Seattle Rock n' Roll Half Marathon 2016 Race Recap (aka The End of the Run Streak)

I decided to run Rock n' Roll again (you can find the recap of my first experience here), since there was an INSANE Groupon deal last year: I paid $44 (with a coupon) for the half. That's practically 50% off the lowest early bird entry fee. Fast forward to this year and I've felt burnt out on racing and have just been enjoying running for the sake of running, and keeping my fitness. Until now, I have not run a single race this year, which is kind of crazy - but fine by me. I kept Rock n' Roll on my calendar as an incentive to keep up on long runs every week: enough to be able to run the distance, but not at any kind of hard effort. My last long run was up to 10 miles, and I've done a few half marathons with only a 10 miler under my belt. So my goal was to run it easy and only slow down/walk for water stops. 

The day before the race was a crazy one. I didn't fuel well, forgetting lunch while helping out at the expo and then I had that horrible emotional hangover feeling after our son gave us quite a scare. (He tripped and hit his back HARD on some stairs, briefly losing consciousness, and we were worried enough about nerve damage to bring him to Childrens ER.) He was fine, but I certainly still felt drained with a fierce headache and didn't sleep well that night - the night before the race. And it's a pretty early wake up for Rock n' Roll, with a 7am start and a shuttle to catch by 6:30 for the new point to point course. All these things conspired against me, but I had weird stubborn streak to prove to myself that I'm still capable of running 13.1 miles for giggles. 

I trudged out the door at 5:30 AM and headed into the city. Thankfully my husband works right by Safeco and I used his parking pass to park in his garage. I avoided a VERY LONG line of cars all heading towards the exit with the public garage, and easily walked over to the shuttles. This new scenario was one of my concerns that day and it all went off quite well. There was not a long wait at all to get onto the school buses, and they got us to the start very quickly, as they drove the closed off course back towards the Seattle Center. It was nice to have time to have a quick check in with some Oiselle teammates (pictured above) and hit up the restrooms, which were severely lacking for such a big race. But the start time was pushed back 15 minutes, so I had plenty of time. I also didn't realize how much time I had ahead of me to just stand around. Based on my corral, giving myself a nice easy finish time of 2:15, I was all the way back in 29! It took at leas 40 minutes from the start of the race until our corral crossed the mats. Needless to say, I am putting my PR or something close to it as my time if I ever run this race again. My feet were getting annoyed before we even started! GAH. Another check in the plus column for small local races... 

FINALLY we were off and the course is still really awesome with great views of the city, a nice stint through Seward Park and the last mile or so is a lovely slight downhill coast towards the stadiums. I felt fine for most of the run. Not great, not good, just... fine. I did meet my goal and ran easy the whole time, walking the water stops except for the steep incline to the I90 express tunnel and a weird little uphill near the end. The finish area, and race overall, are still really well organized.

The medals are nice, too.

As I hobbled towards my car to drive home, I started feeling my right foot ache a tiny bit more than my left. I chalked it up to the usual post race pains and spent pretty much the rest of the day like a vegetable. The DOMS set in the following day and on Monday in earnest, so nothing felt out of place when my foot still felt kind of achy. But, by Wednesday, nothing hurt at all - except by the end of a day on my feet, my right foot kept niggling (because it's go, go, go all the time as the summertime children's cruise director). I had plantar fasciitis, many years ago and I remember that it is VERY difficult to get rid of, but that it hurt in the morning and eased up after exercise. Right now I'm experiencing the opposite - no pain at all in the morning and a slight ache in the evening. 

Regardless, I decided to go ahead and end the run streak last weekend. YEP. I knew that if I ever felt at all injured, that I would be smart about it and stop in the short term, so I wouldn't stupidly mess up anything long term. I was already icing, rolling, compressing and elevating my foot since the day of the race. I'm continuing that several times a day and I took last Saturday and Sunday completely off from exercise. I did one boot camp class, modifying everything to low impact and a couple of elliptical and weights workouts this week. All while wearing this lovely flesh colored support sock!

I even bought a pair of hideous Crocs to wear around the house, so I'm never barefoot for long. I'm already feeling like I have very little pain now, but don't want to push it. I'll probably give it another week of a few rest days, low impact boot camp and some elliptical before I start in with a short and easy run/walk test flight. I'm surprised at how long I was able to go without getting REALLY ANTSY about wanting to run: not until Tuesday, a full four days! 
So, in the end, I hit 759 days total for my first run streak! Because, of course, I'm going to get back on the horse eventually. I'm pretty sure that this bump in the road was the cause of several random factors, not related to my daily streak: bad pre-race fueling and rest, for one. I also did most of my running on nice packed dirt/gravel trails and the pounding from the race course might have made my feet angry. I also should have replaced my shoes many miles ago. I usually buy a pair every 6 months at the Brooks Outlet truckload sales, but the Ravenna 6s felt awful on my feet. I figured I could skip them and was waiting for the 7s to be available at the outlet. I won't make that mistake again and have already gone ahead and bought the 7s, pictured above. So, I shall take it easy and maybe start streaking on the first day of a calendar year this time for 2017, or maybe before... Barring any sort of injury, of course.

