KC Half

Thanks for all the comments last week!

Today was the Kansas City Marathon! I ran the half marathon. When we woke up around 5:30 AM, it was 43 and raining. :( Lukily by the time the race started it had warmed up to a balmy 45 degrees and stopped raining just in time. My goal time was 2 hours 5 minutes, but I thought with the hilly course I might end up more like 2:10. Well, the run went great and I finished with a time of 2:01:49! I was very happy with my time and appreciated all of my supporters along the way.

My friend Lauren also had a fabulous run and finished around 1:50. Congrats to her! We both are going to be running the Pilgrim Pacer half on November 14th and I am hoping for 2 hours or just under! I never thought I would have done so great and know I can do it again! Congratulations also to Staci and Jill who both finished the half as well!

After the race, Lauren and I cheered on some marathoners and then got breakfast with Travis at the City Diner. Overall, it was a fabulous race and a great weekend!

And so it begins...

I have been accepted as a charity runner for the 2010 Boston Marathon! I will be raising money for my former workplace, Boston Partners in Education. BPE enhances the academic achievement and nurtures the personal growth of Boston's public school students by providing them with focused, individualized, in-school volunteer support. Check them out at http://www.bostonpartners.org/!

Important details about this race:

1. This will be my first marathon, running 26.2 miles.
2. Running as a charity runner is the only way I'll ever be able to do Boston, as I would never be fast enough to run a qualifying time.
3. The Boston Marathon is one of the biggest, most highly respected marathons and I am really excited to be going back to Boston for this event, and support my former work organization!
4. I will be running with my sister-in-law, Jessica, who took over my job at BPE when I left, and will also be running for BPE this year! You can read her fabulous blog at http://www.jessinboston.blogspot.com/.
5. I have committed to raising $3,250 for BPE. This means if I don't raise it, it's coming out of my own pocket. My goal is to raise $4,000 to help public school students in Boston.
6. I will be using this blog to keep you all updated on my training, fundraising, and other entertaining stories from my life. Please feel free to leave encouraging comments. If I have no comments, I will think no one reads this. :(

Well, on to talk about current running/training.... Last weekend I managed my first ever running injury. While out for a run with Travis (riding his bike) I tripped on a cracked sidewalk and went down pretty hard. Travis immediately ran across the street to Starbuck's to get some napkins for the blood running down my knees and hands. After cleaning the mess, I decided I should run the five miles home. It didnt' really hurt until I stopped running... then it hurt. I sustained superficial injury to both knees and my right hand - I am right handed. This has made for a difficult week typing, writing, and generally trying to get by. But I'm healing and will be back in no time.

This weekend I ran in the Jared Coones 5K Pumpkin Run with my school running club! This was our culminating event of our inagural first year. We had 25 great students participating and had been training for our 3.1 mile run for 5 weeks. The weather was chilly, but all of our students finished and I was very proud!

I am really beyond excited about this opportunity and can't wait for the Boston Marathon!
Don't forget to comment! :)