11/17/13: Surfer's Point Half Marathon (Our First Half Marathon and #14 for me)

I think one of the most exciting things about being a runner is inspiring others to get into running and helping them reach their goals. Not only has my other half started running but my older sister, well she is only 11 months and 3 weeks older than me, has started running too. I think is great and I am so proud of them for giving it a try even if they do not end up loving it as much as I do!

Now about this "couples race." Days before the race he kept telling me that he was ready. I think he just wanted to get it over with. The night before the race he was telling me that he wanted to run the race that evening since he was getting anxious! We took a quick walk over to Starbucks and then Finish line which was really close to our hotel room and he said he was ready but was still not ready to commit to a time. I agreed and we went back to the hotel and went to sleep.

The half marathon did not start until 7:15 a.m. so we set the alarm for 5:30am and we took our time getting ready and eating our breakfast. We left the room about 6:30am and walked over to the Start. He mentioned that his back was hurting so I asked him if he was okay to run the race. He thinks that he may have slept wrong but the pain is still there. Not really sure what that is all about since is the first time it occurred. This was the view when we first got to the Start. It was about 54 degrees and it felt perfect.

This was an inaugural race and was also a really small race. I think the full marathon had less than 100 participants and the half marathon had about 300-400 participants. For being an inaugural race, I thought it was as organized as it needed to be. There were only a few porta-potties but with the amount of participants it worked and there was never a long long. 

Water on the course was great and at every mile and a half. We carried our own water just in case they ran out of water. I did not want his first experience to end on a course that ran out of water. The only complaint that I have is the lack of photographers on the course. We only saw one and I think he was a one man shop.

The marathoners started at 7:00 a.m. and then the half marathoners started lining up. He wanted to line up with the 10 minute + mile group so we did. There were pacers for both the half and the full but we did not want to run with a pacer.  The half marathon started right on time and we were off and running. I stayed next to him or closely behind him so that I did not make him nervous. His initial pace was around 9:25 so I reminded him not to take off too quickly. He also wore his Garmin to monitor his pace but I reminded him anyway since I know how that race day adrenaline can make you do silly things at the beginning of a race!

The course started out right at the beach and stayed by the water for the most part. The view was amazing! I kept telling him to focus on the view if he started to feel tired.

The course was supposed to be pretty flat but there were some areas that had some steep uphill climbs. 

Luckily they did not last long since I could see the look of panic on his face whenever we would see one of them coming. 

He was still feeling strong at the half way point and I kept asking him how he was doing. At this point I was running a little in front of him so I could take pictures of him and keep him going. I also took care of refilling our water bottles when needed and I also opened his GU for him and kept track of when it was time to fuel up.

During out training runs, he would always stop to use the bathroom. I could tell that he was trying not to but right before Mile 8, he started looking for the porta-potty. 

The course loops back to the finish right around Mile 9 and the it goes out two miles and then back to the finish. There was a decent climb at Mile 11 and at this point he told me that he was starting to feel a little tired. He never stopped except at the one bathroom break but I could see his pace starting to drop and I encouraged him to stay strong since we were almost finished. His back was really starting to hurt but he toughed it out and I was pretty proud of him since I probably would have quit or taken a walking break.

He told me that he wanted to give it everything he had to the Finish and at Mile 12.5 he was going to kick it into gear and go for it. And he did. We sprinted to the Finish Line at a 7:51 pace and crossed the Finish Line with our hands held and raised in the air. Unfortunately there was no photographers there to take our finish line photo but we did get this amazing picture right before Mile 9 that we absolutely love! It was the best $7.99 that I ever spent! I have posted this picture all over social media so please excuse me for being so obsessive about it but I can't help it.

He told me that he enjoyed the race and he really enjoyed it because he loves running with me. I am now trying to convince him that if he can run a half marathon, he can run a full marathon. He just looks at me and laughs whenever I talk about it. I guess that is better than a "NO." I will give him some time before I start bugging him again.

Our official time was 2:08:17. He finished 12th in his age group and I finished 10th in mine.  

Have you ever ran a race with your spouse/significant other?

Three Reasons Why November is Going to be Really Exciting!

