Team Run The Long Road 5K

I know many of you were just dying to know what I had planned on Saturday 😉  Well, the wait is over…

For the past few months, I have been training my friends Trish and Heather for their first 5K.  They chose a small (or so we thought) 5K in Medford, NJ.  Trish and Heather trained their butts off through the winter and could not have been more excited for their first race.  Word got out to other friends and family about the race and before I knew it, we had a Team Run The Long Road!

I cannot express in words how happy and excited I was to have an entire team of runners (some newbies and some veterans) together on a beautiful Saturday morning.  This is exactly why I’m a running coach.  I love to see beginners fall in love with running and push themselves to run further then they ever could have imagined.  I always say that the world would be such a nicer place if everyone ran.  Mushy, I know, but so true.

Of course we ordered Team RTLR shirts for the occasion.  I have to say a very special thank you to Sandy (Trish’s co-worker) who designed a RTLR logo for our shirts.  She is ridiculously talented and the logo looked amazing.  That’s the Philly skyline in the background!

Team RTLR:  Amanda (a Main), Catherine (niece), Karyn (sister), Desiree (sister-in-law), Heather (a Main), Trish (a Main), Aidan (nephew), and Sarah (niece).

Back view:

And look who made a surprise appearance?!  Mom and Dad Run the Long Road!

I must say that I had the BEST running partner for the 5K…my 10-year-old niece Sarah.  This was her first 5K!

Me with the soon-to-be 5Kers, Trish and Heather.

Getting ready to line up…

And we’re off!  I carried my camera and was able to get some action shots of Sarah.

It was a hot and sunny day but everyone did great!  Sarah and I ran a 28:19.  I was so impressed…she’s only 10!  Trish and Heather did a fantastic job.  They did a practice run on the race course about a month ago and managed to shave 5 minutes off that time.  5 minutes on a hot day?!?!  Amazing.  Way to go girls!

Go Team RTLR…we did it!

The first time 5Kers.  I know they were all thinking, “when’s the next race?” 🙂

And….I just happened to see Carl Lewis!  Pretty cool, right?  I had to wait in line with a bunch of kids and may of had to throw an elbow or two to get ahead but he autographed my bib and posed for a picture.

It was a great way to kick-off Memorial Day weekend!  I’m so proud of my team.  Thanks girls for making it a wonderful day!