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.

Mountains

I am not a hill runner.

Never have been.

I have gone out of my way to avoid them.  Until I signed up for the Mt. Washington Road Race lottery and got in.

So, now I need to train on hills, or more specifically, mountains.

I joined some friends at a local mountain Saturday afternoon (yes, a few hours after a 5K race).  The auto road is about a half mile section with an average grade of 10%.

I have not run mountains, I don't hike, I've never been up to the top of a mountain.  Ever.  In my life.  I'm a city girl.

So, in my mind, I've had no idea what I am in for.  My first trip up Mt. Agamenticus was an eye opener.  I couldn't believe I would be doing that for 7.6 miles.  The view from the top was pretty, but really?  Wow, I was in trouble and really needed focus on training.

My second trip up was better and my fastest.  By our third trip, my legs were toast and I just wanted to quit.  But, I made it up to the top and enjoyed the view.  I will be adding mountain running to my weekly schedule because....I don't want to die on Mt. Washington.

Spoiler Alert: I raced

After careful consideration, I decided not to race yesterday.  I had run hard on Wednesday and Thursday.  I have a very long day on Friday, which meant I was out of the house 14 hours, and didn't get to bed until almost midnight.  On top of that, I had agreed to go do some mountain training with my friends Saturday afternoon.  So, I decided racing Saturday morning was not a good idea.

Until....  I got to work Friday night and realized my co-workers all knew I had been planning to run.  My work team volunteers at that race and were expecting to see me.  So....

I raced.

There was a cool wind, but otherwise perfect temperature for racing.  I went in knowing that I wasn't feeling my strongest.  I knew my body was tired.  I didn't know the course, but I expected some hills.  So, I let go of my desire to PR.  I still wanted to come in sub-30 and thought that might be attainable.

The horn sounded and we were off and running.  Almost immediately, I realized that it would be a struggle.  My calves were burning a quarter mile in on a slight uphill section.  I knew my legs weren't into this.  I settled into a rhythm and felt ok.  Then, mile 2 came with some more uphills.  I struggled, but kept pushing.  Mile 1 and 2 were both 10min/miles.

I knew my work crew was coming up so I kept pushing hoping they would give me a boost.  They did and it was great to see them out there, but I was done.  My legs just wanted to stop.  I turned the corner off the trail and then was confronted with a hill that I forced my way up knowing that the finish line was just around the corner.  Mile 3 was my fastest with a 9:52.   When I got to the top and turned the corner, a crew of teammates was there, cheering me in.  That gave me a little boost and I finished strong.

Of course, I got passed in the last 100 meters by a woman pushing a double jogging stroller, but whatever.

My official time was 30:56.  Not the time I wanted, but I am still happy with my running right now.

After the race, I got to hang out with teammates and then went home, gathered my stuff for my next adventure of the day.

My place in the pack

To race tomorrow or not?  That is the question I'm facing right now.

I have been feeling very uncertain with my running the past few weeks.  I am feeling good physically and have tried to keep up with the work my PT had given me.   My pace is getting faster without feeling like I have to work for it, but my mind is still lagging behind.

I have said to myself, and out loud to others, that I feel like I have no business running the pace I am. Since I started running, I've been a back of the pack runner.  Not necessarily the *way* back, but the bottom third.  Now, my paces put me solidly into the mid-pack.  It's an odd place to be.  I feel like an impostor.  Like I'm one bad run away from being laughed back to the end of the line.  Clearly, that kind of thing doesn't happen.  But, I continually find myself saying things like, "I have no business running this pace", or "I'll try to hold that pace, but I don't know" (and then, by the way, blowing that pace out of the water) or "I'm slow".

There is a local 5K tomorrow morning that I want to do.  My training paces the past few weeks are about 30 seconds off my 5K PR pace.  If I'm running that on my regular 3 mile runs, could I hold a slightly faster pace in a race?  Two years ago when I hit all my PR's (after a season of track work with a coach), I wasn't running the pace I am now in training runs. What's the problem?

I'm scared.  I'm scared that I will go out tomorrow with a goal to PR and not make it.  I'm scared that I will go out tomorrow not attempting to PR and then come so close that I wish I had pushed harder.  I'm scared that I might realize that my pace the past few weeks is not a fluke and that I have all the business in the world standing solidly in the middle of the pack.

That's scary.  What if my place in the "pack" is changing?  I have to leave the safety of the "back of the pack" behind and step up.  Anyone who has run "back of the pack" knows--  we're pretty loyal and supportive of one another.  Is the same true mid-pack?  I don't know.  But, I guess I'm about to find out.  My Race, My Pace.

A whole new world

I know, I know.  I *still* haven't gotten my full WDW Marathon Weekend recap post up.  And, I know.  I haven't written anything since then.  A lot has happened.  Here's the short version:

Apparently, I sprained my ankle at the margarita stop near the end of the marathon and didn't realize it until after I was home.  I had some foot pain and after x-rays ruled out a fracture, the ortho sent me into PT.  We worked on a bunch of things-- glute strength, manipulation of my foot, and eventually a video running analysis.

