A little about me & my running history.

Here it is! My name is Monnica, yes with 2 n's that is not a typo. I have been running since a very young age! I love it! I was introduced to long distance my freshman year in high school, when I was invited they told me that if I logged more miles I would get faster & better my times in my shorter distances! Yep, they were right! I also learned to love the distance thing. I was on three state champion cross-country teams, thank you Dave C Houle, an excellent man, friend, & caring coach, & proud to say I was on the first one that put Mountain View Bruins in Orem, Utah (go bruins) on the map! We were also named in Harrier Magazine, ranked in the top 10 teams in the nation three years in a row! (did I say go bruins?) I then went on to college, Porterville, Ca. I was recruited along with 2 of my wonderful teammates from MV, by a wonderful man, Doc Nelson, who believed in us tremendously! There we made it to the Northern Cal Championships! Yet again putting another great team on the map! Go PC Pirates! Then home to help coach @ MV! Still running but there was not much competing. A few years later I got married to my best friend (since we were babies) Corey Skinner. Love that man! Not an athletic bone in his body but we have a lot of other things in common! Still running, just not a lot. After 6 long years of waiting & wanting we got our first baby!
I had always wanted to do a marathon.  Just didn't take the time to train? Still helping coach. After my baby was born I got a nice running stroller & we were off! Running almost everywhere we went! Then one day running down in Vineyard, I got chased & bit by a dog, when I turned just right while running away I pinched a nerve in my back. So much for my marathon  training? It was on hold indefinitely. Still running & coaching a little but no marathon in sight! Several years, & one more child in the mix. I was talking to an old college friend, my BFF, she said let's run a marathon together! I hoe'd & hummed about it & told her I would get back to her in a couple of weeks, she lives in Ca, & we hung up the phone. Later that night I called her back & told her to sign me up! I figured if I waited 2 weeks I would probably find another excuse to put it off! That did it! I started a marathon training program. I was training long distance with my BFF! I only missed a few of the workouts, I was stoked! Not to mention in the best shape of my life! I felt Fantastic! I ran my 1st marathon San Diego Rock n Roll, in June 2005! My goal to run a marathon was happening! Also the excitement & emotions was ever so strong I was planning my next marathon before I ever finished my first! I loved it! That story for another time. I think my favorite part of my first marathon is that my hubby, Corey, was at the finish line as a volunteer he was draping finisher medals around every finishers neck! Including Me!
Just to give you a short note on how Corey got started. He never wanted to run. He thought that I was crazy to like running, let alone do it! But on that faithful day when he got back to our hotel after the whole marathon was over he said to me 'did you know how many husbands & wives do this together?' I said yes, why are you thinking about it? He said (I was expecting a Hell No!) maybe? That was certainly a happy moment in my life! I truly never thought I would hear that come out of his mouth. That ladies & gents was in June 2005, in January 2006 Corey started training for his first marathon! One year to the day of my first one Corey ran his first in the Salt Lake City Marathon! Now just a heads up we have volunteered for every marathon & half that we have done, it's kind of a tradition that we do that, not to mention the extra shirts we get for volunteering are cool too! We always talked about doing the Ragnar Relay, it is ran in our own back yard, but there was always something going on that weekend. Last year we decided two weeks before Red Rock Relay that we were able & ready to do it! But now to find a team! So we started looking online & on FB. Several teams were looking but a lot of them wanted fast runners, females or males only! Any way we found a team that was just for fun. No special times needed & we could be on the same team! So we were off! We weren't sure what we were in for? We didn't know any body on the team. I had spoken to a couple of team members but really hadn't met anyone! The guy that put the team together wasn't even going to be able to be there until the finish line? You could only imagine what questions were going through my mind! Well we got to Byrons house the morning of the race & you would have thought we had known these people all of our lives! We all hit it off Great! To tell you the truth, we couldn't have hand picked a better group of people if we had tried! We had an ever loving BLAST! We also made some pretty great friends for life, okay probably eternity! I love these guys! Each & every one of them! They are part of our family now! Every time we head to Cedar City or St George, or just passing through, we try to get together, or at least call & say hello! We have met up at some races, even had some friendly competitions! Hehe.... I love them dearly! So now to tally it all up, as of right now I have done 16 full marathons, at least twice as many halves, too many to count 5k's & 10k's, & 3 relays! But I know for a fact that I have many more to come! And another thing, I don't mind running the long ones, the hills, or the hardest ones, I just love running! And spending time with friends, & making new ones! I am looking forward to meeting you all soon! 
I also have recently designed my own running pendant! If you love running even just a little bit you have got to see my beautiful necklaces they are pretty cool! 
Oh yah, Phil I think we should meet up sometime & go for a run it would be nice to get to know the other team members & become friends before the relay, why not? Let's start working on that! 
Enough about me, let's get running!
Looking forward to meeting you all soon. Smiles& Kisses
Monnica
www.runnergirl.1@comcast.net

Just beginning

So this computer thing is new to me, let alone my own blog. I feel a little bit overwhelmed when I start doing something new & I'm not sure where to go. So I will start small & work my way up from there.

I love running. Running is a huge part of my life. I have coached at local highschools, I have also helped friends & family by giving pointers & advice to help them become better athletes & I hope to make better choices in their lives, & become better people in general.

I love being around people, whether it be making new friends or spending time with old friends catching up or just visiting.

I started doing marathons in June 2005. It was a bit challenging really because I was training with my best friend in California, well sort of, She was there & I was here in happy valley Utah! We would talk every Sunday & compare notes & workouts of course. If she was running more then I would set a goal to run more the next week, or vice a versa....Well needless to say it worked. We met up a couple of days before my first marathon & it was as if we had been together through every workout.

I have now ran 16 full marathons & twice as many half marathons. I couldn't tell you how many 5k's & 10k's I have done but I can tell you that I just love running!

I have met & made several friends that I will say are dear to my heart, not to mention inspiring. What some of them have done to get where they are in their running is quite inspirational to me & it helps to make me a better person & a better runner. I am happy to say that I love what I have accomplished, & know that I will be able to accomplish anything that I put my heart & soul into.

Thats it for now. I will post more later. I will also figure out how to get some pictures on here too!

Bye For Now,  Monnica