Good God, I did not want to leave the house this morning.
I woke up well before the clock, which was set to go off at 5:15am. I got up around 5, splashed water on my face, and put on my clothes. All except my shoes.
I had alot of time before I actually needed to leave the house, and I laid down on the couch and started watching a Tivo episode of ER.
I really dont want to go, I said to myself. I'm tired, yesterdays relay kicked my ass, then the Astros game, a couple of beers (early) and well, its ok if I dont go. Its fine. I ran hard yesterday. Its all good.
By now its 5:30am. Still laying on the couch.
Phone starts ringing.
Ugh.
"Are you still in bed?" he asked. "No, but I am on the couch" was my reply. Then of course I hear the usual blah blah blah in my ear, all from the guy who wasnt even going to do this race today.
The same person who ended up winning 1st in his age group. You can thank me later for that big ass pretty trophy you got ;o)
Anyway I did end up putting my shoes on and headed out the door.
I didnt expect much today, which I know isnt the right frame of mind to go into an event with, but well...sometimes it happens.
My legs hurt from yesterday, but the warm up I did with Pony (who got 2nd in our age group!!) must have helped. I actually ended up doing alot better than I thought I would.
No PR, and no sub 30: but thats cool. I held my own, and with HottieSteves help there in the last 1/4 mile or so I was able to turn it up and he had me catching and passing people left and right. One tried to come back and pass me (I could hear her coming back up on me) and that just wasnt acceptable. :o) So Steve thanks for the pick-up ... even if I still think you're a big meanie. ;o)
Mile 1: 9:31
Mile 2: 10:09
Mile 3: 10:19 (and in this mile I actually took a 1 min walk break)
last .19: 1:31 (8:00 pace!)
Total Time: 31:30 (3.19)
The avg pace for the 3.1 showed me at 10:10 pace and again...thats great considering I didnt think I had anything left today. Would be slightly less if you take into account the difference between the .1...I know everyone else had it about about .15 or .16, but I guess when I walked that 1 minute there that might be where my difference in distance came in at compared to theirs (since I moved over the right where the walkers were).
I even finally managed to crack the top 10 in my age group (7th) so its been a good weekend for me on all fronts.
Alot of Striders out this morning showing their support, and alot of them took home hardware as well!!
A great event, and with the Striders managing it (Barb as Race Director was awesome), well lets just say that I am thrilled that I did make it out the door this morning. I know had I not, I would have been kicking my own ass with regret.
Night night.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Bayou Bash Relay
Well, well, well...
I did it. I finally logged my first 'official' sub 9: mile. Today.
8:58 for my first mile in my leg (which I ran the second leg).
How happy am I?
It of course was not to be that way in the 2nd mile, but I am ok with that. I still managed a 9:34ish pace for my leg (based on 2 miles not 2.1). Not too shabby. I am happy with that. Yeah I wish it was a 9:29 (or better) :o) but whatever.
The course was long, by my watch almost a full .1 and according to everyone around me they showed a full .1 So even better. I will take the 19:22 for 2.1
We had a good team and I thought we'd place better than we did. Tracy brought it in for the last leg at about 8:30 avg pace. Our time on the clock was 1:15 and some change, but the results showed 1:17+ (first place in our division clocked in at 55:+) and without a chip mat, well you have to go with what the person at the end marks down, even though she was on the other side of the road from the clock and behind it as well.
Striders represented with 24 teams out there today; maybe even 25 as I heard someone say that at one point, so YAY STRIDERS!!!
All in all I felt good, and still feel that way. I have no clue what to expect tomorrow with the 5K on tap. I know I wont be shooting for another sub 9: in that first mile :o) ... That shit about killed me. I dont need 3 days of speed work in one week I dont think!!
Now I must rest before hitting the Astros game tonight! I cant wait for the best part of that which is a HOT DOG and a BEER! Never mind the fact that I had an ice cream cone and a piece of pizza for breakfast. I just love after race parties!
I did it. I finally logged my first 'official' sub 9: mile. Today.
8:58 for my first mile in my leg (which I ran the second leg).
How happy am I?
