NEW 13.1 PR!!! Savannah Rock 'n' Roll 2013

Sorry for the lack of blogs this year, life gets hectic. What else can I say. I'm not a writer, so this stuff doesn't come natural to me. As my BFF Shonna put it, I'd much rather be living it than writing about it!!

Anyway, this race certainly deserves a post.

Long story short, I ran my ass off at the Savannah Rock 'n' Roll Half and I achieved my ultimate goal of getting a sub 2-hour half. Something that last year, I didn't think I would EVER be capable of doing. The closest I have ever been was at the Palmetto Bluff Half at the beginning of this year when I came in at 2:03 - but even that course was short (12.8 miles), so it probably would have been more like a 2:05 or 2:06. My goal for this race was to beat 2:05 at the very least.

First off, I have to apologize to MRTT – I didn't really participate in very many group runs this time around. I was very selfish in the way I wanted to train for this on my own, in my own way. I ran mainly on my lunch breaks because I didn't want to get up so early to drive somewhere to run (I am very spoiled since we moved to a house next to an awesome park. I got used to running alone again, but I didn't mind. Now that my big race is over, I hope to be more active in the group runs. :)

The week before the race, I had just completed a Whole Life Challenge with my awesome gym - the FTC. It was an 8 week lifestyle challenge. We did baseline testing and the final testing was a week before the race. My numbers didn't change THAT much in terms of weight or inches lost. The only significant improvement was that I was able to add 10# to my 1RM back squat (new PR of 160#). I'm proud of that, but the area that I thought I would improve on the most was the 1 mile run. I got a new PR, but only by 8 seconds (7:20). :( That was a bit discouraging as the race was approaching.

So since the challenge was over, I pretty much did what you should NOT have done after changing your diet... I ATE CARBS! You know, the BAD ones! It was glorious! I told myself that I'm just fueling for the race. Pasta, rice, white potatoes - in various forms. Oh baby. Shonna and her family came down Thursday and we had Mellow Mushroom pizza. YUMMMM. Then the night before the race we had ribeyes and potatoes. Oh and birthday cake and ice cream - it was Scarlett's birthday (Shonna's daughter)!

Birthday girl Scarlett, photobombing my flat mama!

On race morning, I ate an English muffin with peanut butter and chia seeds. I also had half of a banana on the way there. It wasn't as cold as I was anticipating. We took photos with MRTT and then went to get in a long port-a-potty line. We made it just in time to run over to corral #6, which was where the 2 hour pacer was. A couple minutes later, we were off! Woohoo! Then, oops, I forgot to start my watch... good thing it was only late by a few seconds.

just a few MRTT that were running this race of 18,000 runners!

Shonna and I ran together, following the 2 hour pacer as best as we could. The pacer was a fast little lady! A 2 hour half marathon pace is about 9:10 pace. My first mile was 8:35! WTF? I think I psyched myself out thinking there was no way I could keep up with that pace. The pacer did slow down for the 2nd mile - never quite to 9:10 though. It was so crowded with people all over the place that short lil me could barely push my way though people. I felt like I was saying "sorry" a lot to other runners that I bumped. Shonna managed to stay close to the pacer, but I was struggling to keep up for a while.

At about mile 5, the course entered downtown and the lanes opened up a bit, thank goodness. Shonna and I managed to run ahead of the pacer! I knew the downtown section would be fun with all the spectators and energy. Right after we crossed the 10K mark - the pacer caught up to us and eventually faded away into the distance. I swear, I think she was on pace for a 1:55, not 2:00. I ran into Shiloh's son who started in the same corral. I told him I'd try to follow him since we lost the pacer, but we eventually ate his dust too!

When the course left downtown around mile 8-9, I looked at our pace and we were still hitting high 8 minute miles - even without the pacer. I was surprised by this. I felt fine and thought I could keep that pace until the end. But it was here that I parted ways with Shonna. Though we didn't run the whole thing together, I don't think I would have been able to make it so far and keep that pace for that long. Thanks girl!!! xoxoxox! So from then on it was up to me, myself and I to make my goal!

The last 3 miles of the race was a blur. I remember grabbing an orange slice from someone, stopping for a split second to ring the Gordonston bell "for power" and seeing someone run to the side of the road and puke. Miraculously, I felt great, never had to breathe very heavily - but I told myself that I would push it on the last mile. On the final long straightaway, I knew there would be small hills (hills that I cursed last year!) but then the turn to the finish wasn't far after the last hill. When I crossed the 12 mile mark I looked at my time and realized that even if I ran the last 1.1 miles in a 10 minute pace, I would still get a sub 2!!! I think I got a bit verklempt for just a few moments thinking that I was about to achieve something I thought was impossible.

Once I reached the last turn to the finish, I knew I was golden. I ran it in pretty strong with a huge smile on my face. After I crossed the line, stopped my watch, looked down at it and saw this:

1:57... OMG!

