So many things to remember!

Sometimes, instead of planning and planning and getting every detail just right, you just have to put your reservations and excuses aside and just go for it. This is how I approached this triathlon…in a, “You never know until you try” kind of way.

Survey says? A+ experience!

I totally loved this race. I have many thoughts on triathlons overall and the things I did right and the things I did wrong (i.e. barely ever riding a bike beforehand), but that’s all for a later post.

For now, my race report!

Pre-race

After staying out too late on Friday followed by a restless sleep, I woke up both groggy, dehydrated, and out of whack. I realized I had no idea what I was doing, and I could feel my mind turning in on itself and try to resist the unknown. Alas, the show had to go on, and I stuffed my bike and all my gear into my tiny car and headed to the race.

My “I have no idea what I’m doing” fears didn’t subside upon arriving at the race. I felt so out of my element. There were ladies everywhere with awesome bike racks and buckets full of their gear (is this a thing?) and generally everyone seemed to know what they were doing. I felt like a lost puppy. Why can’t I just use a bib and my running shoes???

I racked my bike at one of the few spots left and laid out my transition area, basically just copying the veterans around me.

Ahhhhhh what am I doing???

Finding Lindsay, Becky, and other new friends helped get me excited for the actual race, and I cannot stress enough how helpful it was to be doing this race with other first-timers. After a little time of waiting around watching the Olympic distance start, it was our turn!

Ready to swim! With Lindsay and Becky.

Swim

I was so, so thankful that the wave start to this event meant that there would far fewer ladies starting at once than I’d anticipated. The only part of the swim that I was especially nervous for was getting clobbered at the start, but luckily not much of that happened.

Once we were off and separated a bit, I found a good rhythm and felt much more in control than I expected. I spotted every ten strokes or so, and for the most part I stayed right on track with the buoy. My breathing was a little heavy, but I attributed this mainly to adrenaline and tried to stay calm.

After rounding the final turn and coming into the beach, I started to get really excited. 1/3 of the disciplines done! There also weren’t a ton of gals around me, and I thought I’d done pretty well time-wise.

T1

My first transition went smoothly, albeit a little slow. It’s amazing how fast some people go through transition! Mine was a little under two minutes I think, and I just did the best I could.

Bike

So many things to say about the bike. Both good and bad. Of all the legs, I was probably most intimidated about the bike primarily for two reasons:

1) I literally just learned how to clip in. I’d ridden clipped in all of three times before this race, and while I knew it was a little risky to go for it on race day, I knew I’d be much happier in them than not. And after last weekend’s encouraging ride, I felt confident enough. However, the fear was definitely still there.

2) I suck at riding a bike. I never, ever ride my bike. I don’t even really go to spin that often anymore. Since I bought my beautiful new road bike (Daisy) this past spring, I’ve ridden her approximately three times. Two of those times were in the last week. I know, I know..but marathon training trumped bike riding.

Despite these two fears, I was still excited about the bike. It was a beautiful day, and since I wasn’t doing the race very competitively, I just wanted to have fun.

I got clipped in right away and never had any issues with them (huzzah!), and I felt strong and smooth right off the bat. It was pretty exhilarating to be doing something that I’d thought about for so long but had never pulled the trigger.

I quickly realized, though, that while I may have been a biking newb…most of the women in the race were not. I started getting passed fairly soon into the ride, and continued to hear “On your left” throughout the course. It was humbling, I’ll admit, and although eventually I was able to maintain a good clip and keep up with everyone…it became very obvious just how much the bike can probably make or break a race in this sport.

One of the people who passed me was Lindsay, and holy ish that girl can RIDE. I probably had a two minute lead on her after the swim and not only did she pass me on the bike, it took two miles for me to catch up to her on the run. Inspiring!

T2

As I’m sure you can imagine, I was giddy upon getting to the second transition. Knowing that the run was all that lay between me and the finish line was so encouraging, and I was ready to make up some ground. My transition was really fast also, and although my timing chip malfunctioned and didn’t log my bike, T2, or run time (FAIL), I knew I had a great turnaround.

The beginning of the run, right after T2. Thanks Lindsay’s BF for your photography!

Run

So that whole thing about how your legs feel weird after riding a bike? So true. Although I had been warned and anticipated it, thanks to my lack of any “brick” workouts and never practicing a transition run, the jello leg feeling was alarming.

I felt like I was moving so slowly and I couldn’t imagine how I would be able to shake off the feeling in time to make up ground for my slower bike. I was sure I was around a 9 minute mile (slow for me) so when I looked at my Garmin and saw a 6:40 pace looking back at me, I was shocked. I guess my legs knew what they were doing better than my brain. Runner intuition!

So I went with it. This was only a 5k, and although it followed the two other disciplines, I intended to capitalize on my running strength.

I started passing people almost right away. I knew about 12 ladies had passed me during the bike, so I thought it would be fun to try and see how many I could reel back in. And yes, I realize how horrific my habitual competitiveness is coming across right now. I can’t help it.

