13.1 Los Angeles Race Report

On Wednesday, my sister called me telling me that a blog she follows on Facebook (called Fit Bottomed Girls) was having a contest for a free race entry in Los Angeles.  My sister, who lives in Portland, was the first to comment and won the entry for her race-crazy sister.  Woo hoo!  That is some great serendipity!!

The race was the 13.1 Los Angeles, which starts an hour’s drive from my house.  As my alarm went off at 4:15, I was wondering why I decided it was a good idea to run that race.  I was driving by myself and racing a friend who was running in a different state.  I’m crazy.

I arrived in Santa Monica just after 6 a.m.  The race started at 7:13—I had plenty of time.  I’m so glad I got there so early.  It took over twenty minutes to get into the parking lot and park.  I desperately needed the bathroom after the long drive.  There were four porta potties in the parking lot with a pretty long line.  I wasn’t sure how far the start line was or how many potties there were and decided to wait in the line.  It took a half an hour.  Yikes.  It was getting close to race time.  In fact, it was close enough that I decided to leave my drop bag in my car.  It was starting to warm up, so I didn’t really need my jacket any more—it was looking like it was going to be a gorgeous day in Southern California.

I made my way to the starting line.  I had just enough time to make my way up to the 8 minute mile corral.  A few minutes later, they played the Star Spangled Banner and a few minutes after that, we were off!
  
 
The race started out along the boardwalk.  All the shops were closed.  It was a bit eerie to see all the tattoo parlors closed with an array of characters watching us.  Some of them were cheering, but most were muttering to themselves or saying strange things.  They definitely weren’t your typical race spectators.  I had a picture in my head of the guy in Pretty Woman chanting, “welcome to Hollywood, what’s your dream?”  We weren’t in Hollywood, but I imagine there were plenty of dreams in that crowd.

After running along the beach for a mile, we turned left onto Venice Boulevard.  We ran straight on this road for six more miles.  This definitely isn’t the most interesting course I have run (there is nothing along Venice Boulevard as you run away from the beach).  But there is something to be said about the lack of turns.  Because it was such a long out-and-back, we didn’t get to see the leaders for quite a while.  The winner was way in front of the pack and looked awesome.  I am always surprised how easy they make sub-five-minute miles look.  He ended up finishing in 1:05.  Wow!

The race tried to keep it interesting, however.  There was a girl twirling a large baton of fire.  There were a couple of drum troupes and bands along the way.  There weren’t as many characters running as you would find at a Rock ‘n Roll event, but everyone seemed to be having a good time.

I was focused and just ran.  I knew I wanted to run under 1:50.  I wasn’t planning on going for a PR (1:47), but thought I might try to beat my 1:49 time from last year’s Southern California Half Marathon.  That race was an 8:2 average pace (but 8:19 on my Garmin), so I decided to go for 8:15 per mile.
I was able to keep my pace under 8:15 easier than I thought.  Miles 1-5 were: 8:16, 8:11, 8:13, 8:15, and 8:06.  The biggest climb of the race was in mile 6.  The elevation gain was a little over 100 feet.  It was a gradual climb.  It didn’t look like a hill, but my legs felt slower as I realized we were heading uphill.  Mile 6 was 8:21, but the downhill in mile 7 helped me run 8:09.  Miles 8 and 9 were 8:16 and 8:17.  I was feeling confident about finishing well under my 1:50 goal.  There were times when I felt like slowing a bit.  I knew that I could run a little slower and still make my goal.  But I was determined to push myself every mile.  It turns out that it is a good thing that I didn’t let myself slow down, because in the last few miles, I needed that cushion.

I started feeling very tired and sluggish in the tenth mile (8:25).  My stomach was starting to bother me [again].  I had changed up my routine and had a banana and taken an Imodium before the race.  By the end of the eleventh mile (8:20), I realized that it wasn’t working.  Unlike last week’s race, I only had two miles to go.  Last week, I had over five miles left and had to find a porta potty.  Yesterday, I decided to tough it out for the last two miles.  They were two of the toughest miles I have run.  I would feel myself slow down, look at my Garmin and see my pace slip to 8:40.  I was tempted to go with it.  But I had come so far with a great pace and I knew I would regret slowing down.  I also knew that the faster I finished the sooner I could get to a potty!  Mile 12 was my slowest of the day at 8:26.  I was able to push the pace back to 8:15 for the last mile.  I kept looking at my Garmin, telling myself, “you only have eight minutes left,” “only six minutes until you are done,” “less than a half mile; that is only one song!”  I was SO ready to be done. 