I screamed a scream of joy and badassness, the guy next to me did too and we gave each other a high five! His hand actually slipped off of mine and he kind of slapped my face, but I didn't care!! I was so damn excited!!! I found Joel in the madness of the finish line and he PR'ed too - a redemption for his run last year. Shonna came in shortly after with a shiny new PR! PRs for everyone!

Me, sandwiched by my BFFs!

In this race, I hit a 10K PR as well as 10 mile PR!!!

Things that made this possible:
1. Fueling at miles 4, 7 and 10 (thanks Hammer!)
2. Running with a pace group and running buddy (thank you Shonna!)
3. Fleet Feet Savannah CREW's intermediate half training plan (Thank you CREW!! I ran 3x/week: speedwork one day, tempo day, long run one day)
4. Strength training and conditioning with crossfit at the FTC!!! (Thanks FTC!! I cross-trained on my running off-days)

Holy crap, how'd I do that?

With all those things, I knew I could trust my training and just go for it. I knew my lungs and body would be able to handle it because of crossfit -- I've pushed myself to what I thought were my limits, but realized I had more power in me to dig deeper. I actually never really got to the point where I wanted to quit. The only thing I was really worried about was my feet. I knew the pounding would kill my feet. Luckily they didn't really start hurting me until mile 12. I also knew that I'd probably have to hit the bathrooms pretty hard after my running effort. I was right. As soon as I sat down to rest my feet, the cramps started and I had to take my wipes with me to the port-a-pots! LOL I never forget to pack my Immodium!!

So what's my new goal? I told myself that if I ever hit a sub-2 half, I would start training for a marathon. So Marine Corps Marathon 2014, here I come!!!

Race Recap: Enmark Savannah River Bridge Run (December 1, 2012)

There was a lot of build-up to this race. First, I was excited to do this, as it is my MOST FAVORITE RACE evar – being the one I have done the most – 2006 (5K), 2007 (5K), 2008 (10K), 2011 (5K); and second – This was my first DOUBLE PUMP 15K!!! Woohoo!!

I remember back when I first started racing and saw the runners with the different color bib starting on the 5K side of the bridge [10Kers start on the opposite side, 45 minutes after the start of the 5K], thinking, "Man, those people are running over the bridge 3 times?! They must be hardcore runners!" And now flash forward to today and I am one of those "Hardcore" runners!! By no means would I consider myself a hardcore runner, but compared to back then my running and fitness has improved by leaps and bounds.

I also got my running group - Moms RUN This Town (MRTT) - involved with a fundraiser that took place in conjunction with the Bridge Run. I formed an MRTT group through crowdrise.com to fundraise for the race charity: The Nancy N. and JC Lewis Cancer Research Center and Pavilion here in Savannah. I set a goal for us to raise $500. Posted it to my FB page and everything, but 3 days before the race we were not even close to making the goal. I decided to do something drastic and crazy and pledged to shave my head if we met our goal of $500 by the day of the race. Once I had posted it and shared on FB, the donations came ROLLING in. We actually met the $500 goal only 3 hours after I had posted this photo!

And the donations KEPT coming in! We made a little under $1000 in just 3 days!! On the day of the race expo, I was asked by the PR manager of the Cancer Center to do an interview with one of the local news stations. We also worked with Fleet Feet and the Bridge Run director to make my head shaving a public event a the race after party!

Well, my nerves were all over the place the morning of the race - first to survive running over the bridge 3 times and then getting my head shaved right after!

The race itself was pretty rough. I think it was the most challenging race I've done so far. I had a personal goal of completing the 5K in under 30 minutes (which I have never done on this course's 5K at that point) and then feeling good enough to do it all over again 2 more times after that!

I had to race conservative, yet fast enough to make it in time, and once I rounded the corner before the finish line, I saw the clock and knew I had to sprint. I think it said 30 minutes, but I knew my chip time would be less than that and once I finally crossed the line, I checked my watch and it said: 29:46!! I did it!!!

Next up was the 10K. I felt my hips already getting sore. Stopping for an extended period of time in between hard runs is not ideal for my hips! I met up with fellow MRTT members Shiloh and Emily and I started off with them for the first part until their first walk break and then I kept going. I tried to take it easy since the first 2 miles were flat. I caught up to a lady who had a St Augustine Half Marathon (a race I did in November) shirt on and chatted with her about the St Augustine Half and Savannah's races, then I went ahead and soon met up with Ginger (another fellow MRTT!) and ran with her a bit until her walk break... and then the TOUGH part came... the incline back up onto the bridge. On this side, it is REALLY steep. I kept running, as much as I wanted to stop and walk... albeit slow at some points, but I kept a steady pace on up until the decline. I was super thirsty because I didn't bring my water bottle. There was a water stop on the loop back around to the other side of the bridge. I took a short walk break and began my ascent up the FINAL round of the bridge! Still rough, but I kept the steady pace and caught up with Katie and Ashton (more MRTT!) and stayed with them for the rest of the bridge. We came to the final water stop and at that point I was so PARCHED (it was really sunny on that bridge)... I called out for a water and they had just given out the LAST cup to the person in front of me!!! ARGH!!! I was so pissed! But I used that as motivation to finish up strong and get this race over with! As I made my way to the final straight away, I saw Joel and his dad on the sidelines which made me smile and happy to be finishing my first DOUBLE PUMP!!!

