Pictures from some of our races

1st Half Marathon (13.1 miles)

What/Where - FAUQUIER HALF MARATHON in Warrenton, VA.

Jarod and I completed our 1st half marathon yesterday. Our friends Grant and Susan ran with us and both placed in their age group - great job guys!

It was a beautiful day for a run - about 50 degrees and sunny. The race was truly a community race with only about 200 participants! When we got to the race we were able to park right downtown (much different then the Army 10 miler) and walk up to the starting line. The race started in Old Town Warrenton and proceeded out into the beautiful countryside where we passed farms, pongs, cattle, horses and beautiful house. Between miles 9 and 10 there was a HUGE hill but after that relatively smooth sailing. The race was much hillier then we expected, but overall a really great race. After that race I was starving - this has never happened to me before. I guess once you go over 11 miles you need food! Good thing they had a HUGE continental breakfast for us at the Fauquier Springs Country Club. I think we all had at least 2 plates of food - that's a lot of running we did! :) We ended up having pretty good times for us - especially since Jarod had a sinus infection and had never run more then 10 miles before and I have never done more then 11. Here are our times.

Kadie - 2 hours and 18 minutes
Jarod - 2 hours and 20 minutes

That's the last race for the year...now we are focused entirely on studying! Kadie is taking the C.I.S.A. December 13th and Jarod is going to take the GMAT either December or January. Our exercising and training will continue throughout the holidays and kick back up once we finish our tests! :)

Half Marathon

Jarod and I have signed up for a 1/2 marathon (13 miles) race November 9th. Stay tuned for the results! :)

Sprint Tri

Swim, Bike, Run! That's the Tri way!

This weekend I completed my 1st triathlon with my good friend Becci and the support of our directors of logistics - our hubbys! It's amazing how much coordinating goes into this event. Basically how it works is everyone sets their bikes up in a set area - also known as " racking your bike" before the race starts. Along with your bike is everything you will need to complete the biking and running parts of the race. So, things like tennis shoes, socks, t-shirt and pants/shorts, helmet, towel, water, etc. have to be out under your bike b/c the time it takes to get all of that done counts against your overall time.

So, we were in the 500s out of 650 participants - so near the back. The race kicked off at 8am and Becci and I didn't go until a little after 9am. They split the pool in 1/2 with 8 total lanes. Odd #'d people were on the left, even #'d people on the right. Then you had to swim down and back in 4 of the lanes, so 8 one way trips (total of 400 meters). Then you pulled yourself out of the pool and ran around the building (mind you it's about 65 degrees and you're wet and in your bare feet) to the bike set up. Once you reach your bike, you dry off as quickly as possible, put your shoes/socks on and whatever clothes you want to wear. Put on your helmet and gloves and get moving! You have to walk/run your bike out of the bike area but once out it's full speed ahead!

The bike ride was nice, we had to go 13 miles and most was flat or downhill, but there was about 3 miles (between 7-10 miles) that were all uphill and really tough. The scenery was beautiful and I was surprised by how extremely friendly everyone was (spectators and participants). At the end of the 13 miles, you come back to the bike rack section. You get off your bike, walk/run it in, re-rack it and then get ready to run.

The run was really nice. It was only 3.1 miles. I was surprised though at how tired I felt. I normally run 9.5 - 10 min miles and I ended up doing those miles around 10.5 min each. The course was through a small community and relatively easy - they must've known we'd need it after doing the other 2 events. :) The end of the course brought you back to wear the bike rack area was but right before was the finish line. It felt great to finish!

I definitely recommend everyone at least try a Tri. It was a very interesting experience for me. I think next time I'll feel more comfortable b/c I've got one under my belt. They haven't posted times yet but when they do I will be sure to add it to this blog.

Another experience to check off my list! :0) Now the question is, should I go ahead and do a 1/2 marathon now or wait until the spring??? stay tuned! :)

RESULTS ARE IN- I did much better then I practiced!! :)
KADIE BLANEY ALEXANDRIA VA

Swim time - 10:10
Transition 1 - 5:30
Bike - 47:56
Transition 2 - 1:11
Run - 31:26
Overall time - 1:36:11

Jarod (the Gazel's) 1st 10 miler!!