Oh, yeah, and final time was 2:23:10!

Redmond Turkey Trot Race Recap

This might be a record for me on late race recaps.  I had hoped to have lots to say about it, since I actually trained for it and the training went well.  Although, sometimes, I suppose you just have an off day.  I was barely hitting paces that I could maintain at the end of an hour long progression run.  Bleh!  I suppose I could blame my so-so running on the beginning of a craptastic head cold.  But, I ran my half marathon PR in a similar situation.  Sudafed did NOT help for this 5K.  

I could blame it on the coldest weather experience I've had in over a decade!  Most Seattle-ites do not spend significant time in the great outdoors when it's below freezing.  And, I haven't felt that "my fingers are in pain and might fall off" feeling since we lived in Chicago.  We did do a nice little warm up, but only a half mile.  Maybe I should've done more?  I felt fine, as far as body temp goes, once we got started.  But there were one or two patches were I was wary of ice.  

I could also blame my time on a bad start and messing around with my electronics.  Which is the LAMEST thing ever, I know.  I was discombobulated since the gun went off a few minutes EARLY (when does that ever happen??) while my watch was still looking for a signal and I had yet to start my music.  At least a got a lovely picture with my buddy Lauren in the first mile.

Lastly, I could cite the fact that the results were probably not in chip time, but gun time.  Both Dawn and Lauren's Garmin's reflected this, as I'm pretty sure mine did.  My final time was recorded as 26:56 and my Garmin missed the first .4 miles of the race.  Here's what I did get on my Garmin.

I REALLY don't think it took me 4 minutes and 47 seconds (a 12 minute pace) in the beginning. Plus, I didn't stop my watch immediately after crossing the mats.  Either way, I certainly didn't place in the top three of my age group to get a pie (which I was secretly hoping for).  But Lauren did!  Yay!

Looking at the results, if I'd run my PR of 25:29 I would've got a second place pie for my age group.  Wah!  Ah well.  Maybe next time?  Getting 5th out of about 30 wasn't terrible.  I'm also happy with the fact that I finished strong, with slightly faster paces as I went along.

As for the event, it was all around a nice little race (VERY LITTLE with just 230 participants) and checked all the boxes on things I love about races: Saturday! (also NOT the weekend of Thanksgiving!) Inexpensive! Local! Small! Easy parking! Free photos! (Thank you Woodinville Bicycle!)  There were even medals for all, and pies for age group winners.  The course was nice, starting and ending in the middle of Redmond Town Center Plaza, while utilizing the nearby Samammish River Trail.  I would CERTAINLY run it again if they keep the date the same; it could be a nice little tradition.

In the meantime, I'm seriously considering throwing out the idea of constantly obsessing over a sub 2 hour half marathon and gunning for a freaking 5K PR that has eluded me for THREE YEARS.  Sheesh.  2016 might be the year of the 5K Revolution... (Because when Lauren Fleshman says it's awesome, it is.)

Brooks Trailhead 15K Race Report

Eeep!  Better late than never on the Brooks Trailhead race recap, right?  It's no secret that I love Brooks shoes.  My love affair started with Adrenalines years ago and now I'm a die hard Ravenna girl.  I also quite enjoy the 15K distance - it's right about the time in a half marathon that I'm ready to be DONE.  There aren't enough 15K races in these parts, nor 10 milers.  Can someone rectify this?  Maybe a Quest Field 10 Miler, like the Soldier Field 10 Miler?  I digress...

So I was thrilled to learn that Brooks would be hosting the annual 15K race around Lake Union (formerly Seattle's Best, which I ran three years ago and last year it was the Emerald City Run).  My goal for this race was to make it a long run, since I'd been sidelined by sickness and vacation for most of May.  It was a bit of a slog there, but I made it...

It was perfect race weather, maybe a tad on the warm side with hardly any clouds and temps getting well into the 60s by the time we finished.  Parking was no problem, as with every Gasworks Park race.  My 15K start time was supposed to be at 8:14AM, two minutes after the elite 10K start, four minutes after the elite 15K start.  Kind of confusing and I don't think this is how it went down.  So everyone, 10K and 15K runners alike, just went and crossed the starting mats haphazardly.  I waited and therefore missed meeting up with my friend Lauren who was going to keep me company for most of the race.  But I brought my music along and was just fine and ended up catching her around mile 5, which is just as well because that's when I was starting to lose steam.  I was clocking miles pretty consistently in the 10:30s, but starting at the hilly section, I just had to start taking walk breaks.  Final time was 1:42:26 for an average pace of 10:40.  No, not 11 minute miles befitting a 9.3 mile race, as they took into account that the course was really nearly a quarter of a mile too long at 9.6 miles.  

