Running Ups and Downs

2 01 2013

I was afraid to recap last year. I was terrified to count up the miles. I didn’t want to see the number. I didn’t want to know how my couch bonding time affected the numbers. I know the numbers are arbitrary, but I also know that I was only injured for about a month of my lower mileage time. I don’t know what frustrated me so much about running this fall/early winter, but I just didn’t want to do it, so I didn’t. I didn’t run a single mile in December. Not one. I have somehow decided not to dwell on that. Normally I would obsess over it. I decided to tally up my miles today. I’m not disappointed. I’m actually surprised with what I ended up.

mileage

Total: 929

Highest Mileage Month: March with 119

Miles run with Sara: 571

Half Marathons: 6

The fun I had running and racing with friends last year is immeasurable. I had so much fun traveling, racing, not sleeping, plotting, cheering, making new friends and running.

My goals for 2013 are simple:

  • Find some balance
  • Enjoy running

I will be racing less for many reasons. I will only run half marathons or shorter. I will not under any circumstance register for another marathon. I want to run with Sara. I want to have more adventures with Mo and Kelsey. Katie might even get me to run in Minnesota.

I started 2013 off with the Polar Bear Dash on New Year’s Day with Sara, Jen, and Jodi. It was cold. It was fun. And I started the year with 3.1 miles.

Polar Bear Dash


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Categories : running

July in Review

1 08 2012

I think mother nature won this month. It’s good to know it wasn’t just me though. Turns out it was the hottest July ever on record in Wisconsin. I never actually threw a tantrum, but I sure got close. And I definitely bitched a lot.

Total Mileage: 78 <— Yuck
Miles with Sara: 61
Total Miles to date: 716
Longest Run: 16, which went 800 times better than the almost 16 in June.
Races: Big 10K, Cudahy Classic

This should have been a much higher mileage month, but I just couldn’t do it. I’m not worried about my Lakefront training. The killer 16 miler I had felt great. And I have a big run coming up this weekend. August will be good. I will hit my miles and my workouts.

July was still lots of fun. I went to Phoenix for my cousin’s wedding and had a blast with extended family. My brother was in the country for something like 9 days so that was fun. We had Wisconsin beer and Italian wine. We ate good food.

Me, Levi, Dad and Mom

I got to run a fun inaugural race with two of my favorite race buddies: Mo and Kelsey. And I followed it up with running a 10 mile race the next day with Sara.

It was a good month, but fair riddance to July. I’m ready for a new month. August will bring the Madison Mini and all kinds of other fun summer events.


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Categories : Just Me, running

Swapping Bibs

3 11 2011

Stop it.

Don’t do it.

It’s against the rules.

Yes, losing the money sucks.

No, I don’t get why some races don’t have transfer systems.

Yes, I find that frustrating.

Some races have opportunities to sell them through a transfer system.

Many do not.

Why do you think you are above the rules?

Why do you think they don’t apply to you?

I’m not going to lie, I kind of hope people get caught and banned from races.

Yes, I’m a rule follower.

Stop it.


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Volunteering at Races

30 10 2011

I volunteered at the Lakefront Discovery Run on Saturday. It is a fun local race and starts pretty close to where I live. I purposely waited too long to sign up so that I couldn’t sign up. No more 2011 races! (I like to remind myself of this as often as I can). I just figure I should give back. I run a lot of races and know that they wouldn’t happen without the volunteers. Plus I discovered, while injured, how much fun volunteering is.

I volunteered at the Wisconsin Marathon and the Indoor Marathon earlier this year and then the Discovery Run on Saturday. Tracey asked me if I volunteer a lot. I laughed and told her she just happened to run two of the races I volunteered at this year. One of the fun parts of volunteering at local races is getting to see people you know. I saw Tracey, Annie and Rochelle before the start and then again at the finish. I also saw Ginesa and Kim at the finish.

I have been wondering what is volunteering a lot? I don’t really think volunteering at three races over the course of a year is a lot. Plus I have the time and I know how hard race directors work to get volunteers. I find it fun. I like chatting with the other volunteers. It is usually other runners, spouses and friends of runners or people who just enjoy being at the races.

At the Wisconsin Marathon I was handing out the space blankets at the finish and one of my college roommates litterally ran into my arms. I had no idea she had come up with Chicago to run it and she had no idea I was volunteering. How fun is that? I would love to run into a finisher’s shoot and see a friend.