Jarod and I did the Army 10 miler yesterday. It was awesome! Not only was this Jarod's first 10 mile race, but it was also the 1st time he has ever run 10 miles..ever! He did great!! This is the first race that I've ever run where it was PACKED!! all 10 miles. It was tricky running around people for 10 miles, but it made the race go really fast. The weather was perfect - little humidity and around 65-70 degrees. I had a few technical challenges (like my shoe laces coming undone - that never happens!) and our friend Becci that ran with us has asthma, so at mile 9 I had to stop and get her inhaler out, but despite all of that we finished in under 10 minute miles!! :)

The race was really beautiful. We ran around many of the key sites in DC - the Washington Monument, the White House, the Mall and much more. At the end of the race, there is one final turn and then you can see the finish line. I decided I would sprint so I pulled away from Jarod and about 1/2 way to the finish line he passed me and beat me by a few seconds. (if only i had longer legs).

I would recommend the race because of the awesome views and the fact that it was relatively flat. However, since there were so many people I found myself getting very frustrated dodging people for 10 miles. All in all, we had a great time and were feeling very good when we finished! Here are our times.

Jarod - 1:37:54 (9.47 min/mile pace)
Kadie - 1:37:56 (9.48 min/mile pace)

Kadie's 1st 10 miler!!

Well, I survived. It was a great day for a run. The rain cleared and it was cool around 65-70 degrees. I ended up running with Jarod's old roommate - Dan Read. We had never run together before so that was interesting. We stayed together until mile 6 and then I set him free...I was holding him back with my 10 minute miles. :)

I did really well until between mile 8.5 and 9.5 due to the infamous "Farm Basket Hill". I finished in 1 hr and 42 mins. I was happy with the time since this was the 1st time I have every run 10 miles. :) During the race they had the color guard carrying flags. They started out in front of us and we ended up passing them about 1/2 way into the race. At the last 1/2 mile, they started catching up with me and Jarod was at the end yelling "don't let them pass you" so I kicked it up (don't know where the energy came from!) and ended up finishing way in front of them. Phew!

There's an interesting thing that happens once you hit the 10 mile mark - at least for me this happened. Things hurt that didn't hurt before. I have a few blisters on my feet and my camelback (stores water in a backpack) that I use for running left an abrasion on my back. This has never happened before and I am used to running about 20 miles per week - just split out. Blisters - it's about time I switched over to my new running shoes anyways. I was holding out but this helped me decide. Camelback - not sure what to do about this. I guess just tighten it down. Maybe add a band aid or 2.

It was really nice having Jarod cheer for me as I finished out the 10 miles. He ran 5 miles while I was running, just not in the race. After the race, we went back to the hotel, showered and drove around Libery University (where we went to college). It's amazing how much they've added and improved the school since we've been there. Around noon we met Dan (who I ran with) and his wife Elizabeth and their 2 boys for lunch. It was really fun catching up with them. Jarod and I decided we miss Lynchburg...

So, now Jarod and I are preparing for the next 10 miler on Sunday - the Army 10 miler. It's not supposed to be as hilly as the race I just did and it's in DC so it should be pretty. I'll blog about that when we finish..

Here are my times by mile
Mile 1 - 10:10
Mile 2 - 9:38
Mile 3 - 10:07
Mile 4 - 10:03
Mile 5 - 9:56
Mile 6 - 10:17
Mile 7 - 10:27
Mile 8 - 10:24
Mile 9 - 11:14
Mile 10 - 10:46

Overall time - 1:42:14
Overall pace - 10:18

If you want to learn more about the race, there's a guy that's been running this race for MANY years and blogged a really good description of the race here.
http://myoccasionalpieces.blogspot.com/2007/09/race-day.html

Some preliminary pictures from Italy

I will post later on Kodak or something...but here are some of the first ones I have named.

Venice at night

View of St. Mark's Square from Cathedral

Sunset in Dubrovnik, Croatia

Jarod and Kadie in Pompeii with Mt. Vesuvius in the background

Vatican City from the Dome of St. Peter's Cathedral

Jarod and Kadie at the Colosseum in Rome