2020 was a year unlike any other.  This past Christmas, a family member gifted me with an ornament that said: “2020, the year we stayed home.”  This is certainly an accurate way to describe how 2020 unfolded! 

​On New Year’s Day 2020, our family had a laundry list of travels, races, travels for races, and travels with Stroller Warrior friends for races.  Travel excursions and races always gave me something to look forward to.  However, COVID-19 decided otherwise.  This was tough, but difficult endeavors yield meaningful outcomes. 

Quickly, my running and strength training shifted, my fitness plan quickly included the kids in every workout.  At times, this resulted in frequent interruptions, but it also resulted in the kids becoming interested in completing their own workouts- taking the initiative to run on their own, and to complete a few functional fitness workouts.  Difficult?  Yes.  Frustrating?  At times.  Beneficial?  Absolutely…not only did they have more opportunity to witness our Warrior ethos, but to further develop their own Warrior spirit. 

Live-racing was suspended and replaced with virtual races, and though my race scheduled took an unanticipated turn, I tried to make the best of it (albeit, this wasn’t always easy).  I was able to focus more on distance trail running, and I had the opportunity to visit many local and wonderful state parks I wouldn’t have visited otherwise.  I was able to run through tall pines miles on end, while breathing the fresh wintergreen air; I also learned that I could jump as high as a gazelle after nearly striding onto a copperhead! 
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After a few months of virtual races, the local trail-race circuit slowly opened up to limited attendance races.  Before I knew it, I was back on my beloved trails in August, but with the welcomed addition of a running-friend and race bib.  Although it was hot and humid, and pre/post-race festivities were much different, my friend and I raced 11 glorious miles through the pines!  It was so refreshing to run alongside a friend, chat, and laugh (with 6-feet separation of course)!  After this trail race, a 15 mile trail race in October soon followed.  These races gave me hope that perhaps we can again resume travel, races, and reunions with SW friends in 2021!  

Much like our “dream sheet” for the next assignment, some of our SW leadership had some great insight and wish lists for races to come!  Here are some race ambitions and favorite local races shared by some of our Stroller Warriors Fearless Leaders. We’ve organized them based on location to better help you hone in on races in your area and help you set new goals for the future!

Asia:
In Okinawa, Japan, Kelly M says that the Shouhashi Half Marathon in Nanjo is a must-do race. She said it’s very challenging making the finish-line cross something to be very proud of.  Another favorite for her is the Ayahashi Half Marathon, 10k or 3.8k.  This race is one of the flattest in Okinawa, and it is a beautiful run that leads racers over a series of bridges and back to the finish.
Mary Beth H.’s dream race is the Great Wall of China race where half and full marathon distances are offered.  When the COVID-19 pandemic ends, she dreams of traveling to China for this once in a lifetime destination race.

Middle East:
Christie L’s dream race is the Jerusalem Marathon.  She traveled to Israel on a mission trip 20 years ago, staying for 6 weeks, explaining that it was one of the best experiences of her life.  She would love the opportunity to run a race there again!

Europe:                                        
Though Christie dreams of racing in Jerusalem, she currently lives in Germany. She says the must do local races for her are the Berlin Marathon, Frankfurt Marathon, and a tri-country marathon traversing through Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.  Deb E. Agrees with Christie having both the Berlin Marathon and 3 Countries Marathon on her list of must do races.
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South America:
Hannah I. hopes to run the Patagonia International Marathon someday, specifically for the stunning views!  This race navigates through Western Patagonia, near the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile and also offers half-marathon and 10k races.

