getting to the finish line one inch at a time.

Do two rights make a wrong? Danskin Triathlon 2012 Race Report.

I don’t think I’ve ever shown up at the Danskin Triathlon with all my bits and bobs sorted out. You’d think that I’d have a checklist or something highly organized like that but I never do. I’ve had years where I’ve forgotten my swimming goggles, my helmet all sorts of key items. Now that I think about it, there’s actually quite a long list of items I have to lug to the race. I’m going to do myself a favor and write it down, for next year.

Swimming portion:

• Flip flops I’m cool with never seeing again – seriously, we have to walk down a boat ramp to get to the water. It’s ouchy on tender feet. You can wear the fip flops until you enter the final portion before you enter the water where they have this lovely carpet stuff. Not ouchy at all. Now I’ve “rescued” my shoes for the last couple of years but that doesn’t guarantee anything.
• Swimming/biking/running outfit – there is no “changing” mid race. Maybe chuck a t-shirt over the top when you head out on the bike, but really something you can wear to  do all three elements of the race is ideal.
• Goggles – I love that Decker Lake doesn’t require a wet suit but goggles are a must. That’s some murkey water people.
• Swimming cap – the race people give you one of these when you register so it’s not technically something to pack but you do have to have it on race day so must be in your “go” bag on Sunday morning.

Biking portion:

• Sunglasses
• Helmet
• Race number sticker for helmet
• Running shoes
• Yanks – these are handy dandy shoelaces that speed up the whole “lacing up” process to a quick “yank” hence the name. Not a must have but handy.
• Small towel for getting your feet clean-ish and dry before you shove them in your shoes
• Water – if you haven’t swallowed a gallon of the lake already a little mouth sluice is helpful. Plus something to swig on mid race helps too.
• Gu – depending on your need, a little nutritional pick me up does wonders.

Running portion:

• Baseball Cap – or basically something more than sunglasses for shade. In Texas that sun can be brutal!
• Race belt
• Race number – clipped to the belt so you can quickly pop it around your waist
• Gu again – you’ve got to run a 5K remember and there’s  a pretty nasty hill right at the end just to make sure your ass is well and truly kicked.

Other nonsense

• Cell phone – preferably with a camera so you can snap pics of your bad ass self
• Lightweight bag to put all this stuff in and somewhere to stash your car keys and phone while you’re out on the course. FYI – on this one my friend Fro picked a bright orange bag and hung it on the end of her bike rack. This was the FIRST time she didn’t run right past her bike so something must have worked. But then getting the end spot is highly unusual so something to mark where all your stuff is in the throng is also ideal.
• A friend to wish you good luck at the beginning and high five you at the end. I never forget this one.

So as I mentioned, I’m usually fairly scatterbrained about the whole prep and packing situation for the race. This year I, while I still didn’t write it down, I was SO sure I’d remembered everything.

Last year I forgot the bike helmet – a particularly bone headed move if I do say so. This time when I packed in San Francisco I talked myself through the race. I mean really, it’s been SEVEN times already. I don’t need a list. Then, back in the hotel room in Austin the night before the race, I laid out all my items and checked again.  Yes, yes, yes – everything was there.

Why all the fuss this year? Well apart from helmet-gate last year it was the only thing I HAD prepared for. As I mentioned in my last post I was not my usual fit-self going into the race, and I was nervous. Having the wrong kit would just push me over the edge and send me into a full blown tizzy.

So on the morning of the race day I walked down the hallway of my hotel and something felt weird. I couldn’t figure out what it was.

Then, standing there waiting for the elevator, I looked down at all my stuff. I had my helmet, my carefully packed bag and was wearing the swim/run/bike outfit and my flip flops. Everything should be right.

Then I figured out what was weird. That was the problem, everything was right. I was wearing two right flip flops.

Seriously?

I started to laugh. Two right shoes could only be a good omen. This was going to be a good race after all. All my nervousness and concern for the race fell away. I was still ridiculous me who just couldn’t get her stuff together.

