race recap Archives - Page 11 of 19 - My Healthy, Happier Life

ashleyd / February 24, 2014

Hampton Court Half Marathon

Yesterday morning I woke up bright and early to meet Charlie and a few other Team Run Naturally ladies for the Hampton Court Half Marathon.

I signed up for this race a few weeks ago after reading online that it was a flat and fast half marathon surrounding one of the historic palaces in London – Hampton Court. I thought it’d be a fun warm-up to the Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon which was supposed to be my goal half marathon for the season. Even better, Bo and I already had tickets purchased for Hampton Court as my parents had heard great things about the castle. I was elated that my parents would finally have the chance to greet me at a race finish!

When my parents cancelled and delayed flights caused them to arrive in Europe three days late, that resulted in a change of plans for this coming weekend. One of those changes includes us touring Lyon, France versus me running my goal half marathon. Charlie, Gia and I discussed making the Hampton Court Half my goal race instead and while we all agreed that it would be a game time decision based on the weather, course and conditions, Charlie promised to run with me and hopefully pace me for a PB of 2:06 or less.

My bib arrived in the mail on Thursday, just in time for Saturday’s race! I love that thus far the London race seem to mail bibs to you in advance versus making you pick them up at a chosen location the week of the race. It makes things so convenient!

The race started at 8:30, which many locals deemed to be a “very early” start time. I felt like this time was actually right in line with most US races and understood the need for the start time as most of the course was on open roads. An earlier start meant that we runners would share the road with far less cars which is always my preference. Getting out to the start was easier than I expected and while it took 55 minutes from doorstep to doorstep the train from Waterloo arrived perfectly on time, allowing me plenty of time to check my bag and find Charlie before the start.

After a few frantic texts and phone calls, we found each other near the 2:10 pacing group. While the location was not ideal we found it nearly impossible to squeeze forward due to the crowds. The race sold out which is great for the race’s first year but not necessarily so great for coordinating such large crowds in a small area. This seemed to be a theme throughout the entire morning.

As we heard the race begin Charlie told me that she wanted us to get ahead of the 2:10 pacers as quickly as possible so we didn’t get stuck in the slower crowds. I agreed and for the first two miles we did exactly that – weaved in and out of runners doing our best to push forward as quickly as possible. We started off around a 9:05 pace which felt tough but doable. However, we then made a turn into the woods and were greeted with lots of mud and uneven footing along with a few bottlenecks as runners merged onto the path. Trying to keep my pace on this path definitely pushed me and as we exited the path and started heading over the bridge towards the lovely Hampton Court Palace Charlie and I were faced with two issues: no one’s Garmin was beeping as we passed the mile marker AND the wind gusts were definitely picking up. At this point Charlie and everyone else’s Garmins were about .4 miles different than the course mile marker. As we passed the next mile marker we realized the issue wasn’t improving.

The short course combined with the strong headwind took all my will power away. I knew that regardless how hard I pushed myself this half marathon wouldn’t count as it seemed we were running a short course. I told Charlie at that point that I’d keep pushing but that this wasn’t shaping up to be a PB/PR (personal best or personal record) day. At this point we decided to enjoy the run together, keep up as fast a pace as possible but not kill ourselves. We started enjoying the sights, talking a bit about other races and plans and taking fuel or water when necessary.

We ran along the Thames Path, over looking the area which just a week ago was severely flooded and enjoyed the softer gravel and more even path. This portion of the path was so much more enjoyable than the uneven and narrow sidewalks in the residential section that it was a welcome change.

At mile 7 I took my first fuel, Ella’s banana all natural baby food which quickly taught me that I definitely prefer the apple and mixed fruit flavors over banana. It was WAY too sweet for me and just unappealing. I guess there is such a thing as too much banana! At this point Charlie was definitely smiling more than me. By mile 8 my outfit was far too warm and my legs were starting to scream and I could feel the lack of training. For most previous half marathons I’ve run at least 10 miles once or twice before the race but due to illness, my longest run was 8 miles at a relaxed long run pace.