1. I feel like I am kind of pushing it here in terms of races but how do you pass up a great opportunity to run with a friend on a team that is sponsored by two great companies (Nuun and Pro Compression?) I will answer that for you...YOU DON'T! My friend Caroline asked me if I would be interested in running Ragnar Las Vegas with her and I didn't have to think twice about it! The only problem is that we will be flying out of town on my wedding anniversary so I kind of had to ask for permission! My other half gave me his blessing and the rest is history! So on November 7th, I will be leaving on a plane to Las Vegas with Caroline since we are practically neighbors! We will be in Van #1 together so I am excited about that too. I am also excited to meet some other ladies who I know from their blogs but have never met in person. I guess I will be overdosing on Watermelon Nuun and losing sleep in Sin City in just a few weeks!

2. About a week after Ragnar Las Vegas, on November 17th, I will be running the Surfer's Point Half Marathon with my other half. This will be "our first half marathon" as a team. It will be his first and #14 for me. I am really excited about it. I love running in Ventura and I am excited to see him take on this challenge. As of now we have no goals for this race. He doesn't care about time and just wants to finish the race and take it all in. 

3. I will start training for the LA Marathon the week of the Surfer's Point Marathon. I will be using this half marathon as my first long run of my training. I think I am going to use the LA Marathon as a trial run for a BQ to see how close I can come to a qualifying time of 3:45! Just the thought of it makes me nervous but I think it will give me a good idea of where I stand and what my chances of a BQ race in May might be. I can never be confident enough when it comes to the marathon because it is such a humbling experience.

Anything exciting happening for you in November? Please Share!

10/13/13: The Long Beach Marathon (Take Two)

Where should I start? I am finally over the "what if's" had this race gone better than it did. I know I ran a strong race and that I am capable of more than I sometimes want to give myself credit for. This marathon included the strongest 21 miles that I have ever ran in a marathon. Everything seemed to be aligning including the weather. It was cooler than I thought it would be so I think that may be a reason why I felt so great those first 21 miles of the race!

 

I only slept four hours because I was so nervous. Marathons will always make me nervous no matter how many I run make but this time I was super nervous. I laid out all of my race stuff the night before so I would be ready to go when my alarm went off at 4:15am. I had such a low bib number so lots of runners kept asking me if I was an elite runner! Too funny....if only they knew how non-elite I really am!!

My friend who lost her husband came with us to the race to support me. I was excited that I was able to get her out of the house and we had a good time. We laughed like the old times before her husband took his life so it was nice to see her smile again. We had dinner together and she was so grateful that I invited her to come along since her house really depresses her at times with all of memories it holds of her late husband. She has kind of lost her running mojo lately so I was excited when she signed up for a half marathon at the Expo. Progress is a big thing for her right now! I decided to dedicate my fourth marathon to her husband because he was always so supportive and encouraged me to reach for my dreams.

The Race:
The race was delayed by almost a half hour due to safety clearance or something like that but safety first, right? I was a little bummed because I was hoping to finish without having to spend too much time in the sun. That did not happen but it was still cool enough to run a decent race.

I started right with the four hour pacer and spotted Nicole and her brother Joe, who was running his first marathon, and wished them good luck. I kept thinking that if the weather stays cool I just might be able to run this course in under 4 hours. I was off and running and I don't think I ever ran with the 4 hour group or saw them on the course again. I can usually tell by the first three miles of a marathon how my race is going to turn out. I was feeling great the first three miles and just kind of went with it but reminded myself to be smart.

Mile 1: 8:32

Mile 2:8:22

Mile 3:8:20

I did not want my Garmin to distract me from my race by staring at it the entire time because that makes me feel very nervous! I continued to run by how I felt, occasionally glancing at my watch to make sure that I was not going too fast. 

Mile 4: 8:27

Mile 5: 8:27 (GU)

Mile 6: 8:22

Mile 7: 8:26

Mile 8: 8:21

Before I knew it I was closing in on the 3:45 pacer but I just kept a safe distance. I was not feeling confident enough to run a 3:45 on this particular course. It was at this point in the race that I was thinking that I would continue at this pace and hang on until it started to get tough. Things continued to go well and by the way I did end up wearing my hydration belt like I said I wouldn't. I didn't use my handheld water bottle because I forgot the little clips to my iFitness belt that holds my bib on and I needed it to carry my phone and GU's. I was just too nervous to rely on the water on the course even though there was plenty of it.

