There is nothing like the thrill of finishing your first road race. I remember almost exactly a year and a half ago I finished my first 5K. I had been training for 9 weeks and participated in a tiny little race somewhere out in Virginia. I thought I was going to pass out the entire time. It pretty much sucked. But I did it! And after that I knew I was going to keep this up for along time to come. I love crossing the line to the cheering of crowds both small and large, grabbing a water bottle and feeling the relief in my legs as I slow to a jog and then a walk after the sprint to the finish. Over Thanksgiving I participated in my first 5K race since then, and I finished seven minutes faster! And even though I have run 10Ks and a 1/2 marathon and a triathlon, I still felt so satisfied for running hard those 3.1 miles and finishing in the middle of the pack.
Today I was so excited because I got to share that experience with Courtney. This morning Courtney ran her first 5K ever. She beat my first time without training at all, and pretty much kicked ass all the way through, despite the number of short but super steep hills on the course.
So why this sudden surge in running for my girl? This season, Courtney will be participating with me in Team in Training. She'll be completing her first half marathon and raising funds. I'm so excited to go through all the milestones of becoming a runner with her (the pain and fear of the first training run, the first 5-miler, the first 10-miler, the first ice bath...) as I train for my own first marathon. Yay for goals!