I'm glad of that for my results, but I was not glad to be thinking I was nearly done when I was not!  

It's a typical Lake Union race, utilizing the parking lots, sidewalks and some streets around the lake - as well as my least favorite up and downhill portion of races ever.  I'm sure the loop is great for getting a run in, and I know Lauren had a great 10K on this course.  But, I can say with certainty that I'm just not a fan.  I don't like the bumpy, holey, gravel parking areas, the abandoned bit of railroad track, sidewalks by businesses, and of course the steep uphill followed by scary downhill bit.  Again, thankfully I wasn't going into this race with any lofty goals.  For sure all Lake Union runs will continue to be fun runs.  

That being said, I love that my favorite shoe company is in my backyard and is organizing this run.  I love that I have a Brooks themed medal and race shirt!

And I absolutely love that it's held on a Saturday morning and within walking distance of The Essential Baking Co for iced coffee and breakfast sandwich with a friend.  Thanks Lauren for being my personal photographer.

Lake Sammamish Half Marathon Race Recap

This race really holds a special place in my heart and I'm thinking that I might have to make it my goal race every year.  Not only was it my (way too longstanding) half marathon PR, and is now my newly minted PR half, but it was the subject of my first blog post.  (I can't help but laugh at how I was describing my pace in mph instead of minutes per mile!  I digress...)  Looking back on that recap, one might wonder what took me so long to run it again.  Well, the following year, I became an ambassador for Hot Chocolate and the Seattle race is always the weekend before Lake Sammamish.  I already throw a bit of a monkey wrench into the family weekend with races, so two weekends in a row is not ideal.  Plus, I wasn't sure about running a 15K the weekend before a half marathon.  So, I put it on the back burner.  Really, I spent a year putting half marathons on the back burner.  

As 2014 was coming to a close, and running was going pretty well for me, I decided that I wanted to put an honest effort into 13.1 again and I knew this was the race to target.  I love that it's a 10 minute drive from my house (same with packet pickup), there is event parking for all (no stressful weaving city streets hoping for a spot), it's a point to point (no demoralizing out and backs), the buses back were well organized (EVERYTHING is well organized), it's flat but with some variety in the terrain (from gravel, to packed dirt, to road), there is Nuun on course, it has lovely views along the way and it's on a SATURDAY.

Although, this year, I was suffering from a pretty bad head cold in the days beforehand and my son had been running a fever.  I was pretty freaked out.  With all the body aches, sinus pain, and sniffling, there were a few times where I thought I might just bag it altogether.  But, I told myself to make a decision the morning of the race and not before.  So I lazed around on the couch most of the day Friday hydrating and taking Tylenol.  The night before, I took a 24 hour Sudafed (the kind you need to show your ID to purchase) hoping that I'd wake up free of sinus pain and able to breathe.  And, LO!  I slept like a log and woke feeling pretty darn good at 5:30AM on race morning.  

I had my favorite pre-race breakfast of banana bread toasted with peanut butter and a nice strong latte.  Then drove on over to Marymoor in the aforementioned 10 minutes with plenty of time to spare.  I sat in the car to stay warm and had a half a banana and a Nuun tablet in a very small amount of water, so I didn't have too much sloshing around in my stomach before the race.  I finally left the confines of my car to hit up the bathroom and then line up.  Running into Sybil and her running buddy was a great way to pass the time and calm my nerves before the start.

Despite feeling a helluva lot better, I still thought I should take things easy and just get through the race without having a meltdown - my 'C' goal.  My 'B' goal of sub 2:10 wasn't really even on my mind at that point.  The plan was to do a comfortable effort by mile two and try to stick to that throughout the race.  (The first mile is not a good gauge to base my race on, since it's usually a little too fast.  Doesn't everybody do this...?)  After running in the 9:20s for a bit, I started thinking I could still achieve my B goal and I pretty much settled into a comfortable pace for the duration.  

My one race photo, thanks to Woodinville Bicycle!  In the official finish line photos, I was behind a group of people.  Probably a good thing, though.

The morning was really quite cold and my gloved fingers were feeling frozen up until mile 3 or so.  But the sun kept peeking in and out and we ran through little pockets of fog that felt refreshing and lovely to view over the lake.  I felt like I was getting my hydration by osmosis.  By mile 10, I knew I'd be OK and just felt really great.  By mile 11 and 12 the sun was out in full force and I started warming up, not necessarily in a good way.  As I was fumbling with taking off my gloves and taking that last gel, I felt fatigue creeping in.  But I just told myself to keep running miles that started with a 9 and I'd be good to meet that B goal, not realizing I'd settled into a pace that was more 'A' goal.  This dawned on me as we hit that final mile, I looked down at my watch and thought I was hallucinating the fact that I could probably score a PR.  Just in case my math was indeed correct, I switched gears from slightly fatigued 9:30 minute miles back to the 9:20 range and apparently into the 7:30s for that last .1 mile.  My final chip time was 2:01:50, a 1 minute and 4 second PR.

