The great monster dash of 2013!

So it's been awhile!  Honestly, longer than I intended.  As you can see I've now put a link to a PayPal account and fundraising thermometer on the right side of my blog here, but please - wait before you donate!  The reason why I delayed this post is related to why, so please read on (or skip to the bottom, whatever).

Mah gear.

Last weekend I ran a 10 kilometer 'race' (in quotation marks because it wasn't about speed) with one of my closest friends in Toronto: the Monster Dash!  It was my 2nd time running a full 10k, and I felt ready for it, if not a little nervous.  My running buddy does that distance on a regular basis, and I was only just worked up to it. 

I'd been feeling some pain in my lower right calf, and after looking it up realized it was likely related to my achilles tendon.  My friend had found a product called Kinesiology Tape, so we both tried it out.  Worked like a charm!  I picked up a simple brace for a knee that was complaining as well, and I think it helped provide some good support too.

We were 'Team Doin' It!' and boy did we.  Click for larger!

We traveled to the Holland Bloorview Kids Rehab Hospital that hosted the event and took in the sights of various characters - it was a Halloween event!  There was a kids' "Spooky Mile" and a 5k, and most of the really serious costumes were seen on those runners.  Those of us doing 10 didn't want too much going on!  We opted for bacon and eggs - simple and runnable, and surprisingly popular?  We got a lot of "Hey bacon and eggs!" calls.  Yeah, we were surprised too.

Just before we started.

Crossing the finish line!

The race mostly took place in the dark, and after the sun was down for a while, the temperature really dropped.  I struggled to finish up a rather steep hill that for some crazy reason was left towards the end - specifically I started to experience some pretty sharp pain in my right hip.  This is where I reveal the not-so-great news: last year I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, and while I knew it affected my 'guts', I didn't know that it can also have other symptoms.  I'm not 100% sure yet, but I think one of them might have shown up in me, and it can cause pain in the joints.  I'm going to see my specialist this week, but in the meantime running is painful.  I ran another 10k today and was fighting not to limp up any sort of small incline.  For this reason I was waited to write this entry, in case I get bad news from the doctor, but I finally figured I might as well share the experience and just hope for the best! 

Reveling in our victory.

It was tough to get through the end of the Monster Dash, but thanks to my stubborn streak and my friend's amazing cheerleading, we did it!  Our time didn't even stink that much, considering I was pretty slow!  It came out to about 1:08, if I recall.  And we got awesome medals, which double as beer bottle openers, for the record! 

I was really proud to finish another race, and to push through my discomfort.  My hope is that with help from experts, I'll be able to find ways to work with my condition and still finish the half-marathon in May.  I'm hesitant to ask for donations yet though, until I know if it is still a goal I can keep.  I will definitely keep all of you posted!

Thank you so much for reading, again, and wish me luck!