tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75910659432572191802024-02-07T05:30:22.615-05:00Thought Per MileA collection of thoughts, mind games, and observations made while running, thinking about running, or doing any alternatives to running.Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12090033776467415063noreply@blogger.comBlogger154125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-65925231766719537352015-12-10T12:01:00.001-05:002015-12-10T12:01:46.291-05:00Nothing's wrong, so I guess I'll go run a marathonIf you're wondering why I haven't been posting many updates and telling all my stories... well, the truth is, I'm kind of afraid to. I'm afraid to even say this out loud, but for the first time in a long time, <b>nothing is wrong!</b> <br />
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I've just been marching along, slowly increasing my mileage and running a race every now and then, trying not to remind myself that I'm "due" for an injury. It feels kind of like I did something wrong and I'm just waiting to get caught. Instead, after my <a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-end-of-my-injury-free-streak.html" target="_blank">dramatic start to the year on Jan 2</a> with my ankle injury, the rest of the year has been smooth sailing! Maybe I'm out of the woods? (Or maybe it's <b>because</b> I'm staying out of the woods!!)<br />
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After my Disney race last month I decided it was time to go big. It's been a while since my last marathon (Boston, 2014) and I figured it's time for a new challenge. Mentally I was ready to sign up for another marathon, but I decided that this time around I was going to select a race that really suited me. My previous marathons have been races that I signed up for to run with friends, and although I'm glad I did them, none of them really suited my personality or allowed me to do my best. Sometimes I think people get so caught up in the hype of a certain race that they don't consider whether it's a smart choice for them personally. So, this time I focused on thinking about my past marathons and other long distance events, and what worked for me and what didn't. When I pulled it all together, I realized a very common theme. <b>I don't like people.</b> Okay, well that's not 100% true. But more specifically, I don't like the big crowds, endless cheering spectators, and complicated logistics of races. For example, sure I love Disney. But I don't love running a 12 minute mile because I can't get around people, or having to walk 45 minutes to the start line at 5am and having sore feet before the race even started. For Boston, of course I love Boston. But the start/finish line logistics and endless spectators exhaust me, not to mention the anxiety that I will <b>always</b> have at that marathon. All of this makes sense since I'm an introvert, and naturally exhausted by crowds of people. I also thought back to the Patriot Half Iron I did last year. When I had to start running my half marathon 4 hours into my race, I was shocked at how good I felt. Despite having already swam 1.2 miles and biked 56 miles, I was happy and strong. The course was on quiet, rural roads with very little traffic and just a few friendly faces sprinkled throughout the course. No screaming, drunken college kids. Just an occasional property owner cheering me on. I felt like I was running in my own town, and it was perfect.<br />
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When I finally put all the pieces together, it finally clicked. Why not run another marathon in the same place I started my running career: Hyannis! I've had such a love affair with Hyannis for years. It's where I ran my very first race (a 10k), and where I PR'd my half marathon. I even went just to spectate the year I had my hip surgery. I like this course because it's quiet, on small country cape roads in cool weather. I debated whether doing a two loop course would be too much torture, but I think I can handle it. I'm excited to have some friends there doing the half marathon, that will be there to cheer me on when I pass through at the halfway mark and again at the finish. When I visualize this in my head, it just feels right. Plus, I love that I can get a hotel room right there, roll out of bed and walk out to the race, and then head directly to the shower afterwards. <br />
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The timing is really perfect too, because the marathon training plan basically picks up right where my Disney half marathon training plan left off. In fact, I'm already on week 7 of my 18 week plan!<br />
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Here is my approach to training this time around:<br />
- Run 4 days a week: 2 short runs, 1 mid-distance run, 1 long run<br />
- <u>Rest</u> on rest days<br />
- No speed work (to prevent ankle strain)<br />
- Consistent strength training twice a week<br />
- An occasional bike and swim!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-72813165573780512992015-11-25T12:05:00.000-05:002015-11-25T12:05:25.693-05:002015 Disney Wine & Dine race report! (short race, long post)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjAtFdos9paLEG0An67dsWIycbX4ARCDzO8a59SpU5VlySVDMsroxpAcx476q_HOyko3fAvhN1aqASvqs6ndnlCr_C_hcbYouJLCXR5m0hSUgvsi_kyvIj8QhK0NwBlR1hHu1ZNaKUGVs/s1600/IMG_20151108_030233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjAtFdos9paLEG0An67dsWIycbX4ARCDzO8a59SpU5VlySVDMsroxpAcx476q_HOyko3fAvhN1aqASvqs6ndnlCr_C_hcbYouJLCXR5m0hSUgvsi_kyvIj8QhK0NwBlR1hHu1ZNaKUGVs/s320/IMG_20151108_030233.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Last year Ron, Danny and I all raced the Wine and Dine Half Marathon at Disney and loved it so much we decided it was worth doing again! The only thing that could have made the race better last year was if it hadn't been absolutely pouring buckets. So Ron said, "I feel like we need to sign up for this race again so we can have a do-over with better weather. Because there's no way we could have weather as bad as last year". <--- Famous Last Words. Well, Danny's trigger finger wasn't quick enough and he got shut out of the registration before it sold out, so Ronnie and I were the only ones racing. We made a family vacation out of it and had a great week, but Danny was definitely missed!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We arrived Thursday morning and stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside resort on Disney property. This was a beautiful property with a southern/bayou theme and is connected to the French Quarter resort where we stayed last year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Andrew and I rested for a bit after our early flight, and then headed to Disney Springs for dinner at Fulton's Crab House and then Cirque du Soleil. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I was so excited to meet up with Coleen while we were down there! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Friday morning we decided to go for a short run just to shake things out a bit and acclimate to the temperatures. It was well above average, with highs in the 90's and 100% humidity. It was the thickest air I've ever felt! What I expected to be a very, very easy 2 mile run resulted in me being positively drenched with sweat and gasping for air. The only upside to this was the amazing sunrise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I was praying for lower humidity for the race Saturday night. After a quick shower we headed to the Animal Kingdom for a full day of animals and rides. By the end of the day, my watch had calculated more than 12 miles of walking throughout the day. Probably not the smartest way to lead up to a race! I won't put tons of Disney pictures in here but maybe just a couple of my favorites. Like this one, taken at Expedition Everest. You know how they put the hidden cameras at the most thrilling part of the ride so they can catch you looking scared/crying/vomiting/some sort of ridiculous? Well, it appears we were sitting behind a family of corpses.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jE6fBBYCU9C9OtCHacf0on3BlCQ-NNR-Ydj8qskJjZY2ygJyiN7YSYKHsFzTRYU7_8wKjPSV57TE3fc-6ES8eAPAc8e2UA7jjDX3ZsTBgqpWszCkVYvqNXJmm2-Xe-Tcub5pIBPsQHs/s1600/Screenshot_2015-11-06-18-08-26-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jE6fBBYCU9C9OtCHacf0on3BlCQ-NNR-Ydj8qskJjZY2ygJyiN7YSYKHsFzTRYU7_8wKjPSV57TE3fc-6ES8eAPAc8e2UA7jjDX3ZsTBgqpWszCkVYvqNXJmm2-Xe-Tcub5pIBPsQHs/s320/Screenshot_2015-11-06-18-08-26-1.png" width="275" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Friday night we headed back to Disney Springs to do a little shopping and then a late dinner at Raglan Road. Because who doesn't go to an Irish Pub the night before a race, after walking 12 miles? We had a good meal and some good live music, but I think we were all pooped by the end of the night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Saturday our plan was simple. Go to the race expo right when it opens, get in, get out, and then relax with the feet up for the rest of the day. Ronnie and I got to the expo right at 9am when it opened. There were large crowds because of events happening at the ESPN complex, but the expo itself wasn't busy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One of the cool things about Disney races is how much of an elite runner it makes me feel. Numbers are assigned by corral and by times based on previous races.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwcwqScOJKC7t2ndu7bJKiXIaLNES6bYqK2Dfes94Ar64bt3Ke0L5wjc-UwWKwwscVr1EFw9WfgQEc6jXtz-FLW-vo_xFczEdL2Y38mmv7GEAHFC8iZRyefCyoZD-ShVtlANaulwYsVo/s1600/20151107_090358.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwcwqScOJKC7t2ndu7bJKiXIaLNES6bYqK2Dfes94Ar64bt3Ke0L5wjc-UwWKwwscVr1EFw9WfgQEc6jXtz-FLW-vo_xFczEdL2Y38mmv7GEAHFC8iZRyefCyoZD-ShVtlANaulwYsVo/s320/20151107_090358.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I'm faster than ALLLL those people"</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ronnie said next time he would take a picture of me taking a picture of them, to prove that he's even faster than me. Such a one-upper!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">There was a cute little photo-op where people were just being lame and taking normal pictures. We turned it into a sport.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Baguette fighting at the Wine & Dine race expo!"</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfortunately, the expo was pretty much sold out of all the good Disney race merchandise. We spent the day relaxing, napping, sitting by the pool, and I had a "dinner" of chicken fingers at about 1:30. All day I kept hoping for a cold front to blow through, but the humidity didn't budge, and my feet were uncomfortably swollen. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We took Disney transportation to the start of the race, which stated that buses run from 7pm to 8pm. We got in line at 7pm and didn't get picked up until after 8pm, finally making it off the bus close to 9pm. There were tons of delays because of traffic and road construction, which caused a bit of stress. Luckily we didn't have to check a bag. We just headed straight to the porta potty line, while both taking note that the wind sure had picked up in the last hour. After standing in line for at least 10 minutes, suddenly huge masses of people started moving away from the start line. We realized we were being evacuated due to a severe lightning storm nearby! Some stubborn folk decided to take their chances and stay in line for the porta potty but eventually all people were ordered out of the field. This is what 12,000 people running for cover looks like:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We had to take cover in the ESPN field houses and await further instructions.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVvA0HL5vFNyOai38n0JyqSi14rXwTBUvW4f8B3QgYwfeZSlIa32Pign4kA3z7JWplptF76xBgp8kG-6WaSFsgNinp2f0AewYjrTs17coUBxv8na7R62TbTA7EJsMHmDaFp8kOxBatu0/s1600/20151107_215216.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVvA0HL5vFNyOai38n0JyqSi14rXwTBUvW4f8B3QgYwfeZSlIa32Pign4kA3z7JWplptF76xBgp8kG-6WaSFsgNinp2f0AewYjrTs17coUBxv8na7R62TbTA7EJsMHmDaFp8kOxBatu0/s320/20151107_215216.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">camping out on the floor</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A lot of confusion ensued, with people hearing various things via social media and looking at the radar. Meanwhile, Andrew, Donna and Chelsea were having the time of their lives at Epcot, which was closed to the public and open only to race spectators at that time. They basically had the park to themselves and were completely unfazed by the weather. Finally at close to 11pm we were told that the race would go on and we had to start making our way to the start corrals. At this point the announcer was really rushing us along, and I could tell that there would be tons of people that wouldn't make it to their corral in time. We also started hearing that the course would be shortened, and then the announcer confirmed that we would be skipping the Animal Kingdom and losing 6 miles of the race. While I can totally understand why people would be upset about it, especially if this was their first half marathon, I honestly didn't care. I was so tired, the race adrenaline had worn off, and it was so disgustingly hot. I just wanted to get to the finish line party! Ronnie and I were in different corrals so we split up heading to the start. My wave started about 8 minutes after his. It was pretty funny when we passed mile markers because of the altered course. I specifically remember passing the "10 mile" clock at 1:00 hour and thinking I should take a picture of that. But my hands were too sweaty!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I started off very slow. I didn't really care about my time at that point, the humidity was killing me, and it was super crowded. Lots of people passed me in my first mile. However, every mile after that I got faster and they got slower, and I ended up passing tons of people right up to the finish line! When Ronnie found me at the finish he said, "you will not believe what your son is wearing". I couldn't think of what Andrew could possibly be wearing that would be so strange. Until this snuck up behind me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After the race it was quite the process to get our free beer, unlike last year where it was very accessible after the finish line. Eventually we made our way into Epcot for the important part: the party!! I was going to take pictures of everything I ate and drank but it got complicated with not having enough hands. So there's just a couple.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spanikopita and wine from Greece</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chelsea and I sipping champagne in France</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Eventually as more and more people finished the race, Epcot became very crowded and the food lines were a good 50 people deep! Finally we decided we'd had enough and headed back to the hotel. I was showered and in bed by 3:45am. That was a LONG day, and Andrew and I were meeting up with Jaimee in the morning to head over to Universal!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The rest of the week went like this: Sunday at Universal, Monday at Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot, and Tuesday was Disney Springs for lunch and shopping before our flight home. In fact, we had an extra park day that we never even ended up using on Tuesday because we were so worn out and tired of the thick crowds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So, would I do it again? Hard to say. I do love the race but it has its drawbacks. It's a heck of a production getting there. There are lots of crowds both at the race and at the Disney parks during the trip. I think if I did it again I'd do things a little different. I'd probably fly in a day later, skip going to a park the day before the race, and then spend the rest of my trip at Universal after the race instead. Universal was surprisingly empty when we went on Sunday, possibly because there was so much happening at Disney with the food festival. I know I'm definitely not in any hurry to go back to another park with long lines and tons of strollers. I also know that I will never, ever sign up for a race uttering the words "it couldn't possibly be as bad as last year" again! I think my new approach will be: plan for bad weather, and be pleasantly surprised if it's not.</span>Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-78216696418966650742015-10-29T10:17:00.000-04:002015-10-29T10:17:05.441-04:00Newburyport Half Marathon race report!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I spent last weekend up on the north shore of Massachusetts for my second run of the Newburyport Half Marathon. There are so many things I like about this race but probably the best part is that it gives me an excuse to spend the weekend with my long-distance friend Karen! Now, I'm sure Karen would let me visit her anytime without the need to run 13.1 miles, but this sure does make things convenient. Ron and I ran this race last year and felt it was definitely worth a return trip, and this year we recruited Danny to join us.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">On the drive up to Newburyport we were telling Danny about Karen and how welcoming she is so he didn't have to feel weird about staying in a stranger's house. I happened to mention her cats and noticed he didn't say another word, but I didn't really give it much thought at the time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We settled into Karen's house Saturday night and dug into our pre-race meal. I made my usual chicken and rice casserole, Karen made baked ziti, and then we had some bread and apple pie. Fellow horseback rider and good friend Laura stopped by to join us! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">During dinner Danny started sniffling and sneezing, and then the cat was out of the bag (pun intended)... he was allergic to cats! He took some Zyrtec, washed it down with a beer, and then later took a Benadryl, and washed that down with two more. Meanwhile I was on my third glass of wine and thought this potential overdose was hilarious. In my diabolical mind I was thinking this might be the one time I can beat him in a race. He's jet lagged from coming back from California the day before, and is now stuffed up and full of allergy medicine and beer. Now's my chance. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In the morning I felt my odds at beating Danny were even better when he told us that the air mattress went flat and he spent all night sleeping on a hardwood floor. He was a good sport about the whole thing, but I saw the relief in his eyes when we left the house to head to the race. He could finally breathe, even if it meant he had to go run a half marathon just to get away from the cats! Karen had been nice enough to pick up all of our numbers for us on Friday so all we had to do was basically jump out of the car and wait for the race to start. The temperature was low 50's and drizzle so we wore ponchos until the race started. At 9:35 I headed to the porta-potty line, and didn't get out of it until 9:55! Naturally Ron and Danny had abandoned me by this point (just like Disney!!) so I headed to the starting line alone and never saw them again until the end of the race. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The race itself was great. I love the scenic course that winds its way through Maudsley State Park, past some ponds and classic New England farms. There are hills, but nothing too major. I think all my training runs on the 15k course definitely helped!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The day before the race I posted this picture on Instagram:</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">"Now when they say 'nothing new on race day', they don't mean little things like shoes, socks, or nutrition, right?"</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I ended up not wearing those new socks but instead a pair that were used but still in good shape. I went through hell to get those shoes and then the insoles were the wrong size (long story) which I then "customized" with a pair of scissors. I was just hoping I wasn't going to end up like this guy that won the Berlin Marathon a few weeks ago with his insoles literally sliding right out of his shoes:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Not pictured above was my new handheld water bottle. I'm used to holding a bottle while running but the one I had was leaking, so Ronnie picked me up a new one at the store. It held 16 oz so it was a little smaller than my last one. I used half a packet of the tailwind powder as my only source of nutrition. Never having used it, I didn't want to go overboard. Note: I later read the directions (because why would I do that before the race?) and realized the ratio is 2-3 scoops per hour of endurance. I used 1 scoop for 2 hours. Lesson learned!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My race went well for the first five miles except for a very cranky ankle, but then everything started getting harder. Maybe I started too fast, or maybe I shouldn't have had 3 glasses of wine the night before, or maybe I needed some fuel. I plodded along still happy with my pace but not happy with how hard it felt. Seeing Karen and Donna at mile 6 perked me up a bit and I just kept chugging along. By this time I had drank most of my water and realized I really needed some energy, but by the time I got to the fuel station it was completely empty. I was so disappointed to see all the empty gu wrappers everywhere and none left. I may not have been blazing fast, but I would think a 9:30 pace would've gotten me to an aid station before it was emptied out!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Eventually a side stitch hit me like a bullet and I had to walk. I was really hoping not to walk at all because my ankle had been bothering me quite a bit, and I was nervous that if I walked it might seize up on me. But I ended up walking for about 30 seconds or so and stretched out that stitch until it was completely gone. At the final water table I realized I wasn't going to make the last mile without water and I wanted them to fill up my bottle. In hindsight, I don't know why I didn't just take a cup of water. I didn't need my bottle filled up. I'm blaming this on the marathon brain damage I get when I run long distances. Just wasn't thinking clearly! In any case, I thought I'd be super quick about it and unscrew the cap to my bottle on my way to the table and all they'd have to do is pour water and off I go. But I couldn't unscrew the cap! My hands were weak and slippery and I just couldn't get the cap off. So I stopped at the table and asked the guy to unscrew the cap for me. Unfortunately what I said in my head and what came out were two different things. I was talking gibberish, but he figured out what I meant. He unscrewed the cap quite easily and in fact with such velocity that it went flying into a box full of cups. So then he had to dig through the box to find the cap, fill up the bottle, and screw the cap back on. I looked at my Garmin afterwards and found that it took 1 minute and 10 seconds to get that bottle of water. Although that irritates me a bit because I was hoping to beat last year's time, I think it may have saved me from having a stroke!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The final mile is on the bike path which is lined with cool art statues, and then onto the boardwalk along the water. The finish line was exciting and I saw Donna just before I crossed!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Right at the finish they handed out medals, water bottles, and a green towel. I made my way through and immediately saw Ronnie. Then he told me Danny was getting a massage. I was thinking to myself, how freaking slow was I that they had time to get massages??!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We met up with Karen and Donna and then headed straight to the beer garden. There was a long line to get in (for the ID check), but once in there the beer was very accessible! We hung out there for a while, enjoyed some fresh brews from Newburyport Brewing Company, and swapped war stories from our runs. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I kind of felt a little bad for Karen and Donna. Here they were freezing standing around for a couple hours, and then we come barreling in all obnoxious, high on running endorphins, talking miles a minute about all sorts of running things. I equate this to what happens when you stumble in the house drunk from some party while everyone else is sober. (I'm guessing, how would I know that...)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Once we had our fill of free beer we headed back to Karen's house, showered, ate lots of pizza and watched the Patriots game. This was another great race and is going to make next week's Disney race feel sooo easy!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>The bottom line:</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Great race, and I definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a scenic fall half marathon in New England. It's a little on the pricey side, but the course has clocks at every mile, tons of water stops, porta-johns throughout the course, lots of spectators, and tons of volunteers. The free beer and pizza after the race, as well as the live music, really make this a fun event. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>The numbers:</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Well my plan to poison Danny backfired on me. Despite my best efforts, Danny smoked me with a 1:49 something, and Ronnie was just ahead of him. I casually strolled in at 2:08, making for one of my slowest half marathons ever. I'd like to think I just got my money's worth out of the race by spending as long as possible out on the course! I'm just going to have to think of more clever ways of sabotaging Danny next year. Maybe I'll sprinkle some sleeping pills on his breakfast bagel.</span></div>
Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-35262211227130257812015-09-21T16:02:00.000-04:002015-09-21T16:02:38.013-04:00Plymouth Run to the Rock 10k race report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Back on September 12, I headed down to Plymouth MA for the Run to the Rock 10k. This was sort of a last minute thing. I hadn't really planned on doing much racing this summer but Ronnie somehow talked me into it. And since I was looking to get in that distance that weekend anyways, why not do it in a new location? At least that always seems like a good idea at the time, until the night before the race when I realize how early I have to leave my house, how much stuff I have to pack, and knowing that I had some issues at work looming over me this weekend. Man, it would've just been so much easier to run from my house! Nevertheless, I headed down 495 super early and got a call from Ron, who happened to be just ahead of me on the highway. We pulled into a parking lot in Taunton and carpooled the rest of the way, which made things easier! <br />
The race started at 9am and we got there with plenty of time to spare. This was a point to point course, where you park at the start, run to this rock in Plymouth that's famous or something, and then get shuttled back to the start after the race. I thought the logistics of the race were a little confusing, with three different distances all starting in three very different locations and converging at the finish line. It made it impractical to carpool with anyone doing a different distance. Plus, they promote an after-race BBQ and beer festival, but the festival starts at 1pm and the shuttles to your car run only until noon. If I looked into it more I probably could've figured out how to make that work, but we ended up doing just fine without the beer festival. (<--- Teaser!)<br />
The day was overcast at the start, mild temps and very soupy air. After such a dismal performance at the Finish at the 50 10k in July, I knew I needed a better plan. So this time I started further back in the field, and made sure my pace was only slightly faster than my usual pace. Let people pass me, don't get sucked into the fast first mile pace. That worked great and my first mile was 8:54. The course description mentioned a "memorable hill", and sure enough I found it going into my second mile. The people who made a break for it right at the beginning were sucking wind going up that hill and I motored past a lot of people. I was happy to see that 2 miles into the race I could still see Ronnie just ahead of me. The good thing about that big hill was as soon as it crested, it went right back downhill, so I made sure I took as little recovery time as possible at the crest of the hill and then took advantage of the downhill. A little bit later, I smelled the distinct odor of a feed store. That seemed strange since we were running in an industrial park, until I noticed the SmartPak sign off to my left. SmartPak is where I order most of my horse equipment and supplements, so that was pretty funny to see it in person. My second mile was 8:56 which I thought was great considering that memorable hill. Mile 3 was even better at 8:45. I started slowing down a bit after that, partly because my body was like, okay... I think 5 miles is far enough. The sun came out which heated things up, and I also noticed that I started getting caught up in other peoples' paces. I realized I was comfortably running right behind a guy, when I should have been passing him. Turns out I get sucked into both faster and slower paces. I'm such a follower! I was excited when I realized I might actually make a sub-9 minute mile pace, which is the fastest 10k I've had in years. Finally I reached the finish line in 55:16, and an 8:55 pace. I was really happy about that! <br />
At the finish line I caught up with Ron, and Sarah, Kim, Melissa and Julie who all did the 5k. We got a quick picture for the running club, then headed over to the BBQ. 10am hot dog? Sure why not! <br />
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We enjoyed our BBQ on the lawn and noticed a photo booth nearby. Naturally we can't resist a photo op.<br />
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By this time it was about 11am and we still had some time to kill so we decided to take a walk up the street to grab a beer at the bar. It turned into two beers, and then we realized it was well after noon and remembered that the shuttle back to the start line only ran until noon. Luckily Melissa had a giant truck that we piled into and she gave us a lift back. <br />
As we pulled into the parking lot where our day had started hours before, Melissa pointed out that the Mayflower Brewery was right next door. So, obviously we had to stop in for a tasting and a tour!<br />
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We left the brewery and stopped by the beach where Julie spent the afternoon. It was a beautiful beach day for September, and a nice way to end the day in Plymouth. We capped off this adventure by meeting up with more friends in Carver for dinner. I pulled into my driveway at 8pm, 13+ hours after I left for the race. Running from home definitely would have been less time consuming, but it wouldn't have been nearly as fun!Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-1857101220547545582015-08-20T13:53:00.001-04:002015-08-20T13:53:25.927-04:00Back by popular demand!The people have spoken, and I've finally listened. Golly, I didn't know so many people missed my blog posts! Well it's been an interesting year so I'll just give some highlights to get us all up to speed. The last time I wrote was in February and I was droning on and on about the stupid snowstorms and stupid snowshoeing and stupid snow shoveling and stupid stupid stupid. Oh and I was going to run the Hyannis 10k with my stupid ankle injury, but that didn't end up happening because it was - you guessed it - snowed out! So that might have been the beginning of the temporary hiatus of my blogging. But I'm back, and here's what you missed:<br />
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<b>The official ankle diagnosis</b><br />
Turns out I wasn't as much of a whining weenie as I thought, and I had very good reason for complaining about my ankle. You might remember how, back on January 2, Julia and I went for a nice easy trail run (hard to believe there wasn't snow on the ground then) and I managed to <a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-end-of-my-injury-free-streak.html" target="_blank">destroy my ankle</a>. I diagnosed myself with a severe ankle sprain and waited for it to heal. In March, fed up with the lack of healing, I went to see an ankle specialist at St. Vincent's in Worcester. (Dr. Barrette, highly recommended btw). After an x-ray (which I insisted I didn't need because I <i>knew </i>it wasn't broken for crying out loud), we found the culprit of my ankle pain: a ridiculous deformity called an <a href="http://www.foothealthfacts.org/footankleinfo/os_trigonum_syndrome.htm" target="_blank">Os Trigonum</a>. If you want details, click that link. The short version is that it's a stupid extra bone in my ankle that got "nutcrackered" when I sprained my ankle, and is causing all sorts of problems. I took time off running, had it in an ankle brace for a while, and then had a cortisone injection. The next step will be surgery, but after the horrible winter we had, I really didn't want to be sidelined all summer recovering from another surgery. So now I baby the ankle, can't run downhill, can't do speed work, can't take any quick turns, can't point my toes down. Despite the restrictions, I've actually had a pretty decent year of running so I'm getting by with my mutant Frankenstein ankle. After the Disney race in November I will reevaluate the surgical option.<br />
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<b>Booked that trip to Disney I just told you about!</b><br />
That's right, heading back to the most magical place on earth to run the Wine and Dine half marathon again in November! So excited to be running this fun event again, and so are loads of other people based on the fact that online registration sold out in 20 minutes. Ronnie and Donna are coming again, this time with their daughter, and my son Andrew is coming too! <br />
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<b>A couple 5k's</b><br />
Nothing dramatic here... Just a couple local 5k's in May and July. I placed 3rd in one and 5th in the other, so I was really happy with that!<br />
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<b>The Greendale Triathlon</b><br />
Signed up for this because I had a discount voucher to spend this year, so I thought an early season triathlon would be fun. What also would have been fun is if I had ridden my bike more than once or twice before this race. Still, it was fun despite some equipment malfunctions and a staircase on the run. A staircase?!?! And I managed to squeak out a 3rd place which I was shocked about.<br />
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<b>Random trip to Nashville</b><br />
Becca texted me one day and was like, "do you want to go to Nashville next week?" and I was like, "okay", and then we went to Nashville. It was fun, hilarious, and dehydrating. We even managed to get a couple morning runs in before all the <strike>drinking</strike> sightseeing!<br />
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<b>The Finish at the 50 10k</b><br />
Said I'd never run it again, then I ran it again. I'm training to be a politician. But really, it was a good race and a fun time afterwards with grilling (illegally, no grills allowed!) and a fireworks show. Unfortunately my ankle was a giant mess on this race and it was a pure struggle.<br />
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<b>Logged a bunch of miles on the bike with Kristen</b><br />
Apparently I only like training for races and not actually racing and getting the finisher's medal. I did some long bike rides with Kristen to prepare her for Ironman Timberman. (Side note: She, and everyone else, killed it!)<br />
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<b>Survived another edition of "The Leavitts are trying to kill me"</b><br />
This is going back a ways but long time readers will remember fondly the story of Mark and Diana, and the wild bike ride they dragged me on in <a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2013/08/le-tour-de-brookfield-my-encounter-with.html" target="_blank">the Alps of New York</a>. Well, they were up to it again this month. We spent a week out in the Berkshires camping with our horses, and I inconveniently forgot to forget my bike, and went out for another punishing spin. Mark and Diana really are sweet people, I swear. This one might actually have been worse than New York, just because the elevation gain all came at the end, in 4 steady miles of climbing.<br />
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And that pretty much brings us up to current, where as recently as Saturday I had a little encounter with some fisher cats on my trail run. Lucky for me I am quick thinking and thought, <i>hey how about if I just don't run on this trail</i> and promptly booked it back to my house, and then up the street instead.<br />
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So there ya have it. Was it all you hoped it would be? I promised to give you just the highlights, but hey I'm feeling generous so I'm willing to take requests. If you want the "full story" on any of these, let me know!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-50172690873683205882015-02-16T09:35:00.001-05:002015-02-16T09:35:50.217-05:00Kale and bean soupHey folks, some people have asked me for the recipe for the kale and bean soup I referred to in <a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2015/02/new-england-is-new-alaska.html" target="_blank">my last post</a>, so here it is!<br />
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Ingredients:<br />
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2 cloves garlic, minced<br />
1/2 sweet onion, chopped<br />
3 cups kale, chopped<br />
1-2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed<br />
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed<br />
1 cup dry pasta shells<br />
1 container of Organic vegetarian no-chicken low sodium broth<br />
1 cup water<br />
Red pepper flakes, optional<br />
Cooking spray<br />
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In a large pot sprayed with cooking spray, lightly sautee garlic and onion.<br />
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Add whole container of broth, plus 1 cup water. Then add kale, sweet potatoes, and cannellini beans. Cover and simmer on medium low until sweet potatoes and kale are cooked through, approximately 20 minutes.<br />
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In a separate pot, cook the pasta according to al dente directions. Once cooked, drain and add the cooked pasta to the soup pot. <br />
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Garnish with red pepper flakes if desired, or salt and pepper to taste.<br />
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(Mom likes to garnish hers with grated parmesan cheese, rendering it non-vegan)<br />
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Servings: 5<br />
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Nutritional value:<br />
Calories: 199<br />
Fat: 1 g<br />
Cholesterol: 0 mg<br />
Sodium: 415 mg<br />
Potassium: 345 mg<br />
Total Carbohydrates: 43 g<br />
Dietary fiber: 8 g<br />
Sugars: 5 g<br />
Protein: 9 g<br />
Vitamin A: 276%<br />
Vitamin C: 85%<br />
Calcium: 10%<br />
Iron: 17%<br />
<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-48935915394061852372015-02-15T11:35:00.000-05:002015-02-15T11:35:47.311-05:00New England is the New AlaskaJust about everyone in the Boston area is losing their minds over the sheer volume of snow being dumped on us lately, and I'm no exception. Look, I hate snow. I hate everything about it. I wish it never snowed. At best, it's just a cold, wet nuisance. At worst, it shuts down the whole state and life becomes a full time job of shoveling, raking, chipping ice, repeat. We're in the "worst" column right now. I don't understand people that think it's pretty. How is this pretty, when all of nature is covered in white? A Monet painting is pretty. If someone took a can of white paint and dumped it over one of his haystack paintings, would you think it was still pretty? I don't think so. You know what's pretty? Florida. The Caribbean. You know, places that have colors, like blue skies and green grass and pink flamingos. <br />
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Years ago I had decided that since I hated snow so much, and yet I continue to live in New England, I had to find a way to hate it less. I took up snowshoeing, which I honestly do enjoy. It's a great workout, a safe way to get outdoors in the winter, and gives me a chance to be in the woods experiencing nature, even if it is just monochromatic. A few weeks ago, it was still fun to snowshoe. Back when we thought we were dealing with "the big snowstorm of the winter". How foolish we were! Three weeks and seven feet of snow later, and the honeymoon is over! Snowshoeing isn't just for fun anymore. It's an honest-to-God regular mode of transportation just to get from Point A to Point B around the property! I had to snowshoe all throughout Rocco's paddock just to give him some room to walk around. Rocco actually loved this and followed me all over the place.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rocco and I are master selfie-takers, wouldn't you agree? We even have the same smile</td></tr>
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I did manage to get down to the park a couple times, and I'll admit, the scenery was actually pretty nice.<br />
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Like I said though, this was back after the first major storm, when it was still kind of cool to have just two feet of snow on the ground. I have shoveled, raked, and ice picked so much in the last three weeks, I'm going to have the most outstanding arms come Spring. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shovel the deck, to rake the roof, then shovel the deck again. Repeat.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5WqiD7UyEetp1npT0saXEX_qWuWYMUt_sw8Y11uFtsKcL-zdIpFFK_klGxrmTWczofqLBMyKWYG0AWFxDecjvffGhsmLF1odBZeBsQ08HuLQ069oaaP6hbcsp4vskr3IMIS7XjfBY724/s1600/20150209_135207.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5WqiD7UyEetp1npT0saXEX_qWuWYMUt_sw8Y11uFtsKcL-zdIpFFK_klGxrmTWczofqLBMyKWYG0AWFxDecjvffGhsmLF1odBZeBsQ08HuLQ069oaaP6hbcsp4vskr3IMIS7XjfBY724/s1600/20150209_135207.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Might be easier to install a zipline to the barn at this point.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6rd2m6JXfw0jQ7qfYN6xW7eeL1eRjRBpyB36SSx78QK6bZ6RzI76cXVQ9ZLbDNw2BCD8TtQMtA2cT1T4hnyKQv5HqZZOUdT6jSF4RUSA51tk4FbP8YjR8eejwR4bi8xSM1fUJoxg05Mo/s1600/20150209_133847.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6rd2m6JXfw0jQ7qfYN6xW7eeL1eRjRBpyB36SSx78QK6bZ6RzI76cXVQ9ZLbDNw2BCD8TtQMtA2cT1T4hnyKQv5HqZZOUdT6jSF4RUSA51tk4FbP8YjR8eejwR4bi8xSM1fUJoxg05Mo/s1600/20150209_133847.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I'm up to my ears in snow!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Oh you're wondering if it gets worse? Well of course it does! What horrendous "unprecedented" winter would it be without historic temperatures? This was yesterday morning:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWs5JDz5KWwZ1M4h2ugmIcvmUjTqfX6qd0jujt74-6Rq1UebII6OCB0-pMJW6X9g7gs-H4rRxpBtxwnIPrPqgUXLL077-NCjSHJ9rtNRgDlEXobhZGKqgRVT9RT4mvW5QEagZHaBqpMpY/s1600/Screenshot_2015-02-14-06-41-03.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWs5JDz5KWwZ1M4h2ugmIcvmUjTqfX6qd0jujt74-6Rq1UebII6OCB0-pMJW6X9g7gs-H4rRxpBtxwnIPrPqgUXLL077-NCjSHJ9rtNRgDlEXobhZGKqgRVT9RT4mvW5QEagZHaBqpMpY/s1600/Screenshot_2015-02-14-06-41-03.png" height="320" width="180" /></a></div>
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In case you haven't figured this out yet, I'm <b>so glad</b> I'm not training for a spring marathon! If I had even the slightest bit of regret not signing up for Boston this year, <b>trust me</b> I'm over that! I feel bad for all the runners trying so hard to stick to their training plans right now. The roads are downright treacherous and the treadmill is pure torture for anything more than a few miles. I have to hand it to people like Dale and Sarah, who are logging 16+ mile runs on the treadmill right now! Well I might not be accumulating that kind of mileage, but my treadmill and bike are definitely getting lots of use this winter.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibBYe5bION6j2IpW4maxoOMdsAhRB_q2RCJkaietczmzNEx0bz-vN0PQp8Wpjm52RwFdiVcPJNzl9PGyREbff1G3nObkHJjLQywvlb7YM683Mx-epZprcKaaCaMSsHK1V2hKVDS7VwvJQ/s1600/20150201_085618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibBYe5bION6j2IpW4maxoOMdsAhRB_q2RCJkaietczmzNEx0bz-vN0PQp8Wpjm52RwFdiVcPJNzl9PGyREbff1G3nObkHJjLQywvlb7YM683Mx-epZprcKaaCaMSsHK1V2hKVDS7VwvJQ/s1600/20150201_085618.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sweat zone</td></tr>
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Have I mentioned that last year's impulse purchase of the treadmill was the best shopping decision I've ever made in my whole life? Treadmills might get boring and they're certainly no match for a nice country road, but they have some seriously great advantages:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Climate controlled - I can play "Mother Nature", set the temperature to my liking, add a fan or two, and run comfortably in shorts year round</li>
<li>No traffic</li>
<li>Nearby toilet (<b>very</b> nice bonus for me)</li>
<li>I can watch TV or listen to music without headphones</li>
<li>I never have to worry about bonking so bad that I need a ride home</li>
<li>No need to carry a fuel belt on a long run</li>
<li>Building up mental toughness</li>
</ul>
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Even still, I'm getting a bit tired of the treadmill and I'm finding it harder and harder to get motivated, especially when I'm already tired from shoveling and my back is so sore. I usually play some sort of game. Like, run the 1st 2 miles without music, then add music. Or, stop every 2 miles and do some crunches or planks. Or, continually switching up the pace. Yesterday for the first time I tried running based on "time", versus "miles", with a goal to just run for 30 minutes. Turns out I hated that, so we'll scratch that off the list. Sometimes I just like to run in silence and day dream about things. Like Florida, for example.<br />
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All of this solo indoor working out can get boring, so I'm happy that Joe put together a semi-weekly indoor cycling get together at his studio. The biggest challenge is sometimes getting there, especially with all the extra work this time of year around the house and barn. I've been a few times, and it's been a great experience. Amazing how much longer I'm willing to ride the trainer when we have a good group of people to suffer with and some entertainment to watch!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_KYjTIw90lf700VK5wuA59e0z8CkNmMjDevZF8IqW8zUt-1XNq-N48BNKyz_oUb1Y_gT93lq7HfIz7Hkilghb3Wv8SMNRkL2DUNi4Yy9X6iD0KCToTjTgN73HJiDGqTnHXC2byqYsK8/s1600/WP_20150207_011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_KYjTIw90lf700VK5wuA59e0z8CkNmMjDevZF8IqW8zUt-1XNq-N48BNKyz_oUb1Y_gT93lq7HfIz7Hkilghb3Wv8SMNRkL2DUNi4Yy9X6iD0KCToTjTgN73HJiDGqTnHXC2byqYsK8/s1600/WP_20150207_011.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For the record, these beers were props only, a toast to Rori who was too busy at a beer tasting to ride with us</td></tr>
