Coffee talk 5/04/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, the coffee talk is about to begin...

Our Second Annual Cox Rhode Race was a huge success and a whole lot of fun. I always forget just how exciting a road race is until I get to the start. I'm usually cranky while I'm at home, deciding on breakfast, grousing about the route, getting my things together (which should be put together the night before but why make it easy?). It isn't until I get into my Jeep, turn on a CD and start to drive that I begin to settle. And once I meet up with the SistaZ, all my fears, anxiousness and crankiness seem to disappear and the excitement begins to build. As always its laughter from beginning to end, support throughout the entire race, and a friendship that just seems to grow stronger from year to year. How did we get so lucky?

Congratulations, job well done, great run just doesn't seem to carry the enthusiasm I'm looking for when I break into this particular coffee talk. Jill, Jen and Cher, I hope that you are as proud of yourselves as we are for completing that marathon yesterday.

Jill, you went into this race with a completely different mindset than you had during the week. I cannot believe you cranked out a time of 4:14 with a calf muscle that has made your life a living hell for the last month (or possibly more, you never know with you because you don't complain about anything unless its practically broken). Your determination from start to finish with this race was incredible and so impressive. As always, you enter into every race with a positive attitude and your enthusiasm is contagious. You bring so much to SistaZ. It is a bonus to run with you every week, not to mention fun and filled with conversation.

Jen, you are an amazing runner. For someone who has never run a marathon and THEN decided to run this one about...ummm...4 WEEKS AGO, I would say that you should be pretty darn pleased with yourself for throwing up a 4:20 time. Did you ever get that 18 mile run in prior to this race or did you just go out there Sunday with 13 miles under your belt. You have been so much fun to run with and have been setting the pace for us on Fridays. Always smiling, always ready for anything, I hope you want to continue running when you can on Friday mornings.

Cher, your race yesterday was outstanding. Not only did you post a 4:22 time, you trained relentlessly, by yourself, and were determined to cross that finish line. You have a tenacity that I envy and I know that I would not have been as disciplined as you to be training by myself for a marathon. My only regret is that our schedules didn't work out for this training period, but I really want to have you join us when you can. You are a terrific girl and I can't wait to see you at your first triathlon this summer. I promise that some of us SistaZ will be there to cheer you on.

Congratulations to Jane Coutu Poricelli for QUALIFYING for THE Boston Marathon. Not only did she qualify, she came 5 minutes under her qualifying time. I am thrilled for you, Jane. You were fantastic yesterday.

Congratulations to Megan King for completing the Providence Marathon in 4:07. Megan and Jill have been training together and together they ran. Hope to see you out on the road again soon, Megan.

Jane Sincere Morris, our lethal weapon, ran an 8:39 pace and completed her 1/2 marathon in 1:50. Not only that, she placed 21st out of 215 people in her age group. The woman is "a fab runner." Her strength and determination is unmatched. She is quiet but clearly a strong opponent to anyone that is running against her in any race at any distance. I knew she would be terrific.

Lisa Letourneau, you ran beautifully yesterday. 2:03 is nothing to sneeze at especially coming off a night shift and a rocking vacation in Jamaica. Sandy Pereira ran alongside Lisa and came in at 2:03 as well. She, too, prepared well for this race and ran it like a pro. Sandy felt Lisa was pacing her and Lisa felt Sandy was pacing her. Either way, the crossed that finish line like the champions they are.

Lynda Britt you are the new runner girl. No matter what race you run, you always do better each time. I love that you love it and are planning on your next race already. I want to see you train for a marathon and I know you could do it with ease. Did you forget about Mexico like I mentioned? If you do, come run in October. In fact, come run with us every week you can. I know its hard, but like Cher, I want to run with you as well. What's next on your racing schedule?

Mindi Kelley--girl, we don't see enough of you but that must be because your running here there and everywhere. Congratulations on a race well run! 2:17 is fantastic and I know your next race will be even better. When can you join us? The weather is getting warmer so that ought to make things a bit more enticing, don't you think? Would love to get together with you soon.

Courtnee Munson once again ran the Cox race with a quiet determination and is looking toward the future. Courtnee already has her sights on the Cape Cod race in October and plans to kick its ever loving route like no one's business. One of our strongest runners, Courtnee is now training in the pool, doing a little biking, and lifting in the weight room. Do I see a triathlon in her summer calendar.

