Ragnar DC 2012

Our team, Lickity Split, has a start time of 11am on Friday September 21, 2012 for the Ragnar Relay from Cumberland, MD to National Harbor in DC. Here is one account of our adventures!
(For a review, here is the account of my first Ragnar in 2010 from CNHB!)

Thursday 9/20/2012:
4:30pm - I've left work on a mission to get the few things I need. The list is made!

6:30pm - The last of my things have been acquired, a wicked sweet sleeping bag and my own headlamp to protect me in the woods at night. I've also put in new batteries, so no one will be blamed for me being stranded in the dark! (thank you!)

7:15pm - off to kickball! All my clothes are packed in ziplocs, by outfit and clothing type. Toiletries and running accessories too!

9:45pm - Dinner, packing, organizing. Hydrating. Thanks to LD for talking me through my food supplies. We've got peanut butter for days!

10:52pm - An email from NDH that simply says "you are awesome". That's all I needed to hear. Until tomorrow!

Friday 9/21/2012:
6:52am - Am awake. I'm surprised by the lack of panic.  This is going to be fun!  Time to tackle this morning's to-do list: shower, dishes, trash, bake muffins, pack snack cooler, and the elusive playlist!

7:43am - Cooler of snacks is packed. Gatorade, coke zero, chocolate slim fast, bagels, peanut butter, apples, bananas, and power bars. Seems like way too much food but you never know!

8:08am - AHHHHH!  iTunes has died and apparently "can't save my library file for unknown reasons" in the midst of making a new playlist.  NOOOOOO!  PANIC!

8:27am - iTunes is back and running, phone is charged and playlist has synced (save for 8 songs that won't go, but I can't care about that now.

8:35am - BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS REQUIRE EGGS (or applesauce).  PANIC!  I don't have either

8:47am - oil it is, muffins better bake quickly.

9:38am - muffins are done. Bags are packed. Am restless and pacing. Let's do this already. Still 20 minutes until my ride comes.

9:54am - Call from C.J. And we're off to Frederick MD to meet up with van 2!

10:24am - we've arrived in Frederick at a house full of bags, kids, dogs, and decidedly no serial killers! Ty tells us our start time has been pushed up, and the other van was off at 10:30am

11:10am - they tell me the other last minute runner they picked up is "Ronnie the runner" (and he has a website ronnietherunner.com). He's an ultra marathoner who is apparently pretty energetic. I'm hoping they're not disappointed with acquiring slowpoke me!!

11:22am - we get word that the first runner exchange went off without a hitch. Runner 2 is off!

12:22pm - Our van is loaded and we're off. For food!

2:34pm - We've arrived at the first major exchange and headed to safety check-in.

3:13pm - no service at this exchange, but we've heard word that the last runner in van 1 is out and on the way. 30 minutes and our van takes over.

3:15pm - All tatted up!

3:47pm - CJ, our first runner is off!

5:05pm - our second exchange is over. And I'm getting nervous! My bib is on my vest ready for a "night time" leg.

5:36pm - In the middle of a leg called "what the hill?!" As far as I can tell its the only leg with a name. Rightly so, holy hill - but Erik is rockin' it!

5:37pm - my phone needs some serious charging, particularly if I'm going to use it for tunes and gps. I'm determined not to let this team down and get us behind our projected time.

6:00pm - third hand off, Patty's off on her 4.5 mile run. Which means I'm next. And nervous!

6:12pm - I'm taped up, laced up, vested, head lamped and butt lamped. And ready to (wait a bit more before its my turn to) run!

6:34pm - headed to the chute, see you on the flip side.

7:41pm - and my first leg is done!! In at a solid 11 min pace. First four were 10:15 splits even. Then I lost it a bit. Great run along the trail from Hancock MD. Ended in the dark, course lined by glow sticks and Holocene in my ears. Perfect!

8:33pm - changed into my sweats and awaiting Ty to finish up and do the last hand off to Raleigh!

8:57pm - left our last exchange, Raleigh is on his own for this leg again - the last three have been non support legs along the rail trail. On our way to the next major exchange, to meet up with van 1 and finish our first set of runs!

8:59pm - thanks nanio for your endomondo recommendation. Here's the break down of that first run. What the heck is a 7:34min max speed doing in there. Must be why I lost my pace at the end. Good news, my legs are attached!!

9:29pm - we've arrived at the next major exchange and are waiting for Raleigh so we can call it a night! We've been tagged for the second time. This teams van says "everyday I'm shufflin'!" I love their magnets too!

9:51pm - Best exchange ever! We're here at the second major exchange. Which means van 2, anchored by Raleigh, had to pass off to van 1, lead off by Taryn! In keeping with team tradition (save for me) Raleigh is also a sandbagger and got in about 11 minutes early. The chute volunteers yelled out "272!" but we were not quite ready, Taryn was in the bathroom. Raleigh was coming in fast, so Ty yells out "slow up Ral, like A LOT!" as van 1 members are telling "TARYN, FASTER!" Taryn comes running up a hill from the port-a-potties, jumps the fence at the chute, and makes it just seconds after Raleigh arrived for the hand-off! Taryn drops her bag of stuff in the chute and is off! Nice work, Lickity Split!

9:56pm - We're off now. For pancakes I do believe!

10:25pm - Pancakes!

11;32pm - we're headed to exchange 18, where we will hopefully catch some sleep. Van 1 is doing great, we are now 51 minutes ahead of our projected time - so maybe only a little sleep. I've taken over the role of navigator for now. My first question upon getting into the front seat "um, guys, where are we going?" A+ for effort!!

11:35pm - In Hagerstown, MD. 77 miles from Bawlmer.

Saturday, September 22nd:
12:22am - we're at the major exchange for some sleep. We've parked near a small playground with most of the van in sleeping bags under the slide. Raleigh and I have opted to sleep in the van (despite my wicked awesome sleeping bag)! G'night y'all.

