VA is for Lovers 14K

Chris and I debated quite a bit about going to this run. We registered months ago, and had planned on spending the night in a hotel.  But, things change.  The weather got cold again, and we didn't want to leave our older dogs out all night in the cold.  One has arthritis, so the cold just makes it miserable for her.  

Instead, we decided to get up early (3:40 am!) and drive to VA Beach.  However, at 3:00 am, our power went out.  That meant no lights, no hot water, and no garage heater for the dogs during the day.  The debate was renewed...do we drive down, or do we stay home?  We decided that we made this commitment to get fit, paid the fees, so we needed to go.  Somehow, we managed to get ready in the dark, let the dogs out to use the bathroom, fed the dogs, and left them in the house for the day.  We drove to Fredericksburg and needed to gas up.  The wind was COLD and BRISK.  Once again, we debated.  But after getting a breakfast sandwich and hot Dunkin coffee, we continued on.

We made it in great time and pulled into the VA Beach sports complex parking lot before it was closed for the race.  Now that we were there, we knew we were going to run.  It was still windy and  cold (34 degrees), but the sun was trying to break through the clouds.  After picking up our packet and getting ready, we headed out to the starting line.  There were four corrals, and we put ourselves between 3 and 4.  Once we got the ok to start, we headed out.  It was a bit crowded at the beginning, and thinned out a bit as we split off.  One race was a 6K and the other was a 14K (for February 14).  I ran the 14K today.  

I did pretty well running, but one of my biggest struggles was the wind in my face which made breathing difficult.   I kept my Buff on my neck and basically pulled it up when it was windy, then pulled it down when it wasn't.  The second struggle was my calves. I was doing pretty well until I passed mile 7.  Then my calves just began screaming.  I walked when it hurt too much, then ran, then walked.  Luckily I was able to run across the finish line.  I definitely need to work on my form and get my calves back to normal.  Only 2 weeks until the Disney Princess Half Marathon!  Oh boy!

The Expo was fun.  They gave us medals, water, gatorade, pretzels, and bananas when we crossed the finish line.  Then we got a delicious tomato Parmesan soup in a bread bowl.   So yummy!  We had our picture taken while we were there, but totally forgot to use our camera to take any pictures.  I think we were just so cold, that we just didn't think about it. We stopped  at a Jo-Ann's Fabric store on the way home for the material for my Snow White sleeves and trim.  Now to finish the outfit!

 Another great race (minus the calf aching) and great day!