That doesn't sound very good does it? Everyone I told I was doing this to had the same reaction- "Why?" "That sounds boring!" To which I replied: "I don't need your negative attitude- I have enough of my own!"
Don't get me wrong, I like the half marathon, it's so, what's the word?...short! But it is not when I'm on the track for some reason, it's very very long. Maybe something about 52 laps. 52 laps no matter how short they are is still a lot of laps.
I was stressed out by the pace that I was running after about the second lap. I don't know why the first lap is always fast and feels good and the rest are always slow and feel bad. I really want to run under 1:30 which is 6:52 per mile and 1:43 per lap. I ran 1:40 the first lap and boy was that easy, but the second lap is 1:46 so I pick it up and run 1:43 again and then 1:41 to go through the mile in 6:50 but that aint easy. Why? I could run 6:50 easy if I knew I wasn't running the half marathon on the track. Around 4 miles I started to think that maybe if I ran myself into the ground I could quit- I would have to quit if I literally couldn't run anymore right? So I tried to pick it up so maybe I could die. But this is a hopeless idea because running myself into the ground literally takes a really really long time, much longer than a half marathon, because I run the stupid 50k. But the thought of doing 37 or something more laps I can't even imagine. I try to keep it up for awhile in hopes that I will die or maybe that the world really will come to end- hopefully soon. After 26 laps I am halfway and okay maybe I will actually make it. I like to pretend that I am running a different race than the one I am doing sometimes. Like I pretended that I was running the 2 mile and that I was really fast! I had imaginary splits and everyone was cheering.
Now only four miles to go.
I don't know why this half marathon was so brutal to my mind. Maybe it was the track. This was the first time I was able to finish a half marathon on the track so I'm proud of that, especially since my teammates seem to have no trouble- is that true guys? You look like you don't anyway!
I ran 92:49 which is two minutes slower than my PR but for as worried as I was at one mile I think that is good.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
15k Trail Champs
This weekend Joel, his dad Jim, my teammates Oli and Cory and I took a trip to Spokane to run the USA championship 15k trail run. We started out at 11 am on Friday and after a brief snowball fight on the freeway we got to Spokane at around 5. We checked in and got a goody bag which included a pen, some hammer gel, and a cool water bag.
Next we were going to run the course, we made it there after only another hour and a half of driving around Spokane in circles. Once we found what looked like a starting line we ran around in circles for a few minutes while we figured out which way to go. The course map said up and so up we went. The course starts with a hill that is sort of steep but just an ordinary hill, and then you turn the corner. The next half mile is like scaling a wall, with loose bricks in it that fall off and take you down with them (rocks, lots of them!) We walked up it, waiting to kill ourselves until the next day. Even so at the top my calves felt like they were filled with tennis balls. We ran the rest of the course which is 4.66 miles (during the race we would run it twice, and it turns out it was actually long by about .15 miles or .3 miles for the whole race) and after that first half mile everything else seemed pretty tame. We finally got to eat dinner at 9 o'clock and then drive around Spokane for another hour looking for the motel. Our trip cost about a thousand dollars in gas in case you were wondering.
Luckily the race didn't start until 10:45 the next morning but that also meant it was hot! At least by my western Washington standards, probably around 75 degrees! I was not looking forward to the hill. The announcers who kept a countdown for us till race time also liked to throw in little tidbits like "30 minutes till the start of the 15k, that means if you've seen the hill and changed your mind you have 30 minutes to get the bleep out of here!"
It is a very strange experience to start on a hill. You are just starting your race and you are fresh and have all this adrenaline but in about 10 seconds it is gone. You have just begun the race so of course you want to do well and that is still possible but one minute later you are scaling a mountain and every torturous step you manage is rebuked by the tumbling rocks so for all your efforts you are almost going backwards. When I realized I was running slower than I could walk about halfway up the beast ( I could not look up because I could still not see the top!) I did walk. I tried to walk very fast and no one passed me because everyone else was walking or running slower than walking pace too. Still I felt very guilty for walking in a race- especially in the first three minutes! I mean I ran a 50k and I didn't even walk then! When I finally got to the top I thought I'd feel better, we went flat for a while then down on some more rocks. I did but not all the way. The hill stayed with my legs the rest of the race. Terrain that had seemed flat the day before now felt slightly inclined. The couple of other hills, baby monsters, seemed to have grown. My legs felt that running slow was about as fast as they could move and I couldn't even think about going up that monster again! I guess this was trail running.
The second time I think I walked most of it. I walked very fast and passed lots of guys. I had my hands on my knees and almost crawled but I crawled really fast! I reached the top and instead of running right away I kind of stumbled and wanted to lie on the ground. I made myself run again and tried to tell myself that at least I would not feel that bad for the rest of the race, the worst part was over! Now I just had to hang on and get 6th place, which I did!
My teammates Oliver Bear Don't Walk placed 5th and Cory Jenkins placed 9th.We all won prize money and placed All American. It was my very first time earning prize money, I got 100$! But I think you should get paid to run that race- it makes sense. Lots more sense than paying for a race anyway, that's just crazy, yeah...
