Thursday, October 28, 2010

My Dogs are Barking because the race was TOO long.

October 16th, 2010 was a cold and WINDY day. But there was no snow or rain, so I won't complain too much. The animal rescue league of Bedford was holding their first annual 5K race. This is the place we got Dixie, my sleeping compadre so I have a special fondness for them.

I was feeling good, no issues that I could point to. Hoping for a new PR, as always. Roughly 200 runners, so it was cozy, and it was fundraiser so I knew there were a bunch of walkers so I knew there were some people I would beat.

The race started off at a good pace, hit the first turn and WHAM! Into a wall of wind. Bye-Bye PR. It wasn't just breezy, it was holding me back. I picked a girl as my rabbit, but after a mile either her pace picked up or mine dropped (probably mine dropped) and she pulled ahead. At that point I was pretty much running alone, which was fine by me. For the most part, if I don't stop, I'm happy with my race.

The race was really uneventful. At two miles I was feeling ok, the wind still taking its toll on me. As we completed the half mile, someone asked how much further. I said ".6 miles" (thanks iPhone GPS). Then there was this little girl, probably 8, who doing great running, but then stopped to walk, as I passed her I tried to give an encouraging "less than half a mile to go". I think thats the most I've ever said to other racers. We're down to .3 miles left, I tell another woman who asks how much further. What a nice guy. At .2 miles, I start to kick it into high gear. On my death bed, I'll still have enough energy to push through .2 miles. Its nothing. So I pumping my stubby little legs like my life depended on it, pulling away from the ladies that I just told the distance. Still holding out hopes for that PR! Funny thing though. I hit the 3.1 mile mark, and I was no where near the school that we started at. 3.2 miles. Still no school. 3.3 miles. WTF! 3.4 miles. Someone needs to die. At this point, all the extra energy I had was out the window and I'm beyond winded. Finally cross the finish line at 3.46 miles.

The extra distance wasn't a big deal, it was the extra push toward the finish that wasn't where it was suppose to be that killed me. My finish line photo makes me look like a monster that ran .36 miles more than he expected to run.

It was a fun race and I look forward to next years.

3.46 Miles 36:10. A 10:27 pace, not bad for me.


Tuesday, October 26, 2010

8 Miles and Half Marathon

I've increased my mileage to 8 miles. And oh yeah, signed up for a half marathon. Manchester Marathon /Half Marathon. My cousin Denise suggested it, because she's walking it, and suggested I do it as well. After thinking about it for 10 min, I was in.

8 miles. 13 miles. Close enough. I feel like I'm cramming for a test I didn't prepare for. Going to get at least a 10 mile session in this Saturday and see how my body handles that. I will have a week to take it easy before the big day.

I am VERY excited.
Biggest concern. My lower back and nutrition during the race.
Time prediction.....3:20. <-- lots of walking after the 10K mark.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

7 Miles

On October 12, 2010 I ran 7.0 miles. I ran very slow, because thats how I run, but I did it non stop. When I started running in April, I never thought I would be able to run a couple miles continuously, never mind 7! Still stuck at my weight (due to my own poor eating decisions), but I'm really excited about the possibilities. Now as I look in the future for races, I'm not restricted just to 5k races. Now I'm looking for 10Ks! 6.2 miles. Easy-peasy!

Friday, October 8, 2010

Erica's Run To Strikeback Against Cancer 5K

My 5th race of the year was pretty uneventful. It was in Merrimack NH on a beautiful September morning. It was a race of about 250 people, a good majority of them were just walkers as this was a charity event. I love walkers. Anyways. The course was a flat loop. 3 times around. It was my first loop course and I didn't think I would like it, but it really didn't matter. Although being lapped wasn't a highlight. But I showed some of those walkers who the boss was by lapping them.


Good Things: I didn't stop, but the weird thing is I was about 100 yrds from the finish line and I almost stopped. It was like a little battle was going on between my head and my legs. Head won, but legs were pissed.

Personal record. Only by about 30 seconds.

Bad things: Only knocked 30 seconds off my personal best. I run better than that now a days. At least I should.

I was tired! I think my big mistake was not taking a rest day before the race. The day before I did a 5.1 mile run (at a blistering 10:19 pace I might add) that really wore me out. I didn't think it would matter, but it was clear it did.