Fairgrounds.

Even though I wasn't able to PR, I did come close. I'm finally seeing the speed I had two years ago. I guess all the stuff I have been doing is finally paying off, right? :) I did, however, place 3rd in my age group. A first for the new age group.

My official time was 24:08.

It was great to have so many people I know from the Suwanee Big Peach run group out there running it.

2015 Michelob 13.1 Atlanta Recap

In July at the Peachtree Road Race Expo, I decided I was going to run the Michelob 13.1 on Oct 4th. I did the Publix Half in March, so I would be getting the Atl Challenge medal as well as the half medal.

A few days leading up to the race, we had some crazy rain that caused them to change the race course. Since I had never actually ran in that area, I  didn't know what to expect even with the last minute changes. I just knew it would be hilly.

Race start promptly at 7 AM. We had a threat of rain, but luckily, it only sprinkled on us, which was refreshing.

The first few miles weren't too bad. We had a few rolling hills. But, those didn't last long. It seemed like the hills were getting longer each time we had a new one to go up. Or maybe it was just how I felt. Either way, I was about ready to be done around mile 8. Because of the course change, we had to loop back to parts of the course that we ran in the first half of the race. That was okay, and all, but the hill around mile 11 took all I had left.

I was trying to stay ahead of the 2:10 pacer, but as soon as she passed me, I knew I wasn't even going to try to catch up.

We had a little uphill finish. I will admit, I walked some of it. Once I could see the finish line, I started running. By the look on my face in my finisher photo, I was glad to be done.

I have said I won't be running this race again next year. I see no point. I hated that course with a passion. I may consider volunteering for it, but I won't be running it.

One of my main complaints was the lack of water. I later found out because of the rain that was being brought in from the hurricane a lot of stuff wasn't able to get here in time. I normally run with a water bottle but decided not to this race. Next time I ever have any doubt, I will just bring it.

INKnBURN Ambassador

I meant to post this last week but got busy with work.

Back in July, I applied to be an ambassador for INKnBURN. Well, after about a month, I finally got an email telling me I had been selected. I am excited about this opportunity.

If you are friends with me on Facebook or Instagram, you know I run/work out in their clothing. Some of my friends think I am crazy, and others have jumped on board. I am glad I have found a clothing company that I love. If you have never heard of them, go check them out here. You won't be disappointed in their clothes. I promise! :)

Vacation

Sorry for the hiatus, AGAIN. I went out of town a few weeks ago to see my best friend up in upstate New York. We had a great time. Got to visit Niagara Falls. I have to say it was a blast. It's a must see. We did the Cave of the Winds and Maid of the Mist. Two must do attractions. Next time I hope to go over on the Canadian side to see the falls from their point of view.

Also, while I was visiting her, we went up to Boldt Castle, which located on an island that is one of the Thousand Islands on the St Lawrence River. Lovely castle with a sweet story behind it. Boldt bought Heart Island and decided to build a castle on it for his wife. Before he could finish the castle, his wife passed away in January 1904. He left the island and never returned to finish it. For 73 years, the castle was left unfinished. Weather and vandals started to ruin the castle until the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority acquired it in 1977. Several millions of dollars have gone into restoring the castle on Heart Island.

To read more about the story go here.

I loved New York. The weather was perfect. I hated having to come back home to Georgia. The humidity needs to go now.

Here are a few pictures from Niagara Falls:

Here are some photos of Boldt Castle:

Have you ever been to Niagara Falls? 

2015 AJC Peachtree Road Race Recap

It's hard to believe this race came and went. It was only a few months ago that I was registering for this race.

A few days leading up to the race they were predicting rain. Running in the rain isn't my favorite, but after doing a half marathon in the rain I knew that this wasn't going to be a problem.

Race morning arrives. I parked about a mile from the start. I used that little walk as a warm up. Last year I ran a slow mile but since the sidewalk was missing in some areas I didn't want to risk rolling my ankle before the race,

The rain was holding for the most part. It was sprinkling here and there but nothing too crazy. I was set to start at 7:41 AM.

We started right on time. Since the roads were very wet, I decided just to take it easy. I have PR'd before on this course but knew that this wasn't going to happen. I didn't want to risk getting hurt.

Mile 1-3 had gone by quickly and before I knew it was climbing the crazy hill by Shepherd's Center. Even with the rain the patients were still out there cheering us on.

Around mile 4 is when I saw a streak of lightning in front of me followed by some thunder. Not what I wanted.

After that, the flags went from yellow to red.

Sometime after the first streak is when I saw lightning again. I am pretty sure this is the one that probably delayed the start of the waves behind me. I knew I was almost finished and that Mother Nature wasn't going to stop me from finishing.

I decided to speed up. Mile 5 came and went, and now I was turning on to 10th street. Past the marathon foto guys at the fake finish line.

Just a bit more to go.

And finished. Peachtree Road Race #11 in the books.

I grabbed my water and shirt. Got a cold rag and a dry one (to dry off my hands so I could use my phone). I had a few friends from the Suwanee Big Peach Running group running, so I went over to the meeting place to see them.