I definitely slowed down a little (a sub 7 pace is probably beyond my capabilities right now), but I kept up as best I could and eventually fell into a rhythm. I felt tired, but my legs were starting to feel more and more normal. Eventually, the only pain I was feeling was residual fatigue from the rest of the race and the tight lungs from running faster than normal.

Passing people was also encouraging, and it was so fun to both root on other people and have others cheer for me as well. Everyone was SO friendly and enthusiastic the entire time, and no offense to my runner brethren…triathletes are hands down so much nicer during races.

Anyway, after the mile 2 marker, I started getting really excited to finish. I felt strong, and I was really pleased that I was able to keep up a ~7 minute pace on the tail end of the race. Actually, I was really happy to see those paces in general, as I’ve been doubting my speed recently.

When I made the turn into the parking lot before finishing the final loop, a guy shouted, “You’re all alone! Finish strong!” so it was nice to know I didn’t need to worry about anyone creeping up behind me in the end.

Almost done…

I had a huge smile  as I rounded the final corner and headed to the finish line, and the announcer definitely noticed as she called out my name in conjunction with a, “She’s got a huge finisher smile on her face!” Cue: more nervous smiling from embarrassment. But it didn’t matter; I crossed the finish line feeling great and totally inspired by the experience. It was one of those finish line crossings that remind you why your train and why you race.

After receiving my medal and meeting up with all the other ladies doing the race, I found out that I’d finished 3rd in my age group on top of everything! The prize was a box of chocolates, which while not exactly something to mount on the wall…it was still exciting.

Age groups awards and free Luna bars!

Like I said earlier, my chip malfunctioned so all I have is my ranking and final time:

Final time: 1:25 Overall: 21 Age Group: 3

This race was a perfect first* triathlon experience, and I’m excited to expand the possibilities of what my sporting future could hold.

Triathletes!

A big thanks goes to Becky and Lindsay for helping to push me to do the race and to Dawn for coming all the way down to cheer! Big congrats also to Julie, Kerrie, and all the other great ladies I met who dominated the race! And a final HUGE thanks to Nicole for loaning me her wet suit!

So, when’s the next?

*Technically speaking, this wasn’t my first tri. Back in high school, I did a sprint tri both individually and as a relay. But, both times were very causal with hardly any care at all for pace, transitions, or any kinds of technicality. I didn’t even exercise regularly at that point in time, so I don’t really count them in my current racing resume.

I hope everyone had a great weekend full of whatever-it-is you like to do.

We had a lovely time here in Seattle. While the weather was a little indecisive at times (sunny? cloudy? sunny? cloudy?), it was warm which meant I spent as much time as I could enjoying the vitamin D.

This weekend I managed to combine my current ultra-relay training and “triathlon training”* into an unplanned hefty number of miles and enjoyment.

*Quotation marks added since I’m not actually really training for this race, I just happened to practice tri-related things for the first time on Sunday.

I’m happy to report though that it all felt great! It seems as if my legs have finally shaken all the post-marathon cobwebs, and I’m feeling 100% normal again. Thank goodness for that. My speed still feels a little slow, but that’s not necessarily the focus for the time being.

Anyway, the deets:

Saturday AM: 16 miles

Watchless, sunny, happy running. Good stuff. So much salt on my face.

Saturday PM: 4 miles

My original plan for the day was 14 AM and 5 PM, but since I felt great in the morning I decided to switch it up a little. And really…doing 19 miles seemed silly. I like round, even numbers.

The best part was that the PM miles felt great! Much better than a couple of weeks ago. I’m thinking these occasional two-a-days are going to be clutch in terms of relay prep.

Sunday AM: Dilettante Sprint Tri bike course (~14 miles) with Lindsay and Becky!

+

Open water swim around the lake

This was HUGE in terms of comfort for next weekend’s tri. Not that I was necessarily nervous, but getting a firsthand feel for both the bike (my biggest trepidation) and the swim was really helpful. Also (please judge away) this was my first time going on a real bike ride on my new bike. So yea, I would say that was a good idea to do before race day

But I forgot my bike shoes!!! After totally psyching myself up to practice a clipped-in ride with my shoes and my bike, I failed to bring the separate bag my shoes were in. And, as I discovered, it is hard to ride with flimsy flat pedals in your regular shoes! I found myself concentrating on my feet way more so than I would have otherwise.

The course consists of 2, 6.8 mile loops around the lake, and overall I’d say it’s pretty moderate. Excited to ride it again next Saturday!

We also tested out the Becky-proclaimed “brown water” (she’s totally right about that), and swam a little out and back. Open water swimming is definitely a little alarming at first, but after settling my breathing I felt fine. The wet suit really helps with buoyancy too (Thanks Nicole )

The morning was totally great overall, and I’m SO thankful to have had a little experience on the course (and on the bike and in the water) before I “race” it next week.

