I’m linking up again this month with Amanda at The Lady Okie and Becka at Sunshine To The Square Inch for their Runner’s Tell All monthly linkup.  Be sure to pop over to their blogs to see what they have to say on today’s topic, and to see who else is linking up.

This month, Amanda and Becka’s cue was to write about Training:  Favorite Person To Train With / Training Routine / Tips…

 

 

When I saw the prompt “Favorite Person To Train With,” I was quite excited because I’ve never really talked about my running history with my hubby, other then mentioning him in races or recent runs we’ve done together.   And of course, acknowledging him in this little blurb on the My Team tab on my blog:

My husband Bill started running my longer training runs with me to keep me company and before he knew it, he was up to 16 miles. One day I saw a new marathon in our area and decided to sign up for it. He was at work when I called to see if he wanted me to sign him up. He answered his phone, said something like, “Sure that sounds good” and hung up. When he got home that evening he asked exactly what he’d committed himself to! Four months later, we ran Marathon in the Parks together and he was hooked!  Today he’s got about 20 marathons, 11 half marathons, and lots of shorter races under his belt.

MarathonInTheParks2001Bill

2001 Marathon In The Parks

We have an interesting history as a couple.  Back when we were first married, we were totally incompatible; when running, that is.  I preferred to go out and run three to five miles at a slow and steady pace, and Bill preferred to run short and fast whenever I talked him into running with me.  He was on a church league basketball team, and played lots of tennis; so he didn’t need to run to keep fit.  What he needed for his two sports was the ability to run short distances at a very quick pace.

Our infrequent runs always resulted in me complaining that he was running too fast, and Bill complaining that I was running too slowly.  After those first couple of years of marriage, we quit trying to run together – until I started running marathons.

I’m not sure if it was Bill seeing how much fun I was having running marathons, how much time I was getting to spend with my friend Miles out on the running trails, or if he worried about me going out for some of my long runs alone, but Bill started running with me occasionally.  Our sons were now old enough for us to leave them alone for an hour or two while we went out on our runs together making big laps in our neighborhood.  In the spring of 2000, Bill made it up to 16 miles with me; and guess what, we were having a ball together!

Running together gave us time alone, time to talk without little ears overhearing our conversations, and time to do something that we both enjoyed immensely!  Yes, Bill had surprisingly fallen in love with the sport of running; with my sport.  He was running so well and having so much fun, that I made that now infamous phone call to him at work to see if he wanted me to register him for the new marathon that I’d just read about.

Since his first marathon, we have run thousands of miles together…  Many of those miles were just the two of us, many were with the Cruisers, and many were with Miles.  We logged those miles both in training runs and at races.  We are a team, and we were the original Cruisers.

DebBillBaltimoreFinish

2005 Baltimore Marathon

These days our vacation activities tend to revolve around what time and where we’re going on our run.  Bill has been known to scout out a good running trail or route for us before we leave.  He can get downright grumpy if he gets too busy at work to get his runs in.  And that’s why you’ll find us running almost every day while on vacation  – because we have time to run together, and being together is so fun and so important.

BeachBillSunriseRun
BeachBillDuneRun

Yes, you’ve seen me posting lots of running pictures of the Cruisers, my MRTT friends, and my BRF, but my favorite person to train with would have to be my hubby!

Bill2002DCMarathon

2002 Washington DC Marathon

 

Bill2009NationalMarathon

2009 National Marathon

 

BillRichmondMarathonStart

2011 Richmond Marathon

 

  • Questions:
  • Who’s your favorite training partner?
  • What common interests/activities do you have in common with your loved ones?
  • Runners:  Would you rather run with other people or alone?

 

Previous Runner’s Tell All Linkups: My Running Story In 250 Words, Favorite Running Gear And Products, My Proudest Running Moment, and What Goes In, Must Come Out.