And it was a good race. Without the pressure of beating my time I took the race at what I thought was a leisurely pace. I chatted with swimmers and bikers and runners and generally had a good time. Funnily enough I didn’t even post my worst time. Not close to last year’s stellar performance but not awful.  I still managed to finish in the top 50% of my age group.

Don’t get me wrong, I was WIPED OUT for the rest of the day. I was physically drained. I really wasn’t in the physical shape to complete the race but my head and my heart won that one.

Fro and I talked after the race. I remember saying “Wow, that time wasn’t bad. If I’d trained I might have done well.” She laughed at me and commented that we both said that every year.  And maybe for the 2013 race we’d actually make it true.

She’s right you know about saying  “I’ll train for next year” and I sure hope she’s right about the training for 2013, for both of us.

So maybe between my two right shoes and her two rights we just can’t make a wrong.

You only change when the existing in the current state is more painful than changing..

Well that was a very long break.

At this very moment I’m winging my way to Austin for the 8^th Annual Danskin Triathlon. Yes, that first race that started it all is coming up again. I approach this race with a little more trepidation than usual for this year I’m just not prepared.

Now I know I’ve said that before but this time I really mean it. For the past year my focus on fitness, racing and nutrition got put on hold. Well hold his a nice word. I stopped. It wasn’t the priority. I’m going into this weekend’s race knowing I will finish but it’s going to be ugly. It’s my head that’s going to get me over that finish line not my legs.

What happened? What was the priority? Work. Sound familiar to you? I started a new job in late 2010, a job that I was very excited about and knew would push me and challenge me in ways I couldn’t imagine. Boy, I had no idea how much of a challenge it would be.  Increased travel, hours, responsibility and stress meant that lacing up my tennis shoes was the LAST thing I wanted to do first thing in the morning. And let’s not get started on my attitude at night. When I’d come home at the end of the day the only thing I wanted to do was lay on the couch and watch whatever ridiculous show was on the Bravo channel. While the TV was on my mind and body were well and truly off.

Then there’s my life long war with the munchies. Not surprisingly the increased stress and total disappearance of exercise induced endorphins (trust me – they DO exist) had me heading to the snack counter pretty regularly to make me “feel” better. Each time I grabbed a bag of goldfish crackers my motivation was to feed the problem. I usually had 30 seconds or less to “medicate” and taking a moment to think about what I was eating or take a moment to decompress wasn’t even a glimmer in my head. “Feed the beast”, that’s all it said. So I did. Oh, and all the stories you’ve heard of the snacks and goodies they have at startup companies, all the rumors are true.

The combination crazy schedule + mind numbing TV + easy and available access to snacks took its toll.

But if you know me, you know that I’ve stood here before. You know the story isn’t over yet…

For the last couple of months I’ve been wallowing in that terrible place where you KNOW that the priorities and the way things are now just can’t continue. You KNOW that you need to create some balance. You KNOW how to get fit and lose the pounds that have crept back on. You KNOW you can do it. You KNOW that if you do all these things both your body and your mind will be happier. You spend multiple weekends heading to beaches and remote parks and write furiously in your journal about how TODAY you’re going to find that motivation to change. TODAY you’ve found that “thing” that motivates you to crawl out of your warm bed in the morning and face the foggy, cold, running trail of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. You change and focus for a couple of days, and then you walk out of a challenging meeting and come face to face with the bowl of mini-chocolates you pass 100 times a day. But the beast needs feeding and while  you said “no” the other 99 times you said “no”, this time the willpower just crumbles. We all know what happens next. The day is “ruined” and the snack attack continues. It’s a slippery slope and I’ve slipped all the way to the bottom.

But this has been a long long journey for me and each time I face this I learn more about my motivation and what it takes for me to finally turn a corner. I’ve been here before.  Historically I’ve allowed myself to be in this fairly self-destructive place for years on end. The “go” and “give up” happening over and over again while my fitness level declines and the scale creeps higher and higher. Heck, you can even see this pattern on my blog. The good news is each time I learn a little more about myself and each time the “wallow” period gets shorter and I get back on track.

