Christmastown Dash 8K at Busch Gardens

Miles: 5
Total Time: 55 mins
11:04 pace

This was a recovery run, following the Surfin' Santa the day before. I took my time, even stopping to take photos and use the in-park restroom (potty lines at the start were pretty bad). It was very cold (34 degrees) and windy (29 mph) and snow kicked up a bit to add an extra chill to you, but it was a really pretty course. My favorite part was a bridge with Marines in their dress blues on either side, cheering everyone on. I high-fived every one of them like a champ and told them that they rocked--I know they were freezing!
Tonight the knees are toast, but I'm very proud of my 15 miles this weekend.

VB Surfin' Santa 10-miler (PR)

Miles: 10
Total Time: 1:46
10:34 pace
This was a wonderful run for me- killed my previous PR by about 15 minutes, and didn't stop running the entire 10 miles (a first for me as well). Throughout the run I just felt really good. Afterward, my heel and knee pain increased, but while I actually ran, I felt nothing but joy.

Blue Moon Wicked 10K in VB

Miles: 6.2
Total Time: 71 mins
11:27 pace

This was definitely not a race for PR for me, haha. Running in a loofah costume was a blast- not too heavy, but wind was a bit of a challenge. Felt great; ran with my girlfriend for her very first 10K so I stuck by her side to help motivate her. The after-party was amazing, and I did yell to a girl with the DMer sign (if this was one of you, I was the purple loofah crossing the finish line). Loved everything about this run, and will definitely do Wicked again next year!!

VB Run Like a Girl 10K

Miles: 6.2

Total Time: 74 mins

11:54 pace

There are a few things you don't want to do on a trail run- get a 'present' from mother nature, and take a nasty fall. I managed to do both. Welcome back to running, Stace.

I signed up for the Run Like a Girl, which raises money toward Ovarian Cancer research and a cure. This seemed fitting for me, since I just had ovarian surgery to remove cysts (I should get my results on Nov 15th). I'm only 2 1/2 weeks post-surgery, but I was really ambitious and signed up for the 10k vs. the 5k for my first run. Probably not the best decision, but hey- I'm me. :)
Weather was perfect; race time probably ran about 58-60 degrees and sunny. The first mile flew by, and since I was on flat concrete, I barely felt it. Then we turned onto the trail, which was hilly and included a lot of sand and tree roots. I took it slow, since I swore I wouldn't push too hard my first day back, but on one of the turns, I found myself face-down on the trail. WTH? I had caught a well-hidden tree root and fell hard. Embarassed, I jumped up, convinced no one saw me, and treked on. I ended up feeling it in the same knee I hurt during RnR in September, but I alternated running and walking until I hit the finishline at a personal worst 1:13:30. So that's what that feels like, heh.
I grabbed some water and reached for a banana, when two women came up behind me and asked if I was okay. Apparently they saw my fall ("You fell hard!") and worried about my knee. I convinced them I was okay, and the one lady hugged me and told me how inspirational she found it that I just got up and kept going, which really made me feel better about the whole thing. It wasn't until I got home that I found a large gash on my leg, but I know that I'm just fine. Only one way to go from here...

VB Rock 'n Roll Marathon 2010

So this wasn't the PR I hoped to set- but it definitejavascript:void(0)ly gives me a 'Time to Beat'! I slipped around the 5K water stop on all the cups on the ground and tweaked my knee just enough to be a hinderance. I sucked it up and kept on, and my running partner Wayne S. and I hit the 10K mark at about 64:50.

Around mile 7 though, the knee wasn't really supporting my body weight well. I was really struggling with running at all, let alone keeping my pace. I told Wayne to carry on and kick some butt, and I finished by alternating run/walk intervals to the finish.

My knee is definitely swollen and sore tonight, and I had muscles cramp out there that I didn't even know existed, but I wouldn't change the experience for anything. Nine months to a Half-marathon? You bet your ass I did. ;)

My Garmin died around the 9th mile, but the info online is as follows- 5K(31:34), 10K(1:04:43); 10 mi (1:58:25), 11.4 mi (2:17:56), 12.3 mi (2:30:54) Final (02:41:14).

I'm with Steve on this one- I LOVED seeing the Daily Mile runners show out today. Seeing the Daily Mile sign at the start was a huge highlight for me!!! Love ya'll!!

Yorktown Independence Day 8K

Miles: 5.04
Total Time: 00:52
10:16 pace

Woohoo! Happy with my time on this 4th of July 5-miler...especially loved this run because the weather was perfect, the trails are shady, there's varied terrain, and it's hilly, so it's always a challenge. My splits were good: 9:38; 10:33; 10:10; 10:42; 10:27 ...such a great way to go into my 1/2 marathon training!

Wounded Warrior Project 10K at Fort Monroe

Miles: 6.21
Total Time: 01:03
10:12 pace

This went so much better than I thought it would. Weather was cold with drizzle, but outside of tackling a major toe blister, my run felt amazing. Jeremy came in just 3 minutes behind me, I had to go back and get him though. First words from my unprepared husband? "Running is stupid!" But now that he has cooled down, his next goal is to beat me! HA. Like I'd let that happen.