Final Runfession and 2019 in Pictures

This year flew by! I still can’t believe we are only days away from a new year and decade. I’ve been blogging for just over 10 years and this year was nearly the end. I don’t know what 2020 will bring for blogging, but I’ll do my best to pop in when anything interesting comes up. So, here we go with one last Runfession with Marcia!

I runfess that instead of running my favorite half marathon this year, I decided to cheer. A lot of thought went into the decision, but what it really came down to was that my butt still hurt and I had zero interest in walking the last half. Instead, I dressed as a unicorn and cheered on the course. People loved giving me high fives at mile 1 and they were fans of my sign at mile 5! Even better, I got to see Beer Geek finish. I runfess that I have contemplated becoming a professional spectator instead of runner.

I must also runfess that my mileage has not been high since the MCM 50k. I’ve taken a lot of time off to let my hamstring/glutes heal, but really the thing that aggravates it most it sitting, so I should really just be running all the time. I have 7.9 miles left to go to reach 1000 miles for the year. I will get it, but it’s going to be painfully close. Note that I ran fewer than 100 miles in October and that included the Army 10 miler, Freedom’s Run Marathon, and the MCM 50K. And yesterday I ran my longest run since MCM – 4 miles. Oy. I miss my high mileage days.

I must also runfess that I intended to write this post last night, but my 18 year old asked me to work on a jigsaw puzzle with him. Time with my kids always comes first, especially since most of our conversations lately have revolved around the very stressful decision about where to go to college. But putting other things first has been kind of the theme of the blog this year, so might as well end the year the same way I started.

Finally, I must runfess that I had a really hard time pulling together my year in pictures. I really did not write much about life this year. My only regret about that is that in many ways this blog has been my journal and I miss being able to go back and look at my adventures. I’d like to say I’ll improve next year, but probably not. Thankfully Instagram came to the rescue and I was able to pull together a fun retrospective.

January

January started off the year with a bang! I was invited back to the Altra Red Team and as a Ragnar Warrior. I also became a nuun ambassador again after a few years off. But the best thing that happened was getting accepted into the Marine Corps Marathon Runners Club! This means I can register for MCM before the lottery every year. Not that I’ve used that perk yet…

February

And the reason I have not used that perk, is that in February I got into the MCM 50K. Yep, I signed up for my first ultra and the Marine Corps 50k. I was a little nervous about the inaugural race, but I couldn’t resist. I was also invited back as an ambassador for Skirt Sports, which is always a highlight of my year.

March

Things started picking up in March. I ran the Mike to Mike Half Marathon with a bunch of my fellow Skirt Sports Ambassadors. Much fun was had by all. I also traveled to Texas for my first ZOOMA race of 2019 and ran one of my favorite local races, the Four Courts Four Miler. It’s an awesome race. Well, except for the mile uphill (and I do mean UPHILL) at the end…

April

April brought Spring Break and a fun trip with Beer Geek to the Jersey Shore. We ran the Rutgers Half Marathon and then hit every brewpub and lighthouse we could find as we slowly traveled down the shore back to DC. I’m a huge fan of the beach off season, so it was an awesome trip.

May

May was a fun month that kicked off with running my 80th half marathon! The National Women’s Half Marathon included a really long rainy walk home, but as it turns out, it was really good preparation for the MCM 50K. Beer Geek and I also celebrated our anniversary by attending Savor again.  I have always enjoyed this beer event, so it was fun to dress up and see some old friends in the beer industry.

June

June pretty much focused on the Skirt Sports Ambassador retreat. It has always been one of my favorite activities and this year did not disappoint. Spending 3 days with a bunch of strong women always leaves me ready to tackle another year.

July

July was all about my older son. Our family visited Ithaca to check out Cornell University and then he and I went on road trip to visit some Ohio schools and University of Pittsburgh. Along the way, we managed to hit 2 zoos, an aquarium, and an aviary. Since I had to find something fun for me, I did manage to sneak in a half marathon in Ohio. Half Marathon #81 was the Little Miami Half Marathon. It was a nice small town race, but for some reason I never got around to blogging about it.

August

August focused on the midwest this year (ok, it kind of does that every year.) We all went home to visit my parents and of course, Beer Geek and I attended the Great Taste of the Midwest. It is a highlight of every single summer. We also took the opportunity to take Jones down to see University of Chicago and hit up the aquarium (I got my fill of animals and colleges this summer). After Beer Geek headed home, I jumped on a team for Ragnar Minnesota. Yep, I literally saw a post on Facebook and joined. And like every other Ragnar I’ve ever run, it was amazing! 

September

September was CRAZY! I was trying to train for the 50K, but my body and schedule were not cooperating. I did manage to get some fun relay races in – a beer relay and Ragnar Sunset. I also traveled to ZOOMA Great Lakes and ZOOMA Cape Cod, both of which were amazing. It always amazes me that I get paid for that much fun.

October

October continued its streak as my craziest month of the year. But this year we upped the ante – I was running an ultra and Jones was applying to colleges. For bonus fun, I was scrambling to be ready to produce my first race at ZOOMA Wine Country. I kicked off October with my 9th marathon at Freedom’s Run. OMG! It was the hilliest race I have ever run. It was killer, but it was a great training run. Next up was the Army 10 Miler. I decided to add some miles by running to and from the race. After getting lost walking out of the Pentagon parking lot, I opted to “dial a friend” and had Beer Geek pick me up. I decided 15 miles the weekend after a full marathon was enough of a training run. Then I popped off to ZOOMA Amelia Island, where the weather gods did their best to throw us under the bus, but somehow we pulled it all off! And then it was time for the big show, MCM 50K.  It was… I don’t even have words. Go read my recap – you’ll understand…

November

I pretty much did a “no run” November. My body just needed a break. In fact, I took two weeks off entirely from working out. But I did throw in a weekend at ZOOMA Wine Country. This was the first time a race was primarily my responsibility. It was one heck of a learning experience as well as a hell of a lot of fun. I will never look at races the same way again! For the most part, the rest of the month was a time to chill and start getting caught up on all the life things that fell by the wayside during the busy season. I managed to start running some again, but mostly focused on healing and strength training.

December

December has been a mostly local, travel free month. Our one out of town weekend was our trip to the Rehoboth Half Marathon. As I mentioned at the beginning, I decided not to run. Instead I aimed at being the awesomest spectator. To enhance the experience, I dressed as a unicorn. It truly was more fun than running. Because if you must be on the sidelines, always be a unicorn.

All in all, 2019 had more positives than negatives. I’d love to get back to running pain free, so that I can work on my speed, but for now I’m just happy to run. I managed 4 miles yesterday, so I’m SLOWLY increasing my distance again. I hope to run the half marathon at ZOOMA Bermuda, but I’m not going to push it to make it happen. I have goals for the year, but this year will be a big year of change for us. My main goal is to seize opportunities when they come my way, rather than try to plan out everything ahead of time.

This may be my last post for 2019, so Happy New Year! Maybe I’ll surprise us all and pull off one more, but if not I’ll see you in 2020!