Tag Archives: half marathon

Oct29

A two month experiment

Posted on October 29, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

I need to do something to my daily regime to liven up my body. While basic running is what I love, I noted in my last post that the act of finding a new route to run did wonders…but I need something more. Something that will help me see some visual results, which will in turn hopefully translate to physical improvements. Now that I have experienced one month of my 30s, I have decided to embark on a two-month experiment….

No booze….
….well, except for twice.

On Saturday, November 8, 2014, I am participating in the 9th Annual Tyranena Beer Run Half Marathon. I will enjoy my two included post-race beers after the event, and that is it. Come Christmas Eve, I will also enjoy a glass of wine during dinner. And then when 2015 rolls around I will reevaluate my training and beverage consumption, hopefully creating some more clearer goals.

This no booze will be interesting, because well one—it is well-known my husband and I love our craft beer. We even have a craft beer advent calendar that I purchase last month…but since I embarking on this experiment during December, we have decided to save the calendar for January as a nice treat (If Dan was drinking each beer on his own all through December I may crack.). But I’m curious to see what happens if I cut it out. Even without cutting it out or down last year during my Dopey Challenge training, my body composition changed rather drastically. The number on the scale lowered quite a bit, and I was surprised at by how much, even with no major diet change that was kept consistently. Yes, when Dan and I did our crazy “Clean-Eating Challenge” (Link is HERE)in June we both also lost weight, but we were tired and worn out. While I won’t be enacting another challenge like this at this point (not enough time to barely make a bagged lunch for work it seems this school year) I will be attempting to watch what I eat a bit. And with the decrease in alcohol, and in keeping up with my exercise, I am sure hoping I will see some positive changes that I otherwise wouldn’t see in winter months.

I have been trying to go into the school twice a week to work out with two friends. Yeah, I am going to admit to be failing at that. I am so not a morning person, unless it is for a race. 5:45 am alarm is ridiculous. But I liked it. So I either neither to just get my ass up. Or try something else for variety. Since I got Ali into running, I am keeping my promise and giving Crossfit a good old try. This Saturday I am going for the trial class to see what it is all about. No promises, but it will be something new.

In the end, I know I will end up mostly just running. But varying my calendar and adding new challenges for myself will be what keeps it fresh. I have a small handful of cross country runners who come run on Tuesday and Thursday with me after school—-it keeps us accountable. And also, with this “dry-streak” for two months, I decided to do a “Run-Streak” of my own. While many runners do “Run Streaks” in December as preparation for Holiday eating and cold weather, I figured I’d start now. I made a calendar and I am running every day from now until January 31st, even if one day is just a mile. One mile is the shortest distance.

I have now five events between now and the new year. Tyranena Half, Mustache Dache 5km (both in a week and a half in Wisconsin while I am home!), Claus Cause 10km, Santa Shuffle 5km, and on New Years Eve the Resolution Run 5km. Having events always keeps me motivated, and keeps me training, and even these aren’t any huge do-or-die type events, I am still motivated to do my best and reach goals in each. For instance, I will be pacing my friend Kirby at Tyranena in hopes of a personal best for her (2:15 is the magic number!). I am also hoping to get a personal best in the Claus Cause 10km (need below a 45:37!). And in the near 2015 future, I have my Spartan Race Trifecta looming (Temecula x2 and Kalispell) plus some other ideas of intense events up my sleeve.

So this two month experiment is just a stepping stone to help me see what I am fully capable of and in turn, hopefully, make me a healthier and stronger woman. I’ll be keeping you all posted in the process!

Oct20

Bare Bones Half Marathon 2014

Posted on October 20, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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Last year, on the Saturday before the Bare Bones Half Marathon, I was eating poutine at Wendy’s in Airdrie, Alberta. We were on our way back from High School Cross Country Provincials in the far away land of Drayton Valley, a lovely 7 hours north west of Lethbridge. And then, I got to bed at 1 am, managed to wake up on time, and run my personal best of 1:41.07, which earned me a first in the 20-29 category, and a second overall for women.

Fast forward a year and it was déjà vu. Saturday was Cross Country Provincials again, but this time in a city a more manageable distance away-Okotoks, which is 2 hours northwest. The kids on our team did great, and to continue the tradition of eating crap after a day of watching them run (hey, I did total 9.12 miles of walking that day cheering them on!) I decided to gorge on nachos at Boston Pizza. I was able to get to sleep by 9:30 pm, a whole 3.5 hours earlier than the year prior!

The start of my race morning did not seem promising, however. I woke up sore, with bloated feet. My legs were sore and I felt like I could sleep another 9 hours. The day prior gave my body a beating, and I hadn’t even ran yet. I somehow managed to get ready and make it to Softball Valley in time for the race….sorta.

I parked my car at 8:50 am. I jogged to the bathroom at 8:51. I did a set of skipping A’s, B’s, C’s and butt kicks before heading into the starting corral at 8:57. I sure hope I was warmed up, and if I wasn’t, well it was too late.

