Things that give me The Fear #2: Hills

Posted on October 31, 2011 | 6 comments
The hills are alive

The hills are alive ... with the sound of wheezing.

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I am terrified of hills. The sight of them makes me quake in my sneakers; the mere mention of them leads me to question my new-found commitment to acquiring as many running T-shirts as possible.

In my extensive (!) experience with 5Ks, I have come across some doozy inclines. The Covered Bridge 5K in Henniker, NH, springs to mind. My approach to these  perils is usually to slow to a walk while tendering my best stink-eye. Sadly, the hills usually fail to respond (much to my chagrin, my death stare apparently cannot move mountains). This means I have no choice but to switch my jog to a swift plod and asthmatically ascend as best as I can.

If you thought my face was red on the flats, you should see it on the rises. I may have to contact the Pantone company about creating a new color in my honor: 5K Crimson.

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Things that give me The Fear #1: Compression socks

Posted on October 30, 2011 | 10 comments

Compression socksNow that I am an experienced veteran of eight 5Ks (!), I have come to realize that there are certain things that put the absolute fear into me (I guess that’s a point I could make about life too; but this is a blog about running).

So, herewith the first in an occasional series.

Compression socks

I never thought I’d spend too much – OK, any – time thinking about compression socks. I mean, who would? But the mere sight of these at a race is almost enough to make me run in the other direction. Unusually fast.

I don’t know whether it’s because their presence screams “I’m so hard core, you may as well go home” or they give me flashbacks to my childhood and the disturbing tendency of Aussie men to team knee socks with shorts, but either way they instill in me unprecedented levels of The Fear.

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Running with the dogs: Cause 4 Paws 5K

Posted on October 27, 2011 | Comments Off on Running with the dogs: Cause 4 Paws 5K
Cute dog

OK, fine, it's not a photo of the run. But I imagine this is what my lump of a dog may have looked like if he had finished the Cause 4 Paws 5K. And been in Quincy, MA, instead of Sydney, Australia. Still – cute, yes?

My running education has come to a brief halt while I’m in Sydney. There are nowhere near as many events here as I would have thought, which is surprising given Aussies’ tendency to spend as much time outdoors as they can, wearing as little as possible.

So it’s been left to Hubby to carry the running torch in chilly Massachusetts, and a fine job he has been doing. This past weekend, he signed up for the Cause 4 Paws 5K to benefit the Quincy Animal Shelter. I was disappointed at not being able to participate in this one. Not only did it feature many, many puppies, but it was flat! Allow me to reiterate: Puppies! And flat!

You can read about it here. There’s even a video (discerning readers will be able to spot Hubby on the far left in his extra-special running leggings; I can sense a future post on that topic).

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My photo finish!

Posted on September 29, 2011 | 2 comments

Avid readers (!) will recall my previous 5K, during which I ran for beer in Jack Kerouac’s ‘hood. What I didn’t mention was that during this race I demonstrated my first Blisteringly Fast Finish (note: may not actually have been blistering), helped along by my expert – and by now very fast – cheer squad of one.

The reason I bring it up is that I made Run With Ken!* Ken Skier is a New England race-circuit fixture (“the running photographer”) who takes pictures from within the pack. He always runs barefoot and cuts a distinctive figure at a race in his blue shirt and red bandana. He has a proclivity for after-race beer.

Normally there would be no way for me to be immortalized by Ken, as I am too slow (and thank God for that), but he was there at the finish line of the Jack Kerouac 5K to capture my Blisteringly Fast Finish and cheer me on as I crossed.  The words “you guys are on fire” may have been uttered.

Yes, I was on fire. It was written all over my flaming red face.

* The photo in question is on Run With Ken’s Facebook page rather than his main website. I dare you to seek us out (Hubby is there too).

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Two runs, one weekend: Jack Kerouac 5K

Posted on September 28, 2011 | 2 comments
Jack Kerouac

Author Jack Kerouac (he ran with us in spirit).

Where boobs characterized weekend 5K part one, part two was all about beer. (And you wonder why we chose to run both.) Some would probably point out that I’m taking a far-too-lowbrow view of the Jack Kerouac 5K in Lowell, MA, but having read the author’s  classic novel and gotten little out of it, I chose to focus on the event’s post-race libations rather than its high-falutin’ literary pedigree. (Lowell, by the way, is Kerouac’s hometown and where he is buried.)

It wasn’t our first run with beer at the end, but it was our first that started and ended in a pub – Hookslide Kelly’s – which made me infinitely happy. I’m not sure of the health ramifications of post-race ale, but, hell, it’s not like we were drinking before the run.

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