Snoqualmie Valley Half Marathon 2026

I went into race weekend feeling like I hadn't even trained. You know how sometimes the taper-crazies fully eat your brain, and suddenly you can't remember the last time you did a long run, even though it was less than a week ago? That was me the night before race morning.

Maybe it was because my summer half was originally going to be in August, and the change to June 20 meant I had a mere seven weeks to train after the Kirkland Half. Maybe it was because I did my last long run on a Friday morning, giving me a full weekend of recovery before the race. Maybe it was because I trained for this one alone, and was running it alone. I'm not sure what got into my head, but I pretty much went into race day feeling like I had zero miles under my belt.

Luckily, how I felt was very different from reality.

Furry 5k 2026

As expected, race day dawned hot, cloudless, and sunny as hell. I had resolved to keep my expectations low, and after my half-mile walk to Seward Park from where I managed to find a parking spot, I had resolved not to bother with a warmup mile. I was plenty warm.

I had expected this race to be on the small side, but Seward was bustling when I arrived at 10:45. I stashed my bag at the gear check truck and met up with the other runners from work. We commiserated about the heat, got some pictures, used the bathroom, and lined up at the start.

"I hate running!"

Earlier this week, I was chatting with a colleague and she asked what my plans were for the weekend, a question I've heard a thousand times. I told her I had a couple runs to get done. She replied, "Oh, I hate running!" (Which is another thing I've heard a thousand times.)

I still haven't figured out a good response to this reaction. I used to be a running-hater, so I understand where people are coming from when they say it. I'm not trying to bully anyone into running, so I don't want to tell them to give it a try. I think maybe I'll try to get cute with it in the future and say, "I used to hate it too, until I developed Stockholm Syndrome."