Race Recap: RnR Chicago

The short of it: No PR. No PW. On to the next race.

The long of it:

Let's be honest, my training has been questionable at best since April. I have no one to blame but myself. The sweltering heat that has been this summer hasn't helped things, but mainly I've been undisciplined and distracted and LAZY.

As of two weeks ago I was thinking of skipping Rock 'n Roll Chicago. I could stand the  thought of another slow and disappointing race, let alone a PW. Ugh. No thank you. I expressed this woah-is-me attitude to a few running friend and the general consensus was to get my ass to Chi-town and make the best of it. 

Ok. Fine. I'll go.

Fast forward to last week. 

I'll sum it up by saying it was a long, shitty week at work.  Days were long, work was frustrating, tears were shed. It was a crappy week. I was suppose to train through the week as though RnRCHI was merely my long run. Coachie's plan for the week was a little ambitious, race or no race, but working back to back 12hr days didn't leave much time or energy for running.  I got in what I mentally and physically could and tried not to get too down on everything I didn't. Plus, my quads and hams were sore from hauling my ass up and down a ski hill or two at DWD last weekend.

Saturday we finally got out the door around 11 and made our way to Chicago. The expo was pretty standard. The Trigger Point crew was nice enough to sell us a replacement roller for the one Willis chewed up. The expo actually still had a race shirts in the size I ordered (yeah!!). We were in and out pretty quick (that's what she said...).

Dinner, followed but cheesecake in bed, Friday Night Lights on Netflixs and lights out by 9.  4:30am was going to come eaaaarly.

I slept relatively well for being the night before the race. I only woke up once or twice, and that was more because I was cold than nervous. Regardless, that damn alarm went off way too early.  Did I mention I forgot my breakfast stuff at home and had to resort to what I could find at Walgreens? Clif bar and hard boiled egg (kept cold in the ice bucket). First time for everything.  We were dressed and out the door by 5:30 or so, making the mile and a half walk to the start. Not a bad warm up, I guess.    

We got there with enough time for the obligatory pre-race nervous picture.

W walked me to my corral and hung out until a few minutes before the start.  It was already mid-70's and a little humid, but there was cloud cover so I feeling okay about things. Except that this was the first half I was running solo. Silly, I know, but it was a mental hurdle I was going to have to tackle. Sure I've done plenty of double-digit training runs by myself, but something about racing solo had me a little shaken. Whatever, time to run and worry about it later.

The first few miles flew by. I wasn't moving particularly fast, but loosened up nicely after about a mile or so and felt good. The first aid station was somewhere around mile 2 but I opted to cruise through it as I had my own water and was feeling good. Shortly after that I saw W, my own personal super spectator, for the first time. Another mile or so went by, another W sighting, another aid station. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Somewhere after the 10k point I started having conversations with singers on my iPod:

WWBD?

Bieber would keep running!

Carley Rae?

No maybe about it, keep going!

Nicki Minaj?

She'd make it look fierce.

Brit-Brit?

I'm beautiful. Drop-dead.

Yeah, being in my head was little strange at that point but it was still mostly upbeat. Every time I started to need something...water, gatorade, cooling station, ice...it was there within half a mile. They weren't messing around with course support. It was top-notch.

My attitude was good and I was keeping my slow and steady pace up until mile 9'ish.  Up until that point I only walked the aid stations, and while I was running slower than in a perfect world I'd like to, things were going well. But somewhere between mile 9 and 10 I feel apart.  Secretly I had hoped to beat my RnRNOLA time, and at that point I was on pace to do it. 2:30 didn't seem unreasonable. I had 40-some minutes to go and ~4m. If I dug deep I could do it. 

But I didn't. 

The sun came out, we left the shelter of the tall city buildings, and the fact that my longest training run in weeks was 8m all reared their ugly head at once.  And so began the walking. The trudging. The swearing. The general suck-fest. Womp, womp.

