Boston Recovery week 1: the one with the CRUNK

Overall, recovery from Boston has (mostly) been going very well. I had some very normal feeling soreness, tiredness and hungriness on Tuesday and Wednesday but nothing alarming what so ever.
I wasn't too excited about stairs for a couple days, but that is a pretty standard.

OH NOOOOOOOOOOOO

Then.... Sometime late on Wednesday night (or maybe early Thursday, who can be sure!?) I awoke with a vile, vile plague. This crunk has been going around in these parts and consists of some level of fever, quite a bit of coughing, and a great deal of head congestion as well as a side order of complete exhaustion.
FANTASTIC.

This more or less laid me up for a few days. I had to work and such (and since I work outdoors, and can avoid coughing on people or touching their items I am quite sure I did not spread the germs.) But at the end of each day I would completely collapse, feverish, exhausted and quite useless. NO FUN.

By Sunday I was feeling a touch better and went for a casual 2.5 mile walk. (and then was worn out!)
And mileage wise, that was IT for the week.

After the Hyannis marathon I got back into my regular training routine pretty quickly. While I think that was a fine choice given how quickly I recovered, I have no plans to jump back into anything structured at all after Boston. (Especially since I ran quite well!) I suppose having the sickness kept me off my feet more than normal, but SERIOUSLY, I would have taken it easy regardless.

In the Boston aftermath, I'm contemplating what I did differently in the lead up that contributed to a positive outcome. There are always a lot of factors, and this year was certainly no exception.
In no particular order:
"I had a good marathon season (Hyannis/Boston) BECAUSE WHY:

-Well.... it was cold and rainy and awful at both races. My best possible conditions.

-I did not run a fall marathon but I built up a great base during the fall, and transitioned seamlessly into more serious race training.

-I had a few focused workouts weekly (or, with downhill repeats closer to every 10-14 days.) They were speedwork (and I met my goal to improve my speed work significantly) A long run at a faster pace than I have attempted in the past. And downhill reps (a 1.6 mile hill, ran at a challenging speed, 2 or 3x) This is somewhat different than past cycles.
My goal in completing my long run at a slightly faster pace, was to eliminate some miles from my weekly total. Complete experiment, and I feel really pleased with how it worked. I never ran a 50 mile or higher week during this training cycle (and still ran a 3:29 in Hyannis, so.... not a problem.) I think my highest mileage week was about 45 miles. something close to that anyway.
And the downhill work- totally clutch. I eliminated focused uphill training and replaced it with the downhill workout. For Boston- a serious game changer.
(personally, I have neither time, desire, or need to run a 60+ mile week to achieve my "3:30-ish" race pace. I might run a 60 mile week sometime in the future just for shits, but I can't envision a situation when I will add that kind of mileage to my training regimen.)

-Eric and I ran together a lot, which was really fun. Having company on almost all of my long runs was downright delightful.

-I basically trained without intending to, from mid November to last week, and never felt burned out or pissed. I took a couple days off when I needed to. I would run up the mountain in the snow if that was what I felt like. I wasn't married to any specific plan. And it worked well!

In conclusion, there are about 1.2 million different ways to get to a marathon start (and, hopefully, finish!) What I did this time worked great for me, and I feel satisfied with the whole experience. What worked for me, might not work for you. That is fine. I'm not here to tell anyone how to do anything running related.

People were curious about what I wore last Monday, in the amazing and ferocious conditions.

Please admire my fashion

(I packed a few outfits and basically cobbled some shit together when we finally realized that it was a hellacious mess outside!)
So, once I removed a huge quantity of throw away clothing at the start, I raced in:
(basically things that I bought on sale at one point or another...)

-Two hats, a "Crow Athletics" baseball cap, and a "First Run" winter hat that I got at a race like, 7 years ago...
-A Brooks Uprise Crossback bra (basically the most magical, non chafing bra that you will ever meet. which I got on a serious discount. #sothankful)
-A VERY old Oiselle Flyte shirt that I got on sale for about $17
-A vest that I bought for 50% off at Hyannis when the weather tanked.
-A 7 year old pair of Lululemon tights (my favorites. I got them on sale for like, $22)
-Darn tough socks (very good socks, no blisters. which my Dad bought for me, so FREE)
-Hoka Clifton 4's which I don't really love but I also don't hate (I liked the 1's and the 3's, so I am hopeful for the odd numbered 5's! Which I had a coupon code for 15% off for, nbd.)
-3 different pairs of gloves. Very old equestrian winter gloves. A pair of dollar store gloves (that my Dad dutifully brought home! I'm so happy, because I am cheap!) and a pair of "First Run" gloves that I literally got SEVEN YEARS AGO OR SOMETHING at the same race where I got the hat.
-And there are some absolutely prehistoric arm socks in there too, added on at mile 18. Those are smart wool, and I am quite certain that they were a Christmas gift about 5 years ago. (so, FREE)

Someday I will get a coordinated kit, provided that everything I want goes on sale at the right time. That would be sweet.