Am I back on track or am I still wallowing? Well I hope so. At least I think I am.

I’ve made some slightly crazy decisions in the last week that show all indications that my motivation to cross the finish line is back. I’ve made the status quo a little bit more painful and given myself a very tangible reason to embark on the journey again.  Why now?  A lot of this motivational mojo is tied to the race this weekend and the idea that in two years Laura and I will be competing our 10^th annual Danskin Triathlon. You all know how I just LOVE a big milestone. My head has been full of ideas on how to make it memorable. And that’s when the idea came…

I’ve defined myself a new finish line. A “finish line” that celebrates the 10^th Danskin and, quite frankly, kinda scares the daylights out of me. I’ll save what the new “finish line” is for another post but either way it means I’m back on here for at least another two years journaling.

We’ll see if I get to the finish line THIS time. I sure hope I do. Are you ready to go along for the ride again?

A Nod to San Francisco and a Stranger: 2011 Danskin Triathlon Race Report

Ok. Can I have a quick shout out? This was our (Team Fro Fro and Jo Jo’s) seventh annual Danskin Triathlon. SEVEN YEARS IN A ROW PEOPLE!

Enough with that roaring…back to the content at hand.

I’m sure you’re curious as to why I’m bowing my head to San Francisco in my 2011 Danskin Triathlon Race Report. Well frankly, I believe that my success this year was entirely due to living I this chilly hilly city. Let me explain..

So we’ve already talked about how this was the 7^th time I was preparing myself for the Danskin Tri. And, as usual, the date snuck up on me like a puppy at the dinner table. I found myself a month before the race thinking “Well you’re pretty fit these days, you can pull it off. You should really get into the pool, on the bike, out running.” Mostly I thought “bugger, I haven’t trained again”. Not for the lack of resources. I have a perfectly good bike in my storage unit and this year access to an endless pool (think treadmill for swimming) a mere 2 blocks from my house. As you know, I’ve also got a delightful park just outside my front door.

But I had this “you’re pretty fit” mantra running in my head. Laura and I have talked about this before. Just the actual act of living in San Francisco, even if that’s just walking outside your front door, requires you to do “hill work” on pretty much a daily basis. And unlike all our friends in the baking central states, if you haven’t heard, the weather in a San Francisco summer can be downright chilly. No “it’s too hot to workout” excuses for us.

So Laura and I showed up in Austin “San Francisco Fit” and ready to race. I won’t bore you with the details of the bike pickup, expo etc etc as you’ve heard it SEVEN times before. What was noticeable this year however was a distinct lack of people. The first year Laura and I participated there were nearly 4000 participants. This year I don’t think the group even made it to 1200. Not that I’m complaining. Laura and I both scored up front bike spots and weren’t overwhelmed by the crowds as we entered the water.

So the swim this year – not my best. I couldn’t swim in a straight line to save my life. I kept finding myself veering to the left when the course veered to the right the whole way around. I KNOW I swam further than the ½ mile course mapped. It did mean I was relatively free of other bodies so swim – check.

I trotted up the hill to my super duper bike spot, jammed on my shoes and helmet and took off again. I had one goal for the bike course. Not get off the bike. Surprisingly the Austin course is quite hilly. There’s even one hill that requires you to come screaming down one hill and make a sharp right turn to head up the other side. It’s brutal. Previous years, even when I was in better shape, I’ve had some sort of bike issue on the hills. I was determined to crank up them whatever it took. This year – SUCCESS! Hills conquered!

Back in the transition area I tossed my bike happily back in the racks and headed towards the run start. While I was jazzed about my performance so far this is where your mettle is really tested. If I haven’t said before, the run is HARD. It’s only 3 miles but it’s on grass almost the entire time and it’s HOT. Texas HOT. Oh, and if you haven’t read recently. Texas has had record highs. I was later to find out that the high in Austin that day was 102. Keeping cool and not going crazy was going to be the key to success un running the full course including getting up the dreaded hill – straight the freak up hill at the end of the course in the open blazing sun.

