2011 RnR AZ Marathon 1/2 Marathon DNR

I've been nursing a left calf strain all week and a slight twinge in the right calf. My calves are my Achilles. I've been injured there multiple times over the past three years; probably the same injury.

Harrison at ASU Kids Rock

So, being on the fence all week about the race itself was a bit unnerving, and I was pretty much committed to NOT racing until I got to Kids Rock and the Expo today and got caught up in all the energy. My photo opportunities were good, but I didn't take advantage. I saw Adam The Boning Boring Runner working in the Brooks booth, and Lauren from When I Get a Little Run Run Run working the Runners Den Asics booth. I had HJG with me and he was a great sport even though I had him in the BOB stroller for over 2 hours! I didn't want to push his budding patience. His only problem was when we had to share an elevator. NOT COOL people!

So, the decision was to strap on the Asics this morning and run the 1/2 at about a 9:50 pace. I would have been running with Suzanne, my running partner. What would the calf do???

At the 2am Norman the choc lab potty time, my calf was talking to me in an angry voice and I made the decision to not run. This morning's stumble to the coffee maker confirmed the decision. Bummer but I know that I would have hurt myself more and possibly would have had to ride the golf cart of shame. Got up early anyway and drove two friends down to the metro station so they could ride the train to the start line, and they are still running now. Hope you guys are having a good run and enjoying the scenery.

Meanwhile, Norman, HJG, and Mrs. RTP made our way through our neighborhood to catch the elites.

Fuck you calf, I'm ready to cheer!

 The course passed about 1/2 mile north of our house. It was overcast and about 50 degrees --perfect. After watching the wheelchair racers go by

Maybe not PC, but that is a cool ride!!

we had a short wait and then the elite men came by in a flash. Awesome!!

Hey Josh! Meb!! It's me, Running Through Phoenix!!!

A bit more of a wait and the first women came by just flying

No photos, but Sally's ass is spectacular!

and then there started the amazing field of fast runners men and women. This was truly fun to watch and made me wish I was out there. I am determined to work this calf back into 20-25 mile weeks and build endurance this year. Had some fun tweets with Lauren and Adam this morning. I guarantee we will be running some trail races and possibly some bi/tri crap this year. I am posted for the Runners Den pancake fun run next weekend, which is designed to be a fun recovery run for those who did the RnR today. Just got a tweet from Suzanne who finished in 2:12!! Great job to all the runners, rollers, and walkers who got out there today!