I will confess something.
The day after the race, I wandered to the Lululemon on Newbury St (or, Blueberry Street as Sarah's son called it) and bought a new pair of full priced tights.
Yeah, yeah, Lululemon doesn't exactly have a pristine reputation for labor practices (or for making non see through tights evidently- although I have never had an issue....) But SERIOUSLY, I have had the same pair for 7 years and they got me through that damn race with nary a blister or tiny spot of chafing. Show me another pair of tights that can do that and I will buy them today, and take them for a test run. (I have run in many others, pro compression, Oiselle, etc and the only ones that come close are the Under Armor ones I have and they have been discontinued...)
OH! And randomly, Lululemon had collaborated with some brewery and had a marathon beer that they were giving to finishers. So, win win!

Who doesn't love free beer?

So that's about it form the recovery front.
I have about another week or so before I will even be thinking about getting back to "it."

And what is "it" at this point?

As I was RUNNING from the marathon finish to the family meeting area I had these thoughts: "Wow I'm in really great shape! Maybe I should run an ultra! Maybe I should do another marathon! ACTUALLY..... all of these things are probably terrible ideas!!"

I'm pretty sure that all of those things were, indeed, awful ideas. While I never say "never" I expect that I am about to transition into full Spring and Summer mode.
I detect some trail running, cycling, and possibly a 5K race at some point (such a different kind of pain than marathon pain!)

It's always tempting to continue to capitalize on the distance specific fitness, but I know from experience that burnout is about one hot long run away at this point.

So, it's fun/adventure training time, and I'm really looking forward to it!

Boston Training week 1: the one with the freezepocalypse

It was really cold last week. The kind of cold we haven't seen in such abundance in years.

Maybe we got it out of the way?


I kicked the week off on Tuesday, with an easy 5 miler in 10 degree temps. It should be noted that 10 degrees may be my coldest run of 2018, but I ran right before the New Year on a day that went down to 1, so that's my all time record.

Goggles are key

I have been asked quite a bit recently about my opinion on running in horrible weather. Here's the deal.
If you want to, and have the outfit for it, and are excited by the thought of it, go right ahead.
If you don't want to, or don't have a sub zero kit, or hate the idea, then don't.
You are not going to get extra points for suffering through it, nor should people who are comfortable in icky conditions be called "insane"(hey, they are only hurting themselves!), and you are NOT a wimp for cross training or hitting the treadmill. Not at all.

So maybe not a great answer, but do what you want. Basically in all areas of life, haha. #choices

We got a huge snow storm and since I don't actually want to die on the roads, I took speed work indoors (see, common sense!)
I did 6x1200 at 7:09 pace.

The snow was falling hard

Friday and Saturday were the coldest days of winter. It was 1 degree on Friday and 0 on Saturday, with windchills close to 60 below WTF?

A rare warm moment

So... I ran indoors both days and THEN AGAIN on Sunday. GAH!
I think I did 6 easy, then 12, then 7ish with downhill repeats which were lame.

I finished the week with 38.6 miles and all was well.
Unlike last year, I avoided the ER during week one of training. I very much hope to keep the NO ER streak alive, thanks. Jesus.

I usually finish my training recaps with some bullet point highlights, and I can't remember what I did last year. I'll just do a couple basic ones this week and then try to get bit more clever next week.

Miles- 38.6
Coldest high temp- 0 (-58 windchill...) And the high temp of last week was 24, for about an hour. (coldest low temp was -15, and it was -28 just around the corner. no thanks.)
Coldest day that I ran outdoors- 10
Largest snowfall- 10"
Random fact- Should This be a running fact? A random fact about general issues? Or me specifically? Today's random fact is that I did not think this one through, but I feel that it has potential.

Happy New Year! 2016 recap.

Warning! This is a late 2016 recap. People who are on top of things had theirs done weeks ago.

