Half Marathons galore!!

Tomorrow I am running my 10th half marathon. And will complete my 11th next Saturday. What???  Really??? I had to sit down and think about it to count how many I have done.  Here is the list.

1) America’s Finest City Half Marathon-  August 2008--  My first half marathon (ironically, two months after my first marathon).  I was hoping to finish under two hours.  I came pretty close. 2:04:37
2) Carlsbad Half Marathon- January 2009—I still count this as one of my favorite runs ever.  It was the first race where I felt like I ran it on my terms.  It didn’t hurt that I blew my PR away by twelve minutes!  1:52:46
3) La Jolla Half Marathon- April 2009—I was right in the middle of training for my second marathon, so I didn’t want to push too hard.  This is known as a very difficult and hilly course and I wanted to run it smart.  I felt extremely good about my sub-two hour time.  1:56:39
4) America’s Finest City Half Marathon-August 2009 I was looking for redemption.  It kicked my butt the year before and I wanted to feel in control.  I had helped a large group of my friends train for this race, so my focus was less on my time and more on the experience.  This is probably my favorite race experience.  Even though I ran the race by myself, the time before and after the race was the most fun I had had.  I didn’t have a perfect race, but it was a great day.  1:56:13
5) Kaiser Permanente Southern California Half Marathon- January 2010—a last minute decision to run this.  My friend Heidi was running her first half and we carpooled.  It was a PR surprise!  I was training for my third marathon and I guess I had some good conditioning.  1:49:48
6) Palos Verdes Half Marathon- May 2010—This was a couple of weeks ago and I did better than I expected for such a difficult course.  Once again, it was a last minute decision and I wasn’t training for it specifically. 1:53:19
7), 8) and 9)I am counting three races as half marathons (since the Half Marathon Fanatics count them).  The Winter Trail Series 21K*, the Malibu Creek 25K and the XTerra Malibu Creek Challenge 22K are all half marathon  distance or longer.

I am planning on joining the Half Marathon Fanatics as soon as my budget allows.**  After running tomorrow’s race in Laguna Hills, as well as next Saturday’s half marathon in Fontana, I will qualify for the Saturn level, which is four half  marathons within a 37 day period (I’ll be doing four in 30 days).

So when did a half marathon become a spur-of-the-moment thing?  It used to be something on my calendar months in advance.  Now it is something I can run on a given weekend.  It serves as a nice tempo run.   I like that!

Since I am not specifically training for it, I don’t have high hopes for a PR, especially since it is another hilly, hilly course.  My goal tomorrow is to finish under two hours, hopefully under 1:55 again.  I didn’t do any sort of taper (I ran 8 miles yesterday), so I am not sure how strong my legs will be.  I’d like to get close to my PR next week, since the race is billed as “the fastest half marathon in the world.”  Once again, I am not doing any taper (running a half five days before), so my legs won’t be super fresh.  We will see.

I hope you are all enjoying the long weekend.  Happy running….

*this one may or may not count.  Technically, 21k is slightly less than 13.1 miles.  However, according to the race director, this race measured slightly longer than 21k.  I am counting it as a half marathon.  :-)
**I received some money for my birthday that was to be earmarked for things I wanted, but didn’t need, to do.  I chose to run a few races.

Palos Verdes Half Marathon Race Report

 

This was a last minute race for me.  I had been thinking about it for a while.  I have it penciled into my schedule as a possible race.  I decided to run it sometime on Thursday because I knew I needed to get a good, solid long run in and wasn’t sure I had the motivation to do it by myself.  I didn’t register, but knew that they had race day registration available.  Then I received a text from Rod that he, Jeff and Joan were running it and would I like to ride with them.  Yippee!!  I was excited that I didn’t have to drive 45 minutes by myself and hang out for an hour before the race.

We met at 5:30 to drive down there.  It was chilly, but not cold. I ended up wearing a tank top, my arm warmers and shorts and was completely comfortable throughout the race.  It stayed overcast in the upper 50’s the entire time.  Perfect running weather.

I started out running with Rod.  We have very similar PR’s, but he is just faster than I am.  I knew that we could definitely push each other.  It was a bit crowded in the beginning where we had to walk for a bit until it opened up, but we got into a rhythm fairly soon.  We went out faster than I normally would, but I thought that I might be able to keep it up.  Could I get a PR?  Hmmm…   Rod offered to slow down when I commented that our first mile was 8:13 (even with the slow start), but I wanted to see what we could do.

The second mile started to climb, but we kept pushing the pace.  We kept up our pace and were average under my PR pace of 8:19.  We ran the second mile in 8:23.

But that is when it started to get steep; really steep.  I wasn’t even really warmed up (it often takes me a few miles to really feel warmed up) and the course turned on to Western Ave which was quite a climb.  I knew I needed to slow down.  My pace slowed down closer to ten minute miles.  I saw Rod start to get ahead of me.  I knew we had over ten miles to go and I didn’t want to kill myself by trying to keep up with him.  As I saw him get farther up the hill ahead of me, I hoped I could catch him toward the end. At the very top, I stopped briefly at the water station, even though I was carrying my own water.  I gave myself permission to stop to gather myself before continuing on. Mile three was 9:42, the slowest of the day.

The course then flattened out for a bit.  That next mile was full of rolling hills, which weren’t nearly as bad.  The scenery was wonderful and I even pulled my phone out to snap a picture.  That is Trump National Golf Course in the distance.  I ran mile four in 8:26.


Then we hit the longest downhill of the day.  It felt great, except for the fact that I knew that I would have to come up that hill toward the end of the race.  I really wanted to take advantage of that downhill, however, to bank some time.  Mile five was the fastest of the day: 7:41—woo hoo!

It continued with the gradual downhill for close to another mile.  That was followed with some steep, short rollers.  The turn-around came and I had to do those rollers again.  Mile six and seven were 8:17 and 8:20.

I’ve decided that I actually like out-and-back courses. but only when I am running with other people.  I love being able to see all my friends.  I was able to see Jeff, who was about ten minutes ahead of me.  I saw that Rod was a couple minutes ahead of me and Joan was about ten minutes behind me.  I also was able to see Penny and give her a high five.  During the time before and after the turn-around, looking for my friends was a great distraction from running.

