San Diego Rock n' Roll Half Marathon- COMPLETE!

It is absolutely amazing to think that I am DONE for the season- after five months of blood, sweat and tears and injury I finally finished the race I had been training for- this morning! And I can't believe I didn't break my toe or fall down the stairs or have some other traumatic injury the night before!

I can't begin to stress how amazing and fun the Team and Training inspiration dinner was last night. It was held at the Hilton Bayfront, and we entered the dinner to a ROAR of the mentors, coaches and LLS cheering us on in full regalia- men in drag, people with cowbells, everyone screaming- it was unbelievable, what an incredible moment! They then had John "The Penguin" Bingham speak. He was sooo funny and so inspirational. But most inspiring was having a woman from the NYC office speak about how she did the Rock n' Roll San Diego last year while her father was having chemotherapy treatments at a hospital along the marathon route- and showed a photo of him watching her run from the hospital rooftop. He then got up to speak, and the audience roared. I was also honored to sit with the GUINNESS WORLD RECORD HOLDER for most miles run in 7 consecutive days, Mike Sheehy, who raised $43,000 by doing so. And all in all, the 4000 Team and Training members from chapters all over the country raised TWELVE MILLION DOLLARS by doing this race! GO TEAM!

After a very sleepless night I got up at 3:15 am to get ready for the day. Luckily I've gotten up at the crack of dawn every Saturday for the past five months to run, so I knew what to do as far as what to eat, what to wear, etc. I had everything set out just in case I was brain dead in the morning, which I was. It was pitch black at 4:45 am when I got to the start at Balboa Park where everyone was meeting and after searching for about 20 minutes I finally found my team!

I was absolutely delighted that I was able to find my training partner this season, Sara. She has been training and fundraising in honor of her dad who is going through treatment for Leukemia now, and so we're bonded through our fathers- and of course having the same pace. She's a rock star fundraiser, which means that she raised $1000 over and above her fundraising goal, and so got to wear a singlet with a big star on the back of her shirt- as well as tickets to seaworld, etc. Believe me, that singlet was a life saver because whenever I lost her in the crowd I just looked for that big huge star. I felt like I was a kid in a grocery store half the race- like where's my rock star? It was absolutely amazing to be able to do the race with her.
Here we are waiting at the port o pottie line, which is where we spent most of the morning as the line was a half hour long.

Here are all the girls that have been training together all season long on the Green team. Sometimes I ran with all of them, sometimes I ran with one or two on one of the mentor runs...we're the "5 minute run, 1 minute walk" girls. It was a such a pleasure to start with so many of them in corral 36, aka the slow paced group. Since the race started off in waves according to pace and corrals, it took a good fifty minutes before we went across the start line!

I love the sea of purple!!!

Here are the marathoners that started before us!
Getting closer to that starting line!
On Highway 163. That was one long highway to run on! My favorite aid station was where the army members were in camoflage handing out water to us. I felt very honored!

The first few miles were very difficult, as it was very muggy and I was pretty dehydrated and didn't get much (if any) sleep. I really didn't know if I would make it or not- was pretty delirious, woozy, etc. I had a gel at mile three and it really pepped me up, thank god, then the next five miles went pretty well. I appreciated the men on bikes at the top of a big hill on 163 who kept a mantra of "Take this time to stretch. Be careful on the downhill. Relax. Breathe through your nose. Take it easy." On the downhill we (Darcy, Sara and me) ran into the assistant coach David, who ran with us for about a half mile and checked in with how we were feeling. At this point Darcy's knee was hurting and Sara's foot had stabbing pain, but I felt good because we were going downhill. Uphill was another story!

Right before 163 was the Mission Mile, where there are signs of honored patients up to remind us why we are here. I also thought it was funny because there was a mile of people waiting for the port o potty! Unfortunately our waiting for it caused us to be among the walkers and we had to weave through them for quite a while.

Cheerleaders along the course. My favorite were the men in drag doing the cheering!

Gotta love the big huge guitar player! This is really a Rock n' Roll marathon!

Darcy asked me to take a photo of her with this woman. I love the sign!

