And Then We Had 12 ... Again!

Heading into the Chevron Houston Marathon weekend, I knew that our "Battling Bloggers of the Texas Republic" team would possibly be needing one replacement (for Joe) and maybe another (but I didn't expect it to be JD).

I had asked Edwin at the Expo (or even that week before) to see if Tommy Stunz would be interested; however, his availability was a concern.

When I saw Cassie and Manny on the course that Sunday, Cassie said that she knew somebody that would be a good fit for our team. I told her to go ahead, make the connection and let's see. I've trusted Cassie ever since she let Waverly stay with her in the summer of 2005 in Parkersburg, West Virginia while I ran the News and Sentinel Half Marathon.

So while I'm waiting on word from these two, I see a note posted on the Texas Independence Relay message boards by a fellow Seven Hills Running Club member and that they're looking for a team to run on. Imagine my surprise!

I e-mailed the member and told them that I had two invitations outstanding and that I couldn't commit until I had answers from those two individuals. They stated that they understood.

So the word came in Wednesday that we were able to make Tommy team member No. 11.

Cassie e-mailed this morning and said her friend was a "no go" as he had just taken a new job.

Therefore, our 12th - and newest - team member will be Katy Lampson, the secretary of the Seven Hills Running Club in Huntsville. Katy and Ken Johnson both came down and participated in the Montgomery County Triple over the Thanksgiving Day weekend.

Katy ran the Wellstone's White Rock Marathon in 4:32:10 and ran the Chevron Houston Marathon in 4:45:07. She'll be in Austin in a few weeks to complete the Marathons of Texas with the AT&T Austin Marathon ... giving her just enough time to recover to knock out her 15-16 miles with us!

Therefore, our roster looks now like this:

Active
Jessica Alexander (Houston Striders)
Barbara Boone (Champions Fit)
Holden Choi (Houston Striders)
Karen Felicidario (The Woodlands Running Club)
Sarah Graybeal (Bay Area Running Club/Houston Striders)
Keith Kelleher (Clear Lake Fitness Club)
Katy Lampson (Seven Hills Running Club)
Cassie Mondragon (HARRA)
Edwin Quarles (Brazosport Area Road Runners Association)
Dave Smart (The Woodlands Running Club)
Tommy Stunz
Jon Walk (The Woodlands Running Club/Seven Hills Running Club)
Injured Reserve
Joe Carey (Bay Area Running Club)
James David Dykas (Houston Fit)
Physically Unable to Run
Christy Gonzales (Houston Striders)

Therefore, with just a couple of days over five weeks to go for the event, we're back at full strength with a balance of six men and six women!