SoCal Ragnar Relay (Part 2)

Did you read Part 1 yet?

Obviously one of the first things I did was put on the magic pants from Aspaeris. Aren't they stunning?

I just LOVED the chaos of this race. Hurrying to get from one exchange to the next, waiting for the next runner to come in. SO. FUN.

Sandy was an adorable nerd

And SO pumped to run

Our last hand off of the first leg from Sandy to Madison:

We headed to our first major exchange point, where we would finally meet up with van 2 for the first time. It was getting CRAZY hot, and we were happy to be finishing up. We were getting hungry! Madison came in for a hand off to Ashley:

Every van got a FREE BOX OF KRISPY KREME donuts. I could hardly wait to eat them all.

Did I mention my van was the best? Because we all agreed that In-N-Out was the ideal place to refuel. So delicious. Not to mention, it was a super fantastic place to change clothes for the our next leg. (As opposed to trying to do it in the back seat of a van).

By the time we arrived near our next exchange point, it was STUPID HOT. We stopped at the grocery store to buy popsicles to hand out and to buy iced lattes from Starbucks.

We remembered to give popsicles to the awesome volunteers too:

I remembered that I hadn't shaved my legs lately and decided the parking lot was OBVIOUSLY the best place to do that:

Made friends by giving out popsicles. Then they were willing to share their shade with us:

It was at least a billion degrees by the time Shannon headed out for her second run:

We stopped at a Rite Aid along the course and handed out more popsicles and wrote some messages on the sidewalk:

Shannon still looking strong

Sandy and I were experts at properly using the orange flags to safely cross the street:

With the crazy heat, we knew people were going to take longer to finish. We were concerned that Shannon was going to miss the turn for the exchange since there was no sign, so Heather and I were dropped off (since I was on deck), and Madison and Sandy went to find her. During that time, I realized I forgot practically everything I needed to run (iPod, safety pins, vest, headlamp, blinky light). It was still crazy hot and I was getting panicky and tense. Luckily, Heather talked me down off the ledge. Sandy arrived in time to drop off all my things, and Shannon came in safely.

I headed out for my run, the longest of all my legs at over 9 miles. I almost immediately got stuck at a traffic light, but at least for only a minute or so. My legs were DEAD. The course went down a "street" - which was more like a barren, dirt packed, ATV course. There were "pot holes" (more like sink holes) that were big enough to swallow a car. I was moving slowish, and got passed a TON. I at least wasn't needing to walk as badly as the last leg, and I was psyched when I saw my team around 2 miles in. They told me they were getting gas and they would see me later.

Not too long after they left, the course moved onto paved roads. I was glad the course was well marked because I couldn't keep up with any of the other runners. But the temperatures dropped and it was finally bearable. There was a slight breeze even! There were some hills, but nothing too awful. I even had a few (very few) raindrops fall on me. Somewhere around mile 6 or 7, there was an AWESOME downhill that I was able to coast down at a crazy speed, averaging 8:15ish pace. And I *finally* passed some people. It got dark the last couple miles of the course, and running along the side of the road, I had a hard time seeing where I was going. I ran about 10 minutes faster than I had expected, which is probably why Heather wasn't ready at the exchange when I got there. Oops.

Leg 2 - 9.19 miles, 1:35:51 (10:27 pace)

Stay tuned for Part 3... 

SoCal Ragnar Relay (Part 1)

The very SECOND that I heard about SoCal Ragnar, I wanted to do it.

Look at all the awesome we run through!

We actually had TWO teams under the name "So Much Cooler Online." I was on the 12 person team, and we also had a 6 woman ultra team. So much awesome exists with these runners that we were able to get some AWESOME sponsorships:

Need some "magic pant" compression shorts? Check out Aspaeris:

We kept our hair looking gorgeous and sparkly thanks to Sandy, fellow van-mate and owner of BicBands:

When we remembered fuel, it was provided by GU:

Hydrated by nuun:

Awesome colored compression socks from Pro Compression:

Skirted up by Runningskirts:

And a cute and functional running top from run pretty far:

Needless to say, I was pretty much exploding with excitement to fly out to California, see my running friends, and get to represent some of the best running products around.

Obviously, I waited until the last minute to pack. I mean, why would I pack ahead of time? I only registered last summer...

I somehow crammed ALL THE THINGS into my regular weekend race bag. I am clearly a packing magician.

When I booked my travel, we didn't know our start time yet. Problem. Had I known we were going to end up with the earliest start time EVER (5:45 am), I would NOT have booked such a late flight out of Denver. I was at school until 2:00, rushed home to grab my stuff, and J dropped me off at the airport for a 4:30 flight. Arrived at LAX... EARLY.

