Race recap: Movie Madness Half Marathon

September 15, 2015 - Mel

After mentally and physically having a rough couple weeks of training, I needed to have some accountability for this past week’s long run. I have also been dealing with weird stomach nervousness and anxiety before I leave for my runs. Since I was traveling to Ohio for graduation, I searched for — and found — a half marathon for early Saturday morning: the Movie Madness Half Marathon in Lewis Center (about 30 minutes from downtown Columbus). My training run called for a total 16 miles, so I planned to do the race at an easy pace then add another three miles to it. But… well, there was a plot twist.

Race Day Selfie. Plot twist was not that dreary sky.

Registration and Cost: Registration was easy and online through Active.com. Since I made my decision a couple days before race day, it cost $59 (plus fees).

Expo and Packet Pick-up: No expo, as this was a super small race. There was race day packet pick, which started an hour before race time. I planned for about half hour before race time and there was no wait. I even had some extra time to relax in the car beforehand.

Bag Check: No bag check, but the state park had PLENTY of available and close parking near the start line.

Weather: When we left the hotel it was about 55 degrees and RAINING. Thankfully (smartly), I packed my rain jacket — so I ran back up to the hotel room to get it. The weather apps all said that the rain would move out of the area by race time (8 a.m.), AND THANK THE WEATHER GODS, it ended up being a beautiful, cool fall-like morning. LOVE.

Course: This “all right turns” course took the scenic route around Alum Creek State Park and its lake.

Map

I liked the course (there were water/snack/Gatorade stops at Mile 3.5-ish, 6, 9, and 11), and there was a relentless climb after Mile 10 as you can see in the elevation below; however, the roads were NOT closed off, so we basically ran in pace lines on the shoulder of all the streets. Mile 10-ish also was the area where the dam is, which I’ve never seen. It was really neat.

Fans and Experience: No fans, and the course was quiet and peaceful (save for passing traffic). I did run with my earbuds and music for the duration of the race. I honestly felt like I was having some sort of spiritual awakening on this run. It was beautiful.

Random Bullshit: Running on the side of the roads, you see the amount of litter that people disgustingly toss out of their cars. I passed at least three dirty diapers. People are just gross. There was also, um… roadkill. I legit had to jump over the carcass of a possum at one point.

Finish Line: There was music playing at the finish line approach, and I sincerely loved hearing my name and time called out when I finished. I played a serious game of mental skill for that last mile. And somehow, my mile 13 split was only 9:37.

Medals and Swag: I like my new pink short-sleeved tech shirt! It’s not race-specific, but has the US Road Running logo on the front. The finisher’s medal is pretty sweet too.

Bonus: Because this was a “Movie Madness” theme, there were several runners dressed in costume. The best of which (and the costume winner) was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. He was hilarious (and said that he bought the costume the night before and never trained in it).

Double Bonus: Well… I couldn’t run my extra three miles because I GOT A TROPHY AND PLACED 3RD IN MY AGE GROUP!

OVERALL
The Great: The realization that I really, REALLY like the half marathon distance. Also, small races are awesome!
The Good: I had a pace friend for most of the race, which was awesome. I chatted with her a bit after the race and it seemed like we both needed/used one another. Kinda cool experience.
The Bad: I started going into disaster scenario solution mode when Mile 3 didn’t have a water stop (it was about .6 miles after that). But OMG could you imagine?! I was planning in my head the logistics of my boyfriend tossing bottles of water out of the car at random course points for me. LOL
The Ugly: Car drivers. I mean, COME ON. If you obviously see a pace line of runners on the side of the road and there is traffic in both directions, SLOW DOWN — don’t speed up just to pass more quickly. I kept my left ear bud out for portions of the race because I was nervous about getting run off the road at a few points.

Splits: 11:08 (1) / 10:58 (2) / 10:57 (3) / 10:41 (4) / 10:33 (5) / 10:43 (6) / 10:23 (7) / 10:19 (8) / 10:38 (9) / 10:09 (10) / 10:11 (11) / 10:38 (12) / 9:37(!!!) (13)

Results
Official time 2:18:36 – a new PR by two minutes!
3rd (!!!) in my 30-39 age group

Training Week 11: Niagara Falls International Marathon

August 24, 2015 - Mel

MONDAY: Finally got back to spinning class this week (on what is my usual rest day). I knew that I would have more than enough rest days this week. And I just really wanted to start the week off right.

