Peek-a-boo! (There are shorts attached to my skirt, I swear.)
These are the professional race photos from the half marathon… that wasn’t.
Do you ever order your professional race photos?
Busy Friday planned…
xo Hill
negatives to positives.
Happy Monday, y’all! I’ve enjoyed reading your responses to my race rant review about the half-marathon… that wasn’t. There’s really no point in dwelling on the disappointment because it’s a done deal. As with many things in life, focusing on the positives (like finishing 5th out of 70 in my age group) is a better way to spend your mental energy.
I thought it was ironic that the day of my race, this print I had ordered arrived in the mail :)
After writing yesterday’s race review, I decided to e.mail the race director. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one of the 949 half-marathon participants that did so. When I checked my e.mail earlier today, I was pleasantly surprised to have received a sincerely apologetic letter and compensation for a future race.
“While we can’t fix what happened, we can say that this will most definitely not happen again. Along
with our deepest, most genuine apology, we would like to offer you compensation towards a future
event. We will be sending you a voucher that may be used as a half-off coupon to any of our
upcoming events taking place in next 12 months, OR as a $30.00 (75%) discount towards
pre-registration to the Moonlight Half Marathon in 2012.”
After a lazy rest day yesterday, I feel calm and ready to run on. You can bet I’ve already been researching races. I think I’ll tackle Half #6 come early fall…
After all the recent running rambling, I think we’re due for some nutty summer recipes…
See ya soon!
Hill
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The Great Fundraising Act is 1 week away: MONDAY, July 25th.
You do not want to miss this delicious event, including a chance to win a batch of my Chocolate Espresso Energy Bites.
Thank you for supporting Susan!
the half-marathon… that wasn’t.
I didn’t trip on something running in the dark. I didn’t quit. I didn’t get lost. In fact… I crossed the finish line of my 5th “half-marathon”, feeling strong, in a time of 1:33:15!
Endorphin-high/“PR” smile :)
I was amazed that I had beat my previous PR (ran in March) by an entire 6 minutes. I couldn’t believe it… and I shouldn’t have. As I was shaking out my legs after the race, a man who had told me to “relax my breathing” before Mile 1, approached me afterwards and we started chatting. This is when I learned that the race course was nearly 1 mile short! A rush of disappointment immediately flashed through my body. My endorphin high was murdered on the spot.
faking a smile (with my gal, Kendra, a 5K-finisher) after getting the news
I felt cheated… and I was. After studying the course map, I think the error was somewhere between miles 5 and 7. I don’t remember passing a Mile 4 sign either, but I will assure you I didn’t run off course. The unfortunate reality that the race was only 12.2 miles was confirmed by at least 5 other frustrated half-marathon participants.
Now I do not feel as if I’ve honestly completed 5 half-marathons. Was the race worthy of 26 dedicated training workouts, a $48 race fee, and 4 hours of travelling? Possibly. Seeing that this was not a new race, and there was an ample amount of volunteers, I still don’t find this excusable – 12.2 miles is not worthy of the painful blisters that are decorating my feet… rant over.
Despite the major disappointment, I thoroughly enjoyed the race. The course was flat, as expected, and twisted in and out of neighborhood parks, vineyards, and a handful of tunnels. The sun was shining brightly for the first half of the race (glad I decided to wear my – bent – hat, but wishing I had a pair of sunglasses); though, the temperature wasn’t unbearable and didn’t seem to affect my pace a considerable amount.
I passed Mile 1 @ 7:00 minutes
Mile 2 @ 14:00 minutes
Mile 8 @ 52ish minutes
Mile 9 @ 59ish minutes
This where I started questioning myself. I was expecting to pass Mile 8 in roughly 60 minutes (as I did for Half #4). How could I be running a full mile ahead of pace!? Obviously, I didn’t stop to figure out the puzzle, so I finished the final “4 miles” telling myself untrue affirmations that I was some running superstar, haha.
Mile 10 @ 67ish minutes – yeah, right!
Mile 13.1 12.2: 1:33:15 [7:39 pace]
What I momentarily thought was a 6-minute PR transformed into no PR at all.
Despite my complaining and disappointment, I am pleased with the results:
20-24 (female) age group: 5th place/70
overall: 74th place/949
Conclusion: I need to register for an accurate Half #5, and I need the Nike+ SportWatch GPS.