East Coast:
The Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) tops the list for numerous Stroller Warriors, either as their favorite race in the VA/MD/DC area, or the race they dream of completing one day.  Christy M says, “my dream race is MCM.  It was the first one I watched my husband run and I had said to myself ‘I could never do that’.  Now that I’ve got one under my belt, it’s on the schedule for 2021 (I’ve had to defer 3x now due to injury/surgery/2020).”  Desiree H’s dream races are the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler (DC) and the MCM. She says, “I was selected for the Cherry Blossom race, but got injured and had to transfer my bib.  The race ended up getting canceled.  Must do races in the area include MCM, Cherry Blossom 10 Miler, National Women’s Half in DC, Across the Bay 10k, where you get to run across the Bay Bridge, which is awesome”.  Gabi P. recommends the Seashore Nature Trail 50k — “the course is through the First Settler’s Landing in Virginia Beach and is absolutely amazing.  The people who put it on are incredible and it’s a great first 50k race”.  Kelly M. tried to signed up for the Seashore Nature Trail 5Ok in 2019 and was 148th on the waiting list. So if you’re interested in that race, be sure to sign up the day they open registration. Hannah I. noted that most runners come to Virginia Beach for the VA Beach Shamrock Marathon.  However, she also recommends the Harbor Half, the Wicked 10k, and the Surf n’ Santa 5 Miler.

Moving north up the East Coast, Emily L. highlights the NYC Marathon as a dream race!  She fell in love with NYC immediately after she got out of the Air Force visiting for the first time.  Hannah I. shares the same interest explaining that the NYC Marathon would be an amazing race, especially since she would be running alongside some of the greatest runners in the world! 
Deb E. would love to run the Boston Marathon.  This marathon is the world’s most-storied and pinnacle running race!  Runners must meet qualifying race times in a previous marathon before gaining entry into the Boston Marathon. If you’ve ever heard a running talking about “BQing” or “Did you BQ?” They are talking about getting a Boston Qualifying time that will gain them entry to the Boston Marathon.

Southeast U.S. and Texas:
Christy M. suggested running the Navy 10 Nautical Miler (which equates to approximately 11.5 standard miles) in TN and the Little Rock Marathon (which includes huge finisher medals) and is also a relatively flat Boston Qualifying course. 

Chelsea L would love to witness the Barkley Marathons in TN.  Although running the race herself is not her dream, she is amazed by those able to complete this true feat of strength that navigates a four-lap 100-mile treck through TN’s rugged backcountry.  Even those completing a single lap of 25 miles are typically bruised, bloody, broken, yet accomplished and proud (even when not completing the entire 100 miles)!  Perhaps the Barkley Marathons intrigue her due to her cross-country roots, or possibly it’s creative approach/requirements for participant selection, or maybe it’s the amusing host- whatever it is, the Barkley adventure is quite special to her and many others. There is even an Amazon Prime Video featuring an entertaining documentary about the Barkley Marathons if you want to learn more about this unique race.   

Katie P. said the Beaufort Twilight Run is a local favorite for her.  She also mentioned that the Savannah River Bridge Run in Savannah, GA is super popular too!  Mary Beth H. added that the Super Hero 5k in Beaufort, SC, is a favorite of hers.  The Super Hero 5k was extra special to Mary Beth because it was her first time placing in an off-base race, and the first time she had her family at the finish line!  As a bonus, there are many cute Bed ‘n Breakfasts nearby if you decide to make it a destination race. 
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Virginia A. explained that the Cowtown Marathon weekend is a must-do in Fort Worth, TX.  This 2-day event offers a 5k, Children’s 5k, 10k, Half, Full, and Ultra Marathons. However, the race takes place in February and the weather can be temperamental.  

Mountain West:
Debbie E. is interested in Colorado’s Leadville 100.  This race’s lowest altitude is 9,200 feet and it rises to 12,600 feet! It is an iconic ultra marathon that many hope to tackle and conquer.
Roselyn B. loves Montana’s Snow Joke Half Marathon.  This bone-chilling February race takes runners around Seely Lake on packed-snow roads through forests of pine- it’s simply gorgeous!  

