Tag: 13.1

Platte River Race Recap

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Yesterday’s post explained my love affair with Denver. Today I’m excited to share my first experience of an out of state race. To catch you up to speed, I had a minor set back on Saturday when I had the joy of feeling full altitude sickness. We drove into the mountains, and a combination of curvy roads, altitude change, and dehydration caused me to be out of commission for 2-3 hours. I still wasn’t feeling up to par by Saturday evening, but I knew if I stayed in bed all weekend, I would feel even worse.

This is where I started to panic. Weak as can be, I was somehow supposed to run a half marathon the next morning. How is this even going to happen? I honestly regretted the race and trip at this point. I was pretty sure I wasted time and money just for me to end up sick. Darren wasn’t going to let me waste any more time. So after driving all over to find me food and drinks I could keep down, I was finally able to get out of the hotel and we kept the night low key, and I made sure to over hydrate.

Sunday morning came, it was race day! Good morning to an early wake up call, nervous stomach, and over thinking. Luckily I was feeling better, at least I thought I was, I always feel like a train wreck race mornings, mostly due to the nerves. One less thing to stress about was the weather, it was perfect, almost too good to be true. A little bit of sun, a little bit of a chill, and not a drop of rain or snow in sight!

Perfect weather!

How could you not relax driving towards this on the way to the race?

We got to the race early, and I took my first steps in the parking lot. My pace was slow, but I wanted to shake my legs out. I decided to wait until race day to do any running. If I had a bad run on Saturday, I knew I would worry about it right until the start and even during the race. I took my spot in wave 3 (2:15 and above) I wanted to make sure I’d start with a comfortable pace and wouldn’t try any 8:30 miles.

Ready to go!

The race started off at a good pace, and I quickly found a comfortable spot. With every turn the mountains were in the background, almost surreal. There were many times in the first mile that I still couldn’t believe I was out in Denver running a half marathon. Am I crazy?

Quickly after mile one we headed to a paved path which immediately made for a very tight run, there was even one point where we were stopped and walking because there were so many people. Water stops were every two miles, which I made sure to take full advantage of. I was already thirsty before the first stop, and I knew staying hydrated would be key to making it to the finish line.

The first couple miles I spent figuring out my pace, checking over my body to see how I felt, and trying to find my place in the crowded path. I decided beforehand I would take some Gu at mile 4 and 8. Well, it must have helped because when I got to mile 5, I was at a 9:30 pace. Whoah! Slow down and don’t get ahead of yourself.

Miles 6 through 9 I kept a pretty even pace. I stopped at all the water stops and took my Gu at mile 8. At this point in the race I felt comfortable, my body felt good, my pace wasn’t too quick and I was just taking in the moment. The wind started to pick up, but I tried not to let it get to me, and I kept pushing on. I even passed people, something I have rarely done in a half. The course up to this point followed the Platte River and we had multiple bridges to run over and under. Including a few that shook and reminded me of running at Bur Oak. There was even a dirt path next to the pavement that gave provided some relief throughout the race.

Right around mile 10 the path opened up a bit and I could tell we were getting close to the finish and into the city. The sky also darkened at this point, and it became a race to get to the finish without getting caught in a storm. Lucky mile 11 came and I started to cramp. I knew by this point I was a little dehydrated and my pace started to slow. I started checking my Garmin about every ten seconds. Throughout the race I had been on pace to PR, and like always I knew it would come down to the last two miles.

Mile 12 finally showed up and it was the mile I had been dreading the entire race. There was a “small” hill right at the finish. This hill lasted what felt like a half mile and once everyone made it to the top, the wind took full force. I was blown around multiple times, I started to think I was going to get blown off the bridge and wouldn’t make it to the finish. Coming down the bridge, I knew I was close, and as we turned the corner I could see the balloons at the finish line. My first thought was, “OMG, it’s finally here! Just keep moving, and the cramps won’t kill you” I was so excited for this moment!

