#JellyBean Race Wrap-Up

Last week was the fourth annual running of the Jelly Bean Virtual Race. Like every other year, there was amazing participation from all over the country world!  As always, my virtual races are free to participate in... with the opportunity to win cool prizes. My hope is that my virtual races are a push out the door and extra incentive for your friends and family to gather together, combining fitness and fun.

This year, there was an optional finisher's medal, which proceeds benefitted the St Jude Children's Hospital. Because of you, St Jude received a whopping $500 donation - just from this virtual race. Thank you! If you missed out on the medals, it's not too late to make a donation (here).

On Opening Day of the Jelly Bean Race (April 13), I ran the 5K with this fine looking group above. Sporting my bunny ears, I ran the first mile with my two girls, who are racking up the miles for the Peoria Kids Marathon. Then I headed back out for the remaining mileage. The best part... my last mile split was an 8:49! That's what happens when you get dumped on...

You see, Mother Nature tricked us again. With storms forecasted for the afternoon, we moved our run up a couple hours earlier to avoid the rain. Well, halfway through our run, the clouds opened up on us. We all got very wet. Of course, it was dry the rest of the afternoon. Sigh. I've had really bad weather luck with my fun runs lately.

Now for the important news... the PRIZE WINNERS from the virtual race!  

I have your mailing address and will get the goodies in the mail to you next week.

Beth Peralta (IL) - Advocare pack

Heidi Sebastian (IN) - water bottle with phone compartment

Genevieve Roestel (CA) - Subway gift card

Diane Rock (IL) - Swiftwick socks

Terri Brown (TX) - tube of Nuun hydration tablets

Laura Pyne (PA) - Headsweats beanie

Lisa Elder (IN) - You Just Got Chicked headband

Sarah Blissett (IL) - GU Energy variety pack

Stacey Kirk (NC) - 2pk of LockLaces

There were so so many great photos submitted from your virtual races. They made me SMILE all week long. My favorite was from Kimberly Merrifield. They dressed up as a bunch of jelly beans and ran their 10K this way! I just love the enthusiasm and silliness of it. Congrats Kimberly, you've won a Run & Eat Cupcakes shirt from me. Please e-mail me with your shirt size and mailing address.

THANK YOU and CONGRATS 

to everyone who ran and/or walked 

in the 4th annual Jelly Bean virtual race!  

That's a wrap... Come on back next year!

4th annual Jelly Bean race

Celebrate Spring by running with me in the 

4th annual Jelly Bean virtual race!

~FREE TO PARTICIPATE~

What's a virtual race?  A virtual race is running a specified distance (timed) without being present in the actual race location.

DATE:  April 13-20, 2014

The race begins on Palm Sunday and ends on Easter Sunday, 8 days.

LOCATION:  Pick your favorite local route or just hop on a treadmill.

EVENTS:  Choose the event that works best for your current fitness level. If you complete both the 5k and 10k distances within the 8-day time frame, you will earn an extra point into the prize drawing (2 entries max per person).

- Run 5K (3.1 miles)

- Run 10K  (6.2 miles)

RESULTS:  Report your race time(s) HERE before Tuesday, April 22 at 12:00 noon CST.   This is a fun race; no Garmin/treadmill photo required to verify your time. 

PRIZES:  When the Jelly Bean results window closes, there will be a random prize drawing from all finishers.  Prizes include:  GU Energy assortment pack, Subway gift card, Headsweats beanie, tube of Nuun hydration tabs, Swiftwick socks, You Just Got Chicked headband, 2pk of LockLaces, Advocare fuel pack, water bottle with phone pouch, and a Run & Eat Cupcakes shirt. 

Follow me for race updates...

STEP-BY-STEP HOW THE JELLY BEAN WORKS:

• No need to pre-register. Just mark your calendar, tell your friends, and organize a local group run in your area. This makes a great family event to get the kids active! Bookmark this webpage so that you can come back for updated information until raceday. Join the FB event here.
• Order an Jelly Bean finisher's medal below (optional). Proceeds from these medals will be donated to the St. Jude Children's Hospital as part of my fundraising for the Bartonville-to-Peoria St. Jude run. 
• On race week, PRINT A RACE BIB for each person participating. 
• Finally, RUN the Jelly Bean... and have FUN!! Take pictures and please share them on my Facebook wall.  Hint, hint... I always award one prize to my favorite picture.
• REPORT RACE RESULTS for each participant before 12noon on April 22. You will earn one entry into the prize drawing for each event that you finish (2 max). Each event may only be completed once.

- FINISHER'S MEDAL -

Celebrate your Jelly Bean finish with a finisher's medal, an optional add-on to the virtual race.  New for 2014, every medal purchase includes a snack-size bag of Starburst Jelly Beans!!  Proceeds from these medals will be donated to St. Jude Children's Hospital as part of my fundraising for the Bartonville-to-Peoria St. Jude Run on August 4. (Later added) Thanks to you - St Jude received a $500 donation from the sale of these medals!!

