Week in Review (May 5 - May 11)

Tuesday (18,077 steps) - Went to the gym with plans to do a hill program of some type. After I had been screwing around and had only gotten maybe a half mile into my run, one of the teachers from the Kid's Club came over to tell me that A had hurt herself and was pretty upset. I grabbed my stuff and headed in to see her shaking, crying and freaking out. She had been trying to show her friend how to do a back bend and for some reason the two were holding hands. Not sure of who let go or what happened, but A fell back "wrong" on her wrist. I opted to take her to urgent care - where it was confirmed... fracture.

Wednesday (22,108 steps) - A still wanted to go to the gym. I tried to run on the treadmill, got a little over three miserable, chafing miles in. Blah.

Thursday (25,399 steps) - An hour on the elliptical.

Friday (17,155 steps) - A had an appointment to get the "real" cast on at a super inconvenient time. I skipped going to work in the morning and watched some tv while she was in school until it was time for her appointment. She opted for green and purple.

Saturday (18,193 steps) - L and I were supposed to be running the Arvada Park to Park inaugural half marathon. Due to a week of non-stop rain a lot of the half marathon course was flooded so it was canceled at the last minute (like 2 in the morning). We opted to run the 10k instead, and A ran the 5k. (Recap to follow).

I had plans to meet up with Jessa, Jackson and Lisa at 3. We hadn't hung out in a LONG time. Imagine my surprise when we walked in and they had thrown me a mini surprise party! (My birthday isn't until the 18th, but this weekend worked better for us all). They got me Voodoo Doughnuts, a cheese plate, vegetable and fruit trays, stout beers I hadn't tried and we ordered pizza for dinner. THE BEST NIGHT EVER. These gals are the best!!

Sunday (22,247 steps) - L had opted to run another 10 in the morning. It snowed (A LOT, like 5 inches) overnight and I wasn't feeling up to it - especially after all the fun food from the night before. Since it was Mother's Day, A woke me up with coffee and breakfast. We had NO plans with such a blah day, so we watched movies. I walked (yes, walked) - 8.5 miles on the treadmill. Yikes.

We had dinner at my parent's house with all the family - it was pretty nice.

Monday (29,254 steps) - I did a "virtual run" with some of the INKnBURN fan club ladies. I actually got up early and ran 6 (very very very slow) miles on the treadmill. I honestly can't remember the last time I did that many miles during the week OR the last time I got up early during the week to exercise. A still wanted to go to the gym so we went for a bit - 40 minutes on the elliptical.

Stats

• 152,433 steps
• 15.5 miles run
• 100 minutes of cross training (plus 8.5 miles of walking)
• No strength this week... (oops)

Everything Else

• Gah. So, yeah, A's fractured wrist was the "excitement" of the week. Not that there is ever a good time for medical bills, but I have just spent all that money with the dentist (root canal & tooth bleaching is coming up on the 26th) and I'm not looking forward to getting the bills from the Urgent Care and Orthopedic. Yikes.
• The weather has been AWFUL for the last few weeks. Maybe we were spoiled with such a mild winter, but man. It's been cold, windy, rainy and GLOOMY. Not to mention the half a foot of SNOW we just got. Enough!!! I want some sun and warm weather!
• Still haven't had my review at work. It was canceled due to the HR lady being out on a family emergency. It never got rescheduled... Do I harass and keep asking if it is happening? It was supposed to be almost three weeks ago.
• Nothing else.

Week in Review (Feb 11 - Feb 17)

Tuesday - One mile in the basement inferno, then I tried a new Fitness Blender video - Total Body Toning and HIIT and 8 Minute Abs.
Wednesday - 2ish mile run at the gym, then BodyPump. Still hard.

Thursday - Got up early and did another video - Total Body Toning and Functional Strength. After work, went to the gym - 3.65 mile run, with .75 at 3% incline. It is hard to imagine that I ever did hill training. This seemed IMPOSSIBLE.