Miles eight, nine and ten slowed down again (8:54, 9:38 and 9:13) as the course went back up the hill (remember those zippy miles in miles five, six and seven?).  At the end of mile nine (the second slowest of the race) I could see the top of the long incline (so I thought).  I told myself that I would have my last Gu at the top.  When I reached the point, I discovered that it was merely a turn in the road and it continued up for another half mile!  Holy hell!  Why didn’t I pay more attention on the way down???

The last three miles were mostly downhill (8:25, 7:50 and 8:33).  The steep hill on Western Avenue wasn’t as fun as I thought it would be (although, I did haul some booty with a sub-8 mile.  woo hoo!).  While I am getting better at the downhills, at the end of a tough run, I felt like my feet were pounding the pavement.  Even though another runner warned me earlier, I completely forgot that the race started with a gradual decline (maybe that is why that first mile was so fast).  Well, during the last mile of a hard-run half marathon, an incline, even a gradual one, is disheartening.  I like to put on the gas during the last mile of a race, but that last bit felt really hard.  When I finally saw the finish I gave it everything I had.  I saw Jeff on the sideline cheering me in and I gave my last bit of steam to cross the finish.  I had the volunteer tear off the bottom of my bib, since I couldn’t even get my hands to work.

My official results:

Time: 1:53:19
Overall: 268/1118
Division:14/88

Palos Verdes elevation profile

This was one of the hardest races I have run.  The trail races* are technically harder, but there is so much less pressure to run fast (and therefore, I ran them an hour slower). This was very similar to La Jolla Half in terms of hill climbing.  La Jolla has a longer hill, and this one has two big hills.  I’ve looked at the elevation profiles and can’t tell which one is more difficult.  Either way, I am happy to have run this one three minutes faster than La Jolla, which I ran in 1:56:39.  I am happy to be only four minutes off my half marathon PR (1:49) on a course like this.  In fact, I have only run two half marathons faster than I did on Saturday (Carlsbad and Southern California).

La Jolla elevation profile

Despite the difficulty of the course, I can definitely see myself doing this race again.  I actually enjoyed it and felt a sense of accomplishment after finishing strong.

Once again, thanks for reading.  And happy running...

*Malibu Creek 22K, Malibu Creek 25K, and the Winter Trail Series 21K races had insane elevation profiles and rough terrain.

What's in store for 2009?

I don't do resolutions. I am of the mind that if I want to change something, I shouldn't wait until January 1. I don't want to resolve to make a change, I just do it. That said, the beginning of the year is a good time to look forward to the year and think about what might be in store.


I am obsessed with getting a PR every time I run a race. I am pretty sure that this next year I will get as fast as I am going to get. Most people get slower as they get older, don't they? We'll see. Obviously, I would like to break the two hour mark in the half. That is my number one running goal of the year. I would also like to run the marathon faster than 4:30. Other than that I haven't thought that much about the other distances. I suppose a 24-minute 5K would be nice.


I have also toyed around with the idea of running in a race every month. I think it is pretty achievable. This year the cost of all those races is actually a factor.* I don't get massages or pedicures (much), so this can be my splurge.


Here are some of the races I am thinking about:

• January-- Carlsbad Half Marathon. I am already registered for this one. That is good since it sold out the first week of December. goal: sub-2 hours.
• February-- Xterra Trail Race at Mission Gorge. There is a 5K or 15K option. I haven't decided which one I will do. The problem is that the 15K course looks REALLY hard while the 5K course looks relatively easy. I don't want to come in last in the 15K. Kenny thinks I should do the hard one. Hmmmm... goal: to finish
• March--There is another trail race at Black Mountain. They don't have the maps posted yet, but just knowing the area I would say that the first one is more challenging. There is also a St. Patrick's Day 10K, but that is the weekend before my daughter's birthday and I am not sure when her party will be. goal: ?
• April-- La Jolla Half Marathon. This is the granddaddy of local half marathons. Everyone says how difficult it is. It is the second leg of the Triple Crown (Carlsbad, La Jolla and America's Finest City). That is a medal I definitely want! goal: to finish feeling strong.
• May-- The Rock-n-Roll Marathon part deux! I am going to run it again! Laura and Jen have both said they want to do it with me. We are going to train smarter this time. Rather than just getting the miles in, each run will have specific purpose (speed training, hills etc.) goal: 4:30
• June-- Camp Pendleton's World Famous Mud Run. This one looks like a BLAST. I just hope I have recovered from the marathon by then. goal: to get a team together and have as much fun as possible.
• July-- I will probably do the Coronado 15K again. goal: 1:20??
• August-- The third leg of the half marathon Triple Crown, America's Finest City. goal: to break 2 hours, but not necessarity PR (depending on how I do at Carlsbad)
• September-- ?
• October-- ?
• November-- Father Joe's 5K and/or Race for the Cure 5K
• December-- ?

It is definitely a different year in terms of my running. A year ago, I never would have dreamed that I would have completed a marathon. Heck, the furthest I had run a year ago was 10K. The idea of a half marathon was a vague idea that I discussed with friends. I definitely didn't consider myself a "runner." I am definitely a runner this year. I need to make sure I maintain a balance between my training and my roles other than running (wife, mother, friend...).

It should be a good year. Happy running!

*The economy has hit our household and my dear hubby is facing a salary cut. I will be looking for additional income. Anyone who knows of part time work that I can do at night or during preschool hours let me know. I am not ready to go back to being an executive with the long hours that comes with it.

Half Marathon Countdown

It is so appropriate that this week's Take It and Run (TIaRT) topic is the half marathon. I am running a half marathon on Sunday that I trained pretty hard for. I didn't run miles and miles (only about twenty miles a week), but I think I trained pretty smart adding tempo runs and speedwork.

What I like best about half marathons is the fact that it is long enough to feel like I have really accomplished something that most people would not or could not do. I feel proud just finishing it. I love getting comments like, "you ran 13.1 miles..... in a ROW?" On the flip side, it doesn't overtake your life while training for it. The long runs are a couple of hours on the weekend and some hour-long runs or shorter mid-week. I don't have to pay a babysitter, my husband still has a wife and I feel like my life is not really affected negatively.

