The Not So Scary 20 Mile Monster

On Friday afternoon I checked in with "meteorologist" Dianna and we decided to go ahead with our scheduled Saturday plans—20 miles. There was a chance of rain showers for Saturday and Sunday, but we were lucky. The rain held off, and even though it was extremely humid, the cooler temperature was nice for running.

Friday evening I headed to Dianna’s house for carb-loading and relaxing. I had a great time and even though I have been eating much better for the past 3 weeks (salads everyday), Dianna probably saved me from making some un-wise eating decisions. (My sweet tooth "acted up" this past week. Around 10:00 every night I had extreme cravings for chocolate, which of course I had to satisfy with a handful of chocolate chips). :)

I ended up sleeping over Diannas to save time in the morning. But unlike sleepovers I had in high school—this time there were no pillow fights, junk food overloads, or talk about cute boys. Who am I kidding? Of course there was talk about cute guys!! ;)

This morning I woke up feeling really good, but extremely nervous. My last long run came close to being a disaster so I was worried it would happen again. At 7:30 Dianna and I were joined by Charlie and Dave for our first 10 mile loop. Normally I am quiet, but I was really quiet as we headed out on the trails, full of nervous energy. After awhile I found my groove and before I knew it, we were back at the house. We had averaged a 9:37 pace.

Back at Dianna’s house I changed into my new sneakers and refueled (peaches and a new Gatorade). We headed out for another 10 miles, this time on the roads and with Michelle. The next ten miles were difficult, but not impossible. I think I "zoned out" during miles 14 and 15. At that point I ate some gummi bears which helped, but around mile 17 I started "watching" a slide show of images in my head.
First slide— an ice cold glass of water
Second slide—a cold shower
Third slide—Lance Armstrong!!
I started thinking…Okay, I can get through this. If Lance Armstrong can survive cancer and go on to win the Tour de France a million times, I can certainly keep running. But…my legs are so tired. I wonder if I’ll be able to keep this pace on race day. I can’t believe I just ran 17 miles. Keep up with Dianna and Charlie. Don’t walk!! Don’t walk!! Hey, at least I’m feeling 100 times better compared to my last long run. I can do this. I know I can. Just a little longer.

A few miles later we finished, averaging a 9:10 pace for the last ten miles (actually a little slower for me because I fell a minute behind Dianna during the last mile).

Right now I feel really good. Granted, I did take a 2-hour nap this afternoon but I’m not sore and looking back I’m really pleased with how the run went this morning.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend. I had the best of intentions of catching up on blogs this afternoon, but my computer was acting funky. I’ll try again tomorrow. Happy Running!

Adventures at the Run In

(photo of my old sneakers)

I bought a new pair of sneakers yesterday! That sounds like a simple statement, but of course there is a little story to go with it. :)

My first time experience at the little sneaker store called the Run In was interesting. When I first arrived at the store I noticed the small, dusty display window. There were two old, faded sneaker promotion posters hanging on the glass window and behind them the space was filled with shoeboxes. I started thinking—--Is this place still in business? ---Is it possible that I just drove 2 hours for nothing? Thankfully, when I pulled at the doorknob, the door opened. I wish I could have taken a picture of the store. It was crazy! There was one small path open for customers to walk from the cashier to a bench. Other than that, there were shoeboxes everywhere!! The shoeboxes were piled from the floor to my waist, and some even higher.

Immediately I saw the sales clerk, an interesting older man. I explained what I was looking for and he told me take off my sneakers so he could see what type of sneaker I needed. As he looked at them, he muttered a few things under his breath and then scurried off to the back room. At one point I heard a few boxes fall in the back room, which was immediately followed by some major swearing. When he came back I tried initiate some polite small talk, but with his one word responses I didn’t get too far. He did however hand me six pairs of sneakers, which he recommended for my "foot type". I tried them on and I was allowed to take them for a "test drive" outside on the sidewalk. After I picked out a pair (Asics GT-2100), he bluntly explained that my old sneakers were too small for my feet and that I needed a bigger size. I thought---I hope this man really knows what he is talking about. I have been buying size 7 ½ sneakers since high school and I have never had a problem. But I suppose if he can find six pairs of sneakers ideal for my "foot type" in a crazy, crowded little shop then he must know what he is doing.

