A Perfect Race! (almost...)

I'm really not sure where this story starts.  Maybe in 6th grade when I discovered I loved to run and that I was faster than everyone in my class.  Maybe it starts when I ran my first marathon in 2000 and loved it.  Maybe it started I got back into marathon running in 2009.  Maybe it was when I started training with my coach, Paul Pilkington, for Boston in 2010 and realized I could really break three hours in the marathon.  My first attempt was so close!  My second was almost as close but still I just couldn't do it.  I knew I had the ability but each marathon was months of training and hard work to get ready only to fall just short of my goal.  Two years later I wasn't getting any younger and felt like I was starting all over after having another baby.  I signed up for the Ogden Marathon thinking I'd use it as motivation to get back in shape.  My plan was to run a good Boston qualifying time (around 3:20) and then train hard for a fast marathon in the fall.  After all, my baby would only be 11 months and it takes time to get back in shape.  In January with only four months until the marathon I wondered if I had made a big mistake.  I dug back in to the hard workouts and early mornings out on the road and surprised myself.  My coach tried some different training with me.  Workouts that I thought might be impossible were feeling terrific.  I realized a couple months before Ogden that I wasn't just ready to run, but I was ready to run fast.  I was going for a PR and knew I could run with anyone in the race.  I just hoped for a good day for running!

The week before I was so excited and yet nervous at the same time.  It seemed like race day was never going to get here.  Tapering was driving me crazy. I had passed up two races in the past couple weeks that I could have won so I would be rested for the marathon. I was anxious to get out and compete.  I finally picked up my packet.  Lucky 13?  I hope so!  I got two of them!

The whole week before there were record breaking temperatures.  I worried about a repeat of St. George in 2010 but the forecast was for a cold front to come through just in time.  It was looking perfect.  Unfortunately, the cold front brought rain with it.  Lots of rain.  I woke up at 3:00 in the morning listening to the rain.  It was coming down hard. Still several hours until the start though.  We live in Utah.  It doesn't rain this hard for that long here...I hope.  Still that was the end of my night's sleep.  I lay awake listening to the rain with butterflies in my stomach.  Four hours of sleep.  Not what I wanted the night before the race but I've never slept well the night before a marathon.  Soon we were up anyway and heading to the bus in the dark and the rain.  I was glad Jason had decided to run the race too so I had some company on the bus ride.  The rain seemed to be slowing a bit as we walked from the parking area by the finish to the bus.  Maybe it would stop...  I grabbed a spot at the front of a bus. (I hate getting motion sick going up a canyon in the back of a bus!)  As we drove up Ogden Canyon it was obvious the rain wasn't stopping.  Two hours until the start and it was still coming down.  And it was cool.  Perfect temperature for running if it's dry but suddenly I was worried about staying warm enough if I got soaked at the beginning of the race.

The buses pulled up to the start area and I saw all the other runners in ponchos trying to stay warm by the fires and in line for the porta potties.  I was extremely grateful that Jason had an acquaintance who lives across the street from the start and invited us to his house before the race. We watched all the other runners out his front window for the next hour while we stayed warm and dry!

We couldn't avoid it forever.  Soon we were out warming up in the rain and heading to the start.  I quickly found out my shoes had way too thin of a sole to be good for running on wet roads but it was too late to do anything about that.  I was going to have to run with wet feet!  I pushed my way to the front.  Overall results are determined by gun time rather than chip time and I wasn't giving anyone a head start.  I just had to remind myself to run my race and not go out with the runners who start fast.  Anything can happen in a 26 mile race and I had to stick to my plan.  One of Jason's training partners, Scott Sykes, was coming back from some injuries and planning on slowing down a bit.  We decided to run together to help pace each other and I was glad for the company and help pacing.  Jason and I wished each other luck and I reminded him to turn around after he finished.  If everything went well I should be right behind him.

After a moment of silence to remember Boston we were off. I watched several women run past me and had to remind myself not to get carried away. Most, if not all, would come back later when they slowed down.  This was me against the clock. Time was all that mattered but I had to admit I was hoping to be in one of the top spots when we got to the end.

