Chapte 2 page 193 - TR 73 freezing walk & friends

Today "C" was flying back from NYC where she delivered her middle daughter "A" safe and sound so that she can begin all the adventures that go with your first job after college. Good luck "A" - I'll be thinking of you and wishing you the best!


So "L" and I did something we haven't done in such a long time - we trained together . . . sort of. We took a 3.5 mile walk in the BITTER cold. Bitter I say! The windchill made it 24 degrees. "L" is an olympic pace walker (okay, maybe not quite that fast, but she is crazy fast!!!). By the time we were walking back from the park we were facing into the wind and the sleet and snow. SNOW!!! It was beautiful. It only lasted about 10 minutes. BRRRRRR!



Today's walk was primarily about letting "L" chat. Her aunt died today after having a massive stroke this past Saturday. Her other aunt who was diagnosed with cancer and has been in the hospital for about a month took a turn for the worse yesterday. It's a lot on her plate in addition to life's normal drama. Please keep her in mind as she works through the many decisions, struggles, and emotions that are certainly going to be coming her way this week.

Additionally "Allen L" from my 3 Elles blog is having surgery tomorrow. Wishing her lots of luck for a speedy recovery!

Chapter 2 page 192 - My man Meb

Have you heard of Meb Keflezighi?

Do you know his background?

Did you know he wrote an amazing autobiography?

Meb, who became a household name after winning the 2009 NYC Marathon, recently wrote an autobiography entitled "Run to Overcome." I first became aware of this by reading Endurance Isn't Only Physical's blog.

I picked up a copy of this book and couldn't put it down. I'm by no means a good runner, a fast runner, a technical runner, or even a running enthusiast, but this book has something for everyone.

Who should read this book?
-Parents of high school cross country athletes (especially if their children have aspirations beyond high school running)
-College runners
-Runners who are serious about improving their time in anything from the 10K-full marathon
-Recreational runners looking for some motivation
-Any runner struggling with injury, difficulty in life, or other adversity

What's so special about this book?
-He discusses overcoming adversity (and the kind of adversity that none of us can imagine)
-He discusses training schedules, pacing, and mileage (on a scale that none of us can imagine, but still the principles can be applied to all of us)
-He discusses how faith is central to his life
-He discusses goal setting, dedication, determination, and the need to be surrounded by a strong team
-He discusses injury prevention and rehab options (that most of us can only dream of having access to, but still - it can be applied to our lives, just maybe a little less comprehensively)
-He discusses life balance between family, faith, education, and running

I HIGHLY recommend you get this book for yourself and for the runners in your life. In its 241 pages, I have learned how to tap into a deep reservoir of perseverance within myself.

Have you read it? I'd love to hear what you thought.

Chapte 2 page 191 - TR 72 & Clutz Award

Before I begin with the clutz award part of the story, I should tell you the weather stats first:
Temp 27 degrees
Wind 20-25 mph with gusts up to 35 mph
Windchill 17 degrees (BRRRRR!)

Last night at about 9 p.m. I decided that I was going to do the Rainbow Lake 5K today. That didn't leave much time for my normal routine which includes ensuring we have either a bagel or English muffin in the house which I use as Peanut Butter delivery device for my pre-race breakfast. Oh well, I decided I would just swing by McDonalds before the race and get a plain English Muffin. At the last minute I decided to go into the restaurant and go potty one last time before the race. I then purchased a large diet coke (shout out to TMB and "C") and a plain English muffin. I walked normally (not rushing or screwing around or texting) out to the car when in one split second, I was on my butt - and hard! I remember thinking (if I didn't actually say it aloud) "WHAT!". I tried to get up and couldn't. I was sitting on a patch of black ice. For my southern fans, click here to learn what black ice is all about. I had to scout to the edge of the ice and then get up once my feet were on actual pavement. The patch of ice was only about 3' X 2', but it was sooooooooo slippery! Thankfully I didn't spill my soda (awesome job, right?). I immediately sat in my car, collected myself, spread my peanut butter on my English muffin. While doing that I noticed an older lady coming out of McDonalds with a large coffee. I remember thinking "I hope she doesn't fall" - BAM, she too fell to the ground on the ice. Unfortunately, she spilled her hot coffee all over herself. I really should have reported it to the staff, but I was in a hurry to get to the race . . . and scared to walk across the parking lot again to go inside to tell them. Before driving away, I got out of the car and stood up to see if I was alright. Boy, my wrist (which I used to catch myself) and my ankle, knee, and back were all pretty sore. I thought I would still be able to do the race. Besides, there was no way my wellness client "J" (who I was meeting at the race) would EVER believe I fell on black ice - she would have totally thought that was a bogus excuse to sleep in).

