Race Day!

Today was our local Y's Holiday Hustle. I signed up for the 10k, but I considered doing to the 5k. Instead, I convinced my sister to run with me.

A couple of weeks ago, we were supposed to run a race with Mom wearing the tutus she made, but it was pouring rain that race. We decided to wear them today instead.

The weather was perfect this morning! Mom took off on her own since she was meeting up with some other runners at the end for another 6 miles. Carrie and I ended up running with my neighbor the whole way. Surprisingly, the tutu didn't bother me too much, even with the jungle bells.

Carrie pulled away from us at the end, but I finished in 1:04:54. Not a pr, but it definitely wasn't my worst 10k time either! Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to medal. Still, I'm super pleased with the run! 

YMCA Beach Party 10K Recap

Ready to run

This morning, Sarah and I ran the YMCA Beach Party 10K. It started off cold (but not horrible!) in the mid-40s with a windchill in the 30s. It made it hard to decide what to wear, but knowing it was going to warm up quickly, I went with a tank and tights. It was a beach theme so she put a lei bracelet around her ponytail and I used a necklace one around my visor. I don't do the whole dress up thing for runs, but at least this way it didn't bother me while I was running.

We stayed warm inside the Y as long as possible after getting our chips. I handed out blue and yellow ribbons to pin to the bibs as a tribute to Boston. I also wore the Runners United to Remember Boston bib on my back. You just can't help but think of the runners and their friends and family as you hit the pavement these days.

The first mile was very cold and windy, but it warmed up quickly. Around mile 2, after just having told Sarah about my mom's newest injury, I spotted my parents on the side of the road! Sarah threw her headband and arm warmers to my mom because she had warmed up too much. We saw them again going under the bridge (actually Dad was on the bridge) and then when we went back under the bridge. It was like having our own paparazzi! It did force us to smile and try to look like we were feeling good :)

First spotting of my parents





Boston on my back

Another sighting



My dad on the bridge



Up the embankment to the sidewalk (and this wasn't even the last uphill)

My momma in her new footwear

Getting closer to done

We kept a pretty consistent pace throughout. Sarah's calf started hurting around mile 4, but she kept at it. The Y has a cruel and unusual way to end their races...up a hill, around a gazebo and down the hill (which terrifies me because the sidewalk curves around a pond...my fear is I'll get to flying down the hill and hit the water). Still, I kind of dig the hill there...charging up it at the end is a thrill!

I finished in 58:25, getting third in our age division. I was pleased with a sub-60. I remember when that used to be my ultimate goal. It wasn't a PR, but that's ok. We weren't able to hang around for the awards since we had mom duty in the tball dugout, so we had to wait until results were posted this afternoon. We did enjoy some fruit and pumpkin bread...and of course the chocolate milk I brought us :)

RnR Dallas Race Recap

My fourth half is in the books...and with a new PR!

We left for Dallas early Saturday morning, made it to the hotel, and took the DART to the Expo...Sarah, Josh, their two kids, Chad, our two kids and me. That's a lot of bodies to corral in a crowded place, but even the kids seemed to enjoy the expo. I was able to stop by the Team Refuel booth, but unfortunately, I wasn't able to time it to do some of the video fun.

After the expo, we headed to lunch and then Fair Park where we were planning on going to the museum. We didn't know it, however, but the museum we have loved going to is no longer there :( Luckily, the aquarium is still there, so that's where we went.  It was just about right for us. We headed back to the hotel, where we all ended up falling asleep before dinner (except SB). We had dinner at Boston's...a flatbread pizza for me...which, in hindsight, did not have enough protein for me before a race. I didn't sleep well at all that night and even had to get up at about 4:30 to eat a granola bar...I was so hungry!

I got up a little after 6 to start getting ready. I still wasn't sure about what to wear...windy and cold is hard to plan, especially when you can't step outside to see just what it feels like. I ended up in pants, compression sleeves, my Team Refuel jersey, arm warmers, my BondiBand hat with the ponytail hole and gloves. That ended up being just about right. The only thing I would have added is a sweatshirt or jacket I could have tossed after a mile or two.

Sarah and I had sandwich thins, PB and bananas for breakfast before the race in the hotel lobby. We took the DART to the start line. We weren't in a real rush because it was so cold. We ended up getting there, waiting for the portapotty and walking to our corral right as it was being released for the start (not at the start line, but just starting to move). Couldn't have timed it better..no waiting in the cold for us! The dads and kids stayed at the hotel...it was just too cold (and early!) for them.

