First Race in Forever

Back in October, I promised myself I'd do a half marathon before the year ended and as luck would have it, the good people at Competitor brought back the TourPass, a year-long pass that allows passholders to register for unlimited Rock 'N' Roll races within North America.

So, I bought it and proceeded to register for just about every race I wanted to do.  

First stop of the tour:  Sin City!

Vegas never ceases to amaze me.  A fun girls weekend filled with Vegas-y things...always an adventure!

Anyway, back to the race...

This year's course was a bit different, and after last year's many disasters, Competitor did a fantastic job improving the event.  Unlike 2011, the 2012 race offered plenty of water for runners, a fantastic photo op at the Las Vegas sign, and a centrally located finish line village that made getting back to our hotels 100 times easier.

I won't be in Vegas for 2013, but this race was a great way to kick off the race year!

I Miss Running?!

I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but here it goes:  I miss running. 

After encouraging co-workers to participate in local 5Ks, I've had the pleasure of seeing their faces light up when they tell me how much fun they had, how much they enjoy collecting medals and how excited they are for their next race.

It's a feeling I understand very well.  After participating in a handful of 5K and 10Ks, and seeing friends post pictures from their most recent full- and half-marathons, I've come to the realization that this is the first time since 2009 that I haven't run at least 13.1 miles in a single occasion.  And part of me absolutely misses it.

I am on a mission to finish off the year with one half-marathon.  It won't be Big Sur because it's sold out (and I heard that the full is prettier than the half...) or LA as I don't feel 20 days is enough time to train.

So what am I left with, you ask?  Just a fun little run along the Las Vegas Strip :)

Viva!

Nautica Malibu Triathlon: REGISTERED

I did it.  I finally took the first step to becoming a triathlete:  registering for the 2012 Nautica Malibu Triathlon. 

I'm also learning how to swim, but that's another story for another day.

Am I scared?  Not really.  I'm definitely excited about the challenge, and even though I am not a swimmer yet, I'll get there.  Today is day two of my swim lessons, so I'm hoping I'll get better sooner than later.

Some background:  The Nautica Malibu Triathlon features two events - the Olympic distance and the Classic distance.  My friends and I registered for the Classic, which is a 0.5 mi swim, 18 mi bike ride and 4 mi run.  Completely do-able.  There is usually a strong celebrity presence at this event, so maybe I'll bump into some cool people in the ocean :)

At some point, I'll move on to the Half Ironman, but for now, this is the perfect first step into the world of triathlons!

My 2012 Race Calendar

It's a new year, which means it's a new opportunity to earn some medals!

Just a little over a year ago, I made a (relatively) short list of races I wanted to do in 2011 and am quite proud to say that I actually did some of them. We had:

- Bay to Breakers
- Nike Women's Half Marathon
- Disneyland Half Marathon

I also added the RNR Vegas Half. Not too bad, right?

I never did get around to doing the Run Chicago Half, Surf City (I did cheer, though), or Big Sur, and I'm not convinced that I'll be doing any of those in 2012 either. Maybe next year? Or maybe not...Big Sur is VERY tempting.

What I do know is that I'll be running the Knott's Berry Farm Coaster Run 10K and the Hollywood Half in 2012, which should be a lot of fun. The Coaster Run medal is adorably designed with Snoopy on a roller coaster (this one will look lovely next to my Mickey medal from Disneyland) and the Hollywood Half's Walk of Fame star medal is equally nice.

So, to update my race to-do list:
- Big Sur Half Marathon
- Run Chicago Half
- LA Marathon (I know I said I don't want to do a full again, but I might change my mind in 2013)
- Ironman Hawaii (Half...but I don't know how to swim yet)

I guess that's it for now. I feel very fortunate to have completed all the races I've done. To date, I've done 10 races and by the end of the year, will be at one full, nine half-marathons, one 12K and one 10K. I can honestly say that I didn't plan on running this much, but I'm so glad I started.

See you at the finish line!