3 degrees

Well, I've had a very busy week with classes ending, finals beginning, and 2 days of working. And only 5 days left till I'm basking in the warmth, sun, and pollution of central California. Yay! (really!). I went for a 7 mile run this morning, and the temp supposedly felt like 3 degrees- all I'll say is that my lips were numb, other than that I was very (overly) bundled up. I'm looking forward to running in the 50s -- only a bit longer. Well, I have two more finals to take, besides working on Monday, so I'm getting ready to head out of Wellesley, but I'll be back for wintersession and training. Hopefully I'll get a chance to write more once I'm home. Til then.

Snow

Snow has arrived to the Wellesley bubble, which means two, no, three things. First, it's freezing cold, literally freezing. Two, the ground is icy, which means I'm not going to risk running outside because of my being prone to fall over, which meant four miles on the treadmill today. And three, it means I'm thinking about nice, warm, sunny home in CA-- only 2.5 weeks left! yay! now back to my final projects....

First group run

Let me just say how incredibly lucky I am to be a student at Wellesley College. Not only have I met an amazing alum training, too, but the CWS (Center for Work and Service) is reimbursing me for my transportation expenses, and group training happens to take place, of all places in the Boston area-- Wellesley.

Today temperatures were slated to feel like 13* at 8 am. I, of course, was excessively layered from head to toe (I really wanted to wear long wool socks, too, but I managed to resist). I took the Zipcar parked right next to the Science Center to the Wellesley Community Center. I wasn't sure exactly where this was located, only that it's near where Rt. 9 and Rt. 16 intersect. I happened to find it right before I would have packed it and have gotten completely lost (Wellesley roads don't allow for easy U-turns). The morning started with a long yet energy filled training talk by Coach Rick, about running form, gadgets, goals, etc. I'm really impressed with his dedication to the Team and his experience (30 something marathons... wow!). One of the assistant coaches is a sports psychologist, which is exactly the field I need to work on... so I can make it through mile 17! Then Colin, the owner of Marathon Sports, came to talk to us about shoes and gear- and about how we shouldn't overdress. whoops.

Now, the run itself... 2 hours later, was a bit hilarious. 60 or so people jogging out of the WCC into the streets of Wellesley- SUVs beware! (before the run we got a toned-down lecture of Wellesley townspeople's behavior, which was quite amusing). I ran with a really great girl from Providence College... all the way through the Ville to the College, which is about 2 miles from the Community Center, right along the actual marathon course. Afterwards, I met two other girls who go to BU (Boston University), and to both of our surprise, she also used to be a rower. So perhaps this is where ex-rowers end up, training for the Boston Marathon, and staying a bit warmer running rather than sitting in a boat on the icy Charles River.

Until my next run...

Brrr

So, I went out on my first training run today, around Pond Road, about 4 miles, although I didn't have my watch, nor do I own a fancy GPS thing. I'm a bit nervous about cold-weather training. I'm used to California. Where the coldest day I had ever run was 31 degrees, my race day 2 December's ago. Freezing. ha! It was that cold today and I saw someone running in shorts and a t-shirt. I on the other hand had on tights, gloves, fleece head band. At least I know what I'll be asking for for Christmas-- more fleece!

First Meeting & First Workout

I had my first meeting w/ TNT last Saturday in Somerville. The TNT staff are incredibly friendly, and everyone had a ton of energy. And, who would I find myself sitting next to, but a Wellesley alum! I was also very relieved to find out that our weekend team runs are going to be in Wellesley town, although 2 miles away from campus, compared to anywhere else in the Boston metro area, I'm in luck! It's a great area to run at (although I'm still quite leery about running in the freezing cold and snow), and it's on the marathon course no less.

The team's honorees are amazing... a few of them spoke at the event, which was incredibly moving. I'm so glad that I can run in honor of Peyton! I haven't seen her in awhile (being 3000 miles away and all) but the Central California TNT contact sent me a photo of her that I'll eventually post on here, of her running the Blossom Trail kid's fun run earlier this year. She's growing up so fast!

The normal workout schedule includes running on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, cross training on Wednesday and Friday, and group run on Saturday. This being Thanksgiving, it's been a bit modified, and workouts won't officially start till next week. I did my first workout on Monday with Tracy, 45 minutes of erging on slides. Oh, slides. I'm hoping to make my workout schedule accomodate hers, so that I can share in her intensity.

Anyways, today is Thanksgiving! I had a great time in New Hampshire with Becca's family, which, no, did not include running anywhere, although I enjoyed an amazing Thanksgiving dinner, and a walk through the snowy woods.