R2R 10k: Hold Back, Stay Steady, Finish Strong

I have been a terrible blogger, but I'm going to make a better effort to stay on top of it. 

So!  This weekend, I ran the Run to Register 10k for the Marine Corps Marathon out in Quantico and had a fantastic time.

My good friend, who I've previously called WB for Work Buddy came into town to do the race with me. We stayed close to Quantico Friday night because the last thing we wanted to do was drive an hour+ from the city down to the base. 

We got up early, headed over to base and walked out of the car into cool, crisp air.  The base was alive with a bunch of talkative runners, pacing around, warming up.  After a last minute bathroom break for me,we lined up under the familiar Marine Corps Marathon arches (my stomach dropped seeing them, remembering my anxiety at the marathon) and off we went. 

The course was a simple out and back, down a gently sloping (rises and falls, though nothing too steep).  Quantico really is beautiful, we were going down one road that stays along side a lake and a bunch of trees.  I felt amazing a few miles in, approaching the halfway (3.1), I felt amazing. 

I've noticed that I often times come out of the gate WAY too fast (aka, the Turkey Trot with my brother where I nearly puked all over everyone because I was trying to hold is 7:28 pace....HA).  This time, I stayed with my friend, stayed with the crowd, and as it opened up, I slowly let myself adjust to about an 8m/m pace.  That's a pretty decent and safe pace for a 5k for me, maybe even fine for 4-5 miles, but to stay with it for 6.2 was going to be a little challenging.  But it's amazing what checking your speed at the starting line can do.  Conserving energy, I was faster for longer.  I saw WB as I started back from the halfway and checked my watch.

I couldn't tell you now what it said, but I remember trying to do math for a couple of minutes, checking and rechecking to make sure I'd calculated it correctly.  I couldn't possibly be holding this time, this long...could I?

But I went with it, enjoying the scenary, feeling confident and breezy.  I turned the corner to come into the track and checked my watch.  In my bad calculations, I had hit 51 minutes and was about to turn possibly beat a 53, which, while I didn't "really" have a goal, I knew I wanted something below an hour and that it was possible I could pull out something under 55.  After rounding the bend in the track, I saw the official clock: 49:1something.  Two words went through my mind: HOLY SH*T and I booked it.  I'd already tried to put on the after burners coming down the hill onto the track but lost it somewhere in the middle.  Refiring was really difficult, but I crossed the line in what I swear was some blur of numbers around a 49:3something. 

Alas, my official time (which apparently was clock AND chip time...even though I started probably a solid minute after the clock time?) was 50.00.00.  A new 10K PR. Some smooth even numbers there, my friends.

I felt officially accomplished and spent the rest of the day, stuffing my face with Mexican food with WB (who also ran a solid race, crushing his PR by 15 minutes--major props to him!) and spending time with Chadd.

Here we are, WB and I, post race:

Best part of the race?  When we finished, we were handed a card with an access code on it for a guaranteed entry to the Marine Corps Marathon this year--the 35th.  I ran the 31st in 2006 with a 4:22:34...and am looking to crush the 4 hour mark this year, which is just a little over a 9 minute mile.  I'd be in line for a 3:45 if I held a solid 8:30.  We'll see how training goes!

I've got a weekend off, then the Cherry Blossom 10 mile!  If I can hold an 8:15 pace, I'll be thrilled, an 8:30, pretty happy, and anything lower, acceptable. 

A little shout out to all of you--thank you so much for the gchat messages/emails/facebook messages, etc. letting me know you read the blog and your congrats on my race--y'all are the best and you give me warm fuzzies. 

Coming up this afternoon: Abs/Core Arsenal--a few moves for beginners to experts to pay some special attention to your core!

Cooking Locally: Spare Ribs and Ramps

What a weekend...

Chadd and I did the Run Amuck 5k up in Rockville...absolutely hilarious.  We also found out that Chadd is a superior trail runner than I am (though I think I'd probably win in longer distances) and that wading through lake mud makes your quads sore.  We did finish 43, which, in our opinion, is pretty damn good out of about 370 teams of two.  Our time was somewhere around 33 minutes.  While that would be embarrassing for a 4k, I think it's pretty good for a 5k with obstacles and mud pits.

Some gentleman walking around the race took our picture for us since I was brilliant and left my phone in the car, and with that, my camera.  So I'm hoping that he'll email us our picture so I can show you what happens when you run a 5k through trails, wade through lakes, and finish the race crawling in a pit of mud.  Seriously.

I spent Sunday mostly cleaning and cooking, which brings me to this month's/quarter's whatever's Cooking Locally!

For just over $16, I picked up a little more than 2 pounds of pork spare ribs from one of the pork vendors.  I grabbed asparagus from another farm (4.50) where I'd also grabbed Ramps ($5) the week before.  I picked up a handful of small yukon gold potatoes ($2.50) and I was set.

I called my dad to get his expertise on the ribs.  He suggested a dry rub, and normally I'd have just put one together, but then I remembered that we have packets of spice rubs I picked up from a little spice/tea shop in Florida (there's another one here in Alexandria, apparently).  I brushed the ribs with a little olive oil, then slathered the rub on pretty thick on both sides.

After that, I tossed them (racked) in the over at about 175 for the next two hours.  I made the mistake of thinking they were done at this point (they weren't) and went on much later in the evening to throw them into a 450 over (which surprisingly made them come out perfectly) for about 15 minutes while I was finishing up the potato and ramp au gratin (2 c. potatoes, bunch of chopped ramps, layered, 1 c. milk, bread crumbs on top, your choice cheese on top, bake covered for 20 min. in 450, uncovered another 15).

Dinner wound up looking like this:

And was it ever delicious.  Chadd gave it a 4.5 out of 5, mostly because he likes the potatoes done a different way, but we both agreed the ramps were pretty good and a nice touch to the dish.  I was also pretty happy with the caloric value (somewhere around 450 for me) since ribs require so much time to eat, I get full on them quickly and don't eat too much meat, everything else was pretty healthy, especially since I used 1% milk for the potatoes instead of cream, and no butter.

I also whipped up a frittata of leeks, potatoes, and spinach, which, since I fell asleep prior to my bed time last night, failed to cut for my lunch today.  But there will be a review.  That recipe came from the cookbook I hailed as awesome last week, so I have no doubt it's going to be awesome.

My bosses aren't in today, but that doesn't mean I'm at a loss for work.  I can't believe it's already noon and I'm going to lose most of my afternoon and productive working time to a conference call. 

I've got a lot of links saved up for tomorrow--get excited!

Marathon Training, and how

I sat down at my computer yesterday with a little time on my hands in the afternoon to look over a few running schedules for marathon prepping.  I have Jeff Galloway's book at home, but since I forgot to pick it up and bring it in with me, I decided to do some online research and I found a program that I think I'm going to try out.  It was listed online through the Houston Chronicle and can be found here at this link:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/run/971175.html

Anyway, since I've done one before and would like to consider myself in fairly decent enough shape, I figured I'd give their intermediate schedule a shot and modify it as I went a long due to teaching etc.