TUESDAY: Went to the Chelsea Collective store preview party. See my post here!

WEDNESDAY: run//yoga club with another 3.01 miles (time: 29:54) and 75 minutes of hot, sweaty yoga. Still a little adapted because of my finger, but I definitely felt stronger than last week.

THURSDAY: Anticipated getting a post-work run in, but there was an office party that went longer into the workday. Meanwhile, I skipped drinking at the party so I could run, but then I was too tired by the time I got home at 7pm PLUS I still had to pack for my weekend trip. At least I got another day’s worth of walking in for my commute.

FRIDAY: Drove to Cleveland, and there was no time for anything but singing alone in the car. Hashtag, thanks Pitbull Sirius channel.

SATURDAY: I really didn’t want to run the day before the race. I did a 5K the day before Pittsburgh, and well… I didn’t want to do that again.

SUNDAY: Half Marathon Day! Read my recap here. 13.1 miles at an average 10:37 pace. This run felt great, and as I wrote in my recap, was 33 seconds faster than my Pittsburgh time. I only walked at two water spots (just long enough to drink and eat some beans). I probably could have even done the first few miles a little faster but I had a really great pace group. This feels good though and makes all this mileage madness worth it. A few seconds is progress, and interesting to see where I can make even more.

My breakfast was a little different than for my usual long runs too, which is interesting to note. No eggs (stupid room service).

Total runs: 2
Total miles: 16.11 miles
Total training miles: 120.54 miles

By the end of next week (and in next Monday’s post), I can officially say that I have run the furthest that I ever have, with a 14-mile long run on the schedule for my weekend. Here’s hoping for some crisp Fall-like weather, eh?

Race Recap: Rock Hall Half Marathon

August 23, 2015 - Mel

I finished my second half marathon this morning, you guys! And overall, it was a great run and I feel good about my result.

I’m at the mid-point of my full marathon training right now, and a half marathon just happened to coincide with my weekend long run of 13 miles. This was the Rock Hall Half Marathon in Cleveland presented by Second Sole and part of Greater Cleveland XC — in collaboration, obviously, with the Rock Hall.

Registration and Cost: I was one of the first 500 participants to sign up, so the discounted registration price was $55. Registration day-of-race (for comparison) was $95.

Expo and Packet Pick-up: No expo, but bib pick-up was INSIDE the Rock Hall, and you can’t get much cooler than that venue!

Bag Check: This race did NOT have a bag check, but I was staying at a nearby hotel and walked to the start line all geared up.

Weather: The morning temperatures were probably very similar to Pittsburgh’s Half — chilly but sunny. The temperatures quickly rose into the low 80s and I was glad for wearing my tank and shorts and not having to shed any layers (despite how chilly I was to start). No humidity at ALL though, and even a nice little wind. SO NICE.

Course: USATF certified course that started at the 9th Street Pier (aka: where the Rock Hall sits) and its ONLY hill is within the first 3/4 mile going up West 3rd. The course quickly diverted out of downtown down Lakeside, and up 18th Street to Carnegie, which took us all the way to MLK Boulevard — where the museums and beautiful Cultural Gardens are located. MLK dead ends, basically, into the lake, so we pulled a left to run along North Marginal, which takes you back to the Rock Hall for the finish. There is the tiniest little incline coming back into the last finish sprint, but coming from Pittsburgh, Cleveland “hills” are laughable.

There were many jokes made in my small group about the “perfect” place to have a heart attack, as we passed through Cleveland Clinic’s campus.

Fans and Experience: Minimal fan interaction along the course, save for the start and finish. My favorite fan was definitely the female cop on MLK who gave every runner a high five. Considering my being overwhelmed by the crowds at the Pittsburgh Half, the nearly-empty sidelines were welcomed.

I started off with the 2:40 pacer (who was ironically from Pittsburgh), and it was a really great group. I broke off with one of the older gentleman around five miles in. At the mid-point of the race, we attempted to catch the 2:15 pacers. Eventually, I needed a shortest-walking break to take in a bit more water (that I had mostly skipped) and eat a packet of sport beans, and my partner advanced ahead of me. It was nice to have someone to run and talk to for a lot of the race though! Plus, I didn’t put my earbuds in until about 8 miles in.

