Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Week in Review (February 20 - February 26)

Tuesday (14,191 steps) - Nowhere near enough sleep. A had student council in the morning so we were up extra early. Roads were still crap from the snow we got the night before and my drive in was wretched. A had rehearsal in Lakewood for her Honors Orchestra concert, so I coerced Dulce into running with me. It was freaking cold, like 15 degrees and not sunny, but we had a great time catching up.
Picked A up at 6, quick trip to the store, then dinner. A put herself to bed around 8:30, although I still had to stay up another hour to do laundry.
Wednesday (19,315 steps) Roost Boulder run club! Other than Kristin having a nasty fall right at the end of the run, it was a good time. A was a little slower than usual, I don't think she was feeling well. We stayed at Under the Sun and sold cookies. Again.
I always steal these pics from the weekly newsletter, maybe that's why they are blurry!
Over 2 miles in, and it's kind of light!!! 
Thursday (7,709 steps) - Woke up to no heat in the morning. Good thing I had called earlier in the week to have someone look at my furnace because it was making weird noises. 3 hours and $450 later, we had heat, and I was on my way to work. Had to get A to rehearsal in Lakewood at lunch, then over to her area Honors Orchestra concert.
The kids did a fantastic job, it was really a good show! The drive home was terrifying because of all the snow/ice and lack of plows being out.
Friday (6,824 steps) - Canceled my barre class because of the snow and my impending cold. Good choice, I really needed the sleep. Cookie booth after work in the snow - which probably helped us sell cookies. Sold a bunch! Pho for dinner because we were both freezing after being in the cold for two hours.
Saturday (18,797 steps) - Runners Edge! I had 12 on schedule. Woke up so tired and not feeling great, so I opted to "only" run 8. Ended up being a great choice as the last half was into a nasty headwind.
Home to make thin mint cheesecakes, then off to Denver Roost for the Colorado Brewery running series kick off! A was selling cookies, and I was sampling beers with Maureen and Jandy. Really fun afternoon!
Then off to Heather's house for a beer & Girl Scout cookie pairing. Also a lot of fun. Very tired.
Sunday (7,995 steps) - Drove to Boulder to pick up JT. Volunteering again at the West Side Best Side XC race in Arvada. GALE FORCE WINDS AND THE MOST COLD EVER. Assisted with packet pick up and registration before heading out onto the course to marshal the same section that I did last year. I earned a free entry for volunteering, which again, I let A use. She ended up run on "Team Skirt" and was the fastest person for their team!
A is running in her WINTER COAT. (Ignore the guy in shorts, he's clearly insane)


After the race we stopped by New Terrain, dropped off JT, then went to work a cookie booth for an hour.
Dropped off A at her Scout leader's for a meeting, then BACK to New Terrain to pick up JT and up to Boulder for a beer at Under the Sun.
Home by 5. Good lord this was the busiest day ever. Finished up with the spring premier of the Walking Dead.
Monday (13,485 steps) - Barre with Karen. Still don't love her class, but wow, did this one kick my ass! I may never walk again. Picked up A at homework club, then down to Homegrown Tap & Dough for Roost Denver off site run club!!
Ran a 5K around Wash Park with Dulce, then we stuck around after for pizza and beers. Another really fun night.

Stats:
  • 88,316 steps (Lowest in ages. Felt fatigued and sick all week.)
  • 21 miles run
  • 1 barre class

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Week in Review (February 13 - February 19)

Tuesday (13,424 steps) - Barre with Kelly. Sloan's Lake Tap & Burger run club! Ran one big loop with Dulce and Zach. Managed to not stay out too late. Went to Target for a stock-up trip, it's always terrible to spend a few hundred bucks on things like laundry detergent and toothbrush head replacements.
Wednesday (20,788 steps) - Boulder Roost run club! BARELY made it there in time, and Kristin came, so we all ran "together."
Another new route that had some incredibly icy sections. Overall, a pretty great run!
Instead of a regular raffle, there were "couples" contests. The first one (no picture) was backs against each other and lowering to a squat. I did that one, but my partner quit early. A and JT had a great time doing the alternating push up and sit-up challenges. 

