Second Marathon - Done!

Yes, I know you have been waiting for the Post Race Blog. I just needed to wait a few days and get some energy.

I did reach my goal which was simply to have a better experience than my first marathon. Although I just realized I did it 6 months earlier then I intended. When I wrote the goal on my blog page I referenced Chicago, not Green Bay! My time was almost exactly the same, but it was such much better experience during and in recovery!

I was a little worried the first half because I wasn't feeling that great. It took a while to get into a rhythm and I never felt the surge of energy that I did during my first half. At the halfway mark I decided to take advantage of the wind at my back and pick up the pace a little bit. During my first half I was already playing the "if I run to the stop sign then I can walk until the next one". At about mile 16.5 we turn North and headed down the Fox River. The wind was pretty much in our face, but trail gave us some protection. I didn't let it get me frustrated. I just kept my legs moving at the same rate and didn't fight it. My pace slowed by about 30 seconds/mile, but I was okay with that since I was feeling so much better than the first marathon. We had the wind for a little over 6 miles, so I was happy when I finally saw people running across the a bridge (there were a lot of bridges before that teasing me!) I felt good until about mile 23 and then I started to struggle. I was still able to maintain a run, with very short walks at water stops. I was getting frustrated that I wasn't seeing the stadium and I was once again NOT happy that I had to run through it. Luckily, I got a boost of energy when I saw Christy cheering us on and telling us that she was at mile 25! Then I finally saw the Lambeau Field and even more important my 3 college friends cheering me on. So, I was able to pick up my pace and run through the stadium and to the finish line with a smile on my face - quite a contrast to my first marathon!

I was a little fearful that this marathon might make the upcoming Chicago Marathon an event that I dreaded, but now I am looking forward to it.

The rest of the runners in the Sparta Group did great too! Our two "newbies" finished well under 4 hours- a little light headed but still standing. They unfortunately did not get a grandma hug like I did at the end of my first marathon. Wendy met her goal of ridding herself of the 4 hour monkey on her back. Jenny was just happy to stop at the right timing mat this time. No last minute 50 yard sprints. Sandy and Jill finished with smiles on their faces and not looking like they had just ran 26.2 miles!

Things to remember:

1. The lady (or was it a man) in all in pink.
2. The new motivational ABC game - except for Wendy.
3. A reminder to teach newbies race etiquette such as not shoving through two people running together!
4. Pace people don't really run at pace the whole race (why is the 3:40 guy behind the 4:00 guy?)
5. Al should run the full so he doesn't drink all the beer before the marathoner's get in.
6. Wine, beer and crackers with the crew are an essential part of the race (Jill!)

Good job to everyone! We all FINISHED! A huge achievement for all of us!

Running with Kids

Ah the joys of trying to have a fun family fitness outing! Actually, I got caught at work today so I couldn't run with the kids were in school. I could have had our high school neighbor come up and watch them, but nah - I thought the kids would have fun. They did for the first 1.5 mile which was all down hill. Of course during that time there were a few "He's going the wrong way!" "Get on the side of the road!" MOM!

1.5 was the turning point. That was the first call for a break. I felt like I was on a long run with Jill (just kidding). Shortly there after it was "My legs are tired" which I found hard to believe since 2 seconds later the complainer was racing his sibling while crying "He budged"! From there on out the conversation consisted of:

"My legs are tired"
Wah! Wah!
MOM!
Wah! Wah!
He budged!
Wah! Wah!
MOM! He budged!
Wah! Wah!
Mom! WAAAAIIITTT!
Wah! Wah!

The crying is no exaggeration. Thanks to my GPS I can report that Ben wailed (no exaggeration) from miles 2.8 to 3.9. With intermittent episodes from 1.5 to 2.8.

Rest assured that this experience will not happen again. Even if I feel inspired to do it again, when I ask the 3 little Hellmans if they want to ride their bikes along with me while I run the answer will be "NO!".