The sponges at mile 11 were AMAZING. The Brooks guy half a mile after that made me smile (and pause for a gratuitous self pic). The tunnel was fun. And then I ran out of motivation. We were running on Lake Shore Drive, in the full sun, cars blazing by...I was so close, but I just didn't care. I'd walk the rest of the damn thing if I had to. I just wanted to be done. And then around mile 12 Kelsey caught me.  Bad news, Kelsey caught me. Good news, KELSEY CAUGHT ME! That girl kept me moving for the last mile. She told me that with only a mile to go we were going to run. There was no walking at that point, no matter how shitty we felt. And so we ran, and complained, and commiserated our way to the finish.

This wasn't the hottest or hardest race I've run, but it just didn't work for me. I'm sure it was my lack of summer running coming back as a karmic bitch-slap, but I pushed through.

My feet were barely leaving the ground by mile 12....

Thank god for Kelsey!!!

Rock 'n Roll Chicago Final Results:

2:40:22

1207/1723 AG

6151/8998 Gender

11082/14881 Overall

#RnRCHI: Run and DONE!!

  

Race Recap: Dances with Dirt 10k

Me, writing a race recap the day after the race? Unheard of!

Last week, after recovering from my first ever trail run, I decided to take the plunge and register for my first trail race. I mean, why not?  I was only registering for the 10k, how bad could it be?

Let it be known that the Dances with Dirt 10k is a bastard of a race.  A dirty, rotten, bastard that will make you want to cry and quit and possibly punch someone.  I should have listened to EVERYONE that told be to just run the half--twice the distance, more technical, but no black diamond ski hills to haul my ass up. Lesson learned.  Listen to your elders.

Obligatory pre-race nervous face

Since the 10k didn't start until 8am we opted to drive up race morning.  I couldn't have asked for better weather for a mid-July day--mid 70's and overcast. All of my friends were undertaking much more impressive distances at the race, so I found myself milling about alone in the sea of 10k runners. I seeded myself middle back knowing that I wouldn't be first, but that I wouldn't be last.  I had, after all, gotten out my nervous poops that morning so it was going to be a good day!

The race started with a mix of grass and blacktop path along the golf course, over to the base of the ski hill, along the bottom of the hill over to the undeveloped side of the hill where we made our way into the woods.  It was around this point that I fell into stride with a cool chick named Megan from the Chicago area and she became my running BFF for the race.  We talked and motivated one another along the way, and made the best of what was going to become a really obnoxious run. Once in the woods we ran some not too technical single track with rolling hills, and what not before making our way back to the base of the ski hill...where the masochistic race director had us run up the big ass black diamond at the center of Devil's Head, about 3/4 of the way up we cut across the hill and over to the adjacent black diamond and made our way to the top.  I told you it was going to become an obnoxious run.

I RAN UP THAT SHIT.
At least the view was good...

From there we disappeared back into the woods to run some more single-track-esque trails.  With all of the time I've spent at Devil's Head, I can honestly say I had no idea where we were at times.  We looped and swooped around a bit in the woods, ran up another ski run, partway down what used to be my favorite blue run at the hill (favorite until I had to run down it), back into the woods and eventually all the way down the bunny hill.  From there we were half a mile from the finish line and I was ready to be done.  Sure, I found myself walking up the giant f'ing hills, but what was starting to ache and shake were my quads from trying to be so careful on the downhills.  Another little jaunt through the woods around the corner and down the finish chute.  I finished feeling, sweaty, a little tired, but good. 

Coachie wanted me to run another 2-4m after the race, but I just didn't want to.  And since apparently I think I know more than my running coach,  I decided not to run.  Instead we drove over to Devil's Lake to the "nice" showers so I could rinse off and change into something that didn't stink.  We then settled in to enjoy the breeze and fun of the finish line for the afternoon.

I mentioned earlier that everyone else I knew was running much more impressive distances, so we had a bit to relax before others started to finish.  Krista V rocked the half and I completely missed seeing here and meeting her in real life. Boo! Then came Shayla and Matt, both of who ran the marathon like it was walk in the park!  Shortly after that Jeff, Kritta's main squeeze, came strolling in from the 50k.  It wouldn't be long now until Kritta, Marty and Tracey would be finishing.  And finish they did, in style, like the absolutely adorable runners that they are.

