Three races (part 3)

Ever since the inaugural Illinois Marathon/Half-Marathon I've been saying to Joy that I was going to come and do this event with her.  We met when we both studied abroad in Dijon, France in 1987 and have been friends ever since, and we both graduated from the University of Illinois together in 1989:

In 2007 we ran our first race together, in my hometown - the Leuven New Year's Corrida:

So doing the Illinois Half Marathon with Joy has been on my bucket list for quite a few years now, and this year, things worked out!  

Unfortunately (and this is why I don't have any pictures, except the one below after we finished) the weather was terrible.  The evening before, for the 5K, it was perfect.  But we woke up to pouring rain, and a chilly 54 F.  Luckily, there was no thunder and lightning and the race was not called off, as it had been the year before.  So Joy's husband drove us as close as possible to the starting corrals and we tried in vain to stay dry and warm while we waited for the start.

Once we got going, despite the rain, wind and cold, dare I say we enjoyed ourselves?  We did, actually - we talked the whole way, thanked the volunteers along the course (they had it worse than us, we reasoned - they had to stand still), laughed, looked forward to refueling stops, and sloshed along in our sponge-like shoes.  I can tell you, for a fact, that cold and rain is good for one thing - preventing blisters!  My feet were very comfortable - perhaps because they were numb?

The course itself was flat, started out going through campus, wound through Urbana and some beautiful neighborhoods with old stately homes, through a nature preserve, and some newer neighborhoods, and finally back to the University of Illinois campus.  It would have been great to do it on a sunny day, but we both said blistering heat wouldn't have been fun either.

It was a relief, though, when we finally made it to the finish, in nearly four hours, crossed the line in Memorial Stadium and at last, chilled to the bone and completely soaked, were able to get out of the wind and rain.  Patrice, God bless him, picked us up, and we spent the rest of the day curled up in front of a wood fire, proud and happy of our accomplishment:

And we weren't even last:

I'd do it again in a heartbeat (but I'd pray for no rain).

Three races (Part 2)

My next two races took place at the University of Illinois - my Alma Mater!  The first one was a 5K on Friday night - and the best part about it was that my 13-year-old godson agreed to run with me (even if he wasn't very enthusiastic about taking a pre-race picture with his mom and godmother):

I was a little bit nervous about running with him, hoping I wouldn't be too slow and hold him back.  But he had been out of soccer with an injury for a while and assured me it would be okay.  So we set off on the fun course that went right through campus, and past all the Greek houses.  A few sorority girls were out on their lawn watching the runners and one shouted at us, "You're gorgeous!"  I looked at G and asked him if he heard what they said.  He looked puzzled for a minute, and so I told him, "They were talking about you!"  Did I mention he's gotten tall and handsome?

Then we had to run past all the bars and fast-food joints on Green Street - the food smells were killing us!  Finally we were on our way back to Memorial Stadium where the race finished right on the football field - how exciting to run in with all the lights on.  Very impressive!  G sprinted ahead of me (it's one thing to run with your godmother but another to cross the finish line with her, LOL!) and I followed shortly after - in my usual time of 35 minutes.  If nothing else, I am consistent!

Part 3 (the half marathon) coming soon...

So...those 3 races in April I told you about... (part 1)

 A couple months ago I mentioned that I had three races planned in April, which was a big deal for me, not having participated in many organized events in the past few years.

The first one was a 5K in Texas that my sister Christy found would be taking place the weekend I was there visiting.  We both signed up.  In the meantime, I found out that a fellow blogger, Kim, was also going to be in Texas that same weekend, visiting friends with her husband Stephen - and not far from where my parents live!  The race venue was not too far from where Kim's friends, Gina and Steve, live, and so they offered to meet us at the finish of the race.

