Aloha everyone!
Michael is currently running the Ohlone 50k in California. He’s doing well through mile 9 but lost a shoe in some mud which cost him some time to dig out. We have an awesome teamgarrison member sending updates and photos. The first pic is from the start and the second is from mi 9 (thanks Blaine!)
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Aloha everyone!
Just want to start off by thanking everyone who supported me and sent me well wishes on my journey. I’m so lucky to have such great friends and an amazing family, I owe my success to you.
The last time I posted on here I was more than halfway through with training for the Krakow marathon. Things hadn’t exactly been going the way I envisioned. I was completing the runs but was having a really hard time with it. The long runs were becoming brutal and I was starting to lose faith in my training. Things came to a breaking point when I became so exhausted I was having difficulty doing much of anything that didn’t involve laying and a bed. I finally got some labs done in early April and found out I was (pretty severely) anemic. I started taking iron supplements right away but was told it would take a minimum of 1 month to get back to normal. Doc was great and didn’t try to dissuade me from doing the marathon but wanted to at least make sure that the ole body was responding to the iron. Thankfully the labs I was able to have done before taking off for Europe showed some improvement. Since my hemoglobin was so low and I was not getting sufficient oxygen to my muscles during runs, I decided to ease up on the training. In April I ended up running only 23 miles before the marathon compared to ~120 in March.
The anemia coupled with the time off from training left me worried about the marathon. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I just desperately wanted to finish without getting pulled off the course. I read that the cutoff time was 5:30 and I imagined this cart driving along putting people in it who were too slow (like Monty Python’s Holy Grail “bring out your dead” scene, “I don’t want to go on the cart” was uttered many times in our house leading up to the marathon).
The night before the marathon Michael and I discussed the race plan which was to keep with the 5 hr pace group and after 20 miles if I felt fine I could always break away. I felt okay in the morning but not terribly excited mostly because I was still worried if I had recovered enough from the anemia to finish the run. Michael and Matt (our friend currently stationed in Italy who ran the marathon with us) did a good job of distracting me. As the race started I kept with the 5 hr group, however about two miles into it I jogged up to the 4:45ers and felt more comfortable there. I was feeling great running the first few miles until I felt the beginning of some knee pain at around 4 mi. I was concerned that the joint pains were starting so early and wondering if taking such a mileage cut in the last month of training wasn’t a mistake. Luckily, the anemia issue was doing such a great job of distracting me that I could ignore the growing pains. With every step I kept waiting for the wheels to come off like they had done so many times during training and around the half I was relieved that the body (besides the knees) was doing great. I came through around 16 still hanging out with the 4:45ers. The legs progressively got worse, pain moved up to the glutes and back and by mi 21 I was struggling a bit. By that point I knew I could finish in under 5:30 and was trying to enjoy being in Krakow, since the in first half I felt so distracted. I walk/jogged until mi 23 and started walking for about 2 mi, but told myself when I hit the park that I had to run/jog/shuffle the rest of the way. When you come into the park you can see the finish line across the field, but you still have to make your way around the park ~3/4 mi before the big finale, it’s quite cruel actually. As I was running along the park, the fantastic supporters were cheering, clapping, and counting down the meters. I heard a few women along the route cheering especially for the female runners which made me want to run harder for them. When I crossed the finish line I was so inspired by the crowd I felt like I could run forever.
Ok maybe it wasn’t quite like that. I crossed the finish, stuck out my neck to be medaled and was relieved to see Michael standing right there so he could hold up my body (it’s like hugging). I couldn’t believe it was all over, the training, the anxiety, the cheering and the determination. It really was a great experience.
Since this is a training blog and this post is mighty long already I won’t detail the rest of the Europe trip but I do have to thank our friends Eileen, Matt and their little guy for taking us to Positano and giving us the best one day in Italy we could’ve hoped for and for coming with us to Krakow (and Matt thanks for going along with our crazy Krakow marathon idea). Also thanks to our friends Kelly and Mark for leaving their little guy in Switzerland to come hang out with us in Krakow. I’m so happy you guys all enjoyed Krakow as much as I do. My family in Poland, thanks for providing an excellent environment for eating, drinking and sleeping, it was a great post marathon recovery time.