Tracey, Marty and Kritta

From there we spent the afternoon, lounging in the shade, snacking on everything within reach, drinking beers and laughing like the exhausted, sunkissed, fools we were.  It was the absolute perfect end to a great day.

Tracey, Jeff, Matt, Krista, Marty and I
DWD 2012

As far as a first trail race could go, with only one trail run under my belt, I have to say I'm pleased with the outcome.  I finished, I felt good, I didn't get hurt, I wasn't furst...but I wasn't last.  All in all, I should be pleased. I am pleased. But I have my list of shoulda, woulda, coulda's.  I should have pushed myself on the flats and powered through the small hills. I would have been faster if I hadn't held back on the downhills.  I could have, and yes I really do think I could have, broke 1:30 if I just put my mind to it.  

Instead of obsessing over what could have been I am going to relish the accomplishment of my first trail race and a great afternoon spent with some of my running besties.

**UPDATE**

Final Results are posted!

1:38:29

16/18 AG*

179/214 Overall*

*The results do not include the DNFs which, to make myself feel better I must point out, were A LOT.

Running & Other Such Shenanigans

I may or may not be the worst blogger ever these days. But it happens. Life happens. We all move on.


Over the past few weeks I've been trying to figure out how to get my mojo back--it's been MIA since April. And the wicked hot and dry summer we're having this year is not helping matters. Wah.

The artistic stylings of Jay Roeder.

First thing first, I found a coach. I am now working with a longtime acquaintance, Chris, on planning out my training and racing schedule for the rest of 2012.  I gotta say, this guys got street cred-- TNT coach, multiple Ironman races under his belt, 70.3's, ultra marathons (including finishing the Rocky Racoon 100 in like 18hrs and change), just to name a few. Oh, and he's an all around cool guy.  So far I think his training plans are out to KILL me which is why I taking them more as suggestions than gospel.  I think we're in the early stages of our 'relationship' and that we'll sort things out. But in the meantime, it is so nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of and to tell me when I need to HTFU and get on with it.


One of the things he and I were both on the same wavelength about was adding some trail running to the mix. Something fun, different, and a little lower impact on my poor, beat up body.  Enter the amazing Marty.  I know Marty mainly through the Twitter and mutual friends, but I can tell you he is one of the nicest guys around. Not only does he love running and trails and staying active, but he loves sharing his passion with anyone, of any ability, any time. We had been trying to rendez-vous at Lapham Peak for some time to learn me to trail run. We finally made that happen last weekend.  I let Marty and a few other FitMKE peeps out there in the heat and sunshine for ~4m loop.  The first loop was the 'faster' group...which I TOTALLY sandbagged, but amazingly enough, no one seemed to mind!  We chatted, Marty gave an excellent tour and tips, and we had fun.  I should have called it a day there, but I let Marty talk me into ANOTHER loop with the 'slower' group.  And off we went. Again.  And while I was getting tired, I stuck it out and had a BLAST. I drove home, smelling NASTY, singing along with Carly Rae (on repeat) at the top of my lungs. All and all, a great little field trip.

Go ahead, click on it and laugh.

And since, you know, I've gong trail running all of ONE time, I let myself be talked into running Dance with Dirt this weekend. I blame Krista. Let's be honest though, I am only doing the 10k...but I've heard it's a doozy of  run.  Oh and and it's going to be toasty out there tomorrow. AND DID I MENTION THE 10k RUNS UP A SKI HILL? Because it does. Twice. But what goes up must come down, right? 


After I'm done hauling my ass up and down a ski hill, coachie wants me to tack on another couple miles for training purposes or something.  By the time I finish my 10 or so trail miles for the day, assuming I can still walk, the plan is to scoot over to Devil's Lake to cool off in the lake a bit and shower before heading back to cheer for my hardcore friends doing the 50k.  Fun in the sun my friends. Fun. In. The. Sun.


It would be arguably way MORE fun if I wasn't fighting off the plague and it wasn't 9000 degrees out, but those details are neither here nor there.