Given that final push, and the fact that I had not realized I was running close to PR pace the whole time, I'm thinking maaaaaybe I could have spread that effort more evenly over the first 12+ miles.  I didn't feel like hurling afterward and even had water leftover in my handheld!  Therein lies the thing that I could improve upon next time - because there's always SOMETHING.  Don't get me wrong, I think this was my favorite race experience to date!  The race itself and my execution were pretty much PERFECT: my fueling was on point from breakfast to evenly spaced water, Nuun and three gels throughout, the weather was excellent, the course was lovely even with a few miles on the road where the trail was closed, there wasn't much crowding, I love that the buses are at the end now - rather than the beginning of the race, and I kept a steady effort and met all my goals - even my A+++ one!  

And yummy post race brunch was the cherry on the cake of my day!

So, of course, I'm already chomping at the bit to do it over again WITHOUT coming off a horrible cold and with more confidence that I could kick it up a notch without crashing and burning later on.  But I may just leave this race as my goal half every year and run the others for fun, because it is just that awesome.  Thank you Lake Sammamish Half Marathon for giving me back some much needed 13.1 confidence!  Cheers!

  

Hot Chocolate 15K Seattle Race Recap

What can I say about Hot Chocolate that I haven't said before?  Really, I could just copy and paste my last race report, down to the sunny weather, and call it good!  Thankfully, this time around I was not running after injury AND went a tad faster.  Not too fast, as this was my last long run before the Lake Sammamish Half.

Got to put my splits somewhere, so here's a good spot:

My final chip time was 1:35:27 - I definitely took a minute remembering to turn off my Garmin.  I barely had time to start it, too.  Parking is a little more tight for those running the 15K, as it starts after the 5K and that race was going on while I was trying to find a spot.  I finally pulled into a paid lot and by the time I jumped into my corral, it was time for the National Anthem.  Not even a a last minute potty break beforehand - a first for me, and all was well!  And, I'm pretty pleased with keeping my long run pace on those hills (in miles 3-4 and 6) while running slightly faster than long run pace for the rest of the race.  I felt just fine afterwards and the next day, a good indicator that I kept an easy effort.  Well, except for crossing the finish line - I had to sprint over those mats.

One thing I can say about this year's race was how awesome it was to see so many people from different corners of my little running community in one place.  In mile one I finally met a gal who I've interacted with at Gametiime, and I exchanged side fives with Oiselle (and Ragnar) teammate Suzie in mile two.  Shortly thereafter I heard another mother runner I know give me a shout out, waved to Oiselle peep Kaleigh on one of the downhills, ran into two Y buddies on an uphill, talked to Twitter friend Amy and then Shannon post race and a whole gaggle of my boot camp brethren while we ate chocolate.  Actually, I let mine go cold as I was gabbing too much.  (Side note: you can easily reheat the fondue in the microwave and it makes a great drawer organizer.)  

One of my boot camp buddies asked if the huge number of participants was normal and, yep: this race sells out every year.  There were nearly 5,500 15K participants and nearly 7,000 5K participants.  I know that a lot of people aren't into the 'gimmick' races.  I myself have no desire to do a mud/color/bubble/foam/what have you race.  I don't like the idea of not being timed for my efforts and the increased risk of a ridiculous injury - like tripping because there is foam in my eye.  However, Hot Chocolate IS a straight up, chip timed, road race.  Sure, there's anthropomorphous marshmallows dancing over the start line and chocolate chips, tootsie rolls and marshmallows handed out along the course. (The marshmallows were excellent, by the way! New race fuel idea - they melt in your mouth easily.  Get on that Gu!)  Yet, it is a good introduction to the fun of a first race or 5K for MANY of the participants.  Now they have a concrete time to show for their effort and many will get the bug to try and better it, set goals and improve fitness.  How cool is that?  And for the more experienced runner, the 15K is a good stepping stone to the half marathon.  Really, the Seattle 15K course is NO JOKE.  It is quite a hill workout and a nice challenge for any level of runner.

This doesn't really look as menacing as those hills did during the race, but they were pretty tough.

And this year, yes there were the super cozy hoodies, and there were 15K medals - HUGE HEAVY MEDALS.  

And free photos!  I like the pic that Stacie snapped (above) better than the official photos since she shouted at me and got me to smile.  It was hard to see the photographers because of the sun in our faces, I wish I had been able to smile for them.  Next time!

