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September 30, 2007

Bucktown 5K: Surprisingly Awesome

On my training schedule for today, I had a 30 minute "embarrassingly slow" recovery run. It made sense - I'd done a long run yesterday, so today should be an easy day. However, I'd registered for the Bucktown 5K - a local race that gives out runner premiums that are way better than your typical t-shirt. This year? A zip-up hoodie and technical hat. Not a bad deal for $30 and 3 miles of running. I figured I'd just ease my way through the course and treat it like a nice stroll through the park. The entire course was on tree-lined residential streets, so it'd be a perfectly enjoyable way to get my run in. Even if it was probably going to be my slowest 5K ever.

Since I wasn't "racing" this, per se, I didn't really do any sort of pre-race prep for it. I had pizza and pop for dinner last night. I stayed up later than I should have given the early wake-up call. And for breakfast this morning? Cold pizza. Not exactly the pre-race meal of champions.

But then I got to the race, and between the chip on my shoe, the number on my shirt, and the thousands of other people, I began to think, "Maybe we'll just go out and see how we feel. Run it easy for a 5K. Maybe." That soon turned into, "Well, I'll run a pretty good effort, but I won't kill myself, and if I get stuck in a slow spot of the crowd, I'll just go with it instead of weaving all over the street to get around it."

I seeded myself at the back of the start corral, and when I crossed the start line I took off at a respectable pace. Not slow and easy, but something i could hold for 3 miles without killing myself. I was passing people steadily, but I wasn't weaving all over the street to do it. When I hit the first mile marker in 9:58, wheels started turning. If I picked up the pace just a wee little bit, I could finish in under 30 minutes. Hmmmm. Considering how slow I've been feeling all summer (since I haven't been doing short races or speedwork), being able to get under the half-hour mark would be a huge confidence booster. My legs felt OK, so I decided to pick it up just a wee little smidge and go for it. I quickly found that if I stuck to the right side, I could get around most of the pack. I was still steadily passing people, and it felt great. When I hit the 2 mile mark in 19:28, I knew that as long as I held my current pace I'd come in under half an hour. So, naturally, I picked it up a bit. As I got ahead of more people, the open spots in the crowd got bigger. I was now weaving my way all over the place to get into free space, and I was running pretty hard. Not all out, but pretty hard. The pizza in my gut was starting to talk back a little bit, but I knew that with less than a mile to go, I'd be just fine. Keep pushing, keep building the speed, but stay relaxed. Just go. Gogogogo.

When I crossed the line, my watch read 29:15 and I couldn't believe it. The day after a long run, with no intention to run fast, and I was only a minute and a half off my PR? A PR that I set when I was doing tons of speed work and feeling super speedy and probably tapered for a few days before the race? I will totally take that.

Now, a lot of people I know don't like to run this race because it's so crowded. And.... it is. 3000 people over 3 miles on residential streets? Unless you're out in front, it's packed. However, I didn't think it was any worse than the Shamrock Shuffle, a race that I keep running despite the crowds, so that didn't bother me too much. I never got fully and completely stuck behind slower people - I could always find a way around, although it did involve some creative cutting and weaving.

That said, I don't think I'll come back to run this race, and here's why: When I get done running a race, be it a 5K or a marathon, the one thing I want right away is water. Most races I've run have had bottles of water either in the finishing chute or with the post-race refreshments. This one? Had one table with cups of water at the entrance to the park where the post-race festivities were. No bottles anywhere to be found. Nothing in the finishing chute. And the post-race refreshments, while plentiful and tasty, included absolutely nothing to drink. I couldn't believe it. I should not have to wait in line and fight a crowd after a race for a cup of water. If you're a big enough race to take in 3,000 runners, then you're a big enough race to get someone to donate a couple thousand cases of bottled water.

Except for that one little hiccup, the race was great. The course was fun- enough turns to keep it interesting, not so many as to really slow you down. Chip and packet pickup was a little weird (you picked up your number and goody bag before the race, but picked up your chip the morning of. Huh?), but it's a system that seems to work for them. Once they find a way to get some (more) water at the finish, they'll have a great fall race going.

Splits: 9:58, 9:30, 8:56, :51 (.1)
Unofficial total: 29:15

Posted by Dawn at 12:32 PM | Comments (1)

September 28, 2007

Looking Ahead

This morning, I met up with my coach for a ride and to talk about the calendar for next year. We discussed a few ideas, worked out an outline, and, as you'll see in the sidebar, I immediately came home, looked up dates, and figured out how the Big Things worked in with the little races I like to do every year. So far, it's coming together nicely, and I'm super-excited about it.

