This race was put on by the Running Wild store in Davenport for the ARC of Rock Island (I think-I'm not even sure what the ARC is). There was a pretty good size crowd there, but not too bad. They were allowing strollers and dogs, so that was new for me. It was supposed to be 50 and partly sunny at 8, but at 6:00 this morning, it was not. So, I put on a thermal long sleeved shirt, a t-shirt and pants on. Man, was I regretting that choice about 8:15 when I was sweating! I would have been fine in shorts and a t-shirt. Oh well, live and learn.
I got there about 45 minutes before the race started and got my race packet and chip. The shirts were HUGE. Sucks, they were pretty neat, maybe it'll shrink. Then I just wandered around for a bit. It was at a Gold's Gym. Fancy schmancy. (I come from Y country, ya know).
At 8 we lined up on the street and everyone started moving. I, unfortunately, had walkers in front of me that I almost tripped over. So, I found my way out of that mess and started running. There were a couple of hills, but they weren't too bad. It was through a residential area which was nice. Fancy houses are always a good distraction.
I again waiting until I saw the finish line and sprinted. I probably should start sprinting a bit earlier, but I don't want to tire out before I cross the line! I did run the whole thing, but I don't have my chip time yet. Somewhere in the 31 minute time. I grabbed some gatorade and a couple of cookies (ok, ok, and a banana...and part of a bagel... geez! quit harassing me, I was hungry!) and headed home.
My next one is in two weeks in Peoria! MUST BREAK THE 31 MINUTE TIME! I'm shooting to be somewhere in the 30 minute time.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
May 10th-Peoria Race for the Cure 5K
Holy freebies, Batman! Ok, got that out of my system. This race was HUGE. I think there were an estimated 20,000 people there. It was a little overwhelming, but in a good, inspirational way. I think only 600 people had a chip to be timed. I was in the 300's, pretty much in the middle. I came in at 31.32 chip time. I was soo excited! My pace is slowly going down!
From the beginning:
I wore pants and a t-shirt since it was supposed to be in the 50's and semi sunny. I got to the mall in Peoria at 6:45 to meet my best friend Laura. She was going to walk with me, but couldn't (understandably =) ). She was SOOO nice though, and still picked my packed up for me. She met me to give me my packet (thank you!) and she took my keys for me. It was so nice not to have to run while holding keys! I got on a bus (my first time on a city bus, wooo!) and rode over to the race site.
It was crazy at the race site. Well organized, but just a lot of people. Panera bread was there with ribbon shaped bagels, some juice place, Ford was giving away breast cancer awareness scarves, Charmin (It think) was there doing some game to win prizes and a few others. I just wandered around as I had 50 minutes to kill. I did get a scarf that I carried and a free t-shirt from the juice people. I threw that on over my other T and it was insanely big. But, I wasn't going to carry it, so on it went.
We started lining up and they told the people with chips to go towards the front. I had no idea where I was in the group. Sucks being short. Where's Brent when I need him?!? So, I inched forward as best I could. They must have waived the flag because we all started moving...slowly. It seemed like forever before I got to the start line. Really, it was only 30 seconds according to my chip/flag start time difference. I felt like a sardine packed in there. I couldn't move very fast so I knew my time was going to be slow. I got to the first mile marker and I was at 11 minutes something. Sooo not good. I kept going and got to mile two at 20 something. It started clearing out about then as some people were walking so there was more room. Last race, at this time, I started walking. I was determined to run the whole thing this time, so I trucked on.
There were a ton of people, churches, boy scouts, etc lining the streets with water, lemonade, bands singing in driveways. It was cool. During this mile, the men started catching up with us. They started 10 minutes later than the women. They sprinted by me. One guy clapped for us as he sprinted by and said "good job ladies!". It's a good thing I couldn't catch him or I might have tripped him. I know, I know, he was just being encouraging. But, seriously, I'm red faced and sweaty and I don't need you, Mr. skinny legs, to pat me on the back. I might have been getting a little tired and cranky at this point. Maybe.
I was actually feeling pretty good so I knew I'd be able to finish it by running. A woman next to me said the finish line was coming up and I said "I sure hope so!". I didn't know the area, so I had to idea where I was on the course. We came down a little hill and I saw the finish line. I saw the timer said 31 something and I HAD to get in before it hit 32 so I all get-out sprinted towards it. I don't know where that energy came from, but it worked. After I crossed the line a man asked if I wanted him to take the chip of my shoe. Uh, YEA, or I'll probably fall over on you. Duh!
