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Posts tagged ‘13.1’

Nov 23

A course best at the Big Sur Half on Monterey Bay

First things first: If ever given the opportunity to run along the coast, any coast, you should. There’s something about salty wind blowing on my face, the smell of the water and beauty of the waves cresting on the coastline that’s soothing.

I love running in San Francisco for this reason. I love runs along the water nearly anywhere in the Bay Area.

Monterey Bay is a beautiful place to run, only rivaled by the actual Big Sur Marathon which transverses 26.2 miles from Big Sur to Carmel. In April, I ran 21 miles of the marathon as part of the Big Sur 21-miler.

It was shortly after running that I again signed up for the Big Sur Half Marathon onMontereyBay. The course runs 13.1 miles of rolling hills along the bay. Last year, it was dreary, but not cold. It was also more than I was expecting at the time.

I figured the course would be more flat.

Turns out, it’s a little more quad pounding than I thought.

In 2011, my finish time was 2:37:41.

It was warmer this year, but my training was also more on par. I did a lot better. I ran a 2:28:27.

It didn’t happen my accident. I’ve trained on inclines more this marathon season. With this run, I feel more ready for California International Marathon in less than two weeks.

My mom and I left on Saturday to head to Monterey Bay. We got to the area at about 2 p.m.and headed straight to the expo.

As always, the Big Sur expos are well organized. First bib pick up, then into the vendor area. There were more people in the expo than I expected. Breathe deeply, I thought. We waded through the people to the shirt pick up area.

The 2011 shirts are a nice shade of burgundy. This year, the shirts are a deep purple. They are decorated on both sides, the front celebrating the 10th anniversary (or presentation as the organizers call it), and an image of the Point Sur lighthouse.

We were handed our Gu-brand bags with the race guide, always filled with great stories, and a poster. My mom found a nice pair of yellow sunglasses at the expo, but I didn’t find anything of interest. So we headed out to Fisherman’s Wharf to check out some shops before checking into the hotel.

Volunteers were in the middle of setting up the finish-line area when we walked by. The barricades weren’t yet up, though. These guys were trying to figure out how to get the Velcro sign attached.

I was starting to feel more comfortable, definitely more so than the previous year. After a cheeseburger at a very noisy sports bar, we headed back to the room where I fell fast asleep rather early.

We went to sleep at about 9 p.m.I woke up at about 5:30 a.m., perfect, I thought.

The great thing about this half is that we stay pretty close to the start line. My mom dropped me off about a half a mile away from the corral area. I walked most the way, then picked it up to run.

It was overcast, but didn’t look like rain. Perfect conditions.

Then I freaked out a little bit, when I saw how many people were around. So…I did something kind of irrational. I waited in a portable toilet line and, once I got in one, hid out for literally 15 minutes while I calmed down.

I want to apologize to the other runners for that one. I know proper toilet etiquette is to get in, get your business done and get going, especially at races. But I couldn’t help it. To be fair, a portable toilet is not exactly the place you want to breathe deeply or anything like that. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked.

After emerging, I walked through the crowd (tense, trying to keep an arm’s length from people, which was actually pretty easy), and headed into Corral G. It was rather spacious in the corral. I actually found a spot in the front, hoping to get out and run faster to get away from people. I guess there’s nothing like anxiety to set a course personal record.

When we started at about 7:15 a.m. I was kind of a ball of nerves. I think that’s why I did so well. Instead of concentrating on being anxious, I was trying to just keep running.

It was a pretty consistent run for the most part.

Mile 1: 10:29— I didn’t think I was pacing out that fast, but I was. We went out down Del Monte Boulevard, past a little park with paddle boats and over a bridge next to a cemetery. These are things I didn’t notice last year.

Mile 2: 11:19 — The first mile of this race seems long, especially considering you’ve already gone through downtown Monterey by the time you reach mile two. And you’ve already done the tunnel. The tunnel was hot and muggy. My glasses fogged up and I had to take off both my hat and my long-sleeve shirt.

Mile 3: 11:25— Slowing, uphills here. Gu here.

Mile 4: 11:38— We hit this mark right after the big hill in Pacific Grove. I couldn’t believe how amazing I did on it this year, walking fast up about a 20-foot section, but then going into a slow run. This was my slowest mile.

Mile 5: 11:08— Downhill and out toward Asilomar State Beach. Getting the pacing more even now.

Mile 6: 10:48— Gu. I felt I needed it to make sure my legs didn’t get tired. I wasn’t feeling fatigue quite yet, but I wanted to get ahead of it.