Mile 9: 8:26

Mile 10: 8:26 (GU)

Mile 11: 8:25

Mile 12: 8:31

Mile 13: 8:26

I was still feeling pretty good at the half way point and it was at this point that I decided that maybe I could meet my most optimistic goal of all which was to PR! I also knew that the most difficult miles of the course were coming up soon and I was going to see my pace drop significantly.

Mile 14: 8:26

Mile 15: 8:33 (Gu)

Mile 16: 8:26

Miles 17-20 are the toughest miles of the course for me. The course takes you into Cal State Long Beach and it is nothing but hills in there! It was pretty tough so I slowed it down on the uphill and tried to gain some time back when the course flattened out. I did much better this year and I didn't die or hit the wall!

Mile 17: 8:27

Mile 18: 8:56

Mile 19:8:25

Mile 20:8:50(GU)

Around Mile 19ish my race took a different turn. I ran through some water on the course with what felt like sand and I almost slipped and over extended my right leg and felt a pain in the back of my leg. Little by little the pain became worse to the point where I had to slow down considerably. I stopped and stretched it out around Mile 22 per the instructions of Monica who happened to run past me as I was hobbling along in pain. By Mile 23 I could not run for long at all without it hurting or tightening up so it was a run/walk effort from Mile 23-25 but I did not give up! 

Mile 21: 8:42

Mile 22: 9:26

Mile 23: 10:04 (GU)

Mile 24: 10:26

Mile 25: 10:17

It was at this point that I knew that my race was headed in another direction. I wasn't sure what was the best thing to do. I thought about quitting or just walking to the Finish but I just could not let myself do it. I completely fell apart at this point because I was not sure what was going on with my leg and what might happen if I kept on going. At Mile 25, I saw my friend Meg who I have known for a while through the blog world! She came up to me and we started talking and she ran with me for about a mile. I felt better just seeing a familiar face and I was able to brave through it and make it to the Finish. THANK YOU MEG! YOU SAVED ME!

Mile 26: 9:31

.48=8:48 (I guess I did not do very well running the tangents either!)

Goals:

My goals for this race were to beat my 2011 course time of 4:05:35 (CHECK.). I actually beat my course time by 13 minutes and 20 seconds! My second and more optimistic goal was to finish the race in under 4 hours (CHECK.) This was not a PR for me but this is just one of those courses that will probably never get me a PR or a BQ! It just doesn't love me!

I finished Marathon #4 in 3:52:15 and finally earned my Beach Cities Challenge medal! Sarah was handing out the BCC medals and it was nice to see her out there volunteering. I can remember when I thought that I would never be able to run a sub-four marathon so I have convinced myself that 3:52 is a decent time for me considering that it did do lots of walking! I told Long Beach that I would be back to get revenge and my sub-four finish and I know I ran a much stronger race than I did two years ago. No excuses for a bad race so I will just suck this one up and pay attention to where I am running in the future and accept the fact that not every race is going to be a perfect one and realize that CACA HAPPENS!

This makes race #12 of my quest to run 13 races in 2013 and my second best marathon time. I have been taking it easy because I was hurting everywhere and I am also hoping that my hamstring pain is just a temporary thing that rest will take care of. I am not ready to use the dreaded "I" word yet! I am hoping to get a run in at the end of the week if I am able. Until then, I will be doing lots of icing and this....

  

 Next up...Ragnar Las Vegas, sponsored by Nuun and Pro Compression, with my friend Caroline and 10 other ladies that I cannot wait to meet!

9/1/13: The Disneyland Half Marathon

The Disneyland Half Marathon is one of my favorite races that I look forward to every year! The race started at 5:30 am which meant a 4:00 am wake up time. I get up at this time to go to work so it did not bother me at all. I actually like the fact that the race starts super early because the weather is much better at 5:30 am than it is at 7:30 am! We left the hotel at 4:40 am and started our walk to the corrals. The situation was much like I am used to seeing it and the runners were able to head straight to their corrals since there were no other events before the half marathon. I can usually get pretty close to the front of the corral but I was not able to and ended up somewhere in the middle. I think that all of the Dumbo Double Dare participants headed over to the corrals much earlier after seeing the crowds at the 10K the previous day. 