Seattle Love 'em or Leave 'em Valentine's Day Dash Race Recap

This year's race was a far cry from the last time I did Love 'em or Leave 'em.  I'm SO pleased with how things went down, and it's just icing on the cake that it's such a fun Oiselle team tradition.

Sticking with tradition, I did day of race packet pickup and scored a nice parking spot close to the start.  I love that it's a Saturday race AND it starts at 9:30!  Easy peasy to head over a little early to get your bib and shirt.  I must say, the shirts were a much lighter material and softer this year, maybe because it's the 10th anniversary of the race?  I hope to be able to wear it a bit more for kicking around.

After dropping said shirt in my car, I did a short half mile warm up and then met up with teammates to chat and take group pictures, naturally.

Another thing that's pretty cool about this race is that it is full of FAST people.  I still lined up optimistically at the front end of the 8 minute mile group, just to be on the safe side.  Things get off to a quick and easy start with hardly any weaving.  Then it's pretty smooth sailing throughout the entire course.  It's also probably due to the fact that (unlike many Green Lake races) it's mostly run on the roads around the lake with just a short stint on the running path (that you need to share with the many other folks enjoying the park).

off to a good start - thanks for the photo Irwin!

About a half a mile in, I looked down at my Garmin and felt like 'huh, this isn't too bad' while doing just over an 8 minute mile.  'Juuuuuuuust keep it up' was my mantra.  Which we all know is easier said than done in a 5K.  As usual, that second mile was tough.  I deliberated whether to save some energy for the last mile or to keep pushing it.  I kept pushing it, but I was getting fatigued and just kept telling myself to get to that 'Tunnel of Love' at the end where there's a perfect little downhill to kick it towards the finish.  And I suppose that worked because I kept roughly the same pace for mile three as mile two.

The final chip time of 25:35 gave me a renewed sense of trust in my Garmin.  For the first time in awhile, I actually started it without issue and remembered to stop it on time.  As for goals, I easily met my 'B' goal of sub 26 and was only 6 seconds away from my 'A' goal/PR.  I am very pleased!  My PR race at Fall City Days was a straight out and back, so I think that I'm pretty much back to the level of speed I had THREE YEARS ago.  I might have to run it again and see how I'd do on the same course...

As per usual, the post race festivities seemed to be hoppin' - especially since they added a beer garden this year.  I picked up some KIND bars, some Zico coconut water and a sample of one of my favorite treats: Bark Thins.  There was also a flower truck on hand for all those last minute Valentine's Day shoppers, which was a cute addition.  Really, no matter what they do, this will always be a must-do race!

*Also, speaking of meeting goals, I'd really love it if you'd go on over and register for the Hot Chocolate 5K or 15K (LINK HERE) with the code: SEAHAT2 for a free tech hat.  Even if you've registered already, you can shoot Hot Chocolate a message (via the 'questions' tab on the website) and they'll add it on for you!

Mustache Dache Race Report (aka, My Kid's First 5K)

(Again, FYI, if you haven't entered my Athleta gift card giveaway already, you still have time and totally should - odds are good for winning!)

Well, for one thing NaBloPoMo is making me write this race recap a lot faster than I would have otherwise!  It also helps that the free race photos from Woodinville Bicycle were posted at lightning speed.  

I'm so glad I was able to run this race for the third year in a row and since it's inception (recap from the first Dache in 2012, and 2013).  What a great event, for a great cause, to call a tradition.  And it will most likely be a family tradition going forward.

Running a race with my son has been on my mind for awhile (and on my to-do list, which I'm doing HORRIBLY at this year! Ha!).  I knew that he had the maturity and energy to complete one, especially coming on the end of his soccer season.  I thought I'd take advantage of his pretty rigorous schedule (two hour and a half long practices a week and one game), in lieu of doing any kind of training program.  The Mustache Dache worked out great, as it was the first Saturday after the soccer season ended and is a PERFECT race for kids: everyone gets a medal, it has a late start, it's mostly comprised of fun-runners/walkers in silly getup, the start/finish is close to the playground at Magnuson Park, and there's a mechanical bull.  Yep.

They did add a half mile long kids dash this year, complete with capes for the kids.  This would have been just as fun and appropriate for my 7 year old.  But I really liked the idea of him getting his medal and running a race with me.  I head out the door all the time to go run a race and the kids will ask things like "Did you line up in a row?" "Were you on a track?" "Did you win?"  I thought it would be cool for him to see exactly what's involved in an everyday road race so that he could picture what I'm always off doing.  Plus, I explained to him that the race supports a charity for men's health called Movember, and what a great first run for a boy.  His response? "Yay for men's health! Wait, what month is women's health month?"  I like your gender equality thinking there, kid.

