First XTERRA race (Richmond)

Well I think this new adventure in my life has been a long time coming. I think I have always been looking for something new and exciting. Something to keep pushing my boundries. I first found that in Ultra Running when I first ran JFK for the first time. I knew from that point that I found something that I loved doing not matter how much it sucked during the event hehehehe. But after every finish of mine I have been so happy that I accomplished that goal/race and could not wait for the next one. And with all the ultra's I have completed, I feel that I have continualy pushed boundries that I thought I could never reach.

Now I won't say it has got to a point where I don't enjoy running them at all. I still get super excited and yes still nervous before every race. And yes it still sucks sometimes during each and every one. But I know that going in so it really does not bother me or sway me from entering the next one.

For awhile now I have been thinking what else can I possibly do to keep testing my endurance and pushing myself to do things that were unimaginable.

I don't know where or who I got the idea first from for trying out mountain biking. I am sure it was one of you crazies out there that will be reading this. Mountain Biking has been something for awhile now that I have wanted to try and experience. And so I had been wanting for awhile to get a mountain bike. So when the idea came about going out for a mountain bike ride and Schaffer Farm came up I totally wanted to join. And Michelle was nice enough to loan me her old bike to try out. I was totally hooked from that first ride. And so when Michelle told me that she would sell me her old/new bike I was pretty excited. And I totally jumped at the idea of taking it off her hands knowing she had just got a brand new bike.

And so with the purchase of my first mountain bike came a new challenge for me to tackle and accomplish. Now I had an excuse to get out and exercise more. As if I did not do that enough already. And with each ride came some new aches and pains too. But I knew going into it that would ultimately happen.

So now I had the ultra running and mountain biking going on but still felt I wanted to try something more. I know it sounds crazy. Ultra Running and Mountain biking are tough enough alone, let alone together.

So when the thought of throwing in some swimming came to mind I figured why not. I had already been swimming at school for the exercise. Even though it can get pretty boring going back in forth in the pool. And so I started searching around on the internet about ways I could put all 3 diciplines together. And sure enough the Off Road Tri's/XTERRA races came to mind one day while searching the internet. Originally my first thought would be to enter and finish the EX2 Adventures off road tri in July. But after going to an XTERRA briefing/meeting down town I found out about this XTERRA race going on in Richmond on June 14th. It would mean swimming 500meters in the James River and then a 19k mountain bike ride and 4.5 mile trail run. And I said sure why not. And so I signed up and got excited.

As the 14th got closer and closer I got more and more nervous. I had never done something like this and really did not know a ton about what I was getting myself into. But I knew I could do it if I put my mind to it and pushed myself no matter what.

Well I decided to leave for Richmond early saturday morning because I wanted to see a friend race in the 21k xduro race. And I got down to Richmond in time but not to the right place. So by the time I got to the race expo/start/finish to see everyone one my it was too late to see him finish. But I still got to pick up my packet and soak in all that was going on.

As the day rolled on I felt like I wanted to do something rather than just wait around doing nothing. So I got the smart/great idea to grab my bike and go preview the bike course which I was going to ride on the next day. So I geared up and set off on my bike. The first part of the ride was over a swinging bridge and onto Belle Island. Nothing too exciting. And then up some winding cement stairs where I had to carry the bike. Not too exciting there. And then finally some trails. Here is a little picture of some of the trails. There are some really nice and technical trails in Richmond. Alot of ups and downs. With some roots and rocks thrown in there too.

I forget if this was one of the ups or downs that I was on. Really can't remember right now. Either way it was tough. Here is another picture of me on the trail. You can tell I was trying to take it myself. So don't laugh. Fun times really. So at this point I had probably rode about 9 or 10 miles and thought this is good. The bad thing is that I did not really know where I was going or how to get back. So I just kept riding and finally caught up to another newbie who was lost. And so together we rode around and finally got some directions and headed back to the start finish. At this point I was pretty tired. Then intention before I set out was not to ride the whole course but that pretty much happened and then some with about 13 or 14 miles.

