Un-Race Report - Dirty Dog 15k Trail Run

It rained on Thursday.  And with that rain, our crawlspace flooded for the third time in as many weeks.  I was totally frustrated and fed up and ready to quit.  As we worked to clean out as much of the water as we could between storms, I started to seriously consider withdrawing from the race.  But then I thought more about it - a day on the trails might be just what I needed to clear my head and relieve some of my stress. So I decided to give it a go.

Friday morning, I'm laying in bed waiting for the alarm to go off before I get up, and I'm sure I hear rain on the roof.  Rain that could possibly be re-flooding the crawlspace.  Rain that would definitely be muddy-ing up the trails.  Once again, the idea of withdrawing reared it's ugly head.  Turns out it was just the sound of the fan in the hallway and not rain, but I still thought about withdrawing.  I'm slow enough right now when it's dry - the thought of how much mud and slippery trails would slow me down even more was just downright depressing.  Again, I gave it some thought and the stress-relieving, head clearing positive aspects of a day on the trails (even wet, muddy ones) won and I talked myself into running anyway.

It's now Saturday morning and the big question of the day is "to run or not to run?"  For some, it's a silly question.  Most race days, for me, it's a no brainer.  But this one, this morning, was different.  I didn't wake up all excited and pumped to get to the race.  Ordinary race days I hop out of bed and get dressed in a flash and I'm ready to leave early.  This race day, I dawdled; I procrastinated.  I started putting on my race outfit, thinking that if I could just get dressed, I might feel more like running.  Nope. Not even my lovely, fun, inspiring, green sparkle skirt could shake my "don't want to run today" blues.

There was a small part of me that wanted to run.  But unfortunately, that part of me wasn't strong enough to beat the part of me that didn't want to run.  It couldn't overcome the fear of slipping in the mud, sliding down one of the steep sections of trail and breaking some bone on one of the big rocks.  It couldn't overcome the major feeling of unpreparedness that comes from the lack of motivation to train that's been plaguing me all spring. It couldn't overcome the mental hole I've fallen into the past week or so.

Running is a mental game.  If my head were in the right place, I could overcome all of that and run this race anyway.  But today, it's not.  It's feeling too many doubts. And the Dirty Dog is not a race to run when you're doubtful.  It's too hard of a course to not take seriously; you can't just wing it.  You have to be all there; you have to go all the way and give it all you've got and then some.  And today I just don't have it to give.

The Toughest Race I'll Ever Love...

Is it "wrong" to wear a sparkle skirt to a trail race called the Dirty Dog?   Don't know, but next week, I'm doing it anyway.

Yes, here I am again, one week away from the Dirty Dog 15k trail run (see my thoughts from this day last year: 2012 Pre-Dirty Dog post .)  I don't know what it is about this race, but it's one of my favorites.   It's hard; I struggle and fight for just about every step; it's made me cry.  But I keep signing up to do it again.

Once again, I'm not ready for it. But I'm gonna do it anyway.  If nothing else, it'll be a nice walk in the woods.  

I'll be there, probably finishing close to last, bringing a little sparkle to the woods in my green sparkle skirt.  Because every race, even ones with dirty in the name, needs a little sparkle.

Read about my previous Dirty Dog adventures here:
2011 Dirty Dog Race Report

2012 Dirty Dog Race Report

Race Report - Susan G Komen Race for the Cure

Hope & Faith, my trusty Komen shoes
ready to carry me through another event

 Last August, I participated in the Susan G. Komen 3-day Walk for the Cure.  It was an incredible experience.  I don't remember the exact figures, but all along the walk course they had signs and posters with Breast Cancer Facts that included staggering numbers of women (and men) who are diagnosed with breast cancer every minute and the sobering and equally staggering numbers of people who die from breast cancer.

 

With those numbers in mind, I signed up to run today's 5k Race for the Cure.  Whether walking 60 miles, or walking or running 3.1 miles, the goal is the same - to help find the Cure. 

 

Because Everyone Deserves A Lifetime.

 

 

 

Now let's taking a moment to move away from the charity and the symbolism of the event, and get down to the run part.

 

I wore my "Hope & Faith" shoes not just because they are symbolic of the BC fight, but because I needed a little of both if I was going to have a decent run today.  I've been spending a lot of time going slow and utilizing the walk/run method on my evening runs.  I've been lazy when it comes to my long runs and cutting them short or skipping them all together (which means the Dirty Dog in 2 weeks is going to be an interesting experience (like always), but we'll take it one race at a time and save that one for later. :-) )  So I figured going into today that I was going to be slow and that I would probably have to walk. 

