Coming up next…
Half-marathon #6 is this weekend! Dexter-Ann Arbor, watch out, I’m comin’!
I’m gonna need another medal hanger at the rate I’m accumulating these…
25k full of awesome!
Last week I ran the 30th anniversary of the Fifth Third River Bank Run in Grand Rapids, my first 25k race. It’s the largest 25k road race in the country, so of course I wanted in on that bucket of awesome.
I’d run the 10k in that event twice before, but I wanted to do the 25k as a sort of kickoff to my fall marathon training. Running 15.5 miles seemed like a good way to do that.
Instead of opting to get a hotel or anything reasonable the night before, Cara Jo and I decided that were were going to tackle this race guerrilla-style. That meant waking up at 3 am, making the 2.5-hour drive to the race, picking up our race packets, running the damn thing, celebrating with breakfast, and then making the 2.5-hour trek back home. We are professionals, kids. Do not try this at home! ;)
After 30 years of existence, this race definitely has its shit together. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an event that’s more organized. All aid stations and their offerings were clearly marked, there was a clock at each mile marker, packet pickup and gear drop were extremely efficient, etc. Dear other events (ahem, Let’s Move Festival of Races), this is how it’s done.
Thankfully, unlike last year’s icky rainy weather, we had a nice, overcast and mild day. I lined up near the 9:30 pacers and waited for the starting gun. It went off, and thousands of us were on our way.
True to its name, the River Bank Run follows the Grand River. I see what ya did there, Grand Rapids…. It’s a very pretty course, with huge overarching trees, chirping birds, happy bunnies, and the big river to your right. It was a lovely morning for a run and a lovely course for a run. The first 8 or so miles were flat, too, which always helps. A few of the later miles had some hills, but they were very manageable. Nonetheless, I was still excited when a volunteer told us “This is the last hill of the course!” after we climbed it.
I had been running fairly steady 10-minute miles and was feeling pretty good, but I was ready to be done. I approached a sign with a big smiley face proclaiming “1 mile to go!” and got excited. I knew that Cara Jo would be somewhere spectating with her glittery PR That Shit sign.
I came around the corner for the final stretch and saw THE SIGN™. I gave Cara a quick hug and then crossed the finish at 2:35:44. My longest run since the marathon…I’ll take it! And, since it was my first 25k, that’s an automatic PR, woo-hoo! See ya in 2013 for a new PR, River Bank Run!
Random musings:
- Oddest race swag: Our goodie bag contained a small pouch of…vegetable oil. Useful, yet puzzling.
- Best pace team: The 10-min group! No, not just because they were near me a lot, but because they were crazy full of spirit and awesomeness. They’d make their group feel proud by repeatedly chanting “T-E-N! WE ARE TEN!” and such.
- Overheard: A very quiet and reluctant “soorrrrrry,” said to the next runner in line at an on-course porta-potty after Woman A had used it.
- Best pre-race pit stop: Dunkin’ Donuts for the early morning drive
- Most inspiring: Seeing a 25k runner with a sign on her back that said she’s battling Stage 4 breast cancer. Amazing strength and astounding courage right there.
- Number of hours in this day: 24
- Number of hours it felt were in this long day: At least 72.
Wow, this is really gonna happen…I’m officially registered for the Goofy Challenge. It’s definitely going to be a challenge to do a half one day and then a marathon the next! I can’t wait to earn those 3 sweet, coveted medals!!!
Aww yeah. Finished the 25k! (Taken with instagram)
Excited to earn one of these sexy babies next weekend. :)
Weekend racing
More race recap catch-up! I finished off April with a couple fun races:
Run With the Cops, Not From Them
I’d always wanted to do a race on my birthday, and this year I had just that opportunity! This race was on Belle Isle, Michigan, and The fun name for the race intrigued me, so I signed up for an impromptu 10k and made my merry way down to Belle Isle in Detroit.
Unfortunately, race morning was a helluva cluster (see what happens to me when my racing buddy is out of town?!), and I arrived late to the event. I was picking up my packet when I heard the gun go off, so yeah, I was late. No biggie, it’s a fun run, so I put on my bib and trotted after the crowd in the distance.
I hadn’t run on Belle Isle since the marathon, so it gave me butterflies to be back there and running along part of the same route. In fact, I was wearing my marathon shirt, and as I began to pass people, they jokingly accused me of sandbagging. I had to tell them, “I just got here late!” :)
I felt sluggish since I didn’t have any warmup, but I sped up a little each mile to finish in 57:11. It was a great way to start a fun day and make up for the cake and ice cream to be had later!
Race day musings:
- Most Unique Experience: Asking a clown for directions to the start line. No, really. Not sure why there was a clown on Belle Isle on a Saturday morning, but I’ll just roll with it.