Have I convinced you to join us next year yet?

As I turned the corner at the bottom of that final hill I looked up with trepidation. It was going to take something else to get me up there. Just in front of me was a young woman jogging slowly and painfully. I knew what she was feeling. She started to walk and I saw her shoulders slump. The hill was beating her. As I came up behind her I gently put my hand on her back and said “Come on. You can’t walk now. You’re nearly done. I’ll run with you up the hill.”  She looked at me like I was some sort of insane person and started to run. Now I couldn’t walk. Plus she ran faster than me so I had to push to come close to keeping up. As we neared the top I could see her falter. I shouted “Come on! You can’t let the crazy lady pass you!” She started to run again.

She made it to the top. Poor thing looked terrible and it had taken everything in her to get up that hill without walking. We cheered for a moment and kept toward the finish line on the fabulously flat black asphalt. Yeah.

Now I don’t know what she said to her family and friends about the insane woman on the course that wouldn’t let her walk and nearly killed her.

But I tell you, my family and friends. This stranger on the course got me up the hill. Without her I would have walked. Without her I wouldn’t have posted my BEST TIME EVER at the 2011 Danskin Triathlon.

 

So thank you San Francisco for getting me ready. And thank you stranger on the course for making it a winning day for me. Now I’m all motivated to beat the time again in 2012. Don’t hold your breath tho. That race sneaks up on me every year. Let’s see if I get my act together this time.

Crossing the finishline back in February 2011

I’ve sat down to write this post more times than I can count. Each time I’ve written a couple of sentences and stopped. Stopped because I just couldn’t think of how to put my thoughts down on “paper” without sounding like some jerk. Wow, even reading that now I’m shocked at my opening. Then as time has gone on I’ve moved from postponement to denial. By taking so long to write this post nothing was getting written. I know, now I’m a jerk AND I’m lame.

So what happened?

I’ve been putting off writing my February race report. I put it off because I just didn’t want to celebrate it in any way. It didn’t seem like the right thing to do.

Why?

Well because a man was dying as I cross the finish line.

No you didn’t read that wrong. As I ran under the finish line banner I looked to the left and there on the ground was a man violently getting CPR. I didn’t know he was dying then, I learned that  he’d died later.

So how can I cheer about my accomplishments on here?

I’m still at a loss.

Even now, I don’t know what to say.

I keep writing sentences and deleting them.

So here’s the deal.

I’m still running. I’ve actually run a couple of races since the XX month race. I’m also kicking up my training for a Marathon in late June. I’m still struggling with sticking to my goals both eating and athletic.

What I haven’t been doing is participating in my weight loss and fitness community. Participating here or on the myriad of other digital mediums I use to motivate and focus.

I didn’t know Peter Haas. He was only 36. But I’m guessing that as he was a runner (and a fast one by all accounts) he’d give me a kick up the ass and tell me that I shouldn’t be using what happened to him as an excuse not to participate.

So here I am, participating. And please, don’t tell me that I’m not a jerk or lame. It is what it is and I needed to write it down. What I won’t be is a lame jerk any more. I

My new goal?

Participate.

And just so you can all hold me accountable. I have the Mermaid ½ Marathon on May 7^th, feel free to bug me for the race report.

Did I get to the finish line? Looking back on 2010...

I’ve been looking back at post from the beginning of 2010. I was in the same place I had been many years before. Wanting to run faster, wanting to weigh less, wanting…wanting. I made promises to myself on Moloaa beach in Kauai and gave away my television in hopes that it would motivate me finally to reach my goals.

So what did I accomplish? Let’s take a look shall we?