Poolside R & R today…
Hill
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Has a similar racing incident happened to you?
Would you be upset? Am I overreacting?
Would you still count it as running a half-marathon?
Would you complain to the race organization?
half #5 prep + playlist.
After 26 workouts, I am officially done with training for half-marathon #5. Tomorrow is Race Day!
I’m pretty pumped about this run. I hope my legs are as excited as I am. If not, I made a decent playlist that I hope will accelerate the adrenaline.
Current song obsession: Moves Like Jagger
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I had CoolRunning calculate my “dream on” mile splits. I think goals are a wonderful thing; but, I don’t want to be too ambitious, as I think the time of the race (7:00pm) and summer temperature could affect my running.
Do you expect a PR every race?
About those beets, I finally got around to roasting them… and when I did, I ate all four! I think there are worse things to indulge in ;)
An interesting combination of ingredients (and not exactly ideal pre-race fuel), but it was tasty.
Organic baby spinach, organic strawberries, roasted golden beets, red onion, pistachios and creamy chevre drizzled with clover honey, olive oil, S + P
I need to finish organizing my race gear for tomorrow’s travels…
Hope you have a lovely weekend!!
xo Half-Marathon Hill
Running Tuesday: 10 Treadmill Truths
Hey there. Happy Running Tuesday, friends!
As a full-blooded runner from my callused feet to my low, healthy heart rate, I love nothing more than gearing up and going for a long, refreshing run in the outdoors – whether it be the pavement, or a muddy dirt trail. That said, I wasn’t raised in the warmest of climates, so with the summer sun shining full force, I’m more inclined to run to the gym to train instead of melting like an ice cream cone in the heat of the sun.
Summer arrived a few days early!
You may be thinking that treadmill training should be left for the cold, dark, perhaps snowy winter season, but I’m sure some of you are appreciative of the machine in triple-digit temperatures. Since being in college, I’ve run marathons of miles on the despised “dreadmill”, so I decided to compile a list of what I’ve found true of treadmill training.
10 Truths About Treadmill Running
#1 TIP: Never (unknowingly) mount a treadmill with the belt running. It may result in an embarrassing, bloody disaster and 6 stitches in your chin.
#2 It’s an ideal means for practicing your math – you don’t want to lose your subtraction skills from the second grade.
#3 It will set your pace. Being able to manipulate your speed with the push of button will allow you to sustain your desired speed for an allotted amount of time – you can only slow down when the belt does.
#4 The incline button is your friend. If you don’t have hilly terrain nearby, use the ‘mill for hill-repeat simulation. It also eliminates the stress on your knee joints since you do not have to run downhill.
Holy Hills [30-minute] Treadmill Workout <— try this!
- 5 minutes @ 7.2mph – 0.5 incline
- 5 minutes @ 7.5mph – 0.5 incline
- 10 minutes @ 7.5mph – alternating 2.0 & 4.0 incline every minute
- 5 minutes @ 7.5mph – 0.5 incline
- 5 minutes @ 7.2mph incline – 0.5 incline
#5 Speed intervals are not for the track only. If you don’t have access to a track, the treadmill is an ideal outlet for interval training. Why do intervals? They will make you stronger, slimmer, and faster!
#6 It will keep your kicks sparkling clean.
#7 Variety is key. Have a handful of workouts to keep things interesting during your week. For example, you may do: 1 tempo run, 1 longer run, and 1 interval run (depending on your training needs).
#8 It will keep you injury-free (hopefully!) as the soft rubber is easier on your joints, shins, and leg muscles.
#9 Your thigh muscles may increase in size (see #5).
#10 You’ll gain the reputation at your gym as “the crazy runner girl”.
This is the treadmill I run on at the WREC, just FYI.
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In other running news, I registered to run my 5th half-marathon! This isn’t just any regular race… it starts at 8:00pm due to the hot summer temps – running a race in the dark, I am ready for the adventure! :)
Oh, and it’s just over 4 short weeks away on July 16, 2011!
Stay tuned for training details and the Week II recap of my Slimmer for Summer Plan.
Gotta run…
HP
Have you ever run a night race?
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Of Possible Interest:
- My guest post on Carrots ‘N’ Cake: Tips for Training Indoors.
- The Upside of Running Inside – Runner’s World Magazine