LA Marathon

4:53:15. 

I can't complain.  It was 65 at the start, 79 by the time I was at mile 21.  I was SEVERELY undertrained.  I did a 19 miler two weeks ago and didn't touch my running shoes again until Friday before the race.  The 3 mile run on Friday was rough.  The 19 miler was supposed to be the 20 miles, but I had to stop at 19 because I felt like I had strained my groin.  So I stopped and stretched and things seemed to be okay.  But on Friday, I was feeling it again.

Sure enough, mile 8, that groin started acting up enough that I was certain I had strained it.  It hurt, but thankfully, not bad enough that I couldn't keep going at a slower pace.

My bowels were also giving me issues around mile 12, so I finally hopped in a porta potty at mile 15 marker.  There weren't enough water stations and I felt dehydrated for much of the race.  I'm pretty sure I'm sunburnt despite a generous application of sunblock and a hat. 

So given all those issues, being just 5 minutes slower than my very first marathon where I was better trained and ran in a cool cloudy 65 degrees throughout condition, this is a win in my book.  I even managed to average a 9:27 my last mile again. 

About the LA marathon itself: I'm glad that I did it since it was the very first one that I'd seen that inspired me to want to run a marathon, but I'm probably never running it again.  To the organizers' credit, with a field of 25,000, the course didn't seem overly crowded.  You were always running with people, yet you still always had room to run.  It also didn't take us overly long to get to the start.  I was expecting to wait nearly half an hour before I'd get to the start line, but I was there in less than 3 minutes.  I also appreciated the number of spectators that came out and supported us along the course.  BUT, it's still a field of 25,000, which made the logistics of this race a nightmare.  It took nearly an hour for my friend's parents to get through the traffic for the race just to pick us up.  The finish line was over 20 miles from the start, but there were no shuttles back to the start where I had parked my car.  The medal at the end was just okay, and the food at the finish line left MUCH to be desired.  With an early bird entry fee of $150 and given that LA is HOT, I much rather pass.  There are so many better races out there.  Flying Pig being one of them.

Quad Cities Half Marathon

Final time: 2:02:12 (PR)
10k split: 56:00

A lot of this marathon reminded me of the Flying Pig.  There was a marathon and a half marathon event that started out on the same course before the half marathoners turned off somewhere before mile 9.  There was also a relay component for the marathon.  They had a Pump N' Run event, and a shorter 5k event.  The course also traversed more than one state and ran across a couple of bridges and interstates.

We drove down Saturday afternoon and picked up my race packet.  Like the Flying Pig, swag included a poster of the Quad Cities marathon, but I declined the poster.  I was trying to give my Flying Pig one away to my sister even.  The shirt didn't feel like a dri-fit shirt, though the label claims otherwise.  It was soft, and made for a nice sleep shirt.  We also got a Quad Cities bandana. I chose a blue and green one to match the colors of the marathon.

All races except the kid's race started at 7:30am on Sunday in Moline, IL.  Our hotel was only a 5 minute drive away and AWAY from the race which meant very little traffic.  It was 42 degrees at the start, though expected to warm up to 50s mid morning and low 60s by noon.  I chose a sleeveless singlet to wear along with some capris, though I suspected I'd be too warm.  I got to the start shortly before 7am and was cold standing around, so I ducked inside a building until about 7:15am.  Then I lined up with the other runners and was surrounded by body heat.

It was crowded at the start.  Unlike Flying Pig which was strictly corralled, the Quad Cities allowed runners to line up according to what their perceived pace was.  Though there were pacers with signs, I felt they were spaced much too closely together.  The 2:10 pacer was really close to the 2:00 pacer, and I was planning to start between the two.  In the end, I chose to line up with the 2:10 pacer.  I find that starting with the 2:10 group and chasing the 2:00 group has worked well for me.  I crossed the start line with 1:20 on the clock.

Madison Mini-Marathon 2013

Bottle opener medal

Remember how I had all these plans to train for this half marathon?  Remember how I said I was going to do some speed training, some hill workouts?  Despite our lovely cool summer, I didn't train.  Instead, life decisions happened and I forgot about the running.  Well, I didn't forget so much as running and training just wasn't on my mind and as such, I forgot about the countdown toward the Mini-Marathon.  Instead, I stressed about moving and making life decisions.