The only glitch though was my lack of clip-in practice, which leads to my spontaneous Sunday afternoon decision…

Sunday PM: 15 miles, around Alki and back, CLIPPED IN

I was so excited about this! I kind of just kept going and going and enjoyed the feeling of really riding. I rode my standard long run route and, no surprise, it goes by A LOT quicker on the bike

The best part was that I felt completely natural with the clip-ins. It was really weird actually…when I first started, it was like I instinctively knew what to do no problem. As if I was picking up an old habit again. Which doesn’t seem right, because I only learned to ride clipped-in last weekend.

And by learned, what I mean is…I fell on my butt a few times and at the end of the day managed to somewhat mount and dismount without toppling sideways.

But yesterday? No problems! I felt like I’d been doing it for years.

Maybe this is only a hurdle for me and everyone else thinks clipped-in riding is NBD, but either way…it was yet another confidence boost.

My little bike was oh-so-happy to feel wanted yesterday.

So there it is: nearly 50 miles in running and biking this weekend! Did I mention I also took a two hour nap between rides yesterday?

I love that I finally feel capable of someday being a real biker. I’ve always loved the idea of it, but I’ve held back since all the logistics seemed so technical and beyond my expertise. But practice makes perfect, and little by little I think that I’m actually getting the hang of it.

Alright, rambling over. I’m sorry I suck so bad at having visual proof of my life, and hopefully it doesn’t make my posts too boring. I think I included enough smiley faces in this post that there’s at least a little color.

Will get better at that.

Tell me about your weekend! 

My head all week:

“ROBYN, write a blog post! You like blogging, just write something! ANYTHING! Post one picture and gif, SOMETHING!”

My reactions:

…no.

Yada, yada, yada…lots of work, lots of life, and lots of “I’d rather watch reruns of Grey’s than look at a computer screen for another second.” It happens.

But wouldn’t you know it, I do have some news to share. Exciting news! News which has slightly dented my previously mentioned lack of direction in the running/racing world.

In just one week, I have gone from being registered for zero races to being registered for three. Three! Exciting stuff. And the best part is that two out of those three are within the next month or so.

So with that said, let’s take a look at what’s coming up:

Dilettante Women’s Sprint Triathlon

You guys, I did it.

Finally.

After over a year of circling around the triathlon pool lake, I finally decided to get over my fears and jump in head first.

And I mean that quite seriously. I’ve done very little specific training, I know close to nothing about transitions, and don’t even get me start on the clip-in pedals (Read: biggest fear OF ALL.)

Essentially, if you consider how much I mentally and physically prepare for running races (a lot) and take the opposite of that…that’s basically how I’m approaching this first sprint tri.

And I kind of love it! It’s a short enough race that I can kind of get away with this method, and it totally takes any pressure off. I honestly have NO idea as to what a “good” sprint tri time is, and this whole endeavor is more to get a taste of the sport in general. I’m excited.

The best part is that some local friends are doing it too, and they had the brilliant idea to do some open water swimming and biking on the course beforehand. (And they’re letting me tag along ) So this Sunday, exactly one week from race day, I’ll be starting my triathlon training.

So smart.

But in all seriousness, I’ve been in the pool and on the bike recently enough to where I’m sure that short of complete catastrophe, I should be fine.

And I actually have a feeling I’m going to enjoy it more than my wallet is prepared for…

See Jane Run Half-Marathon

You guys! I won something! RoseRunner hosted an awesome giveaway on her blog a few weeks ago: she gave away three spots in the See Jane Run race series. I was psyched to see something that I actually wanted in a giveaway, and somehow I ended up snagging one of the spots!

Side note: If you don’t already, check out her blog. Girl is stupid fast, smart, and isn’t afraid to call out the bullshit in the “healthy living” blogging world. One of my favorites in my reader.

This race is in mid-July, so it will potentially be warm, but otherwise I’m looking forward to it. I’ve flirted with the idea of making it a goal half race, but currently it’s scary to do one mile at my would-be goal half marathon pace, let alone run 13.1 miles at it. We’ll see.

Seattle Half-Marathon

Okay, so this race is eons away, but that doesn’t mean it’s not fun to have on the calendar! I absolutely loved this race when I did it for the first time last year, and at that time I promised myself to run it again. And with a coupon code in hand and a lingering price increase deadline, I decided to go for it.

There is also potential that should I not get into Boston for 2014, I may decide to do the full instead. Essentially, I’d like to keep the option of a fall full open for now…and this one is late enough that I could still do some solid training after knowing for sure about Boston.

But in the meantime, I’m still hoping for/planning on being in Bean town next April, in which case this will just be another fun, cold, post-Thanksgiving coma half-marathon.

Hooray races! Sorry paycheck, you were fun while you lasted.

I am really psyched to have some things on the calendar in additional to the crazy ultra-relay extravaganza I’ve gotten myself into.

Lots more to share, but for now I’m interested in what races YOU have planned for the upcoming couple of months. It seems like people either go crazy with racing during the summer or avoid it altogether.

So…what races are you signed up for?

Also, how do you “do” a sprint triathlon?

And the relays don’t count…those are really just for fun/I’ll be happy if I simply survive.