I headed outside to grab my shuttle to Heather's place, and found it without too much trouble. Although. It left late, TOOK FOREVER (thanks, LA traffic, for ruining my life), and I didn't end up in Irvine until after 8:00. We immediately headed to meet the rest of our team for dinner, although by the time we got there, they were pretty much done. I didn't find out until later that the place was vegetarian and chick'n is NOT the same as chicken. But it was good.

The carrot cake? REALLY good.

We headed to bed early, after some last minute packing/race prep. Not super early, it was probably close to 11:00 pm.

RACE DAY

Van 1 - the most awesome runners EVER

3:15 came VERY fast. We left Heather's place at 3:42 (exactly) and headed down the street to pick up Madison. Then we went to meet the rest of our team and get our van (home for the next 2 days) and drove up to the start line at Huntington Beach.

Team "So Much Cooler Online" Van

Checked the forecast on the way there. Wow. Hot.

I didn't take any pictures of the start line, but I should have. CHAOS. There wasn't really any signage, we didn't know what we were doing, and the organization just wasn't there. But we were already having fun. I said hi to my friend Josh, who I roped into volunteering at the last minute.

Me and Josh

We wandered around, took pictures, got coffee, ate pastries, but really lacked in the "getting prepared" area. We totally spaced about having a bib... a timing chip... the slap bracelet. Needless to say, by the time we had everything, we totally missed our 5:45 start.

Van 1 is ready to go!

Which just gave us time for MORE PICTURES! Here is Shannon, runner 1. You can't see it, but her "Richard Simmons meatball" shirt is the cutest EVER.

Shannon had a 5 mile leg, and we headed back to the van in hopes of seeing her on the course before getting to the first exchange point. We stopped a few miles in, I used a gas station bathroom, we climbed a hill and cheered on some runners with cowbells and screams, saw Shannon, then headed to the exchange. We decided to walk over to the exchange point right after parking. Good thing, since she was already there waiting. OOPS. I didn't even have my bib pinned on yet and my Garmin didn't have satellite. Failed exchange #1.

Hot pink dot at the end is MEEEE!

I was totally flustered with the chaotic exchange and obviously that meant starting out too fast since my watch wasn't ready. Three minutes in and my pace was :03 and I'd gone .06 miles. Grrrr.... My leg was 5.1 miles along the Santa Ana trail. Don't let the dark sky deceive you. It was CRAZY hot, and I got tired pretty quick. The course looked flat on the map, but turns out it was a gradual uphill the whole way. I did walk a few times. I'll admit, a few times during my run, I wondered HOW I was already so tired, and how I was going to possibly run anything else. However, I cruised in to a respectable finish.

Leg 1 - 5.1 miles, 47:19 (9:16 pace)

The exchange went off without a hitch. And obviously, we are the best dressed team EVER.

Part 2? Coming soon.

Platte River Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Littleton, CO
Sunday, April 15
Half Marathon #58
Colorado Half #10
Platte River Half #2
Weather - Chilly, overcast, gloomy and WINDY

I ran the Platte River half marathon last year, and registered as soon as it was open this year. It is inexpensive, close(ish), and "not bad" in terms of course for Colorado. Of course, the weather can be iffy in April. Up until a few days before the race, the Facebook page for the race was discussing cancellation because of snow. (Not that I ever thought it would get cancelled, this is Colorado for crying out loud). Lisa and Kim were coming out for the race and were unimpressed with the forecast. Sorry :(

They both arrived Saturday afternoon and hit up the expo. I did not. I had planned on just picking up my packet race day since Littleton isn't exactly right around the corner. Apparently L's boyfriend got bored and picked up mine for me anyway. Thanks!

Our plans to meet up were for an early dinner at Chili's. We were supposed to meet up at 5:00, but between getting lost and the rain, we were late. Luckily my bloggy friends are understanding. Dinner was delicious, and of course the company was fantastic. We also met up with Lisa's friend and fellow blogger, Kate, who is SUPER nice.

Cajun Pasta

Kate, Lisa, L, (Hannah), Me, Kim

Lisa, Kate, Kim, Me, L, A & H

Lisa headed back up to our place for the night. We stayed up until 9ish, and then we headed to bed. Oh yeah, we are total party animals. With the race not starting until 9:00, we were even going to be able to sleep in. Forecast NOT looking so great... check out those wind speeds!