- Second Most Unique Experience: Passing between a group of kids with handsaws. I think they were volunteers to clear trees/brush, but they were all lined up, clutching handsaws, and less than a foot away from us.
- Best Compliment Received from Another Runner: “You look gooooood out there!”
- Least Desirable Race Day Parking: I parked in a giant, ankle-deep lake of a puddle from the previous night’s storm. Well, when you’re late to a race, you don’t have much choice.
Let’s Move Festival of Races
My first relay! My runner bestie Cara Jo and I decided to do the 2-person half-marathon relay at the Let’s Move Festival of Races in Mt. Clemens last weekend. Our team, The Glitter Bombers, was primed for awesomeness, even on this unusually chilly morning.
This race was…interesting. Logistics-wise, anyway. To say there was scant info about the relay on the website would be generous. Even the volunteers really had no idea what the hell was going on with the relay. All we wanted to know was how this shit worked, how long the legs were, where we had to catch the shuttle, etc. You know, “minor” details like that.
As the runner for the first leg of the relay, all I had to do really was just show up and go. My partner, unfortunately, had an adventure. A race coordinator gave her and about 20 other people wrong instructions, so they missed the shuttle. After a mad scramble involving a random utility van, they made it to the relay exchange point with minutes to spare before I arrived at the end of my leg. Eek. So yeah, here’s hoping they improve upon that for future events!
While that was all happening unbeknownst to me, I was trotting along my part of the route. My legs felt like lead dipped in cement for some reason, so I did all I could to keep moving. I knew my portion was about 6 miles (again, nothing confirmed), and I arrived at the exchange at 54:35 to see Cara’s smiling face and to see her off.
I caught the bus back to the start, ran back to the car to grab THE SIGN™ and a cowbell, and went to the finish line for some obnoxious spectating. This PR That Shit! sign has been to quite a few events, and it always seems to bring smiles. It’s packed with glitter and awesome, so how could it not make you smile?
As I saw my partner round the corner for the last 0.1, I put my spectating into full gear. I cheered her on as obnoxiously and awesomely as I could, startling a few bystanders in the process. I wanted to do her proud, for all the times she’s cheered on my finishes with amazing enthusiasm.
And with that, The Glitter Bombers completed the relay! Despite its logistic headaches, this was a fun event, and I look forward to doing another relay.
Some random musings:
- Best Thing a Complete Stranger Asked Me While I was Spectating: “That sign…does that mean Cara Jo is running?” THEY KNOW THE SIGN™!
- Number of People We Had to Ask Before We Got Any Semblance of Relay Instruction: 10
- Grosses Thing on the Course: A deceased possum. RIP, little guy.
- My Observation from Relay Leg 1: There is an enormous amount of liquor stores on this road.
- Smelliest Miles: Miles 2-3 were along a busy road with a lot of smelly cars. :-/
The Martians Invade!
Saturday’s Martian Half-Marathon was half #5 for me and my second time doing this race course. Since my long runs in the weeks preceding the race had been less than stellar, and since I had an icky cold (or whatever the hell it is) throughout in the week, I had no idea of how I would feel on race day. So I took a no-pressure approach and treated it like a long training run. I dug it.
The Martian festival is always crazy fun. Lots of inflatable aliens, space-themed goodies, sexy medals, and people in fun costumes. The course itself? Not as much fun. In fact, the majority of it is pretty damn boring. Lots of pavement, not many spectators, and not much change in scenery. I still love this event, though, so next year I may just do the 10k and then find a more scenic half-marathon course for Spring.
The temperature felt perfect in the low 50s, and we were spared the heavy rain in favor of a light misty spray. The first 7 or so miles ticked by pretty smoothly, and then my calves started to tighten up (WTF, that never happens!). I started to feel like I was running out of gas, but I kept chugging along. Seeing handsome Army men at the aid station definitely helped cheer my spirits.
I’m really not sure how I made it through miles 10-13; they’re kind of a blur. As I came around the corner to the final stretch, I saw my bestie Cara Jo aggressively spectating with her legendary “PR that Shit!” sign! I gave her a quick run-by hug and crossed the finish.
My chip time was 2:06:42. Not my best 13.1 time but not my worst either. I’ll take it.
Look at the sweet Martian bling!
I leave you with some musings from the race:
- Best thing overheard while running:
Courtesy of a discussion between friends about how they’d greet their friend on the course when they caught up to her:Girl: “I’m gonna touch her boob!”
Guy: “I’m gonna lick her ear!” - Best sight during warmup: A purple bikini top casually laying in the middle of a subdivision.
- Grossest thing on the course: A flattened squirrel with about 15 cigarette butts stuck in it. Um, what?!
- Best thing overheard after the race: “There’s no line at the snack table!”
- Number of GUs choked down: 2
- Best thing about doing races: Spending time with my friends and nomming on delicious breakfasts afterwards!