Fact: I never remember the finish to a race. I get into a weird sprint the last 50 feet and black out everything. But, I actually remembered this one, and I was thrilled to see Darren on the side, taking pictures, so of course I had to smile. I glanced at the clock and saw 2:16. I missed it. But….Garmin said 13.2, and by my calculations for a 13.1 race, I got a PR by a few seconds. WHAT!!

Couldn’t have done it without him

Here I am, in Colorado, running my first half of the year, and I ran a PR for 13.1 miles. I never even dreamed this would happen. Throughout the race I knew I had the chance of getting close, but after the last two miles, I gave up the idea of finishing strong and just wanted to finish. I don’t even know how it happened, but I felt great during the entire race. Even with cramps at the end, I couldn’t have asked for a better race. I was relaxed, and just let my legs lead the way. I was so excited to say that I finished and I had half number 5 under my belt. Half number two in the 25 challenge was in the books! I ended up placing 727/1421 of all the lady runners, and 64/110 in my age group. Not bad.

This race was exactly what I needed to jump start half marathon season. I fell in love with the distance all over again, and I can’t wait to enjoy so many more this year. Colorado, not only did you give me an amazing experience, but you’ve given me a whole new meaning to the words, I love running.

Love.

Up next is the Earth Day Challenge Half Marathon in Gambier, Ohio. Molly will be dominating the race, and I’ll be celebrating my birthday! (and running of course)

Hey Colorado!

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Tomorrow I leave for the great state of Colorado! After 15.5 weeks I’m ready to take on 13.1 miles of high altitudes and a new adventure. I’ve been looking forward to this for months, as if my blog didn’t already show it. I’ve got my list of everything to pack, iPod is ready, and I’ve checked the weather about a hundred times.

I’ve had ups and downs in training, but I’ve come a long way. In no way am I expecting a PR on Sunday, but I don’t plan on just coasting through it. I’ll be running in altitudes that I can’t even imagine, and although the course is rumored to be flat, I guarantee it will be a challenge.

I’m excited to explore Denver and see this amazing city that so many people rave about. I’m even more excited to see things through a runner’s eye, find out why so many runners go out there to train. More importantly, how running in Denver will hopefully make running in Ohio much easier.

I’ve come so far, cutting down my mile pace by at least two minutes. I’ve used Gu on more than one occasion, and I’ve spent many nights with my foam roller. I’m back to the point in my running where I can just feel where a mile is. I’ve already run two PR’s this year and I haven’t even hit the peak of race season.

The greatest thing…

After running this weekend, I’ll be mentally ready to start training for my marathon. Every race this year is a challenge, and training for those wonderful 26.2 miles that await me in October.

I can tell myself to be cautious, to make sure I pace myself, drink lots of water and Nuun all weekend. But honestly, I’m going to enjoy it, soak up every single moment, and just do what feels right. I’m ready.

Platte River Training: Week 14

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It all comes down to this. Week 14, which means now I’m counting down days to the race, not weeks. 14 days. I’ve come so far in the past weeks and months, but there is so much that can happen in the next 14 days. This is where I need to be careful about what I put in my body and how I treat it. Every single pain or twinge I need to think twice about. All liquids will now be water, so wine glasses, I’ll see you after a few weeks. And all pasta is welcome back in my body. I may be going to the extreme, but I’ve put so much time and effort into this race since December 26th. Outside of Maine and the marathon, this is one of the most important races of the year. Not to mention I’ll be running in altitudes I’m not used to at all.

So let’s take a look at the past week.

Monday: Rest Day

Tuesday: 3.22 Miles

Wednesday: 3.41 Miles

Thursday: Rest Day

Friday: Rest Day

Saturday: 6.19 Miles

Sunday: Rest Day

I let my legs decide on the mileage this week. I didn’t want to push myself too hard, or get down on myself if I didn’t make it to a certain mile. The first mile of my runs is probably the hardest now. My knee just doesn’t want to give in, and makes for a very uncomfortable couple of minutes. I’ll be picking up a brace for the next couple of weeks, hoping that will help by race day.