Sara's mom, boyfriend and friends were at mile 8 on Friar's Road. It really put a pep in her step!

John and Kristen were at mile 10 with these awesome signs they made with hot glue and glitter. Gotta love it! They were so psyched to see me after waiting for over an hour (or two?) but at least they were waiting by a band! John was absolutely giddy!

Me after 10 miles. I was so happy to see my sister and my hubby!

Bye bye!
Kristen and John were cheering from top of a bridge at mile 11! Thank god we were still running!

The final push just before the finish line! We walked about 3 miles due to injuries, but at least we finished!
Hanging out with the Running Elvises at the Beer Garden after the race. Gotta love it!

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy playing for us at the finish line. They were SOOO good and even though I could barely walk because of blisters and my legs felt like they were sawed in two by chafing, I was having a great time dancing!

At the finish!
YEOW! My finish medal, which is so heavy! Thanks to my friends and family I was able to raise $100 per mile and finished in about 3:37 give or take a minute or two (it would have been a lot faster if we didn't stop at those port o potties!). This was for you, Daddy!

Coronado Run

I've got three weeks until the 1/2 marathon. Three weeks! Today was supposed to be a back down week and only 6 miles for the 1/2 marathon group, but since I've got to make up my miles and the longest I've really done is 6 miles, I decided to do the marathon training run and did- gasp- 9.2 miles. 9.2 very long miles, but along Coronado so I can't complain. We met at Tidelands Park at 7 am along with three other marathon training groups- I guess it's a popular place to meet!

I was doing 5 minute run, 1 minute walks, then met up with a group that was doing 6 minute miles, two minute walks and quite frankly I LOVE my recoveries so I joined them. I swiftly went to the rear (I know I'm getting faster, but so is everyone else!) and was joined by the sweeper, Tina, who helped me go for miles while chatting. I said I should be the sweeper (the appointed last runner who makes sure everyone's okay) on the runs from here on in since I'm so good at it! I felt like absolute garbage the first couple miles, but then my body went, oh, okay, I guess I can do it, and I just plugged through it.

After Tina went back with the half marathon group, my buddy Joe came on as the sweeper and joined me for the other part of the run. Did I mention how much I love running with other people? It just makes the miles fly by, and so much more pleasurable. At the aid stand just before the 9.2 mile turnaround, I was going to head back but I had everyone there cheer me on to get to the turnaround point, which was two rocks leaning towards each other like a butt. Imagine hearing six people yell, "Touch the butt! Touch the butt!!" Of course it was like a mirage and so much further then it looked, but it was awfully satisfying to touch the butt : )

The last three miles I was joined by the TNT mentor David, who is doing the Rock n' Roll marathon on a hand bike. I had never really talked to him before, just knew he was from Indiana and was very friendly, and whenever he goes by me in the handbike it makes me go faster. Turns out this is his twentieth race with Team in Training and has been part of the group since 1998. He had done numerous marathons and two ironman triathlons and in 2001 (?) he did the Alaska marathon with TNT, went hiking a few days later, fell, and crushed several vertibae in his spinal cord. He said he had done NYC the year before, and when he was in Alaska was supposed to do NYC so was able to transfer his entry to his nurse, and did the race the next year in his hand bike.

I can't even begin to tell you what an inspiration David is. He has a wonderful, cheerful outlook on life, and while we did the last three miles together he was telling me all about his races. He was also constantly checking on me- how are my feet, how are my shins...it made me want to cry (I did a little but hopefully I was able to hide it). I feel so blessed to have been able to spend that time with David.

Afterwards we went as a group to the Beach N' Diner on Orange Ave in Coronado for a celebratory breakfast! Here's Assistant Coach David having his post run meal of chicken n' waffles and a chocolate shake- ummm!

Torrey Pines

Had a great run this morning with Team in Training, after two weeks of no running (I know, I'm a loser) because of the new job that's taking all my time. I have to figure out how to fit in the running between the paperwork and exhaustion at the end of the day.