Stacie Tracey, you are a machine. Congratulations on a terrific race and a terrific pace. You have worked so hard these last two months and its paid off in so many ways. You have come such a long way and its only going to get better from here. Strong in mind and body, you are such an asset to this team because you never give up. You're always out there, working hard and doing more than asked just to get better. I love you for it.

Lori Keough, I can't begin to thank you enough for coming out to run this crazy 5K. I only wish I could have found you after you finished. Did you run straight to your car? I, and everyone else, truly appreciates you coming to run yesterday. I know how busy your weekend was and it was so nice of you to set aside time to run with your SistaZ. And you were telling me you haven't run at all??? You ran 26:56 yesterday!!! You are incredible. Look out Maine, here she comes!

Chris Ross, you ran a terrific race yesterday and you seem to be back in the saddle when it comes to running and racing. All of your physical therapy paid off and now you can get back in the game whenever and wherever you want. Its great to have you back.

Susan Reid Burnett I am so happy you are back running with your SistaZ. You have been sorely missed and I really appreciate you getting out there yesterday and running with the ladies. As always, you make our races and post race parties the best. Always smiling, always ready, always a great friend. We love you, Susan.

Thank you Tracey Mahoney for all the cheering and picture taking. A big thank you to the Keith and Nicole Coutu, and Bill Mahoney as well. Gary Tracey, as always, it was a pleasure to see you out on the course with the kidlings. Having you all at various points during the race made our time out there that much better. I know I picked up the pace after I saw you all. You are wonderful friends and we couldn't have crossed that finish line without your support. And we are ready to do the same for all of you when the time comes.

Our last race is this Sunday. Please send me an e-mail to let me know if you plan to attend. The race will be held in Scituate Mass and we are running in memory of Susan Burnett's sister-in-law, Kathy. We are taking up a collection to make a donation in Kathy's name, so if you would like to contribute, please let me know.

We will be on hiatus for training until further notice. Enjoy your time off.

Joyce

Coffee talk 4/26/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, coffee talk is about to begin...

Congratulations to Stacie Tracey for running the ALS race in 27.22. Is the girl not amazing? Is there anything she can't do? Fabulous cook (i know this personally) great personality, and works her butt off to run like I know she can. I am so proud of you Stacie. And I know I speak for everyone when I say that. Can't wait until Sunday! You are going to run a fantastic race.

We are into the final countdown. Just think, this time next week, we are going to be DONE! After that, who knows where we will be but next week's race marks 1 year that we have been running together. Where has the time gone?

This week is a taper week and its really important that you keep your mileage low - 4 miles Monday, 30 minute run Wednesday, 3 miles Thursday-- and maintain your nutrition and hydration. The extended forecast looks to be 60 degrees, which could go either way in terms of temperature depending upon humidity. Fortunately, 1/2 marathoners and marathoners begin at 8:30. 5k runners will begin at 11:00 a.m. I will be in touch with those that have signed up for the race about a meeting place and time of departure. No need to bore those that are not running with the details of before, during and after the race :)

Sole Sisters will continue to run throughout the summer; however, there will be no training schedule for any race until we start to train for Cape Cod Marathon and Relay. I am really excited about the relay teams and those who are looking to complete a marathon. The weekend promises to be an exciting one. For those on board with this, we are going to meet on our own to discuss logistics and how it will all work so that everyone has a thorough understanding of what is expected and what your training will need to consist of.

That's all for now. Enjoy your week. Let me know if you have any questions. And remember--hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

Keep on keepin' on...

Joyce

Coffee Talk 4/22/09

Just wanted to check in with everyone. We have had a lapse with school vacations and busy work schedules. Really haven't had a reason to blog since everyone's training schedule seems to vary.

I wanted to check in before the Cox Rhode Race. It doesn't look like we will have enough members at this point to be a team. However, for those of you committed to racing that day, I want to assure you that you will have a number. If for any reason you feel you need to change your status from 1/2 to full or full to 1/2, please let me know so that we can do it before the race next week. The day promises to be a terrific one. Michelle, Brenda, Tracey and Susan, we will miss you this year.

Our plans have changed for the fall. Due to a conflict in travel for Thanksgiving, our destination race has been changed to Cape Cod the weekend of October 25. This is a Marathon and Relay race only. There is no 1/2 marathon or 5K. 1/2 marathoners can partner with someone and relay 13.1 miles. I am currently looking into hotel accommodations and will let you know what I find. Please check your schedules and let me know if you can still plan to run this race. For those of you who are serious about the relay, we can certainly work out the logistics so don't worry that you won't have a race to run. Lots of hills at the end on this one (yippee!) but the advantage of being at the Cape is the close proximity to home.