Ad for Sparta Newspaper

This ad will appear in next Monday's Sparta Herald:

ATTENTION and WARNING

for

Friends and Mere Acquaintances

of the

Morning Running Group

You are hereby warned that on any given morning between 5:00 am and 6:00 am you may hear a knock on your door. However, knocking will only occur if you don't lock your door. The expectation is that you will answer and allow (with a smile on your face) the person (usually a male member of the morning running group) to use your "facilities". No payment will be given - just a smile and an unpleasant odor.

Thank You for Your Cooperation.

T-shirt and shorts

The first morning run with t-shirts and shorts for everyone, except me who couldn't quite bring myself to believe I would be warm enough in a t-shirt. Spring is in the area- t-shirts and shorts, light early in the the run and the frogs have started singing.

I didn't do a race report for St. Clare's so I have been delayed in welcoming Melissa -officially- to the group. She ran a tough 1/2 and is gearing up to run Grandma's. She also came out to Larry and Judy's so she could finally meet the Guru himself. You will know it is Melissa when she says "y'all". Welcome Melissa!

Monday Morning

A pleasant run with the Cousins this morning. I got to wear a new pair of run capri. I think they will do the trick. Mile Marker Sports had a big clearance sale. Now I see they are having one for Mother's Day. Of course this means that my shopping will be limited at the Green Bay Expo which is always a bummer!

I heard the weatherman say that spring is here to stay! I am going to hold him to that in two weeks!

Studs

Jenny, Sandy and I ran this morning. A good run - better for them though since they went another loop. I passed. We were a quiet group this morning. We didn't have the studs to entertain us. We did see them run by when we were done. They were doing their pace run and they did look like Studs. I can hear Jill screaming at me now... 'Allison! Don't be nice to them!" But after all the grief I have given them the last week, I figured they were due for a compliment no matter how untrue it is (hee hee).

You know a man is...

You know a man is truly comfortable with his manliness when he has a pink heart on his key chain and uses a pink Ipod. I hate to even point it out because I don't man to not run with us in the morning, but all I can say is "Jill made me to it!" Of course, I don't think I have much chance of offending him because obviously he IS comfortable in his manliness - Jill just was quick to point it [the heart] out.

Ah yes, a chilly spring morning, but I noticed as we were coming down Meadowview Street that we weren't running in the dark anymore! Soon we will be able to cast off our reflective vests for two months! The muscles were slow to warm up, but we ended the run at a good clip.

Thanks for being such a good sport Tom!

Just in case you were wondering

Just in case you were wondering (Jenny and Jill) Mike and I DID run this morning. It wasn't that bad. Although I admit that as I was driving to Walgreens I was thinking "If no one shows up, I will be TOTALLY fine with that". (please, please, please don't show up!) Trustworthy Mike did show up though and I got the treat of being the only one in the audience for all his stories from the weekend. He promised me that for my reward for being a good running partner he would promise not to share any of the stories with any of you! I just realized that I should probably reward HIM for also being a good running partner - nah, being willing to run with him is reward enough.

So, it was blowing and snowing, but after Saturday if felt like a pleasant breeze! And it really is true that 34 degrees in April does feel warmer than 34 degrees in November.

Last run back to Kansas!

The last long run is done and at many points it felt like we were Dorthy trying to run back to the farm before the tornado hit. A silver lining in the whole experience was that we learned that although running in 20+ mph winds is slow, it is not as slow as the service at Southside Tap! We thought it was because someone had called in sick since there was one women being bartender and serving the 10 full tables. She told me when I paid that it was always that way!

There were many funny stories during the 3.5 hour run. Many were about Tom, but after being blasted by the wind for that long I forgot them. He is thanking the running gods right now. We did learn that teaching is not Tom's true passion - it is inventing, preferably with duct tape. He came up with quite an "ingenious" water bottle holder, but I am afraid that Mike's string around the belt still has him beat.