I wandered over to the Cub food area and these guys wearing tuxes were handing out water and bags of food. I headed over to the bus area and almost got high on the fumes. It was awful! They finally boarded us and I got back to the mall. Laura met me again and we went to Panera for breakfast. Total yum.
I did raise $65! Thank you Sandi, Barb and Rebecca! I found out later that one of Alex's teachers saw me there but I didn't see her. I totally wished I had so I would of had someone to hang out with! I'm getting more comfortable being by myself though, so it wasn't too bad.
Next up, the Running Wild 5K in Davenport on the 24th!
From the beginning:
I wore pants and a t-shirt since it was supposed to be in the 50's and semi sunny. I got to the mall in Peoria at 6:45 to meet my best friend Laura. She was going to walk with me, but couldn't (understandably =) ). She was SOOO nice though, and still picked my packed up for me. She met me to give me my packet (thank you!) and she took my keys for me. It was so nice not to have to run while holding keys! I got on a bus (my first time on a city bus, wooo!) and rode over to the race site.
It was crazy at the race site. Well organized, but just a lot of people. Panera bread was there with ribbon shaped bagels, some juice place, Ford was giving away breast cancer awareness scarves, Charmin (It think) was there doing some game to win prizes and a few others. I just wandered around as I had 50 minutes to kill. I did get a scarf that I carried and a free t-shirt from the juice people. I threw that on over my other T and it was insanely big. But, I wasn't going to carry it, so on it went.
We started lining up and they told the people with chips to go towards the front. I had no idea where I was in the group. Sucks being short. Where's Brent when I need him?!? So, I inched forward as best I could. They must have waived the flag because we all started moving...slowly. It seemed like forever before I got to the start line. Really, it was only 30 seconds according to my chip/flag start time difference. I felt like a sardine packed in there. I couldn't move very fast so I knew my time was going to be slow. I got to the first mile marker and I was at 11 minutes something. Sooo not good. I kept going and got to mile two at 20 something. It started clearing out about then as some people were walking so there was more room. Last race, at this time, I started walking. I was determined to run the whole thing this time, so I trucked on.
There were a ton of people, churches, boy scouts, etc lining the streets with water, lemonade, bands singing in driveways. It was cool. During this mile, the men started catching up with us. They started 10 minutes later than the women. They sprinted by me. One guy clapped for us as he sprinted by and said "good job ladies!". It's a good thing I couldn't catch him or I might have tripped him. I know, I know, he was just being encouraging. But, seriously, I'm red faced and sweaty and I don't need you, Mr. skinny legs, to pat me on the back. I might have been getting a little tired and cranky at this point. Maybe.
I was actually feeling pretty good so I knew I'd be able to finish it by running. A woman next to me said the finish line was coming up and I said "I sure hope so!". I didn't know the area, so I had to idea where I was on the course. We came down a little hill and I saw the finish line. I saw the timer said 31 something and I HAD to get in before it hit 32 so I all get-out sprinted towards it. I don't know where that energy came from, but it worked. After I crossed the line a man asked if I wanted him to take the chip of my shoe. Uh, YEA, or I'll probably fall over on you. Duh!
I wandered over to the Cub food area and these guys wearing tuxes were handing out water and bags of food. I headed over to the bus area and almost got high on the fumes. It was awful! They finally boarded us and I got back to the mall. Laura met me again and we went to Panera for breakfast. Total yum.
I did raise $65! Thank you Sandi, Barb and Rebecca! I found out later that one of Alex's teachers saw me there but I didn't see her. I totally wished I had so I would of had someone to hang out with! I'm getting more comfortable being by myself though, so it wasn't too bad.
Next up, the Running Wild 5K in Davenport on the 24th!
Sunday, May 4, 2008
May 3rd-Lake Bloomington Run 4.37 Mile
Ah, my longest distance so far! And I made it! I finished this one in 45 min & 46 seconds. My pace was better than last weekend, so that was cool. I ended up 24th out of 47 for my age group. I'm cool with that as there is no way I'll ever be a 6 minute pace girl. No freakin way. As always, I was just happy not to be the last person. I think there were close to a 1000 people there all together.
I spent the night at my sisters the night before. It was fun! I had to do my Proper Aunt Duties and rile up my nephew before bed. It looked like it was supposed to be 50 and partly sunny at 9am so I had high hopes. Saturday morning it was bright and sunny so I threw on some pants and a t-shirt. (Ok, I him-hawed around trying to decide what to wear) I almost put on shorts, thank goodness I didn't! My sister will tell you that I had every possible combination of clothes in my suitcase because of the stupid weather.