Bare Bones is a small local race which has a 5km, 9km and half marathon every year. There were over 300 participants total, with 40 in the half marathon. At 9:00 AM, the 9km and half marathon would set out together. The race began and I quickly knew I was going to quick, but I wanted to get the first mile over with. The first mile is through gravel and past the always pleasant-smelling water treatment plant. As we made our way to the trail by the Oldman River, I knew there were three women ahead of me. I kept my eye on them, as I was not sure if they were 9km or half runners. At this point and time my legs had gotten warmed up and I was feeling positive, so I would do my best to catch up to each of them.

I was able to pass one of the ladies as we ran on a cross-country portion of the path, which was put in because of the wash-out by the river. I had two more to catch. We were approaching the 9km turnaround. Thats when I found out that the women I was pushing way-past my desired average pace to catch, were 9km competitors. They turned around, and all of a sudden I was the female leader, approximately 2.5 miles in. Crap-I better not screw this up!

The weaving through the river bottom helped to slow me back to the pace I should have been at. When I reached the dreaded hill climb up to Scenic near mile 5, I started to slow dramatically. I knew my pace would drop off here, as this hill is well over a half of mile of hell. My calves started to feel super heavy. This was the point where I knew the chance of a personal best was GONE. But I kept thinking about keeping my place as lead female and pushing the best I could…hopefully get a sub 1:40 still.

I made it on to Scenic Drive and it took a few minutes for my legs to loosen up. I slowly got back on track to the pace I thought would be reasonable to aim for (7:30-7:35). Distance between me and the closest male runners was spreading, and this race was starting to feel like a solo adventure. It was starting to get extremely tough mentally as I knew I needed to keep at race pace, yet I had no one around me. I was alone.

The turnaround near Tudor Estates is was saved me. The out and back layout of this course is perfect, because that hill beats you up and makes you feel all alone, but then on the way back you get to high-five other runners and in time, run down that crazy-ass hill.

The turnaround also gave me a vantage point of how close the women behind me were. There were three women within striking distance, all around 1-2 minutes behind me. If I hit the proverbial “wall”, slowed down even a little bit, or they picked it up at all, my position would be lost. I kept trying to think positively, and now my goal was to keep this position and hopefully get a Bare Bones personal best, as I wasn’t completely sure if sub 1:40 would be in the cards. Every word of encouragement I received from fellow racers as I headed back to the hill were bursts of energy that I so very much needed. And Amiee, a colleague of mine in the Lethbridge 51 School district, did an extra awesome job of giving the most energetic high-fives mid race as we would cross each other!

As I rolled down the hill, I knew I still had a decent position away from my closest female competitior, but I didn’t want to get too comfortable with that. It was down at this very trail that I lost my steam during the Police Half Marathon in September. In that race I was on time for an EPIC personal best, but gained a bunch of time during the last 5km of weaving by the river. I still nudged out a personal best (3 seconds faster, but still counted!) however, I knew I could have done better. I didn’t want to falter down here again.

I kept my composure and kept on pushing. When I got to the metal gate that exited us from the Nature Reserve, a volunteer was yelling to me I was the first female. I mustered out the words “how far back is she?” The volunteer guessed 45 seconds. Crap. I made it 12 miles in first place. I wasn’t going to screw it up the last mile.

The last mile is tough as you are running through the same gravel area as the beginning and it just feels like a quarry. You couldn’t see the finish line or hear any spectators. It is a mentally draining stretch. As you finally round the corner where the new road from Scenic was put in, the finish line awaited. I lengthened my stride the best I could and rolled on in. 1:40.43—first place female and a new Bare Bones Half personal best for myself!

Just like in September at he Police Half, when I stopped after the timing mat for the workers from RacePro to removed my chip, my calves were shaking. Not just a little, but pulsating like they were going to explode. My left knee was twitching. My body felt like a wreck. I walked a bit for about two minutes, grabbed some water and a coffee, and did the one thing a runner should never do after running a half marathon—-I sat down on the ground. Glenn and Grace (local runners whose children go to WCHS) both yelled at me to not sit down and I quickly responded “I don’t care!” The ground was what I needed!

I didn’t stay down for long, as I knew I needed to keep moving. I wandered back and forth to my car, to layer my sweats and long sleeve back on. I got more coffee and snacks and stretched. I cheered in the rest of the half finishers—former student of mine Kristin finished her second half marathon in under 2 hours, a new personal best for herself! And Aimee and her dad came running into the finish line together, hand in hand, and it made me smile. It made me laugh later when she told me he was giving her a hard time the whole way that she needed to pick it up.

The age group awards were presented, and I received a white with gold glitter dog bone medal. When I came home, I promptly wrote my time on the back with a black permanent marker, and my overall place. I also made sure to write “1st place female 30-39” because while I did place 1st female overall, this race will always be the first half marathon of my 30s, and I am going to remember it fondly. Who ever said getting old meant you had to slow down? I know I am definitely not ready to slow down!