I have only run one half marathon and it was hard. I actually ran a marathon before running a half. During my marathon training there was only one half marathon that I could have done. The La Jolla Half Marathon was in April and we considered it. We decided against it for two reasons 1) it is difficult and hilly and none of us wanted to get injured and 2) it is difficult and hilly and none of us wanted to lose our confidence. When I ran the AFC in August, I think I was relying a lot on my residual fitness from the marathon. The Carlsbad this weekend is a race I trained specifically for and I am looking forward to it.

Since I am relatively new to this distance (although I am pretty sure it will be my favorite in the long run), I don't have a ton of advice. I will share my approach to Sunday's race: train smart and try to have fun. In the end, it isn't worth it if I don't enjoy myself.*


*I have been sort of obsessing over my sub-two-hour goal and I am trying to focus these last days on having fun. I need to trust in my fitness and training... :-)

I ran THE HILL.

The La Jolla Half is in less than three weeks. It is known in the area as being a killer. Particularly, the hill at mile 6 is a killer. I had never been to Torrey Pines, so I thought I should check out that hill for myself. Well... it is every bit as steep as people say. I actually had thought that some had exaggerated. Not so. This is a hill that walkers struggle with. I saw people leaning over as they went up the hill for a leisurely walk. There is no way to maintain a good pace up this thing. You just have to hope only to lose a few minutes.

I found a few pictures online that demonstrate the pitch of this monster hill that goes up for over a mile.

Here is the elevation profile from my Garmin*. At one point the grade is over 15%. Yikes! What sadist put this in the middle of a half marathon. There is also a short but very steep hill around mile 12. I have heard that it is harder because it is so late in the race.

Why, you may ask, am I putting myself through such a grueling race**? Well, why do we ever run these things? But one big incentive, however, is a brilliant marketing scheme called the "Triple Crown." If you run the Carlsbad, La Jolla and America's Finest City half marathons you get an additional Triple Crown medal. Seriously, how much can those medals cost? A few bucks? There are a TON of people that wouldn't be running La Jolla if it weren't for that silly little medal. I am pretty sure that AKA Alice is one of them. It is also has spectacularly beautiful views. Much of the race is along the Pacific Ocean. I hope I can enjoy the view.

I ran with my friend, Heather, who is training for her very first half marathon. That is some hutzpah, my friends, to chose such a difficult race for your first one. I am excited for her. We started out together for about a half mile or so. The hill was at the beginning of our run and she didn't want to burn out too early, so she slowed down to conserve her energy. I wanted to see if I could run the entire thing, so I kept going. We both knew I wouldn't be running the entire thing with her anyway, since our pace is so different. I am happy to say that I ran the entire hill without stopping.

My splits were all over the place***. I ran with Heather for a while and then would run ahead on my own. In the seventh mile, I decided to push the pace a bit. It was nice to know that I could take it to a higher gear in the middle of a tough, hilly run. My pace going back down the HILL was pretty slow. Running down is almost as hard as running up. It doesn't make me feel like my lungs are going to explode, but I felt like I had to put it in a lower gear to keep from careening down and sliding on loose gravel.

I did close to ten miles. I felt good. It was freezing when we started (freezing for us...around 46 degrees) and hot when we ended, but I think it was similar to what it might be like on race day. My left shin started hurting. I had shin issues last year, so I am going to pay attention and ice, ice, ice. My friend, Heather, ran nine miles, which is the farthest she has ever run. Woo hoo!! The best news is that she felt great!

So while I had a good hill run on Sunday, yesterday I felt sluggish. As I was struggling along in my neighborhood, thinking I was kicking it into gear, I looked down at my Garmin only to see my pace hovering around 10 minutes. I put off my run until the afternoon and it was hot. I hadn't really drank much during the day, so I was thirsty throughout the entire 4.5 miles. It was the first run in a while that I didn't enjoy. It wasn't the worst run I have had, but it was definitely something that I only did because it was on the schedule. I know, by now, that I will have mediocre runs now and then. I hope that my tempo run tomorrow feels better.

*I ran an out and back (more like up and back), but the reason that the ascent and descent are not mirrored is because I ran back several times to check on my friend.

**In addition to the elevation profile, it is often hot during April here. Last year, there was record heat (temps in the 80's) and they ran out of water. Once you get in the park, you lose the ocean breeze and it is a long, hot climb.

***splits
mile 1--10:58
mile 2--9:50
mile 3--9:24
mile 4--9:48
mile 5--10:10
mile 6--9:57
mile 7--8:50
mile 8--10:13
mile 9--9:15
.90--10 minute pace

Goals for America's Finest City

I don't think I have shared my goals for my upcoming half marathon. I wasn't even sure I wanted to run it. After the marathon, I couldn't imagine training again so soon. But, I had raced two-thirds of the Triple Crown and it would be silly for me to give up that extra medal! When I signed up, my goal was to just run it. Then I started training and my competitive juices started flowing.

So here are my various time goals for this race:
Platinum- A PR! I ran the Carlsbad Half in 1:52:46, so a PR is a tall order. That is what I have been training for. [my double secret platinum goal is to get 1:50.... sssshhhhh]
Gold- Under 1:56:39. This was my time for the La Jolla Half. That is the hardest race of the three half marathons, so I figure I should be able to run AFC faster than La Jolla.
Silver- Under two hours. My goal last year for this race was to break two. I came close, but didn't quite make it. I know that I have the ability to finish this race well under two hours. I feel like I need to get a little redemption for last year. We'll see...
Bronze- Finishing with my friends and trainees. I have decided that if the wheels fall off and it looks like I am not going to make it under two hours, I am going to wait for my friends and finish with them. This is my last San Diego race for a while and I want to have positive memories. I would rather think of this race as a race where I finished with friends (a couple are doing their first half) than the one where I finished a few minutes shy of my goal. I have actually gone back and forth as to whether or not I want to just run the entire race with them. The reason I decided not to is because this is my first race since my certification training and I want to see my training through until the end, so I can better coach my clients. This last goal gives me a win-win outcome. In this case, missing my goal by a half an hour is way better than missing it by a few minutes.

I am really excited about the race. There are so many of my friends running it this year. As I mentioned before, some of them are running their first half marathon. Two of them are running their first 5K on Sunday. One is running four months after having a baby. And another is looking to get a PR by 10-15 minutes. It will be a big deal for everyone. It will be a fun day.