I found my way to the lake and had to park probably at least a 1/2 mile away. It was WINDY. Super windy. I walked to the race site while fighting the wind. I stood around for a bit and realized that I was going to need my hat and gloves, so I walked back to the car. This time walking into the wind. Fun. I got my hat, gloves and my fleece coat. Walked back and stood around a bit more.
The race was a "cannon" start and a chip finish. So, I was sporting a cool neoprene (I think) ankle bracelet with a chip on it. I ran the first two miles than walked some. The first mile was right by an open field and the wind was awful! After that, the course wound around by the lake some so it was pretty shielded by the trees. It was either starting to spinkle or the wind was picking up lake water. Either way, it felt good. I ran/walked most of mile 3 and ran quite a bit of the last mile. At this point the people running the 12 K started meeting up with us. And running MUCH faster than me. That's niiiiice. Once I could see the finish line I sped up. There were a TON of people there waiting. Totally not like the last two races.
After I finished I somehow got a water bottle put in my hand, but I don't really remember someone giving it to me. Eh well, I guzzled it. Then they had Avanti's catering sandwiches. I LOVE Avanti's bread. Yum! Some other stand had smoothies, also yum.
I decided to head back to my car at this point so I started the long walk back. Some guy drove by and asked if I wanted a ride, but I declined. After I got to my car I realized I had my hat on inside out and the stupid tag was flapping around in the wind. I had taken it off in the middle of the race and then put it back on towards the end when we got back into the windy part of it.
I drove back into Bloomington and headed to the Y. My friend Doug works there so he was going to bust me in so I could change. My legs were started to hurt at this point. I probably shouldn't have rode 1/2 hour in the car right after the race without walking around some more I guess. Live and learn. I went to lunch at a Mexican place with Doug and then headed home. My legs were REALLY starting to hurt then.
All in all it was a great little trip! I'll definitely try to do this again next year.
Some things I learned this weekend:
Do not try to drink water while running in gusty winds. You will end up with water blown all over your glasses like a flippin rainstorm and you'll have to start walking so you can wipe your glasses off. (Maybe you are right, Ang. Contacts would have been nice at that point!)
Totally gross but, runners don't really care about "niceties". Gotta spit, just do it. Gotta sniff, snort, etc(I'll spare you the sound effects). Just do it. Don't have matching clothes, who cares! People who wear spandex when they really shouldn't? They don't care! Me with my sweaty hat hair? Who cares! It's great!
Next week is the Peoria Race for the Cure!
I spent the night at my sisters the night before. It was fun! I had to do my Proper Aunt Duties and rile up my nephew before bed. It looked like it was supposed to be 50 and partly sunny at 9am so I had high hopes. Saturday morning it was bright and sunny so I threw on some pants and a t-shirt. (Ok, I him-hawed around trying to decide what to wear) I almost put on shorts, thank goodness I didn't! My sister will tell you that I had every possible combination of clothes in my suitcase because of the stupid weather.
I found my way to the lake and had to park probably at least a 1/2 mile away. It was WINDY. Super windy. I walked to the race site while fighting the wind. I stood around for a bit and realized that I was going to need my hat and gloves, so I walked back to the car. This time walking into the wind. Fun. I got my hat, gloves and my fleece coat. Walked back and stood around a bit more.
The race was a "cannon" start and a chip finish. So, I was sporting a cool neoprene (I think) ankle bracelet with a chip on it. I ran the first two miles than walked some. The first mile was right by an open field and the wind was awful! After that, the course wound around by the lake some so it was pretty shielded by the trees. It was either starting to spinkle or the wind was picking up lake water. Either way, it felt good. I ran/walked most of mile 3 and ran quite a bit of the last mile. At this point the people running the 12 K started meeting up with us. And running MUCH faster than me. That's niiiiice. Once I could see the finish line I sped up. There were a TON of people there waiting. Totally not like the last two races.
After I finished I somehow got a water bottle put in my hand, but I don't really remember someone giving it to me. Eh well, I guzzled it. Then they had Avanti's catering sandwiches. I LOVE Avanti's bread. Yum! Some other stand had smoothies, also yum.
I decided to head back to my car at this point so I started the long walk back. Some guy drove by and asked if I wanted a ride, but I declined. After I got to my car I realized I had my hat on inside out and the stupid tag was flapping around in the wind. I had taken it off in the middle of the race and then put it back on towards the end when we got back into the windy part of it.
