Races

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A New Week!

Update for Last Week:

My goal was 17  miles but  I only ran  for a total of  15.5 miles.
I ran a 5K race (finished under 29 min.)
I played tennis 2x and did yoga 1x.

Goals for next week:

This week’s schedule:

Mon – proctor LSAT
Tues – tennis after work
Wed –yoga
Thurs – haircut
Fri –  mah jongg

This week’s running:

Mon – 3 mi before or after work
Wed – 4 mi after work
Thurs – 3 miles before work
Sat – OK Bank 5K race
Sun – 8 mi
 
Week Running Goal = 21 miles 
June Monthly Running Goal = 70 miles, a race or 2

Yearly Running Goal = 1011 miles

Happy Running!

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33rd Freihofer’s Run for Women Race Report

As I said previously, I love this race.  It’s crowded & it’s impossible to do really well, but who cares. It’s a nice course that is shady and scenic with music, fans, and clocks & water at each mile. We got a cool green tech shirt and a box of Freihofer cookies & sandwich buns.

One tennis friend was running it (one cancelled) along with a recording setting 4800 other women runners. The beginning’s runners group from last year planned to meet to take a “one year later” group photo.

My hubby picked up my bib yesterday so that saved me some time.  (I did go to the expo to get my friend’s shirt and I got an autograph from JOAN SAMUELSON!!!)

I decided to park at work to avoid the traffic and run to the race (as a warm up). That was a little over a mile & I walked a lot of it.

The weather was perfect – sunny, 60’s, no wind.

I immediately bumped into the running group plus others. I never found my tennis friend. Some of the runners even got interviewed for the news (Janis, Bridget & Tammy).

Eventually it was time to line up.  Somehow I got an orange bib which would have put me WAY back but I squeezed in toward the back of the “Yellows.”

As usual in this race, it starts and you can’t move at all.  You move and it’s crowded so you weave in and out up the hill until you get into the park and then you can run at a decent pace.

So my first mile was slow, the 2nd was faster but I did stop briefly for water (my throat hurt from all the pollen).  I walked again during the 3rd mile which pissed me off but I picked up speed as the race ended downhill.

Here’s a video of the course:

As I appraoched the finishline, I saw that I could finish under 29 minutes and I did!! Officially 28:51, net time- 28:14 and Garmin time 28:08.

Splits:

Mile 1- 9:21
Mile 2 – 8:59
Mile 3 – 8:49
      .14 – 6:50

Hooray for negative splits and meeting my goal of under 29 minutes!! 

Click HERE to watch my finish! Not really, you can barely see me at 28:51 (But you can see that I was already way past the finish line!!!)

My running friends also did great. Esp. Felice, Janis, Jen & Bridget who got PRS.

I got some refreshments, chatted with some runners & watched the beginning of the awards ceremony.

Then I  took off, I needed to get in some more miles so I ran back around the park and to my car adding 3 more miles to my day’s total.

Here are some pics from the day:

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Happy Running! Hope you had a good weekend!

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My Next Race…

FRW #4 for me.  

Freihofer's Run for Women 2008

Freihofer's Run for Women 2009

Freihofers Run for Women 2010

You can’t have PR goals in a race this big (over 4000 runners) but I love to run this one anyway:

  • It’s the ultimate women’s race!!
  • Even with the crowds, you always bump into a familiar face.
  • It’s a course that is used for many races (and ends with a downhill.)
  • I may run into my idol ( Her b-day is a week after mine but I am 4 yrs older):

My bib # is 2984 (The  4th race in a row of  2 & 8). This year they are organizing the start of the race by colors according to estimated finish times. I don’t remember what I filled in (or if I filled it in) when I registered.  I finished last year in 30:39.  I finished this same course last October in 29:10.  My last 5k finish was 27:54 so I should be BLUE but I may be  a slower color.

My goal is to finish under 29 minutes.  I realize that this may not be possible since I may be stuck in the middle of a slow moving crowd.

Maybe I’ll make the cover of the local newspaper again?

 Happy Running!

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June already?

May Recap:

Goals:

  • 60 miles  – ALMOST – 57.5  (This is my lowest mileage month this year but also the lst month without half marathon training and I was on vacation for a week.)
  • running 3-4 times per week  – YES!
  • a 5k race (finishing under 30 min) or 2 or 3 or 4 – YES! 3 5ks – all under 30 min and a 3.5 mi race – that’s 4 races!!

Highlights of May:

My Tennis Vacation in Naples, Florida:

after a run one morning

Memorial Day Weekend on Lake George:

on the marina dock after a morning run

Goals for June:

  • 70 miles
  • running 3-4 times per week
  • adding some longer runs
  • a 5k race or 2 (finishing under 29 min)

Happy Running!

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Monday Goals on Tuesday

Update for Last Week:

My goal was 15  miles and I ran 6 times for a total of  15.5 miles. YAY!
No races.
I played tennis 1x and did yoga 1x.

Goals for next week:

This week’s schedule:

Mon – boating on the lake
Tues – tennis after work
Wed –yoga
Thurs – belated b-day dinner
Fri –  mah jongg
Sun – NYC to see Memphis on Broadway

This week’s running:

Mon – 3 mi near the marina
Wed – 4 mi after work
Thurs – 3 miles before work
Sat – Freihofer’s Run for Women 5k + 4 more
 
Week Running Goal = 17 miles 
June Monthly Running Goal = 70 miles, a race or 2

Yearly Running Goal = 1011 miles

Happy Running!

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Work and Racing

On June 22, I am going to a conference in Milwaukee, WI.

Look what is going on in Milwaukee at 7pm on June 22:

Wouldn’t it be cool to run this race?