The course starts out heading down South Fork canyon. It's easy to go too fast with the gradual downhill while you are feeling fresh at the start. My goal was to keep my pace around 6:40 per mile the first 5 miles down the canyon. I watched seven women pass me as I settled into my pace. The mile markers were a bit off but Scott's Garmin said we were right on pace. It felt comfortable and as I was holding back watching people pass me I hoped it would pay off later. I was wearing a tank top but kept my long sleeve warm-up shirt on because it was so chilly and wet. The rain was coming down pretty steady and I was glad I had grabbed a visor last minute to keep the rain out of my face. Soon my long sleeve shirt was so wet it was heavy and not doing any good. I dropped it by the side of the road hoping I wouldn't regret it later. At the bottom of the canyon Scott's wife was waiting for us with water bottles. We came out of the canyon into Ogden Valley and met the next obstacle that came with the cold front. Wind. It wasn't terrible but enough to waste precious energy early in the race.  The course took us through Huntsville and Eden around the north side of Pineview reservoir.  We would have a head wind a good part of the run through the valley. Scott insisted I run behind him so he could break the wind. I protested that wasn't fair to him but after the third time he told me I took him up on the offer. I still felt the wind a bit but he was saving me a lot of energy not having to take all of it head on.  We settled into 6:50 pace now that it had leveled out a bit. I started to pass a few of the women who had had passed me at the beginning.  Scott even jumped off to the side whenever we were coming up on the photographer so that I could have some pictures!

Scott and I running through Huntsville early in the race.

About mile ten I tried to pull my second GU out of my pocket. My hands were so cold I couldn't get the Velcro open to get it out. After struggling for several minutes before I finally got it out my hands were so cold there was no way to open it except with my teeth. When Scott realized my hands were so cold he pulled off his gloves that were thicker and insisted I trade him. My hands were so numb that it was another ordeal taking off my gloves and putting on Scott's. I was skeptical whether trading wet gloves for wet gloves would do anything but once I finally got them on my hands actually started getting some feeling back. It did slow us down a bit though. Our three miles before the half were just over seven minutes. We hit the half way point at 1:29:52. I didn't have any room for error. I needed to run the second half faster than the first.

Around mile 16.  Just finished the uphill and almost to the canyon!

I was starting to feel like I had been running a long time but I felt like I had a lot left for the second half.  By the half way point I'd moved into 5th place and I could see two women ahead of me that I was catching.  I was ready to take off after holding back for the first half.  We picked up the pace again after the few slow miles dealing with the gloves.  Mile 14 is the only significant uphill in the race.  Scott had to remind me not to go up it too fast since I was wanting to catch the girl in front of me.  Still we caught her and I moved into 4th place.  I told Scott that 4th is my least favorite spot to finish in and I really wanted to take off and catch 3rd place who was in sight.  Wait for the downhill he reminded me.  We stuck with our pace and ever so slowly the gap was closing.  We arrived at the dam and I finally felt like I could do what I was waiting for.  With a slight twinge of guilt I left Scott behind after he'd helped me so much up to this point.  Eight downhill miles left to go and I took off.  Just after dropping into the canyon I moved into third place.  I was hitting miles in the 6:20's now and I felt terrific!  I was looking at the marathon runners ahead of me and catching them one at a time.  I couldn't help wonder how far ahead the 2nd and 1st place women were.  Could I catch them?  The road down Ogden Canyon was so wet with standing water all over the road.  I tried to avoid the biggest puddles but by this point my feet were soaked.  Halfway down Ogden canyon my legs started to get tired.  But one thing Paul has taught me is how to run on tired legs.  My breathing still felt fine; I just had to keep moving my legs.  My last two miles down the canyon were my fastest, 6:13 and 6:09.

Ogden Canyon.  Notice the really big gloves.  Thanks, Scott!

The Ogden River Parkway where the course levels out and really starts to hurt!

The final stretch on Grant Ave.

Shortly after coming out of the canyon is the start of the 5K.  3.1 miles left to go and my total time was 2:34:21.  I had over 25 minutes to run the last 5K and still break three hours!  The two lead women still weren't in sight and I was starting to realize I probably wouldn't catch them.  But I also realized that my goal I'd been working on for so long was really going to happen!  The course leveled out at this point and fatigue really started to set in.  I finally started to feel like I was going anaerobic.  At this point I couldn't see any other marathon runners.  I was whizzing past the half marathon walkers but that was more of a hassle than anything since my energy was all but gone and it seemed like such an effort to go around them.  This is where a marathon is so mentally tough.  I had to keep telling myself to keep moving my legs even though they were screaming at me to stop.  I still kept the next two miles at 6:30 pace.  I was around 2:47 with 1.2 miles to go. The course turned onto Grant Ave. and the finish line was in sight.  But it's a long last mile to the finish.  The rain had chased away most of the spectators who usually help carry you to the finish.  There were a few who braved the storm and I was so glad a block from the finish when my kids were there cheering me on!  I crossed the finish in 2:55:41!  Jason was there screaming and cheering for me waiting to give me a huge hug. He had finished in 2:51:40, four minutes ahead of me.