The race went really well. We took off at a decent pace, not able to feel our hands or feet. It was pretty crowded, but we really didn't have any trouble staying together. I can't tell you much about the race...it's all a blur. I do know it was uphill to mile 8, but not horribly so. There were a couple of tough hills, but Sarah and I charged up them like troopers. I do remember some good music along the way...Jessie's Girl, 867-5309, Pour Some Sugar On Me...lots of fun! She and I took turns giving the pep talks. There were times she wanted to talk about pace or possible finishing times, but I just couldn't do it...I get jumpy at the pressure of what I might be capable of.

I did meet up with one other Team Refuel member, David, twice on the course. It was cool to have that instant camaraderie with another runner.

We saw the husbands and kids at the last little turn...such a pick-me-up! I wish I had a picture of them cheering for us! At the very end, Sarah pulled away from me. I just didn't think I had it in me. However, I saw the finish line and knew I wanted to cross it with her...so I did! It took everything I had to give it that last little bit. It rocked to cross the line knowing I had a big PR. It turns out I cut 8 minutes exactly off my old one...finishing in 2:07:52.

While we were still in the finisher's chute, I was able to stop at the Team Refuel tent for a quick photo op. I felt like a Nascar driver with the sponsored drink...now that's a picture I need...me guzzling the chocolate milk like a driver with his Coke. After that we got our chocolate milk (which never tasted so good!), water, snacks and space blankets before finding the family. It was so cold afterward that we really couldn't stick around to see what all was there...I didn't even have a chance to stop by the Team Refuel VIP tent. That's just part of being a mother runner :)

We headed back to the hotel on the DART for a much-needed shower and fuel. On the way home, we stopped for burgers and fries at Twisted Root.

I am exhausted and sore, but nothing really hurts. There's one spot on my right foot...the knuckle below my big toe...that hurts. I'll ice it tonight and see what happens. I have a feeling it's a tendon or something.

All in all, I am so proud of Sarah for her first half...and so proud of my new PR! I couldn't ask for a better support crew, the ones that were there and the ones I knew were thinking of me at home.

City Lights 5k

Before the race

Even though Sarah couldn't make Thursday's race, we were still able to do Saturday's City Lights 5K. The weather was beautiful, and the run was great. I could tell Sarah really needed the run.

And I can't wait to see pictures, but I actually dressed up for the Christmas-themed run...with what I could manage on short notice. Red and white fur-trimmed knee socks, a red shirt borrowed from my husband, and my gray vest...as good as it gets, but fun!

The course started off on a paved trail next to a river and then headed to the streets, following the parade course for later that evening. It was kind of neat to see everyone setting up for that night's festivities...although running between the crowd and the elementary choir singing was a little awkward.

I wasn't sure whether I should push my pace on this race after Thursday's race. However, I went out at what felt good. My first mile was slower than Thursday's miles, but I figured I could keep it up. Sarah was just ahead of me, but I couldn't quite keep up with her.

In the last mile, I tried to pick off as many runners as I could, passing at least 5 runners. I ended up running the 3.1 miles in 26:25. I'll take it!

I didn't get to stay for awards and such...but according to today's results, I ended up 3rd after Sarah's 2nd out of 17 in our age group. Pretty cool.

After the race, Mom and Dad (they came and watched...and took pictures! I'll post them later) and I headed to the choir area to watch SB sing in her first choir performance. I stepped into a parking garage to throw some jeans over my shorts. Later I switched to long sleeves and a jacket in the parking lot. She did such a good job! She's getting so big and grown up.

After that we had some time to kill until the parade. We met up with my husband's family at a coffee shop and warmed up a little before the parade. The parade ended up being over an hour long! I think the kids enjoyed it though.

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with the two 5k races so close together. I've gotten so used to going long and slow that the short, fast races felt amazing.

Sent from my Samsung Epic™ 4G Touch

Great American Smokeout 5K Color Run

Oh, my! I have had the best intentions of blogging more, but I just realized it's been more than two weeks since I've written anything...and I've missed it!

Earlier this week a friend of mine asked if I wanted to do a 5K Thursday. It was a benefit for the American Cancer Society and was scheduled to coincide with the Great American Smokeout. Her grandmother is battling lung cancer for the second time, and she wanted to honor her with the run. The two of us are already signed up for a 5K on Saturday with our city's City Lights downtown Christmas events, so I wasn't sure about running two races so close together. However, on Wednesday, I decided I'd do the race with her...on Thursday.

My sister was already planning on doing the race, but I was hesitant to sign up because it was a color run...I'm just not that into the color runs and mud races and such.

