Central Park 4M Recap

Another PR in the books!  Though I wasn’t feeling great and it was hot as heck out, I still banged out a decent race.  This also marked the first race that I ran for Prospect Park Track Club.

First mile was uneventful…the usual crowding but that helped in not taking Cat Hill too quickly.
Second mile I finally found my groove and space after the crowd thinned.  I also felt really hot.  Not quite ready for summer running.
Third mile was hilly.  Ugh.  Everyone struggled with this mile, so at least I wasn’t alone.  Hilly and hot.  I also passed a lot of PPTC people cheering so that helped.
Fourth mile was a bit better but I felt like I was going to throw up and my whole body was heavy.  Too damn hot.

Overall it was a great race despite feeling like I didn’t give it my all.  Found Steve, Judy, and Frank after to compare race notes and find brunch.  You’d be surprised how many places don’t serve brunch at 9 am…  We stumbled upon Cafe Ronda and fatty awesome breakfast was found.  I don’t eat eggs, but French toast is *always* an exception.

Brooklyn Half Recap

Woooo! The series of shitshow races has culminated! Now I can rest my poor body until I start training on June 15th, which will mean a proper plan and time carved out of my schedule instead of winging it. I’ll still run and go to the gym, but for fun and without a predisposed itinerary.

I haven’t missed a Brooklyn Half in years even though I wasn’t prepared and still healing from the DE Marathon. Hands down my favorite non-marathon race. Not sure what it is about the race, the runners, the volunteers, the spectators, Prospect Park, the fast six miles down Ocean Parkway, the finish on the boardwalk, or Coney Island, but everything together makes for a perfect race. Though four months ago I wanted this race to be a PR, I went into it just wanting to have fun, take it easy, and finish under 2 hours.

Morning of the race…

The course is two laps in Prospect Park (almost 7 miles), straightaway on Ocean Parkway (a little less than 6 miles), and finishing on the Coney Island Boardwalk. The laps in the park were challenging because they were hilly but also because there were 5k+ runners. In every race there are walkers who line up near the front and runners who find it necessary to run with their friends, four people across. Brooklyn was no exception and I spent the first few miles weaving. Seriously people, if you are walking before mile 2, start in the back! I was in the 5th corral with my pace group, I shouldn’t be REACHING you if you are walking. You clearly started in the first through fourth corrals and you have 12 more miles to go. Argh! Even if you can keep up the pace and you suddenly can’t move your legs (a la me last week), move to the side so you don’t cause a collision. Rant over.

Maptasticness…

The good thing about running primarily on the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges is that the hills of the park were no problem. What was a problem, were the downhills. Around mile 4 my right knee started burning, which incidentally, was not the knee that bothered me during the marathon. My knee became tight and hurt with every extension and the downhill plodding accentuated the pain. I told myself that I was just sore and tight and from marathon and kept moving forward. I contemplated bailing since the pain was sudden and I was only a few miles in and had many more miles to go. Then I realized that if I stopped…my keys, wallet, metrocard, and other fun stuff were in my checked bag heading to Coney Island. I figured that my gait hadn’t changed and I was only losing my temp a little bit, the motion just hurt so I could keep trucking and shake it out. Around mile 7 – the straightaway and mostly even footing – the pain subsided.

Course elevation…

The spectators were amazing. People lined the entire park cheering, clapping, and holding up signs of encouragement. Though this race doesn’t have a purse and mostly attracts locals, I’ve noticed that there is more support for this race than any other NYRR race aside from the NYC Half and NYC Marathon. Love it!

Finished in less than two and felt great. Waited for Kate and Jim to finish then we took a dip in the water…and by dip I mean I went ankle deep. Then we lounged around the beach for a few hours with fellow runners on a surprisingly perfect day. Summer is starting to shape up quite nicely.