We went to Under the Sun again, and A had a semi-ok night selling cookies. (Will be glad when this is all over!)
Thursday (12,449 steps) - A had a Scout thing after school, so I got my run in closer to home at Berkeley Park (since I wasn't sure when she was going to be done). Pretty "speedy" 3 miles for me. Socialized a bit with the gang before heading home.
Friday (7,277 steps) - Barre with Sasha. After work it was dinner and packing. The gal who bought my snowboard showed up around 7:30 and seemed pleased with the purchase. Also, my furnace seems to be going out, so I spent some time troubleshooting, although not much I could do right before we were heading out of town (figures, right?).
Saturday (8,478 steps) - With the change in our flight schedule we didn't have to get up super early to go to the airport. Everything was easy peazy and our flight left close to on time. A had downloaded some movies and we watched The Money Pit during the flight. Heather picked us up and we headed to the expo downtown. First though, we stopped at Whataburger for lunch! After the expo we headed to Heather's house. Lisa picked up A to spend the night at her house. Meanwhile, we went to Hurricane's for dinner, and it was the most delicious ever. Unsure if this was ideal pre-race food or not.
Sunday (27,591 steps) - Austin half marathon!
We stopped to get coffee on the way home (because it was soooo cold outside). I got a red velvet latte from Cuppa Austin, and it was delicious. Afternoon was spent watching the Olympics. Around 6, Lisa picked me up so we could have dinner together. Her, my niece and A made chicken fajitas and a pumpkin bundt cake. Was delicious! She dropped me and A off around 9 back at Heather's. Only made it about an hour before I headed to bed. Exhausted.
Monday (6,891 steps) - Slept until some crazy hour like 9. We went to Jim's for breakfast (omg, was that delicious).
Then, we walked around Brushy Creek for a bit.
It was super windy though, so we ended up spending the remainder of our time... watching more Olympics! Chili's for dinner on the way to the airport. Through security in record time (like 8 minutes). Flight into Denver was uneventful (delayed, but we landed roughly the same time as our original schedule). THEN, we had to brave the snow that had hit. It was probably close to 10 before we got dropped off at the car (maybe later), and the roads were crap. Didn't get home until about 11:30. Waaaaay late.

Stats:
  • 96,898 steps
  • 27.1 miles run
  • 2 barre classes

Austin Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, February 18
Austin, TX
Half Marathon #178
Weather - Overcast, drizzling

So when Heather moved to Texas last summer, she decided to run the Austin half marathon. Now you might remember that I ran the full marathon in 2012 (back when I as fast). She sent me a groupon in an attempt to entice me to join her. Somehow, I purchased this groupon (no seriously, they have my card on file and I don't actually recall hitting "buy"), and a long weekend was planned.

Our flight into Austin was delayed. We still had plenty of time to get to the Parmer Events Center to pick up our packets. Disappointed that the shirts were unisex? WHY??? Nothing of interest at the expo, so we were not there long.

Race Day

Planned to leave at 5:30, with the 7 am start. I got up at shortly after 5, which gave me enough time to get dressed, braid my hair and have coffee.

I had hyped up the Waze app to Heather for getting us to our pre-booked parking at the Westin, yet the exit Waze told us was closed. We still arrived at the valet stand with plenty of time. The hotel was super awesome about letting us runners hang out in the lobby and use their fancy bathrooms. With about 15 minutes until the gun we decided we should head to the start. It was still dark!!