Weight Loss –

I’m currently 8lbs away from reaching my original goal of losing 100lbs I set for myself back in December of 2003. Yes, it’s taken me THIS long to get THIS close. Of course, over this year I moved the goal as I realized that 100lbs, while an impressive and clean number, wasn’t the right number for me. As I’ve emerged with a new body I’ve learned that I have a petite frame. A petite frame that should actually be 120lbs lighter than my starting weight.

Running Faster –

How close am I on this one? Well it depends on the day. Again, keeping my numbers all nice and tidy I’d set myself a goal of running consistent 10 minute miles over a ½ marathon course. For most runners moving the needle on the speed you run is as hard as adding muscle to a weight lifter. It’s hard. I knew that at the beginning of the year but tossed my head in disdain at the unachievable. I was going to finally lose the weight and just by being lighter I’d run faster. Or at least I hoped and prayed I would. Luckily for me I was right. I’m down some 60lbs since the beginning of the year. It’s dramatically impacted my speed and I’ve gone from an average 12:30/mile to 10:15 – 10:20/mile. Yes, that’s close to 15 seconds away from my speed goal. If my math is right, I can see the sub 10 minute mile in my future.

Running further –

This wasn’t really a goal. I just knew I’d need to run a LOT this year to meet all my personal goals. Other than a couple of times when I pressed the buttons wrong on the watch, I’ve worn my Garmin GPS watch on every single run this year. According to the little tracky thing, I’ve run just shy of a whopping 800 miles this year. Holy crap! That’s like running from X to X. Now that I’ve measured it I’m going to have to make a goal for 2011. 

Did I get to the finish line in 2010? Well no, not really. I did, however get a LOT closer than I’ve ever been in years past. I also feel, for probably the first time in my memory, positive about my accomplishments in 2010. While I didn’t reach the finish line this year I can clearly see it just over the hill in the distance. I don’t hear the voice in my head saying “OK. Here we go again…” This year I hear “Almost there!”

So what do I have planned for 2011? Well I’m already jotting down ideas I’ll be sharing with you soon. I absolutely expect to get to the finish line on the goals I didn’t finish this year. But knowing me, I’ll have added a new one before 2011 is out. But it’s not finishing the race that’s important is it? It’s about the journey.

So what’s going to be your journey in 2011? I’ll be rooting for ya!

Another ½ Marathon?!? The Rock N’ Roll Las Vegas ½ Marathon race report

I think this was my fourth running of the Rock N’Roll Las Vegas ½ Marathon. Is it bad that I’ve lost count? With all this documentation of my races you’d think this would be an easy task for me. I just updated my race schedule with my finish times and races more races I have scheduled for 2011. Something tells me it will be handy to look back on the dates, times and locations of all these events.

What I WAS clear about in prepping for the Vegas ½ was the fact that this would be my sixth race in the ½ Marathon-a-month project. Running a  ½ Marathon and being ½ way to my goal of running one a month for a year. It seemed weirdly “right” in my head.

What also seemed “right” was the idea that I needed to run a ½ Marathon. I’ve gotten to the point in the process where I’ve moved from “I SHOULD run a ½ marathon this month because you can’t give up this early.” To “Ok. It’s time to run a ½ Marathon now.” I’m not saying that it’s any easier to run the 13.1 miles. It just feels like the flywheel is spinning, I’ve created momentum and stopping now would just be odd.

I think this is also why I haven’t been highly motivated to write my race update. I made a video too. Running the ½ Marathon seemed like such a normal thing to do that I couldn’t find the hook in my story. Don’t get me wrong. I had a great time in Vegas. It was Vegas people. I was also surrounded friends who joined me for the final race of the year. I had 10 fellow runners join me out on the course (two impressively finished their first Full Marathon) and other friends who played the part of the cheerleading section. We were non-stop play from the moment we hit the ground on Friday night to the crawl to back to the airport on Sunday. I’ll still be back next year as the entertainment around the race is worth every step. Maybe you should come with us next time?