It of course was not to be that way in the 2nd mile, but I am ok with that. I still managed a 9:34ish pace for my leg (based on 2 miles not 2.1). Not too shabby. I am happy with that. Yeah I wish it was a 9:29 (or better) :o) but whatever.
The course was long, by my watch almost a full .1 and according to everyone around me they showed a full .1 So even better. I will take the 19:22 for 2.1
We had a good team and I thought we'd place better than we did. Tracy brought it in for the last leg at about 8:30 avg pace. Our time on the clock was 1:15 and some change, but the results showed 1:17+ (first place in our division clocked in at 55:+) and without a chip mat, well you have to go with what the person at the end marks down, even though she was on the other side of the road from the clock and behind it as well.
Striders represented with 24 teams out there today; maybe even 25 as I heard someone say that at one point, so YAY STRIDERS!!!
All in all I felt good, and still feel that way. I have no clue what to expect tomorrow with the 5K on tap. I know I wont be shooting for another sub 9: in that first mile :o) ... That shit about killed me. I dont need 3 days of speed work in one week I dont think!!
Now I must rest before hitting the Astros game tonight! I cant wait for the best part of that which is a HOT DOG and a BEER! Never mind the fact that I had an ice cream cone and a piece of pizza for breakfast. I just love after race parties!
Saturday, March 31, 2007
The Bellaire (Hurricane) Trolley Run 2007
**edited 11:37am**
Seriously we had it all this morning...getting to the race was hard enough...the rain, lightning, thunder and wind was brutal. I had to pull over a couple of times because at one point I thought my vehicle was going to tip right over...As it got closer to 7:30 it seemed to let up; it wasnt raining as hard and the wind had stopped, but the lightning and thunder prevailed. And the temperature had dropped from 73 when I left my house to the low 60's so that of course was welcomed.
The race started on time.
First things first; I PR'd...by about 2:40 I guess. Garmin time was 30:15, Chip time showed 30:18. Yep, I was that close to my first sub-30. I hadnt even really thought about that till the last turn when I looked at my watch and I thought "I might have this bitch"...so I kept on, I knew the PR was in the bag already. I turned it on too late though because well I thought I was closer to the Finish than I was therefore no sub:30. I knew I wasnt going to get it once again there was yet another turn (7 in all the whole race course) so I just ran that last bit as hard as I could. Considering the conditions and the turns, well you know... ;o) I am extremely proud of my effort; a big 5K PR and that close to sub 30.
I never walked a second, and just ran past the water stop both times. I felt great out there today. Really great. Wait, no REALLY REALLY great...I was ready to go again. I was ready to be one of those that runs after the run.
Mile 1: 9:19
Mile 2: 10:02
Mile 3: 9:58
.1: .56 (8:29 pace) :) :)
As I said if I had known where I was in that mile 3 (should have looked at mileage on Garmin again), I might have been able to get it...Theres always next time. I have already signed up for the Easter Bun Run here in downtown next Saturday but I dont think its chip timed, so I am thinking maybe I should head to Clear Lake for the Resurrection Run (which I believe is chip timed) instead to get that sub 30. I will make that decision later this week.
7 miles, maybe 10 on the schedule for tomorrow morning at Memorial.
Seriously we had it all this morning...getting to the race was hard enough...the rain, lightning, thunder and wind was brutal. I had to pull over a couple of times because at one point I thought my vehicle was going to tip right over...As it got closer to 7:30 it seemed to let up; it wasnt raining as hard and the wind had stopped, but the lightning and thunder prevailed. And the temperature had dropped from 73 when I left my house to the low 60's so that of course was welcomed.
The race started on time.
First things first; I PR'd...by about 2:40 I guess. Garmin time was 30:15, Chip time showed 30:18. Yep, I was that close to my first sub-30. I hadnt even really thought about that till the last turn when I looked at my watch and I thought "I might have this bitch"...so I kept on, I knew the PR was in the bag already. I turned it on too late though because well I thought I was closer to the Finish than I was therefore no sub:30. I knew I wasnt going to get it once again there was yet another turn (7 in all the whole race course) so I just ran that last bit as hard as I could. Considering the conditions and the turns, well you know... ;o) I am extremely proud of my effort; a big 5K PR and that close to sub 30.