The day was so beautiful- since it's spring, the flowers are in full force and the drive to Torrey Pines was gorgeous. And it's just breathtaking there- probably one of the most beautiful places on earth. The run started at the bottom of the hill in the Penasquitos Marsh reserve, and we jogged up (and up!) the hill, along the Pacific Ocean to the road, where we then ran down Torrey Pines Blvd to the Del Mar dog beach. WOW! I hadn't known that we were going to run to Del Mar, so when we got out of a gorgeous housing development and I saw the ocean, I literally had to catch my breath!

I ran with three other nice girls (I'm amazed I was able to keep up with them, considering my training has been so sporatic) who all had done the Peace Corps. Add that to the list of why I love Team in Training, I meet the coolest people! We did intervals of 6 minute run, 2 minute walk...the six minute run was a bit long for me, but I LOVE the two minute recovery! On the way back from Del Mar, just as I headed into Torrey Pines, I stopped for a moment to drink it all in. I was in the middle of some flower fields, overlooking the cliffs and the ocean, and I started crying because I was so overwhelmed by the beauty of Torrey Pines. I'm a sap, I know! Running makes me happy to be alive.

Distance: 6.1 miles

Five Miles in La Mesa

I haven't posted in a while, due to a new job (finally!), traveling to NY for my beautiful nephew and godson's christening, and general procrastination. I am gradually healing from my plethora of running injuries, so going out cautiously and with some trepidation. I made the decision to switch to the half marathon because I've lost so much time training- an extremely difficult decision, but a realistic one.

Today we ran in La Mesa, which is east of where I live and usually sweltering hot- it wasn't today, thank goodness. We met at Moving Shoes then ran around Lake Murray and back, doing 4 minute run, 1 minute walk. Since I wasn't quite up to doing 8.4 miles with the A group (my slow lighting running partners) I pulled off the loop and went back at El Paso. I think it was 5 miles but it was probably a bit less...so funny to say, "I ONLY went five miles today."

I really am enjoying training with the Team. It took a little bit to know people, but now that we're 2 months in, we're all more comfortable with each other and it's fun to hang out together after the run for stretching and chit chatting.

This past Wednesday I was able to go to the Balboa run and did 3 miles around the museums. The weather was perfect (70?), the flowers were fragrant, and I was running around amazing artwork. That's what I love about running- it makes me happy to be alive.

First Day of Training!

Today was the first day of training with Team in Training for the marathon to kick off 18 weeks of training. It was such a pleasure to meet up with the Central team (about 100 people?), which is only one team out of three- there is also a North team and the South team in San Diego...so nice to see the support for Team in Training!

I'm always amazed how incredibly friendly people are in San Diego, and how happy they are to live here. It was also so nice to see how happy people in Team in Training are to be doing the program- so meeting up at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to start the run was like being in Disneyland, everyone was sooooo thrilled to be there! Yippee, horray, we're training for a marathon! There was so much pride in what we are doing, all the alumni were wearing Team in Training t-shirts and jackets and showing off pins saying how many marathons they did...I would have to say there were about 60% alumni there! There were also about 15 mentors, four coaches, two assistant coaches...with signs and cameras and all these yay rah things that I never would have thought of, like signs along the running route saying all these facts about leukemia and why we are doing it.

Learned some new stretches for my shins today, which were very helpful! Partnered up with someone to hold each other up and first:
1. Went up on our tip toes facing forward
2. Went up on our heels facing forward
3. Had our heels close by with toes facing out and up on tip toes
4. Our heels close by with toes facing out and up on heels
5. Our toes close together with heels out and up on toes
6. Our toes close together with heels out and up on heels
I was also told that as a new (well, returning) runner that shin splints are very common, and it's best to roll a tennis ball under my foot to prevent/ help heal shin splints. Also, if you rub your arch, it helps it as well.

I went with the A group, the beginners group, to do 3.1 miles, running 3 minutes and walking 1 minute. Felt pretty great the first mile and a half, then felt like I was going to puke. So I ran 1 minute then walked 3 minutes (okay, that's being generous) until the end. The picture doesn't really capture my beet red face, but I was happy to be done!

