Once Was Not Enough

Guess what, friends? I'm coming back for more.

That's right; I'm signed up and registered for my second full marathon - the 7 Bridges Marathon on October 21 in beautiful Chattanooga, Tenn.

Not going to lie, I'm still processing the fact that I'm putting my body through this again. For those of you who are like me, you realize this was a no-brainer. I had to sign up for another marathon. I ran one, so why not another, right? See, you get my logic.

Truthfully, I had already begun plotting my next marathon even before I ran my first. In the weeks prior to the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon, I started looking for what my next big race would be and when and where I could find a marathon perfect me. Call me crazy, but I really enjoyed all the training for the marathon and was going to miss it.

And it didn't take me long to decide that if I was going to run a marathon in the fall that it was going to be 7 Bridges. The location is perfect for me as it's only a 2.5- to 3-hour drive away in a locale I love but don't get to visit often enough. The date of the event is perfect for me work-wise, and all the other pieces just fell in perfectly.

As much as I loved the Knoxville Marathon, I wanted to find a marathon that was a little less hilly. When you think of Chattanooga, a non-hilly course does not come to mind. After all, Lookout Mountain is there. If you've ever driven through the area, you know there are plenty of hills and steep climbs. Yet, the organizers of the 7 Bridges Marathon did a great job in mapping out a course that isn't hill heavy. There are some peaks and valleys in there, but nothing like the Knoxville Marathon. Mile 25 does not look fun, but hey, the final 1.2 is downhill. I can live with that.

Here's a description of the course from the race's website: Runners will cross the Tennessee River six times during the marathon and will enjoy cruising past such local landmarks as the Tennessee Aquarium, AT&T Field, Creative Discovery Museum, Chickamauga Dam, Bluff View Arts District, Hunter Museum and Coolidge Park Carousel.

Sounds like a picturesque run to me.

One other thing I like about this marathon is that it's young, small and still growing. This will be only the second running of 7 Bridges. The race will cap out at 750 runners, while there are caps for the other races about of this event (1,500 for the half, 500 for the 5K and 500 for the 1K Family Fun Run.) Not too big, not too small. Just right if you ask me.

And as if you couldn't tell, I'm excited about this race. I am ready to start training (come on mid-July).

In the days, weeks and months leading up to the 7 Bridges Marathon, I'll blog more about this race, my training and things I'm noticing which are similar/different from my first marathon.

In the meantime, if you are looking for a fall marathon to run, what don't you join me in Chattanooga?

Happy running!