His and Her Vineyard 5K

"V" is a tricky letter in the A-Z Challenge. Thankfully, we didn't have to rack our brains too hard before discovering the perfect topic.

There are three of us blogging today so here is the color recap to help:
Purple is Amanda
Red is Sean
Green is Shellie, Sean's sister

   
Shellie and Tim, Sean's sister and our now brother-in-law, got married last year. We were over-the-moon excited that we were able to travel to Australia for the wedding and stay for a month to visit with everyone and tour the country. (I blogged about the wedding here.)

We decided, before arriving in the country, that we wanted to all do a 5K together. Shellie and Tim had begun a training regimen a few months before the wedding to lose some weight. They both did a great job and they looked (and still look) amazing! In all the talk about their training, Sean mentioned that he thought it would be fun for all of us to do a race together. The idea stuck! 

Since it was winter in Australia, our choices of 5Ks were very limited. In fact, we could only really find one that was a viable option - on the day after their wedding, an hour away from their home, at 11:00 in the morning. Crazy right? We certainly didn't sign up for that craziness...or did we?

Of course we did! Even Shellie's trainer thought we were all crazy. We arrived one minute before the race started, but we were there when the race gun went off. The course was hillier - MUCH hillier - than Sean had promised me, but I trudged along. The scenery was beautiful and it was a great experience for all of us to share. The coolest part? I have a 5K shirt from Australia to wear when I head to the gym or walk around the neighborhood. So cool! 

Been there, done that, got the T-Shirt (and the finisher's medal)

I had considered running in the half marathon or 10k and then walking the 5K with the rest of the group, but after seeing how far from Shellie's house it was and how tired I would be and possibly also dealing with jet lag, I decided to scrap the longer race idea and just walk the 5K with the group. I looked at the course and the topography and thought it looked pretty flat. My mistake was that I was used to looking at maps of races in our area where they make a small bridge look like Mt Everest since it is so flat in our part of Virginia. It ended up being pretty hilly for most of the race but it was a very scenic course and we all had a great time laughing and enjoying each other's company. The gardens by the vineyards were just stunning and even the the grapevines looked nice, though it was winter and there were no leaves. The course was well marked and the organizers did a great job on putting on a well run and fun event. I would love to participate in this event again on our next trip and maybe run in a longer event as well.

 The gardens were very scenic.

 How could you not enjoy a 5K when it is this pretty?

Everyone is enjoying the walk even though there are lots of hills.

It was weird to be in a race with KM markers rather than Mile markers.

This would be even more stunning when the grapes and leaves are out.

I remember signing up for the Winery Running Festival last May when Sean asked me if I was interested in participating. It was right in the middle of wedding planning and I remember thinking it was a crazy idea!! I had listened to Sean talk about his many running events and jumped at the chance to do one with him while he was in Australia. The craziest part was that the event was the day AFTER our wedding!!! We met up with Sean, and Amanda that morning, and made the trek out to Hunter Valley Gardens to begin our 5.2km walk/walk (honestly... it was a walk, we were so tired post wedding ) It was beautiful to walk through parts of the Hunter Valley Gardens, and point out our favourite ( in Australia we have a u in that word :D) parts of the gardens to Amanda and Sean, since we had been here a few times before. My favourite part was spending time with my husband, and chatting with Sean and Amanda. I would recommend the event to anyone in the Hunter Valley, as it has a great variety of course lengths and beautiful views on the course. We even got a shirt and medal for participating. It is nice having a little token to remember my first 5k event with my brother :) After the event they have lots of yummy food choices from many food stalls or close by cafes and restaurants.

Amanda, Shellie and Tim crossing the finish line.

We know this is a long one, but all three of us writing was fun. What is your favorite race/5K that you have done? 


Happy Running/Walking,

                               and Shellie