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Southwest U.S. and West Coast:
Amanda H. is a fan of the Monterey Half Marathon.  After multiple deferrals due to wildfires and COVID-19, she hopes to take-on this race in 2023!  Virginia A. looks forward to running any race in California’s wine country.  She says, “You can’t beat a good race with some post-race vino!”
Kelly M. invites the challenge of the Rim-to-Rim Race through Arizona’s Grand Canyon as her must-do race.  Runners begin on one side of the Grand Canyon, descending onto its floor, then ascending 4,400-feet to summit the other side of the Grand Canyon.  This race also offers the Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim Race where you double the distance and retrace your steps back to where you started.
 
U.S. Virgin Islands:
Gabrielle P. is interested in the St. Croix Scenic 50.  The course is absolutely gorgeous as it guides through tropical-terrain and alongside seaside overlooks. I don’t think many would complain about getting to race in the Virgin Islands!

​Take a moment to investigate and explore these races!  Hopefully a few of these events will find a way into your calendar in 2021 and beyond! 😊 If you have more must-do races you want to share with your team, feel free to add them as a comment for us all to read and learn about.
 
Happy running!
-Rose B.

​Ten Years of Awesome
By: Stephanie Geraghty
January 1, 2021

Happy New Year, Stroller Warriors! Many of you may not remember me at this point. So allow me introduce myself. My name is Steph and I get the super cool title of Stroller Warriors founder and retired CEO. I officially retired almost 3 full years ago but still dabble in a couple behind-the-scenes things and LOVE to see what the Warriors are up to. I have to say, I am so amazed and proud that the club still stands and is quite frankly, flourishing. Well done, team. I am overjoyed and so grateful that you’ve carried on the torch. It means a lot.
 
To many of you, it might seem like the club has been around forever, but believe it or not, we’ve only been in existence for 10 short years. In some ways, those ten years flew by in a second because I still remember the early days vividly. One decade ago, I had an idea that maybe a military spouse running club would be fun. Maybe I could make some friends. Maybe my kids could make some friends. And maybe, just maybe, I could survive my first deployment as a mother.
 
There were only 3 of us on that chilly Tuesday morning in North Carolina. It was January 19th, 2010, to be exact, and why I thought it was a good idea to launch a club in a cold winter month just goes to show how excited I was about the idea! That morning, we plodded down the path with our kids bundled under blankets in the strollers. The three of us congregated at our cars afterwards, excitedly talking about how fun this was and how we will do it again. So I hosted another workout that very next Tuesday. A couple more people showed up. And the week after that…and the week after that! It was working! I didn’t take any photographs the first couple months because I didn’t even really grasp what was happening and what this would be. But the images are clear in my head. Every time I saw another vehicle pull into the parking lot, the strollers heaved out of trunks, and little ones running around the playground, my heart was full. I WAS having fun. I WAS making friends. And I wasn’t just surviving the deployment. I. Was. Thriving.

​That, my friends, was the beginning of something special, something beyond what I could have ever dreamed. I am not sure how to capture ten years of Stroller Warriors in one short blog, but I’m going to give it a shot. Here’s my “Top 10” of why Stroller Warriors was the best part of my years as a military spouse.
1.  Home. This is number one on my list because home means peace, comfort, and support. We moved to Camp Lejeune in 2009 when our boys were 2 months and 2 ½ years old. That home in Jacksonville, North Carolina, was 1,325 miles from my childhood hometown in Avoca, Iowa. I had never lived that far from my parents. Additionally, it was intimidating to bid farewell to my husband for 6 months and wonder, who can I rely on? Stroller Warriors gave me the village I needed, a home away from home. They supported me and loved me as one of their own family. I won’t deny that in retirement, I’ve had many moments of yearning for my village. It’s slowly developing but not nearly as fast as what a Stroller Warriors chapter achieves. My hat is off to the best village I’ve ever known. There’s nothing else quite like it.
2.  Fun! Laughter keeps us young. Laughter makes life lighter and simpler. There was not a Stroller Warriors workout that did not feed my soul through conversation and laughter. Whether we were laughing about our kids antics or our own antics, dressing up in ridiculous costumes, or making horses pop out of bushes (I’m looking at you, Lou), we always enjoyed our time together. A smile is good for the soul. I was a bit of a sarcastic smart a$$ on our leadership planning pages and for good reason. One, I was the founder and CEO and nobody could fire me. Win, ha! Two, it made me laugh to see their witty responses, which were equally hilarious. I laughed, a lot. Gifs and memes were a stellar add to Facebook and the Warriors used them like seasoned experts. Thanks for all the late nights and good times. You brought me happiness.