 

I am so far from my 5k PR right now that it's kind of depressing to think about and I know I want to work this year to meet or beat it.  But something that I also know is that it'll take most of the year to get there.  I knew I wasn't going to do it today.  In fact, I knew I wasn't even going to come close.  Today was a "I just want to finish" kind of day.  I guessed that I would finish in around 32 minutes.

 

It seems the gun going off was a surprise to most of us at my section of the start line.  None of us were really paying attention to the fact that it was almost time to start and then BANG! off went the gun.  The slower, unhurried start was just what I needed because I didn't take off too fast, but was able to start at a nice comfortable pace.  And it ended up being a nice comfortable pace that I was able to easily sustain for the whole race.  I had stop twice in mile 2 to stretch out a sore & almost cramping left calf/shin, but didn't have to walk, which was a happy surprise.

 

I reached the finish line in 32:52, close to my predicted time.  My mom commented that I finished right were I wanted to.  Not exactly.  I want to be faster.  I want to be finishing somewhere in the 29's. But I did finish where I knew I could considering where my fitness/endurance is at the moment.  And I'm ok with that. 

 

That was a hard lesson for me to learn last year, but this year I am more accepting of the runner that I am at any given moment.  Doesn't mean I'm not going to keep pushing and training and trying to get better, faster, stronger.   No, it means that when I look in the mirror, I'm going to see me now, as I stand today, in this moment, in this run/race and not be so hard on myself in comparing that me to the me that I want to be but am not yet.

 

 

Race Stats:

Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5k

05-04-13

Finish Time - 32:52 (garmin); 32:58 (official gun time); 32:48 (official net time)

Pace - 10:31 (garmin)

22 of 39 in age group

449 of 594 finishers

 

 

Race "Report' - Joker Run

Today was a first in my racing "career". 

A couple of weeks ago, riding on the racing high that resulted from the Princess Half Marathon, I registered myself for a bunch of races - the Cleveland Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in October, the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in May, and the Joker Run (4 mile) in March.

March 24, to be exact.  Today.  Right now, as I type this; well, 10 minutes from now.  But instead of standing nervously at the start line waiting for the crack of the gun, I'm sitting at my dining room table.  Yes, today I have my very first DNS (did not start).  I'm sitting this one out because I'm not prepared. That's my excuse anyway.  That and the weather.   The thought of running a race I'm not prepared for, in the cold rain, just was not appealing in the least.  If it weren't raining, would I be there?  Good question.

Whatever the answer would be, I can tell you one thing.  On the running front March has been a gigantic, huge, complete and utter fail.  Due various excuses, some legitimate, most not so legitimate, I have run a whopping 3.5 miles.  So sad.  So ridiculous.  So unnecessary. So downright lazy (at least for the days I skipped due to those not so legitimate excuses).

But the time for beating myself up about it is over.  It's time to get back at it.  It's time to renew my commitment to fitness and to running.

I've already made a start - I started the Insanity program.  And insanely, I'm actually liking it. (I have discovered that exercise videos and DVDs tend to bore me and get on my nerves. But not this one. At least not yet.) 

I'm almost done with Week 1 and though the workouts are hard, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment when they're done (a feeling that was lacking with other video workouts).  In just a few days, I can already see a difference in my flexibility when doing the stretches.  My muscles are sore and feeling stronger.  

I'm hoping that Insanity will increase my overall strength and endurance and make me a stronger runner.  I'm going to have to modify the 60 days it's supposed to take to finish the program, because if the last few days of just Insanity are any indication, I'm not going to be able to do it and run on the same day.  So I'll be alternating days, running one, Insanity the next.

I have big goals for this year (some time soon, I'll tell you what they are) and if I'm going to accomplish them, I need to work.  And work hard.  No more excuses.  Just commitment.  Commitment to a better, stronger me.

Race Report - Disney Princess Half Marathon

I don't usually like to focus on what a race or run was not, but in this instance, for this race, I think it's important.  This could have been a different race.  I could have started in an earlier corral; I could have finished with a faster time.  BUT - that was not what this race was about.  This race was not about me.  It was not about running by myself.  It was not about fast times. It was not about rushing to the finish.  It was not about the quest for a new PR. 

Well, you ask, if it wasn't about those things, what was I running the race for?

For moments like this:

And this:

And this:



 

Moments that I would have missed if I'd run alone. Moments that I wouldn't trade for all the PR's and fast times in the world. This race was about good times; it was about friends; it was about support and encouragement; it was about fun; it was about finishing with a triumphant smile.

