Traverse City Record-Eagle

Sports

July 10, 2012

Chouinard to run in 15K

BY DENNIS CHASE, dchase@record-eagle.com ----

TRAVERSE CITY — It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks for Adrian Chouinard.

The former Traverse City Central grad was married on June 23, bought a house in Colorado Springs a couple days later, and then watched nervously as wildfires swept through the area.

"It's a relief to get to Michigan and take some down time," she said.

Chouinard, and her husband Tommy Neal, will run in Saturday's Festival of Races. Chouinard, who competed in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in January, is entered in the 15K. Neal is in the 5K.

The two, who run on the Adidas team, were married just over two weeks ago at the height of the devastating wildfire.

"My parents got evacuated form our house the day we got married," Chouinard said. "It (fire) came really close to the house, but luckily never jumped the highway. As long as it stayed on the other side of the highway, we were fine. They have everything pretty well contained now, so we didn't worry too much about leaving town."

Chouinard, who last ran the Cherry Festival 15K in 2008, is coming off an injury. She's been bothered by tendonitis.

"I got through a 10K at the University of Pennsylvania in April," she said. "After that, I was done. It (foot) hurt too bad.

"I sat out six weeks. I'm just starting to run again. It's kind of been a bumpy road back, to be honest. Training's been a little rough. But I think I'm finally moving in the right direction. This will be a great opportunity to see where I'm at for starters."

Chouinard, a former Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion at Grand Valley, last ran a 15K in March.

"I ran it in 54 minutes," she said. "I would guess I'm probably in 57 shape now. I'm definitely not where I was in March. But I still think I could do OK."

Chouinard said she plans to run a 10-mile race in September as part of the Twin Cities Marathon, then compete in the New York City Marathon in November.

For now, though, she's enjoying being back in her hometown and showing her husband the area.

"He's only seen Traverse City in the winter," she said. "I'm so excited for him to be here for Cherry Festival and get an opportunity to see Traverse City in summertime, because you wouldn't want to be any place else."

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