I never walked a second, and just ran past the water stop both times. I felt great out there today. Really great. Wait, no REALLY REALLY great...I was ready to go again. I was ready to be one of those that runs after the run.
Mile 1: 9:19
Mile 2: 10:02
Mile 3: 9:58
.1: .56 (8:29 pace) :) :)
As I said if I had known where I was in that mile 3 (should have looked at mileage on Garmin again), I might have been able to get it...Theres always next time. I have already signed up for the Easter Bun Run here in downtown next Saturday but I dont think its chip timed, so I am thinking maybe I should head to Clear Lake for the Resurrection Run (which I believe is chip timed) instead to get that sub 30. I will make that decision later this week.
7 miles, maybe 10 on the schedule for tomorrow morning at Memorial.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Law Week 8K 2007
It always freaks me out a bit whenever I get someone who I dont know that says "Hey June! I read your blog!". That happened a few times today. More so than it ever has at one event/time. The first time was a guy and was while I was still out on the race route and just after we made the turn at Shephard. Hiya!!!
The second time was as I was about to cross the Finish line, and this time it was a girl. After she said Go June!! I turned to look to see who it was, not recognizing her, and she followed up with "I read your blog all the time!!" I just smiled and waved. I hope to see you at Bellaire next week!!!
And then the final time was a bit after it was all said and done and some of us were just hanging out. A special shout out to Mr. Rios :O) for giving me such compliments ... and it was very nice to meet you. And I am glad I was able to set your mind at ease :o)
So anyway it does in fact make me smile and I wish that I could meet more of you that happen along the way. I see the hits and where they are from and alot of them are from Houston, but I have no idea who you all are!! ;o)
It was definitely different conditions than last year. Last year was about 20 deg cooler and no humidity. Today we were socked with 70 deg and about 95% humidity. Last year I ran it in 56:05 and with the conditions and me not feeling 100% due to allergies I just didnt have a clue that I was going to be able to pull out a PR. Thank goodness for oxygen tanks and Altoids...thank you HSteve for that!! The Altoids definitely opened up my sinuses for at least the first 3 miles.
As usual I go out too fast even though HSteve says there is no such thing. First mile: 9:32. Something I had not counted on. Mile 2: 10:20. Not sure of the splits after that because my signal kept going in and out, but I averaged out at 10:51 per mile...I did feel confident enough that I had the Garmin set way high on intervals just in case...I had it set for 9/1's but as it turned out I only walked the 1 min once and for 30 sec on another time. The rest I saved for the water stops. All I kept hearing in my head was HSteve telling me to not be a wimp and dont walk...run slower .. ok, but dont walk. :o)
For a PR of 53:23 total race route. Last year was 56:05. I will take that.
And as usual I know I could have gotten sub 53 if I would have just stepped it up a time or two. Ugh I hate it when I dont freaking push myself. I know this mostly because after I crossed the Finish line, and Santos was there to take off my chip, I wasnt heavy breathing, I wasnt winded...Yeah I was soaking wet but hey, it was hot/humid out there this morning. So I know I had more in there to give. I think once I knew I had a decent PR that it was ok to just coast.
Stupid.
Anyway, Bellaire 5K next week, and we'll see how that goes. Another PR? Let's hope so. I sure hope for at least less humidity :o) We're gonna have to do alot better on my per mile pace next week for a decent PR although given my time in the first 3 miles this morning I think I should be a-ok.
Kudos to all the Striders that did so well out there this morning, and as usual its always good to see a bunch of friends! Of course John Yoder won 1st in his age group, and I know that DavidM, Andrew, HSteve, Pony...everyone did really well!!!
Now I am off to consume as many crawfish as I can in the span of a couple of hours at the MDA Benefit. And to answer the age-old question it seems everyone asks when it comes to crawfish: "Yes I do." ;o)
The second time was as I was about to cross the Finish line, and this time it was a girl. After she said Go June!! I turned to look to see who it was, not recognizing her, and she followed up with "I read your blog all the time!!" I just smiled and waved. I hope to see you at Bellaire next week!!!