Mile 7: 11:24— Another bit of an uphill here. Slowed, stopped at a water station and walked longer than I wanted to so I could get myself back together.

Mile 8: 11:23— Got out to the turnaround and headed back toward the finish line.

Mile 9: 10:38— Really felt good here. The Gu was propelling me. This is when I started having real issues with my arm chafing.

Mile 10: 11:24— Arm. Chafing. Hell. But I kept on going.

Mile 11: 11:25 — I’m surprised this mile went so well being that the Gatorade cups weren’t stocked here and we had to wait for someone to fill a cup. Of course, I was there before three others and kept getting ignored by a volunteer. It happens, but I was annoyed. This is where I finally saw the Vasoline guy too. I grabbed a glob of the stuff and slathered it under both arms. Gu here too.

Mile 12: 11:20— Down back into Cannery Row, my favorite mile because it’s the John Steinbeck marked mile. It also marks the last major uphill, which isn’t that bad.

Mile 13: 11:34— Pushing at the end. Feeling good and realizing that I’m likely going to do really well in this race.

Mile .27: 2.33 — I look at my Garmin and kick it for the last bit, which ends up being longer than the .1. I’m usually about that much off on each course.

Official chip time: 2:28:27 for 13.1 miles

Garmin time: 2:28:27 for 13.27 miles

I crossed the finish line and was handed my awesome ceramic medal.

That’s a photo of it later, after my shower in the hotel room. After applying a ton of cream under my arms just so I could put on a long-sleeve shirt.

The best part? I felt amazing afterward. Running has been helping me feel better in general, but some days it takes me a lot longer than it should to get up and get going. Once I get past that hurdle, I’m usually good and, even, floating for some time after the run.

In this case, I was floating for the rest of the day.

My mom and I went back to the Wharf and had a little lunch after the hotel. We had a reservation to go whale watching on the bay later.

That was our boat. We went out for nearly three hours and saw some awesome humpback whales. What was nice is that there were hardly any other people on the boat. There were maybe 25 of us in total. So there was a lot of space to walk around.

We spent the rest of the day shopping in little stores in the area and checking out the local scene. It was quiet, mainly because it was Sunday afternoon and many people went home right after the race. We stayed the extra night to have a nice dinner and make our way home slower.

Not a lot of people, which was amazing. That little pink shop on the left is where we spent a good deal of time, checking out all the little knick knacks.

The race was awesome. I stayed hydrated. I loved the experience again. It turned out much better than I expected. I’m glad I didn’t decide that I should stay home for this one. I’m glad I gave myself a kick to get out and get going even when I didn’t feel as if I would be able to perform at my best.

But I did.

I keep saying that I have moments where I see my old self shining through. I’m trying to build on those moments. How do I get those and keep them? How do I stay “in the moment” and not think about everything else impacting my life. I’ve mentioned that I thought my personal problems weren’t about running.

It’s running, though, that’s helping me to get through more than anything else.

Nov 21

Reasons to run on Monterey Bay

I’ll be writing a detailed race report of my nine-minute course record experience at the Big Sur Half on Monterey Bay, but realized I have a ton of photos from the two nights I spent on the Central Coast with my mom.

First of all: It was just what I needed. It felt good getting away. (It didn’t feel good coming home, realizing I had to face reality again, but that’s for another post at another time.)

My mom and I did this trip last year too since my husband isn’t a fan of traveling for races.

We had a good time. So when I signed up for this race in May I invited her again. We had a really good time again. We walked around, we went on a whale watching tour and explored the Monterey peninsula.

It was a beautiful weekend.

The weather was rainy when we left the Central Valley on Saturday afternoon. It poured for the first 20 minutes of our ride down Interstate 5. But then the skies became clear, for the most part. When we got to Monterey Bay, it was partly cloudly with a 30-percent chance of showers on Sunday morning.

It was a perfect weekend to take in the sites and relax. I was tempted, numerous times, to cancel this trip in light of what happened a few weeks ago.

I didn’t because it was $115 to register for the race. I had a $348 hotel booked as well. And my mom was really looking forward to it. So I was.

I was affirmed by my husband who told me it would be good for me to leave. He said it would be nice to get away from everything and be somewhere else.

I’m glad I went now.

Because it was an amazing weekend.

We even walked Cannery Row, which I ran on Sunday, before we left to come back home.