Friday - 1.25 mile run in the basement inferno. I took the day off from work since A didn't have school. Our first stop was a trip to Voodoo Doughnut (and maybe our last). We were like 20th in line (outside) and it took ONE HOUR AND ELEVEN MINUTES to get out. That seems excessive. Our second stop of the day was a hike... it was finally warm outside, so we drove over to Lair O' the Bear. It was INSANELY icy and fairly muddy. A fell twice, I fell once. It was beautiful, temperatures were mild and we had a great time, and managed to get in almost an hour of hiking/walking/skating.

Then we headed to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch - which was DELICIOUS. The remainder of Valentine's Day was spent at home with my favorite person, A.
Saturday - A woke up me up early to go to the gym. I had a decent 7.5ish mile run.

The remainder of the day was spent on the couch, with the exception of a quick trip to the mall. I managed to get a sweater on clearance from Loft for $5.99. She warned me it was a final sale. Um, for $6, I think I can live with that.
Sunday - 1.25 in the basement inferno (DAY 100 OF THE STREAK!!). Two videos - Butt and Abs Tabata (Fat Blasting Cardio) and a new arm video - Tone Lean Arms (Rhomboids, Shoulders, Bicep, Tricep and Chest). I don't even know what a rhomboid IS, but I can tell you, that whatever they are, they are WEAK. Those were TOUGH. A worked another cookie booth in 67 DEGREE WEATHER. It didn't feel that warm, unfortunately, since it was windy.
Monday - Quick Cardio, Abs and Obliques video before work. Wasn't crazy about the jumping oblique twists that were the cardio intervals for EVERY SET. After work, I had an exceptionally great run at the gym, getting in a 10k(ish) at a pretty FAST pace!

Weekly Miles Run - 23.14 (all treadmill)
Weekly Cross Training - 2.4 miles of hiking (57 minutes)
Minutes of Strength Training - 193 (!!!)

Weekly Gain - 0.8 pounds

• Eh. I #ateallthethings

• In addition to the Voodoo, L brought home a dozen donuts from Dunkin Donuts. Did you know they have a cookie dough donut? And one filled with fudge? IT'S TRUE.
• Made two more new recipes this week - enchiladas and crock pot Mac & Cheese. Neither is healthy, and both were heavy on the cheese. HOWEVER, the enchiladas were DELICIOUS and I will make them again for sure. The Mac & Cheese... meh. I liked that I could throw the noodles in uncooked into the crock pot, but the whole consistency of it was... off. Next time I make it, I will use the oven and try baked Mac & Cheese.

• We've been consuming a TON of asparagus lately - this week, Sprouts had it on sale for 98 cents a pound. That is NUTS. A pound lasts me and A 2-3 meals, depending on how hungry we are.
• I splurged on Sunday and picked up some beef patties stuffed with bacon and jack cheese - threw them on the Foreman and made burgers. That was a delicious choice.
• Related: I guess Heather is right. Cooking is NOT the worst thing ever, it is NOT as horrible as I imagined, and maybe I will start to buy a few more basic "ingredients" so I can branch out and try more. On deck for this week? Vegetable soup!

Everything Else

• Just when you thought nothing else exciting could happen at my work... My boss (in his mid 70's) is stepping down from his current position. LUCKILY, that does not affect MY job, as he will still be in office, practicing less, but working on more "special projects." However, the other attorney that we work with is out of a job... effective April 1 (the same time we are moving offices). I mean, we all knew this day was coming, but the timing and notice seems unfortunate.
• Related: I think Jessa was the glue that connected me to the other girls in the office. Now that she is gone, I no longer get invited to lunch or on breaks. Le sigh.
• Sorta related: Starting to feel like that chick that got pregnant at her senior prom. Everyone my age either has kids old enough they can be left alone, a husband/boyfriend to watch their kids, or no kids at all. I hate feeling like the odd (wo)man out.

Week in Review (Jan 28 - Feb 3)

Tuesday - 1 mile in the basement inferno and then a little bit of everything (arms, thighs, 8 min abs, little black dress boot camp and yoga/stretch). I really enjoy doing a bunch of really short videos. Yay Fitness Blender!