My 10K time was 1:07:08 - a course 10K PR for me (by about a minute), making my total time for the 15K: 1:36:54... a new Double Pump course standard to beat!!

Now that one thing was completed, I had to do the next thing --- get my head shaved! It was a fun and exciting moment for me, I hope everyone in attendance got a good kick out of it. I love doing things for charity, whether it's helping to raise money for a good cause or public humiliation in order to raise said money... I'm all about it!!! I'm glad MRTT was out there to support me/laugh at me... and I am very happy that we were able to raise the funds!

I don't know how I can top this crazy antic, but I am always up for some crazy stuff -- so long as it's for a good cause! Maybe we can come up with something for next year's bridge run!! Actually, MRTT already has something REALLY fun planned for this year's Bridge Run!!! I can't wait!!!

an article from the Savannah Morning News (savannahnow.com): http://savannahnow.com/sports/2012-12-01/bridge-run-notebook-runner-jacy-vergara-loses-hair-good-cause#.UT-y7xnB1KZ

another article from the local news that interviewed me WTOC.com: http://www.wtoc.com/story/20232586/savannah-woman-shaves-head-to-raise-money-for-cancer-awareness

St. Augustine Half Marathon – Nov. 18, 2012

I signed up for this race (the St. Augustine Half) a few months ago, when Jen (of Running Our Way) told me about it and the discount code for MRTT that she was able to score. I signed up even before I ran my first half, which was the RnR on Nov 3rd (15 days before the St. Augustine Half). I figured I would already be in shape for another one at that point.

Well, after the RnR, my body actually recovered quite well – I pretty much did everything "by the book" with the training plan and taper and eating, etc. I didn't even run again until the following Thursday. I had a few more runs after that to prepare for St. Augustine (SA), nothing too hard that would throw my body off (hips, knees are my main concerns). I sort of wanted to treat this run as just another long run in my unofficial training plan for any future races, such as the Bridge Run on Dec 1. So I didn't really taper - my last run before the race was I think the prior Thursday (SA was on a Sunday). I actually signed up for a 5K taking place the day before - because the price was so cheap, but ended up giving it away because I just didn't have time to do it with all the thing I had to do to prepare to get down to SA!

I invited my sister Jen, who lives in Orlando, to come along, mainly to hang out with Liam while Joel and I ran. :) She didn't mind and I am glad she was able to come! We met up with her in SA after we checked in to the hotel (which was right in FRONT of the start line and expo!). After Joel and I picked up our bibs and chips we ventured out to check out the city and get some dinner. The "expo" for this race was one of the smallest ones I've seen. Only a few booths were set up and when we got there (we got there close to closing time) only one was still open (Newton).

One of my MRTT sisters - Tina (of One Foot Out the Door) and her daughter - met up with us for some pre-race dinner at a place called Pizzalley, which was recommended by the front desk of the hotel. Man, those alleys are so confusing! haha... I'm usually great with directions and having a general idea of where to go based on a map glance, but maybe since the sun wasn't out, I wasn't able to hone my inner navigator! We eventually found it and got out eats on! I had a little bit of pasta with light red sauce, just because I didn't want to get any major issues for the race. After dinner we, said g'nite to Tina and decided to head back as well... until we passed by this awesome looking gourmet popsicle shop called The Hyppo! OMG... the flavors they had were all so delicious... I ordered a Pear Pie pop, Liam got a Strawberry one and Jen got a Avocado-Coconut one. I traded with my sister because the Avocado-Coconut one was just sooooo good and creamy and mmmmm... I am not an avocado lover, but this was just amazing. Except after I devoured it, I found out that it had DAIRY in it! Dairy and my tummy don't really get along... I was so scared that something would happen at the race!

When we got back, we set our alarm for 4:45 (race start was 6:05am). I think I actualy got up at 5, ate my Powerbar and half of a banana. Then, I tried to do my pre-race "ritual" if you know what I mean, especially after that damn delicious dairy pop the night before! I wasn't too successful, but time was running out and we had to get out there to the start. It was GO TIME! Luckily we had just a few yards to walk to the start line! And it was pretty damn windy!!

I saw minute pacers and was eyeing the '10' sign, when I saw Kim (another MRTT sister)! We chatted a bit before the anthem and then it started! I ran the first bit with Kim until her first walk break and off I went. The first part of the race was narrow getting to the main road, but it opened up quickly. The streets were lined with beautiful holiday lights and the first bridge we were crossing was also lit up with lights... awesome! After the first bridge, I was a bit more warmed up and tried to get in my groove. The first few miles were along a straightaway then turned onto another straightaway to another and then to a bigger bridge.