At this point I was hot and all I wanted to do was jump in the water. So again I got the smart idea to head down to where we would start the swim the next morning. When I got down there it was just me and I did not want to get in by myself with the current that was out there and no one to rescue me hehehehe. So after some standing around and debating on whether or not to get in someone else shows up and talked me into at least swimming out to the island and back. Now as I am waiting around to get in the water another guy who would be racing does show up and gives me some good hints about swimming in the river with the current. I totally took his advice to heart and got in. I started swimming at an angle just right of the island which was a good idea. But quickly I could already feel my legs were tired from the bike and I could not wait to get to the island where I could stand. And thank god I swam fast enough to get there and catch my breath. We stood around at the island for a bit and then decided to swim back to where we came from. I figured it was a good idea that I got in the water but was also realizing that it might have been a mistake to bike as much as I did. But I would not know that till the morning. Quick shot of me after getting out the water.

Well Sunday morning came quick and trasition opened up early. I got there early enough so I could get a good spot near the bike in and bike out.
Don't I look excited about what was to come. Well I finisied setting everything up and get my timing chip and body marked and headed down for the start of the swim. Then I really realized this was going to happen. I knew the swim would be the toughest for me. And I knew once I got started and got out the water I would be good to go. Little did I know how much the water would literally scare the shit out of me. When I got in the water saturday it was just me and another guy so I did not have a ton of other swimmers to fight with. Oh yeah and did I mention I had never swam in the open water till saturday. Well the gun goes off and we all set out against the current. And right away I am hitting other swimmers and can't get a comfortable stroke going. This is already made tougher by the strong current. And so I knew right away this is really going to suck. But I kept motoring on. And so about half way to the island I really started feeling it in my legs and arms from the previous bike ride a day earlier. And that was probablly the first time I was scared shitless. I did have to keep spotting the right side of the island which meant I had to momentarily stop my stroke. Which made it even tougher to start up again. But again I kept going. And I soon was scared shitless again because i was having a tough time swimming in the current and kept looking around for a kayak to hold onto or something. I kept thinking this is going to suck ass if I go under and I did not want that to happen. And right after that though I kicked one of the sand dunes under that water and said THANK GOD out loud. I was never so happy to be standing on somewhat solid ground. I stood there for awhile to catch my breathe before I kept going. Then I finally decided to head out around the first buoy and back on to the sand dune and walk along that for awhile. After awhile I knew I had to start swimming again and clear that last buoy before heading back to shore. I luckily had the curent taken me back in. And still it was tough getting back in. But I did about 20 or so minutes later. Here I am back in transition after the swim.

Can't you tell how happy I am to be out of the water about 23 or so minutes later.

Well folks that was part 1 of my adventure. I am being kicked out of the library. Hopefully part 2 will be coming tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed reading so far. I know I get carried away when I start writing about about something I am excited about.

Pittsburgh Marathon (a belated report)

The background
My memories of the Pittsburgh marathon start as a kid, watching it on TV because my dad would always have it on—it was a big deal to the city so it was always televised. In college, I volunteered at a water stop around mile 23 for a couple years--in my hazy state early on a Sunday morning, I was impressed with those runners, and no doubt wondered who these crazies were who would choose to run that far. Sadly, not long after I started running marathons, the Pittsburgh marathon lost its sponsor and went away. I always said I’d run it if they brought it back.

The training
I found out the race was coming back not long after finding out I was pregnant. I was due in November- I wondered if I could get ready for it in May? I didn’t put any pressure on myself but always had it in the back of my head during the many preggo miles that I ran in 2008. I knew that I’d be able to do it only if I was able to run or exercise through a lot of my pregnancy and come back quickly. I kept up “long” runs through September, even running the Parks Half, but stopped running by early October. I kept up with walking and cross-training and picked up the running again in January, when Erik was about 5 weeks old. By this time, my sister Robyn had also decided to run Pittsburgh and kept asking me when I was going to register. I was still a bit worried whether I could get ready but she finally convinced me I should go ahead and sign up, and we became virtual training partners- keeping tabs on each other through the cold months of training.