Friday run at 8:45 is planned. Seven mile route. Please let me know if you need water put out.

That's all for now,

Joyce

Coffee talk 4/05/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, coffee talk is about to begin...



Sorry for the delay in blogging. I was having major computer issues last week, so much so that Alan took my computer in for repair (gasp!) and I was incommunicado for a couple of days. I still don't think the thing is working right, but who am I to complain? My idea of repair is "Control, Alt, Delete." When in doubt, reboot.



There are a couple of things I would like to share with everyone. First, Jill Levin, one of our newbies, ran her second 5K last Saturday and shaved about 3 minutes off her time from the St. Patrick's Day race. A huge accomplishment to say the least and all within 7 days. Jill has been dedicated to her training these last few months and apparently its paying off. She is one of the nicest people to know and a lot of fun to be around. I'm looking forward to seeing you at the Cox race, Jill. You are going to be outstanding.



Lori-Kiley Garcia, another newbie, walk/ran 4 miles on Saturday with an average 2 minute walk/5 minute run. Lori, I knew once you got out there there would be no stopping you. I am thrilled to know that you are planning to join our party train on Sunday, May 3. And a party it will be. Congratulations, Lori. You are going to be terrific.

Jill Lifrak and Cherylynn Brownbeck are both running the Providence Marathon on May 3. That's right--the full marathon. These girls are going to need us on the beaten path with water, non-stop cheering and maybe even some company. They are training so hard right now and getting ready to peak in their training. This is the toughest time. Jill and Cherylynn, if there is anything you need, you let us know. Both ladies are fantastic runners and deserve a huge pat on the back for this undertaking. We are there if you neeed us!

We need one additional person to run the full in order to be a team. If we don't fill the spot, then we simply drop the team idea but everyone will still race that day only it will be individually. I just want to remind everyone how well we did in the St. Patrick's Day race. Although we had Steve's bionic time, we were still competitive within our category. This race is a bit different. I don't really feel the times are important, its more the idea that all of us are there for each other. If you still need to register, please do so under "sole sisters -" (don't forget the dash) password is 111500. If you have any questions about registering and/or the race that day, please don't hesitate to ask. We still need a number of 5K runners as well so please don't feel that you need to bite off more than you can chew.

I have added another race to the list, The Scituate Fire Fighters Road Race which will be held on Mother's Day this year, Sunday, May 10. Sole Sisters is dedicating this race to Kathy Brown, Susan Burnett's sister-in-law, who passed away in January of this year from cancer, and we will run in her memory. For those of you who can make it, I can promise you that it is a really fun race that you will thoroughly enjoy. I would encourage you to bring the family. The ride is a little less than an hour and the race doesn't begin until 10:00. I am planning to collect donations of loose change at each of my classes until race day. There will be jar available for your deposits so please bring your change if you happen to think of it. Sole Sisters will be making a donation to cancer research in Kathy's name. This is a collective effort regardless of what you can give, or if you can even give. Times are tough and I thought this would be the easist way for people to donate if they so choose.

The ALS race is taking place on April 25. I do plan to run this race, and I know of a few others who are going to as well. If you have not signed up, I would encourage you to do so.

Reminder: Annual banquet will be held on Friday, May 15 venue to be determined.

That's all for now.

Keep on keepin' on...

Joyce

Coffee talk 3/23/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, the coffee talk is about to begin...

