Half-Marathon in ink on the calendar!!

There's no turning back! January 31st in Ocala I will attempt to run another 13.1! I really enjoyed the last one I did in Gainseville last November. I finished that one feeling like I could have done a little better, so that's the goal. Do better!
Ocala Half Marathon

Jacqueline, Tina...I need you! You better be there! :)

I'm up to 9 miles for my long run. I have 9 weeks to go so that leaves me plenty of time to build up slowly.

Coming up on December 12th is the Jingle Bell 5k right here in Inverness. Love this one! Jaret ran it last year and did great and plans to run again this year. Daniel won't be able to make it, though, because he will be doing something with Civil Air Patrol.

Cross Country-Regionals

Another Cross Country season coming to an end. Today we went south to Dade City for the Regionals meet. Tim Wenger will go to State but the team as a whole didn't quite make the cut. They came in 12th overall as a team and gave their all. I'm so proud of all the guys.

Tim Wenger is in the middle. He's Citrus High's top runner and he qualified for state. Congrats!

Praying always gets 'em fired up.

Getting into the zone...wishing mom wasn't in his face with the camera.

Can't find Daniel in this shot, but I tried.

Mid-race

Hey Jacqueline! You know where these kids get their speed!! Congratulations to Chloe who was 3rd at Regionals and goes to State!

Can't live without the necklace.

Great 8-miler with Tina this afternoon! It was tough, though...I like the early morning runs much better. By the end of the day, I've got no umph left!

My 1 mile repeats this morning were tough!It was pretty hot, but all I did was 3 miles with 2 minute rests in between. I usually take at least 4 minute rest. 2 sure made a huge difference!

I'm hoping to get a good time out there at the Jingle Bell 5k in December and I'm working towards a half marathon in January. At the moment, I'm trying to find a good schedule to carry me through the next few months. Still searching for something different.

Congrats to Chloe for her top female finish at McKeethan...again!

Chloe with Mom Jacqueline(my running pal)

Firecracker 5k

Never did run that Miami race. Instead we stayed here in Inverness and I ran the Firecracker 5k. It was a grueling run and I nearly killed myself trying to get 1st female. Had a hold of it for a little bit but eventually it got away from me. Got the old lady Master female again! I'll take it. Dan says I should stop trying to catch the teenagers. I disagree.

Finally some new shoes!

Woo Hoo!
Got some new shoes....Asics Oberon 3? Whatever that means!(Broke 'em in with a nice 3 miler this afternoon. Had almost 750 miles on my last shoes. Not good.

Well, it turns out I won't be running the Firecracker 5k here in Inverness. Instead I'll be chasing down some Miami folks early 4th of July morning! Yippee!!

I'm really enjoying the Runner's World "Smart Coach" schedule. I've never done 5 mile tempo runs and longer than 1/4 mi. intervals! I can really feel the difference already...my thighs are sore!

Officially in training!

OK!! No messing around now! I'm back on a schedule and training for a 5k that is 8 weeks away. I haven't been doing much speed work for the past couple of months and today's 400's were pathetic. I really need to incorporate some weight training back into the mix as well. The next race planned is the Citrus Summer Showdown on July 11th. It takes place at the park and is hilly, sandy and just plain hard. I wasn't thrilled with my performance the last time I ran it. All the cross country kids from the county come out to this race as they prepare for their season. It's open to everyone of all ages as well and it's free so... why not?

My shoes are nearing the 600 mile mark...that's not good.

Ethan is 9!

What a great day we had at Whispering Pines Park for Ethan's birthday! So many friends came out with only 2 days notice! Thank you guys for making Ethan's birthday so special!

Wow! Where has the time gone!? Still running. Ran 6 miles this morning because I couldn't squeeze it in over the weekend. I've got to get back into the habit of getting up early in the morning now that the heat is coming on. I've been running mostly in the afternoons for the past few months. Those days are over!
No races on the calendar coming up. I haven't been doing much speed work because of it, I guess. I'll jump back into a "Hal Higdon 5k Schedule" for the Citrus Showdown in July!