Random Bullshit: Uh, there was no cop or volunteer stopping traffic at the 18th and St. Clair intersection, which was a little scary. Thankfully, another runner grabbed a cop at the next intersection to get somebody there ASAP.

Finish Line: Short chute, with plenty of water close by at the end. Jimmy John’s was giving out sandwiches and I saw people walking around with plates of pizza and ice cream sandwiches (crazy jealous!). SO MANY vendor booths at the Pier. Well done.

Medals and Swag: Both the half and 5K medals were awesome, and the awards were in the shape of a guitar pick (none of the latter for me lolz). In our swag bag was a ticket for free admission to the Rock Hall and probably one of my favorite free race t-shirts ever.

Bonus: Since I haven’t been able to curb my hunger during long runs, I packed a couple gluten-free lemon shortbread cookies from Pamela’s and THEY WERE PERFECT.

Double Bonus: One of the SCRR runners that met up for a pre-race picture saw me approaching the finishing climb of the race and ran with me almost to the end. That really made me feel good, and that kind of race day camaraderie is why I love this running community.

Pittsburghers (and Steel City Road Runners) invade Cleveland!

Notable 30-somethings: High five to the 35-39 age group winner (ahem, my group) who finished in 1:23.42. Seriously.

After party: I found out from my sister that, randomly, my dad’s band was playing out at Legacy Village. We stopped out there for a couple hours to catch up with family, got more sunshine and lunch. And then it was back in the car to Pittsburgh.

OVERALL
The Great: Being able to run a race back in my hometown!
The Good: Weather was awesome, and I felt really, really good. Man, I haven’t had a good run in far too long.
The Bad: My boyfriend forgot to bring down my dang chocolate milk to the finish line!
The Ugly: Um… had some “digestive” issues prior to the race which made my already-nervous stomach more so. Thankfully, I had no problems on the course (but certainly did again afterward). Hashtag, runners problems.

My internal monologue was doing a little shit-talking after Mile 12, but MAN I felt so much better at this race overall than I did at Pittsburgh.

RESULTS
Finished: 2:20:16 — 33 seconds faster than my half in May, so I have a new PR!
53rd in my age group (out of 82)

Weekly Therapy: …but maybe we should.

August 21, 2015 - Mel

the week:
I feel as though I haven’t had a chance to think this week, let alone PACK (or, you know… run). Every night I had something on my calendar and to be honest, I’m looking forward to a couple hours in the car by myself tonight.

weekend:
Heading over to O-hi-O for some running (participating) and roller derby (observing). I have the Rock Hall Half Marathon on Sunday, and the WFTDA D2 Playoffs at the Public Auditorium throughout the weekend. Should be a kick-ass, hot-ass weekend.

52 books in 52 weeks:
#29: Seeking Ultra by Paul Klipp – I feel… a bit disingenuous including this in my list, given that it’s about 50 pages long. But I had no idea going in, and was, frankly, disappointed that I was duped into reading this book that’s not really a book (via Kindle). Moving on…

seven things, seven days:
1. Randomly won a $250 visa gift card for taking a survey about healthcare (which I’ll be ironically using to pay a stupid doctor bill; WHYTF do I even have insurance if it covers nothing?).
2. There was a wellness fair in Market Square this week, and I finally got to try some Gluten Free Goat Bakery baked goods (chocolate chip cookie and a cider donut, if you must know). I know that she uses potato starch in her ingredients, but I had already failed at my attempt in having a non-contaminated, nightshade-free lunch (which was so much FAIL), so… YUM.
3. Excited about crossing a few of these cool places to do yoga off my list soon. {via NEXT Pittsburgh}
4. Speaking of yoga, 1600 (SIXTEEN HUNDRED) people signed up for OM in the Outfield next weekend (I am one of them). More like OMG in the Outfield, amiright?! #anxiety
5. I feel like I was reading something that my daily internal monologue posted with this: …Or Maybe, I Don’t. {via Wit & Delight}
6. The psychological obstacles holding you back at work {via The Book of Life}
7. ME, in sum: “If being watched while you undergo a task, even something benign as eating, makes you highly uncomfortable, then you have social anxiety.” Social anxiety and 7 ways to cure it {via A Daring Adventure}