Some of the Suwanee BP Runners

My weekend running family.

Paula and I showing off our INKnBURN

Kimmie, myself, Paula, and Michael

After getting photos, we decided to head over to the ATC tent at Park Tavern to see what was going on. Ended up with some awesome coffee mugs.

As much as I wanted to hang out and see my Mom finish her 10th Peachtree, I couldn't. I was cold. I had no dry clothes with me. I sent her a text telling her to head to Marta and that I would pick her up at the station.

Paula, Kimmie, and Michael all went back to their hotel to freshen up before heading to lunch at Uncle Julio's for some much-needed food.

This  Peachtree was a fun one. One I won't forget. I will be back next year to run my 12th. I am determined to make it to 20 without missing a year.

2015 GA Publix Half Recap

Second half marathon of 2015. I've been excited about this since registration in 2014.

Flat Ramona ready for the Publix Half.

They started predicting rain a few days before the race. I was hoping it wouldn't do anything until after, but, unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans.

I got to the race 45 minutes before the start. Spent that time getting my headphones, phone, and gels ready to put in my FlipBelt.

A friend found me about 15 minutes before the started and handed me a trash bag to use while waiting in my corral. Thank goodness for that. Kept me dry until it was time to start.

Even though I am not a fan of running in the rain, it felt fantastic out there. The first half of the race went by pretty quick. It wasn't  raining so that helped. I did have to keep my eye on the puddles in Atlanta since I didn't want to get my feet drenched before I was even half-way through.

The crowd support was incredible despite the weather. So thankful for that.

Before I knew it, I was more than half way. The rain started to pick up a little bit around Piedmont Park but wasn't enough to slow me down. I kept gone going.

Between GT and Centennial Park, I was getting tired. I knew I wasn't going to PR. So I told my myself to push for a course PR. I did just that. I finished with a time of 2:05. Course PR. Last year's time was 2:09.

Spartan Race Entry Winner

Thanks to everyone who entered my giveaway over the weekend. The winner has been selected.

Congratulations, Liz Lew, you are the winner of my giveaway. I will be emailing you shortly.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Spartan Race Special Discount + Giveaway (OVER)

Have you always wanted to participate in one of Spartan Race events? Now is your chance. From now until May 27th you can save up to $40 off the race entry. Enter code: MEMORIAL when registering.

And if that wasn't cool enough, the lovely people from the Spartan Race are allowing me to giveaway one entry into any open heat (non-confirmed start time) in the US.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway information and disclaimer:  The giveaway starts at 12:00 am EST on Friday, May 22th and ends at 12:00 am EST on Wednesday, May 27th.  Open to US residents.  Winner will be picked at random by Rafflecopter. I will contact the winner with their race entry code. I was not compensated for this giveaway.  All opinions are my own.

2015 Peach Jam Half Recap

I am starting to wonder if I should stop running half marathons in April because it always seems to rain the days leading up to it. Like last year, we had to worry about rain the day of the race. Luckily, the rain stopped the night before.

The race took place on the Big Creek Greenway out in Cumming, GA. It started and finished at Fowler Park.

The race started at 7:30 sharp. We took off from the parking lot making our way down to the greenway.

It was bit congested until about mile one then it started to thin out.

We had a few puddles and one big one that I remember from last year. I decided I  didn't want to run through it quite yet, so I decided to slow down and tip toe quickly through the mud.

With this race, you don't have that crowd support so it's  a mental game out there. Once we were coming up on the turnaround, I saw a friend from the local running group. She took my picture and cheered me on.

Three miles down. I was thinking to myself, "Why am I doing this again??". I kept pushing through.

Another than the mental game, I was feeling pretty good with the run. I was keeping my pace constant.

Around mile 8, I started chatting with another runner who was running her first half.

We ended up staying together for the rest of the race. She thanked me for pacing her and keeping her motivated to keep going. It was nice to have someone to talk to.

I didn't PR this time around, but it's okay. I got to help pace someone cross the finish line of their first half.

Oh and the most important thing of all and why I ended up signing up for this race......

2015 Disney's Enchanted 10K Recap

Since I was doing the Glass Slipper Challenge, I knew I was going to run a much slower 10K so that I could save my legs for the half the next day.

Flat Ramona ready for the Enchanted 10K

Race morning started off early. I set my alarm for 2:20. I surprisingly jumped right up and got ready. I was out the door 10 minutes before 3. Plenty of time and luckily it wasn't too far of a walk to the buses either.

For some reason, I got on the second bus instead of the first one, which is fine cause I really wasn't in that big of a hurry to get there. It was chilly that morning but nothing like the Frozen 5K the day before.

Arrived at Epcot in plenty of time. Seeing how this was my first runDisney event I was able to walk around for a bit before heading over to my corral.

Brandi and her parents showed up. We talked for a bit. Before I knew, it was time to head over to the corrals.

Since I was in corral A, it was really cool walking past the other corrals with them cheering us on. Makes you feel like you are some elite runner. Ha Ha.

At 5 AM, we were off!!

I had to tell myself once I crossed the start to keep it slow. I have a tendency to just want to take off. Races do that to me. I had to tell myself that I have 13.1 miles to run the next day.