Sep28

…It is Time for a New Age Group…

Posted on September 28, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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I am a 29 year old female runner. But, on Wednesday, I jump an age group. I turn 30 years old on October 1st. In the running world, this is a big deal. Age groups at races are usually 10 year groupings. I have been in two major age groups during my time running road races. The first was when I was in my teens, and my first official event I ever participated in (that can be found still online for all to see) was the 2002 Jingle Bell Run for Arthritis. I was 18. I jumped up into the 20-29 age group when I ran in the Madison Full Marathon 2005. Other than larger events that have age groups every 5 years (20-24, 25) I have been sitting comfortably for the last 10 years.

I am not someone who is “dreading” turning 30. Actually, I think the fact that running has taken over a large part of my life the last two years helps the aging shock. Yes, it is an age group jump, and as someone who runs events regularly I will constantly be reminded that I am now 30. When I register for any event now, my “age on race day” will be 30. But it is exciting as for some events, it will present new challenges. I will be against different competitors in the local races I run regularly. I may place higher than I would have in the 20-29…and sometimes I may place lower. I am looking forward to the new age bracket, and will be running two races this month where my age on race day is in fact 30. We will have to wait and see if I am this positive about the aging process come the next age bracket….

Sep21

Dumbo Double Dare Photo Recap-Official MarathonFoto Pictures!

Posted on September 21, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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Finally got around to ordering my Disney Dumbo Double Dare race photos from MarathonFoto. I knew I had to purchase the download package as the pictures of me and my best friend in the 10km were incredible, and the half marathon shots weren’t too shabby either.

Below are some of my favorite shots from the Disneyland 10km, held on August 30th, 2014!

And now, here are my personal favorites from the Disneyland Half Marathon, held on Sunday, August 31st, 2014.

What a great weekend! Loved that this event capped off my Coast to Coast adventure!

Sep14

Disneyland Half Marathon Recap

Posted on September 14, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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So this is a few weeks late. Not too bad considering I came home after Dumbo Double Dare and started work five hours later, and then went to Vancouver for a wedding three days later. I need to get this recap posted because I just did another half marathon back in Lethbridge yesterday, and I don’t want to be behind on my recaps! This one won’t be long anyway….I think….

I went to bed early on Saturday night (around 9:00) because I had had trouble sleeping the night before since it was warm outside. My 2:30 alarm went off and I got ready in a zombie-like state. The best part was going to 7/11 dressed as Snow White to get coffee and some drunks heading home after a night out saying “What the fuck?!?”

Ali and Kevin parked and got me to the staging area by 4:00 am. There were a lot more people milling around this morning compared to the 10km. The DJ was there getting people pumped up. I was set to go! I headed to the corrals around 4:45 and placed myself in the outside of Corral A, near the front. I wasn’t necessarily trying to go for some epic time that morning (I was actually nervous how my knees were going to hold up since I had just done Edmonton Full Marathon the week prior) but I wanted to be out front to start, since the course is rather narrow.

I knew when I started I wanted to push hard early on, so to avoid the warm Anaheim sun. I was not going to stop for any pictures during the race, as I would rely on Marathon Foto to capture any of me as I went by. (I have purchased the photo downloads of both races from them and will post a pictorial of my favorites in a separate post!)

The first mile was my fastest. I blew out of that gate. I ran a 7:17. And before I knew it, I was already in Disney’s California Adventure! The course for the half brought you into the parks much quicker than the 10km, and it also brought you through it somewhat in reverse. I got to run past World of Colour without having to run on the wooden boardwalk, run down Cars Land towards the Radiator Springs facade. As I cut between DCA and Disneyland I was able to see Ali and Kevin for a brief second. Running down Main Street was fantastic, as people who had purchased ChEAR Squad packages were allowed on there, unlike the 10km where no one was able to spectate. The thing I realized early on, that would keep me pumped throughout, that since I was near the front of the group, I was one of the first “costumed” runners people would see. A lot of the hard cores don’t normally dress up, especially the guys, and many women may just have a sparkly skirt on. It was fun to have kids and adults yell “Go Snow White!”

By the time I was out of Disneyland property, I had run miles 2-4, in 7:29, 7:31, and 7:51. I was concerned how running on the streets of Anaheim would go, as I was unsure how “entertaining” it would be. I had read tons of reviews of this race, and people almost always said how great the support and entertainment was on the city streets. Now, I was actually able to see what everyone meant!

This was not a bunch of empty roads full of commercial businesses. The roads had many clusters of spectators cheering loudly. Spectators had awesome signs and music blaring. There were various ethnic dance groups performing as we ran by. I remember a Mexican & Hawaiian troupe specifically. There was also a mile long stretch going through highway underpasses that could have been dreadful. This was remedied by our own personal classic car show. Car afficiandos would have LOVED this, and while I don’t normally care for looking at cars, the tailgate-style atmosphere and pride of the car owners was incredible. Miles 5-8 were 7:44, 7:32, 7:41 and 7:55.

