Valentine's Day Massacre Marathon & Relay
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After completing a brutal yet satisfying 14-mile run at a 7:40 pace yesterday with Sole Sister Cindy Barbour, I was on such a high (or so mentally and physically broken) that when she suggested we partner together to run the Valentine's Day Massacre Marathon & Relay this coming Sunday, it never occurred to me to say no.
Never occurred to me even though:
- Cindy is a MUCH faster runner than me
- I have the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon the following Saturday, allowing only 5 days of recovery time
- I wrote a blog post describing my utter exhaustion the last time I ran the Massacre on a FOUR-person team
- The course is in Country Park which means hills and all my training as of late has been on flat roads
The course through Country ParkI think it comes down to the hoodie. The Massacre has the best hooded sweatshirts for participants of any race I've ever been in, hands down. I'm willing to put myself in pain for one of those.
The race is held over a 1.6 mile loop. Runners alternate running loops, 8 apiece. I think I remember that 2-person teams were permitted to run two loops at a time before switching out. I hope so. The hardest part of this race isn't the distance. It's cooling off after each of your laps then having to go back out on the course with tight muscles.
The best part of this race though is the down times. It's a great chance to talk and catch up with fellow runners who are between laps and people treat the event like one big tailgating party. There'll be tents and lawn chairs and plenty of food and drink.
The key word for this week is easy. Go easy on the legs. Easy on the workouts. Eat well. Drink lots and lots of lots of water. A little bit of prayer probably wouldn't hurt--especially given the team name we picked.
On Sunday, be sure to root for TEAM SOLE SISTERS: HOT FAST WOMEN.
Cheers,
Dena
