Now That THAT's Done...

So after running the MonsterDash Half-Marathon, I was all gung-ho to run every Team Ortho race in 2012 – think of all the cool medallions! I already have a Get Lucky and Monster Dash.

Well, maybe not the Duathlon, because my knees are too precious to my running self to risk them on a bicycle race (hopefully I will get over that phony theory some day).

Then I realized the Polar Dash 10K is on January 1, and we have a family get-together that day (not to mention that last year it was -15 degree wind chill!) and I’m not going to put a crimp in family plans. So, I plan to start my “2012 Running Season” on March 17, with the Get Lucky 7K race (the same one I did in 2011 that started all this running madness for me). That’s a good start to get me ready for my April challenge…

THE APRIL CHALLENGE

April 14, 2012 is my 50^th (gulp) birthday and to commemorate the fact that not only am I still alive, I am actually LIVING, I have decided to run 50K in April! There is a 50K UltraMarathon that day on the paved and unpaved trails that run up and down the hills of Hyland Park…

But I am a reasonable man, especially after running 13 miles last month, so I know that 31 miles is more than just a convenient writer’s palindrome. So the plan is to spread the 50K out over the 7 days leading up to and including my birthday. Here’s the plan:

April 7 (Saturday) – St. Paul Running Opener 10K around Lake Phalen
April 9-13 (Mon- Fri) – local 7K route run each day (total of 35K)
April 14 (Saturday) – easy 5K run ending at our home for a birthday bash!
Total April distance = 50K!

MAY - NOVEMBER

In May, Minda and I will run the Apple Blossom 10K in Hastings which is a beautiful race with about half the course running on trails through the woods.

June will be my last run before the summer heat sets in, with the Minneapolis Half-Marathon (Team Ortho!) on June 3. After that 13.1 miles, I will be taking it easy and indoors on the treadmill (probably) until…

October when the 2012 Monster Dash Half-Marathon (Team Ortho!) returns. The goal for 2012 will be to sprint that last ¼ mile and beat this year’s time.

And of course the annual Turkey Trot 5K in Minneapolis has become a tradition for Minda and I and that will draw an end to the 2012 Racing Season for me with a projected total of 114K! Piece of cake!

What I would like to see is several of you WIIL-ers running these races with me, with encouragement, practice runs, and challenges to make it fun and rewarding. You only have bad health and excess weight to lose! Who’s with me?

I’m not looking for a commitment at this time, just a show of hands to start encouraging each other during the “indoor” season and remind each other about the registration deadlines. We can also plan on training runs as the race dates get close.

Thanks Minda!

Another goal checked off the list. And this was a BIG one. I mean, 11 months ago I sort of joked that I was going to run a 7K race. I meant to try to run it, but I didn't think I really would. And then I did. A month later it was a 10K and 2 weeks later, another 10K. All of the sudden, I realized I was serious about running.

So when Minda suggested I run the MonsterDash Half-Marathon, in lieu of the MonsterDash 5K I was planning on, I joked that maybe I might just think about considering that idea.

Just before the start -
13.1 miles ahead of me

And then I did it.

It was not a great finish for me, though I did in fact meet my goal of under 2.5 hours (officially it was 2:31:53, but I am "officially" deducting 5 minutes for a very long porta-potty line at mile 4).

I hit no mental walls along the way - once I started, I knew I was going to finish - and in fact, I felt great for the first seven or eight miles. By mile nine, I was tired but going strong. At mile ten or eleven (they kind of blurred together) I was greeted and cheered on by good friends Mark and Anna and their lovely daughters, Ellie, Tabby and Malia.

Here I go - 13.05 miles
ahead of me.

About a half-mile down the road, my lower left leg started squeaking...and then screaming! I started jump-drag-hobbling. And then my right leg started whining about the added work it was having to do. And then they both threatened to quit on me!

When Minda joined me -
about 1 mile to go.

And then I heard a familiar voice: Minda cheering from the sidewalk! She jumped off the curb and started running with me - in her suede boots and carrying my bag of "stuff". I told her what was happening and that I was angry at my legs - I wanted to finish STRONG!! I wanted to do that last 1/4-mile sprint at the end that I have fallen in love with: passing people left and right, shaving seconds off my time, sucking wind like it's IPA-flavored.

But for the first time, I started doubting I was going to even make it to the finish line. What if my leg really did collapse? Minda would hear none of it!

"Come on, just tell your leg it has everything it needs - blood, oxygen, nutrients - and keep going. You're going to finish - tell it that." And I did. And Minda ran that last mile with me.

Finished! And (technically) under my goal time!

Thanks Minda for encouraging me all summer to do this - and pushing through with me to the very end!