September 25, 2011 by Darlene

Adirondack Half Marathon Race Report

No need to be nervous. Right? This is just a training run for Half Marathon #4 which is in 6 weeks.

But I was and stayed up late finishing a book. When I got up, I remembered that this house had all the comforts of home EXCEPT that there was a percolator. I don’t know how to use one. Neither did AJH. So since I was the first one up, I drove to Stewarts to buy some COFFEE. Got to have coffee!! Then I ate my usual cream of wheat with raisins and continued to stress out about how I would be able to do 13.1 miles.

After getting our race gear together, we headed to the race (and didn’t make any wrong turns.) There was no traffic and plenty of parking.

No problems with bathrooms either. There were bathrooms at Stewarts, porta potties and NO LINE at the boathouse (Thanks Mary for the advice).

We were at the Marathon start and needed to take a bus to the half start.

where the marathon starts

There were lots of buses. I must say that this race is very well-organized. So we arrived at the start with plenty of time for photos.

me & AJH

I bumped into the young mothers running group right away. They seemed so excited & I was excited for them.

me, Bridget, Janis, Felice & Amanda

I should mention that it was warm, sunny but not as humid as I thought. Occasionally, there was even a breeze.

The race was very scenic with views of the lake, especially the first half. The speactator/course marshall support was awesome. There was music, cheering and sometimes, they looked up your number in the program & called out your name.

the lake is on the right

What was my plan?

Really no plan. I was going to play it by ear. I had said that I just wanted to finish under 4 1/2 hours.

I felt great for the first 6 miles or so. No pain. I ran except for walking through several water stops. My time was good and I started thinking of PR…

Then came the endless hills of route 9. I mean endless.

My pace slowed and slowed and slowed. I decided to walk up the hills and run down the hills. Unfortunately that meant that I walked A LOT!!

The idea of a PR vanished so did finishing under 2:30. Yeah, I said I just wanted to finish…

As I dragged myself past the drummers, I was determined to sprint across the finish line UNDER 2:45.

I did!!! Officially 2:44:59. My slowest half marathon time so far but I’m thrilled!!

All my friends had already finished so I wandered to the food tables. What a spread!!! In addition to the usual bagels, yogurt, fruit, they had ICE CREAM!

The race ended at the beach. Perfect way to cool off your aching feet.

We hung around for the awards ceremony. AJH won 3rd in her AG but she had already headed home to Vermont. Felice won also – 2nd in her AG. She didn’t beat Sarah’s time but I’m sure this half was tougher than the one Sarah did.

Then I drove back to my friend’s river house to unwind. Believe it or not, my heel doesn’t hurt…yet.

Half Marathon #3

I’m glad I decided to do this race. Yes, I wish I was trained and ready but I’m glad I pushed myself the lst half and ran. I’m glad that I walked the 2nd half so that now I continue to train for my next race.

Happy Running! Hope you had a nice weekend!

September 24, 2011 by Darlene

Adirondack Half Marathon – Pre-Race Report

Lucky for me, my friend has a house on Schroon River which is not too far from the start of the race.

Fellow runner/blogger AJH was running this race too & I invited her to stay with me.

I planned on getting there early Saturday morning but actually AJH arrived before me. Then we headed to the Expo, my first, in Schroon Lake.

It was a pretty small expo. First we picked up our race packets. Instead of tee shirts, they gave us a cool green race jacket. So I decided to buy a tee shirt – one with the logo on the front and the name of the runners on the back. Can you believe it? I’m not even racing this one.

back of the shirt

Then we had lunch. We went to small cafe that specialized in crepes. Yes, the French teacher in me came out. It was delicious!! I had a chicken, brie, apple crepe and we split a smores crepe for dessert.

I bumped to my running friend Mary on the street who had come up to get her packet and look at the course.

AJH & I decided that we’d like to drive the course. We headed north and followed the Marathon route. It was very scenic, many of the leaves had changed colors but it was VERY hilly.

Finally we arrived at the start of the half marathon.

They said it was flat – not really but definitely less hilly that the 1st 13 miles. For most of the beginning miles you had a great view of the lake and the race ended at the beach.

I started to get excited about the race but then reality set in – I’m not racing it… I can’t. I will finish and have fun anyway. I repeat. I will finish and have fun.

a sign in front of one of the stores in town

So then we headed back to the house. It took about 11 minutes. Yes, we were pretty close.

AJH relaxing at the river house

Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Schroon Lake for the Pasta dinner. I was surprised how elaborate it was. I succeeded in carb loading – 2 plates of pasta & some cheesecake. We sat with a nice couple from NJ. He was doing his 1st half and she was training for the Chicago Marathon.

Remember that 11 minute ride. It turned out to be much longer on the way home. We missed 2 exits and then accidentally got back on the highway when we didn’t need to.

Finally got back and spent the rest of the evening on our laptops while planning our morning routine.

To be continued…

September 23, 2011 by Darlene

Goals for Half Marathon #3

Actually this is pretty easy…since I’m not ready to race 13.1.

My Goals:

Have fun.
Run a lot of it.
Walk when necessary.
Finish under 5 hours (but really I want to finish under 4 hours or maybe even in 3 hours

I am not a fan of rain. I raced in it once and that was enough for a lifetime. Here are the forecasts:

It looks like either way, it will be WARM and HUMID!!

Happy Running! Good Luck in your weekend races!

September 22, 2011 by Darlene

Half Marathon #3 – What’s the Plan?

“If you tell yourself that your goal race is going to hurt + that it won’t be any fun, your expectations will probably come true. Instead tell yourself that there will be challenges, counterbalanced by feelings of joy and satisfaction.” — Jeff Galloway

So what’s the plan?