Speaking of race day, I didn’t run the Sole to Soul 5k. We had a change of plans and I ended up in Wooster for the weekend. I’ve quickly learned I need to have an alternate race schedule for when I’m not up in Cleveland. However, I did find a race for this coming Saturday down in Marion, so I’ll be able to get in one more race before the half!

#1441

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As much as I love Cleveland, I love traveling down 71 to see old friends. Friday night was spent in Wooster, partly to make sure I wouldn’t be borrowing a friend’s couch to sleep, but also to help break down the drive. I woke up Saturday and did a short run to shake out my legs, trying not to blow away I headed around Route 83, dodging cars, and quickly found a housing development. I heard my knee pop just as I turned onto the sidewalk. Immediately I thought, this couldn’t happen, after taking two weeks off and being careful, I couldn’t bare starting the pain all over the day before the race. I slowed down and turned back. Luckily it was just a pop and some small pain. By the time I got back, it felt like nothing happened. Hopefully this was just my body’s way of telling me to be careful this weekend.

The drive from Wooster to Columbus felt like forever, probably because I was so excited to get to the expo! I was even more excited that Darren would get to experience it, and maybe it would make him want to be a runner….(wishful thinking). I got my number, pretty cool shirt and race bag, then I was off to see what I could find that “I had to add to my running closet” After spending more than I should have, and spending more than enough time, we were off to watch the Buckeyes at Eddie George’s.

We met up with one of my best and oldest friends Elayna

She stayed for the first half, and then left me in charge of Darren’s friends. Let’s just say that being the only sober person in a bar during a Buckeye game, isn’t always fun. But OSU won, so it was a great start to the weekend!

After spending about 6 hours at the bar, we met up for dinner with my old high school running buddy at this cute little pizza shop. Luckily the pizza was good, because we found out they took pasta off they’re menu. I was not a happy camper 😦

Laying in bed, my mind was all over the place. I don’t know Columbus that well, I wasn’t even sure how to get to the start of the race, or even where good parking garages would be. I wasn’t familiar with any of the race course, so I had no idea what to expect for the course. I had trouble sleeping because I was so worried about getting lost, but I could have easily overslept had I really wanted to. I was still really unsure as I was getting ready in the morning. I was so excited that a number of friends would be running their first half/full marathon. But my excitement quickly diminished for my own race. My stomach was a mess and I was undecided on long sleeve or short sleeve all morning. Stresses I didn’t need.

On my way to drop off my bag, I found Sarah, a friend from high school who was running her first. She was so excited and nervous, everything I had felt 5 months before, getting ready for Cleveland. I wished her good luck and was about ready to start. I barely fit on the street, but started to get excited as the fireworks went off and the race began.

Within the first half mile, I was already regretting running. I was thinking of ways I could get out of the race, trying to convince myself it wouldn’t be my day. Right as I wanted to turn off I felt an arm around me. Who is hugging me in the middle of the race? It was my aunt! We ran together for a few minutes, got my mind off everything and she sped up to do her own race.

The miles went on and soon I decided I needed to take a bathroom break. Waited in line for 2-3 minutes, then I was back on the road. My stomach was in bad shape and I could feel my legs slowly deteriating. The only thing getting me through was knowing I’d be a fanatic at the end. I was still keeping my normal 10:00 minute pace, but there was no way I’d be able to negative split on any miles. By mile 7 I was growing thin, my stomach was growling, cramping and on the verge of losing the Cliff bar I had in my stomach. This was about the time that the volunteers were handing out some sort of energy gel. I grabbed one. I figured nothing else could go wrong, so I might as well try one. Thinking in the bad of my mind, never try something new on race day, I figured it was worth a short, anything to help me through the race.