Sorry, Finisher's Medals are SOLD OUT.

•  •  •  •  •

Join me in-person for a local fun run to complete the Jelly Bean race!

Bring out the kids to make it a family run! I will supply the jelly beans.  

Sunday, April 13 at 11:00am

East Peoria Trail

Park and meet by "the train"

Fon du Lac Park Admin Building

201 Veterans Drive, East Peoria, IL

#JellyBean Prize Winners

The 3rd annual Jelly Bean virtual race was indeed another smashing success. Thank you to all who participated... over 1000 people! The purpose of my virtual races is all about fun and motivation. I love to see runners uniting together for a run. I love springtime (although the jury is still out on that one). I love the encouragement to step outside our comfort zones with a variety of events... perhaps it was your first 5k, maybe a challenge to get all three runs done, or a push to dust off the bike after a long winter rest. Whatever the race accomplished for you, I'm glad you played along... and hope you enjoyed a jelly bean (or handful) afterward.

I want to first acknowledge the 28 participants who achieved ROCKSTAR status by completing all four events and reporting them... GREAT JOB!

Alicia Burrill   •   Allison Milancewich   •   Amanda Carey   •   Becky Butler

Christine Viota   •   Genie Dietz   •   Jacky Camós   •   Janet Look

Jason Kriess   •   Jill Weiner   •   Joel Coovert   •   Kallin Anderson

Kim Demary   •   Kyria W.   •   Laura Gay   •   Laura Harms

Lindsay Barnes   •   Lisa Jones   •   Lisa Ngai   •   Lula Carter

Megan Kinney   •   Nancy Capen   •   Pedro Castro   •   Ramona Hasan

Sarah Blissett   •   Suzanne Westenhofer   •   Valerie Butler   •   Victoria Butler

I decided to do a surprise prize drawing amongst these top athletes alone.

The winner of my Grand Prize Pack is... JILL WEINER

It will be a surprise when it arrives - a variety of my favorite things!

~ PHOTOS ~

Throughout the race, participants have been sharing their photos on my Facebook wall. Click HERE to scroll through and view their pictures. Feel free to post your snapshots as well. I love to see the #JellyBean in action!

THANK YOU

TO ALL THE GREAT SPONSORS &

CONGRATS TO THE WINNERS BELOW!

Please click on the company names below to patronize their websites.

Winners - No need to contact me. I have your addresses for shipment. 

Should I need a size selection, I'll email you for that information.

Thank you!

 *** WINNERS ***

Carmen Castro

Gigi Becker

Lauren Seserko

Jen Ressler

You've won a NON-SLIP HEADBAND courtesy of BAMR Bands

*** WINNERS ***

Dianne Hollister

Amanda Farmer

Sherry Winkle

Cassie Zell

You've won a PACK OF PERFORMANCE SOCKS from Fitsok

*** WINNERS ***

Tiffany Margolis

Cathie Bradich

You've won a $20 GIFT CARD from Gone For A Run

*** WINNERS ***

Katie DuBois

SarahJeanne Olson

You've won a RAINBOW OF ELASTIC SHOELACES from LockLaces

*** WINNERS ***

Jaclyn Webb

Lori Bonilla

You've won a RUN HAPPY TEE from Milestone Sports Jewelry & Apparel

*** WINNER ***

Erika Soloj

You've won a NUUN PRIZE PACK from Nuun Hydration

*** WINNERS ***

Eric Voita

Erica Agran

Stacey Kirk

You've won a RACER PHOTO FRAME from Racer Frames

*** WINNERS ***

Amy Nelson

Jen McElroy

You've won a $25 GIFT CERTIFICATE from Running Chics

*** WINNERS ***

Danielle Cook

Christina Paul

You've won a RUNNER DRINK TUMBLER from RunnerDecals

Jenna Shaw

You've won a RUNNER CHICK TEE from RunnerDecals

*** WINNER ***

Laura Gay

You've won the Triathlon for Every Woman BOOK from SwimBikeMom

*** WINNERS ***

Lula Carter

You've won a STAINLESS STEEL WATER BOTTLE from ZOOMA Women's Race Series

Suzanne Westenhoger

You've won a RUNNING HAT from ZOOMA Women's Race Series

My #JellyBean Runs

** My 5K **

I kicked off the 3rd annual #JellyBean virtual race on the first day - Wednesday, March 20. I met up with my Sole Sisters in the evening to tackle the 5k event. It was pretty cold and windy, but the sun made it tolerable. We had a smaller group than normal - which means there were plenty of extra jelly beans leftover for me my kiddos.

