Week 3: Rainy days and a race!

This week was more of the same as far as our training mileage; the only changes I'd say we are noticing are a somewhat faster pace and fewer aches and pains. We had some iffy weather this week too---normally I would never choose to run in the rain, but I figure it is something I'd best learn to tolerate. If I can't handle 3 miles getting a bit wet I'll never manage 16 or 26.2, and I'm not about to bow out of the marathon because of some drizzle. This isn't to say I don't have my limits---lightning, a hurricane, a nor'easter---but regular old rain? Gotta suck it up.

We took a short trip this week to Gettysburg, PA. Chris had a medical conference where he was a speaker and we decided to take the kids out of school for a little history lesson on the side. The drive was about two hours; we stayed overnight Tuesday and woke up early Wednesday to a gloomy, drizzly day. Chris and I headed out on a 3-miler recommended by the hotel that took us to part of the Civil War battlefield. It would have been nice to go farther but with the less than optimal weather and Chris needing to prepare for his talk, we stuck to our schedule and kept it short.

The afternoon was spent at Gettysburg National Military Park, where we saw a short film about the battle (narrated by Morgan Freeman, with Lincoln performed by Sam Waterston!), an impressive sound and light show/cyclorama, and a museum of Civil War artifacts. The boys were fascinated by the weapons and also by the doctor kits and tools. One of the exhibits showed families divided by the war (brother fighting brother, father fighting son), and the kids seemed to have a difficult time comprehending that fact. Before leaving town, we made a final stop at Robert E. Lee's headquarters, which is now smack dab in the middle of a motel parking lot. Lee had the door of this little house torn off and turned into a map table out on the field of battle; the woman who lived there wasn't too pleased but I guess she didn't have too much say in the matter.

Saturday we were able to run a very nice 5K in Milton. The course was partly through the pretty downtown area and partly on trails through a park. The weather was supposed to be terrible but fortunately the sun stayed with us long enough for a beautiful race. I felt like Chris went out waaay fast---I was huffing and puffing trying to keep up---but he said it felt normal to him (maybe I was just tired). We finished in 36th and 37th place out of 71 runners, but we had to wait until everyone finished to find out our time. While we were waiting, a raffle drawing was held and I won a nifty waterproof shoulder bag! It seems like it will be useful for camping or a day at the beach.

Now for our weekly stats:

Tue 4/17    1.66 miles in 14:45 (seriously fast for us, an 8:45 mile)

Wed 4/18   3 miles in  30:00 (this was Gettysburg, my GPS was off and I had to guess)

Thu 4/19    1.59 miles in 15:09

Sat  4/21     3.12 miles in 29:35 (I knew it was fast! Normally we can run 1-2 miles at this pace but not over 3. No wonder I was tired.And yes, I know this is considered SLOW by most experienced runners--it's all relative.)

Sun 4/22     2.57 miles in 42:32 (a chilly drizzly walk)

Thanks for reading. I also want to thank everyone who has donated to Fisher House through our Team LoveLife. If you haven't yet contributed, and would like to, there is a link at the top of the page. Every donation is hugely appreciated!