There was actually ONE band early on the course, which led me to believe that there would possibly be more, but then I thought, "It's friggin 6am... who would want to hear a band playing that early?" There was not much crowd support other than the water stations, cops manning the street closures and the random pedestrians that happened to be out while the race was going on. I wasn't expecting much support to begin with, especially that early, so it wasn't a big deal for me.

Anyway after the somewhat uneventful miles 2-5, I took my first Gu and walked. Then it was up the second bridge!!! This one was longer and steeper than the first one. I tried to see if I could find Tina and Joel on the other side of the bridge (on the way back). I thought I saw Tina and yelled her name, but she didn't wave back (turned out it was NOT her, haha) and I also saw Joel and waved and he waved back. The bottom of the bridge had cheerleaders and I took it upon myself give them all high fives as I passed because they were a great cheering squad! At the turnaround was the 10K point! Woohoo! almost half way done!

The second ascent of the bridge was tougher because of the wind. I thought I was going to be blown off, it was so strong! But I didn't stop, I kept going... I saw Kim on the other side and I yelled to her, which she acknowledged :) There was a lady I caught up to and ran and chatted with for a bit until I realized that my pace was getting a little too easy and I had to pick it up! I think the bridge was rough on a few people because I passed a bunch of people on the straightaway back.

The second half of the race went through a park, so it was a bit more scenic, thank goodness. A little bit of neighborhood, then cut to a park - I think it was around mile 10 where there was a straightaway along the coastline that was SUPER windy... I think it was harder than the wind on the bridge ascent! I was trying to find someone to draft off of, but no one was around to run behind. It wasn't that long and after the next water station (Snoopy-costumed volunteers!) I took my second Gu and walk break to finish up the last 5K!

This last bit went through some neighborhoods and eventually ended up back on the same straightway in the beginning, leading to the first bridge we crossed over. I was hanging behind a couple of guys who were more 'mature' (maybe 60s?), I overheard them talking about Ironmans and Tri shoes, blahblah... they were going a good pace, until they slowed to chat with another runner and I went around them.

The final mile-point-one was pretty long... as expected at the end of a race. The bridge wasn't too bad, I tried to let my momentum going down the bridge give me speed for the last straightway to the finish line... I finished pretty strong, especially when they said my name as I approached the arch... they even said it correctly (doesn't happen often)! So I was super happy... and even more happy to see a 2:12 on the clock! New PR! Faster than my RnR (2:14). I raised my hands and crossed the line, got my medal and to my surprise, Liam ran up to me! It was great to see hi after that trek through the city. :) I sat down to catch my breath and gave my medal to Liam to wear.

I saw Joel and was happy to hear that his time was MUCH better than his first at the RnR – he got his sub-2! I stretched a bit, but felt my right hip was sore. I had been having issues with my left, but now my right is acting up again. We walked back to the field to meet up with Tina, got some pics with her and she had to leave because it was really COLD. I waited for Kim and we got some food – a pretty good selection of stuff, even free beer (didn't get any, but I got a free koozie!) Then took pics with Kim and her sis-in-law Maureen, another MRTT sister! Then back to the hotel room to thaw out and shower, nap, pack up.

It was a great weekend! My tummy never really bothered me, so the dairy in the pop wasn't so bad! haha My chip time ended up being 2:11:05, which is already pretty damn close to my goal time of a 2:10 half for 2013! So I'm happy. The course was good, sun never came out, windy, challenging... I really enjoyed the bridges because of the change up and the challenge. Would I do this race again? Most likely not, only because there are so many other races I'd like to do and just the logistics of what to do with Liam, what to do with the dogs, how to afford the hotel, etc gets hectic. It was nice that it was very close. The drive was not bad at all (3 hours from Savannah) and SA is a great city that I'd like to visit again to explore more.

Next half marathon??? Not sure, but the next one I am registered to do is the Blue Ridge Half on April 20, 2013!!! Woohoo!

New Goals / Shooting Stars / Running Groups [[randomness]]

After the Rock 'n' Roll, I realized I need to make new goals for myself.

For the time being, my goal is to continue to train for the half marathon distance and stay injury free!

Racing goals are to be able to run a half in 2:10 or less. Hopefully I will be able to attain that in 2013. My goal for the upcoming bridge run on December 1st is to break 30 minutes on the 5K - I have come so close, but have never done it! My fastest bridge run 5K was 30:02 in 2007. And since I'm doing the Double Pump, I'd like to beat the time I did for the bridge run 10K in 2008 - which was 1:08:19... I'm in so much better shape that I was for both of those times, so I'm sure I will be able to do it!

Long term, I would like to train for a marathon, and then run one at sub 4:30 (Oprah's marathon time - which would be the same pace I did for the RnR half).

