2020 JANUARY

I kicked off a new year and a new decade- although I guess there is controversy about when a decade actually starts - by not having a lot on the calendar but having fun at those things that were scheduled.

January 1st - we kicked off the 465 Virtual Challenge. The goal of the 465 Challenge is to complete at least one virtual loop around Interstate 465 in Indianapolis which is 53 miles. This challenge runs from January 1st thru February 29th. To make it one loop, you would need to average .88 miles a day. You can complete the miles however you choose: running, walking, cycling, swimming, etc. There is no right or wrong and - like all virtual races - it is on the honor system. There are also 2 "sub-challenges" within this event. The 24 Hour club - for people who completed the 53 miles in a 24 hour period. Most of those folks have been cyclists. The other group are the Loopers - if you make it around twice (106 miles), you are a Looper. I was confident when registering, I could at least complete 2 loops. Time will tell how many I finally complete.

Naturally my very first run needed to be 4.65 miles!

Within the Facebook group I try to stay active but not overpost. On Mondays, I post a #MondayMotivation to the page and then on Wednesday's I created a "Little Susan" that visually tracks my progress around a map of 465 that I enlarged and put on my wall. People say that they have enjoyed watching my/her progress!

On January 22nd, I was able to report that I had started my second loop. 

So Little Susan began running with a pennant that had the number 2 on it.

I don't do many virtual races but one of the thing I've loved the most about this one has been the Facebook group of participants. Everyone is so incredibly encouraging to one another. It has been amazing to be part of that.

January 4th - the RUN(317) ambassadors had a post-holiday Holiday Party at Tracie's house and it was a blast. I adore these people and am incredibly thankful to be part of the group! 

But "no shoes worn in the house" was enforced!
Rules are rules

January 8th - we had our first official RUN(317) meeting of 2020. There are some exciting changes coming this year and I can't wait until we can tell everyone about them. 

January 11th - I noticed on Facebook the night before that there was still a need for a volunteer at a night-time trail race at Eagle Creek Park. Volunteering for races is good running karma and since I didn't have anything else going on, I agreed to help. The people that did this race definitely are mentally stronger than me. First of all, I'm not really a fan of trail races and certainly not at night. But the weather for this one was awful. It had rained almost all day on Friday and continued to rain on Saturday. This didn't make pleasant conditions for me either. By the end of my shift, I was wet and cold! But I really did enjoy being out there helping to keep those participants safe. 

January 23rd - this date marked 100 days until the Indy Mini Half Marathon on May 2nd. I was contacted a couple of days prior by a staff member at the 500 Festival stating they wanted to feature me on this day since the race will be my 100th INDIANA half marathon. 😎 Naturally, I was okay with this. You can read their blog post here: 100 Days Until Susan's 100th Indiana Half

And that pretty much sums up January 2020. 💋