2015 5/3 River Bank Run 25k

Saturday marked my 3rd running of the 5/3 River Bank Run 25k.  For those in West Michigan, this is THE spring race event and is the 25k national championship race.  This year, those uber fast folks could also attempt to make the half marathon Olympic Trials as part of the race.  I'm not sure how many attempted it, but what a cool opportunity for the elites.

I haven't been super healthy from a running standpoint and for the past couple weeks, I've been barely getting through my long runs and my weekly shorter runs have been more walks than anything else.  To say I had very low expectations for this race would be an understatement.  I was even debating whether to even show up Saturday morning but because I ran the Gazelle Girl Half a few weeks ago and paid all sorts of money to run this one (and get the Double Down medal), I knew I would at least make it to the start.  My goal was just one foot in front of the other until the finish line, no matter how long it took.

Not feeling confident about my ability to run, I set up Runmeter to intervals (2:30 run/:30 walk).  I wasn't using my Garmin for this race either because I haven't been timing my runs and it would have only stressed me out.

Saturday morning's weather was crappy as per RBR usual.  Some years it's freezing, others are roasting, most of the time it's raining.  Yesterday was humidity, warmth (mid-60s), and rain.  Lots and lots of rain.  I woke up at 4am to the downpour. Because this race is only about 15 minutes from my house, I figured I'd get downtown in plenty of time to park and get to the start.  Sadly, got a little bit of a late start but it ended up working out ok.  Our church is only a few blocks from the start and we were able to park there and wait inside where it was warm and dry.  We even watched a bunch of the 5k and 10k runners go by.


I wandered down to the start about 20 minutes before the gun and found a few friends in the crowd.  The crowd was significantly smaller than in previous years and I'd love to see how many DNS's there were because of the weather.  I had started my playlist before I walked down from church and tucked my phone into two ziplock bags in my fuelbelt.  The gun went off and I took off running with the 11 m/m mile pace group just a little bit ahead of me.

My achilles was squaking at me but it wasn't horrible so I just kept running nice and easy, with walks just to grab water at the aid stations about every 1.5 miles.  I made it through the little downtown area and into the trail system feeling pretty good.  It was around 3 or 4 miles in that my friend Tim tapped me on the shoulder and said "hi".  He and our friend Joe were right behind me.  I played rabbit for them until just after mile 8 when I ducked into a bathroom.  I was clearly well hydrated.

I hit the 1/2 way mark still feeling pretty good.  Much better than expected. I actually felt the strongest through the hills on Butterworth.  My playlist was outstanding and in this section I was singing outloud to Uptown Funk, Pour Some Sugar on Me, and Dear Future Husband.  The people around me were quite entertained.

Just after mile 11 or so I came across Lake Butterworth.  (Thank you to Pete for posting a picture and letting me steal it.) I had to laugh out loud as lines of runners went through mud and a giant briar patch to get around the massive puddle.  People who went through it said it was up to about mid-calf.  I debated for a few seconds about just running through since my feet were soaked anyway, but I decided to go around and ended up with mud soaking through my Newtons.  I needed new shoes anyway.


We came out of the hills and back into town around mile 12 and I still couldn't believe how good I felt.  I was getting tired but other than those water station walks and my mud trek, I'd been running the whole thing.

Then the wheels fell off.  Somewhere around mile 12.5 my legs just said NOPE and started cramping up.  My stomach started hurting and I felt like even when I was running that I wasn't moving.  I realized I hadn't taken any gels since mile 8 so I took another around the 13 mile mark.  I made it to the half marathon mat and then started paying attention to the intervals that had been talking to me the whole race.  I was pretty sure my unspoken sub-3 hour goal was gone at this point and I just wanted to get to the end.

from Wood TV via my daughter - I'm *almost* famous!

For the last 2.5 miles of the race, all I wanted to do was stop running but I made myself run those dang 2 1/2 minute intervals, even if the run wasn't much faster than the walks.  On Lake Michigan Drive, I was my friend, Tammie, cheering and I went over to get a much needed hug.  I think I told her I felt like shit and she said I looked better than shit so to keep running.  I wanted to run the last mile but even in that section I did my walks because mentally and physically I was done.  The last 1/4 mile or so is up a hill that feels like it's straight up but it really isn't.  My legs were toast but I ran that last section with all I had and even managed to chick a couple guys.  Go me!

I crossed the finish line and the clock read 3:06 something, so I was pretty sure I was over 3 hours. I didn't really care but I sorta did.  My legs were one giant pile of cramp and I was having a hard time walking and I was crying.  Interestingly, my sports med doc was working the finish line and he came over to me and put his arm around me.  I know he was just doing his job and making sure I wasn't going to fall over, but it was so nice to see a familiar face. We walked with him holding me up for a little bit until I said I was ok and he gave me a big hug.  I somehow made it the rest of the way through the finish shoot.

I was so happy to get those 2 medals.  I sat down on the steps of Calder Plaza and somehow my friends found me there.  Good thing.  I'd have never gotten back up without their help.

I LOVE the medal this year and getting the Double Down for also running Gazelle Girl was a great touch.  This is the first year (outside of the 35th Anniversary race that I spectated in my boot) that the RBR has had a new medal design.  It's beautiful!  The Gazelle one says Finish2 for Finished Squared and the logos for both races are on the back.

When I realized I could scan my bib to get my official results, I think I SQUEEE'd out loud in the car when I saw I just eeked out a sub-3 hour finish!  For running one of my worst races as far as pace goes, I'm happy with this one.  I fought for that finish starting about 2 weeks ago right up until I crossed that finish line.