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In other news, my mother and I brainstormed and created a new hearty vegetarian soup that has become my new favorite. This is a kale, sweet potato and white bean soup. Only 199 calories per serving!<br />
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Well, the Hyannis race is fast approaching. It's scheduled for next Sunday, and a bunch of us booked rooms to stay there for the weekend. Originally I wasn't going to run it because of my ankle injury, but I emailed the race director and was fortunate enough to switch to the 10k! The only issue now is that there is another snowstorm, possibly two, coming between now and then, so it's very possible the race could get cancelled. <br />
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While we wait to hear the final word on Hyannis, I will continue to get my runs in on the treadmill, daydreaming about burning books with Jake Gyllenhaal and getting rescued by Dennis Quaid.<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/Ku_IseK3xTc/0.jpg" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ku_IseK3xTc?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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In the meantime, here is my current view out the window.<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-85409177092860012062015-01-28T09:26:00.000-05:002015-01-28T09:26:43.157-05:00Clearwater Distance Classic Race Report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjv1aLAmjertY7QXAPLmVktXaSTyV31DxUtJ4imJUxzpbocTZuqN8IE_H9exuaUu1ZeZRYp_M-W3uSNF_aotS2ZnwDOr7vuN64umlZ5HB86dkp08Fp5Mnw8f8XhJLYK3P5tJnmTifqcl0/s1600/20150118_102049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjv1aLAmjertY7QXAPLmVktXaSTyV31DxUtJ4imJUxzpbocTZuqN8IE_H9exuaUu1ZeZRYp_M-W3uSNF_aotS2ZnwDOr7vuN64umlZ5HB86dkp08Fp5Mnw8f8XhJLYK3P5tJnmTifqcl0/s1600/20150118_102049.jpg" height="307" width="320" /></a></div>
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Digging out of this monstrous blizzard seems like a good time to reflect on my time spent in Florida last weekend! Warning, this is going to be a picture-heavy post. Of pictures of warm, sunny Florida. Brace yourselves!<br />
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Last weekend I went to the Tampa area to go visit Jaimee. We used to run together at lunch when she worked at Putnam, until she moved a couple years ago. We decided to book my long weekend around a race, and set our sights on the <a href="http://clearwaterdistanceclassic.com/" target="_blank">Clearwater Distance Classic</a>, but little did I know I'd go and sprain my ankle right before the trip! I got there Friday afternoon, and after a quick stop at her house, she and her boyfriend James took me out sightseeing. James is Welsh and works for the UK military, so I will hereby refer to him as James Bond. They live in Tarpon Springs, a Greek fishing village. We drove through there and then down to Clearwater, where we did some shopping, eating, and walking on the beach.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkn-wN8M31N3un-NQbdOMoUYEuv_XRX4gmfKZnpZsZwDAHkvX7qp-C5KoUg5LwdvoHwRUDRKZyLnAEeoN23hxnAhpyfzZVTsXZaMvFuqxYXpazsmKzOQvA39HAGVFx88wSNNnDqr8770/s1600/20150116_134740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkn-wN8M31N3un-NQbdOMoUYEuv_XRX4gmfKZnpZsZwDAHkvX7qp-C5KoUg5LwdvoHwRUDRKZyLnAEeoN23hxnAhpyfzZVTsXZaMvFuqxYXpazsmKzOQvA39HAGVFx88wSNNnDqr8770/s1600/20150116_134740.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meal #1: Grouper topped with crab meat, asparagus, and hollandaise sauce</td></tr>
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Do these colors look unusually vibrant to you? I thought so. In fact, they probably thought I was high because I kept saying, "the sky is <b>so blue!</b>" and "everything is <b>so bright!</b>". <br />
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Saturday, Jaimee and I went for a short 2 mile run so that I could test my ankle (and running in the warmer weather). It held up pretty well, so I decided running Sunday was a go. I knew I wouldn't be racing because my ankle was still pretty swollen and tender, but just taking my time on a leisurely run. After our run, we went up to Crystal River to go swimming with manatees with a tour group called <a href="https://www.birdsunderwater.com/#/" target="_blank">Birds Underwater</a>. They have several tours daily and what we should have done was head out early on the 6am tour, but after a long day of traveling, I knew I wasn't going to be waking up too early Saturday morning. When we got to Crystal River we really started regretting that decision though, because of all days, it just happened to be a Manatee Festival going on! There were thousands of people all over the place, with tons of extra people and boats on the water. Definitely not ideal conditions for seeing manatees, but despite all the extra traffic we did end up swimming with a bunch of them. We had a really cool tour guide who found some hidden gems for us. I was really hoping to interact with the manatees but most of them were sleeping so all we could do was watch them from a respectable distance. It was a great experience though!<br />
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On our way back from Crystal River we stopped at a farm stand. That might be my favorite thing about Florida... all the fresh fruit and farm stands! Then we took a detour through Hudson, Florida, so that I could tell Mom I went to Hudson. Reason being, that's where her horse Hudson came from. We tried to find horse farms but all we could manage to find were golf courses. After a long day of driving and swimming, we cleaned up and headed to Tarpon Springs for dinner. Where, of all things, there was a craft festival going on. We really seemed to have a knack for turning up at places at the most hectic times. After about an hour we got into Hella's for dinner, which is a delicious Greek restaurant. My pre-race dinner consisted of pita bread, hummus, and stuffed grape leaves. I had no idea how this would turn out the next day, but didn't really care at the time!<br />
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Sunday morning we got up super early to head to Clearwater for the race. It was still dark when we got there. In fact, sunrise wasn't until about 7:20am, 15 minutes after the race started! I had a mild heart attack when I saw the bridge we had to run over:<br />
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Although it wasn't very warm for Florida's standards (about 60 degrees at the start), that's tropical for me so I opted for a tee-shirt and shorts. I was amazed at how many people were bundled up! This is a unique race that offers many different distance options, everything from the 5K to the ultra marathon. I'm glad we only signed up for the 5 miler, because anything over that I would've had to cancel. James (Bond) was supposed to run the race with us but ended up being up all night with a sick dog, so he stayed back. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMolJt4G53bPnU2QoHymGhh9VxwWF23iDBtPQV6sraWw7khqwF1bE6Yw0WyFLJetCxJ_DVCY8yJZcj9RBoFb1t07vMSvBkX2I932IXqHhxMRAsU4eLNmFGJGdq2eds5AOSaSoJmWAt_lU/s1600/20150118_070720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMolJt4G53bPnU2QoHymGhh9VxwWF23iDBtPQV6sraWw7khqwF1bE6Yw0WyFLJetCxJ_DVCY8yJZcj9RBoFb1t07vMSvBkX2I932IXqHhxMRAsU4eLNmFGJGdq2eds5AOSaSoJmWAt_lU/s1600/20150118_070720.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pre-race photo</td></tr>
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With the exception of the 5k, all other distances started at the same time. This was interesting because you really couldn't gauge your pace by those around you since they might have been running longer. I started closer to the back than I should have, and got stuck in some seriously thick crowds at the beginning. I worked my way around a lot of them, and by the time I got to the bridge I had room to breathe. I brought my phone with me so that I would be forced to stop and take pictures and not worry about my slow pace.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhELQo2b2xxBMHPz_Jf432pNrFGFy81Dt5xhkjYhklx-WLFe2Wj6YwWU4_iaiR-_eb-kJcIp9zUk5Hgzp_VCTGZreQUiLcdaLYtimlvTWhLSoqknKVA1SxI_Zvhq_qkbvAUe0tRQoqsTcc/s1600/20150118_071603.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhELQo2b2xxBMHPz_Jf432pNrFGFy81Dt5xhkjYhklx-WLFe2Wj6YwWU4_iaiR-_eb-kJcIp9zUk5Hgzp_VCTGZreQUiLcdaLYtimlvTWhLSoqknKVA1SxI_Zvhq_qkbvAUe0tRQoqsTcc/s1600/20150118_071603.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going up the bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrl0GAeCwQ1UlGSW7KFdTkUqErUyTsewmeErVobgPCHx5pAKh8Ve7_BTk_LSFouNXKiIbkErfmukMLhbDzfn09icLZhRNFWySz-BiMeAbsNUMDSBwYxZxetkIBhwiFqefgLJJ2rF-Bxas/s1600/20150118_073238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrl0GAeCwQ1UlGSW7KFdTkUqErUyTsewmeErVobgPCHx5pAKh8Ve7_BTk_LSFouNXKiIbkErfmukMLhbDzfn09icLZhRNFWySz-BiMeAbsNUMDSBwYxZxetkIBhwiFqefgLJJ2rF-Bxas/s1600/20150118_073238.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entering Clearwater Beach.</td></tr>
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We ran past the Clearwater Aquarium, which is apparently home to the dolphin with the prosthetic tale from the movie Dolphin Tale.<br />
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After going over the causeway, we went a short ways down a road before doing a U-turn and heading back. By this time I was dripping sweat and really wishing for water stop. My only complaint of the race is that the water stop didn't show up until mile 3.5. On the return trip over the causeway we were treated to this gorgeous sunrise:<br />
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Just after taking this picture of the sunrise, we had to go back up and over the bridge, we seemed much bigger on the way back. I kept telling myself it was okay if I wanted to walk, but my pride made me keep going forward. In fact, I chanted this all the way up the hill:<br />
<br />
One<br />
Foot<br />
In front of<br />
The other<br />
(left, right, left, right)<br />
One<br />
Foot<br />
In front of<br />
The other<br />
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My favorite part of the race had to be on the way back, we were running on a pedestrian walk way rather than the highway, and to get back down off the bridge onto ground level, we had to run down a tight spiral ramp, for at least two full rotations, maybe more. It was really fun! I wanted to take a picture of it but the tightness of the turns made visibility very limited and I didn't want to get nailed by a runner. Back down to sea level, I ran straight into the finish where the announcer said my name and exclaimed, "all the way from Massachusetts!". <br />
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I was impressed that a 5 mile race handed out finisher medals, and even more impressed at the post-race feast! There were tons of food, breakfast type snacks, coconut water, soda, and beer! I don't <strike>ever</strike> <strike>hardly ever</strike> <strike>very often</strike> always drink beer for breakfast at 8am, but if I do, I make it a balanced breakfast with coconut water.<br />
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The post-race vibe was great. An announcer kept the crowd excited, along with music, food, spectators, and vendors. A stage was set up for a band but we didn't stick around long enough to hear it. We left before awards, which stinks because Jaimee took 3rd in our age group! I know I said I only had one complaint about this race but actually I have another. This race awarded by gun time rather than chip time, which was unusual and strange to me especially with the mass start for all distances. It didn't really impact me all that much because I had no intention of racing for an age group award, but it put Jaimee at a big disadvantage. We started so far in the back that it took exactly two minutes to cross the start line. If we had started closer to the front, Jaimee would have been in at least 2nd place.<br />
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After the race we headed back home and sobered up a bit with coffee in the hot tub.<br />
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Then James Bond took us out on his boat! It wasn't great boat weather, 60's and cloudy, but who cares. I'm on a boat in January in the Gulf of Mexico. I win.<br />
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James keeps his boat in a marina, and I've never seen anything like it. This brings valet service to a whole new level.<br />
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We had the cooler packed, the dog packed, and a few extra layers for the chilly ride. <br />
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Boating is one of Warren's favorite things.<br />
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I know it looks like we were in Alaska, but it really wasn't cold once we stopped! The sun even finally peeked out and it was comfortable. Plus the beer helped.<br />
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James Bond and his partner Warren headed to the nearby island for a super secret mission.<br />
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Warren got the towel.<br />
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Action shot of me steering the boat near Honeymoon Island. As you can see by the lack of wake, I wasn't actually steering it anywhere.<br />
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After boating we went to a local bar to watch the NFC Championship game. Then headed home and watched the Patriots slaughter the Colts! <br />
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Monday was a perfect Florida day and we spent my last day, and all of my money, at Busch Gardens. Sticker shock was an understatement. $100 to walk in, $8 beers, and let's not even talk about how much it costs to feed the animals there. Still, a fun time and great last day of my vacation. And sticking to the theme of going places on the busiest possible day, we ended up at Busch Gardens on Martin Luther King Day, where schools were out and every teenager in Florida was at Busch Gardens. Here's just a whole bunch of animal pictures:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">$7 for that tiny cup of nectar!</td></tr>
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We spent my last night in Florida in Palm Harbor, for a nice seafood meal and a little pub crawling. Great end to a long weekend, and I can't wait to go back!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-31222113189758814912015-01-16T08:52:00.001-05:002015-01-16T08:52:47.699-05:00Southbound!My favorite thing about flying is using the on-board WiFi. Sure sometimes it's a bit spotty but really, I'm cruising along at 470 mph, 38,000 feet above sea level, watching episodes of Drunk History, Facebooking, and reading my Kindle. I can't complain, even if the signal is a tad bit slow. Which reminds me, if you've never seen it, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3dYS7PcAG4" target="_blank">check out this hilarious video</a> of Louis CK's take on flying. (NSFW! {Not suitable for work} [or for people that don't like swears]). <br />
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So I figured while I'm here on my magical air ride to sunny Florida, I'd give a quick ankle update. First of all, thank you to everyone who expressed concern and followed up with me to see how the ankle was doing. I will tell you this: Kids, don't do what I do. I'm thinking that not going to the doctor was probably the wrong choice, although I seem to be doing okay now. I had really been on the fence about seeing a doctor because it did seem like more than just an ankle sprain.<br />
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On Saturday, 8 days after the injury, I tried running. I had been walking okay, and even though the ankle was still swollen and tender, I wanted to see if I even had a small chance of being able to race this weekend. I did a very slow walk/jog 1 mile. While running it honestly wasn't that bad. A little tender, and my ankle is definitely unstable, but not horrible. After sitting for about an hour I went to stand up and it <b>killed</b>! Ouch! So, I waited a few more days, and then tried another run on Tuesday. By this time the ankle was less swollen and tender. I wrapped it up well, ran 2 slow miles on the treadmill, and immediately iced it after. No problem! Wednesday I did the the same, a little faster, and without ice. It definitely seems to be getting better, although it's very unstable feeling and especially tender when I do any "pushing off" motion. Looks like hills and trails are out of the question! <br />
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I know you're probably wondering why I don't just leave it alone, but for me, this <b>is</b> leaving it alone! Just a couple of runs and a bit of cycling is all I have done in the last couple weeks, and I really wanted to see if I had any shot of running my 5 mile race this weekend. Based on my last couple days I'd say I have a good shot. I'll just take it easy, walk if I have to, and enjoy being in Florida! My trip is much more than just running the Clearwater Distance Classic anyways. Apparently we're going to be swimming with manatees and maybe going on a dolphin tour! <br />
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As much as I don't like trudging to the airport at 5am, the view is pretty awesome flying south, when you're sitting on the left side of the plane!<br />
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The only draw back is that the sun is reeeally hot and I feel like a bug under a microscope sitting next to the window.<br />
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Stay tuned for more updates from Florida, where I will do my best to take a selfie with a manatee!!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-62360731529470561972015-01-09T18:51:00.000-05:002015-01-09T18:51:53.770-05:002015: End of my injury-free streakWell, here's how my new year started. I was planning on doing a 2014 recap blog post, either a "top 10" or a "best of" or something along those lines. I had loose ideas in my head. I planned to highlight my 365 days of being uninjured as my biggest accomplishment. 2014 had started off with the New Year's 5K, and my bib # 180 was my symbol of things to come. I had high hopes for 2014, wishing for a complete "180" of my recent string of injury plagued years. And it worked! 2014 was a really solid year for me. Maybe my overall mileage wasn't too high, but I managed to squeeze in a marathon (you know, that one that ends in Boston!), a half iron triathlon, and lots of cross training and horseback riding.<br />
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I thought of these accomplishments this year on New Year's, when I went back and ran the same race about 40 seconds faster even though I was "taking it easy". That's a testament of a good year of training! <br />
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I was also very inspired by friend and club member Cort, who did a 365 day run streak in 2014. I wondered, could I do something like that? Realistically probably not, because I'm a well documented commitment-phobe, not to mention lazy. But, if I couldn't commit to 365 days, I wonder how long I could keep a streak going? So on January 2, I went for a run. I figured, what better time to start an informal streak than the beginning of the year. I wouldn't tell anyone. I wouldn't make a big thing about it and then be subject to pressure and nay-sayers. I'd just silently see how far I could make the streak. <br />
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The answer was 2. Or, 1.5 really. I ran 1.5 times before my run streak ended on a trail 3/4 of a mile from home, with me screaming and thrashing about like a lunatic in the pine grove. Proof:<br />
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I was pretty bummed out about this. I have been haunting poor Julia for a good 4 months to run with me. She finally was able to squeeze in an hour during my lunch break on a day I happened to be working from home, and we decided to go for a super easy trail run and just chit chat and catch up on life. We were having such a great time, until this happened. Later when I told my mother about what happened, she said, "poor Julia, she must have been so upset". <i>Ummm, I think I was probably a little more upset! </i><br />
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After several minutes of me crying on the ground, Julia gingerly peeked at my ankle. It was bad. Immediately swollen and purple. I was blacking out from the pain and was overcome with nausea, but finally I got to my feet. We were thinking of ways I could get extracted from the trail, but eventually I was able to put some weight on my foot and declared I was able to walk home. It was a slow, painful, chilly walk back but we tried to think positive. I could bear weight on it, so it's not broken, right?<br />
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I spent the rest of the day with my foot elevated and iced, popped some serious Motrin, and tried to remain calm. I was actually kind of proud of myself for being such a grown up about it and not declaring my life to be over. I was really on the fence about going to the ER for x-rays, so I did my famous "let's just wait a day and see how it looks". I was pretty certain it was just a bad ankle sprain, but I did have some concern about a hairline fracture. In the middle of the night my foot swelled up much worse and I was unable to even walk to the bathroom, so that was pretty scary. More elevation, more ice, more Motrin. By the next morning it wasn't as bad so I figured I'm going in the right direction. Again, I felt like such a grown up for not flipping out. Julia called me, worried that I was actually <i>under</i>reacting to the injury. I continued to be on the fence about going to the ER, but decided to prep myself by showering and I'd think it over while I was in there. Well, thanks to a plumbing disaster my bathroom flooded with nothing you want to imagine, and I spent the afternoon cleaning up that nightmare. So I figured, "let's just wait a day and see how it looks". <br />
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After a few days the swelling has gone down quite a bit, I have some lovely coloring in various places, and I'm walking quite well. I have almost full range of motion, although it's still very tender to the touch. Running has quite obviously been out of the question but I have been able to cycle pretty well with minimal pain. The timing is a little bit of a nuisance because I had <b>just</b> booked a trip to Clearwater Florida for next weekend, to visit a friend and run the Clearwater Distance Classic 5 miler. I'm trying not to stress out about it too much. Obviously I very much want to be able to run the race, but it's not really life-altering if I miss it. Either way I'll be in Florida, and what do they say? A bad day in Florida beats a good day anywhere else, or something like that?<br />
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I haven't yet returned to the crash site to investigate, but honestly it was a very easy trail. I must have let my guard down and just stepped on a root or something uneven that caused the ankle to roll so severely. It's a historically weak ankle, so this is a clear sign that I need some serious ankle support once I get back out there.<br />