Slowly but surely, I started feeling better and had some energy. My legs were still sore, but I was feeling better. Thinking back, I should have put more IcyHot on to block out all pain. Around German Village I remember Elayna said she would be there to support me, I tried to find her, but unfortunately couldn’t spot her. She later told me she found me and that I looked great.

Two miles left and I hit my usual wall, not as hard, but my time was definitely slowing down. From then on it was just a solid line of fans on both sides cheering and pushing everyone to get to the finish. I don’t remember much of this part, but for the first time I knew I was going to make it. When I saw the sign that told the half marathoners to split off, I started to speed up, increasing my stride and opening up my legs, I was just seconds of finishing. And that moment never felt so good. With everything against me I made it at 2:17:38, just 2 minutes off my PR (Shouldn’t have taken that bathroom break) My greatest feeling was that I was finally a fanatic. I had worked hard to get to this point, and I could smile through the pain.

So here I am, Half Fanatic #1441. My toughest race to get to this accomplishment. And even though it was a horrible race, it made me stronger. I was 90% mentally not in the race, but somehow I made it through, had some firsts, and wasn’t far off my regular pace. Even bad races can be good.

Columbus swag

After I got myself steady I got a much needed massage, watched the finish and waited to see a fellow Muskie come across the finish line. I was already on the verge of tears after watching little kids squeeze through the fence to finish with their parents and saw a man being helped to the finish after his legs gave out 500 feet from the line. So watching Kimi finish her first marathon, I was completely overwhelmed. Even the guy next to me was excited for her. So proud she had an amazing race!

She’s my inspiration

Oh and hey back 13.1……I’ll see you next year!

Pre race jitters

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Nervous? Yes.

Scared? Not really.

Excited? Absolutely!

Sunday is the Columbus Half Marathon. After a couple of weekends off from races, I’m nervous all over again. But these are the excited nerves. There is so much to look forward to on Sunday….

  • This is my 4th half marathon this year. Remember how scared I was for my first one?
  • After Sunday I will be a half fanatic!
  • Sunday will be the first half marathon for a fellow Muskie and an old friend from high school.
  • Traveling down 71 allows me to meet up with some other friends who now call C-bus “home”
  • It’s Expo time, and I love Expo time!
  • The most exciting thing…it’s Kimi’s first marathon!! Her journey to Columbus has been amazing and she’s going to rock on Sunday!

As for me this weekend, I’m excited to see what Columbus has to offer. I’m hoping to get a time of around 2:15, maybe even 2:10. My body feels much better after taking a week and a half off after Akron. And no knee plains, which means I can run a stronger race than I have been. At this point, it’s all about enjoying the race and being proud to say that I can run 13.1 miles.

>13.1 Miles

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>13.1 Miles. Months of training and nerves at their highest, I can’t believe that in a matter of hours, everything I had worked for came together and is now over. This is the experience of my first half marathon.

Sunday started for me at 3:15am. I was so excited/nervous that I couldn’t sleep any longer. Got up to take a shower and there was no hot water in my building. Looking back, I think it was a way to prepare me for the cold I would endure later on that day. The weather was a perfect, for me at least, this was going to be a good day. Melissa and I arrived downtown around 5:30 and met with my Aunt Lori who would be running with me. Just walking from the car to the stadium was unreal. I couldn’t believe that the day had finally come. It was great to see runners in every direction, hoping it wasn’t too obvious that I was doing my first half.

Between figuring out where I needed to be in the starting line, and visiting the restroom half a dozen times, the hour to wait until the official start time seemed like forever. We were all packed like sardines, waiting to get this thing started. It took about 10 minutes to cross the starting line, and I could begin my journey. The first mile or so was crowded and to me didn’t really count. There was no way you could get to your pace, and most of the time was spent dodging people trying to get into some open road.