Will I run the 25k here again?  I really don't know.  I think I need a serious running break from distance runs and even a break from running in general.  I hated the shirt this year.  I wore it for a couple hours after the race and it will probably never see the light of day again - it's WAY too big and even though I paid extra for a tech shirt, there were no exchanges for tech. So annoying.  The weather is always iffy for this one but at least I earned a little Michigan runner girl cred back for running in the soup after hardly running outside all winter long.  I figure I have until next January or so before I have to decide.

Thankful Thursday: friends with great taste

On Monday I put a call out for some new running tunes & you guys really stepped up! It's pretty cool to see how many of my bloggy friends share the same taste in music as me.  Given how I'm feeling about Saturday and the weather stalking I've done showing really warm, humid and rainy conditions, I'm going to need all the music positivity I can get.


Might be a bit tough to read but that's my playlist for Saturday's 25k (if you click on the image you can read it easier). A few old favorites, some music I forgot I owned and a bunch of new favorites. I might add a few more songs before Saturday morning so if there are any last minute suggestions, hit me up in the comments!

Fitness Friday: and so it begins??

To run the Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k in 2015 wasn't in question when they unveiled the new medal.  Isn't she pretty!?!  Finally, a re-design after using the same medals year after year after year after year....you get the idea.

What's in question is whether I'm ready to start training for another big race.  I got a little burned out training for Detroit but the payback of a nearly 35 minute marathon PR was worth it.  I'm wondering what I could pull off for the 25k in May.  How hard do I want to work?  My PR is a 2:41:33 (10:25 pace) and that was pretty tough.  Think I could go sub 2:30?  That would be around a 9:30 pace.  I think that's probably a big of a stretch carrying the extra weight I have and seriously lacking in speedwork, but May is a long ways off.

I haven't registered yet because there's rumor that they are partnering with another race and that could mean special bling to sign up at the same time, so I'm going to hold off for now.

In any case, the first official "long" run is tomorrow morning.  It's a whopping 5 miles but since I'm still toying with the idea of a winter half, I'm planning to run an extra 3.  Anyone want to join me in 8 frigid miles tomorrow morning?  At least it's not supposed to snow.

Fitness Friday: what's next?

After coming off my awesome Detroit Marathon PR, it's hard to think about goal to chase next.

Do I work on increasing strength?  I'm notorious for not seeing lifting programs through to the end.

Do I focus on increasing speed at a shorter distance?  Perhaps that elusive sub-2 half?

Do I get back to focusing on getting my weight back down where it should be?  Because losing 10-15 pounds would really help with all these other ideas.

Or do I set my sights on another marathon?

I know I don't have to decide today, but this "not having a plan" plan really isn't working for me.  I've been on the scale more this week than I probably should be in a month.  

I do have one little race on my schedule for 2015 (although I won't register until after the new year).  This year, the Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k FINALLY revealed a new medal!  They put it up to a community vote and my choice won.  Isn't that one of the prettiest medals ever?!?  For a race that is the 25k National Championship and a huge draw for Michigan and the city of Grand Rapids, it was about time they showcased what GR has to offer on it's medal.  This one will definitely be hanging around my neck come May of 2015.  Anyone want to run it with me?

5/3 River Bank Run 25k Relay #racereport

On Saturday, May 10th, I ran in my 3rd relay race.  I've done a 200 mile relay (The Fred - LOVED) and the Grand Rapids Marathon Relay (Eh).  This one also fell into the "Eh" category, but there were definitely aspects to the weekend that I loved.  Getting to spend the weekend with Corey and finally meet her hubby were 2 of the highlights for sure.  The run? For me, notsomuch.

Anyhoo...Going to write a recap that's probably a little long so if you want to grab your beverage of choice or just skim the pictures, I'm totally ok with that.  A 25k is a long-ass race, so the recap is going to be similar.

Friday afternoon, Mike and I met up with Corey and Glen and our friend Joe at the expo.  Since this wasn't my first River Bank Run expo, I knew exactly where we needed to head and what I wanted to see.  Corey and Glen loved the expo because there was all sorts of free stuff like water bottles and samples that they don't get in Trinidad.  It was cute watching them go from booth to booth.  We grabbed our packets and when the guy at the relay booth handed us a bright blue track baton, we were both like "WTF???" Yes, we had to run the entire relay carrying an actual track baton.  It was not awesome.  One thing that was full of awesome was this free green-screen photo booth where Corey and I practiced our handoff :)

After we got our packets and grabbed lunch at Freshii (sorry, bad blogger didn't take a picture), Mike and I headed to our daughter's conference track meet while Corey and Glen headed back to their hotel.  We met up later that night for some carb loading at Founder's Brewing.  I mean, where else would you take out-of-towners for beer???  (Side note - carb loading minus bread really defeats the purpose. I was very pissy most of the night and finally said "screw it" and had beer - the lowest carb/calorie one they make. Eating my sandwich minus the incredible sourdough was both difficult and sad.)

Aren't we cute? 

Race evening was my usual zero sleep (ok, maybe an hour between 3 and 4) and an extremely early wake up because my son was volunteering and needed to be downtown by 5:15.  I ate my usual bowl of oatmeal (but a full cup vs the 1/2 cup I usually have) and coffee at about 4:15 am.  I wasn't going to be racing until close to 9:30.  Not planning for more food was a mistake.  