More Jay Roeder because I'm OBSESSED

What's totally cray-cray about the situation is that this is just a training weekend.  Just like next week, Rock 'n Roll Chicago, is just a training weekend.  Me and 10,000+ of my closest friends will be sweating it out on the streets of the Windy City, just training, having some fun. And even more off the reservation is that between the weekend and next coachie will jam pack my week with bricks, and crosstraining, and long runs and fartleks. 


Speaking of crosstraining, who here has tried Aqua Zumba? 'Cause I'm here to tell you, you haven't lived until you've gone to Aqua Zumba.  This discovery of mine was a happy accident, but since I'm in a sharing mood I thought I'd go ahead and pass on the awesome. You're welcome. So Aqua Zumba, yeah. I begrudgingly headed to the YMCA the other night to swim some laps, but was pleasantly surprised to find the laps removed and the blue-hairs taking over the pool. Let me tell you, these grannies meant business. Headbands on, water aerobics gloves on, game faces ON.  And then we Zumba'd. In the water. I have not smiled so big or laughed so hard in a REALLY long time. I was shaking my money makers and gyrating my hips, kicking my legs and clapping my hands, all in the safety of chest deep water because I am fairly certain I would have hurt myself on dry land. Oh, and the water hid the fact that I have ZERO coordination or rhythm.  I will be going back every chance I get.  


Did I mention that somehow I was talked in to running the Disney Marathon this January? Two of my Ragnar ladies from last year, Nesa and Kim, have decided to run Goofy this year. Seeing as it's the 20th anniversary of the WDW Marathon, and I love me some Disney, I was easily convinced to cross the Disney Marathon off my bucket list. That is assuming that I make it to marathon day and that it goes better than CMM. Details...  That's coachie's job, right?  


Assuming I survive tomorrow, I'm sure I'll have some epic stories to tell about my first ever trail race. Eek!!

One more Jay Roeder for the road!

Race Recap: Ragnar Chicago 2012

This time last week we were loading our gear into a 15 passenger van about to embark on 30-some hours of  sweaty awesomeness. (Note: That would have been true if I had published this the day I started the damn post. Blogging FAIL.)

Being the only Madison locals on the team W and I decided to host a team dinner.  Carbo-loading feast for 13 people, no problem. Truth be told, I probably made it more work than it needed to be, but that's how I roll.

  

Before the hungry runners arrived  

Being the only Madison locals on the team W and I decided to host a team dinner.  Carbo-loading feast for 13 people, no problem. Truth be told, I probably made it more work than it needed to be, but that's how I roll.

I opted for penne with sauce and ground turkey (suckas, you thought it was beef didn't you?!), followed by my all time favorite dessert, homemade strawberry shortcake. There was salad and bread and all things a runner needs before tackling Ragnar.

Food was eaten, conversation flowed, fun was had (I hope), until the mosquitoes descended upon us and we all fled for safety.

I don't even think I made anyone sick. ;)

Fast forward to race day.  Van 2 was nice enough to pick up W and I on the way to exchange 7 in Lake Mills. By 11am when we headed out it was already getting HOT which did not bode well for my running...

Van 2: B*tches Be CRAZY

I work hard to avoid photographic evidence of me running because, well, it's not pretty. So you'll just have to take my word that I ran.  


Leg 7 started at Lake Mills HS headed down the street a bit before turning onto the Glacial Drumlin trail. I really couldn't complain about my leg because legs 6, 8 and 9 were WAY worse, but it still sucked.  The trail is a very forgiving crushed gravel, but there was not nearly as much shade as I thought there would be.  It was like 1pm'ish and HOT already and let's face it, I am just not a good hot weather runner. I sucks the life out of me and I just haven't built the mental toughness to push through it.  Leg 7 ends with ~3/4 of a mile, mostly uphill, on the side of an unshaded county road. Nothing says 'KILL ME NOW' like running on the side of a black-top county road in full sun in HOT weather.


Leg 7: 4.7m 53:28 (11:22 avg pace) 

W before his first leg.