It was also quite an America's Funniest Home Videos moment when Sheri and Jenny almost had a head on collision with our STATIONARY Sag vehicle!

Lastly, although not quite up to Sheri and Jenny's accomplishment was my digger caused by an evil crack a block from the end of the run. Luckily, no one from the running group saw me since I was running by myself. They were all enjoying the splendors of being finished - not worrying about their fellow running comrades fallen in the field. A pack of Hell's Angels saw me, but they didn't even pause or shout a "Are you okay?" Of course, they probably realized that if they did stop I would probably run off in the opposite direction. I might not be afraid of dogs, but men in black leather on Harleys are a bit intimidating.

We are done people, we are done!

Donuts?

I was patiently waiting by my car after the run, waiting for Tom to run around the corner carrying a box of donuts. After all, if you patronize an establishment such as Tom did this morning, I believe Mrs. Manners would say that you should purchase a product produced by that establishment. Given the type of service Tom was expecting, I would assume he would do the right thing and buy a whole box of donuts. But alas, I needed to get going and couldn't hang around and wait. Maybe running with a box of donuts slowed him down.

A wonderful 60 degrees this morning! I blame my slow running on not being acclimated yet.

Another run done

A good morning run with Jack and the cousins. We did the industrial loop backwards and it seemed to go so fast. A bit chillier this morning. Mike obviously adapts to warm weather quickly. Monday he was wearing shorts. Today when it was 8 degrees colder he was wearing sweats and a stocking cap!

Good luck to the runners doing their long run today. It looks like you are going to have a beautiful day. Let us know if you are celebrating with a beer afterwards. We will come and join you so you can tell us how good it feels to be done!

Shorts - 2008

It was above 50 degrees this morning so I wore shorts. First time (outside) in 2008. I checked 2007 and the first time I wore shorts was March 26 (and 27)! Now it will be interesting to see if we can keep on wearing them! After the winter we had, we deserve to wear shorts for the next 6 months!

Mike and were the only ones brave enough to show our white legs. I figure it is one more way to stay safe - the car lights glaring off my legs. Of course, for Mike it is a safety hazard since people are so intent staring at his "nice calves" (not the moo kind) that they might actually have an accident due to inattentive driving! Mike would like you to believe that he is embarrassed by this attention, but every time he wears shorts he tells us a story about how someone - usually not of the opposite sex - notices his nice calves.

However, I am willing to put up with him, as long has he doesn't show up looking like this:

Whew!

Yes! The last pace run in over and it went well! We ended up with an average pace of 8:59/mile! It felt so much better than the last pace run! Apparently it did for Tom, Mike and Jill since they sprinted the last block! It was good conditions - just below 50 degrees, not much wind. At one point it got quite misty and I was afraid rain was going to start, but it held off. The best news was when I got home and learned that I didn't have to rush of to a cold, wet soccer field for 2 hours! The day is starting out on the right foot!

Geez - I almost forgot! Jim joined us for 13 miles too! Of course, we had to dress alike for the occasion, but it was an accident - a mere coincidence. Really, it was! We enjoyed the experience so much that we decided to do it at GB. We have already picked out our outfits, except they might be in Lycra instead of denim. At the very least we will have a good chance of being a featured photo!

Windy but good

A good run with Sandy and Jill this morning. I was dreading it in the middle of the night when the howling wind woke me up. On our long run this weekend, I think I did learn one thing and that is not to fight the wind. When I got hit with a blast I found myself hunkering down and fighting into it. I tried to relax and not do that and it worked. I think I was using a lot of energy just 'fighting' it. Sometimes, like when you are faced with a strong, steady wind, you just have to say this is life and this is this run and not try it beat it. So, I used that mentality this morning on the one stretch where we headed into the wind and it seemed to work. So, lesson learned!

And despite the wind we had a good run. I mixed in some hill work (running faster up the hills on our route) and tried dot pick it up at the end. It was good to see that I can still run faster than a 9:00/mile.