The Run for Chocolate

There are two different ways I could write this entry about the "Hot Chocolate" race I ran this past Saturday. I could spend the post complaining about the race organization and the "epic fail" that the event has been described as by runners and media sources in DC. Or I could tell you about my personal experience and how I had an incredible race and a great time with my friends. Knowing me the way you probably do by now....you know I will choose the more positive one :)

So....I got up at the crack on dawn on Saturday morning....after going to bed later than I planned and not sleeping all together too well. I donned my running gear (complete with new running leggings under my shorts to keep warm) and made myself my normal race morning breakfast. For those of you that don't know....that's a cup of coffee, peanut butter bagel thin and a banana. I had laid out all my race day materials the night before but went through my mental checklist anyway and made sure I had everything I needed. I even had enough time to add one more "new" song to my running playlist on my ipod before I set out to meet up with my friends.

By 6:30 AM I was in Julia's car along with Sue and we were on our way to the National Harbor to arrive early enough for Sue to do the 5K (Julia and I were running the 15K which had a later start time). The 7 miles we had to travel from our meet up spot took WAY longer than it should have. All this thanks to accidents, road closures, and heavy traffic all funneling into the National Harbor....which was so not able to handle the 20,000 runners that were allowed to register for the race. We got there so close to the 5K start that Sue actually had to jump out of the car before we parked. Turns out they delayed the start so long that she didn't really have to....but we didn't know that at the time.

It was COLD Saturday morning (36 degrees when we got to the start line) but I didn't feel cold after our brisk nearly 2 mile walk to the start line. And that would have been perfect....except things went terribly terribly wrong on race morning for the organizers....and the 15K started over an HOUR late! The time went by quickly though because Julia and I chatted with one another and with other runners but in the meantime....my muscles stiffened up and when the race finally started....my shins and calves really hurt. So we waited quite a while....but finally we got to run. The first 4 miles went by in a breeze...well except for the tightness in my calves. But with Julia by my side....I just kept chugging along. As we got nearer to the 5 mile mark though....the sense of impending doom that was the long uphill climb started to settle in. I walked a lot of that hill. :) And when I got nearly to the top (at the 5 mile mark) I checked the running app on my phone for our pace. We were near 10:30 and there was a very sweet text message I had received since the start wishing me luck. That made me smile and helped me push on. We came around another half mile and returned to the starting line. But at this point we were just more than half way done. The half mile downhill went by SO quickly. We just let out legs go and flew! I was weaving in and out of other runners....eager to take advantage of the momentum. And at the bottom of that hill...at the 6 mile mark...I started to run out of gas. Julia reminded me about the Clif Energy Shot I had in my pocket. We had both taken one at the 5K mark and it was about time for another. I quickly squirted it into my mouth and by mile 7 I knew it had hit me. After the race Julia said she could tell when it had hit me too....that I just took off :) We kept on...winding up and down more hills and along the harbor by the water. Nearing the 8 mile mark we passed a volunteer who cheered us on like a former drill sargeant might. It was encouraging. And Julia pushed me to push hard til we crossed the 8 mile. In that moment I might have uttered "I hate you" to her under my breath. LOL Now we were in the final push. Whenever I get inside the 2 mile mark I always have these moments in my head where I start the logic. Its just 2 miles....I do that in my sleep. Here we were with only 1 1/4 left and the last 1/2 mile all uphill.

While I loved that hill between 5 and 6 when we got to fly all downhill....I knew it would be tough on the way back. I was WAY too in my head about that hill....I was dreading it too much. And when we flew through the tunnel and around the corner to where we could see the finish line. I knew it was time to hit that hill. I walked some of it. But Julia was there....cheering me on that we were almost there. We crossed the 9 mile threshold and there was the finish line ahead. They were calling out runners names...and I didn't hear mine but it didn't matter....I couldn't wait to cross and be done. And when I looked down at that phone app after we got our water. I nearly jumped for joy (okay I actually did later).....not only had we beaten the 1 hour 45 min time I wanted to finish in....I had set a personal best pace time for any race greater than 5K!!!

I didn't get any chocolate the day I ran for chocolate....but I got something better. A personal best pace time. Another great run with a great new friend. And our own personal after party with Julia and Sue. Both of these ladies are on my Ragnar team that will run 200 miles in January. I cannot wait!!!