Broncos Mania in full force Downtown Denver

Wednesday - Really REALLY great 2.15 miles before class. BodyPump killed me. Again.
Thursday - Just over 6 miles. It was Broncos day at the gym, so I did all this in cotton. How I ever did this in the past is BEYOND me.

Friday - 2 miles in the basement inferno. I don't even know why I would do that.

Saturday - Sadly, no outdoor run this week. Way too cold, snowy and icy for someone as wimpy as me. I dragged L to the gym and did just over 4 on the treadmill. Not great, not awful, not as long as I wanted. Oh, and for some reason I wore long sleeves. Why would I do that?? Oh wells.

 

L brought home VOODOO!!! We had 3 Dirty Bastards to split between the two of us. What a lovely surprise!! Spent most of the day on the couch, but also did some grocery shopping for my great adventure of the weekend - cooking dinner. Yes, I know that many of you do this ALL THE TIME. I, however, do not. So that night, I spent 1 hour and 3 minutes preparing dinner (spoiler, so far we have had 2 dinners and a lunch and there is still enough left for one more lunch). PS - It snowed for like 2 days straight:

Sunday - I did my mile in the basement inferno early, to get it out of the way. Good thing I did, because I literally spent the rest of the day eating. I had thought I might do something else later, but no. I did nothing. We went to get donuts in the morning, then more Target shopping. A had homework about Groundhog Day. This picture has had me lol'ing for days:

Couch/TV time and then headed to my parents house for the Superbowl. What a ridiculous game. I watched it all, except the halftime show. My favorite commercial was the Audi Doberhuahua.
Monday - 5 pretty terrible miles on the treadmill. During the winter, they don't turn on the ceiling fans in the treadmill bay. I DON'T KNOW WHY SINCE THERE ARE A BILLION PEOPLE AND IT IS THE HOTTEST EVER. Speaking of the hottest ever, the cute guy from the gym was on the treadmill next to me for a few minutes AND I saw him shirtless in the sauna again. Best part of my week, lol.

I normally go to Yogurtland every Monday. This Monday they were giving out free froyo from 4-7. I didn't want to wait in line, so we went after the gym, only to find out they were CLOSED for clean-up for at least an hour. We went home, had dinner, and came back. Ended up with 10 free oz. My addiction is getting a bit out of hand. I realize this.

Weekly Miles Run - 21.39 (all treadmill)
Weekly Cross Training - ZERO
Minutes of Strength Training - 98 (slacked a bit...)

Weekly Gain - 0.2 pounds

• More than ok with the gain. Sunday alone, I literally ate a whole box of Girl Scout cookies. (There are only like 14 in a box now, don't panic).
• Superbowl was a free-for-all. Jalapeno & Chipotle bratwurst from Sprouts, chips and queso, DONUTS, potato salad, brownies and beer. Yum, yum, yum.
• I think I only had 1 frozen dinner all week. I took sandwiches for lunch almost all week - another experiment to see if this will save even more money. Not sure on this one yet.
• Again, did not go out to eat all week (except to get donuts and froyo - those aren't MEALS though, lol).

