Because Being Ordinary Is Boring: Athleta

Showing posts with label Athleta. Show all posts

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Ralston Creek Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Arvada, CO
Sunday, February 12
Half Marathon #55
Colorado Half #8
Weather -OMG SO COLD. 10 degrees at start, 18 degrees at finish

When I first heard about the Ralston Creek half marathon, I was pretty sure I wasn't going to run it. I mean, it is in FEBRUARY. The weather is SO iffy here, and I hate running when it is cold or snowy (or both). If I race in Colorado in the winter, I usually wait until the last possible minute to register so I don't have to run in yucko conditions. The lure of a medal suckered me in, and I registered before the last price increase on January 31.

Then came - Snowpocalypse, which dumped a couple FEET of snow. And then it snowed Friday night. Luckily, there was no snow OR wind on race day. But it WAS super cold. REALLY cold. Cold enough that I actually went out and bought some crazy awesome running tights. Well, technically they are crops, but since I am a midget, they are pants that are just a *tad* too short. Completing the outfit for the arctic temps? A YMX top covered with my Athleta 1/4 zip, a beanie and gloves. What's missing? A running skirt. Obviously, I adore running in a skirt, but in 10 degree weather? NO.FREAKING.THANK.YOU. I also wore three items I have never worn once, and the 1/4 zip I'd only done a short training run in. So this was brand new territory me. I know, I know, never try anything new on race day? Well, no wardrobe malfunctions and I didn't freeze to death, so I consider it all a success.

I arrived at the race start with no problems about an hour before it was supposed to start. Nearly froze to death walking across the parking lot to pick up my bag, bib, and timing chip. Immediately headed back to the car and cranked the heater. How on earth was I not going to freeze to death?? About 9:15 and I did a quick run to use the bathroom, and thankfully missed the lines. On my way back, I ran into a twitter friend - Luke (@runthetrailsCO). It was really nice to chat with him and his fiancee - Courtney (@cisforcourtney). They are both adorable and super nice! We chatted until about 10 minutes before the race was supposed to start.

First long stretch of the course - those are people "warming up"

Had to run over to my car to pin on my bib (no race belt today). Headed over to the start about two minutes before the race was supposed to start. Lined up behind these two ladies - who were wearing bibs for Sherry. I meant to print out a bib, and forgot, but there were at least a half dozen people I spotted wearing them.

Almost immediately after I took that photo, a woman approached me and asked if I was W's sister. I asked how she recognized me, since I wasn't wearing my typical gear. She said my phone :D Chatted a minute, then we were off. I started off with a pace I felt was pretty good, and immediately I was shocked with just how cold it was. I mean, the type of cold where you can really FEEL how thin the air is. The kind of cold where it hurts to inhale too deeply. The kind of cold where your face feels like it could crack and fall right off. BRRR. Luckily, most of my body warmed up pretty fast, although it took my toes about a mile or two before they didn't feel like they were suffering frostbite.

I was worried about how the course was going to be with all the snow we had been having and with the cold temperatures, we weren't having much melting. Most of it was just fine, although there were sections that were icy and snow packed, which meant I had to be a lot more cautious than usual.

Between Miles 2 & 3

I was SUPER glad I had worn what I had, I think I would have frozen to death had I been wearing anything less. I wasn't having any weird aches and pains, which is always a good thing. I was pacing pretty well, but it was COLD, and I just wanted to get this race over with!

The next aid station was just after mile 4, I grabbed a nearly frozen Hammer gel. I had to walk to take it because I couldn't get the package to open and it was NOT going down as easily as "unfrozen" gels. As an aside, I do NOT care for the Tropical flavor. Stopped about a tenth of a mile down the road to use the bathroom.

Since I didn't bother to look at the course or profile, and had never run in this part of town, I really didn't know what to expect. The whole first part of the course FELT uphill. (Luckily after I downloaded Garmin stats, it really WAS uphill and I was not imagining things). I felt like I was working pretty hard, and did take a few short walk breaks to give my legs a break. I really hate the snow and cold, but it was an eerily pretty day out:

Between Miles 5 & 6

About the time we arrive at the halfway point, I start wondering where the course turns around. And then, just before mile 7... I see this hill in the background. Probably hard to tell in this background the enormity of that hill, but that whole sections is switchbacks up to the top. Ugh. Glad I didn't know about that in advance. Yucko.