But before I get there, I would like to be able to run a half marathon in as close to 2 hours as possible. That's a nine minute mile, for 13.1 miles. Am I near that? Hell no. I was in the low 10s for the RnR. But, I also had no idea how fast I'd be able to run 13.1 miles when I signed up for it last year. I estimated 2:30 - based on the fitness level I was at the time. When My little sister ran her first half in 2011 (the RnR in San Antonio), I was amazed by her finishing time of 2:20!! So I sort of secretly changed my goal time to that. So, If I am able to crush my original goal time by 15 minutes, what is another 15 minutes?? If I continue to train like I have been doing and keep challenging myself to get faster, I'm sure I can do that. I gave myself until my 35th birthday to get there... so, 10 years should be enough time... LOL ok, just kidding. I'll be 31 this December, so 4 years to a 2-hour half... I can do it!!

+++++

Getting up to run in the morning before dawn has it perks (just a few). Other than being able to get your workout out of the way first thing in the morning, the next best thing I love about getting up so early are the shooting stars. I'm a wanna-be stargazer: I love space and the idea of an infinite universe all around us, I just don't ever have time to sit and stare at the sky at night (I'm so tired these days). For living right next to a major interstate, my house is actually in a great area for stargazing - it gets pretty dark and you can see a ton of stars at night if it's clear. Anyway, on a number of my morning runs, especially this time, late in the year, I am sometimes greeted by a quick beam of light passing by in an instant. I saw one yesterday morning before I got in my car to run downtown - it was super long and bright too - I took that as a sign that I'd have a good run that morning (which I did). On another run (my first 12 miler), I actually saw THREE of them!! It's pretty awesome.

+++++

I just wanted to mention that joining running groups has really changed the way I run and given me so much more motivation to run. I would not be signing up and getting excited for all these races if it was not for my running buddies. I signed up for the Savannah RnR thinking that I could totally just pick a training plan and do it myself. All by myself. Running is a one person sport, after all, right? Yes, and no. True - you are your only competition in running (unless you are an elite...), but with a group, you have your support team, cheering squad, running buddies, friendly competition and coaches... it's totally not a one person sport. I honestly would not have had such a great time and finish time at my first half without being a part of my 2 running groups (MRTT and CREW). I was skeptical at first because I was used to training on my own and running by myself before this year, but having people to run with and to push you to go faster or run longer, really helps. REALLY. So if you are getting bored with running... I highly suggest joining a running group! Best decision EVAR!

FIRST Half Marathon - DONE!!! (warning: long post)

 

After all the training, hard work, early mornings, sore body parts, blood, SWEAT and tears, my FIRST half marathon is COMPLETE!!! November 3, 2012 will definitely be one of the most amazing days of my life – right up there with college graduation, my wedding day, and the birth of my son. haha I could not have asked for a more perfect day.

I really have to admit that tapering the last 2 weeks definitely helped - not only to recharge my body after a hard week year of miles, but to also recover from my injuries: the road rash, the sprained calves, the sore shins... I ran probably my best run ever on Saturday morning. AND, I did not have any lingering soreness, blisters or pains afterwards. It seems so magical. I did everything right the entire taper period, from resting when my body needed it and drinking water until I peed every hour... it totally paid off in the end!!!

Expo green screen fun!

The Savannah Rock 'n' Roll weekend kicked off with an awesome Expo. Joel and I went on the first day (Thursday) to pick up our numbers and race swag. I was able to change my corral from 16 to 12 (which didn't really matter, as I had come to find out). I'd never been in a huge race before, so the expo was an experience in itself! I picked up a bunch of freebies and samples, got our photos taken, signed up for free entries to other races, walked around and just took in all the energy. That night I went to a group dinner with my CREW training group - the ones who have gotten up with me every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings since June to run around dark Pooler neighborhoods and train out butts off! We have become a little tight-knit family!

Most of my Pooler CREW

Friday, the day before the race was hectic - trying to get work done, trying to get everything ready and packed up since we were spending the night at Joel's parent's house, making soup for the pre-race dinner hosted by my other wonderful running group - Moms RUN This Town (MRTT), going to the dinner (sorry no pictures... Katie's Blog has some good ones though!) and then coming back to drive to the in-laws with kid and doggies in tow. Set the alarm for 5:30am. I went to bed at my normal time (1am).

I woke before my alarm went off. Joel was awake too, I think. Took a while to get out of bed, but when I actually got up, my tummy had an urge to go. TMI, but you runners know what I mean. My day could not start off ANY better! I was worried about tummy troubles during the race, so emptying them out before the race was ideal for me. I had a glass of water, half of a banana and half of a Powerbar before we gathered our stuff and headed out. It was chilly that morning, but not cold enough that we needed our hoodies/sleeves at the start.

Newport running family!

Our BEFORE photo!

Joel's dad dropped us off as close as he could to Ellis Square, where I was to meet up with my CREW group to take a photo before we split off to our corrals. We passed MANY empty spots downtown! After the pictures, we trekked down to the bag check area, and took a few more pictures along the way. Bag check was very easy, it was just pretty far down from where we needed to line up. On the way back up to the corrals, we found the line for the Brooks VIP bathroom. The line was shorter than the port-a-pottys but still longer than I expected. Joel couldn't wait for me, so I kissed him goodbye/goodluck and off he went. I got out just in time to line up in corral 12.

