Winter Training Blows!!!

I am going to try to stay updated with this blog. It's tough juggling all the different aspects of social media. I finally caved in and started an Instagram account; but no twitter. Lol. This winter has been tough. Last year we got more snow and plenty of cold but the whole month of February has been colder than it has been it many years. I've had to many runs on the treadmill because of cold and icy conditions. The toughest is when I had to do my 2hr 10 min long run, that was just awful. Spring soon come and will not be soon enough. This year I am really committed to hitting my sub-5 hour goal. It would be great to get it in NJ especially since the flat course will be ideal for it. The way this winter training has been set up, who knows. I just recently started get the 2015 race calendar together. Here it goes. April: Scotland 10K, NJ Marathon. May: 5 Boro Bike Tour, Air BnB Brooklyn Half. June: Niagara Fall's Women's Half, Oakley Mini 10K, Achilles Hope and Possibility. November: TCS NYC Marathon. December: Reggae Marathon 10K. Looking to add maybe the Trenton 10 K and the Rocky Run. Spring please hurry up!!!

Taking it international!

Well the weekend after the TCS NYC marathon I ended up run/walking the Trenton 10K with a dear sole sister.  On Thanksgiving I ran my 3rd Prospect Patk Turkey Trot.  The race that I had been waiting for to close out my 2014 season happened this past Saturday, The Reggae Marathon 10K.  This was my first trip to Jamaica and first trip out of the U.S. in 6 years!!!   I boarded an insanely early flight with my fellow Reggae Runnerz.  We were at least half the flight.   We arrived around 930 am and first stop was a Pina Colada at Margaritaville (actually it was to duty free shopping 😊).  After a long ride from Mobay to Negril, we checked in and made a quick dash to change and hit the beach.  I enjoyed having time to chill out before the race.  Friday was the Pasta Party I never made it to (won't go into whole story but don't fall asleep in the Caribbean sun when you have been partying).   Race start was 5:15am so  set alarm for 3:45.  I fell asleep early and woke up after midnight and tossed and turned till time to get up.   Even with early start in the dark it was warm but not horrid.  Exodus was the song that got the race started.   I started to feel itchy and thought I was getting bitten by bugs but turns out it was just my sweat.   Music at every mile.  Water and electrolyte drinks in baggies (when need this in the U.S.).   It was a flat course but dark early.  I made sure to look down to avoid tripping.  Along the course were specators,  some saying nothing, some saying a whole lot....hint...hint.  Also some ganja smokers along the way.   At one point there was a baby goat running along with us.   I started to race in the 1.5 miles to beat the sun.  I actually kept a better pace than expected.  A fresh coconut awaited at the finisher party.  Also nice ice cold red stripe.  I hung around for a bit before the bugs started to invade the area.  I walked back to the hotel along the beach.  I was back on the beach by 10am.  Running was such a small part of the trip but I can say I enjoyed myself and would definitely do it again.  10K only, once the sun comes up there is no shade on the course which happens to be an out and back. 

Bank of America Chicago Marathon

"Do epic sh@*" was one of the signs I saw on the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course.  It was definitely epic for myself and the other nearly 45,000 participants.   My plan this year was only to visit Chicago for the AAO conference which starts later this week.  On a whim I entered the lottery thinking I had no chance of getting in and was surprised by the confirmation in April.  I was thrilled to change plans and have the opportunity to do two world major marathons.   I had a tough task of treating Chicago as a training run and not going all out.   I had to get my pace under control and because downtown Chicago has funky gps signals I couldn't glance at my watch to check on my pace so I had to go by feel (which is better anyway).  It was a fantastic trip through 29 neighborhoods with great crowd support except around 15-16 (people were there but dead quiet).  I remembered to wave at the senior citizens at the residence we ran by.  The Hispanic neighborhood of Pilsen was lively with music. We had great temperatures but with little shade on the course,  I ended up getting rather warm in the late miles.  I have to thank my family and friends for the support during training and during the race.   What touched me the most was the virtual circle of support from my running family, BGR! NYC.  My phone was in ultra power save mode during the race and when I was done, I switched to normal mode and got a blitz of notifications.   They followed myself and fellow NYC sole sisters from start to finish; cheering, praying, willing us through.   Prayers go out to the two men who went into cardiac arrest; one is fine the other is in critical condition.
I am very pleased with my 15 min pr.  I have a certain time goal that I will shoot for next year but I am happy to have finished #2.   3 years ago doing this form of epic sh@* was something I never dreamed could be possible.  I enjoyed meeting my virtual friends and making new ones.  In 20 days I will take on my hometown marathon.   Thank you Chicago for a fabulous time.