So, I didn't have much expectations going in.  My legs were feeling much more fatigued than usual and I knew that was going to be an issue going in.  I had done some speed training on the treadmill this summer and hit some nice PRs in the shorter distance races, but I didn't put the time in to do any long distances.  I knew that I was likely to peter out by mile 8.

Capitol Mile

The Capitol Mile is put on by the Wisconsin Track Club.  You run 1.75 loops around the square for a net downhill course. They run 7 different "heats": Elite Women's, Elite Men's, Girls Youth, Boys Youth, Open Women's, Open Men's, and Masters. 

I hemmed and hawed about running this race.  I was downtown at Barrique's working when Barry stopped by around 3:30 asking if I was going to run my division of Open Women's at 4:15.  I had all my running gear in the car with me, but I couldn't decide if I felt like running a mile.  At 3:50, I decided to do it.  I grabbed my stuff, quickly changed and met him down at registration.  Because I hadn't decided to run this, I didn't plan my food intake particularly well.  I ate lunch at about 3pm, and I certainly felt it midway through the race.

There were only 7 of us in the Open Women's division.  It was incredibly small and somewhat amusing at the start when none of us wanted to be right at the starting line, asking each other if they want to be ahead.  This is very different than the Boys Youth group all jostling each other at the start line.

The last time I ran a mile and just a mile was back in high school when I was 15.  The fastest I've ever ran it then was at 8:00.  So I had no idea how to pace myself during this race.  I figured one mile, no big deal, I'll just go all out.  About 200 meters in, I'm running third in the pack and thinking to myself, "holy shit, I'm not this fast."  I pull back.  I turn a few corners and I'm climbing the hill back toward where we started.  Halfway up this hill, I hit the 1/2 mile marker and someone shouts 3:22.  Whoa, still way too fast.  And sure enough, I feel myself lose all gas at this point and some of that lunch shifting itself upwards.  The second half mile, people are passing me left and right, but I've little choice in the matter and nothing left to sprint with at the end.  I come in last.  Still, I finished it at 7:30 for a PR. 

Movin' Shoes Full Moon 5k

"Hot" black shirt.

 We were blessed with a cold spell this last week.  Temperatures dropped to the 70s during the day, and it was often cool enough at night to wish for a light jacket.  These was amazing temperatures for mid-July races.

The Full Moon 5k is put on by the Madison running shoe store, Movin' Shoes.  I've bought the last 4 pairs of running shoes there.  The shoe store puts on a number of races throughout the year including a Frosty 5k and a Elver Park 5k, but this is the first of their races that I've been to.  The race is limited to a field of 500 runners, which is plenty so that I was never alone on the course, but I also never felt crowded.  At only $20 race registration with technical shirt, blinking light and chip timing at the finish, this race is a much better choice in my opinion than the Electric Run.

The race starts at 9pm on a Thursday with packet pick-up over at Olin Park, which is actually about 3/4 mile from the start.  Barry and I parked down there, picked up our packets and t-shirts, hid from the storm cloud for about 20 minutes before we had a nice warm-up to the start.  I debated back and forth about a rain jacket.  There was a looming storm cloud that may or may not hit us, but when the rain never quite materialized before the start, I didn't bother.  It was just a bit too warm for a jacket anyway.  I did wear a hat to keep raindrops out of my eyes just in case.

By 9pm, the sun has set in Madison, and it's fairly dark.  Barry warned me of the speed bumps on the course with stories of when he tripped over one and then finished the race with blood dripping from his elbow.  The race directors provided us with blinking lights to attach to our persons, which I appreciated, but this I also left behind with the rain jacket.  It was darker than I had expected but the race directors lighted the course with blinking lights in the parts where street lights were lacking.

The course itself is beautiful.  We start on the west side of Monona Bay and run around it to Brittingham Park, cutting over to John Nolen and then back down to Olin Park for the finish.  Everybody who's ever lived in Madison knows that the drive around Monona Bay has some amazing views of the Madison Capitol and the skyline, especially at night in the summer when the bay glitters with the reflections of the lights.  The course takes us right toward and past this view.  These kinds of courses were designed as a love letter to Madison. 