I think everyone agrees that it was a fantastic race this weekend. Great course, great post-race snacks, great friends. There is no better feeling than running a "wicked fast" (true Rhode Island adjective, or is it adverb?) 5K. With that said, Team Newman placed 4th out of 35 teams. Thank you to Steve Sears for leading our team to victory. Erin was right when she said he IS Forest Gump. Jill Lifrak was second with an outstanding time, looking like she had just taken a light jog down the street when it was all over. Joe Lifrak came in third for Team Newman and wasn't too far behind his lovely wife. Lori Keough you better never tell me again that you are not fast. Lori came in fourth for Team Newman with Lisa Letourneau in fifth. These two ladies have the longest legs and a great stride to go along with them. Gary Tracey came in seconds behind Lisa and did an outstanding job with his first 5K. Courtnee Munson didn't think she had 25 minutes in her but she did. Ran like the wind that was blowing that day. Nice job, Court. Rich Baudreau, a newbie to Team Newman, ran a fabulous 5K and looked great doing it. Rich is an awesome guy and a terrific athlete. Thanks so much for running, Rich. The Cox race is May 3. Are you in? Joe Caruso, you are the best. I knew you could do it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with your time and we want you running with us again very soon. You know where to find us. I think your next race should be May 3 as well. Stacie Tracey ran the race of her life on Saturday. Hoping to break 29 minutes, she ended up at 27 minutes and made it look easy. Great race, Sta. Lynda Britt, you ran a 1/2 marathon last week and a 5k under 30 minutes this week. You are officially on the circuit. Way to go, Lynda. Cox is just around the corner and we want to see you there with bells on. Mindi Kelley, we didn't get a chance to see you but your time says it all. Nice job on Saturday. Will we see you on the course in May as well? Erin Sears you are obviously on the road to recovery. You ran a great race on Saturday and we hope to see more of you during training runs and at our next race. Nice job. Brenda Booth you are awesome. You ran so well on Saturday. I hope you plan to do another 5K in May. Liz Fasteson you just keep getting better. For someone who runs once a week, you are amazing. Chris Ross is was great to see you out there running in the time that you did. Keep it up. May is just around the corner. Pam Sluter I am so glad you ran with the team. You were fantastic as was your outfit. You totally dressed for the part. Jill Levin, you ran your first 5K and you ran it with your sistaz! Congratulations on an outstanding time and race. You were great. CJ Jasionowski you amaze me. You work 60 hours a week, take care of 3 kids and run a 5K in the midst of all of it. Way to go, girl. Lori Kiley-Garcia, I am so proud of you. How long have we been talking about you running a 5K? I knew you could do it. Now the rest is easy. Just keep runnin'. Cynthia Corbett, you are getting better with every race. The 1/2 marathon is easily within your reach. Monique Francouer, way to go girl. I knew you could do it. I promise it gets easier every race. Pat Messore, so proud of you. You are officially a Sole Sister and we expect to see more of you when your schedule permits. Maria Anthony, great race. Another official Sole Sister. Please join us for training runs when you can. Michelle Polk, you weren't on the roster but you are always part of the team. Great race. Looking strong and feeling good. Bill Mahoney we know you are from Riverside, not Grafton. I would love to find the other Bill Mahoney's time but I can't seem to locate it. Bill Mahoney ran 24 minutes on Saturday. Great PR Bill. Now please tell me that you plan to run a 1/2 in May. I know you have it in you.

For those that were unable to run due to schedules or sidelines, we missed you. Keep in mind that this is not the final race. We have a couple of others coming up that promise to be just as fun. As always, the party begins after the race so if you can't race, you can always come to the party. We are equal opportunity runners.

Gotta keep this one brief as well. We will be running long Friday and Saturday this week. Walk/Run is scheduled for Saturday. As always, please r.s.v.p. with your intentions so we can plan our routes. Long run this week is 10 but we can always shave off a mile or two or four...it's all good.

Keep on keepin' on...

Joyce

Coffee talk 3/16/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, coffee talk is about to begin...

This weeks blog is dedicated to Rhode Island Hospital's finest, the MICU MARATHONERS, who ran a phenomenal New Bedford 1/2 Marathon today. Led by their L' Capatain, Evelyn Sayles, this nursing team is taking racing to a whole new level. Evelyn has inspired and motivated each of her teammates to get out there and train, to run the best race they can run, and enjoy the moment--kinda like us, except they save lives every week. Congratulations to Jen Rodriguez, Cherylynn Brownback, Robin Mercier, Lynda Britt, Evelyn Sayles, Lisa Letourneau, Eric Anketell and Jerry Felix who all crossed the finish line. This group of runners is one fun group to hang out with. You were all AWESOME today and I hope you are all celebrating your victory.
Thanks for letting me hang out.

So we ran and what a run it was. Couldn't ask for better weather (I feel like I'm repeating myself every week but seriously, after all the snow we've had, its true), an extremely organized race, and a route that wasn't all that bad. It was worse last year due to the weather conditions and my condition, but I'm still not in love with it. It could be that Lisa and I were minus one (Courtnee Munson), or a number of other reasons but I was pleased with my time which was 2:01:30something or other. I was out there for a pace today and ended up surprising myself with the 2:01. But dammit, had I just not walked halfway up that damn 3rd hill I would have had it!!! I took my 30 seconds since nobody was around to watch and loved every second of it (Nicole). I know what I need to do for Providence and I will break that 2:00 mark. Prancy did her thing and stayed the course, beating me with seconds and I know she surprised herself. Way to go, Lisa, I knew you had it in you.

