Happy New Year!!! Fiiiiiiiiiinally this year is O.V.E.R.

I was going to do a decade in review sort of thing, but honestly...looking (thinking) back there isn't a whole heck of a lot that sticks out in my mind as something I actually want to remember.  And there are a couple of years (2002, 2003) that I honestly don't remember that much about anyway.  I made two of the biggest mistakes of my life; one being that I was stupid and tossed the one man that I've ever loved more than anyone by the wayside (2000) and the second being  ... well  ... anyway...  I lost a job here or there, struggled, pulled my way out successfully.  Got engaged for the 5th time :o) (2002) and subsequently broke it off about a month later... Sold my house (2003).   I started running (late 2005) and continue to run despite a few injuries here and there, made new friends along the way.  Lightened my 'backpack' along the way too, and am still in the process of that actually...did a triathlon and a couple duathlons (2009).. Ran the NYC Marathon (2008) and about to run the Houston Marathon for the 2nd time (2007 being the first time). 

2007, 2008 and most of 2009 have been filled with more heartache and disappointment than one person should ever have to deal with but such is life in the big city.  The times they are a-changin'...

All I can say is that not only am I ready for a new decade, but I am beyond ready for 2009 to be over with, despite the few and far between positive things (my new job for one), 2009 has not been one for the record books in the wonderful memories sort of way (unless it was running related).  Now that my friends is just sad.

But as I sit here and type this out, things are already changing and I see that by changing the way I bring in the new year could possibly have only positive outcomes for the year post-NYE.  I sit here with an ear to ear smile on my face, and about to burst from excitement and anticipation for tomorrow.  I cannot remember the last time that has been the case on NYE.

I finally get that the definition of 'insanity' is doing the same thing over and over again, only expecting different results. 

I'm soooooo over 'crazy; in that respect.

Bring on happy.  I sit here with open arms and open heart.

How strange it is to want to cry from being happy as opposed to the alternative. 

What a concept.

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Tuesday workout:  6 miles (treadmill) followed by 1 hour/15 min of Vinyasa Yoga. 

Muy bueno.

I am really starting to love the yoga thing and will more than likely be purchasing a package deal as it saves a bit of money rather than paying class by class.

New Year...New Goals...New Challenges...New Life...New Junie B

1. Complete the Chevron Houston Marathon (4:14:59; 4:20; 4:29:59 (time goals) ..help me Lord if the wheels fall off or Mother Nature lays down a warm/humid Spring/Summer like day upon us)
2. PR at every distance in the Spring, including the RnR Dallas Half Marathon mid-March (havent done a 1/2 marathon in over 2 years
3. 2 Triathlons in the tri-season (late Spring/Summer); and also PR
4. 2 Duathlons; and also PR
5. Reach my goal weight (which means losing about 9 lbs)
6. Complete 2 marathons (both under 4:30; actually closer to 4:15-4:20 pleaseandthankyou)
7. Be as close to BQ'ing (4:00:59) as possible by Jan 2011 marathon (goal race is USAFit marathon here in Houston)
8. Continue to eat smart (imperative to goal #5)
9. Give up alcohol (as I have for the past couple of months), sans the occasional celebratory glass of wine or such for special occasions.
   

This coming year is going to be all about me; call me selfish, I've been called worse.  No really, I have.  :o)Just this past Saturday, someone on the outside looking in, pulled me to the side after the long run and shared with me some things that surprised me (funny how you don't know people are 'watching'), but also made me feel very good inside.  He/she also shared with me how I am a 'giver' and would appear that I am prone to attracting others that might not always necessarily have my best interest at heart.  And at the end of the conversation, the validation alone that I am worth so much more, from someone you never expect it from to begin with, was one of the most precious gifts I could have received this holiday.  So in 2010 I will still be that 'giver' but to myself and those deserving.

I have other thoughts, plans, etc., hidden away in the old noggin but they are still just spinning around in there.  I thought about an ultra this coming year, but I am going to push that off till 2011.  There is only so much time you know! 

All that I know for certain is that I refuse to allow another year go by where I am not completely happy with my choices whether they pertain to relationship(s), running, work, or whatever.  I have done way too much of that over the past couple of years and have compromised some of the values my daddy taught me, lost some self-respect, and allowed others to treat me not like they would want to be treated (you remember the Golden Rule right?).  I have however, also remembered some of what I was taught, and have managed to persevere through some pretty awful situations, some personal, some professional.