There were workers painting the candy cane-colored fence around the tree, which we ran by, and prepping everything for Santa to arrive in his coastal getaway from the North Pole.

Everywhere we went, there were waves crashing up and down the coast. The weather was perfect. Conditions, overall, were just beautiful.

Perfect running weather.

I figured I’d share these images after my gross chafing post. These are much easier to look at.

Nov 1

Looking past the present

Like my awesome PhotoShop skills? I actually am really good at it, but this is just the simple smudge tool over my emergency room band. I’ll give away that much. I recently had a trip to the ER. It wasn’t fun. It wasn’t planned (hence, an emergency).

People usually say they are “working through stuff.” Yep. I’m working through stuff.

And that’s where I’ll leave that.

I’m trying to look past the present right now.

To the future. Or at least to my running future.

I’ve been doing some planning over the past couple days on races I’d like to run next year. I’ve been putting together a short list so far. Only a couple are solid in terms of choices right now. Financials will play a role, obviously. And, surprise, I’m actually considering running a spring “A” marathon and a summer marathon.

I’ve run enough races to know where I like to travel and what I love to see when I run. I also know which ones I’d like to do again, but maybe not in 2013.

So, today, I started planning.

JANUARY

Brazen Coyote Hills 10K: I love this race. The rolling hills. The beautiful view. It’s got a lot to offer. Plus, it’s Brazen. And I love Brazen. This race is kind of difficult logistically for Brazen, with shuttles needed to send people back and forth, but Brazen does an awesome job making it happen.

FEBRUARY

Rock ‘n’ Roll Pasadena Half Marathon: This wasn’t my favorite race ever, but I want to give it another go. I now know what to expect, including the hill right at the beginning. My hope is that I won’t be a straggler at the end this time. I signed up for it today, before the price went up.

MARCH

Brazen Badger Cove 10K: Brazen hosted this combination half marathon, 10K and 5K for the first time in my neck of the woods this year. It’s literally only over the hill from where I live. It’s also a week before the Oakland Half, which makes it a perfect warm-up and taper run. The hills are crazy, but I felt great after. Definitely a must-do again.

Oakland Half Marathon: This will always be a favorite for me. Oakland holds a special place in my heart because I spent my two years as a student at University of California, Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism living in the Temescal neighborhood. I love it there. I’ll always love Oakland. And I usually sign up for a steal (half price!) with a coupon code from the San Francisco Marathon. A side note: Oakland is still one of the ONLY events you can defer entry to the next year if need be.

APRIL

San Luis Obispo Marathon: Here’s where I really switch things up. This race is a little more than a week after Oakland. I don’t know how I found out about it, but I’m hoping to run 26.2 here. A bonus? My husband has family in the area, which means he wants to go too. And there are rolling hills…so I’ll have to work the only hill I know in Mountain House, and maybe some others.

MAY

Bay to Breakers 12K: This is less of a race, more of a fun run. Unless you are my brother and smash it in under an hour wearings short-shorts and looking like the kid who knocked up Juno. There’s been some changes to the 2013 website, so I’m not even sure when this is happening. I’ll probably ask my brother to run with me again. And I likely won’t do “premium” or “plus” registration because, despite being sponsored by a T-shirt company, this race has some of the ugliest shirts I’ve ever seen.

JUNE

The San Francisco Marathon: Let’s have an “oh my God” moment. I’ve said, numerous times, that I would NEVER do a marathon in San Francisco. I’m actually really considering this because it would put me in the elite “52 Club.” Who runs for bling? That would be me. Actually, it’s just a sweater. But now I know the beginning and end of the marathon path, I’m kind of excited to try it. Will I sign up? We’ll see. This wouldn’t be an “A” race, but it would be one I’d train seriously for.

And that’s it, for now.

I figured I’d wait on planning the rest of the year. Will I run CIM again? I don’t know. Will I sign up for the Nike lottery? Likely. I’m also considering the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half again. We’ll see. Since I’m only signed up for two of the seven races I have planned, nothing is really set in stone yet.

But I’d rather plan ahead right now than deal with some other stuff.

Speaking of which, I probably mentioned having to return two pairs of pants to Lululemon due to bad design. I got two great gift cards in return.

A couple days ago, I got a new package.

I opted for two new shirts in lieu of the capris. I show this mainly because Lululemon changed it’s packing. It’s no longer an simple gray mailer. Instead, it’s covered in the company’s manifesto. As much as I love it, and it gave me a smile for the moment, I’m a little disappointed that my Lulu packages won’t be anonymous anymore.