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So, my informal run streak officially ended at 2. On a positive note, I've set the bar pretty darn low, even for my standards. I guess I should just be happy it happened on day 2 and not day 363!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-26973030071903719222014-11-28T11:27:00.000-05:002014-11-28T11:27:58.594-05:00Turkey recap and little known facts about meHow's everyone doing after the big feast?! I proudly maintained decent portion control during dinner, most likely because I drank seltzer with my meal which filled me up, so I woke up without regret! (But with a sore throat, boo). Yesterday was a good Thanksgiving. After a little snowstorm Wednesday night, the roads got cleaned up in time for the annual Whitin Five road race. Temps around 30, clear roads and no wind made for great race conditions! I really enjoyed myself and ran at a "I'm enjoying this run" mixed with "it hurts a little but I'm not dying" pace.<br />
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It was also my first outdoor run with my amazing new watch that I'm completely obsessed with: The Garmin 920xt. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAmU0A3hZBmKz7paT6x0z3ERw4WN0hyUZM85jzBtNAQHM97TU-K_HtLnR2JtUgRDrLOeq7M-nSZlrlQqkVPQi9SEuNDe74HKULX0QVpBboojxa5RG5z1EfO2g1KjTuj0KRn1T6Mg8CiT0/s1600/20141125_191339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAmU0A3hZBmKz7paT6x0z3ERw4WN0hyUZM85jzBtNAQHM97TU-K_HtLnR2JtUgRDrLOeq7M-nSZlrlQqkVPQi9SEuNDe74HKULX0QVpBboojxa5RG5z1EfO2g1KjTuj0KRn1T6Mg8CiT0/s1600/20141125_191339.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rather massive looking on my tiny wrist</td></tr>
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I was so afraid I was going to have an operator error and hit a wrong button or accidentally delete my data, but it all worked out great! More on my love affair with this watch in an upcoming post.<br />
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After the race I headed home to make a deadly sangria concoction.<br />
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Luckily some friends came over after dinner to help me drink it because my family was afraid of it. It was amazing.<br />
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<b>Things you never knew about me (and most likely don't care)</b><br />
I'm stealing this from the <a href="http://www.shutupandrun.net/2014/11/happy-tgivingand-you-might-learn.html" target="_blank">Shut Up + Run</a> blog...kind of a cute idea to share some random information about myself.<br />
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<strong style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">Four names that people call me other than my real name:</strong><br />
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1. Jilly<br />
2. Jilly bean<br />
3. Ma<br />
4. Shorty<br />
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<b>Four jobs I've had:</b><br />
1. Cashier at Cumberland Farms (when I was an Art major in college)<br />
2. Horse stall mucker (in high school, when I was dreaming of becoming an Art major in college)<br />
3. Horseback riding instructor (when I realized I wasn't going to make a living selling artwork)<br />
4. Operations manager (when my heart turned to stone)<br />
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<b>Four movies I've watched more than once:</b><br />
1. Bourne Identity<br />
2. Forrest Gump<br />
3. Twilight<br />
4. Good Will Hunting<br />
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<b>Four books I'd recommend:</b><br />
1. Gone Girl<br />
2. The Hunger Games series<br />
3. The DD Warren Series by Lisa Gardner<br />
4. The One Good Thing<br />
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<b>Four places I've lived:</b><br />
1. Massachusetts (I don't get out much)<br />
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<b>Four places I've visited:</b><br />
1. Iceland<br />
2. Ireland<br />
3. Nova Scotia<br />
4. Niagara Falls<br />
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<b>Four things I prefer not to eat:</b><br />
1. Onions<br />
2. Moldy things (except some cheese)<br />
3. There must be something else...<br />
4. Nope, that's it. Just onions and some moldy things.<br />
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<b>Four of my favorite foods:</b><br />
1. Mom's cranberry coffee cake<br />
2. bread things<br />
3. cheese things<br />
4. pasta things<br />
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<b>Four TV shows I watch:</b><br />
1. CSI<br />
2. NCIS<br />
3. Criminal Minds<br />
4. Scorpion<br />
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<b>Four things I'm looking forward to this year:</b><br />
1. Spending more time with my Garmin 920xt.<br />
2. Road trippin' to some races<br />
3. Going to the Kenny Chesney concert!<br />
4. More camping<br />
<br />
<b>Four things I'm always saying:</b><br />
1. I'm starving<br />
2. It's freezing in here<br />
3. I'm literally dying I'm so hot<br />
4. Hey Cat Face! (to the cat)<br />
<br />
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! My next posts will be about the Wine and Dine half marathon from a couple weeks ago, and more on my new boyfriend, the Garmin 920xt.Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-42501119338252809302014-10-28T11:45:00.000-04:002014-10-28T11:45:19.509-04:00Happy hip-anniversary to me!Okay I know it's been a hundred years since I've written anything about training or race recaps, and I swear I'll make it up to you... but today I want to focus on something really cool: Me.<br />
<br />
Three years ago today I went in for my<a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2011/11/hip-surgery-1-week-later.html" target="_blank"> hip surgery</a>. At this time three years ago I was in the operating room, after shoveling snow off my car from a rogue snow storm that wreaked havoc upon the Halloween season. It was a major surgery due to a torn labrum. The <a href="http://thoughtpermile.blogspot.com/2011/04/oh-my-aching-hip.html" target="_blank">injury itself</a> had left me in constant pain for six months leading up to the surgery, and post-op I had many months of physical therapy and a very long road to recovery.<br />
<br />
If you asked me at the time, I would have told you I thought my life was over. Being on the sidelines, struggling to repair your body, watching everyone live their life and continue to improve while you're feeling left out...it's an awful, lonely feeling. Especially for a "doer". I'm a doer. I like to do things. I like to make things better and fix things. The hardest medicine to take is rest and patience. I remember when the doctor told me how long it would take to recover, I thought, <i>sure, maybe for the <b>average</b> surgical patient. Not an active runner like me. I'll cut that in half.</i> I was wrong. He was right. Of course, all of his surgical patients were active runners so I guess his prognosis made perfect sense. I was too panicky to see it that way back then. I had a major case of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), and I didn't want to get left behind.<br />
<br />
It's easy to get caught up in every day struggles, thinking <i>this is the worst thing in the world and it will never get better. </i>The thing is, it does get better. Sometimes it takes a really long arc to see the progress, and I remember being down on myself for a really long time, feeling like I lost a major part of my identity.<br />
<br />
I'm a numbers gal. I like data. It helps tell a story and put solid facts behind what I'm saying. So here's some data to help tell the story of my "life ending hip surgery":<br />
<br />
In the last three years following my hip surgery, I have completed:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>3 full marathons</li>
<li>10 half marathons</li>
<li>A bunch of triathlons, including a half iron distance</li>
<li>Hundreds of miles on my horse</li>
<li>Thousands of miles on my bike</li>
</ul>
<br />
Ironically, this is the first "hip anniversary" that I can celebrate with a run. On my first anniversary, I had just stress fractured my foot, forcing me to miss the Newport half marathon. On my second anniversary, I had a torn ligament in my other foot. In both cases I thought it was the end of the world. Luckily I have a habit of being wrong about that. On Sunday I completed a half marathon, and I completed another one the Sunday before that. <br />
<br />
I'm here to tell you that if you are struggling with an injury, <b>it will get better. </b>It is not the end of the world, even if it feels that way at the time. You aren't missing out as much as you think you are. Do the work, even if it means rest and patience because that's work too, and remember that it's just a little blip on an otherwise long, enjoyable, journey. <br />
<br />
I'll be celebrating this journey and my anniversary with an easy run after work today, shaking the rest of the junk out of my legs from Sunday's race.<br />
<br />
<b>It's good to be back.</b>Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-12929975700502952752014-08-06T13:58:00.002-04:002014-08-06T13:58:50.808-04:00Crazy intervals & Death of a GarminIt's been a relatively quiet couple weeks here at the ranch. I went through a brief weird mental funk where I just didn't feel like doing much, but luckily it didn't last long. I'm starting to shift my training a bit more towards running, and less on triathlon, since I have several road races coming up this fall. However, I also have the Greenway Challenge coming up in September, where I will be doing a 19.5 mile road bike segment, so I need to get in plenty of quick miles on Lexi between now and then!<br />
<br />
Here's the calendar for the next couple months:<br />
<br />
August 16: Larry Olsen 10K<br />
August 23: Cranberry Sprint Tri (should I do it?? I haven't signed up yet)<br />
September 27: Greenway Challenge<br />
October 19: Baystate Half Marathon<br />
October 26: Newburyport Half Marathon<br />
November 8: Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon<br />
<br />
Yeah, sooo...three half marathons in four weeks? I'd say it's time to focus on running! I think for a couple weeks I was starting to feel a bit stale, and just couldn't get excited about anything. Then Kristen mentioned she wanted to do bike/run intervals, which was perfect timing since I had recently read something about bike/run intervals <b>and</b> Scott had just mentioned he was starting them too! We set up the trainers in Kristen's driveway, and after a 15 minute warm up, alternated between 5 minutes on the bike (2 minute recovery, 3 minutes zone 5 effort), then an 800 yard run on the street at a 5K pace. It was the most <strike>pain</strike> fun I've had in a while! I think because it was different, it was with a friend, and we were constantly switching roles, it seemed like more of an adventure than a workout. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMqllZQVNU21UfyE5TzHm4VuPhokl4WFtrpzL7WzL7aJtnacISBWYTIUMVpAKyDbu_IRiaU8Y1BtdG_PXjbCD2W4IHlHh2Y6GuMKUQHf3n7tMR6yXqAaVV9r6f-Dp1OCWqwhoSMv4WfQ/s1600/10444715_10100174243546681_6186119858420748260_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMqllZQVNU21UfyE5TzHm4VuPhokl4WFtrpzL7WzL7aJtnacISBWYTIUMVpAKyDbu_IRiaU8Y1BtdG_PXjbCD2W4IHlHh2Y6GuMKUQHf3n7tMR6yXqAaVV9r6f-Dp1OCWqwhoSMv4WfQ/s1600/10444715_10100174243546681_6186119858420748260_n.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo cred to Luke, who distracted us from the pain while target shooting with his bow</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The next day I went to track and realized I can't do speed work two days in a row. A few days later, I tried the same workout, except alone, in my house. <br />
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This was not nearly as fun without a friend or inquisitive neighbors wondering what the hell we're doing riding our bikes in place in the driveway and sprinting up and down the streets like maniacs. My transitions were super fast though!<br />
<br />
Part of the reason I did this indoors is because <b>my Garmin 610 committed suicide</b>. This Garmin has been a thorn in my side for about a year, so I can't say I shed a tear at its demise. It was constantly reverse-charging (ie the battery would actually drain on the charger instead of charge!) and recently the side buttons were getting cranky. Well, the side buttons finally stopped working altogether on Monday, which was very bad timing since I was trying to get out of my whiny funk and didn't need even one more reason to skip a workout. Well... nothing improves a mood faster than buying yourself a fancy new gadget (well I guess maybe if someone buys it for you instead), so at just prior to 7pm I ordered the Garmin 910xt from Amazon, sprung for the $3.99 overnight shipping, and the Garmin was on my doorstep the next day at 5pm. Amazon is magical! Hilariously true side story: On Monday, just before learning of my Garmin's passing, (like seriously maybe an hour) I finally paid off the treadmill I bought in February. It's like these gadgets talk to each other. I spent last night pairing the watch with my foot pod, bike cadence sensor, and trainerroad, but apparently I forgot to pair it with my heart rate monitor. I did a super early trainer ride this morning and so far I'm loving the new watch. Can't wait to take it swimming! (Wait, didn't I say I was going to focus on running??) <br />
<br />
<b>6 other things that happened in the last week:</b><br />
1 - <a href="http://tri-valleyfrontrunners.com/" target="_blank">My favorite running club </a>had a trail race in the woods behind my house last week. In addition to running the course with Anthony the day before, Rocco and I went out Thursday afternoon to check signage. Rocco approved and thought the runners would really love this sign:<br />
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And no, Rocco didn't leave a mess for the runners on the trails!<br />
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2 - In no-way-shape-or-form is this related to running, but I gave Andrew a much needed haircut. My friends gave me a hard time about it, thinking maybe Andrew is a little too old to have his mother cut his hair. I don't see a problem with it... I'm saving him money and it comes out looking spiffy! <br />
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3 - On Friday night Julia and I went to Gillette Stadium to see Ty Law get inducted to the Hall of Fame, and then the in-stadium practice. The event was free, meaning free tickets and free parking. What a treat! I still spent $45. ($2 for a hot dog and $43 in booze). It was a great time and we had a lot of laughs thinking of ways we could incorporate some of the Patriots drills into our track workouts. Like maybe the stretching in a circle around the field, the shedding random clothes wherever for someone else to pick up, and most importantly the air horn. We also contemplated what our "walk out song" would be when we are inducted to the Tri Valley Front Runners hall of fame. I think we can all agree Julia's will be <b>Turn Down for What.</b> I'm sure mine will be something like <b>Beer For My Horses</b>, <b>Bottoms Up</b>, or <b>Drunk on a Plane.</b> <br />
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4 - On Saturday I headed over to Marie's house to do her nails and lend her my wetsuit for a triathlon on Sunday. We spent the day drinking seltzer water, and then she slithered into the wetsuit and tested it out in the pool! <br />
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We then went to dinner and watched <b>Wolf of Wall Street</b>, which was a nice quiet, wholesome movie for the whole family to enjoy. (*No it's not). <br />
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5 - Sunday I woke up at 4am and drove with one eye half open to the start of the Blackstone Valley Triathlon. I had no desire to race this but figured volunteering would be a nice way to participate and still get to see my friends. They did great, naturally!<br />
<br />
6 - Yesterday morning I went for a run before work, and since my Garmin was in its final resting place, I had to go without a watch. I've been doing most of my runs in the trails (at least partially) lately, but I wanted a run that I knew precisely how long it was, so I figured I'd go up the street on my 4 mile loop (which I tend to avoid because it's so hilly). About a mile in I realized I was having some - um - digestive issues. Mile 2 I wanted to die. Mile 2.5 I had to walk. Unfortunately I chose this particular run to go through a development where there were no safe bushes to duck into. I finally made it back to my street and did the shuffle of shame into the woods, watching the cars drive by and breathing a sigh of relief when they didn't look in my direction. And here's a picture of it:<br />
<br />
Just kidding... On the positive side, the last mile of my run was great! That's one run I'm glad I didn't have my watch for! After conferring with my mother and Andrew, we determined that we all were suffering from "bad scallops". I was just the unfortunate one that decided to go for a run that morning. I have new fondness for trail runs now, and all the privacy that comes along with them. I also have a new appreciation for Rocco, who apparently has better trail etiquette than I do. :-)<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-48751627693709818792014-07-22T09:36:00.000-04:002014-07-22T09:36:40.638-04:00Iron Girl 2014 race report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Well I finally got my act together and signed up for another race. After the Patriot Half, I briefly considered retiring on a high note, but naturally my friends wouldn't let me. I had to take a couple weeks off of training due to a non-running-related surgery, so I struggled a bit getting going again. Within just hours of Iron Girl registration closing online, I finally agreed to do it (with some aggressive suggesting by Coleen!). Since Patriot, I had only swam twice and biked once on the road. My running was doing okay but with some lingering issues from my surgery I wasn't running at 100%. In the meantime, I somehow managed to get a flat tire even though I had it on the trainer. I've gotten pretty good at changing tires, but getting the rear tire back onto the bike seems to be my hang up. <br />
<br />
I was getting a bit nervous in the days leading up to the race because my quads were killing me. I assume it was from Wednesday's track workout, but it was strange that it was lasting for so long. Then I remembered I've been doing a lot of squats on my bosu ball, so I think it was a combination of both. I ran 3.5 miles on Saturday to see if I could flush out my quads. I normally wouldn't run that far the day before a race, but I'm glad I did because my legs felt a ton better afterwards. Saturday night I figured I should probably just make sure my bike was working okay since I hadn't taken it on the road in a full four weeks. I brought it outside and hopped on for a quick spin. I didn't even wear my helmet because I was only going to ride it for about 20 seconds, but I was having so much fun I sprinted all the way up my hill. Whoops! While riding, I noticed my neighbors had porta-potties set up in their front yard. Weird.<br />
<br />
As I was getting tucked into bed, I texted Coleen and asked her to text me at 5am to make sure I was awake. I've had a couple issues with my alarm lately and didn't want to oversleep! We were carpooling together and I was supposed to be at her house at 5:15. She's very punctual so I knew I could count on her. Then... the music started. It was weird music. Heart thumping, shake-the-house loud music, and it was coming from my neighbor's house, but it sounded like it was inside my skull. I had my windows closed and the fan on full blast, and couldn't escape the noise. I was so angry, but I wasn't going to be a snitch and call the cops on my neighbors. Unfortunately, the party lasted all night and I didn't get any sleep at all. When my alarm went off at 4am, I was still trying to fall asleep! I knew this was going to make for a rough race. Finally at 4:30am I walked outside to move my truck and the music abruptly stopped, and I saw several police cruisers next door. At 4:45am I texted Coleen and said, "no need to text me. I'm awake and I've been up all night". I finished getting ready and went to go pack my bike on my truck. I lifted my bike off the ground and gave it a little bounce, and realized my rear tire was loose! When I had changed the tube, I had trouble getting the tire back on securely but thought I finally got it on. Turns out, I hadn't. The skewer wasn't even locked down, and I very easily could've had a disaster. I guess rolling up my hill last night without a helmet wasn't such a good idea! So, I spent a couple minutes getting the wheel back on correctly, and ended up running late. I texted Coleen at 5:15 saying I was running late and leaving my house now. At 5:30 I pulled into Coleen's house and there was no sign of her! I walked up to her house and she came bursting through the door, announcing her alarm never went off and she just woke up! It was kind of hilarious. Definitely not the best way to start a race, but all we could do was laugh. We finally got to the race with just a few minutes to spare before the transition area closed. Maybe that was a good thing, because I never had a chance to obsess over how to lay everything out. My main priority was finding a porta-potty, so I quickly set up my transition area and made a beeline to the toilets!<br />
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It was a chilly morning, only in the low 60's. The water was over 78 degrees so wetsuits weren't legal, which was fine with me because I wasn't using one. It felt so warm in the water, which was such a nice change. At Patriot the water was cold it took my breath away. They split up our age groups into two swim starts to make the swim waves smaller, and there were 5 minutes in between each swim wave. This was a great way to start the race. Very relaxing and inviting for even the most timid swimmers (like me!) Last year I had started in the far back and off to the side to stay away from everyone. This year I was a little more confident so I started right in the middle and swam in traffic. I swam next to and in between other swimmers and was very successful! I didn't panic at all and had no trouble breathing. I passed a few swimmers and a few passed me, and it was just a nice relaxing swim in clean water. I know this doesn't sound like anything special, but I think I'm happier about this than anything. Swimming has always been an issue for me, so I'm very proud of how far I've come!<br />
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<b style="text-decoration: underline;">Swim stats:</b> .33 mile swim<br />
Time: 13:51<br />
Pace: 2:36/100m<br />
Place in division: 48/82<br />
Place overall: 302/583<br />
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I exited the water and jogged to the transition area. For some reason my transitions are just always slow. I should work on this, I guess. It felt like it took me forever to get my feet wiped down and my socks and shoes on. Finally 3:11 later I exited T1 with my bike and headed to the mount line.<br />
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My bike felt great. I cruised out and felt like I was keeping a quick pace, passing people constantly. No one passed me on the whole course, and I passed tons of people. On the big hills where many people were walking their bike or zigzagging across the street trying to stay upright, I just kept pedaling. I wasn't crushing the hill, but I was making steady progress and not killing my quads. After the big hills I knew there was a long fast downhill and then some fun rollers, so I settled in and had a great ride. I finished strong, hopped off my bike, and was happy to discover my quads didn't feel completely trashed like they had last year. I remember last year thinking I wasn't even sure if I was going to be able to run my bike back into transition, let alone run 3 miles! <br />