There were close to 20-25 cheerleading/Pom Pon teams and high school bands entertaining throughout. Families of these kids were there watching the event also. Jumping ahead of myself, near the end when my knees really had taken a beating and I was sweaty from the humidity and heat beyond belief, the thing that kept me going was running by the band kids and cheerleaders, giving them high fives. I felt a connection to them, as I was in high school band and a Pom Pon girl for all my years of high school. And also, when you get to Angels Stadium, the entrance into it, the exit out of it, and while running the bases, was lined with Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. I was a Girl Scout until 9th grade and after I graduated high school, worked for one summer at Camp Alice Chester, the Girl Scout Camp I grew up going to. Without being too sappy, seeing the scouts, the marching bands and the cheerleaders gave me flashbacks of my life 10-15 years ago. I got emotional about it, because I’m a piece of crap like that. But it pushed me through.

Those last miles were tough. My body hurt, my legs felt like trash. But I wanted to finish strong. The crowds that lined the finish area of Downtown Disney were electric. I even found some energy in my reserves to help push me in just under 1:40.00. My final miles were 8:02, 8:00, 8:00 and 7:44, bringing me in with an official time of 1:39:57. I had completed the Dumbo Double Dare Challenge, and also earned my coveted Coast-to-Coast medal. The combination of doing the Dopey Challenge in January and now Dumbo in August is unreal and unmatched, in my opinion.

Will I do this race again? YES. I love Disney. I love visiting my best friend. I love running. This course is fantastic. The race swag is second-to-none. The time of the race is right before the school year starts, so traveling here is doable. While it costs a pretty penny to fly down to California from Alberta, it is still more affordable than going to Orlando. And Ali and I are in the talks of doing Dumbo together next year. This race will always be special to me, and I can’t wait to do it again and again.

Aug27

Going Back to the Original Purpose…

Posted on August 27, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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When I wrote my first blog post on January 6th, 2013, I stated some information about who I was, what I was about, and what I was planning on doing over the course of the next year.

My first “real” blog entry

In those initial purpose and goal statements, running a Boston Qualifying race time was never an initial goal. I ran more races than I ever had before, I raised money for a cause important to my heart. I even started breaking my own personal best times and realized I could become a contender in my own right. I went and achieved all my original goals. The thought of Boston came after I completed the Walt Disney Full Marathon in January in 3:50:52. It was a late-in-the-game goal. I figured I might as well try.

As you know from my post yesterday, I didn’t achieve that goal. But, as you also know from that post, I am not going to let it get me down and ruin me. I think back to everything I have been able to complete and achieve this past year and it makes me smile. It makes me happy. And being happy is the most important thing to me right now.

Tonight, I head out California where I will be participating in something else that wasn’t in the original plan. I am participating in the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend, and partaking in the “Dumbo Double Dare Challenge.” Not as daunting as the “Dopey Challenge“, but still challenge enough, I will run 19.3 miles over the course of two days: A 10km on Saturday (with my best friend Ali-her first 10km ever!), and a half marathon on Sunday. Upon completion, I will not only receive the gorgeous Dumbo Double Dare medal, but I will also be the proud owner of the Disney Coast 2 Coast medal. I will have completed two RunDisney events of a half marathon or longer on both coasts in one calendar year.

I didn’t plan on this when I first started my blog. But, plans change. The Boston challenge was a stressful, demanding one. I could have really let that get me down after not getting in at both Calgary Full Marathon in June and in Edmonton Marathon this past Sunday. But I didn’t. And now come the exciting change, that helps me bring this back to what it was all about. It says so right at the top of my page:

Running, Disney World & Dad….How do they connect together? Follow my journey this year to find out.

It has now been well over a year since I first started that journey. If you have been following me since then, I think you may better realize how they all connect. I know I have a deeper understanding myself. I am looking forward to doing this race weekend in Disneyland not only for myself, for my best friend, for my family members, but most importantly, for my dad. If he could see me smiling running through Disneyland, that would be more important to him, even now as I near the age of 30, than me making Boston.

I love you Dad. Je me souviens.

Jul7

Stampede Road Race Recap-Yee Haw!

Posted on July 7, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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On Sunday, July 6th, 2014, I participated in the Stampede Road Race up in Calgary, Alberta. Those of you not from Western Canada have no clue what “Calgary Stampede” is. Well, if you want to know, here’s a link from Wikipedia explaining the insanity that is Stampede: “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth!”

So obviously, this event is held during Stampede week. There was a 5 km, 10 km, half marathon, and even kids races. About two months ago, I did not have a July race planned. Usually I never race in July! But, since I had signed up for the Digital Running “Time of the Season Challenge”, I needed some sort of event in July. You can find information about that virtual event here:
Digital Running Virtual Challenges

I opted to register for the half marathon, as my attitude is that if I have to drive two hours to get to a race, I want to at least be doing an event that will take me over an hour. Yeah, weird theory perhaps, but why get up at 3:15 am, drive two hours, then do a 10km? I also was looking forward to this half marathon, because it would probably be my best shot at a personal best this summer. My Millarville Half Marathon a few weeks ago was so-so, and I wouldn’t be doing another half until Disneyland (which I have not as of yet fully decided how I am going to pace it). I also was still a little volatile towards Calgary after my performance at the Calgary Full Marathon on June 1st. It wasn’t Calgary’s fault! But, I didn’t achieve my goal time, so I was in a way seeking some sort of redemption.