Good thing my the people in my neighborhood don’t seem to be the running type. Otherwise I’d worry about the packages disappearing.

Oct 22

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On the wings of the goddess of victory

The Nike Women’s Half Marathon is not one of those races that is easy to get a personal record on. Why? There are so many people running. There are many others walking. The first three or four miles are spent weaving through people until we hit the hills, then it evens out a little bit.

So my expectations, especially after my horrendous experience at the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half Marathon, were pretty low. I ran a 2:36 in San Jose. Not great. My body hurt. I hate the entire experience.

Nike was the complete opposite of that.

I loved every minute of it, even the beginning with a new corral system.

And I finished 13 minutes ahead of my time from last year. I figured I’d do better than last year no matter what because I at least new what to expect this year.

The whole experience was positive, though.

I woke up early for the 7 a.m. Union Square start. It was dark when we left our home in Tracy. It was still dark when we neared the city. I stopped at my predesignated race bathroom pit stop before heading into San Francisco.

Know where this is? I think it’s one of the best kept secrets if you are coming in to run from the East Bay. There are three portable toilets here, no lines. Stopped here saved me during the 1st Half of the San Francisco Marathon. The lines at the Embarcadero were just way too long for me to even consider going to the bathroom at the race start.

My husband dropped me off about a block from my corral opening. The first thing I noticed: There were a ton of people waiting for the bathrooms. Great, I thought, a repeat of last year. I was glad I went before I got into the city.

I walked up to the middle of my corral and was surprised to find another set of portable toilets with lines only three deep. Seriously? How is no one finding these? I jumped in a line with 15 minutes to race time and was out by the time the gun went off to let the first corral go.

I even had time to head up toward the front of my corral, which it seemed like a lot of people were avoiding.

It was still pretty dark at the start. I didn’t start seeing a glimmer of the light until I was about to cross the start line, 16 minutes after the first people began.

It was kind of beautiful, though, to see the shadows on the ground.

There was really that much space between me and the next person. It was nice not to be on top of one another, a huge change from last year.

It didn’t seem long until the announcer was telling us that it was time to head out. And, just as quickly as I got there, we were off and running.

Mile 1: 10:50 — A downhill at the beginning, not too bad. Bobbing and weaving a lot. My Garmin actually had me pacing closer to 12-minute miles. I should have known than that something was wrong with it.

Mile 2: 11:04  — Continuing running through and around people. We’re down at the Embarcadero now, with a slight wind coming up from the San Francisco Bay. But it was getting a little warm already.

Mile 3: 11:38 — A slight hill near Ghirardelli Square. I actually heard a woman say: “Wow, my friend said the hills were bad, this isn’t bad at all.” I laughed a little, if only because I knew what was coming up soon.

Mile 4: 12:32 — On the first hill, slowing down a little, but not feeling horrible. I was worried about my legs. They started getting a little tired here.

Mile 5: 11:08 — Now a downhill and run through Crissy Field. I love running along here. It’s a beautiful area, plus there is a huge cheering area at the Marina Safeway. This is probably my favorite part of the run. I picked it up here because I was so pumped…and I knew what was coming up.

Mile 6: 12:03 — Not bad as I continue through the area near Golden Gate Bridge. It’s getting harder to stop at water stops because it seems like everyone is stopping near the end now. There are just a lot of people in this race, so everything takes time.

Mile 7: 15:11 — THIS. HILL.SUCKS. I hate it. It’s in both this race and the 1st Half of the San Francisco Marathon. When you run on a hill this step, it really feels as if you are running in place.

That’s the elevation chart from my Garmin. The biggest, most challenging hill is starts near mile six. And it seems to take forever to climb.

Mile 8: 11:42 — Back down the hill a little here. Not a bad mile. Not my best. Just kept running.

Mile 9: 14:00 — The second big hill here. I forgot about it completely. I thought I was going to start a downhill, then turned a corner and realized how wrong I was.

Mile 1o: 12:13 — I think mile 10 is always my favorite mile during half marathons. It is in this one because the downhill here is significant, but you can get caught up running way to fast. That happened to me last year. This year, I paced nicely down the hill.

Mile 11: 11:43 — Into the park, feeling my fatigue.

Mile 12: 12:45 — I walked here for longer than I wanted to. I think I was just tired. I finally picked up a slow jog. And yet, it didn’t seem as if I wasn’t running at all. (A theme in this race, I think.)

