Around The Bay 30K in Pictures

By Princess Jodi

I didn’t blog much about the training for this race, despite the hours on hours of treadmill slogging required to get race ready during the coldest, most uncooperative winter, for a very simple reason: I didn’t know if I could actually do it. It was my longest race ever, and also my longest run ever – lots of milestones and unknowns. I have never felt so uncertain heading into a race.

If you know me at all, you know I love shopping. This may seem like a non-sequitur, but stay with me. Expos are my idea of heaven. Yet the day before Around The Bay, I walked through the Expo frought with anxiety about purchasing any official race gear. Would I be able to wear it after the race? Would I earn that right by crossing the finish line? This is all to say that being an official finisher is a huge, delicious accomplishment!

While we are recovering, and before we get into a detailed recap, I wanted to share with you some of my favorite moments of the race! And, I also want to say thank you to everyone who was in my corner, pulling for me to cross that finish line.

Layers, layers and more layers

Great signage at the KM markers

Couldn’t resist stopping for this one!

One of my favourites

Half-way and feeling strong!

Farthest I’d run before race day

The infamous Grim Reaper at 28K

More to come as we move beyond the Bay and onto training for the Pittsburgh Half-Marathon where I will have no fear buying race gear! If I can conquer Around the Bay, I am confident that I can become a Runner of Steel – so game on, PGH. I am also excited to share with you that I was chosen as an Official Race Blogger for the Pittsburgh Race Weekend!

I’m looking forward to road trippin’ with Princess Laural, and reuniting with many of my Ragnar Napa Valley team mates in the ‘burgh! In the meantime, I’m just celebrating the fact that the longest, hardest race of the year is behind me. It was a big, hairy, audacious goal and I am sleeping better with it in the rearview mirror! I may never run Boston, but that’s OK: I ran the oldest road race in North America. I ran Around the Bay.

I did it!