Race Recap: Mercer Island Half Marathon

I won't hold you all in suspense any longer...I DID IT!  I crossed the line of the 2012 Mercer Island Half Marathon in 1 hour 56 minutes 31 seconds.  I owe a ton of credit to my awesome friend and official pacer, Sonia!  She wore the watch and kept us on pace and didn't tell me that I actually had almost 13 minutes to finish the last mile :).

This is Sonia, you should hire her as a pacer :)

Not only was Sonia my pacer she was also my breakfast cook, I know I'm a lucky friend!  We started the morning super early with a fuel filled breakfast of eggs and yogurt.  I also had one of my oatmeal pumpkin protein bars about an hour before the race.

Sonia and I met up with two of my friends from college, Carol and Lisa, and we hung out in the warm community center before lining up to start.  The weather was race PERFECT...sunny and in the 50's for the entire race.  We were in the shade most of the time so I never got too hot.  The race started promptly at 9AM and you literally run around the entire perimeter of Mercer Island.  There are HILLS, but there are also a lot of DOWN hills so I felt like they evened out for the most part with the exception of a doosy of a hill at mile 11, that just isn't cool.

That would be a hill from mile 11 almost to mile 12

The goal was to try and stay under 9:00 pace to leave room for slowing at the end and I used the time I built up during the first half to take it slower on some of the uphills and then used the downhills to kick it up a notch.  At mile 10 when Sonia told me I had over 30 minutes to finish the race in under 2 hours it finally felt real and totally doable.  She refrained from telling me my time for the rest of the race which was smart on her part...I probably would have slowed down :). I felt strong for the whole race and when I approached the finish line seeing 1:57 on the official clock I was SOO excited.  I had my doubts for sure but I knew I would disappointing in myself if I didn't at least try from the start and I'm really glad I did.

Instead of boring you with my thoughts during every mile I just break down some highlights/lowlights in bullet form:

• This race is REALLY well organized for being on the "smaller" size as far as races go.  They have parking all over the island, packet pickup was a breeze, and the warm community center to wait in before the race is worth the price of registration alone.
• I didn't run with any music or garmin...crazy I know!  I knew I would be running with Sonia the whole time and my garmin doesn't work anymore so I went sans technology.  
• I love my Nike Free shoes more than ever now since they glided me through a sub 2 hour half with no pain!
• Going uphill and downhill for 13.1 miles is ROUGH on your legs, quads burned on the uphill, knees burned on the downhill. If you don't train in the outdoors in Seattle you probably wouldn't be prepared for the hills in this race.
• The finish line area was open to anyone so there were spectators getting samples and food which made it VERY crowded and I got pretty claustrophobic in the finish tent trying to find water.

I really don't have too many negative thoughts about this race...PERFECT weather, PERFECT running buddy, PERFECT PR!  I still can't believe I ran that fast for 13.1 miles, especially when only 4 short years ago I crossed the finish line of my first half in 2 hours 35 minutes.

In totally unrelated news you MUST watch this video if you live or are from Seattle...HILARIOUS and they nail every stereotype pretty well!

Question: Who else raced this past weekend? 

Race Recap: Jingle Bell Jog 5K

First off, can I just say that I LOVE 5Ks!!  Definitely my new favorite distance.  Of course, I'm not really taking them seriously or trying to sprint them but at the same time you get all those giddy race feelings without all the nerves knowing you will be done in 30 minutes or less!

source

I signed up for the annual Jingle Bell Jog in Seattle a few weeks ago with my running buddy, Sonia, and we had a great time just chatting it up for the whole race with a short sprint to the finish.  I was telling Sonia during the race that some day I would like to train and try to place in my age group at a smaller race or something but the Jingle Bell Jog is definitely not the race to try and do it.  The third place female came in around 19 minutes...I have LONG way to go!

Pre-Race: Another reason to love 5Ks...I don't have to get up insanely early to eat a huge breakfast so I don't starve while I'm running for 2-5 hours.  I woke up around 7, got dressed, ate a Luna bar and headed out the door to pick up Sonia. We parked a few blocks away for free in downtown Seattle and stepped right in line 10 minutes before the start.

The Race: The jog is really about people watching and hearing all the bells...so fun!  There were santas, reindeer, a grinch and even a couple guys in nothing but shorts and running shoes (I'm not sure how that is Christmasy)...BRRR!!  It was a pretty crowded course so we really couldn't run fast even if we wanted to.  The course started on a gradual uphill going through downtown before it turns back north on the express lane tunnels.  The tunnels would have been nice if it was raining (it wasn't!) and they were just kind of loud and a little smelly.  By the time you get out of tunnels you zip up a decent hill and then it's downhill to the finish.

Results: 29:29 - 9:34 pace

finish line madness

Post Race: For a 5K this race had the most extensive post races treats I've ever seen.  Water bottles, orange slices, bananas, bagels and Top Pot donuts...oh and a FREE beer. Sonia and I decided to skip it all including the free beer and head right to brunch at Pesos where I enjoyed a bloody mary and shrimp and avocado omelet.