My class schedule is as such:
- Tuesday PM: Step Class
- Every other Thursday PM: Body Pump
- Ever other Saturday AM: Body Pump
- Sunday AM: 20-20-20

With three days taken up a week with training, I'm in kind of a pickle, especially since there will be weekends (every other weekend, in fact) where I'll be teaching twice, which wouldn't be an issue if I didn't also have to throw a long run in there, which can take up to 4 hours.

As I was charting out my modified running schedule, I started to realize that, uhoh.  I'm exactly 26 weeks away from the marathon.  Which, truth be told, is quite a lot of time (that's half a year, for those of you, who, like me, went "that's so soon!"), but since I have a serious goal this marathon, I need to be diligent.

My last/first/only marathon, I told Chadd that I wanted to run it in under 4:30 and he promised he'd take me to dinner wherever I wanted to go if I did it.  It was really a friendly competition, he later told me that he'd have taken me out to dinner no matter what considering that I'd just run a marathon.  The funny thing was that I really held on to that bet with him through the race, truly believing that I had to get a 4:30 (though through no reflect of who he is, had I actually been in a sane state of mind I'd have realized he was playing along).

I crossed the line at 4:22:34 and have never had such a strange surge of emotions go through me, exhaustion, elation, pride, extreme and momentary sadness, pain, confusion, clarity...and then I just sat my butt down and waited for someone to find me.

This time is going to be a bit different.  First of all, this isn't my first race (can you believe I did a marathon as my first race?  Talk about ambitious.  Thank God I didn't die...) and second, I've got a solid running history now.  I know what I can do, and I think I can do a sub 4.  If I literally came in at 4:00:00, I'd be okay with it, but a 3:59:59 would make me elated.

This puts me at needing to maintain just a little under a nine minute mile, meaning I need to train to stay at 9 and hope that race day, I get a speed surge.

But as I was writing out this program, realizing that it was 26 weeks away, and that my program literally started this week, I started to build a mental wall.  It doesn't help that I'm not really trained up for my half a week from this weekend...whatever.  4 miles should no longer scare me.  But I psyched myself out really badly for that run, had a miserable time, and barely made it home for just under 5 miles.

Tonight, after my appointment with my R.D., I have to go pull a solid 5, which means it's likely I won't be home until 8:30 tonight.  Must remain positive...and excited.  Here is, so far, the plan for the first 9 weeks of my plan, starting this week:

So.  Now to get to it...

Plans plans plans

Quick update...plans for the week!
Food:

Monday:

-       Breakfast: Cereal, peach

-       Snack: Yogurt

-       Lunch: Amy’s meal, carrots, 100 cal pack

-       Snack: Banana

-       Dinner: Big salad, chicken

Tuesday:

-       Breakfast: Cereal, peach

-       Snack: Yogurt

-       Lunch: Salad, cheese, triscuits, 100 cal pack

-       Snack: Popcorn

-       Dinner: “grilled” veggies, chicken, rice

Wednesday:

-       Breakfast: Cereal, applesauce

-       Snack: Yogurt

-       Lunch: “grilled veggies” and rice leftovers, 100 cal pack

-       Snack: Popcorn

-       Dinner: Pita thingys

Thursday:

-       Breakfast: Cereal, banana

-       Snack: Yogurt

-       Lunch: Pita, 100 cal pack

-       Snack: Veggies

-       Dinner: Whatever will wants

wiWill comes into town on Thursday night, hence the wild card.  

Working out:

Monday: 20 minute run, 20-30 minute full body weights

Tuesday: Step

Wednesday: 40-50 minute run (my beginning runner's group will meet for this first time this night, so I'll likely have a very light workout here)

RThursday: 40-50 minute run

Friday: Off

Saturday: 8 mile run

Sunday: 20-20-20

More later!

as

My Body Does What? Also: Porta-Potties

4 days til the marathon and my fears are actually starting to lift away.

I keep replaying Chadd telling me "it's just running.  It's not like this isn't something you don't know how to do, just go run."

It's also made so much better by the fact that my two very dear friends, Maureen and FJ, have volunteered to run a couple miles with me.  Technically, it's not allowed, but no one is ever stopped from running for a couple miles.  Maureen and I have a history of running together--accidentally or on purpose.  She and I usually wind up beating our PRs with each other because we think we're keeping the other back...that's how I crushed the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler at an 8:09 pace.

FJ is my iron man.  He ran Ragnar with me and literally had that name on the back of his shirt: "Iron Man."  FJ recently qualified for Boston and is a total inspiration to me--he's volunteered to run as many miles with me as I want.  And since he did his qualifying marathon two weeks ago, I'm not too concerned about his ability to do as many miles as I need.  I've asked him to be there for miles 16-20ish.

I've decided to run without my ipod for the majority of the race.  That truly was one of the best things about the marathon the first time--was the sound of runners.  It's a symphony of foot steps, breathing, whispers of encouragement, occasionally laughter, the crowd cheering, marching bands playing...and it feels at times like you are simply carried along by the runners around you.

Yes, there are moments when your body is in excruciating pain...probably best summarized by this WaPo article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/section/Marine-Corps-Marathon-2010-Ready-or-not-graphic/index.html

I love especially the bit about the brain:

"The brain does not want the body to run into harm, so it will reduce its electrical impulses to the muscles--in other words, it will stop telling them to move.


Ready?...Or Not: The untrained brain has little or no experience with an effort of this magnitude.  If the body pushes too hard, the brain receives a cacophony of threatening signals--Temperature is rising! Fuel is disappearing! My engines can't take much more of this, Captain!"

That author is CLEARLY a runner.

Then you read articles like this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/19/AR2010101903617.html

And you think to yourself: I am not lucky to run, I am blessed to run.  I was passed in the Army 10 miler by a double amputee doing the race on two prosthetics.  I felt like a huge jerk because I was just mentally complaining about how much it hurt and how much I didn't want to do it...it's the little reminders that keep your mind and body putting one foot in front of the other and to smile while doing it.

In the humor section...runners around the world are giving a big thumbs up to the Marine Corps Marathon race director who very clearly told Comedy Central to shove it when they asked if they could use the porta potties for the Steward/Colbert rallies the day before.

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/stewart-colbert-rallies-looking-for-a-few-good-porta-potties/19664942?a_dgi=aolshare_facebook

I love comedy, I love Stewart and Colbert, and I wish I could go to the rallies (I'm probably skipping in favor of the race expo and staying off my feet as much as possible since my angry heel is still, well, angry) but guys....the race has been planned for months and while I'm sure it will come through, your permit hasn't even been approved yet...and we've had ours for months.  And let me tell you, I don't believe you for one second that Comedy Central would be able to get them cleaned out and restocked in time for our race.  Don't throw a fit and tell us we're being unfair.  I paid good money for those porta potties to be there and clean, well-stocked, and useable for me when I'm running.  So unless some of the money that Comedy Central was offering to the MCM was going to go to crediting my race fee or to the Injured Marines fund, you can find your own potties.