I regretted not getting closer to the front of the corral because I weaved through the crowds for the first five miles. The course was very crowded and I was unable to find a spot to settle into my comfortable pace and I got really frustrated. Runners were bumping into me, running in front of me or just getting too close. I don't mean to sound arrogant but I like my space and I want to be free to move around a little bit. My pace was 9:30 for the first .55 miles and I was only able to squeeze an 8:37 out of the first mile due to the crowds.

Mile 1 :8:37

Mile 2: 8:20

Mile 3: 8:08

Mile 4: 8:17

Mile 5: 8:22 (GU) 

I saw that other runners were jumping up onto the sidewalk to break through the crowds but I didn't need to do that since I was not shooting for a PR. I didn't set a goal for this race but knew I wanted to close it out with a fast finish. I felt like I could run a decent race since I ran my 1oK pretty easy but I pretty much let my body dictate this race. I didn't push myself but just ran by how I felt. My splits were all over the place so I am not sure what that says about how I was feeling.

There was some pretty interesting signage out on the course this year. These were two of my favorites!

I was finally able to get some space from Mile 6 on but by then I was pretty annoyed. I stopped looking at my Garmin and felt like giving up. I had to have a talk with myself and reminded myself that I wasn't attempting to PR the race so it was not that big of a deal. I kept the pace comfortable and never felt fatigued. I walked through some of the water stops and made it a point to stay hydrated. I decided to carry my handheld with me due to the heat and the fact that the water bottles in my hydrating belt end up with warm water when the temps are high. The temperature felt much better than it was the day before but it was still very humid. It was 79 degrees at the Start and the sun did not break through until about Mile 11.5.

Mile 6: 8:03

Mile 7: 8:23

Mile 8: 8:23

Mile 9: 8:02

Mile 10: 8:36 (GU) I need to get better at running and taking GU while running, Can you tell?

I wanted to finish the race strong no matter what. The final miles have always been a struggle for me especially during the marathon so this is one of the areas that I really focused on. I need to able to find my strong in the end of a race since this could make or break a big race. I felt like I did well and was happy with my last 3 miles. No PR for this race but probably one of my strongest finishes on this course. It is pretty amazing how you can finish a race strong when you start conservatively and then save it for the end.

Mile 11: 8:01

Mile 12: 7:48

Mile 13: 7:45

.27 (6:53)

OFFICIAL TIME: 1:48:43

The Dumbo Double Dare was awesome and I glad that I was able to be a part of this inaugural event but I think that I will just go back to running the half marathon next year. I usually PR this course every year and I am looking forward to another Disney PR on the half marathon course next year. Disney races are a lot of fun with tons of course support so if you have never ran a Run Disney event, you have to try at least one and dress up for it. They are pricey but you will definitely enjoy it! 

Did you run the Dumbo Double Dare or any of the Disneyland race this year? Tell me what you thought of the events this year.

8/31: The Inaugural Disneyland 10K

Run Disney events are pretty popular and draw lots of people so I always stay at a hotel even though I am about 45 minutes from the theme parks. We arrived at our hotel on Friday evening which happens to be walking distance to the Start. It is very reasonably priced, has all of the amenities that we need such as breakfast, a refrigerator and microwave and saves you the headache of having to find parking on race day. The Mickey and Friends Parking Structure gets pretty crowded on race day so I find this to be a much better solution to parking. The walk to the start is about 10-15 minutes so I didn't have to wake up at the crack of dawn to get to the race which is always nice.

What I love most about Disney races are the costumes that runners wear. Some of the costumes are so creative and people do some serious planning for their costumes. I saw one lady who was dressed in a full on Dumbo costume from head to toe. I am not sure how she ran in that costume because it was hot out there! I dressed up for the 10K but not so much for the half. 

The Disneyland 10K: This race started at 6:15 am on Saturday morning.The 5K started at 5:30 am so the corrals did not open until 6:00 am. The crowds were pretty large and it was a mad rush to the corrals once they were given the go that the 5K participants had cleared the corrals. 

The race start on time and the pre-race show was pretty entertaining as it usually is. The theme of the 10K was "Wonderland" so the Mad Hatter made an appearance and interacted with the race announcers.

