Wed Winners: Recaps++ to INSPIRE!

 Happy Wednesday!

This is a special edition of the Wednesday Winners weekly post, with shout-outs to a handful of runners who really gave it their 'all' this past weekend, digging deep and finding out what they would become by reaching their (newest) destination!  

 In order of the distance they tackled, give a big 

YOU ROCK! 

to ...

Laura, a friend here in Orlando, who recently ran her first 15K and did a great job. We hugged at the finish line and she whispered in my ear, "I feel like I'm going to throw up."  That's okay... you earned it!   

Shelley, who took on her first 10-mile race in the Buffalo Stampede and looked pretty darn snazzy doing it. (Yes, it is all about the visor, after all!)  You can read about her big day here.

Next, two members of the Turtle Tribe took on a half-marathon for the *first*time*ever* this past weekend....

MJ discovered a 'whole new her' in the inaugural Disney Wine & Dine Half Mary that started at 10:00 p.m. Saturday night.  Um, can you say Past My Bedtime??  I hear the park was beautiful and the after-party awesome.... Check out MJ's blog here.  She let us know she finished.  We're waiting for the details!

Debbie and Daniel, local running buddies, ran the Disney race, too... Debbie's run was one week after her Akron (OH) Marathon, and for Daniel, a newbie runner (less than six months) AND a fellow diabetic, the Disney race marked his first-ever 13.1.  Way to go!!  

Across the peninsula, and a little north, friend and fellow Floridian, Harold, aka The Aimless Runner, ran his first-ever 13.1 in the Marine Corps Half Marathon in Jacksonville.  Overcoming a surfing injury and multiple bridges, this guy was lookin' for the beer at the finish line.  Go Harold!  OO-RAH!  You can read his cool recap here.

  

Let's hear it for 26.2 ....

Joanne reached a new place on her own journey as she completed her first-ever 26.2 miles, the Wineglass Marathon, an event, ironically, spectated by another blogging buddy, AJH, who's on the injured list and wrote about her experience here.  (I don't think these ladies know each other??)  Joanne earned a little soreness, and shared tips about running a marathon (somewhat) comfortably. Check out her advice here.  Congratulations, Joanne!!  Love the new bling from Hubs!  This course looks especially beautiful... might be an addition to this turtle runner's agenda for next fall! 

Anybody up for 50 miles? 

Through the desert? 

In the heat? 

For HOURS?  

With horses, Mountains, and boulders?

Apparently, 

the answer was YES for Emz, 

as she decided 

to take on a new distance to really put things in perspective, find out what she was made of, and come away feeling mighty fine!  

In her recap, she described her race this way:   

EXTREME 

After reading it, I found even that word falls short.

And in a follow-up post, a few more words, in which she said.....

"Thank you for following me on this journey. 

It has meant everything to me."

Emz, thank you for sharing your journey with us.  

You have inspired me to go further,

push harder, 

and suck it up!

You've also made me think about salt and pickles 

a little differently... 

Oh, and I'm sharing your recommendation 

for blister help.  

(thank you!) 

And while these friends tackled their new race distances, many  Turtles Tribe friends found out more about what they're becoming  on their own  

journeys 

toward their destinations....

 

Plagued with injuries this year, Jill was excited to share her news of a 'really good week'  (Yay, Jilly!) ~ the first one in a month, she says.  You can read about her good vibrations here.

A little further south, fellow blogger Ann is gearing up for her first-ever marathon, and has had some recent struggles with the l-o-n-g training miles and more recently, GERMS.  Send her a little bloggy love (and advice about dealing with 20+ milers, if you can offer some!) as she gets ready for her BIG race.

Also in the South is fellow blogger, Ask Wifey, who recently celebrated her 21st.... um, mile that is. Yep. She's continuing to find out what she's capable of as she adds miles, commences tapering, and thinks a lot about her upcoming first-ever marathon, The Marine Corps Mary in Arlington, VA, October 31st.

Not ready for your first ultra yet? Well, take it from Jill.... training is everything! Check out her ultra training adventures here.  Can you say Billy Goat Gruff?  (You won't see these guys in Orlando!)  

A shout-out goes to my buddy Kim in the heartland who will be running the Chicago Marathon this weekend, her first-ever 26.2.  We were supposed to meet-up and run the Chicago Half together in September, but didn't when life got in the way.  Now, she's ready for her first full Mary and I'm cheering for her all the way from Orlando!  Go, Kim!!!!

The Chicago Marathon, a race on my own Bucket List, is also special to  me as I think about other running buddies: one who ran it last year for the first time (Morgan!), and totally ROCKED it(!), and one who was training hard to run it this year  for the first time, but fell victim to injuries during training (Lauren), who had to come to terms with this set-back as part of her own personal journey.  So sad.  Lessons learned, she says.  Don't worry, girl. Just means a better day is coming!!!

And as a little, tiny side note, I'd like to share my own personal  'high five' as of late... after a month of the fewest miles (16) in a year, I finally put my game face back on, and enjoyed a 3-miler last week, a 5-miler over the weekend, and another 3-miler this week (so far).  Feels good!  Yay! 

We become what we seek....

Congratulations and HUGS to all of this week's 

Wednesday Winners 

for  

finding yourselves 

and 

owning your journey 

in all of those miles!

Bravo!!!!

Happy running, friends....

Robin

Own your journey. One run at a time.