 Everything Else

• In the never ending saga that is my job... So I made a risky move on Wednesday. I went into the Office Manager's office and told her I thought it was best if I just put in my two weeks notice. I don't feel appreciated and I don't make enough money to go "down with the ship." She claims that conversations have been had with the Shareholders and that she thinks I will be getting a raise, and she hopes it is a "number that will make me happy." She followed with, I will personally help you find another job if we can't make this work for you. In between all of that there was a bunch of "we really like you and want you to stay." 
• My boss and the Office Manager have both been out since that day. My boss came down with the newest zombie bird H1N1 swine flu and the Office Manager's son has been really sick. Soooo... as of today, there is still no resolution. I had left the conversation with - "How about instead of giving my two weeks, I will give it two weeks to see if things improve." I guess I have another week to go at this point.
• Related: Our new attorney started yesterday. It was super awkward sitting in the docket meeting with her and her never being introduced to the support staff.
• Related: The new attorney wasn't even given a computer, she was told to use the firm laptop while we "shopped for a good deal" on a machine for her. We've known she was going to be starting for over a month. WTF does she still not have a computer???
• Related: She apparently doesn't have a phone in her office. When trying to transfer to the other assistant's desk we discover there is no longer a phone there. Sooooooo.... are they not replacing her? Why is there no phone? Also, the file clerk's computer broke the other day so she went to use the computer at that desk... and it was gone?
• Related: I'm still the only assistant - what is this, week 5?
• Related: Out of all the jobs I've applied for, I've had 2 "no thank you's" and zero interviews.
• NOTHING ELSE.

Week in Review (Jan. 7 - Jan 13)

Heads up - I finally discovered the "FitSnap" app - so look for those really obnoxious selfies with a text overlay of my running. Wheeeee!!

Tuesday - The gym was crowded, as expected. I had to wait for a treadmill. 4.25 of not-so-great miles. Felt VERY hard. Also, 3:00 plank.

L surprised me with this tank. Isn't it The Best??

Wednesday - Went to BodyPump, and it was surprisingly NOT packed. It was, however, VERY exhausting. Every time I do this it is like I have never lifted weights. 1 mile after class.

Thursday - Every intention of a Great Run. However, weight gain has caught up with me. 2.5 horrible, terrible, no good, very bad miles AND chafing. Wah. Hopped off the treadmill and did 5.4 on the bike.
Friday - 1 mile in the basement inferno - not bad.
Saturday - L was racing and I since had both kids, I headed to the gym. Hoped to knock out 10 miles, and instead, suffered through 7.5. Again, felt VERY HARD for the pace. No bueno.

Crazy sock day at the gym

Lounged around most of the day. After dinner I headed downtown to meet up with co-workers for bar hopping. Pretty fun, but getting home at midnight was rough.
Sunday - Was woken up early for a trip we have been planning for AGES to Voodoo Doughnut!! They have been open with limited hours since mid December, and we still had not gone! We were pleasantly surprised with a minimal line and were in and out in about a half hour.

Spent most of the day on the couch, but took A skating in the afternoon. Put off running until very late. 1 mile in the basement inferno (not the WORST, but not especially wonderful). Did the arms video and 2:00 plank. I'm going to die dead when I start doing these videos for Real.

Monday - Finally, finally, FINALLY, not the worst run ever. It wasn't by any means, Great, but I got 10k done and one mile was at 10:00, which is pretty fantastic. My favorite day so far of "spirit week" at the gym - NEON!!

Weekly Miles Run - 23.49 miles (all treadmill)
Weekly Cross Training - 5.4 miles on the bike (15 minutes)
Minutes of Strength Training - 74 minutes (I really need to get back to doing those videos...)

Weekly Loss - 2.0 pounds

• I made a conscious effort this week to get back into better habits. I have really let things slide over the last few months, and let's face it. Both the scale and my running reflects that.
• Beer was IN CONTROL this week. I did not buy any beer this week and pretty much the only real consumption was Saturday when we all went out for co-worker's birthday for drinks.
• I did have some splurges this week, of course. And they were totally worth it. Voodoo Doughnuts, Smashburger and Yogurtland.

Everything Else

• We had a firm meeting last week. From what I gathered, they have NO plans on replacing the other legal assistant until after our firm relocates - which is not for another 2.5 months. MY HEAD IS GOING TO EXPLODE.
• Related: I had a "talk" with the crazy office manager that if they don't get someone in soon, I will be looking elsewhere. The concern over my work led to:
• You do the "least" of any secretary in the history of the firm (UM, WHAT???)
• SHE is soooooooooo busy, so at any time I feel like actually pitching in, she needs the help (never mind that she makes three times what I do AND has a company car).