I joined the Speed Development Program and actually did almost every track workout. I moved up through the pace groups as I got some fitness back. I ran a few races- the RRCA 10 miler (predicted a 4:11 marathon) and the Country Road Run 5 miler (predicted a 4:15 marathon). I got in two 20-mile training runs and many miles pushing the stroller, but overall was fairly light on the mileage compared with previous marathon training cycles. Special thanks to Paul for enabling me to get those runs in, and to Michelle for joining me on most of my long runs.

The plan
Leading up to the race, I thought a lot about what my strategy should be. I thought I'd love to run 10s (for ~4:20 finish) but my long runs were 10:30+ pace and I doubted I could really go too much faster than that. I thought the more realistic goal was 4:30. Despite that, I decided I would run the first 6 miles at 10:00 pace and decide from there how I felt. Robyn said she’d run with me since she didn’t have a particular goal (but wanted to beat her 4:25 first marathon from a few years ago).

The race - May 3
We barely made it through the port-a-potty line before the start, but made it back to line up between the 4:20 and 4:30 pace groups. Thanks to the crowds, we held back to a 10:06 in the first mile, then started to click off 9:40s, 9:45s. I said to Robyn at mile 5, ‘Remind me later when I blow up that this is all my fault for going out too fast.’ We made a half-hearted attempt to slow down (ran a 9:54 probably due to a bridge uphill) then it was back to consistent 9:45s. We were both feeling good, chatting away, and the miles went by quickly. My dad and Robyn's husband were spectating by bike and were able to get around the course to cheer and take pictures. They were a great boost! We got a nice pick-up at mile 10 where Paul, Erik, and my mom had trekked over to spectate. It had started raining a bit at this point but quite honestly the weather was PERFECT- overcast and 50s, with just a bit of rain to keep us nice and cool. We held our pace through the half, slowed a bit over the approximate 1 mile hill at mile 14 (really, the only real hill in the race), and then motored on to mile 20. We couldn’t believe how good we felt, and both agreed we were running the right pace. We hit a screamin’ downhill at mile 24ish, which we hammered in 8:20 (my quads would pay for a week) then to the homestretch. It was mile 25 when I realized I really hadn’t taken in enough calories but knew I could hold on for another mile.

About a tenth mile from the end, I saw Paul, Erik and my mom again- Paul offered me Erik to carry to the finish, but after a few steps of running with him, I realized that was NOT going to work (it was too far to run with a baby!) so I had backtrack a bit to flag down my mom and pass him back. Then Robyn suggested we sprint it in (I think she must have been holding back some- that was quite a kick she had!) so I did my best to stay with her and we crossed together in 4:16!!! I was ecstatic about our time, and how GOOD I felt the whole race. I only started to flag in mile 25 and that was energy/food related, and my body felt surprisingly good throughout the race. Despite my initial ambivalence on what pace to run, this was probably one of my most perfectly paced races.

Conclusion
This is a great marathon though I admit to being biased since it’s my hometown (and we also got super lucky with the weather—it can be warm this time of year). The course is fast— small rolling hills (mostly bridges) in the first half, one real hill towards the middle, and a downhill/flat finish. It takes you through many diverse neighborhoods in the ‘Burgh and people really come out to support the race. I definitely will have this on my calendar again in the future!

Capon and Highland Sky Training Run

Yes I've been neglecting uploading pictures and writing anything on the blog. I admit, I'm sulking over being injured. On the bright side, I'm glad I ran part of Capon and I plan to be back there next year. And we even got to see a nice big black snake!



















So here are a few pictures from Capon and then a bunch of pictures taken during the HS training run weekend. Note my nice blue cast - can't wait until that June 1st doctor's appointment, I hope it's healed and I get this thing off.