21 April 2012

Running with Krissy (aka Inspiration Maven!)

This morning, I got to experience something I never thought I would do.  Thanks to Patagonia, I had the opportunity to run with Krissy Moehl - an ultrarunner that I've been watching for the past couple of years.  I became aware of Krissy when I moved up to Saskatchewan.  Her words were motivating during that transition period and got me inspired to run my third marathon ever in Saskatoon.

I've run three marathons and this year, I'm going to tackle my first ultra.  Needless to say, Krissy has been a source of inspiration!

To put it in perspective, Krissy Moehl is my version of other people's Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

The Chicago Patagonia crew hosted a great event last Friday with treats to eat, a beautiful new store off the Mag Mile full of great gear and, of course, a talk and video presentation by their trail running ambassador, Krissy.  She shared some tips for recovery after long races, what inspires her to run the distances she does (um, twelve 100-mile races people...just sayin') and her philosophies about pounding the pavement.

I was insanely excited to meet her in person!

Another great thing Patagonia did...a raffle!  They raffled off four pairs of trail running shoes (two for women and two for men) as well as two complete running outfits.

And...can you believe it...I won!

I am now the proud owner of a pair of Patagonia Fore Runners (in deep plum)!  They are more minimalist than I have traditionally worn, but I've been out and about in them and can honestly say...they are AWESOME!  These came to me in just the nick of time as my last pair was running a bit thin in the sole.  Thanks, Patagonia!

*just a teeny bit excited!*


Saturday morning, I had the opportunity to join a great group of runners in Lincoln Park for a six-mile fun run with Krissy.  

We ran from Patagonia store to Patagonia store - Lincoln Park to the Mag Mile.

During her talk on Friday, Krissy spoke about the running community and how much she enjoys running with groups as opposed to running on her own.  That was evident on the run as we chatted on the route, got to know other runners and shared some stories.  

It was an amazing experience...one I will not soon forget!


Krissy's approach to running is inspirational...she lives by three rules (I'm paraphrasing here):

1.  Smile and enjoy the experience on the run
2.  Make sure everyone else is enjoying their experience on the run
3.  Compete with (not against)

Watch her TED Talk where she describes just that:


Thanks to Patagonia for a great weekend...I have the shoes to remember it by!






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