A big heart felt thank you to the race director.  Thanks for standing up for us.  I'll think of you during all of my bathroom stops before/during/after the race.

The Second Marathon

You know what never gets old?  Crossing a finish line.

Yesterday was a wonderful day to race.  I may fall asleep writing this.

Katie came down from Boston to be my support crew with Chadd--we all got up and met up with FJ and Eric at the Metro and headed down to Pentagon.

The lines for the portapotties were unreal.  I mean, un real.  I was terrified I'd miss my start, and just like last time, I didn't even get synched up with my correct corral, I think I managed to get myself into the gates somewhere around the 4:30 mark.

I had originally signed up for a Clif Bar pace group, but I knew I wouldn't join up with them.  I walk my water breaks, I didn't want the pressure of a group.  I lost FJ and Eric in the crowd, but as much as I wanted to run with them, I'm also one of those people who really just prefers to run on their own.

The gun sounded, but it took about 15-20 minutes for me to even cross the start line.  Once I got going, we went up through Rosslyn where I could see the bleachers set up for the spectators at the finish line.  Though I felt great, I also felt like that was forever away.  Something about this marathon had me in knots--later, talking to some Marines in line for the massage, we agreed that you only become a marathoner after you run your second one because then you know what you are subjecting your body to while the first one, you may be granted temporary insanity.

I was great running through Rosslyn, across the bridge to Georgetown, up into the Palisades (ugh, hills), then down M street, to K, up behind the Kennedy Center where I saw Sarah, K-Lo, Pete, and Jana with a "Go Captain Nigeria" sign, which was totally awesome.  I can't remember how much I talked about Ragnar here, but that was my team name from my team (background: I sent out an email about paypal where I said that after people paid me on paypal for the race, I'd reveal myself to be a nigerian warlord scamming people off through the Ragnar scheme--maybe you had to be there.)

I missed Katie and Chadd at the 10-11 mark we'd planned because they wound up dividing the road, but that was okay.  I really wanted to get rid of my jacket and gloves, but I waited until after I'd went around the island--is that Haines Point?  I never know...when I saw them at 16.  I had a 1:58 at the half, which was impressive considering how fast I'd had to run to make up time I lost in the beginning from being with a slower start group (probably a 10 minute mile pace, maybe 10:30).  By the time I got to that area, I was in a solid group of runners that I was more or less leap frogging with the rest of the time.

The race had a very different feel this time--Chadd noticed it too.  The tone was a lot more serious--there were still people in costumes, but even though it was halloween, not nearly as many people as I thought I'd see.  There were a lot more serious runners.  People were hyped and anxious.  Maybe it was me projecting how I felt onto other people, but it had a whole different feel this year.  I can't quite put my finger on what was different, but it just was.

I came back up and went around the mall where I saw my cheer group again (twice! love you guys!) and  saw Chadd and Katie again (they had a sign that said "FREE BEER in 16, 10, 6.5 MILES" that they crossed off as they went--people loved it).  At mile 20, Maureen joined me and thank God.  I was in so much pain at that point, everything else had gone out the window.  I was enjoying the first 20 or so miles, but by mile 23, I'd hit the wall.  My body just couldn't do it anymore.  That's the worst part is that once you beat the bridge, you might not be on the bridge...but it's still desolate highway wasteland.

Maureen was my hero and stayed with me through mile 26 where she peeled off.  .2 Miles to go.  I passed a guy walking and while I knew how badly he hurt, I grabbed his arm and said "you can't stop, it's only .2 away, come on."  Then that hill.  Oh that hill.  It's just unkind.  It would put you out of breath walking up the hill, but running after 26 miles, and you can see the end.  You can hear people screaming, you can see the arches, the photographers, the runners stopping and resting.  There are marines lining the hill, crouching down so you're at eye level with them while you're forcing your body up that hill and they're clapping and waving you onward.  Every step there was a stab of pain going through my body, my legs were on fire, and then that miraculous point where you step across the first timing mat and you are finally, finally done.

4:08:48.  It's not below 4, but honestly, I'm okay with that.  It just wasn't in the cards for yesterday, and I'm just proud of myself for doing it (again).

I got a foil blanket from a Marine, tucked myself into it, being cold already, then got a medal from another Marine after going through the gates, stopped for a picture in front of the Iwo Jima statue, then let myself get herded off to the water and food.  Powerade, water, and this year (great idea!) a bag from sodexho already full of food--somewhere to put everything!

Mom and Dad called me while I was milling around in the crowd then I found Katie and Chadd and with a sweaty hug leaned on them while we got to the finisher area, where I got a mich ultra (mmm favorite "bad" beer) and a much needed massage.

During the massage, FJ came and found me then we all headed to the metro....

Unfortunately, the lines for the metro and shuttles were so long that we decided just to walk back to Georgetown.  And let me tell you.  I was surprised I could walk so far, but we wound up getting a cab around Wisconsin and M back to the house.  We grabbed pizza at Flippin Pizza then drove Katie to BWI.

I felt great last night (for having run a marathon) but today, I feel horrible, kind of like I've been beaten with a baseball bat.  Chadd got me into bed last night, turned on the ballgame, and after I took two tylenol pm, I passed out, but around 7 am, the cat started.  Chadd got up, took care of him, then came back and helped me roll over.  This morning, I was in excruciating pain.  Hell, I still am.

I got a late start on work, but spent the day at my laptop, occasionally trying to get up...now, just to wait until the soreness wears off!

Thank you again everyone for your support!  I'm pretty sure that was my last marathon, but it was a good one to go out on.

And like Katie said--now that I've done more than one, I can say that I'm a marathoner.

Race Calendar 2011

In other news, I'm working on my race calendar, which currently looks like this:

Jan. 7-8: Florida Keys Ragnar (http://www.ragnarrelay.com/race/floridakeys)
March 12: Four Courts Four (http://pacersevents.com/fourcourtsfour/index.html)
April 3: Cherry Blossom 10 (http://www.cherryblossom.org/)
May 1: The Colorado Half Marathon (http://www.ftcollinsmarathon.com/HalfMarathon.html)
June 4: Virginia Wine Country Half Marathon (http://www.run4virginiawine.com/)
Oct. 21-22: Las Vegas Ragnar (http://www.ragnarrelay.com/race/lasvegas) (With Jill! ZOMG!)

Which means I should probably find races for:
- February
- July
- August
- September

I'm planning on doing a turkey trot wherever my parents are for November, and maybe this year I'll suck it up and do the 10k Jingle All the Way again. So cold.  So jingly....

What are you registering for?

A Post about Many Things

So you know what happens when you wait to register for races?

They fill up.

As a result, the two half marathons that I'd planned to run this year have filled up (Virginia Wine Country and the Colorado Half).

Right now, I'm on the wait list for Virginia Wine and am scrambling for a replacement for the Colorado.  The trick in this equation is that Will leaves in May to go home for a bit, then comes back to Colorado.  I was thinking of the Horsetooth Half (mid-April), but Mom and my cousin (who lives out there) have suggested maybe a fall race...better weather!  Roze says that the Crosswinds race is less punishing (course profile says flat and fast) and, again, better weather.

