Davis Moo-nlight 12.2 Half Marathon

Last night I ran my 19th half marathon. Well almost half marathon. A 12.2 mile half marathon to be exact. I’m sure you are sitting there reading and wondering “did I read that correctly?”  Well my friend you did so read on.

HP and I headed out of hometown to Davis for the Davis Moo-nlight Half Marathon around 5:30 p.m so we could pick up our packets and have plenty of pre-race time. Upon exiting the freeway we ran into some serious traffic. Although there was official event parking the race directors did not provide enough parking for the 3,000 participants and traffic had backed up. Our friend DG had beat us there and texted that there was parking at the IHOP. Cool enough except that I missed the turn for IHOP. I drove a couple more blocks made a u-turn and pulled into a full parking lot. Fail. I found a spot at the hotel behind IHOP. Score!

We made it over to packet pick-up and picked up our bibs and t-shirts. My last name falls at the end of the alphabet and the line is usually very short. With only two runners ahead of me I thought I’d have my bib in no time. But I stood and stood some more. There was some sort of problem with the registered runner at the front of the line. Finally it was my turn I was handed my bib by an adult volunteer and a pre-teen volunteer tossed my tech tee at me from the far side of the table. Hmmm, so much for customer service.

Back at the car I dug my running shoes out of my backpack and pinned the bib to the front of my tank. HP ran into the hotel for a quick potty stop and DG went in after HP returned. While waiting for DG this rude little man comes out and tells me that customers are complaining that the lot is full and to move my car. I did my best to keep my spot just a couple of blocks from the start but finally gave in and moved.

I made the short jog to the start to find my buddies and we watched the end of the kids race and headed to find the start. The start and finish were kind of hodge podged together and it was actually a little challenging to find the start. Another lit bit of frustration was that the 5K, 10K and half all had the same start time. This was yet another move by the race director that needs improvement.

I find that I must stop the story here and give my opinion of running a race with a stroller. Don’t. That’s my opinion. Don’t do it. Especially if you have not ever raced before and have no idea what your pace is. To the guy who easily breezed by me with the stroller just before the first mile marker you get on with your bad self because I am not talking about you. But to the all the others and to the walkers I applaud you for getting out there and doing work like the rest of us but please move to the back of the start line. The traffic at the start beat out the traffic on road coming to the race. While HP and I started at the 10 minute/mile marker we were forced to fight our way around strollers and walkers alike for much of the first mile. Very frustrating, I’m just saying.

So now back to the story. HP and I stayed together for the first 2ish miles. We were both running too fast and it was hot. We were on a stretch of road that paralleled a major freeway and it was somewhat stifling. HP said she was going to pull back a bit and we said our good lucks and see ya at the ends. For most of the next four miles I was running a comfortable pace and enjoying the scenery of the beautiful Davis park we ran around and through. The sun started to set and it began to cool some. Around mile 6 the 10K and half marathon runners were directed to split from the 5K runners. As I made the climb up the freeway overpass I came to the 7 mile marker. Huh? My Garmin had only logged just over 6 miles. What the freak? Did I miss a turn? How could I have? I never strayed from the group I had been running with. I figured the sign was placed in the wrong area and that the next mile marker would be in the appropriate place. That did not happen, ever. At each subsequent mile marker my Garmin was short a full mile. How could this be? I started losing sight of my goal of 2:15 (not a PR but still a decent time for a rehabber like me) and trying to figure what the hell happened. Just as my Garmin beeped to signal mile 12 a volunteer cheering us on said “3 blocks to the finish”. Ummm what? No sir I have a mile to go not 3 blocks. As I rounded the corner there was the finish. The clock read 2:06 and I was nearly 10 minutes ahead of my goal. I crossed the mat and a volunteer tossed a finish medal at me, (literally tossed) thanks a lot I thought.  I searched out the water station and I looked around for DG who had a goal of 2 hours in his sights. I walked around a bit dazed and confused. Had my Garmin failed, had I failed, or was the course really a mile short? Mind you this was an USATF certified course. I sat down feeling deflated. Then I caught a glimpse of DG. He runs low tech, no fancy water bottles or watches, and I asked if he thought we were off. He thought so but couldn’t figure out how either. A few minutes later HP comes in and she is just as perplexed about the mileage. Now I know something is up because the chances of both Garmins failing was like zero to none.

So my official result is this: 12.2 mile Half Marathon 2:07:10. This would have been a PR by nearly a minute if I had of actually run 13.1 miles which I did not.

Needless to say I will not be shelling out any cash next summer to go and run this poorly managed event.

Random little bits

Today's goal:  Easy run, 3 miles @10:46
Workout: 3 miles @9:37
Much better run today.  The air was still and crisp with the faint smell of freshly mowed  lawn.  No mini river or annoying little dogs.  Still trying to run without paying much attention to the 'ol Garmin.  Feeling really strong today.  Think I need new shoes though, feeling a little shin splinty.  Opted to wade in pool instead of ice bath.  70 degree water was much nicer than 50!

Lately I've had more good runs than bad ones.  I've got a new summer routine and I like it.  Over the last few weeks my friends and I have been able to fit in a mid-week speedwork session.  As much as I dread running around that oval track I can't wait to meet up with my crew.  Okay let's get real, what I really look forward to is sitting enjoying a well deserved latte after the workout and visiting!  But nonetheless it's great to see my buddies twice a week and my increasing strength is an added bonus.

