Happy New Year!

I tend to think of my running life as being divided into two parts. The first part was way back in high school when I ran cross country, but really only as a way of keeping in shape for my true love (swimming).

My second running life, as you may know, began in the summer of 2004. My first and only goal that summer was to run around the lake one time without stopping, the equivalent of 1.2 miles. It took me about 8 weeks to get that far but I did it and I will never forget how proud of myself I felt that day.

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I shy away from comparing times from my two running lives. After all, I was much younger and thinner in high school. Every PR I keep a record of now only applies to my second running life because never in my wildest dreams could I imagine that I'd ever run close to my high school times ever again.

But something amazing happened on New Years Day. My BIL and I (acting goofy above) ran the Resolution Run 5k. My dad (wearing the goofy hat on the left) came along with sis and my mom as the most supportive cheering section on earth. Despite all the wind and the cold, BIL managed 2nd in his age group with an official time of 20:46 (sick) and I came along in 27:34, which works out to an average pace of 8:53. When I peaked at my garmin at the first mile marker I thought for sure the course was short. There's no way I was running that fast! But at the finish line I knew I had done it. Breaking my previous second running life PR by almost 1:30. I have no idea where that burst of speed came from but I'm riding it all the way.

As soon as I got home, I dug though some old boxes to find my high school PR. I just had to know how far away I was. Finally, I found that flimsy piece of paper given to my by coach after my last race and I knew. In my junior year, I ran a 25:25 and now, believe it or not, my goal is to blow that away.

This is the thing I love about running. Every day is an opportunity for a PR. Before the race, I told my BIL I wanted to run a sub-30 again but I was pretty sure that wasn't going to happen. After all, it was cold and windy and starting to snow and my lack of mileage has been so discouraging. But I reasoned to myself that I'd never run this race before. I'd never run any race on New Year's Day before so whatever happened, I was running a course PR, right? I was going to run a PR for New Year's Day, right? Never in my wildest dreams could I imagine a 27:34.

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And, to be honest, it's not the actual time that I'm happiest about. For most decent runners, this is still pretty slow. But for me, it's knowing that with a little hard work and sweat, I may be able to do something I never dreamed I'd be able to do. Something that seemed out of the question when I was struggling for weeks to get around that lake just once. This (dare I say it), even more so than the marathon, gives me hope...

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Here's to a healthy and happy 2008!