three months and three days

My inspiration. Minus the beard.

Three months and three days. That's how long until I take to the start line for my first half-marathon.
That's 95 days.
Or 2280 hours.
Or 8,208,000 seconds.
I like the bigger numbers better. It tricks me into believing I have an infinite amount of time to train.
After toying with the idea for a few weeks, when registrations opened for the "First Half" Half Marathon I was more than tempted. The event is limited to 2000 runners, and entries are usually full in a couple of hours. There's nothing like the threat of missing out to make me jump into action.
I've been running significantly less than I used to - both in frequency and distance. I put it down to having no dog to exercise, and no work-place stress to deal with. When life is just peachy, there's less motivation to exercise.
But that's going to have to change.
Joining VanRun - The Vancouver Running and Jogging Club - has helped my motivation. Usually because there's food on offer after each run. But I'm also surrounded by people who do some pretty amazing things.
Melissa - a gym manager/triathlete. Was nervous about a recent half-marathon because running isn't her strong suit. Even though she keeps the men on their toes on VanRun outings.
Craig - knocked over a 50-mile event on the weekend and has a 100-mile run this weekend. Crazy much?
Alison - a new mum who managed to overtake many an embarrassed competitor at a recent half-marathon. Why were they embarrassed? She was pushing a pram as she did the race.
Post-run talk over sushi or beers is dominated by war stories: "The time I did a triathlon without training." "Remember that marathon in 100-degree heat."
This talk has one of two effects. Either you are completed intimidated by these super-humans who clearly need to learn to relax. Or you start to think that if they can do it, why can't I?
I'm not under the impression this will be easy. I'm the most unfit I have been for years. It's not the best starting point to train for the longest run I've ever done. But I'm also going to need something to keep me going during the winter. It's not the time one wants to be running outside. It's damn cold!
But with a beanie, long tights and gloves, I've got few excuses.
So how did my first post-registration run go? Well I slacked off 20 minutes into a 40-minute evening run. Great start huh?