College football has returned!

In case you missed it, college football is back!

I'm happy. So, so happy.

I made the trip down to Madison Saturday to meet up with my friend Renee and we took in the Badger game. Yes, it was hot, as in, so hot I could feel the sweat dripping down my back.

But it was worth it. In his first game as head coach Gary Andersen coached the Badgers to a 45-0 win over UMass. Forty-five points score? Yes. Three 100-yard rushers? Yes please. Watching as the players themselves took the field and jumped during the traditional pre-fourth quarter "Jump Around?" Yes. And listening as the team huddled near the end zone and sang "On, Wisconsin" before heading into the lockerroom? Loved. It.

Is it Saturday yet?

Madison Mini Marathon Race Report

This was my third time heading down to Madison for the Madison Mini Marathon. And let me tell you, it's always a great experience.

I mean seriously. A course that starts in front of the Memorial Union, takes you up past the Capitol, down State Street, through campus down to the Henry Vilas Zoo and then the rolling hills of the UW Arboretum. Then it's through some neighborhoods, back out by the UW Hospital and then it's onto the Lakeshore Path for a two-mile run back to the finish line in front of the Memorial Union. What's not to like? Oh, the post-race party on the Terrace is pretty fabulous as well.

I got down to Madison Friday night, met up with my friend Jodi and we headed down to campus to pick up our race packets. And I needed to stock up on some fuel, since I had none at my house. Nothing like breaking that cardinal rule, nothing new on race day, since I would be going with Shot Blocks. Then it was off for a pre-race meet up with more friends for dinner.

Pre-race with Jodi.

I had no goals heading into this year's race. It would be my longest run since Green Bay and I just wanted to enjoy myself. I ended up meeting up with my friends Erica and Aaron and we ended up running together. We kept a nice easy pace, chatted, threw in some walking when needed. Erica started cramping somewhere in the Arb and she kept telling us to go on without her, but we stuck with her.

Dear Runner 3770, you ruined what would have been a perfect picture.

Somewhere around Mile 10 it started getting warm and they told us the race was raised to a yellow flag, or one of those, "Hey, it's getting warm. Be careful and remember to drink fluids" levels.

With two miles to go, Aaron and I decided to split off from Erica. We knew she'd be able to handle the last two miles just fine. We started to run. Right after the UW Boathouse, with about 0.75 miles to go, I was the silly one who looked at her Garmin, noticed we could hit 2:55 if we pushed it. And then I mentioned it out loud and Aaron was all for it. D'oh. I should have kept my mouth shut.

So we ran. Pushed the pace. Actually, Aaron pulled me at times. And when we got off the path and made the turn on to Park Street, where's there's this little uphill, my legs revolted. They'd had it. No more. As much as I didn't want to. I walked. Yes. I walked a block from the finish line. I'm kind of ashamed to admit that. But my legs were done.

Before we made the final turn, I started running again, turned and I have to say, had a pretty decent kick to the finish.

2:55:18. Not bad.

Then it was time for the post-race festivities on the Terrace with friends and beer.

And it was races like the Madison Mini that reminded me how much easier it is to run long distances with friends, when the chatter can keep you occupied or they can push you to a finish.

Not surprising, it was a good day.

Hang on, it's going to be a busy month or two

Seven days into August, you would think my summer would be starting to wind down.

Nope.

If anything, my summer is about to get crazy busy. And I'll have to remind myself to take time to breathe.

It all started last week, when I spent the entire week out at AirVenture. For those of you have been around for a few years, you know this is my favorite event to cover each summer for work. A week of airplanes and aviation enthusiasts. So much to see, so many stories to tell.

 This is what I watched in the afternoons last week.

Since I left the shack on Friday at 5 p.m., I've been on vacation. It's been needed. I haven't done too much. I've gone to two going away shin-digs for two co-workers, read two books, got in a decent 9-mile run and even a bit of speed work. Today, I've watched as people throughout my community have had to clean up after a wicked storm moved through the area overnight.

