New Tattoo

I had to get something to commemorate my first marathon. So I opted for a tattoo that is like the sticker on the back of my truck, just a simple 26.2 in an oval. It's on the back of my right calf and is of course, pink! I had it done at Bandana's in Anacortes.

Ready to go!

Bandana Mike

Yes, tattoos bleed...that means they hurt a little

Won't that look awesome, peeking out below my capris when I'm running??

26.2

After 6 months of training, the day arrived. It was bittersweet as my running partner, Rochelle, was unable to run due to a stress fracture on her patella. So I made the drive down to Portland on Sat morning alone-well, me and Moose made the drive.

Moose all bucked up for the drive

Got to the hotel and checked in, I purposely picked my hotel for it's proximity to the expo and race start. About 4 blocks down was the hotel with the expo, made my way in, was pretty orderly, picked up my bib and browsed the expo. Bought a fleece with Portland Marathon on it, and picked up goodie bag, and then had to buy a new sticker for my truck...can take off my 13.1 and replace it with my 26.2 now! After that, I went back to my hotel to drop my stuff off and went off in search of the Harley store. Had dinner after that at Cheesecake Factory and then came back to my hotel for the evening. I got all my race stuff together, bib pinned on shirt, double checked that I had everything(socks, sports bra, rubberbands, barrets, etc).

I set my clock for 5, and requested wake up calls at 515 and 530-was paranoid about oversleeping...lol. Went to bed and managed to fall asleep fairly easily, briefly woke up once or twice(I tend to sleep like crap when Bill is gone), and woke up no problem. I had breakfast, got dressed and headed out.

The start was about 4 blocks over and 3 blocks down. It was the first race I was in that had the start area blocked off, you had to show your bib for entry. I made my way to the back and lined up behind the 6 hr pace group. And then the waiting game began. I helped an older woman start her MP3 player-she said her husband was usually there and did it for her(she was the one that I took a picture of the back of her shirt that said brain tumor, blood clot, knee surgery and 5 marathons). I found someone else who was there alone(her running partner bailed on her about halfway through training) and asked her to take my picture. Then we were off, they did a wave start so I started at about 710. We started off through downtown Portland and within the first quarter mile, there was a drum line who was just thumping...and I about cried there! The emotion hit me of O-M-G I'm running a marathon! But I kept it together...lol. Early on, I was doing my run 8 mins, walk 2 mins and it seemed to serve me well as my pace was pretty consistent the first half of the race.

People like this just AMAZE me!

My pace started to drop after 17.5 miles and kept slowing down. Around mile 16 my hip started to bother me, and I started doing more walking around mile 18. I met up with the girl who took my picture again, it was also her first marathon and we walked and talked quite a bit-her knee was bothering her. There was a gnarly bridge at about mile 17 or so, I don't like bridges(really should have rethought my marathons as they all have bridges...lol) About mile 20 my knee started to hurt, it was the one I had surgery on 5 years ago-I'm also pretty sure someone was smoking pot around mile 20...lol. My new buddy finally pulled ahead as I was slowing my walking down quite a bit because I hurt. I also ended up taking potty breaks quite a bit the last half, I made it to the halfway mark before my first break-I figure I don't normally go during a half so I was good till that point. I started to worry a little as I barely went(sorry for TMI...lol) and was afraid of getting dehydrated. So I was really drinking at all the water stops from that point on(I'd been doing water mostly till then, but after that, would grab a cup of ultima and water at each stop). Needless to say, it was like when you're drinking beer and 'break the seal'...I stopped 4 more times the 2nd half of the race...lol. The last 4 or so miles, I just wanted to cry so many times-and started a few times. My hip and knee hurt and I just wanted to be done(ok, like I admitted to Bill, I wanted to quit). I wanted to cry when I was leaving the portapotties-it meant I had to stand back up and move again. I managed a few more bursts of running here and there. I hit 26 miles and couldn't hold the tears back anymore, I started running and just crying, people were cheering and it was wonderful. I heard my name as I crossed the line and knew I was DONE! I got my medal, walked to the recovery area where blissfully the first thing there was people handing out chocolate milk! Once I got my milk, I put my stuff down and pulled out my blackberry to email Bill, wanted to tell him first since he made my training possible. I walked around the recovery area getting some munchies-the volunteers were great there(as they were all through the course). I headed down to pick up my finisher shirt and then made my way out of the area for the trek back to my hotel-it sure felt a lot longer walking back than it did that morning...lol. Got a few 'congrats' on the way back-kinda obvious since I had my medal and a space blanket...lol. I came to my room and just wanted to lay down and not move. I seriously contemplated that for a while...lol. I knew I'd feel better after an ice bath and shower so I did that. At that point, I was planning to just order room service, but when I got out of the shower had an email from Bill telling me to 'take my ice bath and go to Hooters'...lol, so I did just that. I had a beer, some wings and shrimp-and because I was thinking of my Joy of Running buddies, cheesecake! Got my picture taken with a couple of Hooters' girls-twins no less...lol, to send to the man(and for the Half Fanatics website...them and MM have a thing about going to Hooters, which is right up my alley). After that, I came back and relaxed.