********************************************************************
Update on my running:
First of all, I want to thank everyone for the virtual slap about my whine yesterday. You are right. I am tapering. I should be taking it easy. Obsessing about one run is not going to help anything. Thanks for snapping some sense into me!

I took the kids to the track last night. After wasting a bit of their window of attention by talking with my husband on the phone, I tried to run a bit. I should have planned better. They both wanted to run with me (and both were wearing some sort of summer shoe not conducive to running). My first lap was very slow, shuffling with a three- and a five-year-old. My five-year-old experienced his very first side stitch (awww) and it was cute watching him run with his arm laying on his head (that is what works for me). That lap was my warm up. It tired the kids out enough for them to play a bit with some toys we brought.

I was able to get in a mile at an 8:05 pace. Ah, redemption! It was hard, but I didn't feel the overwhelming need to sit down afterward. I was able to get my legs moving without my lungs ending up in my throat. I ended up doing a little more than two and a half miles total. I was hoping to get in a little over three, but when kids are done, they are done. They were bored and hungry. At least I was able to run a little and it was fun!

The best news of the evening was that my five-year-old ran pretty close to a mile (with a few breaks in the middle). He did the two last laps in a row with very little stopping. He officially wants to find a one mile kids' race. I told him that he would have to train for it so that he could run a mile without stopping*. He is excited to do it!

*I am not going to push my child to run without stopping. I need him to realize that in order to run a race, he needs to practice. By telling him he needs to do it without stopping, he knows it isn't super easy.

Hills, hills and oh... did I mention the hills?

But we did it! Fourteen miles and we finished STRONG, despite the hilly terrain. We went up to Canyon Lake with Jen and her family. What a fantastic weekend. I'll talk a bit more about the weekend as a whole in my other blog, but for now, I will discuss our twenty miles of running during our mini-vacation (6 on Friday and 14 on Sunday).

If you think about the name Canyon Lake, by definition the lake sits at the bottom of a valley with steep sides. It is not in the middle of a flat desert. We should have known that there would be some hills. You know...you never really think of hills unless they are particularly steep or you are running up them. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining at all. I am really glad we had the hills this week. I know that they made us stronger and they did a lot for building our confidence.

We ran farther than a half marathon. We ran the fourteen in 2 hours and 22 minutes. If you take off 10 minutes for that extra mile, that means that I would have run a killer half marathon in 2:12 or so. Not too shabby. Hmmm... how hard could that La Jolla Half Marathon be?? Nope. Not this year. I'm going to stick with the training schedule since it has worked so far.

So, as I stated above, we ran fourteen miles in 2:22. That is a 10:11 pace. It is a bit slower than last week's run, but like I said... those hills really slowed us down. The best thing about the entire run was how we finished. Our fastest mile was mile fourteen and the second fastest was mile thirteen. We definitely still had 'juice in the tank' at the end! Here is a breakdown of the split times:
Mile 1- 10:24 Mile 8- 10:06
Mile 2- 10:40 Mile 9- 10:03
Mile 3- 10:27 Mile 10- 10:26
Mile 4- 10:18 Mile 11- 10:15
Mile 5- 10:12 Mile 12- 10:01
Mile 6- 10:29 Mile 13- 9:39
Mile 7- 10:09 Mile 11- 9:25

Oh, did I mention that I waterskiied for the first time in over a decade on Friday? That seems a bit off topic, but if you have ever waterskiied you might know why it is relevent. Every muscle in my body was sore. I felt muscles that I forgot were even there. Both Jen and I skiied pretty hard and felt it. I STILL feel it. My arms and back hurt in addition to my quads. We skiied Friday after running six and then again Sunday afternoon after the long one. I must say, I am pretty impressed with ourselves. :-D

Here is a map of our run through the neighborhoods of Canyon Lake:

La Jolla Half Marathon Race Report

Before the Race:
My alarm went off a little after 4. Yikes. I was very tired. For two nights in a row I have had very little sleep (I blame my cat-- and that is a completely separate post). I scrambled around trying to get everything I needed. I was suddenly getting a little nervous. I picked up Heather and headed north to the Del Mar fairgrounds.

I had a sweatshirt that I was going to throw away, but when we got out of the car, it didn't seem that cold. I had my arm warmers, so I left the sweatshirt in the car. Standing around for an hour or more, even 50 degrees starts feeling REALLY cold. My teeth actually started to chatter (I know, I know... I am a Southern California WIMP).

My friend, Heather, was REALLY nervous. This was her first half marathon. The farthest she had run was ten miles. Her plan was to take it easy and run conservatively so she would finish for sure. Her only goal was to finish within the three hour limit.

I was thrilled when I spotted a neon green/yellow shirt and white hat. It was the famous Alice! I finally was able to meet her in person. Funny thing is that we live only a few miles from each other. I found out that her kids have been going to the school where my son is starting in August. Small world. And she is just as funny and nice in person as you might imagine.

I was excited for the race to start. I had a plan. I knew that if I followed my plan, I would finish under two hours. I wanted to start and run the first miles around 8:45, slow down around 10 minutes/mile on the hill and then pick it up on the second half and run how I felt.

During the race:
I know I have written about the insane elevation profile of this course. Even though I ran THE HILL and trained for the race, it was actually a little harder than I expected. I was mentally prepared for two hills: the one through Torrey Pines Reserve and the one just past mile twelve right before the end. I don't think I even thought about the other ones. They took me a little by surprise.

Here is a copy of the elevation from my Garmin and a little play-by-play of the race:

a- I'm about a mile in. I feel pretty good. I broke the rules and brought my iPod*. I settled into a nice rhythm and enjoyed my music. I ran the first three miles at 8:40, 8:28 and 8:44. Hmmm.... rolling hills.

b- WHAT??!! Where did this hill come from. Nobody mentioned a steep hill this early in the race. Holy moly! It was short, but steep. That mile was 9:02.

c- As we crest the hill out of Del Mar, the ocean opened out in front of us. There is a straight stretch of highway with wetlands on one side and ocean on the other. It is a beautiful view. And there, in the distance.. is the HILL. You could see the runners like ants crawling up the trail. This picture (courtesy of westcoastroads.com) shows the view and if you look just left of center, you'll see the beginning of the HILL.