In the final stretch, my water bottle fell out of my belt (for the third time of the race—stupid water belt).  When it has happened in the past at the end of a race, I have left it.  This time, I actually stopped to pick it up.  I wasn’t running particularly fast and I didn’t feel like coming back for it later or buying a new one.  I picked it up, and pushed across the finish line.  Maybe, if I wouldn’t have stopped, I might have finished with the clock reading under 1:50, but it clicked over as I was approaching.  That was ok, since I had started a minute after the gun.  Woo hoo!  SUB 1:50.

Results:
Gun Time: 1:50:12
Chip Time: 1:49:08 (my second fastest half marathon)
Overall: 532/2539
Gender: 130/1314
Female 40-44: 26/196


They had some great food afterward.  The sausage and chili didn’t seem too appetizing right after running a race in 70 degrees.  However, the Italian shaved ice was yummy!  As I was deciding which flavor to pick, another runner took one of the last ones.  Then a little kid pushed his way in and TOOK THE LAST ONE.  I was really bummed.  We were in the runner finishing area, not the finish festival.  When the volunteer told me that he had already had a couple, I was annoyed.  I told her that I might resort to elbow checking him if he took mine the next time.  Luckily, they brought more and there were no brazen children taking treats from tired runners.

I enjoyed the after party.  I took a few pictures and even took advantage of the free massage afterward.  Just what I needed before a long drive home!

After hanging out for a couple of hours (the line for the massage was pretty long), I made my way back to my car.  It was further than I realized since the finish line was in a different spot and much further south than the start.  I also didn’t realize that the walk back would be so interesting.


I have lived in California for nine years.  I have lived in Orange County for a little over a year.  But I have never been to Venice Beach.  My exposure to Venice is limited to movies like LA Story.  But I never realized it was such a FREAK SHOW.  I know this is a race report, but it would be complete without a report about after the race.  Since many of my readers aren’t in Southern California, I thought I would share a little about the sub-culture that is this little Los Angeles beach community.
At first it reminded me of any beach town in Southern California—Mission Beach, Pacific Beach etc.  There was the requisite surf shop.
 

And a nice park on the beach.

Then there was an entire fence with the saying “who in the heaven is Larry.”  So random.  It turns out it is a restaurant.
And then it got weird.  It went from a typical beach boardwalk to some strange underworld.  There were tattoo parlors, head shops and stores full of oddities.

And vendors selling everything from t-shirts to pipes to jewelry…you name it.

I started smelling a fragrant aroma.  I think I actually got a bit of a contact high.  Then I noticed plenty of places that supply that aroma.  Now if I ever get glaucoma, I’ll know where to go…


The thing that clinched this place as a freak show was an actual freak show.  A guy was standing out front bragging about his two-headed turtles (which were in a tank…I saw them…freaky) and the five legged dog.

So that was my full day (all before noon).  I ran a great race and enjoyed some of the oddities in Los Angeles.  Oh…. and Nadine is buying me breakfast!  She ran a great race at the Rock ‘n Roll Arizona and finished her half marathon in 1:50:20.  She ran negative splits!  I really have her to thank for my finish time yesterday.  If it weren’t for her challenge, I wouldn’t have pushed.

Yeah for free race entries!  Yeah for beautiful Southern California days!  Even though I ran the race by myself and it wasn’t the kind of fun I had last week, I had a really nice time.

Happy Running.

Gauntlet thrown...

I won an entry to the Los Angeles 13.1 tomorrow.  I hadn't planned on running another half marathon so soon after last week, but I never give up a free opportunity to race.  I had planned to run it nice and easy, enjoying the crowds, music and race atmosphere.  I hadn't really thought about "racing" it.

When fellow Ambassador of Wow, Nadine, found out I was running, she offered up a challenge.  Since she is running the Rock 'N Roll Arizona Half Marathon tomorrow, she thought it would be fun for us to compete.  Both of us have the same half marathon "sweet spot" of 1:55.  She thought that we should push it to 1:50.  Whomever gets the best time will buy a Jamba Juice breakfast in the winner's city.