Around mile two I was finally in my pace, sub 10:00. I didn’t have a goal time, but I was hoping to do a 10 minute pace and just finish. I think for the first time in my life I was ok with going that slow. It would be a long hard run, and after mile 10 I didn’t know what to expect, I’d never run that far. The next couple miles seemed to be going all well. I had a good pace and didn’t need to stop at the first drink station. However, I was trying not to let the amount of miles left get stuck in my head or else I knew it’d be downhill from there.

Between mile 4 and mile 8, I think I had the most activity/changes/whatever you want to call them. We got off of the main roads and started in on some side streets, the change of scenery was good, especially when I looked up right before the 4 mile clock and saw one of my best friends cheering for me. Such a great surprise, considering how early it was, and how iffy the weather had been all morning. I noticed the streets where beginning to show true Cleveland spirit with potholes at almost every step. In the game of trying to avoid other runners and the potholes that were like a hidden mine search on the ground, I noticed that my arch in my left foot wasn’t too happy about what I was doing. I just decided to ignore it and continue on.

Mile 5 drink station was well needed and somehow I lost my aunt. I knew the pace I needed to continue on so I kept going, thinking she was ahead of me. About a mile later she came up from behind and we were able to keep our pace and make it through the halfway point of the half. Quarter of full marathon down, but still had to spend another hour out on the roads.

Closing in on mile 8, my body was slowly starting to resist wheat I was doing. The pain in my arch was getting worse, my knees were starting to question if I could make it the whole way and my sides were taking turns cramping up. I did what I knew I was allowed to do, but wasn’t too proud of, I walked. Luckily a drink station was right around the corner and I was able to full up and get another mile in the books.

Looking back now, I don’t remember much of mile 8-11. I know that I slowed down, I was cramping and I had doubt that I would be able to make it. But I kept telling myself, Pain is temporary, pride lasts forever. I had come this far, I had to make it the whole way. The crowds were amazing, just when you mentally start to break down, they’d be cheering you on. One woman in particular would ride her bike to different spots throughout the race, holding up signs to cheer us one. The one sign that kept me going was along the lines of “millions of people didn’t wake up early when you were on the starting line today” Very true, this is what I love, this is who I am. I run, and I was determined to cross that finish line. Coming back into downtown, my aunt and I separated, but I started to think that after two miles, I would be a half marathoner. Not sure if it was the rain, wind or cold, but I started tearing up just thinking about all I had done to get ready. I was putting my all into this race, I wasn’t going to stop. The last two miles, I’m sure I had a steady 12 minute pace, at least it felt like it. I couldn’t open my stride, and there was no way I was going to have a sprint finish like I was able to do in college. Seeing the blue tower at that last turn was incredible. I don’t remember getting there but I crossed the finished line. 2 hours 15 minutes and 46 seconds later I had become a half marathoner. I was exhausted, sore and freezing. My aunt gave me a huge hug and I told her I wanted to do another one.

The feeling afterward was beyond what I had expected. I knew I’d be sore, I knew I’d be tired, but I don’t think I’ve ever worked that hard for anything in my life. My arch and right knee are shot, along with many muscles in my legs being stretched and sore. But it’s a good pain, an “I gave everything I had and then some to make sure I crossed that finish line” sore. And knowing that I wasn’t in the shape I used to be in two years ago (Goodbye 7min. mile repeats) I think I did great.

So what’s next? I plan on taking this week off completely. As much as I’d love to hit the treadmill, yes, I’ve started to have a change of heart. I need time off to let my body heal. I’m looking forward to getting my road bike out and doing some cycling through the metro parks. I also plan on running another half in the fall, and of course I already have one picked out. After going online, I’m really interested in doing the River Run Half Marathon. It starts in Berea and goes through the metro parks and an almost continual down slope for the 13.1 miles. Sounds like a perfect run to do in the fall. I’m looking forward to doing some 5k’s and some possible 10k’s this summer. But one thing is for sure, I have no desire to run a full marathon….at least not this year.

My first race, at the Cleveland Marathon when I was 4 years old

My first half marathon, also at the Cleveland Marathon