We lined up... somewhere? Maybe around the 4:30 sign, although we weren't planning on running that fast. I had looked at the course map and elevation profile earlier and realized it was not the same course I had run years earlier. Of note was the long gradual hill for roughly the first three miles. My personal goal was to not walk any of the hills.
At the start line
I had my throwaway sweatshirt on and assumed I'd wear it at least the first mile or two. False. I got hot and ripped that thing off within the first 7 minutes. The aid stations were placed nearly every mile, and all had Nuun - yay, my favorite!
This sign made me laugh
The first 8 miles were uneventful, other than the first of our 3(!!) beer stops.  Around mile 8 Heather was walking the hills. I was obnoxiously running them and then waiting at the top for her.
There was a series of these posters that had silly Monty Python references (half and full course stayed together the first 11 or 12 miles)
I do remember commenting that the race had not picked the most scenic city route. We ended up having another two random beer stops - including Mile Beerteen!
Luckily, at some point we heard someone talk about the hill at mile 12. And oh boy, was that a hill! Apparently one section was over 13% grade!
allllll of the fog (which kept temperatures down)
Thankfully, there was no longer an uphill finish, and we turned onto Congress Ave. for the last tenth. We got our bottle of water (and a nuun packet) and a bag of random crap. We did not, however, get a space blanket. We both decided to skip the beer and head back to the car instead.
Official time - 2:34:07
Garmin time - 2:34:11
Mile 1 - 11:39
Mile 2 - 12:23
Mile 3 - 11:22
Mile 4 - 11:53
Mile 5 - 10:52
Mile 6 - 11:16
Mile 7 - 11:19
Mile 8 - 11:16
Mile 9 - 12:18
Mile 10 - 11:44
Mile 11 - 11:45
Mile 12 - 11:33
Mile 13 - 12:07
Mile 13.28 - 9:07 pace

Thoughts:

  • Expo - the venue is pretty good. Located only about 20 minutes from the airport, so that was helpful. There weren't that many vendors there, so we got in and out quickly. 
  • Swag - Not impressed with the unisex shirt (as I stated earlier). I don't keep many race shirts, but I like to keep the ones from races I travel to. This one will get donated.
  • Medal/buckle - yep, you read that right! I like this one!
  • Aid stations - well-spaced, and I liked that there was Nuun at every one. On the half course there were Clif Shots at mile 9, but I didn't take one.
  • The race itself is very well organized, but a bit pricey. Makes sense though for a big city race, a LOT of roads downtown had to be at least partially closed down.
  • Suggestions for next year - space blankets at the finish and of course, gender specific shirts!
  • As for my personal performance, I felt really great this whole race. This is a huge mental boost for me as I have only run double digits a handful of times since Chattanooga. Heading into some high mileage training, so really pleased with how this went! 

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Week in Review (February 6 - February 12)

Tuesday (14,310 steps) - Got there a little late, but went back to the Sloan's Lake Tap & Burger for run club. (We may do this instead of speed work, undecided). Ran just over 4 miles with A and Dulce, and then had delicious pasta and salad. A sold more cookies. Home late-ish again.
Wednesday (21,075 steps) - Roost Boulder run club! We were heading out on a semi-new trail! I'll have to run this again when I can actually see what's happening, it seemed like it would be really pretty!
After the run we went to Under the Sun where we had some food/drinks and A sold (A LOT) of Girl Scout cookies.
Thursday (12,491 steps) - Roost Belmar run club! Newton was there for shoe demos, and I tried the new Gravity - mainly because they are really pretty! I have been wearing Newtons as my primary road shoes for many years, so it's always a treat when the rep visits. The park was closed, so we ended up running to Addenbrook Park and back. It was kind of a meh run, but warm enough for bare legs!
Friday (6,679 steps) - Barre with Sasha. A went to a sleepover. I made a complicated cake for a friend with lots of allergies and watched a few episodes of Game of Thrones.
Saturday (18,737 steps) - Runners Edge Lakewood. It was cold and snowy. Really happy I only had 8 miles on schedule.
My one picture from the run is the random "Mr Popper's Penguins" house
After I picked up my aid station I headed home for a super quick shower, picked up A at her friend's house and then braved the treacherous roads to Boulder to sell more cookies at Under the Sun. Not quite as many sold, but I enjoyed a delicious breakfast burrito and a stout. THEN, we headed down to Dulce's for Valensgiving! A great evening with food and friends.
Sunday (19,457 steps) - Arrived at the Platte River Bar & Grill for volunteering at RMRR. We helped with registration until it was time to run. I was starting about 4 minutes after the gun. The trail was snow-covered and icy. When running north, I kept thinking... why am I wearing so many layers? Then when we turned around there was an awful head wind. It was cold and not a lot of fun.
I took this at the start!
Once again, no pics of me, so here is one of A looking awesome
Time - 1:16:15
Distance - 7.00 miles
Mile 1 - 11:03
Mile 2 - 10:44
Mile 3 - 10:22
Mile 4 - 10:40
Mile 5 - 11:56 (this is when I really wanted to die)
Mile 6 - 10:51
Mile 7 - 10:34