I arrived 30 minutes later to the race registration. I checked in and moved around on my ankle a bit - ouch! I totally should have probably just sat out the race, but I needed to run and was kind of jealous of "C's" awesome Turkey Trot time so . . . I decided to push through (walk if I had to). This was my first race that I ever did completely by myself. Even races where I didn't bring someone with me, I usually meet someone and we end up doing it together. Not today, it was all me for the entire 3.1 miles. I listened to music which I NEVER do (not a big fan of music - I hear all of you just boo hiss!). It was alright. I couldn't use a beeper timer because of my tunes so I just did whatever I felt like.

My first interval was 10 minutes of running and 3 minutes of walking.

My second interval was "until I got to the house on the corner" which was like 7 1/2 minutes running and 2 minutes of walking.

My third interval was only 5 minutes running and 3 minutes walking (running was cut short by the one and only water station).

I then ran the last 12 1/2 minutes.

My ankle hurt worse to walk than it did to run (odd, huh?). My final time was nothing to brag about (42:48). I ended up 160th place out of 180 (there were 4 people behind me in my age group - that rarely happens, especially with such small races - I usually take the prize for dead last . . . of the last 4 was my wellness client "J").

After the race, I came home, wrapped my ankle in an ace, put ice on it while we drove an hour to another Thanksgiving party. It's REALLY sore - not going to lie.

But I feel happy I accomplished 3 miles on my own.

Here are some quirky pix:
I broke out a brand new pair of shoes for this race - yeah!
The race started at Jean Stratton Porter's house.
My wellness client "J" and I at the finish line. It was sooo cold. I know I had at least 10 items of clothing on (tights, pants, 2 shirts, sweatshirt, gloves, ear warmer, under garments).

Hope your day was great!

Chapter 2 page 190 - craptastic weather

Today's weather here in Northeastern Indiana was nearly a perfect rating on the craptastic weather scale. Had it been a bit more chilly (it's currently 33 degrees), it would have been an award winning day for the suckiest weather. It was WINDY, extremely rainy, and heavily foggy.

Just 72 hours ago, this is what "C" and I were experiencing:

How quickly 72 hours passes by and now feels like months ago. I raise my glass to my new friends living in the sunny South - cheers!

Chapter 2 page 189 - Turkey Day

Just wanted to take a quick moment to wish everyone Happy Thanksgiving!

What are you thankful for on this day?

p.s. Good Luck "C" on your 5K today - you're a better woman than I for battling this Suckfest weather! Have fun with "K" & "T" - tell them I said hello!

Chapter 2 page 188 - TR 71 & WHM stats

I was scared to write this post. Why? I'm not really proud of my time or pace, and I don't want you all to think I'm a loser. But . . . I'm also proud of having accomplished the race despite it being a sub-par performance.

Time: 3 hours 17 minutes 14 seconds
Pace: 15:03 min/mile (most all of you must be thinking that with such a slow pace how can I even call this running . . . I know - it's slow, we started off with a 13:45 m/m pace but as it got hotter, we slowed way down)
Interval used: 2 minutes running (which became shuffling rather than running starting at mile 9ish) and 1 minute 15 seconds walking
Overall Place: 4149 out of 4746
Age group place: 759 out 842
Temp at start of race: 64 degrees with 98% humidity
Temp at end of race (3 hours later): 78 degrees with 87% humidity
Temp increase during the race: 14 degrees!!!!!!