There are lots of factors to consider, some of which are out of my control, but here’s my attempt at conveying the big, jumbled picture. Be warned, it’s somewhat all over the place and almost doesn’t even make sense to me.

Since even before I ran Eugene, I was not planning on running a fall marathon. Assuming I got into Boston, I wanted a break for a little while from the 26.2 distance and to save my legs for Marathon Monday in 2014. Had I not qualified, obviously this would have been a whole different story

There was one exception to this plan though: if I got into the NYC Marathon.

I entered the lottery, just like everyone else, and honestly didn’t expect to get in. That didn’t stop me on Wednesday though (the day of the marathon drawing) from refreshing my bank transactions and NYRR status way too many times. Spoiler: I didn’t get in. As expected.

But what surprised me was just how bummed out I was about it. It made me think that if my one fall marathon prospect gave me such high hopes, maybe I want to/should do a fall race after all?

Who knows.  I do really like the idea of a fall marathon. I absolutely love fall races (way, way, WAY more than spring), and undoubtedly I will be seething with jealousy if I don’t get in on the action.

However, this desire is not at the expense of Boston. I really do like the notion of bottling that 26.2 energy and focus up until next April…and if I was guaranteed an entry, this decision would be a no-brainer.

But that’s the thing. I’m not guaranteed an entry. And with every article and headline that comes out about 2014 being the “Biggest Boston Ever!” I get more and more skeptical of the likelihood of getting in. That would suck, frankly, but it’s a fact that everyone who qualified will have to face. Except probably Shalane…homegirl doesn’t need to worry,

Essentially, then, I don’t want to sacrifice a fall marathon and then not be accepted into Boston. We don’t find out about Boston until the end of September, leaving little to no room to “salvage” a fall/winter marathon.

Then there’s the other options: the ones that completely eliminate any thoughts of a fall marathon in favor of other sports.

There was a point in time when I declared 2013 “the year of the triathlon,” and in case you were curious on how that plan is going…it isn’t.

But! There is that option. Which both excites me and further confuses me. It would be a huge change in gears and a complete overhaul in the training I’m used to. And while I absolutely love the idea of competing in triathlons, I’m not quite sure if I’m up for it right now. Maybe that’s just fear of the unknown talking (or laziness) but something just doesn’t feel quite right about it yet.

So that leaves me with the next choice (the third choice? I lost count): getting away from distance and working on speed.

This is the decision I find myself leaning toward, as I feel like it’s something that I’ve wanted for a while but haven’t really had the chance to really take on.

I constantly feel like there’s an untapped reservoir of improvement that I have yet to really dig into. At the risk of sounding like a total d-bag, I’ve relied a lot on natural ability ever since I started running and racing. Yes, I put in work, but more often than not, I shy away from anything that sounds too “hard.” Essentially, I stay in a comfort zone. And while it seems silly to call the still relatively high number of miles I run a “comfort zone,” it is what I’ve been used to over the past few years.

I really hope that last paragraph didn’t sound too jerky, because that’s not at all what I intended. In fact, my intention was to state that in a lot of ways, I don’t try as hard as I think I could be. And I’m becoming more and more anxious to get over my fears of the unknown and bust a gut for a little while.

I recently realized that I’ve either been training for a marathon or injured for the past three years. Neither of which is very conducive to really working on speed. And it’s kind of funny, since sprinting and speedwork were the only types of running I did when I ran track so many years ago.

The times when I have done a little speed work here and there within marathon training—I actually loved it. There’s something so rewarding about a hard interval workout that feels so different from a long, single-speed run, and despite my self-proclaimed love for the long run…I think I’m ready to shake it up.

…..

I suppose my little narration about the confusion that is my running brain actually turned into a little bit more clarity than I expected. Isn’t writing nice that way? Essentially, I think what I’ll do is a combination of all ideas, in smaller proportions. There are some races out there that I’ve all but pulled the trigger on, and I think once I do that, the rest of the specifics will fall into place.

Once again, I’ve found myself without much to say…therefore I just don’t say anything at all.

The truth is, running hasn’t been too great. It’s actually been pretty hard. Until yesterday, I hadn’t really had what I would call a “good run” since before Eugene. Not that they were all bad, some were just fine, but for whatever reason recently I have just felt out of my groove.

At first it was lingering marathon soreness, then it was a week of just feeling sluggish, then there was a week of intentionally really slow runs. And now? I don’t know. I’m caught in this weird place of really wanting to run but wanting the runs to feel good and to have that magical endorphin feeling connected to them, which hasn’t been happening.

I was getting impatient. Here I am, pretending/attempting to “train” for this crazy relay business and it just doesn’t seem to be working. The miles are there, but the satisfaction isn’t, if that makes any sense. Maybe it’s a little burnout, but I don’t really think so. I think my legs just went through the grinder during Eugene, and I was too anxious to return to normalcy. Marathons are tough man.