Apparently I stopped taking pictures at this point...

After we finished our round of running we headed to Noodles for some food (which, not shockingly, didn't sit super well with me) before heading to Martin Luther HS to catch some z's.  This break last year we had enough time to eat, catch a few hours of sleep and get ready to run without feeling rushed.  This year after eating we had barely enough time for a cat nap before we were back at it.  I maybe snoozed for 30 or so minutes thank sin large part to the asshats yelling in the parking lot.   

Leg 19 started at Martin Luther HS and headed to Franklin HS.  Last year this leg followed the Root River Parkway and was flat and fast and fabulous. Since they changed the exchange for 2012, this year it headed out from Martin Luther HS and straight down 76th straight for 2'ish miles.  By straight down I really mean straight up, as in uphill. For 2 miles. Granted it wasn't steep, but it was constant for 2 fucking miles. It was 20-degrees cooler than earlier, but those first few miles took a lot out of me.  Eventually we turned off of 76th and made our way onto a multi-use trail of some sort through some park. The trail was awesome with some rolling little hills, twists, turns and whatnot.  What sucked was turning off the trail and finishing the leg running uphill. Again.  What also sucked was that the leg was almost 1/2m long.

Leg 19: 5.49m 58:49 (10:42 avg pace)

The cooler temps, and by cooler I mean in the mid-70's, felt downright chilly after the heat of the day.  It was refreshing but cool when not running.  We finished up our round of running at the YMCA in Racine at 5 or so in morning, watched the sunrise, and then promptly passed out on the grassy median in the parking lot for an hour and a half.  After that little cat nap we made our way to the next major exchange for pancakes and little relaxing before we started another steamy day of running.

I started my final leg, leg 31, around 9:30 from North Chicago HS.  Last year this leg wound its way through a neighborhood before making its way onto a crushed gravel path for the majority.  Not so lucky this year.  This year I had the pleasure of running the first half on sidewalks in the full sun and heat of the day.  I made my way through some Naval base, base some Seamen (hey-o!), and eventually onto a multi-use path.  Holy balls, Saturday felt even hotter than Friday.  There was a point during the run I started to get the chills, which is never a good feeling when it's wicked hot out.  Luckily my van was able to stop a few times and refill my water/hose me off because every step was a challenge. There was never enough shade.  But it was flat, so there's that I guess.  I finished at Lake Forest HS, which ps, has the most amazing front lawn I have ever seen. Like take off your clothes and roll around neked on the grass amazing. Seriously. Only by the time I finished I was too overheated and miserable to enjoy it.  I have never been so happy to be done running.

Leg 31: 5.1m 1:01:04 (11:58 avg pace)

I feel even worse for my teammates who had to run as the day got hotter.  Saturday seriously became a death march.  We did our best to pace to our runners and take care of one another, but it was almost too hot to matter.  W spent some quality time tossing his cookies at Northwestern after his leg.  And poor Maureen had the longest, hottest leg of them all to finish it off.

Trust me, these medals were well earned.

We wrapped it all up at Montrose Beach in Chicago.  I wish I could say we celebrated and got epic at the finish line, but really we all just wanted to be done with it.  We were ready to be out of the heat, clean, and off our feet. That's not to say we didn't love (almost) every minute of the experience, because I know that I did. And that W did. And that I adore the ladies of Van 2 so flippin' much.  But enough is enough already!


I'm disappointed in my running this year. Not just at Ragnar, but this spring in general has been a let down.  I'm still at it, working things out, hoping for a break through.  But in the meantime, I'm going to savor the memories, the friendships, the laughs...and start plotting an planning for next year.

Ragnar Chicago 2013, I'm coming for you! Here's hoping for cooler temps in 2013!

Race Report: Country Music Marathon

AKA Marathon FAIL
AKA Worst Run of My Life

The short of it: That sucked balls.

The long of it: Ugh, that really sucked balls. Seriously. Awful. Splat. I died.