Yesterday after school as I was racing home to change and make it to registration in time, my friend called and said she wasn't going to be able to make it. Her grandmother's treatments were running late. I decided to go ahead and run anyway for her and her Gram...and I'm so glad I did!

The Before

 

My  sister picked me up and we made it just in time to get me registered for the race. It was 3 loops around a small lake (if you want to call it that). Each lap you made, we were told, you would be colored. Kind of a fun way to keep up with laps.

 

Carrie didn't have a voice, so we didn't talk as much as usual...which was just fine because we were running a lot faster than usual. I tried not to watch my Garmin too much, mainly watching the mile splits. Kind of cool to see an 8:20 on the first and an 8:24 on the second. I've never seen that! I ended up with a PR of 26:51, and the race was actually 3.25 miles. Average pace showed to be 8:15.

 

My parents had brought the kids, both my two and my sister's son, out to the race. There are duck and geese they fed, plus they got to see the color fun. They also took pictures, which I'll add later.

 

Here's the after:



 

Sent from my Samsung Epic™ 4G Touch

13.1 Dallas Race Recap

13.1 Dallas is in the books!

The crazy look on my face says, "Whoa! The world just tilted a little."

 We headed to Dallas Friday morning after getting the kids off to school and getting packed up. We stopped to look at Camping World (yes, that says we are officially old) and for lunch at Chick-Fil-A. We then picked up packets for my sister and me at Luke's Locker before heading to our hotel. We were a little worried about it because we got it on Priceline and had read some yucky reviews on it. It turned out to be not as bad as we expected.

Since it was just Chad and me, we enjoyed a date night at Boston's. I never really think about what to eat before a long run, but the race had me nervous. I think I did just about right with a flatbread and a caprese salad (and a little dessert shot).

Saturday morning, we woke up early to very cold weather. I haven't had a really cold training run this round and was a little worried about what to wear. The tights I had brought just didn't feel comfortable, so I decided to stick with the shorts and compression sleeves I've worn for just about every long run. I knew I was wearing my Team World Vision jersey and arm warmers but ended up wearing my running jacket as well...and my BondiBand hat with the hole for my ponytail...and gloves. I had some pants I wore over my shorts until a little before the start.

We had a team picture at the TWV tent before the race. We still had some time to kill so we went down a level into the parking garage where it was much warmer. It was a smaller race than the other halves I've run, so it was nice to be able to get to the start line just a little before race time.

We didn't all stay together as a team. My parents were there (both are injured and couldn't run even though they had signed up for the race months ago). My sister wanted to start with the 1:50 pace crew. I stayed back around the 2:40 group. My sister-in-law was run/walking the half with her best friend. There were a few others from our team there as well.

The first part of the race went really well. It was cold, but my running felt easy. Around mile 4, I started to think about how much farther I had to go and had to tell myself, "Don't think; just run." That helped.

Chad was able to take the DART trains to try and catch me on the course. He missed me a couple of times but did find me at mile 9. I was so glad he did! I needed that mental boost right then. From about mile 7.5 until that point I was worried about possible tummy issues and just a general yucky feeling. But after I saw him, I felt good.

The course was great...a combination of downtown streets, wealthy neighborhoods and an asphalt runners' trail on the Katy Trail. Until mile 12. Somebody had the bright idea to end the race with a .6-mile uphill on Ross Ave. They even made an event out of it and timed runners from the bottom to the top of the hill for a separate "race" and prize. I was just thrilled that I didn't walk up the hill. In fact, that mile was one of my faster ones at 10:18. Pretty happy with that.

I finished in 2:15:53! My fastest half has been 2:20, so I'll take the PR. I'm most happy with the fact that it just felt like a good race...mentally and physically strong for me.

The Team World Vision tent had breakfast from Corner Bakery for us and our friends/family. The hot coffee was great! Overall, I'm really happy with how the race went. Today, I'm a little sore. My kneecaps hurt...not really my knees, just the kneecaps. The tendons between my feet and shins are tender. Some muscles are tight and need to be rolled. But overall, I feel pretty good. I'll try to post some more pictures when I get them.

Shortgrass Scamper Race Recap



The cousins at the start line



Getting ready







Friday night, Chad had to shoot football and Ryan informed me that he did not want to run the next morning, so Saturday's race was just SB and me. We got there and got our bibs and swag bags (which were awesome, by the way...far better than many big/expensive races I've fun). SB had two cousins running the one mile and decided she wanted to run with them and not me. I was fine with that. It was very cool to see her have a chance to be independent and do something without me. I'm sure if she had run with me, she would have complained and walked...but not with them! She ran her mile in 11:00 :) I think that is awesome! She and her cousins took the first, second and third places in their division...she's so proud of her medal!