Mine is here today. It is done before my taxes are, so it's still winning.

2016 was the year of the medals!! If Eric or I could find way to add a medal to the pile of loot, we did. (I think I finished the year with 17 or 18 medals. Looking at Instagram last week, I saw that some people have like, 60!!! Holy shit people, that's a crap ton of race money! And a lot of 5k's that give out medals, hahah.) But seriously. For me, this is a lot of bling.

The proof is in the picture below. While, obviously, I received only one medal at Boston, my little trophy wall deserves mention. #muchathlete

I got ultra creative and made my Dopey Challenge medals into magnets. (so maybe #muchartist!!)

I ran the New England double (VT City AND Hartford) for another 3 (well, 4, cause Eric and I made VT city a relay too! But then I went and lost that medal..)  (so... #muchfail?)



Finally we had Lumiere's Challenge to round out the year. PHEW. #MUCHdisney

Clearly a LOT of winning happening in our home. 

 

Medals, medals galore

Dopey was definitely a highlight of the year. The whole event was a lot more fun than I had anticipated, and the three of us had a really good time.
If/when we return to a Disney race it will be this one!
(as everyone knows, we returned for Lumeire's challenge in November. It was fun, but not on the same level.) Maybe it's because Andy wasn't there....

Dopes at Dopey!

Boston, and the lead up to the race, definitely fills in the #1 slot of 2016 racing.
My training was the best I have ever had.
My two lead up races (Hampton and Eastern States) were excellent.
Despite inconvenient race day temps, I ran smart, and finished strong and healthy.
There was nothing better than having a great group of friends there too. So much fun!
Add in the fact that it's also a fun family weekend and it can't be beat.
Boston weekend: #1 for 2016!!

The big winner

Hartford was good too, but in a different way.
I was so pleased to finally, FINALLY, chip a few minutes off the old 3:33:xx, which had been my go-to time for 2 years.
I also had the best 23 miles of any race, possibly in my running lifetime.
I did not have the most delightful training though. The heat, my busy schedule and generally feeling "blah" for the final 3 weeks got me down.
That being said, a 10 minute 2018 BQ time might balance out the general dislike.

Gritting my teeth at the Hartford finish

In general I felt that had a smart and solid year.
I claimed age group PR's in the 10k, 13.1, 26.2 and (I think) the 20 mile distance.
I raced two strong marathons and finished two others, just for fun.
I had two very dedicated and focused training cycles.
Eric and I ran some new races, and saw some new places (like Burlington, which I LOVED!)

This year I really enjoyed both training, and racing. I am comfortable with who I am as a runner, and with how I do my running. As with any sport it took me a while to get here, and I still have a lot to learn. I feel that I'm doing at least a little something right though. I hope to continue to be lucky enough to enjoy my hobby for many years to come.

I do not know how many miles I ran last year. At some point I will look.

In MUCH more important news....
In 2016, I also drank some very, very good beers.
Since good beers REALLY is what this blog is about, here are a few of my favorites. 

WINNERS. Like, real winners not just "here's your finishers medal" winners.

And just like that, it is 2017.
Today was the first day of Boston training.
This winter is shaping up to be a monster!
And guess what? Still no treadmill, or ANY sign of one! *shocking*

Guess who's back?

And just like that, I'm back.
Just your typical 2 month blogging break!

Clearly, after such a long hiatus I have a lot to catch up on and absolutely no idea where to start.

Last time I was in a blogging mood I was about ready to begin my training for Philly and was being thwarted by a grouchy hamstring. I am pleased to report that my theory of time off equals healing proved to be true and I was back on my feet in no time. I was about 10 days late onto my short plan training program but being late is better than not showing up at all because you are an injured hot mess.

As is per the norm with my crazy self, once I began to train I was in, whole hog. While I might not want/need to run every day of my life, it seems that once I embark on a training cycle there is not much that stops me. I like the routine and I just suck it up and get it done with very little angst.
(I will post more later (maybe) about details of this round of training.)

In the meantime, let's recap shall we?

In early October Eric and I participated in the run2respond relay, a cross country relay to benefit first responders and to encourage them to have a healthy lifestyle.
We seem to jump into crazy adventures happily if it is for a good cause, especially if we have friends joining in. Once the baton had reached Maine we knew probably 90% of the people running so we concluded that it would be a fine adventure.
We began our leg/s quite late at night in Kennebunk and carried the baton straight up Rt 1 to Scarborough.