I started this post with thanks and I’ll end it the same way because its what’s most important. My family on both coasts and in Poland, thanks for always giving your support and love. All our friends and coworkers who asked and listened about running things even when they were tired of asking and listening about running things. You guys kept me going. And finally and most importantly thanks Michael, you believe in me more than I can ever believe in myself…I did it baby!
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Aloha everyone,
I am Jim Mullen from Ireland……… More on this in a bit
This past weekend, Pauline and I ran the Krakow marathon. Wow! What an experience! This was my first marathon outside of the USA and the race organizers did not disappoint. The weather had been warm for our first few days in Europe (Naples & Krakow) and we woke up on race day with about a 10-15 degree drop and a rainy morning. We would not have to worry about the heat—this much was certain. We, along with our friend Matt– an American living in Naples–took the train from our hotel to the race start at the local soccer stadium. I wish more American race organizers would have this kind of support. All marathon racers had access to indoor locker rooms, restrooms, drop bag areas and nice dry areas to relax prior to running 26.2 miles around the beautiful city of Krakow. The race even had showers and free beer for all finishers at the finish line..onto the race…
If you have been reading the site over the last few weeks, you know that my training has not been all that great. I continued that trend by not running a step between my great race at Mt Diablo and the Krakow marathon. I have had a difficult time running on this trip and I decided to use this as a rest period. I will get back on the train again once we get back to Oahu. After all, it’s only about 5 weeks until the San Diego 100 and I will most definitely have a few pounds to lose after all the amazing food and drinks here in Poland!
Prior to the race I decided to try and run how I felt and I wondered if I would be able to run a decent race given all the time off and travel (flying halfway around the world has really messed up my sleep pattern). After all the pre-race stuff was accomplished, we headed toward the start line. The rain had stopped but it was still quite chilly. I gave Pauline a quick good luck kiss and we headed toward our starting areas. She was looking for the 5 hr pace group and I was looking for a group running between 3-3:15. I will let Pauline fill you all in on her race in her next post.
The gun went off and I fell into a nice rhythm. I definitely felt like I had not been running enough but that was to be expected. As the course wound its way through historical Krakow, the streets were lined with people cheering. “Bravo” was the most common cheer that I heard and the spectators seemed genuine with their enthusiastic cheers. I locked myself in with a group running around 6:35-6:40 pace and I just went along for the ride. The weather stayed cold and the wind started to pick up as we excited the city center and headed out on the highway to the neighborhoods on the outskirts of town. I was starting to feel a bit cold and the wind was ripping thru me as I started to struggle with the pace around the 13 mile mark around 1:28:20.
From miles 13-16 I tried to slow down a little and catch on with some of the groups of runners as they passed. I was sporadically successful with this for a bit and then I saw something that would completely change my race. I promise to not get too graphic for this next part and if you are the squeamish sort, maybe skip ahead a paragraph. I knew that with the wind and cold that I would be battling some chafing issues so I took the usual precautions of liberally applying the body glide and used my trusty nip-guards (yep, that is what they are called). From this point, let’s just say that I had multiple issues, lost some nip guards, and the body glide was no longer gliding. I knew I was chaffing a bit and I was feeling the damage, but when I looked down to see what was happening, I kind of freaked out and shut things down. I lost all interest in running fast and I just wanted to be finished.
With that being said, I spent the next 10 miles jogging and walking my way to the finish. The nice part was that I was able to see Matt and Pauline along the course. I saw Pauline just as she hit 13.1 and I called out to her but she did not hear or see me. She looked great and was probably jamming out to some Lady Gaga song. I was a little concerned for her heading into the race, so it was super nice to see her out there cruising along. The course stayed lined with supporters along most of the route with the numbers increasing as we ran along the river and back to the finish at the stadium. It was rough little 10 miles. I crossed the finish line around 3:46:27 and I immediately headed to grab my drop bag with a towel and dry clothes. The race provided portable showers, think large port-a-potties with 3 cold water showers, and these were awesome. I assessed the damage, cleaned up, and headed back to the finish line with a Krakauer in hand to cheer on Pauline. As 5 hours came and went, I started to get concerned. I just wanted for her to have a great experience and I was worried that she was out there suffering along the route. I now completely understand how she feels while she is waiting for me to appear out of the woods at my ultra races. I am not very good at the whole waiting game and I started to feel uneasy. Pauline made a great decision to wear a forest green top and was very easy to spot as she approached the finish line. Once she turned the corner to run the last 200 meters into the finish, I started to tear up as she approached. She crossed the line with 5:16 on the clock and I met her with a big hug. I am so very proud of her and I am seriously impressed with her performance. She has had a rough month with her running and she persevered.
