2012: A Dickensian Running Year

On January 1, 2013, I will begin my fourth year as a runner. And as long as Mother Nature doesn't throw any whammies along the Mass Pike on New Year's Day, I'll begin that fourth year where I've begun the last two: At the 1st Run Lowell 5K in Lowell, Massachusetts.

When I get frustrated with my (at times glacially) slow progress, I try to remind myself that when I started running on January 1, 2010, I never intended to run any distance farther than a 5K. (Frankly, I had no plans beyond running that year's Freihofer's Run for Women.) While 2012 did not include a 5K PR (nor did 2011), it did include a 10K PR (and marked the first time I ran the entire distance of a 10K). Last year also marked my first foray into the half marathon distance. While my first half marathon ended with relief, joy, and well-deserved soreness, my other half marathon ended in frustration; in some ways, I'm still trying to get back up off the ground from Dividend Loop in Myrtle Beach. I finally had to look up the name of the road, because I got tired of calling it Mile 1.8.

So 2012 was, running-wise, the best of times and the worst of times. The Tufts 10K for Women in Boston and the Suftown Half Marathon in Misquamicut (and frustrating, nerve-testing Watch Hill), Rhode Island, were the best running experiences I'd had in 2012. The worst of times? Definitely the Myrtle Beach half. In fact, I refuse to use its official name, the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon, because there's nothing "mini" about 13.1 miles. (Well, unless you're used to running the Leadville 100. Don't worry, that kind of distance isn't even remotely on my radar.) After Surftown, I actually thought, "Maybe I could run a full marathon someday." After Myrtle, I honestly wondered what the hell I was doing.

2012 was also my second year competing in triathlon, with two races on the schedule: the Mountaineer Girls Tri Too (and those hellacious hills that made me want to cry--but I needed to save my energy) and IronGirl Syracuse. I'd like to repeat both of those races in 2013, but the budget will probably require me to choose, and Syracuse is much closer than Morgantown, WV. Maybe the Triathlon Fairy will bring me some winning lottery tickets.

So...my resolutions for 2013...

Set new PRs at each distance:
1. 5K (currently 34:26 from the 2010 Saratoga Palio 5K)
2. 10K (currently 1:21:22 from the 2012 Tufts 10K for Women)
3. Half marathon (currently 3:09:54 from the 2012 Surftown Half Marathon)

The short list of races planned for 2013 (since additional races always come up, especially locally):
1. 1st Run Lowell on January 1st
2. Hollywood Half Marathon on April 6th
3. Boston Athletic Association 5K on April 14th
4. Run to Home Base 9K on May 4th
5. Freihofer's Run for Women 5K on June 1st
6. Saratoga Firecracker 4 on July 4th
7. IronGirl Syracuse on August 4th
8. Ballston Spa's Jailhouse Rock 5K in mid-August
9. Albany's Dunkin Run 5K and/or the Saratoga Palio 5K in September
10. Tufts 10K for Women on October 14th
11. Troy Turkey Trot on November 28th
12. Albany's Last Night 5K in December

Here's to a healthy, prosperous, and athletic new year! Keep moving!