​3.  Generosity. The club taught me to look outside my own obstacles and focus on the needs of others. I loved our outreach activities so much that we kept adding more and more. We were busy, but good busy. Even though I’m no longer an active SW, I still stalk the Facebook page and love watching the creative ideas all of the chapters come up with. Serving meals at the USO airport, collecting clothes for families impacted by fire, sending used shoes overseas, or making meals for our own Warriors in need…every act makes a difference and fills your cup. I always felt better when we were giving back. It always felt right. Keep filling.
4.  Inspiration. I watched my fellow Warriors show up even on hard days. I watched them go through tough things but still log those miles, set those goals, run those races, and then set more goals. I never would have even considered running a full marathon or trying a triathlon if it wasn’t for the club. They inspired me to believe in myself because THEY believed in themselves. I followed their example and bowed to the best kind of peer pressure, Stroller Warriors pressure! I still reflect on many of my friends’ achievements and think to myself, “Wow, I want to be awesome like them.” Thank you for the push, Warriors. All of these years later, I’m still watching and being in awe.

5.  Leadership. I thought I knew something about being a leader prior to the club. This club pushed me to grow in ways I never knew possible. My skin toughened and my heart grew. Leading a massive worldwide organization is not easy. You can never make everyone happy. But, obstacles spurred our headquarters team to brainstorm, to play devil’s advocate, and to unite on the best outcomes for the betterment of the whole. I am so much more open-minded because of the club and I still draw on that wisdom and experiences today. Every tear was worth that growth. To the current leadership staff, I understand your trials and I admire your strength. In those tough moments, remember that anything worth having requires a lot of hard work and it is always worth it. The Lord smiles on every good deed. Keep up the important work. You. Are. Awesome! I’ve got to throw a special shoutout here to your CEO and my dear friend, Kelly Mulder. You guys. She’s so amazing and we owe her so much. Do me a favor and randomly drop her a line now and then just to share something you love about the club. That fills her cup and her team’s cup, which trickles down to all the Warriors. [email protected]. 😉

6.  Memories. So many of my favorite and most positive memories from those years were wrapped up in the club. Why is that?! Well, probably because the club was so fun, the workouts and events were the only places I wanted to be and where I spent all of my time! But, on a deeper scale, that positivity was how all of the activities were framed. Friendship, family, fitness, and fun all create the perfect formula for great memories. I will never forget the races we traveled to together, the Christmas parties, the PFTS, and the all-around fun. And our kids came to all of it because duh, they were the whole reason! My military spouse memories were full of joy because of the club.

7.  Outlet. The military lifestyle isn’t for the faint of heart. The top stressors a person can experience are wrapped up in this community, ranging from moves, health complications, separations, combat, post-deployment adjustments, life, and death. However, the military lifestyle offers the opportunity for us to take care of ourselves so that we CAN endure those things. Stroller Warriors provided an outlet and helped me focus on my own needs, physical, mental, and spiritual. Word vomit on long run Saturdays was like much needed therapy. We could talk about the weirdest most random things in a couple hours and leave feeling cleansed and uplifted. Thank you for the stories, thank you for listening, thank you for lifting burdens. Now, in these retirement years, I have floundered at times. I realized that I needed to be feeding my soul by purposefully doing things that do make me happy and healthy. I needed to do Stroller Warriory things. So I started biking weekly with 3 girls who became my best friends practically overnight. (Sound familiar?!) I started substitute teaching at the school and volunteering more at the church. I’ve been making meals for people in need just because. I even put on a small local race! I felt like my old self again and was grateful I had the SW example to reference. That self-care has been VERY important this year because frankly, 2020 has been a unique level of, um, sh*t show. But we’re figuring it out and SW has been a huge help with that. 2020 couldn’t knock us down. We handled it and now we’ve got our sights on a great 2021.