Portland Marathon Finisher with the Hooters Twins

Had to hit Voodoo Donuts on the way out(need to pick up some inappropriate donuts...rofl), and then head home(with another stop at Harley store in southern WA). I was feeling pretty good the next morning, all things considered. I was to the point in the last few miles of the race and that night that I was second guessing running my other marathons I have scheduled-it was mostly my knee that worried me. Massage and chiro appt really helped my recovery.

The Voodoo Donuts shop

Box full of voodoo dolls, a Triple Chocolate Penetration and the triple cream filled cock and balls!

On the drive home, I was thinking, what a difference a year makes. 1 year and 1 week ago, I ran my first half marathon. I was so sore by the time I got home from it, I put ice on immediately, hobbled around for several days, wore Crocs(didn't even want to look at my running shoes), and wound up on crutches for 10 days. Fast forward to now and a few days post race and I'm pretty much back to normal

I am a marathoner!!!

Are you a Marine?

Full blown marathon training is underway! Had to get in 16 miles today, and also had to run the Maj Megan McClung Memorial Run 5K-it is the very first race I ever ran back in 2007. To make sure I was able to do both, decided to run from my house to the race site, run the race and then head back toward my house. Rochelle and I left my house and covered the 8 miles fairly easily. Made it to the race start with no problems and plenty of time to spare. Had an awesome pit crew crew chief-Bill came to the race and took our camel backs for us so we didn't have to to run the race with them, and then had Gatorade waiting for us when we were done.

We get to the registration table to pick up our race packets and we're all sweaty, got our camel backs on and the ladies running the table ask us if we did a warm up run. We told them we ran from the Seaplane Base over to here. They asked us 'Are you a Marine?' LOL We told them no, just a runner:) Race went well, finished in 36:46 which I was happy with.

Then we headed back off base to finish the remaining miles. Rochelle and I need to calibrate our Nike Trackers together as we're off, and since her knee was sore she stopped once her tracker hit 16 and I went ahead to hit my 16 miles. I had a nice little spill at mile 15.25. I was coming off a sidewalk and about to cross the street and when I did, I stepped in a small pothole and rolled my left foot which set the events in motion...lol. I stumbled and I'm sure looked extremely graceful as I fell on my right side-hand, hip and knee all hit. Scraped my knee through my running rights but thankfully didn't rip them and my hand a bit. I'm sure I'll be feeling it all tomorrow-it hurts so much worse to fall as an adult than it ever did as a kid! A very nice lady in a minivan saw me fall and pulled over to ask me if I was ok and if I needed help. I told her thank you, but I'm fine...she asked a couple of more times-must have been a bad spill to watch...lol. I reassured I was ok and thanked her again and continued on with the run and finished strong!

Here are Rochelle and I after 8 miles before the start of the McClung run-

North Face Endurance Challenge 1/2

What an experience all around! It started out yesterday afternoon, we went to pick up our race stuff and see the race discussion panel. They had a trainer from the North Face Seattle Running Club, the race director, Amy Palmiero-Winters , and Ultramarathon Man, Dean Karnazes!!! I admit to feeling like a 14 year old girl going to a JoBros concert...lol. I read his book a while back and loved it and was super excited to see him in person. I enjoyed listening to all the speakers on the panel. After the Q&A session, Dean was available for pictures and autographs and I had him sign my book. He was very down to earth, and very personable.

