Goals

Last summer I spent a lot of time thinking about all of the things that I want to do in Oregon. It is so beautiful here and there is so much to do. There's berry picking, the farmer's markets, gardening, trying new restaurants, kayaking, etc. We had a great summer, but it left me wanting to do more. And then, in September, I realized that summer would be ending, the berries would be gone, the farmer's markets would be closed, gardening would be over, etc. So, I decided that I was going to find some way to enjoy Oregon during the winter that would keep me busy until next summer. I decided to start running again. My goal was to run a marathon.

First I had to pick one. I knew that I would need time to 1) get into shape in order to train for a marathon and 2) train for a marathon. I put together a training schedule with help from Hal Hidgon. First, I would train for a 5k. Then I would train for a 10k. Then I would begin marathon training.

That put me at 35 weeks out. I started hunting for a marathon 35 weeks from then. That's when I found the Eugene Marathon. The more I learn about it, the more I think it's perfect. It's a flat race that ends on Hayward Field - the University of Oregon track where Prefontaine ran so many times and where US Track Olympic trials are held.

So then I started running. With the best training partner in the world, Mike. And then I sprained my foot and Mike sprained his ankle.

So, a week later, we started running again :)

Here we are. We've trained for and run a 5k. We've trained for and run a 10k. We are now training for a marathon. In fact, we are already two weeks in. You can follow our training schedule on Hal's website here. Last weekend we ran 7 whole miles. We are in the middle of week 3 now with a nice 4 mile run yesterday and a 3 mile run yet to do today.

I look forward to journaling this experience both for my reference and to share with friends and family :) Enjoy!