Aid station right at the base of the switchbacks. Those poor ladies must have been FREEZING, but were wearing their ski pants to keep warm. Yes, it was THAT cold. I ran up about 3/4 of the switchbacks, but took a few short walk breaks. Still had a little more than half the course left, I didn't want to use up all my energy!

At the top of the switchbacks... yes, we ran up ALL that

Took a quick picture and then was ECSTATIC to have some downhills. I literally CRUISED through the next two miles, posting sub 9 minutes for each. WHAT?? I haven't done sub 9s in AGES. I was feeling AWESOME at this point. Took another gel just before mile 9 (this one was NOT frozen since it was in my pocket). I was able to hold a pretty good pace for the rest of the race, although I probably did go out a bit too hard and did take a few short walk breaks. I passed at least 5 or 6 of my "rabbits" during the last few miles, which is always ego-building.

I was super happy when we exited the trail section. I had really been crossing my fingers hoping for sub 2:15, and when I looked at my watch, I knew I would do even better than that. I cruised down the road, and Courtney got an awesome shot of me as I ran by at about the 13 mile marker. How awesome is it that they stuck around so long. Luke finished in 9TH place in 1:22ish. CRAZY!!

For the first time in AGES, I had a little left at the end and actually sorta sprinted at the end. Amazing. Crossed the line and... YAY, my dad had brought A to watch me finish!

Bib #1433

Official Time - 2:11:35

Official Pace - 10:03

Overall Place - 268/421

Sex Place - 112/228

Division Place - 25/41

Garmin Time - 2:11:36

Garmin Distance - 13.16 miles

Garmin Pace - 10:00

Mile 1 - 9:11

Mile 2 - 10:02

Mile 3 - 10:46

Mile 4 - 10:06

Mile 5 - 11:31 (bathroom)

Mile 6 - 10:59

Mile 7 - 9:56

Mile 8 - 11:02 (this was up a mountain, so PLEASED)

Mie 9 - 8:53

Mile 10 - 8:59

Mile 11 - 9:10

Mile 12 - 9:48

Mile 13 - 9:44

Mile 13.1 - 8:11

Headed over to the finisher area and got some delicious chocolate banana bread, a diet coke (I don't care if it IS bad for you, I think it is tasty), some water AND a burrito. Another twitter friend, Daniel (@cybermallet) found me and introduced himself. I just LOVE the internet and all the running friends I have met through Twitter, etc.

Anyway, all things considered, I am super pleased with how this race went. One of my better times in the last year, and I didn't die of hypothermia, which is always a bonus.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Three Products to Try This Winter

1. Yellowman Winter Flower Long sleeve Tri-Pocket Jersey

How much do I love this top??? TONS. (And this is the color I have!)

UPF 50+
Three pockets in the back - deep enough to hold a water bottle (although I wouldn't/couldn't run with one, but good for cycling or walking)
MadKool fabric - 92% polyester, 8% spandex

OMG. So I was lucky enough to win one of these bad boys through Twitter (if you aren't already following them... DO - @WearYMX). It came JUST IN TIME for my 20 miler Fat Ass run last weekend. I know I'm a tank top wearer, but due to the weather, I figured what better way than to test out a shirt than on a 4ish hour trail run?

I. Am. In. Love. Attractive and fitted, this shirt has it all. I was kept warm, yet it wicked and even cooled me down when it got warmer. No idea how that works, but I'm telling you. The 4 hours I wore this shirt CHANGED me. I will wear this on my longer trail runs and know that I can toss my iPod and keys in the back and go for a run and I will be comfortable. Highly recommend this product. Also - check out their website as they are running a special 72 hour sale on one item for $25... Wear Yellowman

(I was not asked to review this product, but since I liked it so much, I wanted to).

2. Athleta Headwinds Jacket

Um. This jacket is no longer on Athleta's website... which is a TOTAL BUMMER, because it could quite possibly be the best jacket I've ever had. I purchased mine on Black Friday during their sale- in an awesome red color (with silver accents and black lining).