Well done Pauline!!!!!
As far as the Jim Mullen comment…. I am not in the official results so far. For some reason my race number, 5530, is applied to Jim Mullen from Ireland. We have contacted the race organizers and hope that they can get both Jim and I the right times on the overall results.
That is about all for now. Time to enjoy our last day in the countryside outside Krakow with new friends and family. It will be a long flight home with stops in Germany and California. I am looking forward to our return to Oahu and to complete my prep for the SD100 by jumping in a local trail race on May 11 and the Hibiscus half marathon at the end of the month. If you are planning on being in the San Diego area the weekend of June 8 and you would like to help crew or pace me, please let me know.
Thanks for reading and Happy Running
Aloha
Michael
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Krakow marathon
Aloha everyone,
Wanted to let you know that Pauline finished her first marathon in around 5:13. We are still waiting for final results and we will update you all with some race stories soon.
Thanks for following!!!!
Michael
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Aloha everyone,
This past Saturday, Pauline and I started our trek toward Europe with a nice, quick stop in the San Francisco Bay Area for the Mt. Diablo Trails Challenge 50k (actually a bit closer to 51k). Last year, I came into this race with some lofty expectations with my new found confidence that I gained by running my first 100 miles. In all the excitement, I started out the race a bit too fast for the first 15-18 miles and I really paid the price for that effort with an absolutely brutal last 4 miles. Despite the melt-down, I still finished in 5th overall with a time of 6:03. Heading into the race this year, I felt that I could learn from the past and run faster than I did last year and I worked on a plan to do just that.
Only six days had passed since the North Shore Marathon and I had only run an easy 4 mile run in the time between races. My hip had been hurting following the marathon and I needed a little rest. On race morning, I was not feeling very good and I headed out for a little 1.5 mile warmup to try and get myself going. On the warmup, I felt even worse and I started to really wonder how the day was going to wind up. I started thinking that the run was either going to be a good one, or it was going to be a rough, long run. When I came back from the warmup and told Pauline how i was feeling, she said,” it’s ok, go work it out on the course”. The perfect thing to say to me at that point in time!
I approached the starting line and noticed a few of the top-notch Bay Area ultra runners. This group included Ian Sharman, who ran 12:44 for 100 miles at Rocky Raccoon in 2011. At that moment, I knew I needed to stick to my conservative plan if I wanted to have any chance to be successful at this particular race. Thank goodness I was feeling like garbage, otherwise I might have gone out way too fast and likely melted down at the finish. This year my plan was to try and run as close to even splits as possible for the entire race. I wanted to run 5 hours–a massive improvement over last year, but one I felt was possible. That works out to around 9:39 mile pace over 31 miles with over 5000 feet of climbing. At the start line, the race director commented that the course was closer to 51k, so I set 9:30 as my goal pace. The plan was to stay conservative, walk steep uphills when necessary, and spend very little time in the aid stations. Bottom line, I needed to keep moving forward at all times and not run too fast–especially early in the race.
The race starts and 3 guys are immediately gone. The race starts with a nice climb that can get your heart rate up rather quickly. I relaxed and ran with another runner in 4th/5th place. I ran relaxed even though I tried to keep my eye on the top 3 guys who had an ever-growing lead on me. The scenery is absolutely amazing in the East Bay hills and I tried to soak in as much as I could. There are 2 major climbs in the first 11 miles of the race and I soon found myself with a different running companion vying for 4th place. We traded spots but barely spoke to each other. Little more than a thanks to the other guy as we each took turns holding open the cattle gates that we ran thru. I was focused and in my own head. I still did not feel great and I just wanted to focus on myself. I kept the IRun headphones in my ears and just kept on rolling. It turns out that my competitor’s name was Alex and man he could fly on the steep downhills. I was running in my New Balance 110 trail racing flats and had a very difficult time with the steep downhills. Maybe next time I will run in a shoe with a little more cushioning to help with the descents. I hit the aid stations right on pace, filling my bottle with Skratch Labs each time. Pauline had a much easier time finding the aid stations this year compared to last and she kept commenting on how much better I was looking compared to last year. It seemed that the plan was working.