There’s also the issue of my way-too-tight right calf, which has also been annoying. My achilles/foot/calf have just been generally tight, and it’s taken a lot of extra rolling and stretching. I think it’s actually my shoes, which is weird since I’ve never felt that my Pure Connects didn’t have enough support, but maybe it’s time for a new pair. (That sentence sounds awful, sorry, but hopefully you understand). They don’t have a ton of miles on them (compared to others I’ve run in) but I don’t know…they just feel worn out. Have you ever had a faulty pair?

Anyway, this is all kind of leading somewhere.

Saturday was a great example of the whole “not-so-great running” scenario I’ve been facing. My plan was to do a double run day. 12 in the morning, 6 in the afternoon, to help simulate some relay running. The 12 in the morning were fine, but not awesome. Par for the course recently. I finished feeling fine, and looking forward to the slow-and-easy run in the afternoon.

Wrong. wrong . wrong.

Those 6 miles felt like complete garbage. I was wearing compression socks for the first time ever, and both my calves felt like rocks the entire time. Read: so far, NOT a fan of the compression trend. My AM run ended around 11, and my PM run started around 4, so maybe there wasn’t enough time between the two?? I don’t know. Either way, I know for a fact that double-days have worked for me in the past and this one was pure poop. I took my frustration out on a Red Robin burger and that helped, per usual.

I’m being dramatic. But it’s just not fun when running is hard. NEWS FLASH ROBYN, RUNNING IS HARD. I’m such a whiner, sorry.

But I was determined to get back in my groove. So after some yoga-action on Sunday (two weeks in a row, I don’t even recognize myself), I tried my best to orchestrate a good run for Memorial Day.

I picked my favorite 10 mile route, decided on no watch, and pre-determined the brunch spot for afterward. If running wasn’t going to be fun, then damnit…I was going to make it fun.

I opened the front door on a mission to make my lemons into lemonade, and…womp, womp, womp: RAIN. Seattle has really been showing off its aversion to summer recently. And for someone who is typically a forecast expert, this wetness came as a surprise.

I considered the treadmill for about .6 seconds, and finally decided to get over myself and giddy-up.

And wouldn’t you know it…despite the miniscule caveat, I FINALLY had a great run. It felt smooth, it felt fresh, and the rain only helped set the stage for the peaceful running stage.

I finished feeling much more restored than I have in a while. Sometimes going through the motions of running just doesn’t cut it, and when that happens I really need the synchronization of body and mind to remind me of the magic of the sport.

I really hate complaining about when running is “hard.” Every single day I try and be thankful for just the ability to run, as there are many who can’t. It feels so petty, then, to complain about something that most of the time I consider to be a huge gift. But sometimes you gotta let it out. Everything in life ebbs and flows, and running is no different. Per usual, sometimes we need the bad to appreciate the good…and for me, the bad runs also really help me to focus on the other important factors like stretching, hydrating, fueling, etc. All of which should never fall to the wayside, but oftentimes do when we aren’t forced to consider them.

So I guess you can say I’m (hopefully) getting my groove back. I’m going to resist the selfish urge to complain when the going gets tough, and when it does I’ll try to remember that no one is forcing me to do it. And really, running is hard. It just is sometimes, and it’s one of the many reasons why it’s so great.

How was YOUR weekend?

I’ve actually only done one running workout since Eugene (5 x 800- a fave), and the majority of my runs have been done without my Garmin and relatively slow. It’s been lovely, and while I don’t really want to break this stress-free cycle too quickly, there is the matter of the two ultra relays I’m running in a little over a month and a half.

So, how does one “not train” but still ensure they don’t die while running over 30 miles in a 24 hour period?

Well, that’s the answer I’m currently trying to figure out. I started this weekend, and I’m realizing that my whole “not training” method is going to need to exclude the weekends—as this is when the real work will comfortably be able to get done.

So I guess you can call me a weekend warrior: focusing on Ragnar and Spokane to Sandpoint on the weekends and carelessly choosing to run or not run during the weeks. If you know me, you know 9.9 times out of 10, I’ll choose to run anyway, but it’s the mentality of it that will ultimately save me from curling up in a corner and crying.

So here’s how my first weekend of pretending to know what I’m doing went:

Saturday: 16 miles in ~2:10

Basically, the first 5 miles felt awful, the next 8 felt great, and the final 3 were a mix of awesome and relief and “oh my god how I did I run 10 more miles than this just three weeks ago?”

My right leg got all tight again like it did in Eugene, and I think the root of it is coming from my piriformis. It’s not painful at all, just annoying. Like my leg is only functioning 90%. When I rolled it afterward, it was pretty clear that there was something resembling a large rock inside my glute. A lot of stretching and rolling later, it was good as new. I suppose it’s just a not-so-friendly reminder to keep up the stretching.

Sunday: Climbed Mt. Si with BF, 8 miles round-trip  3,000+ ft elevation gain

Such a rewarding view from the top. 

Okay, this wasn’t actual “planned” training, but I figured getting my calves on some steep uphill and my quads on some rough downhill couldn’t hurt. Well actually, it did hurt, but in a good, constructive training kind of way. I loved keeping the impact low while getting in some good ascent and descent work, and doing it amongst the beautiful Cascade range kept it scenic and enjoyable.

