Category Archives: Running & Fitness

The Butterflies, Bees and Broken Glass: Great Urban Race 2013

14th April 2013

You know those pre-first day of school butterflies? The ones that leave you ready to throw up and want to just quit the whole thing before it even starts butterflies? Welp, for some reason, I couldn’t shake those same little butterflies on Friday night, the eve of our third Great Urban Race.

Couldn’t sleep, terrible dreams, woke up every 20 minutes butterflies. And for what? An awesome day of exploring where I knew I wasn’t going to die (fingers crossed, they had made me throw up while eating squid and unhand-cuff myself at a mob museum in the past), making friends with strangers would be incredibly easy and I was going to partake in taking obsessive amounts of photos and video…long story short, I’m a big wimp.

The good news, we survived.

The better news, we placed 11th.

The best news, we get to plan a trip for the National Championships this November in Puerto Rico.

As excited as I was to be finish and be rid of my nerves, the Great Urban Race isn’t your typical run as fast as you can for X amount of miles and cross the finish line race, as they say it best, GUR is a wild urban adventure and the stories that go along with it are the best part.

After winning tickets to compete last minute in 2012, P and I wound up falling in love with this race concept and followed it to the National Championships in Las Vegas last November (you can read all about those adventures here and here).

In 2013, we came prepared. No more of the single smartphone, map-less planning for us.

We arrived at the starting line with a map ready to go and were lucky enough to have one of our best friends join us as photographer / navigator extraordinaire. We also met up with some dear friends who were crucial in helping to solve the clues and keeping us all going.

We split the clues 50 / 50 between our two teams and less than 30 minutes after the starting horn, we were off and running with a plan and most of the clues solved. The worst part was over, phew.

I’ll spare you the play-by-play of the next hour and a half, but here are some of the highest points:

1. We got to walk on broken glass. How cool is that? And despite what it looks like, it didn’t hurt one bit (I was pleasantly surprised).

2. The photo tic-tac-toe clue is always a favorite. This year we opted for: take a photo with a stranger with a tattoo (how cool is she?), take a video giving a stranger a high five and Tweet a photo of all teammates “Smizing” (apparently a Tyra Banks thing? I don’t think we mastered that one).

Our tatto friend. How great is her hair?

Our tattoo friend. How great is her hair?

"Simzing" Yeah, not sure Tyra would approve.

“Simizing” Tyra wouldn’t approve.

3. The next clue took us to a “secret” prohibition bar in Edgewood that is actually buried behind a bookcase in a pizza joint named Vesuvius. So. Cool. We put our googling to the test to answer questions like “What Minnesota republican was the major voice behind he National Prohibition Act in 1919?” in record time.

4. We dug up our best “every good boy deserves fudge” knowledge to decipher music notes to give us a phrase, and then act like them in a photo. We were bees if you can’t tell from our stellar impressions.

Our best bee impressions.

In all, it was another fantastic day and took me to more parts of the city I haven’t explored on my own (which is secretly my FAVORITE part about this race). A huge, huge thanks to all of the stop locations for their incredible generosity and pure southern hospitality (check out a list of our favorite places below).

Now, just as we were a year ago, we are counting down the days to Nationals where we will be in the hunt for the $10,000 (or more likely, another great adventure to share). Until next time masterminds.

It’s not all fun and games: sometimes they make you think TOO hard.

Our tops picks for the 2013 race locations (aka, go check out these places Atlanta):

Vesuvius Pizzeria: look for the bookcase in the back hallway. Have a great time.
iwi fresh Garden Day Spa: these ladies make their own amazing body scrubs. They smell SO good.
Joystick Gamebar: old school arcade games and drinks, could you ask for more?
Cafe 458: not only was the staff super sweet, all of the proceeds, including tips, go to support programs and services that aid the homeless.

Here comes the sun (fingers crossed)

24th March 2013

This guy and I are not on good terms. Source.

I’m certainly not the first to point it out, but I’m certainly just as bitter. Mr. Groundhog quite simply sucked at his sole responsibility this year. An utter and complete liar that little guy has been. What a jerk.

As I write this post, it is pouring rain and 40-something degrees. It is also the last week in March. I’m quickly starting to believe I no longer live in the sunny south, but somewhere much less pleasant. While mother nature doesn’t seem to be planning to get with the picture anytime soon, a girl can dream about warmer, and sunnier trips to come.

Within the last two weeks, I survived my first getaway weekend of 2013 (survived is appropriate as this was Savannah for St. Pat’s for a bachelorette party) and have booked flights for two upcoming trips in the next 30-days.