Mineral Point Historical Run

I meant to write this post about the Mineral Point Historical Run that happened on the Fourth of July earlier, but I got started and then I sort of just forgot. So I'll do my best to recap.

I wasn't feeling the run at all on the morning of the Fourth. I slept late the previous night and got woken up much too early by chirping birds. Only about 3.5 hours of sleep before Barry picked me up at 6:30am. In my hazy not quite awake state, I managed to put on the proper clothes, but forgot to apply sun block or bring a hat. This was a mistake for July. At first I wasn't too worried since it's only a 5 mile run. I figured 50 minutes in the morning sun shouldn't be too bad. Nope, felt that sun beating down on me about 25 minutes into the run, and I started worry about sun burn.

I had been warned that it'd be a hilly course, but I thought it'd be good training. Unfortunately, only about a mile into the race, I started getting cramps. I began walking knowing that that was the only way I could expect to continue, but then I was kind of just done with the race. I just didn't want to run anymore. Eventually, I manage to convince myself to start running again, and I aimed to just pace with the people around me. By this point, there were very very few people around me.

In most races, I'm usually middle of the pack. I've never been far back enough or in races small enough where I needed to actually pay attention to the route markers. The Mineral Point Historical Run had two events, a 2 mile and a 5 mile. The 2 miler had about 150 participants, but the 5 miler only had about 80. I was occasionally in view of a couple of people, but when corners were quickly turned in succession, I had to follow the route markers or I'd be completely off course.

I came in 52:57, which is still under an 11 minute pace, but puts me in 77 out of 80 people. Poor showing, but I can't complain when I walked nearly half of the course. After the race, I went to bbqs and enjoyed good food with little guilt.

The Mineral Point Historical Run is a very small town race. We didn't even have bibs, just our name written on a slip of paper tucked into a ziplock bag, pinned to our shirts. Registration was expensive for what it was with the lack of food at the end, but it benefits the local Chamber of Commerce.

Fort Atkinson Half Marathon

The half marathon distance is probably my favorite distance.  I find that I never quite enjoy a run until I reach about mile 6.  I'm always amazed at what might have felt like a difficult first 6 miles suddenly becomes an enjoyable and easy run when I see that mile 7 marker.  It probably helps that come mile 7, I'm slowly and steadily passing people rather than struggling to keep up with those around me.  The miles start to feel like they're just flying by and I feel much more relaxed.  Barry said that running a half marathon always convinces him that he does not want to ever run a marathon.  For me, running the half marathon is what convinces me that I may want to run a marathon.

I ran the Fort Atkinson Half Marathon Saturday.  This is a small local race technically in its 4th year with a field of only about 350 runners.  I say technically because according to Barry, this used to be a 10k event for many years until they recently upgraded it to a half marathon distance.  There's also a 5k event that's new this year with only about 150 runners.  The half marathon started at 7am, and the 5k started 10 minutes later.  The fairly flat course took us through and around Fort Atkinson.  There were small bunny hills throughout, but I hardly noticed them.  It kept the course interesting without adding any real difficulty though I heard others disagreeing.

Syttende Mai 20 mile 10 mile run

Around the beginning of May, I signed up for the Syttende Mai 20 mile run.  This was before I had run the marathon, and I was ambitious.  There weren't many runs in general that are 20 milers, and I didn't really want to miss it.

But a week after the marathon, I was doubting it.  On a five mile run, something went wonky and my knee was giving me some issues.  Nothing serious, per se, but I noticed it when I had been sitting for a long time and put pressure on the kneecap by crossing my legs.  I started to rethink my choices.

Button to get into festival events.

Come Friday, I email the Stoughton Chamber of Commerce and ask to downgrade to the 10 mile run.  It took me a while to make that decision.  It was hard to determine if the reluctance to take on the 20 mile run was out of deference to the limits of my body and possible injuries or if it was a lack of faith and willingness to take on difficult tasks.  Ultimately, what convinced me was logistics.

