Half Marathon Pics and Post Race Thoughts

Some pictures and thoughts from last weekend's half marathon:




Steve and me before the races.




The blue girl and me in the last mile, passing all the slower 10 mile runners.



My final push to the finish line.


After the race.

Although there were a few things that weren't so great with this race, I didn't want to leave people thinking this race wasn't something they should do. This was my first Team Ortho sponsored event and I'm completely sold on them. Some thoughts on the race and Team Ortho as a sponsor:

Pros
- The start line was PERFECTLY organized. They had big flags seperating out the paces, and enough space between them that everyone could line up appropriately.
- The pacers were extremely motivating, ran even splits and finished within their goal times.
- Team Ortho sponsored training runs for 8 weeks prior to the race. The training runs were well organized and lots of fun. Water, Heed, and Hammer Gel Nutrition were provided.
- There are a few rolling hills, but overall, it's a flat and fast course.
- This is a great event for a "fun run" if you want to dress up or run with friends, but is also a good course to PR on if you're looking for a competitive race.

Cons
- The race felt backwards: The first few miles were open and spacious, and it gradually became more crowded as the race went on.
- Water stops were scarce in the first 5 miles but then were almost too frequent in miles 5-10.
- That snafu with the city buses at Chicago Ave. The race director needs to look into this for next year.

Overall, I think it was a GREAT race. Obviously, I'm a little biased because I did PR here, but I still think it is a race that everyone should try.

Monster Dash Half Marathon Race Report

If you're like me and only skim blogs for the good stuff, here's the scoop:

Monster Dash Half Marathon
Previous 1/2 Marathon PR - 1:43:25
Goal - Break 1:40
Results - Finished in 1:39:07, 15th of 402 in my age group (F25-29), 36th of 1565 women.


If you want the full race report, keep reading.

Saturday morning Pre-Race:
I got to Harriet Bandshell early thinking I would be able to snag a good parking place. Apparently a few thousand people had that same brilliant idea. By 7:15, the area was packed with runners. I found parking, headed down to the bandshell to do nothing, went to the bathroom for the first time, headed back to sit in my car and do nothing there. I waited until about 7:40 and then started my warm up. I ran into Steve and stopped to chat with him for a few minutes, then stopped at the bathroom again (trip #2) and finished my warm up. It was cold out, but I decided I was overdressed and headed back to my car to shed a layer. I headed toward the half marathon start line, stopped at the bathroom again (trip #3) and contemplated how my body could seriously have to pee 3 times in less than an hour. I found my place at the start with the 1:40 group (7:38 pace), introduced myself to those around me and chatted with training buddy Chris for a few minutes. The race director announced we had 13 minutes until the gun. I noticed a line of port-o-potties right by the start line and decided I should probably go one more time. Thankfully the line was moving quickly and trip #4 to the bathroom only took a couple of minutes.

The race:
Mile 1 - Pacer Paul took off like a frickin' jack rabbit. Usually races are crowded enough that you can't start right at pace, but Pacer Paul made sure he was on pace instantly. Surprisingly, there were a number of people we passed in the first mile. I'll never understand how some people line up at the front of the pack and then start running WAY slower then everyone else behind them. Did these people not see the giant 8 foot flags along the start line indicating how the different paces should line up? Did they not see the numerous pacers holding their signs with the pace and finishing time they would run? What the hell? Oh well, we passed all those people and finished mile in 7:40 - right on pace, but I felt like I was running a lot faster than that.

Mile 2 - The 2nd mile felt awesome. Despite my 20 minute warm-up, I think I needed that 1st mile to get into my groove. Mile 2 felt great and we passed the 2nd mile marker in 7:26. Awesome.

Mile 3 - I needed water. My mouth was dry, but I felt awesome otherwise. Mile 3 split - 7:27.

Mile 4 - We finally got to the first water stop. I couldn't get to the right side of the road right away, so ended up going to the last volunteer in the row. He had 2 cups of water in his hands, but right as I was reaching out to him, 2 people in front of me grabbed those cups. Dammit!! The volunteer guy felt really bad, but I knew I would be OK without water for a few more miles.

