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Guest Blogger Jerry Allison

When I first moved to DC, I knew winter was going to be a challenge. Texas had year round warmth with a few scattered cold days. Moving to the East Coast would have a lot more cold days.

My first winter storm in my new city came Halloween weekend, which in the DC area MCM weekend.

All my coworkers made suggestions about clothes. However, I knew I needed to bundle up cause it was going to be cold. So I picked up a fleece hoodie to keep me warm.

The race went well, and I found myself enjoying the cold. Something I wasn’t expecting from coming from Texas.

The next winter storm, I braved the cold again in the ice and snow and enjoyed it. Not only because I was running in a winter wonderland, but also, I got a lot of crazy looks from my neighbors. I beamed after that weekend, knowing I had faced the cold and beat it.

But the ultimate test came this past weekend, when I ran the Pacers Love the Run You’re With 5k. Temperatures in the 20s, with a windchill in the teens. Not something I wanted to face. However, when you work for a running store and everyone knows that you are racing, it’s hard to DNS.

So I crawled out of bed and faced the cold. My feet were numb for the first two miles of the race and it was crowded.  I finished close to my fastest time, knowing I could have done better, but happy with my time.

Maybe I’m becoming a cold weather girl or maybe I know I can run in any type of weather and survive. Whatever it is, I like it.