Christy and I got to the race venue early enough to watch the kid's mile fun run - there were lots of little kids to cheer on.  I texted Kim our bib numbers so they would be able to watch out for us at the finish - we had never met in person and you always wonder if you're going to recognize someone from pictures.  And then Christy and I set off.  The course was an out-and-back around some baseball fields, a lake and a park - the weather was pretty nice for Texas - not too hot, but warm enough to be enjoyable.  And the field of participants was small, very small - maybe 200 people.  I ran at my usual comfortable pace (finishing in 35 minutes as expected).  As I came around a turn towards the finish line I could recognize Kim's posse waiting at the finish, and I started waving.  It was so fun to have them cheer me in!

Once we finished the race we hung out for a bit at the park - Kim, Stephen, Gina and Steve were all great and willing to wait for the organizers to announce age group winners, because, having seen who came in before me, they thought I might have won an age group award.  And Gina and Steve's son Luca was such a charmer!  At first it is a bit strange to meet someone you know through blogging in person - you actually know a lot about each other just from having read posts throughout the years, but you're still technically strangers.  In my experience, though, having met (and ran a race with!) Dutch blogger Fran a couple years ago, you quickly get past the initial awkwardness and the conversation starts to flow as if you'd known each other for years!  Same thing with Kim!

And then - what a surprise - they started calling out age group winners - and I won first place! Everyone tells me I shouldn't say this, but - full disclosure - there were only four people in my age group - LOL!  But I don't care, it was a first for me to win an age group award, and having new friends and my sister there to celebrate it with me made my day!  

And I actually got to stand on a real podium.

More soon about races #2 and #3...

16K Trail Walk

I've been on a training plan to walk the half marathon with Joy at the end of the month and yesterday my husband joined me on the 16K I had to do.  I plotted out a route on my walking paths map and our oldest son drove us out to the starting point, from where we would walk home.  It was a gorgeous spring morning, as you can see!

It took us 3 hours 45 minutes to walk 16.4 km.  We had a packed lunch with us and stopped along the way to eat at a nice picnic spot and then at a cafe when we were almost done for a coffee (those two stops are not counted in the time).  I was a bit worried about stopping, that it would be hard to get up and walk again (Ingrid and I never stop when we walk) but actually it was a nice little rest and didn't seem to make it harder to go on at all.

The trails were challenging - a lot of ups and downs, muddy, uneven paths, and cobblestones.  The half marathon in Illinois will be flat and paved.  I honestly feel like the variation in trails is a lot healthier for my body and leaves me feeling less sore than walking on the monotony of paved roads/sidewalks.  The advantage to paved, however, is that you don't have to keep your eyes on your feet as much.  There's a Swiss Flag to everything, I guess...

Surprise! Upcoming Running/Walking Events

I haven't done many events the past couple years, but surprisingly enough I have three that I am signed up for this month, one that I will probably do with my son Florian in May, and a big one with Ingrid in June...and at the moment I'm struggling a bit with sciatica but walking and running feel okay (thank the Lord).  Here's a run-down of the events themselves:

• Running for Education in India 5K with my sister Christy in Texas on April 24
• Illinois Marathon 5K and Half Marathon with my bestie Joy on April 29/30 (I'll be running the 5K and we're walking the half together)
• Linden Trail Run 7K with my son on May 17 (we still have to sign up)
• Great Breweries 25K Walking Event on June 5 with Ingrid - yes, this will combine walking with beer tasting - not sure if this is a good combination or not ;-)

I am bit apprehensive about the travel to the US in a couple weeks.  Our airport is still not back up to full capacity after the bombing attacks, and it's not sure yet if it will be soon.  My husband and I flew to Venice last weekend, and the flights went out of a regional airport in Liege, which went smoothly, given the circumstances.  

Some Thoughts after March 22

We are still reeling here in Belgium from what happened at the airport and on the metro on Tuesday morning.  I feel extremely fortunate personally - my husband, who works very close to the metro that was bombed in central Brussels, was thankfully still at home when the attacks happened, and we have no friends/family/colleagues among the victims, for which we are grateful, but of course like everyone else we are deeply mourning the victims and their loved ones, our country, Europe, and our way of life. 