And then the final time was a bit after it was all said and done and some of us were just hanging out. A special shout out to Mr. Rios :O) for giving me such compliments ... and it was very nice to meet you. And I am glad I was able to set your mind at ease :o)
So anyway it does in fact make me smile and I wish that I could meet more of you that happen along the way. I see the hits and where they are from and alot of them are from Houston, but I have no idea who you all are!! ;o)
It was definitely different conditions than last year. Last year was about 20 deg cooler and no humidity. Today we were socked with 70 deg and about 95% humidity. Last year I ran it in 56:05 and with the conditions and me not feeling 100% due to allergies I just didnt have a clue that I was going to be able to pull out a PR. Thank goodness for oxygen tanks and Altoids...thank you HSteve for that!! The Altoids definitely opened up my sinuses for at least the first 3 miles.
As usual I go out too fast even though HSteve says there is no such thing. First mile: 9:32. Something I had not counted on. Mile 2: 10:20. Not sure of the splits after that because my signal kept going in and out, but I averaged out at 10:51 per mile...I did feel confident enough that I had the Garmin set way high on intervals just in case...I had it set for 9/1's but as it turned out I only walked the 1 min once and for 30 sec on another time. The rest I saved for the water stops. All I kept hearing in my head was HSteve telling me to not be a wimp and dont walk...run slower .. ok, but dont walk. :o)
For a PR of 53:23 total race route. Last year was 56:05. I will take that.
And as usual I know I could have gotten sub 53 if I would have just stepped it up a time or two. Ugh I hate it when I dont freaking push myself. I know this mostly because after I crossed the Finish line, and Santos was there to take off my chip, I wasnt heavy breathing, I wasnt winded...Yeah I was soaking wet but hey, it was hot/humid out there this morning. So I know I had more in there to give. I think once I knew I had a decent PR that it was ok to just coast.
Stupid.
Anyway, Bellaire 5K next week, and we'll see how that goes. Another PR? Let's hope so. I sure hope for at least less humidity :o) We're gonna have to do alot better on my per mile pace next week for a decent PR although given my time in the first 3 miles this morning I think I should be a-ok.
Kudos to all the Striders that did so well out there this morning, and as usual its always good to see a bunch of friends! Of course John Yoder won 1st in his age group, and I know that DavidM, Andrew, HSteve, Pony...everyone did really well!!!
Now I am off to consume as many crawfish as I can in the span of a couple of hours at the MDA Benefit. And to answer the age-old question it seems everyone asks when it comes to crawfish: "Yes I do." ;o)
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Rodeo Run 2007, 4Wheelin, Human Salt Blocks and Overall Fun Day!
Jesus it was HUUUUUUUUUUMID out there today, now I like it warm, but I dont like it humid as hell...but I still managed a PR thanks to Marianne, SteveB and HSteve! More on that later!
About 7:30 my phone rang and it was Marianne! She had indeed made it to register so she was running! Swung by and picked her up and we were on our way...just sprinkling rain so it looked good...We were hurrying to make it there in time to catch SteveB for his costume contest!!! As we neared Texas Ave...we were stuck in freaking traffic, and thankfully HSteve called again and told me what to do to get past it all. Little did I know that it would have us 4-wheelin over the curb, grass and a wheelchair ramp to slide into the back parking lot while everyone else was just gridlock!
Hopped the shuttle and ended up having to run before the run to make it time but we did!!! And SteveB won FIRST PLACE!!! He looked great!! Since he became an instant celebrity and was being interviewed by all the news stations, Marianne and I set off to to portapotty lines...and then finally meeting back up with SteveB; somewhere along the way we lost HSteve, but he was waiting for us near the start as we finally got close. Took forever to cross the start!
It had started raining but not too terribly bad and then it stopped. It didnt rain the whole race until we were actually leaving. I mean a sprinkle here and there but nothing to complain about.
I think we started out too fast, not sure what the first mile was because well, in the laughing so hard about the 4wheelin incident I left my Garmin in the car!