Keeps me warm, yet vents me when I get hot (how??). Nice looking and fitted. Not too tight at the waist line - I was able to wear it OVER a fuel belt without it being too tight/annoying. Long enough sleeves that I can use the thumb holes without feeling like my arms are being ripped off. Outside ZIPPERED pockets - great so I don't lose stuff. AND inside pockets too. Plus, the accenting is ALL REFLECTIVE, so it is perfect to wear at dusk/evening. This is an awesome jacket - I hope Athleta brings it back. It is perfect for me!

3. Aspaeris Pivot Shorts - Dual Sensory Compression

As part of the SoCal Ragnar team I'm on, I'm officially SPONSORED to wear these for at least one leg. I CANNOT WAIT TO TRY THESE. I like sparkle skirts, but what I DON'T like is that the UA "compression" shorts I have been wearing are not at ALL compression-y. They constantly ride up and I spend half the race pulling them done.

The Aspaeris pivot shorts "guide your muscles into proper position, thereby improving your pivot performance which helps prevent ACL and hip injuries" SCORE. Anything that can help prevent me to get injured is something I want to try. They also wick away moisture so that odor-causing bacteria is eliminating. Obviously something I'll need if I'm spending a few days in a van with people I don't know :-/

So... something special about these... if you need some compression shorts, they are offering a 50% off discount (courtesy of our team) - use the code "cooleronline" and save a TON!! So check them out!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Southside Fatass 20 Miler ("Race" Recap)

Not really a race, but an organized group run with distances where you record your own time. There IS a winner, but totally unofficial.

So the other day, I'm on Facebook, and one of my friends asked - "anyone want to run 20 miles on Saturday?" Well. I did want to run 20ish. Actually, I had 24 on schedule. So I asked for more information. She told me about the Southside Fatass run. Lucky for me, it was taking place only about 20 minutes from my house. On a day I was supposed to do a long run anyway. With available distances ranging from 15 miles to 50K, I was pretty sure it would be a nice change from the treadmill.

Yes. You heard me right. After 9 weeks of doing my double digit runs on the treadmill, I decided to take it outside.

Date: January 21
Time: 7 am

I was warned that I shouldn't be late, or I would miss getting a map. I was very concerned about getting that map since I have only run a teeny tiny section of the trails. And THAT was about 2 years ago. Two other girls needed to use the bathroom, so I went with them - and we informed the group we would be back for the start. Had some nice conversation, the women had actually done the relay of the 100 miler I'll be doing in a few months. One is running the Leadville 100 this year!

Anyway, we are heading back to the start, the sun is coming up:

And then we see the runners heading toward us. They started without us :( Which meant... no map for me! OH NO!!! It looked like they were running fast. Not really surprising since Boulder is known for super freaky fast runners. I ended up at the tail end of the pack and spoke with the organizer. She said she would get a map for me and ran off. Unfortunately... she never came back. Lucky for me, I latched on to apparently the only other average runner. And yay for me that she turned out to be AWESOME. She gave me her map, and said she was familiar enough with the trails that she probably wouldn't need it. And she was super great company. I never ONCE turned on my iPod. And for pretty much the only time EVER, the miles seriously did fly by. I didn't really look at my watch, and actually enjoyed most of my run.

This IS pretty nice to look at

So it IS January. Luckily most of the trails were pretty clear. Only a few sections were icy and about a mile was decently muddy. But for the most part we had some pretty runnable trails. I was doing really well until we had to cross the highway - maybe somewhere around 4 miles. Right after we crossed, there was a downhill section. I tripped over a rock, flailed awkwardly and was not able to catch myself from falling. Face plant. Skinned my knee. But at least I didn't rip my running tights or my jacket. And at least I (narrowly) missed the cow poop. Jumped up, and kept going.

I had chosen a VERY unconventional (for me) outfit for running. My new YMX Winter flower long sleeve jersey and my Athleta Headwinds jacket. PERFECT. As you know, I am 99% of the time a tank top wearer. But. 27 degrees. Windy. January. I didn't want to take a chance.