I stayed up at the front of the corral and met up with Chris, a fellow CREW member, who was at the back of corral 11. As we moved up when the race started, he found others in our CREW and they called for me to come up and join them! It was nice to be able to start off my first half with the same people who I trained with for the past 6 months!

It was our turn to start and we were off! I stuck with Chris for most of the first half of the race. It was nice to have someone to chat with for those first miles. Made it easy! There was the first hill in the first mile, not so bad. After the 2nd mile, I think there was a water station. It was chaotic because the road was pretty narrow and there were people stopping right in front of you to get water. In addition to the narrow run-way, there were random cups on the ground that you had to dodge. Well I dodged them anyway - I didn't want my injury-prone ass to slip on one! The narrow water stations was probably the only bad part of my experience...

I stopped to walk for a bit after mile 4 to take my first Gu, then went back at it. We were headed back towards downtown. After we made the first left turn onto MLK (around mile 5), there was upbeat hip hop/dance music playing and it really pumped me up! Then I saw a huge line of kids with their hands held out and I made my way over to them and just ran down the line giving high fives!! WOOHOO!! That was the start of my surge!! It really got me going! The whole downtown part (miles 5-8) was just so awesome and packed with spectators!!! Especially along Oglethorpe!! I loved the bagpipers playing in front of the Cathedral (probably the best band out there on the course! haha). Around mile 8, I saw my friend and boot camp instructor, Kerrie who came out to cheer for us!

After the hustle and bustle of downtown, it was back to the neighborhood streets... after mile 9 we passed under the legs of a huge inflated Brooks rocker dude. Then I decided to take my second walk break to consume my 2nd Gu before entering the Gordonston neighborhoods, where I would be on the look out for Joel's parents and Liam! For some reason this part seemed pretty long to me. Maybe because I was searching and anticipating seeing my son. I knew we'd see them in between miles 10 and 11, but as we kept making turns and not seeing them, I thought they might have left already.... until I finally caught sight of them near the end of the 10th mile. I briefly stopped to give Liam a kiss. Then he says, "I want to go run with you mommy!" I didn't tear up like you'd think I would - instead I just said, "I'll be right back! We'll see you later! Love you!!!" and continued my journey. Then I hear some really sad weeping... that just kept getting louder even as I jogged away!! :( I felt like a bad mom... one lady runner came up and said, "Oh it just breaks your heart doesn't it?" And it did, but I just had to laugh. He does that every time I leave him! Apparently he did that with Joel too, so I'm sure seeing his other parent run away from him earlier didn't help me! LOL

After that little ordeal, I saw the 11 mile sign and knew that I was SO CLOSE to the end!! A couple miles to go!!! It started to split off to where the marathoners left for their 2nd half... it was very clearly marked and they had people along the course telling people as well. After the split, was mile 12!!! AHHHH just 1 more mile!!! This last mile was the longest mile EVER. First of all, there were a couple little hills on this stupid road. It was rough. My toes had become numb and my feet were just getting beat. I made myself walk a little bit before trying to finish strong. I wish there was as many spectators on this final mile like there were on Oglethorpe! I was trying to remember the succession of streets before Drayton (the LAST turn), but I just kept seeing a mass of people still lining the street ahead of me. Ugh. But it came up by surprise because I think there might have been a hill and then right after the hill was the final turn! WOOHOO!!! Just .1 mile left!!!

Where's that finish line?

The last .1 was a blur. There were tons of people lined up on the sides cheering people in! I tried to sprint, but I don't think I had much left in me. I went as fast as I could, even slowed a bit to make sure my finish line photo was cute by posing. LOL I crossed under the gate and yelled out, "WOOHOOOOOOO!!!" I didn't cry like I thought I might (especially because just I started my period, haha - sorry TMI). I was just so HAPPY and overwhelmed and proud of myself!!! Especially when I looked down at my watch to see my time: 2:14:36!!!!!!! Holy $hit! I beat my goal (2:15)!

Finishing up strong!

Pumped up at the finish!!!

I went and got my medal and saw Joel! He waited for me, which I am glad he did because we got our finishers photo taken together! He didn't do as well as he would have liked due to an injury, but I am proud of him for finishing!! I met a girl who recognized me from Daily Mile, which was pretty awesome that we finished around the same time. I also saw my old Crossfit instructor, Kim at the end handing out medals and gave her a high five!

Finisher's photo with my man!

After the photos and crowded finish line craziness, we walked straight down to the bag check area and got our bag. Bag checks are awesome! I changed out of my shoes and into my FitFlops... ahhh... my feet needed those! Got my phone and took an "after" photo of Joel and I and checked my texts and FB... although it was nearly impossible to get a good signal out there with all the people trying to do the same exact thing.

Our AFTER photo!