Charlie and I both kept our minds in a more positive place by just telling ourselves that we were out for a long run together. Shortly after this point we headed over a bridge, crossing the Thames and finding ourselves in a mixed use residential and shopping area where the course twisted and turned for about a mile. No race course is perfect but this portion just seemed down right awkward. We crossed through construction sites and small alleys for bit before finding ourselves back on the Thames Path heading back towards the finish line.

Charlie and I couldn’t help but laugh about the wind at this point. My ponytail was almost horizontal in the wind and the headwind was directly in our faces. We both got pretty quiet at this point, putting our headphones in and just pushing forward. We made our way back through the woods again before exiting into the small, residential area near the start. At this point I started to pass the time by looking for Leah, who due to illness opted to cheer at the finish versus running the race. A smart decision as the Paris Marathon is her goal race, it helped pass the last two miles as I had no clue where she’d be. Suddenly we heard someone scream our names and I quickly recognized her huge smile and waving hands! She cheered us on and captured a few pictures as we pushed through the last quarter mile to the finish line.

We crossed the finish line in 2:07 which was not a PB considering the short course but still a strong long run pace as this was now just another long training run for each of us.

It took about 10 minutes to get from the finish line through the queue for fruit, water, finisher bags, and medals but these colorful, heavy metals were worth the weight! Relaxed and happy to be done we greeted my parents who made it out to spectate their first race! It was so special to see their smiling faces after getting my medal. This picture is true happiness!

Of course I couldn’t let my first London race experience finish without a picture with King Henry VIII, who lived at Hampton Court back in the day. Such a fun touch!

Overall, I want to acknowledge the race organizers for all their hard work as this was the inaugural Hampton Court Half Marathon and considering the course flooding they had to deal with just one week earlier, they did a great job. The few things I’d update or consider for next year would include ensuring the course is actually 13.1 miles in length, have a larger starting area or a staggered start, pass medals out immediately after the finish line, and more bathrooms along the course. While I didn’t need a bathroom I don’t believe I saw any along the actual course.

Charlie and I both have our eyes set on the Geneva Half Marathon in May which allows us plenty of time to train for strong races. We each have some big, hairy audacious goals for the race and with 10 weeks of training I have no doubt we can each finish strong and celebrate new personal bests that day along Lac Leman!

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ashleyd / December 15, 2013

Nativity Run 5K Race Recap

Over the past few years, Bo and I have enjoyed kicking off the holiday season with a holiday themed race. For the past few years our race of choice was the New York Road Runners Jingle Bell Jog which brought thousands of runners to Prospect Park for a jingle bell filled 3-5 mile race depending on the year. In fact, last year’s race was a huge PR for me, the first time I ran sub 9 minute miles for a NYRR 4 mile race.

This year I wanted to keep the tradition alive and therefore started looking for local holiday races in London. Luckily back in October Leah and I discovered the CAFOD Nativity Run which features a 5k and 10k course. The name of this race is one of the big differences we’ve noticed about the holiday season in London and Geneva. People still greet people with Merry Christmas versus happy holidays and there are religious references in many different events such as this run.

The race, which takes place in Clapham Common, encourages runners to kick off the season by running the race in Nativity themed costume or other holiday costume and stick around after the race for mulled wine, hot cocoa and mince pie. Since it is a more casual race, the start time of 10:30 was also a welcome change especially since so many weekends kick off with holiday parties on Friday night. The entry price of 5 pounds (5k) or 10 pounds (10k) included chip timing, race number and post race festivities. Almost every runner was in full costume ranging from nativity characters to spandex Santa costumes. 223