• For fun, I re-opened my POF account. Yep, just as dumb and annoying as I remember. So far, I've been hit up by people in other states (WHY?), a woman, and then of course, the people that after ONE basic message say they hate texting/messaging and we either go out or they don't want to talk to me. Maybe I'm crazy and/or paranoid, but I feel like at least getting to know something BASIC about someone before agreeing to meet them. It's only been a week and I'm already on the verge of quitting. Online people are INSANE, RUDE, and DEMANDING.
• I quit a book for the first time in as long as I can remember. I will usually suffer through an uninteresting book. This one? I just could NOT do it.

• Did you hear that I'M FAMOUS??? A friend on Dailymile sent me a message that she thought I was in the January issue of "Competitor" magazine. And she was right! Aren't I super photogenic?? (Can you even tell which one is me?! lol)

• DID YOU KNOW THAT THIS WEEKEND IS TINKER BELL??? I am the most excited EVER!!! Spoiler: Heather and I are looking for a new Disney PR!!!

Skirt Sports Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Louisville, CO
Sunday, June 9
Half Marathon #85
Colorado Half #25
Weather - Sunny and warm

Another inaugural half marathon in Colorado, the Skirt Sports half marathon was added, and of course we had to run it. Well, the price tag was a bit stiff, but their marketing for the race was first for a "women's only" half (they later opened it up to men because they didn't have high enough registration numbers) and the registration included a $50 gift card.

Working out a few kinks, I was hesitant to sign up right away, when the course was still "pending" and the date was still "pending." Thankfully, everything worked out fine, and we were relieved that they modified the start time to 7:00 so that we wouldn't die of heat stroke with the predicted 90 degree temps.

L had picked up our bibs the day before, and check out what bib number I got! (Apparently, they were assigned in order of registration... GO ME!)

The race started only about 20 minutes from our house, so we didn't have to get up too ridiculously early, even with the 7 am start. We dropped off the kids at my parent's house at 5:45 (put them back to bed) and headed to the start. By the description, we weren't sure how far away the start was from where they told us to park. Turns out, super close.

We picked up our timing chips and hit the bathroom. There were a few male participants, and a lot of them were super gung ho about the skirts. This guy was adorable!!!

Hope arrived with about a half hour to start and I was pleasantly surprised that she had worn a skirt and was going to be matchy matchy with us!! We hit the bathroom lines one more time and were told that the race was going to start 10 minutes late so that everyone could get through the line. Excellent.

We lined up at the start, listened to the announcements and heard that there was a SEVEN YEAR OLD GIRL running the half. What. She was standing a few feet away from us, cutest girl ever, but I was worried for her.

L took off right at the start, as normal. The course started in the back of the Home Depot parking lot, and one of the many course changes had us crossing over a pedestrian bridge to get over the highway. Giantest cluster EVER. Unless you were in the VERY FRONT, you were stopped at the bottom of the stairs. It gave me time to re-pin my bib, which tore the first 60 seconds I was running. After we got through the traffic jam on the bridge, we entered the course.

I was familiar with the "area" but had no idea where we were going. The course was on a 2 lane road and was coned off for us to run in the bike lane. It was a bit graded, and started out with a gradual uphill. Wheee.

Tired, tight legs pretty much right off the bat. I think I did get through the first mile before I had to walk. Curse my stupid body. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, but thankfully there was a slight breeze so it didn't feel as hot as it could have.

The aid stations were spaced pretty well apart with an electrolyte drink I hadn't tried before "Skratch" and water. Somewhere around mile 3 or 4, my left foot started to go numb, and eventually my entire lower leg went numb. That was annoying, and meant more walking.

The course was much hillier than I expected. I am glad I did NOT bother to study the course map, as my soul was sucked right out of me when I realized we were going to have to run up South Boulder road. I used to drive that road fairly frequently when I worked up north and often laughed to myself at cyclists struggling up it. A mile or so long GIANT HILL. This picture is at the top, looking back (and does NOT do it justice):

The end of the hill was about mile 8, and that was the last mile marker I actually saw on the course. I knew that just running down McCaslin would not get enough miles in, so I wasn't surprised when we were routed onto the Davidson Mesa (a "trail" I ran on a decent number of times on my way home from work when I worked up in Boulder). A fellow runner got this shot of Hope and I, somewhere... around mile 9?