Mile 13: 10:44 — I realized it was nearing the end. I picked it up and gave it all I could. We exit the park and then, immediately, hit the finish line. So it’s quiet, then it gets all crazy (especially with people running across the intersection).

Mile .26: 2:24 — RUN. FAST. NOW! I don’t know why I picked it up so much, but it felt good. You can’t tell from my race photos, but I was so happy to be done.

Garmin time: 2:40:01

Chip time: 2:40:51

And then, the line for the Tiffany necklaces.

I’m told that once upon a time, they would just hand you the necklace upon finish. Now they scan each bib and make you walk through this area before a handsome firefighter hands you a necklace.

(An aside confession: I’m a little on the heavier side again now and hate, hate, hate my back fat. But I realize when I run races with a lot of women that nearly every woman has back fat that is unflattering in athletic clothes. Even slim ones. I don’t know why that makes me feel better, but it kind of does.)

Back to the necklace. I waited for nearly 10 minutes trying to make my way through this mess. It just kind of seemed like my line had a log jam.

Then it happened.

Hello handsome firefighter. Thank you for handing me a beautiful necklace. By the way, when I took this photo a woman behind me scoff and said I was holding up the line. I found it funny because the woman to the right of me is getting her photo taken with a firefighter. The woman to the left to me, you can see her phone, just finished doing the same thing I was.

My next line was my finisher T-shirt pick up. Last year I loved the yellow. This year I loved the florescent lime green. Great for running at night. Great for being seen in general (it’s at the top of this post).

It took forever to get through the finish area. After getting a banana and a bagel, I only took one of both, and some water I dunked under a barrier to get out of the mess. I finally went and sat down looking at Ocean Beach, ready to open my prize/medal.

I always hate untying the bow. It’s so perfect. I wonder how long it takes to tie 20,000+ Tiffany boxes with ribbon. I would imagine Tiffany works on this for quite some time.

I opened the box up and was confused at first. The pendant is dog-tagged shaped with what looked like cryptic writing in the background. Upon closer inspection, I realized the figure was actually running in front of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Perfect, since this is the bridge’s 75th anniversary.

Beautiful. I honestly love it so much more than my one from last year. I’ve been wearing it all week. Love.

Last year, I was thankful to run this race. This year, the wings of the goddess of victory led me to another 13.1 this year. It’s tough to get into this race, but I’m so glad I did. And there’s never a guarantee for next year.

But it was an amazing journey. I’m crossing my fingers than I’ll be able to run it again in 2013.

Oct 14

Happiness in a little Tiffany blue box

After an incredibly bad week, that included my 10-year-old car being towed away and looking for a new vehicle today in addition to 100 other things, I crossed the finish line at the Nike Women’s Half Marathon somewhere around 2:40 today.

The time comes courtesy of my Garmin. I still don’t have my chip time results on the website.

Last year I finished somewhere around 2:53. So I set a 13-minute course personal record.

I can’t be mad about that. I can’t be mad about how I ran, because I busted to get up those hills, even though I slowed down quite a bit.

I didn’t stay at the finish line too long or partake in a lot of the festivities. I’ve been completely beaten this week. The half marathon was exciting. It was empowering. It was amazing.

It will also get a full recap in another post. But I did well today.

And now I know last week’s horrible half in San Jose was a fluke. I run better than that now. It was warm. I was tired. Things happen.

Today was redeeming. I’m going to celebrate that.

I’ll also be celebrating my sweet new Nike bling. I love how the Golden Gate Bridge, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, is incorporated.

Oct 13

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A nice retreat at the Nike Expotique

I mentioned in a previous post how excited I am about the Nike Women’s Half Marathon. It’s a huge race. There are more than 25,000 women running for the same cause. It’s all about female empowerment. And it’s fun. There was nowhere along the race path last year that I wasn’t having an amazing time.

I’ll admit, though, I was reluctant to sign up this year. It’s a lot of money. Getting in is also pretty difficult. There’s a lottery system. Nothing is guaranteed.

And yet, I got in. I was thrilled when I got the email earlier this year.

So I’ve been anxiously awaiting this race weekend. When I got the reservation for the LunarGlides, I immediately took the day off so that I’d be able to spend a lot of time at the expo and in San Francisco.

I headed to the city around 11 a.m. on Thursday. I venture over on BART, a public transit train system in our area. It’s about a 40-minute ride from the station I board at to near the expo site.

It took forever to find parking. I had to go to three garages. So I was ridiculously hungry when I got to San Francisco.