So, to avoid this issue in the future, here's my calendar:

Jan: Ragnar Miami (just got back last night!)
Feb: Love the Run You're With (http://www.pacersevents.com/lovetherun/index.html)
March: B and A Half, Four Courts Four
April: Cherry Blossom 10, Nashville Rock and Roll Half
May: Marine Corps Half (maybe) or maybe New England Ragnar

Ragnar.

Ragnar was incredible.  I had a great time down in the Keys--we got to DC on Wednesday night, got Brannon, and headed to the house where we passed out after a glass of wine and some nachos.  Thursday we celebrated Chadd's birthday with breakfast at Briar Patch in Winter Park, then got ready to head down to Miami.

Chadd and I picked up K-lo in Boca Raton, then met up with everyone in Miami.  Friday morning, we decorated the vans (which looked so awesome...they had grass skirts with hibiscus flowers around them and margarita lights around the front windshield) then headed to the start line.

The only thing I'd change about this Ragnar experience would be our start time.  We got a 1pm start time and wound up getting stuck with fast teams, so we were often alone at exchange points and missing the real "Ragnar experience."  However, Ragnar was totally awesome and let us run simultaneously--Van 1 was still running their third leg while van 2 began theirs as well.  Instead of finishing after the finish line would have been closed (we'd have gotten in around 8:30), we wound up finishing around quarter of 5.

Margaritas, beer, pina coladas, all out on the Southernmost Point beach (I managed to walk into the water to about my knees in lieu of an ice bath).  The after party was INCREDIBLE.  Live music, great vendors, tons of people...it was really paradise.  The race itself was a blast, I had great people in my van and we spent a good deal of time basically rushing through the Keys (our legs were a lot shorter this time, it seemed, and traffic destroyed our ability to easily get around).  There was nothing like running over the water on the fishing bridges, or talking with the wonderful people in Homestead who thought we were crazy.  Van 1 saw a Key Deer while we saw Iguanas....there were a few legs that required runners to sign a waiver about "potentially aggressive wildlife" spawning the joke in the RagMag (ragnar magazine) with a giant fake gator saying "Imma Eat Choo"....

The whole experience was just as wonderful, but totally different than the first.  That's the beauty of Ragnar--it might be the same structure, 36 hour 200 mile relay race, but it's always new.

I'm already planning the next Ragnar, so if you want in, let me know.

On the Ragnar note...the Hood to Coast documentary is being shown for one night only in theaters tomorrow night.  If you live in the Alexandria area (Eisenhower, Hoffman Center), come see me other Brigade members, and Pacers at the theater for a reg code with a good deal and talk to me about Ragnar in person (please allow for at least 30 minutes as I can talk your ear off about how much I love it).

In final news, I'm filling out my workout schedule, which will look vaguely like this:

Monday: Rest OR Pacers evening Fun Run (Alexandria)
Tuesday: AM workout (weights) AND Teaching evening cycle (7pm Nat. Cap YMCA - starting next week)
Wednesday: AM workout  And/Or Fleet Feet Women's Running Group (6:30PM AdMo)
Thursday: AM weights workout And/Or Pacers Running Group (Logan Circle)
Friday: AM cycle or AM Cardio and Weights
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Teach 20-20-20 (10am Nat. Cap YMCA)

This fulfills my requirements for two running clubs, brings me back to teaching 2 classes a week, and gives me two rest days.  I prefer doubling up on days to workout simply because it gives me flexibility if I don't want to hit a night workout.

Ideally, I'll be able to cycle through the three running clubs--do Monday night when I can't make a Wednesday or Thursday.  If there are 4 weeks in a month (roughly), I'd ideally like to make it to a running group 6 times.  That gives me two weeks where I can only make it once or one week where I can't at all.

In final news, (too lazy to go back and correct previously written stuff on this page), I will be captaining a team for Ragnar New England, May 20-21.  Prepare.  Now...to find a good team name....

When Running Becomes Who You Are, Not What You Do

The first mile I ever ran (without stopping) took me 15 minutes, flat. Huffing and puffing, I hit STOP on the treadmill and felt like I had just climbed Everest. I felt so proud of myself. I ran a mile. Without stopping. I can still feel the blood pulsing in my temple as I woozily got off the treadmill at the Y in Oviedo.

Thursday night after my spin class, half way through my half hour core workout, I was thinking about how I'd found myself on the road to an Ironman 70.3 and, let's be real, a full Ironman. I thought of myself on that treadmill and the dogged pursuit of a full, running mile.

Chadd is fond of reminding me that I can run a half marathon with very little training when I'm down on myself. How did I get from that 1, 15 minute mile to a half marathon in the tank? I wished I knew. I felt like I had accidentally stumbled into this life. Don't get me wrong, I still felt very grateful, but it felt less like a goal, more like an accident on Thursday.

Sunday afternoon, while I was cleaning the house and Chadd was at the gym, I had a bit of an emotional breakdown. Bryan, the voice of sanity in my crazy workout world , and I made a pact a few years ago: I would do an Ironman if he would do a marathon (right, Bryan? I can't remember the exact terms, but they were outrageous). I was at a point in the job I held then where I was so miserable and down on myself (just like I felt before I registered for the half Ironman) that I was ready to take the deal. Whenever Bryan or I have been particularly down or in need of encouragement, this video gets passed back and forth via email. Maybe y'all think that's the exact opposite of encouragement, but between Bryan and myself, it's the perfect medicine.

My joints aching, I decided to watch that video again. Halfway through, I totally lost my cool and started crying. As I described to Bryan, "I legit had a 'hold the cat and sob' moment while watching the 'you will do this' video." But I wasn't crying from sadness or exhaustion (ok, maybe some exhaustion). I was crying because I so clearly saw myself on that treadmill, 10 years ago, begging my body for that mile and because I am so proud of myself. It was like watching myself through all my running accomplishments:

- the first, wretched mile
- the first long run (9 miles, in a victoria's secret cotton outfit - bad bad bad plan)
- the first time I did 20 miles
- my first expo (Marine Corps marathon!)
- running a 5k turkey trot with my brother and mom
- the first time I ran after foot surgery
- the second marathon and all the tears, toenails and blood that came from that one
- Ragnar.
- Ragnar Ragnar Ragnar
- My first sub-8 mile (downhill at the 4 courts 4)
- The first time I pulled a half marathon out of thin air on no training (Marine Corps Half Marathon)
- My brother's first half marathon

The list goes on. But suddenly, running didn't seem like something I do...it became something I am. And I was so damn proud that all I could do was cry. I clutched our big, stupid cat, crying into his fur and said, "this isn't very iron, is it?" Or maybe that's what being Iron is all about.

This week was a great week in training - I almost hit 9 hours of training, and minus a very tweaky shoulder, I felt fabulous. I can see myself getting in better shape, stronger, healthier. I learned how to swim effectively (and less scarily!), ran 12 miles at a decent pace and got away with not being sore on Sunday.