I finally caught Alex at the Curry road aid station (23 miles) and I thought that I had a chance for 4th. He pulled away on the steep downhills again and I was left to run alone with runners from the half marathon heading the other direction and offering their support. I was starting to feel a bit worked and my hips/quads were pretty beat up from all the descending. I reached the final climb around 27 miles (the scene of my meltdown last year) and I needed to walk a bit on the climb. I had some time in the bank and I knew that if my overall pace fell to 9:25, that I needed to get running. My run up to the final aid station at mile 28 was met by a very relieved Pauline. She said “wow, you look so much better than you did at this point last year”! I started to do the math and I knew that I had a decent shot at breaking 5 hours. So I hustled out of the aid station, down the hill, thru a bunch of creek crossings and made my way to the finish line in 4:58:18. I ran fast for the last 800 meters because I knew that it was going to be close. I don’t think I have ever felt so good or finished looking so good at a trail ultra. In retrospect, this was pretty close to the way I felt after Hilo to Volcano in January. I was stoked with my time, my 5th place overall and my first age group win in a ultra on the mainland. Running conservative and sticking to the plan totally worked out. I even felt like eating afterwards and Pauline, Katherine, and Kathy all went out for burritos afterward.
The race website is starting to post some great photos and I will include those in a post once I return to the USA.
We are currently hanging out outside of Naples, Italy and we are heading to Krakow tonight. I have not run a step since the ultra and I am feeling rested and excited about the Krakow marathon on Sunday. We had a few travel issues and needed to spend an extra day in Oakland prior to leaving for Europe. So far the trip has been awesome and I will fill you all in later on. I am giving thought to running the marathon with my phone so I can send you Pauline race updates like she has so many times for me. We will see.
Thanks so much for your comments and support. We hope to see you out on the trails soon!
Much Aloha,
Michael
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Diablo 50k
Aloha everyone!
Michael had a great finish at 4:58 (over 1 hr faster than last year!) which secured him 5th place and 1st in his age group. Thanks to all the volunteers for making an easy race/crew environment and thanks to all our extended ohana for coming to cheer and sending digital well wishes our way!
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: 50 k
Aloha everyone! Greetings from the East Bay…
We’re about 15 min away from the Mt Diablo 50k start. It’s a gorgeous day out and Michael is looking forward to a great run. TeamGarrison is planning on crewing at mi 8.2, 23, 28.1 and cheering at the 31.1 mi finish and hoping to post a few updates along the way.
Mahalo for tuning in!
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: 50k
Aloha everyone,
This week P and I stayed on island and I ran the 3rd annual North Shore Marathon on the north shore of Oahu. This is one of my favorite spots on Earth so I was excited to finally get in a solid run up there.
In the week following the Oriflamme 50k, I ran a bit and actually found my way to the track. I wanted to get in a nice pre-marathon workout—6xmile with 100 meter walk/jog rest. I felt great during the workout and averaged 6:23. This workout, along with a few of the other results this year, made me start to wonder if I could scare my 1999 marathon PR of 2:55:42. Mileage for the week landed just under 76 miles and the marathon course measured out around 26.38 miles.
My plan heading into the race was to run around my PR pace of 6:40 as long as I could. If things went well, a PR would be in the cards. But if not, the plan would be to chill out and make it a nice long run. With the Mt. Diablo 50k is 6 days away, I did not want to totally waste myself if today was not going to be a big day.
Well, things turned out just about as I thought they would. I ran the first 12 miles as part of a 3 man chase pack that included the eventual race leader. We were chasing a single runner and we averaged right around 6:37-6:40 pace thru 12 miles as we made our way out to the turnaround at Kaena Point. Once I started to labor with such a long way home, I decided to slow things down. It was a near ideal day for a run with a slight headwind on the way out (meaning tailwind on the way home) and the cloudy skies kept the temperature moderate by Hawaii standards.
On the run back, I had a few moments of doubt and struggle, even though it turned into a training run. As those doubts came up, I focused on my 100 miler mentality and worked to just keep moving. I worked my way thru a little rough patch and closed well over the last few miles. I wound up running 3:10:17. Good for 5th overall and 1st in my age group. I finally popped off a Boston Qualifier and the last 14 miles were a training run. Nice to know that I have some fitness building up. I am excited to see what I can accomplish later in the year after some more training and some rest!