Mr. Handsomepants happy as a mountain goat.

This is me, in case you didn’t know.

I finished off the day with 75 minutes of yoga. Once again, it took all my willpower to get myself there, and once again…I was so glad I went. We did pigeon AND lizard (both hip/glute/quad openers) and they happen to be my two favorite poses. I like to think this was the universe rewarding me for my yogi discipline.

So there you have it. Pretending to train turned out to be pretty productive: 24 miles, lots of elevation changes, and over an hour of stretching after it all.

I think this week I’ll attempt a double run day, but otherwise I’m planning to leave my structured relay prep for the weekends.

Ultimately, the goal is to finish all my legs and not get hurt in the process. If I can do those two things, I’ll be a happy camper once all this is said and done.

How was your weekend? Training? Relaxing? Hiking? Let’s here it!

POST SCRIPT: If you are a member, or even if you aren’t I suppose, go to the REI Anniversary sale before May 27! Members get 20% off a full-priced item, and there’s tons of stuff on sale. I mean…um…I totally didn’t spend my money on unnecessary running gear this weekend.

I’ve heard about them, read about them, and actually been invited more than once to run on them. Alas, life got in the way, and I found myself still a relay-less runner.

So I decided late last year to change this. Without ever having done one, I already know that relays are totally my jam. Mashing together running, organized chaos, and a team environment is my kind of fun—so I began doing some research into races.

There was one *tiny* thing I wanted though: I wanted to do an ultra-style relay. Sure, I know I’ve never even done a 12-man relay race (which is the norm for the 200 mile distance), but what can I say? I like miles. And I liked the idea of a new kind of challenge.

Long story short—I found a race, recruited Nicole, we sent out some emails, we wrote some checks, Nicole announces she’s with child so she’ll be cheerleading from afar instead, and bada boom, bada bing…ultra team!

So, in August we (Tasha, Rose, Amy, Jordanne, OPEN SPOT*, and me ) will be running the Spokane to Sandpoint Relay—all 200 miles of it.

*let me know if you want to run/know anyone who would want to run!

I’ll leave information on distances and legs for another post (and once we actually figure out the specifics ) but for now all I know is that I’ll be running as many miles in 24 hours as I sometimes run in one week. Through the night. In the summer heat. It’s going to be a party.

Oh, and one other thing:

I’m running ANOTHER ultra relay in July.

WTF? How did I go from a relay virgin to running two ULTRA relays within a one month period? When it rains, it pours I guess. Does anyone want to loan me their IT bands this summer?

In all seriousness, I’m really excited for this…um…adventure.

The relay in July is Ragnar Northwest Passage, and after hearing all the Ragnar hoopla from all over the country, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to run it so close to home. Plus, I like to think that I’m in the business of meeting new people nowadays…and what better way to do so than by exchanging niceties and body odor smells in a packed van?

Our Ragnar team captain Lauren recruited me along with 4 other ladies (Rebecca, Rira, Jessey, and Bethany), and I’m designated Runner 6. I don’t know much about what this means except that there are a lot of miles, but I’m excited. Will be fun to bring our team into the finish.

So, in a nutshell I’m feeling both really excited and really unprepared. I have no idea how to train for these things. There isn’t any “Hal Higdon’s Ultra-Relay Training- Novice” plan out there; in fact, there is very little on how to train for this type of race. Which I’m mostly happy about, as I don’t feel much like subscribing to a schedule at this point in time.

However, I will be keeping up my mileage. Without draining myself too much, my plan is to capitalize on my fitness from Eugene and keep up some relatively high miles every week—most of which will be slow.

I think I’ll try and work in one double-day a week or so (running in the AM and PM) as well as a few back-to-back long run days. Lucky for me, I’m not burnt out, and running is really the only exercise I’ve been feeling up for recently—so let’s hope that carries out into the summer

I have no doubt that these races are going to be a whole new type of challenge. They are going to be tough—no doubt about that, but I’m looking forward to a new type of endurance training that isn’t just standard marathoning. Plus, having other runner peeps to share the ups and the downs with will make it all so much better.

So there you have it. This summer will be the summer of relaying and ultra-ing, apparently  Perhaps a few halfs thrown in there as well…I’m interested in having a little fun with that distance.

So now I plead with all of you who have done relays/ultras/ultra relays before:

How do you prepare for these???

Why? Well, it sounded fun and exciting, and I also feel like there’s a lot of randomness going on that I haven’t posted about. It’s all going to be stale before too much longer, so now you get it in a photo/information dump of a post.

Also, I’m feeling chatty and the internet is hilarious today—so deal with it.

1) About three weeks ago, BF and I took a little weekend trip to Canada. And I never wrote about it. So here are some photos for your viewing pleasure, and because we all know that nothing actually happened unless you post it on the tubes. #proof

It was awesome. I highly recommend Vancouver.

2) Glee did an ‘Nsync and BSB Mashup.