12:51am - Not asleep. In fact, very awake as Patty is back at the van, knocking on the window to make sure we have her phone number so she's not lost.

1:23am - Not asleep.

1:59am - Not asleep.

2:05am - We're up and getting ready for our on time! Seems everyone else has slept a bit.  First song on the radio when we turn the van on says "I'm wide awake!" Raleigh and I disagree.

2:43am - CJs off, and we're back to the van. Ty has resumed driving and I'm back as navigator. Second legs for van 2!

2:54am - driving through Middleton MD. It looks like it would be a cute town, were it light outside.

3:20am - No one tell my mom, but I just changed my complete outfit in a scary dark corner of a shopping center, behind the dumpster. Exchange 1 over. Erik's out for his second leg!

3:32am - breakfast of champions: coke zero and a bagel.

3:43am - my peoples back home are all asleep and no ones around to hear me be nervous. Erik's leg is almost over and Patty's up next. And I don't feel ready.

3:45am - bang, crash. "what was that?" "I think that was my Gatorade!" CJs Gatorade just rolled off the roof of the van as we pulled to a stop sign. Nice driving Ty, we went about 5 minutes without it moving up there!

4:25am - Patty's in the midst of her second leg, 6.7 miles. CJ says it was this leg last year where he nearly kicked a possum while running. Awesome! Wildlife!

4:26am - I'm ready. I think. Maybe. Probably.

4:32am - I'm now wondering if I should switch the outfit I am wearing for this next leg. It dark and chilly. I should save this pair of shorts an tank top for my daytime run. Crap. Is there time to change?!

4:44am - Yes, time to change. On the side of the road. Now I'm wearing capris and will save my shorts for the last leg! We've also just seen Patty, who is half way done!

5:08am - NDH is up and checks in with me just as I'm heading to the chute. I decide I wish I'd had time to use the bathroom, and am now unsure how this will go!

5:13am - official hand off Patty to me!

5:50am - Holy Fuck Yes! (sorry Mon!) but that was the most fun run ever. That's why I did this this weekend. 3.6 miles, me, a head lamp, and a road between corn fields and farms. I passed 7 people, had a negative split (for the first bit), swallowed a massively huge bug, and finished well under my projected pace.

6:07am - after a bit of banter about what the appropriate thing to say when passing someone in a race, N is off to sleep and I'm going to try and do the same. Ty's in the midst of his 9+ mile run, then Raleigh has the same.

6:45am - I have been asleep in the middle seat when the van stops suddenly. I open my eyes to see a runner hunched over and CJ is out to help. At first I think it's Ty, but quickly realize its not and we're taking him in. To my seat. Quick maneuver to the back seat and we've got the downed runner. We are very close to the exchange where we drop him to his team and move along to meet up with Ty for the last exchange of this round.

6:59am - And Raleigh is off.

7:04am - And now I'm driving....

7:39am - hi!

7:43am - Ty hands water off to Raleigh 6 miles into his 9+ run.

Ty's got excellent flag skills, and Raleigh is almost too fast to catch on film. Almost time for breakfast, guys!

9:58am - Nap Time! (oh ya, somewhere in here we ate breakfast at panera.)

12:44pm - after a team nap, some food, water, stretching, and the like van 2 is out for the last 6 runs of this thing! Most people have short runs, CJ leads us off with 2.2. We've left him early so that poor Erik can get ready for his non-short 6.9 no van support leg!

1:14pm - lots of confusion at the last exchange. Teams without bracelets, runners over-running their runs, runners under running. But not us, CJ was in in record time and Erik's off on his last one!

2:09pm - Erik's done, it looked rough - 6.9 miles in the blazing sun, uphill. "A hill that got so steep it had to end in stairs!" Patty's off on her last 2.7, and I'm up next. I'm awfully stiff right now, with some interesting low back pain. Hopefully I can pull out this last 4.4 without too much trouble. I'm back in a trail for this one - along the Potomac! See you when I'm done.

2:19pm - the van has taken a wrong turn, we're running the risk of being late to meet Patty. Not making me panic at all!

2:25pm - we've found our exchange point and see Patty coming in strong. Ty barely has enough time to stop the car; I'm out, carrying my belt, and running into the chute in the same direction as Patty, confusing everyone.

2:26pm - off to a discombobulated start I am thankful for the don't walk sign right away at a huge busy intersection so I can start endomondo, iTunes, interval timer and situate my belt.

2:35pm - this is really the most beautiful run of the whole race!

2:43pm - the trail narrows and a sign indicates that bikers should get off and walk. The biker in front of me tries, but crashes into the trail railing, falling off her bike and basically flipping over the railing into the street. It was a little ordeal to help clear that up before I was back on my way.

2:55pm - it is hot. My skin feels like its on fire, my water is gone. I am barely moving. But, I'm running along the Potomac, I can see the Jefferson memorial, the planes are landing at National directly in front of me. I try to ignore that I am dying!

2:56pm - a fork in the trail and no sign. I choose incorrectly. I'm back on the right course a few minutes later.

3:22pm - I finally hand of to Ty. It was a rough rough leg, however pretty! It ended in a little park where people were taking wedding pictures!

4:07pm - at National Harbor! Off to find Raleigh, van 1, and finish this up right! More from the beer tent

4:25pm - Raleigh finishes his leg, with a "Fist Bump Yeah!" from the whole team as we crossed the finish line, got our medals, and a few team photos. I think this makes our time about 29 hours and 55 minutes! Nice work Lickity Split!!

7:04pm - Monica, Ronnie and I are headed from Frederick to Hagerstown to drop Ronnie off when we realize one of the car magnets is missing. On the way out to I70, I spied it in the road face down. We stopped quick to rescue it, one small crack but perhaps salvageable!!  This finally makes me feel like I've contributed something useful to the team that let me join them the day before Ragnar!  Thanks Lickity Split, it was great fun!