I do love Grand Rapids in the early morning hours.  The river is beautiful and we were able to chill at Corey and Glen's hotel before we needed to head down for the 25k.  Glen was running the 5k and we actually saw him on the TV coverage.  Corey got video and it was quite hilarious.  While at the hotel, I ate a hard boiled egg, but by the time I was boarding the bus at 8:15 to go to the exchange zone, I was starving.  They had bananas and granola bars on the bus so I ate a banana but I skipped the granola since I didn't know what it might do to my stomach.

Had to get a pre-race team photo :)

My bus left for the first exchange zone right around the time Corey started running her 6.8 mile leg.  We were figuring it would take her a good hour between the time it would take to get across the start and then run her section.  I was able to see the elites come flying through, which was very cool.  The lead guys did that leg in about 32 minutes and the lead female in 36:30.  It was unreal.  Then, guess what?  She CRUSHED leg 1 and showed up about 5 minutes before I was expecting her! Crazy girl held an 8:26 average pace and set a huge PR for that distance.  I grabbed the baton and was off.

I already posted about my run on DailyMile and I don't want to re-post a bunch of it here, because frankly, it really sucked.  I know starting in the middle of the 8:20/8:30 pace pack really messed with my head because I started way too fast (there were high 8s and low 9s the first 1/2 mile) and then when EVERYONE is passing you, it's pretty defeating.  I felt like I was slow and in everyone's way.  I also was running immediately into all the hills without much of a warm up.  My legs (and my head) were pretty much trashed 2 miles in so once I hit the bigger hills, I was done.  I even made a stop at the first aid station for sunscreen because I didn't put any on at zero:dark:30 in the morning and my entire 8.8 miles were going to be in direct sun.  I walked so many times that I seriously thought about just sitting down. Between my head, the heat (it had gotten into the high 50s/low 60s by the time I started), and the hills, I was beat down and really discouraged.  After Corey did so great on the first half, I completely tanked the 2nd half.

All those blue dips down were the times I walked. Fail.

Once we hit the flat sections again about 6 miles into my run, I started to get bad cramps in my legs and even took Gatorade at about the 14 mile mark (my 7ish). I could not will my legs to move and was getting really pissed at myself.  I'd watched the 8:30, 9:00, and 9:30 pace teams pass me and I was determined NOT to see the 10:00 pacers.  I really wanted to maintain under an 11:00 pace for this run and I failed.  I averaged an 11:07, but when I looked back at my Garmin data, it looks like when I was moving, I was running at a pretty good clip - definitely in the 10s with some 9s.  Just all those walk breaks screwed me.

seeing my splits with "best pace" breakdown made me feel a bit better

I managed to pull it together somehow and ran my last .8 miles at almost the same pace I ran my first mile.  Nothing like bringing the horse into the barn - even on the stupid uphill last 1/4 mile to the finish line. I crossed the finish and went to the girls handing out medals.  They told me the relay ones were all the way at the end where I had to turn in my baton.  Did you forget? I'd been carrying that f*cking baton for almost 9 miles!  I wandered up and down the finish shoot and never saw where to get our medals but I did find a banana.  Everything else I saw was stuff I wasn't supposed to eat.  I also saw another relay girl wandering and looking lost and confused.  We finally found someone who directed us to a tent OUTSIDE the finish area where we got our medals and ditched our stupid batons.

I ran my 8.3 miles in 1:37:11.  A very disappointing 11:07 pace.  I met up with Glen in the finisher area and then a couple minutes later, Mike showed up.  Corey had gone back to the hotel to shower so I got in line to get my free beer (a gross Michelob Ultra because by the time my slow ass finished there were out of anything better) and bitched about my race to my friend Pete.  

Overall, Team Made in Michigan did really well.  We even managed to place 1st in our AG (however they figured that out) and since the team was listed under my name, I had a bunch of friends messaging me that I got first in my AG. Um, NO.  That was just some weird fluke in how they reported the scores.  I will never see a "1" by  my name again though, and honestly, I don't like it in this instance.  The relay results should have been listed by team name - not by team captain or however they chose to do this.  Now, I have a bunch of people thinking I ran a 25k at a 9:60 pace (also dumb - isn't that a 10:00 pace???), which is a total lie.  I didn't run this, Team Made in Michigan did. We finished in the top 30% or so for all-women teams and just under 50% overall.  Considering how badly I tanked, it's a wonder we weren't DFL.

Loved the shirt design but it's HUGE. Last year they ran small
so I sized up this year. Big mistake and I'll never wear a shirt
I paid extra for now.

After the race, we headed back to Corey and Glen's hotel to shower while they hung out at the post-race party.  We met up with them for lunch at San Chez, which is one of my favorite restaurants ever and even more so now since they brought me the most incredible gluten free bread.  The food, my bloody mary and Corey's bubbly were pretty great too.  So, other than a crappy run for me, this was a really nice weekend.  I'm not sure I'll ever run the 25k relay again because I wasn't crazy about the whole finish line crap and running with runners way above my pace, but at least I went out there and ran almost 9 miles of hills in the blazing sun and got to hang with Corey and Glen in the process.

Did you run the 5/3 River Bank Run or another race this weekend?  How did it go for you?

Training Tuesday: Double Digits and T - 5 days until River Bank Run

Last week turned out to be a pretty decent training week.  Do you see that "10" on Saturday?  That was my first double-digit run since the end of December!

I'm getting kind of bored with writing out each day's workouts since they are all over on Daily Mile (and you all are probably bored reading them).  Maybe once I pull the trigger on Detroit, I'll start logging the workouts in more detail here.