No PR, but this was a race about having fun (mission accomplished). I had never traveled for a race -let alone to a whole different state. We didn't have a car during our trip and we must have walked at least 8-10 miles on Friday and Saturday. I had NEVER gone more than 14 miles and this race required us to walk nearly 1.5 miles to the starting line (and then back to the hotel afterward). We didn't have access to the food I have become accustomed to in the days leading up to the race. These are not excuses they are just factors that influenced my race performance.

We did great until mile 7. We were 90 seconds ahead of my pacing temp tattoo and looking good. Miles 7-8 were where we sort of slowed down. Mile 9-10 we added a couple of walking breaks (out of the 62 intervals we ended up walking through only 5 of them - not too bad). Miles 10-12 were all about hating life. Mile 13 I was ready to run the whole thing (pretty sure I was delusional at that point).

Hope you all aren't too disappointed in me.

Here are some photo proofs that clearly show my the WIDE range of emotions I experienced during the race (starting off with euphoria, then pain, then anger, then exhausted finish).

Pre-race photo (sunrise beauty! Not sure "C" is completely awake)

Feeling great miles 1-6
"C" looks like a champ who could do this all day. Me? Well, that grimace screams it all!
Oh yeah, I see the finish line - woo hoo - come to mamma!

Check back next week for many more photos!

Chapter 2 page 187 - the mini vacation

"C" and I flew out of Indianapolis where the temperatures were about 40 degrees only to arrive in Tampa 2 hours later where temperatures were about 80 degrees - NICE! Indiana has VERY gray skies in the winter and the landscape is VERY brown (brown dead leaves, brown grass, just a sea of brown). We arrived in St. Petersburg only to be greeted by beautiful green palm trees, blue skies, and dark blue waters. AHHH!

Friday:
-Took a perilous cab ride from the airport to the hotel (mental note - it's just best that you don't look at how closely the cabby tailgates)
-Checked into the hotel
-Walked SO FAR in search of food (and further because I was directionally challenged)
-Sat outside on top of The Pier and shared a delicious salad and shrimp. We just relaxed and enjoyed the beautiful sun and the water. I sent a pix of my location to all of my co-workers who would have still been in the office.
-Walked through several small shops inside The Pier
-Walked back toward the hotel and came across a movie theater so we decided to see Due Date - hilarious!
-Went to bed
Saturday:
-Ate breakfast at the hotel
-Walked to the Publix and bought bottled water and some items for Sunday's breakfast
-Walked over to the race starting line so we knew exactly how to get there
-Took the "looper" trolley to the Vinoy Resort where the expo and packet pick up was located
-Picked up our bibs, shirts, bags (what a complete bummer -the bag was billed as the ultimate goody bag - ultimate? NOT!)
-Walked around the expo for nearly 3 hours (it was sooo busy and so hot and so packed with women looking for clothing bargins - I think it was a good warm up for Black Friday - bring it!). I bought 5 bondi bands, and 2 pairs of stripped toe socks. "C" picked up 1 bondi band and an iFitness double pouch belt. We got some watermelon chomps which was thrilling since they don't seem to be sold in Indiana anywhere. We also got a couple pouches of mint chocolate gu (those too aren't readily available in IN).
-I rested while "C" took a few pix of the expo craziness
-Met Momma of 3 on the Run
-Took the "looper" trolley back to the hotel to drop off everything
-Walked to Nola restaurant and had a light salad and soup
-Walked to Bella Brava and waited over an hour to get a table (Momma of 3 on the Run and her friend Heidi joined us for dinner); "C" and I shared spaghetti and meatballs for dinner; enjoyed a wonderful time of getting to know Christina and Heidi
-Walked back to the hotel
-Got all of our race stuff layed out
-Went to bed
Sunday:
-Woke up early
-Ate our breakfast in our hotel room
-Walked to the race start
-Did 13.1 miles (way more details coming on this in future posts)
-Got a 10 minute post race massage
-Walked to CVS to get "trinkets" for all my peepes back home (thanks Momma of 3 on the Run for pointing me in the right direction)
-Walked back to the hotel for a much needed shower and change of clothes
-Took the "looper" trolley to The Pier
-Sat outside on top of The Pier and ate a salad (the dressing on the salad was so amazing!!!!)
-Bought some souvenirs at the shops inside The Pier
-Took the last "looper" shuttle to The Gatsby restaurant
-We chose the Gatsby because we could eat outside and they had 3 outdoor tv's that had the Colts game playing. We shared Bruschetta, ate Grouper sandwiches, and cheered loudly for the Colts (totally fun despite the very sucky last pass by Manning directly into the arms of the Patriots - UGG!)
-Walked down to the Gelato cafe and enjoyed a small 3 flavor gelato cup. It was so delicous.
-We walked back to the hotel and packed up our things