Of course I accepted her challenge.  Now, as I sit here in 80 degree weather, I wonder what I have gotten myself into.  Nadine is training for Boston and an Ironman.  Nadine does tempo runs and speed work on a regular basis.  I haven't run a heck of a lot in the last month or so (averaging less than 20 miles a week since early December).  The closest thing to a tempo run I have done is last week's half marathon.  I am not race ready.

At least I get breakfast with a friend out of the deal.   It's a win-win situation.

happy running...

Kaiser Permanente Southern California Half Marathon Race Report—January 8, 2011

It wasn’t a bad race.  I didn’t set any PR’s, nor did I improve my time from the same race.  However,  Saturday’s race was more about my running buddies than it was about my own accomplishment or lack thereof.  It still goes down as one of my favorite race days.

We all met at 6:20 at Rod and Lori’s.  It was our entire running group except for Caitlyn, who is injured.  The weather was cold, but looked like it would be perfect for running.  We were parked and walking to the starting area just after 7.  We had plenty of time to pick up gear*, use the porta potty and get psyched up for start of the race at 8.**

Rod, Kelly, Shannon, Stacey, Sandra, Me, Odessa and Lori before the race.

 Me, Stacey and Shannon before the race

The race was definitely bigger than last year.  But I think it felt bigger because we were pretty far back in the pack.  The first couple of miles were pretty crowded.  There was a lot of weaving during that first mile.  Rod, Kelly, Stacey and I started together.  Shannon, Sandra, Lori and Odessa started out more slowly.  I knew within the first couple of miles that it wasn’t going to be a PR kind of day.  I debated whether I should just get comfortable and stay with Stacey or Kelly throughout the race.  Both of them told me to run my own pace.  I decided that since I paid for this race, I would see what I could do—PR or no PR.  I was hoping to run it close to the pace that I ran it last year (1:49) After a mile or so, Stacey decided to pull back into a more comfortable pace.  We had been running under 9 minute miles and were starting to speed up a bit (the second mile was 8:17).

A little later, Kelly fell behind.  As Rod looked back to see where she was, Kelly yelled, “don’t look back for me, run your race!!!”  We had our marching orders.  Kelly fell further and further behind us.

Kelly is “running happy”

This race is a series of out-and-backs.  I enjoy out-and-backs when I am running with a group of friends.  I was able to see everyone at least once.  There is a long stretch where we ran on a bike path along the river, crossed over a bridge and then back along the other side.  I was able to see all my friends.  The course isn’t particularly scenic, so I doubt I would ever want to run it by myself.  But with a group, it is a nice distraction to look for all your buddies.

The crowds on either side of the river

All the out-and-backs made it a perfect race for spectators.  Mine and Stacey’s husbands decided to ride their bikes down to the race and take some pictures of us.  Our kids spent the night with relatives and Kenny and Alex started their twenty mile bike ride just after we left for the race.  They arrived just before the beginning of the race.  In fact, they were getting off their bikes as the starting horn sounded, so they didn’t have time to film us at the start.  However, they were able to get some great pictures during the race.

He was able to get a great shot of Stacey.  I played around with the color and got a pretty cool picture.

  It was great having my hubby there.  He doesn’t get a chance to see many of my races.  It is just too hard with the kids.  This course also allowed me to see him four or five times. 

Around the half way point, my stomach started bugging me.  Oh no…not again.  Soon, it was apparent that I would have to stop in a porta potty.  Rod starting pulling away from me.  I struggled keeping my pace up.  My pace went from 8:09 in mile 5 to 8:15 in mile 6, 8:24 in mile 7 and 8:29 in mile 8.  In the ninth mile, I found some porta potties.  I spent TWO MINUTES in the porta potty.  Not a good thing.***  Once I got back on the road, I really struggled to get back up to speed.  That mile was 10:40—ugh.

The next miles were a struggle.  I knew that my sub-1:50 was gone, I debated with myself if I should stop and wait for one of my friends and finish with her.  I wasn’t sure if Kelly was in front of me or behind me. At the next turn-around, I saw that she was several minutes behind me.  I knew that she would be angry with me if I stopped and waited for me.  I saw Kenny.  He told me that Rod was two and a half minutes ahead of me and urged me to push it.  I decided to see if I could pull out a decent time.