Race Day


So the weather wasn't looking that great when I got up. It wasn't raining or snowing, and it wasn't windy yet... I still planned on wearing a shirt instead of a tank, with arm sleeves and gloves. I remember it being cold and windy last year and didn't want to be cold. I'll be honest, I was *almost* nervous for this race. Only because my training has really been suffering the last few weeks, and I just wasn't sure I had it in me.

We leave the house around 7:35. Only to get a few miles from the house when Lisa realized she had forgotten to put her timing chip on. Ooops... drove back to the house, grabbed it, and on our way. We were able to get a parking spot just a few blocks from the start. We had packed a drop bag in anticipation of moisture and cooler temps. 30 minutes before the start and there were no lines for the bathroom. The sun was out and it *seemed* to be warm, so we dropped our bags early. That left plenty of time for goofy pictures.

I don't even know what's happening here

Giants v. Midget

You can't tell, but I'm actually wearing the Baltimore half marathon shirt. I've never worn a race shirt in a half!

With all our screwing around, we forgot to line up. We ran over to the start right after the gun went off. I think we ended up feeding in right where we wanted to, at the back of wave 2. I was feeling decent, but really wanted to start out slow and hopefully avoid those pesky leg cramps I've been having again. Kim and S passed me almost immediately. I did get a shot of her somewhere around 3/4 mile in. Look how sunny it is!

At about 1.25 miles in, I was already feeling warm. I tossed my gloves and was wondering if I had overdressed. Ruth caught up with me (I had forgotten to text her at the beginning, but it is funny how we always find each other). We ran together for a little over a mile. I remembered the merge from the road to the trail and how SUPER narrow it is. We had to walk a bit because it was too congested to run. I lost Ruth at the first aid station around mile 2.4 - the awesome RUNNER'S ROOST station. I walk a bit longer than she does and I didn't want to chase her down.

I was still feeling good, and it was still feeling warm out. Went under a bridge around mile 3, and the wind picked up. It never stopped, it just intensified as the race went on. I think the course is pretty boring, and since I'd run it before there wasn't too much to look at. I did take this one picture at the mile 4 aid station:

See the dark clouds rolling in?

I caught up to Kim and S right after the aid station. I had apparently just missed an awesome picture opportunity. Darn. We ran close together for a few miles, and then somewhere around mile 5 or 6, I gradually eased in front of them. I was feeling good and pushed a bit. I expected them to catch me at one of the next aid stations, but they never did.

I had been chasing a woman in the heartstooth running skirt because she was keeping a pretty steady pace. Somewhere around the halfway point, I passed her, and she never caught up either. Mile 8 is when the race got tough for me. My legs were feeling ok, lungs feeling ok, but I was cold, the wind was awful, and my ankle was hurting. I had taped it before the race, but it still felt tender. I didn't want to be out there any longer than necessary, so I kept on going.

I looked down at my watch every so often and I was usually between 9:30 and 10:00 pace, which I was SUPER pleased with. Mile 11 came and so did the tiny raindrops. Luckily it didn't turn into anything more than that, although I think it was about then that the wind got WAY worse. Mile 12.2 is roughly when the only substantial hill is, and I remembered it from last year, and managed to run the whole thing, AND pass people in the process. I was super happy to see the finish line, and pushed as much as I could. All I wanted was my jacket and sweatpants!

Unlike last year, we got a medal! Woo hoo! I ran into L almost immediately, and she wasn't sure what had happened to Kate, Lisa, and the drop bag we were sharing. Sad panda. I knew Kim hadn't passed me, so I doubled back to the chute and managed to get a couple pictures of her and S finishing:

We did not stick around for food, but we grabbed some fruit strips and vitamin water and jumped on the light rail:

LIGHT RAIL!!

S has an insanely good sense of direction, and even though we are from Colorado, and he is not, he managed to get us to the right stop. He rocks.

Too cold for a picture in actual running outfits

I had a pretty decent race, and I felt a little badly that Lisa and Kim had to race in such yucko weather. Kim even said she will never come back to Colorado. Sad face.

Bib #2727

Official Time - 2:10:23

Overall Place - 1326/2409

Gender Place - 615/1421

Division Place - 127/273

Garmin Time - 2:10:24

Garmin Distance - 13.15 miles

Garmin Pace - 9:55

Mile 1 - 9:36

Mile 2 - 10:10

Mile 3 - 9:46

Mile 4 - 9:38

Mile 5 - 9:54

Mile 6 - 9:29

Mile 7 - 10:15

Mile 8 - 9:41

Mile 9 - 10:12

Mile 10 - 9:38

Mile 11 - 10:23

Mile 12 - 10:00

Mile 13 - 10:27

Mile 13.1 - 8:15

By the time we got to the car and drove home, it was already 1:00. Even with super fast showers, we weren't out the door to get lunch until after 1:30. Obviously, as seems to be our luck, we had the worst service ever, and it was almost 3:00 before we got our food. It helped a bit that it was one of the best burgers ever:

Our last adventure was to meet up again downtown at the Wynkoop Brewery. We also had some pretty awful service. However, I got to hang out with some awesome people, had a super tasty Chili beer, and A got to fist bump a gorilla:

I just love my bloggy friends, and a weekend visiting with them is always a blast. Excited I get to see Lisa in just a few weeks when we travel to Nashville for the Country Music half marathon!