This week's numbers 

Running 17 miles

Biking 14.7 miles

Yoga x 1

Lifting x 3

Walking 6 miles

I did see a new-ish chiro this week (that would be the giant BLANK on Thursday). I had worked with him before my stress fracture 2 years ago and just wanted his opinion again.  He feels my foot issues are being cause by a lack of strength/activation in my hip and glute.  Sort of makes sense.  He also found my quad was a mess, so I'm now rolling like crazy and trying to strengthen my glute.  I actually felt pretty decent after my 10 mile run on Saturday and even managed a 6 mile walk on Sunday.  Maybe we're on the right track.

In related news - the 5/4 River Bank Run 25k Relay is this coming Saturday!! I'm so excited to see Corey again and run with her on Saturday.  Running a good chunk of my segment on Saturday tells me I'm not going to be setting any PRs, but I know I can finish and collect our bling at the finish line!

What's your next race?

Fitness Friday: how do I fuel and how do I celebrate?

So, if you've seen any of my other posts this week, you know that I've been re-vamping my eating to be paleo-ish.  I've cut grains, most sugars, and dairy.  This has worked great this week - as of this morning I've lost just over 6 pounds since Monday.  Don't flip, I'm sure at least 5 pounds of that is water.

Now I have a huge issue though.  All my usual pre-long run/pre-race meals are off limits.  

Gone is my ability to eat my usual chicken parmesean on Friday nights.  This is also one of my family's favorite meals, so my guess is I'll be cooking it for them and then eating plain chicken and a sweet potato or something while they enjoy this.

Gone is going out with friends after the race to celebrate.  I also usually have a beer the night before a race and now I can't have that either.  I know I'm whining about stupid shit, but it kind of pisses me off and this is exactly why I didn't want to go paleo in the first place.  One of my friends suggested chips/salsa and cider instead of beer, but those aren't exactly healthy alternatives (and technically, corn chips are also off limits because they are a grain).

Corey is coming in next week Friday and mentioned going out Friday night and then after the 5/3 River Bank Run race on Saturday.  I have no idea where we will go or what I'll be able to eat/drink when we get there.  It kind of takes the fun out of a weekend with friends.  

I'm not really looking for suggestions because I got a ton of them on FB.  Most included brown rice (also not allowed) or rice noodles (not allowed).  I'm hoping that my dinner tonight of plain chicken and a sweet potato helps me get through 10 miles tomorrow morning.  If not, I'm pretty much screwed for race day next week.

Fitness Friday: race registration karma?

It seems the universe is conspiring against me in my quest to start signing up for races. (Even though I'm not currently running - I'm getting antsy.)

I've tried for 2 days in a row to register for the Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k Relay.  

Both days something went wrong - either I couldn't connect to the site at all or the coupon code I was given for unknowingly becoming their postcard image didn't work.  

I figured I could register for this one since I should be fine to run by May.  I hope the running God's aren't trying to tell me something because I'm really excited about this race now since I get to run the relay with Corey so I HAVE TO BE ABLE TO REGISTER!

Since I had it in my head to register for SOMETHING today, I decided to go for this one instead.

Don't worry, I'm not running a marathon in 3 weeks, or even a half marathon.  I'm going to run the 1/6th Moonlight Marathon the night before.  I figure even broken I can walk 4.4 miles but hopefully I'll be able to at least run most of it or I'm going to freeze my ass off.

Fitness Friday: race plans?

The thing to do the first week of a new year is lay out all your race plans for the year. I was 100% planning NOT to do that. I'm injured and burnt out and really wanted a break after completing 11 races this year. 13 if you count a virtual 10k and the Get Lost in Running virtual race. (I might count those because that means I did 13 in 2013!)

Anyhoo...like I was saying, I wasn't planning to post any race plans.

But then this happened yesterday.



That would be yours truly on the propaganda for the 2014 Fifth Third River Bank Run, the largest 25k road race in the country.  I can't even imagine how many of those postcards were delivered.  At least it's a cute picture and I set a PR that day.

And then my Facebook and Twitter exploded as friends all over the area got their mail today.  Oy.

look familiar?

So now I have a bit of a dilemma.  I wasn't planning to run the 25k this year.  I won't run the 5k or 10k because I'm too much of a bling whore and those races don't have medals.  Now I feel obligated to run because they used my picture.  (Side note - let this be a lesson that anything you post online can be used, especially if you put it on Facebook.)

So what's a girl to do?  It sorta looks like this one is running the 2014 Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k, or maybe I'll do the 5k/25k combo.  Kinda throws off my plans to take the month of January off from running, doesn't it?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Race Photos! #53rbr #25k #runchat

Finally, a race where I don't hate every.single.picture.taken!  Granted, I look at these pictures and see so many things about my running form (among other things) that need to change, but still.  These aren't altogether horrible so I thought I'd share.

Oops - caught looking at my watch!

Around mile 15?

Determined - but the chick on the phone isn't impressed.

Home stretch - and both feet off the ground!

DONE!!

Official chip time was 2:41:33.

And because I couldn't just show the decent pictures, I figured I'd give you all a laugh at my expense and post a couple of the really bad ones.  It's no wonder my hands hurt after this race - in every picture I look like I'm ready to punch someone out.  Note to self - open your hands every now and then!  Also - keep working on that mid-foot to fore-foot strike, cuz it ain't there yet.


Now, the big question.  Do I buy a picture and if so...which one?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

5/3 River Bank Run 25K #53rbr #racereport

This past Saturday I ran a little race around these parts known as the 5/3 River Bank Run 25k.  This 25k is the largest 25k in the country (and I believe the national championship).  The day also includes a 10k run, 5k run, 5k walk and junior events, with participants totaling over 21,000 people.  Needless to say, it's a pretty big party for the running community and city of Grand Rapids.

