Pictured is Charlie Berens of the the Manitowoc Minute
A few blog posts ago I talked about all the world travel and fabulous races planned for this year. We got one trip in...and then, like everyone else, we were stymied by COVID-19. It sucks...I mean REALLY sucks to be sure. And we are not alone, I know many of you reading this are in exactly the same boat. But at the end of the day, we are adaptable...and as a Midwesterner born and bred, I found myself needing to heed the words of Charlie Berens (it you don't know the Manitowoc Minute...click the link above and see an episode from late March/early April of 2020)...and find a way to "keep 'er movin'"
Glenda and I both kept working out, kept hoping for the best for our races, even when sometimes it felt futile.
Easter Virtual Ash Dash/Cottontail Classic 5k featured Little Bunny FooFoo and a Chomped Chocolate Bunny
We ran a 5k (combining two virtual races) in our neighborhood and that was nice. And we decided maybe we could run the odd virtual to help keep us motivated. Glenda had already said that she was going to run the distance on the day of her London Marathon, just because...
Glenda's London Marathon got picked up by the local news...click the link in the paragraph below to see the story
But THEN Glenda did something that kicked us in the right direction. She went big, and we did a lot of planning and she ran the London Marathon, in London, Wisconsin! The news coverage was a surprise....but we were prepared to do it large. I made lemon blueberry scones the day before, we made reconnaissance drives to pick out pubs (the local tavern), cathedrals (the local church), rivers (Koshkanong Creek became the River Thames), ships (someone's fishing boat became the Queen Mary), etc. along her route...we put up banners, a toilet paper finish line, got flags for spectators, procured cut outs of Her Majesty and Big Ben. I made Glenda a skirt and of course we had masks with the Union Jack. We invited friends to run along or cheer from a social distance (several did and all were respectful and careful). And we ate fish and chips when it was done. It was a glorious day...and I (along with Glenda) decided that in big and small ways I needed more of this.
Glenda and I running to honor my mom...Mom took the photo!
Before long Mother's Day rolled around. I wanted to find a way to honor my mom, but she is almost 90, and though very healthy for her age, has some pre-existing health issues. So hanging at her house or going out together seemed ill-advised. We have been seeing her now and then, but alway at a distance and either outside or on her screened in porch. I saw an ad for a Mother's Day Virtual Race with a good (anti-domestic abuse) charity...and a light went on. Why not run a 5k for Mom...and do it at her house where she could watch and chat from the screen porch. We put on our heart skirts, pink shirts and homemade bibs (mine was 2, as I am Mom's second child and Glenda was +1, because she is my +1)...took my Mom a homemade card and some homemade cookies and ran 7.5 hilly laps in her condo's circle drive. Mom came out, took pictures and had a bit of a walk...again all great fun!
Ready to roll on my self-made duathlon
But I haven't been training just for running...I had a duathlon on my schedule (and I still have triathlons coming up, no idea if they will happen). My duathlon changed their schedule, rather than having a virtual option. So I did a little research, and found a few dus...but the most popular were longer distances than I felt ready to do. So I decided to create my own, and looked back at some of the duathlons I had done in the past. Thus, the Suellen's personal progressive duathlon series was born. The first was based on an early season du I had done a couple of times in Texas...the TriGirl. I called this version the "(I'm a) TriGirl Minisprint Du" .5 mile run/8 mile bike/2 mile run. I even gave a donation to an animal charity (The Wisconsin House Rabbit Society), as TriGirl usually partnered with animal charities. (I'd have done the original TriGirl virtually, but they postponed, too).
While Glenda did the USAT standard distance virtual...I did my minisprint. We carefully planned a course and a place to park our transition area, and though her race took longer than mine, we were able to see each other on course and cheer each other. I didn't know if a completely made up event would work for me, but it did! The second in the series titled "Suellen is a Tough Cookie Du" will be 1.5 miles/10 miles/1.5 miles and is currently scheduled for July 11.
In June we have signed up for a virtual "trip" that includes weekly virtual races...so more shenanigans to look forward to and blog about!
Keep 'Er Movin'!
