Cyndi Chambers

"Obstacles are put in our way to see if we really want something or we just thought we did.

City: Ocala State: Fl

Favorite Shoe: Asics Gel Cumulus Size: 9

Age: 51.8 years old

Marital Status: married

Family members:
two children

What I do for work:
freelance writer

Places I’ve called home and why I like where I am now:
Ohio-- Tampa,Florida--Raleigh, NC--Orlando, Fl--Ocala, Fl

great place to live--small town feel---great place to raise kids-two hours from major cities

When I started running and what got me started:
started running in grade school on my own becuase my brothers were in high school and were runners--wanted to be able to do a sport they did. was on the track and cross country team in high school and continued running after high school, through college and up through now

What does running mean to me:
it's very relaxing, it's very convenient, it's a stress reliever, great physical workout, accessible, low-cost, and it adapsts to whatever my fitness level at the time might be, or whatever time contsraints I may have.

Running accomplishments:
no records broken if that's what you mean--I'm not that fast or in that caliber running category!--but I have completed 6 marathons, quite a few half-marathons and numerous 10k's, 5k's and triathlons.

What I like about trail/mountain running:
it's a different sort of challenge--more mentally challenging because you constantly have to be aware of your surroundings, instead of just being on auto-pilot for road running. you get to see incredible landscapes and areas of our beautiful country

Favorite running trail and why:
the one right here in my home town of Ocala, Florida is one of my favorites---it's so peaceful...your surrounded by all these huge trees..you run by horse farms and big fields, or you can choose the "blue" or "red" trails and make it more challenging

Favorite trail/mountain race and why:
haven't done enough to have one yet--but I'm sure it will be Pike's Peak!

Best running experience:
that would be a tough one--I have been blessed enough to take my running shoes all over the world--running on the beaches of Hawaii, through the streets of Florence, Italy, across cobblestones in Canada, through marketplaces in Mexico, along the waterfront in Baltimore,through the mountains in Pennsylvania and Colorado,up mountainsides in Arizona, through the rolling hills in California, through the city streets in New York and Chicago and through our nation's capitol in Washington.They were all great!

Worst running experience:
The hardest race was the Philadelphia Marathon---I was coming off double stress fractures and could only train up to mile 18 shorlty before the race--I come from Florida with hardly any hills to train on and I got to mile 20 and hit the wall. My legs cramped so bad I couldn't run--I kept trying, but my legs wouldn't let me. It was soooo cold, I was freezing as I hobbled in the last 6 miles. That was definitely my mind and willpower and sheer determination carrying me to the finish line, because it certainly wasn't my legs!

Running pet peeves:
runners not helping out at enough local races--support your own running community every once in a while--you don't have to run every race!! cars trying to intimidate you off the road---they just don't get it!

Other hobbies and interests:
photography

Other stuff:
I'm a sports junkie--love to read about it, watch it on tv, go to games and especially take sports photos!

Page last modified: 7/15/2004