Here we are, 9 weeks post-marathon.  I am back to running with some changes.  One of the things that was clear in the video was that I over-stride and heel strike.  To help correct that, my PT had me running with a metronome to increase my cadence.  In the video (and looking back at my Garmin data), my average cadence was around 150, sometimes even lower.  I am now comfortably running around 165.

And, it's a whole new world.  My average pace has plummeted.  

Three weeks ago, I tried to do a 3 mile run with a friend who was a bit faster.  My average pace for 1.5 miles was 10:35.  I was working so hard to I thought I was going to puke and I actually stopped and let her run on ahead.  It was too fast.  Or, was it?  Yesterday, I ran 3 miles at an average pace of 10:07 AND I ran negative splits.  (10:16, 10:07, 9:57)  It wasn't an all out effort at all.

If I continue to run at this pace, I will clearly need to re-evaluate my race goals.  Even when I was setting 5K PR's 2 summers ago, I was not running these paces.  I'm still not "fast" by racing standards around my area, but I'll take it.

I am also cleared to start speedwork, conservatively.  This month is all about strength, cadence and base building.  Feeling optimistic about a fabulous fall racing season!

Pre-26.2

I am a marathoner.

Yup, I said it.

I am a marathoner.  It never gets old. 

I'll try to sum it up in as few words as possible, but a weekend as life changing as this, takes time to rehash.

When I arrived in WDW on Thursday, I parked my car at the hotel and immediately jumped on the bus to the expo to meet up with some friends.  We sat in the sun, talked and eventually made our way over to the expo (grabbing beer along the way).

After packet pick up, we checked out the runDisney merch.  I am SO happy to report that the merch was well stocked the entire weekend, even at the post race tent.  I didn't see a single item out of stock.  Sadly, I didn't actually love most of it.  The theming this year just wasn't my style. But, I did manage to pick up a few things.

After that, I checked into my hotel, had dinner and went to Disney Springs for a bit before heading to bed.  I planned to get up and cheer at the 10K very early the next morning.

I didn't sleep well and by Friday morning in was pouring rain.  I decided to skip cheering and just rest a bit.  I was meeting the team for breakfast anyway, so I did that.  We had a huge group and pretty much took over Kona.  It was a wonderful breakfast full of many laughs.  After breakfast, I tagged along with 2 teammates to the expo before we all headed off to Epcot for our team meet up.

That's where it all got crazy.  We are a fun loving bunch and at a few margaritas from La Cava into the mix and, well....  the 12 year old was doing all the adulting.  We could not be trusted.  We took a Grand Fiesta Tour that was so epic, there was a boat between our groups.  We sang, badly and loudly, and had an amazing time.  After that, people started to drift off in separate directions, but some of us ended up going over to the boardwalk and having dinner.

We walked back through Epcot and I headed back to the hotel.  Even though I wasn't running, I was meeting the group before the race for a pre-race picture.  So, I got up at 2am and was on the bus at 3am.  After the pre-race shenanigans and pictures, I headed out with a group, including the Chicken Hat Cheerer to our spot on the course, near the Poly.  We were out there just after the first runners came by.  We cheered, high fived, screamed, hugged, gave out candy and supported anyone who needed it.  It was so much fun!

When finally the clean up crew was opening the road, we headed back.  I went back to the hotel to warm up and then went back to the expo.  My ankle was bothering me a bit (really tight calf) and wanted to get taped up.  However, that was a disaster.  The line was so long and they kept turning people away and asking them to return at a certain time.  However, if you returned at that time, you'd be turned away again.  After the 3rd time, I gave up and just taped myself up.  I really appreciate the free taping service, but really hope they come up with a better system for managing the line next year.

After that debacle, I grabbed a snack and met a friend to listen to the presentation being done for 1st time marathoners.  The main message of that hour was, go slower than you think you need to, especially at the beginning.  Slow down.  That's a hard message for runners to hear, but was an important one.

I was still deciding what my race plan was going to be.  Part of me wanted to run with all the fun friends I had made.  But, I knew they were 2 corals ahead of me and were faster runners.  They stop for lots of pictures and shenanigans, so I'd be leap-frogging them the whole way.  On the other hand, I knew that above all else, finishing was my top priority.  I knew I needed to go out slowly.  My ideas started to form.  After the presentation I headed to Disney Springs to have dinner with friends.  It ended up being much longer than I planned and I was exhausted.  And, as a bonus, by the time we left it was pouring rain.  I was soaked by the time I got back to the hotel.  I laid out all my stuff for the morning and fell asleep easily.  2 am comes early....

New Year, New Goals

I've been pretty quiet these last 2 weeks.  Partly, because I (like most of us) have been insanely busy with holiday hoopla.  But also, it's taper time.

I missed my last long run.  My ankle was cranky and I was short on time.  I thought it better to rest and show up healthy, rather than sick or injured.  So, I've taken taper to the max.  No working out at all this week.  (Unless you count my 12 hour retail shifts....)

So, as I begin packing to go run a marathon next weekend, I am thinking about new goals for 2016.


My goals for 2016:

Finish the WDW Marathon

Run a marathon for time

Run a 2:15 half marathon.

Not.Be.Injured.

Hopefully, one year from now, I will have a checkmark next to all of these...

Happy New Year!  Run Safe, Run Happy, Run Healthy!