I finished with a pretty good time.  Despite spending two minutes in the porta potty and feeling sluggish for the last four miles, I was able to finish in my half marathon “sweet spot”—1:54.  Since my first sub-two half marathon of 1:52 in January 2009, most of my half marathons have been between 1:53 and 1:56.  I was pretty happy with my time, considering how crappy I felt physically. It didn't really matter because I still had fun.

I quickly found Rod (who finished in an outstanding 1:47!), Kenny and Alex (Stacey’s husband) to wait for the others.  We were watching for Kelly, but I missed her!  She finished three minutes after me.  This was her second half marathon and she took eight minutes off her last time.  She finished with an incredible 1:57!!  I am so proud of how far she has come. 

Stacey was the next one to come down the finish lane.  She looked intense.  She looked down at her (new) Garmin and I yelled, “don’t look at your watch, just RUN!”  She didn’t hear me.  She was listening to music and focused on the finish.  She finished in 2:09, which is five minutes faster than her first half marathon in October. 

Sandra came in next at 2:25.  This was Sandra’s very first half marathon.  She finished strong and with a huge smile on her face.  I was so happy for her; she was thrilled with her experience.  I am so happy to help yet another first timer successfully cross the finish line!

Sandra told us that Shannon’s knees were bothering her.  We were watching closely for her to round the corner.  I had made Shannon a 2:30 pace band and I was hoping that she would make her goal.  She came down the stretch and looked like she was ready to be done.  Stacey, Sandra and I ran out into the road to join her.  At first, she waved us off.  But we cheered and yelled her name.  The four of us ran across the finish line together and it was so much fun.  She told us later that our running with her gave her a huge high that she will never forget.

Finally, Lori and Odessa finished.  Rod had run back about a mile and came in with them.  We all cheered them in and had a great time afterward.  The food situation was pretty goofy though.  Runners queued up in a line and went through like a cafeteria.  They took one of everything and even had boxes and bags to put it in.  I just wanted an orange and a banana.  I didn't want to wait in the silly line.  So I walked up to the box of bananas, reached between two people, grabbed the banana and walked away.  Done.  There didn't need to be a line.  If everyone did that, everyone would get food after the race.  Plus, the food area was separate from the finish area, so it was being used by spectators as well as runners.  Their selection was great (cookies, muffins, fruit etc.), but the line thing was annoying.

I’m bummed Shannon had to leave before we took this picture

This was such a fun race.  One friend ran her first half and three others had significant PRs.  I am so proud of everyone and feel privileged to run with these ladies (and Rod too).  Even though I didn’t have my best race, I will always remember this race as one about my friends and their accomplishments.

Happy Running…

*Stacey’s husband had picked up our bibs and shirts for us, but the rest of the group had to get theirs.  Stacey and I both exchanged our shirts for smaller sizes.
**It turns out that we should have moved into the starting area earlier.  The first mile was very crowded and we had to weave around slow runners and walkers.
***I did my normal morning routine.  I went to the bathroom the magic number of three times.  This is exactly what happened in the Long Beach Marathon, America’s Finest City 2008 and Rock ‘n Roll 2008.  I may start experimenting with Immodium. Does anyone out there take Immodium before races?  If so, how much and when?  Also, I usually eat an English muffin before a race and I realized that they are whole grain.  That might be the problem.  I think I might also switch to bananas before long runs.

Hood to Coast Movie

I went to go see the Hood to Coast Movie last night.  It certainly didn’t disappoint.  The “event” portion was a little lacking and didn’t meet my expectations at all.  However, the movie was great.  It was everything a running movie should be.  It was funny, inspiring and I even shed a tear or two.  Like Spirit of the Marathon, it followed participants of the race before, during and after the race.  I think there were more poignant moments in HTC and definitely more laughter.

The movie documents the Hood to Coast 197 mile relay in Oregon.  Teams start at Timberline Lodge* on Mt. Hood and run to Seaside, Oregon on the Pacific Ocean.  The course travels down steep mountain roads, through countryside, over bridges in downtown Portland, and over a mountain range to the coast.  Teams run all day and night and get little to no sleep.

