Race 28 of 40 - The Crim

The Crim 10 Miler - August 24

Great course - very fun - definitely one I don't want to miss in the future! 

Races 26 & 27 Warrior Dash / Gladiator Run

I waited until I finished BOTH races 26 & 27 to update my blog because, let's be honest, they were the same darn race - 5k obstacle courses

Warrior Dash - July 28 - Mt Morris, MI

This was my second time running the Warrior Dash. It's a lot of fun! Rope walls, climbing over tires, swimming through mud pits, crawling under barbed wire, etc. No really, it's fun! I ran this with my cousin Melissa and her brother-in-law Ian. This was the second time Melissa and I have run this, first time for Ian. This is advertised as an intense event, and yes, there is some danger involved. But we completed the obstacles without problems...almost. On the second obstacle, a pretty simple over/under (get yourself over a 4-foot wall, duck under barbed wire, repeat) I landed a little "off" and twisted my knee a little. And this has only just recently started feeling better. So, while the Dash is fun, I've been feeling a little bitter about it because I hurt myself a little. So I was bummed about that.  And that injury made mean really not want to do...

Gladiator Rock & Run - August 17 - Stoney Creek Metro Park

So my fear of further injury made me pretty reluctant to run this one. But... I had committed to run this with friends and I didn't want to back out. That and, to be honest, this was the most expensive race I had paid for this year and I wasn't going to waste that money!  So I went with the plan to take it easy and have fun and just finish. I ran this with Becky and two guys from SEMR, Jeff and Mike. We jogged for the first part, but mostly wound up walking it. I skipped a few of the obstacles - hate to sound like a wimp, but I just can't climb a rope or complete a set of monkey bars. Maybe some upper body training would be a good thing for me to add? ;)  This one did have a few different obstacles from the Warrior Dash, but it was the same idea. The best part of this one is that it was at a beach, so we could just hop into the lake to clean up once we were done. 

So...I now have done Warrior Dash twice and the Gladiator Run. They ARE fun, but I think I'm done with the obstacle course races. I'm tired of getting mud EVERYWHERE.  I'll find some new challenges for 2014.

Now - I am SUPER excited/terrified for the next nine weeks. Next weekend is The Crim, a 10-mile race in Flint, which is supposedly a blast. I'm really looking forward to that. After The Crim, I have a 10k, then the half marathon for Run Woodstock. Run Woodstock will be my first trail half since Back to the Beach in 2012. Then I'll have the Brooksie Half and the Heroes on Hines half in back to back weekends. And THEN the Free Press half at the end of October.  So that's a 10-miler and four half marathons in an eight week period. (There's a 5k and a 10k in there as well). So the next nine weeks will be pretty intense. But I'm ready!! I think...

Races 24 & 25

Ok, I know, I know! I've fallen WAY behind on my blogging!  I'm going to write just one post for races 24 and 25 because...well, let's be honest...I'm feeling lazy and I need to catch up quickly.

Race 24 - Run Drugs out of Town - Fraser, MI 10K

This was  fun, local 10K, for a good cause. This was put on by an organization called Families Against Narcotics - www.familiesagainstnarcotics.org.  Their mission is "to raise awareness of the prescription opiate drug abuse epidemic, to reduce the stigma and change the face of addiction, to educate about the dangers of prescription drug abuse and its potential to lead some to illegal narcotic use and to support those affected by drug abuse or addiction."  

So going in, I knew it was for a great cause.  And there were a TON of us from SEMR running this one as well.  Overall, it was indeed a nice little race.  However, it was a little frustrating.  It consists of a 3-mile loop, so 5K people completed the loop once, 10K people completed it twice.  This was also a charity walk, so for my second loop of the 10K, I was constantly dodging the people who were walking the 5K.  This was a great event, for a great cause.  But I think it would be better if they were to just make it a charity walk, rather than trying to include a 10K.  Although, even though I was dodging the 5K people, I still managed to finish in my usual 1:06. :-)


Race 25 - Escape to Belle Isle - 10K

Another Belle Isle 10K! Again, nice little race.  And more SEMR people running. This one was pretty simple, pretty much run a lap around Belle Isle.  It was fun!  Although, this one also had it's shortcomings.  As we were finishing the loop, we ran past the bridge onto the island - and there was no one directing traffic.  We had to cross the road - dodging cars - with no one there to direct.  That's not simply annoying, that's dangerous.  But still, it was nice little run, complete with a finisher's medal.  Y'all should know by now how much I like the bling. ;)

So there it is - 25 in the books.  15 left to go.  Of those 15, there are 2 obstacle course races, 4 half marathons, 1 10-miler, 1 15K, 4 10Ks, and 3 5Ks.  Yikes!!