It's been a long time.

I haven't posted here in a long time.  My last post was about the NYC Half. Two weeks after that I ran the inaugural Philadelphia Love Run. That day made history. The most amount of rainfall every on that day in Philadelphia; over 4 inches. What started as some light rain developed into a monsoon. Definitely the toughest race conditions ever! Time of course went out the window. Around mile 10 is where the sky opened up and I wanted to cry. There was nothing to do but suck it up and go because we were in the middle of Fairmount Park. I eventually got a second wind and picked up the pace. I ended up catching up to my travel roomie who was having a hard time so I stayed with her to the finish. I am seriously considering not every doing a half marathon in the month of March again. After the Love Run I participated in the Crescent City Class in NOLA, UAE Healthy Kidney 10 K, Brooklyn Hal Oakley Mini 10 K, Achilles Hope and Possibility and the 2nd annual Moonwalk NYC Half Moon. I decided to cut down on races this year to focus more on training for the fall marathons. Next race is Join the Voices 5 miles which got moved from December to August. I will be doing it as a Sunday recovery run. I am little concerned that I am slightly behind in mileage considering that Chicago is 0ct 12. I have my coached designed schedule and I bumped up my long run by a little under 2 miles for this past week. I forgot to mention that I also pursured running coach certification. I am a Level 1 USTAF coach and once I finish my test I will be RRCA Certified Coach!

Catching up

I haven't posted in quite some time. This winter has been an interesting one with multiple snow/ice storms, bad weather days, etc. Though I took time off to recoup from the marathon I still wanted to keep up a base and also be ready for the NYC Half which I ran last Sunday. I found it really hard to stick to a consistent schedule. I did virtually no speed training but did a little hill work. I having been shooting for a 2:15 half since RnR Philly but it became pretty evident that wasn't going to happen with the NYC half. My first race this year was the Gridiron Class 4 Mile on Super Bowl Sunday. I didn't even try to beat my 4 mile PR of 38:20 so I was happy with my 41 and change finish. Though not as well prepared I was looking forward to the NYC Half. Initially the weather reports were looking good but as the time got closer the weather started to look very similar to last March during the Allstate 13.1. On race day it started out at 31 degrees and even dropped down to 29 before heading up again. My plan was to take it easy in the park because of the crowds and the hills. I did pretty well with that and even ran up Harlem Hill nice and steady. The course had a change from previous years. We started right on Cat Hill and continued up before exiting the park at 110 and Lenox before coming back into to head up Harlem Hill. Things were tight on the round about back into the park. My least favorite portion of Central Park is the rolling hills. My pace naturally slowed but before long I was headed out of the part to the most exciting part: Times Square. It was pretty awesome running downing the center of Broadway. We turned on 42 Street to head over to the West Side Highway and this is where trouble began for me. I was able to get into my origin corral so I was slightly back and located pretty close to the 2:30 pacer. Right while on 42 street I noticed the pacer pacing me which did not make sense because I knew I was running under that pace. I let doubt get the best of me and I speed up to 9:40 miles for 2 miles which brought me right to the point where I got smacked hard with head winds on the West Side Highway. I knew that the pacer was running under pace but still the competitive edge of me would let me stick to a good pace. The West Side Highway was tortuous. Windy and boring. I eventually picked up a little speed and before long I was headed to that tunnel near the Battery Park after you pack the WTC. I was thrown off my how dark the tunnel was (plus I was wearing my transitional lens glasses) and how long it seemed. I felt as if I ran a mile in the darkness. It was a bit scary because you could barely make out what was in front of you. After exiting the tunnel I had to pleasure to run up and a hill but fortunately just after that was the 800 meters to go sign. I crossed the finish in 2:26:24, nearly 5 minutes slower than my last half in September. I wasn't too disappointed considering how I felt, but really has me questioning ever doing another half marathon in the NYC area during March. Next up is the Philadelphia Love Run on March 30.