We got our free beer and then headed over to the CREW tent for post-race congrats to my CREWmates and photos. Then we went over to the MRTT tent to catch up with the other MRTT runners from Savannah, ATL and other chapters, as well as rest, stretch, ice, drink more beer, and just enjoy the beautiful afternoon... We stayed and got updates on Jen - who was doing the Full (a first for her, too!) It was really awesome to watch her come in and finish strong - well above her expected goal!!!

Morgan and Jen... both big achievements at the RnR!

This race was so unbelievable. I knew it would be a great time, but it really exceeded my expectations of a half marathon. I wore a custom-made Wonder Woman running costume (from the wonderfully talented Helen of This Princess Runs) which got me lots of comments and "GO WONDER WOMAN" cheers along the way! Whenever I heard someone say it, I'd yell out "WOOOHOOO YEAH!!!!" and try to make eye contact with them as a thank you to let them know I heard it and it is keeping me going!!! The race support and volunteers were just so phenomenal. I would love to do this again next year!!! 

My splits. I wanted to see those 9s at the end of the race, but I guess I started off faster than I should have. Oh well! I still ran a fabulous race!

(Thanks marathonfoto.com for the pics! I will be purchasing them soon!)

Bring on October!

The first few bars are not proportional to the later ones

Just to give you a bit of history, I only used to train for mostly 5Ks back in the day, pre-baby. Which meant the furthest I ever ran on any given running day was 4 miles. I ventured into the 10K distance for a short time before I got pregnant and did a couple 10K races (both 10Ks were bridge runs, so I am looking to eventually do a flat one to try to PR -- sub 1 hour is my goal!)

I joined a training group in June this year with my local Fleet Feet for beginner half-marathoners (specifically training for the Rock and Roll Savannah Half in November) and they have been excellent for making me get out of bed in the mornings. I knew I could never follow any type of plan by myself because I could easily have just said, "I'll run tomorrow" or, "I'll just make up the miles this weekend" or... any other excuse not to get up and get my miles in.

Another group that I joined this year: Moms Run This Town, has given me even MORE motivation and support to go out there and run. Plus I've made a bunch of awesome new mommy friends -- which is a milestone in itself because I am not the type to go out there and join a "mommy group" but I am so glad I did. I love the group and try to pitch in as much as I can to give back to the cause and support I have received in return. I was recently promoted to be a co-chapter leader for our Savannah group, which I am honored to do so, but not worthy! I'm just doing my part! :)

Doing the LoCo Motion this past Saturday!

One of my last posts dealt with new records for the month of September -- I have even more to add. It's just getting a bit ridiculous -- the amount of achievements I've done this month -- but it's all true and noteworthy that I have to mention it! haha It's like it just keeps getting better!

• Finished my first 10-mile race, the LoCo Motion 10 Mile Run/Walk in Callawassie Island, SC (details below)
• Ran a record number of miles in 1 month: 78 (see image at top)
• Reached a total of 400 miles run for 2012 thus far (according to Daily Mile, yet the screenshot above totals only 388... which is fine because there were a few times I did not log!)
• Completed my highest total number of organized races for the year...so far! And more to be added! I am at 6 thus far in 2012, whereas my previous highest was 4 in 2010!)

Last Saturday morning, while pretty much everyone was out doing the Big Nasty Mud Run (I'm so jealous!), I was out running the LoCo Motion 10 Mile Run on Callawassie Island in SC. It's a 3-day, 30 mile event which benefits breast cancer research, screening and treatment. Callawassie Island is the first community in South Carolina to be designated a Community Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation, so the course was BEAUTIFUL - half golf course and half shady neighborhood streets. But the race started at 9 am! HOT! I've grown accustomed to seeing dark morning stars and beautiful dawns on my runs.

I guess I'll start with the few CONs of the run: First, the late start time, nuff' said! It was a very casual race, which meant no chip timing (no big deal, I knew this before hand and was prepared with my Garmin and was not expecting a PR). But it also meant that the course was most likely not measured correctly -- my GPS readings were minus .2 miles from each mile marker, so I had to make up for it after I crossed the finish line. It also meant that the start was not really officially announced - I thought we were doing a group "warm up" walk, but then after I saw people in the front of the pack start running, I started my watch and tried to make my way past the walkers, which also kind of sucked, because I was in the back and I'd say 75% of the group were walkers. Plus the start was on a golf course path, so it was really narrow and really hard to maneuver past. I read on the website that they'd give runners a 3 minute head start. I guess they forgot!

Now that all the bad stuff is out of the way, I can get on with all the GREAT stuff!

1. It was a beautiful, scenic, mostly shaded course.

2. TREMENDOUS community involvement: high school cheerleaders were cheering, residents had pink bows on their mailboxes, and a lot of them were outside their houses cheering everyone on and waving.

3. TONS of water and snack stops along the way, which made it fun and really broke up the course -- some residents had unofficial stops where they set out some snacks, drinks, candy, pretzels, oranges, chocolates, watermelon (OMG the watermelon hit the spot!) and played music. I wasn't planning on stopping along the course so much, but I loved how they all came out to support the race!