 Seen on my long run.

My plans for the rest of the week include more reading, a possible trip to Packers training camp tomorrow and sneaking in a 10-mile training run before the weekend. And then there will be rest. Because Friday afternoon the craziness of the next two months begins.


Friday I'm taking off for Milwaukee where I'll meet up with friends to volunteer Saturday at the USA Triathlon Age Group Nationals. We've got aide station duties and I'm pretty sure it'll be a good time.

Then it's off to Madison on Aug. 16-17 for my third attempt at the Madison Mini. To say I'm looking forward to a weekend in Madison is silly. I mean, come on. It's Madison, one of my favorite places. Plus, it's a gorgeous - albeit somewhat hilly - course through some of my favorite places in Madison.

I get a weekend off! Mostly to catch my breath.

But then it's back to Madison on Aug. 31 for the season opener at Camp Randall! Football's back! I'm going to watch the Badgers with my friend Renee. And while the game itself won't be nail biting, it'll be a great day. Football. Badgers. A good friend. And Madison. Need I say more?

I throw in one more trip to Madison on Sept. 7-8 for Ironman Wisconsin weekend. I'm helping cheer on a good friend's husband and I hope to spot a few other folks who will be out on the course as well.

I get lucky and get another weekend off before it's time for the Fox Cities Half Marathon on Sept. 22.Yeah, during all this craziness and traveling I've still got to fit in time to get the long training runs in.

Finally after Fox Cities things start to die down a bit and I don't have any other races on the schedule until I head back to Lake Mills in November for the Tyranena Beer Run.

It's going to be a crazy, busy few weeks, but it's going to be so fun. However, I'm tired just typing those plans out. I think I need to go take a nap now.

July reading recap

I had good intentions of blogging in July. Really. I did. But then life got in the way. I got busy.

Strangely. I still managed to find time to read. And quite a bit.

In July I read five books and 2,408 pages. That brings the yearly total to 44 books and 15,275 pages (give or take a few pages since a few of the books I've read this year were the Kindle variety). Compared to last year when I had finished 24 books and 8,259 pages, I'd say I'm doing OK.

In fact, at some point during the last month, I decided I needed to revamp that yearly reading goal - again. Remember at the beginning of the year I was aiming for 40 books. Then I upped it to 52. Well, I've upped it again. Now I'm aiming to finish 60 books by the end of the year.

What'd I read in July? Take a look:

The Elite by Kiera Cass
The Likeness by Tana French
The Princesses of Iowa by M. Molly Backes
A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
Austenland by Shannon Hale


And now for the brief reviews, complete with number of stars given out on GoodReads. Follow me here if you’d like a more timely update on what I’m reading, what I think and what’s been added to my to-read list.

The Elite by Kiera Cass ****
This wasn't bad. It was the second book in a series and I had to wait for it for a while from the library. It was a quick, easy read, although there were a few parts where I wondered where it was going. It all came together in the end though. Waiting for the third book to come out.

The Likeness by Tana French *****
This is a follow up to In the Woods, which I read last month. So, so glad I had friends recommend this author. So good. I liked In the Woods a lot, but I liked this one even better. So many twists, turns and surprises and it kept me guessing until the final pages.

The Princesses of Iowa by M. Molly Backes ***
I don't remember how this got on my to-read list, but I finally read it. And it was just kind of, eh. Yes. I realize this is a YA book, but it was a little too high school drama-ish for me. Honestly, if I could give half stars, this would probably get a 2.5.

A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin ****
The second good in the Game of Thrones series. I had watched season 2 of the series, so I knew what was going to happen, but at 969 pages, this was still a good read that pulled me into the stories and added more details than the TV series couldn't.

Austenland by Shannon Hale ***
A quick, easy read about a woman who loves Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice and sets out to get the full Jane Austen experience. Cute story.

So what's next? Well, I have a few  titles that I got from the library just in time for my vacation. After that? Who knows. What are you all reading?