The trails were a nice change from the graded road, but it was hot and it was NOT flat and/or downhill like the volunteers promised. Grrrrr. We walked some, ran some, and I was REALLY surprised when Hope said we only had about a mile and half to go. YAY!! Another nice thing about not wearing a watch, sometimes I've actually gone further than I thought. That's nice.

With about a mile to go, I had to stop with my favorite sign of the day. I SURE WILL RUN FOR DONUTS!!! (Voodoo, are you listening??? Sponsorship??)

 

The last mile? ALL DOWNHILL. No, really. It was the best mile of the entire race. Really really really happy to be done, as that downhill also made my IT band start acting up. WOMP.

I saw awesome photographer L at the finish chute, and she didn't disappoint getting an awesome picture of us getting ready to cross the line.

SO happy to be done.

Official Time - 2:40:16
Overall Place - 223/299
Gender Place - 212/287
Pace - 12:13
Mile 1 - 12:22
Mile 2 - 11:35
Mile 3 - 11:39
Mile 4 - 11:33
Mile 5 - 12:01
Mile 6 - 10:48
Mile 7 - 12:25
Mile 8 - 13:54
Mile 9 - 13:51
Mile 10 - 12:16
Mile 11 - 12:25
Mile 12 - 12:25
Mile 13 - 11:26
Mile 13.1 - 9:08

We grabbed some water and an Evol burrito and chatted a bit at the finish line. The 7 year old not only FINISHED, but she actually beat L, running a pretty impressive 2:09:xx. If only...

I am not that disappointed with my finish. I am still mostly on my running hiatus. Everything still aches a lot when I run. And it was hot. I had great company running with Hope again. Maybe next week, I'll start trying to actually run again?

Matchy Matchy skirt triplets

And instead of a medal, there was a finisher skirt for us at the end. Pretty cute!

Thoughts:

• Really not crazy about this course. The nonsense in the beginning with the pedestrian bridge was pretty unacceptable. It was an "ok" course, but that hill in the middle was pretty cruel. OK, maybe I'm just lazy and weak?
• The aid stations were great, everything was well-stocked and volunteers were super friendly.
• There were "power bar" gel things at the halfway point, but I don't like them so I didn't take any, but they were there.
• Not a great course for spectators.
• The skirt (or shirt for guys) was a nice touch for a finisher award.
• Not too "girl power-y" that I would avoid it in the future.
• Overall, I give it a "not bad" for an inaugural race.
• PS - 7 am is still too late of a start in my opinion in the summer (we actually started at 7:10 with the delay). 6:30 or even 6:00 would have been better.

With the hefty price tag, I likely won't run again, although had I waited longer to sign up, they were apparently running some pretty great discounted registrations.

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday

Voodoo Doughnuts is coming to DENVER!!!!

Eugene Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, April 28
Eugene, OR
Marathon #21
State #21
Weather - Perfect. Overcast, cool. A bit humid.

Rumor has it that there is MAGIC in Eugene. Last year, there were a TON of bloggers I follow that had amazing races in Eugene and set PR's left and right. Needless to say, I wanted BADLY to run the Eugene Marathon. I booked airfare (again, CRAZY cheap - round trip into Portland for $106!) in December. I waited a bit to register after having months of slow and painful running. Kim assured me that if I at all was considering the full that I should just register for it and the drop down to the 1/2 was simple if I had to do it.

I convinced my BFF Heather to join me in a "redemption" marathon, as L has decided no more marathons, the end. We managed to settle on a matchy matchy outfit, and off to Oregon we went...

