Kiawah Half Marathon- check.

Ran the Kiawah half yesterday with a couple of friends... had a good time, sore as hell, am now packing for ANOTHER work trip.

I am tired.

Sorry not more descriptive- been bad about blogging!

Five miles this morn- WOOHOO!

Been doing a lot of traveling and working out lately... have hit LA, Vegas, Albany, LA again, Albany, and Tampa in the last 4 weeks. Fortuantely, the Tampa trip was a last minute decision to woop it up at the World Series for Game 1! Chief Wahoo had an extra ticket and I could not pass up the opp!

Did the Charleston Race for the Cure 5K last weekend and was happy to return to racing! Been running 3 miles or so a couple times a week, doing a lot of elliptical and biking, and weights. Overall, I feel terrific... and have avoided stepping on any more nails! :)

This morning I met my impromptu running group and we did five- it felt awesome! I am looking at doing the James Island Connector 10K next Sat, a 10-miler mid-November, and of course... the Kiawah Half early December.

Off to watch football!

Happy trails!

VEGAS!!!!!!!

Just stepped off plane back in Charleston. What a trip...

Good news- I am up to running 3-4x a week...doing 3-4 miles regularly.

Am debating signing up for a 10K race this weekend- can run most of it and just enjoy the beautiful (cooler) weather... or I can do the 5K option.

Decisions...decisions...

Good to be back!

Kiawah Half Marathon- back in the saddle

Well, gentle readers, I am approximately three months out from the Kiawah half marathon and I am feeling calm, confident, and re-energized. I have reflected back on the last couple years... revisited the running highs (first sub-hour 10K!) and lows (Chicago Marathon) and I am ready to pick up and start my new chapter!

I have eased back into running lately, done a lot of cardio blast class (I think it is called that), yoga, biking, etc. My favorite part of running is still the fact that I can just throw my running shoes into my suitcase and run anywhere in the world. It really has been a great way to see the fabulous cities I visit for my traveling career!

So, here I am. Back to where I started...kinda. I am really ready for the fall weather to come through Charleston (after we get past these tropical storms, of course!) and start building mileage for early December!

Happy trails to all...

I'm baaaaaack....

So much has happened since my last post. I started a new position at work, went on about 49 trips, sold my car, bought a new one, and...and...signed up for the Kiawah Half Marathon in December! The race that started this whole thing two years ago. I am feeling great about it! And I am sorry for being an MIA blogger that has not read posts, commented, or been around for awhile :)

Let me catch up quickly- I was in Kentucky last week for my niece's first birthday. She is the cutest thing ever! Here are some pics...

Travel is taking me to Chicago AGAIN next week. Looking forward to it.

All for now... I am gearing up to run/walk the bridge tomorrow. Getting back into the swing of things is hard but I am committed!

Happy trails!

Cooper River Bridge 10K Recap

First of all, I am happy to say that I managed to keep the CRBR Streak alive... running my third race on the new bridge which opened back in 2006. Yahoo!

Let's chat for a second about how the race is a logistical nightmare.

1. Over 35,000 people run the race and Charleston ain't that big of a city
2. It is a point to point race
3. In between the points is a huge bridge and the only other way to get from point to point is to take a long 23 mile "workaround" aka highways
4. The bridge closes at 7 AM (one hour before race time) so you better get your butt there beforehand if you want to cross.

Long story short... it was my slowest time ever. I had not trained. I had not prepared. Part of me wished I had actually ran beforehand... but I did it! My time was 1 hour, 23 minutes. A pace of 13:30 for walking probably 70% of it. The good part is- I guess I have a fast walk?

So, the aftermath. I am really not sure but my left foot (the plantar fascia nightmare) hurts like hell. I am trying icing and rolling it over a frozen bottle of water. I would feel great otherwise!

Congrats to the other finishers! I wish I could have met up with you, David and Mendy :( Next time...next time... and we can all start in the sub-40 corral! I am glad you enjoyed some of the yummy food here in Charleston- Vickery's and Andolini's are awesome!

I am off to spend time with my family and will be out of pocket for a few days.

What's next? Who knows? Stay tuned...

Twas the night before the Bridge Run...

Life has been nuts lately. Most of my energy, thoughts, and prayers have been with my grandfather. He went into the hospital last week to get a cancerous tumor removed, end up having a stroke after lots of internal bleeding, and has been in Intensive Care since then. It has been really hard on my family.

So, here I sit at 11:35 PM the night before my third Bridge Run. I haven't trained. I haven't run much since October. I am just going out to have fun and run/walk this 10K thing with friends. I am hoping to get the same motivation that I got several years ago on the bridge that spawned a tailspin of half marathons, marathon training, and other assorted fun.

Twas the night before the Cooper River Bridge Run...

Biting the bullet

Finally going to visit the foot doctor tomorrow- yipppeee! I am sick of not running. Need to run. Need to race.

Keeping the non-running blog streak alive!