8.  Parenting. Being a parent is the most amazing blessing in my life. It’s also my biggest challenge by far! Currently my 13-year-old is trying to see how many gray hairs I can grow. Can I getta amen? Way back when, I really appreciated having the club to help me navigate those ups and downs of being a mom. I watched the other parents and realized, hey, I’m not alone. We all jumped in to help each other out. A weight was lifted. We learned from each other too. If I’ve seen one NRR (non-running related) post, I’ve seen a million, and a good portion of them were about our kids. It was so nice to be able to ask questions in a non-judgmental environment. I would like to think my kids really benefited from the club too, not only in their own little friendships but in me striving to be a better mother to them. They also saw the example of all these other parents getting out and enjoying life to the fullest as a community, and I hope they carry that with them. I want them to be “Stroller Warriors” too, in every way.
9.  Food. Okay, this isn’t the most deep heartfelt list item but I love food and Stroller Warriors love food and geez, we ate a lot of delicious food! Most workouts featured some sort of random treat, or we just made up reasons to bring treats. I don’t think it’s an accident that the long runs on Camp Lejeune commenced and concluded at Dunkin Donuts either! Breaking bread together is another way to feel at home and I always appreciated that. So did my stomach. I remember the most exciting treat I ever shared…gender reveal cupcakes for my daughter. What a special moment  and it was so fitting to share it with Stroller Warriors. They were so genuinely happy for me and shared the journey with me and I will never forget that.

10.  Lifelong friendships. This one sums up the list and comes full circle to how the club changed my life and gave me a home. Without a doubt, some of my very best friends to date are still the Stroller Warriors. We’re all over the world at this point and I don’t see them in person often. But, there is just something about that triple threat as military spouses, as parents, and as runners that secures DEEP friendships very quickly and very forever. They saw me at my best and worst and loved me through it all. I have to share this story because I think it exemplifies how you always carry those kinds of friends with you. Two days before Christmas I woke up and realized I had a dream about an very dear SW friend. We don’t talk often and she doesn’t post to social media, so I don’t stalk her very well! But, our hearts are bonded and when we do get time together, we don’t skip a beat. Anyway, back to the dream…I dreamed that she was pregnant! Eek! I just knew God was nudging me. So I promptly texted her and asked if there was anything I needed to know. She responded that I was creepy and that I no longer needed tickets to the real circus because I could just enjoy hers! I promptly called her and we chatted the next hour about her little one on the way and how life has been with her husband, her other five children, and their awesome hobby farm. She is a prime example of all the dear friends I’ve collected. They’re so special to me, unprecedented really. I love you all and am so grateful you will always be a part of my life. (Please keep sending those Christmas cards! And I’ll keep dreaming about you. Literally. 😊)

As I read this top 10 list and think about what I still see happening in the club, I realize that we’re fundamentally still the same as what we were back then. Same mission, same goals. Yes, this year has been entirely unique with quarantines and restrictions on workouts, club activities, and races due to Covid. You had to find new ways to motivate and connect…and you DID. You rolled with the obstacles just like always and identified ways to unite and overcome. I absolutely loved watching the virtual events, the scavenger hunts, and the online chatter. You did not let this deter you from meeting your mission and supporting each other in every way that you could. You ARE changing lives of people like me, who will move on eventually but always carry the club in their hearts. Forever changed. Forever grateful.
 
Happy 10-Year-Runniversary Stroller Warriors. In short, you will always have my heart. I’m very proud I got to be a part of this in the first 10 years.

(I must apologize that this got so long. Thanks for hanging in there. Those of you that know me are not surprised by my verbose blog. Some things truly do never change. 😉 )
Happy Running from your retired founder and CEO and biggest fan,
Steph