In January, I shared my unfinished resolutions, one of which I’m hoping this favorite little season will help me to continue to knock out of the park: to take more risks.

So what do booking flights and taking vacations have to to with this?

Taking time away to do fun things definitely doesn’t scream “check-that off the list” when it comes to resolutions, but when it means stepping out of the routine, it means a much more fun version of that goal. Here’s what I can say I’ve checked off the list so far and what’s exciting to come during my favorite (sunnier) season of the year.

On Taking Risks

One of my college roommates is finishing up her final Optometry school rotation before she becomes a real-live doctor in Tucson, Arizona. Rotations mean short times in neat cities, and add in our other college roommate’s teacher schedule and we were left with a single weekend in which to make a trip. I’m a big fan of not having plans and going with the flow, but not when it comes to things like spending money.

My friends and family can attest for my need to “beat” the retailers when it comes to the sale, the coupon or the discount. Booking a flight across the country three weeks before takeoff = not cheap. But what the heck, we did it anyway. How often is your best friend going to live in places that look like this, have a car and a free place to stay? In a rare occurrence, my stomach didn’t even drop when I clicked the purchase button.

How do you say no when your BFF is Instagraming this on a daily basis?

In an act of balance, the airline world must have rewarded my efforts, as I snagged a flight deal for a $40 discount within a 24-hour timeframe for the next trip to DC later in the month to run the Nike Women’s Half Marathon. High five bank account. This race will mark my fourth half marathon and my frist destination race to do so. Oh, and there’s that little promise of a blue Tiffany’s box at the finish line. If that isn’t motivation to make a weekend getaway out of a physical activity, I’m not sure what is.

In addition to these two weekend trips, P and I are looking to go big this year for the big 25. We both officially enter our mid-twenties this year and are hoping to take some time off to take a vacation to somewhere we have never been. We do a lot of exploring locally and to family favorite spots, but want to switch it up this year. Ireland? Jamaica? Costa Rica? Who knows. We’re not there yet. Our only requirement: it must contain at least one activity the requires the use of the Go-Pro.

So there you have it, baby steps, but three months in and the resolutions are still alive. Spring is certainly going to be a whirlwind with trips in addition to races, weddings and gradations. I’m looking forward to meeting the rather fun challenges head on, if Spring ever decides to show up. Come on Mr. Groundhog, we’re ready for you.

Irish Blessings and Reminders

17th March 2013

Saint Patrick’s Day (or St. Paddy’s day as it’s known in my house) has always held a special place in my little Irish heart. With a namesake of ‘Dennihy’ and ‘Kelly’, escaping the world of claddaghs, clovers and celebration was never in the cards for me.

This weekend, I had the opportunity to experience the South’s best incarnation of the Irish tradition with a bachelorette weekend in Savannah, Ga. While the river may no longer be dyed green, the city did go all out for the 189th celebration. Dancing, drinks and debauchery ensued (to a very responsible degree mind you ;)) and we left the weekend with a renewed love for a fantastic southern city and plenty of stories to share.

The bride-to-be and myself

Beyond the green beer and the shamrocks, I’m also reminded of a few great lessons my Irish heritage has lent me over the years.

Never take life too seriously.

Every Saint Patrick’s Day morning growing up we would wake up to find the leprechauns had wreaked havoc around the house by putting pictures on the walls upside down, placing furniture on top of each other and hiding toys within obscure locations. Did it make a giant mess in the house? Yes. Did my siblings and I love it? Of course. When I shared this story with friends this weekend, I learned it wasn’t as common of a tradition as we had assumed years ago, but I love that it’s something ~~the leprechauns~~ my parents always made a priority.

Keep an eye on the road ahead.

I was reminded of this one quite directly this weekend. Note to self, 5-inch wedges are not a great idea for late night cobble stone streets and there should be a medal for making it out of that city without breaking an ankle. On a more serious note, my friends and my family have always supported me to focus on the future. Whether that be placing one foot in front of the other quite literally, or setting goals for the future. Have a plan and then have the flexibility to throw it out the window from time to time.

Find faith through friends and family.

And of maybe a drink to two to share with both. Weekends like this remind me how many awesome people I’m surrounded by day in and day out. It’s every single one of those people that make St. Paddy’s Day, and the other 364 days of the year worth a laugh and a smile.

I’ll leave you with a little Irish blessing that graced the halls of my house growing up, and is one of my personal favorites. I hope everyone (Irish or not) celebrated in their own special way today. Cheers.