Mile 1 came before I knew it. :(

We turned on to a "hill". I say "hill" because it's nothing like the hills here in Atlanta.

At this point, I was feeling great. Legs were not tired from walking around the parks the day before, so that was a plus.

Mile 2 came up.

Mile. 3. Half way done. Still maintaining a good pace. Not too fast which is what I wanted.

Mile 4. Entering Epcot. So excited to run in the park when it was closed. So pretty.

Mile 5. Am I really almost done? LOL

Mile 6. Man this race went by fast. Only .2 to go.

And done!

I finished with a time of 1:07.

Behind

I've been so busy that I am behind on recaps. Finally published last year's Peachtree Road Race recap. Up next will be the Enchanted 10K, Princess Half, and then the GA Publix Half.

I am hoping that this week will slow down some that I can work on each of those recaps. Stay tuned because I am sure the Disney recaps will be picture overload. :)

Hope everyone had a great Easter.

2015 GA Peach Jam Half

So a couple of weeks ago, I may or not have signed up for my 8th half marathon. This will be my third half marathon in three months which will qualify me for half fanatics. I never cared to be in it, but now that I am so close to it...why not?

The Peach Jam takes place on the Big Creek Greenway in Cumming, GA. I ran it last year and even with the crappy weather I still managed to PR. I am hoping that I can beat that time and also possibly sub-2 on that course this year. Fingers crossed for excellent weather and speedy legs/feet. I am going to need it for this flat half. :)

2015 AJC Peachtree Road Race Lottery Open

The AJC Peachtree Road Race lottery is officially open. If you are interested in running in the largest 10K in the world (yes I said that right) then go here.

Now that registration is officially underway they revealed the five t-shirts that we get to vote on. Here they are:

Thanks, AJC Peachtree Road Race facebook page for the picture.

I am not a fan of two of them (the Seal and Diagonal Lines). The more I keep looking at the designs, the more I like Americana and Freedom Runner. Vintage is fine too just not one of my favorites. Which one or ones do you like?

To go and vote click here. 

I can't wait until July 4th to see which one is chosen! 

2015 Peachtree Road Race Registration

The 2015 Peachtree Road Race registration starts this weekend for the ATC members. Hard to believe it's already time to do that. I will be running my 11th straight race. I thought about not running it, but I want to be there to see my Mom finish her 10th. And to think I was the one who got her to do this race each year and she has stuck with it. :)


If you aren't a member of the ATC and want to run the race on July 4th, the lottery will open March 15th and close March 22nd at 11:59 PM.

Vacations Go By So Quickly

My Disney weekend came and went. I am already counting down the days until my next one. Sadly, it won't be until next year sometime. :(

As much as I would love to blog about my first runDisney experience right now, I really want to break it up into two or three parts. You'll have to bare with me. I am going to try and blog about it all, or at least from what I can remember. What I can not remember, well, that's what the pictures are for right? 

So be on the lookout for the recaps within the next week.

Almost go time!

In exactly one week, I will be on my way to Disney. It's hard to believe it is almost here. :-D I have already pulled one of the suitcases out. Yes, I will be taking two with me. I don't want to have to worry about shoving everything in one. Makes sense, right?

The packing has slowly started. Right now, I am just getting the stuff lined up that I will not be using anytime soon but will need at Disney (bodyglide, kt-tape, etc). The main stuff will be put in the suitcase over the weekend or on Monday (at the latest).

I am going to try updating this blog as it gets closer to Disney time! :) And, of course, when I get back I will have an update with plenty of photos I am sure.

I did it!

Last week I was suppose to run my last long run before going to Disney, but my body had other plans. The week before M was sick so I guess he passed the head cold to me. Not what I needed. It's weird. Normally when either of us is sick, the other one doesn't get it. The one time I do not have time to get sick, I get it. What the heck is up with that? Luckily, I kicked it within a week even though I felt like I was dying (no, not literally) during the week.

On Sunday, I decided to take it easy and go for a short 2 mile run. The run was okay. Most of my friends would have said I was running fast, but I didn't feel like I was. I felt so drained. But I knew that was probably going to be the case. I am just glad I decided only to run 2 miles.

Tuesday, I decided I would give 5 miles a go. Same thing happened, I felt sluggish and still drained of energy. I was starting to think I wasn't going to be able to run 10 miles. A few friends reassured me that I would be able to run the 10K and Princess with no problems seeing how I had already run 9 miles a few weeks back.

Today rolls around and I decided I was going to give the 10 miles a try. First 4 miles wasn't bad. I didn't feel tired, but the last 6 was a fight. I got to 8 and decided I could get 2 more miles. I did it! I feel better now knowing I hit my 10 miles (I usually try and do that for each half I train for). Now it's taper time! :)

2015 Spartan Race Winner

Thanks to everyone that entered! If you are still interested in registering for one of the Spartan Race events -- use the code SPARTANBLOGGER to receive 10% off.

And the winner of the giveaway is.....


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Larissa, I will be emailing you shortly. Thanks again everyone!