Photos: up top- me with my water bag; our snowball fight
Me at the start; a very small portion of THE hill (it is impossible to fit in one photo, would need full screen!); Oli, Cory, and I with our new friend we met running the course the day before
Next we were going to run the course, we made it there after only another hour and a half of driving around Spokane in circles. Once we found what looked like a starting line we ran around in circles for a few minutes while we figured out which way to go. The course map said up and so up we went. The course starts with a hill that is sort of steep but just an ordinary hill, and then you turn the corner. The next half mile is like scaling a wall, with loose bricks in it that fall off and take you down with them (rocks, lots of them!) We walked up it, waiting to kill ourselves until the next day. Even so at the top my calves felt like they were filled with tennis balls. We ran the rest of the course which is 4.66 miles (during the race we would run it twice, and it turns out it was actually long by about .15 miles or .3 miles for the whole race) and after that first half mile everything else seemed pretty tame. We finally got to eat dinner at 9 o'clock and then drive around Spokane for another hour looking for the motel. Our trip cost about a thousand dollars in gas in case you were wondering.Luckily the race didn't start until 10:45 the next morning but that also meant it was hot! At least by my western Washington standards, probably around 75 degrees! I was not looking forward to the hill. The announcers who kept a countdown for us till race time also liked to throw in little tidbits like "30 minutes till the start of the 15k, that means if you've seen the hill and changed your mind you have 30 minutes to get the bleep out of here!"
It is a very strange experience to start on a hill. You are just starting your race and you are fresh and have all this adrenaline but in about 10 seconds it is gone. You have just begun the race so of course you want to do well and that is still possible but one minute later you are scaling a mountain and every torturous step you manage is rebuked by the tumbling rocks so for all your efforts you are almost going backwards. When I realized I was running slower than I could walk about halfway up the beast ( I could not look up because I could still not see the top!) I did walk. I tried to walk very fast and no one passed me because everyone else was walking or running slower than walking pace too. Still I felt very guilty for walking in a race- especially in the first three minutes! I mean I ran a 50k and I didn't even walk then! When I finally got to the top I thought I'd feel better, we went flat for a while then down on some more rocks. I did but not all the way. The hill stayed with my legs the rest of the race. Terrain that had seemed flat the day before now felt slightly inclined. The couple of other hills, baby monsters, seemed to have grown. My legs felt that running slow was about as fast as they could move and I couldn't even think about going up that monster again! I guess this was trail running.
The second time I think I walked most of it. I walked very fast and passed lots of guys. I had my hands on my knees and almost crawled but I crawled really fast! I reached the top and instead of running right away I kind of stumbled and wanted to lie on the ground. I made myself run again and tried to tell myself that at least I would not feel that bad for the rest of the race, the worst part was over! Now I just had to hang on and get 6th place, which I did!
My teammates Oliver Bear Don't Walk placed 5th and Cory Jenkins placed 9th.We all won prize money and placed All American. It was my very first time earning prize money, I got 100$! But I think you should get paid to run that race- it makes sense. Lots more sense than paying for a race anyway, that's just crazy, yeah...
Me at the start; a very small portion of THE hill (it is impossible to fit in one photo, would need full screen!); Oli, Cory, and I with our new friend we met running the course the day before
Haggen to Haggen
Haggen to Haggen was last week but I wasn't going to write about it because it was boring- but Joel is making me so, I ran 19:12 with lots of downhill, yawn. I do not like the 5k much anymore. It is very short, over almost before it starts and I do not have enough time to beat anyone. The prizes at Haggen to Haggen went to the top three men and women- gift certificates to Haggen grocery store. They mostly went to the high schoolers who beat me and my teammate Oliver who won, ( good job Oli) which is funny since what high schooler would want a gift certificate to a grocery store? Not that I'm bitter anything! I just wish they would give away free groceries for a 50k or something, instead of nothing.
It was pouring down rain so after the race we were freezing cold in our jerseys and shorts. I was lucky because the race ended about a quarter mile from my house so I got to go home while my teammates got to run back to their cars at the starting line in their jerseys and shorts. Nah, I lent them clothing from my house, and sat on the heat vent for the next hour and a half!
It was pouring down rain so after the race we were freezing cold in our jerseys and shorts. I was lucky because the race ended about a quarter mile from my house so I got to go home while my teammates got to run back to their cars at the starting line in their jerseys and shorts. Nah, I lent them clothing from my house, and sat on the heat vent for the next hour and a half!
Thursday, May 5, 2011
There's another girl here...
After a year of being the only girl on my team I finally have a teammate! Her name is Anna Leigh and she’s very talented, and speedy!
Last Saturday we did a workout together where we were supposed to run 4 times the mile in around 5:45. “Don’t go out too fast,” Joel said, “so you won’t get too fatigued.” But I knew that at 5:45 pace I was going to be fatigued the entire workout, especially since my mile PR is only about 5:35. But at least that is less scary- you’re not afraid of when the pain will come, you know it will be there with you always.
The first two Anna Leigh beat me by a couple seconds and I ran 5:51 and 5:49, the third one we ran together and when we got to the last lap she started really moving and even though she was fighting for air as much as me she found some to encourage me to go with her. So I had to run the last lap faster than I thought my legs could ever go and into more pain than I thought possible. We finished in 5:51-52, probably 4-5 seconds faster than I would have done on my own. Joel only wanted her to do three but he still wanted me to do four so I ran the next one on my own after only five minutes ( I felt like I needed 10 minutes! or an hour.) By myself my legs felt so heavy and I ran 6:07 despite best efforts. Still it was definitely the fastest mile repeats workout I have ever done and I’m glad to have a new teammate to share the pain with! After practice we went to Robeks for a nice protein smoothie- yum! They make then a lot tastier than I do at home.
Yesterday I ran a 1k all out in 3:21 and then 3 400s in 77-78. We had a push up contest at practice because none of the boys thought I would be able to do a push up because I am a girl. I did 47 and beat Joel and Mark and Cory only beat me by one. The next day Mark did 50 just to beat me, but I'm pretty sure I can do 51. Analeigh has yet to do the push up challenge, but I think girls can be good at pushups. It is not just about your arm strength but your core strength as well, and even if we have less to push up with we also less to push up so it is pretty proportionate. Proud to push up for girls in the push up war!
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