Again, this was weeks ago. But I’m probably the only person left in my age group that still watches Glee, and holy shiz this is like all my pre-teen fantasies come true. When I saw this I felt all the former boy band worshipping tendencies of my 11-year-old self come flooding back.

3) I got crazy and bought different shoes.

No one has ever taken this picture.

I’m still loyal to my Pure Connects, but I started listening to the masses and thought that maybe I should try and alternate between shoes. So I went up a step and bought the Pure Flows 2. Is this whole theory a myth? Did I just fall victim to a marketing ploy of the shoe industry? Whatever.

Anyway the verdict is still out. I actually think these might be the wrong size…fail…either that, or my feet are just too used to the Connects. I like them, but not in a “will wear regularly” kind of way. They just feel a little heavy.

4) Peter Sagal tweeted to me. And it was about running.

So basically life is awesome now and we’re getting married.

5) This sports bra might make me reconsider my goal to never ever run without a shirt.

I felt weird taking this, and posting it, and it’s cropped. Oh well, you understand. Brightness is brighter in real life. I blame the summer for eliciting this fondness for color. I don’t know who I am anymore.

6) Read Allie’s blog post.

http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/

This was shared many times yesterday, but I felt it worthy of promoting myself. It’s not happy-go-lucky Friday reading material by any means, but it’s beautiful. Her narrative is incredible, and her story is worth reading.

7) Breaking Bad, WTF.

Remember how I’m constantly behind the times on everything? Yea, this is no different. BF and I are currently Netflixing galore on seasons of this show. It’s definitely all it’s cracked up to be and really intense. I also feel like I understand the complications/interworkings/consequences of the drug industry now, so that’s…good?

8) Starbucks is getting crazy.

Actually, maybe I should say that Starbucks is exactly following suit with healthy food trends. I saw these “new” salads today, and I have to say…I’m impressed. They aren’t cheap, but if you want a good salad on the go that’s not filled with iceberg lettuce and sour cherry tomatoes, this is a pretty sweet option.

RELATED: A coworker also reported today that her fritter from good ‘ole Bux was much smaller than normal…as were the other pastries.

I see your evil plan, Starbucks.

9) Running!

Isn’t that what this blog is about?

lol

I’ve recovered really well from Eugene, and running’s feeling great. Still going slow and Garmin-less, but I’m past the stages of sore–>less sore–>not sore, but tired–> not tired, but slow. I guess I’ve entered back into regular territory. Still, I’m not pushing it, because…who wants to do that? Kidding, kind of, but I am pleased that my bounce back has been more bouncy than not, or something like that.

10) I guess I have to start biking now.

In retrospect, this is more a picture of me than the shoes. Awkward. I guess I should have titled this, “A selfie with half a shoe in it.” I just wanted to capture my excitement.

BF got me clip-in shoes for my birthday!!! Oh yea, and my birthday was last week. I’m a horrible self-centered blogger.

I’ve wanted clip-ins for spinning purposes for SO LONG but never felt like spending the money. Now that I have my beautiful new bike, there was even more incentive to buy some…which I never followed through with.

Enter turning 25 years young, and voila, pretty white shoes! I’m so happy but so sad because now this means I have no excuse to not start the “triathlon training” I’ve yammered on about for years.

11) 30 Undeniable Facts That Everyone Knows Are True

14. This is the only way to get upstairs safely after turning off a light:

God Buzzfeed is so funny.

12) We re-planted our garden.

Yes I know that picture is terrifying.

We planted a vegetable garden last year and had the highest of hopes for abundant home-grown produce.

Then we watered it all of two times and it died. Except the chard, that shit was a champion. But regardless, we’re trying again…and this time we’re doing it right. I probably should have taken a picture of all the adorable planted seedlings, but I’ll save that shot for when we have bushels of healthy vegetation blooming. That should be in a week, right?

13) All of my photos from Eugene suck, except kind of this one:

I actually look a little excited in this picture. The rest I look like the grumpy cat. Note to race directors: the photographers should be scattered throughout the course and not ONLY between miles 22-26.

14) I got crazy and bought myself a BQ/birthday present:

I feel so fancy for doing this, and admittedly it helped that I had a few giftcards, but no matter…I LOVE it. Cross-body bags all the way for me; so much easier than hauling a 10-pound sack of crap around (which I’ve also done). This is only the second time I’ve done the post-marathon reward system, but I kind of liked it.

15) This is my life after work, everyday.

Happy Friday!

Admittedly, I’ve been a bit selfish throughout my running career as I am typically the one crossing the finish line, as opposed to seeing others cross. And as a runner, I l-o-v-e the finish line, as I’m sure others can attest. It’s one of my favorite places in the world, and it’s a happy place I can go to when I need motivation.

But I discovered something this weekend: while the finish line might be a place of triumph and celebration for the runner, it is almost as equally inspiring and exciting for the spectator. 

As I mentioned last Friday, I had the opportunity along with Nicole and Becky to volunteer at the Tacoma City Marathon by giving out medals to the finishers. (WordPress won’t let me hyperlink your names, grrr).

Half medals for the half marathon.

