Mercedes Marathon 2012

On February 12, 2012, I ran the Mercedes Marathon in Birmingham, AL. 3rd marathon was a charm! Huge PR at this one!

I didn’t really tell anyone about this race, and definitely didn’t verbalize any goals. I decided to do it on impulse after the First Light Marathon. I didn’t want to waste my training, and felt like I didn’t have much to lose by running it and just seeing what would happen. I figured I could always drop at the half if things went horribly wrong. But they didn’t! Everything went perfectly, and I had one of my best running days ever!

The weather was COLD for us southerners. Temperature at the start was around 25F. Yikes! I obsessed over what to wear, but long sleeves (with a tank underneath), capri tights, gloves, and earwarmers seemed to do great. I was so cold at the beginning that my feet were completely numb for the first mile and a half. After a couple of miles I was comfortable, and even ditched the gloves at about mile 18.

My secret goal was to break 4:50. I decided to start out with the 4:45 pacers and see if I could keep up with them. Unfortunately, the pacers did not have a strategy that would work for me. I stayed with them the first 3 miles, but I felt like they were going way too fast. Every time I looked down at my Garmin, I saw we were going under a 10min/mile pace. That seemed crazy, since I wanted my average pace to be around 10:50/mile. I let them go between mile 3 and 4 and decided to go it alone.

Mercedes is a double loop course, and after mile 12ish when the half racers split off, the course got pretty empty. I always thought I would hate the double loop, and that it would mean the 2nd loop would be really boring. But I loved it! I felt like I knew what was coming, but at the same time I remembered so little about the first loop that it all felt new enough. The only parts I remembered were the ones I loved. I especially loved the Highland Park area. There were a few little hills during the second half of each loop, but not anything defeating.

I remember hitting mile 23 and realizing I was in the home stretch. At this point, I thought about the Office episode where they run the 5k for rabies after Michael hit Meredith with his car.

Remember what Pam said her race strategy would be? “Start fast, run fast in the middle, then finish fast.”  I decided there was no reason to hold back at this point, and just "finish fast!” Sounds kind of dumb now, but it made me smile at the time and reminded me to just get going.

I passed the 4:45 pacers at mile 25 (they were walking), and I knew I would be reaching my goal. I felt so strong at the end. Awesome feeling! Managed to spot my sweet parents cheering at the finish line. I was so thrilled!

Aaaaaaahhhhhhh! I couldn’t believe it! My official time is 4:40:47, average pace of 10:43/mile. I remember telling my mom right after the finish that this kind of race is the reason I run.

Such a fabulous experience! I’ll never forget that day.

First Light Marathon 2012

On January 8, 2012, I ran the First Light Marathon in Mobile, AL. I was sure a flatter marathon would be a sure thing PR. It wasn’t. I have lots of reasons (excuses?) as to why this race didn’t go exactly as planned. But the bottom line is that it was a really fun day, and I was so glad I did it.

I was so lucky to have my best friend Hollie there as my awesome marathon cheerleader! (I don’t know why we didn’t get a picture together on marathon day)

Different race. Hollie's first 5k!

Hollie drove me to downtown Mobile bright and early. I had been scared it was going to rain on race day, but it never did. It would probably have been better if it had. Just ended up being really steamy. And warm.

The race was really small. There weren’t many spectators, but I was lucky enough to have my very own cheering section! Hollie found tons of places to spot me on the course, and took a bunch of fun pictures!

I thought I was keeping a good pace at the beginning, but I slowed way down in the second half.

At about this point was when I encountered the super weird race walker. They kind of always look funny, but this lady took it to a whole new level. She kept screaming “COME ON! PUSH IT!!!!” I assume she was talking to herself, but maybe she thought I was going too slow. I was, after all, keeping about the same pace as the race walker.

At mile 10, I was met with some unexpected rolling hills. I had done the half at this race in 2011, and it was totally flat. I didn’t know Mobile had hills at all! They weren’t really all that bad, but it started to get hot about this same time. The sun came out and it was steamy and difficult.

My aunt and uncle that live in Mobile met me at the University of South Alabama at about mile 15. I was so glad they came out to see me!

The last 6 miles the course flattened out again. But it was too late. I had lost so much time, and the heat was really getting to me. My only real goal for the race was to beat the 4:59:52 from the Georgia Marathon. I knew at about mile 22 that I didn’t have a chance at beating it. I felt so slow, and I was having to walk a lot. There was just no willing my feet to speed up at this point.

I crossed the finish line in 5:03:45, which is an 11:35/mile average pace.

Very simple, very special medal at this one.

It says, “Handmade by community members of  L’arche Mobile.” So sweet.

Tashka 25k

On December 10, 2011, I ran the Tashka 25k trail race for the second year in a row. This is a small, local trail race at the beautiful Lake Lurleen State Park.

The 25k goes all the way around the lake (there’s a 50k option, too, that goes around twice). They flipped the course this year so that the hardest part would be at the beginning, instead of the end like last year.

It was a cold morning, but great running weather.

I intended to treat this run as a long marathon training run, but I ended up pushing a little harder than I expected to, especially at the end. I thought the course change helped a LOT. I could tell I was going faster than last year because I kept falling! A total of 3 tumbles throughout the race. Seriously. Didn’t hurt anything, and they didn’t slow me down too much.

I ended up beating my time from 2010 by 20 minutes! I was shocked! Final time ended up being 3:15:54, which is a 12:36/mile pace. I love this race so much. I want to be able to do the 50k at some point.