Basically I am implementing my "Embrace the "It Ain't Worth It" mentality in 2010.  Pish posh to any, all and everything that doesn't fit my agenda, my schedule, my values, my life, etc., so forth and so on. 

Told ya.  Complete selfishness shall abound in 2010.

Saturday after the long run, was spent mostly on the couch staying warm, snuggly and watching movies.

Sunday brought yoga and was fabulous!  Felt really stretched out and back to normal.  Went to the movies and saw Up In The Air.  Great movie!  Then off to a birthday celebration where thankfully there was sushi (which I have been craving) and tons of wonderful healthy fare to nosh on.

Got up this morning, day off...and headed out for a quick run.  I have a 1.5 hour massage here at noon and doing hills this evening just seemed like a silly idea after the mind numbing experience and relaxation of a massage!  Legs felt a bit heavy today but I guess that is to be expected after all.

Also, although I havent blogged this previously, today marks day 87 of no fast food (which I never ate much of anyway, but always would indulge in Whataburger on average of 3-4 times a month), and no mexican food restaurants either.  We had fajitas on Christmas day, but still...Also sans a couple of glasses of wine and 1 vodka shot at Lights in the Heights, its been the same amount of time of consuming alcohol.  I am pretty darn proud of myself.

2010 goals post coming shortly...

LAST Long Run Before Marathon - Kenyan Way

“You want peace, chase down your war every morning and get it out of the way.”
So says my ever-present and usually annoying alter ego.

4:00 a.m. (hell even 5am for that matter) always sucks. Always. Always. Always. It is never going to be one of those things body or mind naturally do (on a weekend when there is no good reason really), and I do not give one single flying #*$@ what anyone says. As long as we’re all clear on that, we’re good.

See, I have a big problem with things and people who are not straight forward… if something is going to suck like a Hoover, just give it to me, don’t wrap it all up with a frilly little bow the shade of someday and call it communicated. In this respect, I do not like surprises.

So, folks, here it is for you - you NEVER get used to getting up at {insert ungodly hour here} in the morning for anything, in fact, unless your house is on fire, all of your receptors and responders will not, in fact, engage in any sort of conscious behavior for at least 20 minutes. Do not drive during this time. Do not leave your house during this time. Do not go up or down stairs during this time. Trust me.

There. Said. Done. Moving on.

I am not weak. I am not faithless. That said, I have earned the right to bitch a bit about the first few miles of a run (or the last couple for that matter). ESPECIALLY that early in the morning. On a Saturday (or a Sunday). When it’s awful, icky, humid ass weather.  Or its not (as was the case this morning, with low humidity, no wind to speak of and a nice chilly 32 deg at the start, with 49 deg at the end).  Or that I am just plain ass tired.  Or just because its the weekend.  I mean really?
So – let’s recap:

-- Getting out of bed to do anything at 4:00 a.m. will, until the end of time, FORever, damn near cause me to become violent. Depending….

Get up.
It sucks.

Then it doesn’t.

Go train.
It sucks.

Then it doesn’t.

Always, in that order.

No games. No bows. No tiaras.

In the words of Nike:  Just Do It.

And thats exactly what we did this morning...12-23 miles of the marathon course covered, which included the Westpark Bridge (not so bad after all this time).  21 miles total.  Was supposed to be 22, but F a bunch of that :)  After 21, we just said OK, thats enough.  I had 3 previous 20+ milers under my belt, not to mention the 17, 18 and 19 milers along the way.  We ran the first couple nice and slow before starting with the group, then started out.  We decided to run the long way around the park to add on a mile and then finish up around base instead of doing Allen Parkway.  I finally figured out what was wrong with my Garmin but not till after daylight so I dont have splits; I was only able to monitor pace.  The history was full.  Go figure.  As I monitored the pace fluctuated between 10 and 10:30's so all is well. 

Now we rest.  Recouperate.  Re-energize.

And on race day, may my preparation meet the task at hand, and with that hand, I hope to hand the marathon a big old helping of whup ass.

And a partridge in a pear tree.

Tis The Season

To everyone out there, enjoy your holiday in whatever form or fashion you and your family partake in. 

I have only 2 things I really wanted for Christmas, well 3, but Daddy can't be here, so we'll leave it at just the 2.