Leah who has organized Team Naturally Run, a group of London bloggers who attend events together and organize things through a very active Facebook group, suggested we make a celebration out of the race. Not only did she organize the group but she also ordered engraved race medals for each of us and elf costumes! The elf costumes, which were made of felt, were actually quite warm and comfortable thanks to a cinch waist feature. The felt was a bit too warm while I was running but while we were waiting and socializing afterwards I was thankful for the extra warmth since I was only wearing shorts and compression socks underneath. So let’s talk about the race itself. When Bo, Emily and I registered originally the plan was to race the 10k and hopefully go home with a shiny new PR or PB, personal record or personal best as the gals in UK call it. Well unfortunately the three weeks I’ve been fighting an ongoing cough and cold, which has limited my workouts. This week I decided it best to drop to the 5k considering the distances I’ve run recently and I’m still not feeling 100%. The organizers were super understanding and even refunded us the price difference, though we never requested nor expected this!

Using Athlinks I found that my 5k PR was from 3 years ago and was a 9:35. With this new goal in mind I asked Emily if she wanted to help pace me to a sub 9 since I feel like I can do anything for 3 miles even when sick. My fellow Team Naturally Run girls laughed when they heard this yesterday as they each warned that this wasn’t a very race friendly course. The course, which at times felt like it was shaped like a snowflake, felt like something a little kid drew on paper.

It went through woods, huge mud puddles, piles of leaves, up hills, and across the common, rarely running on the paved path. We can only imagine that the course was as twisty as it was in order to make the distance but it was still a humorous experiences. During the run I couldn’t help but laugh out loud to Emily that I couldn’t believe we were doing this. Every time we encountered mud I had a vision of me becoming a mud covered elf if I slipped. Our shoes were covered in dirt by the end! 225 Regardless of the terrain for each of the 5 kilometers we pushed on as fast as my lungs and legs could considering the elements. Luckily the one thing in our favor was the weather as it was a gorgeous, clear day around 40 degrees and sunny! We had no idea what are pace was as we ran Garmin free. When we crossed the finished we high fived each other, proud that we’d still given it our best effort but were definitely thankful we didn’t have to run another loop for the 10k. We later found out that our effort resulted in a shiny new PR of 28:38 or a 9:13 pace. While this isn’t the sub 9 that I was hoping for it is still a huge improvement from my previous 5k time and has me excited for half marathon training this Spring when I can focus a bit more on strength and speed!

These London bloggers know how to organize events, that’s for sure!The fifteen of us had a blast yesterday catching up, celebrating the holidays and Leah’s recent engagement! These ladies even brought champagne to toast with afterwards! 230

I’m also thrilled that Bo, who also ran the 5k, was able to meet each of them!

Have you ever run in full costume? What was it?

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ashleyd / October 13, 2013

ING Hartford Marathon Recap

Yesterday morning Amy and I woke up bright and early ready to run our hearts out in each of our respective races, the half marathon and marathon. We both slept wonderfully the night prior and literally jumped out of bed when our alarms went off. We enjoyed a cup of coffee, toast with peanut butter and banana, and some water before leaving for the race. We drove Amy’s rental car downtown and were elated to find easy parking within 5 minutes of the start. There were a number of parking decks in downtown Hartford, open yesterday morning, within walking distance of the race start. We were especially surprised to find that parking was only $5, even on race day! By 7:10 we were in the VIP area, thanks to Danielle and the race’s generosity. They allowed me, Amy, and a few of my runner friends access to the area to make our experience as smooth as possible as part of my partnership with the ING Hartford Marathon. The VIP area was amazing with a dedicated area for elite runners, plenty of tables, bathrooms, food, and water for everyone before the race. We had a perfect view of the finish line, as you can see above! We were able to easily meet up with Laura and Melissa Z who were also running the marathon before heading over to the starting line together which was right near Bushnell Park. The start was truly a party with fun music pumping. The 4 of us were dancing in the starting corral in between stretching!

I am not sure how long it took us to cross the start as I didn’t look at the clock but I’d say we crossed the start within 10 minutes of the gun going off. Later in the race I would regret this choice.