I made it up to Glenmore Athletic Park by 6:15 am on Sunday. The half marathon race was slated to start at 7:30 am, but walkers who thought they would take longer than 2:45:00 could start at 7:00. I wanted to be there early because I needed to pick up my race packet, and I was assured via Twitter I could that morning. But when I got there, the whole area was a ghost town. Sure, there were signs saying the roads were closed for the Stampede Road Race, but there was no sign of life. I followed the map to where the start line would be, and it was an empty gravel road. I was getting anxious, so I moved my car closer, slathered on bug spray, and went to use a Porta John’s. By this time it was close to 6:30, still no start line set up, and as I waited to use the bathroom, the ten of us standing around realized only one porta potty was unlocked. The other six or seven were all zip-tied shut by the door handle. They were obviously delivered the night before and kept shut so people in the neighborhood or surrounding area didn’t go in them at night. It was just a very bizarre first 25 minutes.

Finally a volunteer showed up to her station near the Porta John’s. I felt really bad for her because at this point about two to three dozen people were milling around confused at where to go, some asking about packet pickup, some asking about the walking start, and some just wanting to go to the bathroom. I found out the packet pickup was actually over on the track at the athletic park, where the finish line would be. I hiked over there, got my packet, used real bathrooms, slathered on bug spray, and dropped my bag. I had about 30 minutes until race start now, so after the initial confusion and frustration, I had time to calm my nerves.

The start area was now set up, courtesy of Racepro Timing . I have talked about these guys before—they are great, and locally based from here in Lethbridge. Before I got set up in the starting area, I asked Randy of Racepro what the heck happened this morning. He said they were there early, around 5:30 am, but whoever was suppose to let them into the locked storage with all the timing equipment didn’t show up until obviously way later. At least Randy and his team are old pros at getting the system set up quickly, because now as five minutes before race time fast approached, it looked more like the start of your typical half marathon.

I had looked at the map of the route and just assumed it would be a flat bike path around this reservoir. In talking to a few people before the gun, they told me it had LOTS of rolling hills, and some pretty big climbs. Someone also told me it would be a tough course to get a personal best. I took that as a challenge.

When the race started, I quickly found my pace and positioned myself accordingly. For the first mile and a half, we ran on neighborhood streets, which allowed runners to get spaced out. I appreciated this, versus hitting the narrower trails right away. By the time we did the little turn around at the end of a neighborhood, I had roughly counted myself to be the 20th female runner. Little did I know that I would never have a female competitor pass me the rest of the race, let alone that many men. I also wouldn’t be passing too many people myself, at least not until the last 5km, so I seemingly would end up getting used to the people surrounding me for the duration of the event.

We hit the trails hard and I kept on trucking. Besides my always fast first mile, miles 2-4 were pretty spot on. I was aiming for around 7:30 a mile, as this would be necessary if I wanted to beat my personal best of 1:38:40, which i interestingly enough ran in Calgary in March duringRun for L’Arche. We had hit the first “hill” at around mile 3, and it wasn’t that bad. I have mentioned before that hills have become my friends (in shorter races like this) because as long as I know I will be going downward eventually, I can truck my way up. And since I don’t listen to music when I run, this is the only time I actually “sing” to myself during a race. No, I don’t sing out loud, but I get a song (sometimes a weird one) in my head and go through it at the cadence my feet are going, keeping my head forward. I will admit, and you may want to admit me to a psych ward after reading this, but I went through the song “The Perfect Nanny” from Mary Poppins. Why? Because you can basically talk through the words, and I know all of them. Whatever, it got me up the hill just fine, and it got my up the latter two also!

Miles 5-8 went pretty well too. At 10km, I was at approximately 45:55, which was on pace for a personal best, as long as I didn’t screw up. There was a point after mile 6.5 where I couldn’t see many people in front of me due to the turns on the path, so I think it slowed me up mentally a tad. You can see that in the time at mile 7, but thankfully, I picked it up on mile 8.

Mile 9-10 are notoriously the toughest for me during a half marathon. This is the make or break it area. I was still feeling super solid, my stomach wasn’t acting up, and my legs felt strong. Right before mile 9, I hit the major hill. You can see that in the map below, where it curves red. I knew this split would be slower, but I didn’t know by how much. The fact that I kept mile 9 at around 8:00 minutes per mile makes me super proud. It was after the top of that hill that I started talking to a guy I caught up with, Chad. I asked him if that was the last major hill and he assured me YES! I told him what I was going for time wise, and he acknowledged that I was right on target. Since no one else was right next to us, I decided to try and pace with him.

Chad helped me TONS during the final 3 miles. He did lie to me though-sort of. That wasn’t really the last hill! There was one more pedestrian bridge we needed to cross to get over a freeway! It was a switchback sort of climb, and wasn’t too bad, but it came right after mile 11. Once I made it up and over that, and my average pace was still on at 7:30, I knew I could get my best time. As we got closer to the finish, we had now joined up with the 10km runners, so the energy in the race crowd had picked up a bit. More spectators were around the final mile or so, and this helped motivate me. The race ended with entering the athletic park and running about 300 metres on the track. As I reached my last straightaway, I knew my personal best was all but written in pen, and I pushed hard to keep it under that magic number of 1:38. I finished with an official time of 1:37:54!

