Preparing for Ireland

7:00 AM - 8 Miles, 57 min
River path and Minuteman trail in the rain. Legs were tired and left hamstring was pretty tight at the start.

After waiting for this and looking forward to it for so long, I am finally leaving for my Ireland trip tomorrow. For those that don't know what this is all about, let me update you. Back in November, as a result of winning the NE XC Championships, I was invited to join other US athletes in a free trip to Ireland where I would compete in two races against some solid international fields. The two races that we'll be competing in are the Armagh International Road Race (5K) on Thursday and the Ras na hEireann XC Invitational (6K) on Sunday. I'll be traveling with my teammate Kristen Coon and will be joined by the following athletes that will make up the mens roster:

Christian Hesch - Winner of the 2007 Armagh Road Race & CR holder
Pat Tarpy (Reebok) - 8th at the 2007 US XC Champs
Ryan Warrenburg (Zap Fitness)- 1st at the 2008 USATF XC Club Nats
Jon Pierce (Zap Fitness) - 3rd at the 2008 USATF XC Club Nats
Thomas Morgan (Zap Fitness) - 2nd at the 2007 USATF XC Club Nats

As you can see, these are all well established athletes that I'll be joining. They have all achieved All-American status and have all either run in an Olympic Trials already or have at least qualified for one. I have to say I am very honored and excited to be on this team, one that is comprised of such incredible talent. I already know four of them pretty well so I'm looking forward to my experiences with them and can't wait to put on that USA uniform.

I'm assuming I'll have internet access on a daily basis so I plan on updating this blog frequently and try to keep you all up to date of my many adventures along the way.