Pace yourself

My good friend M is a Pacer for the SF Marathon training clinic with Athletic Endurance. Last week he wrangled Tom and me in to become Pacers too. I admit I'm a little nervous but very excited about being somewhat responsible for the training of a group of runners. There will be plenty of them that have more running experience than me. I've only run one marathon and one half marathon, so it feels a little weird being the role model when I could just as easily be one of the trainees. But being a Pacer does have its advantages:

1. I get two technical shirts with the group logo and the title PACER on it.
2. I get a technical running hat that also says Pacer. I look official!
3. I get a good boost of confidence in my running and more motivation to run
4. Nifty SFM bag!
5. Garmin Watch!!!
6. SF Marathon/Half Marathon registration fee waived ($65-$100).
7. Being a Pacer is free (if you don't count my time and running pain), whereas being a trainee ranges from $100-$400.

So yeah, I get this fancy dancy GPS watch that does a bunch of cool stuff. But from a completely shallow point of view, this sucker is ugg-lee. And big. And heavy. It's a ho-hum colored, bluish-grey watch that is so large, the face has a bend in it so it can wrap around the wrist. But it will be super helpful with training and keeping my runners on pace. But yeah, Garmin should have some Apple designers revamp it and make it look slick.

I haven't decided if I'm actually going to run the marathon. I have committed to at least running the Half. We'll see how I feel as race day comes closer (August 3rd). I hear it's not the greatest course, but it would be fun to run a marathon through my favorite city. Plus I think there's a good chance of having my friends/family come out and cheer me on from the sidelines.

I'm really excited about running again. I feel like I'm finally in shape. I went to Sports Basement yesterday and spent way too much money on running and biking stuff. I bought another NB running skirt, a pair of Saucony Hurricanes (next time I'll get the Asics Gel Kayanos), a really cool cycling jacket, and Sugoi biking shorts. I saved 20% off my purchase from my coupon I got in my shwag bag from the Windmill 10K race. Nothing like new gear to get your out more. Yay!