The 20 mile and 10 mile run are both point to point.  The 20 mile run starts at the Capitol in Madison and ends in downtown Stoughton.  The 10 mile run starts at the midway point and has the same course.  There's also an untimed 17 mile walk that starts at the Badger Bowl.  The runs and the walk are both part of the Syttende Mai (Seventeenth of May in Norwegian) festival in Stoughton.  There are shuttles before and after the race that runs from Stoughton to Madison.  Since my friend Barry was running the 10 miler, I figured logistically, it'd make more sense to stick with him.

Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati

The Flying Pig Marathon has some really good reviews.  And I can't disagree with what others have to say, but I do really wish my first marathon wasn't on this course. 

Cincinnati folks are big supporters of the Flying Pig marathon.  There were so many people out on the course with entertainment.  Random strangers were standing on the side of the road, in front of their businesses or their houses handing out bottles of water, gummy bears, bananas, paper towels, etc.  There was constantly someone around cheering you on.  There are water stops at EVERY mile.  I had to skip a few to avoid taking in too much fluids.  I also liked that the water stops were placed in the middle of each mile.  It helped mentally to convince myself to make it first to the next mile marker, then the water stop, then the next mile marker.  I ran the last 6 miles that way. There were even non-race sponsored live entertainment.  It's a pretty awesome race if you're not focused on time.  It's also a scenic course.  The views at the top of the hill in Eden Park give a gorgeous outlook of the river.  At one point we even cross the bridge over to Kentucky for a couple of miles.  There's a course tour on the website that I should've read before running so I could recognize some of the major landmarks. 

Unfortunately, the course is also really really hilly.  Others online have said that the major hills are from about mile 3.5 to mile 8, and then after that it's gentle rolling hills.  I would disagree with that.  The hills after are anything but gentle.  And as a first time marathoner, come mile 22, I really needed flat road or downhills to carry me to the end and not have to dig deep to find the will to tackle yet another hill.   

Crazylegs 2013

I saw this on a website and I found it amusing. 

Yeah, today was that kind of a day.

I said last year that I didn't know if I'd run Crazylegs again, but nearly every runner I know runs Crazylegs.  It's hard to not join in on the fun.  Plus, there aren't any other races in Madison when Crazylegs is happening.  It is a nearly 20,000 runner race and it draws some of the fastest runners in Wisconsin.  I felt like I had an easier time navigating the course this year than last year.  I thought at first that maybe there were less runners on the course, but Barry pointed out that I was a more seasoned racer and navigating is perhaps easier with experience.  I was still annoyed with those running more than two abreast though. 

Wave Y this year.  Last year I was wave X.

It was warm at the start, about 54 degrees when I left the house and since I was in wave Y, it quickly warmed to the high 60s by the time I started running down Wisconsin Avenue.  I started feeling energized and I was among the first of my wave to get on Wisconsin Avenue.  I ran the first mile in 8 minutes according to the clock.  I even made it up Bascom Hill, but I started to have the familiar feelings that told me this race would quickly go downhill.  Cramps set in after I made it down past Charter St, and I started walking.  I knew that if I pushed it, I'd regret it.  I'd end up on the side of the road, trying to not faint.  I was ready to just walk the whole damn thing. The pain subsided by the time I hit the mile 2 marker, so I started running again slowly.  Mile 2 split was 12 minutes.  I'm averaging 10 minute miles, which I figured isn't horrible, but was a far, far cry from last week's 8:41/mile pace.  I thought I'd just try and maintain this pace, get under 50 minutes and call it a day.

20 miles and Spring Sprint at the Arb 5k

Last season's training for the half marathon had a motto.  It was, "make it to 13.1 miles."  I didn't follow any training plans.  I just ran with the idea that I had to be able to run the half marathon.  This season when I started training for the marathon, I decided to follow a training plan.  Part of the reason was because I wasn't ready to jump back into training and I knew I didn't have the motivation and gusto I had last spring for the half.  So the motto started out as, "stick to the plan." Well, that went out the window pretty quick.  Instead, this season's training motto has morphed to "listen to your body."