Most runners have heard of long distance relays.  The Ragnar series holds races all over the country and is getting more and more popular every year.  But Hood to Coast was first.  Even the Ragnar race directors admit that HTC is the granddaddy of relays.  The movie really did a nice job of giving the viewer a sense of the history of the race.

This movie had special meaning for me.  I grew up in the shadow of Mt. Hood.  I heard about HTC through my dad, who either ran it or drove a van (I’m not sure which).  I remember thinking that it sounded like a cool event, even before I ever thought about running.  The race took me through my childhood.  They showed Sandy, Oregon, where my mom taught for years and years.  They showed downtown Portland where I would go to shop and enjoy the city.  The finish line and festival is in Seaside, Oregon.  I spent many weekends and vacations in Seaside, where my dad grew up and my grandfather lived.  Seeing the turnaround, really brought me back.  The inception of my marathon dreams was right there.***  Throughout the movie, I kept leaning over to Marci saying things like, “I grew up near there.”  I started to get pretty homesick.

The movie followed four teams throughout the journey of HTC.  There was a team of men who have run it for many years (one member had run it 27 times—every year it had been run) called Dead Jocks.  They were pretty darn fast for guys in their 60’s.  There was a team called Heart and Sole, consisting of older women.  They spotlighted one team member who had suffered a heart attack the year before.  While her story was inspiring, it was also a bit disturbing.  Her theme was of perseverance and determination, but it also conveyed a message that you don’t necessarily need to listen to your doctor—I was a little uncomfortable with that.  Another team, Team R Bowe,  was running in honor of their friend/family member who had passed away (tear jerker alert).  The final team was my favorite.  Team Thunder and Laikaning  were a bunch of non-runners who were more interested in beer drinking than training.  The two main “characters” provided the comic relief of the movie and, frankly, stole the show.

Last night was a special screening “event.”  They had a red carpet in Portland and had a simulcast** in the theaters.  The red carpet commentators were Runners World Chief Running Officer, Bart Yasso and producer, Anna Campbell. Neither of them will take jobs away from E! reporters for red carpet duty. LOL.   It is tough to get excited about people on the red carpet who we have never seen before.  I hope they post red carpet footage now, however.  I’d like to see some of the people from the movie now that I am emotionally invested in them.

After the movie, they had a panel discussion about the movie and the race.  Unfortunately, very few people in my theater saw it.  It was almost 10:30 when the movie ended.  The audience was comprised of runners who get up at o’ dark thirty to run every morning and it was past our bedtime.  The credits rolled and by the time the credits finished, most people had left the theater.  My friend Nadine left just so she could use the bathroom!  After the credits stopped rolling, the house lights came on and the screen was blank for a minute.  I had been looking forward to the panel discussion, but even I thought maybe they had cancelled it and thought about getting up.  I had to talk Marci into watching it with me.  They had advertised Bart Yasso, Mary Decker Slaney and Alberto Salazar.  Yasso and Slaney were there, but not Salazar, who is one of my personal favorite runners.  We watched for a few minutes, but we were pretty tired and the discussion didn’t seem to be going anywhere.  We left.  I hope they post the discussion today, because I would like to see it now when I don’t have a 40 minute drive ahead of me.

The movie alone was enough. We really didn’t need the “event.”  However, I believe that the “event” could have been more successful.  I think that each theater could have had a host or moderator.  That way the audience would have all known about the panel discussion afterward.  They could have even had raffle drawings to keep the excitement going (and give an incentive for staying for the discussion).  Leftover HTC t-shirts would have been a fun prize.  I know that the movie showed in 350 theaters, but they have a pretty active facebook page and could have easily found volunteers for each theater.  Nadine’s running club was there and one of the leaders could have done a great job moderating.  Even better (but a logistical nightmare) would have been a true live broadcast where we could have called in with questions. 

I am so glad I went.  It was just the inspiration I needed.   I laughed, I cried.  I remembered how much running brings different people together.  I want to run a relay.  I want to run THAT relay.  Heck, I just want to run in Oregon.  It’s been a very long time since I’ve been home.
 
So if they do another set of screenings, I recommend seeing this movie. Otherwise, put it in your queue for Netflix or Blockbuster.  Better yet, buy the DVD. 