Best part of the week? My Saturday run showed off weather like this:

So, moral of the story is this - you have it in you, whatever it is that you want to do. Sometimes, you just have to make it past the first 15 minute mile of your life with one foot in front of the other.

Race Calendar

I have a really bad habit of signing up for major races then overbooking myself. I always enjoy the races, always feel accomplished, but sometimes when I'm tired, I look at my calendar and go....fuuuuuuuu

Today happens to be one of those days!

Current race plans:
March 10 - Four Courts Four Miler (thankfully my coach only has me running 4 easy before this race instead of the 12 I'd tried to map out so I could hit my 16)
March 17 - Rock and Roll Half Marathon

April - TBD (anyone have any good recs for fun April races? Nothing too crazy, I'm winding down marathon training this month)

May 6 - Flying Pig Marathon
May 11-12 - Ragnar Cape Cod (formerly, NE)
May 27 - Boston Memorial Half (which I will get to run with my bff Katie!)

June 8-9 - Ragnar Chicago
June 15-16 - Ragnar Wasatch Back (tentative)

July - Nothing on the books - any suggestions?

August 5 - Ironman 70.3 National Harbor
August 17-18 - Ragnar Great River

September 21-22: Ragnar DC
September 28-29: Ragnar Adirondacks (formerly, NY)

As far as major races go, that's:
Half Marathons: 2
Marathons: 1
Ragnar: 6
Half Ironman: 1

There's a duathlon on July 15th that's like...26 miles of biking and I think 6 miles of running. Could be fun.

I'm supposed to send this list to my coach and have her say yes/no...I'm betting she's going to keep me in line :)

Four Courts Four Miler

I have a post percolating in the back of my mind, but since it's not ready yet and it's not the kind of tone to start a week, I'll tell y'all about my awesome Saturday.

I had signed up for the Pacer's Four Courts Four Miler a while back, before I lost my mind and signed up for the National Harbor 70.3. My coach rearranged my training schedule a little bit and instead of having to run 12 miles prior to this race (seriously, guys, this was my plan...and this is also while I have a coach), I ran 4 miles around my neighborhood, then popped in the car and met up with Blair and Anne at Blair's house.

We walked to Four Courts in Clarendon, dropped off our bags and took our place in the corral. Here's me in my Ragnar gear!

I was standing next to this guy:

I hope when I'm this old, I'm badass enough to run a race like this, much less do it in wind shorts and a singlet...

The gun went off and though it was a clear, cold and [very] windy day in Rosslyn, I suddenly felt warm and tingly. Running felt like it made sense again and looking down the Rosslyn hill, I felt totally effortless. 

The Four Courts Four course is very deceptive and a real test of how well runners can adequately pace themselves. The first 1.5 miles fly down the Rosslyn hill and finish the second mile out on 395. That hill is FAST. I checked my watch at mile 1:

Mile 1 Split: 6:50 - w.t.f. Y'all, I have NEVER run a sub 7, ever. This is a huge accomplishment for me and even though I knew in a horrifying mile I'd be regretting is all the way to the finish line, I didn't care. I didn't care that the downhill gave me that ability to get under 7.

I slowed down A LOT at this point because I knew that a bonk was going to come, even if it was only a 4 mile race. 

Mile 2: 8:06(ish): If only I'd kept the first mile all in the tank, I bet I could have managed this pace on the way back up.

Mile 3-4: Roughly a 9 minute mile. Alas. I'm fine with the 9 minute, but it was such a wild swing back from the first mile. And I certainly felt the horrible hill coming back up, to the point where I started to wonder if I needed an inhaler - I felt like I couldn't get a deep enough breath (something I almost never ever experience).

I tried to stay with a guy who was also huffing and chugging up the mountain hill and managed it for a bit, but just couldn't get a breath deep enough to justify it.

I still finished in 33:06, 50th in my division (of 396), and did better than last year (33:32). I also beat the Leprechaun (again) - Robbie Wade is a craycray fast runner/area semi-pro triathlete. They let him go about 20 minutes after the start of the race. For every person he passes, Pacers donates a dollar to a good cause, and if you make it to the end before Robbie, you get a water bottle. Watching Robbie run is a beautiful thing. He was running just over a 5 minute mile and the sight of his fluid, effortless run was just an amazing experience.

I finished the race and waited for Blair to tackle the mountain. We tracked down the Leprechaun!

Check out those awesome hot pink compression sleeves. Love them so hard.

I was flagged down by a couple while we were waiting for Anne who saw my jacket and were interested in running Ragnar! See, guys! I am a good ambassador :)

I told them that they shouldn't "think" about running Ragnar, they should simple sign up today and do it! What was really cool was that this guy's grandfather actually had a major role in creating the state park where Ragnar DC starts! How amazing is the running community? While I was talking to this couple, I happened to see fellow Ragnar Ambassador: Amanda M.

I had an epic brunch with Anne and Blair afterwards:

French toasty goodness. You can't see the beer in that photo, too.

Saturday was a great day for a race, and an even better day for catching up with fellow crazy triathlete, Rachael.  Rachael and I met up for a quick cup of coffee then experienced what is quite possibly the most excruciatingly amazing experience ever: a pedicure with paraffin and a massage chair on crack.

We went with awesome colors:

In case you can't tell, my toes are basically Barbie Neon Pink. And amazing.

I really love spending time with Rachael because, she too, is insane and signed up for an Olympic distance triathlon, despite being a runner (and only a runner!) just like me. We've been tweeting back and forth about our successes and failures (none so far!) and the aches, pains, and bottomless pit of a stomach we seem to have as we learn how to balance three sports instead of one.

Rachael is raising money for Team in Training in memory of her mother. I didn't get the chance to meet her mother, but I can tell you this - she must have been some kind of extra amazing for raising a woman like Rachael. If you have $5, it would mean a lot to me (and to Rachael!) if you could pop over to her fundraising page and let her know you support her.

And with that, happy Monday! Hope my fellow morning workout-doers aren't suffering too much with the time change.

Thursday Mountains

Last week was busy for me. When I would say that a few months ago, that meant something much different than it means now. Prior to training I was busy, but after training, I feel like I've put a moratorium on a lot of things. Namely, hanging out with my friends (sorry guys) has been the first thing to go.

I barely got my workouts done last week. I managed to double up my Tuesday after work so I could still get to Miriam's Kitchen in the morning, I did my track workout at home before Chadd and I went out to a concert (Anti-Flag!) on Wednesday, but by the time Thursday morning rolled around, I was drained. My alarm went off at 4:45 and I just.couldn't.do.it. I had plans with the girls after work, and I stayed later than I intended at the office, so by the time I got back, it was all I could do to finish cleaning and uncork the champagne. I know, what a rough life.

What I hadn't really anticipated was the extreme guilt and disappointment I felt missing that workout. I'd managed every other workout for the past three weeks. It felt like I'd just knocked down the sandcastle I'd built meticulously. Everyone in my support system assured me that it was probably for the best that I miss a workout at some point in the beginning or I'd have a total meltdown further down the road (with an even BIGGER sandcastle). And they're right...but that doesn't change that FREAKOUTYOUMISSEDAWORKOUT urge I have.