June Reading Recap

Let's skip the fact that it's already July. Let's just talk about books.

Like the previous five months, I managed to do a little reading in June. As in six books and 2,037 pages. That brings the yearly total to 39 books and 12,867 pages (give or take a couple pages since a few books this year were of the Kindle variety). Compared to last year when I had finished 22 books and 7,475 pages by the end of June. I'd say I'm doing OK and well on my way to hitting my 52-book goal for the year. Let's just say I might want to consider upping that goal, but I'll decide that in the coming months. Or whenever I hit 52 books.

So what'd I read in June?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Entwined With You by Sylvia Day
Requiem by Jamie McGuire
Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris
Burned by Sara Shepard
In the Woods by Tana French

And now for the brief reviews, complete with number of stars given out on GoodReads. Follow me here if you’d like a more timely update on what I’m reading, what I think and what’s been added to my to-read list.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen  ****
It's one of those classics that everybody has read. But I had never read it. So I picked it up and it didn't disappoint.

Entwined With You by Sylvia Day  ****
I'd been waiting for this third book of the series to come out since last fall. It didn't disappoint. What did disappoint? Learning there were plans for a fourth book. And I'll have to wait until who knows when to read it.

Requiem by Jamie McGuire  ****
This wasn't bad. A quick read.

Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris  ***
This is #12 in the Sookie Stackhouse series and since I've read every other one, it was time to pick this one up. These are fun, quick reads. I am, however, looking forward to reading the 13th and final book in the series.

Burned by Sara Shepard  **
Tell me again why I'm still reading this series? Seriously. After 12 books, it needs to wrap up. Actually it could have wrapped up a few books ago. But from I've heard, there isn't any immediate plans to do that. Sadly, I'll probably keep reading them. Unless someone forbids me to. Yes, please forbid from reading more of this series.

In the Woods by Tana French  *****
By far, my favorite book of the month. Maybe it's because I write about crime for a living, but I found this one fascinating. A great crime story full of twists and turns. One that I couldn't put down. And I was pretty excited to realize this is part of a series. So needless to say, I'll be reading the rest of these books. If you haven't, pick this one up and read it. Trust me.

So what's next for July? If the library comes through with any of the books I've requested, I'll obviously read those. But I'm also thinking it's time to start tackling A Clash of Kings, the second book in the series by George R.R. Martin, which Game of Thrones is based on.

Ragnar Chicago

Ragnar Chicago.

I'm finding it hard to put those 60 or so hours I spent with 11 other amazing people into words.

In short, it was everything I could have asked for and more.

It all started Thursday afternoon when I headed down to Milwaukee to meet up with a chunk of my teammates and pick up our vans. The six of us who would be spending the next two days in Van 2 got lucky and ended up with a 15-passenger van. Yes. 15-passenger. And me? The girl who drives a Ford Focus? I drove that spaceship to Madison. And didn't crash. Although Garmin Dave might have gotten a bit snippy with me at one point.

 Pre-Ragnar bonding.

Once we got to Madison, we checked into our hotel and met up with our remaining teammates before heading out to Noodles for some pre-Ragnar food. Then it was back to the hotel and time for some more team bonding. Which of course involved beer.

At some point, the Van 1 teammates decided it was time to sleep - something about having to run early in the morning - so us Van 2 runners continued our bonding and drinking downstairs in the hotel lobby.

Team B*****s Be Crazy, being a little silly.

The next morning dawned bright and early. Our runners would be starting at 8 a.m., but we all met up at the start line for pictures. Before we knew it, Runner No. 1 was off and so was Van 1.

 

We jumped. Or tried to.

For the six of us in Van 2? First there was an attempt at a jumping picture. Then it was time for food. One power outage - while I was in the shower - and one fire alarm - while I was clothed only in a towel - later and we hit the road for Lake Mills to decorate the van and wait for our teammates.