I sure hope those 2 things find their way underneath the tree...oh and maybe one under some mistletoe.  I found some mistletoe right outside my front door this morning (hmmmm) as I was loading a bazillion gifts into the car...

Merry Christmas!

p.s. a great, injury free 22 miler on Saturday would also be greatly appreciated Santa :o)

I Hate Running Sometimes

A warm front is upon us (till tomorrow) and I had mile repeats, 7 miles total.  Since I have plans for early evening out in Kingwood, I had to run my speed workout mid-day.  Ugh.  It sucked.

1.5 mile warmup
4 x 1 mile w/ 1 min rest in between (between 9:18 and 9:26)
1.5 mile sloooooooow run back home

My body feels like its shutting down on me but I know its just because I am exhausted and we are in the last full week of high mileage before taper.  And it was just soooooo humid out and we've been so blessed with cold temps...till today...

I have to try and squeeze in a run tomorrow before work, or between work and heading to my sisters.  I honestly dont know if thats going to happen as I wont be home till late and I know I am going to be that much  more exhausted come tomorrow morning...

Sigh.

Bitchy, Whiny and Moany

I am sore from yoga.
I am exhausted from running 38-50 miles a week.
I am moany because thats what I do when I am sore and exhausted.

I didnt want to go to hills, but to hills I went.  If Megan would have responded No to my text then I might not have gone.  But she said Yes and there ya go.

Did a 1 mile warm up around base and then 3 loops of the cloverleaf.  Ran them about a minute slower than we normally do and I did in fact, bitch, moan and groan the entire time.

Only got 4 miles in today and I guess I am just going to have to live with that.

Tomorrow will be better.  I am sure of that.

Whew!

I am finally a Female again.  The timing company finally fixed the results from the Turkey Trot.  What sucks is that it was 10 sec between me and 3rd in my age group :o)  4th out of 105 women?  AND 296th out of 2,643?   I will take that and a bag of chips.  :o)

Sheltering Arms Turkey Trot 2009

Overall        AG       Bib     Name                Gun    Avg Pace    Chip
 296/2643   4th/105 3633    June    F 46   26:04    8:42     25:55

Turkey Trot - 5K

I don't like this race.  Its about 6000 people and mostly people who run twice a year.  This one and the Rodeo Run in February.  Its full of walkers, strollers, soccer moms, grandparents and gangs of high school kids.  But since this year the 5K was chip timed and I got a free entry, I decided to do it.

Glad I did.  I smashed my 5K PR.  Some say the course was short and thats fine...I have run many 5K's where the course was long and I always have to hear 'well it was the course and thats your time, for good or bad'.  Well if thats the case then if its a short course I say 'well it was the course and thats your time, for good or bad'.  My watch showed less than .1 short on the course, but again its all how you run the course; tangent or no tangent, weave or no weave.  Even if I had to run that extra...I still would have come in at about 26:30?  Still not shabby :o)....buuuuttt...I didnt have to and it is what it is...

Today there was no weaving whatsoever.  I knew better than to line up at my goal pace, and as much as I hate to do this, I lined up near the front where the 6 min mile sign was.  I knew looking around me that NONE of those people were running 6 min miles...

Once I went over the mat, I moved right over to the far right and fell into my stride.  I wasn't in anyones way thats for sure.

Just past the 1st mile marker, the 5K'ers split off from the 10K'ers, and my first mile came in at 8:39.  Right what I was hoping to do.  I knew that once I made the next turn I would be fighting a headwind but I also knew it wouldnt be for very long...Ran right past the water stop...no need for water on a 5K in these conditions (temp was about 48).  The headwind didnt bother me that much, but my split at mile 2 came in at 8:51 and this was due all in part to that I started to feel the lactic acid build up and I slowed a bit (but not wanting to post anything with a 9: in it), knowing that I wanted something left for the last mile, and of course the last 800m.

Once we made the turn onto San Felipe I knew I had a PR I just didnt know how much of one.  The last 5K I did on Halloween when I posted a 27:14 that never got recorded due to my chip not registering, well as they say if its not officially recorded it doesnt count...so having said that, my PR for a 5K was 28:31...My hopes today were to go sub 27...I was trying to do the math in my head...I remember looking at my watch at 2.5 miles and thinking...oh.  wow.  We are so going to do this...

Last mile came in at 8:38... and then of course the change for the remainder.