The handoff (s)!! And yes, MUCH darkness!

The moral of the story is that running at night on Route one is pretty scary and that I got a lot of confused looks from drivers who were clearly shocked to see me running at 1AM.
I do not suggest that anyone, ever, invite me to be on their 24 hour relay team because I am a terrible night runner.

To sum it up: I saw quite a few police vehicles in the first miles of my run and I prepared a lovely statement to give them should they pull me over for running in the pitch black night. "I am running to benefit YOU!!" I would say, joyfully. "Look a all my reflective/LED gear, I am clearly SAFE and running for a GOOD CAUSE!!!"
....fast forward 10 or so miles.....
*sees cop car*
"ARREST ME I AM CLEARLY UNSAFE!!!"
Sigh. We finished and I fell asleep, post haste.

A couple weeks later I ran my way down (literally) to the Waterford 5K for a bit of speedwork over hills. I had just run 15 the prior day and had zero expectations other than to sweat and suffer.
I got exactly that.
Actually, it was a nice time and a nice day. I enjoy seeing all the people in my town and they do a lovely job with awards (medals for overall winners and AG placements- plus legit jugs of maple syrup!)
Typical 5k performance for me, I managed to lope in as the 4th woman and take 1st in my AG with a 22:51.

The big finish!

Through the early days in October I was a bit disturbed, knowing that running MDI was going to be a little challenging for where I was at in my training.
(by the time I signed up for MDI they only had slots available for the full- totally my lazy fault!)
I had formulated a plan to run to a certain point (18/19) and then basically schlep to the finish and collect my Lobster Claw medal in a blaze of glory.
This was a solid plan with the exception of those 8 or so miles that I wasn't really excited about getting my legs over.

Anyway, as things have the tendency to do it all worked out.
While most of you know the story by now I will sign off for today on this cliffhanging note, and a guarantee that I will be back soon to conclude this alluring tale!

Before I sign off for good, it merits mention that the weather has been absoultely spectacular for the past couple of weeks! Sunny, mild to downright warm and basically delightful.
I will leave you with a pic from my hilly run route, a picture that seems to be making a regular appearance as the seasons change.
Top pic, late August. Bottom pic, late October. Hashtag no filter!

You just can't beat this view!

January recap, all the storms, all the excitement!

January certainly went out with a bang, 20 something inches of snow in the Blizzaster of 2015 and one million feet of snow since (those million feet are not getting any attention because they are not falling in Stormageddon format.)

Day after the snowzaster. Cleaning snow off high things from the bucket of the tractor. #mainelife

Since February roared in all crazy pants, spewing snow and chaos here and there I had no choice but to bail on the Mid Winter Classic. I was *bummed*, especially when I woke up and it was about negative 16 degrees with a gentle 40 MPH wind. Yeah..... While it might not have been such harsh conditions on the Coast I still had to stick around town and try to take care of work stuff that just can't get done on snow days. Honestly, I missed seeing my friends but my heart wasn't broken to miss the frigid conditions.

So it's time for a quick January recap!

-I got the sick and had to lay low for a bit. No big deal and my mileage got back to a normal point for the final two weeks of the month. My total mileage was about 120 which I am happy with- I'm not the Captain of the 60 mile weeks so this is a fine number of miles for January. 

-I ran Derry. I remembered why I'm not crazy about it but it certainly was a good training day!

Biiiiig finish! Woof....

 -I became oh-so famous! I thought I might see a slight increase of blog readers post Chronicle article but I did not.  Kind of a relief since my blog is less than stellar about 95% of the time. Who knows how I would handle the pressure of the big time!

Well, I FEEL famous anyways!

-However, Maine Running Photos shared my Derry recap and about a gazillion people read that blog. Funny right, runners read running blogs and horse people not so much.

Hundreds of people enjoyed my 95% crummy blog. Time to up my game (and face)

 -I made it to Yoga a few times, I wish I could find time in my schedule to go at least twice a week but it just is not in the cards right now. I have many late afternoon and evening lesson to teach and I really can only sneak out early one day! (and to be honest- that is tough. I really have to work hard on NOT booking up that time....) 

Hopefully February brings some better weather, but it looks unlikely.

Keith Carson... You better watch it buddy- this is not OK!!!!

