Race Recap: Boot Scootin' Boogie 5K

Running and beer go hand in hand.  Add in some country music, a bonfire, and some BBQ and you've got yourself the Millennium Running Enterprise Bank Boot Scootin' Boogie 5K and Brewfest.

Let's break it down, shall we?

Pre-race:

For what you get, this race was really reasonably priced.  I registered the week of the race and paid $35 which included the race fee, admission to the post race concert/brewfest, and a glass for unlimited tastings of beer.  There were yogurt/bananas at the finish, but no other food was included.

There was plenty of parking across the street from the venue.  It was about a 5-10 minute walk.  The race did provide gear check so you didn't need to walk back to your car if you didn't want to.  You could pay extra for VIP parking which I may do next time.  Explanation on that later.  

The race:

Registration was open day of the race, so it had not sold out.  That being said, it was a good size race with about 1000 runners/walkers finishing.

The corrals had pace signs, although as is typical with local 5k's, many people either didn't know what pace they ran or just blatantly ignored the signs.  This is one of my pet peeves and why I have been running fewer and fewer 5K's.  But, I digress.

The race starts off downhill and then turns into a little neighborhood.  This was the fun part of the race.  Many families were out in their front yards playing country music and cheering.  A few kids has hoses and squirt guns to cool off the runners.  It was a loop around the neighborhood, so you passed the water stop on your way in and on the way out at approximately mile 1 and 2.  Then, it was back out onto the main road to go back up the hill and into the athletic complex.

The best part of any race is having your name announced as you cross the finish.  Andy Schachat of Announcers on the Run is the best of the best.  I don't ever feel right crossing a finish line he's not announcing.  So, of course, having his call my name at the finish is always a big thrill, no matter how many times it has happened.

Post-Race:

After the race, you are given a tiny tasting glass and head down a short path to a baseball field.  There were several breweries and food trucks set up along the outfield.  The band was playing and a pallets were stacked at home plate for the bonfire.  Initially the lines were a little long for the beer samples, but as people started to wander off to get food and sit and listen to the band, the lines got shorter.

However, the band did stop to take a break right at what should have been the height of the after party, so it was a bit of a buzz kill.  As mentioned before, if I do this race again, I may opt for VIP parking in order to have a chair or blanket to grab to sit on in the field.  Overall, this was a fun, well run, reasonably priced event.  I would certainly run this one with friends again.

When things don't go as planned

In January, I decided that my half marathon goal this year was not only to PR, but to hit 2:15.    I spent this spring training and had a goal race--Wallis Sands.  In the month leading up to the goal race, I ended up doing 2 other half marathons.

This was both a good idea, and not.  The first half I ran was awful.  I wasn't ready for the distance and the hills were too much.  Two weeks later, I signed up for another half.  I raced well and felt strong through mile 10.  At that point, I knew that even if I slowed to a very comfortable pace, I would still PR easily.  I did hit a PR and was incredibly confident that I would be able to run very well at my goal half.

Fast forward 2 weeks...

Wallis Sands promised to be a lot of fun with an easy course and tons of good friends.  Sadly, from the very first step, I felt "off".  I just couldn't get into a groove.  I couldn't breathe. I felt miserable and hated every step.  I got into my own head and it got worse and worse.  I ended the race with a time last year I would have been proud of.  But, given the expectations I had for the day, I was nearly in tears.

After several weeks, I still don't really know what went wrong.  But, I'm moving forward with this thought:  I PR'd this spring.  I had fun with friends.  I am not injured and will have another opportunity to race again.  Mental toughness is just as important as physical conditioning and that's what I'm going to be focusing on as my training shifts towards fall racing season.

ISLAGIATT

It seems like a good idea at the time.

It still does.  Sort of.

Around Christmas, I was talking to my pub run friends about a race called the Rock Lobster Relay. It's a Ragnar-style event, along the coast of Maine.  Beers were had.  Plans were made.  And, fast forward 5 months and I am just a couple weeks away from joining 11 teammates as we traverse 200 miles.