Giving me an OFFICIAL (chip) time for the 5K of 25:55.  Watch showed 25:50 but at one point where we run under the tunnel for the Williams Tower I heard my watch beep and it showed Auto Pause as if I had stopped.  As I exited, it read Auto Resume.  So thats where the time difference is I suppose.

Since everyone is saying the course was short, then well I guess I have my work cut out for me at the next 5K...to at least get that time...I wont have any more 5K's till the Spring though...

The thing that I am most proud of is that I did this during marathon training.  Where there is no training going on for short distances.  No 800m repeats, nothing like that.  Its all about the endurance training and hitting your training paces with some MPace in there from time to time.  I feel certain that once I hit Spring training, I should be closer to 25 or sub 25....thats the goal...

The other thing that I am most proud of is that looking back...to a time where I ran 36 and 37 min 5K's...just a mere 3 years ago...taking 3 min off per mile is something that I, and I am sure others, dont take too lightly or without some semblance of respect for the effort.  And the training...

At least I like to think so.

Next up?  Las Vegas Rock and Roll Half Marathon.  Next Sunday. 

I smell another PR....

Raced on Saturday.

5K.

Huge PR (1 min 20 sec). Broke 28 min, almost broke 27. would have too if not for shoes coming untied TWICE...finally double knotted...plus the rocky 3/4 mile path in mile 3 around the race track. stupid.

dtag didnt register. still getting that worked out with timing company.

27:14. Good enough for FIRST in my age group.

Go figure. Even when they adjust the time and add me...i highly doubt the woman who got the bad ass plaque for 1st in our AG aint gonna give it back. woe is me.

48 miles this week. 19 on Sat or Sun coming up. Not sure what day i am actually going to do them. Run with KW on Saturday, or do the 25K. Gonna discuss with Sean tonight and see what he thinks.

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Entered the lottery today for NYC marathon 2010.

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And people...if you're going to talk the talk, run the run. Nothing makes me roll my eyes more than a person thats just plain ass lazy and really good at excuses.

Seriously.

Put up or shut up.

10 For Texas

First 10 mile race since 2007. Last year this race weekend I had a 22 miler to do... :)

2006: 1:55:xx
2007: 1:51:xx

This year?

1:38:24

Schweet! 13 min pr...

Avg pace: 9:47. Only 3 sec per mile off my goal marathon pace. I had to take a potty at the start of mile 3, then an untied shoe in mile 3 and still ended up with a 9:33 pace for that mile. I had to make up some time right?

Mile 5 had a wardrobe malfunction...HR strap kept sliding down (have lost weight)...and when i was adjusting it, it came undone and i had to run and try to get it clipped back in without flashing any boob. Hard to do I tell you... So mile 5 ended up being one of the miles over 10:00. Mile 1 was as well due to the Start traffic (10:07)

Very happy with my effort.

Perfect conditions as the cool front had come in on Friday, so we had 57 deg but still humidity and a mist the whole way. Perfect though. I was shooting for MP the 10 miles and wanted to definitely get under 1:40. Mission accomplished.

Peace.

TriGirl 2009 Report - First Triathlon!

I realized just this morning that I hadn’t blogged about my recent triathlon. But then I realized it was only just a week ago.

Honestly it seems like forever ago. I just don’t blog like I use to but I promise to try to be better, and I am not even sure if anyone is still reading this? I do mostly facebook, but there are A LOT of people on there that have access to my page and there are just some things I would rather not put on there I suppose.

As far as the tri goes, it was indeed a rush so to speak, however I did not leave there, nor did the feeling sink in several days later that “I can’t wait to do that again”. That’s not to say that next tri season I won’t be trying to improve (because I will) but its not like I am itching for that time to get here. I can tell you one thing…that the next couple of them that I do, it will be IN. A. POOL. That open, deep, murky, can’t see the bottom crapola is not for me. I am too afraid of deep water to begin with, and don’t ask me why on earth I did this??? :o)

Thankfully Brooke offered to get up at the ungodly hour of 4:30am and drive with me to Deussen Park. This was wonderful. I got all set up, marked up, etc…ran into a few folks that I knew, chatted etc. Somehow Brooke and Cindy convinced me to get into the water and swim a bit…not so bad. At that time. Anyway, without further adieu:

The Swim (300 yds):
Just as I expected it would be. Horrid. I did exactly what B and C told me to do. Get at the back of my wave (which was 4th), after the horn goes off, count to like 10 and then go. So that’s what I did. Let me tell you from the bank 300yrds looks like a cake walk. When you are in the water…eye level, yeah, its effing far people. Especially for me who (thankfully) got a big girl job and for 2 weeks couldn’t really swim to train…So I put my face in the water and when I couldn’t see the bottom I panicked and that was that. I got to the buoy and held on, trying to catch my breath. Slow the HR down. Tried again. Nope. So I did what I planned on and that was to flip onto my back and start going. I knew I had about 4 min before the next wave would start and I knew some of the fast swimmers would over take me. And that did happen but in the last 75 yrds so it wasn’t terribly bad. A couple of times I wanted to just quit when they asked if I was ok but I knew if I quit, I couldn’t bike and I couldn’t run. It doesn’t work that way. And I wanted to bike and I wanted to run!!! So I made up my mind right then and there it didn’t matter that I was last in my wave (AG) to get out of the water…I wouldn’t be last in my wave (AG) to finish on the bike, the run OR THE RACE….It ended up taking me 12:29 to finish that swim…



The Bike (11 miles):

Once I got out of the water and headed to transition, I walked for a bit to get my legs back and then slowly ran to transition (3:20) to get ready for the bike. The hardest part here is putting on socks and (running) shoes as you have to dry off and such…I was pretty much at the back of the pack with very few bikes left racked…Oh well…off I go…I guess it had to be about 1-1.5 miles in I caught my first biker. And then another, another, another…and so it went. What was nice was when I started catching bikers with 30-39 (and below) marked on the back of their calves. These people started 10-15 minutes ahead of me on the swim and now look? Yeah…take that you fast swimmer (who and I don’t mean to be rude are quite the big girls, which makes me think if I were bigger would the swim be easier?) Honestly I think its harder when you are more muscle cause not only do you have to swim, but you somehow have to keep yourself up on top of the damn water!!! :o) I don’t have a lot of buoyancy if you know what I mean. I have to work on speed I guess… J Anyway, I was passing people left and right, some bigger women and just slower on the bike, and some on bikes that clearly I had the advantage on, and then the ones that might have been better than myself (these would be the ones we leap frogged most of the course taking turns as to who led, but at the end, I just passed them as I felt like they boxed me in on purpose and I had to go into the other lane and hoped I didn’t get penalized but they wouldn’t let me pass!) but my determination was in full force by now and my confidence level going up. There were a couple of long inclines and that slowed me down a bit but not as much as it slowed everyone else down. I cant remember my time now on the bike but it was good…16.5 avg I think…



The Run (3 miles):
This time the transition off the bike to the run was much better than my first duathlon…I had the technique down on what to do leading up to the dismount and it worked…Plus by now I was riding high knowing all I had to do was run 3 miles and I had conquered this thing!!! My transition was too long because I couldn’t find my dang ponytail holder and I just wasted time cause I needed it. 1:50 I think it was. WAY TOO LONG…I finally just gave up and yelled at Gay if she had one and she threw one to me…Lesson learned. So off I ran. Most of the course was in the shade and yet again I was passing people. People running slow, people walking…ah yes, first and foremost I am a runner. I had a couple of ‘issues’ along the way which added to my time, but I don’t even care to be honest. It was my first triathlon and it was an automatic PR. I had a time in mind of sub 1:30 and I almost made it. Missed it by 29 seconds. I know of at least 3 places I could have gotten that back but it doesn’t matter.








As I said I was thrilled I did it and I did ok you know? However I am WAY more excited about my upcoming duathlon mid-October and the training for the marathon in January here in Houston than I am for tri season 2010. Maybe that will change later…

THE FINISH!!

Cyndy, myself and Gay (Lukes ladies!)

A Marathoner, A Duathlete, and Now a Triathlete

Full report later.

300yd swim. 11 mile bike. 3 mile run.

1 hour 30 min 39 seconds.

I'll take it considering it took me FOREVER to make the swim. Thats what no training will get you. :) Thankfully on the bike and run I was passing people left and right. Otherwise I might still be out there with the buffalo. Seriously. There were buffalo along the run route.

