Broad Street Run - Splits

Mile 1: 10:20 a little too fast
Mile 2: 10:54 this is where I fell -- I guess it worked to slow me down and get me back on pace!
Mile 3: 10:59 angry at juggler guy running near me who kept dropping the balls
Mile 4: 10:57 feeling good - ate my new Power Gel with 4x sodium
Mile 5: 10:42 still feels good
Mile 6: 10:30 wow! where did this mile come from?
Mile 7: 10:57 I don't remember this one
Mile 8: 10:55 or this one
Mile 9: 11:04 slowed down a little to hear the Rocky theme at the water station
Mile 10: 10:41 finished pretty strong....but I think the 1/4 mile to finish sign was a big fat lie!

Total: 1:48:03

1:48:02 *

It was an ideal day for the Broad Street Run and overall I had a really good day. My finish was a respectable 1:48:02 -- a full 10 minute improvement over last year.

The asterisk is because my time was screwed up (a tiny bit) by the ridiculous fall I had when I tripped on a trolley track between miles 1 and 2. A TOTAL wipeout. I was laying face down in the street.

I bounced back and with the exception of some ugly road rash and some sore, cut and bruised hands I am OK.

More details later including mile splits.

Extremely mediocre run

We met after work and I got through 5.5 miles but it wasn't pretty. More walking that usual and less motivation than usual. I have no explanation for it but my lame excuse will be that I wasn't 100% from Monday's long run and I didn't want to work too hard before Sunday's race.

Survivor has gotten really good these last two episodes. More strategy than I remember seeing or hearing about for many seasons.

Vacation!

We've settled on a plan and we're going to Yosemite National Park in late September! We might also take in the Eagles vs. 49ers on September 24th before heading to the NP but that part of the plan is still up in the air.

This allows us to go to Virginia Beach and do the PDR (our normal fall racing schedule) and then go on vacation without missing the hardest weeks of fall marathon training. At least I think it works out that way. It will for sure if we do Philadelphia and it probably will if we're doing New York.

The date for the Marine Corps entry is looming and I'm not going to get myself register even though I kind of want to. I'm letting fate decide my fall marathon plans.

I have developed a strange ankle twinge/injury since yesterday. I think it's from too many days wearing junky shoes without enough support. I'm supposed to meet Brian for a run tonight but if the ankle still hurts I might skip it so as not to make it worse before Broad Street on Sunday.

Gatorade Endurance Loves Brian

Today when I got home from work I found a mysterious plastic wrapped box from Gatorade in the mailbox. It's addressed to Brian. It looks very much like the small CD-sized mailing I got last week that contained a coupon for a free 32 oz. bottle of Endurance.

Brian is laying on the couch, completely uninterested in this mysterious box that I am dying to rip open. So I force him to open it. Guess what's inside? Not just one coupon for the drink but a plastic wrapped DECK of free coupons. There must be 25 of them in there all for the big 32 oz bottle. PLUS it has a nifty Fuel Belt Shoe Pocket which is just the right size for keys and a couple dollars.

What on earth did he do to rate such an awesome giveaway? He never signs up for any races on his own, he never fills out the "win a free whatever" survey forms at the expos, he never even buys gatorade! Free stuff is wasted on him!

I guess I can't complain because I seem to have won the QVC lottery -- although it remains to be seen if that is better than the Gatorade lottery.

I hate blogger

I keep trying to post a picture of my run activity but blogger keeps pretending to load the picture and then not showing it. It's so aggravating.

I'm going to try AGAIN but I bet this post still has no picture.

The Long Run

In an effort to simulate race-morning conditions I had a couple of packets of instant oatmeal for lunch before heading out on the long run. I washed it down with a bottle of Gu2O since that's the drink they'll be giving out at Delaware. Gu2O is kind of nasty for anybody who is wondering. It's not the worst thing I've ever had but it's not in the least like the kool-aid flavor of Gatorade and Powerade.

We parked at Oaks near the restrooms and our plan was to run on the trail to VF, where there are water fountains and restrooms, come back to the car (and bathroom) and then head the other way on the trail to the center of town where there are stores so we could buy food or drinks to refuel. The weather was great yesterday but there was a good breeze and we couldn't quite settle on outfits (long or short sleeves?) and so we were able to stash extra clothes in the car, which we didn't need.

I tried out a new pair of shorts from Title 9 that worked out great and I think I'm probably going to wear in the race. The shorts I used to love from last year are all really floppy and make me look like I have even more enourmous hips than I actually do. Plus they have liners like spandex tights that keep creeping up. That didn't seem to happen last year but it's driving me nuts this year. Anyway, these didn't move around too much and were comfy all day. Here's hoping they'll be good for race day.