Mile 5 - Hills, hills and more hills. Not big ones, but lots of rollers. I finally got water right before the 5 mile marker. I missed the 4 mile marker (I think it was at the top of a hill where there were lots of spectators and distractions.) Mile 4 and 5 split = 15:05, still a few seconds fast but I was still feeling great!

Mile 6 - We were starting to pass the slowest of the 10 mile runners. This mile was flat, but we lost a few seconds and finished the mile in 7:50.

Mile 7 - Yet another flat mile. I chatted with training buddy, Chris, for awhile. He was running his 1st half marathon and was doing great. As discussed in our training run, we agreed we would stick with the pace group until mile 9 and then assess whether or not we felt we could kick it in a little. Mile 7 split - 7:43.

Mile 8 - CROWDED!! The 10 mile runners were coming back on one side of the road while we were running out on the other side. There were cones running down the center of the road to seperate us. I couldn't find a good place to run. I stayed in the middle and weaved in and out of the cones. It sucked. There was just too much going on with cheering on everyone and checking out people's costumes. We were all distracted but our pace was actually pretty good - 7:32.

Mile 9 - We were a little slow on our overall time, so Pacer Paul tried to make up a few seconds. I felt like we were finally working a little. Unfortunately, just as we got to Chicago Ave, the police started yelling at us to stop to let the cross traffic through! WTF?!! Stop during a race?! Apparently the city buses needed to stick to their schedules. People were yelling at the cops to let our pace group through and the cops were yelling at us to stop and let the buses through. A couple guys ignored the cops and ran through the intersection. I followed. As long as I got across, I didn't really care what happened to the rest of the pace group (yeah, I'm stuck up like that). I guess everyone else followed suit because the pace group reunited very quickly after that. Mile 9 split - 7:50. I figured that was OK since we had that little hang up at the intersection and there was a pretty significant hill right before the mile marker.

Mile 10 - We needed to pick up the pace a few seconds this mile. The course was still VERY crowded with the slower 10 mile runners. We were constantly bobbing and weaving through other runners. I even had to jump up on the curb a few times to get around people. It was a mess. I felt like we had made up some time but this turned out to be our slowest mile yet - 8:06! Damn!!

Mile 11 - Pacer Paul was worried. We were off pace a little and with the crowded roads, it was going to be tough to make up time. I started to wonder how I was going to finish. My plan was to take off on my own after mile 9, but Pacer Paul seemed to be taking off with me. We were pushing the pace and I could feel it. Most of our pace group had fallen apart and a lot of people had fallen back a few seconds. There were 2 girls in our pace group that were dressed up like pigs. One little piggy fell off pace, but one little piggy could run! There was one pretty big hill on this mile and I was working hard to keep up with that piggy. My legs were hurting! We crossed the 11 mile mark in 7:00. Wow! I guess that explains why I was hurting!

Mile 12 - Paul knew he had made up time and could finish the race at our 7:38 pace, but I was still feeling great. He could tell and told me that if I was feeling it, I should take off. I did. The fast little piggy took off with me. A lady in a blue shirt and blue hat was right there with us too. I knew the 3 of us could hold onto our faster pace for the rest of the race, so we took off leaving the pace group behind. We finally caught and passed a guy dressed as He-Man. He was just ahead of our pace group for most of the race. Apparently, not even the Power of Grayskull was enough to last him an entire 13.1 miles. Without the pace group around me, I could feel the wind a lot more. My right quad was starting to scream, but I knew we were almost done. Mile 12 split - 7:21.

Mile 13 - Our little piggy fell back, leaving me and the blue girl to finish the race alone. We were running hard. The roads were still crowded with the slower 10 mile runners. I kept yelling "On your left!" to warn them that faster runners were coming up behind them. They were all very respectful and let us pass without incident. The blue girl finally started yelling "Slower runners, keep right!" I wasn't sure I had the authority to say that, but it seemed to work, so I started yelling it too. The 10 mile runners obediently moved right, leaving us with plenty of space to pass. Mile 13 split - 7:17.

