Monday, November 5, 2018

Bucket List Races | Blog Ahead #3

Blog Ahead #3
Originally written on October 9, 2018

It's race week here in my corner of the world! As of the day this post goes live, I will be 5 days away from attempting my 8th marathon in Richmond, VA! I thought that I would dedicate my #BlogAhead posts that I will schedule for this week to be running related to get me PUMPED to run 26.2 miles on Saturday.

First up, let's talk about the races that are on my Bucket List. Every runner has them, and I am no different. I feel like there are so many fun road races out there that I would love to participate in some day and hopefully I will be lucky enough to try them all! I'm sure that I'll have to do another post related to this topic sometime in the future as new races are popping up every day, but for now, here are the races that I would absolutely *love* to try:

1. Boston Marathon

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I think we can list this one under "DUH". Boston has always been a dream race for me. I remember being in high school (well before I took up distance running as a hobby) and wanting to run the Boston Marathon one day. This is on of the hardest races to get a number for. Both the qualifying times and the fundraising qualifications are extremely touch to meet. BUT, I do live in the Boston area, and I have a feeling that one day the stars will align and I will be able to toe the starting line in Hopkinton.

2. Disney Princess Half Marathon

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The Disney races seem like they would be SO much fun! I'm especially interested in checking out the Princess half as it was the first Disney race I heard about and I think it would be the perfect distance for such a fun race. Of course I would dress up as a princess during the run and try to get photos with as many characters as possible!

3. Walt Disney World Dopey Challenge

Yep... you get 6 medals for this one!
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Speaking of the Disney races, I would really like to try my hand at the Dopey challenge one day. For those of you who may not have heard of this challenge before, it takes place over the course of the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend and you would run the 5K, the 10K, the half marathon, and the full marathon, all on consecutive days! I'm fairly certain my legs would fall off by the end of it, but I've always been so intrigued by this challenge and think it would be an awesome memory!

4. Beat the Blerch Marathon

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I'm a big fan of The Oatmeal, and it turns out The Oatmeal is a big fan of running! You should 100% read his comic The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run because it basically sums up my running life tbh. He puts together the "Beat the Blerch" Marathon each year, which is a joke that is throughout his aforementioned comic, and I soooo want to do it. It features cake at every aid station, couches in case you want to nap mid-race, and blerches that chase you around the course! I'm so into it.

5. London Marathon

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Another one of the World Majors! It would be so cool to tick off all of the World Marathon Majors, but this is one that I'd totally love to do. I lived in London for a few months at the end of 2010 during a study abroad trip and I miss it so much. I spent many an afternoon running around Hyde Park which was right up the street from where I studied. I would love to visit the city again and see all of my favorite spots while running!

6. New York City Marathon

Vlog from one of my favorite running channels, The Ginger Runner

If you guys aren't aware, I have a life goal of running a marathon in each one of the 50 states in the US. I've already ticked off New York, but I would absolutely love to return to run the New York City Marathon. I'm sure this race is just non-stop crowds cheering you on which is always so wonderful, especially in those later miles! And, of course, you just want to be able to say that you've been able to run the NYC Marathon, right? :)

7. Carolina Reaper Challenge

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Even though I'm not a fan of spicy food and these races are named after some of the hottest peppers on the planet, this challenge sounded super awesome. Basically, you pick a distance and they've divided that distance into increments that you have to complete within a certain period of time. For example, the half marathon challenge (which is probably the one I'd opt for), you'd have to complete five 2.62 mile loops, and you have 40 minutes to complete each loop. If you finish before the allotted time, you have to wait until the next 40 minute loop starts to go out on the next one, and if you don't finish within that time, you're disqualified. There is a marathon option (which sound so difficult omg) and a 50K option (even worse!), but for those that just want to have fun, the is a 1 loop option as well. Either way, this event seems so fun and I definitely want to try one day!

Like I said at the beginning of this post, there's a good shot that I'll be adding to the list in the coming years, but these races have definitely caught my eye and I hope to run one or all of them sometime in my life! :)

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