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<b><u>Bike stats:</u> </b>12 miles<br />
Time: 41:40<br />
Pace: 17.3 mph<br />
Place in division: 5/82<br />
Place overall: 29/583<br />
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Once I got back into the transition area, I was miffed to see that there was a bike in my spot. I know it's a crowded area and it's not 100% scientific, but in this case, someone's bike was literally laying on top of my running shoes. I had to waste time moving that bike out of my way so I could rack my bike. Quickly changed my shoes, tossed my helmet, and took off running. My legs were tired but not too bad, and I passed a lot of people on the run. I got passed but not too often. Just after the turnaround spot I saw Coleen coming up behind me. I figured she was only about 30 seconds behind me so my new goal was to try to hold her off as long as possible. She had started 5 minutes behind me so I knew she was technically "ahead" of me, but this was my motivation to speed up! I held her off as long as possible, and then heard her call out to me about a quarter mile from the finish. Crap! I sped up a bit, but then she caught me in the last tenth of a mile. It gave me motivation to try to stay with her and finish strong, so it worked out great. I think that's the key, I need a 5 minute head start in all my races!!<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">Run stats:</u> 3 miles<br />
Time: 26:49<br />
Pace: 8:57 min/mile<br />
Place in division: 29/82<br />
Place overall: 177/583<br />
<br />
<u style="font-weight: bold;">Finish time:</u><br />
Time: 1:27:50<br />
Place in division: 12/82<br />
Place overall: 76/583<br />
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As usual, Iron Girl did an awesome job putting on this race. I heard my name as I crossed the finish line (albeit a bit botched: Jill Doohommy). The post-race breakfast was amazing, but I just wasn't interested in eating. I took a Greek yogurt and a chocolate milk. I got very chilly and we couldn't get into the transition area for another hour, so I was relieved when Joe loaned me his jacket!<br />
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After the race I started rethinking my bike split. During the race I really felt like I was cruising and I was happy, but then when I saw my time I realized I wasn't as fast as I thought I was. I became fixated on this, and had to go find out how I did last year. I looked up my Iron Girl results from last year, and sure enough, I was 12 seconds slower this year. This made me crazy, because after all my bike training this year, I definitely should've been faster! I looked back at my Garmin stats from last year and compared them side by side. Note: Garmin has this course measured at 12:29 miles, which is why my pace is so much faster on Garmin versus the official results. And since for 2 years in a row Garmin has measured it identically, I think Garmin is correct!<br />
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It looks like mile 5, "the hill" is where I lost the most time. I also lost some time in the first couple miles, but made up time towards the last few miles. I probably shouldn't be as annoyed by this as I am, but what can I say. I'm not an age-group winner, so I compete against myself and don't like to see myself get slower. However, this year's run split was <b>4 minutes and 11 seconds faster</b> than last year! So I'm very happy with that. Maybe sacrificing 12 seconds on the bike helped give me such a positive run. Imagine what I could do with a full night's sleep!Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-86937780667886552492014-06-18T14:25:00.000-04:002014-06-18T14:25:00.665-04:00Patriot Half Race Report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As you probably already know if you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or <gasp> in real life, this past Saturday I completed the Patriot Half Triathlon in East Freetown, MA. As a newbie to triathlons, I really set a stretch goal for myself in registering for such a big event, but I did whatever I could to be prepared!<br />
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I had taken Friday off work to pack and head down to my hotel. What I didn't factor on was the <b>torrential downpours </b>and <b>flood watch!</b> I was getting a little panicked seeing all that rain and it was a nuisance to pack the car and drive in it, but my bigger concern was what impact it would have on race conditions.<br />
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I first headed to the hotel in New Bedford to check in, because I wanted to make sure I knew my way from the hotel to the race venue and wouldn't be scrambling around at 5am. (I know this is neurotic. I test things for a living, what can I say...) I was a little freaked out when I checked into the hotel, because it didn't look like a hotel and I'm pretty sure I was the only guest. Since I only booked the room a few days ahead of time, all the suggested hotels were full. It was definitely spooky and I can see why it wasn't occupied, but it was only about a 12 minute drive from the race venue so it really worked out just fine. As long as you don't mind random pills on the floor, and a generous 1/4 roll of toilet paper.<br />
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I left there shortly after checking in (wondering if I'd ever see my stuff again) and headed to the race start for packet pickup. The rain finally started to let up. I picked up my race packet and attempted to donate some shoes but no one could tell me where to put them so I brought them back to my car (where they remain to this day, which is quite unfortunate on this 90 degree day). I walked down to the swim start and saw folks starting to put buoys out into the water. Really, really, really far out into the water. <br />
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Then I went to find my rack in transition. How cool that they actually list out your number and name! <br />
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I met up with Ronnie, Rori, Rudy, and Mike, and we headed out to dinner at Fireside Grill. I don't know how I managed to not get a single picture with these guys. We had a great time over a couple beers, delicious food, and colorful conversation. Talking with more experienced triathletes is a double edged sword. On one side, you get a lot of good tips and insight. On the other, you are bound to hear lots of horror stories! After dinner we headed back to our hotels.<br />
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I didn't sleep well, and way too early the alarm was going off. I ate a bagel with peanut butter, got dressed, and headed to the start. Ironically I ended up parking right behind Rori and Ronnie, so it was nice having familiar faces (and Rori's bike pump) nearby. I loaded up my nutrition onto the bike, gathered everything up, and headed to transition. Transition was a tight squeeze with no room to spare, so I had to lay things out efficiently!<br />
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Since it was a damp morning with the threat of more rain, I didn't want to leave everything out to get wet. I brought an extra large towel which I folded in half, and covered everything up while I was out swimming and biking. <br />
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After one final stop at the porta potty I went back to put my wetsuit on. This, naturally, coincided with the singing of the national anthem, so everyone standing solemnly behind me got to watch me shimmying into my wetsuit like I was hoola-hooping.<br />
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I headed down to the water with Ronnie to sneak in a quick practice swim before the race started. The water temp was 64, similar to what I had been swimming in during my open water swims, so I was thankful I had prepared. The anticipation of the race, the number of people zigzagging through the water, and the water temperature all gave me some trouble breathing, but I quickly got it under control and got in some practice strokes before we got pulled out of the water. <br />
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Everything turned into a blur at that point. I was slowly meandering my way towards the start of the swim, stopped and talked to Alex for a minute, noticed people were already swimming, realized it was 7:07, and my swim wave start was 7:11! I needed to boogie to get to my corral! The format of the swim start was a time trial, where they release three people at a time. I was grateful for this, since I'm a bit of a nervous swimmer and don't like crowds. However, I also knew that the running-into-the-water thing was going to cause an instant heart rate spike and most likely give me a breathing issue. And it did! I probably wasn't 10 yards offshore when the people lined up behind me were already passing me, and I struggled to catch my breath. But, I knew that I had a long day ahead of me and it wasn't worth struggling right at the beginning, so I just treaded water for a minute, waited til my breathing found its rhythm, and took off at a very relaxed pace. Maybe a little too relaxed, since my swim took 57 minutes, but I stuck to my plan of not wasting energy during the swim. I knew this was my weakest segment so this was a matter of just getting it done, and I was actually expecting it to take an hour. And man, that was about the longest thing I've ever done in my life. 57 minutes felt like <b>all day</b>. There was so much fog in the lake, it was actually hard to see the buoys! They just kept going and going and going. I was happy for not panicking in the water, especially when I was bumped into and (almost) swam over. I don't mind getting bumped from the side, but I really feel that there's no good reason to swim over me. The lake is pretty wide, and I'm not taking up that much of it. If you swim over me, I'm going to suddenly have very active kicking legs. I know this is a waste of energy, but it makes me feel better. <br />
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The only real problem I had with the swim was that I became extremely nauseous and dizzy. I felt seasick, like my equilibrium was thrown off, and I kept burping up peanut butter. I spent a good deal of the second half of the swim wondering what the water would look like after I vomited into it, and thought it might be a good way to keep people from swimming over me.<br />
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I made it out of the water (57 minutes later...) and jogged into transition while removing the top half of my wetsuit. Ronnie was right ahead of me (despite starting 20 minutes behind me!!) so it was nice to see him. I was able to get my wetsuit off quickly and got out of transition in relatively short time. My only regret is that I carried my gloves with me instead of putting them on during transition. I thought I would save time by putting them on while I was on the bike. I don't recommend this, because it turns out I'm not that coordinated and was swerving all over the place.<br />
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Right as I was starting out on the bike I passed two elite guys who had clearly gotten tangled up. They were bloody messes with dirty, ripped shirts. I used that as my reminder to not do anything stupid, ride carefully, ride smart. My goal was to start off slow, conserve energy on the bike, and finish in 3:30. My biggest concern was that I would push too hard and have nothing left for the run, so I forced myself to average about 16mph. I didn't really know if that was the magic number since I had nothing to really compare it to, but my gut told me that 16mph was mild enough that it wouldn't wear down my legs. Because of the residual nausea I had from the swim, I had to adjust my nutrition plan. I had expected to eat my Honey Stinger waffles immediately, and then switch to endurolyes and chews. The nausea forced me to delay solid food for about 30 minutes, but I did start taking the endurolytes right away, and took 2 every hour. I snacked on chews every 15 minutes, so the ride was like a 3 hour buffet. My only real hiccup was the water situation which caused me great anxiety. I only had my one water bottle, which I tossed at the bottle exchange at mile 18. They gave me a new bottle, which was just a Poland Springs squirt bottle, and it bounced right out of my bottle cage not even a mile later. This left me without water for about 10 miles, but I was able to get another bottle (and hold onto it) after that. Altogether I drank about 3 bottles of water on the bike. By about mile 40 I was looking forward to getting off the bike as some things were starting to get stiff and other things were starting to get chafed. Despite the generous application of Body Glide, nothing seems to prevent chafing on this sensitive skin!<br />
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56 miles and 3 hours and 25 minutes later, and I was off the bike and trotting a long long way back to transition. My legs felt a little wobbly so I really took my time. I racked my bike, switched into run mode, and headed back out. I think the trick is to do the transition so fast that your brain doesn't register what's happening. If I thought about it too long I probably would have sat down and just hung out for a while. I was surprised to realize that my legs actually felt pretty good running. They were tired, yes, but not weak and rubbery like I expected. My back was stiff and I wasn't sure how well I would be able to run, but figured I'd gut it out and see what happened. By mile 3 my back soreness was gone!<br />
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The run went well and I'm surprised how quickly the miles ticked away. There were aid stations at every mile, and since I wasn't really in any rush, I decided to take full advantage of them! I stopped at each one, grabbed a drink or two, some ice a few times, and even some endurolytes. I <b>love</b> the fact that they had Coke at every aid station, and I took some at probably at least half of them. The run course itself was beautiful with some easy rolling hills and beautiful farms. My only real issue was that I felt a blister developing on the bottom of my foot early on, around mile 5, which got progressively worse. I decided the best thing I could do was to keep running because walking would just take longer! I passed a surprising number of people on the run, so I was very grateful I had stuck to my plan of taking it easy on the bike. By no means was I ripping up the pavement, but it was nice to feel surprisingly fresh. The more I ran, the more I started becoming aware of all of my chafing spots. The one that started bothering me the most was on my chest, where my tri suit was rubbing. I tried unzipping it more, but that made it bounce against my skin. I zipped it all the way up, but then that rubbed too. <br />
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I stopped at the final aid station, just after mile 12, for my last dose of Coke. I walked for a minute, and then my Garmin gave me a "low battery" alert! It was like my Garmin was kicking me into gear, because there was no way I was going to let my Garmin die without tracking my full race. I picked up the pace and ran the last mile strong. As I ran onto the grounds I was so excited I had goosebumps! I couldn't believe I was finishing this thing, and feeling so good! I ran into the final stretch strong, high-fived Rudy, and gave a big wave to the Caruso family.<br />
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I crossed the finish line, got a nice cold towel and bottle of ice cold water. Then I dunked my feet in an ice bath! <br />
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I checked out the bottom of my foot, which was sporting a super ultra disgusting blood blister. Finally I made my way out and met up with everyone.<br />
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It's weird to finish such a long event feeling good. Usually when I finish a race I feel like I couldn't possibly take one more step. My body is completely depleted and I'm running on fumes. On this day I crossed the finish line feeling fresh and fantastic. I don't know if that means I did everything right, or if I took it too easy. I don't really care though, because this was definitely the better way!<br />
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<u>Final stats:</u><br />
<b>Swim (1.2 miles):</b> 57:26<br />
<b>T1: </b>3:21<br />
<b>Bike (56 miles):</b> 3:25:41 (16.3 mph)<br />
<b>T2:</b> 3:50<br />
<b>Run (13.1 miles):</b> 2:17:11 (10:29 min/mile)<br />
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<b>Total (70.3 miles!!!): </b>6:47:29<br />
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As for post race damage, I felt pretty good. My hip flexors were a little sore the next day, but muscle wise I was in pretty good shape. My skin, however, was another issue. I had major chafing on so many parts of my body I looked like I belonged in a burn unit. <br />
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One final thought: I had a surprisingly good attitude during this race. I reminded myself that I had trained for it. I was good enough to do it, I was going to relax and enjoy it. I never got sucked into anyone else's pace, and I never got down on myself when I got passed. Several times I reminded myself how fortunate I was to have a body that can perform like this. When I felt the sting of the chafing throughout my body, I looked at the guys with road rash all over theirs and reminded myself how lucky I am. I consciously gave myself a mental pat on the back when I completed the bike ride, for doing so safely, and did so again when I finished the run without injury. I absolutely believe my positive attitude played a big part of having such a successful day and it's something I will remind myself!<br />
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And one more final thought: This was a top-notch event. Sun Multisport Events really knows how to put on a heck of a race. Every detail was well done. The volunteers were outstanding. The aid stations were bountiful. I think if I asked someone for a meatball sandwich, not only would they have given me one but they would have given me a choice of cheeses. I can't say enough great things about this race, and now I see why it sells out six months in advance. I'm already looking forward to next year!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-73142522798580025442014-06-12T09:10:00.000-04:002014-06-12T10:09:11.524-04:00Wetsuit wrestling and other triathlon nonsenseWell, time sure flies when you're busy training for a half iron! I've been swimming, biking, running, and horsing around all over the place in the last month, and apparently I didn't leave myself anytime for a quick blog update. I'll try to catch up here as concisely as possible, since <b>this Saturday</b> is the big day! The Patriot Half is this Saturday, and I'm pumped. The weather forecast looks like AM clouds and maybe a shower, then afternoon sun, and highs in the upper 70's. Couldn't ask for anything better. But before I get into that, let's recap some of the more interesting parts of the last few weeks.<br />
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<b>Wetsuit wrestling</b><br />
A wetsuit is a necessary piece of equipment for early season triathlons, especially for long distances. I had never swam in a wetsuit before since I've of course only done one tri in my life, and that was last July. But I had gotten this super nice Xterra Vector Pro on a steal last year. I remember getting it in the mail, attempting to get it on, giving up, and hanging it up for six months. Well, eventually the ice melted and it was time to get in the open water, so I met up with Joe for a very chilly early morning swim a few weeks ago.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Farm Pond, Sherborn MA</td></tr>
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The night before the swim I dusted off the wetsuit and tried putting it on again. It took 25 minutes and I was lathered in sweat by the time I was done. Luckily, over time I've gotten a little better at it! The first time swimming in it was shocking. I wasn't prepared for how buoyant it would be, and although that can be a good thing, it was alarming and I found myself fighting it a lot. I felt like I was hanging upside down! The biggest problem was that I couldn't breathe. Between the tightness of the wetsuit and the cold water temperature, my lungs felt paralyzed. I couldn't even exhale. It was an awful feeling, but eventually with Joe's advice I was able to get things under control and had a good second half of the swim. After that, I got in a bunch more open water swims through <a href="http://www.mramultisport.com/" target="_blank">MRA</a> and attended an open water clinic, and I'm feeling a lot more confident now! I also picked up one of these awesome little inventions:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ATH0UxvPWmA0A07vlZyKPslgVa5nhXswuPGHb_JscuzDkWYmnvbwnQW2s1ygnpinHNq30ox2M94gTLrEe8z6h07DClbAEgJKtcYWgJoCUQujt9FgWlDQuGIEYRRL8-6P27ecQQqRp-U/s1600/20140529_115203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ATH0UxvPWmA0A07vlZyKPslgVa5nhXswuPGHb_JscuzDkWYmnvbwnQW2s1ygnpinHNq30ox2M94gTLrEe8z6h07DClbAEgJKtcYWgJoCUQujt9FgWlDQuGIEYRRL8-6P27ecQQqRp-U/s1600/20140529_115203.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not sure if I qualify as "competent"! </td></tr>
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This swim buoy is awesome. It can hold your belongings and makes you very visible to other swimmers and boaters. A must have for open water swimming!<br />
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And like any other piece of sporting equipment, the wetsuit found a way to chafe me. Ah the perils of having such baby soft skin!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grossness on the back of my neck!</td></tr>
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And finally, does anyone else like to play "dress up" with their wetsuit and put them in funny positions?<br />
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<b>Pavement Pounding</b><br />
I've been diligently trying to get in long rides on the bike, and whenever possible I try to get someone to go with me. But on Memorial Day I went out alone. The weather was iffy, but finally the weather man insisted that the rain was done, the clouds were breaking up, and we were in for a sunny afternoon. I headed out for my 30+ mile ride, and got stuck in a rainstorm about 10 miles into it. I pedaled through increasingly heavy rain through Grafton, Upton, and Westboro, and finally took shelter under a tree in Hopkinton until the rain let up a bit.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiding under a maple tree</td></tr>
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At this point I just wanted to be done, so I hopped back on Lexi and headed home. I got to Winter Street, which is where my favorite hill is. I started hammering up the hill and my chain let go, and instantly I was pedaling with no resistance and toppled right over. I thought the chain broke but it didn't (thank GOD because I was a long way from home!). I scuffed up my knee, and my knuckle started swelling immediately, but otherwise I was fine and so was Lexi. I tested out the chain a few times and it seemed okay so I hopped back on and continued up the hill (which was <i>very </i>challenging starting from a stop on that steep incline!). Several miles later, in Upton, I got stung in the throat by a yellow jacket. I spent the rest of the ride wondering if I'm allergic to bees, since I hadn't been stung by one in probably at least a decade. By the time I got home and was still alive, I concluded that I must not be allergic! That was definitely not my best ride, but all you can do is laugh it off! Oh, and spend a butt load of money at the bike shop getting the bike fixed up.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is my sad face, dropping Lexi off at Landry's for some repair. This is *not* my blue steel face.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUZp0oEyZQZh-hyJ-95YhVzsanA40VZLQSpUhBBqnQKhUNTYjyDXm_CMrw1vj6rLAuXu5nVjQESItvmuPpEAKZvyrm2rxqIs8x7gmMKaWPHcHc53vocEUJsCWmlrHGReUhr1SsaNPYTGs/s1600/20140527_095929.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUZp0oEyZQZh-hyJ-95YhVzsanA40VZLQSpUhBBqnQKhUNTYjyDXm_CMrw1vj6rLAuXu5nVjQESItvmuPpEAKZvyrm2rxqIs8x7gmMKaWPHcHc53vocEUJsCWmlrHGReUhr1SsaNPYTGs/s1600/20140527_095929.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sporting a pretty impressive bruise on my knee after the crash, which bulged out like an extra knee cap</td></tr>
