february 2012 race schedule

with the weather we've had for the last couple of months it's hard to believe this is wintertime. this morning, even with some drizzle coming down, the temperature was in the 50's on the way to the office! and the warm weather should stick around for at least a few more days :D

but getting back to the february races.  the month kicks off with the manhattan hot chocolate 10k at riverside park.  the race is the companion (bookend?) to the brooklyn hot chocolate 10k held at prospect park last weekend.  it will be my first race at riverside park and i'm looking forward to it.  on deck for the following day is the gridiron 4 miler in central park.  it's another one i'm looking forward to, but may not run if i have to drive katie to her field hockey practice up in brewster...

the following weekend hosts a pair of february standards; the stratford sweetheart run 4 miler and the boston build-up 20k.  as in years past, i'll team up with emmy for the sweetheart run.  but in a big change, jim announced yesterday that the 20k is moving from southport to fairfield!  the biggest benefit of this relocation won't even be race related (although he did mention one less hill on the revised course).  instead of the miserly parking conditions at the southport train station, there'll be practically unlimited parking at the much larger fairfield station!

mid-month will see a return to albany for the winter marathon.  running 26.2 miles on the suny albany campus in typically frigid conditions has become something of a tradition - with this edition being my 4th trip around the grounds, so to speak.  the only downside to this race is having to miss the cherry tree 10 miler, one of my favorite races, which is run on the same day :(

the last weekend is another old friend, the colchester half marathon.  this race is a real hassle to drive to - and every year i promise it would be the last one.  but it's worth the effort to get to - a classic old school, no frills, tough course, great post-race food - and shouldn't be missed!  the next day, is a brand new race/event - steve is putting on an ekiden relay in central park (more details to follow when i've gotten a 4 person team together).  i've run short (1k, 2k, & 3k legs) ekiden relays at waveny park, as part of the summer xc series.  this one will cover more distance, and i'm looking forward to it.

here's how it looks so far:

2/4 - manhattan hot chocolate 10k
2/5 - gridiron 4 miler
2/11 - stratford sweetheart run, 4m
2/12 - boston build-up 20k
2/19 - albany winter marathon
2/25 - colchester half marathon
2/26 - ekiden 4-person relay