January 16th 2011 starts training for the Buffalo Marathon. I was not pleased with the Buffalo half marathon the first time I ran it. But there has been some great improvements to the race in the last couple of years. At least that is the rumor. Plus, my friend Eddie is coming to run it with me. It will be his first ever marathon. It will be my fourth marathon but the first time I will not be finishing the race at EPCOT center. I have to say this worries me. I have run nearly every part of the course doing various races in the Buffalo area, but 26.2 miles without the satisfaction of a Mickey Mouse Metal is very disconcerting.
The great thing about this race is that it is relatively flat AND inexpensive. Inexpensive is key to all things in 2011. Plus, Eddie and Steph will not need a hotel, we can all car pool to the race, and we can all celebrate that evening together. These are great things.
Stacey would like to run the half so some planning will be needed for that. Otherwise this is going to be a really great race. If anyone else would care to come out to Western NY and run it too, let me know. It may be a small house but everyone is welcome to share a bit of the floor.
So what are my goals. I have my Plan A goal which is my pipe dream I would love to hit time. I will not share it with you. So Plan B goal is sub 6 hours. Disaster has struck in every race I have run. Be it cramps, blister or sub zero weather. Which means I have never beaten my first race time of 6:30 minutes. I know in those last two races I could have beat 6 maybe gotten close to 5:30. So I want it bad. Plan C is reality. I am training mostly in the worst part of Buffalo winter. It will not be nice for running until mid April at best. So I really just want to finish uninjured with at least a sub 6:30.
This will be my first distance race of the year, but hopefully not my last. There is also the Grand Island Half that I am interested in, as well as the Niagara International full and Half Marathon in October. If something great happens this year and finances are really really and I mean really good, I would like to do the Disney Wine and Dine Half in october instead. But not if it endangers my ultimate goal. The Walt Disney Goofy Challenge in 2012. That is right, I want to run the Half and Full Marathon in January next year.
So tomorrow it all starts. Pray for me.
Filed under: running
I’m super excited about this race, and I can wait to run it with you!