Lesson #1 of the day: In any race, always look at the clock time when you cross the start so you know your time difference versus the race clocks along the course.

The first mile of the race flew by and before we knew it we said goodbye to Amy who veered right for the half marathon course. Melissa Z and I made plans earlier in the week to run together for at least the first 13 miles. This plan worked flawlessly as we reminded each other to fuel, sip water and keep our pace as close to 10:18 as possible. The first few miles of the course were through downtown Hartford and an overpass before we headed down into Riverside Park. Miles 3-8 were along the river in Riverside Park and absolutely beautiful. There was a decent amount of shade and due to the narrow course along these miles, many runners started talking with each other. The two of us primarily listened as we were trying to save energy, but it still helped the time pass.

Around Mile 8, as we exited the park’s lovely shade, I realized just how warm the last 18 miles would be. Unlike my previous 3 marathons where I barely sweat the entire race, due to cold temperatures, sweat was dripping into my eyes beginning at mile 8. I mentioned to Melissa that this was going to be very different than expected due to full sun, warm temperatures and humidity but she just said to focus and forget about it.

Lesson #2 of the day: If there is any sunshine or heat predicted, especially more than you are accustomed to, wear a visor to help block sun and sweat from face.

Lesson #3 of the day: When you realize temperatures or conditions may affect your run, think about altering your time goals early on in the race so you adjust and don’t burn out early. (Runner’s Connect has a great tool which adjusts your goal paces for you based on temperature. This shows I should have adjusted to a 10:27 versus 10:18 since it felt like 70 while we were running yesterday.)

After the scenic beauty of the park, we exited onto a street for miles 9-12 which weren’t very memorable. In fact, I recall a business park, some industrial park and an awesome volunteer who was out there with her oxygen tank. The sun was growing very warm at this point but we kept on our pace goal and even saw Kristin and her husband cheering around this point! (Thanks for the picture Kristin!)

It was also around these miles where Melissa and I decided to take advantage of the multiple water stations. Hartford Marathon was had a water and Gatorade station at EVERY mile which was incredible especially considering yesterday’s weather. I wanted to ensure that I didn’t run out of NUUN in my CamelBak so I took a sip of water or Gatorade every other mile at this point. At mile 10 we both took salt shots, minus the tequila, to help us since we were both sweating profusely.

Lesson #4: Always carry salt packs with you as you never know when you’ll need them. You can grab them at any fast food restaurant and they are perfect to use on a hot day!

Mile 14 we hit the out and back part of the race, which would last for 6 miles. I enjoy out and backs courses as I love watching for friends or running outfits on the other side. In smaller races, such as Hartford, it provides a good change of scenery. We hit a gradual 2 mile incline as we started heading up Main Street. Main Street was dotted with homes and fall foliage, not quite as nice as I was expecting, but still very quaint and very “New England.” Unfortunately mile 14 is also where things started to go south. Melissa felt we were going fast and her Garmin had us running closer to a 10 minute pace while my watch showed we were around 10:20. We asked people next to us and they said they were running a sub 10. But, at this same time the 4:30 and 4:45 pace groups past us. I was wary of going too fast so decided to slow to Melissa’s watch. A few minute later, just as we passed the Mile 14 marker Melissa needed to stretch so I promised to stay on the right side of the road and slow my pace, in order for her to catch up. Unfortunately, I slowed my pace down to around an 11 minute pace at this point which really messed things up with my body. Suddenly I felt everything from my hips to my quads.

Lesson #5: Try to keep your pace within a few seconds of your goal pace for as long as possible as slowing or changing pace dramatically can affect your gait and muscles.