We stopped to use the bathroom around mile 7. First aid station at mile 8. Yes, there were aid stations. The organizers husband ran a "mobile" aid station. Waited for the last people to arrive then headed to the second point down the trail. I downed a 1/4 PBJ sandwich, small cup of coke, a few pretzels and some animal crackers. (Did I mention this event was FREE???)

Hope (the woman I was running with) and I were having a great time talking, and we finally encountered the first section we really couldn't run. It was steep single track, lots of mud and ice. Neither of us fell. Bonus. After scraping mud out of the soles of shoes, we continued on. Second aid station at mile 11. We beat the van there by a couple of minutes. Refueled - this time with a chocolate chunk rice krispie treat, some chips and M&Ms. We added another runner who only wanted to run the end, and headed out again.

She turned out to be MUCH slower than we were. We talked and "ran" (her jog was my brisk walk pace) for about a mile, then when she slowed to a walk, we went on without her.

It's hard to see, but in the picture below on the hill there is a big animal. We could not determine if it was a wolf or coyote. Luckily he never came close enough for us to find out.

We had a nice section of fairly flat and downhill. Then we turned and the wind picked back up. I took off my jacket around 10:30, tying it around my waist. That was not as annoying as I thought it would be either.

Since Hope knew where she was going and was only running 20, I decided to scrap my extra miles and finish up the run with her. Even with over 20 minutes of stopping and standing around (between the bathroom stop and aid stations), we still maintained a pretty decent pace.

She is training for her first 50k in May (the same one I ran last year!) and we plan to do another run together this spring.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Three Things Thursday

1. I did an outdoor run today. It was pretty good! Except for the path being all icy. Which is dumb, since it hasn't snowed in over a week. I got to try out FOUR new items I've never used... I'll probably review this more in depth later. But for now:

Nike ear warmer thing. It's cute. And it kept my ears from freezing off and my headphones from slipping.

Athleta Hindsight Half Zip top. Now. I don't normally wear long sleeves, but I figured this year I'd try being comfortable and warm. I got this awesome top as a Black Friday special using a gift card from a friend. I absolutely LOVED it. It breathed really well which kept me from getting too hot, yet it felt like air moved through. Never got cold either. Please it had the thumb holes (which I love), and a back zippered pocket. I put my keys in there and NEVER felt them. LOVE. THIS. TOP.

Adidas Gloves - Touch screen compatible!! I loved these, never took them off. And yes, they worked as promised!

Newton trail runners. I have had these for over a year. I even forgot my socks, wore this for a 35 minute run. So comfortable, no blisters. I think I will train my outdoor runs wearing these, and possibly race my 100 in them...

2. Field trip for Daisy Girl Scouts to the Butterfly Pavilion. They had the whole exterior decked out with lights... and a Fire Dancer. In 25 degree weather.

3. FINAL GRADES ARE IN!!

Friday, December 9, 2011

Five Things Friday - Short and Sweet

1. Unimpressive Customer Service - Runningskirts

My sister placed her Black Friday order two days after mine and had it last Saturday. It took TWO days of calling, emailing, posting on Twitter and Facebook to get a response from someone. I was informed my orders shipped (yesterday), even though I had confirmations that they shipped last week. Not impressed.

2. Impressive Customer Service - Athleta

I purchased some winter running gear on Black Friday. One of the items I received was sent in the wrong color. Even at 8 pm I was able to get someone on the phone who was able to help me out. After posting on Twitter I even received a personal message apologizing for the error and asking if I still needed help. Awesome.

3. Ultra Training - Success!

Monday - Speedwork (6.46 total miles, fastest 400 @ 1:42)
Wednesday - Easy-ish (4.4 miles)
Thursday - Easy-ish (10.02 miles)
Friday - Mostly easy-ish (24 miles)

Total running miles for the week - just under 45 miles!

In celebration of an awesome week, this is the shirt I'm wearing today

4. Three races registered for this week:

Austin Marathon (yes, the full)
Platte River Half Marathon (local race, did it this year too)
Pittsburgh Half Marathon (Will be excited to see the other B run her first FULL marathon!)

5. Plane tickets obtained to Peru for a STEAL - Inca Trail to Machu Picchu Marathon is definitely happening!!!