Flying Piggies

Yay! Just got back from Cincinnati and one of my favorite races, The Flying Pig. This time however I did the half and not the full. (And boy am I glad!)

Even though this event is hard it is so much fun. I actually went back and forth on whether or not Bill and I should drive the course beforehand so I could see what I was in for. I eventually just let it up to chance though...no need to make myself crazy. I am kind of glad that I didn't drive it, because there were some majorly unexpected hills that might have psyched me out and lots of unexpected down hills which I would have been looking for way too early I'm sure. I was already feeling a bit nervous since I hadn't logged a single mile in three weeks (yikes).

This time my for real goal was 10:30 pace (lately I've been telling people 10:30 and secretly hoping for lower). I figured this was a good goal considering my lack of training and the difficulty of the course.

Of course, it was pouring down rain at the start. Yuck. I don't mind running in the rain, but I hate standing around in it, sopping wet, knowing that I will be uncomfortable because of it later. For this reason (and others) I was so glad that I wasn't in for the whole thing.

Right off the bat, I forgot about the minor hill leading up to the road to the bridge. Small but steep, it reminded me of some of the hills in the Queens half marathon. Bleh. My legs didn't react well and I knew I was kind of in for it.

But here's the funny thing: all of the hills I remembered as being torturous were actually not so bad. It was the little ones I didn't remember that sucked. So I just held back in the first few miles and took it easy.

The thing that is great about the Flying Pig is all of the crowd support. It seems to multiply every year. There weren't really any places on the course that were too deserted, and some places (like in front of my old workplace) were as crowded as they are for the NYC marathon.

I am pretty sure they changed the course a little bit though, adding a killer hill in right before we went into the park. Luckily, my all time favorite water stop was there to inspire me. (In the FP the water stops are manned by different volunteer organizations who compete for best water stop.) For some reason I find the guys at this water stop hilarious. (I think they are the Avondale Running Club). I never know if this is because I am tired/not looking forward to the worst hills on the course or if they really are truly inspirational/hilarious. Anyway, they play music over loud speakers and then the guys were singing "Running on, and running on, and running on. The Gatorade is in the green cups, the Gatorade is in the green cups. And running on, and running on..." and they are very enthusiastic and clap and tell you you are awesome and it's just very fun.

I was so dreading the Eden Park hill, remembering that Gina and I thought it was way worse than Harlem Hill. But you know what? Running it this time I was like "Wait. What was the big deal?" I'm pretty sure there are actually worse hills on the course. And this hill actually has a bit of a plateau in the middle of it. Not bad at all!

At this point I felt great, AND I knew from my segmentation of the course (which was ingrained in my head from so many years/times of running the course) that the worst parts were over!

When I got to the split though (marathoners to the right, half marathoners to the left) I was like "all right already." I also decided that I needed to cut myself some slack...as in, not sign up for so many difficult races. I mean seriously, am I a glutton for punishment? It kind of made me laugh.

On Gilbert some woman was like "It's all downhill from here!" But having heard this a million times on a million courses and found it not to be true I was skeptical. And then I saw a man on the side of the rode that said "Once you hit that cell tower you have about 2 miles of downhills!" THAT I could believe because it was so specific. :) The cell tower looked close, but it seemed to take forever to get there. And boy was he not kidding. There was so much downhill that I had to slow way down in order to make sure I didn't hammer my quads.

By mile 11 I was mentally done. So it was a good thing I saw the Avondale Running Club again. This time they were singing "You can make it, you can make it." Which is, consequently what I had stuck in my head for the rest of the race.

As I turned into the finishing corral I was spent, but spent in a good way. I felt like I couldn't have done any better for that race, so I was happy.

Oh yeah, and I averaged a 10:12 pace. Pretty good :)

Sparse Posting

I have been very bad about posting to my blog lately. It is completely work's fault :( When I put in 14 hour days the last thing I want to do is blog. In fact, I haven't really been running much this week either, which is BAD. But I remember reading in Runner's World that the week before a marathon sleep is more important than getting those last few runs in (if you absolutely must choose between the two).

That being said, I am so excited about the marathon!
We leave tomorrow for the long drive, and it looks like the weather is going to be great (knock on wood). I am being very diligent about not drinking alcohol. AND I am going to eat pasta only the night before the marathon, even though my friends are going to be eating delicious cookout food. I just can't trust myself to eat it because I have no idea what it would do to my system. I haven't eaten cookout food in sooooo long. So THAT is going to be a test of my willpower.

I am also looking on to my next marathon.

I decided to join Team in Training and hopefully I can get into New York (TNT doesn't have any guaranteed spots) if not, I will be running the Marine Corps Marathon in DC. Our group already starts training NEXT WEEK! Isn't that crazy?


Let me tell you, these TNT people don't mess around. I faxed over my commitment form at 4:00 one day and my mentor called me at 5:00! AND I've already received a big packet with a book and a bunch of info and my training shirt. I only committed on Tuesday! Most of the runners I have met are very disorganized, so this is crazy for me.

I canNOT believe that the marathon is in 3 days!!!

Happy New Year from New York!

Yes, I am finally moved (though not completely unpacked) and just starting to think about my running plans for the year. Of course I am starting my training for the Flying Pig THIS weekend.

I haven't decided if I want to do my long run (which will consist of a 6.2 mile loop around Central Park) on Saturday or Sunday. I guess it depends on how my unpacking goes.

I have also decided to run (or at least try out running) with the Resevoir Dogs. This is mainly because I think their name is cool, but also because their office is pretty much close to where I live. BUT I am NOT running until this weekend. I may regret this later, but for now it seems like a good idea. I have found out though, that my legs will most likely be screaming at me because of this. Why? Because after booking it up the hill to the post office (and walking the dog, and exploring the neighborhood, etc. etc.) my legs are SORE. This is depressing, but I have to keep reminding myself that New Yorkers do a LOT more walking than normal people. I just need time to get used to it. Hopefully that means that my burrito baby (coined after what happens to your stomach right after you eat a burrito at Chipotle) will melt away. Luckily our kitchen is FINALLY unpacked so I do not have to eat fast food another night. That should help too ;)

Also my husband and our friends have all decided to run the half marathon! Hurrah! I think some of them even signed up for the Roncker training program. Yippee! I know they will have lots of fun. I made Bill a deal: I help him with training things I've learned about running and he forces me to eat like a runner should. Pretty soon we'll be amongst the fittest people in New York (yeah right).