One Step at a Time

Where to begin? I guess it was about four years ago that I came up with the crazy idea to complete a race in all 50 states and on all 7 continents. At the time, I was a fair weather runner in need of motivation....so I created it. 


Now, don't get me wrong, I have no delusions of grandeur, and do not intend on finishing this quest in the near future. It's more of a life long goal to help keep my butt off the coach and my hands out of the cookie jar...sometimes.


In the last two and half years I've had a partner in the journey, helping me get up in the mornings (which is a struggle for me) and stay motivated in the task. Then we got Mars, our insanely cute and adorable Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy. 


We stumbled across this breed watching Dogs 101 while hanging out in Chicago for a race, we knew that was the dog for us (we discovered they have high endurance and can hang with us if we ever decide to run more than 13 miles). The caveat, you cannot run with a puppy until they are at least a year old, and we have been anxiously waiting for this time.


Mars as a puppy:

Mars at one year:

As of April 6, 2011, Mars was ready to go. We took him out on his first half mile run. I know, long distance right? Well, if people are advised against getting off the couch after a year and going to run a 5k then I'm sure the same applies to dogs.


So here I am, with my fiancée and our precocious pup on our journey. 


States Completed (6):
California, Nevada, Texas, Illinois, Colorado and Arkansas

As you can see we still have quite a few miles left until we cross the finish line!

Stay tuned for training and racing updates, for us and the dog, as we try to fit work, grad school, moving and wedding planning into our lives.