The finish!  I wish they had a clock you could see in the picture.  I guess you'll have to take my word on it!

Jason waiting for me at the finish.

It really was almost the perfect race.  The last three miles hurt but it meant I had given it everything I had.  There was no question as to whether I had left anything out on the road that day.  My only disappointment was in that I thought a race like that had a good chance at winning.  A lot of years my time would have won.  But congratulations to the two women who beat me.  They finished in 2:48 when I had just over a mile to go.  Still I was excited to place in the top three out of over 1200 women.  My average mile pace was 6:43.  I won a small cash prize.  As Jared put it.  "Wow, Mom, that's a lot of money to me but it probably isn't to you!"  Jason beat his best time on this course, although he was still eight minutes off his fastest marathon at St. George, and he finished 13th in the men's race and 2nd in his age group.

Before Jason and I had even started our race, Andrew and Jason's step dad, Darrell, ran the 5K.  They were as wet as us and Andrew finished in 22:15.  Darrell won his age group and Andrew placed second in his.  The rain was finally starting to let up about noon when it was time for the KidsK to start.  Jason's mom had taken the kids home after we finished since it was so wet and cold.  I drove home to get them and we barely had time to make it back to the park for their run.  They were only about half way from the car to the starting line when they blew the horn to start the race.  So their one kilometer run ended up being a little longer.  I love this picture of Kaitlyn waving at the finish!

The kids loved the cow bells they got for medals!

After so many years of working so hard towards this goal I feel a little lost now that I have accomplished it.  What's next?  I used to say that once I broke three hours in the marathon I would retire from marathon running and stick to shorter races.  But I had to sign up for St. George before I ran Ogden so I'm already registered for my next marathon in October.  And then I really want to run Boston again so we are planning on going there in 2014.  This is also where marathon running becomes addicting.  I start thinking, "If I can run 2:55 on a course like Ogden in terrible weather what could I do on a good day in St. George?"  So I've got another hard summer ahead of me with new goals ahead.  What should I reach for?  A sub 2:50?  Winning a marathon?  Placing in the top 100 at Boston?  Some of those goals seem rather lofty yet I remember a day when I thought I'd never be able to break three hours.  I've learned a lot the last few years while I've worked towards this goal but most importantly that nothing is impossible.

San Diego

Last week Jason had a conference in San Diego.  After a lot of debate about whether the kids should miss school we decided to go with.It turned out to be a great week to go.  We left snow behind at home and enjoyed plenty of California sunshine.  Our first afternoon there while Jason went off to meetings we explored Old Town.  The kids loved it.  Especially watching them make taffy in the candy store (and eating it of course!)

We enjoyed the tour of the Mormon Battalion.  The kids had fun panning for gold.

The weather was perfect for a morning run along the bay.  These were my two cute running partners!

As always, the thing the kids wanted most was to swim in the hotel pool. Skyler had a blast splashing in the pool for his first time.  He loved everything except Andrew in his goggles which for some reason terrified him!

The kids and I spent Thursday at the San Diego Zoo while Jason was at meetings.  The pandas were the highlight of the day.

Later that evening we enjoyed delicious seafood looking out over the bay at sunset.

Friday we convinced Jason to skip some meetings and come to Sea World with us.

Skyler loved the dolphins!

Waiting for Shamu.

Petting a real alligator!

Jared and Andrew with the birds after the pet show.  This show was Skyler's favorite!  Especially the pig!

Friday evening the kids and I drove up to Fountain Valley for a short trip to visit my parents and brother, Spencer.  It was a perfect beach day!  We could have spent all day but had to cut it short to get back to San Diego.  Andrew took Skyler for his first dip in the ocean.  He didn't like the cold water too much!  The kids had a fun time flying their new kites we found at a fun kite shop in San Diego.

We got back to San Diego and walked through the Gas Lamp District for dinner.  It was a long wait and the kids were starving by the time we finally sat down to eat at the Spaghetti Factory but it's such a fun place to walk around at night!

Too soon it was time to go home.  It was a long trip in the car but a lot of fun!

Some Thoughts on Boston

Last Monday I woke up wishing so bad that I was in Boston for the marathon. Next year, I had to remind myself. I've been planning our next Boston trip ever since I crossed the finish line there in 2010. Since I didn't run a marathon last year because of my pregnancy I wasn't qualified for this year's race.  Little did I know the events that would unfold that day in Boston. I had a busy morning but kept checking on the leader board and tracking friends on my phone. I felt a twinge of disappointment when the top American finished 4th in both the women's and men's race.  Another year without an American winning Boston...