Pam Sluter has offered to pick up the race packets for the 5K St. Pats race on Wednesday. I will probably go with her so that I can help and I can then organize them for Saturday distribution. If you would rather pick up your own race packet, please let me know. I do understand that some like to retrieve their own so please do not feel as though you are insulting me or Pam by saying "no thank you." Just wanted you to know the option is out there.

We will park in the Ann and Hope parking lot on Saturday. We cannot park at the Y this time because the basketball teams are having their pizza party at 11:00 a.m. Therefore, if we park closest to the bank, we should be all set. Let's plan to meet for 9:15 a.m. in the lot.

Our training schedule reflects training for the Providence race 7 weeks out. Please follow the schedule and let me know if you have any questions. Adjust the mileage as needed. The most important thing to do to prepare for this race is the long run each week. If you miss a run or two during the week, its fine. The long run is key to success.

I am going to address a couple of other races that are coming up during the week. For now, enjoy your easy week and get ready to have some fun on Saturday.


"Energy is like love. The more you give, the more you receive."


Joyce

Coffee talk 3/9/09

Pour your coffee and settle in, coffee talk is about to begin...

Okay so this is my 3rd attempt today at getting the coffee talk up and running. I will dispense with the formality and get right to it.

For those of who were able to enjoy the weather this weekend I say "Congratulations." It was fab from Friday to Sunday. I would like to thank Courtnee Munson, Laurel McLaughlin and Cheryl Medeiros (newcomer to the group and a great running buddy)for talking me into leaving my jacket. Just me and the fuel belt and of course, the company of some terrific ladies. Always makes the 12 mile run go by that much quicker. Alright, it was 11.7 but close enough.

The New Bedford 1/2 is this week and a taper schedule is in place due to the race. We will be starting with a new training schedule for the Providence/Cox race (to be held May 3) next week. Although this coincides with our March 21 race, we will be fine to race on Saturday.

Speaking of which, if you have not registered for the St. Pats, March 21 race you can still do so, online, by March 13. Use the link along the side of the blog. Register as a team. Team name is Team Newman and the passcode is 111500. If you have any problems, please let me know.

The Providence/Cox race will be held May 3. In order for us to be a team, we need at least 3 people in each category to qualify. This race was very special to a lot of us last year and I would really like to see a good turnout. It was a struggle to find someone to run a marathon in my place and Dennis was such a good sport and stepped in to do it after having run the Boston marathon two weeks prior. Cherylynn Brownback is registered to run the marathon so we need at least 2 more people, if not more. The more people we have the stronger our team. It looks like we will have a good turnout for the 1/2 marathon. We still need 5k runners so if you know of someone who is looking to become a newbie, now is the time to join in. They will be race ready for May 3. In order to sign up, click on the link to the side of the blog. Click "Register." Team name is "sole sisters -" (don't forget the dash) password is 111500. Let me know if you have any problems with signing up.

I spoke to Luca this evening about the swimming program for triathlons. He is going to give Sole Sisters a special rate of $10 as opposed to $20. This program will be held on Thursday nights from 6:30 to 7:30. This is a great opportunity to get in the water and learn the technique you need to swim in open water. I also have a dvd that is a great introduction to swimming that I can loan out if someone is looking for tips. Just so you know, I was pushing for Sole Sisters to not pay anything at all. However, if someone found out that we weren't paying anything, it could cause a problem, so we agreed to this. I hope some of you can take advantage of the program. Its a great chance to get in the pool and add a different workout to your routine.

Speaking of triathlons, we are looking to do some local races. Bayside YMCA and Wild Dog triathlon are two tri's that are held back to back in August. I would say that Wild Dog is the easiest of the two because the swim is a little shorter. I picked these two because they are easy to get to and they are small in terms of number of participants. However, we are not limited to them and can certainly look at competing in others. For the newer participants, though, they are great races for distance and transition areas. Please let me know if you are interested in competing. Remember to just look at a triathlon as a workout. You'll be done in 2 hours and then you can eat anything you want.

I'm looking forward to getting back out there with everyone. There isn't much in the way of coffee talk because we are all running (literally and figuratively) in different directions. Once New Bedford is over, though, I anticipate that we will be able to run together again and make our time out of the road fun and full of laughs.

Destination marathon and 1/2 marathon will be: Philadelphia, PA. Its flat, its easy to get to, and its November 22, 2009. Please let me know if you are interested so I can work on rooms. I want to reserve them now and I need a rough estimate. Yes, you can change your mind if you decide not to go.

That's all for now.

Keep on keepin' on...

Joyce