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

Trying to get back on the training wagon so I can keep the wheels on, even if I'm not as fast as I wanted to be.  Either way, it will be a fun time with some amazing people.  I'm looking forward to the event, if not the actual run.

Stay tuned!

Back Again

Consistency.

It's something I have trouble with.  I love to blog.  But, I don't seem to keep at it.  I love to run and train, but somehow I keep falling off the wagon.  One of my goals for this year is to be more consistent with the things I do.

But, that aside:  It's January.  And, that can only mean one thing:  WDW Marathon Weekend!!

This year was a little different for me:  My husband, his parents and our kids all came along.  Hubby was celebrating his birthday and was supposed to do the Dopey Challenge (which included his first ever marathon).  Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans and the half marathon got cancelled.  I'm still extremely proud of him for completing his first marathon--that's no small task!  I enjoyed our trip, but we've decided that for us family vacations and race-cations don't mix.  I felt like I didn't get to enjoy either side:  I missed out on so many race related experiences to spend time with the family and we had to plan our family time around the race.  So, in the future, races will be more of a solo venture.

I had planned to do Goofy, but ended up running "just" the 2017 WDW Marathon.  I *finally* had decent corral placement and got to run with some really fun people.

I had trained up to 18 miles.  I certainly wasn't trained like I had wanted to be, but I knew I could comfortably finish.  What I wasn't prepared for was the temperature.  Who knew it'd be 30 degrees in Florida?!?!  I ended up never taking off my extra layers I wore to the race.  I kept them and I'm glad I did.

I have the best running team around and a margarita was waiting for me at mile 25.5 so I could cross the finish line properly hydrated.

I am still on that marathon high and am ready to kick training into gear to crush some 2017 goals.

Races on my calendar this year include a couple of half marathons, Mt. Washington lottery, 200 mile relay, and potentially a marathon.  I am also planning on Dopey 2018 for the anniversary year.  My half marathon goal this year is a 2:15 half.  I think I can get there. But, above all:  I'm aiming for NO INJURIES.  What are your goals?

~See you on the road!

TD Beach to Beacon

TD Beach to Beacon 10K is one of the most well known in the country.  It draws a large crowd, including many elite runners.  Honestly, it was never on my radar until last year when a friend of mine did it.

I really had no overwhelming desire to run this race.  But, a friend convinced me to try to get in.  So, I did. The race sold out in a little over 4 minutes.

There is a lot of hype in the weeks leading up to this race.  I went to the expo on Thursday and the energy was really high.  Everyone was excited.  It was a relatively large expo considering it was only a 10K.  Overall, it was well organized and the volunteers were super friendly.

I really wasn't sure what to expect from this race.  I had raced hard on Tuesday night and only did a small shake out run the next day.  I wasn't sure how my legs would feel.  I didn't go into this race with any specific goals.  I was prepared to just run it for fun and take it easy if my legs weren't there.  I wouldn't be disappointed.  On the other hand, I knew it was possible I could PR if my legs were feeling good.  I wasn't sure of the course elevation profile, but I feel comfortable enough with regular hills that I didn't think it would be an issue.  My race strategy was going to unfold on the fly.

On Saturday, I arrived at one of the shuttle parking lots and waited for my friends.  When they got there, we got in line for the bus.  We were on the first bus and got to the start area without any trouble.  There were drinks and snack there for runners while you waited for the start of the race, which I thought was a nice touch.

The sun peeked out just as the race was starting and I was worried.  It was already warm, and the sun was feeling hot.  This is a relatively large race with about 6,600 participants.  Having run Disney races, I am used to crowded conditions and huge races so I didn't think it would be a big deal.  I was wrong.

The race started and everyone seemed to be at different pace--clearly self seeding had not worked well today.  I tried to run the first mile as best I could.  My legs actually felt pretty fresh and despite a little arch pain in the right foot, I felt ready to race--if I could only find an opening.  I spent a good deal of the race weaving around people.  Not just the first mile..,the whole race.  Thankfully, the sun mostly disappeared behind some clouds for most of the race.  Most of the course were on road that were very slanted, which made it difficult to run the edges.  I tried to run along the center line as much as I could.  I got slowed down significantly at the water stops when everyone stopped to walk.  I tackled the hills without much issue except for the one at mile 5.  My stomach wanted to revolt by the time I got to the top, but I was able to focus on my breathing and get myself back in the game for the final mile.  

