No more swims at Tower 26 in Santa Monica Bay. No more bike rides from Culver City to Malibu. No more training runs on the Strand from Marina del Rey to Palos Verdes. Gone are the palm tree-lined streets and clear blue skies and constant 70 degree temperatures.
About 6 weeks ago I left sunny Los Angeles for a new job in Dallas, TX. To say the change of scenery has been dramatic would be an understatement. The temperature is currently consistently in the 40's, golden and red leaves fall from the trees and crunch under your feet, and hills are something you hear about but never see.
After my first week at work I learned about the Dallas White Rock marathon that would take place 2 weeks later and was asked if I was interested in joining other coworkers in running. Sure, I could go from 0 to 26.2 in two weeks. Sounds fun, right? It wasn't. I got a sharp pain in my hip around mile 3, toughed it out and finished in 4:37. My half marathon split was 1:54 and for very limited training, I am very pleased with the result. Also, it turns out that the other coworkers were only running the half marathon. Not really the way I planned on establishing a reputation at work, but I'll take it.
My 2011 race plan is more or less out the window now because it consisted of mostly southern California races, so I'm reworking it now to include races in the Austin, Houston, and Dallas areas. I'm also planning on adding gym workouts to my training which is something I've never really done. Lots of research, lots of planning...lots of fun.