Leading up to the event, I was feeling unusually relaxed.  I'd had other stuff stressing me out but not the race.  Maybe this was because I was planning to just use the race as a training run for the Bayshore Half coming up in 2 weeks.  In any case, I wasn't stressing too much unless you count stressing a little about the weather.  Friday at lunch time, I scooted downtown to pick up my packet.  I spent more time trying to find parking than I did in the actual expo.  It's a really good expo if you have time to walk around. Lots of vendors, other races you can register for, etc.  Basically I just ran in, grabbed my packet, and ran back out.

My daughter had a track meet Friday night, so I got to hang out in the rain and cold while she competed.  Once her events were done, I headed home and had a nice dinner of Subway, a bag of chips and a beer.  I figured it worked for Martian so why not try the same meal again for River Bank ;)  I set up Flat Bari and then hit the hay around 9:30 pm.

My alarm went off at the ungodly hour of 5:40 am - but as per usual, I was already awake.  I don't know why I bother setting multiple alarms for races because I never sleep the night before anyway.  I debated a long time about whether to carry my fuel belt and at the last minute, left it on the counter at home.  There were aide stations every 1.5 miles on the course so I figured I'd be fine.  My school district has a corporate team every year and I was a member of the team, so I got to wait in the VIP/team area before the race.  I'm not fast enough for my time to count towards our team's score, but I join the team specifically for the private bathrooms with no line and a warm/dry place to wait.  I did a little warm-up in the room and then met up with Mindy.  I also got to see Megan for a few minutes before the race as well.

I'll be buying another Altheta Relay Skort - so comfy and NO chaffing!

Mindy and I lined up together at around the 10:30 pace sign.  (There are pace teams for this event, but the closest times were 10:00 min/mile and 11:00 min/mile - we were both shooting for a 10:30 average so we decided to run together as long as we could and use my Garmin for pacing.) The plan was to run the entire race but walk through the aide stations for water.  I figured the short walk breaks would help keep my pace under control and force me to drink since I wasn't carrying water.  (For the record - I took 2 shot blocks every 3 miles for fuel and just water for hydration.)

I pretty much split this race into thirds in my head, so that's how I'm going to report it.

Miles 1-5 - We start heading out of downtown and into the Kent Trails system.  The number of people running is just crazy for such a small area and Mindy and I spent a lot of the first 5 miles weaving in and out of the crowds.  I wasn't feeling great in the first miles - my foot and ankle were hurting pretty much from the start and I didn't think I'd be able to maintain my goal pace.  This section is really flat but Indian Mounds Drive is cambered with rumble strips down the center.  It was hard to find an even section to run on. Splits: 10:11 - 10:23 - 10:21 - 10:28 - 10:38  

Miles 6-10 - Right around mile 6 was the cheer station staffed by Grandville Public Schools cheerleaders and football players.  I got a hug from Julie, the cheer coach who is also the preschool teacher at my school, and lots of high-fives from former students.  This gave me a nice boost and a smile.  We headed across the river and past Johnson Park.  I had friends spectating there but never saw them.  Around mile 7, Mindy and I parted ways.  I was feeling really strong and comfortable.  This is an area that I've done many training runs on and I wasn't worried about the hills coming up on Butterworth. The biggest climb starts around mile 9.5 and the hills continue through around mile 12.  Splits: 10:32 - 10:25 - 10:32 - 10:21 - 10:44

Miles 11-15.5 - The biggest section of hills (rollers really) started around mile 10.  Just before the mile 11 marker, Zac Brown Band's "Quiet Your Mind" came on.  The timing couldn't have been more perfect.  "Quiet your mind, soak it all in" was exactly what I was trying to do through this area.  I'd done many long runs on this section of Butterworth and I knew those rollers like the back of my hand.  I don't think I've ever felt so strong or run with more smiles than I did during this portion of the race.  After the several miles of hills, we headed back into downtown, which was very flat again.  I remembered running this race 2 years ago and hitting the zoo at mile 13.1 and knowing I was setting a distance PR.  I set another distance PR at this point on Saturday - the farthest I'd run since getting injured and the farthest I'd run since my full marathon back in October 2011.  In the zoo section, I heard one of my running buddies yell my name.  I had no idea she'd be there and didn't see her at first.  This made me smile again.  I was starting to feel tired but kept telling myself "you can run 2 more miles - you've done this hundreds of times."  When I crossed the bridge on Fulton there were a ton of funny signs.  "Smile if you aren't wearing any underwear." "Run now, beer later."  "Keep running, your beer misses you!" I could hear the finish line area and with 1/2 a mile to go, I really kicked it in.  It's a bit cruel that this race finishes on an uphill, but there you go.  My last 1.5 miles were my fastest miles of the entire race.  Splits: 10:16 - 10:24 - 10:25 - 10:20 - 9:58 - 5:42 (9:18 pace).  

data from my Garmin

Sweet victory!  I had finished my 2nd 5/3 River Bank Run 25k just as strong as when I started running.  I'd even managed to set a sweet new PR - by about 11 minutes :)  I made it through the finishers area and got some water and chocolate Muscle Milk. My hands were so cold that I had to ask a random stranger to open them for me because I couldn't work my fingers.