Last week, despite the 18 mile long run I had on the schedule, I skipped it.  My body was telling me that it does not want to go out there and run.  I went out there on Wednesday and started a planned 8 mile run.  Instead, 1 mile in I had to stop and walk.  My muscles were more fatigued than usual.  I was getting nauseous.  I did some mental math and knew that this was the week.  This was the week once a month where the running thing just doesn't work for me.  After a half mile walk, I felt a bit better and finished out the run with 6 miles, but I knew the long run wouldn't happen that week.

So I took it easy for the next 5 days and didn't run because I just didn't feel like it.  Unfortunately, the weather decided to take a downturn for the worst too.  It was cold, raining, freezing, and windy this week.  I ran a couple of times that week, but nothing of note.  Come Friday, I walked out that morning and felt great.  The weather felt warmer than I expected though it was still only 40, and I felt that today was my day for the 20 mile long run.

It's amazing how easy 15 miles can feel when my body feels ready for it.  Even one mile felt like the hardest thing ever when my body just doesn't want to run.  Mile 16-17 was hard though.  I hit the wall there and I slowed to a crawl.  But one foot after another and I started to find a second wind around mile 19.  Suddenly, I was nearing mile 20 and I was picking up my speed.  I thought to myself, "holy crap, did I just do that?"  3:35 on the clock. 

Saturday morning though, I had signed up for a 5k at the Arboretum.  Barry and I parked near Seminole highway and then walked about .9 mile on the trail to the start line at the Arboretum center.  I thought this would for sure be my slowest 5k yet.  My legs definitely felt tired from the 20 miler.  It was also chillier and windier than I anticipated.  Barry and I warmed up for about .5 miles, reassessed our clothing choices (I decided to go with a hat and gloves along with a light jacket), and waited at the start line.  It was a simple out and back and mile 2 was definitely the hardest.  I finished with 28:23.  Not a PR, but not my worst either.  And it was better than February's Valentine's 5k when I first started running again this season. 

Weekly mileage and that stupid 1/10 of a mile track.

Remember how throughout the half marathon last Saturday, I repeatedly told myself to run a smart race so that I could come back the next week and run my scheduled 16 mile training run?  Yeah, that didn't happen. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm still proud of how I did in the half marathon.  It was a PR and I felt like I could've gone for another 2 miles.  BUT, I was well rested for the half marathon.  I ran 6 miles 4 days before the half marathon and then didn't touch any running shoes until race day.  However, this week, I ran 8 miles on Tuesday, three days after the half marathon and then attempted the 16 miles on the 1/10 of a mile track at the SERF yesterday.

I started out the attempted 16 miler pretty well.  I was slow.  I stopped every 25 laps or where I thought a water stop might be on race day for a sip of water.  The first 5.5 miles went by easily that way.  The next 4 were harder.  At about mile 9.5, I stopped running on that damn track, and decided I'd finish on the treadmill.  But 2 miles later, I didn't think I could do another 4 miles.  I was feeling nauseous and had absolutely no motivation to keep pushing.  I was just done.

My longest long run to date is only 13 miles.  At least, my mileage for the week is 32.  I really wish I'd just kept jogging for another couple of miles after Saturday's race.  I'd feel better about how my training run went yesterday.

I don't know what I was thinking when I signed up for a spring marathon.  Why didn't I sign up for one in June, or at least late May?  Didn't I anticipate that my period every month would result in a week with low mileage?  Or that there are many spring races that I want to do?  Why does this seem so much harder?   What am I doing trying to following a training schedule?  I didn't follow one for the half marathon and that worked out quite well.  I ran when my body said it was ready.  I didn't run when it told me it needed rest.  Now, things ache.  My right hip bothers me.  My left kneecap feels all loose and unstable.  I feel on the verge of serious injury.

At the forefront of my mind is the idea that I should perhaps switch races on May 5.  Do the half marathon instead of the full marathon.  I could try for another PR.  I think that's just my disappointment in my training thus far speaking.  Though I can't manage to get past 13 miles.  I could run 13 miles in two hours, and have a little less than 5 hours to walk the remaining 13 and still make the 7 hour cutoff.  Would I rather finish a marathon where I walked half or it and finish with an abysmal time or would I rather run a half marathon really well?  Would I feel as accomplished or as proud of my performance if I walked nearly half of a marathon?