Monday:
-We got up extra early ("C's" alarm was still set for Saturday's wake up time, then she pushed the snooze button instead of the off button so it went off again a few minutes later, then about 15 minutes after all that, her wrist watch alarm went off . . . so we just got up and laughed)
-Got ready and went to eat breakfast in the hotel
-Sat on the hotel's porch and waited for the Super Shuttle to take us back to the airport
-Flew back to IN (thankfully it was 68 degrees when we landed in Indy - helped with the weather transition . . . it was 22 degrees when I left for work the next morning)
-Ate at Paradise Bakery & Cafe (wow - the wrap and cookie were amazing)
-Fueled the car
-Drove home
-Did laundry (our race clothes were sooo stinky!!!!)
-Hugged our husbands and went to bed

The End . . . sigh

Chapter 2 page 186 - New friends, post 3 of 3

Mile 11 and hating life -
Anyone will tell you that I'm a SUPER over-the-top positive and happy person! No doubt - I can motivate, encourage, and support others like no one else on earth (okay, well that's a bit overstated). That said . . . anyone who knows me while I'm running ("L", "C", "M") knows that I can become extremely NEGATIVE. I seem to loose all sense of joy when things get hard. When I begin to struggle - EVERYONE around me hears about it. I'm not proud of this fact, and I really hope that some day I learn to love running which will stop the negativity, but for now - running is super hard for me and I struggle. Anyway, about mile 11 I was really hating life. I said on more than one occasion "I WANT TO SIT DOWN RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!!!!!!" I am also known to say things like "I want this to be over. I want to be DONE!" During miles 10-12 I was with an amazing group of women. They were struggling too, but when I said the negative things, they countered with a slew of encouraging words. They helped me to put one foot in front of the other. They helped me to not sit down. I should mention that there was a woman named Carol who told me "I'm not going up there only to come back down here" and she did in fact sit down. Carol did not become my friend - she represented everything I thought I wanted (sitting, rebelling, stopping), but became the persona of everything I didn't want (to be a quitter, to give up, to not be able to have a great story of finishing the race). To those ladies around me during mile 10-12 - THANKS!

Home Stretch, gent
I made the final right turn onto the last 800 yards and was passed on my left by an older gentlemen. He and I had been near each other for some time. We had shared some verbal pleasantries along the way and I actually think he was part of the ladies who supported me during the miles 10-12. As he passed me, he said "You've come this far, you're not really going to let me beat you are you?" Honest to goodness - I can't remember the words I said to him, but it was probably something positive and kind (I loose the funk once I see the finish line . . . just in case you're wondering - having a visual of the end really helps elevate my mood). Immediately, he slowed down to allow me to be in front of him as if to say "this is your race, not mine - go do your thing." I was shocked that someone would do such a selfless gesture as to "throw a finish", but was also humbled by the act. I told him something like "No - you go be all you can be. See you at the end." He took off and sadly I didn't see him again. He wasn't more than a few seconds (less than 30 probably) ahead of us (maybe I can search the results - there weren't many men in the race who finished near me). Anyway, I owe him a lot for showing me the impact selflessness can have on others.

Finally,
I owe my training partner and friend "C" a HUGE thank you! Without "C" at my side the entire time, I would have NEVER been able to finish!!! "C" - you're an amazing person and I'm all the better for knowing you, for training with you, and for having you as my friend. Thanks!!!!!!!!!!

Coming up next -
the mini-vacation surrounding the race followed by the race recap later this week and then photos next week.

