A July 4th tradition

I ran my 16th Peachtree Road Race this morning.
It was hot. It was humid. I walked quite a bit. I finished!
The race, for me, actually began Sunday at the expo. I always look forward to the expo, visiting the vendors and seeing friends. I met my friend Angela there and ran into running buddy Carolyn as well.

Yes it does! Entering the expo

Hey, that's me!

Me, Carolyn and Angela

Ready to race!

The weather forecasts were for very hot and humid, so the Atlanta Track Club put up a code red for the event. It meant lots of water and electrolytes for the two days leading up to race morning.
Angela was in charge of our costume. We wore flag tutus and patriotic headbands. While I was riding in on  MARTA I started talking with other women in tutus and they gave me their left over face stickers, so we had those, too!

All smiles

We're twins!

Wave L ready to start

And we're off!

Angela and I started out OK, but my IT band was really tight and her foot began bothering her, so we ended up walking quite a bit of the race. So, if it's hot and you find random strangers handing out Bloody Marys, you have one!

Cheers!

After we finished we visited with friends Ellie and Dave, having mimosas before we headed off to lunch. All in all, a top notch July 4th! Friends, running, food and fun is certainly my July 4th tradition.

More Than Pink

With Interstate 85 under repairs back in May, the Komen Race for the Cure in Atlanta, which is always held over Mother's Day weekend, got postponed this year until June 24.
It was with slightly weary legs that I ran the 5K this year.
I worried that with the postponement, it would be much hotter than usual for the race, but we got a little drizzle that morning. Kept temperatures down, even if it was a bit more humid.
Nevertheless it was a great event.

At the start

It's been 11 years now since I was diagnosed with breast cancer. The start of the race always tears me up, though, thinking of my friends who were not so lucky to survive so long. The need to find a cure or better treatments is still very critical.

Survivor's medal

The Komen race also always makes me reflect on where I am today. It makes me realize I'm so much more than my cancer diagnosis. In fact, I am much more than pink.