(Also, pretty much all these pictures shamelessly stolen from Kim and Lisa. I was SUPER lazy with the camera this race).

Six Things Saturday

Non-running related... this will be six things I like about my new job:

1. The clothes. I gotta say, I miss wearing my "fancy" clothes. I get to wear heels again!!!
2. The city. I have always avoided Denver. After a few days downtown, I think I like it. I like that if there is something I want to do during my lunch break, I can literally walk 5 minutes in any direction and probably find what I am looking for.
3. My co-workers. They all seem genuinely nice and willing to help me. They aren't treating me like an idiot, but they are also challenging me.
4. The job itself. There is tons of stuff to learn, there is lots of different things I will get to work on, and I am pretty certain I am not going to get bored. (Plus, it sounds really fancy to tell people I'm a legal assistant/paralegal). :D
5. EVERYONE pitches in. We take turns on kitchen duty. EVERYONE has a week, INCLUDING the attorneys. I think that is awesome.
6. Did I mention I get to wear my beautiful heels again?? (Maybe this will help my ankles get stronger).

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday

My new office building! One of the tallest in downtown Denver:

Evidence: (top) Boob sweat (bottom) NO ARMPIT SWEAT

In crazy land (my head), I am looking to possibly run this the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend as a last "training run" before Peru. 3500 foot higher elevation than Denver (among other things). Out and back. Possibly, I could die. BUT. It's super cheap. Like $40 or $50.

Exciting News!!

Non Running Related

I GOT THE JOB, I GOT THE JOB, I GOT THE JOB!! (Do I sound excited?? Because I super duper am!) So my official title is Billing Specialist/Non Traditional Paralegal. Fancy! And even MORE fancy? I will be working in a high rise building downtown. Pay is good, they all seem very nice, job seems challenging. I start tomorrow (Wednesday).

With a only 7 class periods left (and my job is working around my classes), I have all A's! I even got 100% on my last two exams. Wheeeee!!

Running Related


I know I have talked a ton about how much I sweat. I am unfortunately "that person" that sweats just sitting around, which is why I almost always wear dark colors. I have FINALLY found a solution... Product is called Certain Dri. I started using it last week... NO CRAZY SWEAT MARKS. So anyway, if you are looking for something. It is clearly going to make my life better.

I got an awesome discount and finally tried Brooks PureFlow. I ran 6ish miles in them today and think I love them a little bit. My only complaint would be they don't seem to breathe as well as my Newtons. I can live with that I think. Especially to save $60 on a pair of shoes.

Remember I drank the Luluaid? I finally tried some of their socks. They are all that and a bag of chips. Trust me.

In just a few days, Kim and Lisa will be here to run with me for the Platte River half marathon. We are currently looking at temperatures in the upper 40s with rain... SORRY...

It is only 10 days until SoCal Ragnar!! I haven't talked much about it, but I am CRAZY excited. I get to see my BFF Heather and some of my Disney running buddies. I have been given the "death" leg, aka, the hardest leg. Should be fun and challenging.

I am addicted to Nuun. I now drink it every day, even if I'm not running. Current favorite flavors are tropical and strawberry lemonade. Yummo.

On the Sundays I am not racing, I will be taking A with me to Yoga at Lululemon Boulder. She has been begging to go, and let's face it, it will give me an excuse to check out the merchandise.

Not so exciting


I realized I will no longer be able to do the weekday runs with the running group I literally just joined. I'm a little bummed about that, especially since I had already told A she could come with me. She is also bummed. I will still be able to do the weekend runs, on the rare weekends that I am not racing. Le sigh.

New/Renewed aches and pains. My ankle was bothering me during long run on Sunday. Wrapped in KT tape today and it was better. I wish the tape would stick better though. My right knee is also bothering me, ouchy right under the kneecap. Also, I have felt super tired and exhausted lately. Getting enough sleep. Eating/hydrating pretty well. Still not feeling energetic. Hope it is nothing serious.