As I've said before, my biggest problem is that I'm all or nothing. I need strict schedules or I just wander around or sit on my couch. As much as I want middle ground, I just don't have it. Diets? All or nothing. New to running? Let's try a marathon. How about triathlons? Half Ironman it is!

The hardest thing for me about this new training has been the dedication that it requires - and not in the way that I imagined. I am fortunate enough to like working out. I appreciate that sweaty, tired feeling you get after a long run or a good class or rocking the weights...but like I said before, when I dedicate to something, I'm pedal to the medal, all or nothing, do or die. Maybe y'all knew that already considering my decision to do the National Harbor 70.3 without having done a smaller triathlon first.... I'm still learning this about myself. But it's the dedication to ease up on myself - to be balanced. You know that person who diets, eats only salads and lean protein for three weeks then splurges at the all you can eat buffet and gains their hard lost pounds right back? That is so me. I have to learn the dedication to not freak out over something as much as I need the dedication to make my workouts, work as hard as I can and following my training program.

I did take some time last weekend to put myself together. I'd complained about this earlier so I made some time to get my nails done, get a pedicure with Rachael, have my hair done on Monday, and bought all the make up I needed. Finally, back to my old self. Sometimes, it's the low-hanging fruit that can make all the difference in the world.

Speaking of Thursdays, it must be a thing. My alarm went off, as planned, at 5 this morning. Bryan was awesome and set my bike up on the trainer last night, but I just couldn't get out of bed. This may have had something to do with the fact that I was up too late and I'm working off a sleep deficit, but Thursdays are my new mountain.

Thankfully, the trainer is still set up and I'll be scaring my cats (i.e. sitting on the trainer) for a bit tonight. The only plans I have involve picking up my race bib and enjoying quality time with Alicia and Bryan (and Eliot!) unless work decides to go nuts in the next 3 hours (which it may well do).

I have to say...after having the bike for a month and not getting to ride it just yet...I'm really stoked to sit on it for a bit tonight!

And with that, if you're going to be at the Rock n Roll expo tonight, let me know!

Songs that Make You Say F*ck Yeah!

In light of the race coming up this weekend, I've seen a lot of requests on Twitter for good running music. I actually made a great playlist for just such an occasion while I was sitting on my spin bike a few weeks ago. While I was cycling (ha) through my playlists, looking for music that would wake me up, help me focus, and make 45 minutes pass...the following showed up and thus was born a new playlist, "Songs that Make You Say F*ck Yeah!"

Gloriana - How Far Do You Wanna Go
Jimmy Eat World - Bleed America
Ou Est Le Swimming Pool - Dance the Way I Feel
Rise Against - Architects
Pretty Lights - Forever Lost
Darude - Feel the Beat
Lucky Boys Confusion - Hey Driver
Cartel - This is Who We Are
Chromeo - Don't Turn the Lights On
Lucky Boys Confusion - Champions
Skrillex - Cinema
Kanye ft. Bon Iver - Lost in the World
Linkin Park - Bleed it Out
T-Pain, etc. - All I Do Is Win
DJ Khalid - We Takin Over
Blink 182 - Easy Target

I don't run with music anymore for long runs, which I miss, but it's for the best since I won't be allowed to use a headset during the 70.3. That hasn't stopped me from using music to drown out the other sounds at the gym or when I'm sitting on the bike.

What songs did I miss? What are your "songs that make you say f*ck yeah!"?

If you're running tomorrow, have a great race! You can find me in the beer garden at the end.

Rock'n'Roll Half Marathon

I don't even know where to start this blog post because I have SO many great things to say about Saturday's race.

First of all, I had SO many friends who were also doing it. Even if we didn't meet up at the race, I got to enjoy the pre-race Twitter and IRL conversations with everyone. Even MORE exciting was that this was Amanda and Alicia's first half marathon and I have so enjoyed watching them train and become strong, amazing runners over the past few months.

Bryan came into town from Chicago on Wednesday, and after track practice, we got to hang out at my place and chat. Thursday, we met up with Eliot and Alicia to hit the expo, pick up our bibs, and shop a little.

I picked up some more Sweaty Bands. If you need headbands for active use...this is your best bet. I know there are a lot of cheaper imitators, but don't be fooled. Pay the difference and I promise you won't regret it.

They have skull patterns. Clearly, I'm their target demographic.

Then we got dinner in Eastern Market. I had a bit of a snit regarding food and man, can I tell you that you learn who your real friends are when they tolerate you until you stuff your face with chips and salsa. Chadd met up with us for margaritas and dinner then we parted ways and I sat on the bike trainer for an hour. See also: dedication.

Saturday morning, we got up in enough time to use the metro...because my car was locked in the garage (awesome.) Thankfully, the metro was easy to navigate and despite an almost 20 minute wait, we wound up at RFK around 6:15 where we met up with Amanda. After the usual "I have to pee, wait, where did I put my timing chip, can you hold this gu pack?", we ran over to see Coach T so I could get a pep talk, a hug and a high five.

Then we jumped into the corral, and slowly moved forward as the wave starts were released.

Me and Bryan

Me and Amanda

This is the first of many times I'll say how well organized the Rock'n'Roll crew was. The corrals were clearly marked, the releases were adequately spaced out, and aside from slightly annoying announcers, it was a nice way to start the race.

I saw these compression socks while we were waiting...I need these:

The race was a beautiful course around DC - we went out to the Mall, up 18th Street, then on Connecticut and into Adams Morgan, then Columbia Heights, then down by Howard University, through NE into the Atlas District, then back to the stadium. Rolling hills through the course, which is my strong suit. I learned at Ragnar PA that I am an ace with rolling hills. Must be from all the spinning (shameless plug to come to my class). I also enjoy the feeling of cresting the hill and rolling down...it's like mini accomplishments through a race and for me, a good mental check point.

Source

Rolling hills. Lots of them! Source

The first few miles were kind of rough. I tried to stay with Bryan and warm up and get focused, but my mind was all over the place. My calves were in pain and I just wasn't feeling it. But around mile 3, I hit my stride, warmed up/woke up and got moving. Every mile from there out got easier (and faster!)

By the time I got to Chadd at Mile 6, I was feeling amazing. After a quick hug, I powered up the hill and enjoyed the bands, the crowds, the shot of green beer from the friendly spectators in Columbia Heights.

I saw Cyndi on H Street and waved hello frantically. I started to get distracted mentally around mile 9. I was having a good race, but for a split second, got off track, got lost in my thoughts and lost my way. Suddenly, the end felt far away, even though my normal weekend runs are around 13 miles. Then I remembered that Coach T was going to be just past the 12th mile marker. With renewed energy, I charged toward 12. I felt stronger and stronger and stronger and FASTER. I tried to slow myself down because I was afraid I was going to burn out, but I couldn't stop. I waved at Coach, then focused on a strong and controlled finish.