After stopping to stretch again at Mile 15 Melissa said I needed to proceed on my own as she didn’t know how long she could progress. We were both exceedingly hot at this point but Melissa was feeling ill. I took a 30 second too long stretch break and continued running. I put my headphones on at this point, thankful for my marathon playlist on Spotify. Around mile 16 I saw Laura running towards me and we exchanged quick smiles and waves. As expected, these miles were very quiet as there were only a few local families out spectating, many of which were just sitting outside watching versus cheering. I took my 3rd and last fuel pack around mile 16, wishing I had brought more. Luckily, there were multiple cyclists volunteers along the course passing out Gu packets. I grabbed 2 (tri-berry and vanilla) to save for later miles.

At Mile 18 I felt like complete crap. I was disgruntled that the pace groups had passed me. My Garmin which was 100% charged at the beginning of the race went dead. The moisturizer I put on was dripping in my eyes, which along with the salty sweat, burned and caused me to wince constantly. This was my lowest mile mentally as I just had no desire to continue running. I also knew that there was no one I knew cheering along any of these miles so I had very little to keep me motivated. Due to slowing my pace so early my hips and quads were tight in a way I had never felt before. At mile 19 I was forced to stop and stretch out a charlie horse in my calf. From this point on I told myself that I needed to be stronger. I had to get out of my head and just focus on putting one foot in front of the other whether walking, jogging, slogging, or running.

I had no idea what my pace through these miles was but did my best to jog for about 8 minutes and walk for 1-2 minutes. As I started this I also started keeping my eye on people, trying to pass them one by one. This worked wonderfully until mile 23.5 where I just hit the wall completely. I stopped to stretch and burst into tears. I’d trained so hard for this marathon and wanted a PR so badly. Without knowing my pace or the time, I had no idea how close or far from last years time I was. I felt like I had let Gia down as my coach. I felt like I’d let so many readers and friends down who had cheered and supported me and BELIEVED in my 4:30 goal. I probably stood there crying for about 2-3 minutes. Truly pathetic, I know. Now looking back it annoys me even more as if I’d been walking during these minutes or better yet jogging, I would have run a PR.

Then, this lovely woman who I’ll call Angel, since I didn’t get her name, came up and slapped me on the back. She said her goal had been to run sub 4:20, which she ran on the Hartford course last year, and had been following me all day. My pink tutu was the “rabbit” she was trying to keep up with after starting to feel fatigue early in the race. She said there was no way she was letting me hang out on the road. She motivated me to start jogging again and from that mile on we jogged to each water station. She warned me that the Founder’s Bridge, which we’d hit at 25.5, would feel like hell as it’s so late in the race. We kept moving over that bridge and then at mile 25.75 I saw a smiling face, Amy jumping up and down screaming at me. I was crying in both pain and excitement at this point. Amy hugged me and jumped in with me, as promised, to run the last half mile. She said that I’d crushed the first half, perfectly on pace. I laughed and told her that yes, I had crushed the first half and the second half had crushed me. I told her I was in pain and could only move at a slog until the last tenth a mile where I promised to give it my all. We passed Kristin and her husband at mile 26 who were cheering loudly and chanting. They were so incredible. The finish shoot was exactly what I expected, magically lined with gorgeous Fall mums and tons of spectators screaming their heads off, including Laura and her mom. The announcer called out everyone’s name as we crossed and at that point I was the happiest person in the world. Sure, I didn’t set a PR but not every race can be a PR. Yesterday’s marathon was about learning a lot, helping Melissa Z push through the first half, experiencing a new town and course, and finishing. After finishing I immediately followed Amy back towards the VIP area where we were able to celebrate with Laura, her mom, Kristin and her husband. There was delicious Harpoon beer, cold chocolate milk, candy corn, and a Mexican burrito bar waiting for me! We had a blast cheering on other runners until the course closed at the 6 hour mark. It was truly the perfect way to end a great day! Thank you again to Danielle and the rest of the Hartford Marathon Foundation staff who made yesterday possible. It was a wonderful weekend filled with friends, good food, great memories, and 26.2 miles which taught me more than I ever expected!