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<b>Maximum exhaustion</b><br />
Two weekends ago I hit my peak volume before starting to taper for this race. On Saturday I did a 1 mile open water swim, then 25 miles on the bike with Marie, and then a 5 mile run. On Sunday I met up with Rori and did a 53 mile ride with him through a bazillion towns. I was actually tired going into the ride, and pretty pooped about halfway through. I was also having a lot of neck pain and had to stop a couple times to stretch. I picked a pretty sweet place to stop though!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I could've spent all day watching those chickens! This was in Dover, MA</td></tr>
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I was very tired by the end of that ride, and my neck was killing me. But Rori gave me a hefty dose of Ibuprofin and a beer as a parting gift, so I'll ride with him anytime! As soon as I got home Stanley wanted to hear all about it and make my tired legs feel better.<br />
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That busy weekend left me feeling tired for days, so I listened to my body and backed off a bit. In the meantime, I had other things to do!<br />
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After being out of commission since winter, Rocco is finally ready for some short rides. If there's an upside to this, I guess it was good timing since it allowed me to invest more time in my triathlon training, but I'm really looking forward to hitting the trails again with this handsome fella. <br />
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<b>Kayaking!</b> Julia and I went out last weekend for Julia's maiden voyage of the kayak she got for Mother's Day. It was only my second excursion in mine, but we looked like pro's out there and had a blast paddling around all the little islands of Lake Whitehall in Hopkinton. <br />
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So, tomorrow afternoon I head down to the race venue. I'll be staying at a hotel about 10 miles from the race start, so I'll check in and then head to packet pickup. They're having a seminar for race day strategies, and although by now I should have my strategy nailed down, I could probably use a few tips! Check back in next week to hear all about the 70.3 miles of <strike>pain </strike>fun!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-43773877744494676762014-05-09T12:11:00.000-04:002014-05-09T12:11:21.829-04:00Boston is so "last month"It's been a few weeks since Boston and I have to say, I'm <b>so over it</b>. It was fun (actually, it was half fun, half agony), and I'm glad I did it, but I'm so glad it's over. Training for a marathon is tough business, and training for 3 in 16 months is just downright tedious. I'm ready for more <b>fun</b>, more <b>variety</b>, and different forms of <b>torture</b>. <br />
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Better weather means the return of our club group fun runs (yay!) as well as weekly track workouts (ouch!). It's nice to have a purpose to each run again. During marathon training I felt like most of my runs were just mile-logging runs and didn't really have a specific purpose. (This was my own doing, most people training for a marathon <b>do</b> have specific workouts throughout training). I went to my first track workout this week and survived, but it wasn't pretty, and yes I whined a lot. I haven't done any speed work in close to a year, and it really showed. We did a one mile time trial and I was humbled to barely break 8 minutes. I equate this to eating junk throughout the holidays and then stepping on the scale after New Year's, and being shocked at what the scale is telling you. It was eye opening, and shows I sure have a lot of work to do! Track is a weird thing though. I dreaded going, pretty much hated running that mile, but afterwards I couldn't wait to go back to track and focus on improving. <br />
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In other exciting news, did I happen to mention this silly little <b>half ironman triathlon,</b> the Patriot half, I'm doing in five weeks?! I got so caught up in Boston blabber that I never really gave it much discussion. I still can't even believe that back in December I somehow thought this was a good idea to sign up for a half iron just after Boston. I rationalized it by saying that I would already be in running shape, and the swimming and biking would be good cross training anyways...so it would be the perfect fit. Right? Well, sort of. But, things got pretty complicated trying to blend my Boston training plan with my Patriot plan as the marathon got close. I missed some high volume weeks of triathlon training because it conflicted with my marathon training taper, but I just kind of had to wing it for a few weeks. I'm back on track now though, all recovered from Boston and finally hitting some of my triathlon training targets.<br />
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Last weekend I kicked off the season with a challenging duathlon! This was a 1.5 mile run, 14 mile bike, 2 mile run. It was good practice for me, and showed me that I need to speed up my transitions and do more running right after cycling (aka "brick sessions"). I found out real fast that I'm not good at clipping into my pedals under pressure, and I struggled with that for about 50 yards before finally settling in. I also learned that my adorably petite bike is so small it doesn't reach the ground in transition:<br />
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As if that wasn't bad enough, this happened to be an extremely windy day, causing my bike to swing wildly off the rack. It got a lot of chuckles from the guys around me. Eventually I ended up stuffing my gear bag under the front tire to keep it secure. In the future I'll bring an extra towel with me to use as a chalk block. Now I know! The course itself was a little painful. Lots of uphills, and even the flats were challenging because of the steady, strong head wind, and the downhills were a little scary with the cross wind! <br />
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Okay there were a lot of complaints in there but I'm kind of kidding about most of it. It was actually a super fun race, my first duathlon, and I felt pretty accomplished afterwards! It was a small turnout, but hey look what I got!<br />
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The good thing about where I live is that there is no shortage of hills, so I have plenty of opportunity to hone my climbing skills. However, the Patriot course is pretty flat so I won't have worry about any crazy climbs. Yesterday Rori and I headed down to Freetown and took a ride on the course. I was a tiny bit worried about doing the whole thing since my longest outdoor ride this season has been the 14 miles I did in the duathlon, but I had been doing a lot of indoor cycling on the trainer, so I wasn't overly concerned. I woke up in the morning with tired legs from track, but I guess this is good training! I was happy to see that the 56 mile ride was no problem at all. In fact, the only issue I had was that my butt got a bit sore and I had to stand up every now and then. The course itself is beautiful. The roads are in good shape (as opposed to the potholes and patchwork we have around here), and the scenery was full of cranberry bogs, lakes, horse farms, and beautiful properties. Hopefully Rori didn't get too tired of hearing me blabber on about how beautiful it was and how much fun I was having. I also used yesterday's ride as a chance to practice my race day nutrition. I took 2 Endurolyte tabs every hour, and 2-3 Honey Stinger chews every 15 minutes. I felt strong the entire time, and in fact, some of our last miles were our fastest! The ride was a huge confidence boost and makes me feel that I might actually have a shot at surviving this crazy thing in 5 weeks.<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-69299773226743464382014-05-05T11:52:00.001-04:002014-05-05T11:52:42.630-04:00Running Dreams and NightmaresRunners and non-runners alike have had the dream. The stuck-in-the-mud/quicksand/concrete dream. I have that dream all the time, although I kind of feel like that even when I'm awake!<br />
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Lately I've had a few unusually vivid running dreams and nightmares and I just had to share them. Please tell me I'm not the only one that has these...<br />
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The night before the Boston Marathon, I had a dream that I was being chased around my property by a deranged man in a bunny suit. <br />
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He was trying to kill me. I went to the back door of my house and tried to sneak in, but the door was locked. I knew my mother was in the house so I was frantically (but quietly) knocking on the door so she'd let me in. Then I was flashing a light switch to get her attention without making too much noise and drawing the rabbit to my location. (The light switch was on the outside of the house, but controlled the light on the inside of the house. It's dream logic, don't fight it). She slowly meandered into the kitchen and saw me, and I woke up before I found out if she opened the door before the rabbit caught me.<br />
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The day after Boston, I had crazy dream about running a half marathon. It started off like a regular race, but suddenly the course was full of people scattered about like a party in the street. I lost the runners in front of me and couldn't figure out which way to go. The course wasn't marked, and eventually I ended up in some obstacle course inside. I made it back outside, and saw Rich at one of the intersections. I asked him which way the course went, and he said, "I don't know, why don't you ask that fruity guy". I couldn't figure out what he was talking about, until I saw a guy at a corner dressed up like a kiwi.<br />
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He pointed me in the direction of a shoreline and before I knew it I was running in the water. I finally decided to drop out of the race and just do my own 13 mile run, but then my watch didn't work and had no idea how far I had run.<br />
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A couple nights ago I had a quick dream that I was in my old apartment in Franklin, and Ryan Hall was there. And he was trying to kill me.<br />
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Luckily I woke up fast from that dream, because I'm pretty sure Ryan could've caught me no matter where I ran and hid. Ever since that dream I get a little creeped out when I see a picture of him.<br />
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The good thing is, I know I'm not alone with these crazy dreams. Just this morning, Julia emailed me with the most vivid dream she had last night, about the Greenway Challenge (a run/bike/paddle relay race we did last year). This is her email, verbatum. I've only added pictures to bring the story to life.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>I had a dream about Greenway last night. The dream first started out with Jill and I climbing Mt. Everest. </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Yes, we made it to the top and even took some selfies. </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Then, we took our spaceship to the planet Venus where the first leg of the challenge began.</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b> We were pretty much neck and neck with RI DEM the whole race then I was the anchor for the paddle leg but I only had a row boat. </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>I still managed to pass the DEM girls and bring it home only to find out we got totally smoked by 2 russian teams. We took third.</b></span></span><br />
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Julia gets award for the most creative dream! <br />
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What weird running dreams or nightmares have you had? <br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-19114675184955436872014-04-24T11:06:00.000-04:002014-04-24T11:21:35.016-04:002014 Boston Marathon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This year's Boston Marathon was certainly one for the record books. It included all the markings of a good story: grief, struggle, resilience, redemption, heroism, and as only Boston could: unexpected plot twists (and unicorns, of course). To be a part of it, whether running, volunteering, spectating, or watching it online, was to witness the best of the American spirit. <br />
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Monday morning, Ronnie and Coleen met at my house and then we headed over to Julia's. Like last year, we all wanted to meet at Julia's before heading over to EMC to catch the shuttle bus. That way we'd all be together heading to the Athlete's Village.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wearing our Wal-Mart special throw-away clothes!</td></tr>
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We met at Julia's around 7:45 (I'm documenting this because we were fretting about what time we should meet and I was chastised for not including this specific detail in last year's blog!) and paused for some photo ops. Funny thing overheard: "Coleen, take your pants off so we can get a picture".<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Danny, Julia, Coleen, Me, Kristen, Marie, and Ron</td></tr>
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We got to EMC at 8:30 and easily found parking. This is where we first started experiencing major differences from last year. We had to go through security checkpoints and screenings before getting onto the shuttle buses and there was a strong police presence even just in the parking lot. No one was bothered by the increased security, and we all made it through security in time to get on the same bus.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The annual bus ride pic</td></tr>
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Also new this year, instead of the bus dropping us off in the center of Hopkinton, where we would have to walk 3/4 mile to the Athlete's Village, this time the bus took a different route and dropped us off right at the village. At first we thought this was pretty cool, until we tried to leave.<br />
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The Athlete's Village was a massive sea of people strewn about all over the damp ground and outlined by ripe toilet-paperless porta-potties. This, combined with the interesting array of throw-away clothes and people gulping down their final pre-race goodies, felt more like Woodstock than a marathon!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI8h02f42qI7ZaJiOo6mVVA3TeZ75JO1pYh96_DnqOLPFpDfAZbvzrmsvyHY2YcV55cGsa3d1bywk_oUKsJPWlNSdoJsFcvqL1fi0c7WMnH6lr6boqEkB5OElqcnEEqsb2dqKGAsk6tuw/s1600/10264581_10201765323923525_8639520443583788448_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI8h02f42qI7ZaJiOo6mVVA3TeZ75JO1pYh96_DnqOLPFpDfAZbvzrmsvyHY2YcV55cGsa3d1bywk_oUKsJPWlNSdoJsFcvqL1fi0c7WMnH6lr6boqEkB5OElqcnEEqsb2dqKGAsk6tuw/s1600/10264581_10201765323923525_8639520443583788448_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dude...pass me the banana</td></tr>
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We met up with a few more club runners and got another group picture.<br />
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A very noticeable difference this year was the way that runners were sent to the start line. Unlike last year, where runners could leave the Athlete's Village when they wanted, this year they were very strict about staying in the village until their wave and corral assignment was released. Because Ronnie was in the 3rd wave, he had to head to the start a half hour earlier than us, and we couldn't see him off. They were very strict about corral assignments also, so they would announce, "If you're in wave 4, corral 1, 2, or 3, line up. Everyone else needs to wait". So as we started getting ready to head to the start line, most of us got split up. Part of me is a little disappointed about this because part of the excitement of the race is standing at the start line waiting for the gun to go off. We didn't experience that this year. Instead, it was more of a rolling start, where we (at least in the further back corrals), walked from the Athlete's Village right up to the start line and then started running. No fan fare, no seeing friends or family at the start line that had been waiting there for hours to catch a glimpse of us. I understand the need to keep the start line free of too much congestion, and it's tough to manage 35,000 people, but still it was a bit anti-climactic! Not to worry, the rest of the course more than made up for it.<br />
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Just before we headed to the start line, the temperature went from pleasantly brisk to warm and sunny. As we took off our throw-away clothes, we speculated that it might be getting warmer than we expected. I immediately wished I had worn the singlet instead of the short sleeve shirt. At that point all we could do is hope the temperature didn't rise too much higher! Since I was in the final wave of runners that started at 11:25, we would be impacted by the warm temperatures more than any other group of runners.<br />
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Heading towards the start line and seeing the spectators for the first time gave us a preview of what the next 26 miles would feel like, and it felt amazing. We were like rock stars, and people even lined the street a good half mile before the start line wishing us well. And offering us beer, cigarettes, and ribs. It was a tempting offer, those ribs looked delicious!<br />
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As the race started, it soon became clear that this was indeed a special, once in a lifetime experience. Crowds lined the street for 26 miles, with an unprecedented level of unity and patriotism. There was almost never a bare spot along the entire course. Shalane Flanagan later commented that it was like "running through a 26 mile stadium". I stuck to my goal of keeping it slow and steady in the first miles, resisting the urge to sprint down the plummeting hills into Ashland. I had people lined all along the course to look for, so as I approached TJ's in Ashland I slid over to the far left, where I saw my sister, her boyfriend, and then my friend Eddie. <br />
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My goal was to finish in last year's project time of 4:45. That would require a 10:50 pace, and I started off a bit under that to give me a cushion for the later miles. My plan started off great! My only question mark remained the heat. I knew I might have a problem when by mile 2 I was already saturated with sweat. The sun quickly got to me, and I would've killed for a rain cloud. Even still, the first 10 miles went perfectly.<br />
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At mile 10 I took my first walk break (as planned) and assessed my heat situation. I was starting to get uncomfortable, but my lungs, heart, and legs all still felt good. I decided to switch gears and take a mini walk break each mile for the next couple miles and see if that helped.<br />
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I realized that if I kept taking mini walk breaks each mile, my average pace was quickly going to pass my necessary 10:50. Time to reevaluate. I stopped at the 13 mile clock and said hi to Anthony and Mark. While I felt okay, I knew the heat was getting to me, and I needed someone to tell about it. Anthony always seems to know just what to say. He said, "Take in more water, get ice if you can, and adjust your pace. Now you can sit here and complain for 10 more seconds, but then you have to go". I love him. Off I went.<br />
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This marathon was absolutely a "Tale of Two Halves". The first, very successful half, and the second, just-survive-and-get-it-over-with half. I was in full-on survival mode, taking in ice at every opportunity, and pouring water over my head at every water station. Around mile 15 my quads started hurting, a lot. Never in my life have I had sore legs while running. Tired maybe, but not sore like this. Every step was a pounding, and I knew the next 10+ miles were going to be a challenge. Everyone around me was feeling the same, because soon water stations were out of cups and volunteers were holding pitchers of water and offering "refills". At each water station, the race seemed to come to a halt as everyone stopped for refills or - if they were lucky - actual cups. The road was so covered in cups that there was literally no asphalt left to run on, and those cups got slippery! Ice was my best friend, and every time I saw some I grabbed a handful and stuffed it under my hat and down my shirt.<br />
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Just before mile 15 I veered over to the left to find Andrew's friend Dominique (she saw me and even got pictures!) and then veered back over to the right to get ready to see Jackie and Mike. When I saw them I was instantly jealous of them standing on the side of the road. I wish I was standing on the side of the road, not running. I ran by them saying "I'm SO HOT!" and Mike said, "Yeah you are!!" and I laughed and kept going. <br />
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I turned onto Comm Ave at the Newton fire station, which was busting with spectators, and heard Toby Keith's "American Soldier" booming from a stereo. The whole course was a steady reminder of where we were, and why we were soldiering on. It was a well placed song and gave me some motivation as I tackled the hills. I was definitely disappointed with the way I felt going into the hills. I had prided myself on running so many hills in training, and yet here I was, facing some relatively mild hills, and I couldn't even drum up the energy to run up them. I walked off and on for the next three miles (more walking than running). My quads weren't cooperating, and I was extremely nauseous and getting lightheaded. I stopped at a medical tent and asked for some biofreeze but they didn't have any. (What?!) At mile 21 I spotted Mom and Dan and made my way over to them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKrHogiksFJ7hb8mw0XOjxebgwHDM2JXPAx1ApjQ81vgr7NfvoJ2QcsY7YECkROVf3PxZVLibUCgOueaW2FYNG_D4iri2Tb_7VKtHaFQiGYuSg7PIc3PjxmfqnKjtPI42dGD6-y5lspg/s1600/100_2695.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKrHogiksFJ7hb8mw0XOjxebgwHDM2JXPAx1ApjQ81vgr7NfvoJ2QcsY7YECkROVf3PxZVLibUCgOueaW2FYNG_D4iri2Tb_7VKtHaFQiGYuSg7PIc3PjxmfqnKjtPI42dGD6-y5lspg/s1600/100_2695.JPG" height="320" width="310" /></a></div>