At the same time, things like this make you realize what is most important in life: people you love, friendship, kindness, trying to be a decent person.  So many people, some I hadn't heard from in ages, checked in on Tuesday to see if we were okay - it was amazing.  Thanks so much to everyone who thought of us.

My husband passes by Maalbeek station on a regular basis and the departures hall in Zaventem is ten minutes from our home and very familiar ground.  This was more than close to home - this is home.  It is very difficult to get my head around what has happened. I wonder what impact this will have and what kind of a world we are leaving for our children and grandchildren. 

So at this point we will do the best we can to resume our normal lives, with this grief, fear and disillusion ever present in the back of our minds, but at the same time with hope that things will get better and belief in the basic goodness inherent in most people and the strength of our community, in all its diversity.

Source: politico.eu

Our Christmas Adventure in Lapland

When my oldest son, Florian, got selected to study for one semester in Sweden, both he and my husband started talking about how they wanted to plan a trip to Lapland, up above the Arctic Circle, and I was like, Arctic Circle?  Cold?  Dark? Are you guys crazy?  Even during mild Belgian winters I always feel cold, I couldn't even imagine what it would be like in Lapland.  But they were determined and started investigating it and when they discovered a company that offered a four night Northern Lights package over the Christmas holidays, there was no way I was going to stay home and miss out!

So way back in August we committed ourselves to spending Christmas in Abisko, Sweden. and putting ourselves entirely in the hands of the company Lights over Lapland, for the full four days - accommodation, all meals, activities and a nightly Northern Lights photography session were all included.  All we had to do was make sure we had plenty of warm clothing and an SD card each for the cameras they would loan us, and get ourselves up to Abisko two days before Christmas.

We met Florian in the airport in Stockholm - it was wonderful to see him because despite Skype, Messenger, and email, there's nothing like getting a real in-person hug from your 20-year-old kid you've been missing.  (I might have shed a tear or two, but they were definitely happy tears.)  Then we all boarded a plane bound for Kiruna, a mining town in the very north of Sweden.  What an experience getting out of the plane and seeing nothing but snow everywhere.  We were lucky as far as the temperature was concerned - the driver who picked us up told us that they were having unseasonably warm weather (-5 to -2 C) and it was actually causing a lot of problems.  We, however, were relieved it wasn't too cold.  But man, was it dark.  

The drive out to Abisko, 90 km further north, was made in complete darkness even though it was mid afternoon.  All I could see was the snowy road in the headlights in front of us, and a herd of reindeer at one point standing like ghostly apparitions on the side of the road.  In Abisko, a small village originally established to keep the railway line clear so the iron ore mined in Kiruna can get to the sea on the Norwegian coast, there is also a national park and lodge for visitors.  Our guide for the week, photographer and adventurer Oliver Wright, met us as we arrived and helped us get checked into our bungalow that would be home for the next few days.  

At dinner, we met the rest of the folks who would be in our group - Aimee and Toby, a young couple from Australia, Dixon and Joanne, a young couple from Singapore, and Helle, a Danish woman who also happened to live and work in Belgium - at the same place my husband works!  It truly is a small world sometimes.  We really enjoyed getting to know everyone over the five days we spent together.  Our group clicked amazingly well.

After a three course gourmet dinner each night (with a delicious different alternative every evening for the one vegan in our group - me - which was quite a treat all by itself), Oliver took us to a different location to attempt to photograph and view the Northern Lights or as they call it there, Aurora.  We each were loaned a fancy camera, a tripod, an Arctic jumpsuit and Arctic boots to keep us warm.  Oliver helped us get the cameras set up and made sure we knew what we were doing in order to get great shots.  The only hitch was...would the Aurora make an appearance?  This is the one thing no one can predict.  But the team at Lights over Lapland is pretty confident that if you come for four nights, you'll have a 95% chance of seeing Aurora.  So it was our first night, we weren't worried at all, but were very excited.

We headed out to a site that is a replica of a traditional Sami camp.  Oliver set up a fire inside a hut and we all started practicing taking pictures with the wide aperture and long exposure settings that would get us optimal Aurora pictures.  I don't know anything about photography so I was unprepared for the effect this would have on pictures taken in the pitch dark - I could not get over how they looked like they were taken in broad daylight!