Blue girl, me and some dude in a tie-dyed shirt pushed each other across the finish line and all came in right around 1:39.

My official time was 1:39:07, well under my goal of 1:40! I think with a not-so-crowded race course I could have run a little faster, but overall, I ran smart and that's still a PR by over 4 minutes. I can't complain about that!

Looking ahead

My husband and I were at the neighborhood drug store the other day.

Husband: Why is there so much Halloween candy? Is Halloween coming up?
Me: When do you think Halloween is?
Husband: I don’t know. Next month?
Me: What day do you think Halloween is?
Husband: (pause) October 10th?

Although my favorite holiday does fall on October 10th this year (more about that later), October 10th is NOT Halloween. In case anyone else is as ignorant as my husband, Halloween is on October 31st. That is also the day of my next race, the Monster Dash Half Marathon.

I haven’t run a half marathon in over 2 years. My positive thought is that I’m a hell of a lot faster than I was 2 years ago. A new PR should be easily attainable (knock on wood). My negative thought is that I haven’t done any real distance running since training for the Boston Marathon last spring. In fact, the last time I ran more than 9 miles was on April 20th (the day of the marathon). I’ve got some work to do.

I’m hoping to break 1:40 at this race which would give me a 3+ minute PR. I’m thinking that is a very plausible goal since this course is supposedly flat and fast. However, there are also over 1000 runners in it, so I have to consider that the first few miles will be spent fighting the crowd. Even if I don’t break 1:40, I still think a PR is in order.

So… about October 10th. You may have already checked your calendar only to find that there is no holiday listed on that date. Well, apparently your calendar is not aware that October 10th is the 4th Annual Oktrouserfest. What is Oktrouserfest? By definition, Oktrouserfest is a reunion of Ragbrai riders, congregating in the city of St. Paul for a day of cycling and beer drinking. It is held every October and was created by the founders of Team Trousermouse. Hence, Oktrouserfest.

The first Oktrouserfest consisted of 2 guys on bikes, riding the usual “highbridge loop” but stopping for a beer at every bar along the way. The next year, our entire Ragbrai team joined them, using the event as a chance for our team to reunite outside of our annual ride across Iowa. The route was concretely defined as an 18 mile loop with 6 beer stops and made an annual event. On Ragbrai, there are 2 other teams that we hang out with regularly, Short Bus and Los Bastardos. The Bastardos usually have some representation at Oktrouserfest, but it appears this year we will also have representation from the dirty south, Oklahoma , Chicagoland, and I would not be surprised if there is a sighting of Colorado's elusive Red Bear. No matter who shows up, it will be one hell of a good time.

Next weekend, I have friends in town to run the Twin Cities Marathon. I will be out cheering everyone on. If you’re running or spectating, let me know and I’ll keep an eye out for you!

St. Croix Valley (Olympic Distance) Race Report

Pre-Race:
"Should you be drinking the night before a race?" my husband asked as I poured my second glass of wine Saturday night.

That's the difference between an A race and C- race. I was racing for fun, not for a PR or a place. I highly doubt a few glasses of wine would make or break my race. So, dearest husband, while I appreciate your concern for my alcoholic tendencies, please pipe down!

I always lay out all my gear the night before a race. I couldn't seem to find anything that I needed. (It didn't help that it's been 2 months since I last raced! Where the hell did I put all my tri gear after Lifetime?!) After a minor temper tantrum, I finally got all my shit together and packed for the race.

Sunday morning the alarm went off at 5:10am. I don't mind early mornings (and 5:10 isn't really all that early for me), but this time my husband was coming along and he is most definitely not a morning person. An anxious athlete and a tired spouse do not make good travel companions on the way to a race. Thankfully this race was only 30 minutes away.