Where was I? Ah yes, the race. Again, I’m stuck for something interesting to say. The running Elvi were out in force and several couples taking advantage of the run through wedding chapel. I didn’t have a personal record but then didn’t have a bad race either. Is this what momentum is?

So I won’t go on any more about Vegas but look towards the races scheduled for next year. I’m already booked to run the Los Angeles 13.1 in January and have two ½’s scheduled for February. One race starts literally a mile from my front door, the other in Austin Texas. I’m particularly excited about the Austin race. My 13 year old nephew Gus is running his first distance race with me. He’s quite the athlete so I don’t think 13.1 miles is going to be much trouble for him. Frankly, my guess is if I let him run by himself he’d beat the pants off me. We haven’t discussed logistics yet so we’ll see what happens. Either way, I’m thrilled to be part of this experience for him.

I’ve got all sorts of other events scheduled for 2011. The Marathon leg for the Vineman Ironman Triathlon you already know about. I’m also putting a team together to run a 199 mile relay race from Calistoga, CA to Santa Cruz, CA.

Ha! I think I just found my “hook”. What happened at the Las Vegas ½ Marathon? I think I finally became an athlete in my own head. Who knew?

PS. Finishing time 2:18:44.

Hang on a second... How did that happen?

Not surprisingly, I’m fairly active (no pun intended) in the health and fitness space online. Last time I counted I was subscribed to over seventy different blog feeds. I’m also active on a couple of message boards as well. While I gave up the TV for the moment, I certainly haven’t given up my internet addiction. Hmm, now I think about it, maybe I should curtail that too.

I was on one of my favorite boards the other night. It’s full of people who’ve lost a significant amount of weight and have made exercise a significant portion of their life. These are people I can seriously relate to. The majority of the people on the board are signing up for their first 5K and asking about training programs and the like. In case you’re interested, the #1 program recommended? Couch to 5K www.c25k.com It’s the same program I followed (I just didn’t know it at the time) when I started running. Also known as, run a little bit – then walk a little bit – then run a little bit – then walk a little bit. Repeat. Next day, run a little bit further – walk a little less – run a little bit further. Repeat.  There’s also a smaller group of regular submitters who hard core. Now when I say “hard core” I don’t mean some mamby pamby ½ Marathon a month type of hard core, I’m talking about folks who’ve completed Iron Man Triathlons or Ultra Marathons.

Side bar: One of the most frequent questions I get about my running is: “How far is a ½ Marathon?” It’s funny, when I tell people it’s 13.1 miles their eyes get wide and inevitably the follow up question is: “Are they all 13.1 miles?” Just in case you were wondering, yes. A ½ marathon is always 13.1 miles.

Side Side Bar: Funnily enough, a full marathon is 26.2 miles. Not, may I add, the distance that Pheidippides ran from Athens to Sparta, but a distance established in 1924 by the Olympic Comittee because the British kept fiddling with the distance to the finish line so that the Royal Family would have a good view of the finish.

Back to my original Side bar: Now I’m just teeming with statistics I’ll finish off what I’m sure you were originally wondering. An Iron Man Triathlon consists of a 2.5mile swim, a 114mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run. Yowza! An Ultra Marathon is any run 50+ miles or longer. Many are known to go for 100 miles. And no, you don’t get to stop for naps or spread the race over a couple of days. Both these events are an “all in one go” type of thing. Bottom line, the people on the board are NOT messing around.

Anyhoo, I was perusing the board when I saw a post from one of the hard core peeps titled:

Runner Needed

I was intrigued, I wondered if I would qualify as a runner. I clicked on the link to read the post.

Here’s what it said.

Am thinking of putting together a team for the Vineman 140.6 relay http://www.vineman.com/relayevents.htm

We have a swimmer interested
I'd like to do the bike
So we need someone for the run

The Vineman is an Iron Man Triathlon, and if you'll remember the "run" portion is 26.2 miles. And yes, you guessed it….I threw my hat in the ring. You know what’s worse? They picked my hat!