Since the race has such a lovely late start at 10AM, we arrived with plenty of time to park and have some snacks (Clif Bar samples).  I caught up with teammates and met some new ones.  This was another fun thing for my kid, meeting a bunch of people.  He's pretty outgoing, loves to chat and said 'nice to meet you!' nearly a dozen times on Saturday.

When the announcer asked everyone to head to the start, he started jumping up and down with excitement, shouting "I'm so excited!"  In case it wasn't clear.  While we were waiting in the chute, he asked about five times "How many more minutes?"  Thankfully the announcer started letting everyone know.  Finally we were off and doing a nice steady pace, I'd say around a 11-12 minute mile (no, I didn't turn on my Garmin).  

He was doing great, chatting (hey! a Minion is running! Let's beat the Minion!) and saying things like "this is awesome!" "what a pretty day!" It WAS a gorgeous day.  The one thing I should have done was bring my handheld water.  We did wander around for a good amount of time before the race and didn't drink anything.  About 3/4 of a mile in, he was saying he was thirsty.  Damn it!  At the same time, he pondered "What would you do if you had to pee?"  "Do you have to go, buddy?" He claimed he did not, he was just wondering, but by the time we saw the second Honey Bucket and I asked again, he decided to go "just in case." 

After the bathroom break we took the picture above, which was just after the first mile, and started taking walk breaks.  "Whew, my legs are getting sore!" "Man, this is tiring!" "Do you ever feel like this in a race, mom?"  Yes.  Yes, I do.  We did happen upon a water fountain half way through, so that was great and I promised he'd have plenty of water once we were done.  Once we passed the two mile marker, I reminded him of what a great job he was doing and to keep up the good work - only one mile left to go!  And then I noticed his chip timer was not on his shoe. Womp.  He took his shoes off and back on again to ride the bull, and I'm guessing it got lost right after that.  But I was a bit bummed he wouldn't have race results!  I'm thinking of trying to get mine switched for his, we'll see...  Anyway, once we rounded a corner and could see the big inflated Clif Bar arch, he asked if we could sprint.  We did as best we could, because by that point we were having to dodge dogs and strollers, but we kicked it up and raced across the finish.  Final chip time clocking in at 44:04.  Yep, it was fun, but it sure did feel like we were out there for at least that long! 

Thankfully, we scoped out the ground in the finishing area and found what was most likely his chip on the ground and returned it.  He started downing his bottle of water and thought the 'teeny bagels' were a marvel.  He also loved the playground, and we spent a good twenty minutes or more chillaxing there before heading to the car.  On our walk back, he said he couldn't wait to tell his friends (and gym teacher) that he ran three whole miles!  He turned to me and said, "Thank you mom, that was fun today. I'm really glad I got to do this with you."  And then he held out his still tiny arms for a hug.

He SLAYS me.

When we got home and regaled Sister and Daddy with our tales, my husband asked our daughter if we should all go next year.  Of course that was met with a resounding yes, and I definitely agree.  A great race for all, and for a great cause.

Snohomish River Run Race Report

This summer I was so glad to have the opportunity to get the word out about this race along with an entry to run.  I had been looking forward to it for a VERY long time, and planned the 10K as a goal race.  But when I got an unexpected PR at Beat the Blerch (another great race put on by Snohomish Running Company), I wasn't sure what my goals would be.  I decided to keep up with my training and aim for a time that confirmed I was truly in PR shape - maybe something within 10 seconds of the Blerch run.  I'm quite sure I succeeded in this, although it won't be reflected in the race results.  It just goes to show that even in the best events, the tiniest problem can have really big impacts...

I must admit that it if it wasn't for my intrepid race buddy Dawn, I might not have stumbled out of bed in the pitch dark after getting very little sleep the night prior.  Additionally, I had weird muscle aches from an hour long adults vs. kids soccer game with my son's team the night before (those U8 kids are FIERCE competitors).  The night was filled with wind storms, a broken fence and a short power outage.  I was worried about what the weather might bring the next morning and was kind of dreading the race.  It was a pretty early start compared to most around these parts - 8AM for the half marathon and 8:15 for the 10K.  Thankfully Dawn got our packets the day before and we had those extra 15 minutes, since we were both doing the 10K.  

Once we parked (which was super close and easy this year) and checked our bags, things were looking good and off to an auspicious start.  There was Nuun!  Yay! I hope this is now a regular thing at Snohomish Running events.  I was really glad to have some to whet my whistle beforehand and the rain looked as if was going to stay away for the duration.  It was perrrrrfect running weather in the low/mid 50s and cloudy and I felt great in my new arm warmers with my singlet.