A. Run the whole damn thing (and hope I don’t make my heel injury worse).
B. Walk the whole thing (under 5 hours, of course so I can get a medal).
C. Run until I get tired and then walk.
D. Walk one mile, run one mile, etc.
E. Walk up the hills, run down the hills.
F. Pretend that it’s a training run for Half Marathon #4 instead of a race.
G. Play it by ear. Do whatever feels right.
H. Have lots of fun and take lots of photos.

Stay tuned to see what I do…

Happy Running! Anyone faced with this situation?

September 20, 2011 by Darlene

Two for Tuesday: Train or Taper

One week until Half Marathon #3 and 7 weeks until Half Marathon #4!!

So my longest run was a little over 8 miles. That means I am training for my half marathon on Nov 6!
This coming Sunday I have to do 13.1 miles…Do I need to taper?

Happy Running? Have you ever had to choose between training & tapering?

September 18, 2011 by Darlene

Boats, Jazz, Running & Pirates

We listened to jazz from out boats last year and it was fun so we thought we’d do it again. The weather cooperated. It was sunny but cool so we decided not to listen from our boat but to drive to Lake George Village and meet our friends and listen there.

First we walked around the Boat Show that was at the public docks.

Then we went out to lunch at The Lookout restaurant which has a great view of the lake as well as great burgers. Then we headed to the Jazz Fest to listen for awhile.

Afterward, we headed up to Bolton Landing to put our boat in the water (that’s where we would be sleeping) and then back to our friends in the village for an evening of cards and watching the fireworks from their deck.

The next morning I headed out for my long run. Unfortunately, my energy level was low (I hadn’t had dinner the nite before & didn’t get a lot of sleep).

I decided to repeat my 9N South route and but to take a different detour than last week. The weather couldn’t have been better – sunny & cool (& not as cool as I was dressed for.)

Route 9N So

photo stop

and a tree house

the beautiful lake

heading back to 9N

The run was fun because of the beautiful scenery. I covered about 8.5 miles in total with a lot of stops for photos. I was fine until around 6 miles & then the lack of food & sleep took over and my pace slowed.

It is Talk Like a Pirate Day on Sept 19 but we decided to celebrate a day early.

When I returned from my run, we headed out to Commission Pt Island to meet our friends.

waiting for the "Pirates"

Here we are - Aaaargh!

me & the hubbs

the party's over

Good-bye "Pirates"

As usual, it was a fun-filled day! Lots of fun, food, drink, laughter, etc…

One week until my Half Marathon – gulp!

Happy Running! Are you sad to see summer end?

September 17, 2011 by Darlene

My New Tee-Shirt

CRAZY OFFER: ULTRA-Lite personalized performance (tech) shirt for only $12.

I couldn’t resist…

So I ordered the tee-shirt above and here’s the e-mail I received:

Yo Darlene,

This is a brief note (well, maybe not so brief) to inform you that your order from nduranc.com is on its way.

Your shirt(s), sadly, has been participating in an underground international ultra of epic proportions. The recycled plastic Dr. Pepper bottles used in the tech shirt(s) polyester fabric originates from deep-sea caverns off Madagascar. The shirt fabric is then milled in Asia, shipped to the United States, put before the judges on “America’s Got Talent,” and then sent to yet another facility before delivery to nduranc.com, where underage Honey Badgers apply the design.

However, the final leg of your order’s journey is the most hazardous of all. Yes, your order must now survive the byzantine switchbacks of the U.S. Postal Service.

We’re convinced all delivery services have crease-and-wrinkle machines just for shirts. Once you receive your item(s), you may want to throw them in the washer and dryer to rid them of the negative vibes and potential Old Spice aroma.

If you don’t receive your shirt(s) within the next five days, please let us know and we’ll send Dean Karnazes down to the local postal annex to rattle a few cages.

Thanks again for your order.

Never stop (unless instructed to do so by Peirs Morgan, or by a police officer pointing a loaded weapon),

…
Runner & Operations Flunkie

$12 with a free saying from a business with a sense of humor. What could be better? Do you think it will make me run faster too??

Happy Running! Can you resist buying new running clothes?

September 16, 2011 by Darlene

Fall Racing

Yes, I am trying to rest my heel and not do too much racing. But there are a few on my radar for various reasons:

1. Adirondack Half Marathon – Signed up for this one before the injury.

Oct 1, 2011

2. Race for the Cure 5k – We have a team where I work & I am one of the coordinators. Besides it’s an important cause. There’ll be too many runners to worry about my time.

3. Santa Clarita Half Marathon – Signed up for this one too before the injury.

Nov 24, 2011

4. Our Town Turkey Trot – This 5K is near my house and it is my PR race.

Dec 17, 2011

5. Albany Last Run 5k – For this race, you get to see the Capital Holiday Lights in Washington Park and a spectacular fireworks show.

A few more may squeak in…

Happy Running! Are you racing this fall?

September 15, 2011 by Darlene

Three Things Thursday: Running, Yoga, Eating

1. After 2 days of tennis, my heel was sore. I didn’t run on Mon & Tues and I decided to wait until after work to run yesterday. I parked my car at yoga and ran 4 miles around Washington Park. Not a good run but a run nevertheless.

the park in the fall

a nice place to run

2. Then I went to yoga at HeartSpace. My friend Cheryl was there as usual. Yoga is the perfect cooldown!!!!!!!!!!

Lisa, my awesome instructor

3. For the second week in a row, Cheryl & I went out for dinner and drinks at The Point. (She has some restaurant.com gift cards). This week, we just had drinks, salads (pictured below), shared a dessert (cinnamon donuts with strawberries & cream) & coffees. YUM!!!!!!!!!!