Amy's Post - Hi Y'all!

Wow - this has been quite a journey so far.  Let's go back a bit...

So, approximately 5-6 weeks ago, I met my good girlfriends at Charles Hooker's house in order to start this running journey extravaganza.  I was nervous, worried, and positive that I would not be able to run - at all.  Having never really played sports (only in the shadow of my much more sportily-gifted sister), I thought running would render me an utter failure in the world of being physically active - as usual. 

Well, there is a magic that happens when good people get together and are supported by a patient, caring coach.  Sports-shmorts - I am running!

The past few weeks of Sunday runs have produced a much happier, less-stressed me.  I look forward to our runs together as a team, and I think of my individual jaunts almost as therapy - I know I'm going to struggle a little bit, but afterwards I feel so good - so ready to tackle the rest of my day, that the small-time struggle just falls away; it doesn't matter.

When Jennie threw out the idea of signing up for the Turkey Trot, I thought - YES!  Let's DO IT!  A few days later, KG and I mapped out the course, and I have to say, this helped me a bunch.  Knowing where I was going / what to expect made me relax during the actual run.  Note to self - repeat this for any other upcoming races!  :)

Race Day, as I've come to expect, contained supportive, caring friends and (surprisingly!) family (calls from / to my family in Colorado and a shocking message afterwards that my cousin finished about 2 minutes behind me...what??) which made the experience a soon-to-be tradition for me.  Because I was surrounded by racers ALL THE TIME during the race, my competitive side started to emerge bit by bit.  I wanted to keep going; I knew I could do it; I felt the pride that is connected to completing a goal.  Heading toward the finish line, I saw my husband Dan - taking pictures and yelling "Woo Hoo...GO, Amy!"  His words of encouragement helped me to jog across the finish line, and man, as I did, that the rush of adrenaline definitely kicked in.  I immediately joined Melissa and friends to cheer on the rest of the team. 

The team - KG, Carolina and Jennie - we were a team that day. 

So now, I'm loving my runs through New Cumberland, and I look forward to our Sunday runs as a member of The Gamut Girl Squad.  I'll admit - I'm still a little nervous about running a 10K...this seems like a LONG WAY, and it is - but my team and I will make it.

Until next time...

Welcome the New Squad

Hi all.  "Coach C" here.

So....with a cliff hanger, we ended the last installment of the Gamut Girls Run Squad Blog-o-report-o-gram.

Briefly, everyone did fantastically in the race and the group raised the second highest overall amount in donations in the event!  Donations that went directly to support your Harrisburg Shakespeare company!


I'm proud of everyone in the squad for both those accomplishments.

A few weeks afterwards, we debriefed at a diner just outside Halifax Pennsylvania.  Image the scene!  Besides the many memories relived and stories retold, we knew looking forward that we wanted to have a Gamut team out for the 2013 Run for the Arts.

Good people, faithful readers: that team is here.  That team is now.

And you may already know some of these brave souls!

Once again (after some wrangling with recruitment efforts) the team is all ladies.  (Except for this guy - but you won't be hearing so much from me.)

In the next few posts, they're going to introduce themselves to you, let you know what the hey they're doing here.  (And some of the Alumni might even let you in on their trials and tribulations from last year's race and...well, most of 2012.)



I'm excited for you to meet them and so looking forward to the next few months of training toward April.

best,

c