They paced me well, but I was having a bit of situation with my knee and after the first up over the Elysian my hams were crying...I didnt eat well yesterday or the day before, I hadnt slept much either...but I kept on and they kept me going when I didnt want to. You see I hadnt run this distance without intervals before. EEK!! If I had to guess I think I might have walked 4 minutes of the entire thing. Mostly during water stops. I cant be sure though. HSteve kept me at 30sec walks here and there until he left us at the start of mile 5. The headwinds the last couple of miles were brutal too especially having to come back over the Eliysian. I swear there were just too many factors today...but I still did it (PR'd) , and I am happy about that!!
I think I am more proud of that fact (the no intervals) than I am about the PR. Hard to say.
SteveB was the highlight of the run though because he had so many people cheering him on as we would pass crowds of people. And thats another thing, there were alot of people out today, throughout the course! That part was great. I am sorry but I just dont know how he ran 6.2 miles in that thing!! And still had so much fun, mostly egging me on with annoying whoops and hollers and "june's gonna PR! june's gonna PR" ... Way too funny but there were times I f'ing wanted to smack him. ;o) ;o)
I don't have an official time, but unofficially (according to Marianne's watch) I did it in 1:08:54; thats a 4 minute PR from the same race last year, and 3 minutes from the Turkey Trot. I can live with that. I picked it up at the last .2 but there were so many people in my way that it was hard to manuever that last .1 as I was trying to stay on the inside. Eh, whatever.
I didnt see many Striders, but I did see Pony at the finish and ended up running into Jessica too!! Saw John "pizza man" Yoder too as he was kicking some serious ass on the way back in. And I think we talked Jessica into joining Marianne and I at the cookoff later! Yay for girls going out!!!
Highlight for me was seeing Drew (without a shirt) in the number 2 spot bringing in it (behind Sean)...That Drew is one fine, fine male speciman. :o) There were others, but well, we'll leave it at Drew.
And you know when you REALLY just want a beer, an O'Douls will do in a pinch. At least it tasted like beer ;o) Went really well with all the salt caked all over my body by the time it was said and done. Too bad they didnt have tequila....Oh wait thats for later....Watch out cookoff here we cooooooooooooooome! The rain has stopped and the sun is already peeking out... Whoop!
About 7:30 my phone rang and it was Marianne! She had indeed made it to register so she was running! Swung by and picked her up and we were on our way...just sprinkling rain so it looked good...We were hurrying to make it there in time to catch SteveB for his costume contest!!! As we neared Texas Ave...we were stuck in freaking traffic, and thankfully HSteve called again and told me what to do to get past it all. Little did I know that it would have us 4-wheelin over the curb, grass and a wheelchair ramp to slide into the back parking lot while everyone else was just gridlock!
Hopped the shuttle and ended up having to run before the run to make it time but we did!!! And SteveB won FIRST PLACE!!! He looked great!! Since he became an instant celebrity and was being interviewed by all the news stations, Marianne and I set off to to portapotty lines...and then finally meeting back up with SteveB; somewhere along the way we lost HSteve, but he was waiting for us near the start as we finally got close. Took forever to cross the start!
It had started raining but not too terribly bad and then it stopped. It didnt rain the whole race until we were actually leaving. I mean a sprinkle here and there but nothing to complain about.
I think we started out too fast, not sure what the first mile was because well, in the laughing so hard about the 4wheelin incident I left my Garmin in the car!
They paced me well, but I was having a bit of situation with my knee and after the first up over the Elysian my hams were crying...I didnt eat well yesterday or the day before, I hadnt slept much either...but I kept on and they kept me going when I didnt want to. You see I hadnt run this distance without intervals before. EEK!! If I had to guess I think I might have walked 4 minutes of the entire thing. Mostly during water stops. I cant be sure though. HSteve kept me at 30sec walks here and there until he left us at the start of mile 5. The headwinds the last couple of miles were brutal too especially having to come back over the Eliysian. I swear there were just too many factors today...but I still did it (PR'd) , and I am happy about that!!