I am a little bit of a chatty runner. It is funny to see how people chat back in the beginning but not so much toward the end. As we ran down this stretch, I commented on the gorgeous view. Several runners agreed (myself included) that a view like this makes the hills worth it. That mile was 8:22.

d- OK... here we go! This hill goes for almost two miles and has a grade as steep as 15% in some places. I didn't want to kill myself on the hill. I just slowed down and took it at an easy pace. Don't get me wrong. It was hard. But I didn't push myself to keep my pace around 9. Those two splits were 10:20 and 9:30.

e- Woo hoo! We are at the top! There was a lot of whooping and hollering among the runners. I chatted with one guy for a while who said that it was all downhill from here. I told him that he was a liar. He laughed. His goal was to finish under two hours as well. We both agreed that we were in good shape and only had to make up a bit during the downhill miles. The mood among everyone was pretty high. My friend, Heather, said that when she arrived at the top, one of the women decided to hop on the sag bus. Heather tried to talk her out of it, telling her that the worst was over, but she said that she "was done." Man... what a bummer.

The next few miles were very nice. I just relaxed and ran in a groove. I ran miles eight through ten in 8:52, 8:26 and 8:48.

f- Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee.........I'm flying!

g- Ow, my knees are starting to ache a little. My quads are feeling it. I like running down hill, but it is hard to keep from going too fast. Some people blew by me on this downhill, but I really just tried to go with gravity rather than accelerate at all. I did that mile in 8:03-- flying!

h- Running along the beach at La Jolla Shores. It doesn't get better than this!! Mile 12: 8:43

i- Well... here is the last hill. No need to hold back on this one. I am pretty tired by this time, but I know we are almost through. As I passed the clock at mile marker twelve, it said 1:48. I knew I had twelve minutes to get to the finish and see the clock still have a time under two hours. The pressure was off...I could just enjoy myself (as much as you can on a steep hill in the twelfth mile of a race).

j- We are pushing up the last part of the hill. One of the spectators yelled, "you just need to get up to the light and then it is down hill!!" I pushed hard. I wasn't able to keep my pace up. That mile was 8:57. I did, however, pass quite a few people along here. That felt good!

k- Woo hoo!!! The final stretch is here. It is all downhill for the last quarter mile or so. I ran it at a 6:45 pace. The worst part of the final stretch was the uneven ground. There were cobble stones etc. and I was a bit worried about rolling my ankle. Luckily, the last few yards were on grass and I could really fly. I saw that the clock said 1:57. I threw up my arms because I was thrilled that I met my goal. I was only four minutes off my PR on a MUCH more difficult course.

After the race:
I hung out in the finish area for a while, took a finish picture, ate some bananas and oranges. I knew I had a bit of time before Heather finished so I went to the beer garden and grabbed a beer. It didn't taste as good as I had hoped. It was Budweiser... not really my favorite**. I was also standing there drinking it by myself. I felt like a dork. I didn't want to miss Heather crossing the finish line, so I left the beer garden and headed to the finish line.

I saw Alice finish strong. I screamed as she ran past, but there was a lot going on-- I don't think she heard me. She had mentioned earlier that she didn't have high hopes for the race, but she looked great and finished well ahead of three hours. Heather came in with about ten minutes to spare. 2:50! I was so proud of her. She was THRILLED. She had just completed a very difficult half marathon. She felt great afterward and started talking about how she could have gone faster. She is already planning her next half. She's hooked.

It turned out to be a fantastic day. Successful races for myself and my friends and a gorgeous San Diego day (it was sunny and 65 at the end of the race).

Happy running, everyone!!



*the race literature stated pretty specifically that iPods are not allowed. I love my music. I figured if they had a problem, I could stash it in my hydration belt. Like I suspected, plenty of other people were wearing headphones. It wasn't a problem at all.
**not like the 5K on Thanksgiving when they had Stone Brewery supplying the beer. That was a tasty treat.

Winter Trail Run Series 21K Race Report

This race was HARD.  It was more than twice as long as last week's race and twice as difficult.  Here is a glimpse of the elevation profile from my Garmin.  Yikes.

This race was a leg workout extraordinaire!  There was a LOT of running uphill or downhill and very little flat.  The climb starting at mile 6 was 1400 feet over 1.4 miles!  The grade for that section of the race was over 20%.  To put that in perspective, my previous hilliest races were La Jolla Half Marathon and the trail race last week. La Jolla has a hill with an elevation gain of about 450 feet over two miles and O'Neill Park has an hill with an elevation gain of about 550 feet over two miles. La Jolla has 960 feet of climbing over 13.1 miles where today's had 3107 ft of climbing over 13 miles.

But I am getting ahead of myself.  I would like to start at the beginning....*

I woke up this morning to rain.  Thanks to Glenn, who told me about the race as well as pointed out the joys of running in the mud, I was determined to go no matter what the weather.  Due to scheduling issues, I wasn't able to rally anyone else to drive the hour drive with me.  By the time I hit the road around 6:45, the skies had cleared.  It was a gorgeous morning!

 

There was a bit of traffic (always in this area), so I was starting to cut it closer than I would have liked.  I drove up into the mountains and then turned off toward the campground where the race was.  Instead of going through Orange County, I drove into Riverside County.  Google Maps told me that it was fifteen minutes faster.  That was because there was more time on the interstate than the windy two-lane highway.  Unfortunately, most of the runners came in from the west.  My directions were brief on the website and there were no balloons showing me the way.

As I am driving up a wide one-lane road into the mountains, I started wondering if I was going the right way.  There were no other cars.  No markings.   I finally came across a campground.  It was not the Bluejay campground that I was looking for.  Thankfully, there were some campers there making breakfast who told me that the other campground was just down the road.  Phewww....   I hate being lost.

I finally found the cars of the runners and parked.   I started talking to two women while walking down to the start.  They were Kate and Cindy.  I explained that this was my first real trail race.**  I was nervous.  I knew that there was a lot of elevation change.  They told me that there was even a creek crossing!  They had run it a couple of weeks ago in the pouring rain.   It was Cindy's first time.  They reassured me that I would have a great time.

In the starting area a very friendly gentleman came and welcomed me.  He even gave me a hug.  I recognized him as the race director Baz Hawley.  What a wonderful person.  He completely put me at ease.  The day before, I had e-mailed him asking if there were still spots available.  I also asked him how scary the course was in the rain and mud.  His response? "Not scary... it is magic... you will love it.  BAZ"

 

Then I saw a familiar face.  While I have never met Glenn in person, I recognized him from pictures from his blog and Twitter.  I walked up to him and said hi.  I love meeting bloggers in person.  We learn so much about them through their blogs and other social media, once we meet them, it is like we already know them.