 

It started as a dream - I don't remember how I heard about the race but when I did, I thought it would be fun to try to do it someday.  In November 2011, at one of our regular girls' weekends, I made a "wouldn't it be cool if we could all go to Disney and you all could cheer me on as I run the Princess race."  As I know I've mentioned before, that statement planted a seed and grew in a way I never imagined it would - it went from friends cheering me on to friends running with me. We set a goal to do the Princess in 2013.  And before we knew it, race day was upon us.

Jen = Jessie

Becca = Jasmine

Me = Tinker Bell

The day started not-so-bright and early, with a bus to catch at the lovely hour of 3:00am.  Although it seemed ridiculously early, it was the perfect time  - we got on the bus and got to the start area with none of the issues I've heard rumors that later buses experienced.  (Big thank you to Shannon Roberts for the tip!). 

 

Before we knew it, it was time to head for the corrals.





hanging out before heading to our corrals





Sign on the way to corrals

corral E was the place to be







At a little after 6am, Fairy Godmother said the magic words, the fireworks went up, and we were off!  The first few miles felt easy and seemed to fly by.  We were just about at the 3 mile mark when we saw the race leaders flying by on the other side of the course. They were almost done, we had basically just started.  Jen put it all into perspective though - they may have been fast, but they were running the same race we were. It's the same start line, the same finish line, the same race.

 

And then we entered the Magic Kingdom.  And saw the castle.  That beautiful, wonderful, awesome castle.  I don't know how many miles we could see it, but the excitement of approaching it and running around and through it was enough to make us forget that we were running in a race, forget that our legs were getting sore and tired. We were in Disney! That's all that mattered.



There were photo ops with characters all along the course, but in the interest of time and attempting to avoid the possibility of getting swept, we didn't stop for many.  I did a few "run-by" photos tho.

Evil Queens and StepSisters

Buzz and some lovely ladies I don't know

Aladdin, dude from Mulan, Flynn Rider

Mrs. Incredible

There was one, however, that we had to stop for.  In FrontierLand, we found Jessie.  Since Jen was dressed like her, we had to stop for the pic.  Jessie was so excited when she saw Jen, she started jumping up and down.  Definitely a cool moment.

Twins!

The miles from Magic Kingdom back to Epcot were a bit harder - we were tired, we hurt, it was humid.  It was a struggle, and at least for me, it became a fight for every step.  But we did it.  Soon we saw the "golf ball" as Becca's 2 year old son calls it, and we knew the finish couldn't be too far away. 

Crowds of spectators with "go random stranger" signs motivated us just enough to know we would finish.  A "great job girls!" from a sorority sister's mom handing out powerade at mile 12 was encouraging.

And then, there it was.  Mile 13 and the finish line.  We did it!  Half Marathon #1 for Becca and Jen,  #4 for me, was done.  We started, we finished!  We are Princesses! 

 

We are Half Marathoner Princesses!

And now for the nitty gritty - not so magical or fun details:
Physically, this race was hard for me.  I don't know if it was the lack of training (weather and other factors kept me from doing enough long runs for this one), the temperature and humidity (what training I did do was in wintry, cold conditions), the roads seemed oddly angled, the crowds (constant weaving in and out of runners and walkers), or a combination of all those (ding ding - we have a winner!!), but it was painful.  My hips and knees started hurting early.  My feet joined the soreness party somewhere around mile 9. Not sure if it was the length of time on the course that was causing my issues or if it was just a bad day physically.  I don't know if I had tried to go faster and run/walk it at my normal half marathon pace if I would have felt better, or if that would have been worse.  But a few extra sore muscles were more than worth it to be there with Becca and Jen as they ran in and finished their first half.

To run in Disney World with 2 of my best friends was an incredibly awesome experience.  Thank you to Becca and Jen for coming on this journey with me.  Can't wait to do it again! 

 

 



The Evolution of a Runner

Me:  "I'm not meant to be a runner."

There was a time, in the not so distant past, that I would say that statement.  And I would say it often.  My  husband would try to get me to run with him, and I would go out for a short while and come home with some kind of ache or pain.  And I'd give up.  I tried running when we lived in the apartments in South Charleston. I tried running when we lived in our condo in Hunters Ridge.  And each time, I'd last about a week or two and give up, with an adamant declaration of "I'm not meant to be a runner."

And then one Sunday afternoon in March 2009, I was home alone and bored.  It was a beautiful day and I didn't want to waste it sitting around inside.  For some reason, and to this day I don't know what made me decide to do it, I thought I'd go for a run.  I was Forrest Gump.