Chapter 2 page 185 - New friends, part 2 of 3

During the race, on the pier -
MarathonFoto has photo evidence that my next new friend was with me longer than I was aware; however, Paula came into my life at mile 7. Heading down the pier (click here to learn about this cool place), "C" and I took our first extra walk break. I had suggested that we walk the entire pier but"C" was having NONE of that (jus' sayin' "L" would have let me). I was kind of whipped at this point. Not completely done, but fearing the second half of the race. Dreading the fatigue that was going to be setting in soon. Paula circled the back side of the pier with "C" and I. I said "hi" and we became fast friends. She said she did the walk-run thing and I invited her to join us at least for the rest of the pier (nearly a mile back to the shore). Paula was also a first time half-marathoner and agreed to try to stay with us. Once back on the shore this man on a bike kept yelling very positive and encouraging words. He seemed to be where I was quite a lot ("C" says she remembers him being "around" during the first half of the race - but I was soaking in all "the excitement" of a race and really couldn't say whether or not he was there; however, having seen photo proof that Paula was near me earlier in the race - it makes sense the guy on the bike was near me the first half of the race, too). My friend "M" was a HUGE help to me the last 2 - 2.5 miles of my first half marathon and this guy was like an "M" angel sent to help me along the course. There are NO WORDS to describe how thankful I was for him so . . .what's a girl to do. I yelled "I love you man!" Turns out - the guy on the bike was Paula's husband. What? What are the odds of that (especially when there are dozens and dozens of people within 50 yards of me)?!?! Paula continued to be around "C" and I through mile 10 or so and then I didn't hear from the bike guy again which meant that Paula had fallen a little behind us. I missed both Paula and her husband (I regret that I can't remember his name- maybe "C" remembers). They were extraordinary people who were like angles on Sunday sent to help me get through the hard parts.

Chapter 2 page 184 - New friends part 1 of 3

I'm back - miss me?

I will be putting together a race recap later this week when time allows, and posting pictures maybe next week once I get them all together from the multiple cameras that we used.

Until then, I would like to say how much I LOVE racing. I never win, I rarely PR, I utterly hate the pain and the mental struggle that is required to dig deep and finish - but . . . I LOVE meeting encouraging, happy, and positive people (I love corrals because everyone in there with you is a lot like you). This post will be about some of the awesome people I encountered and met during the Women's Half Marathon this past weekend in St. Petersburg, Florida.

For starters -
"C" and I met the author of one of my favorite blogs Momma of 3 on the Run. Christina and her friend Heidi were the neatest people EVER! You think she's personable and fun on her blog - you should meet her in real life. She and Heidi are gems! We enjoyed a relaxing pre-race pasta dinner together. It was awesome to finally meet her "in real life." Christina was amazing. She completed her first half marathon despite several physical ailments. Read her race recap here. I have one true regret about the WHM and that would be at the finish line. Christina was so positive, inspiring, and fabulous. She cheered "C" and I on at the end. Seconds after I crossed the finish line (which is truly a blur - details to come in my race recap later this week), we walked over to see Christina. She introduced her ADORABLE children and sexy husband to us. We spoke briefly - way too briefly. I truly regret that I wasn't more clear headed and able to stand there longer to talk . . . and more importantly, to celebrate her HUGE accomplishment. I was totally dead - totally done and just wanted to get my medal and sit down. I'm sorry Christina that we weren't able to talk more. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to talk with you super cute children and tell your husband how much "C" and I appreciate you and how proud of you we are. I rarely have regrets, but the short exchange at the finish line is definitely one.

On Friday, in the restroom -
"C" and I had to use the restroom (is that TMI?) and were commenting on the overhead pipped in Christmas music. When, from another stahl, a women with a southern accent said "they have to play the music so early 'cuz it's so warm here." We continued the conversation with her out in the hallway, learned her name was Linda and even met her husband who is a tri-athlete. 2 days later during the race, Linda pops up from behind us and says "Hey girls!" We were near each other for pretty much the whole race. A quick potty break can turn into a new friend - and race day cheerleader.