First stop, the mall. For food.

There’s a great pasta/pizza place there with thin crust pizzas. I ordered one and ate like there was no tomorrow.

It was amazing. The cheese was perfect. The flavors were amazing. Then again, I was really hungry. I actually was able to eat before the lunch rush. Then I walked around for a couple hours at the mall.

I even found a pair of shoes I’d been looking to buy for awhile (Cognac-colored flats).

There are very few stores where I live and not many that sell inexpensive clothes. So whenever I make the trek to San Francisco, I usually visit H&M and some other places that specialize in low cost, fashionable clothes.

I decided it was time to head to Union Square after a couple hours. It was a quick five-minute walk up the street. When I got there, I was greeted by the purple Nike tent.

There was hardly anyone at the expo, as it had only opened a couple hours before. So I headed to the first person with her hand up. Checking in was easy. And she didn’t even check my identification. (For all that Nike preaches about not allowing other people to run in the place of another, I thought that was a little weird.)

The volunteer’s scanner wasn’t working, so she manually entered my number. I was handed my Nike+ volt-colored bag and basically sent on my way. Actually, I got something new this year too.

It’s a pace band. After last year’s disaster of a start line, which I’m told happens every year, I was glad when I was handed this band. I’m not the fastest, obviously, but I also don’t want to be behind a sea of walkers. We’ll see if this brings any change.

The bag is pretty nice too. Definitely something I’ll reuse. I’m not big into bag check. Usually I just take what I need with me and my husband brings me a bag at the end. (I have another new one in my ongoing quest to get him to actually bring me a bag, it’s another one from Lululemon I’ll post about later.)

Then I checked out the expo.

There’s always a lot going on at the expo, but not in a regular sense. People complain about not being able to sign up for other races or visit other vendors, but I think it actually works out for Nike. It’s a big brand. Plus, I’m often tempted to buy  a few to many gear items I definitely don’t need.

This year, I was tempted by the sports bras.

I briefly chatted with the saleswoman, but decided I probably already had as many sports bras as I could handle right now. I know you are supposed to replace them every six months. I have a few that aren’t even that old.

I checked out the Neutrogena booth, where they were giving away free samples. I drank some Nuun. I got some coupons for Safeway. I also watched a runner have their gait checked out. A lot happening in a small area.

Then, I headed to Nike Town.

I was specifically excited for one thing there this year: Seeing my name on the wall.

And this time, it was there. Last year, because I gained late entry, I was too late to have my name included.

I was so excited to see it in purple.

And here’s the point where I go a little crazy. The same thing happened last year. I normally limit my expo spending in any area to a set amount. For some reason, I can’t see to do that at Nike.

I was already purchasing the $150 limited edition LunarGlides.

Then I started looking around. This year there was more half marathon specific items.

I found a new cotton shirt for everyday wear. I have a gray one just like this from last year that I love.

Then I picked up a new tech shirt for running.

And since it’s getting to be cooler outside (seriously, I went from wearing T-shirts and needing the air conditioner two weeks ago to sitting here typing this with a long-sleeved shirt and wearing socks), I justified buying a new long-sleeve pullover to run in.

That’s the front, which is pretty basic but still pretty awesome. I’m really, though, in love with the back.

I love the ombre-inspired color pattern going down the back. Plus, as I mentioned in previous posts, I’m a fan of good design. This long-sleeve is really well designed.

See how I went a little crazy? Yes. I actually saved up a good amount of money to not break the bank this time, like I did last year.

Then, just for good measure, I figured I would pick up a hat too. I run with them from time to time, especially when it rains.

Because I really needed something else. To say this is why Nike doesn’t allow other vendors at the expo would likely be an understatement. They want you to come spend money, lots of money, at the NikeTown store. And that’s what most people do. It’s always ridiculously busy in there, some women buy shirts upon shirts upon shirts.

Some likely also buy enough stuff to sell it on eBay. (An off note, I saw a pair of the Nike LunarGlides posted as an eBay link  on the Nike Women’s Marathon Facebook page. That was a little disgusting. I’m glad Nike removed it.)

I had to wait a couple hours to pick up my shoes, so I headed back out to do some more shopping.

The lobby to NikeTown has maps of the course and huge images reflecting the marathon themes. It’s pretty inspiring.

So many photos, right? I get a little blog happy at this expo. Seriously, I’m probably more excited to write about this half marathon than any other one I do. I’m even usually more excited to run it. I’m REALLY looking forward to tomorrow.