I also told her about something that, right now, I can only refer to as my Two-Year Plan. If you look at what I'm doing next year, I'm sure you can figure it out. However, I'm not quite ready to say it out loud just yet, mostly because while I'm excited about it, a sizable part of me still thinks it's Completely Fucking Insane. If you had told me two years ago that I would even be pondering this, much less considering it seriously? Especially seriously enough to start building a long-term training plan around it? I would have asked you if you were high.

Now I'm just asking myself if I'm high.

Posted by Dawn at 07:34 AM | Comments (3)

September 24, 2007

The Price of Laziness

Yesterday I had a long run on the schedule. Nothing horribly massive, just a nice 2:45 run where I was supposed to pick up the pace slightly during the last 30 minutes. Piece of cake, right?

Wrong.

The excuses started early. I was at my parents' house in Michigan and hadn't packed for 55-degree weather, which is what we had early in the morning. (Lesson learned: check the predicted LOWS as well as the highs.) I'd also forgotten my Garmin, so I'd be running totally watchless and HR-monitorless. I figured I could probably pace myself reasonably well, but I wasn't sure if I had the guts to try and find out. I thought about just toughing it out. I thought about waiting until later in the day. Then I decided that in addition to not wanting to spend the first hour of my run freezing and going out too fast, I also didn't want to run for that long and then sit in a car for 5 hours while I drove back to Chicago. So my solution would be to leave Michigan early, drive back to Chicago, and then do my long run in the evening.

Except once I got home, I felt tired. However, I'd gotten home earlier than expected, so I had time for a nap. I took one. When I woke up I was still feeling tired, unmotivated, and on top of it all I was also feeling hungry and dehydrated. I decided to skip the run, and instead had some dinner and a bunch of water.

This was all fine - I got some work done, I sort of watched a football game - until the time when it was Definitely Too Late to start running. Then I felt antsy. Twitchy. Like I really should have gone for the run instead of sitting on my butt all day. On top of that, I didn't sleep well once I got to bed. Clearly my body had the energy stored up to run and now it had nowhere to go.

Lesson for the future: Do your long runs in the morning, no matter what. Also, when going out of town, pack for more types of weather than you think you'll need to.

Posted by Dawn at 12:19 PM

September 18, 2007

Educational

While out for a sunrise recovery ride this morning, I discovered why cyclists always seem to be wearing sunglasses, regardless of how sunny it actually is outside.

It's not just because they think it looks cool. It's because a bug in your eye at 20 MPH hurts like a bitch.

Posted by Dawn at 12:10 PM | Comments (1)

September 15, 2007

The Double-Edged Sword of Fall

This week, fall has decided to come to Chicago and it's been glorious. I'm wearing a jacket during the day and snuggling up with the cats in my sweats at night. While this summer was nowhere as brutally hot as last year's, I'm still more than ready to turn off the A/C for a good 8-10 months and put the flannel sheets on my bed. (The A/C is off, but since I'm sure we'll get another chunk of warmer weather before it cools off for good the flannel sheets are on hold.)

Anyhow, in checking today's weather last night, I discovered the high was 60. Immediately I made the decision that I was not going to get up early for today's long run. If 60 was as warm as it was going to get, then there was no need to get up at 5 so I could be out the door by 7. None whatsoever. Ahhhhh.

Around 7 I figured I'd get up for breakfast, and by the time I'd digested and actually gotten out the door it was just before 10. However, the weather was absolutely perfect, the run was good (with the exception of the total hissyfit my Forerunner threw, but, eh, whatever), and I felt incredibly well-rested. There was a down side, though: by the time I got home, stretched and showered, it was after 1. PM. My plans for the day? Were totally shot.

My original plan for the afternoon was to geocache my way up to a local apple festival where I would then purchase a variety of taste appley treats. And, sure, I could have done that if I ran out the door as soon as I got dressed, but that held absolutely no appeal for me, not to mention I had a couple hours worth of work I had to get done before doing anything. Maybe it's just me, but after a long run I need to relax, rehydrate, and just generally hang out and be lazy. If I have somewhere I absolutely have to be, I can do that, but otherwise? An hour or two of slug-time is greatly preferred.

So, instead, I'm hanging out watching the Michigan game and hoping it'll be a lot better than the past couple have. Geocaching has been postponed until tomorrow (when it's supposed to be equally nice, just a bit warmer), but the apple fest, which is today only, will just have to go. Sure, it runs until 5, so technically I could leave now and catch the end of it, but with that sort of thing going right before closing just means you have limited choices and run the risk of some vendors closing up early if they sell out. There's always next year (or taking a field trip out to an orchard) for super-fresh appley goodness.