I set out intending this to be a training run, but as a friend said later, I was weak - I let the thrill of racing get the better of me :) I've discovered that I can't NOT race in a race environment.  I care about my time and I was definitely finding targets and picking people off.  The chick with a flower in her hair - roadkill.  The dude in a tutu with a sign on his back that said "Never lose a bet against your better half" - roadkill.  I stopped counting at 15 people passed in the last mile.  But am I upset with myself for racing this training run? Hellz. No.  I'm extremely proud of myself for running a very smart race.  I think I could've pushed myself much harder than I did but I would've ended up much worse for wear.  Instead, I'm left with some muscle soreness and a sore foot, but nothing that I'd consider an "injury" at this point.  The next few days will be devoted to recovery.  I started my recovery right after the race with a beer and pulled pork sammie.  :)

My initial results had me ranked higher than the final, official results, but I'm ok with that.  Sure, I'd rather be in the upper half, but compared to where I was 2 years ago when I ran this in 2:52:55, today's run was a huge improvement. I ran a very smart race, set an 11:xx minute PR and physically feel much better than I remember feeling a couple years ago. I even managed to run a negative split with all the hills in the 2nd half and passed 300 people in the 2nd half of the race! Very f*cking awesome :)


So, my "training run" turned out to be a nice race with a PR and bling.  Not too shabby for a morning's work. I'd set 4 goals for myself in Friday's blog post:

• Finish with a smile on my face - CHECK ( I really can't wait to see the race photos)
• Finish without any injuries - CHECK (I think - jury is still out on the foot)
• Be proud of how far I've come this year - MEGA CHECK

And if I'm feeling really good....

• Finish in under 2:52:55 - CHECK!!

My "unwritten" time goal was to finish under 2:45:xx - I'd managed to hit that goal as well!

Did you race this weekend?  How did it go?

Fitness Friday: 25k Gear & Goals

This being Michigan means the weather has been a bit indecisive. We went directly from winter to summer and now Mother Nature has decided spring was feeling left out so it's back to cooler temps and rain. I've been just as indecisive about what I'm wearing for tomorrow's 5/3 River Bank Run 25k, but I think I've got it down now.

• On my head: Sugoi hat, Chicaband
• On my wrists: RoadID and my Garmin 410
• On my body: Moving Comfort Juno bra, Yellowman by YMX shirt and arm warmers (probably won't end up using the arm warmers), Athleta Relay Skort (this just came in the mail yesterday so I ran an easy 2 miles in it last night and I loved it - only thing I don't love is the color and that it's a thicker material so I'm afraid it might get warm)
• On my feet: Smartwool PhD Run Ultralight Micro socks and my Newton Gravity shoes

I still need to somehow make it to the expo to pick up my packet/number (I'm runner 7132 but I don't believe there is runner tracking and I haven't decided whether I'll have runmeter broadcasting my run to Facebook or Twitter).  Obviously I still need to add my fuel belt and number holder but for the most part I've got my sh*t together.  Because I'm running on the team for my school district, I get to wait inside so I don't have to worry about throwaway clothes for the morning but I do need to pack a bag to check with some dry clothes for after the race.

Now....on to goals....

• Finish with a smile on my face
• Finish without any injuries
• Be proud of how far I've come this year

And if I'm feeling really good....

• Finish in under 2:52:55

I have another time goal in mind but I'm keeping that one to myself for right now.

Are you racing this weekend? Or like me using a race as a training run for bling?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Spectating Saturday: a different sort of race report

Since I couldn't run the 35th anniversary 5/3 River Bank Run 25k, I spectated the crap out of it. I got to watch the start of all the various races (the wheelchair athletes were inspiring) and see the first 5k male & female finishers (14:39 & 16:58 - holy crap they're fast!!).



I watched a bunch of my friends race & got shots of Pete starting the 25k & Morgan (she blogs here!) killing it in the 10k.



And I celebrated their awesome races with an adult beverage or 3! (Angie ran an amazing 1:58 in her 25k!!)



I figure if you can't join them you might as well cheer your heart out for them because these friends are some of my biggest cheerleaders too.
Then, you get dressed in a new pair of jeans & go out wearing matching shoes for the first time in 3 weeks!



Congrats to all of the 5/3 River Bank Run participants! If you ran & write a race report, PLEASE leave me the link so I can read it!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Best Laid Plans

Back in January, I envisioned today going like this:
• Going to the 5/3 River Bank Run expo full of excitement & dropping a bunch of money on sport beans & gu.
• Hydrating myself with water & Nuun until my eyeballs float.
• Eating a great pasta and protein dinner.
• Pinning my race number to my carefully chosen race outfit complete with Team Sparkle skirt.
• Going to bed nice & early to get up at the butt crack of dawn to run the shit out of tomorrow's 25k.

Instead, this has been my day-before 25k:
• Went to race expo to pick up my really expensive (but very nice) race t-shirt and hobble around sullenly without buying anything.
• Consumed about 4 oz of water today, no Nuun. I've been hydrating with Sonic Diet Cherry Limeade & iced tea from McDonalds.
• All I've eaten is my usual protein shake for breakfast & a burger from Sonic for lunch. I'm at a track meet so dinner will probably be a hot dog or some popcorn.
• I'll dig through my swag bag later for my beer coupon and put it in my backpack. Screw the number and who knows what I'll wear tomorrow.
• I'll go to bed whenever & sleep in a little bit, but still head downtown in the morning for the River Bank Run.

Even though I can't run, I can still spectate the SHIT out of those races.

Good luck to all of my friends racing tomorrow. I'll be the one in the boot screaming her head off at the finish line.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

3 Things Thursday

Some Thursday randomness today since I posted on things that make me smile yesterday.