My waterbottle was filled with Gatorade Endurance formula (undiluted at first) which I topped off with water at VF and then refilled with full strength Endurance for the second out and back section. Much better than Gu2O!

We were taking it easy at first, walking to a streching point and then picking up the pace. I stayed with Brian longer than I usually do which was good because that meant that we were talking a little bit and that my pace was controlled and slow enough. Eventually I decided to time a mile and that one clocked in at 11:22 and it felt like a walk in the park. I didn't keep continuous time because I didn't want to get caught up worring about pace. After stopping for water, and eating an Espresso Love Gu, I ran most of the way back to the car and timed a mile in there at 11:25. No more timing though, for the rest of the day.

We had a longer than expected stop here because Brian had an issue with sunscreen in his eye so it took a few minutes to fix that properly and then we were on our way. At this stage we had somewhere between 7 and 8 miles under our belts -- probably closer to 7 -- and we both felt great.

I don't have much to report on this leg even though it was the longest part of the run. The trail here is gravel, which I like since it's softer, but Brian isn't thrilled with for fast walking. I didn't run nearly as consistantly on this section but it wasn't terrible either. I had a harder time keeping pace and I blame that on the music and the fact that I wasn't sticking around near Brian as much as I had before.

When we hit 5.5 miles out we finished up the Gatorade, refueled (I had a pack of Clif Blocks) and bought water and a bottle of regular gatorade at WaWa. My legs felt good and I ran a pretty good portion of the way back too but I know I was stopping more and more. Once we got off the gravel and back on the paved section I could really feel the paved road pounding my legs and I totally wanted to stop running but watching Brian pull away kept me at it.

You can see the peaks and valleys of running but over all it was a pretty solid effort and one I think I'd be happy with in the real race. My fuel tank was still pretty full at the end and we shared a bottle of some strange protein drink I got at GNC on a whim. It was pretty tasty but I don't think my stomach liked it much. My legs feel great today though!

The whole thing took us about 4.5 hours and I think we covered about 18 miles -- maybe a little more but it was good enough in my book!

Next up: Broad Street Run!

Many many miles

I don't think we got to 20 but I'm sure we got past 17 -- probably more like 18 or 18.5.

It was a pretty good outing but right now I'm too tired to write about it. I also think that I've digested my dinner enough that I now have room for the chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream that is lurking in my freezer.

I RSVPed to all the events for dorky QVC weekend. I am officially a huge weirdo now.

Weekend of Parties

I bad news is that I didn't get in one second of exercise this weekend because I was at a wedding shower and a First Communion party. The good news is I'm taking a half day today to meet Brian and do our 20 mile long run. Hopefully we'll have time for the whole thing.

I was supposed to do a local 5k on Saturday morning but I just wanted to sleep late so that's what I did. I think it was probably a good decision.

In other news, I've been invited to a top secret "red carpet" event weekend at QVC Studio Park. I'm half horrified and half thrilled about it. It's all this lame "reception with the hosts" and back stage stuff but since QVC is so close I am very tempted to go. At least for the vendor show -- maybe I'll get free stuff? It says that the invitation is non-transferrable and that I can bring a guest with me. I'm not sure if I can bring multiple guests or only the same one. I'll have to have a lottery to see who gets to join me. My Mom and sister are candiates but I think that Brian's family is WAY more into QVC then mine and they would enjoy it far more.

Stay tuned for updates!

Running is really messing up my TV schedule!

There is no doubt that all these trips to Valley Forge have been good for me. It's very relaxing out there in the nice weather (as I did again last night -- although this time is was more walking than running.) but it's really wreaking havoc on my TV watching!

I haven't seen Top Chef or Survivor this week and I'd be adding Lost to that list too except I hear this week was just a clip show. Not to mention the pile of Netflix I have sitting on my DVD player that I am not watching. And don't forget about all the National Park shows I have taped from the Travel Channel. I don't know when I'm going to find the time to catch up -- and now we have hockey playoffs competing for TV time.

I have an 80 hour Tivo that's jam packed to the point where it's taping no more than one suggestion a day. I need a rainy day with nothing to do but watch TV.

Rock'N'Roll Half Marathon - I can't resist the medal

I just registered us for the Rock'N'Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach. This will be the fourth time we're doing the race and every year we swear we're not going back!

They've released a photo of the 2006 medal, and like always, it's very cool. This isn't quite as awesome as the sun medal from a few years ago but it's still pretty snazzy.

