Sunday, May 9, 2010

Il Giardino and the Shamrock 8K


About two months before our wedding, my husband ran the 2009 Shamrock 8K in Virginia Beach with some friends from work. He had been doing CrossFit with them for several months at that point and was in terrific shape. I, sadly, was not. He wanted me to run with them, but I wiggled off the hook: my maid of honor planned a bridal brunch in Philadelphia for me that weekend (thanks, Anne!).

This year, no such luck. March 20th was wide open on my calendar. So in January, I reluctantly agreed to train for and run the 2010 Shamrock 8K with him (and some friends from our church). Neither of us likes to run, but he's much better about it than I am. I HATE running. Throw me in a pool and I'll swim for hours, but lace up my tennis shoes and I'm toast.

The race started at 8am in Virginia Beach, about an hour drive for our house, so we got a hotel room on the oceanfront the night before. Our good friends Jen & Rob were also at the beach that weekend, so the four of us decided that we should carb load together at Il Giardino.

The meal was amazing, but I was most impressed by Jen & Rob's six-year-old daughter: she special-ordered a dozen clams steamed in butter & garlic and proceeded to eat them all by herself!

What I Ate:
  • Calamari Fritti - Squid, lightly dusted with flour & deep fried, served with marinara sauce
  • Capellini Piselli e Proscuitto - angel hair, tomato cream sauce, mushrooms, peas, & proscuitto ham
  • Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc, Napa, 2005
  • Caymus Conundrum, California, 2007
The Scoop:
Il Giardino Ristorante (http://www.ilgiardino.com/) is located at 910 Atlantic Avenue, Virginia Beach, VA 23451. Their hours are 5-11pm. Reservations are available by calling 757-422-6464.

Back to the race: Since I had promised my husband that I would run the 8K with him, I did. Or at least I tried. He runs a 9-minute mile. I run/walk a 12-minute mile. After trying to stay together for the first half mile or so, I let him beg off and run at his own pace. He finished about 20 minutes before me, but we both finished. I'm proud to say that I've done it, and I'm pretty sure I don't want to do it again.

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