I'm from VA, too. I had toyed with the idea of trying the Marine Corps Half, but I see that registration is closed. I would like to train for that distance anyway.

A little bit about myself . . . I’ll be 42 in February (still can’t believe I’m “that old”) I’ve been married for 20+ years No children, but 5 male, black cats Am a refugee of CR and am so very glad we’ve brought over the 40s on the Run thread I finally decided to get my life and health together about 6 years ago, and lost 20 pounds with Weight Watchers and the gals from the The Firm workout DVDs. I started getting bored after about 4 years of the DVDs and was looking for a change. Coincidentally, in about July 2006, a good friend of mine began talking up running to me about the same time the doctor told my husband he was a prime candidate for a heart attack. He and I began walking in the early morning hours, he soon quit, and I slowly moved on to running. I vividly remember coming back one morning and telling him, “I ran all the way to the video store and back!” And shortly thereafter, “I ran all the way to Henderson Center and back!” Since that time, oh so long ago, I have entered various short road races and completed my first half marathon this past November at the Big Sur Half Marathon. However, I have fallen in love with trail running. I’ve participated in two trail running events through Pacific Coast Trail Runs (Pirates Cove and Salt Point) and have completed various personal runs with my friend, with our most spectacular being an 18-miler in the Trinity Alps. My goals for this next year are the Pirates Cove 30k in March (Sausalito, CA), Forest Park 50k in May (Portland, OR), Salt Point 50k in July (Jenner, CA), and the Bizz Johnson Marathon October (Susanville, CA). If I can accomplish all this in one year, I can accomplish anything.

My name is Lou. I'm 50 years old and I've been running for 2.5 years. I used to play indoor soccer and brag that I never ran more than 40 yards at a time. When I blew out the second knee, I floundered around for a while, then finally listened to my wife who had been trying to get me to run since we started dating 14 years ago. Now I have four marathons, several half marathons and a handful of other races under my belt. My wife and I train very early in the morning, trying to finish our runs by 6am, so start time depends on the planned distance. Sometimes that can be a grind, but normally that only happens during training cycle peak, for a few weeks, at which time I may back off a bit to avoid the overtraining syndrome. Nice to meet you!

Hi yall. I'm Ricky and 43. Started running Oct. 1 of '06 with a dream to chase down the soft PRs set as a teen. I had 40 lbs to drop, and I did that in 6 months time. I joined RA in Jan '07. ...... For now, I'm in rest mode, recovering my first-ever marathon.(Rocket City) Happy to meet you guys.

Man, I checked your log, mega mileage for a yearling. Ahh, to be young again Congrats on Rocket City. My DS2 lives in Huntsville AL Bravo, jjj ETA: Happy Birthday Rick!

Man, I checked your log, mega mileage for a yearling. Ahh, to be young again Congrats on Rocket City.

Thanks. I feel like 24. I swear to God I do.

Another CR refugee here.... Next thon will be Big Sur in April (Fatozzig - I'll be running this one for fun and the experience... I'lll probably need to pick your brain for strategies). My goals are to take plenty of pictures, talk to the grand piano player, and finish before the 6hr cut-off. Jeanne in Ohio

Jeanne - I only ran the HM. But yes, you need to take your camera. It's one of the most beautiful areas to run! And if you can, take the time to spend a day or two driving up and down the coast. It's absolutely gorgeous. From Mendocino down the coast the Cambria. Gorgeous, would take a couple of days, but well worth the trip. I grew up in Cambria. Very beautiful place, as well. Re the race - if the Marathon is run even half as well as the HM, it'll be a great time. If you check out my blog, I did a race report on it. Later!

Wow.......quite a few Virginia connections here. It would be fun to stay in touch and do some races together sometime. The Richmond Marathon was my first too. I live actually in Lynchburg and there is a Ten Miler here every September that I run in. The Charlottesville Ten Mile race in March is an interesting thought. I have also looked the Virginia Beach Marathon in the spring as a possible target race. There is also the Virginia Creeper Race (I hope I got that name right) where JJJessee lives and always runs. Tramps has run that one. This really is neat and I am loving learning about everyone's running background.