Up next is the Mt. Diablo 50k and then P and I are headed to Europe for a few weeks. Pauline has had to take a break in order to get her iron levels back up. She is doing well and is very excited to show me around the town of her birth, and run a marathon while we are there.
Well, it is time for me to head off to see Barbara at Massage Specialists for an amazing 2 hour massage. I hope everybody has a great week and I am sure P will send out some updates along the way during next weeks 50k.
Happy Running and Much Aloha
Michael
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: North shore marathon
Aloha everyone,
This weekend i darted off island for a few days to run the Oriflamme 50k just outside of San Diego. It was my first of a nice 4 weekend stretch of races that are either 50k or 26.2 miles long–Let the fun begin! Before we get to the race report, just a quick update on my running in the 3 weeks since my successful run at the Hapalua 13.1…
The past few weeks has been a little rough on the training front. I picked up a small cold and then added a sinus infection into the mix so I have not put in any workouts/repeats but I have spent a few days up on Tantalus and even made a run back up Sierra Drive. My mileage for the 3 weeks were 54.71, 58.94, and 36 miles respectively. According to the plan I set up at the beginning of the year, I am around 84 miles short of where I wanted to be at this point of the year. Hopefully, I can stay healthy and start to get a few of those miles back in the next 9 weeks as I complete my buildup to the San Diego 100.
My mindset heading into the race was generally positive and I wanted to make sure that I finished in the top 10. But a top 5 finish was the result I wanted to chase. The course was an out and back starting around 5000′ elevation and following a nice and rolling single track trail for the first and last 5+ miles. The course then descended around 2500′ in elevation over about 4-5 miles to the desert floor. Once on the desert floor, we made our way out and back thru a nice highway of orange ribbons that marked our race course. Once at the turnaround, we made our way back thru the desert, up the monster climb and back to the start/finish–We had a nice little Saturday planned.
At race start, I made my way to the front and quickly established myself in 3rd place. 2 of San Diego’s best Ultra Runners, Igor Campos and Dean Dobberteen ran in 1st and 2nd. I was feeling focused and relaxed, hoping to just stay relatively close in case I had a chance to move up a spot. Thru the first aid station 5+ miles in, I was feeling good and started to drink on my bottle of Skratch Labs. I managed the rolling single track well and I was looking forward to running down the mountain and onto the desert floor.
As soon as I rolled thru the first aid station, the trail became wider and easier to manage. The run carved down into the desert and it was absolutely beautiful. I no longer felt the cold wind of the first few miles and I rolled along with a nice rhythm. As I progressed down the mountain, the trail became much rockier and more technical. I started to think that this thing as really going to be a beast coming back up. Steep and rocky—I would need my A game in order to successfully run back up this thing after a hard 20 miles. I hit the desert floor and immediately noticed a change in trail composition. I was now running in sand. It was all run-able, but it was definitely tough. I stayed focused and kept up on my fluid intake. I was still feeling good and I was wondering how long it would be until I saw Igor and Dean running back at me on their way back. I finally saw both of them and I guestimated that Igor had a bit over a mile on me and Dean had around .75 of a mile on me. After the turn I found a nice, steady stream of really strong looking runners chasing me down. Things were going to get interesting on that climb out of the canyon. Life was good with one exception. On the way back, I tried to move out of the way of a runner heading out and I wound up driving my left knee into a cactus plant—Please do not try and re-enact this at home—It was not fun at all! I do not recommend it. The fun really came when I stopped a few minutes later as I decided to pull out some of the spines. It turns out, I found the cactus that had the same color spines as my blond leg hair. I pulled out what I could immediately see and then hit the trail to try and stay away from the group of chasers.
Needless to say, that climb was a total BEAST and I was not. I hit a bit of a rough spot and spent some time walking my way up the thing–I was not excited about this but I was just trying to minimize my losses as I kept moving forward. On the climb I was passed by Aaron Keller of Colorado and San Diego’s Pete Riley. I reached the 26 mile aid station at the top of the climb in 5th place and I was starting to feel much better. I felt that I could crank out the last 5 miles and finish in 5th. Oh boy, I was wrong…
Things started to take a turn for the worst around 28+ miles. The wagon wheels just came completely off! I tried to run and then walk for a bit but I was finally reduced to just walking the last mile and change. Not exactly how I planned on finishing but I ran hard and put in a very solid effort for the day. I finished up in 5:08:28. Good for 9th place overall and 3rd in the 40-49 age group. I wound up losing over a half hour to 3rd place.