I'm now limping a little bit and my legs feel like lead and I've been SOOO tired all day long. This is going to be a LONG process and hard on my body and I'm starting to wonder why I didn't do the century ride for Team in Training? It's very different to train for a marathon when I'm almost 40 then when I was in my 20s...enough complaining, I've got to get up early to do a 40 minutes jog tomorrow!

My first race with Team in Training

My first race with Team in Training was the Bermuda half marathon in January of 1998. Here I am, after the race, cold and wet after going through two huge rain storms (it REALLY rains in Bermuda, crazy monsoon rains- then it's bright and sunny right afterward like it never began) and absolutely thrilled that I was able to complete the race!

Let me backtrack to how I had started with Team in Training. I had begun volunteering with the Leukemia Society in 1995 when I graduated college, putting on special events to fundraise in memory of my dad. Team in Training was a relatively new program and the people that had done the marathon through them were VERY enthusiastic and their pride in doing the event was infectious. They kept asking me to do it, and my answer was pretty much what you would expect- absolutely not, there's noooo wayyyy I could ever do a marathon, what are you crazy??? I had run as a teenager, actually as a way to cope with my father's dying, but hadn't since and was very out of shape.

Fast forward two years later to 1997. I was living in Hoboken and working in New York City and started working out regularly. While I was on the stairmaster I read an article in Health Magazine about Team in Training and thought, that's it, that's my calling. So I RAN home four blocks. listening to Prince on my walkman, and thought, hey, I can run again! I called the Leukemia Society the next day and signed up over the phone for the next marathon they were fundraising for, the Dublin marathon, even though it was in 3 months. Okay, I hear you laughing. It was very impulsive and I can tell you I had NO IDEA what I was in for. If I really did have a clue just HOW much work was in front of me I might not have done it, but at the same time it was also one of the best things that have ever happened to me.

I wrote a letter to my friends and family and posted my letter to my then publishing company's intranet server. To say the support I had was overwhelming is an enormous understatement. I heard stories from so many people telling me how cancer and leukemia had personally affected them. I met many people I might not have met, and realized that fundraising and training for a cause was really bigger then myself. I no longer felt like it was just "me", but felt like I was a vehicle for spreading the word about the Leukemia society.

Training was long and repetitive and rigorous. I trained with the running club in Hoboken, the Hoboken Harriers, and would get up at 5:30 am to run along the Hudson river before work. Unfortunately before the Dublin race I got a hairline fracture in my foot, and wasn't able to train for a month while it healed. So I was able to transfer to the next marathon, which was Bermuda. And then I sprained my left ankle three weeks before that race, running on a sidewalk but after training for 6 months I decided to do the race anyway, albeit as a half marathon instead of a full marathon. And then I broke my toe on a piece of exercise equipment a week before the event (!!!). So I figured I would go to the event and just do how ever long I could do and then stop when my toe and ankle started acting up.

The night before the race Team in Training had a huge spaghetti party and told us the story of how the marathon came to being...that there was a runner, Phidippedes, that ran 26 miles to Athens to tell them that the war was over (and then died of exhaustion). He compared us as marathoners to messengers- that we are spreading the word that someday there WILL be a cure to Leukemia.

The day of the race, January 18, 1998, was BEAUTIFUL. I think it was 70 degrees and sunny and the water looked like someone dropped turquoise food dye in there. It was quite the change from training during the winter in New York! I started walking...and walking...more like hobbling, expecting to only do a mile. People were cheering me on, asking me if I was alright, laughing with me because I was limping in the first mile. Since I knew I really wasn't competing, I decided to just enjoy the scenery as I walked and thought of my dad and the girl with leukemia that I was limping in honor of, Chelsea, and thought, well, this pain I'm having in my ankle and toe is nothing compared to chemotherapy. And what a way to see the island! I walked along the breathtaking coastline and manicured lawns and proper people (who said, hey, are you okay, come inside and have some tea) and then the not-so-rich area with the Rastifarians (who said hey, sweetheart, come in the house, forget this marathon, we'll give you a backrub). After a while my toe went completely numb and miraculously I went around the whole island and completed 13.1 miles! I came in 310 and finished in 3:49:07- I didn't come in dead last!