My marathon training started well. I was making my long runs, I was doing my midweek runs. I was picking up speed and gaining confidence. Then RnR NOLA happened...and didn't go as planned. I trained for a 2:15. I ran nearly a 2:30, 2:20-something if you exclude porta-pottie time. I was pissed. I was discouraged. I WAS LAZY.

Yes, I admit it. I got lazy. I started a new job. I made excuses. I got sick (legitimately). And mainly I pouted about blowing a perfect PR opportunity.

Fast forward to early April when I realized I didn't log the mileage I needed to make it to race day. Shit. Oh well, looks like I'd have to run my first full some other time. I decided bir to stress and just be excited about hanging our in Nashville with a friend I don't see very often and just have fun. What's that? She didn't show? AGAIN? That's a different post entirely. But I digress.

Fast forward to race day. After an outfit meltdown and an I-don't-wanna-run tantrum, we did in fact make it to the start line. Shocking, I know. Seeing as I had averaged one run a week in the 3 weeks prior I knew this was going to be a struggle, but doable...

I had heard the course was hilly, but was NOT PREPARED for what was ahead of us. The first two miles ticked by uneventfully in the mid-10's. Then we turned the corner. And hit the first of many long, slow, tortuous climbs. And by mile 2.5 I was walking. That is never a good sign.

And then it got hot. And sunny. And I wanted to die. I made a decision, somewhere between mile 6 and 7, that I was going to embrace the slowest, longest, most miserable 13.1 miles if my life and make the most of it. I took pictures. I complained less than I wanted to. I walked the aid stations, and most hills, and just kept putting one foot in front of the other. At least I showed up, AM I RIGHT?!?

I still don't know my official time, but I expect it to be in the 2:50's. Embarrassing and uncharacteristic, but I am proud to say I hung in there.

What's next? I don't know. I really want a re-do. I also really want a break. And to lose 20lbs, but we don't always get what we want...

C'est la vie: RnR New Orleans Recap

The short of it: It didn't go as planned, but 2:29:44 we were it done.

The long of it:

The flight there was easy. In and out of Milwaukee to save some $$. Manageable layover in ATL, which I am happy to say we made (#FTW) and Delta was even sweet enough to upgrade us for our final leg. Weeee. Complimentary cocktail? Yes, please. Anything I want from the snack basket? I should probably take a look. Another cocktail? Don't mind if I do.

And just like that, we were there.

We arrived in the Big Easy around midnight Thursday night, Friday morning (whatever). We checked into our hotel, which was in the hear of the French Quarter just 2 blocks off of Bourbon St. The last time I was down here I stayed near the Riverwalk, which was quieter and cheaper, but not as close to the fun. We were suppose to share the room with a friend of ours...but that fell through (on Friday) and stuck us with a hefty hotel bill. Really nothing we could do at that point. But I digress. After checking into the hotel we decided to stretch our legs on Bourbon Street.

I was mesmerized by the neon.

Are people actually bribed by beads to show their goodies? Does that work?

One of the few places twinkle lights are appropriate year-round.

Friday brought daylight, which meant a short shake-out run and some site-seeing. We headed out for an easy 3-miler around the french quarter around noon. It was a swamp 70-some degrees. To go from running in the dry 40's and 50's to the humid mid-70's was a shocker, not that I'm complaining. Just sweating. A lot. And I was pleasantly surprised by how good I felt despite flying the night before and the humidity. We showered and headed out to check out the French Quarter, find some lunch and pick up our packets.

Local music on Royal Street.

The rest of the gang, that made it to race day, arrived Friday evening. Renee, Maureen, and Kelsey, 3 of the fabulous ladies I met running Ragnar Chicago last summer. A flurry of text messages later, we were all at the same place, at the same time. Dinnah! We enjoyed an assortment of New Orleans classics, including hurricanes, before hitting the street.

Maureen, Kelsey, and Renee

Saturday we slept in before seeking out beignets at the word-famous Cafe Du Monde.

One word: YUM!

After shaking off the powdered shugar we headed back to the expo to take advantage of the registration discounts. Yes, I was seduced by a $15 discount and a t-shirt into registering for not one, but two more Rock n'Roll races: RnR Half Chicago (July) and RnR St. Louis Half (October). Let's not talk about it.