Me and Dean:)




After that, headed home to get ready for bed-not soon enough...lol. Thanks to Bill being gone, I have insomnia, and even knowing I had to be up to leave the house by 0645, I still was up till well after 11 last night. Thankfully the morning came and getting up wasn't too bad. Had a camel back SNAFU-filled it last night so it'd be ready to go this morning, and it had leaked all over the dining room table and was all wet and I wasn't able to wear it. So I did a quick change to one of the other camel backs(of course, I picked the one I did cause it was the most comfortable). Got everything in the truck and headed to get gas and pick up Rochelle. With the help of Lola(my GPS) we got there with plenty of time to spare.


The weather was a little chilly this morning, in comparison to the recent week or so. It turned out to be perfect for the race though. The 1/2 started at 9(the 50K and 50 miler were already well underway at that point) with the 10K to start an hour later. Fair number of people milling about. As always, runners are so darn nice. I talked to some women in the restroom who complimented me on my gaiters and said they were way better than their boring black ones...lol. We checked in to make sure they knew we were running and didn't get lost on the trails.


Here we are before the race-all smiles...ignorance is bliss, not knowing what lies ahead.


Well, as we were looking up, we were getting an inkling of what was to come-and wondered WTH I had gotten us into-yes, it's all my fault...lol.






The race started out and we were trucking along, when next thing I know, who is running next to me and making small talk-Dean Karnazes!!! He was like, 'hey how's it going, can you believe they're making us run up a hill right off the bat??'. Then he was saying how we were doing great by going slow and steady at the start-and I told him I was good with slow and steady the whole way...lol.



That's Dean on the right-






Again, felt like a giddy teenager...lol. He kept on heading through the group and soon it was just the group. We started near the back, and that's where we stayed. Once the bulk of the racers passed us, Rochelle and I alternated with our new friend Crystal for the bottom 3...lol. We had a
very nice race volunteer trailing us to make sure we were ok. The race started and did an approx 2 mile or so loop back to the start. There were a LOT of uphills. I hate hills, they suck. Some of these ups and downs were tough. Parts of the course were on logging roads, so they were wide. Others were trails through the woods-and very aptly described on the race website as needing billy goat like skills to navigate. We went over and under logs. We crossed small streams. Up and down some crazy trails-while going over and under logs and crossing streams...lol.

As is the norm living here in the beautiful PAC NW, the views and scenery were wonderful.





Of course, this was my view most of the time..






Kept my footing pretty well for the most part. Had a few stumbles, but nothing major. Some of the downhills that were steep worried me-while my knee doesn't give me trouble, I think it's still in the back of my mind after so many years of dealing with it. I really took it easy on those, especially at the end when I was tired, at that point I was just trying to get to the finish.



Toward the latter 3rd of the race, was getting tired, thinking I'd just walk the rest of the way. Somewhere around mile 8-9 was a couple of volunteers who totally lifted my spirits. They were in the right place at the right time doing the exact right thing. They were loud and hooting and and hollering for us...and one of them was a penguin.







Not far after that was the aid station/check point. I have discovered a new love that was just about the best thing since sliced bread...potatoes with salt. I swear that was some of the best tasting food I've had in a while...lol. We hit the aid station one more time on the way back for the last couple miles of the race. There was some of the tougher trails on the last leg of the race(though I don't honestly think I could a pick a part that was toughest...it all was) and with some of the steep areas I really took my time and that was when I went ahead and let Crystal pass me as she seemed to have gotten her 2nd wind and was trekking along pretty steady and I didn't want to impede her(lots of the areas were single file). I just kept trekking along, one step at a time, running when it wasn't too steep and made it to the finish!



For a while, my race philosophy was to finish upright, under my own power, having enjoyed it enough to want to run again and hopefully not last. The more that I've run, the more I've made the first 3 my priorities. I am not fast. I'm not coming close to winning anything-except the love and support of my family and friends..I have the best cheerleaders ever! I'm ok with that, I run because I love it. I've run a few smaller races where I was very near the back of the pack. I had decided that finishing last was something that may happen. Today, I totally embraced it...lol. As previously mentioned, we spent the bulk of the race in the bottom 3. Yours truly was DFL(Dead F'ing Last...lol), and I'm damn happy with that. Life didn't end because I came in last. I still had an awesome race.

