Hey guys! I've been a bit quiet here on the blog lately... I hope you haven't missed me too much. Life has gotten extremely hectic with some career transitioning and some personal things, but I'm here today to get back into Friday Five posts!
On Fridays, Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC, Cynthia at You Signed Up For What?!, and Mar at Mar on the Run, host a fun linkup with new themes each week. This week's theme is SPRING. I've decided to talk about five spring races that I'm looking forward to.
1. Shamrock Shuffle 8k on March 29. This is always a fun race. Being Irish, I of course like the theme. This year they are doing something new – finisher medals! That's exciting. I can't say I'm always a fan of the shirt, but they are tech material, so I wear them for training if nothing else. I'm hoping for some 50 degree weather! It's really fun running through the streets of Chicago, especially down State Street past the Chicago Theatre. The crowds are always energetic, plenty of on course support, and fun after party in Grant Park (though the beer isn't quite what I would prefer...). If memory serves correctly, there was a band playing and food/beer for sale. Participants received their first beer free if they were 21+.
2. Boston Marathon on April 20. No, I'm not running, however I love watching the live feeds. It's so inspiring and motivating. I can't wait to see how my pals do, not to mention Shalane!
3. Southwest Half Marathon on May 3. This is my goal half marathon. I'm training to get a PR. I like this race because it's a small runner field, so I don't have to worry about congestion or weaving around people.
4. Tinker Bell Races May 8–10. I am registered for the Neverland 5k as well as the Pixie Dust Challenge. This will be my second time out to Disneyland, as well as my second time running the Tinker Bell half marathon - - first time with the 5k and 10k :)
5. Soldier Field 10 Mile on May 23. Last year was the first time I ran this race, which I signed up for the week of, and was so glad I did. It was such a great race, and we had beautiful weather. It was really neat to get to run through Soldier Field and actually finish on the 50 yard line. The course was nice (and the beginning was fairly wide, so gave the large number of runners a chance to spread out), plus a great medal, tech shirt, and a cool bag with all of your post-race goodies (water, pretzels, etc.). I'm racing again this year, as a BibRave Pro, and I'm super excited. Shameless plug - register before March 31 to save $10 on your registration. On April 1 the price increases. I was planning on doing this rave again this year, I just got lucky enough to be chosen as a BRP for it :) Join me and #FinishOnThe50 at the 2015 #SF10. Head on over to SoldierField10.com and register!