Team 5K in 50 States

Team 5K in 50 States: Hannah and Auntie Jennie

Running Buddies: Auntie Shauna, Owen (brother), Dad (Justin), and Uncle Greg.

Cheerleaders: Mom (Nicole), Grandma, Grandpa, Ava (AKA Suzy-Q, cousin), Baby Kaelyn (cousin), Grammy Farr, and Grandpa Tom.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Go for the Gravy 5K

 Greg and Suzy-Q waiting for the race to start
 Auntie Shauna and Owen goofing off before their race
Saturday morning was a blistery 10 degrees and boy was it cold!  Thankfully, Wasilla didn't have any wind to make things any colder.  This was our first true winter race and boy is it a whole different experience :)  I was at REI yesterday and picked up a Turtle Fur Windtech Maskot Beanie which blocks the wind and covers most of Hannah's face so she is more comfortable running in the cold. 

Pre-race activities included hot cocoa, hot apple cider, and coloring for the kids.  The kids also got to write on a big poster things that they were thankful for.  Hannah wrote on behalf of Ava that Ava was thankful for her awesome cousins :)
Hannah and I were off at 10am.  The trail ran along the Parks Highway and was quite icy.  We caught up to a lady that remembered us from the Bonny Sosa races which is always fun.  Hannah was a super strong runner girl and pushed it up the one long hill of the race.  At the top of the hill was our turn around point to head back for the finish.  Hannah's goal was to run this race in 29 minutes which is pretty fast given the cold and icy conditions, but what can I say...the girl has goals and who am I to dash them :)  Hannah and I were quite close to making that goal!  The last part of the trail was pretty icy, so we had to slow down a little.  We finished the race in 30:45!

Great race team 5K in 50 States!!!!
Owen ran the kids 1 mile race indoors which was nice for the kiddos and the spectators.  Auntie Shauna, Owen's faithful running buddy, took a feather off of his necklace for each of the 12 laps to keep track how far he ran.

 Suzy-Q and I cheering Owen on
Both Hannah and I got 1st place in our age groups!  This was my first time getting 1st in my age group.  The race had a raffle and Owen and Hannah both were lucky enough to win a prize.
1st place ladies :)
The races and awards ceremony were done at 11:45 so we had to hurry back home to have a bite to eat for lunch and then head back out again to the skiing kick off at 1:30.  What a busy day!!!!  We are looking forward to starting skiing next Monday and the Jingle Bell 5K in a couple weeks.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Winter Training continued...

Jennie writing...

Hannah and I have now run 3 miles, 3 times a week for the past 3 weeks!  Hannah and I continue to run at the ice rink 2 times a week and at Grama's house 1 time a week to keep getting hill training in.  This past Tuesday, Hannah and I got to run with a High School running club who was running at the rink at the same time.  The other runners and the coach were quite impressed with her!  Some of the boys gave her high fives as she ran by, and the coach kept praising her each time we went by.  The coach was quite impressed with how fast she was running.  Some of the high school runners were trying to complete their 3 mile run in 30 minutes.  Hannah and I finished our 3 mile run in 30:30.  Ava joined us for the run on Tuesday.  Here's a picture of Hannah and Ava after our run.


Hannah and I, Shauna and Owen will be running in the Go for the Gravy 5K this coming Saturday.  We will also go to our Cross-Country Skiing Kick-Off later that day!  We can't wait to get out for some more winter time fun and training.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Winter Training

Jennie writing...

Hannah and I have finished out the Bonny Sosa series and are starting into our first winter of training.  Without weekly races to look forward to we are having to find new motivations.  We will be running a combination of outside and inside, so that we are still getting some hill training done.  Our indoor training is at our local ice rink.  I was a little worried that Hannah was going to get bored running around the rink, especially since it is only an 1/8th of a mile oval.  Hannah and I have run three times at the rink so far for 3 miles each time.  Hannah actually likes running at the rink because there's usually something to watch while we are running :)  Thursday was hockey practice and today was speed skating practice.  We also started doing a few sets of stairs to help with the flatness of the track.

In a couple weeks we are going to start cross-country skiing with the local junior nordic club.  This will serve as part of our fitness training for the winter.  I haven't cross-country skied since I was a kid so I am looking forward to taking the beginning classes with Hannah to learn the basics.  Should be lots of fun!

On a side note Hannah and I are in the Life section of ADN today in our ladybug costumes at the last Bonny Sosa Race :)