So, I am going on another cruise on February 23rd to the Western Caribbean. For those of you keeping tabs, I just went on one in December. I kinda like vacation. And the Caribbean. And it is kinda a cruise "date" with someone I have only been seeing for three months. A date that lasts 7 days and we will be sharing 180 sq foot cabin.

It almost sounds like a reality show.

Can't wait to head home tomorrow- Boston is freezing my butt off! I have finally decided that I will start my training for the Cooper River Bridge Run- my homecoming to racing several years ago. Hey- wait! Yall should come run it too!! Mendy, David- you have no excuse. Jess- come on up! Marcy- NY sucks this time of year-come to Charleston. Jayhawk and all your blogging posse- Charleston is waiting!! Bring your mom- plenty of bourbon to share! All you other folks- come on!

OK, I kinda am motivated now.

Race report I can't really remember...

Sorry- short term memory and I have been to San Francisco, Charleston, Cleveland, Charleston, and now Chicago since. Woooohooooo!!! (Hey- any of you Chicago bloggers want to meet up for a run Wednesday morning? I am hella slow- but Chicago can't hold me down. No ma'am)

So, the Grape Stomp 10K rocked. The weather was swell (60 degrees and zip humidity)

Most laid-back race I have ever done. No chips. Some dude wearing a tie-dyed shirt yelled GO! and off we went... probably around 300 of us? Course was out and back on paved path and dirt road. Felt good... finished in about 1:04, rocking about 10:25 min/miles. No PR there, but who cares? Drank some wine after the race and jetted around wine country in the convertible before heading back to San Fran.

Life is grand :)

Tiff in her natural state, sporting her new Gucci sunglasses from overstock.com. BOO YEAH

Grape Stomp 10K

So, I am in San Francisco this weekend speaking at a work conference and I caught a glimpse of a race in Livermore, about 45 minutes away in wine country.

I signed up.

Grabbed a rental car. Free upgrade to the convertible with the southern accent and charm.

Will be rocking the Grape Stomp 10K tomorrow morning through the winding valleys of beautiful Northern California... with FREE WINE TASTING at the finish.

Hell yeah.

Race for the Cure 5K- Race Report

It felt good to get out there again and run a race and just relaaaaaaax. I decided last night around 11:00 PM to run this morning and am so glad I did. Several of my friends were running in it so I thought, "What the hell?!?" I honestly had NOT RUN AT ALL since the Chicago Marathon so I wasn't really looking to PR or kill myself. I thought it would be a fun day to get out there, wear running shoes for the first time after my blood blister healed, and be with my friends while they ran their first race leading up to the Kiawah Half that I talked them into doing.

I kept snoozing this morning, finally getting out of bed at 7:00 AM and scooting across town to Daniel Island, the site of the race. I was registered, pinned, and ready to roll by 7:45 AM which meant I had plenty of time before the 9:00 AM gun. Of course, the race got started late (just like last year) and we finally got going around 9:15 AM.

It had started to get a little hot by that point... maybe 76 degrees? Sunny. No shade. Kinda reminds me of... naaaah.... it was nowhere as bad as that. The water stations at miles 1 and 2 were equipped and well-manned. That was nice. I appreciate that more now.

I also forgot what it is like to run local 5Ks and how people do not really practice race ettiquette-starting at the front of the pack and walking, forming a line across the street, and other pet peeves of mine.

I have been running at a 11:00-11:30 min/mile pace for marathon training so I picked it up a little bit this morning and tried to stay at a 10 min/mile pace or just below. I came up on one of my friends around 2.5 miles into the race and she looked like she was struggling after going out too fast. I jogged with her for about 2/10ths of a mile before she waved me on. I was proud of her for running the whole thing as she has been taking walk breaks while training. They all kicked butt!

My final chip time? 31:38... about a 10:15 min/mile pace. 3+ min slower than my time last year although I have to remind myself I have not been training for shorter distances. I will get there.

Next race is in 2 weeks- the James Island Connector. I am then pushing on with the Folly Beach 10 miler the following week before getting into the longest of my half marathon training runs.

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack.

At the 11th hour... I decide...

I am running tomorrow! I decided to lace up for the Charleston Race for the Cure 5K... and I am excited! At least it is fairly hard to screw up pre-race prep for a 5K... and believe you me... I have tried. Bad bad bad Tiff- several accounts earlier this year when I was partying til the wee hours before the races and popping GUs chased by Bailey's on the way to the start line. Oh how I have matured. HA.

Speaking of weird stuff... what the hell was that unmarked vial of crap they put in our race bags in Chicago? The vial just reads, "Take One Daily" with no insert, no additional info, etc. I jokingly stated that we should take, "A Vial a Mile" and my friends' parents put this on their signs at the marathon when they were cheering us on. Perhaps we could have saved the race if everyone had just taken their vial.

A vial a mile.

I might just pop that vial tomorrow and see what happens!

Stay tuned.