Back to Back Marathons + Blogging Friends

I often write about the wonderful friends I've made through blogging, and last night, I had the pleasure of adding another to the list.  I met up with Trisha from Barefoot Monologues for food and drinks in Encinitas.  She recently moved to San Diego from Boston so she is still in a state of awe about living here.  Three years later, I think I am too.  We ended up talking for 4 1/2 hours before we realized it was way past our old lady bed times.  How often do you meet people that you can talk with for 4+ hours without a single moment of awkward silence?  Maybe the pitcher of Sangria helped...  Yes, we were two bloggers hanging out and didn't manage to snap a single picture.  Blogger fail, as usual.

I have also connected with Kristen from Happy Running Mama who lives in Portland.  If you don't read her blog, you definitely should.  It's good for the soul! She is insightful and her writing is honest and refreshing.  She also includes gorgeous photos of her children who are too cute to handle.  She is a kindred spirit of mine and her posts always resonate with me.  It's truly uncanny how much our lives parallel one another.  We had big plans to trail run and eat delicious vegetarian food when I was supposed to visit Portland this past December. Sadly, my  trip was canceled and we didn't have the chance to meet.  We will finally be meeting in Boston this April for the marathon.  Our first time running together will be 26.2 miles!

Kristen at mile 18 of the Portland Marathon

Kristen's fan club.  How cute are they??

 

Kristen had this crazy idea to run the Newport Marathon less than 7 weeks after Boston.  Newport is on the coast of Oregon and the race is flat and fast.  She proposed that we run it together.  I considered it for approximately two seconds before I was 100% in.  Flat? Fast? Oregon? KRISTEN? Um, yes.  Sign me up!  That was my thought process exactly.  So we bit the bullet and registered for the race.  It will be a girls' marathon weekend and hopefully a PR weekend, as well.  I can't wait to meet Kristen's beautiful children, dog and husband!

My new plan of attack is to take it easy in Boston.  I want to have fun with it.  I plan to enjoy the crowds and smile the entire way.  Okay, maybe not the whole way (note: Heartbreak Hill) but I want it to be enjoyable. Boston will not be about a PR or pushing myself to the limit.  It is going to be all about the experience.

Newport is a small race. Right up my alley!

Newport is where it's at.  I have plans to do really well in Newport, and I think Kristen and I are on the same page with our goals.  If we are going to make it to June 1st injury-free, we need to be extremely careful in the next few months.  That means icing, foam rolling, stretching, resting whenever necessary, and listening to our bodies.

Have you made friends through blogging?

Have you ever done back-to-back marathons?