"That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run."   - Forrest Gump

I put on some old running shoes and headed out the door.  I made it just past the neighbor's house before I was out of breath and winded.  I remember thinking, "Really? That's all the farther I can run? I can do better than that!" So I tried again.  And again. And again.  I made it around the neighborhood loop, alternating between running and walking from property line to property.  I don't know how long it took me, and at the time I didn't know how far it was.  But it seemed to take a long time and it felt really far. (And the hill - it about killed me.)  But I wanted to do it again.

I don't know why that particular run on that particular day was any different than all the other times I had given running a try.  But something about it awakened the competitive spirit in me.  I wanted to be able to do better - to run farther and be faster.  So I kept running.  There have been highs and lows and times when I felt like I should give up.  But I kept running.

In the almost 4 years between that March Sunday and now, I've kept running.  I've struggled and I've triumphed. I've good runs and I've had bad runs.  And I've transformed.  To date, I've run in 18 5k's, 1 4.5 mile trail race (walk), 2 8k's, 2 10k's, 1 8 mile trail race, 2 15k trail races, 3 half marathons, and 1 virtual half marathon.  The girl who swore she wasn't meant to be a runner became a runner.

"Now for some reason, what I was doing seemed to make sense to people...  Somebody later told me it gave people hope.  Now I don't know anything about that but..."  - Forrest Gump

Somewhere along the way, and I really don't know how this happened, I also apparently became an inspiration.  That's not a designation I'm particularly comfortable with, because I don't feel like I've really done anything particularly inspirational, other than just run.  I just know that I made one "wouldn't it be neat if..." comment.  And that comment started a whirlwind of change in three of my best friends.

Like me, these women never thought they could run, never thought they would ever want to run, and never thought that they ever would run.  In short, they felt they weren't meant to be runners either.  But, a change happened, and three more "I'm not meant to be a runner's" became runners.

Transformation

As I sit here counting down the final 2.5 weeks until I get to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon with two of these women, I am amazed.  Amazed at the transformation in them; amazed in the transformation in me.  I have more self-confidence. More courage. More strength. More determination. More everything.

Who would've ever thought that something that boils down to simply putting one foot in front of the other could be so powerful? So life changing??

Me:  "I AM a Runner."

Race Report - Winter Series 10k

This is the second year that I've participated in the Winter Series races.  While it's been a little chilly for some of the races, it has never been what I would call wintry.  Until today.  Today the Winter Series lived up to its name. There was snow.  And ice.  And cold.  And did I mention ice?

I knew conditions were going to be a bit sketchy when they issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the weekend.  It snowed most of the day yesterday and this morning there were some flurries with off and on light snow showers.  But the road in the neighborhood was clear, and I really wanted my purple hoodie.  I figured it couldn't be too bad out there so I put on some warm clothes and hit the road for Kanawha City.

I got there early, got signed in, got my hoodie (which I just might be wearing as I type this report - love these things!), and waited for the race to start.  The part of the course you could see at the start looked bad - snow covered with slushy parts.  I had a feeling the race was going to be interesting.  Since I had strict instructions to stay upright from my Disney Princess running partners, I ditched any time goals I had and set my sights on just finishing. And on not falling.

As it turns out, the start line was pretty much representative of the entire course. The conditions the whole way alternated between snow covered ice and slush (with some clear spots scattered here and there; but those were few and far between.) I started slow, and kept a nice but careful pace until just before the 2 mile marker.  That's where I started slipping and sliding.  With thoughts of "stay upright" running through my head, I switched to a walk at that point.  I played it safe the rest of the race: running when I felt safe and steady on my feet; walking when I didn't (which, unfortunately for the part of me that wanted to finish fast, was most of the time).

While I'm not very fast right now (even on good weather days) I know that I'm capable of going faster than I did today.  But instead of feeling down as person after person went by me, I told myself to run (or walk) my own race and that Disney was way more important than today.   It wasn't worth it to run hard, fall, hurt myself, and not be able to run in 3 weeks (just 3 more weeks!!)  So I kept myself occupied by singing along with my Disney playlist and focused on staying upright.

You  might be thinking, after reading that last paragraph, that I had a bad day.  But I didn't.  I didn't wimp out and stay home (as I have done with more of my training runs lately than I really like to admit.)  I braved the elements.  I stayed upright.  I got 6 more miles into the bank for Disney Princess training.  So it's all good.  :-)

Winter Series Race #3 - 10k
Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013
Finish place - 271 (according to my popsicle stick)
Finish time - 1:17:42 (garmin)
Avg Pace per Mile - 12:32 (garmin)