Get Lucky Triple 7k (Half Marathon)

I had low expectations time wise for this half marathon.  I had been running at least one double digit run a week for the past month, and I didn't feel like my muscles were recovered enough for this.  I laid off on the Thursday 6 mile run that I had scheduled.  I knew I needed a couple more days.  While I still didn't reach my sub-2:00 goal, it was still a PR at 2:03:25.

At last year's Get Lucky Half Marathon, the weather at the start was a beautiful 60 degrees.  This year's temperatures at the start was a cold and chilly 22 degrees Fahrenheit.  I looked at the forecast for the whole week, and it seemed for a while that with Friday's high of 41, we might get at least into the mid or upper 30s for Saturday's race.  No such luck.  Friday never quite reached that high and instead had some snow in the evening.  The forecast for Saturday now read "26 degree high, with chance of snow in the AM."  I started wondering whether I should've sold my bib and let someone else run the race.

Awesome race swag:
hoodie instead of a T-shirt.

The Get Lucky event is two races in the Twin Cities, Minneapolis.  The 7k run is a loop that starts in Minneapolis, whereas the half marathon is an out and back course that starts and ends at the Ford Plant in St. Paul. I thought it was interesting that the start of the two events were actually 7 miles apart.  It actually worked out in my favor.  I was worried that this was going to be too big a race.  The website mentioned that they usually have about 12,000 people registered for this event. The 7k had about 10,000 people registered, and the half marathon 2700.  As it was, parts of the half marathon course were kind of narrow for the amount of people.

The other nice thing about the two separate races was that parking for the half marathon was super easy and free.  While one could opt for the paid parking in the Ford Plant, parking in the local residential neighborhood streets was just as easy.  I got there at about 7:10am and only parked a block away.

It was cold.  I had on 3 layers and planned to keep them all on during the race.  I also had my hat and my gloves.  After I gear checked an extra hoodie and pair of sweats for post-race, I started my warm-up with some easy jogging.  The warm-up actually kept my spirits up as I felt less cold once I started going.  I appreciated that the start line had nice large banners for estimated min/mile pace.  I lined up right before the 9:30 mile marker.  The pace teams also came out nice and early.

I decided right from the start that I wasn't going to try and keep with the 2:00 pace group.  I wasn't trying for a PR or goal.  I just wanted a good training run.  I wanted to run a smart race, one that I'll recover easily from and still be able to do my 16 mile training run 5 days later.  I told Ellie on Friday that I'm hoping for better than my worst half marathon time of 2:10, but I'd be happy with anything less than 2:20.  Throughout the race, I kept telling myself, "smart race, smart race, not a fast race." 

Fifty Furlong

I ran the 50 Furlong this past Saturday, with a slow slow time of 1:05:47.

I had an off week this past week.  I was in no mood to run and my body seemed to be telling me that it needed a break.  I was having a hard time recovering from my runs.  My legs felt constantly fatigued.  I ran 6 miles on Wednesday, and had plans to do 14 miles on Friday (with walk breaks) on Friday.  Unfortunately, I only got to mile 10 before I had to quit.  My legs were fatigued and though the walk breaks helped me get to 5 miles easily, the latter 5 were just as much a struggle as before.  Moreover, I ran it in my new shoes which were rubbing in all kinds of wrong places.  I knew I had rubbed through the skin on my heel by mile 6, but I kept going for 4 more before I decided to quit for good.  It was a rough 10 miles.

I had originally planned to do the 14 miles training run and skipping the 50 Furlong (or watching it as I ate a cheeseburger and drank a beer), but since I had only done 10 miles on Friday, I decided to run the 50 Furlong (in my old shoes, of course).  The temperature on Saturday was fairly warm in the upper 30s though there was quite a bit of headwind on the parts of the route back.

 The 50 Furlong is put on by the Hash House Harriers.  50 furlongs is the distance and it's 6.25 miles or roughly 10k.  It's a small race, at only about 50 people total.  Technically, it's a PR for me since it's the first race of that distance, but I'd be a bit embarrassed to list it as such.  I ran it very slowly, at about 10:30 min/mile.  I hadn't fully recovered from the 10 miles the day before, and I started to feel that fatigue by that first mile.  Moreover, the race course is SO incredibly hilly.  I ran the first couple of hills, but I had to walk up the rest of the hills.  The course was fantastic for training, but man, as a race, it was so mentally tough.  I feel like I've gotten soft with all my indoor running on flat tracks.  I need to get back on the road and run the rolling hills.  If only the weather would cooperate!