We got to the race site. Husband set off to find a cafe where he could get some coffee and breakfast. I headed down to get body marked and set up my transition. I learned my lesson at my last race and really attempted to set up a good transition area. Fortunately this was a smaller race so it wasn't too crowded and I had plenty of space.

The race director held the usual pre-race meeting and we all headed down to the beach to start the race. I was walking with Pharmie and Steve and mentioned how I was anxious to get in the water so I could pee. Some guy in front of us turned around and said, "I dont want to be behind you!" He was totally disgusted! We wondered if perhaps this was his first triathlon. I thought about that for a second and decided that maybe we need to explain to tri newbies what to expect at their first triathlon. Everyone pees in the water. During warm-ups, during the race, everyone pees. Some of us pee off the bike. Some of us pee while standing in transition. In fact, if a big race came down to the run, some of us would even be willing to shit our own pants and fling the poo to the side of the road if it meant we could pull off a big win.

That's triathlon. Deal with it.


The Swim:
All the guys took off in the first wave and the women and relays started 3 minutes later. This wasn't a big race so I found open water pretty quickly. The swim course was 2 laps around a rectangular course. I liked that a lot. I had a good pace right away but had to keep telling myself not to go too hard too early. I made my way around the rectangle and once I was heading back toward the beach, I decided to try to catch a few people. I'm not a fast swimmer, so it took me awhile to reel in each person and then get ahead of them. I was battling a girl in a purple swim cap forever, but finally I caught her feet, then worked my way up next to her. We were pretty even in swim skill, so we swam together for a long time. Together, we passed a few people. Finally, I started to pull ahead a little and was able to get in front of her. On my second lap, I could only see men around me. That was a good sign. They started 3 minutes ahead of me and I was catching a lot of them. I concentrated on staying competitive. I picked out a bobbing swim cap in front of me and went after it. Once I was ahead of them, I picked out the next person to go after. I felt great. I could feel my swim form was falling apart the last few meters, but I was almost done. I was out of the water in 28:51! A HUGE personal best for my swim! (That's almost 2 1/2 minutes faster than my swim at Lifetime!!)

Transition 1:
It's not uncommon for me to come off the swim and be completely dizzy and disoriented. I didn't feel that way at all. I was calm and and relaxed. My wetsuit came off relatively easy. It's very easy to get panicky when my wetsuit doesn't come off quickly, but I didn't have any of that today. I didn't even have to sit down to get it off. Wetsuit off, bike shoes and helmet on, off for the bike.

The Bike:
The bike isn't necessarily my strongest leg, but it's my favorite. I had new race wheels on my bike, so I wasn't sure how today's ride would go. It started out OK. It usually takes me 7-8 miles until my legs are ready to ride hard. Today my legs showed up at around 6 miles. It was a pretty hilly course at first. There wasn't any wind, but I wasn't riding fast. My computer was pretty steady around 18-19mph. Not good, but I wasn't getting passed either so I figured it must just be a slow course. The ride was pretty uneventful. The field was spread out. I wasn't catching anyone but no one was catching me either. I was pretty much just riding alone. The way back toward the park was a little faster. My computer was holding a steady 21mph. Still not fast, but better. This would be a slow bike split, but I was OK with that. There was one huge downhill at about mile 21. I was flying down it when I heard a clanking sound. I looked down and my chain was dangling from my bike. DAMMIT!! I've never had a mechanical during a race before. I had to stop in the middle of the hill, untangle the chain from my derailleur and put it back on. I got back on the bike knowing I had just lost some major time. Everyone else was flying down that hill pushing 40mph and I was sitting there at 0mph. Great. My saving grace was that I knew this was a C- race. I couldn't be discouraged because I was only out there to have fun. No matter how many people had passed me, I was out there to run my own race and enjoy the day. I finished the bike leg with a personal worst time. Ironically, before the race my husband had asked how long the bike part would take. I told him that if I was having a good race, I would be done in under 1:10 and if I was having a bad race I would be done in 1:13. My bike split was 1:13.

Transition 2:
Bike mounted, shoes changed, helmet switched out for a visor, off on the run.

