In getting ready for my first event of 2010, I thought it would be appropriate to recap 2009. I’m sure you’ve read many lists recapping the events of last year (or the last decade), so hopefully mine will not disappoint. Here is a rundown (pun totally intended)of what to date has been my most successful and busiest running year. Enjoy.

February 1, 2009
Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon (San Francisco, CA)
Time: 2:07
Quick Recap:On pace to to break my previous best (1:59) until mile 8; energy was zapped after that and couldn’t recover. Still had tons of fun and burned off enough calories to thoroughly enjoy a great Super Bowl.
Full Recap: Race Report: Kaiser Half

April 26, 2009
Big Sur Marathon (Big Sur, CA)
Time: 4:52:56 (PR)
Quick Recap: First time running this beautiful, hilly course. It is a must-run for all marathoners. Set a PR on a difficult course and broke into the 4-hour mark by shaving 26 mins. off my previous best at marathon distance.
Full Recap(s): Big Sur International Marathon, The Beauty of Big Sur

May 2-3, 2009
The Relay (Calistoga to Santa Cruz)
Time: (as a team) 28:36:26 (62 of 225)
Quick Recap: 12 runners running 3 legs of various distances apiece over 2 days and covering 199 miles from Calistoga to Santa Cruz. This coupled with my previous success at Big Sur the weekend before makes it the best 2 consecutive weekends of my life. Hands down.
Full Recap: The Relay

June 7, 2009
Hit The Road Jack 10k (Sonoma, CA)
Time: 0:50:45 (PR)
Quick Recap: I’m not much of a 10k runner (although that will be changing in 2010), but this was fun. I did some speed training on the track to get ready for the faster pace. Tried to come in under 50 min and just missed it, but my fastest mile was that last mile at 7:31 and set a PR for the distance.
Full Recap: Hit the Road Jack 10k
July 3-5, 2009

Triple 10 Mile Run; made that up myself (Clear Lake, CA)
Time: 1:30:31, 1:24:34, 1:24:30
Quick Recap: Challenged myself to run 10 miles three days in a row July fourth weekend. Pretty much an experiment to see what the results would reveal and surprisingly, I got faster each day.
Full Recap: 3 Day Results

July 26, 2009
San Francisco Marathon (San Francisco, CA)
Time: 4:45:24 (PR)
Quick Recap: One of the toughest races I have ever faced mentally. I’ve never experienced wanting to give up mid-race… well there is a first time for everything and this was it. But I managed to set another marathon PR on this oh-so-familiar course.
Full Recap: The San Francisco Marathon

September 5, 2009
Redwood Park 50k Trail Run (Redwood City, CA)
Time: 7:33:04
Quick Recap: My First Ultra (any distance over a marathon). Time was never a goal, as you can tell. But I had a great time and accomplished my goal of finishing injury free.
Full Recap(s): Ultra-Recap, Ultra-Recap 2.0

October 4, 2009
San Jose Rock n Roll Half-Marathon (San Jose, CA)
Time: 2:17
Quick Recap: Decided to run in costume as the late Michael Jackson. The King of Pop outfit was a success and ran without a care for finishing time. Had a blast.
Full Recap: Smooth Runner
November 26, 2009

Turkey Trot (Walnut Creek, CA)
Time: Don’t recall, but it was mostly a 10 min. per mile pace
Quick Recap: Ran this local race with friends to burn off some calories pre-turkey. Was thinking of trying to run this course fast, but change of plans at the start and changed to time not being a goal, just great conversation over 6 miles.
Full Recap: Sorry, there was none.

December 6, 2009
California International Marathon (Sacramento, CA)
Time: 4:40:41 (PR)
Quick Recap: To date, the race I am most proud of. After taking 3-weeks off for vacation a month prior, it was a quick rebuild to marathon distance. The most consistent race I have run to date in terms of time and provided tons of encouragement and anticipation for 2010.
Full Recap: CIM Marathon Recap

There it is, my 2009 recap. Marathons (3), Half Marathons (2), 10k (2) a Relay and an Ultra. My busiest running year to date and 2010 doesn’t look to be slowing down. It was my first injury-free year and I shaved around 38 mins. off my marathon time in 2008. Sets up quite lofty expectations for this year… so here it is:

Main goal for 2010:
In Marathon distance, break into 4:30 (and better) in the first half of the year and low 4 hours by the end of the year.

Tentative Schedule: (unless noted, these are all races I’m thinking of running)
Jan: Arizona Rock n Roll Marathon (Registered)
Feb: Ultra Marathon (31 mi.)
April: “Other” US Half, Ultra Marathon (50 mi.)* Participation based on success in Jan/Feb
May: The Relay (committed to team already)
June: San Diego Rock n Roll Marathon, Seattle Rock n Roll Marathon
July: San Francisco Marathon (registered)
October:San Jose Half Marathon (registered)
November: NYC Marathon (if selected in Lottery), US Half Marathon
December: Las Vegas Rock n Roll Marathon

Thanks for following along in 2009.