Well, I have my dreadmill, my Dance Moms, and Uptown funk on repeat so I will make it!
The first 2 weeks of Feb should be leaning towards higher volume and then I'm getting the hell out of town and heading south mid month for a week. I have that penciled in as a big fat ZERO week but we shall see. I'm actually tempted to bring some running shoes and, if the mood strikes, enjoy a little warm weather running!

Well, that's a wrap! 2014 in all its glory.

Like ANY good blogger it is the time to type a blow by blow post about all my thoughts and feelings regarding my year of amazing and epic accomplishments!!!!!

Or..... Let's just zip thru the months and see how I did in 2014. Some good stuff, some bad stuff, some things to try differently, some things to do again. Overall not too shabby!

2014 was supposed to bring about several milestones for me.
A Half Marathon PR at Hampton in February (sub 1:36:27)
A Course PR at Boston. (sub 3:31 and change)
A strong 50K. (as in: don't blow up)
A solid Fall Marathon PR (sub 3:25:45)

Going into 2014 I knew there were several distances that I most certainly wasn't going to focus on, or be even slightly concerned about racing. Like the damn 5K, woof.

Shall we begin?

January! Jan-Jan-uary!!!!
I started off the year with a 10K- after one of the worst weather Decembers in recent history here in Maine and after being absolutely wracked with flu-like symptoms for a week I certainly did not mind a fairly average run.
-10K 1st Run, Lowell MA 46:51 You can read about the windy day right here.
(so, my 2012 10K PR still stands at 44:01. But I was bat shit crazy in 2012)

Less Bat-Shit Crazy in 2014 obviously. 

February! Time to kick some 13.1 ASS!!!
Yeah. Or something.
I ran around the Mid Winter Classic 10 miler early February on a totally decent weather day- I believe this was one of the very, VERY few outdoor runs that I had managed in weeks. The weather had been truly appalling and the road conditions horrid. I was both pleased and surprised to run a 1:15:56- only 40 seconds above my 2012 PR when, as previously mentioned, I was bat shit. A good set up, I hoped, for Hampton.

Once again we lucked out on weather, conditions and basically everything and for about 5 minutes I thought I had kicked crazy 2012 in the teeth- and managed a 3 second PR with a 1:36:37. (It was, if nothing else a 12 minute course PR for me) Later that day I double checked old results and discovered that no, I had missed my goal by something silly like 12 seconds. For some reason, this really bothered me. The whole damn day in its glory.
The one thing I took away from this race was that there was nothing I could have done about that 12 seconds! I simply could not have run faster. The end. Once I realized that, I stopped being bothered about my perceived "failure" and stopped thinking about it.

While my race was not a complete fail this FACE IS!!!!

March:
I didn't do Jack-diddly-squat apparently.
The weather was good for garbage.
I ran on the treadmill except basically once.
I did have some good long runs.

Mostly, March was like this. What the actual F**K????

April Boston TIME!!!!
I trained with the intention to run a course PR, and as we got closer my brain kept drifting to shooting for an overall PR. I decided that even if things went rather amiss I could certainly run a 3:27 or so. Unless it got warm for the first time in months of something silly.... Every outdoor run thus far had been pretty lovely in the 40 degree Spring temps and somewhat diminishing snowbanks.
Unless you're new you know it was my worst executed race in History. With temps rising, and rising, did I rethink my plan? Nope, I went charging all around running some shit crazy stupid fast miles and died a horrible death. The end. 3:54 something UGH. BOO.
Part one: when there was still hope
Part two: watch me blow up
A good learning moment! At least I learn...

I look unwell. I felt unwell. 

May. 
I ran a 5K in 21:36 which is fast enough. Seriously!
(not fast enough to beat damn 2012 though hahah!)

I ran the Pineland 30 miler that is called a 50K on Memorial Day weekend and was really pleased. I executed the race exactly the way I wanted to and was very pleased with the outcome! Yay, go me!! Honestly, we all know that I do not put in the correct training for races of this length so unless I do- this is as good as it gets for me! I truly enjoyed this race and it marked the beginning of my "Summer running Break"

"there's a creeper photog in the grasssssss"

June: 
A spontaneous Trail run at Robert's Farm was my final hurrah before taking the lazy route for the rest of June. Another really fun race!

UNCLEAN. 

July:
NADA as in NOTHING. Most runners worst nightmare, but a much needed break for me!

OK so I did SOMETHING. Mostly standing though!