It's the Get Lucky half marathon this Saturday.  I'll do a couple of 10k loops around the Arboretum this week, but I'll generally keep it light.  I think one double digit run a week is sufficient.  Hopefully, I get right back onto my training schedule next week.  

Berbee Derby 2012

This is perhaps the first race for which the alarm clock inexplicably failed me.  I woke up literally a minute before my friend Barry called to tell me he was outside in the car waiting.  I told him I needed 10 minutes.  I threw on contacts and running clothes and headed out the door.  I counted on the weather being the 50+ it had been all week.  I did not count on wind.

After I crossed the finish line.

This is the 9th annual Berbee Derby.  The event happens on the morning of Thanksgiving Day and runners often don turkey hats on their heads.  I saw a couple of people dressed as M&Ms or carrots as well.  I think anything that might show up on your dinner table later that day makes for an appropriate costume.  The Berbee Derby has two events: a 5k run/walk and a 10k run.  It's an unexpectedly large event.  They were telling us at the start that there was something like 8000 runners.  I registered fairly late.  I wasn't sure I was going to do this run, and I kept procrastinating on the registration.  Come Monday, I'm down at the Copps on Fish Hatchery buying some Thanksgiving Day supply when I saw the Berbee Derby registration office.  I took that as a sign.  Half an hour later, I was registered.  They assigned me to wave B for the 10k, though I informed them to expect only a 10 min/mile pace out of me.  I wanted a workout on Thanksgiving Day, not so much a PR.  It's my first 10k race though so it's an automatic PR anyway.  As luck would have it though, this 10k is slower than the first "10k" at Lake Monona.

Cow Chip Classic 2012

Thankfully, not an actual cow chip for a bib.

I ran Cow Chip Classic back on September 1.  I didn't post about it because it was a last minute decision to run, and I didn't have a goal for this race. 

The Cow Chip festival takes place each year in Prairie du Sac, where people gather and watch people compete to see who can launch a cow chip the furthest.  The novelty of this festival lies in the fact that cow chips are dried cow dung.  Good ole Wisconsin with their cow tipping and dung throwing.  There is even a "tournament of chips" parade that goes through town with a "Trojan Cow" named Cowabunga.  She is a 13'6" tall cow whose head moves from side to side and lifts her tail for the "chip."  While entertaining, we were there that morning for the run/walk event.

The Cow Chip Classic has two distances: 5k and 10k.  The 5k and 10k starts together and takes the racers through a charming little downtown.  Then the 5k racers turn off  right before the 10k runners go up a daunting looking hill.  The event was small enough that there's only a timing mat at the end.  We all cross the finish line within seconds of each other.  I believe there is only about 900 or so runners total. 

Haunted Hustle 2012

The Haunted Hustle half marathon was tougher than I had expected.  I signed up for this one back in May because my friend Joe had told me it was a flat beautiful course through the woods.  In August, they changed the course.  Did you know there are hills in Middleton?

About two weeks before, I went to a good form running clinic at a local shoe store.  I was tired of injuries from the half I've been doing and I didn't see how I'd be able to train and complete a marathon if injuries keep cropping up and keep me from running for a week or more.  Hell, I'm starting to think about possibly completing an Iron Man someday.  So my friend suggested I attend this clinic and figure out what some of the issues are.  It was a 2 hour course that had a lot of information that I already knew, but the 15 minutes of information I didn't know were pretty valuable.  I tried this out at my next run and I was a convert.

They warned us, however, that there will need to be some retraining of muscles since we haven't been using them.  I had gotten up to 8 miles running this way, but nothing in the double digits. The 8 miles felt good, almost easy, so I figured 13 would be okay.  Even for the Mini-Marathon in August, I'd similarly only gotten up to 8 miles the week before.  What was perhaps a mistake was me going on a couple of long bike rides the week before.  The weather was nice and I knew I didn't have many more opportunities for my bike, so I went out for a 16 mile ride.  I should've worked up to 16 miles.  My hip flexors were sore up until the day before the race.