Happy Running…

*Timberline Lodge (the original lodge) was the spooky hotel in the movie The Shining
.
**I think that the live event was actually at 5:30 and we saw the taped version, just like the Oscars.  The east coast got the live feed at 8:30.
***They used to have a marathon in Seaside called the Trail’s End Marathon.  I remember my dad volunteering at this race.  I have a memory of running times from the finish line to somewhere inside the hotel.  I remember thinking to myself that I wanted to run that marathon someday.  I am sad to say that The Trail’s End Marathon held its last race in 1999.

Ambassador of WOW!

If you have been following me for a while, you might remember that I ran for Team Jamba over the summer.  I was chosen through Active Ambassadors.  Of the 100 Jamba Juice Ambassadors, several of us were called and asked if we would be interested in taking the ambassador program one step further.  I drove up to Santa Monica to interview with a PR/advertising agency.  Three of us were chosen to be the Ambassadors of Wow!  The coolest thing is that Nadine and I became friends through Team Jamba and are super excited about working with each other.  We met the third Ambassador, Felipe, at the LA Eco Mud Run and he is a really nice guy.

We recently had a photo shoot up in Beverly Hills.  Other than battling gruesome traffic in LA, it was a great experience.  I have never done anything like that.  There was hair, makeup and wardrobe.  There was even a food stylist.  We had a couple of wardrobe changes and I posed with both oatmeal (my personal Jamba Juice favorite) and a probiotic smoothie (they let me drink it afterwards--yummy!)

Today was the launch of Jamba Juice’s Ambassador of Wow campaign.  I checked the website several times during the day.  When it finally went live, I was so excited.  

Check out JambaJuice.com’s newest campaign! 

Recognize anyone?

Over the next several months Nadine, Felipe and I will be Jamba Juice spokespeople.  I don’t have a lot of details yet, but I am looking forward to it. Nadine and I joke that we are the Jareds of Jamba Juice.  I do know that there will be smoothies and oatmeal in my future and that makes me happy.

2010 in pictures

January

My first run of 2010

Southern California Half Marathon—PR!  Heidi, Odessa and Rod ran it too.

February

I ran a fantastic race at Surf City.

Kelly, Heidi and I ran the OC Chili Trail Race (Heidi and I ended up doing the entire series.)

I was able to meet blogger friend, Glenn at the Winter Trail Run 21K.  It was Glenn who told me about the race and introduced me to some of his trail-running friends.  After this race, I was hooked!  I knew I could run any trail after completing this brutal course.

March
I met another blogger, Danica, who was volunteering at the PCTR Malibu Creek race.

And I finally met blogger Penny.  She and I have run so many of the same races.  It was so nice to finally meet face to face.

At this race, I did my first river crossing.

Heidi and I ran the 2nd OC Chili Race.

April

Heidi and I in the last OC Chili Race.

May

Xterra Malibu Creek 22k

Palos Verdes Half Marathon with Rod, Jeff and Joan

Laguna Hills Half Marathon with Penny and Glenn

June

Fontana Half Marathon with Kelly, Jeff and Rod.

Camp Pendleton Mud Run

Team Jamba Juice!

 
My first Age Group Award in the Villa Park 5K!  



July

I won my age group in the 10K

Pacing my sister-in-law, Kristi, to a 5K PR.

Coronado 15K

Randomly bumped into blogger Luis at the beach.  Such a small world!!

August

I met a new friend, Nadine, through Team Jamba Juice.  She and I ran the LA Mud Run together and realized that we are living parallel lives.  You will probably be hearing more about Nadine in the weeks to come.

I met Nadine in Long Beach for a couple of training runs.  She and her running group know how to have fun.

September
Paced Kristi on another 5K PR.  I like this trend!

Beautiful run in Back Bay

October
Blogger meet up with Aron.  She helped me feel better about my disappointment at the Long Beach Marathon.

Celebrating with friends after Long Beach (my friend Stacey and her brother, Eric had run their first half)

 

Pacing Shannon in her first half marathon!

November

After pacing Kelly in her first marathon!

December

The Gladiator Rock ‘n Run. 

Hiking in the rain and mud with my family*

That about covers my year of running.  2010 was difficult personally, but as you can see, I had some great running moments.  I am looking forward to even more great running experiences in 2011.  Thanks for riding along with me.

*This last set of pictures doesn’t really have anything to do with running, but getting out and active with my family was an important part of 2010.

Happy Running….