Half Marathon Training Update

This post should be short and sweet. Kinda like my training. The Pittsburgh Half Marathon is exactly 6 weeks away. Funny enough 6 miles is about the farthest I have run in my training (well, not yet but I am about to go run 6 now if I get off the couch and stop blogging.) I have been fighting sinus/allergies which are new to me so I've been sluggish on my runs. I plan to work some fartlek (intervals) and hills into my runs to hopefully give me some strength for the race. The plan is to slowly increase my long runs until I get up to 10 before the race on May 2nd.

Thomas Family Running Updates:
My sister Leah is running the Pittsburgh Half with me this May. This will be her first half marathon! Her training is going well - I think she's up to 9-10 miles now (kicking my butt.) Plus, she was buried in snow up in DC and couldn't run outside for a while. Good work, Scussy.

My older brother Matty, who just turned 29 on St.Patty's day finished the Los Angeles Marathon this morning in just over 3 hours. He has been sick with a virus but still completed the race in a very respectable time. His PR is around 2:50. He volunteers with "Students Run LA" an organization that encourages at-risk students to run and complete a marathon. www.srla.org

My younger brother Zummy (Z's Blog) is nuts in a good way. He completed his first Ultra Marathon a few weeks ago in 6 hrs and 58 minutes for a first place finish. This was a 50 mile race. Yes, he ran for an entire workday. Think about that tomorrow when you're at your desk.

They continue to inspire me with each run...

Night of the Phoenix

I work for Elon's Phoenix Club, the fundraising organization within the Athletic department. The past two years, the Phoenix Club has hosted an annual fundraising dinner and silent auction to raise scholarship funds for student-athletes at Elon. This year's "Night of the Phoenix" on February 19th was a huge success with close to $90,000 (net) raised! This is the most we have raised in the event's three year history.

The formal entertainment for the evening was a gentleman named Giovanni Livera, who is a performer, magician and motivational speaker. I didn't get to see much of his show but I know it included some cool tricks our coaches buzzed about for days after the event.

Our silent auction included around 170 items open for bidding. Items included everything from a Biscuitville t-shirt to a week long Caribbean Cruise on a private yacht. Oh and not to mention a dinner with yours truly. I made a cool $500 which far surpassed the amount bid on dinner with our head coaches. What can I say?! Priceless.

February is a frantic month for us in the office. Luckily, we had a great crew of people helping us make the evening memorable for all. Thanks to all who helped and put up with a sleep-deprived Sarah for a few weeks.

Get in the game, Sarah

No, not basketball, although I have been consumed by the madness lately just like most college basketball fans. I'm talking about the blogging game. I've been hibernating lately but only concerning my blog, otherwise, I have been up to a lot. I will begin to share retrospectively.

Upcoming Stories:
*Comma splices in my blog posts (kidding - but see if you can keep track)
*Night of the Phoenix
*Half Marathon Training Update
*Culinary Creations
*March Madness
*Steve Young and the Economy
*Family, Friends, Life