Yes, this is me, in front of a Sami structure with a very faint line of Aurora behind me.

It was actually pitch dark.  But this is what it takes to catch the Northern Lights on film.

We were very lucky - on our first night out and after a bit of patience, we saw the most amazing display of Aurora...and soon enough it got intense enough that it could even be seen without the help of the camera.

The next few days were one incredible experience after another.  We spent a morning on a frozen lake, ice fishing with Roger Marklund of Activities in Abisko.  Despite the fact that no one actually caught a fish, we had an awesome morning on the ice enjoying the beauty of the Lapland scenery and sky.  We ended up spotting a very rare Nacreous cloud while on the lake, while enjoying a glass (or two?) of Roger's vodka spiked lingonberry tea.  It was Christmas Eve, after all, right?

We got a chance to try snowmobiling and man, those things go fast!  I flew off the trail and over a rock at one point but luckily no harm was done, to either the snowmobile or my passenger, Helle.  Phew!

And we had three more evenings with Oliver and our group, taking photos and waiting for Aurora to start up, chatting around the fire and drinking the ubiquitous lingonberry tea (without vodka this time to be sure we all made it back home at the end of the evening).  

Our final day, a huge snowstorm blew in, meaning a lot of activites got cancelled.  We were supposed to go up the mountain in a chairlift to the Abisko Mountain Station, to view and photograph Aurora.  The raging storm winds meant the chairlift was closed, and we had to make other plans.  Oliver suggested hiking down to the lake (about 1.2 km downhill in about 30-40 cm of snow) where there was a boat house and sauna building we could use as a shelter.  Everyone in our group was up for it, so after dinner, we got suited up and bravely hiked down, and got our cameras set up.  This was the coldest night we had experienced so far, with temperatures at about -15 C.  Still not terrible but I could definitely feel a difference to the previous nights.  Consequently I spent a lot of the evening in the sauna room, by a fire, talking with Helle, Aimee, and Joanne.  The guys were all outside enjoying their last chance to get pictures.  Suddenly, Oliver burst in, excitedly telling us that the Aurora had started up.  So we all went outside, and were blown away by the best display we had seen so far.  I ended up not even taking many pictures because it was all over the sky and just too amazing not to watch with my own eyes and experience the moment fully.   At that moment I could really understand the magic of the Aurora and why it draws so many of us to come and find it.  The way the lights dance and shift in the sky, the way they seem alive, is bewitching.  You can't help but stand there with your mouth open, saying wow over and over again.

And then I was grateful for all the walking and hiking I've done over the past year, because we had to hike back up to the lodge - 1.2 km in 30-40 cm of snow UPHILL this time in a heavy Arctic suit.  It felt good to know I could do it without a hitch but I certainly was sweaty when I got to the top.

And so our trip came to an end.  We said goodbye to all the new friends we had made, we thanked Oliver for the wonderful job he had done taking such good care of us.  We boarded the bus back to Kiruna, this time in the gorgeous mid-morning blue light, and we sat with our mouths open the whole 90 km ride back, enjoying the Lapland landscape, the amazing colors in the sky (another Nacreous cloud our bus driver Ingrid stopped to let us all take pictures of because they are so rare - go figure that we saw at least three of them during the five days we were there), the many reindeer and the one single fox we saw along the way.

The Nacreous cloud we saw while ice fishing

And then Kiruna-Stockholm, goodbye again to Florian, and finally Stockholm-Brussels.  Where it felt amazingly balmy at 16 C the next day, and I could wash our woolens and hang them out in the sun all day long to dry.  What a contrast!  I won't lie - it felt great to see the sun again.  But I feel so very grateful to have had the opportunity to experience Lapland and the Aurora in the dead of winter, something I never thought I would do.

I guess I'll just have to wait and see where my other two kids go if they do an Erasmus semester...do you think it could get any more exotic than this?