Thanksgiving 10th Birthday 10K

What a great way to start Thanksgiving! I got up this morning and my sweet 4 year old and I sang "Happy Birthday" to his older brother....my wonderful 10 year old!!! I had decorated the dining room and put out his presents. So in the very early morning hours (before 7AM on a non school day is very early for us) I got to watch that sweet boy open his birthday presents and be so happy with a celebration meant just for him. :) I love birthdays for that reason....a day where the celebration is dedicated to you. After our breakfast....I dropped the boys with their dad and headed out to Ashburn for the 10K race. (As a sidebar...my oldest thought it was great that I was running a 10K on his 10th birthday....I burst that bubble just a little when he got too excited and asked me to place 10th to make it even cooler....I had to explain to him that mama is NOT that fast...LOL).

So....I was already a little annoyed with the organizers of this race because in my preparations for the race I had checked out the water stops along the course and found only ONE! I have run many a race now.....and only one water stop in a 10K is not quite the norm. If you read yesterday you saw my rant about this (if you didn't, check it out here). Now that sets you up to know that I was already irritated. That annoyance grew even more when I arrived more than half an hour before race to find that the lots I was told would be available for parking had no spots! I am not so new to this to think that this wouldn't happen so I had scoped out a few alternatives the night before. I had to fall back on that plan. Admittedly it wasn't a great "Plan B"....the shopping center adjacent to the running course has a grocery store. Why is that bad you ask? Well....it is Thanksgiving day....do you know how many people hit the grocery store that morning for forgotten items?!?!?! I do....just ask me :) But the good news about this same shopping center is that it has a Starbucks! No no no I was not going to stop for a latte before my race. But I was going to....and did....stalk the coffee lovers leaving the shop until I got a parking space! That did take a considerable amount of time. I got out of the car with 7 minutes until race start time and not a good idea of how far I really was from the starting line. So I got out.....grabbed my needed race gear....and warmed up for the race by....well....running to the start line!

Fortunately the disorganized race organizers held true to my existing ideas about them....the start was delayed. While normally I would have been further irritated...this actually worked out for me :) Once the race started...I was happy to be off and running again. My last training run had felt great. I had found myself a good energy gel to consume partway through the race. And after it was over, I got to go home to see my family and stuff my self (guilt free) with Thanksgiving trimmings! The course was actually very nice. Mostly flat with a few small hills and all road with no mixture of road and trails. I used my new running app for the first time in a race situation. It really helped push me at the end when there wasn't much left of the race. Although it did help to further my irritation with the race organizers (poor folks can NOT catch a break with me)

because the course was closer to 6.5 miles than 6.2. Yeah I can handle the extra .3 miles but my time is supposed to be based on 6.2 and I am crazy about getting my time right :) Like several other races I have done, I had come alone and run alone. So I didn't stick around for the post race festivities. I took a quick post-race self portrait and then headed home to get cleaned up for the Thanksgiving/Birthday celebrations.

Happy Thanksgiving All! I am so grateful to be able to stay healthy enough to complete all these races and for all that running has brought into my life. I am also grateful for all the family and friends that support me. If you are reading this, you are among those people. Have a great Thanksgiving.

XOXO - Jenn

Am I allowed to have a race pet peeve?

I decided to map the directions to packet pick up for tomorrow's race while at work today, and thought that I should go ahead and review the instructions as well. I was pleased at the details presented in the packet....its a local race and those don't always yield the best instructions to runners. But this group impressed me with their level of detail. And if you know me...I am a detail girl so its kind of a big deal if your organization impresses me :) The race is a 10K..because a 5K turkey trot wasn't enough of a challenge right? ;) For you non-running, non-metric folks that is a total of 6.2 miles. I have run other 10K races...as well as longer and shorter distances. And I have to say that I am bothered by the lack of course support for this race. I got to the part of the packet where they discuss prohibitions. No strollers. OK. No dogs. OK. No headphones. Ummmm. I usually ignore this when I see it show up in a race packet, because I run with music. I have to. I don't always use the music, but there are times when I need it. And I will not go without. I am usually respectful of this request though and only wear one earbud so that I can still hear the course officials....or remove one when I come upon a course official. Their reasoning, of course, was just that....course officials cannot be heard well with headphones on. Ok. So they intend to have lots of course officials that have important info to tell me. Yeah right. Now on to the pet peeve. The packet goes on to further state that they will have course officials at every mile marker calling out times (that's the folks with stopwatches who let you know how long it is taking you to run the race). Great. But there is only ONE water stop along the whole course.....just before the halfway mark....at mile 3. Seriously?!?!?! You are going to have all these people with stopwatches telling me my time at every mile....but no one to hand me a dixie cup of aqua until mile 3??? Maybe I am spoiled. I am used to courses having water about every 1.5-2 miles. Having no water support until halfway and then not again until the end just seems absurd. I will, of course, now carry my own water. But it seems that if you are going to put that level of detail into your race organization....you could have thought about the runner support component. Okay now that I have ranted....here's my question: I have only been a self declared "real runner" for about a year and a half....do I have a right to be picky? Has my quest for 100 competitive miles this year made me a race snob? And if I am going to be a snob, don't I have the right to know these kinds of details up front BEFORE I give you my hard earned cash to come and run in your race? Thoughts I will likely ponder during the race tomorrow.