1. Since I'll have my first DNS at the 5/3 River Bank Run 25k, I'm scoping out places to spectate (and praying for good weather for both runners and spectators).  I know a lot of peeps running and for ease I think I'm going to camp out near the start/finish lines.  This way I get to see Morgan kill it in the 10k (this chica is my comeback-from-injury inspiration!) as well as Megan (running her 1st 25k!), Pete, Keith, and Angie blow away the 25k. (If you are running or coming to GR to spectate, let me know so I have someone else to cheer for/see!)  With as fast as all my friends are, I shouldn't have to wait very long to use the beer ticket I'll get in my swag bag. Now, the big question is whether I'll ever wear the really expensive shirt.
2. I'm starting to really like dresses but today I'm wearing pants.  I'm planning to watch my girl's track meet tonight and hoping I can get to all the spots on my little roll-y scooter. 
3. My right calf is now 1/4" smaller than my left calf.  I'm officially a freak.

Have you ever spectated a race?  What's your go-so spectating item?  A cowbell, sign, sunscreen?  Give me some suggestions!

Oh, yah, 1 more thing - I just hit over 85000 pageviews on this blog since I started it.  Why aren't you all commenting????  Stop lurking and SAY SOMETHING ALREADY :)

2011 Fifth Third River Bank Run

On Saturday, May 14, 2011, I did something I said I'd *never* do.  I ran 15.5 miles.  I set 2 PRs that day - distance and time.  A pretty good way to start off a Saturday morning. 

But this journey really started over a year ago while training for the 2010 River Bank Run.  I'd decided to start running again and set my sights on the 10k.  After that race, I literally just kept on running.  Another 10k in July and then the Grand Rapids Half-Marathon in October.  A few weeks ago I ran my first 10 mile race.  All in preparation to run the 2011 Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k, the largest 25k road race (participant-wise) of it's kind in the country.  Saturday morning, I set out with nearly 21,000 of my *closest* friends.  Of these 21,000 people, around 5600 would run the 25k race.  (There are also 5k walk, 5k run, 10k, and 25k handcycle & wheelchair races.)  With that many participants, plus around 30,000+ spectators and volunteers, you can imagine how insane the energy was.

I started off the week making sure to eat lots of good carbs and get my hydration taken care of.  This included the obligatory giant plate of pasta the night before the race.  (This might explain the slight bump on the scale.)  I also had a great time wandering around the expo.  I got all my gear situated and crawled into bed by 10:00. 

Somewhere around 0-dark-30, I woke up and started getting ready.  I was less than thrilled to hear the rain hitting the windows, but for the past several years, the weather has been pretty cruddy for RBR so I really wasn't surprised.  Plus, I had been stalking the weather channel, so I knew not to expect sunny skies.  Early morning prep followed my usual long-run M.O.  I had a bowl of oatmeal with butter and brown sugar for breakfast (don't knock it till you try it!) and made up a 32 oz pitcher of Fruit Punch Nuun.  I also spent some quality time with Mr. Foam Roller. (Isn't the hubby a great photographer? - Wait, don't answer that.)

We headed downtown around 6:30 am and found a great parking spot at our church.  Since the rain was coming down VERY hard and neither of us thought to grab an umbrella, we waited for a bit in the car.  I played some Angry Birds and Mike took a nap.  About 10 minutes after 7, the rain let up and we decided to make the walk down to DeVos Place.  As we were walking down the hill toward the expo center, we got to see the lead runner in the men's 5k race go flying by (literally - the dude finished in 15:04!).  We made our way into the expo center and met up with our neighbor, who was also running the 25k.  Scott is hilarious but I needed to find a potty, so we wished him luck and were off.  Since I was signed up as a member of my school district's team, I was allowed access to a special "hospitality" area.  The best thing I ever did was ask what was involved in being on the team.  I never received a response until my name showed up on the roster.  Apparently, nothing is involved - except perks like women's bathrooms with no lines and snacks before the race!  Mike couldn't come in the room, so he stayed out in the main area and kept texting me the number of women in the bathroom lines - 40, 50, 60.  In my line?  Zip, Zero, Zilch!  but the men's line had about 20-30 guys!  Think the teams were a little testosterone heavy, maybe?  Needless to say, I will be a proud member of Grandville's team again next year :)

Anyhoo.  I spent some time stretching and using the facilities, then headed back out to meet up with Mike.  The rain had slowed to a drizzle at this point (it's now around 8:10) and so after one more trip into the "good" bathroom, we headed outside to line up for the 25k race.  I decided to line up with the 11 m/m pacers to keep myself from starting out too fast.  

Here I am, in the rain, waiting for the start!



In reality, it took about 5 minutes after the gun went off to actually cross the starting line.  Lots of starts and stops.  There was a bunch of good natured mooing and bleating as we all felt like livestock being lead to the slaughter.  I finally got close to the starting line and I hear Mike yell my name and tell me good luck.  He got a great picture of the dude next to me starting his race :)



Where's Bari?



