One of the numerous things that runners stress over is picking out their race calendar for the year. When planned correctly, one can insure success at every single event – however there are a LOT of variables to keep in mind. A great example of poor race calendar prep would be my own personal attempt last year, where I enthusiastically signed up for a half marathon two months into a new job and was delightfully diagnosed with mono the day after the race from over exhaustion. This year, I have placed great care in scheduling races around the less busy parts of my life – and most importantly have taken my career into consideration. See below, my current major race calendar. I will support training for this with 5 and 10k’s we get closer to the season, just for fun.
May 18th, 2019: Brooklyn Half Marathon
The Brooklyn Half Marathon is huge, and a lot of fun. Sign ups are usually filled within an hour or two of going on sale – this year it took 5 and there are an expected 27,000 runners. The course runs through Brooklyn and ends at the Coney Island boardwalk. I’d compare it to a mini version of the NYC Marathon – equal levels of excitement but half the work.
July 14th, 2019: Boilermaker 15k
This race is the best race in the entire world (seriously). You run by the zoo. You get to eat popsicles. Bands of all genres play along the course. There is unlimited beer at the end. I never run one meter of this race without a smile. If you could sign up for only one race, I’d tell you to do this one. The only downside is the start – in concern for the safety of the runners there’s no real car drop off location, so it’s kind of a weird start. Just follow the people and you will be just fine. The race is 80% full as of March 22nd, so better submit your name ASAP.
July 21st, 2019: New York City Triathlon
This will be my first, and probably my most risky race as I try and train for three disciplines while also preparing for all of this running. The race is a 1.5k swim down the Hudson, 24.8 mile bike around the West side Highway, and 6.2 mile run through the finish line at Central Park. I am hoping to finish somewhere around the four and a half hour mark, if all goes according to plan. I have been preparing since January, and think it will go OK.
October 13th, 2019: Maui Marathon
Maui as in Hawaii – like across the country Hawaii. This is another first, my first marathon, and I am PRAYING to come in at 4:30. It’s a delicate 26.2 miles through the 80F heat along the coast. Runners are required to be at the start line by 4am. I’m going to be miserable, but it is going to be totally worth it. I will be running this one with my Dad, and hope to use him to pace myself appropriately.
I’ll share my eight month long training plan in the coming weeks so you all can see just how doable it really is. A few long runs, some tedious swims, and a couple of bike arounds and I’ll be ready!
Wish me luck!
-Louise
J Louise Hoggan 