I drove back into Bloomington and headed to the Y. My friend Doug works there so he was going to bust me in so I could change. My legs were started to hurt at this point. I probably shouldn't have rode 1/2 hour in the car right after the race without walking around some more I guess. Live and learn. I went to lunch at a Mexican place with Doug and then headed home. My legs were REALLY starting to hurt then.
All in all it was a great little trip! I'll definitely try to do this again next year.
Some things I learned this weekend:
Do not try to drink water while running in gusty winds. You will end up with water blown all over your glasses like a flippin rainstorm and you'll have to start walking so you can wipe your glasses off. (Maybe you are right, Ang. Contacts would have been nice at that point!)
Totally gross but, runners don't really care about "niceties". Gotta spit, just do it. Gotta sniff, snort, etc(I'll spare you the sound effects). Just do it. Don't have matching clothes, who cares! People who wear spandex when they really shouldn't? They don't care! Me with my sweaty hat hair? Who cares! It's great!
Next week is the Peoria Race for the Cure!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
April 26th-Wildlife Prairie Classic 5K
(also copied)
Well, I made it through my first 5K! The trail was interesting...mud, gravel, grass, pavement, wooden pathways, potholes, did I mention the mud? I had no freakin idea where we were by the middle of it, and I've been going to this park since grade school!
I finished in 34:02. I'll admit I didn't really push myself. I was tired and freezing so I kind of putzed along. Some parts were very narrow, only 3 people across (which I've since learned is normal for a trail run- thanks Lena!). Some people didn't want to move over to the side, that was frustrating. I wore what I did a few weeks ago, minus my thermal leggings. Thank god I brought my hat and gloves!
I got there WAY to early. Packet pick up was 6:30-7:15 and the race was at 8. I had no idea how busy it would be, so I went super early. It took no time at all, so I had over an hour to waste. Good thing I brought a good book along! Got the T-shirt, in the wrong size, and an awesome breakfast afterwards. I was starving...and there were donuts! How cool is that! And I snagged some bananas and a granola bar for the ride home.
Next weekend is a 4.37 mile race. But, my friend is taking me for mexican afterwards, so that'll be motivating. I'm spending the night at my sister's the night before, so I'm looking forward to that! I'm going to continue with my "night before the race" pizza tradition. (Hey, it seems to working well so far)
Note for next year: recruit people to race with me. Racing by yourself sucks. Not the actually racing part, the the before and after parts. Standing around by yourself is b o r i n g. I need some motivation to keep me going-though the donuts worked pretty good, a friend would be nice too.
Well, I made it through my first 5K! The trail was interesting...mud, gravel, grass, pavement, wooden pathways, potholes, did I mention the mud? I had no freakin idea where we were by the middle of it, and I've been going to this park since grade school!
I finished in 34:02. I'll admit I didn't really push myself. I was tired and freezing so I kind of putzed along. Some parts were very narrow, only 3 people across (which I've since learned is normal for a trail run- thanks Lena!). Some people didn't want to move over to the side, that was frustrating. I wore what I did a few weeks ago, minus my thermal leggings. Thank god I brought my hat and gloves!
I got there WAY to early. Packet pick up was 6:30-7:15 and the race was at 8. I had no idea how busy it would be, so I went super early. It took no time at all, so I had over an hour to waste. Good thing I brought a good book along! Got the T-shirt, in the wrong size, and an awesome breakfast afterwards. I was starving...and there were donuts! How cool is that! And I snagged some bananas and a granola bar for the ride home.
Next weekend is a 4.37 mile race. But, my friend is taking me for mexican afterwards, so that'll be motivating. I'm spending the night at my sister's the night before, so I'm looking forward to that! I'm going to continue with my "night before the race" pizza tradition. (Hey, it seems to working well so far)
Note for next year: recruit people to race with me. Racing by yourself sucks. Not the actually racing part, the the before and after parts. Standing around by yourself is b o r i n g. I need some motivation to keep me going-though the donuts worked pretty good, a friend would be nice too.
April 12th-Sandburg 2 mile
(Copied from somewhere else)
I made it!!
The race was at 9, but we got there at 8:15 to check in. It took all of 2 minutes, so we had a long time to sit and wait. It was 38, sprinking and windy. Could have been worse. I wore thermal pants and a top, track pants, a short sleeved T and a fleece coat, a hat and gloves. I took the gloves off by the end and wished I could have taken my coat off, but my number was on it. Started out fine, then a small hill, then a big hill. The one mile turn around point was at the top of the hill. I walked a bit up the hill. My time at 1 mile was 10:25. I was shocked!