Ragnar was a Norse god

A few years back I ran the Ragnar New England with NDH and several of our friends.  It was one of the most awesome running experiences ever, and I've been dying to do one ever since.  On Tuesday night, I was given an idea.  Someone made a post in a facebook group of mine, asking for an extra runner to fill in. I jumped at that shot, and told her I could do it.  And then I waited.  And waited for her to respond.  As I waited, the idea got bigger and bigger, and I really wanted to do this.  It seemed like such a random adventure - oh, right, I should mention the race was 3 days away! It seemed like the type of adventure I could really get on board with right now. So, I found the Ragnar DC facebook page, and located a different team in need of runners, and as of late last night I was their latest teammate!

As much as I loved New England Ragnar, it was a bit of a situation.  I was co-captain (NDH, we did do awesome), but it was stressful.  I was very concerned about logistics, and everyone being happy, healthy, safe (also, on time, in the right spot, following the rules).  Add to this, my own nerves about the actual running, some extensive sleep deprivation, and the fact that our team nearly lost a runner on the second to last leg of the race, and then entered Gillette Stadium dead fucking last. Let's just say, there were tears.

What I'm most excited for about this Ragnar is....none of that.  I'm not in charge.  There will not be exhaustion-exaggerated-personal-drama.  There will just be running, through what hopes to be some ridiculously beautiful scenery.  And hopefully a group of new friends when I'm done.  We're basically BFFs already, as all day they've been referring to me as SuperStar.  It's like they know me!

I'll be trying to live-blog/update as I go, so please check-in, it'll be nice to hear some friendly encouragement.

So here goes something.  Tomorrow, Ragnar number 2.  

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

A 20-month hiatus from blogging, but here I come to revive our blog!  There's a lot to catch up on, and I'll start by admitting that our blog name is a little outdated.  LDH is still up in New Brunswick, but YJP has moved from ATX to Baltimore, MD - technically, the same coast as LDH.  But, but, still different time zones, different countries, so technically she's on the east coast of Canada where I am on the east coast of the US.  So, the name stays!

In an attempt to get us up to date - one year ago I moved to Baltimore, MD.  In October of 2011, I completed my first full marathon.  My good friends from Boston trained with me all last summer, and came down to run with me in the fall.  We can use "with me" loosely, because I pulled up the rear with a final time (WELL UNDER my estimate of 6 hours) around a 5:55 first marathon.  But I finished.  And we looked good, didn't we?

After conquering the distance, I decided to step back and work on my speed.  I figured I could get faster, so I spent the winter working on that.  I spent much time on the treadmill inside - because it turns out that it's cold and snowy here in Baltimore!  I was working my way down quite nicely, and was encroaching upon 9:30 min miles, quite the accomplishment from the 11:30 that I started with. I had hopes of completing a sub-hour 10K, and it looked in reach.  Until my leg imploded.  I ran with moderate to severe leg pain for a bit over a month, completed the 10K in 1:07, walking much of the second half (I finished the first 3 miles in 29 minutes).

I then spent the spring not running, but going to sports med doctors, physical therapy appointments, and the like.  I was diagnosed with a pretty decent stress fracture. The PT determined it was due to my weak hips, and my attempts at getting faster.  Without my hips and butt muscles to act as shock absorbers, my legs were taking way too much force, this combined with the gloomy darkness of winter (I still blame this since the blood work turned up a vitamin-D deficiency) my leg couldn't take it.

Finally, mid-summer, I graduated from both the sports doctor and the physical therapist and began a very slow Return To Running schedule.  I began with one minute of running and one minute of walking.  It was annoying, but after nearly 3 months of no running, it was just about where I needed to be.  As I began to finish this, and be able to move into a regular running/training schedule, life began to throw me a few curve balls.  After a few weeks straight of various catastrophes including threats on my life (thanks lightning and other disastrous events), threats on other people's lives, broken hearts, and even a middle-of-the-night police invasions, I was in a pretty low spot running wise.  There were other daily activities I was struggling to keep up with, that running was so far off my radar.

Until yesterday!  I decided it was time to get back out there.  Thanks to some pretty consistent motivation from NDH, I strapped on my shoes and got out of the house.  And what a fantastic run it was!  I made it just about 5 miles, and it felt great.  So great, in fact, that I did the same route again this morning.  And it was easier, and a smidge faster.  Thanks, NDH, for your help this weekend, the past few weeks, and in general being an inspiration of how to turn bad situations into some more positive healthy goals.

This song came on my mix while I was running - and I may have listened to it twice. It's not necessarily directed at any one person or situation (seriously), but I found the message of this song to be exactly the pick-me-up I needed in the last mile of yesterday's run.  I needed the reminder that my problems, while real to me, are mostly inconsequential in the grand scheme.  I am truly a lucky person, with plenty of wonderful people cheering me on in almost everything I do.  It's about time to get things back on track and stop feeling sorry for myself.  Time to turn this month around and come back swinging!

And swing I will.  I plan to keep my miles low for a bit, and get my lungs and legs back into a groove.  I think I can be consistently around 10 minute miles, and will still aim to comfortably finish a (maybe not official raceday) 10K in under an hour.  Then I will tackle adding on some miles to meet my next two race goals - an half marathon in Austin in February, and the full Country Music Marathon in Nashville in April.  I think NDH has agreed to go to Austin, and maybe even LDH!  And then, NDH will definitely be in Nashville with me. It's time to get some training schedules into the calendar. My new method will CERTAINLY include a focus on cross training.  I need my hips and butt behind me (literally) to keep my leg in line.

It's good to be back.

running out the rage

I think I've said it before, I run best when I'm angry. Once, last December, I was in IKEA and I got a text message that filled me with rage, and I came home and ran 10 miles. Just like that. There's something about it, being so pissed off, and then just running. Running it out. You can think about whatever you want, you can play out awful scenario after awful scenario, and as you do, the miles just roll by. What happens, usually, is by the end of the run, whatever was making you so upset is also gone.