I will say this, though - next week? I'll be up early, regardless of how cool it is. While there's something empowering about knowing that you've gotten a few hours of running in before 10 a.m., there's something mildly depressing about getting back from a run at 1 p.m. and realizing that half your day is shot, and all you've done is run. I'll happily take the earlier wake-up call.

Posted by Dawn at 02:16 PM

September 11, 2007

DWD 2007: The Highlights

Once again, the second weekend of September found me making the trek out to Hell, MI for another round with Dances With Dirt. This year, it would prove to be far more of an adventure than it was last time. Heck, just getting to the race was an adventure: the team I'd originally signed up with pulled out after losing (and being unable to replace) 2 or our 5 members, and the team I joined up with after that had all sorts of personnel problems. Just as we'd get a full team, someone would have to drop out. The Thursday morning before the race, we had a full roster. By Thursday night? Our 5th member lost his babysitter for the day and we were back down to 4. Of course. We held out hope against hope that a runner would magically fall from the sky to refill our team, but Saturday morning found us rearranging legs, trying to find an order that evened out the mileage as much as possible and gave everyone time to rest between legs. Instead of running just under 13 miles for the day, I'd be running a tad over 17. Bring. It. ON.

I was runner #2, so when our first runner came speeding in at the end of her leg I took off. The leg was called "Buttkicker" and is one of the hilliest legs on the course. They were not kidding. A complete lack of any sort of speedwork or hill training this year has left me completely out of shape for this sort of thing, and by the end of the 5.3 miles my butt was on strike, my quads were shot, and I was exhausted. I knew then that a) I might have gone out a little too aggressively and should have started walking the big hills earlier and b) it was going to be a long day.

My next leg, "This Sucks", involves a trip through a swamp and features a "Runner Wash" at the end. I needed it, because I was covered from the waist down in thick, black mud. For about a mile we trudged through mud that threatened to suck off your shoes (helpful hint: stay to the sides!) and crossed waist-deep creeks that required 2 or 3 people to pull you up on to the other bank. Luckily, everyone goes through this chunk of the leg at about the same pace, regardless of how fast they run, so I was in a crowd of about 6-8 people. After the shallow creek crossing each person helped the one behind them out of the mud, and at the end of the deeper crossing, two guys stationed themselves on the bank to yank people out, aided by a guy standing in the creek who was boosting people out. I don't even want to know how far down he sunk into the dirt once we all made our way out, because the ground he was standing on was anything but solid. It definitely takes a special kind of lunatic to enjoy this sort of thing, and I loved it. I mean, when do you get to have that much fun getting dirty and playing in the mud as a grownup?

By this point, I was realizing the challenge of running a race like this with only four people. It's not the extra mileage that gets you, it's the reduced recovery time. Even with 5 runners, by the end of the day you're getting that "I have to run again? Already?" feeling. With 4? I got done with my second leg, and it felt like I was heading out for legs 3 & 4 just five minutes later. I was beat, but, hey! I was almost done! I was running two legs back to back, but the second one was only 1.4 miles, so I was looking at it as a single 6-mile leg. It'd be my longest leg of the day, but I could do it. As I trudged off into the woods for the last time, I told myself, "6 miles to freedom!"

Except I just could not get moving. I was exhausted. I was on nice trail, but it was a never-ending gradual uphill. Plus, I really had to pee. Finally, I got to a spot where I was alone and could duck into the trees to take care of that last detail, and I couldn't believe how much better I felt. It was like I had a second wind! I hit the trail as hard as I could, but within 5 minutes I'd hit the swamp. Again. So much for my second wind.

The name of this leg was "Where's The F'n Bridge," and when I got to the big open river crossing, I thought that was what they meant. I waded through the nice clean river, ignored the guy on the boat that told me to watch out for the snake (although based on the scream from the girl behind me, he may not have been kidding about that. Whatever. If I didn't see it? It didn't exist), then skipped through a little bit of swampy mud and said to myself, "Why, that wasn't bad! Heck, after This Sucks, that was a lovely walk in the park!"

The phrase you are looking for is "Famous Last Words." We got back into the woods, and it was all swamp muck, all the time. So much for making up time with my second wind. Then we got to a creek crossing that had ropes across it, tied to trees at either end of the bank. I vaguely remembered the race organizers mentioning something about ropes and to please be using them during the pre-race announcements, and as I was pondering that, I saw the guy ahead of me step into the creek and wind up in mud and muck up to his waist. Clearly, they weren't kidding about the ropes. I grabbed on to the rope and jumped in. It wasn't too bad - I could reach the bottom, but it was nice to have the rope there for balance and to aid the forward motion, and I used it to pull myself out on the other side. Right on. Ropes. Not messing around. Moving on.