First Duathlon

Official Times:
7th in AG
First 2 miles: 19:36.2 9:48/M
T:1 1:30.4 (I was 8th in my AG on this transtion; took way too long trying to make sure the camelback was working)
10 Mile Bike: 35:37.6 16.1avg pace
T:2 0:54.0 (I was 2nd on this transition... :)
Second 2 miles: 20:01.2 10:01/M
Total Time incl transitions: 1:17:39.6

I have to say that I am VERY happy with these times! I didnt think with the heat and the humidity, plus the fact that I felt the way I did on those last 2 miles, I just didnt think I had it in me to pull those times out...Seriously.

First Run: I didnt wear my Garmin so I had no idea what my pace was but I just kept it nice and easy, as I knew that with the added run before the bike, I wasnt sure what I was going to have at the end. I just basically got in a groove, watched my HR and kept it there. I hated the fact that part was through grass as they had just recently cut the grass and with the morning humidity it was just globbin up everywhere on you. When I made it to transition, I looked at my watch and saw 20 min...Guess I was off as they show me at 9:48per mile. As I was nearing the chip mat I pulled out a gel and began eating it...

Transition 1: I went straight to my bike and was glad it was open rack cause I got to pick a spot midway and on the end. I put the Camelback on and tried to see if it was working and I fiddled with it way longer than I should have. Tore off my patella bands and because of the time with the CB I opted to not try and put my biking gloves on with sweat pouring out of me and all down my arms. I would just deal with the slippery on the bike ride. took a swig of Accelerade and off I go....

Bike: No problems hopping on and heading out. It was an out and back and flat till you got to the turnaround at 5 miles and then it was just a small hill to top...no problem.. I was passing people left and right on the bike and that helped my confidence. I had one or two pass me, one being Penny but I knew she was stronger than I am on the bike and fully expected her to catch me. She caught me just after the turnaround, somewhere in mile 6...I just kept thinking, you'll catch her on the run :) ... On the way back, there was a spot where it was all open and thats when I felt the headwind. On the way out I was going about 17-19 mph, but when I hit that, my speed fell to about 15mph...shit...Then after about 2 miles Im guessing when I hit the trees to the right, it was fine and I was able to recover back up to my original speed. I knew I couldnt go faster as I had that run coming up and I needed to save some in my tank. Then I saw the tents and such coming up on my right and I knew I was almost there...35 minutes for the 10 miles...I'll take it.

Transition 2: Wow. When I got close to the dismount line, some chick stopped in front of me and I had to stop about 20 ft away...and when I hopped off I almost felt like I was going to fall...legs were pudding...All I did was take off the camelback and took off the helmet. No time to put the patella bands back on. It was 2 miles afterall...no need. 54secs..and 2nd in my AG in this transition. Me like that.

Run 2: Holy shit. I still cant believe my time came out to 10min miles. Seriously. I felt like I was BARELY moving. Especially the first half mile. I even walked the water station to make sure I got all the gatorade in me. 1 other time I took about 20 seconds to just let my legs recover. It really was hard throughout this 2 miles. I just kept thinking about the movie I watched last night about Fred Lebow and him running that NYC marathon pretty much on his death bed, and if he could run 26.2 miles in that condition, then by God I could freaking run as best I could in the condition I was in...I had NO idea what my pace was at all...At whatever point it was I knew I had a sub 1:20 in me...I could walk it in and do it...Secretly I had 1:15 as a goal, but I have no idea where that came from since I hadnt done one before...and when I knew it was gonna be in the 1:17 range I was especially elated. yeah not 1:15, but for the effort and how hard it was, I was very happy indeed.

As I was coming up to the Finish line I saw all my Strider buddies there cheering me on and Dixie and Evan!!! I could not believe I had done it and done it quite well in my opinion. After it was all said and done, I felt fine right after and actually still do...

So having said ALL of that...I signed up for Du the Bear in October....and am gonna swim some this week...I might, MIGHT...give that Tri a go in August in Clear Lake...

Bayou City Classic 10K

4 minutes and 3 seconds PR!! 58:32 for 10K
It was colder and windier than last year...although the wind was not a factor past the first 3/4 of the first mile and then I didn't really feel it again till at the end of mile 5...great just what I need, headwind in the last mile AND going up that damn ramp back into downtown!! At least the rain held off...

