So I know this is waaayyy overdue, but life has been a bit busy in our little household so, better late than never I always say.
So I ran the Hot Chocolate 5K in Columbus about 3 weeks ago and I have to say it was a pretty well organized race. The weather actually held out for us during the race. It rained quite a bit the day before and the morning of, but at the start of the race there was no rain and the temps weren't overly bad. Quite bearable actually which made the experience very nice. It rained after the race, so God was truly smiling on us while we were out there. I ran the race with my aunt and my sister...though we were all in different corrals we weren't all that far apart from each other. The course was very nice and no complaints there...I always love racing in downtown Columbus...lots of great things to see and that's good for an ADD girl like me...lol. The only complaint I had about the course was it was rather congested. I usually hang to the back of the corral, and this may not have been the best option this time. Had to do a lot of bobbing and weaving, but overall it was a really good race. And the goodies at the end were really really good. Hot cocoa, fondue, pretzels, banana, rice krispy treat, sugar wafer cookies...lots of yummy goodies! Really good after race yumminess! Would I do this race again...yes I probably would. It was a lot of fun and really enjoyed the vibe of the crowd and the goodies at the end. You also got a cool looking hoodie with our race bag, which was very nice...though I did have to exchange it for a larger size because they ran small but a really cool SWAG indeed. So I ended up running the race in 29'40"...not my best but definitely not bad either considering all the bobbing and weaving I did.
So now that winter is officially here in Ohio, it makes for interesting runs. This past Saturday I ran 5.27 miles but it was in the 20s....and when the sun started going down boy did it get cold...and that was before 5 pm!! Needless to say made for a really chilly run, but ran a pretty decent time...nothing like being cold to make you run faster :). So my runs these next few months I'm sure will be sporadic. I'm the type of person that if I can go outside and run, that's ideally what I will do. If the weather is bad I'll end up at the track at Kids America....and if I can't do that and get desperate...I'll end up on my mother-in-laws treadmill at her office.
Winter running also means bundling up...sort of...runners know you can't bundle up like Ralphie's brother in the Christmas Story....that doesn't work so well. So I have come across some new winter gear that I am liking very much that I'll share with you:
EmFraa thermal base layers :Top & Bottom....I was honestly a little leary in ordering these...they were so cheap compared to other base layer items I was looking at, but I read the reviews at Amazon and decided to give them a try. Though they are thin, they keep me very warm. I've washed each of them several times so far and they wash up well. If you are looking for a good base layer without spending megabucks, try these out...the only negative I had with these was that they actually shipped from overseas, and even though I ordered both of these at the same time...I had to pay the $9.00 shipping for each piece...so yes almost $ 20.00 in shipping alone, but even with the shipping they were cheaper than most of the other base layers. Good base layers are a must with these chilly temps right now.
Velocity Women's Reflective Running Jacket....I LOVE this jacket...and yes I got the bright yellow. I wanted to make sure people could see me :) This jacket is nice and warm without being too warm and it is soooo soft. Love it!! I had just ordered a North Face jacket that I paid 4 times the price for and I sent it back because this jacket was just so much nicer. The only complaint...again came from overseas and took a little longer to get it shipped to me (I initially ordered it for my Hot Chocolate 5K....of course it showed up the day AFTER the race) and it is starting to pill in a couple places, but not sure if that's the jacket's fault or my old washer...but regardless...I really like this jacket and I'm considering getting the hot pink one too. Maybe Santa will be nice to me. ;)
So that's all for now. Not sure I'll get back on here before Christmas, so in case I don't, have a very Merry Christmas and I'll talk to you next year as we gear up for my half marathon training for the 2014 Cap City Half Marathon in May :)
Merry Christmas and many blessings!
