My brother and I are going to be running the OKC half marathon at the end of April. My SIL is going to run the 5k that same day. They came up to visit me this weekend and we had a great visit! While I love reading all about running from blogs, magazines, books and anywhere else I can find, it was really encouraging to have them here. We talked about out training and how great it is to see progress being made and everything else running we could think of. It was great because normally the people I see don't want to talk running as much as I do.
B got a Garmin when we went to the running store and got his shoes. H went back to the running store a few weeks later to change her shoes and she picked up a Garmin at that time. I was pretty jealous because these brand-new runners had a Garmin and I just have my $4.98 watch from Walmart to time my runs. But I tried to remain content.
I got a great surprise this weekend though when B&H told me they brought me an early birthday present. My birthday isn't until the end of April (just a few days before OKC) so I was wondering what it could be? IT WAS A GARMIN!!! Sweet! Now I can use it to train for OKC.
I named him Gary, just because it fits him. I love it! I did let DH know very quickly that I'd named him Gary so that in the near future when I say "Gary and I are going out for a while" he wouldn't get jealous. I just read the comments in a BRF's blog from one of his readers and they named their's Paula - so I'm not crazy that I named him. LOL!
Anyway, for those of you who don't know what a Garmin is (Mom, this is for you), it's a Global Positioning System that uses sattelites to track your course. But it's really a lot more than that. He's a bit bigger than a watch, but that's how you wear him. He can track your miles and how fast you are running. You can program him to help you do intervals (walk a minute, run a minute or run a quarter-mile, do a two minute cool-down), beep at you when you drop below a certain pace (helpful when you need to maintain a certain pace for the marathon), download your run onto your computer and analyze how you did (how consistent you ran, how fast, how far), map your run, run wherever you want and tell it to take you back to start, and so much more. It's freakin awesome!!!
I love Gary. He's my new best friend.
With Gary we went out for a run on Saturday and I got 3 miles in. Sunday I did 5. B, H, and I all had our Garmins on and we went our separate ways and relied on them to bring us back. It was great. Now I just want to run all the time and play with my new toy. Just another bonus to Gary. He just doesn't get tired out!
Oh, so let's post some numbers now that we can:
Saturday 3/15/08:
Lap 1: 11:08
Lap 2: 11:01
Lap 3: 13:06
Sunday 3/16/08:
Lap 1: 11:32
Lap 2: 11:38
Lap 3: 11:22
Lap 4: 13:44
Lap 5: 12:28
And here's a running ettiquitte question? When you drive and a funeral procession passes, you pull over by the side of the road and wait to continue on your way until the procession passes by. Do you do that when you run? On Saturday a procession came by and I crossed the street and stopped. Do any of you do that too or do you just keep running?
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"I always loved running... it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs." -Jesse Owens
About Me
- Andria
- I love to run. I love to knit. I try to balance those two loves with raising my daughter, being a good wife and step-mom, and figuring out what I want to be when I grow up.
Marathon
At mile 20 I thought I was dead.
At mile 22 I wished I was dead.
At mile 24 I knew I was dead.
At mile 26.2 I realized I had become too tough to kill.
At mile 22 I wished I was dead.
At mile 24 I knew I was dead.
At mile 26.2 I realized I had become too tough to kill.
8 comments:
I love that you love Gary! I love my Aragorn too. :D I'm not sure if I'll stick with that name or not, I'll have to wait until I run with him a little more.
Tomorrow Bobby and I are going running around my brother's housing complex here in FL. Yea for breaking out the Garmin's in a new state! :D
WOW nice gift. You will love Gary.
I've never had the funeral thing happen, but I think if I was very close I would stop too.
Does one lap for Gary equate to a mile?
Yes, I set him up so that a lap is a mile.
Andria! I'm so proud of all of your progress! I had lost your blog and email info, but you posted on my blog today, and I've found you! I can't wait to read all of your past posts!
XO
KC
Very nice early birthday present! You will love Gary more as time goes on. I just call mine the dude. He really needs a name though :)
Can't say I have ever come across a funeral procession while running. I would probably stop though. Cars and bikes should so why not runners?
YAY on Gary! You'll love him for sure!
I'm not exactly sure what you're supposed to do in reference to the funeral thingy?!?
Just one thing - you said that Gary doesn't get tired out. Well, keep in mind that once charged, he will only last 10 hours (according to the manual). This is no big deal to you - Miss Less Than Seven-Hour Marathon Woman. But to me, it hit me that my Gamin may run out before me. :-)
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