Instead of medals, we got pint glasses at this one. I really love this trail race trend.

Yay 25k!

Kaiser Coastal Half Marathon

Completely on impulse, I signed up for a half marathon in Orange Beach, AL that was held the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 26, 2011. It was a good price, and at one time I thought my family would be there over Thanksgiving. They weren’t, but Wes and I drove down Thanksgiving night and stayed at a dear friend’s house (one of my favorite places on earth, by the way) through the weekend. It was awesome in every single way. And I was so happy I signed up for the race! It wasn’t a PR race, but it was a good race, and I felt like I learned a lot.

I was nervous before the start. I’d had to take off a few days right before because of some random IT band pain that appeared out of nowhere about a week before the race. I stretched up well right before, but I had serious butterflies!

 

Didn’t end up having any pain at all during the race. Go figure.

I paced pretty horribly during this one. I started out too fast, and got stupid and competitive with a orange and blue decked out Auburn fan (the race was the day of the Iron Bowl, after all). I kept this up for several miles of unbelievable headwind. But I started to fade at about mile 10. Really, really faded. I ended up having to walk a bunch in the last few miles. The race was super flat, and really beautiful. A lot of it was on one of my favorite paved trails ever in Orange Beach, and some was on the main drag next to the beach (that was the super windy part).

I paid for my bad pacing decisions, and ultimately finished 4 minutes slower than my PR. Official time ended up being 2:14:05, which is a 10:14/mile average pace. I had fun and was really glad I went. The trip was just what I needed at the time.

AND, I got met at the finish line by a super cutie!

AND, I got to meet Deena Kastor! I even got an autograph like a weirdo :)

I got a medal, too, of course.

Yay for participation!  

Rainy Day Catch Up

It’s raining out, so it’s clearly the perfect day to lay around and do nothing. And maybe catch up on some rest and possibly some super-old race recaps that I’ve been meaning to do forever.

In the meantime, just for fun, here’s Pam and Wes from high school Homecoming, circa 1997. Sorry for the picture of a picture, I came across it last weekend when I was at my parent’s house getting ready for my big PR MARATHON. More on that later…

You’re welcome!

Good Riddance, 2011

I'm not really being dramatic when I say 2011 was the worst year of my life. My husband and I both lost our jobs, my town was destroyed by a tornado, and my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. I wish I could say that I see the reasons these things had to happen, and that I've come out on the other side happier for it. But I'm not there yet. The truth is, I'm still struggling with the sadness and change that this year has brought.

What I can say is that I'm hopeful for a better 2012. I can also say that I can see glimmers of the positive. I'm still moving forward. When I first started this blog, I used my favorite quote to title it ("If you can't run, then walk. And if you can't walk, then crawl. Do what you have to do. Just keep moving forward and never, ever give up." -Dean Karnazes) I don't see it as just a running quote. To me it's about life. This year I've just kept moving forward and doing whatever I had to do to make it.

And in the process, I can say that I've gotten stronger. My marriage is stronger. My running is stronger. I feel like if I can make it through this, I can make it through most anything. And in so many ways, running has saved my life this year. I remember many long runs through my favorite spots and taking the chance to sort through thoughts and plans. It also gave me time to really connect with nature and pray. I always feel so much more calm and centered after a long run.

Running also helped me to have a few successes and happy days when they were few and far between otherwise. I got the bad news about my old job in March, then immediately had the distraction of my first marathon, then a HUGE 5k PR that was a long time coming. As things have gotten even worse toward the end of the year, I've been so grateful for the anticipation of my 2nd marathon and getting to do a bunch of fun trail races with good friends. It really has made all the difference. 

I still have a couple of races from the past few weeks I need to document. A road half marathon that was a HUGE learning experience, and a trail 25k that was a HUGE success!

I'm not big on new year's resolutions, so I don't think I'm making any. I'm just hoping to put 2011 behind me and make 2012 so much better. Happy New Year!!

Oak Mountain Trail 21k

On Sunday, November 13, 2011, I ran the Oak Mountain Trail Half Marathon in Birmingham, AL. The weather was warm and perfect, and the scenery quite nice. The race was hard!

Some sections of the trail were lovely. Others were full of rock formations that made it really difficult to keep a steady pace. Some even included signs on the trees warning “Danger Slow Down!” Seriously.

Once we got past the rock formations, we entered an area with these constant quickly rolling hills. That was easier at first, but got progressively harder until I was ready for those to end, too. The last mile included some really punishing inclines and declines, and I started to be OVER IT and just ready to be finished. Unfortunately, that’s when they made us circle the parking lot where all the people faster than me (and the ones that did the shorter races) were driving right in front of me and the finish line I couldn’t get to. Grrrrrrr.

I did finally finish, where I found my sweet parents waiting on me!

My dad was behind the camera. My mom brought me flowers and I burst into tears. My mom has been going through so much lately, and it meant the world to me that she made it there. The flowers didn’t make it in this picture, so here they are once I got home.

They didn’t give out pint glasses at this race, even though it was part of the same race series (And Paula, they didn’t put any beer in it before! What gives??). We did get a medal this time, though.

Overall, I was happy I did this race, even though my time was really slow. There were some seriously hardcore runners there that finished the course in unbelievable times! I was considering this race more of a long marathon training run, so I was mostly happy with the result. I finished 12.9 miles in 3:05, which comes out to 14:44/mile.

At least it was some good time spent on my feet!