Then I was at the grocery store and my phone started ringing. "Have you heard about Boston?" I stood in utter disbelief as the stories came to me about explosions at the finish line. Suddenly finishing times and place were meaningless.  My first thought was of friends that were in Boston.  I was relieved to hear back quickly from them that they were unharmed.  Then came the thoughts of what if.  What if I hadn't had a baby last year?  If everything in my life had worked out the way I timed it, I would have been there.  And even worse my kids might have been standing at the finish line watching.  I was of course grateful that we were safe at home but I was devastated thinking about those that were in Boston this year.  So many times the questions ran through my mind.  How could this happen?  Why would anyone do this?

So many people work so hard just to qualify and get the opportunity to run Boston.  Many people have much more inspiring stories of overcoming obstacles to get there than me. My Boston experience was what every runner dreams for.  The people of Boston welcomed me, as they do all the runners, with open arms and treated me as a celebrity.  I couldn't go anywhere in town with my marathon gear without being swarmed with congratulations. The people in Boston love hosting the most prestigious marathon in the world and they come out by the hundreds of thousands to cheer on the runners over the 26 mile course.  For a recreational runner like me, it's the only place to feel as if you are an elite athlete.  There is really nothing like coming down Boylston street to the finish line.  The sense of accomplishment and achievement is like nothing else I've ever done before.

Here I am in 2010 at the spot where the bombing occurred last week.

My heart aches for those who were hurt in this tragedy.  Although I feel helpless I hope those whose lives have forever been changed will take some comfort in knowing that countless people are praying for them.  So many others walked away from the race "safe" yet all of their dreams were shattered by the senseless act of violence.  Instead of the feeling of celebration and accomplishment they were surrounded by terror.  And while we will never forget that day and those who were hurt, I hope we don't let Boston become defined by such a terrible act.  This poster hangs on my wall and I think it really sums up how I feel about Boston.

I've heard a lot of comments the last week like, marathons will never be the same, or would you ever go back?  But if we have that attitude I think we have let the terrorists have a victory.  The Boston Marathon is all about pushing yourself harder than you ever thought you could.  Every marathon runner knows you only get better by working through hard things.  The race will go on and only get better.  After all, noyhing says better, better than Boston.

Only a Half

I once read an article that pointed out that the half marathon has been unfairly named.  After all, you don't call a 5k a half 10K.  Why doesn't a 13.1 mile race deserve it's own name?  I've noticed that I often hear this conversation with the Ogden Marathon coming up.  "Are your running Ogden?" And the response, "Only the half."  Have you ever run 13.1 miles?  I really don't think running that far should be phrased as "only" 13 miles.  If you haven't run that far just try driving it and think about running it.  It's a long way.  Many half marathons have also started giving medals to finishers like full marathons since it really is an accomplishment to run that far.  Personally it's my favorite distance to race.  You don't get to the glycogen depletion like you do in the full marathon but it's long enough to be a true distance race, which happens to be my strength.

So even though I love half marathons I've realized that every time I sign up for one it's used as preparation for a full marathon.  It's always in the thick of my training and used as a predictor for how I'll handle the longer upcoming race.  This also means I'm never fully tapered and have tired legs coming off some recent hard workouts.  One of these days I need to train specifically for a half marathon but the race I ran last week was like the others.  It was the Striders Winter Racing Circuit Half Marathon.  It's part of the series I have been running and I was looking forward to it because it is basically the first half of the Ogden Marathon.  I figured it would give me a good idea of how to pace myself next month in the marathon.

We got on the bus at the finish line in Eden and headed to the starting line up South Fork Canyon.  The course is one way, my favorite way to run, no loops or out and back.  It was chilly, in the high 30s, with a slight breeze but not bad for early April in the mountains.  The buses were a little late so my warm up was cut short and my muscles didn't feel warmed up at all when I pulled off my sweats and made my way over to the starting line.  I started to wonder if I'd made a mistake wearing shorts but it was too late.  The gun went off and we started down the canyon.  The first mile I was with the lead pack of women.  This race is also part of another racing series that brings a lot of fast runners from Salt Lake.  I knew some of these runners were extremely fast and seemed to be taking it easy.  Either that or I was going too fast. The pace felt good though and I hit the first mile mark in 6:21.  It was a little fast but it was downhill so I wasn't worried.  The pack started to split up a little at that point and I settled into 5th place and let some of the faster women go.  I was running a comfortable pace hitting miles in the 6:30's.  I figured I'd slow down when we were out of the canyon.  I was surprised how fast that came.  The course does start down lower than the Ogden Marathon course and we were out in the valley already after only three miles.  Still ten to go.