The Run:
My husband was cheering about 1/2 mile into the run. I told him that I dropped my chain on the bike and lost a few minutes, but I was still feeling OK with that. Really, what could I do? I got passed by a girl a few seconds later and I was OK with that too. I was out to run my own race. Although I love races sponsored by Final Stretch, their run courses are notorious for having the mile markers off. I figured I was running around a 7:20 pace. That's OK for me. Not great, but definitely not bad either. I could see the woman ahead of me and wasn't sure if she was within reach. She looked strong. At the 3 mile mark, my total time was 2:08. That's when I realized that I was still within PR range. I decided I would give it a go. I tried to keep my pace steady, but then ended up dropping my gel flask and having to stop to pick that up. I don't know what the hell was going on with me today. My bike and my run just felt sloppy. I finished the run in 44:38.

My total time was 2:30:16, a personal best by almost a minute and a half! Not too bad for a C- race! I ended up 4th in my age group and 7th female overall. I was OK with that. Some girls are just faster than me. I had no regrets with today's race.

I was really hoping to break 2:30 this year, but I'm still happy with my season. I finished this race over 5 minutes faster than I did Lifetime, and Lifetime was my A race of the season! I guess not training and drinking the night before works well for me!

Congrats to everyone who raced at St. Croix Valley this weekend! Sounds like there were a lot of PRs!

St. Croix Valley Pre-Race Thoughts

Although I’m not looking at this weekends race as anything other than a fun run, I figured I’d still write up a few pre-race thoughts.

I haven’t been in the water in over week. I haven’t even touched a wetsuit since my last race (almost 2 months ago!). That’s not good. However, the swim is the shortest part of the race and is always my worst leg. How bad can it really be? I’m a little nervous about swimming in a river, but I’ve heard that it’s in a spot of the river that doesn’t have a current and feels exactly like swimming in a lake. Works for me. Like always, the plan is to go out, try not to drown, and attempt to be out of the water in any place other than last.

I haven’t touched my tri bike in 2 months except for a few trips to Timmers house which is half a block away. I don’t think that counts. I have been getting some miles in (on the road bike), but not like I was pre-Ragbrai. Apparently the Ragbrai boys train only for that trip and are now in hibernation until next spring. I’ve been riding with my fellow Birchwood Betty’s on Tuesdays and the LTF boys on Wednesdays. Some girl named Steph has been coming to Birchwood for our public rides the last couple months. That chick can ride! She is doing her first Olympic tri this weekend. I’m going to bet she will finish at the top of her AG. Good luck, Steph!

I've been running really well lately. I still don't quite understand why my running has come together so much this summer when I've been focusing mainly on the bike. Whatever. I'll take it. I haven't been doing any hills and I have a feeling this is going to be a hilly course. Oh well. Hills have always been my strength, so I think I'll do alright. It's all mental, right?

I have no plan for the bike or the run other than to keep my head in the game and go out and catch as many girls as possible.

I'll post the race report in the next couple of days. Good luck to everyone racing this weekend!

Football season has begun!

Keeping with my "fun" theme, I spent last weekend at the Packer's pre-season game against the Bills. This was a family vacation, and since it was all about football, you can probably guess that it was planned entirely by my father and husband.

I am really not a family oriented person. In fact, I was pretty much dreading the thought of having to spend 2 entire days with my parents. Surprisingly, it wasn't that bad and I actually had a really good time. (I'm sure the 24oz beers at the tailgate party had something to do with that!)

M husband and my parents headed to Green Bay Friday afternoon to spend some time with the Buffalo Bills at their hotel. One of our close college friends is the 2nd string running back for the Bills, so they wanted to spend some time with him before all his game day chaos.


College buddy Mike, my husband, and Freddy (Bills #22)

I, unfortunately, got stuck at work, so my brother, sis-in-law and I didn't make it to Green Bay until very late Friday night.

