Yesterday I started my last morning visiting my mom with a 12-mile extra-hilly run.  My run was far better than my previous one, but those hills put a hurting on me.  My total time was 2:00:54 (10:04 pace), and my quads are still complaining!

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I ran past the trash and recycling center and since they were open, I stopped in to use the porta-potty (no surprise there).  It was the cleanest porta-potty I’ve ever seen…  It even had a rug in it!  You don’t think I could have passed up on a picture, do you?

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A few miles later I ran past this little lady and she started following me.  Every time I turned around to check on her, she cowered down.  I finally decided that she was just wanting to be friendly so I let her come over to me.  After lots of happy jumping and licking (by her, not me), I turned to continue my run.  My new friend decided to run with me and stayed right beside or in front of me for about a mile or so.

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A few minutes after my new friend joined me, I passed a house with a little workshop right by the road.  I saw a guy sitting in the yard and decided to ask him if he knew who the dog belonged to.   As I ran by, I asked him how he was, and he replied, “Doin’ fine.”  Just as I started asking, “Do you know whose dog this is,” I noticed that I could see bare skin on his side below his shirt and that his pants were gathered below his knees.  O. M. G!!!  He was squatting there doing his morning business, not expecting a soul to come by, especially a chatty runner girl.

After a wonderful five-day visit with my mom, I met Bill, Joseph, and Julie in Blacksburg in time for an early dinner at Cabo Fish Taco.

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I ordered what ended up being one of the best margaritas I’ve ever had.  That bad boy was almost gone before my chicken fajitas arrived.  The fajitas were good, but don’t deserve the same high accolades as the margarita!

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After dinner we walked over to the Duck Pond to watch the sunset.  I took this picture with my iPhone, and Bill took a bunch of pictures with his fancy camera.  I’m sure his are outstanding, but I don’t think mine turned out too shabby!

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After watching the sunset, we headed to Cassell Coliseum to watch the finals of the ACC Wrestling Tournament.  We were thrilled to cheer our Hokies on to an ACC championship!

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After we left Cassell Coliseum, we drove over to the Drill Field to cheer on Julie’s friend Brett who was starting an overnight training run in preparation for the Umstead 100-Mile Endurance Run.  Julie and I would have loved to run a few miles with Brett, but we weren’t exactly wearing the appropriate footwear!  Next time, Brett, we promise!

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Each lap around the Drill Field is almost a mile (50 miles = 62 laps).  We stayed for a while and cheered Brett on each time he passed by.  Bill took advantage of me being preoccupied and pulled out his camera and tripod and took some night photos of Burruss Hall.  You can see Bill in the background in an orange shirt.

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And speaking of 100 mile ultramarathons, I have to give a huge shout-out to my friend Amy who battles chronic Lyme Disease, and yesterday attempted to run the Graveyard 100 Mile Ultramarathon. In Amy’s words, “By running this race, I want to raise awareness about Lyme Disease, to bring hope to those battling Lyme Disease and to raise money to fund research for a cure for this crippling, chronic illness.”  If you are interested in helping Amy, you can make a donation to the National Capital Lyme Disease Association through her website.

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Amy, at the 50 mile mark of the GY100

As a veteran JFK 50-Miler, Amy attempted to run the race without a crew and knew this would be a big challenge.  If you’ve never run an ultramarathon, you probably don’t realize just how important it is to have a crew to support you.  Crew members are responsible for your well being during the race.  Not only do they carry your gear, changes of clothing, and any of your special dietary needs; but they act as your cheerleaders, doctors, and sometimes decision makers during the race.  It is their job to get you in and out of your check points as quickly as possible, and watch to make sure that you are still healthy enough to continue the race.

Even without a crew, Amy was able to stay in the race until she set a new distance PR (personal record) of 100K (62 miles).  I am so proud of Amy and can’t wait to read her race recap on her blog, Twingles Mom.

  • Questions:
  • What animals have befriended you on one of your runs?
  • Have you ever crewed for a runner or gone to a race to cheer the runners on?
  • What was the most fun thing you did this weekend?