Since they let me pick up my shoes at 4 p.m., I went back to the mall where I was going to wait until my husband told me to head back to the East Bay. I figured I’d hitch a ride back with him to my car. So I decided to go back to my favorite pasta place and order the best Italian dish ever.

Pesto gnocchi is amazing. I also had a small Caesar salad as well. It was all delicious. By the time I finished eating I was so tired. I walked around a little bit more and decided that I needed cupcakes. Because I always need cupcakes.

Always.

Yes. I got six. I’m not ashamed. They are delicious. And the booth is right next to the BART entrance to head back home for me.

About an hour later, my husband and I talked and decided I should just start heading back to the valley. I hopped on the first train and started my journey.

My trip home wasn’t nearly as fulfilling as my time in San Francisco. My car started overheating. My husband, who was supposed to go out of town today, is now in our garage trying to figure out what’s wrong with it. He’s already replaced the thermostat. That’s the fourth time in the 10 years I’ve owned my car the thermostat has been replaced.

I did, finally, get to look through my “goody bag” from the expo.

There was a lot of great stuff in it, including lip moisturizer, coconut water, Somersaults Snacks and cookies. This was actually a bag filled with good stuff. Compared to other bags, this one is probably the definition of an actual “goody bag.”

Today I’m taking it easy. I slept with compression socks last night. I’m worried because my legs have been incredibly fatigued in recent days. And my half marathon experience last week was brutal.

So I’m nervous about tomorrow. But I’m also incredibly excited about being able to run with lots of other woman who will inspire me along the way. I’m counting down the hours.

Oct 12

My new glass slippers

I’m not typically into girly girl stuff. Not at all. I don’t wear a lot of dresses, or do my hair all fancy or anything. But early last week when Nike posted a photo of the Tiffany blue LunarGlide’s that would be made special for the Nike Women’s Marathon, I didn’t hesitate to try and reserve a pair.

And, surprisingly, I secured them. The confirmation process took little more than five minutes. And I was set.

All I had to do was show up and pick them up at 5 p.m. today. I knew I’d be in San Francisco today to pick up my race packet. So I reserved my time for when I’d be around.

After waiting and waiting in anticipation (again, I’m never typically like this), today was finally the day.

I went through the expo earlier in the day, but I headed over around 4 p.m. on the off chance I’d be able to get my pair early.

They did.

I showed my identification and the store employee checked my confirmation number against a long roster, then I was directed toward the counter where a man dressed in a fancy tuxedo handed me my pair of shoes.

The man showed me my shoes, checked the sizes and then handed them off to me so I could purchase them. The price was steep, yes. But it’s not more than I would have paid for a new pair of running shoes.Plus, the LunarGlides are within my range for stability.

I fell in love at first site.

The shoelaces are a delicate satin, but the shoes also came with regular Nike white laces to switch out. I’m not sure the pretty laces are even practical, but they are cute. The little Nike swoosh at the bottom of the laces is shiny and adds a nice touch.

I’ve never had “bling” on my shoes before. This definitely qualifies.

The shoes are incredibly detailed. Each time I look at them, I see something unique. It may be cheesy, but I kind of feel like these are my glass slippers, especially after the week I’ve had with technology fails and my car overheating on the way home from the Expotique (more sigh).

That’s the insole. When the nice tuxedo-clad man showcase the shoe for me, he made sure to give me a peak of the inside to let me know there was something special there too. The shoes are that Tiffany blue color everywhere.

That includes the Lunarlon padding, which actually is more pearl-toned than I thought it would be.

I’ve talked before about how I didn’t have a “pretty” pair of running shoes until I bought my LunarEclipses a few months ago. Then, finally, I had some color and different texture on my shoes. I felt, dare I say it, stylish when I ran.

These make me feel like a running princess. And I’m not inclined to ever feel like a princess. Ever. That’s just not my style. It kind of changes my perspective on running shoes (which have, always, been about function as opposed to style for me).

The downside? I don’t get to wear them during the actual run. I never, ever try anything new on race day. It’s taboo in general, but I think on a course like the 13.1 I’ll be running for Nike it would definitely be a big mistake. I’d love to wear these to run, but I’m sticking to my LunarEclipses because I know the shoes and how they’ll react on the course.

I’ll do a more throughout report from the Expotique a little later, but I wanted to share these photos and some giddy about these awesome add-ons to my race experience this weekend.