Trenton Doublecross 10K

I was very hesitant to sign up for this race.   It was 13 days after MCM.  It was being widely publicized as a BGR! national event with the opportunity to earn double bling.  I was worried about pushing myself too hard in my post marathon recovery.   I am so glad I signed up.  It was a great road trip.  I headed down Friday afternoon with my morning running buddy and sole sister.  We were able to pick up our races packs which included a cute tech shirt.  We then headed over to Rho for a meet and greet.  It was a nice space and for $10 we got a nice buffett.  There was a live band playing but unfortunately their selections were a little too country.  The band took a break and the Dj started spinning and BGR! hit the floor.  He played the "Wobble" and it was on.  We didn't stay too late because of course we had a race to run.  Saturday morning was chilly but it warmed my heart to see all my BGR sisters and some of our brothers from Black Men Run.  I ran the 10K but there was a half marathon as well.  It was quite a sight to see the group of 700+ of us together trying to take pre-race photos.  We ended taking pictures in city sections.  Trenton was not ready for us.  Every other runner around me was BGR!.   The course took us over two bridges and across two states.  I didn't particularly like the bridges because their surface allowed you to see the Delaware River beneath and messed with my gait.   I had to hold myself back for going out to fast but I had fun.   I loved the post race pretzel.  Apparently there was a whole spread lsid out at Rho but we had plans for a NBMA/BGR! brunch.  It was yummy!   I wouldn't mind running it again but if it is one week post the NYC marathon I may have strong reservations. 

The 2013 New York City Marathon-volunteer/spectator view

One week after completing my own first marathon I volunteered at the mile 16 water station for the NYC marathon. I knew many people running it this year; including many of my sole sisters who were running their very first marathon. The days leading up to the marathon were exciting. There was such a buzz in the city. I went to the expo on Thursday when it first opened to check it out and see how it was. I did not really get to spend much time at the MCM expo given all the waiting I had to do. There were so many people and so many languages being spoken. There was a long line to go through security but it moved fast. The expo space was huge! I walked around check out the merchandise and looking for freebies. Alot of the gear was nice (and expensive) and I wished I could buy some but I will just have to wait for 2014. I did buy a pair of new mizuno thermal gloves. They heat up when you hands get a little sweaty. I got a discount on them, so the price was right. I picked up several freebies: a megaphone and orange sunglasses from ING. Bam Bams and neck warmers from Grano Padano, gatorade samples, packs of mixed nuts from fresh direct, other goodies. Sunday was the big day. My shift was from 7:30-3:30. I arrived a little after 7 am. One of the things I learned from racing/volunteering is that there can be some much chaos involved in getting a giant race set up. I initially didn't plan to be at the Gatorade section but worked with several of my BGR sisters. We had to mix the formula: 1 bottle of the gatorade solution with 5 bottles of water, add to a huge can and then stack of 4 sections high of cups in a honey comb pattern. We had to make sure the the Gatorade branding was visible on the front cups. The handcyclists came throught first and we made tons of noise at 1st ave and 61st as they came off the Queensborough bridge which is a tough one to cross. It is long, has a big incline and quiet because no spectators are allowed. It is often said the the NYC marathon begins at mile 16. Not too long after came the elite women. What a site to see. Deba who has made the Bronx here home was in the lead followed closely by her training partners. The rest of the pack was quite a ways behind at that point. I noted several other elites: Firewhot Dado, Kim Smith, Amy Hastings, and another local elite Aziza. Only one of them took water from the station. Next came the men. The men's elite pack was very tight at that point. I don't even remember who was leading. The crowd went wild when Meb came flying by. He was blowing kisses as he came by. I later learned that he wanted to drop out at mile 20. He was just coming back from a injury to his knee and a torn calf muscle. He didn't get to training beyond a 15 mile long run. You would have never known we he went by at mile 16. The rest of the runners began trickling in. We cheered loudly for them as well. We were calling out the names of runners who had placed their names on their shirts. The best parts where seeing my fellow BGRers on the course as well as some of NBMA local NYC runners. There was so much emotion, hugs, and kisses to ladies who I have run and trained with. Most inspiring was seeing the runners with disabilities who were completing the race; a reminder that anyone who really wants to can complete a marathon. Waves and waves of runners came in. Things began to space out a bit. Around 3:00 we had to start breaking down the station. I felt bad about that because runners who had been on their feet already nearly 5 hours were coming in. It was about to get to the point where they would have to finish the race on the sidewalks. We got word that the first runner with Down's Syndrome to complete the NYC marathon was about to come through. He received thunderous applause and cheers when he came through with his guide. I was so impressed by the determination to finish and not give up seen on the faces of those at the end of the pack. After breaking down the station, with tired feet and sore throats a group of us BGR volunteers went to grab a bite to eat and talk about the day. At least one of us who didn't plan on running the NYC marathon was now set on making that happenend. I have one more race to complete to finalize my guaranteed entry into the 2014 (now to be called) TCS NYC marathon. God willing, that will be the highlight of 2014 for me. I will make sure to get my family and friends out on the course to see me in action. I already know my BGR! family will be there. Marine Corps was a great marathon but I don't think it has the magic that the New York marathon has.