I was able to make it pretty close to the front of the corral. I don't like to do the weave in and out of the crowds thing. 

My goal was to run the 10K at a 8:00-8:15 pace but the weather at the Start was 81 degrees and super humid so I immediately dropped the idea of any goal time and enjoyed the course instead. I also knew that I needed to take the 10K easy so that I would be able to run the half marathon the next day without dying. I rarely if ever, run consecutive days so I was already a little nervous about how my body would handle it. My normal routine is alternating between running and cross-training.

I have never taken the time to enjoy a Disney course so this was the perfect opportunity. I stopped and took so many character photos and had a blast! The course was fun and I really liked that 90% of the course was inside of the theme parks. 

We ran through both California Adventure and Disneyland. The half marathon spends much less time in the theme parks so this run was a lot of fun.

My favorite part of the race is running through Cars Land! I love that place because that is where my favorite ride ever, Radiator Springs Racers is located. Can you tell I that I love Cars Land?

OFFICIAL TIME: 52:33. My splits were all over the place (7:36, 8:04, 8:08, 9:20, 8:20, 8:45, and .33 at 7:05) because I was stopping to take pictures. 

Some characters had longer lines than others so I had to wait at times. This race was not a PR but it was definitely the most fun I have ever had! 

Do you like to run fun races like RunDisney events?

7/27/13: City of Cypress 5K

I don't care what anyone says. 5K's are tough! They are tough for me because I really push myself thinking that it is just 3.1 miles. It had been over a year since I last ran a 5K so I was a little nervous going into this race. I had no goal going into this race except to do my best since my focus has been on improving my endurance and no real commitment to speed work.

This is a small race (5K and 10K only) but it was well organized. My friend Caroline suggested that I line up in the front since the race tends to be congested in the beginning and there are lots of strollers and walkers throughout the course. The course was very flat and fast but the temperature was about 70 degrees at the start which was no bueno! 

I also liked that bib pick up was available the day before the race as well as the morning of the race. I arrived about an hour before the start time and it was not crowded at all. Parking was close to the start and there was no problem getting in or out of the parking lot. I was able to pick up my bib in less than 5 minutes and had time to go back to my car, put my sunscreen on and use the bathroom.

They had real bathrooms as well as porta-potties. The lines at the real bathrooms got longer as the start time approached but the porta-pottie lines did not.

There was plenty of water and snacks such as bagels, bananas and popsicles after the race. I was not able to enjoy my popsicle because someone else wanted it more than I did. My son has the habit of taking all of my snacks after a race and I end up with nothing but water.

Now onto the race....I debated about actually running this 5K because I went to a church function with family the night before and ate way too late and I didn't get to bed until way past midnight. We laughed about how my race might go the next morning and apparently it was not a joke. I also woke up several times in the night feeling thirsty and I think I even had a nightmare! My alarm went off at 5am and I decided that I should go and make the best of it in spite of feeling super tired since I paid for it!

The race started out on the wrong foot because I broke the "don't go out too fast rule." I didn't do it on purpose but I didn't glance at my Garmin until the first turn (about a half mile into the race) and it read 6:35. "Hello...you can't hang at that pace so you better slow it down!" I immediately took it way down and settled into a 7:15-7:20 pace. 
Mile 1: 7:16

As I approached the last half of Mile 2, I started to feel a pain in my left side. I tried to push through it by holding my side but it didn't help much. I slowed it down a little more to about a 7:30 pace to see if that would help but it got worse and I had to stop. Yes, I stopped! I was absolutely hating myself for stopping but I had to or else I would not have made it to the Finish Line. 
Mile 2: 7:32

The last mile really sucked and I just tried to finish the damn race. I thought that maybe I had not hydrated properly and that was why I was feeling the side ache. I drank more water and that made it even worse! I never experienced a side ache before so I have to figure out what I did that brought it on. In any case, I kind of gave up mentally and that just sealed the deal. I didn't care anymore and when I saw the clock at almost 24 minutes I just wanted to forget that I even showed up! 
Mile 3: 8:16

Official Time: 23:57

5th in AG

I know that every race will not be perfect or result in a PR. I just wanted to do my best and know I did not so it was a disappointing race. This was my 9th race towards my goal of 13 races in 2013. I have a long run in the plan tomorrow so hopefully it will be a better day.