For those venturing out in the next few days, Nike Town is also giving away a free gift with a $150 purchase. It’s really, really easy to rack up that kind of damage at the store. There’s too much awesome stuff to choose from. I’ll admit, this is the one race where I actually do go a little crazy with gear.

The shoes come with a reusable bag.

Other purchases that exceed the limit come with a very practical cosmetic-style bag. Last year the gift was a brushed metal picture frame. I like this year’s freebie, particularly because it also came with pony tail ties and an elastic headband.

Definitely useful.

I may go a bit crazy about this race over the next few days. I’ve been fortunate enough to secure a spot in it for the past two years, which is really, really special in itself.

When I started running, my ultimate goal was never 26.2. It was “one day, I’ll run the Nike race.” I accomplished that last year. This year I’d like to beat last year’s time. With tired legs and a stressful week, though, I’m not sure that will happen.

One thing is already for sure: My shoes are an amazing treat.

Oct 11

Happening now

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I’m in San Francisco at the Nike Expotique! Way more excited than I should be!

Oct 11

Ever had one of those weeks?

I should name this the “post in which I tell you that I’m not writing a race review for the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half Marathon.”

Why?

Epic technology failures.

My week has seen enough of them already to make me really feel, again, like I looked before the beginning of the half marathon this past weekend.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is my angry face. It’s my “I’m looking at you and my mouth is askew because I can’t say what I really want to.” I had said face at the beginning of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon because there was no pacer in my corral.

I had a goal. I was told a pacer would be there. No pacer.

I should have known then it would be a bad run. I should have laughed it off.

But for some reason I can’t laugh anything off this week.

I’m four for four on days with technology issues. Not just at work, but at home too.

Servers not working. Equipment not connecting. Images not appearing. All by no fault of my own (seriously, I haven’t brought down a server in some time). All taking away from time I needed for other assignments and projects.

Add on top of that a very glitchy-as-of-late Garmin that I had to do a master reset on this morning, thereby erasing all my data from the past three weeks, and I’m not a happy runner this morning.

Then, my six-year-old 17-inch multimedia special edition laptop died. I want to cry. It’s the computer I built my masters project for University of California, Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism on. It’s been my go-to computer for the past four years.

And the hard drive just keeps trying to load. And load. And load. Windows XP keeps saying “not happening.”

This week sucks. I can’t even sugarcoat it. I’m afraid to leave my house and head to the Nike Women’s Marathon Expotique in San Francisco now, but I will be shortly.

Since my primary blogging laptop died and my Garmin has no data, there will be no Rock ‘n’ Roll race recap. I’m actually pretty good with that. Why? I can sum of the experience succinctly: Started good, stomach hurt, threw up, kept going, got sick again, finished nine minutes above last year’s time.

No other technological devices failed in the writing of this blog.

But it’s still early.

Sigh.

Oct 7

4 Comments

Some bad news, some good news

Today didn’t go as well as planned at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon. I finished nine minutes over my PR from last year at 2:36:13.

My problems started at mile three. By mile eight, I was keeled over on the side of the street throwing up. (Sorry for the blunt honesty right there, but there’s no real easy way to say it. Maybe, expelling all my Gu on the streets of San Jose?)

At mile ten, I had another episode. I honestly had a moment where I didn’t think I’d be finishing the race. Then I pulled it together and pushed my hardest.

Today was bad, because I didn’t reach either of my goals for the race.

It was good for a completely different reason.

I don’t write about my job(s) a lot, mainly because I’d rather not get into too much about work on my running blog. But today, I want to share a link to a story I wrote.

It started as a blog post in response to Wisconsin anchorwoman Jennifer Livingston’s on-air response to a letter from a concerned reader about her weight. I had something very, very similar happen to me in 2009.

Full time, I edit a newspaper website. But I’m also a writer. I was a writer before I learned how to code HTML, interpret CSS or shoot and edit video. Today, I revealed a very personal part of myself in an article in the newspaper.

It’s here (with a wedding photo of me even! Another thing I don’t often share because my husband and I have different last names professionally and I typically like to keep that aspect of my life private too).

It’s kind of nice that the story ran today, if only because today was one of those bad runs I address in the story. From each run, we learn something not to do for the next. (For this one, I think having an upset stomach for four days is probably not the best thing to run a half marathon while dealing with.)

Either way, I wanted to share it with my readers. It’s more revealing than I am on here sometimes, though I aim to be candid on my blog as well.

I’ll post a full race recap later this week. Just to warn: it won’t be pretty.

 

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