Now I’m signed up to run the last leg, a marathon, of the Vineman Ironman 2011.

I hadn’t planned on running a marathon again. I was doing the ½ Marathon thing really well. And if you remember, I like ½ Marathon’s better because “I’m lazy like that.”

But you know what I realized when the whole thing was done? The race is in July 2011. You know when I started the ½ Marathon a Month project? July 2010

Seems right to end the year of running with a bang no?

Funny how things work out like that.

Well I’m off; I’ve got to go train.

Magic powers? Pshaw, Harry Potter Ain’t Got Nothin’ On Me…

Did you know I have magic powers?

Magic powers I can’t control but I have them.

I can only do one spell, but that’s what counts right?

And what is my magic trick?

I can turn street lamps off just by my mere presence.

Seriously.

Let me explain…

When I head out to run in the morning; it’s dark outside. AGAIN.

It’s not the, “oh I can kinda see in front of me” dark. It’s the “holy crap, did I wake up in the middle of the night and run” dark. You can’t see a thing.

Luckily for me, my entire morning route is brightly lit by streetlamps. They bathe the path in front of me with light so I don’t have to worry about either a) tripping on some crack or root or something and fall on my ass or b) not being able to see some unfriendly character lurking in the bushes.

Ok, maybe I’m being a tad overdramatic. I can see ok when the lights are dim, I’m not really in any danger. What I can’t see is the readout on my Garmin watch which as numbers obsessed as I am is a problem. I was going to get over it until I started to use the street lamps as a marker.

When I started this whole running shindig back in 2004 (I was technically still a walker then) I used the striped poles dotted along the San Francisco Embarcadero to get myself from walking to running. I started by running between every other pole (they’re only about 500 yards apart) and slowly worked my way up to full on running by adding a pole each time things were getting to easy. It took me a while but one day I ran the whole route.

I’m a pretty good runner now. No need for walking between poles any more. What I’m not is a FAST runner. I want to become a faster runner and everything I’ve read tells me I need to add short sprints to my runs and slowly work up. Sound familiar?

Hence the lampposts in Golden Gate Park…

I decided to sprint between the lights on the last mile of my morning run.

Then the buggers started going out.

Of course a lamp that’s out doesn’t count does it? I have to keep sprinting until I hit a streetlamp that’s on.

Of course the only ones that went out were the ones marking the end of my sprints.

I even switched up my “starting lamps” when I went out the next day.

No luck.

My mere presence turns off lampposts.

Anyone know a spell to turn them on?

Sheesh.

Big Sur ½ Marathon Race Report: I have a cheerleading section!

Let me start by setting the stage for the Big Sur ½ Marathon..

Since running my last ½ Marathon in the Luberon I had:

1. Started a new job.
2. Started a new job where they stock the kitchen like it’s a 7-Eleven.
3. Traveled to New York not once but twice for the new job.
4. Traveled some 6000+ miles to Buenos Airies for a friend’s 40^th Birthday extravaganza

And last but not least…

1. Organized a going away party for my beloved Husband as he took off on his year long journey around the Pacific on our 31’ sailboat Murre

Needless to say, there wasn’t much running going on and there was MUCH drinking and eating happening. All those rumors you’ve heard about the wine and steaks in Argentina are ALL true. I got back from that gluttonous trip a mere four days before I was due to run my November race.

My goal was to finish. ANY time would be good. I must admit, I was a tad worried.

What added a sheen of loveliness to the entire event, was that Randall (the husband mentioned above) had plotted a course to meet me in Monterey and cheer me on as I tackled ½ marathon number five.

This was a pretty big deal as; while he’s participated in a couple of my races (realistically 3-4 years ago), he hasn’t been there to cheer me on since my first race the Nike Women’s Marathon in 2005. It was fun to have a supporter there. It was even more fun for Randall as the race start and finish was a mere 500 yards from the Marina so while I was out pounding the pavement he got to sit on the boat and watch the world go by.