Most people didn't have a stellar day, which helped to get 7th place! Plus, I won a $25 gift certificate to Runner's Roost - good day!
Roost teammates!
Ribbon winners! - 7th place is purple!
Volunteers!
We went door to door selling cookies for about a half hour, and A did surprisingly well. Jan picked her up for a Scout meeting and I had lunch and watched more Game of Thrones. Before picking up A I dropped off 3 boxes and a bag at Goodwill (things are coming along!). Panda Express for dinner and getting caught up on Law & Order.
Monday (9,897 steps) - Runners Roost Stapleton run out of Cheluna Brewery! I ended up running with Jason Romero - and... it turns out we used to work for the same law firm years ago. Small world! Stayed out way too late playing trivia, BUT, we came in second place!! Fun night.
Warming up for the run playing foosball!
Stats:
  • 102,646 steps
  • 32.1 miles run
  • 1 barre class

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Week in Review (January 30 - February 5)

Tuesday (18,042 steps) - We had the week off from speed work, so we met up with some of our Belmar friends at Sloan's Lake Tap & Burger for another run club. I ran the first loop with Dulce and was feeling really good, so I ran another loop by myself, for a total of 5.5 miles. Pasta and salad were on the house (!), so we didn't even have to make dinner when we got home. Fun times!
Wednesday (15,138 steps) - We set our alarms and got up early to walk to the lake to see the Super Blue Blood Moon! Unfortunately, we didn't realize that totality would last over an hour, so we missed it, super sucky. Left the house about 20 minutes too late. We did see a nice sunrise, however.
Opted to skip our weekly run on the Boulder trails for a fun off site run with Denver Runners Roost at Crazy Mountain. I had planned to run with Alison and Dulce, but ended up doing 4 miles with Tony. Food was catered in from Cuba Cuba and we got a beer on the house. Another fun night!
Thursday (14,079 steps) - Belmar run club! I did a little loop alone before the group started, then did a big loop with Samm and Dulce, and then another little loop. I had forgotten my vest and a jacket, so I was pretty cold.
Friday (9,283 steps) - Barre with Sasha. We watched Groundhog Day since A had never seen it.
Saturday (28,346 steps) - Runners Edge! Thankfully, we didn't have an aid station. I committed to running 12 with Kristin. It wasn't terrible, but it was pretty warm and super flat routes kinda hurt. Due to aid station placement we were closer to 12.5 miles.

Breakfast at Einsteins, then off to the dealership so Lucy could get her first oil change. Almost three hours later we were finally home. Watched Office Space and then... picked up Girl Scout cookies. Already.
I decided to finish purging kitchen stuff. I pulled out FIFTY coffee mugs/glasses to donate. 50. And we will still have more than enough. How on earth do we accumulate this many? I had already donated things like sport bottles a year or so ago, so this number used to be much higher.
Sunday (13,092 steps) - Runners Roost MUT kickoff! The group was supposed to run our regular Wednesday route, but it was so cold and icy that we decided to skip the run.



We helped set up and just chatted with people in the store. Stuck around until 11 so A could sell cookies.

Beer and snacks at Southern Sun, then onto Chloe's birthday party at Skate City. I dropped off A and ran my 4 scheduled miles solo on Clear Creek.
Picked up A and then went to Ben's to watch the first half of the Super Bowl. Left after the halftime show, finished the Super Bowl at home. Long/short weekend.
Monday (13,377 steps) - Barre with Karen. Headed over to Cheluna Brewing to meet up with the brand new run club for Runners Roost Stapleton. I was kinda sorta familiar with the area, but it was really dark and I wasn't running with anyone else and missed about 2/3 of a mile of the route.
It was pretty cold and windy, so 3.2 miles was plenty. A sold cookies and I had a beer and unofficially played trivia. Late night, we didn't get home until 9.

Stats:
  • 111,357 steps
  • 35.3 miles run (wow!)
  • 2 barre classes

Week in Review (March 5 - March 11)

Tuesday  (15,597 steps) - Peloton rides before work in the office. Went to the gym at lunch for strength training. After work I had to go to...