Bearathon 2010!

I'm getting excited- in less than a month is my 3rd half marathon- the 2010 Bearathon in Waco, TX. My motivation of doing it this year was to lose some weight. I started training at 215, and am now around 193, so its helped me get in shape. If I wasn't eating so poorly recently, it would probably be more. I want to get down to 185 for the race so I can run faster. This half-marathon (13.1 miles) is a really pretty run through Waco, along the Brazos River, and into a very hilly Cameron Park. About 7 miles in is when you hit the hills, and let me say, it feels like you are climbing Mt. Everest. Last year, I breezed through the first 7 miles, and hit a wall, or mountain I should say, once the elevation started to climb. Maybe that had something to do with the fact I ran LaFortune Park only, which is very level--not many hills. Once I was out of the park in the race, I was able to recover. I did the first Bearathon in 2003 with a time of 2:10. Last year, I was 1:57:02. This year, my goal is 1:45. This is a really aggressive goal. I've been training currently at about 8:20 a mile, which is 1 hour 49 minutes. Maybe I'll get a good draft from the runners to pick up some steam. Last week I didn't train because my right knee has been hurting, so I feel someone out of shape this week. Tomorrow, I will be running 6.5 miles at the 8:20 pace and see how I feel. The good news is that I have trained alot more this year than last, so hopefully I can get close to 1:45. My running buddy Wes Cash is doing it with me again this year. I am really looking forward to it. I always get really nervous about a day before for some reason, but am ready for March 20th! The pic on the left is me crossing the finish line last year.