I remember one time in high school, I'm pretty sure it was my senior year, and my JV field hockey coach had us each write down one goal for the game. Mine was probably something like "stay on your man" or "stick down when you stop the ball", or some other terribly obvious thing that I could never quite do right. And she had us put them in our right shoe, and every time we took a step, we were supposed to think of that goal. And dammit, if that didn't just work well! I think I do a similar thing with running when I'm angry. I focus all of my energy on that one thing, and by the end of the run I just don't need to worry about it anymore.

Lately, I think I've forgotten this. I mean, it sounds silly, to focus on all the bad stuff. But, it's gonna be there anyway, may as well do something constructive with it. This week, the last few weeks, have been particularly bad. Personal things, professional things, things completely out of my control, things completely under my control - and I've just ignored it all. This morning I was supposed to do Wilke Hill with my group, but I didn't. I say I slept through it, and that is the truth. Honestly though, the alarm went off and I woke up. And as I lay there contemplating whether or not I was going to do this (as I do every morning), I must have fallen asleep for an hour. Because at 7:15, I was waking up again. Oops.

But, I ran anyway. Not Wilke. A new route that I've never done before. And I ran away the rage. I ran for everything that's been bothering me, stressing me out, and making me want to yell. And, it totally worked. 8 miles later, and I was feeling great.

I took LD's advice, and I switched up the tunes - a great idea. My iPod must have known exactly what I needed, because we started with some of the angry Eminem and Alanis Morrisette. But the run ended with Dar Williams singing about Better Things. Man, it was just perfect.

Song that rocked my run: Not Afraid by Eminem.
4 star run, rage gone!

shoes

The tip of the morning was about shoes, and getting good running shoes that are right for your feet. I can't stress this enough. My feet are flat, and I encountered some hip/leg/IT problems when I started running on the wrong shoes. Once I fixed my muscles and got in the right shoes, the difference is tremendous. It was also suggested to get two pairs, one for your weekend long runs, and one for your weekday shorter runs. This way, you've got two pairs that are fully broken in, but not completely shot, come race day. It sounds like an excellent idea - for those people with jobs and income and the ability to get two pairs of shoes.

What's your current shoe of choice?

In March I bought Brooks Adrenaline and have been incredibly happy with them. A friend of mine swears by them and will not wear anything else. Prior to the Brooks I was in a Mizuno Wave Rider, which was also good. Both of these don't require any additional orthotics in the shoe (for me), and have enough support and stability. I find the Brooks to be a bit lighter and easier.

AustinFit Red Group

I've run with Austin Fit before. I did it in preparation for the 2008 San Antonio half marathon. LDH and I did it together in preparation for the 2009 San Antonio half marathon. I was meaning to join this summer, but with LDH gone...let's just say I couldn't do it without her. And then I realized I was going to be out of town for the San Antonio half. So, no group for me. Combine that with this crazy heat, and here we have a poor showing for my summer, running-wise.

This morning, I dragged myself out of bed at 6:20. I wasn't totally excited, but I wasn't dreading it either. I pulled on my pink shorts and I thought, "hi shorts, haven't seen you in a while". I headed down to TxDOT to meet the group. It's not for the San Antonio race, but for the Austin race (Nanio, it's the 20th anniversary on February 20th, which seems like the perfect time for a trip to Austin to run!) I decided to join the Red running group, instead of the Orange, and run with the 10:30 pace group. I'm not quite at 10:30, but it's where I'd like to be. So I'm hoping if I start with them it will push me there.

Man, oh man, the head coach Janice - she's intense. Go ahead, please, click that link. Check out her bio. How can she not be exactly the running coach I need. It says she ran her first marathon in 2004 in just shy of 6 hours, and now she's completed half and full ironmans and is basically like the terminator.

We started today and she said, "We're going to forget the pace today" and I thought, sweet! What she really meant was, I'm going to run you up and down hills and we're still going to finish in a pretty decent time, but I want you to not think about it. She stopped the whole group (the 10:00, 10:15, 10:30 and 10:45 pace groups) at the parking lot of Joe's Crab Shack, before heading up a slight hill to Travis Heights to go over proper up-hill form. She said, LDH listen up, to look at the top of the hill and don't look down at the ground. You see, we always look down. It helps to trick us in to not being TERRIFIED of the hills. Well, Ironman Janice says that looking down keeps you all hunched over and you are inefficient and you expend more energy. It was like she was speaking straight to my scientist heart. Inefficient, expend energy - I don't want to do that. So, looking up I will do. She also says you need to shorten your stride. She had spoken a bit about running on flat ground, and how your stride should be long and you should see your feet if you look down. LDH, girls like you and I probably should only be seeing our toes, but you should see them. However, on the uphill, when you look down you shouldn't see your feet at all. Your stride should be short, your body should be straight, your eyes up at the top of the hill, and your arms pumping lightly. With this lesson, we were off.

Up Travis Heights. It was about this time that I realized there was something weird going on. We weren't stopping. There was no walking. We were just, running. I thought to myself, I'm totally screwed. I can not do this. I'm asking too much - faster pace, longer distance (oh, I haven't spilled that one yet), AND no walk breaks. But, Ironman Janice to the rescue. She then spoke about active recovery. She said to use the top of the hill and the downhills to control your heart rate. She said to take a few deeps breaths, hold them in, and slow your breathing. Holy cow, it was like resting without the walking. Don't get me wrong, the walking - way easier!

Once we reached the top of Travis Heights, she stopped us again to discuss downhill form. She spoke about keeping things controlled. She said you still want to keep short strides, but you can increase your cadence so that you are still using the gravity of the downhill to get you down faster, but that your perceived output is not greater. She even mentioned the "inverse relationship" between stride length and cadence in a downhill - Ironman Janice, you are killing me with the technical terms. Where have you been all my life. So off we went down Travis Heights. and back to TxDOT.