I had a huge cheesy smile on my face after finishing. My right leg was also trembling, not because I felt woozy, but because I was so damn excited. I broke my personal best, got the redemption I wanted from the city of Calgary, and did it all while it was close to 75 degrees and increasingly getting warmer. This gave me a huge boost of confidence for my training and running the rest of this summer, as I usually don’t do well in warm weather. Another funny thing about this new personal best is that I beat my last time by 46 seconds, but it was also 68 degrees warmer! No, that is not a typo—it was honestly 7 degrees Fahrenheit in March when I ran my 1:38:40.

The medal for this race was fun, as it reminds me of a sheriff badge, and it is on a bolo tie. Definitely a fun medal for this theme of a race. I also did really enjoy the shirts we got in our race package, which were lavender for women and orange for men. They are a fitted Mizuno shirt with v-neck, and I will definitely be wearing it to train in, which is great. The race package itself was full of goodies, like coffee from Kicking Horse, and Honey Stinger products.

This great swag made up for my other race complaint (In addition to the confusing morning), and that is in regards to the “Stampede Breakfast” we all received a ticket for. When I finished my half, I received a bottle of water, and eventually made my way up to where the food was. I did this about 15 minutes after I finished, as I needed to walk around a bit, pick up my bag, etc. Now, I had finished fast, so you’d think the line for food would be small. But I did not take into account the people who did the 5km and 10km. They were all finished and all in line. You could tell these were the events they ran by looking at the color of their race bibs. The line went from the entrance to the food pickup all across the bleachers in front of the track. And it was moving SLOW. Since it was a pancake breakfast, it wasn’t just a standard grab a banana and chocolate milk and go. It was frustrating that I couldn’t just grab a piece of fruit or a juice, but would have to wait in this giant line behind everyone and anyone who did the 5km and 10km. I don’t even like pancakes, but I did want that sausage I saw on plates. Oh well, I thought about it for one minute and decided to bail and hit the road, picking up breakfast in the way. I gave my ticket to someone already in line and made the short trek back to my car.

So that was the Stampede Road Race. Would I recommend this race to someone? Sure, if you live in Calgary or were going to be there the night before. I do not recommend doing what my crazy self did and drive two hours there, race, and drive two hours back. You’d think I would have learned my lesson from Millarville, but I didn’t. If I was to do this race again, I would look into staying with a friend the night before, and then possibly only doing the 10km. The route was fantastic and the swag was great, but the morning confusion and the post-race food frustration for half marathoners was, well, frustrating. This race will always hold a special place in my heart, as it was my 20th half marathon, and as I set another milestone with breaking 1:38!

Jun14

Millarville Run to the Farmers’ Market 2014—Race Report

Posted on June 14, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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Today was the 3rd Annual Millarville Run to the Farmer’s Market Half Marathon. Last year, I ran this event, and you can find the recap here: Millarville 2013

I had such a positive experience at this event last year, that I decided to run it again! Two things were different though: I didn’t go up the night before, and the weather was cool and had a slight drizzle!

My alarm was scheduled for 3:45 AM today, but I woke up naturally at 3:43 AM. How does that happen? Anyway, if you read earlier this week, the husband and I are on this “Clean Eating Cleanse” diet for two weeks. This morning was breakfast number 7. I knew this “diet” could play into how my race would go, but I was using this race as a scheduled speed training workout, not necessarily a personal best. That being said, I had green tea, black coffee, steamed asparagus and two poached eggs as breakfast…not my normal race-morning breakfast. I got dressed, packed a bag to check, and hit the road at 4:50 AM.

I made it to Black Diamond Oilfields Arena at around 6:40 am. I was able to park close the the start line, went in for my morning-of packet pickup, and got myself situated. Packet pickup was smooth, and the shirts are great. Same logo as last year, but different size, orientation, and shirt color.

The bag check was located right behind the start line, and I was able to drop my bag about 10 minutes before the 7:30 am Half Marathon gun. One thing to note about this event—they have a half marathon, a half marathon relay, an 8 miler, and new this year was the 8-Mile “Bun Run”, where participants had to consume a homemade cinnamon roll from a local bakery at (I think) two different locations during the race before proceeding! The half marathon also offered a 7:00 AM early start for walkers, where I say about 20 people took part.

I started off the race feeling very solid! The weather was in my favour, and I pumped out a 7:26, 7:51, 7:27, 7:35, and 7:29 for the first five miles. I will note, though, that the first portion of the course had little to no incline, and was mostly flat, or rolling country roads. So what goes down…must eventually go up.

After the relay exchange point was where we hit the first substantial hill. I made mile six in 8:04. No biggie, I still had a great average pace. If I wanted to beat my 1:38:40 personal best from March it could still happen. My legs got a little tight from the climb, but started to loosen during mile seven and eight, where i ran 8:00 and 7:55.

Then came the rural highway from hell.