Saturday ended with a small tweet-up of ladies at a downtown restaurant. One of the N'awlins locals organized a little face-to-face time for us to meet and carbo-load. The service was terrible, but the company was good. Unfortunately something I ate did not sit well with me. At all. Wyatt ate the same thing so I don't think it was the food poisoning, but I do know that whatever I ate gave me the worst gut-rut I've had in a looooong time. We walked back from the restaurant and were in bed by 9pm.

The culprit...

Despite being in bad at 9pm, sleep evading me until well after midnight. And then I was up again around 2:30, asleep sometime after 3:30, alarm went off at 5:15. Major sleep fail. I woke up feeling crampy and bloated from the night before, but thought I'd be ok if I ate something.

Breakfast in bed.

After a quick breakfast we were dressed and off to the start line. I had had a bit of a meltdown the night before about what to wear and the weather, but walking the half mile to start was a great warm up and the weather was turning out to be perfect. We navigated the bag-drop, snagged some water and found our coral. About 20-after-7 our wave was finally up and we were off!

The first few miles were crowded, but I was running 10min/miles and feeling pretty good. I couldn't shake the bloated, gut rot, grossness from the night before, but my legs felt ok. We ran the first 5k in 31mins and change and I knew I was on pace for my goal time of 2:15.

Around mile 3 1/2 we decided to stop at the porta-potties. The way my stomach felt it was an inevitable stop as some point so we decided early was as good as ever. We waited in line for what felt like forever, duked into our respective pots and (tried to) take care of business. All in all this detour cost us just over 7 minutes, which I quickly realized I was not going to be able to make up...

After the 7min break we were off and running at a 10min/mile pace again. I was feeling myself become more and more bloated and uncomfortable as I ran, but my legs and cardio felt good so I kept pushing. Around mile 6 or so I untied my pants which were suddenly feeling too tight, despite being a size too big. Another mile of so later I loosened my fuel belt. And by mile 8 I was starting to feel really gross. I drank water when it was available, took in a little gatorade, and took one of my Hammer Gels. Despite my best efforts I knew my pace was slowing dramatically. At that point I knew if we kept the pace in the low to mid 10's we would still come in under 2:20. Around mile 10 I started to realize that the pace had slowed even more and 2:20 was going to be close, but still doable.

And then things got really uncomfortable.

What had been bloated discomfort became searing pains in my lower stomach. Walking didn't help. Stopping didn't help. Nothing seemed to make the stomach pains go away. Ugh. The last few miles were awful. Mentally I was down on myself because I had trained for a much better race. Physically my stomach was protesting and my right foot was starting to get sore. My bad attitude was getting worse by the second and I was ready to be done.

Before, after and the bling.

We finished in 2:29:44 ad were glad to be done. Water, gatorade, a banana, finisher pics and off to the shuttle.

Back to the hotel for showers and naps. A few hours later, feeling marginally better, we headed out to find po'boys and take in a little culture.

Rumored to be the best po'boys in the French Quarter.

Apparently weddings in N'awlins come with a parade!

Definitely one of the highlights if the trip. <3

After an afternoon of walking and taking in the sights we headed back to the hotel to pack and relax before our last dinner in New Orleans.

Farewell cocktails.

All in all, a great time was had in New Orleans. I saw friend, ate some po'boys (yum), drank some huricanes (double yum), ran a little and relaxed a little. The sunshine and weather were perfect and a much needed break from the dreary WI weather. Rumor has it we have to go back next year to vindicate ourselves, but we'll see...

RnR NOLA, The Good:

-Efficient, organized packet pick up (go early!!)

-Organized start and bag drop

-Well planned, fun course

-Plenty of water, etc. spaced out on the course

-Great entertainment

-Perfect weather

-Post-race shuttles were AWESOME!

RnR NOLA, The Bad:

-Corals not well enforced

-Course was incredibly crowded

-Not enough porta-potties on the course

-Bottleneck at the finishline

-Michelobe Ultra, really? Ick.