 

This race was so laid back and low key.  All the announcements were made by hollering over the crowd.  The RD, Baz, scolded runners for talking while he was talking.  He knew most of the runners by name and teased them mercilessly.

I had no idea what to expect in terms of time.  Should I go out slow?  Should I run faster while I can?  I really liked the lack of the pressure of the clock.  If this was a half marathon, I would be thinking about splits, pacing, PR etc.  In a trail race, because they are all different, PR's are out the window.  It is all about running.   It is ok, and even encouraged, to walk when the terrain gets tough.

So we were off.  We ran along the road for almost a mile.  Then we headed into the hills.  It was a gravel and dirt fire road.  Things were pretty social along here.  It was nice and wide.  I chatted with several runners.  There was a couple, Melissa and Hugh, who were very nice.   I came up on Kate and Cindy and ran with them for a bit.  It started getting pretty steep and just about everyone around started to walk.

The views were spectacular.  The sun was out.  I took this opportunity to take my phone out and take a couple of pictures.  I still have a hard time getting a clear self-portrait. 

 

Yes... that is the Pacific Ocean in the distance.

 

Sorry for the blur.

At the top, there was an aid station.  I decided to drink a full cup of sport drink.  I was carrying water, but I forgot to bring my Endurolyte pills and I was really starting to sweat.  While I was standing at the aid station (you can't really drink on the run because the garbage is right there and there is no way I would toss my cup in the woods), a woman asked the man at the station in a very tired voice, "is that the last of the hills??!!"  He gave her a sympathetic look and answered, "I am sorry to tell you that the next one is worse."  I half expected her to turn around and go back.  But she actually passed me on the downhill a short time later.  I then passed her on the "hill".  I didn't see her at the end.  I hope she finished.

After the aid station, the course went into a beautiful single track section.  This is where more experienced runners started to pass me.  Glenn's friend, Lori, passed me.  She is a really cool ultra runner who has run 50K, 50 miles and has attempted a 100 mile (she was cut off at mile 72 due to time).  I tried to keep up with her, but she was pretty quick.  Glenn pointed out that these runners may not have a ton more skill maneuvering on the trails, but a lot less fear.   Watching your feet was necessary.

We hit a downhill section that was pretty much all rocks.  The rocks were all shapes and sizes and getting good footing was difficult.  A few times, my ankle rolled a little.  Thank goodness I didn't roll it all the way.  I really had to pay attention during this time.  We hit a bit of a bottleneck.  Apparently, there were others who were even more cautious than I was.  The trail was narrow and hard to pass.  At some points there were four or five people, so it seemed fruitless to pass.  I caught up to Lori during this slow down.  At one point, I was gaining some momentum.  I nearly ran into the woman ahead of me, who I had been basically "tailgating" for a bit.  She asked if I wanted to pass, so I did.  I am still not sure of the correct etiquette.  I didn't want to be pushy or cocky, especially when the big hill was still to come. 

We hit the creek at the bottom of the canyon.  It was smaller than I had imagined it to be, especially after the rains.  I had visions of traipsing through ankle or knee deep water.  Instead, I just hopped a couple of boulders and started back up the canyon.  There were a couple more spots where we had to navigate water or obstacles, but I loved every minute.  This was trail running.  I even had to duck under a log crossing the trail!  Awesome!

The trail went up, up, up.  This was the 20% grade.  I was right behind Lori.  She stopped at a switchback to take a drink and I decided to go past her.  I was in a nice rhythm with my hiking and didn't want to mess with it.  Soon we came across four or five men in a line.  They were walking very slowly.  In fact, my heart rate dropped quite a bit.  I told myself it was a good rest, since more than half the race was in front of us.  After a while I worried that my heart rate would get down too much and I would have a hard time getting back into it.  A guy who I had passed on the way down asked to pass.  I thought about following right behind him, but didn't.  Then the girl I had tailgated came up behind us.  She asked to pass.  As she went past me, I fell in step behind her and passed the men.  I was able to get my heart rate back up.

As we reached the top of the canyon, the trail widened and the grade reduced a bit.  My calves and hamstrings were KILLING me.  I couldn't wait to start running downhill.   The climb took us to over 4000 feet of elevation and we were in the clouds.  Where earlier the sun was making me warm and sweaty, now the temperatures were lower and the wind blew on the top of the ridge making thing very chilly.  I ran just to warm up.

I reached the aid station and stopped to down some more sport drink.  I could feel my calves and hamstrings starting to cramp up.  I think that my electrolytes were a bit low.   Lori caught up to me here and offered me a salt pill.  I am pretty sure it stopped my cramps.  We started down the hill.   Less than three miles to the end, all downhill.  I tried to stay with Lori, but she was very fast.  She flew down that hill.  I just ran it easy.  My legs were really tired.   It reminded me of that last run after a long day of skiing.  That last run, when your legs are like rubber, is when you are most likely to get injured.   Running down that fire road, I nearly tripped a few times, just because I was so tired.   I focused on running strong and safely down to the end.

It wasn't until I was on this downhill section of the fire road that I realized that it was the same road we ran up.  The aid station was the same one from the third mile.  I usually have a great sense of direction, but with all the switch backs and turns, I had no idea which direction we were heading.  Since the clouds had moved in, the sun wasn't around to give me a clue.  Thank goodness for ribbons and chalk, or I might still be out there today.

There was another short section of single track at the end.  It was nice to run through here, knowing that I could stop running soon.

 

Other than my three marathons, this was the hardest race I had ever run.  It was also the most beautiful.  I ran into the finish to see Baz cheering me on.  He high fived me as I crossed the finish line.  

 

 After the race

Later, I cheered on other runners coming in.  I saw Kate and Cindy, who had been so encouraging.

And Glenn.

Glenn posted a great video of the entire race.  It really shows a lot more of the terrain (I didn't get my phone out much to shoot pictures).  Check it out here.