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When I saw this picture after the race, I said "wow, I look so much better than I felt!" I stopped and hung out with them for a few minutes, answering their questions with grunting nods and head shakes. I drank some of Mom's water and used the rest to wash my face. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64p2EYCCpg3Y5o9DdsHHjCLM9BjLTqXpeQeWibNjdhUHLJpf4-PJyV522SPw1mKskNXDhX3bVWYHMW2yl5ilBhxPjx7zeQUupBzZHVeE8GjnPzsUdeDNThUUpvMG8iXNco_VEdmq02fU/s1600/100_2698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64p2EYCCpg3Y5o9DdsHHjCLM9BjLTqXpeQeWibNjdhUHLJpf4-PJyV522SPw1mKskNXDhX3bVWYHMW2yl5ilBhxPjx7zeQUupBzZHVeE8GjnPzsUdeDNThUUpvMG8iXNco_VEdmq02fU/s1600/100_2698.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is it just me or does that look like the Walking Dead coming up behind me?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnn9EPSI9-rqzbKzpDdozaJ_ikXnya5kmCVc63QyvYGJvykzbMcIYhvvuBkTy640KVFOMHmLtTb1L_AuFwTyvHTCNSg-TBKoYJa2wTapNT_G05M82BbM9Rnm63KPpwJ1rNS-RLBKiA5ic/s1600/100_2699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnn9EPSI9-rqzbKzpDdozaJ_ikXnya5kmCVc63QyvYGJvykzbMcIYhvvuBkTy640KVFOMHmLtTb1L_AuFwTyvHTCNSg-TBKoYJa2wTapNT_G05M82BbM9Rnm63KPpwJ1rNS-RLBKiA5ic/s1600/100_2699.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I have to run HOW MANY more miles??!</td></tr>
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I couldn't put this off forever, so eventually I left them for the last five miles, and promised to text her in an hour. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWbrjVCg3uLEqQ3R4w1JwYhMITi_9bcU1vCOiCLjuwgL-FKR0bPEkrDMVC4OgvbKdsQs2nZfl_DfPBl8c7Q88aR3AGhLT3oY3S-Y-RQSHVY5E9-ojA33BnlItdX7UKhwAazrTmsuGHxwc/s1600/100_2702.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWbrjVCg3uLEqQ3R4w1JwYhMITi_9bcU1vCOiCLjuwgL-FKR0bPEkrDMVC4OgvbKdsQs2nZfl_DfPBl8c7Q88aR3AGhLT3oY3S-Y-RQSHVY5E9-ojA33BnlItdX7UKhwAazrTmsuGHxwc/s1600/100_2702.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Off I went up the last incline before heading back downhill and into Boston</td></tr>
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I made it past the Boston College crowd without getting too annoyed by the spectators. They seemed a little nicer this year. More encouraging and less rowdy. My stomach continued to betray me, and I would've given anything for a Coke to settle it (and give me a little caffeine jolt). I started asking spectators if they had any Coke or Pepsi. A couple people said they did, then realized they didn't. What a tease! If I saw someone with a Coke in their hand, there's no doubt in my mind I would've stolen it out of their hand. My head was so out-of-sorts that I could no longer count. I don't even really remember miles 22 and 23. When I got to mile 24, I couldn't figure out how much longer I had to run. Three miles I think, right? I honestly don't know. I was trying to run as much as possible at this point. Around mile 24.5 I saw a sea of people wearing Team Hoyt shirts, all walking in a cluster. Then I realized they were surrounding Dick and Rick Hoyt, and they were all finishing the race together as a team. That was a special moment hearing the crowds chant for them. I said hi, passed them, and then thought to myself, <i>I absolutely must keep running now so I don't get passed by Team Hoyt!</i><br />
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I passed the "1 mile to go" sign, and that was the best sign I'd seen all day. I did my best to shake the cobwebs out of my brain. I needed to think clearly and really take in everything that was about to happen. I couldn't help but compare this year to last year. I remember seeing the shift in behavior of the cops and spectators last year around this section, so I looked for any similar indications, and found none. The occasional drone of a helicopter overhead gave me some flashbacks, but since they weren't accompanied by SWAT teams, they gave me a measure of comfort rather than distress. I saw the bar we took refuge in last year at BU. I saw the curb we sat on when we were stopped just shy of the finish. And then I got to see sights I had never seen before. I finally made it under the Mass Ave bridge. I took the right on Hereford, and that's when it got real. I was finishing this race, even if it meant I had to yell at myself to keep going. (And I really did, I was talking to myself - out loud - to make myself keep going). <br />
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They say at the end of a marathon, when there's nothing left in your body, and you're totally spent, you're not running on carbs, fuel, or maybe not even adrenaline. You're running with your heart. As I turned left onto Boylston Street, I understood what that meant. The finish line begged me to continue moving forward, and the crowds pulled me along. I didn't want this moment to end, and I looked all around, left and right, trying to absorb and preserve this memory. I had wondered how I would feel about this final stretch. Would I be nervous? Anxious? Emotional? Would I suffer a meltdown and be unable to continue? Maybe this was the blessing of the heat, but I was too exhausted to be nervous or emotional. I felt nothing but pride running down Boylston Street, towards our finish line. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wasn't kidding about the "Tale of Two Halves!"</td></tr>
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After crossing the finish line, my body came to an abrupt halt and could barely move forward. I shuffled at an excruciatingly slow pace for what seemed like an eternity to the water, the heat blanket, and started towards the food until I realized it was too long of a walk, and I was too nauseous and lightheaded, to bother with food. A concerned medic offered me a wheelchair, but I told her if I sat down I might never get back up. Instead I shuffled towards the shuttle bus where I very nearly had to crawl up the steps to get to my seat. Finally sitting for the first time in six or so hours, I took my finisher selfie and posted it to Facebook:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWqONno1RAWYUX0J-jqHa5jfVReGH9UjAgIGGU5eL-6yF6g1e0JQvxGb7Q77dTyZYhOAKOyWELpKUQVJavtL0ciduiL9Pyu91DWtuDlJr_6JSvS96DB7VEEt1WTSkb4iEpFiSojYA2Y88/s1600/10295479_10203561759388647_7879209528898861474_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWqONno1RAWYUX0J-jqHa5jfVReGH9UjAgIGGU5eL-6yF6g1e0JQvxGb7Q77dTyZYhOAKOyWELpKUQVJavtL0ciduiL9Pyu91DWtuDlJr_6JSvS96DB7VEEt1WTSkb4iEpFiSojYA2Y88/s1600/10295479_10203561759388647_7879209528898861474_o.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I was so tired, I actually thought I was smiling in this picture</td></tr>
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The patriotism and sense of community was apparent throughout the course. I had wondered how the new BAA restrictions would impact the feel of the race, but I truly feel that this race couldn't have been better. Instead of costumes this year, runners ran with Boston pride, regardless of what city they flew in from. They ran for Martin Richard, Sean Collier, Lu Lingzi, and Krystal Campbell. They ran for fallen firefighters Michael "Dork" Kennedy and Ed Walsh. They ran for survivors, and they ran <b>as </b>survivors. One great quote I heard was from someone who said, "your scar is a reminder that you are stronger than whatever tried to hurt you". We all have scars from last year and this race was our way of showing them off and fighting back. This was one of the most significant sporting events of our nation's history, and we were all a part of it. Really, where else could someone like me compete in the same event as Olympians and world record holders? It was an honor to be there, and hearing midway through the race that an American man won was the perfect ending to this story. But Meb wasn't the only winner. We all won, as Mom says, "to finish is to win". I'll drink to that!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-50155678238570403782014-04-20T10:34:00.002-04:002014-04-20T10:34:36.796-04:00Boston expo & OMG this is really happening!The race is tomorrow. Tomorrow!! I've officially started the "24 hours from now I'll be..." routine in my head. (I'll be in Hopkinton center, milling somewhere around the vicinity of the Athlete's Village, FYI). <br />
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Remember how panicky we all were getting about the marathon weather forecast? Well, apparently there's nothing to worry about, because we have "absolutely terrific weather" to look forward to! <a href="http://boston.cbslocal.com/2014/04/20/boston-marathon-forecast-absolutely-terrific-weather/" target="_blank"> Check out this latest marathon forecast!</a> I'm just gonna say what we're all thinking: We deserve this weather after all the junk we had to run through all winter. I've nailed down my race day outfit. Still on the fence about arm warmers to start with, but I probably won't use them. If I do, I'll throw them at someone (hopefully someone I know) a few miles into the course.<br />
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On Friday, Julia and I headed into the expo in Boston to pick up our numbers. It was my first time going to Boston since last year and I was actually looking forward to getting into the city. I started getting really antsy in the morning and didn't want to wait another second to head out. I told Julia I would pick her up at 11, but at 9:00 I was thinking, <i>well, maybe I'll just go now and we can go to breakfast first.</i> With great restraint I made it to her house at 11, and we headed to Boston. Kristen and Danny were also each driving to Boston and weren't far behind us, so we expected to meet up when we got there. According to Julia, no one goes to the expo on Friday. Apparently it's so empty that you can actually park your car right in front of the convention center, walk into the expo, straight up to each and every booth and never have to navigate around a single person. We got into Boston and it became clear, very quickly, that we weren't going to have the city to ourselves. We jumped into a parking garage at Copley and circled a few levels before finding a spot. Thank goodness for little Prius cars! Does anyone else duck their heads when driving into a parking garage? I always think the "low clearance" beam is going to smack me in the head, which makes no sense, since I'm in a car, yet I always feel compelled to scrunch way down in my car when I go under them.<br />
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We walked through the Copley mall, which turned out to be hysterical because we kept walking around in a circle up and down escalators. Finally we made it over the sky bridge and into the Hynes Convention Center. And so did about 30,000 other people. <br />
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Words can't express how long the line was for number pickup. If you've ever been to Disney, picture the longest line you've ever had to wait in, and then triple that. It extended throughout the building, up and down queue lines, and then snaked its way around an overflow room. We were bewildered over the length of this line, but apparently that was nothing compared to the parking situation outside. Although Kristen and Danny were each only a few minutes behind us, they couldn't find parking in any of the area garages! As we made our way through the endless line, I kept getting increasingly enraged texts from Kristen and Danny. What a nightmare!<br />
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Although the line was super long, it only took about 30 minutes to get through to number pickup. Fortunately our bib numbers were close so we were in lines right next to each other. We found out pretty quickly how easy it is to lose each other in these crowds!<br />
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Julia and I really wanted to wait for Kristen to go to the expo, so we waited around near the entrance. Then we decided to kill some time by just perusing the first couple of aisles before the Adidas store. Like moths to a flame, Julia and I can sniff out a beer station a mile away, and made a beeline for the Sam Adams table. We got a sample of the Sam 26.2 brew, and then hung out with Sam himself.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sam says "Carbo-loading done right!"</td></tr>
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Kristen and Danny each eventually made it to the expo, but it was like the world's worst game of Marco Polo trying to find them. Eventually we all met up around the Adidas store, where I bought everything I could possibly carry.<br />
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I opted out of the race jacket this year. I wasn't a huge fan of the color or style of it, and decided I really only want my original race jacket of 2013. This year I decided to buy every blue thing I could find.<br />
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The crowds really started wearing us down, so we only went to a couple more aisles before heading out. One vendor approached me with a sticker and he was trying to stick it onto my shirt, which I *hate*. I tried to grab it out of his hand but he was a swift one and beat me to it. I immediately thought he was trying really hard to get the sticker on me before I could see what it said and when I mentioned that to Julia, she jokingly said, "it says punch me in this sticker" and we all started cracking up. Even after that we never bothered to see what the sticker said until a few minutes later.<br />
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Those energy bits people have a dirty sense of humor! Then we laughed harder when we realized Danny was wearing one too.<br />
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If agonizing over the weather is the final mental challenge of marathon training, then navigating through the expo is the final physical challenge. So many crowds, bags, aisles, jacket on, jacket off, we were all exhausted and starving by the time we walked out of there. We immediately skipped over to McGreevy's for some lunch and beer! The bar was filled with equal parts marathon runners and people heading to the Red Sox game. What a day to be in the city!</div>
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After lunch we walked down Boylston Street to the finish line, and then down to the Old South Church where they were giving out handmade knitted and crocheted scarves from all over the country. It was the "marathon scarf project", and it was an incredibly nice gesture.</div>
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"Marathon Scarf Project 2014: Year of remembrance and hope. This scarf is interwoven with love and courage". </div>
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We capped off the afternoon with a two hour drive out of Boston gridlock! We decided that this is one marathon where it's actually a disadvantage to be a local. Next time we are going to go somewhere else, and then fly into Boston like a tourist and stay at a hotel for the weekend!</div>
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Last night a few of us got together for our pre-race dinner, mostly bland pasta, bland rice, and bland chicken. Julia made a collection of all the foods I can't eat and put it in one dish, and labeled it "the anti-Jill pasta"! It had garlic, onions, pesto, tomatoes, and all other kinds of delicious but deadly ingredients! </div>
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So that's the story. Weather's good, race gear is ironed out, and I have friends to look for in certain spots along the course. (Julie at TJ's, TVFR folks at the mile 2 water stop, Tony at mile 10, Anthony at mile 13, Jackie and Mike at mile 16, Mom at mile 21... and hopefully others!) I'm spending today, Easter Sunday, relaxing around the house, eating rice, reading a book, and maybe taking in a movie later on. </div>
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Twenty four hours from now I will be... still in Hopkinton center. Most likely in a porta-potty. </div>
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To all my fellow runners, have a safe and remarkable day. I'm looking forward to writing about this adventure, a year and a half in the making, a couple days from now. See you again on the other side of the finish line!</div>
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Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-53756153922270482152014-04-16T14:22:00.000-04:002014-04-16T14:22:58.786-04:00Pre-Boston Weather ObsessionLiterally every single person in the world right now that's running Boston is in total hysteria about the weather. Trust me on this. Starting two weeks ago, the countdown was on until Marathon Monday would make it into the "Ten Day Forecast". Why is beyond me, since the ten day forecast is about as accurate as... a weather forecast. Nevertheless, we are all obsessed.<br />
Once the forecast made it into the ten day range, we've seen it fluctuate from 60's and sunny to 60's and cloudy, to 50's and rain, to 40's and cloudy. The great news is there's no sign of any type of heat wave. The bad news is I can't decide what to wear. In fact, I bet I won't decide until that morning, but that's the beauty of being a local runner!<br />
We're all also obsessed with hypothesizing what would happen if "today was race day". Like, Saturday for example. Gorgeous sunny day in the 70's. It was a picture perfect day, and Kristen and I took the opportunity to "get away from it all" by dusting off the kayaks and going for a nice leisurely paddle. It was glorious. But as glorious as it was, we couldn't help but think, "I'm so glad the marathon isn't today, it's way too hot!" <br />
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On Sunday I went for my last long-ish run (8 miles) with Ron. I used it as my "dress rehearsal" for Boston, wearing my proposed race gear. I went with a short sleeve shirt, arm warmers, shorts, and calf sleeves. It was chilly and breezy, and I contemplated swapping out my shorts for capris if it was going to be this temperature on race day. But then, just after our run finished, the temperature shot up about 20 degrees. The difference between 40 degrees and 60 degrees is about three articles of clothing, which left me thinking, "I'm so glad the marathon isn't today, how would I dress for this temperature spike??"<br />
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Monday was another gloriously warm, sunny 70+ degree day, and again I said, "I'm so glad today isn't the marathon. I would <i>literally</i> die of heat stroke."<br />
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Yesterday a cold front (I think, I don't know, something...) blew through, with 50+ MPH winds and torrential downpours. Guess what I said. <br />
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This morning I woke up to 29 degrees and my truck covered with an inch of ice/snow/frozen something. The roads were a mess, the commute a disaster. I bet you know what I said...<br />
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Anthony refers to this pre-Boston weather obsession phenomena as "the final mental challenge of marathon training" and he is thoroughly enjoying our hysteria. I feel like the Goldilocks of weather.<br />
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For what it's worth, we are now five days out from Boston and the most recent headline I've seen is "Boston Marathon: Ideal Conditions Now Possible", with temps starting in the 40's and warming into the 50's. Stay Tuned!<br />
<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-71609497298554360242014-04-01T11:59:00.000-04:002014-04-01T14:33:42.081-04:00Operation Bubble WrapHow is it April 1st already? Seems like just last week I was stressing out over how I was ever going to heal enough in time to train for Boston, and now it's less than three weeks away. (Well actually it <i>was</i> just last week I was stressing over healing in time for Boston).<br />
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At this point, all of the hard work of training is done. I topped out last week with a 40+ mile week, my first 40 mile week all season, and possibly ever. <br />
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I'm proud to say that I maintained discipline during this whole training season, and stuck to my objectives.<br />
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<li>10% weekly mileage increases each week, with a scale back week every 4th</li>
<li>Run only every other day, and if I have to run two consecutive days, one needs to be super easy</li>
<li>Don't "make up" miles if something got thrown off course</li>
<li>Don't compare myself to others</li>
<li>Don't get caught up in other peoples' paces or distances</li>
<li>Don't jump up the long-run distance too drastically</li>
<li>Be flexible, back off or switch days if something doesn't feel right</li>
<li>Don't take risks with bad footing. The treadmill is my friend.</li>
<li>Don't squeeze in one extra long run to catch up (from starting my training late)</li>
<li>Cross train</li>
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Sure, some of the weeks got a little screwy with some weather challenges or physical issues, including surgery at the end of February (not running related, believe it or not!). But I maintained flexibility and sought out alternatives to make it work. If I couldn't run, I substituted it with a hard effort on the bike trainer. (Seriously, if you haven't checked out Trainer Road, it's a real suffer fest. No really, they have a program named Sufferfest).<br />
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I feel like my plan was validated when I just read <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/race-training/do-you-make-these-four-tapering-mistakes?cm_mmc=Facebook-_-RunnersWorld-_-Content-Training-_-TaperMistakes" target="_blank">this article in Runner's World</a> about mistakes to avoid while tapering. Two of them seemed directed specifically at me:<br />
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<li><span style="font-weight: 700;">Playing long-run catch-up. </span>Whether an injury or life detour got in your way of getting in all your planned long runs, squeezing a long run in the weekend or two before your target race can leave you fatigued on race day with your best efforts already exerted. It appeases your mind but can negatively affect your performance. It’s better to go into the race with a shorter long run or fewer long runs than to cram them in last-minute to reach the magic number of long runs on paper.</li>
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<li><span style="font-weight: 700;">Jumping up in long-run mileage. </span>It can be tempting to jump up in miles too dramatically (ex: from 16 to 20 miles) in the final phases of training to reach the magic number (20) but when you do, you risk injury, fatigue and a suffer-fest. There’s nothing worse than to go into the marathon just after a humbling long run. It can really mess with your mind and your body. It’s not about reaching 20 miles; it’s about toeing the line as strong and recovered as possible in that given season. One of my best marathons was done on one 16-miler. The foundation of training is more valuable than one or two long runs.</li>
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The second bullet is particularly directed to me. After my last long run of 16 miles (a pretty big jump from 13) I was feeling pretty confident. This past weekend was the last "big" run before tapering, and everyone was doing the 21 miles on course from the start line in Hopkinton to Boston College. In my heart I knew I could do it, but I was only supposed to run 18. I nearly convinced myself to run the whole 21, until two days before, when it occurred to me, that I had nothing to gain by running those extra 3 miles, but a lot to lose if it didn't go well. <br />