Anyway, enough about him let me get on with the race.

Surprisingly, while this is called the Big Sur ½ Marathon the race doesn’t actually go into the hills of Big Sur. THANK GOODNESS! The race was a simple out and back from Monterey along the coastline. We pretty much kept the ocean to one side the entire route which certainly made for a lovely scenic route.

What wasn’t so lovely about the race was the crowded course and the hill I wasn’t expecting. Let me explain about the crowds first.

When you line up for most races they line you up by your estimated finish time. The faster runners get to be in front, with the slower runners bringing up the rear. The idea being that the faster runners would have a clear path in front of them. What inevitably happens is batches of people (you know who you are) park themselves at the beginning of the pack and then proceed to walk four abreast down the street. This requires even the slowest of joggers to have to maneuver around them to pass. Let me ask you…have you been on the highway when there’s some dolt going super slowly? Traffic slowdown across the board. The same thing happens on running courses. I don’t like to drive slowly either.

I’ve never run a race where this hasn’t been an issue. However, usually by mile 4 or 5 the pack of runners has spread out and you’re in with your pace group. Weirdly this didn’t happen until more like mile 11 on the Monterey course. Maybe that’s because I’m actually getting in the top 50^th percentile of finishers so there’s just more of us running. I don’t know, all I do know is I ran a full 2/10ths of a mile further than I needed to.

The other unexpected item was a hill. I’d looked at the course elevation map. After the Los Gatos course surprise this is a “must do”. To my untrained eye it looked relatively flat. I’d also run along the path about a year ago and didn’t remember going up any hills. We did, and it was a hill that went on for what seemed like eight miles. The eight mile point was where I turned around to head back to the finish line. Ok, so it wasn’t a big hill by any standards. But when you’re expecting “as flat as a pancake” a gentle up is annoying.

With all the nonsense above the Big Sur ½ Marathon ended up being a pretty good race. I ran the first eight miles (that turn around point had a timing mat) at a 10:08 pace which is pretty darn fast for me. Frankly that statistic makes me happier than anything. Due to my appalling lack of training and enormous levels of gluttony prior to the race I did slow down pretty significantly on the way back. I ended up finishing in a modest 2:20 right on the nose. Not shabby for a slacker.

I created another video of the race. If you can’t see it just click here.

I’m off to Viva Las Vegas next weekend for the annual running of the Las Vegas Rock N’ Roll ½ Marathon. I’ve got thirteen friends joining me on the course this year so it should be fun.

Until next time…

The great television debate…aka…the question remains unanswered.

If you’ll remember, I wrote a post a couple of weeks ago about goal setting. I asked you what goal I should set for myself to “earn” back a television.

You were not helpful.

Ok, a couple of you (and I mean literally only about three of you) actually chose a goal. Three, really?

I got a lot of, “Just do it!”, “Go Jo Jo!” comments – while I appreciate the sentiment, it doesn’t answer the question. Just do what exactly?

I also had some friends (yes, you know how you are) who don’t believe I’m even going to BUY a TV. They also decided that I shouldn’t be tied to a goal because it was arbitrary. Their solution, toss a coin each day with “even” and “odd” written on each side. Then when the day came where my weight was the same (an even or odd number) as the coin then that was the signal to buy a TV.

Don’t you wish you had friends like that too?

Needless to say, I still don’t own a television. And based on the response from you lot, I’ll have to set my own goal. Thanks.

Now I’m guessing that you want me to tell you what it is. Well I’m not going to tell you.

Not because I’m being a brat. Really.

But as I dug around the internet looking for information about goal setting, I found this excellent video from a TED conference. Derek Sivers talks about keeping goals to yourself. Intriguing .

 

Wasn’t that cool? If you’re new to TED videos go to the website and check them out. They’re fascinating and you’ll learn all sorts of things.

What did I learn from the video? Well not to tell you guys my goal of course.

I will tell you when I’ve reached it. Will that work for you?