If you look at this overview map from my NikePlus app, you can see that long, long straightaway, which I would like to nickname “The Mindfuck.” It isn’t just a straight shot for nearly 4 miles, but it’s a straight shot that then keeps rolling upwards, going flat, then climbing up again. During mile 9 and 10 is when I started to feel the tightness in my quads and hip flexors. While I kept telling myself to go for a 7:45 for both these miles, my legs just couldn’t. I ran an 8:35 and 8:11.

After the climb that wouldn’t end, I looked at my watch around 10.33 miles. I looked at the average pace (which was around 7:49/7:50 a mile) and I quickly assessed my pain level. I also thought about the training I had all summer ahead of me, and most importantly the big Boston Qualifying race I have in Edmonton in August. At that point, I quickly decided to run smart and run slower, coasting into the finish line. I did not quit—I just weighed my options and realized since a PB wasn’t going to happen, it wasn’t worth killing it to just run somewhere in the 1:40s. So mile 11-13 were 8:40, 9:04, and 8:15, which brought me in at 1:44.32.

After walking off the soreness in my leg, I received my sweet handmade bling, and then I broke our cleanse rule and devoured a quarter of a cheese bagel. Sorry Dan! And I also downed a bottle of water. I also immediately felt at ease with how I did! Last year, I ran this same event in a 1:52.10….I ran almost 8 minutes faster! Sure, I was 6 minutes off my personal best, but the improvement I have had over the past year and a half of doing all these races makes it all fine! I finished 36/331 overall runners, 12/213 females, and 8/47 in the 20-29 female category. You can’t have a personal best every race, and sometimes running smarter and safer is key, so that the “Big Show” goes as planned!

How did I feel after? Legs were sore, my knee was fine….but my stomach was beating me up. Did not hurt till after the race. I wanted to keel over into fetal position during the shuttle ride back to the start line, and while I drove back to Lethbridge, I had to stop at a Wayside before Claresholm. This is when I laid in the back seat on Snoopy’s blanket, wincing in pain, and napped for one hour. I did eventually make it back to Lethbridge, and now 10 hours post race, my stomach seems to have settled. Lesson learned—-don’t expect to feel like a rock star after a half marathon when you are on some whack job clean eating cleanse! Next half marathon is the Stampede Road Race in Calgary on Sunday, July 6th. I WILL NOT be on a weird diet then!

May20

Woody’s RV World Red Deer Half Marathon 2014-Race Recap

Posted on May 20, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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My previous post was about my preparation for the Woody’s RV World Red Deer Half Marathon. Today, I am going to recap the race and let you know if my goal came to be!

This is the fourth year I have ran the Red Deer Half Marathon. I ran in 2010, 2012, 2013, and now this year. It is convenient in that my in laws live in Red Deer, but it is also a great race! The volunteers are fantastic, and swag is pretty great (with one complaint) and the course is gorgeous.

Pick up was no issue at all, as usual. Stopped to get my goods on Friday night, so I had plenty of time to then relax on Saturday I forgot BodyGlide and HoneyStinger Chews, which then caused me to go back to the expo and purchase these. (I didn’t know where any other running store was in town so this was easiest!). Had some pasta with the family Saturday night, threw back a beer that evening (per usual pre race plan) and went to bed early. 6:00 am alarm came fast!

I did my pre-race ritual of eating oatmeal and drinking coffee. I taped myself up, put on some Voltaren 10% on my knee, and headed outside for a warmup. I wanted to get more than 13.1 miles in today, so I planned on doing a 1 mile warmup before the race. I ended up doing about 1.5 miles, but thankfully I did this as I determined I was dressed too warm. Sure, it was raining, but I was already warm with a short sleeve Lululemon shirt on, so I quickly put on a tank, got on a garbage bag to protect myself from the rain, and walked to the start line.

I cut it pretty close this year, arriving at the start line at probably 7:53. It is nearly a mile from my in-laws house and I was power walking it. I got positioned in the corral, Oh Canada was sang, and away we went! You can notice how confused I am at that very moment by looking at the photo found on the front page of the Red Deer Advocate. Nice.

So my goal this race was to pace it like I will when running in Calgary on June 1st for my full; an 8:00 minute per mile pace. I knew my first mile was going to be a crapshoot, and I actually ended up going too slow! I ran mile 1 in 8:14! I set my Nike plus GPS watch to Average Pace so I could watch it work the way back down to 8:00. Miles 2-5 clocked in at 7:58, 8:01, 7:55, and 7:47, respectively.

The course is gorgeous, and follows the trail system on the Red Deer River. I have ran these trails many times, even though I don’t live in Red Deer, as they are convenient to my in-laws place. Familiarity does help a ton when you are shooting for a specific time in a race, as I knew when certain hills or hazards were coming. As I approached one tricky hill on the south side of the Red Deer river, I started talking with a lady around my age about her pace. Her name was Christy—she was doing the full and was going for 3:30! She was running the same pace as me, but obviously I was only doing the half. For the rest of the course, until she kept going to finish her full, we stuck near each other. Using each other as pace buddies was helpful! I had slowed a bit on that hill, hitting an 8:25 for mile 6, but then got back on track with help from Christy. We ran miles 7-12 in 7:51, 7:56, 8:15, 7:52, 7:53, and 8:02.