I think I am more proud of that fact (the no intervals) than I am about the PR. Hard to say.
SteveB was the highlight of the run though because he had so many people cheering him on as we would pass crowds of people. And thats another thing, there were alot of people out today, throughout the course! That part was great. I am sorry but I just dont know how he ran 6.2 miles in that thing!! And still had so much fun, mostly egging me on with annoying whoops and hollers and "june's gonna PR! june's gonna PR" ... Way too funny but there were times I f'ing wanted to smack him. ;o) ;o)
I don't have an official time, but unofficially (according to Marianne's watch) I did it in 1:08:54; thats a 4 minute PR from the same race last year, and 3 minutes from the Turkey Trot. I can live with that. I picked it up at the last .2 but there were so many people in my way that it was hard to manuever that last .1 as I was trying to stay on the inside. Eh, whatever.
I didnt see many Striders, but I did see Pony at the finish and ended up running into Jessica too!! Saw John "pizza man" Yoder too as he was kicking some serious ass on the way back in. And I think we talked Jessica into joining Marianne and I at the cookoff later! Yay for girls going out!!!
Highlight for me was seeing Drew (without a shirt) in the number 2 spot bringing in it (behind Sean)...That Drew is one fine, fine male speciman. :o) There were others, but well, we'll leave it at Drew.
And you know when you REALLY just want a beer, an O'Douls will do in a pinch. At least it tasted like beer ;o) Went really well with all the salt caked all over my body by the time it was said and done. Too bad they didnt have tequila....Oh wait thats for later....Watch out cookoff here we cooooooooooooooome! The rain has stopped and the sun is already peeking out... Whoop!
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Saturday, February 10, 2007
The Low Down On Surfside
Clute, Texas. La Quinta. Not Spanish for anything other than horrible sheets! I'm an one spoiled puppy when it comes to my sheets dammit! Ugh, we didn't sleep solid for more than an hour + at a time I don't believe...But you know, it was cheap and it was close to the race...
We headed out to scope out where we had to go in the morning so as not to get lost. Good thing. I still ended up calling both Erica and SteveB for information and finally we knew what we had to do the following morning. I don't think Surfside has enough money for street lights. Its really dark there, hard to get your bearings, but we were close enough to know what was what.
We drove 'around' Clute looking for food. We ended up at a taqueria and DAYUM GINA if the food wasn't freaking awesome. We did wonder 'hmmm, should we be eating this the night before? Eh. Sure we should!!
After getting back to the no-tell mo-tel, I needed chocolate. I walked out to the truck knowing I had a stash in my book bag. As I was in the truck I heard a wail!! JUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNEEEE!!! As I rushed back in, there was Suzy, crap sprawled all over the room, with the exception of............are you ready? Shoes. Yes. Shoes.....Panic set in. We are in the middle of NOWHERE I tell you...thankfully I am one smart cookie, picked up my cell phone and called information begging for any sports related place in the vicinity of 1/2 hour or so..it was getting late. The nice dude told me there was an Academy in Lake Jackson!! Whoohoo! Lake Jackson? Thats like 5 miles from here!! So me in my pjs freezing my ass off, and Suzy take off for Lake Jackson. Shoe crisis averted...
We made it to the pavilion way too early but at least it was warm in there, they had food, but we both had had our pre-race nana's and I had a mini Clif bar as well, so we just sat around, talked to her Bay Area Fit folks and I ran into quite a few Striders that I actually knew!! Yay for Striders!!! We ended up missing the photo op at the beginning; you had to walk about 1/4 mile to the start, but whatever. And then we were off!
The first 2.5 miles were fine. Wind at our back and our first mile was 10:42 which I was shooting for 11:30's till mile 9 or 10 then I wanted to pick it up. Suzy and I ran together through mile 10 I guess, maybe just past that before I said my goodbye and went on my way. At that point I thought I had a chance at breaking 2:30 but it would not be. At the 2.5 we turned to run the opposite direction, and thats when the wind was bad. Coming at you, against you one way, and then it would switch. This went on until the 9 mile turnaround to head back. Lord oh Lord I was so happy to turn back at 9!!!