If we hadn't been in my small hometown, I would not have felt comfortable letting her run without me or hang around the start/finish while I ran. However, she had grandparents, cousins, and lots of family friends around, so it was a great for both of us.



The quarter marathon and 5K started a half hour after the one-mile, so I was able to see her finish. I started the QM with my sister, who ended up having to push her 1-year-old in the stroller. My Garmin wouldn't turn on right before the race, so Carrie was my Garmin. However, that only lasted to about the half way point, and off she went. My sister-in-law also ran, but I could only see the blur of her orange shirt ahead of us.



I felt very slow, like moving through quicksand, especially in the middle. My foot wasn't  hurting, but I could feel it, if that makes sense. I'm pretty sure when my mom planned the course, she went out and found every hill possible. The QM course ran the 5K course and then looped back and ran it backwards. So every hill we went down the first time was uphill the second.





I came in second in my age division...because there were only two of us. And if I had realized at the 6 mile mark that the chic passing me was in my age division, I would have stuck with her! However, I finished in 1:09:21. I didn't think that was too great, but when I entered it into DailyMile (remember, no Garmin...no pace info), I realized that it was a 10:43 pace...for 6.55 miles. I've been running 11/11:30 pace, so I was pretty happy with that. Plus, I came across that finish line strong and felt good.



Overall, this race is so well organized (and I'm not just saying that because my mom is in charge!). Plenty of water stations and volunteers on the course made it nice. The shirts this year for the new QM distance were tech material...and teal! And like I said, the swag bags were great!

We had to pair up with our "matching medal" kid :)

I'm hoping to get some more pictures from Mom since she had her camera there too...plus, they had a photographer at one of the intersections we crossed a couple of tiems, so there should be some action shots too.





Weekend Recap

This was the weekend that just almost didn't happen. However, I'm so glad everything finally straightened out so we could enjoy our weekend away.

When we booked our hotel with Priceline, we were so excited when we got the Gaylord Texan at a decent rate! We decided to celebrate our 10th anniversary a little early and got another night.

We got an email overnight from the race directors advising those in the 15K that run slower than 12:00/miles to consider moving to the 5K to avoid hypothermia and excess exposure to the cold. Granted, it wasn't that cold, but by Texas standards, I guess it was. I know the race officials were worried people wouldn't dress appropriately for the weather since we're not used to it. I think it was 31 at race time with a colder wind chill.

We met up with my parents, my sister and her husband in the parking lot to get our bibs, including the ones we wore for the virtual run for Sherry Arnold. It was so cold that we didn't want to get out there any earlier than we had to.

We didn't hang around the start line long before it was time to go. The corral was really crowded, mainly because people kept joining us even if that wasn't their assigned corral. It worked out fine though. We ran the first mile without any walk breaks, and after that, our walk breaks were short and usually just for uphill sections. I was really proud of Chad! He did great!

We went and got our chocolate fix indoors (thank goodness!) before heading out to the finish line to watch my mom and sister finish. However, we didn't realize that there was a different finish line for the 15K...one about 1/3 of a mile away! Since Dad was walking with a walking stick and in one real shoe and one slide, I grabbed the camera and took off. I got there in time to see a couple of friends and my sister finish, but I totally missed Mom's finish. She was only about 3 minutes behind Carrie, but I never saw her. They did great! I wish I could run as fast as they do!

After they got their chocolate fondue fix, we headed out for brunch. We originally headed to Twisted Root, a burger place (yes, I know it's not really brunch, but it sounded good). However, it was closed "for deep cleaning." The nearest one wasn't open yet either. We found a pancake place, but the only parking was in a parking lot that had a sign saying "Manny's Parking Only: Towaway Zone." We decided we'd take our chances, but when we walked down the block, we realized that place was packed. Since we were already in Manny's parking lot, we decided to eat there. It's funny how things work out...we walked in thinking we'd be eating a Mexican food lunch, but the menu showed breakfast was served all day long...and it was awesome!

Chad and I were the only ones who were staying another night, so after brunch, we headed back to our hotel. We stopped at Grapevine Mills first and then Chick-Fil-A for lunch (yum!). The best thing about a weekend away...an uninterrupted nap! Well, it was uninterrupted for me. Apparently, I was so out of it that I never even heard housekeeping try to come in the room. We went out Saturday night as a Valentine's Day/anniversary celebration.