The Rock'n'Roll organizers did a great job with the bands and with the aid stations. Every aid stop was stationed just after the odd miles. I never wanted anything, never felt bored, and thought they did a great job with the course - especially helping people navigate the half/full split. The finish line was great and though it took a while to get out of the shoots at the end, it's only because they had a lot to offer.

I picked up water, gatorade, a banana, chocolate milk (!!), a bagel, a fruit cup, snicker's marathon bars, and had a finisher's photo taken twice. I didn't pick up the yogurt or the apples, but mostly because I was out of hands.

After I grabbed my foil blanket, I strolled out to the main stage and lay in the grass, stretching and waiting for Amanda. The music was blasting, the sun was out, and I got to enjoy my post-race feast. There is no better way to end a race than that, friends. Switchfoot played and though they're kinda meh on the radio/youtube, in person, they were a great post-race show.

Once I collected Amanda and Bryan, we headed to the beer tent.

Cheers!

In case you didn't know, I have a THING for Michelob Ultra. Marketing works well on me. I saw that series of "active people" commercials where all the hard working office folks hit the bar after a long run through the city, or a weekend biking in the mountains and went "oh, that's me! I too need Michelob Ultra."

Then, Michelob did something brilliant: they sponsored almost all of the major race beer tents in the US. You finish a race and boom, you get a Michelob. Pavlov's theory works very well with me.

Mmm beer. And a nifty banana belt.

Another cool thing that the Rock'n'Roll folks did, aside from awesome medals:

Was that they invited a medal engraver to the post-race area:

Even though it cost $20 - if you pre-made the medals for that to be engraved, I couldn't say no.

After we drained our beers, Amanda was awesome and drove us home. We all grabbed showers, then went to BGR and INHALED our food. I didn't even get the chance to take a picture of my burger. That good.

Of course, since it was St. Patrick's day, we met up later that night with Alicia and Eliot at a sports bar and were lucky enough to snag a table. Reed and some of his friends stopped by. A good time was had by ....I had such a great night, aside from how much I loved my outfit:

Every time I walked back to my table from the bar or the bathroom, I saw my boyfriend and my friends around the table. I had that cheesy realization that I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I commented at some point that it was just like being in a group of friends like How I Met Your Mother...and it was. Laughing, drinking, talking, and really enjoying each other's company. After a couple hours, we wandered down to Flippin Pizza then passed out.

I lay in bed, about to fall asleep and reviewed the day. 

My times:

Finish: 1:58:14

The paces beside them show that interval's pace (i.e. 5k = start to 5k pace, 10k = 5k to 10k pace)

5k: 30:13 (9:43)

10k: 58:11 (9:01)

10 mile: 1:31:43 (8:49)

Finish: 1:58:14 (8:52)

Aside from a 3 second slip in my last 5k, those are some gorgeous negative splits. I was the 4086th finisher of over 1600, putting me in the top 25% range. I ran under Eliot's name, so I haven't bothered to calculate my division stats, but those concern me less.

Those numbers are amazing for me for a couple reasons - I haven't been running this fast in training and I ran without a headset for the first time since my first marathon. 

I learned a couple things: 

- Running in an event with a lot of other friends is fun

- I have a hard time running with other people because I lose focus

- I will definitely run more Rock'n'Roll events

- Trust your training

- I love rolling hills

- I don't need music to love the run

- I have awesome friends

And that is an awesome Saturday.

T-Minus Three Days to Flying Pig

Hi. I'm not dead. 

I've just been a terribly non responsive member of society lately. Aside from my day job, most emails have gone unsent, volunteer work has not been done, planning or writing or anything has been on hold.

Why? 

I don't know. It's like I suddenly stopped caring. Perhaps I reached that edge where having a lot on my plate was suddenly not a motivator and instead, it was a paralyzing factor. Or maybe it's because I really enjoy training and after I train, all I want to do is sit on my butt and think about training/watch tv. Whatever the reason, if my begging off on my friend/volunteer/teammate/anything duties affected you, I'm sorry. I came home on Monday night and had a small cry about how I let everyone down and all this that and the other. Chadd got ready to go to the gym, told me to make a list, lock the cats out and just go one by one down my task list. It's embarrassing how little time it took to do everything.

So, now that I've put my big girl panties on, it's time to talk about a big event that is happening in 3 days:

My third marathon.

I chose the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati because...I have no idea why (honestly). My recollection is that part of it was timing (late Spring marathon!), part of it was that Runner's World said it would be fun (if you love hills!), and partly because I had just spent too much time at the Marine Corps Marathon Expo when picking up my 10k bib. 

This has been a really weird pre-race experience. It's all jumbled in my head, so let's try to break it down:

1) One is the Loneliest Number. This is the first time I'm doing a major race (read: marathon) without support crew. The first time, my mom, my then boyfriend, and Chadd were there. My second marathon, Katie and Chadd came out...but this time...it's me and the road.

I totally underestimated how awesome it is to have crew. During the RnR National Half, I saw Chadd at 6, accidentally saw Cyndi at 10, and my coach just after 12. And every time I got tired between those, I started to think about how I would see someone soon and that powered me on. This is not to discount the friends I'm going with (including Justin, Ayla, and Amanda - some of my Ragnar rocks). But these amazing friends will be running their own races. 

I suddenly feel naked.

I've been told that this is a VERY friendly marathon. I think it may be one of the reasons I saw in the RW article. They apparently close the course down after the allotted time, but they continue to support runners after they've moved them to the sidewalks. Now THAT is friendly.

2) Holy Hills, Batman. So, in a moment of true intelligence, I didn't look at the course elevation profile prior to registering. And now that I've looked at it, I have the pre-race nervous pees. I'm amazing with rolling hills. Probably because of my spinning, I'm totally cool with glorious rolling hills. May go towards explaining why I loved the RnR National Half course. What I do not particularly love is a 3+ mile incline. This gives me flashbacks to Ragnar PA where I had 10+ miles up Mt. Pocono. There is actually a photo of me somewhere slumped on the ground, considering death after that.

Ah. There they are.

Y'all. My COACH had a temper tantrum in 2010 when she did this race. Granted, she also placed second in her age group...but, yikes. The positive to this is that my coach knows this race and has been able to give me a lot of insight into it. We've agreed that I shouldn't go out trying to bank time in the first half. Instead, I'm going to hold a 9:30 for the first half, check my watch at the 10k, the half, the 18 and the 22. The back half of the race is my strong suit - again, cue rolling hills.

3) As in...Sub-4. This may have been the wrong race to try and have such a strong PR. But I WANT that sub 4. I mean, that's the real reason I'm running another marathon (or that's my publicly facing reason, I could keep a shrink in business forever if we went into my addiction to endurance sports). 

I keep telling myself that the last marathon I did, I did not run a smart race. I ran without regard for strategy. I got a late start in the wrong corral, I fought my way back to my group and was totally spent by 20. 