It was weird because then it felt LIKE NO WIND..where's the wind? Why isn't it PUSHING me now? Stupid wind. :o) I made up some of the time I lost on that long stretch and I was pulling in 10:50 and 11:00..but then as I said at the start of mile 13 I knew that the sub 2:30 would not be.
But you know that run, as afraid of it as I was, I felt damn good the whole freaking way and pulled out some miles that I was proud of today. At the end, I waited for Suzy to bring it on home, we took some photos and headed inside for the bbq...no beer. Seriously? Beer. People. Beer. :o)
All in all a GREAT run today for me. I am very pleased with my time and effort, and really thought I was going to come in like 15 minutes behind my PR due to the conditions. I will tell you this much...It obviously took alot more out of me than I thought. My body hurts like a muther....
Oh and can you guess who got herself a new camera?? Expect more photos from here on out! I know how some of you looooooove your pictures!
Total Distance: 13.24 Time: 2:32:11
We headed out to scope out where we had to go in the morning so as not to get lost. Good thing. I still ended up calling both Erica and SteveB for information and finally we knew what we had to do the following morning. I don't think Surfside has enough money for street lights. Its really dark there, hard to get your bearings, but we were close enough to know what was what.
We drove 'around' Clute looking for food. We ended up at a taqueria and DAYUM GINA if the food wasn't freaking awesome. We did wonder 'hmmm, should we be eating this the night before? Eh. Sure we should!!
After getting back to the no-tell mo-tel, I needed chocolate. I walked out to the truck knowing I had a stash in my book bag. As I was in the truck I heard a wail!! JUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNEEEE!!! As I rushed back in, there was Suzy, crap sprawled all over the room, with the exception of............are you ready? Shoes. Yes. Shoes.....Panic set in. We are in the middle of NOWHERE I tell you...thankfully I am one smart cookie, picked up my cell phone and called information begging for any sports related place in the vicinity of 1/2 hour or so..it was getting late. The nice dude told me there was an Academy in Lake Jackson!! Whoohoo! Lake Jackson? Thats like 5 miles from here!! So me in my pjs freezing my ass off, and Suzy take off for Lake Jackson. Shoe crisis averted...
We made it to the pavilion way too early but at least it was warm in there, they had food, but we both had had our pre-race nana's and I had a mini Clif bar as well, so we just sat around, talked to her Bay Area Fit folks and I ran into quite a few Striders that I actually knew!! Yay for Striders!!! We ended up missing the photo op at the beginning; you had to walk about 1/4 mile to the start, but whatever. And then we were off!
The first 2.5 miles were fine. Wind at our back and our first mile was 10:42 which I was shooting for 11:30's till mile 9 or 10 then I wanted to pick it up. Suzy and I ran together through mile 10 I guess, maybe just past that before I said my goodbye and went on my way. At that point I thought I had a chance at breaking 2:30 but it would not be. At the 2.5 we turned to run the opposite direction, and thats when the wind was bad. Coming at you, against you one way, and then it would switch. This went on until the 9 mile turnaround to head back. Lord oh Lord I was so happy to turn back at 9!!!
It was weird because then it felt LIKE NO WIND..where's the wind? Why isn't it PUSHING me now? Stupid wind. :o) I made up some of the time I lost on that long stretch and I was pulling in 10:50 and 11:00..but then as I said at the start of mile 13 I knew that the sub 2:30 would not be.
But you know that run, as afraid of it as I was, I felt damn good the whole freaking way and pulled out some miles that I was proud of today. At the end, I waited for Suzy to bring it on home, we took some photos and headed inside for the bbq...no beer. Seriously? Beer. People. Beer. :o)
All in all a GREAT run today for me. I am very pleased with my time and effort, and really thought I was going to come in like 15 minutes behind my PR due to the conditions. I will tell you this much...It obviously took alot more out of me than I thought. My body hurts like a muther....
Oh and can you guess who got herself a new camera?? Expect more photos from here on out! I know how some of you looooooove your pictures!Total Distance: 13.24 Time: 2:32:11
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