Splits…certainly not fast, but surprisingly fairly even and really no indication of pan for a few miles…

Scotland Run 10K recap (and things NOT to do in a race)

Without trying, I PRed in the 10K by 19 seconds. Woot! I counted the race as port of a longish run. I ran 3 miles to the start, completed the 10K, and ran a 2 mile cool down back to my apartment. I had no intention of pushing myself as I have 18 miles on today’s agenda.

The weather was perfect for a run in Central Park and it was amazing to pass so many people walking, running, biking, rollerblading, etc in the park early on a Saturday morning. It was just another visual reminder on why this part and city is so wonderful.

As I approached the start, my left knee started aching again and my left hip became tight. Ugh, not fun. I plugged on through the race as the pain was slight and tolerable. Over 7,000 runners ran the 10K which provided a constant stream of camaraderie and support through the park. Though there is jostling, I enjoy being surrounded by other runners at the same pace and finding people ahead of me to catch up to.

I also loved the festive nature of the race. Many runners wore Tartan or Scottish football jersey along with the temporary tattoos they gave out. There was a Scottish band at the start and finish and bagpipers lined the course along with the usual crowd support.

All I wanted after the race was an ice pack for my knee and hip so instead of sticking around the post-race I trotted back to my apartment. I think it’s gotten to the point that I need to see a doctor about this. I’m a little disappointed in the lack of care and guidance my primary doctor has given me since this has been a chronic problem so hopefully she can refer me to a specialist. It’s nothing major, but it’s obviously a problem and I want to find the cause and ensure it doesn’t keep happening. I’ll keep ya posted.

Gridiron 4 miler and how I froze my face off

The DC Marathon is 41 days away, ohhhh crap!

I really need to get my long runs in. I’ve been doing 10-13 on Sundays for the past few weeks, but I need to step it up to 16-22 soon. I ran the New York Road Runners Gridiron Classic 4 Miler this morning and decided to run to the start (1.5 miles), run the race, then do about a loop and a half in the park for 15 miles.

When I left my apartment at 8:15 am, it was 14 degrees, but the “real feel” was 1 degree. The air simply HURT my lungs, it was so cold. Other than my filled face, everything else was fine. I wore Under Armor tights, a short sleeved tech shirt, a long sleeved tech shirt, and my Nike lightweight running jacket. I love Nike’s running clothes, they think of EVERYTHING. I’ve had the jacket for over a year and I still find fun stuff on it. Not only do they have helpful reflectors, and stealth pockets, and iPod headphone holder thingies so the cord doesn’t flap, but it has a hand hoods!!! I’m sure it has a real name, but HAND HOODS!!! There’s a little flappy on the inside of the cuff that you can tuck your freezing hands into. Even though I had gloves on, this extra layer of support helped suppress my hypothermia. Also, Smart Wool running socks are heavenly.

Lots of people came out for the sold out race, and everyone was equally bundled and freezing. Despite the inclines and moderate wind, I ended up PRing this race. I didn’t expect it since I definitely didn’t go all out, but it was a nice surprise. Especially since after the 102nd Street transverse, I couldn’t feel my face.

Afterwards, I think I passed someone who shit themselves. Or they fell in mud. Since the person (I couldn’t tell if it was a guy or girl due to the bundling) was small and super thin, they could have been really fast and placed in this points race so IF they did have to go to the bathroom, there may not have been time for that. They had on tights, so there is no hiding that. Or it could have been sudden. Who knows, but that sucks and I stared because even if it was mud, it looked like poop.

So I set out for my loop and a half and didn’t make a full loop. I was honestly SO COLD. Not only was my face absolutely numb, but I was shivering from the cold while running. I called it in after I reached the west side of 96th (still about 5 miles) and ran to Whole Foods. I took the bus across town back to my apartment and after unloading, I immediately went to the gym to finish up the miles.

I have a little guilt in not finishing everything outside, but I just couldn’t. I was miserable and my body was not being as productive as it could have been. I’m done with winter and apparently we’re supposed to get substantial snow on Wednesday. This does NOT fit into my schedule!!