Saturday

Our flight out of Denver was just after 8:00, so we had to leave by about 6. Not to much earlier than I would get up for work, so that was nice. Spent the 2 1/2 hour flight to Portland watching a marathon of Teen Mom 2. (I know, I know). Arrived in Oregon around 9:45, and only ended up having to wait about a half hour for Heather to arrive. Picked up our rental car, and then we started our weekend. First two goals were to hit up Voodoo Doughnuts and Lululemon. (Did you know that Oregon has no sales tax???) We got a bit turned around trying to find the glorious donuts, but when we DID find them, they were GLORIOUS.

I shared the voodoo guy (raspberry filled) with L and also had a maple bacon bar. Man. Those things are good. Genius. We walked through a pretty sketchy part of town to Lululemon where L was overjoyed to find the Pinkalicious pace setter in her tall size. Then we decided that we had been screwing around long enough and decided to start the drive to Eugene so we didn't miss the expo.

Shortly after leaving the city, L spotted a sign advertising a place called "Pizza Schmizza" - aka, LUNCH.

L drove, thankfully, and it was the prettiest drive EVER. Oregon is so green and lush compared to brown, dead Colorado.

We got to the expo with about 1.5 hours to spare. Of course, my line for bib pick-up was the longest. It was crowded and chaotic. We took this fun shot though:

Um yeah. I seem to have lost all ability to make a normal face for a picture. With no plans other than 6:00 dinner near the hotel, we decided to hit up Voodoo in Eugene. You know, for some pre-race fuel.

You can TOTALLY get married at Voodoo! Starting at only $200??? My possible future spouse will be so thrilled to know that I absolutely WOULD get married at Voodoo.

I'm saying "RAAAAAAAWR"

I sure love me some donuts

We checked in to our hotel and managed to walk right past Kim's room. We chatted for a few minutes and then we settled into our room until it was time to go to dinner. We ate at Amici's at the other Holiday Inn across the lot. There were a lot of complaints about service and food. I was thrilled with the no sales tax and my sausage and pepper Panini and fries were pretty tasty. We went to the bar/tap house near our hotel. Service was bad, but my vanilla porter was so good I had a second one.

Lights out early, around 10.

Sunday

Up around 5:30, with plans of leaving between 5:45 and 6:00 to drive over to the start. I thought that was a bit too late and I was really worried about parking, especially since we didn't know the area and there was no parking at the start.

Luckily, Kim coached us pretty well, and without even meaning to, we managed to all park in the same lot, only a few blocks from the start.

The start was a giant cluster of chaos. We only cycled through the bathroom line once and then took a pre-race picture:

Not my favorite - I look super chunky (Left to right - Heather, L, Alma, Kim, Sally, Me, Jess)

And then it was time to line up. The picture I took at the start is for reals the only picture I took of the entire course.

I had put my ID and credit card in the same pocket with my phone, and it seemed like too much of an ordeal to pull it out. Heather took BILLIONS of pictures (as she should have, it was the most beautiful course EVER. I will "borrow" one or two from her blog here:

Thank you, Heather, for taking the time to capture the beautiful-ness of Eugene.

Going into the race, we really wanted to not die and finish within the time limit, which was 7 hours. L gave us a time limit of 6:40 so that we would have time to shower (thanks to the SUPER awesome check out time we were given of 2:30!!)

A quieter goal was to get Heather a PR (sub 5:10 and a super loftybutmaybepossible goal of sub 5 was discussed. I did not want to wear a watch, so Heather was in charge of monitoring pace.

We started in the back of Corral C and honestly, the first few miles went by pretty quick. The course never seemed to crowded to me, and there were a lot of spectators. Sadly, the race honestly started going to shit for me around mile 3. It felt like a gradual uphill. I had no idea what pace we were running, but it SEEMED HARD. I already felt like I had to use the bathroom, which is no bueno this early in the race. I was trying to let Heather take charge of the pace and do my best to keep up with her, as long as I wasn't physically hurting.