So I paid the bill, said thank you, and walked out of the store $85 dollars poorer, but 100 percent happy with my new sneakers!

Good Bye Nikes!
February = 22 miles
March = 22 miles
April = 73 miles
May = 85 miles
June = 103 miles
July = 113 miles
August = 153 miles
September (to today) = 69 miles
Total = 640 running miles

New Haven 2005 Pics.

David, thank you for the pictures.



Whose idea was it to take POST race pictures? :)

New Haven 20K Race Report

Simply wonderful—the race, the weather, the post-race food, the spectators and of course meeting some of the RBF members in person. I couldn’t ask for a better day.

I arrived in New Haven at 7:45 (which could be my biggest accomplishments of the day—not getting lost on my drive to New Haven, which took an hour and 45 minutes). :) I quickly found Dianna, Bill and Jon at the pre-arranged meeting spot, said a quick hello and then headed off to find my race number and the bathroom. When I returned I met Susan, Laura, Sarah and Michelle. We soon headed off in different directions and before I knew it, it was time to line up at the starting line. I started scanning the crowd for an orange hat. Where were the RBF bloggers? Time was ticking and I didn’t know what to do. Eventually I saw someone jumping up and down and waving. I quickly realized it was Jon the Mexican Jumping Bean. :) Sarah and David were with Jon, but Dianna was missing. I quickly asked them about their anticipated paces. I had no idea how to pace myself. I normally let Dianna deal with the pacing while I try to keep up with her.
Without Dinna I tried to find my own pace.
Mile 1: 8:20(ish) Perfect!

Mile 2: 8:10(ish) If I wanted to finish alive I knew I needed to slow down. I had been running near Sarah so I said good bye and smiled as she took off like a bullet. (What a talented runner!)

Miles 3 to 11: I have no idea what my slits were. I just ran. I smiled at the sun, watched people pass me, tried to pass people, made polite conversation with a few runners, and enjoyed the view of the bay. The cheers from the sidelines were encouraging and the bands were fun, although I really missed Dianna’s singing this year. :)

Mile 11: Dianna came up from behind me. We chatted for a minute and then she was off. After she left, Jon pulled up beside me. I was thankful he was running at my pace. We were able to survive the last mile and half-ish together. I had a blast because Jon was really funny. I could hardly breathe because I was laughing and trying to pick up the pace—not a good combination, but well worth it!! At the end we saw Susan, Lara, and Sarah cheering us on. My final kick was pitiful, but I finished with a PR so I was excited.

Chip Time = 1:42:54 (my pacewas 17 seconds faster than last year)

Afterwards, we had fun exchanging race stories and getting to know each other. Everyone was even nicer than I had imagined. And of course, there was more eating and drinking. Did anyone else notice that the RBF weekend seemed to be center around food and the race just happened to be a bonus? :) We even made tentative plans to meet for dinner the night before the Hartford race. I can’t wait until then!

Thanks to Dianna for being the New Haven Ambassador. I hope we can count on you again next year!?!

Priorities

Did you read flatman’s post from Tuesday? I am glad I'm not the only one addicted. :)

I headed back to class this past Monday which made me think about my priorities and what I hope to accomplish this semester. This semester I need to make several things a priority:
~ marathon training (which includes healthy eating)
~ grades
~ being spiritually fed (I know it sounds a little corny,but how else do you say it? Lately I feel like I have just been "skimming the surface" of my faith.)
~ trying to be a loving daughter, sister and friend

This means I need to make some changes....

I love reading the RBF blogs and I can not thank you enough for all your motivation, advice, and encouragement, but I need cut back on my blogging and commenting.

I also had to give up my mid-week run with the Running Chicks because I signed up for a Bible study. I felt like a jerk when I had to e-mail Dianna, but I should have known she would be completely understanding. Her response even made me laugh, "Don't feel guilty about feeding your spirit! That's a good thing. It's not like you joined a beer-drinking club!".

Marathon training will go on as always…and if I could study and run at the same time life would simply be perfect. :)

Here’s to wishing for a speedy semester! This is my last full semester and then a great adventure will begin—figuring out what the next chapter in my life will hold. I hope you are enjoying the last few weeks of summer weather. I always think of Mark’s quote from last year as fall weather approaches, "For me, running in the fall is like eating chocolate for breakfast, lunch and dinner".