The road stayed fairly flat, even a gradual downhill for the next three miles.  I was still keeping up my pace in the 6:30's and was starting to pick off all the men that were running ahead of me one at a time as they slowed down.  By about mile six or seven I was alone and that's when the hills start.  The hills aren't big but they are rolling hills that never seem to end.  The next runner ahead of me was the girl in 4th place.  She had at least a 400 meter lead on me and she was far enough ahead that it was difficult to imagine catching her.  I was about half way but I felt fantastic so I just concentrated on trying to keep my pace steady.  I was still running my miles in about 6:35 even though I was in the thick of the hills.  They just didn't seem as hard as I remembered.  After about two more miles I realized I was definitely catching the girl in front of me.  My legs were finally starting to feel like I'd been running hard for a while but I was chasing her down and I knew I could get her.

Between miles 10 and 11 I caught up to her.  She was super nice when I passed her and said "Good job!  You look great!"  I felt great!  Then she added, "You are in 4th place now."  I knew that already.  Thanks for the reminder.  See, they were giving prize money to the top three and I seem to have a habit of finishing 4th when they do that.  And the girl in 3rd still had a pretty good lead on me.  I was catching her but I was running out of time with only two miles left.  At this point I realized I was going to run a great time.  I could either be satisfied with that and just relax and keep my pace steady or I could give it everything I had left and try to catch her.  I set my eyes on her and picked up my pace.  Mile 12 was a 6:20.  I was closing the gap.  I caught her with about half a mile to go.  After I passed her I didn't even dare look back.  Was she strong enough to keep up with me and race me to the end?  I didn't want to know.  I just had to keep running as fast as I could.  Mile 13 was a 5:55!  I plan on 40 seconds for the last .1 mile but when I glanced at the finish clock I realized I had a chance at breaking 1:25 if I could do it in less than 35 seconds.  So I sprinted in and finished in 1:24:55 in third place, 40 seconds faster than 4th!

It was the fastest I have ever run any half marathon!  The race alone was an accomplishment but like I said, it sets me up in a great position for the marathon in six weeks.  The race felt so good and I can't wait to see how I feel on marathon day after a few more weeks of hard training and a full taper.  My goal: slow the first half down by five minutes and run it in 1:30 and then use Ogden Canyon in the second half to negative split and break three hours.

Jason wasn't thrilled with his race but still ran 1:22:31.  When we got home the kids were excited about the medals and prize money.  They asked how we did and when Jason told them our times Andrew said, "Dad, you better be careful.  If Mom keeps getting faster she's going to beat you!"

Here I am with Melisa Harrison and her dad Bill Sneddon.  Our training group did a great job taking a lot of the prize money and age group medals.  Melisa won the Masters division.  So I did go home with some prize money.  It wasn't much and I spent almost all of it paying the babysitter for the morning but it was still felt good!

What do you think?  Should the half marathon get it's own name?  What would you name it?

Shakespeare

Andrew's honors English class has been working hard preparing to perform Much Ado About Nothing the last month.  We went to watch their performance the other night.  I was really impressed with how well a bunch of seventh graders did with Shakespeare!  Here are a couple clips.  Keep in mind I wasn't in the best spot to film and I was also holding a baby!

Here's Andrew as Antonio.

Spring Break

Spring Break started with a beautiful sunny day at the zoo.  A few of the cousins came along with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law.  My kids were so excited to see the new exhibits that opened last year. You  really couldn't have asked for a nicer day other than there were a lot of people there.

Having lots of fun with Morgan and Winston

Loving the baby giraffe.  One of the few spots at the zoo that still looks like it did when I was a kid!

This is what big sister does to this poor baby when he falls asleep in the stroller!

Jared thinks this orangutan is stuck inside because he won't clean his room.  I wonder where he got that idea from?

Saturday morning Jason's step-brother Alex and his wife Tiffany were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple.  Jason and I were privileged to attend the beautiful ceremony.

Afterwards we went to lunch.

All Kaitlyn wanted to eat were the chocolate covered strawberries!

Andrew discovered he's almost as tall as his grandma!

Then it was off to Grandma's for an Easter egg hunt with the cousins.

We spent a quiet Easter Sunday at home and going to church.

Kaitlyn in her Easter dress

Monday was the last day of spring break and it rained.  So we took our trip to Krispy Kremes for the kids to get free donuts for the A's on their report cards and then went to a movie.

My smart kids!  A whole box for each of them!

It was a great spring break but too short!  I sure wish I could convince Ogden School District to give these kids a whole week off!