For the love of all that is good in your life, please, please wear sunscreen!

Now that the PSA is taken care of… Tops off! Let the sun shine in! If anyone has a problem with your body, that is their problem.

I say “shirts off summer,” but really, I’ve only had my shirt on here and there all year. The weather has been that mild.

I popped the old shirt off pretty quickly during the Clinton historic half marathon. The heat & humidity really came on during that race! I wasn’t the only one stripping down.

The Clinton 1/2 marathon is a fantastic race. The town of Clinton is a little ways out there. So, once again, Syd and I were up and out the door by 6 a.m. on a Saturday. I guess it’s time I just admit that I prefer waking up early.

The half marathon takes runners through some of the older parts of town, by all the schools (I think) a bit on the Katy trail, on some 2 lane blacktop highway, and it begins and ends in the square.

After the race, Sydney and I walked around the square a bit and recounted the past races we ran there before we were together. It was kind of a fun, impromptu date.

The next day was the Father’s Day superhero 5k at the T-Mobile campus. As interesting as the Clinton half was, that is how boring the T-Mobile campus is.

Imagine: a beige and brick rectangle. Now, cut and paste that and arrange them in a circle. I suppose it’s good for productivity. It’s pretty good for races. Getting the distance right and controlling traffic is easy. We had a little problem figuring out which entrance to use. The directions on the event page confused me a bit.

I kept my shirt on for Father’s Day 5k. There were thunderstorms all night, and it was drizzling throughout the race. My intention was to run easy with Syd, and then the two of us were going to pace her father. That was the plan. Pretty soon after the start, we were tailed by a crying baby in a stroller. I had to get away, so away I went.

I was a little heartbroken when I saw it was an out and back course, but at least I got to high-five everyone.

I finished just as Andy, Sydney’s dad, made it to the turnaround. I walked the second half of the race with him and Sydney joined us when we got back around near the finish. We paced him to a new p.r.!

My training is ramping up. With the 2nd big race just weeks away, I’m upping mileage and trying to acclimate to the heat. I’ve been adding gear and shoes to my setup. I’ve been practicing my fueling with rice crispy treats, and oreos. Got to get the tummy in shape!