We got prime parking at Exchange 6 in the Lake Mills High School parking lot. Seriously. Every Ragnar van wanted the LCat of the Week spot (which apparently didn't matter too much since our van got hit by another big white Ragnar van).

 

 It's harder to draw Mr. Potato Head than you think.

After going through the safety briefing, we got down to the business and decorated the van. There were boxes to check off when legs were finished, a "map" from MadTown to ChiTown, Mr. Potato Head and some feathery ta-tas.

Eventually we met up with our Van 1 teammates and we went to wait for Runner No. 6 to come in. And with minutes to go, we were left scrambling after hearing that Leg 7 would be 3.5 miles longer due to a detour. We switched up runners at the last minute and then it was time for Van 2 to begin our first set of legs!

Van 2 girls! Who knows where the boys were.

We leap frogged with out runners along the routes and cheered them into the exchanges. Eventually it was time for my first run, a 5.9 mile jaunt along the Glacial Drumlin Trail. A straight shot. No chances of me getting lost. Even though it was only 6:30 p.m., I would be finishing just after the nighttime hours went into effect, so I was decked out in my neon yellow tank, my reflective vest and headlamp. Oh, and I was still wearing my sunglasses. Because, you know, the sun was still shining.

I finished my leg and handed off the slap bracelet to Runner No. 12. After he was done, it was time to find some food. After we pulled into Exchange 18, we all tried to get a little bit of sleep, knowing we'd be running our next legs in the middle of the night.

Tried is the key word. My eyes were closed. But it was that restless sleep. Tossing, turning, hearing all the voices. I maybe got an hour or so. But at least I was able to close my eyes in the dark.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Van 2 started running again and before I knew it, it was 4 a.m. and time for me to run again. This time it was 7 miles through the neighborhoods in Racine. My longest leg. It was cold when I started running - like see your breath cold - but I warmed up quickly. And if I was worried about getting attacked, I shouldn't have since I was armed with a plastic knife from Noodles (thanks to a teammate). On this leg, I'm proud to say I registered two kills. And let me tell you, they were hard!

But 7 miles after I started, I was done and handing off to Runner 12 and shortly after, we were greeted with this:

Welcome to Racine, folks.

There was another stop for food, and even though we all were starving, we barely touched the food once it came to the table and I may have had my first regular Coke in more than 8 years.

We headed to the last major exchange to wait for Van 1 to finish up and then we began our last legs through Illinois. My 4.9 mile leg was through Evanston. Had I not been paying attention to the sidewalk in an attempt not to fall flat on my face, I would have been greeted with some pretty amazing scenery as I ran through some pretty swanky neighborhoods with huge houses.

I'm responsible for five of those marks.

I grabbed one kill while in sight of my van mates. What? The dude slowed down to walk. He was right there in front of me. I sped up. He decided to start running again. I couldn't let him stay in front of me. So I sprinted. Passed him - barely - and then slowed down and watched him pass me up. Dude. Still counts as a kill.

When I was in front of the Northwestern University football stadium, some lady told me it was "just straight for three blocks, take a right and another three blocks and you're done!" Liar. I swear I went like 9 blocks straight and another 6 after I turned right. They must count blocks funny down there in Evanston.

But I eventually finished. Handed off that slap bracelet to Runner 12 and we were off to try to beat him to the finish line in Chicago traffic (harder than it sounds since he was speedy!). But we did it (barely), ran into the finish line with our teammates and had a mini celebration before heading home.

What. An. Experience.

Seriously. Ragnar Chicago 2013 was amazing. I couldn't have asked for a better group of people - many who I already knew, but a few new friends as well - to travel that 200ish miles with.

When can we do it again?

Ragnar Eve!

Guys! It's finally here! It's Ragnar Eve!

Beginning tonight, I'll be hanging out with and running 196 miles from Madison to Chicago with B*tches Be Crazy at Ragnar Chicago. I haven't talked a lot about Ragnar this year on the blog, but I am SUPER excited to be embarking on this journey with these 11 other people. I'm pretty sure it's going to be a good time.