Chapter 2 page 183 - Ready or not, here we come

The remainder of this week's agenda:


1. Pack - CHECK

2. Activated Isolated Stretching (see my previous experience with this HERE) - tomorrow afternoon


3. Email my family and friends key travel info - CHECK

4. Fly to Florida - Friday morning

5. Race Expo - Saturday afternoon

6. Meet fellow blogger "Momma of 3 on the Run" - Saturday evening
7. Run 13.1 miles - Sunday morning

8. Take a naparoonie - Sunday afternoon

9. Watch the Colts game on tv with "C" (probably with ice bags taped to my many hurting parts) - Sunday afternoon
10. Fly home - Monday morning

Yep, that pretty much sums up the rest of my week. I hope you all have a great rest of your week and weekend. Good luck to everyone who is racing this weekend. I'll be back on Monday evening with an update.

Chapter 2 page 182 - Snow to Sand

It's no secret, I've been quite nervous about the upcoming Women's Half Marathon in St. Petersburg this Sunday. I appreciate the well wishes you all offered a few posts ago - they went a long way to easing my concerns.

Want to know what else helped to calm my nerves?

The forecast for Northern Indiana later this week:
SNOW, COLD (high 42 degrees, low of 27 degrees), WIND

The forecast for St. Pete Florida later this week:
HOT (high of 80 degrees, low of 68 degrees), SUN, OCEAN BREEZES

Even though I'm worried about the HOT TEMPS during the half marathon -hmmm, I think I can suck it up and enjoy the sun, sand, and surf!

Oh yeah - bring on 13.1 miles!

Chapter 2 page 181 - TR 70 & dinner

Tonight the 3 Musketeers were all together for our second to last training run before the WHM on Sunday. We started with a half mile walk, then we did an interval of 2 minutes running and 90 seconds walking for one mile. For the return mile we did an interval of 2 minutes running and 75 seconds walking. We wrapped it up with a half mile walk.

Why some many different intervals you ask? It's all in an effort to find the "perfect" interval to use for Sunday's half marathon. We aren't going for a PR, we're not as well trained as we were for the Sept half marathon, and we're really just going to try to have fun so . . . saying that - we aren't interested in pressing the pace with our normal 2:10 & 1 interval. We're interested in looking for something a little more leisurely. Still no final decision, so we're packing both timers and my watch - we'll decide once we get to FL and get a taste of the hot weather. I'm leaning for the 2:2, personally. Stay tuned for the race recap to find out which one we choose (I know - you're all on pins and needles, NOT!)

After our quick training, we went to a new Mexican restaurant here in town. It was a "pre-departure" planning meeting as well as a chance to meet "C's" daughter middle "A" (the last of "C's" family that I had not met). "A" is awesome! I had a great time chatting with her. All of "C's" daughters are the most amazing people! I'm so thrilled to have gotten a chance to meet her before she goes off and starts her "real adult" life. For all my readers, "A" is the one that had emergency surgery earlier this summer and who just underwent exhaustive and painful testing with results all coming back negative (yeah!). She is finally on the mend and about to move to the east coast. I wish her all the best and hope our paths will cross again soon.

While we were at dinner, I gave "C" 2 shirts . . the pink one we're going to wear for the race




and the green one is for sporting around the expo (so Momma of 3 on the run can find us more easily) (note: ignore the very small print in the middle that says "your text here" - that's not really on the shirt).

Chapter 2 page 180 - daily mile, finally

You may have noticed something new on my side bar - the Daily Mile Training Widget. Since I'm finding an abundance of free time these days . . . as a result of my very favorite word, TAPER (say it with me, and smile - TAPER), I have been able to start a daily mile account. I'm pretty sure that I'm the last person in the blogosphere to do so, but better late than never?

Since all of you are awesomely knowledgeable about Daily Mile - I would be appreciative of any guidance, advice, suggestions, insights, or info you want to share to help me get the most out of it (and as a side benefit - you all can see something on my blog that is accurate and actually provides some info). So don't be shy - fire away with your helpful tips!!! Thanks (in advance) for your help.

As a parting note for tonight, GO COLTS!!!!

Chapte 2 page 179 - TR 69 & 3 Things Thursday

I've never had a 3 things Thursday, but it seems like I have more than one thing to say tonight.
1. Thank you Veterans! Thank you for putting on the uniform so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we take for granted. God bless you all and your families who endure while you serve!

