What a fun race!!!!

The Big Wild Life races were a family event this weekend.  Hannah and Auntie Jennie ran the 5k and Owen and Auntie Shauna ran the 2k.  Alaska's unpredictable weather showed through, when we left the house it was cloudy with a peak of sunshine, when Owen and Shauna ran it was rather warm and 40 minutes later when Hannah and Jennie ran it was chilly!  The pre-race wait was fun because there was a giant T-Rex made of foam and tons of costumed animals walking around.  Owen and Shauna ran their first 2k in about 30 minutes, way to go for their first official run!  Hannah and Jennie ran an amazing 33:25 5k.  This was Hannah's personal best :)  Hannah keeps telling me that she wants to do a 5k in 26 minutes so we will see what the next race holds for us.

I am having a harder time finding races here locally in the upcoming months.  Since we are relatively new to this I don't know if running is mostly a summer sport here or if maybe I am just missing them.

PS - This was Hannah's 3rd 5k race in 8 days!

Fossil 5K

Today was a nasty rainy day to run a race!  This was Hannah's first cross-country 5k and discovered Auntie and Hannah need to do more hill training.  After a potty break in the most disgusting port-a-potty ever, Hannah and Jennie lined up and took off to set her next PR (personal record).  The goal was to beat 36 minutes.  Hannah slipped and fell while running, but jumped up and kept running like a little champ!  At 24 minutes into the race, Hannah and Auntie ran into a bull moose.  They walked behind it for 8 minutes with about 15 other racers before it decided to get off the trail.  A 4 and 6 year old brother and sister were the people to beat for this race.  Hannah finished in 41:32, although she would have finished in 36 minutes had it not been for the moose.  Our next race is the Big Wild Life 5K on August 15th and will keep 36 minutes as the goal.

Seward Sealife Run

Alaska can now be checked off on the map.  Hannah and Auntie Jennie ran in the Seward Sealife 5k on August 7th.  As Hannah and Auntie Jennie were running, Hannah says "I haven't run this far before."  Auntie replies that she ran this far last week with her dad.  Hannah replies "My daddy let me run/walk AND he gave me a piggy back ride!"  Hannah was rather tired for this race as she was sick and did not get to bed till 1am.  Thankfully the race was not until noon the next day.  Hannah thrives on the competition and usually picks a runner near by as the person/people to "beat."  Two ladies were our pacers for this race and we got a picture taken with them at the end.  Hannah took 4 minute off her last 5K time in this race and ended with 39:05.  We are looking forward to the Fossil 5k at Kincaid Park on August 10th.  The goal is to run 36 minutes.

Here we go

Hi blogosphere :) I am Nicole, Hannah's mom.  I decided to blog to try to find any other parents out there who might have kiddos who are running fan's like Hannah (aka Hannah Banana) and to share her unique (I think) journey to complete a 5k race in all 50 states.  I am hoping to hear from people in every state with recommendations about which 5k would be the most fun and maybe even a little about the accommodations available near the race.

A little about us..My husband Justin and I have been married almost nine years and are the proud parents of Hannah who is 6 going on 21 and Owen who is 5 but is such a daredevil that he adds years to my age on an almost daily basis.

Hannah has ALWAYS loved to run.  Even as a 3 year old she would wake up in the morning and ask if she could go for a run.  Now you might think that this might be due to modeling but neither myself nor Justin are runners in the slightest!  In June of 2009 Hannah saw on the local news a triathlon that had a kids component and begged me to let her try a triathlon.  This past June Hannah competed in the Eagle River Triathalon and was hooked.  The running was her absolute favorite and she has run nearly every day since the race.

You might ask, if you aren't a runner then who is running with Hannah?  Well, thank the lucky stars I have an awesome sister Jennie who has become Hannah's running buddy.  Auntie Jennie as we call her had her first baby in January and thought that running with a 6 year old would be a great way to get out and get some exercise with her favorite niece :)

Hannah has embraced running and it is now a daily part of her life that she wakes up and looks forward to.  And, as with any kiddo they find something they love and they take their ideas to the moon.  During the Mayor's Marathon that she raced the youth cup in, Hannah heard me talking to Justin about a lady who was completing her 50th marathon in 50 states by competing in the Mayor's Marathon here in Alaska.  Being 6 she saw no reason why she couldn't do the same thing.  Never mind the years of training these athletes go through or the actual cost of running in 50 states, she wanted to do it.  I gave her enthusiasm some thought and have decided that really who am I to crush her dreams so I have decided to embrace her enthusiasm and try to plug away until we reach the magical 50th state or until it isn't her dream anymore :)

Obviously we have Alaska down so 49 more states to go.  Our next stop is Washington in September to compete in the Iron Girl 5k on her actual birthday.  So that leaves 48 more states to come up with a plan for.  Any ideas and/or suggestions out there?