Now, I won't lie. I stopped to walk a few times. But only for brief spurts. And while I finished just about last in the 10:30 group, I was still ahead of the 10:45. I'll take it. in total I think we did 3 miles. But, we weren't done yet. Ironman Janice had DRILLS for us. While all the other groups were sitting around on the parking lot drinking their water and chatting the red group was off to the side. We did 4 or 5 small running drills - side shuffles, high knees, butt kicks, side lunges. But, this was not enough for Ironman Janice. We then moved to the other side of the parking lot and did 50 step ups, followed by 20 push-ups and then 20 tricep dips. (During the push-ups I was on the wall next to the leaders of my group, the 10:30 pace, and she said to me during my second set of 10 push-ups "Good for you, those look perfect, I'm about spent and couldn't get good form if I tried." I smiled inside and thanked boot camp and Jillian Michaels.)

It was at this point that Ironman Janice was satisfied, and lead us through some stretches. I think she skimped on the quad stretches though, mine are still ON FIRE! She says that we are going to do these drills every saturday for the next 6 or so weeks, and we will be working on form and building a good base. She says the miles will come easier if we've got this down. And hell, I'm not going to argue with that woman. This morning was tough - but it felt good. It felt useful, it felt like I was going to get better. And as I have joined the Austin FULL Marathon training group, I think I'm going to be needing all the help, advice, and occasional yelling, to get myself across that finish line.

The goal: February 20th, 2010 - 26.2 miles. Rumor has it LDH is going to come to Austin and run the half. I encourage anyone and everyone to come cheer us on, or run with us. And in the case of my first attempt at a marathon, bring a chair...you'll be waiting at the finish line for a long, long, long time. But, Ironman Janice assures me I'll make it.

leaving the past back there

I had a to do list. I have had lots of them. I'd say 95% of the things on there don't get done. Among them, write about some runs. There were three I wanted to write about, but they are so long ago now it's silly. So, I'm moving on (save for this post).I'll give you the bullet-pointed highlights.

- I did a run with a group of 5 (yes, five) boys. Two of them are training for the NYC marathon, one of them hopes to qualify for Boston with a time of something close to 3 hours. File that under things I do not comprehend. The highlight of that 5 miler was that I dropped behind the boys (because I run/walk), but then caught back up, and then passed them. Granted, they were running slow as molasses, but hell, I'll take it. (I think I gave this 4 stars)

- There was a second just with the two marathon trainers, but, there was nothing impressive there - I stayed with them for my 10 minutes and then never saw them again. (I don't remember enough about this one to guess on stars, maybe 3)

- And then there was the time my lab mate and I ran down to the greenbelt, hoping to find some mud to practice for our Warrior Dash. Sadly, there was no mud, there wasn't even any water. We did have a pretty unique 5 mile run through an empty river bed though. I loved this run, someone new to talk to. We didn't track distance or time. We just ran until we wanted to turn around, and then we did it. In the end, looking at google maps, I think we did a little over 5 miles in a little over an hour. I'll take it. 5 star run for sure.

Suffice it to say, my running has been sporadic and poor as of late. That all is about to change.

eight miles?

LDH has been trying to following the training plan of our old running group, I...have not. I just got an email from our old half marathon training coach that tomorrow's run is an 8 mile run. Wow, am I far behind. I'm not sure I could do 8 if I tried. I'm going to set my goal for a 6 mile run this weekend.

LDH, remember when we used to be good at this?!

and, for my next trick...

My labmate, her boyfriend, one other friend, and I just registered for what appears to be my next race. It's called the Warrior Dash, and is a 5K run with 11 obstacles along the way. When I say obstacles, I mean...OBSTACLES:

*Warrior Wall - conquer the wooden barricade

* Breathless Bog - trudge through waist deep water and over the logs

*Walk the Plank - traverse the gully on wooden planks

*Knee High Hell - speed step through hundreds of tires

*Tunnels of Terror - burrow through the black tunnels

*Black Forrest - forge your way through uncharted forrest

*Hay Fever - hustle up and over giant straw bales

*Junker Jump - clamber over the rusted wreckage

*Cargo Climb - maneuver over the cargo nets

*Warrior Roast - leap over the warrior fires

*Muddy Mayhem - scramble beneath barbed wire as you near the finish

5 star system

I've devised a new system for rating my runs, which is less based on speed and distance, and more based on meeting set goals. Following this system, each run will be rated as followed.

I did it: one star
I made all my time intervals: one star
I made my set distance: one star
I made that distance in my set time: one star
It was fun/easy/good: one star

This morning I set out on a 3 mile run, hoping to complete it in 36 minutes (12 min/mile). The time was 7:30am, the temperature was 88 degrees, the humidty was 10000% (ok, less than that as it wasn't actually raining).

This run receives a 3 star rating.

Breakdown.
I did it: one star
I made all my time intervals: one quarter star (i made approx a quarter of them)
I made my set distance: one and one third star (i went 4 miles)
I made that distance in my set time: no star (it was not quite 12min/mi)
It was fun/easy/good: one half star (besides the heat, I think it was enjoyable)

Intent

Internet, you see it - right there, at the very top of my list. I had the alarm set for 615, I had my shorts and stuff all laid out, I was going. Funny thing about laying my clothes out. It took almost no effort, because they were laid out from the night before.

Two days, I had the intent of waking early to run.

It's not a lie, it's on the list.

What happened? Let's ask my alarm clock why it decided not to go off. I have no idea! Yesterday, I just assumed I set it wrong (am/pm, maybe I shut it off in my sleep...something) But this morning too, no, the fault is in the alarm clock.

Sadly, as with many things, the fault is not mine but I suffer the consequences. I did not wake up at 6:15, I woke up at 7:30. And clearly, based on this list, I had missed the alloted running time. There was no way to squeeze it in and be ready when my airport ride arrives at 9:30.


(OH, and even though this list makes it look like I need ONE HOUR to change my sheets - really, the post-run shower, dry hair, get dressed and the like were all wrapped into that last item. They didn't explicitly make the list, because I wasn't so afraid of forgetting to do them!)