Madison Mini-Marathon

I just want one perfect weather, injury free half marathon.  Well, October it is.

Beautiful 50 degree weather at the start this morning for the Mini-Marathon.  Too bad, I had a bothersome ankle that now post-race is developing into an ugly bruise.  I thought about dropping out of the race at about mile 6.  I didn't want to exacerbate an injury that might prevent me from someday running a full marathon.  At mile 7, either the pain has numbed feeling in the ankle or it's subsided, but I no longer felt pain with every step.  I get in a couple of good miles and then the pain comes back in and out for the remaining race.  

Somehow, I finished, and even managed to have exactly the results I expected though not hoped for.   

Split times:
5 mile- 44:32
10 mile- 1:35:17
Last 5k- 29:29
Finish- 2:04:45
Overall pace- 9:32

Madison Half Marathon

I worked hard for this medal.

The full marathon was canceled due to a forecast high of 93 on Sunday.  Temperatures were supposed to reach 80 before 10 am.  The Green Bay marathon a week before had also high but not as bad temperatures and the race directors had to shut down the course about 2.5 hours after the race started.  Trying to head off a similar situation, the Madison full marathon was canceled.  Registered runners got some sort of credit for next year's marathon and were all automatically transferred to running the half marathon.  We were originally required to finish the half marathon in 3 hours before they pulled us off the course, but due to the heat, they left the course open for an additional hour and a half.  I was disappointed that my very first half marathon would be completed in less than ideal conditions.

After Lake Monona 20k, running the half marathon in under 2 hours looked to be very possible.  I was expected to come in just seconds before the 2 hour mark, so I knew there would be little leeway.  I had to be running my best.  Unfortunately, the heat picked up in Madison not long after that 20k race and with a bothersome knee, my training took a dive.  I was struggling to get 5 miles in, and was only finally able to work up to a 10k in 80 degree weather about 5 days before the half.  This would be tough.  I began preparing myself to let go of my original goal.  I have had little to no training in these kinds of conditions and risking heat exhaustion or something worse might take me out of future races.

Lake Monona 20k

Do you really want to hear about yet another race?  Probably not, but here goes anyway.

The race started at 9am and we got there a bit later than I would've liked.  Parking wasn't as difficult as others had made it sound, but carpooling is the way to go.  The weather was in the high 50s when we got there, predicted to be in the low 60s by the time we finished.  It was a bit humid and the wind was rather chilly at first.  Once we ran a couple of blocks to warm up, I knew that a short sleeved shirt and running capris would be sufficient.

The race started at Winnequah park and goes clockwise around the lake. For the first 3 miles, I felt fatigue in my legs and mentally rallied to keep up a pace.  The first 3 miles were hilly and as usual, I slow considerably in the second mile, watching scores of runners pass me by.  I was at 26:39 for the first 5k.  I'm thinking, "not bad," if I can keep up a consistent 9 min/mile pace.  Around mile 4, we get on John Nolen drive and for the next 2 miles, I'm fighting a nearly head-on wind.  I cross the 10k line at about 55:30.  Finally, at mile 7, I hit my stride and the next 3 miles come easily.  I keep pace with a few runners around me.  At mile 8, I start to feel hunger and wish I had more of a breakfast, or at least carried some energy gel or something on me.  I had started and ran the first mile with my friend Barry, who after the first mile started gaining quite a bit of distance ahead of me.  A little after the 9th mile marker, I pass him.  Shortly after mile 10, I feel my energy level drop significantly.  Half a mile later, I try to rally, reminding myself that there were only 2 miles to go.  The last few hills just about killed me.  I thought for sure, I'd have nothing left in me to make a sprint for the finish.  Still, when I made the final turn, I found a little something and sped up just a bit, passing a couple people in the last 1/4 mile for the finish line.  My final time was 1:52:55.  I was hoping for closer to 1:51:00, which would make for more even split times, but even at 1:52:55, my split times weren't too terribly paced.  I ran a pace of 9:06 min/mile, about 20 seconds faster than Black Earth.