I don’t have a ton of volunteer experience, but I’m fairly certain this is the best job you can have. You get to congratulate all the runners and give them their hard-earned prize, while simultaneously watching people achieve something incredible.

It was so inspiring to see people cross that line. It was obvious some were finishing their first half or full, which was my favorite. There was joy, pain, happiness, and determination, and it was one of the coolest things I’ve experienced in a while. Highly recommended if you ever need a source of inspiration, or you just want to help congratulate people on their big day.

We also discovered that there is no one correct way to give someone a medal…which I didn’t realize beforehand.

The way I have always been given my medal was by the volunteer draping it over my neck. And I love that! I feel like their honoring me with my hard-earned prize (not unlike being “knighted”), and I always feel a certain kinship with the particular volunteer who gives me my medal. It’s something like, “Hello! I’ve been running forever and now I get to stop and you’re the first person I’m seeing and you’re giving me something shiny! I love you forever!”

Imagine my shock, then, when I discovered that several people DO NOT want you to drape them. Nope, they want you to just hand them their medal and they’re out. No deep gazing into eyes, no silent run-love connection, just a grab-and-go situation. I couldn’t believe it!

Becky agreed with this method herself, as she said that’s how she always prefers it. And sure enough, there were folks who were very obviously not okay with my eagerness to drape them. I learned that the hard way more than once. There were also people especially eager for me to bestow their medal upon them, particularly one gentleman who asked for a kiss along with it. I somehow managed to chuckle my way out of that one…

So that was fascinating. BUT, not matter how the runners preferred their delivery, it didn’t change the fact that I left that race feeling ridiculously inspired by the racers and by the sport in general. It reminded me so much of the Kathrine Switzer quote:

“If you are losing faith in human nature, go watch a marathon.”

And it’s absolutely true. I love that this quote is meant for the perspective of the spectator, and not so much for the runner. There is something incredibly human and magical about celebrating the success of others; watching a running race full of people in all different walks of life is one of the simplest and purest ways to experience this.

Nicole, me, and Becky, excited to start!

Clearly, I had a fantastic time doing this. When can we do it again?

Now I have to ask…how do you prefer to get your medal?

“OH MY GOSH, MUST DO SOMETHING ELSE NOW! Half-marathon PR? Ultra? Another 26.2 in two weeks? Gimme something BIG!”

and

“I don’t want to anything! I’ve earned it! Let’s take 6 rest days a week and on the other day run slow for 2 miles! Summer vacation! Hooray!”

I’m sure you can guess which of these is more prevalent than the other…but for the most part, these are the two extremes I’m vacillating between.

It always happens, and I’ve finally figured out why.

I am currently both: a) directionless, and b) burnt out.

I’ve been focusing on one singular goal for 4-5 months. It’s been getting me up in the morning when I wanted to sleep, it’s given me intention and purpose in my gut-busting workouts, and it’s kept me excited to put all my hard work to the test. Frankly, I love having a big race/goal on the horizon, which is why more often than not I have a BIG goal on the drawing board.

At the same time, however, our bodies and brains can only handle so much focus. The thought of jumping into any kind of training anytime soon sounds incredibly unappealing. It makes me shudder a little bit to think of abiding by the governing powers of a training schedule at the very least for another month.

So as you can see, there is a bit of a conflict of interest between my two mindsets right now. I want to respect the fact that I’ve given a lot to training during these past few months and give myself a break. The marathon distance, as well, beats you to a pulp, and I know that while I may feel completely recovered—I’m far from it.

So there’s that. But there’s also the case of “post marathon blues” that some of you may have heard of or experienced yourself. I am certainly susceptible to these feelings, and I already can feel them taking form. Essentially, post-marathon blues are what’s leftover once the glitz and glamour of the race are over. I wouldn’t say that I’m completely done reveling in my BQ state—but I definitely feel a little loss now that my training’s over.

I really enjoy the journey of a big goal. I love the prospect of trying to make my far-fetched dreams into a reality, and it makes the process of running day after day so much more enjoyable to know that there’s this sparkly potential for greatness out there.

So while training can get overwhelming and mundane at some points, I am almost always a little sad to have my training come to an end, even when the final race result is satisfactory.

If I’m being honest, I think part of this feeling is that the Eugene end wasn’t 100% satisfactory. I know I have more in me, I know there’s more potential out there. And while I definitely don’t have the energy nor the desire the jump into anything for a while, the fire is definitely there.

So where does that leave me? Well, somewhere in the middle of the previously mentioned extremes, I suppose.

I do love knowing that running offers so many options. Running fast, slow, long, short, trail, road, inside, etc…there’s plenty to choose from. And while I don’t feel ready mentally or physically to make my next choice just yet, I’m excited at the prospect of something new being out there.

In a lot of ways, I still feel very new to this sport, and I love that. I know I’ll figure out someday what my limitations are, but for now…I’m choosing to believe/hope that there are a lot more glass ceilings to break through.

Do you experience the same type of post-marathon blues, or do you kick up your feet and lounge for a while?