My time was somewhere around 2:46 (I forgot to turn my Garmin off right away).  It was great to forget about the Garmin.  I rarely looked at it the entire race.  Splits didn't mean anything.  The winner ran it in 1:36!!  Holy cow.  I think he must have run all those hills.

It was a great race and I'll definitely be running more trails!!

Happy Running.

* Of course, I couldn't do a short, concise race report.  Detailed (aka wordy) is my signature.  ;-)

**I'm not sure if last week's really counted, since it was only five miles.

A couple of random thoughts on a Saturday night...

Random thought #1- I am starting to obsess about hills. The La Jolla Half Marathon is in eight weeks. I can't stop looking at the course map and the elevation profile*. Holy CRAP. That hill is GINORMOUS. That steep steep grade in the middle of the race is 420 feet in less than a mile! I have heard that it isn't even the worst part. Apparently the hill at mile 12 is the true killer. It is short and steep and right at the end to suck the life out of you.

Luckily, I live in a very hilly neighborhood. I usually don't like to run anything longer than a couple of miles here because that is the length of the flat route. Thursday, I took on some of the hills. One of them was ridiculously steep (214 feet in .14 miles) but I ran the entire thing. I doubled over, completely out of breath at the top, but I did run the hill. The other hill I ran was a bit better. It was 78 feet in around 1/3 of a mile. I didn't have much difficulty... until I learned that the big hill in LJH is much, much steeper. sigh. Next week I am taking on yet another (bigger) hill in my neighborhood. I am going to do everything I can not to let that race get the best of me.

Random Thought #2- I have been a big fan of The Biggest Loser since the first season. I love watching these people change their lives for the better. They lose weight through hard work and eating right. It is not all about cutting calories, but fueling the body correctly.

This week's eliminated player was shown training for and completing a marathon. Kudos. They went on to say that he finished in in 3:53! Holy cow... if a guy who just lost 100 pounds could do that, surely I could, right? Hold on. I've been reading this week that not only did Dane NOT run a 3:53 marathon, he didn't FINISH the marathon. WTF? At mile 17, he got in a car (reported to be an NBC production van), was driven to mile 20 and ran the last six. He was in danger of not making the cut off of six hours and they wanted to show him crossing the finish line... AT 5:53!

I am so disappointed. This leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. What else has the show lied about? I hope that they retract their report on Dane and set the record straight. I would hate to stop watching one of my favorite shows.

Random Thought #3- Good luck to all of you racing tomorrow! Terri, I know you have your four-miler. You'll do great! Irish Cream is going for a PR in a 5K! Good luck to anyone else I forgot.
Chris, I hope your race went well this morning. Did the cold temps get you moving fast?

Random Thought #4- It is after 11 p.m. and I am running fourteen miles tomorrow. What am I thinking? I really need to get to bed. I haven't run fourteen miles since before the marathon.

Nighty Night.





*Sorry for the poor quality. I couldn't seem to save the map from the website big enough to post. This image is from 2003, but it is exactly the same as what is on the website.

America's Finest City Half Marathon Race Report

All in all, it was a great day!! I had fun with my friends and reached my GOLD goal.

Pre-Race
It started VERY early. I woke up at 3:10 a.m. YIKES. I was meeting Lisa, Heather and Lyn at 4:30 to drive down to the park together. Even getting up an hour before leaving the house, I didn't quite "take care of business" like I wanted to. Damn. That means ppp*

After last year's traffic hassle, we drove a different way to the park. It was easy peasy to get to the park and find parking. We met the other Rockin' Mamas near the bus pick up. Everyone was in great spirits. I was in the best mood. A combination of caffeine on very little sleep** combined with excitement of all my friends running this race made me a tad manic.

Most of us were wearing a matching Stroller Strides tank top. It was great having matching shirts. HOWEVER, we had no idea that the race shirts would be the same color. Seriously?? How jacked up is that? Do you know how hard it is to find cranberry tank tops during the out-and-back portion of the race when thousands of people are wearing the cranberry race jersey? Next time, I need to talk everyone into wearing day-go like Alice and the Heffers.

Lisa F is ready to go!!

The other Rockin' Mamas started showing up

There were ten of us, but we couldn't manage to get a picture of all of us (my friend Pham was in the bathroom when we took the big group pic).





























We got on a bus to Cabrillo Monument, where the race began, which was a piece of cake. We arrived at the starting area well before 6 a.m. and used the porta potties several times.

It was chilly in the morning (chilly for Southern California standards) Heather, Lisa and Lyn shivered while Alicia danced.















The Start
We were in line for the porta potties for one last time. The line was painfully slow. After last year's debacle, I didn't want to chance it. When we got back to the rest of the group, several of them had already gone to the front. I never heard the gun go off, but suddenly the crowd started moving. I ended up crossing the starting line around seven minutes after the gun.

The first mile started out fine. I looked down at my Garmin and saw an 8:30 pace. I saw that Anne and Pham were almost at that pace. I slowed down to join them and told them how fast they were going. I didn't want them to start out too fast. I knew that Pham was much more comfortable closer to ten-minute-miles. Anne can easily do 8:30, but her goal was sub two hours and I wanted her to make that goal and not die on the hill. Then I remembered that I was running a race and not in "coach" mode. I wished them good luck and sped up a bit.

Sometime during that mile, I saw the day-glo top of AKA Alice. She looked great! Really strong. I tapped her on the shoulder and said, "hi!" I thought for a moment that she might not recognize me and would wonder who this strange woman with the manic smile was running alongside her. She smiled and said hi. I asked how she was feeling and she said she was great. She is definitely back from her injury. She ran a great race and you can read her race report here.

By the second mile, I knew that a PR was probably not in the cards. I ended up running the first mile in 8:50, between weaving around runners and "coaching" my friends. To PR, I'd have to make up that time. To PR, an 8:30 pace should feel pretty effortless. It wasn't. In fact, I was falling comfortably into around an 8:35 pace. To go faster than that would have been pushing myself. I didn't want to push too hard too early, since there is a pretty decent hill at the end. I was still on pace for a pretty decent race, however, so I wasn't ready to throw in the towel.

As I approached the first aid station, I ran right through. Afterward, I realized that I completely forgot to look for Irene. D'oh! It was crazy. The entire field was so crowded. I swear I was weaving around runners the entire race. I probably should have lined up closer to the front, but I don't have any regrets. I spent some quality time with my friends (ah... porta potty lines) instead of pushing my way up through the crowd.