Then I came to crossing #2, again with ropes. The guy ahead of me recommended staying to the left, so I grabbed on to the left rope, jumped in, and was suddenly very glad I was hanging on to the rope. My feet were sort of touching something that felt like the bottom, but if I'd tried to stand in it the water would have been over my head. This was not water that you wanted to have over your head, I'll tell you that much. It was certainly the most fragrant swamp of the day, as "ass" was all I could smell as I pulled myself across the rope and up the other side. Everything from my armpits down was coated in a thick layer of swamp goo. Awesome. By the time we got to the third creek crossing (which was thankfully shallow enough to not require ropes), all I could think was, "Jesus, Mary and Joseph, another fucking crossing?"

I may have been a little tired, and perhaps a smidge overmucked. Thankfully, I eventually made it out of the swamp and, after a little over an hour in the woods, I could see freedom and the end of the leg. I knew I had another mile and a half to go, but I was really hoping someone else on my team could take it since the thought of doing any more running with a half-inch of swamp dirt in my shoes was less than appealing. At the exchange point, one of my teammates was there and asked me if I wanted her to take the leg. On one hand, I did. On the other, I didn't want to make her run any more than she had to, since we were all busting our respective asses to cover the course with only 4 runners. I told her that if I stopped running now, I was done for the day. If that meant I ran the next leg? So be it. However, she told me that she was fine and that I could stop there if I wanted. I sent her off and then went and sat in the lake. I have never been so happy to see (relatively) clean and clear water in my life. Nor has lake water ever looked so clean and clear.

After my dip in the lake, I headed up to the team truck to change into clean and dry clothes. As I stripped off my shorts, I realized that I had mud in places people should never have mud. Ewwwww. There would certainly be some quality shower time as soon as I got back to the hotel.

At the end of the day, we finished the 60+ mile course in 11:43:45 - not bad for a team of four women. Our adjusted time (taking age/gender handicaps into account) was 9:59:57 - good enough for 247th place (out of about 370 teams).

It was still a fun race this year, but we were all just beat at the end of it. After talking to some of the other people that ran the F'n Bridge leg, I realized that I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I wasn't so tired, and if I hadn't already taken one trip through the swamp. (Another reason not to run both F'n Bridge and This Sucks: if you have sensitive skin, your legs will be angry with you for taking them through the nasty swamp water two separate times, and will demonstrate their anger by feeling burny and itchy for days afterwards.) On the plus side, my state of total exhaustion meant that I headed to bed fairly early in the post-race party, which meant no hangover on Sunday. Bonus! (Alas, I did miss a lot of fun, but perhaps next year I'll hit the happy medium.)

I will say this, though: despite the fact that I was totally untrained for the terrain and ran myself into the ground, it was still an awesome time. Highly, highly recommended.

Posted by Dawn at 01:33 PM | Comments (4)

September 01, 2007

Yankz!

A couple of weeks ago while I was swimming at the lake with my tri group, the head coach asked me if I'd tried Yankz! no-tie shoelaces. She told me I should check them out, and I made a mental note to keep an eye out for them the next time I found myself in a running/multisport store. Fast forward to the tri expo last weekend when I found myself face to face with a pair of them that perfectly matched my running shoes. I was buying a few other things so I went ahead and picked them up.

I didn't get around to putting them on my shoes until the other night, and I'll admit it: I had my doubts. I tend to wear my shoes tied pretty tight to add extra support to my overly pronatey ankles, and I wasn't sure they'd be able to stay tight enough for me. It took me a few tries to lace them up right - the instructions tell you to leave a loop at the top and not to lace your shoes tight, and when I did it that way I wound up with some really loosey-goosey shoes that were not going to work. So I redid it my way - no loop at the top, and I laced them up like regular shoelaces (i.e., a little on the tight side). Once I had one shoe all done, I tried it on and I was amazed. The elastic was stretchy enough that I could get my foot in the shoe easily, but strong enough that the shoe felt tight and secure on my foot. Encouraged, I laced up shoe #2 and then waited for my next chance to test them out.

The test run happened this morning on my long run. I was mildly concerned that they wouldn't stay tight for the entire 2.5 hours, but I figured I could either deal with it or head home to relace with the regular laces. (Had I really been thinking, I would have taken the regular laces with me, but I wasn't so much on top of things this morning.) To my amazement, they stayed tight and secure the entire way. Color me impressed. Not only will these rock for triathlons, but I'll never have to worry about shoelace loops flopping all about ever again! (I switched to Saucony shoes a few months ago, and those things have freaking miles of shoelaces on them. It's mind-boggling.)

You can buy Yankz! from their web site for $7.50/pair and they come in 50 colors, with black or white clips. I paid $7.75/pair for mine at the Urban Tri Gear booth at the expo.

Posted by Dawn at 05:30 PM | Comments (4)