2. "C" and I did an EASY 3.5 miler using a 2:2 interval. Can I just say this weather is AWESOME? Dang, it isn't hard to get motivated to train when it's 70 degrees, sunny, and a light breeze (I can even overlook the early sunset with weather like this). "L" was suppose to join us, not sure what happened to her. We tried the oldie but goodie interval of 2:2. Man, I sure like it. We're going to be playing around on Monday with several other intervals in search of the "perfect" one we'll use for the Women's Half. It will either be 2 or 2:10 minutes of running and anywhere from 1-2 minutes walking (we're going to look at 75 & 90 seconds as possible options).

3. Shout out to "A" (C's middle daughter): I'm sooooo glad you received good news today! I sure do hope we can meet before you move to NYC!

Chapter 2 page 178 - I win I win

When I got the mail today there were TWO packages waiting for me. Yes, I have won a couple of blog give aways recently. Woo Hoo!!!!

First, I won these "fuel" treats from Half TRI-ing. Thanks Half TRI-ing - I can't wait to try them out!



Seond, I won a Runner ID from Running Diva Mom. Thanks RDM - hope I'll never need it, but am THRILLED to be safer when I run.

Chapter 2 page 177 - TR 68

Today's weather in just one word - GORGEOUS! 72 degrees, light breeze, sunny skies.

Although we were going to do a 2:2 10K for our training today, we opted for a 4.5 mile walk which was A-OK with me. "C" hurt her back on Sunday and it was really bothering her. I'm totally in favor of having it heal so there was no need to push it.

We will try a light and easy 2:2 5K on Thursday.

On unrelated topics:
1. Thanks everyone for your very kind words on my "hay in the barn" recent post. I love hearing from so many new bloggers. I felt very uplifted reading your motivational statements. I will try hard not to let anyone down.
2. Congratulations "B" on getting a 31 (woo hoo!!!!). I never doubted you!!!!!!!
3. "L", we missed you during the walk, but were so excited to see you and the kiddos at the end - thanks for taking a few minutes to visit.

Chapter 2 page 176 - T minus 13 days

13 days until the Women's Half Marathon in St. Petersburg.

THEN:
2 weeks before my first half back in September I wrote a post called "The Hay is in the Barn" (click HERE to check it out)

2 weeks before my first half I was feeling extremely confident about my training. I felt comfortable with the race course because we had trained on it several times. I felt at ease as I had studied the course map and pretty much memorized the route as well as the locations of the water stations.

Most importantly, 2 weeks before my first half marathon I knew I could go the distance because I had run 13 miles twice before in training runs in addition to a 6 other runs of 10+ mile runs. I knew I could all the way!

NOW:
Now it's 2 weeks before my second half marathon which is 8 weeks after my first half. Now, none of the confidence I had with my first half marathon is with me crrently. I have never seen, let alone trained on, the course (except for a video of the route which I have seen at least 10 times). I have no confidence I can go the distance. My long runs in the past couple of weeks are a bunch of 5 milers, an 8 miler, and one 10.5 miler. I haven't gone 13.1 miles since 9/25 and am fairly certain that I can't any more. I'm not like everyone else in the blogosphere - I'm not a finely tuned athlete who can just decide to run 20 miles because it's a nice day and it feels good. "C" and I have invested a lot of time and money in this upcoming race. We have had to pay not only for the race, but also for airfare, hotel, ground transportation, and food. We both have to take 2 days off of work. It's a huge investment and I'm not trained properly.

What a difference 8 weeks makes!

This is what my hay barn looks like for this upcoming race:



Have you ever done a race without having enough mileage under your belt? How did you get through? What advice do you have?

T minus 13 days - YIKES!!!!!!!!!!

Chapter 2 page 175 - TR 67 & WOOF Recap

Today's starting temperature = 23 degrees (SAY WHAT?!?)