I took a few more walk breaks on the way back (mainly because I had a killer side cramp). There was a guy with a bullhorn towards the finish line and was yelling at me, "it's time to sprint, you're almost there". (I wanted to kick him) So, I started running like a mad woman to get in under the the next minute. Now, this sounds dumb, but I cannot remember if it was 21 or 22 minutes I think I made it right under the 21 minute. My friend, Barb, finished shortly behind me so I waited for her. It was her first race as well. Her husband came out and took pictures of us. I'm sure we were looking sexy.
We didn't stick around for awards because I needed to get the boys from my mom and I figured there wasn't really a need. I had no reason to think I would win anything. I go to the Y with the boys for Healthy Kids Day and a coworker who was also at the race comes up to me and says "I told you guys you should have stayed!". Turns out I won 1st place in my age group and so did my friend! We both got trophies!!!!! She got them for us and gave them to me at the Y. I had a perma-smile on my face and probably looked like an idiot, but I was so excited!
_________________
Ok, the results are up and and my time was 20:54. There were only a few of us in my age group so it wasn't a huge victory, but I'll still take it.
I made it!!
The race was at 9, but we got there at 8:15 to check in. It took all of 2 minutes, so we had a long time to sit and wait. It was 38, sprinking and windy. Could have been worse. I wore thermal pants and a top, track pants, a short sleeved T and a fleece coat, a hat and gloves. I took the gloves off by the end and wished I could have taken my coat off, but my number was on it. Started out fine, then a small hill, then a big hill. The one mile turn around point was at the top of the hill. I walked a bit up the hill. My time at 1 mile was 10:25. I was shocked!
I took a few more walk breaks on the way back (mainly because I had a killer side cramp). There was a guy with a bullhorn towards the finish line and was yelling at me, "it's time to sprint, you're almost there". (I wanted to kick him) So, I started running like a mad woman to get in under the the next minute. Now, this sounds dumb, but I cannot remember if it was 21 or 22 minutes I think I made it right under the 21 minute. My friend, Barb, finished shortly behind me so I waited for her. It was her first race as well. Her husband came out and took pictures of us. I'm sure we were looking sexy.
We didn't stick around for awards because I needed to get the boys from my mom and I figured there wasn't really a need. I had no reason to think I would win anything. I go to the Y with the boys for Healthy Kids Day and a coworker who was also at the race comes up to me and says "I told you guys you should have stayed!". Turns out I won 1st place in my age group and so did my friend! We both got trophies!!!!! She got them for us and gave them to me at the Y. I had a perma-smile on my face and probably looked like an idiot, but I was so excited!
_________________
Ok, the results are up and and my time was 20:54. There were only a few of us in my age group so it wasn't a huge victory, but I'll still take it.
The who and why
I wanted to start a journal of sorts to document my first year of running races. If you know me at all, you know that I'm not usually a runner. I detested the mile run in high school. Actually, I detested every one of the "President's Fitness Test" events. (Perhaps because my sister could hang with her chin above the stupid chin up bar for an hour and I could hang, oh, all of 2 seconds...or perhaps not.) Anyway, who would have thought I'd end up here!?
In February I decided to start running. I was super close to my weight loss goal (62 lbs)and thought this might kick it up a notch. I started doing the Couch 2 5K running plan. That first week I had to run 60 seconds followed by 90 seconds of walking. That about killed me! I reached my WL goal, and a few extra, in a few weeks and 12 weeks later I'm a true believer in the program. I still continue to run at 5:30am 3 days a week-some days I run more than others.
My official fun reason for running this year is to see how many shirts I can collect. Eventually, I'd like to make a quilt out of them. I've been challenged to collect 7 this year and I think I can pass that. You know me, if I'm going to do something, I'm going to go all the way.
I have several races planned this year. I've finished 2 so far and I'm still living to tell about it. My knees, on the other hand, are protesting a bit but I'm choosing to ignore them. =)
In February I decided to start running. I was super close to my weight loss goal (62 lbs)and thought this might kick it up a notch. I started doing the Couch 2 5K running plan. That first week I had to run 60 seconds followed by 90 seconds of walking. That about killed me! I reached my WL goal, and a few extra, in a few weeks and 12 weeks later I'm a true believer in the program. I still continue to run at 5:30am 3 days a week-some days I run more than others.
My official fun reason for running this year is to see how many shirts I can collect. Eventually, I'd like to make a quilt out of them. I've been challenged to collect 7 this year and I think I can pass that. You know me, if I'm going to do something, I'm going to go all the way.
I have several races planned this year. I've finished 2 so far and I'm still living to tell about it. My knees, on the other hand, are protesting a bit but I'm choosing to ignore them. =)
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