Ididarun 8 mile night cross country run

Last night was the annual Ididarun 8 mile cross country race in Linden, MI.  It's put on by the cross country teams of Linden Schools, a small school district about an hour away.  This is the fourth year I've run this.  The first year there was a few inches of snow and it was cold.  The last two years it was unseasonably warm for January and the course was muddy.  This year the snow was deep but it had warmed up yesterday and Friday so a lot of snow melted but the temperature dropped in the late afternoon so there was some freezing of the melted snow!  The parts of the course that are on the cross country course had deep snow and to add to the fun, in some spots, there was water under the snow!  Your feet sink right in with each step.  Before the race, the director said, "your feet WILL get wet!"  Oh, he was right!  My feet got soaked.  The run is 4 two mile loops.  Each time around the off road sections wiped me out more and more.  It just took so much to stay upright and to get through the snow and snow/water.  There were some slippery spots on the paved parts, too.  On the last loop, the wind came up and it got colder.  My lips and cheeks were numb.  I kept thinking that I should have just went to the group long run in the morning, ran my 8 miles and called it a day!  I also used this race for my last long run before Key West last year.  I was never so glad to be finished as I was last night!

Cold, wiped out, and soaked feet

I had looked up my time from last year and it took me 15 minutes longer this year.  I was surprised that it was just 15, I thought it would have been more.  I won my age group!!  (Actually, I was 2nd but the winner was the Masters winner.)  I changed into dry clothes and socks right after finishing but I did not have dry shoes with me.  They always have soups after this race.  I had clam chowder soup and it was really good but it didn't sit well which made for a really long drive home!  I walked around in my socks until it was time to leave and then I had to put my feet back into my cold, wet shoes.  I had also forgotten my coat so I had to walk out to the car without a coat and in wet shoes!  I was very happy for my heated seat cushion! 
I actually learned after the race that a lot of people decided to do the relay option which is two people each running two loops.  (People who had originally signed up for the whole 8 miles.)   I guess there weren't that many left running the whole 8 miles.
So, with that, I've completed all of my long runs for Key West!  Just a few short runs this week and I'm off to Key West!

Runner Nerd
ready for Key West

3 Long Days

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week my Respiratory Therapy class had board exam review.  It was 3 full days, 8am - 5:30 pm.
I'm very glad we had it, I feel so much more prepared to take my exams now.  I have 3 of them to take.  It's an odd thing; I just spent 2 years in school full time, a million hours studying and we just went over everything we need to know in 3 days.  Taking these board exams is almost like playing a game.  We learned how to pick the "key words" from the questions and what certain words signal.  It's as if we aren't going to be thinking for ourselves but playing a game, decoding a puzzle.
I'm not sure when I'm going to go and take the first exam; I hope to do it soon after Christmas.  There is a series of 3 exams that have to be taken to become a licensed RT.  Tomorrow I have to go and be fingerprinted in anticipation of applying for my license.  It has to be done before applying.
Graduation is Saturday!!!
Next week I have one week to undo 2 years of neglect in my house.  I'm having a big family get together on the 23rd.  I wish I could spend the time studying the materials from the review but I have to get the house ready. 

Tuesday night I was able to make it to running group.  When I left school I really didn't want to go.  I thought about just going home but I went.  I'm really glad I did!  We headed out for a 4 mile run.  Part of the run was on cart paths of a golf course.  The running store employee who runs with the group had went out and run the route and printed the map from his Garmin.  We looked at it, it seemed simple, it was a big loop.  We made a wrong turn somewhere and ended up running 7.7 miles!!  I really needed that!  I ran good.  I felt good afterward. 

Sunday is 5 weeks out from Key West!!!!

Runner Nerd
Nerd days coming to an end soon!

Just for fun running events

This was the scene last night before a night run. 
Neon green or yellow and reflective trim.  The run was a fun run to commerate the date being 11-11-11.  Runners really don't need much of an excuse to have a run!  One of the members of the running group I run with hosted at his house which is near a lake that has a trail going around it.  There was a full moon last night which made running even more fun.  I was happy when I saw this picture because I wasn't sure if the old running pants I was wearing were still reflective on the trim along the zippers at the bottom of the legs.  I can see from this picture that they are!  It looks really dull compared to how it used to look.  (I'm the one on the left with my back to the camera)
That was last night at 7pm.
Today at 9am I was at it again!  I ran a 5K and a 10K back to back; it's the Iron Turkey!  I ran a 30 minute 5K and just over an hour 10K so it was like a long run.  The 2 races are an hour apart; 5K at 9 and 10K at 10.  I had a half hour between them and when I started the 10K I was stiff and had a really hard time getting my body moving again.  I had the best race number today!!!! I am the one in the middle with the race number!

I had the best race number!

All too soon racing was over and I had to go back to my other life - being the world's oldest college student.  After going home and showering it was off to the library for a few hours of studying for an exam I have on Monday - oh, the excitement! 

Forget what I said about cold weather gear in my last post!

November 8th and it's 65 degrees at 6:30pm!  Yes, that was the situation this evening here in, of all places, southeast Michigan! 
I had tights, baselayer and long sleeve shirt stuffed in my bag and then I realized that it was already 52 degrees at 9:30am, so in went a pair of shorts and short sleeve shirt just in case.  I'm glad I threw in those just in case provisions! 
I studied in the library all afternoon (true nerd style) then headed over to the running store for group run.  I passed a business just down the street from the running store that has a sign which displays the temperature and it said 65! 
This was our first run post time change.  It was completely dark well before our start time of 6:30pm.  Until now it was still light when we started but dark by the time we finished.  Nothing a neon yellow running shirt, headlamp and reflective arm bands can't make work! 
Last week I got new running shoes.  Every time I get new running shoes I can't wait to get them dirty!  They are soooooo white and clean, I can be seen coming a mile away!  I got more dirt on them tonight.  The dirt roads weren't really muddy but it had rained a little so there was slightly wet dirt to pick up!!
Well, running is done so it's time to get back to the nerd part of Runner Nerd; big test tomorrow.
Runner Nerd
enjoying unseasonable November weather