Down on training time I was a bit anxious about how I would make out with my goal race, Bay State Half Marathon.  I had not been able to get past 6m without my knee bothering me and having to put the strap on to get me through.  Today this was not to be the case.  The weather was perfect, about 57 at the start along with sun and some breezy conditions.  My foot was a problem for the last 4m but we lowered the pace and plowed on.  All DRC members finished and THAT was the true goal.  One half marathon down........when's the next one??!!  :)

Training has not been going as well as I wanted but Denise had a great idea of running the NH 10 Miler (billed as “flat and fast”) in Auburn, NH.  We could gauge how we were doing and have a good idea of where we were for the Bay State ½ Marathon.

So Denise, John and I registered.  John was running for time while Denise and I planned on running together with a goal of finishing in 2 hours.  There was a little anxiety before the race because I have never run more than 8 miles and Denise hadn’t run more than 6.2.  We started off with an easy pace and felt great for 6 miles.  At that point my knee started bothering me so I threw my brace strap on and that eased the pain for the rest of the race.

We slowed a bit for 2 of the 4? 5? how many? hills but kept moving and finished in 1:58:49.  John finished in 1:33:33.  Goal reached and we all feel confident about completing the ½ marathon in October .  :)

Well, we've finally had some warm days and Denise & I have been running the Good Times series for a few weeks now.  Really nice course, great group of people...I wonder why I haven't done this before...??   Better late than never.  :)  John's kicking butt on 1/2 marathon training...he has declared he is officially training.  The rest of us need to get in gear.  Work schedules have been keeping most of us on very low mileage but hopefully with better weather and a lighter work schedule we'll get on track.  For the record, Cathy beat Denise and I in today's 5K at Mine Falls.  I'm coming off 2 days with the flu and no food; Denise tweaked her ankle on the course.  Those are our excuses and we're sticking with them!  :)

The Wild Rover is done and another 10K completed (Malden Rotary 10K - 3/20).  That was a great day and an excellent course (part of the Mother's Day Run for Women in Malden).  It was the first 10K for Cathy, Greg, Denise & John.  We all survived and were happy with our times.  Next up was the Winner's Circle April Fools 4 miler in Salisbury (3/26).  A cool, crisp and sunny day was great and everyone had excellent times.  Then came the Shamrock Shuffle in Manchester, NH (3/27).  Another cold but sunny day and an out-and-back 2mile race.  Lots of bling for a 2 miler (pub glass, tech shirt, free beer)!

Friday, 4/1, we had a few more inches of snow but luckily it "warmed up" enough for most of it to melt so by Sunday the Run for the Troops 5K in Andover was a clean course. I've been sick with a really bad cold all week and today wasn't much better but I finished and that was the goal for the day.  :)

Next up is DRC Timing working the Merrimack River 10m Trail Race and running in Nashua at the Run for Food & Shelter; another 10K as we continue to slowly work towards our 1/2 marathon goal.  We've all had our turns at feeling like crap as we get over a bug/cold so let's just hope this coming weekend is the race we are all recovered.