I started out near the front and got into a nice groove for the first 2-3 miles.  Hard, but not too hard, and tried not to look at my watch.  After my watch beeped mile 3, I kept my eyes peeled for the turnaround - expecting a cone or volunteer around mile 3.75 or so, as that's where I thought they told us the turnaround would be during the pre-race briefing.  Just after 3.5 miles I saw some girl just mosey over to the other side and start going back the other way, and my first reaction was - seriously?? Is she just cheating right in front of me??  Then I saw that people were waving to each other and saying we went too far.  Crap! I was paying attention!  I looked down at my watch and it was reading 3.75ish, so I was thinking that I caught the turnaround just in time.  I thought wrong.  As I was running, I started passing people that I already passed on my way out - even walkers.  So clearly, some people ran as much as 7.5 miles and there had to be people who ran as little as 5.5.  I could also tell by the signs that the mileage was totally off and I started to think, welp, I have that recent PR - I don't need to keep pushing it.  I walked through a water station, but then decided to keep at it and just hit lap whenever I got to 6.2.  I must've looked pretty funny, gunning it towards my imaginary finish line nearly 3/4 of a mile before the actual finish line, but I'm glad I did.  

Splits!  It's been for-ev-er that I've included them in a race report and didn't do something silly with my Garmin, thankfully!  I'm super happy that my hard, but not too hard pace for the first 3 miles was pretty much at my 5K PR effort and it's pretty obvious where I started to question whether I wanted to 'race' in mile 6, averaging a 9 minute mile.  Cumulative time for 6.26 miles was 53:51 per the Garmin.  One second off from the Blerch run and I'm going with that.

Right after I finished that .26 of a mile.  I started my cool down.  I did a brisk walk for a few minutes and chatted with a lady next to me that pretty much did the same thing!  Then I jogged it through to the finish line and got my medal, which is really spiffy, and reminiscent of the Snohomish Women's Run.

  

Am I mad?  A little.  I suppose it's a good thing that I got that PR last month, otherwise I would have been a bit more pissed, seeing as how this was a goal race.  But, mistakes happen.  I understand there was an issue that kept the volunteer from getting to the turnaround on time.  And the race directors did send a email apology, taking total responsibility and offered everyone who ran the 10K a 25% discount towards a Snohomish Running Company race in 2015.

Will I run it again?  Abso-freaking-lutely.  This is for sure my favorite 10K.  It seems like many 10Ks are added on to 5K races, where you run two loops.  NO.  Just, no.  Either give me one big loop, or (even better) a straight, flat, out and back like this race.  I also love the new start location in downtown Snohomish.  It had a much better vibe and it was way easier to park and get to the start.  I also love the addition of Nuun on course and water bottles handed out at the finish!  And of course there were lots of good samples (Kind bars and Oberto jerky), bread, bananas, cookies and hot soup (although, just chicken noodle this year).  I'm a big fan of the cozy cotton race tees, as I usually go for the men's shirt and wear it for kicking around or for pj's.  

matches my fave red plaid pj pants!

I gather that the women's tee ran a bit small this year.  Really, it's lovely that races offer women's fit tees.  But, for me, they don't fit any better than the men's.  They're either too tight, too short in the waist, too ridiculous, etc.  One day I hope that I can get a cool beer mug, pint glass, coffee mug or tumbler, maybe fun plastic wayfarer sunglasses, or pajama pants (!) in lieu of the ubiquitous race shirt.  A girl can dream... 

Inaugural Beat The Blerch Race Recap

*Edited to add that there were FREE race pictures and I've added my faves at the bottom. Another Huge thumbs up for this race!*

This race was so much awesome.  How could a race with cake, Nutella, grape drink, couches and 'Blerches' in fat suits be a bust?  If that last sentence made absolutely no sense, I encourage runners and non-runners alike to read Matthew Inman's inspiring and hilarious comic on running. 

now a hilarious and inspiring book

Even prior to race day, the organizers (the same lovely folks that coordinate the Sonohomish River Run, Snohomish Women's Run, Snoqualmie Valley Half, Mustache Dache and probably others I'm forgetting) were on top of making as many runners as possible happy.  When the event sold out in minutes, another race was added on Saturday to accommodate over four thousand people that signed up for a waiting list, should anyone drop out of the original Sunday race.  Additionally, switching between the Saturday and Sunday, transferring race bibs or race distances (for a small fee) was allowed and easy to accomplish with few clicks on Race It's website.  I decided to switch down to the 10K from the half AND from Sunday to Saturday with absolutely no fuss.  Being able to transfer bibs for a fee is really so convenient and I hope more races do this in the future.  Especially for races that sell out, since it gives people who didn't get in an opportunity that might have otherwise gone to waste.  

perpetual line down the block for packet pickup

Packet pickup was a little crazy with some long lines at Road Runner Sports, but that's to be expected when so many people wanted to get Matthew's autograph and all the goodies for purchase, including advance copies of his new book The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances.  I decided not to wait for an autograph or pic because I've had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Oats in the past at a Greenlake Beat the Blerch 'training run.'