I had to run the last mile alone, as the full course forked to the left. I headed behind Lindsay Thurber High School, up Michener Hill, and coasted down to the finish line. This last “mile” took me about 7:00. I put mile in quotes because throughout the race I did not have to weave through traffic much, I hugged the curves, and I ran the tangents. My little legs need any advantage possible. I crossed the finish line comfortable with a time of 1:43.09…and I felt great!

I was met at the finish line with my finisher’s medal, water, a banana, and one of those space blankets. My only petty complaint about this race is the medal, as this is now the third year in a row the medal has had the same design on the front face, with the backside date being the only thing that changed. After receiving those goodies, I was greeted by my father-in-law and my beagle Snoopy. Snoopy was not thrilled as the rain was now really coming down. I had to get a finisher’s photo with him, because I realized earlier last week that I had a photo with my silly beagle every year at this race! Apparently it is a tradition!

I had met my “goal” for this race-I completed the half marathon at the same pace I plan on doing my full marathon. And most importantly, I felt like I could keep on going. It is now Tuesday evening and I am not sore one bit! I took yesterday off, but ran a comfortable 6 miles this evening, and I don’t even have knee pain! I am more ready than ever before to attempt to earn the coveted Boston Qualifying time. Less than two weeks….!

A shoutout to Christy, who did meet her goal, finishing the Red Deer Full Marathon in 3:29:00! Boston Qualifier!

May17

Thoughts Before Woody’s RV World 1/2 Marathon…Not Going for a PR, but….

Posted on May 17, 2014 by mscurlgurl78

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Tomorrow is the 16th annual Red Deer Marathon; Woody’s RV World 1/2 and Full Marathon. I have done this race three times before (2010, 2012, 2013) and ran times of 1:54:19, 1:56:06, and 1:47:22, respectively. My race last year smashed my half marathon PR, and I have now broken that a few more times, working down to a 1:38:40.

This year, I am not going for a personal record. I am not going for placing in my age group. I am treating this run as a practice for the Calgary Full Marathon, which is in two short weeks. This is the race that stands between me and Boston.

My goal in Calgary is to run an 8:00 min/mi, which would put me at a 3:30:00 full marathon. In order to qualify for the Boston Marathon, I need to be under a 3:35:00. But, as you know from my post earlier this year, just under your maximum qualifying time doesn’t cut it. My Beef with Boston

By shooting for the 3:30, I am giving myself some qualifying cushion, so to speak. So tomorrow, I am attempting to run even splits, something I used to have a huge struggle with. I am still not perfect when it comes to my splits, but I have gotten them a lot more consistent. I am aiming for a time tomorrow of 1:45:00.

If I can tackle my race tomorrow with consistent splits and finish at 1:45, my mission will be accomplished. I will feel more confident going into Calgary and attempting my BQ. But, in two weeks, a lot can change that I have no control over. Weather is the big thing—there could very well be snow on June 1st in Calgary, but there could also be a heat advisory. While that course is also relatively flat with no major changes in elevation, the starting elevation is close to 3,428 feet above sea level. Now that my body has adjusted to “Rocky Mountain Levels” I am a lot better than I once was when I first moved from Milwaukee, but I still get nervous about racing a full marathon in Calgary. Proof is in past experience—-I ran the Calgary Full Marathon in 2009 with an astounding time of 5:03:37—a personal worst.

I have ran this course and these trails in Red Deer before, so the familiarity is on my side. The whole course is relatively flat, with one bitch of an incline right at the end. This then turns into a rolling hill down to the finish line, so there is a reward. The elevation in Red Deer is 2,805 feet above sea level, which is very comparable to my home base of Lethbridge (2,990 feet). The climate is more humid here in Red Deer, but nothing compared to my hometown of Milwaukee, so race day temps are nothing crazy.

For now, I am going to enjoy this gorgeous May afternoon and go on a 2 mile shakeout run along the river, to keep those joints moving. I’ll head out to our in-laws cabin later to spend time with my nieces, have supper wit the family, then come back to relax. That 6:00 am alarm will be coming soon!

Click here for more information on the Red Deer Marathon

I already went and picked up my race packet yesterday, and while there I was happy to run into the folks from Racepro.ca. Randy and company facilitate all the Runners Soul events back in Lethbridge, and when I checked in for my bib he overheard my name and commented “…I know that name! It’s nice to see a familiar face!” Right back at you Randy!

Je Me Souviens-To Infinity & Beyond!

Running, Disney & Dad–My Journey Continues…

Tag Archives: half marathon

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Bare Bones Half Marathon 2014

…It is Time for a New Age Group…

Dumbo Double Dare Photo Recap-Official MarathonFoto Pictures!

Disneyland Half Marathon Recap

Going Back to the Original Purpose…

Stampede Road Race Recap-Yee Haw!

Millarville Run to the Farmers’ Market 2014—Race Report

Woody’s RV World Red Deer Half Marathon 2014-Race Recap

Thoughts Before Woody’s RV World 1/2 Marathon…Not Going for a PR, but….

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