Overall I would definitely recommend the race and am glad we went. Now if only I could have used all of the pro's the race had to offer to my advantage...

On a whim...

...I signed up for Rock and Roll New Orleans. The half marathon to be specific because I haven't completely lost my mind. I blame the coupon. The amazing deep discount that RnR offered for 1 day only. The kind of discount they never offer. I was seduced by their discount.

What have I gotten myself into?!?

Now this isn't to say that I haven't run a half marathon before. Because I have. But I haven't run any significant distance since June 2009. And my training, and dedication to a training plan, has been impulsive and inconsistent at best. As I right this I should be running, but I'm not. I know part of me was hoping that signing up for a race, giving my self a goal and a timeline, would motivate me. But so far, nada.

It was pretty fabulous to watch all the people on Twitter realizing that we ALL took advantage of the great price and signed up. It's safe to say that everyone and their mother is going to be in NOLA the first weekend of March. And that is something I want to be a part of.

But between here and March is training, and self-discipline, that I'm just not sure I have these days...

Under the Weather

Here I am, slouching at my desk, feeling pretty miserable. (Hey bossman, what's up! I am totally breaking the rules, blogging at work. Sorry!) My poor little immune system resisted the department plague as long as it could before succumbing to the bug.

It hurts to swallow, I can't hear, my head feels like it is full of cement. Seriously, I am sick. AND whinny. Whatever.

I have been a trooper this week. I've made birthday treats because well Ryan turned the big 3-0 yesterday and treats were needed. I've dined with dealers because they were in town. I got up early to attend a fundraiser breakfast. I've gotten up in the middle of the night to let the damn puppy out.

All of these things aside, you know what really chaps my ass? Tomorrow is CrazyLegs. And I'm sick.

Yes I would like a cheese with my wine.

Prior to Tuesday of this week, with the plague set in, I've been running and feeling good. I've been making progress not only in form, but in speed. I was confident that I could finish CrazyLegs and feel okay doing it. I had times goals in mind. And now, I'm not even sure I am up to running tomorrow.

Especially with a forecast like this:

Rain, seriously? It's like Mother Nature is mocking me!!

Do I attempt to muscle through the run? Be wet, and cough-y, and miserable for 5miles? Or do I throw in the towel, sleep in and be bummed that I missed CrazyLegs? Ughhhh.

RAGNAR?!

Last summer, post-surgery, I optimistically sat and wrote trainings plans and race schedules to include all of the things I wanted to do last fall, winter, and for 2011. Most of those plans were quickly squashed by a long-slow recovery and a cautious physical therapist.

Needless to say, my plans to coordinate a RAGNAR team for the Chicago relay in June (and the Great River relay in August) went right out the window along with everything else. For those of you living under the proverbial rock, the short of RAGNAR is that it's a series of 2-day, ~200mile, 12 -person relay races. Pretty sick, if I do say so myself.

Wellll, I never got around to putting together a team. BUT yesterday I stumbled across a team of Twitteratti looking for a 12th team member. It sounds like 11 running gals from around the Midwest (and beyond) created a team and plan to run together. How friggin' cool is that?! Did I mention my love of the Twitter? Because I pretty much want to send it flowers and chocolates and maybe even ask it to marry me. But I digress. So this group of runners, the majority of whom only know each other through Twitter have made a team and are looking for a 12th.

How perfect is that?!

But...

The downside to running with a group of people I don't know is that I feel like I would be the weakest link and that relative strangers (who haven't been through the last almost 2yrs of injury with me) may not understand my weaknesses and woes. I truly believe I can be trained and ready to the relay, albeit slowly, but is that enough? Granted, the runner they are looking for has 3 moderately easy legs, all in the 5 mile range. I know I will be able to run more than 5 miles in one go, because shit, I can just about do that now. But is 3-5mile legs in 24hrs? Will that be too much? Will I re-injure myself? Will I let my team down?

I *really* want to do this. I have even written up a very doable, but conservative, training plan to get me to the relay. But I just can't keep the self-doubt from creeping in...