Team Hard Coretex takes on the Metro Triathlon

Meet the team, VC is up first with the 1500m swim, then KW with the 40K bike, and then my turn with a 10K run. We are all of the consensus that our individual legs are the easiest - which I think means we are a great team!!  Follow along for a semi-live blog of the event.

12:20am - VC and I return to her house to realize that she has left her swim stuff at her office. She headed off to retrieve it while I went to bed.

5:25am - my alarm goes off, and results in only minor confusion. A flurry of getting ready, making breakfast and otherwise prepping after 5 hours of sleep. 

6:02am - and, we're off! We've heard from KW and she's off too!

6:27am -we've arrived, parked right next to KW, and head with the masses  to the start.

6:45am - we've been body marked. I'm not feeling confident in the organization of this event. Its smaller than the Austin one, and there seem to be less rules. I have concerns that there ARE as many rules but they haven't told us. 

7:17am - swim briefing. VC is ready to go!!

7:32am - VC is off!! Team Hard Coretex  is officially racing!! KW and I think VC is totally crazy and awesome. GO TEAM!!  KW and I are off for the bathroom and to prep for the biking...

7:44am - VC has finished her first lap, of two! 

8:01am - first transition over. KW is off on the bike, with only minor problems with the timing chip. Sadly, she wants it on her wrist, but they need it on her ankle!! VC finished in an amazing 29 minutes. We're off to an excellent start!

8:20am - I feel ill-prepared and nervous. I've made my mental list of things I need to do to get ready. First of which is figure out how to tape my leg, because I'm finally admitting to some shin pain that should be dealt with. Thank goodness for the kinesio tape I got in my San Antonio Half Marathon bag!!

8:56am - VC is changed, I've affixed my runner number, and used kinesio tape for the first time! We're now sitting on a grassy knoll watching the elite men who have already finished the biking. Two words - eye candy. Also, they are so fast. So. Fast.

9:08am - VC and I have made it back to transition, and I ask her if I have time to go to the bathroom. KW has given us a 9:30 early geusstimate of her arrival, and VC knows I'm prone to pre-race anxiety, so she rolls her eyes and says "plenty!"

9:19am - KW has entered transition and realizes we are not aware of it. She yells "TEAM HARD CORETEX!" and I instantly panic. I'm not wearing my belt, my head phones are tangled, I don't have the gps on on the phone, and I havent taken my pre-racing endurolytes. ACK! While I rushed off before fully congratulating her, this was HUGE! She was so fast, and so early, I think she even surprised herself. A great, great, great, first cycling race for KW!

**Format change** This bit must be done by mile, and not minute!

Mile 1 - I started off looking like a real tri-athlete, I was fumbling to put myself together while on the move. I was discombobulated and unprepared, and I felt like I was on the brink of colossal failure; did I even have everything I needed with me?! It really was what a real triathlete must feel like, not a relay triathlete, who has all morning to prepare for a single event. During this mile I saw the lead runner heading the other way, about to finish up. I believe it is important that I mention I was on the course BEFORE the lead runner finished. This is how amazing my teammates were.

Mile 2 - I'm feeling awful. I think team events are particularly hard on me, because too early I start being angry at myself for letting everyone down. I mean, I had 4 miles to go and I was already mad at my performance. I had finally gotten into a bit of a groove, but I was already feeling tired and over-worked. Does not bode well

Mile 2.5 - I check my watch, and do some quick mental math. Holy Moses! I'm not even to 25 minutes yet. No wonder this is feeling challenging. Redoing some calculations, I believe my first mile was sub 10-minute (and included at least one walk break), which means I was mo-oo-oving (at least in YJP terms!)

Mile 3 - I slowed down some, but have still crossed this at 31 minutes. Which makes me feel better for feeling tired, but makes me feel like I may have used too much too soon to make a good time for the end.

Mile 4 - This was for sure my best mile. Not my fastest, but the best feeling. I was ale to stop thinking about things and just run. I was running on my toes this whole mile, and felt great. Why is it that I need a THREE mile warm-up before I stop criticizing myself and start enjoying the run?! It's ridiculous.

Mile 6 - Yes, I'm not sue what happened to mile 5 either, but rest assured that there was running, walking, and cytomax! When I passed the mile 6 sign, point two miles to go, I was concerned that I was dragging it. By this point, I'd let the entire race pass me by, hadn't I?! I managed to eek out passing ONE woman. I'm guessing she had already passed me, so I really didn't make up any ground. I rounded a corner where some finishers were walking back my way. They stopped to cheer me along, and it was exactly what I needed. I ran it on in, greeted by the cheers of VC and KW on my way!

In the end, not my best 10K time, but still a run to be proud of. I grabbed a finishers medal, a bottle of water, a banana, some strawberries, a piece of pizza, and some weird electrolight drink with special vitamins in the cap, and sat on the grass to stretch. We stuck around in admiration of the badass people who won awards. There was a 17 year old boy who did the tri, also the winners had sub-hour bike times and runs of like...35 minutes. amazing.

11:47 am - Team Hard CoreTex was also amazing, winning first place in the women's relay division. This is all credited to VC and KW's crazy badass-ness, keeping giving us a substantial lead to start off with. Even though I let most of the race pass me by, I guess I drew the line at the relay members, as they mostly stayed behind me.

12:25pm - We've returned to the cars, with our medals, wine, and gear only to find out that in the excitment of the morning, VC has left the lights on. But, this is no roadblock for Team Hard CoreTex - the three of us are quickly able to jump start the car and head on home!

1:46pm - We have returned to VC's house, Winner's Wine in the fridge, and are basically useless. I will now go stare at the wall for a bit, and then shower.

a delightful day with an awesome team!! Yippee!!
Song that rocked my run: Keep On Keepin' On by Jack Ingram

The good, the bad, the unpretty: a confessional post.

1.) I checked outside at 10:30am and it wasn't that hot; I was terribly mistaken; 3 minutes into my run I was sweating so much that it was dripping down my face into my eyes and mouth.

