Montgomery County Triple

It is finished! My body is finally warming up after the slight chill that was in the air this morning. A shower, a power nap, some Shipley's, and some decaf helped to nurse me back to 98.6.

It was a very wet, 43 degrees as Lem and I headed for RTW this morning. There were even some rumbles of thunder, yet, we ignored the ominous start to the day because we were on a mission. A pine cone mission.

As I pulled up to the start, I noticed Missy! She was there with Coach Bill. It was only 7:10 when I got there, so I knew she must have been plagued with pine cone fever as well!

Lem and I retrieved the awards from the back of my car and placed them on the table in their position of honor.

Waiting for the run to begin, I realized how great it has been to run this series. I ran with some folks that I've known for awhile, but didn't really know. The MoCo Triple gave me the opportunity to get to know them even more. I am so blessed to be a small part of such a great community of people. They don't care how fast or how far I can go, only that I achieve my personal goals.

Mark made sure that I take along a parka today to keep myself dry. What's worse, he put Lem in charge of making sure I wore it! She was his spy, and if I didn't wear it, I would be in BIG trouble! (at least I let him think so...)

I was opposed to wearing it because I thought it looked ridiculous. So when I arrived to see everyone else wearing theirs, I pulled mine out and put it on. I was very grateful to have it as the rain drove continually through the run. The gloves were nice to have as well. My hands still got wet, but they were warm for most of the run.

I started out with Liz Berry. I thought maybe I could run with her and keep my time under 28 mins. However before I had even rounded the parking lot for the second loop, I found out that she had just finished a 6 mile run and was much warmer than I was. We were running close to an 8 min pace so I told her that I was never going to be able to keep up because my legs were cold and stiff. I don't know how you warm up in weather like this.

I ran with Debbie Tripp for a little bit as well. She was a bit tired from the last few days, so she slowed down and I kept on. I kept trying to catch Liz, but no such luck. She was quicker than yesterday! Later I told her how quick she was and she said that she really felt great. It showed!

The run went by very quickly. I wish I could have been a bit faster, but don't I always?

After the run, the awards were handed out. Unfortunately, my camera was dead, so I wasn't able to take any pictures. If I come across some, I'll be sure to post them later.

Dana-Sue Crews and her family were present and had two of her books given away as prizes. Additionally, there were two race entries given away, The Davy Crockett Bear Chase and the Huntsville Half! I need to figure out which of these I'll be able to run.

Lem was also given an award for running two 1-milers and then volunteering today. She was a real trooper! Never one complaint though I know she was cold, very cold, and really didn't want to get up so early. But she did and she lit up my whole day. Thank you, Lem! I love you!

Total Time: 29:42 Total Mileage: 3.14 Avg. Pace: 9:28 Avg. HR: 171

Mile 1: 9:32
Mile 2: 9:46
Mile 3: 9:19
.14: 7:43 pace

Be sure to keep abreast of the upcoming Spring Montgomery County Triple by checking out the blog from time to time.