Race Report

its alot over due but finally a report from my last race.its alot over due but finally a report from my last race.  Friday night I finished packing my bags, loaded the van (how much does one girl need for an overnight stay before a race? LOL) & hit the road. I love my garmin! I always used to print a sheet of directions to go anywhere especially by myself, now I just plug in the ending address & hit 'GO!' :) I stopped twice looking for a camera battery before I finally found one. following the Garmin I found my hotel easily, only zoomed past it once ;) it won't compare to PW's hotel stay photos here  by any means but it was cozy & just what I needed for a night by myself. after checking in I set back out for a convenience store to get water for the evening as well as morning & a G1 for breakfast (have found I do much better w/less in my stomach for races). However the store I chose had no G1 so I got a G2 & huge water then headed back to my room to get settled. I spent the evening snacking on the Little Ceasar's crazy bread Tim had brought home for me (carbo-load anyone?), answering Scrap Pink emails & generally chilling. I finally decided to shower about 10 then talked to Tim on the phone-he was really nervous about me being @ a mom & pop joint alone then crashed about 11:30. I slept pretty well considering my nerves.

  Looking from the bathroom door& looking towards it. see, cozy, right?!

adorable handstenciled towels:

 sweet little display of toiletries

Saturday morning came way too soon (as always), but after hitting snooze for a half an hour then getting text from Melissa (she & Jamie had come in WAY late & were in a room upstairs in the same hotel) I was up & around. dressed in running gear, started drinking my water, did some yoga stretches then headed out to the van to take my leftover crazy bread, get my running water bottle, etc.. met up w/the girls in the parking & rode w/them to the race. It was a great small race, a new distance for me to race (5 miles instead of 3.1) it was also my first trail run, so finihsing 19th of 20 didn't bother me in the least w/a time of 1:03:something (its been so long now I have forgotten) I thought was pretty good for this point in my training. After the awards (everyone got shirts, winners for each age group/gender got handmade birdhouses (nesting boxes) & reuseable water bottles) we headed back to the hotel for showers.

prerace photo, see the lil shower? :)

A-DORE-ABLE lil hotel!

view from across the street:

post-race, pre-shower photo: (keeping in mind we hung out for awards & had a few minutes drive back to the hotel)

  Heading home, I wished I had taken time for a nap too.. I stopped twice on the way home. Once for potty + more water then the other to stretch the cramping legs. While stretching, I did some bargain shopping & got some work pants capris & some jean capris both on the clearance rack-SCORE! loaded up on junkfood (funyuns + reeses cup minis + frappuccino) & more water then hit the road to home.

Overall, it was a fun new experience! I hope to get to do more traveling next year. Tim said next time he'd make an effort to go with me.  :)

I am tossing this in my Thankful Thursday category.  I am thankful to be strong enough physically to run, to be strong enough emotionally to go places on my own, to have Tim supporting me even tho he was nervous, to live in a part of the country & state that I was able to find a small race in a small town w/an inexpensive hotel for my first traveling experience. Also so very thankful for the Sisterhood for being such an encouragement to get me running on day 1 & for Melissa & Jamie for keeping me running when I loose ambition!

What are you thankful for today?