Overall, I am very happy with the trip. The race was solid and I will plan to run both the North Shore Marathon and Diablo 50k with a bit more patience and see if I can work myself into better spots in the closing miles. I was able to hang out with friends and eat some great food—Taco Surf x2 and brunch at Hash House-A-Go-Go. Hanging out with Pete & Eric in PB, Chris & Meghan at Brunch and Lou & Stacy in Dana Point was super cool. It looks like I will be putting together a crew to help me out at the SD 100. Pauline is still up in the air to help out that weekend so I will need some help. I am looking forward to the next trip to sunny San Diego.
Up next for the rest of April…
April 14–North Shore Marathon
April 20–Mt Diablo 50k
April 28–Krakow Marathon–for those of you following Pauline, she hit a little bit of a hiccup but she is back on track and will be ready for her first marathon!
Thanks for all the support and I will see you on the trails
Aloha,
Michael
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Oriflamme 50k
(Guest post by Michael’s other half, Pauline)
Aloha everyone,
Michael’s been periodically mentioning my training on the blog, so I thought I’d jump on here and share a little of my running journey thus far. First off, I’m not an athlete. I’d been one of those small but grossly out of shape people who couldn’t run a mile for most of my life. My exercise regime prior to meeting Michael had consisted of running home after dark from the U St./Cardozo Metro stop, hauling groceries home from the Dupont Safeway and I swear I once took swing dance lessons.
Since moving to Hawaii, I’ve been dabbling in running, off and on whenever I feel like it but not with any purpose or plan. In 2009 I ran my first 5k and got second in my age group. You’d think that would pump me up to keep running consistently but nah, that’d be too much like right. I’ve done 3 more 5ks since then, one each year since 2010, and the “training” has been the same, start running a month before the 5k. After last year’s 5k in October, I really wanted to change my inconsistent running and began talking to Michael about running the Honolulu Marathon in 2013. He thought I could do something in the spring if I just started training. Around that time, the opportunity to go to Europe in the spring to visit friends and family opened up (sadly at the expense of a missed ultra lottery)…and conveniently Krakow holds a marathon every April. I knew I would regret passing up an opportunity to run my first marathon in the city of my birth with Michael there with me, so I verbalized it and made it real. I. Will. Run. This. Marathon.
Michael found a great beginner 18-week training plan for me (we’re stretching it to 20), easy enough for me to manage. It consists of three shorter runs during the week and one long run on the weekend, with increasing mileage as the weeks progress. This past week (week 13) I was scheduled to run 18 mi for my long run. I cut short the long runs for weeks 10 and 11 (15 and 16 miles respectively) and ran 13 mi both days instead as well as another 13 mi for week 12. I wasn’t sure how the 18 would go since I’d gotten into the habit of cutting short long runs. I knew I had to break down the 13 mi wall though because running off the marathon course to eat pierogi is not an option. Happily, I was able to finish my 18 miler yesterday despite the wet conditions (and congrats to all the runners who ran/walked the half marathon yesterday!) I feel more confident tackling the marathon with the 18 miler under my belt.
I’d been running on the treadmill for a few months before starting this plan but converting to outside running was tough, especially when the trade winds flare up on the islands. The training’s been going well, definitely ups and downs. I expected my body to acclimate to the mileage fairly easily but it’s been tiring at times. The hardest part has been distracting my brain from nonproductive thoughts during long runs. I’ve started mixing in podcasts of This American Life (NPR junkie) in with my music to keep the mind occupied.
It’s been a hard but worthwhile journey so far. I am focusing on finishing the marathon and trying not to obsess about pace. I’d like this marathon to be the first of many and having a great experience is going to make me want to keep training for races in the future.
One last (and most important) thing, none of this would be possible without Michael in my life. He’s made me believe and do things I never had the confidence to believe/do myself. He’s a constant source of inspiration and support, not to mention comic relief when I need it most.
Looking forward to posting an update after my first marathon. I’m always looking for things to keep me motivated, so if you have any running/marathon stories, tips, mantras to chant or great podcasts to listen to send them my way!
Thanks for reading and happy running!
P
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Run With Garrison 