I know not everyone has time to volunteer at races, but if you do, just think about it. Think about the races you have run and the volunteers you have encountered.


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Categories : friends, races, running

RnR St. Louis Goals and Thoughts

19 10 2011

I immediately knew what my goal was for this race. I have wanted to break 1:55 since August of last year when I ran the Bronx Half where I came so close. I am ready for this. I felt great two weeks ago at the Army 10 and really believe I can hold it for another 3 miles. I checked the forecast for the first time today and it looks good so far. I am going to try and behave and not check again until Thursday.

Race Goals

  • A Goal: Break 1:55
  • B Goal: PR – Sub 1:56:30
  • C Goal: Sub 2:00 hours

Weekend Goals

  • Have fun, which will be easy
  • Hang with some of my favorite ladies– Jenn, Mo, and Kelsey!
  • Not get overly stressed about the Badger game. I think this is the least likely to happen. It’s a big one. Possibly the Badgers kryptonite, playing at Spartan Stadium. I really shouldn’t have so much hatred for East Lansing considering I was born there, but I do. Most people are still upset over the loss last year. I still remember the romping in 2004.
  • Allow myself to buy something at the expo as long as it is not Nike Tempo shorts or a running tank
  • Remember to take pictures

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Categories : Badgers, friends, races, travel

Army Ten Miler and an Awesome Weekend in DC

11 10 2011

First off I was reminded of how awesome my friends in DC are. I mean, I know they are and I love them all, but It was an amazing weekend during which there just happened to be a race.

Me and Ethan

I made the executive decision on Friday to get on an earlier flight to DC, which was a very good decision. I arrived at 5:30 instead of 10:00 PM. I got to hang out with Thai Phi and her awesome son Ethan. He is the best 4 year old ever. He said we could be friends. I am totally holding him to that.

Thanks to my friend Barry I didn’t have to go to the Army Ten Miler Expo. He picked up my packet for me. This save precious fun time and me spending money on running crap that I don’t necessarily need.

Saturday was full of catching up with friends which really meant not staying off my feet. I did a short shakeout run in the morning. Hello DC humidity. I still hate you. The fun of the day the the Cox Farms Pumpkin Festival. Thai Phi, Lauren, Ethan and I went. This place was crazy. Slides, hayrides, games, animals, bands, more than I could imagine for a pumpkin farm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thai Phi hosted a pasta dinner the night before the Army Ten Miler. I think maybe half the people there were running. The rest just like food and social events.

Army Ten Miler

I raced this in 2009 and loved it. Of course I think it was my first (maybe second) race in DC. I didn’t run it last year because it was too close to Chicago/I was injured. When I signed up this year I knew it would be an excuse to go back to DC and see my friends. I did my usual race prep the night before and set all my stuff out. I had a pretty simple race plan. Go out easy for the first mile and then push for the next 9. Brilliant I know. It took a lot of time to come up with that.

I borrowed Thai Phi’s care and drove myself to the metro to get over to the Pentagon. Bag check was in the same place it had always been, but everything else was different. The start was moved, getting to the corrals was horribly marked, I did not like the changes (it turned out this was a popular opinion).

I chatted with a couple guys before the start. I was in wave 2 which was a huge mix of two corrals. We started at 8:10 to Party Rock Anthem. Even if my plan had not called for going out slow there was no choice. I expected this. I knew the course would be crowded. I did not think it would stay crowded for so long. As we were running over the bridge from Virginia to DC one of the volunteers yelled “welcome to DC” which brought a huge smile to my face. I felt really good for the first couple miles so just kept up my pace. Somewhere between miles 4 and 5 my garmin decided to make up distances. I had to only watch pace for awhile and then restarted it at mile 5 so I would have accurate mile times. Everything continued to go well until about mile 9 during which I could not move faster no mater how hard I tried. I was obsessively checking my garmin knowing I was really close to my PR. The crowds were ridiculous. I felt like I was weaving around people almost the whole race and it got worse at the finish. Get out of my way people. I have a finish line kick and don’t want to be slowed because you can’t finish. Yes, I know that’s harsh. I don’t care.

Results: 1:27:00 Another cool race time. Course PR by several minutes. Less than 30 seconds off my 10 miler PR. I blame the people.

I love running through DC and signing up for races there is a great excuse to visit my friends and run through the city. Future DC Races: Hot Chocolate 15K in December and RnR USA in March.


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