Tag Archives: local races

March 2nd: Race #2… Mission Accomplished!

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Well, we both woke up sore and tired at 5:20am this morning but neither of us let on that we thought this might be a bad idea… back to back half marathons in one weekend is pretty crazy.

Since we both put on our brave faces (and really wanted to prove that we could do this) we headed over to the Swamp House Half as planned.  It was pretty cold by our standards, around 50 degrees, and our tired muscles and joints were stiff as boards but when the blow horn sounded we were off.

The conversation was good, the company was the best and the adventure was epic.  I love my little sister and our crazy antics.  It was a fun race and the after party was lively and delicious!  Where else do you get unlimited IPA beer and jambalaya included in your race entry?!  Oh, and did I mention that they gave us a little swig of beer at mile 12 just to give us the motivational boost we needed to finish?  Fun times!

Amazing finale to an amazing race season.  I am so proud, happy and ready to train for next season’s goal: HALF MARAHON UNDER TWO HOURS!!

February 24th: 5 days to go!!

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swamp and best

My crazy 1/2 marathon double-hitter weekend is quickly approaching, folks!  This Saturday, I will be running the “Best Damn Race” followed by Sunday’s “Swap House 1/2 marathon” in Orlando!

Crazy?… yes…. Crazy Awesome!  What better way can you think of to end an amazing running season?!  I’ve had some amazing runs, some disappointments, hit some personal records and over-all feel that I have finally come into my own as a runner.

My sister and I are psyched but a little freaked out to say the least!  We will be doing Saturday’s race for time but Sunday’s race for fun…  The Swamp House race has a really fun after party we are looking forward to the entertainment, food and endless FREE BEER to celebrate our hard work!  (We are also planning on celebrating Mardi Gras in one of Orlando’s many great hot spots so, the weekend will be a non-stop thread of manic running and shenanigans.  Just the way we like it!)

Check out the Best Damn Race and Swamp House web sites!:

http://bestdamnrace.com/orlando/

http://www.swamphousehalfmarathon.com/

What amazing ways are you planning on ending your race seasons this year??!  Please share!

 

February 2nd: Miami Half Marathon

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ing 1

The alarm went off at 3am and we were out the door by 3:50am as planned.  We had an hour drive, a crazy search for parking and quite a wait to start (25,000 participants meant it took Georgette and I 28 minutes to just cross the STARTING line).

This is my third time participating in the Miami Marathon and Half Marathon Event.  It was the first half marathon I ever ran in 2008 and the first (and only) full marathon I ever ran in 2010.  Now that I’ve run a few races, (this one was my 12th half marathon) I have concluded that I don’t like big events.  Unless you are an elite runner and have qualified to start from one of the front corrals, its just no fun… You spend more time running sideways to get around people than you do forward to pass people.  Even if you just want to participate in the race for fun and not for time, like Georgette and I did at the Disney Princess Half Marathon last year, you’ll get really frustrated with the insane amount of people that will keep you from even hitting your stride.  (Side note:  Disney races are really, really fun but only for those who plan on walking part of it and don’t care about their time.  All of them are very crowded and many of the participants are not actually runners but people who just want to check something off their bucket list while wearing a ridiculous tutu.  I freely admit to having done the Princess Half in a tutu so…. check)

The race today was not as crowded as the Princess Half but, it certainly was nothing like the under 2,000 participant races I’ve been getting used to doing.  Its no excuse for not having made my time goal, though.  I clocked in at 2:10:20 (fooey) but thats ok.  I had fun, spent some quality time with some quality people and got to run through some of my old stomping grounds.

January 4th: Personal Record and Injury Free!

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west palm 1:2 jan 4th

Today I am grateful for having broken my personal record at the Sunshine State West Palm Beach 1/2 Marathon without injury.  As you may remember, I have set a goal to beat my race times by one minute each race this season.  I have surprised myself by actually beating my PRs by 2 minutes for the past two races.  Today, I beat my last race time of 2:10:31 by 2m 31sec.  I passed the finish line as the race clock ticked at exactly 2:08:00.

I am so incredibly proud of myself and, to be honest, have never been more emotional at a race… Not even my Full in 2009.  I prayed last night, and throughout the race, that the muscle in the back of my left thigh wouldn’t seize up on me as it did last March during the Coral Springs 1/2 that I ran with my sister.  It was very painful and forced me to hobble past the finish and take about a month off of running afterwards.

This past week, the same muscle has been tight and achey and I have been panicking to myself about it because I have been training so hard and looking forward so much to possibly getting a personal record at this race.  It started to get a little sore and tight around mile 8 but I decided that “I’m not going to think, I’m not going to feel, I’m just going to fricken’ do it” … And I did! 🙂

Our Goals

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Walkers' Feet

Its back to school time… which also means that I’ll be going back to work now after having had a wonderfully relaxing summer vacation. Luckily, it also means that South Florida’s running season will soon begin! Whereas the rest of the country is trying to enjoy the last days of warm weather before fall and winter bring on unbearable cold, us Floridians are in hibernation during the opposite time of the year. May through August (and even September) can have some pretty unbearably hot days. Summer time’s temperatures can go high up into the 90’s. Its really a time of year best reserved for short, early-morning runs and cross training.

November through March are really the best months to get out there and get some mileage in. This is also when most of our local races are scheduled!

Last year’s running season was epic for me. I improved my 1/2 marathon PR (Personal Record) from 2:31 to 2:16 (I told you that I wasn’t very fast but I’m proud of it). Improving a full 15 minutes in one year’s time is pretty amazing, if I don’t say so myself. This season, I’m up for the challenge of pushing myself even harder. My mind is changing, my running style is changing and my body is changing. I am inspired to set another goal. One that will truly make me push my mind and body a little further than before. I will try to PR by 1 minute: each race I run this season.

My first challenge wont even be in my home state: Allstate 13.1 Half Marathon in Boston on September 15th! Can I clock in at 2:15? I’m sure as hell gonna try! http://www.131marathon.com/boston/

I will, of course, be posting my progress as the running season progress. I have 5 Half Marathons scheduled for this season so far and I’m excited.

Here is my race schedule:

13.1 Boston 15-Sep-13

Disney Wine & Dine Half 9-Nov-13

Palm Beach Half 8-Dec-13

ING Half/Full 2-Feb-14

13.1 Miami Beach 2-Mar-14

What are your goals this season? What do you hope to achieve? How do you plan on achieving this? Who will be supporting you/ accompanying you? Please share with me! either as a comment to this page or via email. I’d love to hear your stories and feature them on the blog!