The whole race was as great as it was tough. Dean Karnazes said Friday night that no matter what, after the race, it will change you. It really did. It was my first trail race and at times I thought aww hell, what in the world am I doing out here. What was I thinking?? I have such respect for all runners, whether they are running their first 5K or getting Olympic gold. Today, I had even more respect for trail runners doing ultramarathons. Doing what I did today, for 13.1 miles was tough. I'm so amazed at the people who push themselves so much farther and harder-and look freaking fantastic while they do it...lol.

I truly think this was one of the best races that I have run. Not only was it such a tough race that provided such a sense of satisfaction when I crossed the line and knew I had done it. It also was such a well put on race. The trails were so well marked. The volunteers were amazing-I have already decided if I don't run it again next year, I would love to volunteer for it. The other runners were so nice too-I think runners as a whole are a wonderfully supportive group and very friendly. But the trail runners and ultramarathoners we encountered today were the epitome of that.

And once again, I accomplished my goals...finished the race up right, under my own power and enjoyed it enough to want to do it again! Yep, we were still smiling at the end!

Running Update

Been a while since I've posted...May was a great month for running! I am setting monthly goals with my Nike+ tracker, and my goal for May was 45 miles(up from 40 for April). I blew that outta the water!! I ran 80+ miles this month! Holy smokes that's 30 more than I've ever run! I hit most of my training targets this month with a few minor tweaks here and there just depending on life getting in the way...lol. I also hit 250+ miles for the year-which has me well on track to hit my 500 mile goal for the year! This was a light race month-just one, the Kirkland Half Marathon. Was an ok race, not my best time, but not my worst either. We tested out the run 4 minutes, walk 1 minute method which seemed to serve me well in that I didn't feel quite as drained by the end(usual method is run run run till I'm super tired and then walk till I feel better...lol). I ran pretty consistently this month and am noticing an improvement not only in my stamina, but pace as well.

June is shaping up to be a bit busier with races and training runs as well. I'm setting my mileage goal for the month at 60-but should surpass that by quite a bit if I hit all my training goals. Couple of races this month that should be fun-Rock N' Roll 1/2 Marathon at the end of the month. It was supposed to be my first 1/2 Marathon-that is long past...lol.

Double Run

Yesterday was a busy day! We were up bright and early and headed out to Heart Lake for a Hash Run with Average Joes. It was only the second time for me to run with them, and first hash run ever. Smaller group they said, but we still had a good time. Really got to break my trail shoes in. After I wore them to the Tulip Run, I wasn't sure I was liking them as they rubbed my right little toe a bit, but I think they just needed to get broken in and loosened up a bit maybe cause I was fine afterwards. And the tread on them was great, no problems slipping and sliding. We did cut it short and head back to the parking area once the lead runners had us crossing the road to another section as we had to head to our other run. We apparently missed the big fun of the biggest hill-aawww darn...lol. But it was definitely a nice change of pace from our usual road routes and look forward to the next one.

Once we left Heart Lake, we headed down to Everett to meet our Ragnar team. There were 5 of us there and did another 5 miles with the group before we had lunch at Scuttlebutt with a couple more from the team. Was great to meet part of the team finally-half the team was there, and I think we'll have a blast over the next couple of months with them!

I love runners

I know I've said it before, but I just have to say it again...I love the camaraderie that comes with running. Little minor stuff like a brief wave and nod of the head as you pass another runner while you're out on your run. That unspoken bond-knowing that other person knows just why you're there and why you're doing it. Another great display is at the start of a race. Often time, you get a large group of people in a social situation and everyone is on their best behavior, mingling, wondering if they can make small talk with the person next to them. While you're in that great gaggle of people waiting waiting waiting, you're all friends. Like the other day at the Tulip Run, there was a group of a few women who had no problem asking me about my Dirty Girl Gaiters. Today was another great example. Rochelle and I finished our run and I headed to the commissary. Since I had to get there before they closed, I just went in my running clothes all sweaty...lol. I was wearing one of my race shirts and the woman behind me in line asked me about it and we started talking. Turns out she's new to the area and wanted suggestions on good places to run. I ended up giving her my contact info to be able to let her know about the local running club and stuff like that. Just a nice encounter with another runner:) I love runners.