The finish was pretty and the course support of this race was wonderful.  Everyone raves about it.  I thought it was great, but very similar to race I had run Tuesday night.  After you cross the finish line, you are directed up a huge hill to get to the post-race water tables, food and all of that stuff.  Having run hard, having to wait for water and ascend another hill isn't incredibly fun.  Then, you get to wait in a long, slow line for the bus back to your car.

All in all, it was a great race.  I did get my PR. 1:03:25.  I felt I would have been a little bit faster on an open course, but feel like this time is consistent with my other recent race times.  I know there were a lot of famous people there, but I'm not one to pay attention to that sort of thing.  I'm not sure I would go out of my way to do this race again, but I'm glad I did it once.

A Mental Game

Training for the 2016 Hartford Marathon is well under way.  A couple of months ago, I spoke with a running coach about a time goal.  I thought he was crazy.  I *knew* there was NO way I could run the time he said I could.

And yet...

A couple weeks ago, I had a 12 mile training run.  There was a half marathon that weekend and the weather looked unusually cool for a July race.  So, why not?  I registered on a Thursday for a Saturday race.  I hadn't run much that week other than 3 miles Thursday night.

The weather was ideal for me:  mid-50's, cloudy with scattered light rain.  Just enough to cool you off without soaking your shoes.  My goal was 2:30 and I started just behind the 2:30 pace group.  I knew I might lose them in the beginning, but was confident based on my training, that my later miles were my fastest and I would catch up.

That's exactly what happened.  They got away from me at first, I caught up with them around mile 4, passed them around mile 6, and never saw them again.  My time was 2:27:17 on a hilly course.  A 12 minute PR!  I felt amazing.  I followed my pacing strategy, felt strong on the hills, and gave it all I had.

Fast forward a few weeks.

I had a 10 mile race on my schedule that I had planned to use as Proof of Time for Disney.  However, I was so happy with my half time, that I didn't feel like I *needed* this race.  I went anyway and honestly wasn't feeling like it was my night.

I had slacked on training the week before, it was the end of the day, a little warmer than I would have liked and getting there was just a comedy of errors.  (Nothing like walking to the start area only to realize you left your bib in the car!)

I had hoped to run somewhere around a 10:50-11:00 mm.  I started out at a pace that felt relaxed and easy.  At 2 miles, I was well under this pace at around 10:20.  I started to doubt whether I could hold that or not, and at several points during the race attempted to pull back a bit just in case.  But, I was able to hold on with only 1 of my miles being above a 10:40.  I finished with a time of 1:45:11 which is approx 10:31 mm.

Rewind to that discussion with the coach.  As it turns out, my recent race times would indicate that he was right.  I can run those paces.  It is a realistic time goal.  I can race more aggressively than I have in the past.  My first half marathon was a horrible experience and I think that has had a strong mental hold on me for the past 4 years. But, no more.  I can hold a pace.  I can push harder.  I can race smarter.  It's all a mental game...  and I'm winning it.

Mountains, Attempt 2

This week, I did a track workout on Wednesday and a 3 mile recovery run on Thursday.  My legs weren't sore, but have been feeling tired.  On Saturday, I met my friend at the mountain again.

The first trip up was rough and I wasn't sure I was going to make it.  My legs were on fire.

As I stood on the top of the mountain the first trip up, something clicked.  The thought crossed my mind that I wasn't *just* training for Mt. Washington.  This hill training was going to make me a stronger runner overall.  My legs were going to be strong, I'd be able to tackle hills in races like a boss, and most importantly, I would be mentally strong enough to push through difficult stretches during the marathon.  The marathon.  There is was.  The carrot that I needed.

My next 3 trips up were much better.  I dug deep, focused hard and felt strong.  I was able to actually run more than walk on these trips.  I felt good and at the end, I probably had one more trip in me.  But, I left it at 4 for this week.

Total elevation this run:  1,258 ft.