You can't see our awesome socks in this photo...darn!

Raced a 5K, ate a delicious brunch, good time with a good friend and home before noon...great start to a Sunday morning.  So great in fact, I signed up for another holiday 5K next weekend :).

Oh and I'm still doing Jamie Eason's LiveFit trainer, I'm on week 8 starting today...last day of Phase 2.  I'll recap for you all after this week!

Question: Who out there is running holiday races this year?  Did you dress up?  I bought some fun socks and wore reindeer antlers.

Race Recap: Ragnar Relay Northwest Passage - Part 1

Trying to sum up a 27 hour race in three short blog posts is going to be difficult but I'll try to keep it to the highlights and not bore you with the 2:00AM sugar coma madness that overcame most of my van since it was one of those so funny you had to be there to appreciate it kind of moments.  Team Casual Encounters (#187) ALL had a fabulous time and I'm fairly certain I recruited everyone to do it again next year :).

To sum up the Ragnar Relay Northwest Passage event:

190 miles

12 runners -everyone runs 3 times

2 vans

27 hours

The night before or more aptly titled How NOT to Prepare for a 27 Hour Race:

My friend and van mate Lindsey came over Thursday night for a sleepover and pre-race carbo loading session.  She recommended we get Zaw pizza which is a take a bake pizza place that focuses on fresh, local ingredients.  How could we go wrong?  Well we didn't with the pizza that was loaded with chicken, strawberries, caramelized onions and feta on a whole wheat crust...YUM!  However, having a couple local microbrews and half of a GIANT gingerbread cookie was the wrong choice.  I woke up feeling a little hungover and bloated to say the least...great way to start off a race!

Morning Time:

My alarm went off at 4:15AM and I jumped out of bed and started getting ready and packing up our SUV that we rented for the weekend.  Paul and Emily met at my place at 4:45 and we were on the road before 5:00...right on schedule which works well for my type A personality.  

I really liked this GMC Acadia...drove really smooth and had this super cool backup camera that appeared in the rear view mirror when you put the car in reverse.

We made the trek up to Blaine, Washington pretty quickly with one pit stop at Starbucks for a iced coffee...I was beginning to feel normal again...thank goodness!  The start was at Peace Arch State Park where we met our other two van mates who camped the night before, Prentiss and Karol.

Van 1 ready to run!

The start was a little disorganized but we managed to go through our check-in, safety briefing, and gear pickup pretty fast.  I was busy playing with this awesome bubble stick Lindsey bought for us and didn't even realize I was getting my picture taken.  A co-worker emailed me the photo that was in the Bellingham Herald...I'm FAMOUS!

Photo courtesy of Bellingham Herald

And...We're Off:

Paul started off the race for us at 8:15AM and just like that it all begins!  Paul is a super speedy runner so I knew it would be no time before it was time for me to run.  I ate a snack to fuel me up and changed into running shorts and a tank.  The weather could not have been more perfect...sunny and about 55 degrees!

My first run - Leg 2 - 6.5 miles:

Nice and flat, just the way I like it!

Since Paul basically sprinted his first 7 mile run it was my turn to run around 9:30.  A quick exchange of the slap bracelet and I was off.  Woo...feeling good, can't wait to run!  No later than 60 seconds into my run I had to stop at the train tracks for an Amtrak train to buzz through...boo!  One runner almost ran through the crossing until I yelled at him and thank goodness I did because I might have witnessed a train fatality and probably would have had to stick around to give a witness report and not run.  Okay, now I was off to run straight down a road for the first 4 miles:

Mile 1- 9:33
Mile 2 - 9:27
Mile 3 - 9:28
Mile 4 - 9:02

The road went downhill and along Birch Bay at about Mile 4 and it was gorgeous!  There was a perfect breeze and I picked up my pace in order to rack up a few kills (kills = passing people). 

Mile 5 - 9:18
Mile 6 - 9:09
Mile 6.5 - 8:30 <--I took advantage of really tired runners at this point and racked up 4 kills!

I finished in exactly 1:00:40 but I'm calling it an hour since I spent at least 40 seconds waiting for the train.  And I tallied my 7 kills on the window.

Lindsey, Karol, Emily and Prentiss all ran after me and kicked some serious butt.  I know it's rude to count people as you pass them but not in a relay, the more KILLS the better!  In what seems like an even ruder move you mark kills on your van, like a badge of honor.  We met up with the van 2 people at the first major exchange in Bellingham and just like that it's FOOD time.

The whole team, minus Prentiss who of course was running!

We decided to forgo the showers in Bellingham for food and thought we can just take them at the next spot (BAD thinking...).  We went to Fiamma Burger in Bellingham...best burgers ever and made a quick pit stop at Fred Meyer for glowsticks and water.  We went straight to the next place we would exchange with van 2 only to find out no access to showers or changing rooms, just porta potties.  Nothing a few baby wipes and febreeze can't fix.