Can I just say that I've done several November races and a January race and today's race was the coldest I have ever done . . . by like 12 degrees. I don't even know what people wear for a 23 degree trail race (which isn't in the sun, but there isn't much wind - WARDROBE WIZARD . . . HELP!!!!!). Well, I chose a tight C9 wicking shirt as a base layer and the 2009 Rat Race Tech shirt as the middle layer and then a fleece jacket as the outer layer. I decided not to wear a hat. I did have gloves in my pockets, but didn't need them at all. During our pre-race jog to the restroom, I was sweating!!! Oh no - too many clothes and not enough time to change out the layers. I had sweat dripping off my face the whole way. I was ugly hot for much of the race, but occasionally we got in a super shady area or a more open area and the wind was a little chilly. I'm thankful to one of the check in girls for giving me a rubber band so I could put my hair up. I really thought I would want it down to keep my neck warm - WRONG!!!! Quite the opposite, my hair was sweatier than if it were 90 degrees outside (is that TMI?).

The race was quite uneventful. "C" and I weren't certain what "L" was going to do - turns out she joined us as a bandit. Yeah - thanks "L" for joining us - it was FUN! What a beautiful day for the race. The post race fire and food was delightful.

Here are some race day pix for you to enjoy:

A view of the "frozen tundra" that appears when it is only 21 degrees at 9:00 a.m.



A beautiful sunrise taken looking at one of our favorite scenes - the changes leaves in front of a big red barn (barn is a little hard to see - it's behind the trees).




A quick pre-race photo while we waited for the start.



The course takes runners around the buffalo pin so since they were pretty close, I stopped and took a photo ("L" & "C" left me in the dust - I had to run while they walked to catch up)



Post race fire inside the Pavillion - NICE!

Chapter 2 page 174 - Garmin give away

"26.2 Is My Cool Down" is giving away a Garmin 405 or Edge 500. Click HERE to learn more and enter!!! Woo Hoo!

Chapter 2 page 173 - No TR 67

Today "C" and I were suppose to do an easy 3-4 miler in prep for Saturday's W.O.O.F. but unfortunately several factors got in my way. First, the weather scared me. It was raining pretty hard and it was cold - not a great combo when you are facing a race in another state in 19 days. Second, I had an unplanned meeting at 4:00. Third, "C" didn't work today (yeah, school closed for fog!!!) so I felt really badly for making her "come into town" just for a quick run.

So . . . we ended up doing ZERO miles, but look what we accomplished:


We designed and ordered these custom shirts HERE for our upcoming race. Cute, huh? We'll be stylin' as we run the St.Petersburg Women's Half Marathon together on 11/21/10.

Chapter 2 page 172 - TR 66 long-ish run

Last week, "C" and I had planned for our long run today to be at least 11 miles and hopefully 13 - though we didn't really discuss it prior to our run today. We decided we needed to run the trail that makes up part of Saturday's WOOF race plus add a few extra miles on the road.

"C" and I set out without "L" who apparently wasn't going to arrive in time to join us. About 45 minutes into our run, we notice someone ahead of us and then we hear "I see you." At first I though it might be a jerk making fun of my new bright orange reflective shirt. We hear "I see you" a few more times. "C" yells out ""L" is that you?" No response. I said "It better be "L" or I'm going to kick some ass!" We hear "I see you" again. I then announce I'm carrying my gun and have no issue with shooting you (would that have scared you if you were the boogy man trying to kill us on the trail? - I hoped it would). After a few minutes of my posturing, we meet up with the mystery person . . . "L"! Yeah!!!!! It's been so long since the 3 of us ran together - it was fun. We ended up running another hour together. (glad I didn't have to open a can of whip ass on a stranger perv . . 'cuz I woulda!)

We ended up only going 8.09 miles (according to my GPS). I had hoped for much further, but I guess we'll call this an early start to our tapering for our half on 11/21. On a positive note about today's training session, we did the 2:10/1 interval for the entire time except maybe the last half mile when we walked for our cool down.

For all of my friends (most who never comment - shame on you - but who loyally wread my blog) who are doing the WOOF:
The trail was awesome. It's NOT muddy at all. It's very much leaf covered which made some of the roots a little harder to see. I did trip twice, but never fell. It's very beautiful. There are so many colors and textures. There are at least 2 trees that have fallen across the path - they're small so it's easy to jump over. There is one small wooden foot bridge that looks like it could wash away, but no worries - all of the bridges are very secure (I made sure to jump on them to test them out). Friday's forecast is calling for 40% chance of rain and snow - as long as it's not much - it should be perfect for Saturday. Have fun - see everyone there!!!!