VF Loop

Pre-run food: pineapple yogurt, half a gatorade
Hit the trail: 5:29

Walked first mile, stretched out, ran until big hill at 2.5. Walked hill, ran to water fountain, quick stop for a drink, then ran the rest of the route. It was great!

Back at the parking lot: 6:36
Total distance: about 5.5 miles

Best music: You Gotta Move by Aerosmith. Just perfect. It got me through a part where I usually walk without even considering stopping.

Coolest part of the run: the sun was in just the right place to have me looking at my shadow for most of the run. It made me look tall and skinny (and I'm neither) and watching my pony tail swing like a metronome helped me keep a good rhythm I think.

Countdowns

I don't have much to report so I thought I'd share the countdown list that is stored in my watch.

Broad Street Run 11 days
Delaware Marathon 25 days
Philadelphia Distance Run 144 days
Baltimore Half Marathon 171 days
NYC Marathon 193 days

*** 50 days until the NYC Lottery ***

I plan to hit the loop at VF tonight to run the loop.

Long Run - After the VF 5 mile run

So, after the 5-mile run, our master plan was to put up another 13 on the Perkiomen Trail in order to get in our 18 mile long run for the marathon. It didn't quite work out that way.

First of all, we got a really late start on part-two of the day because of all the time I spent blabbing with Char. We also had to revise our "one way" plan of leaving a car 13 miles away on the Perkiomen because the Weather Channel told us that we might have up to 3 inches of rain on Saturday and I wasn't too keen on running 10 miles on wet and muddy gravel. So we decided to do an out and back that would give us 10 miles plus the race. We figured 15 was probably enough plus we could always run past the car to throw in some more miles. Can you tell where this is going, yet?

We set off on the Perkiomen and everything was great, we were planning on running out to the 2.5 mile marker on the Perkiomen (which was partly on gravel and would give us the 10 mile round trip when added to the VF trail) but as I approached the 2.0 mile mark it was getting colder, the sky was getting darker and it was a little more windy. I suggested turning around because I didn't want to be running away from the car when the weather turned bad and it really looked like it was going to. Plus, we'd heard a rumor about storms with hail and I didn't want to be stuck in that with no hope of shelter. So, we turned it at the 2.0 mile marker and headed back to the car. It did sort of rain/mist/drizzle on us but nothing major and certainly no hail but it wasn't a very nice time to be outside.

I had a really solid outing for the first half and pretty strong for the second half but I fell apart a little in the last 1.5 miles. I wasn't pushing myself like I should have and walked far more than I should have. The good news is that I felt pretty good the whole way. I could still run towards the end and had no pain. My fuel gauge was good. If it had been marathon day, I certainly could have continued without being completely demoralized. Still, when it came time to decide about adding on the extra miles, I opted not to. We called it a day with 14 miles total.

Other things I learned: peanut chews are pretty good fuel, orange cream Clif Shots are repulsive, and Lose Yourself is seriously the best paceing song ever. I might have to just listen to that on repeat for the entire marathon.

1st Annual Valley Forge Revolutionary Run (5 miles)

Sunday morning was gray and damp and chilly but not raining so that was a really good thing. We made it to the park just in the nick-of-time and got to the start of the race with about 5 minutes to spare and that was mostly because the race was slightly delayed! I thought having a race close to home would be good but we were still pretty late.

The race itself was great. Mostly along the loop I'm familiar with running but it takes a slight detour around Wayne's Woods and therefore adds one pretty nasty hill to the loop. I did my best to run the whole way and with the execption of the two killer hills I kept it moving the whole time. Clock time: 54:15 and my watch time is 53:01. I'm really happy with both times - I was hoping for 11 minutes or under and I did that, so I'm really glad. I was well fueled and I felt great for the entire time.

I liked the race overall. Parking wasn't a hassle as I had anticipated, the shirt was a surprise (royal blue performance fabric) and the food afterwards was great: lots and lots of PEANUT CHEWS! The only flaw was that the "expo" tent was super crowded but they can maybe fix that next year or I'll be faster and get more of a head start into the tent. They didn't run out of anything though, so that's good. We also ran into my long-lost-friend Char so that was awesome. Our running store guy came in 3rd over all.

I can't wait until next year to do this one again. I think I'll see if I can try to practice on that big hill before next spring. I would be so excited if I could make it through the full loop without any walking. Someday.

VF Loop Again! How boring!

Valley Forge really is the easiest place for us to meet. Too bad it's so boring to do the same thing every night. I guess it's good to compare how I feel though under such controlled circumstances.

Tonight's run was OK. The weather was great but I guess my fuel wasn't as good because this was more difficult than the last two outings here. Sportbrain gives running distance of 4.1 avg. speed 4.9 and running pace 9:42. Again a total scam because of the downhills.