While this will be my second Ragnar Chicago, in a way it kind of feels like my first. Remember when I did it last year? I was so excited to make that journey with 11 other female bloggers. And it was fun, except anything and everything that could have gone wrong, did go wrong.

Heat. A late start time that left us running completely alone. Heat. Having to skip some legs because we were so far behind. Heat. Me never seeing the finish line because I had to head home for a family emergency. Heat.

So yeah, I ran it. I got a medal. But to me, it doesn't feel like I really earned. it. Let's just say I have some unfinished business with this relay.

So this afternoon I'll head down to Milwaukee to pick up some vans and our other teammates. We'll head to Madison for some team bonding and tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. we'll be off running. Literally. Well, I won't. At least not for another 8 hours or so since I'm Runner No. 11 this year.

I'll be back post-Ragnar with some recaps of the experience (yes, this year I WILL write blog posts about Ragnar). Until then, follow us on Twitter, @TeamBBCrazy, or our Facebook page. I'm sure it'll be an entertaining journey.

May Reading Recap

Not only can I not believe it’s already June 1, but I seriously can’t believe how much I’ve been reading. Part of me feels as though I need to find another hobby in order to spend some time away from books. But then, books. I like getting lost in them.

Oh well. With the nicer weather, I might see the reading drop a bit. But in May? That didn’t happen.

I ended up reading seven books in May for a total of 1,919 pages. That brings the yearly total to 33 books. Yes. You read that right. Thirty-three books. And 10,830 pages. Needless to say, I’m well on my way to hitting my 52 book goal. And for giggles, compare those numbers to last year when I had finished 17 books and 5,605 pages. Whoa. That’s a bit of a difference.

So what’d I read this month? Take a look:

Providence by Jamie McGuire

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks

Between the Lines by Tammara Webber

Heartbeat by Faith Sullivan

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

And now for the brief reviews, complete with number of stars given out on GoodReads. Follow me here if you’d like a more timely update on what I’m reading, what I think and what’s been added to my to-read list.

Providence by Jamie McGuire  ****

I had requested this at the library so long ago, that I had forgotten what it was about.  It’s about a girl, Nina, who’s father dies and she learns that he’d been keeping some secrets from her. Nina meets Jared, they click and he turns out to be her guardian angel, charged with keeping her safe. It actually was a pretty decent read and at times was hard to put down.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald  ****

Oh Gatsby. I hadn’t read this since high school and honestly, at the time I don’t think I appreciated it much. But with the release of the movie, I knew I had to pick it up again before I saw the flick. I liked it much better this time. Oh, and I still haven’t seen the movie.

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry  *****

Echo, who goes from popular girl to outsider with the scars, and Noah, the bad-boy and their messed up pasts. Not sure what it was about this book, but it was a good plot and I kind of loved the characters.

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks  ****

Whenever I’m ready for a quick, mindless read, I tend to go for Nicholas Sparks. And his stories usually don’t disappoint. Not a bad read. Even if you can totally tell where the story is going.

Between the Lines by Tammara Webber  ***

Teenage actors and actresses on the set of a movie. There’s a love triangle. Eh. It was OK. At times a bit slow.

Heartbeat by Faith Sullivan  ***

A Kindle freebie. I wasn’t expecting much. 

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn  *****

Guys. I really, really like this author. There’s something about her writing style. Her stories just pull me in and I seriously have a hard time putting the book down. This was no different. A reporter gets sent to her hometown to cover the murder of two little girls. While there, you learn about her somewhat messed up back story. The ending? Creepy. But wow. So good. Quite possibly my favorite book by Gillian Flynn.

Not exactly sure what’s next for June. I’ve been working my way through Pride and Prejudice, which is not a fast read at all, even though it’s fairly short. After that? Who knows. What have you been reading? Any suggestions?