Part 2...coming soon!

Race Recap: Seattle Rock and Roll Half Marathon

Saturday was the day of the Seattle Rock and Roll race and it started off bright and early with a 4:15AM wakeup call.  I got dressed, ate breakfast (english muffin with egg on one half and sunflower seed butter on the other) and half a cup of coffee. 5:00AM I was on my way downtown to meet my friends at the Westin hotel to catch the shuttle.  We stood in a shuttle line from 5:30 to a little after 6:00 and arrived at the start around 6:30.  The next 30 minutes were spent checking our gear and standing in the porty potty line.  We missed the official start of the race but since we were pretty far back it didn't matter.  About 7:30 we were OFF!  I wished my friends Kath and Stace well and went on my way trying to maintain a speed in the 9:30/mile range.

While my dream goal was to run this in under 2 hours I knew after the first 4 miles that was going to happen but I was on track to PR...just as good!

Mile 1 - 9:26
Mile 2 - 9:22
Mile 3 - 9:43
Mile 4 - 9:22

The first 4 miles were actually pretty rough.  I never start half marathons off that fast and my lungs were already feeling the speed and I was worried about maintaining it for the whole race. The course is also kind of boring for the first 4 miles taking you through the industrial area of Tukwila and then through neighborhoods.  But I did warm up after 4 miles and the next 4 miles felt pretty good.  I decided to check in with myself and my watch every 4 miles so I didn't stress about my pace from mile to mile...it was a good strategy.

Mile 5 - 9:39
Mile 6 - 9:27
Mile 7 - 9:28
Mile 8 - 9:26

Miles 5-9 are along Lake Washington Boulevard with a gorgeous view of Lake Washington for the entire stretch.  There are also a ton of spectators along this stretch which is always great.  At one point they had pictures of soldiers who had died in the middle east and then a ton of soldiers holding American flags...I would be lying if I didn't get choked up running by that...which didn't help my breathing much but I figured at least I have breath and freedom!

Mile 9 - 9:39
Mile 10 - 9:11 <---hey speedy...this is where I start thinking "IT'S ALMOST OVER!!"
Mile 11 - 9:17
Mile 12 - 9:37
Mile 13 - 9:07 <---NO IDEA where the energy for this came from because I was feeling very slow!
Mile 13.1 - 7:53 <---Sprinting to the finish...WOOHOO

At mile 9 you are in the I-90 express tunnels which sounds fun but it's super humid and very uncomfortable.  Luckily it lasts under a mile and before you know it you are winding your way into downtown...DOWNhill I might add.  You run through downtown with hundreds of spectators and run up a small hill to go on the Highway 99 viaduct to make your way to Qwest Field.  I knew at mile 12 I wouldn't run a sub 2 hour half for sure so I didn't stress about the last mile and just ran for me, it felt really good!  I knew I would get a personal record, I knew I ran as fast and hard as I could, and I couldn't wait to finish.  I sprinted around other runners for the last .1 mile and even crossed the finish line about the same time as a marathoner! His time was 2:32 or something like that...amazing!


This just in...I just checked the official results and I finished in 2:03:53, not 2:04...I'll take it.  Official stats:

Lauren

Seattle, WA

Age: 29 | Gender: F

Overall: 4737 out of 17083 · Division: 471 out of 2084 · Gender: 2187 out of 11458

Pace: 9:27

Guess that should have been a three instead of a 4 :)

The finish line area was a giant cluster and after I sprinted to the finish I needed to WALK or I knew I would pass out.  It was really hard to make my way through the medal and picture area to the food stuff but I made it and waited for my friends.  We hung out at the finish for a while chowing down and recaping the race and celebrating our 4th year all running together!  Our first half together was the 2008 SeaFair Half Marathon four years ago and we have all come a long way since then.  My time at that race was 2:35 and I've since shaved over 30 minutes off my time.

I was really into flashing important numbers that day!

I spent the rest of the day sleeping and eating and even catching a concert with a friend that night.  Thank you all for your well wishes and congratulations. I got the chance to meet some awesome blogger ladies and a couple men the other night at the blogger carbo loading dinner at the Spaghetti Factory....short recap coming in 3...2....1....

I carpooled down with MyMarathonDiaries who rocked the marathon today BTW and had a great night chatting with ladies about running, blogs, and life.  Good food, good company and good SWAG.  Onlineshoes.com donated some sweet goodie bags made of an insulated lunch bag filled with a water bottle, coffee mug and more.  Tall Mom on the Run organized the event and she is just as sweet in person as she is in her blog.  Run, Zoe Run made trading cards for all the bloggers which was genius.  I need to send her my photo so I can get in on the action!

How fun are these?

Fun swag from onlineshoes.com

So much fun paced into less than 24 hours.  I'm ready for bed...I hope I don't wake up until tomorrow afternoon!

Added to my collection!

I know you were all wondering what my pup did all day...look familiar?