2.) I went to bed early last night so that I could get up early and run; I went to bed early last night after drinking beers with friends from 4-8pm; Not only did I not run early, but I ran dehydrated.

3.) I ran 5 miles; I only continued the last mile because I was one mile from home; I kept the timer and gps running the entire time.

4.) I wore my Ragnar technical t-shirt and it made me happy; I should have worn a tank top; In one of the back neighborhoods I took my shirt off to wipe up all the sweat dripping off my face and then put it back on.

5.) Mueller park is beautiful to run in; I walked most of the "running" minutes in Mueller park; Two little kids and an old man passed me up.

6.) I was running with 24 oz of cytomax and water; I drank it all before mile 3; I was spitting like a maniac after mile 3.

7.) I went running despite my arms being very sore from boot camp; I hold my arms very high snd stiff when I run; My arms might be even more sore now!

8.) There were lots of friendly people out and about; Except for the few who were unfriendly; And that one guy who was holding a chain saw that was switched on and wasn't looking around the sidewalk he was on.

9.) I ran 5 miles (did I already say that); I'm running 6.5 in a week; Two of my friends are counting on me to not suck at it.

10.) I hit all my marks during the first mile and a half; I missed every one after that; The misses were much more significant than the hits.

Distance: 5.02 miles

Time: 65:02:29

Mad props to: The neighbors who were shamelessly watering their yard during water restrictions; Because I ran through the sprinklers; both ways!

Song that rocked my run: Womanizer, by Britney Spears.

aw, what the hell - I said it was confessional. Womanizer, by Britney Spears totally rocked my run (and does most runs). I run best when I'm angry, and I can easily find 5 minutes of Womanizer moments to power me through thanks to Brit and her song!!

run, thwarted.

Yesterday I realized that the Metro Tri is a week from Sunday. That's 9 days, if you count today. And celebrations of last week kept me from running, I began getting nervous. I laid out an intricate plan to LD yesterday.
Friday am - 4 miles
Sunday am - 6 miles
Monday am - boot camp
Tuesday am - boot camp
Wednesday am - 5 miles
Thursday am - bootcamp

See, the care that went in to that planning. It'll get me ready for a 10K in 9 days - and also for a nap! In fact, I think I need one just looking at that. I'll sleep on the plane on Friday for sure.

Turns out, I'm already behind schedule. Her Highness woke me up this morning at 4am whining. This is not a new development, and I believe it's an actual problem which I will explain elsewhere, but it was 4am and I was awake to feed my master. OH LORD. When I stood up, I could count the muscles in my butt. Because every last one of them hurt. When I reached up on the shelf to get Mia's food - I could also feel every single aching muscle in my arms and shoulders. There was no way I was going to make it 4 miles. I wasn't sure I would get myself back in to bed.

Luckily, for all involved, I did make it back to bed, and opted to sleep a little later. I woke up and tried (painfully) to stretch - and resorted to the Stick for a little muscle relief. My legs feel fine now, ohhh boy my arms and shoulders are screaming. I might be able to pull out a four mile run later this evening, especially if it rains! Otherwise, I'm behind before I've even begun.

i am the winner

Yesterday morning I got up at 5:15 am and got ready for boot camp, day2. I was tired. I had come home and gone to bed at about 1am, which was FAR too late for me, but with all my friends deciding to up and move out of the city, there is a lot of hanging out to be done. But, I was up and getting dressed - and off to meet the group at Auditorium Shores.

I want to back up a second and just recap my "running" for the internet. I'm not "a runner", or at least I don't feel like one. I'm not fast. I have to work hard to pull out an 11 minute mile. There I said it. I walk every 5 or 6 minutes. EVERY five or six minutes. And I long for those walk breaks. And sometimes I walk sooner (and longer). So, the image of "runners" in little shorts just cruising around all over creation - that's not me. I love to run, but that doesn't make me "good". I have, somehow, built up some distance endurance. So I'm no longer scared that I can't make the distance of a half marathon. And, I've overcome the soreness that lasted for TWO DAYS after my first half marathon. I can now return to normal the next day, or later that night. So, I'm definitely not the beginner I was. But when I hear people say things to me like, "it'll be easy for you, you're a runner" - I feel like I've tricked everyone. It's not easy for me.

Boot camp starts with a warm-up run. We were meeting at the South First Street water coolers, and our warm-up run was to head west on the trail to riverside, east on riverside back to the entrance to the First Street parking lot, and back to the coolers. A short little almost a mile loop. There are 9 of us in that group, and at least 3 of us all took off right at the same time, the other 6 not far behind at all. In the first minute of this run, I was ahead of the pack. I wasn't busting out a fast pace, although I have a horrible time pacing myself. As the run went on, instead of people catching up to me and passing me, my distance in front grew. When I returned to the water coolers the coach said to me, with a smile, "you're the winner" - and then she went back to discussing with the other coach some plans for the day.

It was when she said that that I realized the sad truth. I'd never won. I'd never even been first to finish a run, in any group, with anyone. Heck, all through Ragnar I'm not even sure I ever PASSED anyone - and we all know I was passed at least 10 times in one leg. So, as insignificant as it seems, finishing first out of a group of 9 during a 1-mile warm up run...

I was the winner.

6am non-run

Well, this past week has been bad running-wise. Between the never-ending birthday celebrations, related recoveries, and subsequent 4th of July, I found little time (or motivation) for running. But, I received an email offer the other day, that may be exactly what I need. The same place where my kickball team plays is offering a summer boot camp, and the price was reduced recently. I signed up yesterday and it starts tomorrow morning.

For one month, I'll be heading down to Town Lake at 6am 3 mornings a week. I don't really know what is in store, but I do know its likely to hurt. And, hopefully, get better. I also know that I'm currently keeping a food diary, which I need to EMAIL in to the head coaches. I'm unsure which to be more embarrassed about - the small amount of exercise that is bound to make me collapse or the frequency with which "cheese" will show up in my food diary.