Speaking of downhills, I find that my "core" muscles hurt by the end of this loop but only on the downhill section at the end. What's even more strange is that they hurt depending on what pants I'm wearing! Isn't that bizarre! If I'm wearing tights, like under armour or something, that are stretchy and supportive, no pain. Regular shorts -- OUCH! I have to like, hold my guts in on that last downhill section. It's just bizarre and kind of embarassing to realize that I need a girdle when I run.

I got my cool "will power" shirt that I hope to wear at the marathon. I might try it out on the long run this weekend. It seems really stiff so I hope it's more comfy once I wear it.

I suppose that's all the news. The weather is supposed to stink this weekend but I hope it's dry enough so we can get in the long run without too much misery.

Valley Forge Loop

Brian and I met at VF last night. The weather is so awesome these days it's really pretty easy to get out there and workout.

I started out slow and stuck with him through the first three miles (this included stretching and a water break) and then suddenly I got a burst of energy and pulled ahead. I did as much running as possible and felt really good the whole way.

Sportbrain gave me running distance of 4.3, running pace 9:43. (Very generous and I guess it's from the downhills!). That's an improvement over the last run at VF which gave me 4.2 running and a 10:05 pace.

I'm curious how I'll be able to perform on the slightly different course at the run on Sunday.

Clean Air 5K + lots more miles...

Saturday morning we went down to MLK Drive to do the Clean Air 5K. I had a pretty lousy performance but it was a great race anyway.

We were running late and I forgot to grab the Oatmea-to-go that I was planning on eating for breakfast so I had to settle for an Hooah bar instead. (yuck!) We got there just in the nick of time but did manage to line up about 30 seconds before the gun went off. It was unusually hot and humid for 9am in April but it was still a gorgeous day. I went out too fast, finished the first mile in 10 minutes, took the next mile to try to slow myself down and then tried (but failed!) to run in the last mile. I finished in 34:40 chip time, which is not my best but not my worst. I should have been able to do better than that but it was still fun.

The post race food was awesome! I didn't eat a whole lot of it, which was stupid of me, but they had lots to choose from. Bagels, donuts, fresh fruit (apples & oranges), yogurt, yogurt smoothies, ICE CREAM, salads, energy bars, coffee and iced coffee. There was more, I'm sure. They also had great booths and samples of stuff and even free massages. Excellent raffles too, although we didn't win anything.

After the race we had to do our long miles for the marathon. We walked back to the car to get our supplies (about a mile away from the Kelly Drive loop) and then came back to the loop. We checked out the new Schuykill Banks trail and then did the Kelly Drive loop. With that plus the 5K and the trips back and forth to the car, we figured we did a little more than the 16 miles required for our training plan. Unfortunately, I had a very bad day and could barely run at all during the long run. I think at first the problem was bad fuel to start with but my bad attitude took over and I wound up just walking 90% of the distance. WIMP!

Valley Forge Loop - 5.5 miles

I met Brian at the loop after work last nigth. It was the first time we've met this spring and it was awesome. I think we need to do make the post-work workout a priority. The only bad thing is that we didn't spend much of the time together since our paces aren't as similar as they once were. Oh well!

I'm so happy with how I'm getting better at tackling the hills at Valley Forge. I used to hardly be able to run any of the hills but now there is only one that totally shuts me down. I ran almost the whole loop tonight at a pace good enough that Brian never caught up to me and that's awesome for me. I didn't time it but I know it was one of my better workouts.

Catching Up on 2006

Well, it's been quite awhile since I've posted anything here and things have changed.

First of all, the Car-A-Mile marathon got cancelled and I signed up for the Delaware Marathon in it's place. That's coming up quickly: May 21. I'm so not ready for it, but that's pretty typical!

I've signed up for the Love the Half National Challenge where I need to do at least six half-marathon (or longer) races in order to win cool prizes. So far, I've done two races: Caesar Rodney 1/2 in Wilmington and the MORE half marathon in New York. Both of those were pretty good. I had a PR at Caesar despite rain and hills and I wasn't so far off that pace in New York. I really am not a fan of those hills.

I entered the lottery for the New York Marathon! I find out in mid-June if I get into that race and if so, I'm going. If I don't get in I'll probably do the Philadelphia marathon. I need to do a fall marathon to fulfill Love the Half, so that's the logical choice, especially if I do PhillyFit again this year.

I've given up on the Goofy Challenge for 2007 in favor of going to Rock N' roll Arizona with my sister.

I have a busy race schedule coming up too! Check the side bar for details!