I had my playlist all set to go and mapmyrun started, but I had decided a couple days before the race that I wouldn't put in my earbuds until at least mile 3.  I wanted to enjoy the energy of the crowd and just "be" while I settled in.  The race headed down Market Avenue and into the Kent Trails system.  I never saw the 1 mile sign and started to get a bit worried when I checked my watch and it said "18-something".  I thought, "Crap, I'm doomed" but a few minutes later, there was the sign for mile 2.  I hit the split on my watch and clocked 22:17:02 for the first 2 miles.  These first couple miles had a slight downhill grade, which was nice.  Shortly before (or maybe it was after) the 2 mile sign, I struck up a conversation with a woman named Kim from Kalamazoo.  We chatted about our jobs and she told me she had run the Kalamazoo 1/2 Marathon the previous weekend.  We asked each other about pace and both said we were looking to stay around 11 m/m.  It was fate :) 

Before we knew it, mile 3 passed (10:56:17) and so did mile 4 (11:04:48).  We are cruising right along under the tree canopy on Indian Mounds Drive, with the Grand River on our right.  Along this path, we were passed by several myTeamTriumph groups.  Everyone would cheer and yell out the "Team Captain's" name.  Watching these groups push their Captains along the route was truly inspirational.  I was wondering if I should put in my music at this point.  I didn't really feel I needed it, but I'd never run this far before without music.  All of a sudden, I notice a spectator on my left wearing his new Kalamazoo Marathon shirt.  It was Pete! (@pmumbower on twitter)  I got a great, double high-five a high ten? from Pete and a TON of high-fives from the Grandville Varsity cheerleaders and football players (including one from the preschool teacher at my school - she's the cheer coach!).  Go Bulldogs!  Those cheers and high-fives kept me going. 

Mile 5 passed by (11:04:15) and we hit mile 6 just before Wilson Avenue (10:58:04).  On Wilson, we crossed the Grand River and I saw another one of my friends spectating.  A quick right on Butterworth and we started a gradual uphill that would last for about 3 miles.  We passed mile 7 (11:23:83) and 8 (11:11:97) and we were over 1/2 way there!  Cue mile 9 (11:05:78) OMG am I really maintaining this pace and have I really not walked???  Kim and I are still chatting on and off and I haven't plugged in.  I've given serious thought to walking, but so far, have only walked thru aid stations for water (I was carrying Nuun and eating a couple Sport Beans every mile or so).  At this point, we hit the big hill that is Maynard Avenue.  Our pace slows a bit, but we hit mile 10 (11:28:59) without much of a slow-down. 

Now it's time for a nice downhill and the rollers (little bunny hills for a couple miles) of Butterworth Drive.  Mile 11 (11:09:52) and mile 12 (11:13:57) go by.  We are now heading into town toward the zoo.  The spectators are great - even the senior citizen who said he'd like to chase a couple of cute girls (yep-sped up a bit there).  Mile 13 (10:59:16).  I look at my watch a minute or two after mile 13 and I realize I've just probably set a 1/2 marathon PR by about 2 minutes!  We run past the entrance to the zoo and I see a family with a sign that says "Go, Mom, Go".  I've seen them 3 times now!  They've been booking from place to place to cheer on Mom, but this Mom appreciates it too.  There are also lots of kids giving out high-fives and a live band playing :)  We pass mile 14 (11:19:21) and I think to myself, "uncharted territory" and start to get choked up a bit.  Right at this point, Kim says, "2 and a half more miles.  We've GOT this."  My legs are fried, but at this point, there is NO WAY I'm slowing down to walk.  I got a bit lightheaded somewhere around mile 14 and take some more Sport Beans.  All better.  We are headed down Lake Michigan Drive to Fulton Street and around the Grand Valley State University downtown campus.  Mile 15 (11:03:83) - holy crap we've sped back up.  I see a couple people down on the bridge back over the Grand River.  I'm so sad for them that they are a 1/2 mile from the finish line and aren't going to finish their race.  As we cross the bridge, another band starts playing "Don't Stop Believing".  I about lost it.  No, Bari, you will not start to cry.  We round the corner and start heading UPHILL to the finish line.  *Note to race organizers - this is just plain cruel.  Lucky for those mean (not really - they're awesome) organizers, there are thousands of people cheering and yelling us on to the finish line.  I hear Mike and my friends Joe and Angie (who finished in 1:59!!!!) screaming my name.  Mike even manages to take a decent picture as I "pose" while running :) The finish line is in sight (last 1/2 mile in 5:44:28).  I hear the race announcer call my name.  I have just finished a 25K!  Let the waterworks begin.

Official Time: 2:52:55

4712/5221 overall

2010/2360 women

248/295 age group

Our Grandville team finished 7/17 in Corporate Division 1

(a note about our team-8 women, 1 man - GIRL POWER!)

After I crossed the finish line and a really hot volunteer put the medal around my neck, I grabbed a carton of chocolate milk and a piece of watermelon.  I turn around and see 2 of my friends from church who had finished a little bit before me.  In a sea of literally thousands of people, I run into ones I know.  Mike, Joe and Angie find me and we walk around for a bit until I start feeling like I'm not going to keel over.  At one point, Angie points out that my lips are completely purple and grabs my hand.  My nails are also completely purple.  She advises me to get my inhaler, so I take a few puffs.  I also never *felt* cold, but I stripped out of my wet shirt and put on a dry shirt and Mike's coat.  By the time we got to the car about 20 minutes later, I was feeling good, but still a little purple.  Hypothermia? Low oxygen?  Who knows.  In any case, it was a wonderful experience and I will definitely run this race again.  Maybe next year we will break the RBR weather curse and have 50 and cloudy.  Wouldn't that be great?!

Posed for a picture in front of the Calder

I'm a 25K finisher and I have a shirt and medal to prove it! 

Thank you to everyone for your words of encouragement throughout my training, all the tweets on race day, and for the great comments on facebook.  Getting in the car after the race and reading all of your posts meant the world to me.  On Thursday, I fly off to Baltimore for Fitbloggin, where I get to hug IN REAL LIFE many of the women who convinced me to start running again and eventually take on this challenge.  I am so blessed to have such an amazing support system.  I could not have done this without you.

Is there a marathon in my future?  I honestly don't know, but I do know this...never say never.