Here goes nothing.

Oh, and I'll be running during this time too. Triathlon is only 13 days away!

Metro Triathlon, San Jose CA

It's official, Team Hard Coretex will ride (swim/ride/run) again! Last fall my friend VC came to Austin and we put together a team for the Austin triathlon - VC did the swimming, one of my grad school friends did the biking, and I rounded us out with the running. We had to come up with a team name, and as we are all researchers in neuroimaging, and completely bad-ass - Hard CoreTex seemed appropriate.

I'm going out to San Fran in the middle of July, and my trip happens to correspond with the Metro Triathlon in San Jose, CA. We've swapped in a new biker, as our old biker won't be in SF. Instead we're picking up another neuroimaging researcher from Berkeley. I couldn't be more excited! I mean, the rest of my trip out there is jam-packed with awesome shin-digs, celebrations and activities, but doing another team triathlon is going to be so fun. And VC is such a good little swimmer!

So it's on, my training is officially behind schedule, but I think I can eek out a good enough 10K in 2.5 weeks!

speedy, not-so-speedy

I'm a slow runner, mostly by choice, partly because I'm not good enough to go faster. I've said it before, when I started running it was a complete shock to me, and I never thought I'd be any good. Lately I've been seriously toying with the idea of running a full marathon - which is something I never thought I could or would want to do. (Nanio, are we still planning for the Austin full in Feb?! I kinda am...but not alone!)

In reading up and thinking about this full marathon thing, I've decided that I really need to become faster. My reasons for this is two-fold. First, a full marathon at my speed would probably take me something like 5.5 or 6 hours to finish. That's a long time. That's a lot of singing bad songs loudly. That's just...more than I care to do. Faster means, less time spent running, less time distracting myself with mental long division problems (yes, I do this). Second, I think if I work on getting faster, I will become more efficient. Which means, it will be easier to tack on the miles. At this point I feel confident in my ability to make the distance (a half, no problem - a full with a bunch more long runs, sure). But really, how will I feel when it's all done. So I'm going to try and use this summer to improve my speed and efficiency. Which, hopefully, will just make things easier for me in the long run.

Today's Plan:	What I actually did:
20 minute warm up at 12 min/mile at 0% incline	a total of 19 minute warm up switching twice between 14 and 12 min/mile at 0% incline
3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 0% incline	3 minutes at 10.5 min/mile at 0% incline
1 minutes at 12 min/mile at 0% incline	1 minutes at 14 min/mile at 0% incline
3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 1% incline	3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 1% incline
1 minutes at 12 min/mile at 1% incline	1 minutes at 14 min/mile at 1% incline
3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 2% incline	3 minutes at 10.5 min/mile at 2% incline
1 minutes at 12 min/mile at 2% incline	1 minutes at 14 min/mile at 2% incline
3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 0% incline	3 minutes at 10.0 min/mile at 0% incline
1 minutes at 12 min/mile at 0% incline	1 minutes at 14 min/mile at 0% incline
Cool Down	Cool Down

I was off on the 1 minute walks because I forgot I was supposed to be doing that at my 12 min/mile pace and the 14 one was a pre-programmed button I could easily press. It was tough, but I was mostly impressed with my ability to stick with the 3 minutes and inclines. I'm generally a wuss about this. Additionally I was impressed with my warm-up, I really only slowed down twice, the first time to adjust my bra straps (I do not wear a jane strap, and the straps somehow had slipped too long - disaster!) The second time was because I was tired. But normally I run 5/1's, so getting through the near 20 minutes was an accomplishment in itself. (I only went 19 because I was just silly and read the clock wrong - I was eager to get going I guess).

Tracking time and distance seems silly for this, because we can all do math - I was on the treadmill at set speeds for set times, the distance/time is uninformative. However, the statistic I like now is Heart Rate. Here we go:

Heart Rate before intervals: 138
Max heart rate: 158 *questionably around than 80% of the max for a person of my advancing age.
Heart Rate after Cool Down: 116

A promise

Here is it, my stuff for the treadmill today! I went for an outdoor run yesterday, and it was alright. it was hot, and I was slow. Today we're going to go inside - which I've decided is better than not going.

Yesterday I agreed to do a race, and it's coming up really soon. All the pieces haven't fallen quite into place yet, and when they do it certainly deserves it's own post. But this may just be the wake up call I needed.

This week's goal: tempo work on the treadmill. As much as I hate (hate hate hate) running on a treadmill I am really terrible at pacing myself. LDH can attest to that, I have two speeds - running and walking. I'm not very consistent, nor am I able to tell if I'm starting too fast (which means I generally start too fast). If I can't have LDH to set me straight, the treadmill will have to do. Now to search for some good articles and training plans on how to actually do that!

welcome to Texas Summer

The other day LD asked if I'd run, and when I said no she said she was just asking to make me feel guilty - for which I'm grateful. I need some accountability. Sadly, though, I had very few plans to actually run this week, so I don't feel like a failure. I just feel - lazy.

Let me introduce you to my friend Texas Summer, who is here in full force. It's hot. All day. Every day. Yesterday and today the forecast has been for Thunderstorms. Mid week the forecast was for partly sunny days. In reality, the whole week has been beautifully sunny, big bright blue skies, puffy white clouds, and temperatures near 100 already.

What this means for running though, is disastrous. If you want to be outside (which I do!) you must get going and be done before 9am for sure. Even 8:30 is sometimes too hot. And the humidity, it's much worse in the morning. If it cooled down in the evening, night would be the best time to run - but it doesn't. This makes scheduling a run pretty tricky. Getting up and out around 6:30 is my usual plan, but some weeks when there is a lot going on, this is just impossible. This was one of those weeks. There was a lot going on, and running never made it on to my schedule.

Without LD here to suffer through these runs with me, I envision a few more trips to the treadmill this summer. Perhaps I can do some speed work there.