Trail Run Preview

After gathering some inspiration from not really running like I should the last few weeks and reading some great blogs online by inspiring runners, I decided that Sunday was the day I was getting my intensity back. So I laced up my running shoes (yeah the ones I use to run outdoors that I have not worn since mid-September) and headed out to Burke Lake Park. This is the same course I will run on Saturday for the "Drumstick Dash 8K" It was an absolutely beautiful day for a run! The leaves are still beautiful shades of orange and red, the trail is gorgeous and the view of the lake just so calming, and the 4 1/4 mile loop around the lake had the perfect amount of people. What does that mean you ask?? Well...perfect to me means that it isn't crowded so I can run at whatever pace I want and not have to try and move around people or have them need to do the same to me. It also means that there were enough people around that I felt accountable to these strangers somehow to keep running and not take too many walk breaks :) So I ran the whole loop.....then added on a bit so that I could complete a full 5 mile run. I tried a few new things during this training run that are worth mentioning.

• My new phone has a running app that uses the GPS to track the distance. SO cool!!! Yeah I am late to that party but I just got the new phone....what can I say. I didn't know that it was talking to me most of the run until part way through when I checked it to see my pace. I wonder how many of those strangers heard it talking :)
• During the Zooma race back in June I had tried a gel that made me sick. I swore off the gels at that point, being too scared to have those lingering effects again. But I know that the energy they give me through a longer run are good....and they are easy to carry. So, the last time I was at the running store, I grabbed a few. It was great! No stomach issues AND it did give me that little extra perk I needed. I used it half way through the run and there were times in the 2nd half when I was running close to a 7 min mile! I didn't think I could actually run that fast for a sustained period!!! That is a repeat for sure. Probably during both of my races this coming long weekend.

I took Monday night off...even though I should have squeezed in another run. My shins are tender....and I am remembering not to push too hard or be too intense. The Ragnar is just more than 6 weeks away. I have got to be healthy for that...especially since many of my partners in crime are not :( More on that in another post.

Always Apologizing :)

I always seem to be apologizing for NOT keeping up with my blog....sigh....the trials of being a single mom....they sure catch up with you and before you know it. Wham! No time to update :( I am currently on a roll with making promises....so here's one more. Tonight/tomorrow I will update my blog for all the races I have done since the "preview" to the half I wrote back in June. Then I am committing to updating WAY more frequently...at LEAST once per week. And I am adding back in my "Log Your Run" widget to run along the bottom and track my training runs for you. My committment to you....will be my committment to preparation for a FANTASTIC Ragnar. And who knows where from there. My friend Aaron keeps telling me a marathon is in my future....hmmmm....maybe let's just get through this year without injury and with success and then I can START thinking marathon type thoughts :) So.....here goes!

Rock and Roll 1/2 - Philly Style

Two weeks ago I ran the Rock and Roll half marathon in Virginia Beach as a relay with a good friend. But today....I was on my own. I traveled to Philadelphia the day before the race and took in some sites, picked up my packet, and used the race as a chance to CARB-LOAD with some AMAZING crab ravioli!!! Then it was off to bed to prepare for my 2nd ever half marathon.

