Marathon Ambition

It seems like whenever I try to update, I always get sidetracked and never get back to finishing. Anyways…

In an earlier post, I mentioned possibly running the Outer Banks Marathon in November. Well, instead, I decided to go for the City of Oaks Marathon. Same month (before my 20th birthday), a little sooner, a little closer to home, and a little cheaper. So I’ve registered, and I just completed week 14 of this plan. However, I must say I’ll definitly go back to creating my own running plans after the marathon. But for now, my only goal is to finish the marathon within the maximum time allowed–6 hours. I know that is plenty of time  for most people, but I run slow. So slow, in fact, that you probably can’t even imagine. Seeing that this marathon has significantly fewer participants than the other well-known events, I may very well be the last person to reach the finish line. I really don’t like that idea, but… it’s worth a shot.

I contemplated settling for the half-marathon this year. It’s a more logical step-up from 5K races. I would have more confidence, and I would also have time to throw in some speedwork into my schedule. But, I know that if I completed the half-marathon, there will always be the “what if.”

College.

Let’s see, where did I leave off? Yes, it has been awhile. I have moved, college has started, and I’m sorry to say that I haven’t accomplished any mileage goals since I moved into my dorm room.

But I did buy new shoes in July–a pair of Saucony ProGrid Guide. I also ran my farthest distance before school started–6.2 miles (10km). I accomplished my run at turtle pace, but I don’t care about that so much.

Currently, my goal is to just keep running. I don’t usually have a lot of time for long runs, and so my runs have just stayed in the 25-40 min. time range. My goal is still to run the Outer Banks Marathon in 2009. We’ll see if that happens…

Off we go: An introduction.

I’m not new to blogging. I read them, write them, comment on them, etc. I am, however, new to WordPress. In the past I used LiveJournal, Blogspot, Xanga… and of course networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. With LiveJournal still near and dear to my heart, I’m setting off on yet another, more formal, adventure with WordPress.

This is my official running blog. If anyone is interested, I also have a less formal running blog here, over at LiveJournal. WordPress seems a little up to my needs at this point, though.

Although I will primarily write about goals, workouts, mileage, running equipment wish lists, and other running related (RR) topics, I might also share bits and pieces of my life as they relate to running. We all need some drama every once in awhile.

I started running (or attempting to run) in the fall of 2005. I thought I would join Air Force ROTC to pay for college, and I needed to start working on the physical fitness requirements, which included running at a decent pace. Well, it happened that I didn’t need to apply for the ROTC scholarship, thankfully, but I’ve kept running off an on since then. Recently, this past January, I decided that if I was ever going to consider myself a “real” runner, I would need to commit more time a determination to running. And that’s what I’ve done so far. I start college next year. Keeping up with studying and running will be a big hurtle in itself. I also think I could someday run a marathon. I won’t be ready for it anytime soon. But someday.

So, if you’re still reading by this point, I hope you’ll stick with me in my journey, wherever it may lead me.