4. It was a small race - maybe 150-200 participants that day, so parking and bathrooms were not an issue!

5. The overall vibe and energy of the morning was great! Maybe due to the intimacy of the race because it was so small? I was definitely catching the vibes of all the different groups and runners out there. For some, it was the 2nd day in a row to be walking or running 10 miles. That's amazing to me.

6. I got to wear PINK! It was a perfect race to don my hot pink CEP compression socks! I got multiple comments and compliments on them!

7. Race goodies! For a small race, they sure had a good amount of free stuff out there: along with the usual bottles of water, bagels, grapes, bananas, granola bars, they had large bags of sweet potato chips (yum), medium size bottles of Gatorade, pink lollipops (grabbed a few for Liam) and other pink candies. And in the race bags there were pink cups, bracelets, a pink beer koosie, nail file...

8. Great race support staff - I had many questions before the race, which I asked on their FB page and they were quickly answered!

Finish time was 1 hour, 43-ish seconds on the race clock. I wasn't paying too much attention because I had to go the extra bit after crossing under the finish line arch to reach 10 miles on my Garmin, which was 01:48:30.

I'd totally do this again next year. Maybe even try to do this and another one of the other days as well! The final day of the event was 10 miles on the beach!

Time for bed... It's October now... where how did September go by so fast? :)

Daniel Defense Pooler 5K Recap

Official Time: 29:53
My GPS Watch Time: 29:01

Proof! ...Of my fastest 5K for 2012, so far...

So I stopped my watch well after I crossed the finish line. I didn't even notice the small time clock at the end. I just sprinted my way to the finish. It was not a chip timed race, so the clock started when the gun went off – not when I crossed under the starting archway. Also, the course was a bit more than a 5K, my watch registered 3.19 miles. My goal was to get a sub-29 5K time... which I JUST MISSED by 2 seconds (by my watch...LOL), oh well, maybe next time!

Beginning of the race, waving to Liam

About to cross the finish line... I totally sprinted past this one gal I was trailing the last quarter mile... sneaky!

It was a hot race. It started at 8am, not the ideal time to run in these parts. I definitely started out too fast, but tired to slow it down... it's hard in a race setting. I guess it's something I need to mentally train myself to do, but the only way to do that is to enter races! On my training runs, I usually keep a steady pace throughout the run until the very end where I try to kick it up a notch to the finish because I have that saved up energy (which I have learned is not good for my knees, lol, but I have toned it down). I probably could have pushed myself just a bit faster at the end, but I was pretty wiped. That mask didn't help either!

There was a costume contest for "Most Patriotic" male and female runner. I ran in a silly costume that I put together the day before the race. I made the cape from an old race T-shirt that was too big for me, and I spray painted the star on it, as well as the red stripes onto the white shirt. I bought a cheap mask and spray painted part of that too and bought the star "race legs" from Team Sparkle! I wore my awesome blue MRTT Bondi Band to represent my mommas and my awesome pair of red Aspaeris Pivot compression shorts! Turns out I was pretty much one of the only few people in costume! I wasn't expecting to win, but after seeing the lack of patriotic costumes, I was pretty sure I had a good chance... and well, I did win!! Too bad it wasn't a cash prize! :)

A few of my fellow mommas from MRTT ran this race and so did about half of my CREW training group (our group long run that morning was actually cancelled due to low participation). It was a great small race that wasn't super crowded, but still had a great turnout. I think about 600 runners participated. The race proceeds went to the Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Stewart where wounded soldiers go to heal. They raised $20,000 for them!!! Woohoo!

Me and fellow CREW mate, Janet

Liam and Mom (me) running the Kids race! Notice the matching capes!

This was also a special race because it was Liam's FIRST race!! They had a kiddie run right before the actual race started. I ran alongside Liam and he was doing AWESOME! He ran ALMOST the entire distance until he tripped and fell right before the finish line! :( It was so pitiful, but cute... he of course cried when he fell. I dusted him off and asked if he still wanted to run, but he shook his head, still crying. I held his hand and asked if he still wanted to finish and he nodded. So we walked into the finish line with everyone cheering him on! It was a pretty awesome feeling, even though he had a little fall -- I'm sure part of the crying was due to embarrassment. But I am glad he wanted to finish because that's what it's all about -- getting back up after you fall and NOT QUITTING what you start! I was so proud of him! :)

Me and Jen

Thanks to Jen at Running Our Way for my free entry into this race!

Jen's 12-year old son Morgan ran the 5K in 21:27!! He got FIRST in his age group! He's such a talented young runner! The MRTT moms are very proud of him!!

Katie also had her first table set up for MRTT at the race which was pretty awesome. We are trying to attract more members... so if happen to be reading this, are a mom (even to furbabies), live in the Savannah area and want to join an AWESOME, free running group, come check us out!! http://savannahmrtt.wordpress.com/

Oh, I also want to thank my husband JOEL for watching Liam and carrying my purse while I ran. :D

Awesome MRTT Running Moms!

Up next: the LoCo Motion 10-miler on the 29th. Woohoo!!