Did you notice the new blog title?  Last Saturday while trying to power through the last couple miles of my first 14+ mile run in I don't know how long (umm I'm thinking like forever but probably like the fall of '08) I had the thought that I should stop using Bart's title and come up with my own.  I find on long runs I often tell myself "just get through one more mile".  So I thought, violá I have a new title!   I did a little Internet research and found that there is a book with the title Just One More Mile. Surprisingly enough it is not about running in the sense of the sport but about running towards a better life.  It looks interesting, I may have to read it.  So after a  little deliberation (and trying to come up with something else til my brain hurt) I decided to use the title because everyday I'm truly trying to get through just one more mile.

You may have noticed that I also changed the look too.  I like the clean simple lines.  What do you think??

I've got two new events on my calendar.  A 10K on June 25 and a half on July 16.  I've also pretty much committed to a full marathon in September.  I guess all that I have left to do is sign up to be fully committed.  Oh and do a whole lotta training!

So there you have it, some random little bits!

Women's Fitness Festival 5K

Yesterday was one of those good days. My mojo was in synchronicity with the universe if you will.

I started the rainy day with a 5K race. I had a goal of 26:anything in my sights. It was a lofty goal and I had serious doubts the clock would read 26 when I crossed the finish mat. I’ve been training pretty regularly but I’ve been struggling with a bout of depression which has led to skipped workouts and less than ideal eating habits. The sunny, warm California weather of legend has been non-existant for the better part of 9 months making it hard for me to get myself out the door on many days.

As I prepared for the 8:00 a.m. event the rain steadily fell from the sky. I once again could not decide what to wear. This seems to be the theme of my spring training. It is more daunting to me than say a 13 mile run. So as I stood in front of my closet I pondered my choices; shorts and a tank, shorts and a short sleeve or long sleeve shirt? Capris or pants were out of the question so it really came down what to wear on top. I knew I didn’t want to be cold as I waited at the start and I detest running with anything tied around my waist so I opted for shorts and long sleeve shirt. Wrong choice! Within a couple blocks of this urban course I was too hot. I decided to not let being to warm ruin my run so I pushed my sleeves up as far as they would go, cranked up the Ipod and just ran.

I find that I often run with my eyes glued to my Garmin in order to pace myself. It’s not a good way to train and I have been working on running by feel as opposed to the time on my watch. As I waited for the start of the race I told myself to not look at my pace the entire first mile. I didn’t and as I approached the first mile marker my Garmin signaled my first split of the morning. 8:19! Yikes! That was not the plan. It was at this point I realized I was running waaaay to fast and was going to crash burn if I tried to keep this up. Like I said, I had my doubts about actually making this goal. I knew I needed to keep a constant 8:30 pace to achieve my goal so I spent mile 2 trying to settle into this pace. I couldn’t do it and grew ever more doubtful. I really need to work on a positive attitude while I’m out on the run!

One of the things my friend and mentor BC has taught me is to take the inside corners. This course had very few so I didn’t have to do too much jockeying to get down into the corners. However as we rounded the next to last corner another runner cut in front of me and stepped on my right foot as she passed. I thought for sure I was going eat pavement. Even worse this is my "fragile" foot! Now I realize that this was not a purposeful act on the part of the other runner but she did not even mutter a “sorry”as she moved out in front of me. How rude! Miraculously I was able to stay upright and kept on running. It sure is a lot more cut-throat at the 8:30 pace than it is back at the 10:00 minute pace! This will take some getting used to if I continue to race at this pace.

At the two mile marker my Garmin showed an 8:46 mile. Not great but not bad either. If I could hold it together for one more mile I might actually make my goal. I walked through the water station took a couple quick sips of water and picked up the run again. The third mile was an act of self torture. The doubt swirled in cyclone-like fashion in my ears. “You didn’t train hard enough”, “You can’t do this”, "why do you set yourself up to fail?", etc… My eyes kept straying to the Garmin and I didn’t like the numbers I saw. Each time I saw a pace of 9:something I got panicky and picked up the pace. I bounced around like a pinball. Slow and fast, up and down. I passed the 3 mile marker and I was spent. So close to my goal and yet so far.  A tenth of a mile to go seemed so long. I rounded the last corner and could see the clock. 26:40! If I ran hard I could make it! I ran harder than I have since I was a child and crossed the mat at 26:58!

As I made my way out of the finish corral a nauseous feeling crept up and became nearly uncontrollable. I thought for sure I had run to the point of sickness. I’ve witnessed this phenomenon many times but never have I pushed so hard that it’s happened to me. I had radar lock on a garbage can off to my left just in case I could not hold back this impending tidal wave of overexertion. As I made my way through the other finishers to said garbage can I felt a hand on my back. It was my husband. He was smiling and congratulatory. I had indeed made my goal! It was in that moment that the nausea subsided and the full magnitude of what I had accomplished sank in. I had just run my fastest 5K, ever. Whoa! What a feeling!

My official time is 26:49.5., a personal best by 17 seconds. Not too shabby for an old chick who has endured 2 surgeries and recoveries in the last 12 months!