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I referred back to my original list of cardinal rules, and stuck to my plan of 18 miles. Mom dropped me off at the Dunkin Donuts in Ashland, exactly 3 miles into the course, and I just hopped right in with the thousands of other runners out on the course. The whole day was a positive experience. It was my first time on the course since last year's marathon, and I'm glad I got that out of the way. All the ruck marchers were out, carrying heavy sacks and waving their flags that are banned from Boston. The Boston Fire Department bus dropped off their runners and then leap-frogged us the whole way to BC. I stopped and offered my condolences to them and thanked them for their service. I overheard many people thanking the veterans for their service as well, and was amazed at the generosity and spirit of everyone out on the course. It was truly a special day and reminded me that although Boston is still raw, it's full of humanity and hope. Okay enough of that, I'm going to make myself cry.<br />
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As we huddled in the Dunkin Donuts in Brighton for warmth and caffeine, we all congratulated each other for finishing our runs and pondered the next few weeks. Chances of injuries are decreased at this point since our mileage is backing down, but the real concern is <b>sickness!</b> There is so much going around right now, and I'm doing everything in my power to avoid any unnecessary contact with anyone or anything. I'm also a bit of a hypochondriac during marathon training. Over the last month or so, I've diagnosed myself with clots in my legs, a collapsed lung, an aneurysm, and several stress fractures. Oh and some grave illness they were talking about on The Doctors, which I can't remember. Poor Kristen has to hear it every time, too. She's used to my panic texts, which go something like, "I think I have a sore throat. Not sure. Might be thirsty. What should I do?" I think that has happened 3 times in the last 3 weeks. I did have some legit tenderness where I've had multiple stress fractures, so that as you can imagine thrust me into major panic mode. I backed off for a day, and then it was fine. <br />
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Yesterday I went in for a pre-marathon cortisone shot in my heel, which will hopefully ease my foot pain through the marathon and beyond. The next couple weeks will be focusing on sticking to my plan, not trying anything new and foolish, listening to my body, and hiding from everyone. No you cannot borrow my pen, shake my hand, or take a sip of my drink (even if you <i>swear</i> you're not sick). This my friends is a <b>germ-free zone</b>. <br />
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Stay safe, stay healthy my friends!<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-27800927648390050392014-03-25T12:33:00.000-04:002014-03-25T12:33:01.875-04:00Pre-run rituals and superstitionsLike many athletes and spectators, runners have some interesting pre-run habits. Whether it's a tried-and-true nutrition system or just a little bit of superstition, if we find something that works we just want to stick with it!<br />
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My pre-run nutrition has certainly morphed over the years (or more accurately, been narrowed down). There are some things I just know for a fact, based on years of research (read: unplanned pit stops) that I simply cannot eat prior to running. <br />
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I know that two days prior to a long run, I won't eat a single high fiber product or leafy green.<br />
One day prior to a long run I won't eat (in addition to high fiber products and leafy greens) any carrots, popcorn, red sauce, onions, garlic, oranges, fatty foods, anything with seeds, or high amounts of dairy. <br />
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The morning of a long run I will eat something with carbs, like an English muffin. A tiny bit of peanut butter is okay, but if I cross the line, it will give me heartburn. I went rogue this past weekend and ate a bowl of Apple Jacks (with just a teenie bit of milk). It was delicious, but I was starving by mile 10. I <b>always</b> take two hefty doses of Pepto before every long run. One immediately after breakfast, and another just prior to my run. It's tradition, tried-and-true.<br />
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I have a weird little quirk about the way I lace my shoes before a run. I always lace them on the outside edge, and I thread the ends of the laces through the loops and under the criss-crosses. I have this weird hang up about laces hitting the inside of my ankle while I'm running, and if it happens I will <b>lose my mind</b>. This solves the issue:<br />
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This past weekend I had my long 16 miler on Sunday. It was my longest run this year, and I know I'm a little out of practice preparing for that distance. In addition to doing my tried-and-true nutrition regime, I wanted to make sure I really took it easy on Saturday. My "rest days" seem to always turn into some grueling work. Like "oh well since I'm not running today, I think I'll just spend the whole afternoon digging holes" or something ridiculous. To prevent the temptation of such silliness, I decided to go to the movies! And yes, I am that cool kid that goes alone to the movies on a Saturday. <br />
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We all know I can't have popcorn, but went I saw soft pretzels, that just seemed like a great idea. Here's how the order went:<br />
Me: Hi, can I get a small Pepsi and a soft pretzel?<br />
Cashier: Sure, would you like a jumbo Pepsi for a dollar more?<br />
Me: No.<br />
Cashier: Okay, would you like a whole pretzel or nuggets?<br />
Me: Um, one whole pretzel.<br />
Cashier: Okay, would you like salt or a sugar coating on the pretzel?<br />
Me: Salt. <i>Does she not see I'm a runner?</i><br />
Cashier: Okay, would you like cheese with that?<br />
Me: <blank stare>... Huh? No, why would I want cheese with a pretzel?<br />
<i>Moments later...</i><br />
Cashier: Okay, someone just grabbed the last whole pretzel. You can come back in ten minutes for one, or, you have these pretzel nuggets with cheese.<br />
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It was the strangest exchange. I've never been asked so many follow up questions just for a pretzel, and then I couldn't even get what I ordered. I settled for the pretzel nuggets, with a cheese dipping sauce, and headed into my movie. I think I ate all those delicious little cheesy covered nuggets before the movie even started. I'm hooked!<br />
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In case you're wondering, I saw Divergent. I've read the book twice, so I was really looking forward to the movie. There were some noticeable differences from the book but it still had the same feel. And let's be honest, two hours of watching Theo James is not a bad way to spend an afternoon!<br />
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Whether it was the afternoon full of Theo James images, my carb/sodium loading of pretzel nuggets, or just a good old fashioned <b>rest</b> day, I ended up having a great run on Sunday. My 16 miles didn't feel more than 10, and I didn't have any stomach issues or fatigue. This begs the question... do I sense a new superstition coming on? I have my last long run scheduled for this Saturday, and as a precaution I have already scheduled a vacation day from work on Friday. I'm seriously thinking about going back to the movie theater and snacking on some salted-pretzel-nuggets-with-cheese. (I'm gonna order that like a pro this time). The question is, should I watch Divergent again, or something different? I don't know if I dare stray from what worked! (I'm just trying to justify watching Theo James for two hours again).<br />
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Are you superstitious? What pre-run/race habits do you swear by?<br />
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<br />Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-2769726836980672272014-03-21T11:12:00.000-04:002014-03-21T11:12:17.223-04:00New Bedford 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last Sunday I headed down to New Bedford with Kristen and Danny for their annual half marathon. It was my third time at this race, so it's become a bit of a tradition. Now that I've been running for a bunch of years, some races like Hyannis and New Bedford have become my favorites. I can't decide if I like creating "traditions", or if it makes me boring, predictable, and unwilling to try new things. I must really be a sucker for this race though, because the first year I ran it, I got sick on the way home, and the second year I had to make an emergency porta-potty stop after several miles of aggressively praying I wouldn't mess myself. </div>
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We got to the race super early, and even though it meant a lot of waiting around, I'm glad we got there when we did. We were able to park right at the YMCA parking lot and not have to worry about the shuttle or side street parking. This year the race venue featured heightened security which caused some drama at number pickup. Kristen and I walked in with our purses, in case they asked for ID. Outside the building we had to wait in line to have our purses searched (okay, I can understand that), and then had a tag affixed to the purse indicating it had been searched. Good to go, right? Nope. We get into the building and we are informed we can't take our purses, that had just been searched and tagged, into the gymnasium to pick up our numbers. We could, however, carry the purses anywhere else in the building, including the restrooms, locker rooms, and weight rooms. I understand the need for security, but it didn't seem like they were using common sense in this case. So we had to hold each other's purses while we went to get our numbers, and then since we couldn't hang out in the gym we just used the restrooms and headed back to the car.</div>
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Hanging out in the car wasn't so bad, and it seems like everyone else was doing that too. We didn't want to spend a lot of time outside because it was <i>freezing</i> and <i>so windy!</i> It gave us a chance to relax, at least until we saw all the cops walking through the parking lot with bomb sniffing dogs. (Well, it's New Bedford, so they could have just been regular drug sniffing dogs on their normal Sunday patrol). Danny wanted to go talk to the cops but we didn't want to look suspicious so we made him stay in the car. Finally we had our last bit of pre-race nutrition and headed out to the start line.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only Kristen could look this elegant drinking Pepto</td></tr>
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We met up with Sarah and Peter, also members of our running club, and they all had to stand around and wait a good 15 minutes for me to get through the porta-potty line. Once I was in the porta-potty, I really took my time. It was a little warmer, and no wind. You know it's cold and windy when you'd rather stand in a porta-potty than stand outside!</div>
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We got over to the start line and stood in the sun as long as possible before heading into the corral.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kristen, Moi, Danny, Peter, Sarah. PS - I didn't get the memo we were supposed to all dress like matching ninja's.</td></tr>
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This year I decided not to wear my fuel belt, and to bring an iPod. I don't know why I periodically think it's a good idea to bring an iPod, because I always end up fussing around with it so much, it ends up making me nuts. In this case, by mile 5 my ears were too sweaty for the "guaranteed to stay in" ear buds to stay in, and finally I just let the right one dangle.</div>
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The course itself was just as I remembered. Freezing, windy, and a wide variety of scenery. There's the two faux-hills before the real hill at mile 3, then down down down to the water. The crowds were out in full force despite the brisk day, but I was surprised to see hardly anyone dressed up for St Patrick's Day. Last year it seemed like every runner was wearing green, but that wasn't the case this year. I did see one creepy looking leprechaun on the side of the road. I passed Dick and Rick Hoyt, which is always inspiring, and then a lady with a sign on her back that said "Baby on Board". My goal for this race was to beat my time at Hyannis, which was 2:11:45. I didn't need to beat it by much, but I wanted my overall pace to be under 10 minute miles. For the first 8 miles that seemed locked in, but then I faded at mile 9. Again! This happens every year at this course and I don't for the life of me know why. I'm going to blame the wind coming off the ocean. I really struggled for a few miles there, walking through water stops (and continuing to walk a bit after them). I think the only reason I didn't walk more in those last few miles was because it was <b>so windy</b> I was freezing and just wanted to be done! I gave myself a huge mental pat on the back when I passed the porta-potty that I assaulted last year without having a repeat performance. I slowly made my way up the hill at mile 12, which for some reason doesn't bother me as much as some people. So many people were walking going up that hill, so it kind of makes me feel good to pass people late in the race. There was one lady I had been following pretty much for 12 miles leading up to that point. Sometimes we would trade positions, but for the most part she was in front of me. She was walking up the hill at mile 12. It would've been great of me to say something like, "hey, I've been following you for 12 miles, let's go and finish this together!", but I didn't. For one, I was so tired I probably would have said "hey!", and drool would've fallen out of my mouth and I would've scared her way. And also, sometimes you just don't know what someone else's journey is, so I just passed her and never looked back. I hit the top of the hill and then (best finish line ever) it slopes back downhill, around a corner, and a nice flat straightaway to the finish line. Phew! Man I was glad to be done with that race!</div>
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I met up with Kristen, Danny, and Sarah, who had all finished well before me. Kristen and I headed back to the car to change while Danny and Sarah waited for Peter. All warmed up and dry, we headed over to Hibernia Irish Pub for some post-race drinks! The place was mobbed, but my friend Chris was bartending there and we quickly got some seats at the bar and settled in for a nice afternoon of draft beer and chicken wings! Chris was one cool cat behind the bar (and pretending to drink my beer).</div>
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He was also praised for his Thor-like qualities. The next day at work I told him about the Thor comparison, to which he admitted, he didn't know who Thor was. (WHAT??!??!). I had to educate him.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mmmm.... Thor.....</td></tr>
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And one last thing... race photos came out today from Capstone Photography. I always cringe, but can't help but look. And here we go...</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprQbg_6SoREZrgUv-hls4LFPLS7OrVfT-aEoBuHGNVdNOrfpMPhh63RwZFlFCHct8rCYo9shBaZ8gKyApgtZv83nzg78XT4AwbBX5FjivvCUftLbJZ2nXH3POUHvIajZDsQQCiF9q5ps/s1600/NB2.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprQbg_6SoREZrgUv-hls4LFPLS7OrVfT-aEoBuHGNVdNOrfpMPhh63RwZFlFCHct8rCYo9shBaZ8gKyApgtZv83nzg78XT4AwbBX5FjivvCUftLbJZ2nXH3POUHvIajZDsQQCiF9q5ps/s1600/NB2.PNG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What? No, I'm not a heel striker. What makes you think that?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvI5SW9O1UtzqDEv2uC6hBgo7bVgjUHF3ei7D5mVv0zLsufLYwWJcVpNjKPuidy7c9K5vl-Fa7U1ZtlvVe0D8TBHmEHqAj0yUfb6WM7q7ahVeNP5134tIAUnKDsUl865Nhdw-yIyLQEE/s1600/NB+half.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvI5SW9O1UtzqDEv2uC6hBgo7bVgjUHF3ei7D5mVv0zLsufLYwWJcVpNjKPuidy7c9K5vl-Fa7U1ZtlvVe0D8TBHmEHqAj0yUfb6WM7q7ahVeNP5134tIAUnKDsUl865Nhdw-yIyLQEE/s1600/NB+half.PNG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Temporarily warm enough to take my gloves off for a bit</td></tr>
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I finished in a time of 2:10:30, so I met my goal of (barely) beating my time at Hyannis. Of course, then I get an auto-generated email from the timing company, which happens to mention that this was 5 minutes slower than last year's time. I guess this is the price I pay for creating racing "traditions"!</div>
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Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7591065943257219180.post-49745024827326045322014-03-05T11:42:00.001-05:002014-03-06T10:09:43.876-05:00BAA Bans Cheeseburgers?!The word is out and everyone's all a-buzz about the hefty restrictions put on runners and spectators for this year's Boston Marathon. Many have argued that the controversial list of banned items is too restrictive and will not only have no real benefit of added security, but will take away from the experience of the runners. <br />
The following list of banned items is taken directly from the <a href="http://www.baa.org/" target="_blank">BAA website</a> (as well as emailed to each participant):<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">Prohibited items for official participants: The following items are prohibited from entering any Marathon venue, including the course, Athletes’ Village near the start in Hopkinton, start or finish area, and all officially-sanctioned Marathon events:</span></div>
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<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Backpacks, any similar item carried over the shoulder, or handbags of any size</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Glass containers</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Any container capable of carrying more than 1 liter of liquid</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Strollers, including baby strollers</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Suitcases & rolling bags</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Personal hydration system products (such as CamelBak®, Thor®, etc)</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Weight vests or any sort of vest with pockets (Note: lightweight running vests are allowable)</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Costumes covering the face or any non-form fitting, bulky outfits extending beyond the perimeter of the body</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Props (including sporting equipment and military and fire/gear and signs or flags larger than 11 inches x 17 inches)</span></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Any item larger than 5 inches x 15 inches x 5 inches</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What's important to remember is that this restriction list isn't limited to the course itself. It includes all "marathon venues", which could include the start area, finish area, or anywhere in between. It's sad to think that no one with children will be allowed to use a stroller, or bring a diaper bag, to the race. I remember last year, I may never have survived if Julia's husband Tony hadn't strolled up to us with their kids, given me the shirt off his back, and handed me his kid's peanut butter sandwich. You know what I think they should ban? Sports beans. I get annoyed listening to them rattle in runners' pockets like little mini maracas for 26 miles.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm pretty bummed about the costume restriction. Not that I would wear a costume, but as a back-of-the-packer, I sure get to see a lot of them! Remember all the cheeseburgers I saw last year? I can only imagine all the runners right now that are frantically trying to redesign their cheeseburgers into something more form-fitting, like maybe tacos? And what about the guy with the Pesky Pole hat? I know I complained about him last year but now I'm worried I won't see him.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm also pretty disappointed about the restriction on props. Again, not that I would ever bring one, but it's extremely inspiring seeing military and fire personnel running or marching the course in full gear and oversized flags. I'm going to miss that a lot.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It goes on to say: </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 19px;">Anyone on the course for any distance who has not been assigned, or is not displaying, an officially issued bib number from the B.A.A. is subject to interdiction. The B.A.A. reserves the right to remove any person from the course who is not displaying an official bib that has been assigned by the B.A.A. Similarly, units or groups such as military ruck-marchers and cyclists, which have sometimes joined on course, will not be allowed to participate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 19px;">Banning military ruck marchers is just a bad call. It's un-American, and overall bad karma. Here's a juicy tidbit from a <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/military-cant-march-at-boston-this-year?cm_mmc=Facebook-_-RunnersWorld-_-Content-News-_-MilitaryRuckersBoston" target="_blank">Runner's World article</a>:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Last year when the bombs went off near the finish line, members of Tough Ruck...were among the first responders to help the wounded. Carlos Arrendondo, a Tough Ruck volunteer who is credited with saving the life of Jeff Bauman who later went on to positively identify alleged Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was also at the scene.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I caught a clip of the newly elected Mayor Marty Walsh addressing the issue of bandit runners. His comment was, "If you don' have a numbah, don' even botha runnin'. Ya gettin' pulled off the coss". (This guy's accent is so thick and awesome, he could have starred in Good Will Hunting).</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And my personal worst:</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="color: blue;">New for this year, there will be a “no bags” policy for the 2014 Boston Marathon.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;">Frequently a marathon, especially a point-to-point race, will have a bag check option. Each runner can fill a bag with some essentials that they will need after the race. Usually, and most importantly, clothes. But also specialty food items, especially if you have a sensitive stomach and can't rely on whatever the race provides. I remember last year how carefully I had stocked that bag with everything I felt I needed to have a good post-race experience, only to be blocked from getting at my bag after the race. I remember how hopeless I felt, like a refugee. The thought of feeling like that again makes my stomach turn.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 19px;">For everyone's sake, I really do hope that the race this year is successful and most importantly safe. But at what cost? I just wonder how much freedom we have to give up to feel secure. One of my favorite things about running is feeling free, being able to just float down the street, letting go of stress and the daily grind. Last year I remember everyone saying "Thank God you're alive, thank God you're safe", and running isn't supposed to be dangerous or life threatening. I hate the thought of needing to put such tight security around a running event, and I pray this doesn't become the new normal. Because the thing is, I really love cheeseburgers.</span></div>
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Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08018745173690067144noreply@blogger.com0