Pros & Cons

There are always pros & cons to racing specific races at different times of the year but today I'd like to discuss the Pros & Cons of training for the NYC Half which is always in March.  For those of us in the Northeast, March is VERY early in the season and this winter has been relentless.  We haven't had this much snow in a very long time which not only makes it difficult to train - this weather makes it difficult to be around people in general.  Everyone is miserable - it's not pretty.

Here are the Pros & Cons for registering and training for this very early seasoned race for this specific year....


CONS:

1. Miserable snow, ice, snow, freezing snow, icy roads, sidewalks;
2. Dangerous conditions - I'm not complaining about running in the cold temperatures but the icy roads/sidewalks made it actually dangerous to run outside;
3. Massive amounts of snow days leaving kids without school, meaning no running for me at all.  In addition to no running on those days, it also is a day of non-stop eating junk food just to make it through the day in order to avoid an injury to someone.
4. The treadmill sucks.  No two ways about it - it sucks and I've been forced to use it more than I've ever used it in my life.  I hate it - it's the worst.

Snow Glorious Snow.

PROS:

1. For the purpose of this post, I had to come up with at least one Pro for this list - I guess I'd say the one pro to signing up for an early season race is that it has kept me moving/running during the above mentioned misery that was/is this winter. 
2. And the most amazing reason is that I've raised money for my beloved Girls on the Run and will be proudly running for all the girls that cannot afford tuition - no girl is ever turned away from Girls on the Run because of financial hardship.  Thank you to all that donated - I greatly appreciate it.

GOTR Glen Rock Fall 2013 team

The NYC Half is in a very short 14 days from today.  After today's 10 mile run, I feel as if I'm ready for this race.  Finally.  I've been so nervous about it due to the nasty winter and my overall lack of running confidence.  But today I did ten very long, very cold and very slow miles but I did it...