Sorry no pictures today :)

Another Group Run

Up until last night, I was still debating running with Runners Roost for an hour or paying $65 to run a local half marathon. I was pretty certain I was just going to do the group run, until I heard that L and her boyfriend were running the half. I had no idea they were registered... THEN I really wanted to race. I'd like to think I'm sort of overcoming my racing addiction. I decided I'd rather save $65 and NOT race a trail I've run a billion times.

So instead, I ran "with" Runners Roost. I say "with," because I was once again the slowest runner. I headed out too fast trying to keep up since I wasn't familiar with the route. I kept the next slowest runners *barely* in sight through the way back. I wish there was someone else poky like me :(

Does it look like it was in the upper 30s and windy? Because it was.

Five Things Friday

I posted a desperate/whiny status on Facebook the other day: 

"For once, I'd REALLY like for something to happen in my favor."

Well... I've got five GOOD things to post about today. Pretty dang psyched.

1. I interviewed for a pretty awesome job yesterday. I'll call it a "real" job. One that I highly doubt I would ever be bored doing. Also, one that would allow for growth within the company. It's also in a "high-rise" building downtown. Fancy. (I even dressed up and did my hair)

Doesn't A take a FABULOUS picture??

Well.... I got called back for a SECOND INTERVIEW. This is huge. I haven't been called on a second interview in AGES. Seems very promising. PLEASE WISH GOOD THOUGHTS FOR ME.

2. I got a 100% on my last exam in my Law Enforcement course. WOOT!!!

3. I am going on another group run tomorrow with the lovely people from Runners Roost in Louisville. REALLY looking forward to doing some trail running.

4. I was at Lululemon in Boulder today and they said kids are more than welcome to attend their yoga class on Sundays. I'll be bringing A the next time we don't have plans. She is dying to do some yoga with me and I'm just not super good at it.

Also? I finally tried on the "Wunder Unders" - holy crap... my butt looks pretty good :D :D

LOL!

5. New snack item????

If I have any left, I'll bring some for my Ragnar teammates.

I Joined a Run Club!

Yep. It's true. I did. So after running almost exclusively on the treadmill for pretty much the last two years, I decided I'm bored. Not super duper bored, just bored. And a little lonely. I have so much fun when I get to meet up with my friends at races, and then it's just me, all alone, at the gym. NO MORE!! If I ever feel like I could have done more in terms of training for Moab, it would have been running more outside.

Saturday was my first meeting with the group from Runner's Roost. I learned that there would be people of all abilities, with distances ranging from 4 to 20 miles on the weekend runs. SOUNDS PERFECT. Obviously I was in NO shape to be running that many miles. Six days after Moab? NO WAY. But what I wanted to do was get a feel for the group. See if it was something I maybe would enjoy. I've been training solo for so long, I didn't know if I would feel left out, too slow, too weird, you know, all the social anxieties I haven't dealt with in forever. Anyway.... it was rad. I was not familiar with where we were running, and everyone looked out for me to make sure I didn't get lost. A possibility since I was the slowest runner there. They chatted with me and made me feel welcome (warm fuzzies). The coach ran with me and she was SUPER AWESOME to talk to. I decided then and there that they were a pretty wonderful group of runners, and I would be back.

Regular weekday runs are on Wednesdays. I picked a good week to decide to join! With promise of "easy" running, 3-4 miles, and a sunny evening, I headed to Louisville. And was met with... an EASTER EGG HUNT!! How fun! Running AND looking for eggs to win prizes??? My kind of activity. I started out a bit fast, and ended up chasing a group of speedy ladies. While looking for eggs around the halfway point, I met a guy who is training to run Bear Chase 50 mile with his mom for her birthday. HOW AWESOME!! I didn't find any lucky eggs, but they gave away TONS of stuff, and I managed to win some Saucony arm sleeves. Although they were confiscated less than 30 minutes after I won them.

The best part about the weekday runs is that kids are welcome. I wanted to check the terrain before heading out to see if A would be ok on her bike (even 3-4 easy miles is too much for her to run right now). Looks like she will be joining me in the weeks to come.

March Rewind

Miles Run - 161.44 (Blah).
Races Run - 4 (1 10k, 2 half marathons, 1 partial 100 miler)
PR's Set - Zero. I did, however, have my first DNF. That was disappointing.
Minutes of Plank - 108

Blah. March did NOT end the way I expected. I'm sorta depressed about where things ended up. I have races pending but nothing major to train for. I met up with a run group from Runners Roost on Saturday, and even though they were all tons faster (no, really. I was DEAD last), they were super nice. I will likely run with them again. Other than that. Trying to avoid the funk of having no goals.