I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that we received half zip long sleeve shirts in our goody bag, along with a Blerch magnet and sticker.

Getting the shirt took awhile because they were not only separated by size/gender, but by race distance.  I'm thinking that in the future it'd probably be easier for everyone to get the same shirt with all the distances included.  Maybe if I was running the marathon, I'd think differently?

On race day, I drove over with Dawn who scored a parking pass for the lot right the start/finish area, Tolt MacDonald park.  However, it seemed that parking nearby was easy and plentiful for all, parking pass or no.  Speaking of parking, The Oatmeal had his Spaceboat of Light and Wonder right up front.

The full marathon started at 9AM, the half at 9:30AM and the 10K at 10AM which was just another reason I was glad to have switched down to the 10K.  We got settled in just in time to watch the half runners start and pretty soon we were off.

I started out in a bit of a crowd, so I did my usual zipping around (probably too fast) to find some space to settle in to a nice pace.  I wasn't trying too hard, but I wanted to make SOME sort of effort.  There's a bit of rocky gravel in the first half mile or so and I was trying to get through that as quickly as possible.  There were also a few runner 'carrots' I was chasing and trying to pass to keep me entertained on the way to the turnaround (all distances were an out and back along the gorgeous Snoqualmie Valley trail) which was apparently a slight uphill grade.  After sitting on the couch, taking a Blerch selfie and having some electrolytes disguised as grape drink, I felt revived and took off with wayyyy more pep in my step.  

huge couches! running blerches!

blerch selfie!

A great thing about an out and back with a slight uphill grade at the beginning?  There's a nice downhill boost for the second half of the race, when you really need it (kinda like the Seattle Hot Chocolate 15K but WAY less steep). Another great thing about and out and back is that you can sort of size up the competition.  I started checking out every woman that was coming my way and wondering if they were 40 or older, if you catch my drift.  Most people at this race were not putting forth much effort, and rightly so - it's probably best to do as a fun run.  But, I was feeling good and thought that it wouldn't hurt to kick it into high gear since there weren't any more couches calling my name.  And, yeah, biggest awesome surprise was that I won my age group and got a PR with 53:50.  I felt like the course was maybe a little short?  But I'm not 100% sure because, as usual, I failed to turn off my Garmin until well after I'd cooled down.  Either way, the age group placement is what it is and I'll take it!

age group medal!

individual race medals for each distance

I got my medal and water, thankfully there wasn't much of a line for cake and post race goodies after most the 10K runners finished.  If there was any problem at this race, I'm thinking the lines for food would probably be it.  There was quite a line by the time the half marathoners were finishing up.  

so. much. cake. The cake and Nutella sandwiches were available at the finish as well as at all the aid stations.

After I ate, stretched, and bought a copy of the book, I decided to go ahead and get in line to have him sign it, since there were less than 20 or so folks queued up.  Luckily I met a nice gal to chat with while waiting and pretty soon I was chatting with Matthew, who is ridiculously nice.  Running two half marathons in two days, plus doing the second one in a fat suit on a hot day while taking tons of selfies with fans is pretty awesome.  I'm sure signing books all the livelong day is a huge part of his job, but he certainly doesn't have to take the time to chat for five whole minutes with people and make them laugh or draw pictures of dogs upon request.

pic I showed him of Chewy and his rendering

The things we covered in less than five minutes included... a congrats on my AG win (he noticed my extra medal right away), I told him that we were those Oiselle girls screeching at him during Ragnar and congrats on conquering the horrific miles of runner 8.  He told me that he also took over the legs for some of his van mates in addition to his own.  Dude.  It was also his first Ragnar and he loved it, especially running at night and that awesome bit runner 8 gets to do on the boardwalk over Fidalgo Bay.  But, he didn't like being 'covered in Ragnar' and if you've run one, you know what he means.  I laughed and agreed, even the hand sanitizer compounds in grody layers.  I asked what the grape drink was on course and when he told me it was Clif, I suggested Nuun for the future.  Apparently, he does drink Nuun (awesome) and went to them first but the timing for budgets was off.  Hopefully next year!  He's training for an ultra and I told him that more Greenlake meetups would be fun, and he said that maybe people could join in as he did 20 or so laps around?  Hahaha.  All the while, he was drawing the lovely picture of my pug.

These signs were plentiful, and I took them to heart.

The Oatmeal is a true force for good in the world (Tesla Museum for the win!) and, of course, he is effing funny as hell (This comic on religion is a personal favorite, really they're all a favorite - just spend an afternoon on his website).  I'm so, so happy that he has made this race a reality and I can't wait to experience it next year.

Also, I just learned that on Sunday's race, a young man collapsed and died.  Such a terrible tragedy.  If you would like to donate to Evan Sebenius' memorial fund, please go here.