The fourth mile is pretty much all downhill. I had my fastest mile of the race (8:00). I was feeling good, but not great. After that mile I thought, "maybe?" But alas...I wouldn't see another split that fast until the very end.

Miles 5 through 10--
These are the flat miles. I was feeling tired, but I enjoyed them so much more than I did last year. Harbor Island is a little spit of land that we run around. It is a bit of an out and back. Last year, it felt like it was 100 degrees. This year, while sweating like a pig, I did not feel overly hot. I looked at the crowd as I passed, hoping to find my friend, Laura. We had run this stretch during a couple of training runs. During those runs, we ran all the way to the end of Harbor Island. Imagine my delight when we turned around well before the end. I enjoyed the gorgeous view of the city and really appreciated the beauty of San Diego.

After Harbor Island, past the rental car return lot---the most boring part of the entire race-- I settled into a nice easy pace. Right around mile 10, I saw my friend Linda cheering from the sidelines. She is 36 weeks pregnant and getting to the uncomfortable stage of her pregnancy. It was so sweet of her to come out and cheer for her fellow Rockin' Mamas. She ran the race last year and I vividly remember her passing me on 6th street, looking fresh as a daisy with a spring in her step.

Miles 10-13.1 (or 13.34 if you are terrible at running tangents and weaving around slower runners)--
Here is where the hills start. I was just thrilled to death that I didn't feel as bad as I did last year at this point. I looked at the porta potties that saved me last year, thankful that I didn't need them again. The aid station right past mile 10 is a fun one. They had music blasting and were handing out cheeseburgers. They didn't sound too appetizing at the time.

By the time I turned onto A street to head uphill, the sun was out and beating full force. This was really starting to feel like work. We had run these hills several times in training and this felt the most difficult. I was already passing quite a few people, however. I wondered if they knew that it was going to get even harder. As I turned onto 6th street, I knew that I was almost done. I also knew that I had some work to do to get there.

Right before mile 12 is my friend, Anne's building. That is where we had our after-party. Several of the dads got together early to walk down to 6th street to cheer us on. I saw Kenny about a half a block before I got there. I waved at him and he gathered up the kids to be ready for me. I took the opportunity to stop for a few seconds to hug them, catch my breath and go on my way. It was great!

I found out later that my sweet hubby stayed out there and waited for all the Rockin' Mamas. He really wanted to cheer for Heather, who was about 45 minutes behind me. What a guy! Heather's husband missed her by a few minutes due to technical difficulties***, so I am so glad for her that she had friendly faces cheering for her during the hardest part of the race. She told me that it meant a lot to her to see them.

The hill was tough. I had run that hill so many times. In fact, during training runs I would run it several times. I ran with one friend and then ran back down to run up it with another friend. The hill didn't scare me at all. Maybe it should have. Where I could easily run up it near the end of fifteen miles at a 9:30 pace, on race day I ran it well over a 10 minute pace. Hmmm...

Once I got up to the top of the hill, I caught my breath and charged forward for the final portion of the race. I hit "lap" on my Garmin, so I would know how fast I ran the last part. I ended up running it at an 8:04 pace. Yeah! I just kept gaining speed and passing people like crazy. I knew exactly where the course turned and headed downhill (I know Balboa Park like the back of my hand). I knew that if I made it to the turn, I could sprint down the hill. About a hundred yards from the finish, I saw/heard my friend Vickie cheering me in.

I heard the announcer and really wanted to hear my name. I have yet to hear my name finishing a race. I took my headphones off as I sprinted into the finish. Nope. No name. I think you have to be old, young or from far away. I thought that maybe since I had a Triple Crown bib on, it might get a nod. Oh well... someday.

I finished in 1:56:13. It is eight minutes faster than I ran the same race last year. It is also 25 seconds faster than I ran La Jolla in April. I think this race felt harder. I'm not sure why, since La Jolla has the KILLER hill. Who knows why you run better one day than the other. I am thrilled that I am in a place where even when I don't have a fantastic day, I can finish with a good time. I am happy with my time, especially considering how hard the race felt. That PR is pretty close. I just need a day when I am "on." Maybe once we are settled in a new place and I am actually living in the same county as my husband, I will be able to focus on training and speedwork again. It will happen.

After the race--
I went to join Vickie to cheer in a few of the Rockin' Mamas. I found out that Anne came in a couple of minutes behind me. Had I known that, I think I would have slowed down to finish with her. It would have made that hill so much easier. I would have felt pretty much the same with a 1:58 as I did with 1:56. But there was no way of knowing that she was so close to me. I am SO impressed with her. She had a baby in April. OF. THIS. YEAR. Yup... this woman ran a sub-two hour half marathon four months after giving birth. That is awesome!!!

After a bit, we wandered down to the finish festival area. I picked up my Triple Crown medal. They give you these if you complete the Carlsbad, La Jolla and America's Finest City Half Marathons in a calendar year. Honestly, it was a big factor in deciding to sign up for this race. It is some nice bling!! It is big and heavy. I think it is a brilliant marketing scheme. For a few dollars per medal, they create a goal for runners. After seeing mine, most of my friends decided to go for it next year. Heather is kicking herself for not running Carlsbad this year, since she did the other two.

We then all went back across the park to Anne's for a wonderful after party. We had quiche, casserole, fruit, bagels and MIMOSAS. It was my first time having a post run mimosa. Now I know why the Heffers enjoy them so much! Yummy. They (yes, I had more than one) hit the spot! The kids all ran around the community house and had a grand ol' time, while the moms and dads socialized. I think everyone was celebrating an accomplishment that day****. It was really the perfect way to cap off a great day.

We took some pictures at the after party, but unfortunately, got the cameras out after some of the girls had already left. We definitely need to do it again!
























*porta potty pooping *blush*
** I haven't slept well in over a week. SIGH.
***getting two young girls fed, dressed and out the door in a timely fashion.
****a few shout outs to my Rockin' Mamas: Alicia, Pham, and Lisa completed their first half marathons. Heather took 10 minutes off her time from La Jolla. Jenna and Christina (and Anne, previously mentioned) were doing their first race since having a baby. My marathon training partner, Laura, ran an impressive 1:50. Vickie, our veteran runner, killed it with a 1:43!