4) Bigger, Better, Faster, Stronger. It's weird to have a marathon simultaneously be a non-event and cause me anguish. I've been impressively nonchalant about it in the past months. Mostly because I spend all of my anxiety time thinking about the 70.3 in August. Maybe it's also because I've distracted myself with unemployment, two job changes, and a bunch of other stuff. It's not like worrying MORE about a marathon makes it easier. It's not like this is a part of training, but in the back of my mind I feel like I'm behind on worrying. It's almost like I haven't gotten over my worry process and now I'm not going to be prepared.

In reality, I should be confident. I haven't been worried because I have this awesome thing called a coach. Coach T has taken all the pressure off of me because all I have to do is what she says. And I've done just that. I haven't been sore after any of my runs. I have comfortably held 9:30's and below on all my training runs. I need a steady 9:07 to pull this out of the bag, which means I trained at the right pace and I should be able to pull out a sub 4. I will run a smart race because I was smart when I was training.

5) The Future. Unlike the last two times I've trained, I haven't gotten sick of training. Sure, I wasn't stoked about going out for 18 miles, but it's not been the same imposition as it's been in the past. I've actually enjoyed it. I'll credit my coach with a big part of this. I've already started thinking about marathons for the fall if I don't hit sub-4 (and let's be honest...even if I DO hit sub 4...). So, unlike the last times where I've had goals (a time goal AND a goal to never do a marathon again if I made my goal), this time I just have one goal: sub 4. And if I don't make it, I just have to try again.

So, in just 3 days time, you will see a very brief post. It will hold the results and probably another marathon goal - sub-4 or not.

Let me know if you'll be in Cincinnati! I'd love to say hi!

A Race By Any Other Name

On May 4^th, I was halfway to Cincinnati when my phone buzzed. We were stoped at a gas station that proclaimed a very bastardized acclamation of the Gospel (sorry to anyone but rich, white landowners, heaven, apparently, just ain’t for you!). I was basically in nowheresville.

I checked my email, expecting spam or work and instead saw this:

From: Ironman 70.3 National Harbor
Subject: Important Event News

You tell me what you think when you see that. I had two thoughts: 1) I probably need to request a start time or something. 2) The race is cancelled.

#2 was the correct gut feeling. This was the content of the email:

Dear Ironman 70.3 National Harbor Athlete, 

The inaugural Ironman 70.3 National Harbor Triathlon has been cancelled. Athletes registered for the event will receive a full refund of their entry and processing fees.Refunds will be issued within 30 days and will be credited to the card used for registration through the Active Network. 

Ironman is committed to helping participants reach their goal of racing an Ironman 70.3 in 2012 and will further offer each athlete impacted by the cancellation a $50 discount to one of the events listed below: 

[Blah blah blah list of races and how to re-register] 

Thank you for your understanding and patience through this process. We wish you the best of luck with your training and racing.

I’ll leave the commentary to other bloggers who have better deconstructed this quick cancellation, but I can tell you what I thought: nothing.

I was so caught up in the travel to Cincinnati that I literally had 0 concern for this. I was really lucky. I got on the phone with my coach immediately who, of course, already knew about the cancellation. She encouraged me to not worry about it, that she already had some options lined up for me, and that we’d talk about those after Flying Pig – but not now. In case you were ever considering getting a coach, this is one of those top 5 reasons to have one.

I will admit that I did spend a good portion of the drive wondering why. Having worked in PR before, this hasty cancellation without explanation was driving me mad. I knew something else was behind it. Coach mentioned the National Harbor’s bad rap for hosting races (anyone remember the Hot Chocolate 15k?) 

I also remembered the problems that DC Rainmaker had when he previewed the course  and that the Potomac has been worse and worse for race conditions (to the point where swims are frequently cancelled). 

When Coach said that this cancellation was a good thing, I believed her. But my PR mind was still chugging. You only send out bad news at 4pm on a Friday. Twitter rumors were swirling, lots of finger pointing was going on, but in the end, this was the second email we received, almost two weeks later:

Dear Athlete,
The Ironman 70.3National Harbor Triathlon was cancelled because not enough athletes were registered for the event. 

Initially we kept quiet because Ironman asked us to stay silent, not post anything on social media and not send out any press releases so that the damage to Ironman’s brand would be minimized. We were fools to agree and that was a big mistake on our part. 

We should have communicated immediately and told you the reason from the start. We have nothing to hide from the truth and were just initially intimidated by Ironman's request. 

We apologize.

I believe almost 90% of this. There’s something else, but it’s neither here nor there.

I got an email from Coach the morning after my marathon and reviewed my options:

• Ironman 70.3 Timberman, New Hampshire
• Patriot’s Half in Williamsburg, VA
• Ironman 70.3 Austin

I also looked at the list and, at the urging of my twitter friends, added two more to the maybe pile:

• Ironman 70.3 Augusta
• Beach to Battleship, North Carolina

I nixed Timberman pretty quickly. I don’t know New Hampshire and it’s a long drive (flight?) and it just seemed like it may as well be in a foreign country when you applied a half ironman to it. Austin is a bit late in the season, and since I’m pretty sure I want to do Giant Acorn (how can you not with a name like that?), it didn’t work. Especially not if I sign up for the Richmond Marathon.

While I was batting around ideas for a new race with my friends in Cincinnati, I floated Augusta. A friend said that the swim course was the easiest for an Ironman – it’s in a river, with current. This was sorely tempting to me, but pride beat me when the same friend said, “I hear that a doritos bag made the swim in 45 minutes.” Pass.

Between B2B and Patriot’s I have two great options for a new 70.3. The only thing that stuck with me was that neither is Ironman branded. In fact, Patriot’s is actually 2 miles longer (on the bike) than an IM 70.3.

I sat down and tried to deconstruct this one night on my bike trainer. If you’ve been on a trainer at all, you’ll know that you do a lot of thinking on that bastard piece of shit (read the link, trust me, you’ll die laughing. Scroll down for description)  

I realized after an hour of going no where (literally), that a brand name doesn’t make the race. The effort and time and training I put into it makes it a race. I started out with this thought process:

My heart says I should choose Patriots. Coach will be there, Williamsburg is close, it’s cheaper than an IM race, and some of my teammates are going. I should do Patriots.

But it’s not an IM branded race. Do I care? I feel like I should care. You were in marketing. You realize that this is basically just good marketing. It’s 2 miles longer than an IM. That makes it more badass. They should make magnets specifically for this one. 72.3. “Well, yes, I’ve done a half IM, but it was 2 miles longer.” This isn’t my only 70.3. This is a good first one. Admit it, you had nightmares about T1 from National Harbor.

But what about Augusta? That’s close to my folks. But then you’ll have done the easiest of the half IMs. Pansy. No, not pansy. Half IM. I hate my bike trainer. This thing is a piece of crap. Why am I on this bike? I could give up training right here, right now. I could just quit while I’m ahead with a sub 4 marathon. That’s pretty beast.

After a lot [more] of inner monologue, which I will spare you, I came to the conclusion that a brand doesn’t make a race any more or less awesome. Ironman or not, I’m doing a 7[2].3 and what will make that race badass is that I will have trained and poured myself into that accomplishment.

How about you? Does race branding matter to you? If so, why?