My hotel was only a mile from the start line (and was actually smack in the middle of the course), so I had really set myself up nicely to "sleep in" before the race. I will definitely take that! I had strategically purchased some "race morning breakfast" foods to have in the room so I didn't have to try and buy myself some breakfast anywhere....I knew that my hotel being on the course would mean lines at any eatery that was open at that hour...and I couldn't risk being late. So I scarfed down my breakfast and took some coffee to the start with me. The one mile walk was a nice warmup for the race....I got going at a brisk pace and got to the start line before I even knew it! A nice addition to this race was the fact that a friend of mine from college was running it as well. We didn't plan to run it together but we did get to meet up at the start line and chat while we waited for the waves of runners that took off before us. Before long, it was time for our wave to take off on the 13.1 mile journey. I spent the first mile or so running alongside my good friend and her good friend. But they weren't planning to run this race for time....so I pulled ahead to focus on my race.

There is something to definitely be said for this course.

It started in downtown Philly and nearly the first five miles took place on roads throughout the city. We ran past Independence Hall, Benjamin Franklin's gravesite, the Franklin Museum, and Reading Terminal Market. I am including a shot of me as I head down Arch Street (just near the Reading Terminal Market). Then as passed Eakins Oval around 5 miles we started to head out away from the city on more highway-like roads along the Schuykill River. How incredibly beautiful! I just ran...listening to my music...enjoying the September sunshine and the beautiful view of the river. Just before 9 miles, we headed across the Falls Bridge (a really neat steel truss bridge) and then ran back down the river, heading back toward the city. I felt really great....until about 10 miles. Then...all the energy I had...all the enthusiasm and excitement.....just left me. With a 5K still left to run....I had nothing left in the tank! Not really sure how this happened....or how to prevent it...but I just hit the wall! I struggled through those last 3 miles....knowing that at the end I could shower, rest, eat, and get ready for the Phillies game I have tickets to tonight. Sigh. I had such high hopes that this post was going to be epic. A tale of how amazing my pace was, how great I felt, how I set a crazy PR. But no. But I am a believer in silver linings, so here goes: I finished! I finished ever so slightly faster than my last half (ok so technically I set a new PR). AND I can't wait to run another one! But first let's get through Ragnar...just 3 1/2 months away now!

Relay at the Beach

Just two weeks ago I ran the Hartwood 10 miler with a new friend. Yesterday I ran the Rock and Roll 1/2 Marathon with an old friend. This race we ran a little differently than Julia and I ran the 10 miler. This time we tackled the half marathon not side by side but together as a team. We registered and completed the 1/2 marathon as a relay team. My good friend Sue and I are big fans of the CBS Show "The Big Bang Theory" and decided that our relay team would be called the Bazinga Babes. We even made our own t-shirts for the race :)

Just like all other races, we had to be at the start line well ahead of the race, but unlike other races, we had to get there even earlier because Sue had to catch a shuttle bus to the relay exchange point. One of the very cool things about this race was our relay baton....a drumstick! But after getting to the satellite parking to catch our first bus to the start line, we realized that very cool baton was still on the counter at Sue's parents house! Ahhhh! We had to drive back and retreive it and then return to the satellite shuttle area. Guess it wouldn't be a race for me if there wasn't a little drama included :) Fortunately we were able to get to the start line and shuttle to the exchange point in enough time! But now Sue and I were separated by nearly 8 miles....so we texted one another until I was able to actually start the race. Gotta love technology! Once we got started I was feeling really good. Not at all like the 10 miler two weeks ago. I was feeling strong and making good time. This being a Rock and Roll series race, the energy was extremely high along the course with local bands every mile or so and local cheerleading squads literally cheering us on. In addition to that, the town of Virginia Beach just really turned out for the race. I felt uplifted and moved by all the energy! Coming in to the mile and a half before the relay exchange we had gotten out on a part of the course that was further from the city and there were no crowds or bands. Just runners and the road. I had turned my ipod on a few miles back but wanted to see how the energy changed now. Removing my earbuds and listening to the rhythm of the race was extremely cool. At that point, no one was talking...just running. It was strange, eerie, and relaxing all at the same time. But I needed to focus, so back went the earbuds!

Focus I did, coming strong into the exchange and handing off to Sue to finish off the remaining 5 miles of the race for our team. There was a few moments in that last mile and a half where I thought about staying on the course and finishing the entire race side by side with her. But knowing that Philly is looming just two weeks on the horizon, I decided to let her finish strong on her own and catch the bus to the finish line. And just over an hour later....we were reunited! And finishers! With cute medals to go with :) Next up.....a full 13.1 all on my own in Philly! Looking forward to trying to beat my last time from the Zooma in June.