Friday, November 25, 2011

Rainbows and Unicorns!!

I just had an absolutely fabulous, beautiful 6 mile run, so this post will be written with rose colored glasses. I'm sure my normal cynicism will return soon.

So far, this Thanksgiving could not have gone better. After rushing out of work to the grocery store on Wednesday, I snagged the last cauliflower they had, the employees were extremely  helpful, and I was barely in line for a minute before I was on my merry way. Wednesday afternoon the day before Thankgiving? Not the experience I was expecting to have.

Thanksgiving morning, Eric and I were on the road by 5am. In an odd role reversal, I felt great driving, and Eric could hardly keep his eyes open. Even after a Starbucks stop, he took over so I could eat breakfast, but I'd barely taken my last bite before he asked if he could pull over and switch back. I was listening to the Hunger Games on audiobook. It was a little hard to drive while crying, but other than that, it was a smooth trip.

We made it to my in laws well before expected, a little after 1pm, and were able to help out with making dinner. I don't have any pics from the night, but picture your family sitting around a table eating turkey, and now replace all your family members with me, Eric, and my in laws, and you've got the idea. 

Everyone was totally impressed with my 55 mile run, and I got to feel like a rock star. Until Eric's uncle asked where I placed in the 300 - some people who ran the race and I had to admit...uhhh....10th from last. Then I had to go directly to bed while all the grown ups (and children) were still hanging out because that 3am wakeup call/7 hrs driving caught up with me. 

Jessica just ran the JFK 50 with Kara, so we've been blog friends, comparing experiences. She tweeted me yesterday asking where in Ohio I was staying. It turns out that she was staying with her parents just a few towns over from my in laws! We agreed to meet for a run in the morning.

I'm really glad I took a full five days off after the Stone Mill 50 Miler to recover, but by the 3rd or 4th day, I couldn't wait to go for a run. Last night I went to bed SO excited to get up and run in the morning. I headed over to Jessica's parent's house and she took me on a gorgeous run in the bluffs along Lake Erie. So much more scenic than the cornfields I was planning on viewing. Jessica is a speed demon who will be training for Boston this spring, but she took it easy on me today, and we ran 6 miles at a 9:45 pace. I had no idea Ohio had any hills, but we ran up some pretty good ones, and it was pretty windy too. I felt a bit more winded than I think I normally would on a run, and I had some side stitches (probably as a result of Thanksgiving dinner) but everything else felt perfect. I felt like "myself" on the way home, to be super cheesy.



Now I can't wait to start training for the Myrtle Beach marathon! Oh, right, I'm supposed to be taking a month off from training.....

14 comments:

  1. That does look like a beautiful place to run! I'm super jealous :)

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  2. i love when the first run post-race is wonderful! i can't wait to start training again too. time off is not what it's cracked up to be ;)

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  3. Glad your first run back was enjoyable! Hope you had a wonderful Turkey day!
    :)

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  4. Meeting up with blogging friends is the best! Sounds like a really lovely run :)

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  5. I met up with some running friends this morning for a lovely 9.5 mile run on a trail I had been wanting to check out for awhile but didn't want to check out alone for the first time. Anyway, some of them I had never met, one I had only met online, and the only two I had met in person before today, I first met online. It's so fun!

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  6. Yay for a great run and glad to read you had a great Thanksgiving. and who wouldn't be impressed by a 55 mile run, you are a rock star!

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  7. It was so much fun! Thanks for driving over. We ran my favorite route! Safe travels home.

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  8. I love how hard core you are :P lol and I love the sun and heat and running in both those conditions lol

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  9. Fifty five MILES?!? That is so cool! Who cares if you placed tenth from last? You ran 52 miles more than I probably cound've run. You rock! ;)

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  10. Gorgeous place to work out - awesome. Hope you had a GREAT Thanksgiving!!

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  11. Who cares when you finished the 55 mile run (as Kelly above said). That is amazing and fits into a golden 1% of the population who will actually accomplish such a goal. ;)

    Awesome. One day, I hope to get up to where you are. One day...

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  12. I'm pretty sure the only hills are in Northern OH, cause there sure aren't any here. My parents live in Western PA and I always feel vaguely like I'm going to die if I try to run there since it's all hills. Have a good trip home!

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  13. so does this mean you'll race with me on Saturday???

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  14. What a beautiful view! Glad you guys had a great Thanksgiving!

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Thanks for commenting! Comments make me probably more happy than they should.