I'm both excited and nervous about this, but I have officially signed up for my first half marathon. I will be running the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in San Diego on Sunday, June 5th.
http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/san-diego
It's a big jump in race distance for me, but Running With Ryan makes it all worth it. I'm going to set a goal of 2 hours and 2 minutes, which would put me right around a 9:15 per mile pace. That is around my normal pace for 6-8 mile runs, so hopefully I can carry that over the full distance. I was able to run a much faster pace for the ACT Today! 10k earlier this month, but this race would almost double that distance.
I will be raising money for the four charities that my sister has chosen for Running With Ryan. They are Holden Uganda, Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, Molly Bears and For Your Tears. I can take donations locally, but if you're not in San Diego it will be easier to donate online or mail a check to the specific charity. Please remember to specify that the donation is in honor of Ryan Elizabeth Watts, so it will help Whitney track the progress of Running With Ryan. You can also purchase Running With Ryan t-shirts and the proceeds will go to these charities. You can find more about all of these causes on the Donate page at Running With Ryan.
Thank you everyone for any donations and/or encouragement you send. Every bit of it is appreciated.
Love You Angel Ryan!
April 11, 2011
April 4, 2011
ACT Today! 10k
I ran my first race for Running With Ryan and it was great. I participated in the ACT Today! 10k. It was the inaugural race for the group, which raises money to help military families that have children with autism. I felt like it was a good way to kick off Running With Ryan for me because Rob (my brother-in-law) is in the Army and it helps children of military families.
I was in bed early on Friday night so I could be up at 6am for the 7:30 start time. I got ready and put on my Running With Ryan shirt for the first time; that was a great feeling. I arrived at Mission Bay in plenty of time and made my way to the start line. I met up with my friend Ginger to give her her RWR t-shirt for the race. A little stretching, the national anthem and we were ready to run.
I started out with a normal pace, but quickly got warmed up. My pace picked up after about 0.5 mile and I made my way onto Fiesta Island. I was passing a few people and felt like I was making good time. I looked at my watch and realized I was doing a bit under my normal pace. It stayed that way until around mile 4 and I slowed down a little, but I was able to pick it back up. I started passing quite a few Marines, so that had my adrenalin pumping. I got back to Mission Bay and finished the last .25 miles with as close to a sprint as I could.
I crossed the finish line at 53:23, which is an 8:36/mile pace. That's at least 30 seconds better than what I normally run! I finished 17th in my age group, which I was quite satisfied with. (http://www.y-events.com/11today10k.htm) Ginger finished a little behind me, and we were both happy to finish our first Running With Ryan race. It's a good start with more to come.
Love you Angel Ryan!
I was in bed early on Friday night so I could be up at 6am for the 7:30 start time. I got ready and put on my Running With Ryan shirt for the first time; that was a great feeling. I arrived at Mission Bay in plenty of time and made my way to the start line. I met up with my friend Ginger to give her her RWR t-shirt for the race. A little stretching, the national anthem and we were ready to run.
I started out with a normal pace, but quickly got warmed up. My pace picked up after about 0.5 mile and I made my way onto Fiesta Island. I was passing a few people and felt like I was making good time. I looked at my watch and realized I was doing a bit under my normal pace. It stayed that way until around mile 4 and I slowed down a little, but I was able to pick it back up. I started passing quite a few Marines, so that had my adrenalin pumping. I got back to Mission Bay and finished the last .25 miles with as close to a sprint as I could.
I crossed the finish line at 53:23, which is an 8:36/mile pace. That's at least 30 seconds better than what I normally run! I finished 17th in my age group, which I was quite satisfied with. (http://www.y-events.com/11today10k.htm) Ginger finished a little behind me, and we were both happy to finish our first Running With Ryan race. It's a good start with more to come.
Love you Angel Ryan!
President's Day Run
I know this is a very late post for the date of the actual run, but I'm so far behind on my blogging that I wanted to get this one in.
I had Monday, February 21st off of work for President's Day. I was moving to my new place in Ocean Beach that weekend, so I had a lot to do. The weather wasn't great during the most of the weekend with some crazy rain and wind. I wasn't able to run on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, so I was expecting to have a rough go on Monday.
I slept in a little that morning, then walked to get coffee. It was slightly overcast as I walked around my new neighborhood, but it didn't look like any rain was coming. I just had a good feeling about running that day. After getting back home I ate a quick lunch and unpacked a couple of boxes.
I finally started stretching and preparing for the run. The stretching took a little longer than normal due to the days off. I stepped outside and the Sun was out in full force. It was just one of those good feelings. I started off towards the ocean with no route in mind. I got as close to the beach as I could without running on sand and just kept going. I ran towards Sunset Cliffs and things were feeling good physically and spiritually.
I got to the cliffs and the sun was out over the water and the waves were crashing into the cliffs. It was just amazing and peaceful. The music from my iPod just added to the feeling. Every song that came on just seemed right, and most of them came from a playlist I created while flying home to NC for Ryan's memorial service. Many of these songs will never mean the same thing for me as they did prior to November 23, 2010. Some remind me of that weekend and how tough it was, but others help give me comfort and peace. It was the latter that were playing on this day.
I just kept running near the cliffs and taking it all in. I wasn't getting tired, which was surprising with the days off. I finally decided to turn around and head back home. I kept to the cliffs as much as I could. I finished my run and just sat on the beach watching the waves. It was one of the best runs of my life.
MichaelNorris's Activities | RunKeeper
She is always with me, but it was just undeniable that Ryan was running with me on that day.
Love you Angel Ryan!
I had Monday, February 21st off of work for President's Day. I was moving to my new place in Ocean Beach that weekend, so I had a lot to do. The weather wasn't great during the most of the weekend with some crazy rain and wind. I wasn't able to run on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, so I was expecting to have a rough go on Monday.
I slept in a little that morning, then walked to get coffee. It was slightly overcast as I walked around my new neighborhood, but it didn't look like any rain was coming. I just had a good feeling about running that day. After getting back home I ate a quick lunch and unpacked a couple of boxes.
I finally started stretching and preparing for the run. The stretching took a little longer than normal due to the days off. I stepped outside and the Sun was out in full force. It was just one of those good feelings. I started off towards the ocean with no route in mind. I got as close to the beach as I could without running on sand and just kept going. I ran towards Sunset Cliffs and things were feeling good physically and spiritually.
I got to the cliffs and the sun was out over the water and the waves were crashing into the cliffs. It was just amazing and peaceful. The music from my iPod just added to the feeling. Every song that came on just seemed right, and most of them came from a playlist I created while flying home to NC for Ryan's memorial service. Many of these songs will never mean the same thing for me as they did prior to November 23, 2010. Some remind me of that weekend and how tough it was, but others help give me comfort and peace. It was the latter that were playing on this day.
I just kept running near the cliffs and taking it all in. I wasn't getting tired, which was surprising with the days off. I finally decided to turn around and head back home. I kept to the cliffs as much as I could. I finished my run and just sat on the beach watching the waves. It was one of the best runs of my life.
MichaelNorris's Activities | RunKeeper
She is always with me, but it was just undeniable that Ryan was running with me on that day.
Love you Angel Ryan!
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