August & September
Three whole entire races!
I tried out 2 new distances.
I ran the Maine Mile in 6:13 which is an automatic PR since I had never tried such a crazy thing before! I have no intention of ever running a mile faster, thanks! It was a really fun thing to do, totally outside of my comfort zone, and over so quickly that I barely noticed how much it hurt.

I also ran a 5 miler in 35:51 for another auto-PR and in the process made myself more sick that I have ever been after a race. I don't have much motivation to run a faster 5 miler ever again but perhaps this one just scared me off.

Early September was the Freeport Half, a PR was not a goal but I was happy to run exactly the pace I hoped for on legs that felt pretty good on a tough course.

I promise it wasn't just me against myself.... 

October! 
Months ago I had completely altered my Fall marathon goals, knowing that putting in the time to meet them was simply impossible. However, I was quite determined to succeed in qualifying for Boston 2016 (my AG now needs a sub 3:40:00) and I felt this was quite reasonable.
We all know what happened at MDI. Definitely a day that reminded me that you can't plan for everything!
I am still so pleased that I marched back out and ran the LOCO Marathon two weeks later.
This was everything Boston was not in terms of a well executed race, a nice cool day, and an additional 6 months of learning what I can and can not do depending on my fitness level. a 3:32:59 felt pretty good to me and was a solid BQ, not to mention a race that I felt really positive about.

PHEW! 

November:
November marked the end of my 30-34 AG era and with that, I went forth and ran 35 miles for my 35th BD.
What?
I think it was a perfectly normal decision!

The most flattering picture of the year or maybe my life. 

December:
No racing, just normal running, a zero week and some thoughts about what next year might bring.

Hopefully the New Year brings LOTS of this!!!

So there you have it kids, my whole year squeezed into one tidy little post.
I'll be back soon to talk details of 2015.
Happy New Year!!!

July Recap, and exciting news!!!

Recap Time!!!

Miles run: 127

Miles biked: 110

Core: Much better this month. Could still improve.

 

Times I puked on my shoes. Zero. but I could have twice.

 

Times I quit running. Once. And I legit quit and called for a ride....

 

Longest training run: 20. Note to self. I need a longer long run than this if I choose to do another 50K. I also need to get in a 22 or 24 before Smuttynose because  need to know I can do it...

 

Takeaway message from July. An ultra is not an extra long marathon. The end.

 

Number of PR's: ONE, as I had never run a 50K before!

 

Number of races run that equaled really awesome pro pics. THREE.  (that is a first...)

 

 

4 on the 4th.
Just badass. Possibly my favorite pic ever.

Old Port Half.
Cute despite the overall yuck of the day...

Shit.....Who broke away from the peloton?
ME THAT'S WHO.
I take back that the first picture is my fav. THIS ONE IS.

My exciting news is that late last week I learned that I had been chosen to be on the Oiselle team for 2013/14!

 

This story takes us back over a year... I had picked up a pair of Oiselle shorts and a tank to try and I loved them- instant LOVE. I had been aware of the company for some time prior to that because when I was on a mission to find athletic attire made (almost entirely) in the USA their name was on the list.. I was genuinely put off by so many of the running duds I owned being made elsewhere, being low quality, being $120 and lasting one wash.... I put the Oiselle clothing to the test and they passed.   Not only do they strive to make most things here in the USA but they are a company owned by women, and as a woman who owns her own business I totally got behind that!!!

 

I was hoping to get more involved in the company and with their other runners at that time but discovered that they had already selected their team for the year. I was bummed to have missed the deadline but also appreciated the fact that they took time to select athletes carefully. I applied this year, kept my fingers crossed and was so happy to have been selected! It has already been a ton of fun getting to virtually know my other team mates and believe that they are a very motivated, supportive fit group of women. I am delighted to be able to be one of the faces of a team and a product that I am a huge fan of- and that I have already been promoting and recommending to my runner (and all athletic) friends!

I will be talking more about this exciting new adventure in the coming weeks but wanted everyone to know how lucky I feel and how excited I am!

One additional thing that makes me pumped about teaming up with Oiselle is that they chose me for who I am- a sometimes potty mouthed, post-race-beer-drinking, slightly off centered occasional over-achiever. With poor grammer and a tendency to be bad at twitter and blogging.... The application was quite thorough and I was brutally honest about how I roll... (awesomely, duh)  I plan to continue in this questionable fashion, and with any luck they will continue to love me for being the unique individual that I am!