Meet Bill Duer

This is Mr. Bill Duer.

I met him at the Lum N Abner 5K on Saturday. He's a local to our small town and after my mother told me a little about him, I knew I needed to shake his hand. And now, I want to tell you a little about him.

Mr. Duer is 76 years young. He has ran over 100 marathons. He says he stopped counting after 100 but he thinks the exact number is somewhere around 110. He once ran a marathon a month for 68 consecutive months. He also states that he has been running every single day for 23 years. He has it all logged and has never suffered an injury.

This man exudes such an air of calmness and sureness. His pace was steady, never faltering and he barely looked winded at the end of the 3.1 miles. And why would he be? A man who runs marathons with the regularity of him has no reason to be tired after a 5K.

I Googled Mr. Duer and found a few references to him in articles and race results, but I am convinced this man has not gotten the recognition or coverage he deserves. He is a true Marathon Man and doesn't seem to be showing any signs of stopping. The fact that he resides in our very own Mena, Arkansas and runs local roads every day just makes it that much sweeter.

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Giveaway winner:

I had 14 comments and the random number generator selected comment #2. So Carrie, you win the book!

Carrie's comment that won: carrie said...
PS - I also "liked" you site on facebook yesterday!

Yay Carrie! Also, Carrie just completed a Walk for the Cure and raised over $1700. She was walking for her mother who was just diagnosed with breast cancer. Go Team Jane's Jugs! Visit Carrie here.

5K Race Recap

Well folks, today Fat Girl ran her first ever 5K.

The Lum N Abner 5K.

28 runners.

9am.

80 degrees (if not more)

100% humidity (i'm making that up but it felt like it)

I had three goals for this race:

1. Finish in at least 30 minutes

2. Do not walk

3. Do not die

I accomplished two of those. I did not die and I made it to the finish in at least 30 minutes. Sadly though I took three walking breaks (one for every mile I guess) of about 10-15 seconds a piece. Enough to catch my breath and haul ass again.

Cause guess what?

I was the second female across the finish line. I placed second in my age division (17+ pretty big division if you ask me) with a time of........26:52! I got a medal too! I think I was beat by a girl still in high school who must run track. She looked very young and was very fast. Overall I placed 12th out of the 28 runners.

My mom and my oldest kiddo were waiting for me at the finish. Didn't get any good pics of me running but here I am after crossing the finish line. Don't worry, I didn't immediately collapse, but it was pretty hot and I sat down on the cool grass in a hurry.

My buddy Phyllis who came in 18th (just like her bib number) with a time of 28:28! Go Phyllis!

My oldest guy who was cheering me on. He's proud of his mommy

and says he wants to run a marathon. I bet he can some day.

Stay tuned for the winner of the giveaway and an extra special post about an

extraordinary runner I met at the 5K.

Confession #2

I have yet to run a race.

You would think by now, after graduating C25K in January and beginning to increase my miles that I would have at least done a 5K. You would think. But you would be wrong.

The main issue for me has been location. I live in a very rural area and the closest races this year have been at the very least a two hour drive. Now that in itself isn't so bad. Finding childcare during the race is bad. My husband works irregular hours and I just haven't made it a point to coordinate my life enough to enter a race.

I know I can finish a 5K. I don't know what I can do it in. I'm sure the adrenaline will help and of course it's going to be a PR for me because it will be my very first. But I am super excited to even have the chance to do it.

Can you tell by my grin?

Here I am with my very first race entry form! Completed and ready to be returned. I've got until June 5th to prepare for my FIRST 5K! I am amped, pumped, over the moon, you name it.

Any suggestions for a first timer?