Splits:
Mile 1: 9:32
Mile 2: 9:17 (had to stop and tie my shoe here)
Mile 3: 9:22 (tossed the gloves off!!)
Mile 4: 9:38 (walked the water stop to drink; I wanted ALL that water in that cup!!!)
Mile 5: 9:26
Mile 6: 9:26
.2: 7.5 mph

Average pace: 9:24 (43 seconds faster per mile over last year)

The four of us started out relatively together, although Robin was a bit in front, but we caught up to her and passed, and then it was just Bonnie and I till I had to stop and tie my shoe. I caught back up to them but had no idea where Dixie was...just past the 3 mile mark was a water stop and I needed water so Bonnie got ahead of me and I never caught back up to her so up till the start of mile 6 I was running alone...Then as we started mile 6 I heard a familiar step behind me, quickly turned my head and sure enough it was Robin...AND DIXIE!!! We went stride for stride till we hit the on ramp and I slowed down thinking I would catch them on the downhill...they were only seconds in front of me really and I just decided to cruise it on in. We crossed literally almost at the same time in the end. All our watches said 58:32 and Bonnie had finished about a minute ahead of us. We were all thrilled with our times and our PR's!!

As cold as we were at the start I think we can all agree it was perfect weather for the run!

We had a beer then headed to Barnabys for green eggs and post race trash talk!!!

I heart heart heart my KW girlie running buddies!!!

Last year (2008):
Time: 1:02:35 (Garmin time)
Last 10K time (2007) was 1:08:52

PR difference: 6 minutes, 17 seconds
Average pace: 10:05

Splits:
Mile 1: 10:15
Mile 2: 9:52
Mile 3: 9:34; at this point, there was a water station just past the 3 mile marker and I took Powerade and walked to drink it
Mile 4: 10:16
Mile 5: 10:01
Mile 6: 9:53
.2... whatever it is to make it to 1:02:35

Two Photos from Park to Park

I remember those peeps and I remember turning on some speed to put distance between us. You can clearly see how much distance I put between us by looking at the photo on the right compared to the one right at the finish there on the left.

Good stuff. I love it when the photog's get me so airborne (as in the pic on the left).

Park to Park 5 Mile

5.08 miles
Course long by everyones Garmin (new route but only at the beginning) Mile markers were only slightly off though compared to last years...

average pace: 9:22
Mile 1: 9:15
Mile 2: 9:33
Mile 3: 9:29
Mile 4: 9:21
Mile 5: 9:14

This was by my Garmin at 5 miles a 46:5+ which equates to a 3 minute PR off last year. Last years average pace was 10:02, so yay me! I ran a 50:+ last year.

Chip time with the overage was 47:3+ which I will take in a heartbeat. Was warm and WINDY...headwind till the last mile where we turned off just before the start of mile 5. Was underhydrated (didnt drink hardly any water yesterday for whatever reason)...but still felt OK today. Started picking people off in mile 3 which is customary for me at this distance. Maybe 400 people out for this run which always surprises me at the lack of people out for this one as its a great course and a great after party!! Budweiser Select was yuuuuummy...

Ran the longest distance in my Adidas Boston racers and was very happy with them...

Only thing is I left something out on the course and for that I am kinda beating myself up...will NOT leave anything out there at the Bayou Classic 10K though so Dixie BE READY!!! :o)

5K Time Trial - Texas Med Center

I wanted to run this race as a time trial to see where I am as far as 5K shape. I haven't run a 5K since I think last April...there hasn't been any speed training, only training for NYC and then the half here in Houston (which of course did not happen). I wanted to see where I was before Spring/speed training started.

It was a perfect morning; about 42 degrees and sunny. My previous 5K PR was 28:32. This morning I ran a 28:31. The course was long, and that proof is in the times posted by the top runners. About 200m I guess, which isnt that much but can make a big difference in the faster runners times...

I did a mile warmup and kept doing strides to keep the legs warm beforehand.

Splits per the Garmin:
Mile 1: 8:47
Mile 2: 9:11
Mile 3: 9:20
Last .15: 8:06 pace

I will take it considering as I said, no speed training whatsoever in months and months. I got REALLY hot in the 3rd mile and my knee started bothering me (first time I didnt wear my patella band; bad decision). Thankfully I had some encouragement in the last 1/2 mile and that certainly helped ;o) And then in the last .1 there was a woman in front of me I wanted to catch and pass (which I did) but she came back just a bit, and I had to make DAMN SURE she didnt beat me...she didn't. ;o)

Now I have speed training coming up and we'll see what kind of improvement I can get through the Spring.

OK off to worky work!