At the turnaround, it finally felt downhill and I felt a LOT better. The next few miles went well, except for the aid station at mile 6 running out of cups. Not water or Gatorade, just cups. Volunteers were suggesting I cup my hands for a drink. Um. No thanks. I used a port-o-potty an hour ago. Bleh.

The hill at mile 8 seemed pretty small from the base. We ran up the first half... then walked the rest. Nice downhill at the backside and then we ran by the start/finish area. There were already speedy half marathoners finishing. Jealous.

We hoped to see someone we knew heading in, but we didn't. We ran by our car just before mile 10 and since there wasn't a wait, used the bathrooms. I felt better for a bit. I think our pace slowed a little, but I felt decent through the halfway point, which is about where the 5 hour pace group caught us.

I knew that Heather wanted to stay in front of them. I wanted to as well. The pacer had the loudest and most high pitched voice ever. I really wanted to outrun them. My ankle started to ache (I promise this is not made up) and somewhere around 14-15 miles in is when I gave the race away. I tried to get Heather to go on without me. I felt like a total jerk for screwing up ANOTHER RACE.

But... she didn't, and we had a great time. The weather stayed on our side, and the sun came out only briefly for a few miles. The aid stations were spaced pretty well apart and again, THE COURSE IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EVER.

At mile 23.69 there were guys handing out beer on the course. I may have told one of them that he was my favorite person on the planet. And I meant it. Beer during a race is The Best. We walked quite a bit the last 10k. Heather was saying that her right leg was hurting pretty bad, so I didn't feel AS bad about taking so many breaks.

We came around the corner and recognized the lot where we had parked and realized we were close! We were discussing a walk break when we saw Alma and Kim!! I think I'm screaming - HIIIIIIIII!

And clearly we were getting pretty darn excited for the upcoming finish. WAHOOO, look how smiley we are:

I really wanted to sprint into Hayward. I really did. My stupid crappy dumb legs were done. It was all I could do to NOT walk across the finish line.

Bib #4207
Official Time - 5:17:31
Overall Place - 2369/2561
Gender Place - 1109/1222
Division Place - 209/223
5K - 34:58 (11:16 pace)
10K - 1:10:21 (11:20 pace)
Half - 2:32:41 (11:40 pace)
20 Mile - 3:54:39 (11:44 pace)

We took a quick finisher pic and grabbed some water and then met L right outside the gates and walked to the car. We hurried to the hotel and took quick showers so that we would have time to get LUNCH AND BEER.

We went to Roadhouse and had a delicious burger and fries and I had a GIANT BEER.

It seemed silly to only go to two of the three Voodoo Doughnuts, so obviously, our only other plan was to go to the third location when we got back to Portland. I apparently fell asleep in the car, and we stopped long enough to go to another Lululemon (in hopes of L getting Aquamarine in tall, which they did not have) and some froyo from Yogurtland. Quick-ish stop at the last Voodoo:

Then we headed to Kim's house, where her and S were graciously going to host AND entertain us. We ordered some food:

And then we watched Pitch Perfect. If you haven' t seen it yet, you should. It is HILARIOUS. Early to bed again. Our flight left early Monday morning, so quick donuts for breakfast with some coffee and some chatting with Kim and then we had to be on our way.

Thoughts:

• Running a marathon is hard. And I don't think I want to do it anymore. I have said this before, but if I'm left with that feeling even AFTER being on the prettiest course ever, I think it's time the marathon and I break up for a bit.
• We got TONS of comments on our outfits. (Sorry, L, it appears Heather and I are twins!)
• The course is great great great. I can see why people come here to BQ. A year or two ago, this race would have gone much differently.
• Plenty of aid stations. I didn't wear a fuel belt and I was fine. 2 Clif gel stations and there were 2 stations with bananas (there should have been 3, but I think one ran out before we got there).
• Did I mention this course is beautiful?
• I really like Oregon. I might have to come back sometime.
• Annoyed I didn't take any pictures myself. I should have.
• I got the worst chafing EVER on my inner right thigh - serves me right for not body gliding. Two days later it STILL hurts.