My (underdressed) hubby shivered in the cold as our official photographer.  Little Girl had the important job of handing out jelly beans at the finish and took her job quite seriously. I finished the 5k with my group in 29:55 (9:38 pace). We weren't really "racing", but Patty did edge us out in a last minute effort!

** My Half Marathon **

My goal was to complete this event part as part of my 20 miler on Friday. I started off by myself for 5+ miles through Dunlap neighborhoods before meeting a group of friends at the trail entrance. I felt really weak from mile one. Typically by time I get a couple miles in, my body goes on autopilot.  Not today... I felt overly taxed the entire run, worn down and beat up. I ended the long run at 14 miles, six short of my goal. Disappointing, but sometimes I actually listen to what my body is saying. Now I have to examine and tinker with the training schedule to squeeze in two 20's before Eugene (April 28).

We ran the Rock Island Trail, which is a staple running area in my town. After a fairly warm winter, however, the trail is pretty beat up. The surface is gravel/dirt, so when the ground gets soft, bikes and feet make deep imprints in the ground... and then it freezes. Friday was cold, so footing was tricky and a main concern for me. I am still babying a sore peroneal tendon, so every awkward turn on my right foot irritated the tender spot. Not fun... and now I'm back to icing.

The best part was the important part... meeting up with friends for a run. Despite the initial cold, the sun made it a beautiful morning. At one point, we had 7 Sole Sisters running and chatting away happily. Lots of smiles and laughs. My official #JellyBean half marathon time was 2:16:33 (10:25 pace).

** My 10K **

I came home from teaching Spin class on Sunday morning and had the urge to run. Overnight we had received a small dusting of snow, but the roads were clear. I made a deal with my family... give me one more hour and then we'll do something fun the rest of the day. Negotiations are a mother runner must!

I decided to try out a new 10k loop through Bellevue. It included a big hill (200ft climb), which is the main reason I've avoided the route. But today, I was feeling badass already, so why not?

Almost as soon as I began to run, the snow started coming down faster. I can't lie, I enjoyed this run tremendously... until I hit the big hill at mile 5. Oh, that hurt. As I was slowly battling the climb in now quite heavy snow, two cars stop and ask me if I wanted a ride. Hahaha... No thanks, I do this for fun.

Big Girl really wanted to come with me on this run, so I made a deal that she could join me at the end to "run me in". As I made the final turn towards home, I sent hubby a "Go!" text and she was off on her bike to meet me for the final 1/2 mile. Official #JellyBean 10k time: 1:00:30 (9:46 pace).

The #JellyBean virtual race is always a celebration of SPRING.

Who knew this year we'd be running it in the snow? Crazy weather!  

The rest of my Sunday Funday... a hot shower after the cold run, out for lunch, meet and greet with the Easter Bunny, egg hunt and craft for the kids, a two-hour nap (yup, even momma!) and then an evening of play in the snow. A seriously fabulous day!

#JellyBean Prize Vault Opened!

Spring is almost here, which signals the start of the 3rd annual Jelly Bean virtual race... March 20-31.  Anyone can still join the fun!  Participation is always free!  In finishing, you will be entered to win the fabulous prizes below (random drawing).  Sorry, finisher's medals are sold out for this virtual race.

Sign up for the #JellyBean HERE.  Race directions and bib will be e-mailed to you on Monday, March 18 via the #JellyBean e-newsletter.  Links will also be available here at RunWithJess.com.  You can do one event or all four... 5k, 10k, Half-Marathon and/or 21k Bike.

Now let's open up the PRIZE VAULT... to see what you can WIN!  Motivation to RUN!?!? I hope so!

THANK YOU TO THE WONDERFUL SPONSORS BELOW 

(in alphabetical order)

Please click on company name to visit their website.

4 winners of NON-SLIP HEADBANDS
courtesy of

BAMR Bands

4 winners of a 3-PACK OF SOCKS
courtesy of

Fitsok

2 winners of a $20 GIFT CARD
courtesy of

 Gone For A Run

2 winners of a RAINBOW OF LOCK LACES

courtesy of

LockLaces

2 winners of a RUN HAPPY T-SHIRT
courtesy of

Milestone Sports Jewelry & Apparel

1 winner of a NUUN 4-PK + WATER BOTTLE

courtesy of

Nuun Hydration

3 winners of a RACER PHOTO FRAME

courtesy of

Racer Frames

2 winners of a $25 GIFT CERTIFICATE

courtesy of

Running Chics

2 winners of a DRINK TUMBLER

1 winner of a RUNNER CHICK SHIRT

courtesy of

RunnerDecals

1 winner of TRIATHLON FOR EVERY WOMAN book

courtesy of

SwimBikeMom

2 winners of STAINLESS STEEL WATER BOTTLE or RUNNING HAT

courtesy of

ZOOMA Women's Race Series