Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Taking a Trip Down Memory Lane

At night when I am having trouble falling asleep, I try to relax my mind by thinking about running. I conjure up memories of previous miles ran and some of my favorite running experiences.  This method tends to work most times and I drift off falling asleep as I'm "running" free. 

I was looking through my keepsakes the other day and I came across two photos that made me smile. These photos were taken when I lived overseas and I was really having a blast with my running.




The photo above was taken at the finish of my second marathon.  I ran the Venice marathon for the first time in 1998, then I ran it a second time in 1999. For the first year  that I ran it, I followed a training program from a Running Times magazine. The following year I worked with a coach/mentor and he really whipped me into shape.This marathon wasn't even a "goal" race for me.  I had been training to run the ARMY 10 miler which had taken place earlier that month.  I didn't do as well as I had hoped at the 10 miler. This marathon was a total redemption run for me. I qualified for the Boston Marathon but, I didn't have the resources to run the race. It took me almost nine years to qualify for Boston again. 
This next photo was taken at the finish of Montefortiana. This was my first half marathon. It had taken place in January of 2000. The race was run in Northern Italy and I remember it being freezing cold.  It was one of the most spectacular courses that I had ever run. It went through quaint villages and beautiful farm lands. It was a hilly course with a mixture of roads and dirt trails.  I had finished 8th woman overall and I received a neat little backpack filled with treats and a bottle of wine.  

I hope someday to return to Europe to run one of these events again. 




4 comments:

  1. Neat photos. Were races in Italy much different than races stateside? Did official race photos cost and arm and a leg back then too?

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  2. Racing in Italy was so different. A marathon is 42 Kilometers not 26 miles. Early in the race the kilometer markers seemed really close together. It's also a bit more serious, everyone is running the race and there are no costumes or sparkly tutus. Also I remember running without music back then.

    I was lucky to receive photos for free from both of the races. I had placed in my age group and the photos were sent complementary.

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  3. This made me happy to read. I love falling asleep to pretty thoughts. And I love reading about your athletic drive. Can't wait for your return to Europe.

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  4. A nice way to fall asleep indeed! I will have to try that next time.

    These are great photos, Dolly! Thanks for sharing. Must be a different experience to race in Italy. I would really like to do a marathon this year but I know I haven't put in the training to shoot for that goal.

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