Race Recap Catch-Up
I’ve been MIA lately — from blogging, not from running! — so I’m doing a beast of an update for the past 3 races. And here…we…go!
Sweetheart 10k
This is the 2nd year in a row that Cara Jo and I have traveled to the land far, far away called Flushing, Michigan for the Sweetheart 10k & 5k. As with last year, it was freezing, windy, and slushy. We had gotten hit with some snow and ice the night before the race, so Cara and I were hoping that the mildly fierce weather had scared people off and that we’d clean up in the awards.
As I trotted along in my 10k through the slippery slushie, I cursed myself for not owning trail shoes. Or anything with more traction than road shoes. My poor NB Minimus Roads were sliding around like I was running through melty butta, and this was making my legs more tired than they should be on a 10k.
I finished in 57:17, and wouldn’t you know that that was actually good enough for 3rd place in my age group, woop woop! I think the race director really likes kitties (as do I) because the awards and shirts had kitties on them. Thus, I present to you the delightfully random kitty cat medal that I earned (and Cara got one too, yay!!!):
Fight for Air Climb
I had the privilege of participating in the American Lung Association’s Fight for Air Climb earlier this month. This event was a 70-floor stair climb of Detroit’s Renaissance Center, and I was eager to take on a physical challenge that was very different than the usual road races. More importantly, this event benefitted a cause that is very dear to my heart: lung health. As a lifelong asthmatic and the daughter of a wonderful man who passed away from lung cancer, I definitely wanted to be a part of this event.
With Cara as our team captain and kickass fundraiser, our team, the Quadzillas, our team raised an astonishing $1,483! I’m so proud of us!
With my quads and butt muscles burning, I finished the climb in just under 13 minutes. Some refreshments and a nice shiny medal awaited us at the top!
Oh, and we made some pretty kickass glittery team shirts too! You can’t quite tell from this photo, but my dino is rocking a gold grill and some gold chains, teehee:
AND we snuck our way on to the local news. You can see us cheering at the beginning of this clip and again when our teammate Kim finishes the climb like a boss.
All in all, this was such a great and meaningful event, and I can’t wait to do it again!
St. Patrick’s Parade Corktown Races
This race never fails to amuse. Are there ridiculous costume? Oh yes. Are the spectators/paradegoers super excited? Heck yeah! Is there drinking involved? Of course!
With friends Heather and Cara by my side, we 3 festive ladies had as much obnoxious fun as possible, chip time be damned. I believe that over the course of this 5k, we shed enough boa feathers, glitter, and tiny plastic shamrocks to fill a Michael’s craft store. We also provided an obscene of enthusiastic high fives to other runners — you’re welcome for that. Sadly, we overran the cute boys handing out shots of Jameson from the sidelines around the 1 mile mark, but we still pressed on gleefully.
This was the first year that the Corktown race awarded finisher medals. But alas, they had just 7,000 made, so in our spirited “time be damned” attitude, we missed the cutoff for sexy medals. Oh well, I still bet we had way more fun than a lot of the medal earners. :)
First 25k is on the schedule
Thanks to today’s tempting Active.com Schwaggle deal, I signed up for the Fifth Third Riverbank Run in Grand Rapids, Michigan for half price! And, since it’ll be my first 25k race, that means… an automatic PR and a new achievement will be unlocked!
Gonna get me one of these shiny sexy medals:
New 5k PR!
Well this sure came out of nowhere. I had set a goal of a 5k PR this year but dang if it didn’t happen on my first attempt.
Over the past 6 weeks, I’d been ramping up my speedwork (doing mile repeats and such), but that was focused more towards next month’s Sweetheart 10k. I didn’t feel 5k PR “ready” at the Freeze Your Franny start line on Saturday, but apparently my legs had other plans!
I finished in 25:58, officially smashing my previous 5k PR of 26:21. I couldn’t believe it. I’m not sure what my splits were, other than somehow I managed to run a 7:43 second mile. WTF where did that awesomeness come from and how can I do that again?!
The race, held at Stony Creek Metropark, was dusted with some light snow that made everything all pretty and winter wonderland-like. We wound along the paved bike/pedestrian path through the park and finally through a giant finish arch that led us to the promised land of heated tents and warm beverages. I was certainly buoyed by the excitement of its being the first race of the year for me. And, of course, I was excited by all the happy puppies at the race that I got to pet. I’m a sucker for such cute animals, especially when those animals share my love of running. Those happy pups remind me how exciting and fun it is just to RUN!
I mean, c’mon, how cute is this? AND they had cute little winter booties on!
After I finished, I went back to cheer on Cara Jo, as she crushed her Franny course PR by over 6 minutes (!). So not only was it awesome that we both PR’d in a pretty wintry race, BUT all this awesomeness cost only $10. Cheers to cheap races!
Moving along and training along…I’d say this year is off to a great start!