Our hotel was right next to Lambeau and within stumbling distance of about 5 different bars with huge tailgate parties. The tailgate parties were like any other beer garden: adults dressed like idiots, endless amounts of warm beer, Journey cover songs played by extremely loud bands with lead singers who would occassionally break out in an air guitar solo. Very Ragbrai-esque.


Husband and Dad at the tailgate party


Me and my mom getting our drink on.

There isn't a whole lot going on in Green Bay outside of the Packers. In fact, there is nothing going on in Green Bay outside of the Packers. Packer fans are nuts, but lots of fun to be around too.


Me and "the Bishop". Notice the guy on the left who has his head painted like a helmet - Told ya these people are nuts!

Best thing I saw that day... An airplane pulling a banner that said "Hey Packers, we moved your cheese!" and was signed by a Minneapolis radio DJ. Classic!

After an afternoon of tailgating, we headed to the game. There were just under 70,000 people in attendance. What are the chances of having your friends randomly end up with seats right in front of you in a stadium that seats 70,000? Apparently, really good. Mike and his wife Tanya (who we didn't know were going to be at the game) had seats right in front of us!


Me, husband, Mike and Tanya


Freddy doing his pre-game drills. Go #22!



Husband and me at the game


So, the Bills got beat, but Freddy had a decent game. We were thankful for another chance to see him, and see him play.


Me and Freddy, post-game.


Overall, it was a really fun weekend. I was glad we got to spend time with my family and got to see a few of our college friends too. Now it's back to work for a few more weeks until our next pre-season game when the Vikings host my husband's favorite team, the Dallas Cowboys!

Having fun

Everyone keeps asking me what I'm training for. The answer is, I'm not training right now.

It seems like everyone has something big on their plate right now: Ironman, a marathon, a 70.3. I have nothing. I was feeling a little guilty about that until my husband reminded me that I'm doing exactly what I set out to do this year... nothing.

Back in March, I was on a ride with Waterboy and we were discussing my goals for the year. As a pro triathlete, he is constantly on my ass to take the sport more seriously. I know I have the potential to lead my AG, and I would like to get to Kona someday, but right now I just don't have the desire. Running marathons killed me. For the last 4 years, I've been running, and running, and running. Last fall, it finally all came crashing down on me and I didn't even make it to the start line for Chicago. I burned out. I forced myself to run Boston this spring, but it was ugly and I'm still embarrassed by my performance there. I don't miss marathon training at all!

So when Waterboy asked me what I wanted to accomplish this year, I told him I wanted one year to just have fun. I was tired of feeling guilty for not wanting to workout, tired of feeling guilty if I skipped a workout, tired of feeling guilty if I got all my workouts done but couldn't remember the last time I saw my husband. Tired of it all.

This year I wanted to rewind and find the fun it all. I didn't want to have a training schedule tacked up on the wall with each completed workout crossed off and each upcoming workout hanging over my head. I didn't want to spend my weekends watching my husband go out with his friends while I went to bed early in preparation for the next morning's long run. I didn't want to be the designated driver for every girl's night out. I wanted to have fun.

And that's exactly what I've been doing.

Unfortunately, that also means I am not ready for my next race. In fact, St. Croix Valley has slowly been demoted from an A race to more like a C- race. I'm not ready. I'm not going to be ready. I'm just going to go out and have fun. If I come in first or dead last, it won't matter as long as I have fun.

Fun has been my theme lately. I am no longer doing workouts. I'm just enjoying swimming, biking and running. I run when I feel like it, for however long I feel like running. I do whatever swim workout I feel like doing that day, and if I feel like cutting it short, I do. I've decided that my Wednesday nights will no longer be spent killing myself on Birchwood's hill ride. I've been riding with a couple of guys from Lifetime Fitness instead. They are WAY more fun. We make up the routes as we go, depending on what we feel like doing and how far we feel like going. We ride hard. We have a good time. I like having a good time.

I know I'm not working as hard as I could be, but there is always next year. Next year I will be focused. Next year I will be competitive. Next year I will take this sport seriously. But next year is still four months away.

Right now I am having fun.