The problem is that my flight (if it is on time) doesn’t arrive until 5pm and then I have to take a (20 min) shuttle to the hotel, check-in and grab a cab to the race…

I still say: Wouldn’t it be cool to run this race?

My conference is at the Marquette University Law School and I’m staying 15 min from there at the Hyatt City Center.

I think it’s not too far from the river. I’m hoping I can squeeze in a run in the evenings.  Anyone ever been to Milwaukee?

Happy Running! TGIF!

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Lucky Numbers?

The bib numbers for my last 3 races were:

May 8 (Mother’s Day Race) – 82
May 19 (Workforce Team Challenge) – 288
May 22 (SPAC Rock & Run) – 82

Coincidence?

Apparently in China, the number 8 is considered a very lucky number since it sounds like the word for prosper when it is pronounced.

My next race is June 4 – Freihofer’s Race for Women.  I wonder what my number will be?

[Update:  My FRW # is 2984!!]

Happy Running!

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SPAC 2nd Annual Rock & Run 5k Race Report

I ran this race last year and it was my fastest 5k at the time.  I have since gotten faster so I was excited to have a good race. PR?  Maybe?

I remember the course being shady & flat with music and timing clocks along the course. It was also predicted to be the first dry day in over a week.  YAY!

at home before I left

The race was scheduled to begin at 10:30 but I headed up to Saratoga early to avoid the crowds. It was sunny when I left but it turned cloudy with a slight breeze and temps in the 60’s.  My boss Chris was supposed to be there but I didn’t see him but I did bump into Dede, a professor that I work with (She was supposed to race Thurs but didn’t).

I was a little chilly but opted to leave my jacket behind and run with just my tanktop. (I was glad I did since it was very humid.)

There were over 700 runners at the race. I started near the front.  The problem with trying to PR is that I knew I had to run faster than 8:51/mi.  I started fast but couldn’t keep it up.  Then when you know you can’t PR, you get depressed.

photo from The Saratogian

The course was a fun one.  There were local bands playing all throughtout the park.  There were electronic timers at  each mile and 3 water stops  (I drank at all 3!).

Although I was running faster than usual, everyone was passing me by including Dede who finished in 23 min.  (Who knew she was a runner?) I crossed the finish line at 27:48!!

Splits:

mile 1 – 8:46
mile 2 – 9:22
mile 3 – 9:04
           .1 – 7:15

Not a PR but a good race.  I am very happy with it.  Last year I ran this course in 29:12 and I thought that was awesome.

They had bars, bananas and donuts (I ate 2!) but most of the good stuff (cupcakes, ice cream, pizza) cost money & I didn’t bring any.

They had the same photo booth as last year and I took some ugly pics of myself.

I stuck around the the awards ceremony. Unfortunately, the awards were given for 10 year age groups not 5.  I came in 6th for 50-59 but 1st for 55-59.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing and I then added another (slooow) run of 2.9 miles before a belated birthday celebration with my BF- Blue Spice, Thai for dinner and then a movie – Water for Elephants.

Happy Running! Hope you enjoyed a good weekend of running/racing!

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Foto Friday

As promised, here are some photos from my wonderful vacation in Naples, Florida:

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Now that vacation is over, I’m back to running!

3.5 mile race last night and a 5k race on Sunday. 

Next half marathon training does not start until July 4 but I have to decide whether or not I am going to do the 10 miler on June 26.  If so, I need to start running more than 3 miles!!

Happy Running!  Good luck on any races you are doing this weekend!

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CDPHP Workforce Team Challenge Race Report

Finally my job has decided to enter this race.  There are many staff members and professors who run but it was not easy to get a team together.  First the coordinator left for a new job and then many had childcare issues and others just didn’t care to participate. In the end, we had 10 who committed to run.

Even I was hesitant being on vacation for 8 days prior to the race.  Would I be prepared?  Would I be tired?  Who cares…It should be fun, right? I had no goals for a PR.

The race is 3.5 miler and the course is similar to the Freihofers and Susan Komen but 1/2 mile longer.

There were 8,654 runners and 449 participating companies/organizations in the 2010 race!!  And even more this year!!

As I mentioned, I just got back from vacation late last night and I didn’t read my email during those 8 days. I brought all my race stuff to work because there would be no time to go home before the race. I thought we were wearing our Komen Team shirts which were the school colors, maroon & gray. Of course, I matched all my accessories to it.

When I got to work and read my email, I discovered that they ordered race t-shirts and there were white with lime green writing on them.  They were very see through also.  My black sports bra was not going to work nor my maroon & gray accessories.

So I rushed home during lunch & changed my shorts, socks, hat and added a tank top under my shirt.

The prediction originally was for thunderstorms.  But it seemed that the rain would hold off – it was near 70 degrees and very HUMID!!

The race was to start at 6:25 pm. My boss & I left our cars at work and started to walk to the start of the race around 5:15 pm. Halfway there, I realized that I forgot my knee braces and ran back to get them  (Psychologically I still need them.)

Holy cow!  I’ve never seen so many runners in one place!!! Over 9000 – CDPHP, the sponsor had a team of over 200 runners themselves.

I still arrived early and met our team captain who gave out our numbers.  There were no timing chips – too many people. unfortunately no one brought a camera so we could not take a team photo.

The announcers kept trying to get the runners to the start so I finally squeezed myself in somewhere toward the front (so I thought). As I was waiting, I was getting really sleepy – I  definitely prefer morning races!!

photo from TU

Finally the horn sounded and the race started although no one was moving.  It took me about 1/3 mile to get going.  The whole race was crowded but I just kept moving and increasing my pace steadily.

photo by DM Cyndi

Some more pics – http://www.flickr.com/photos/altuwa/sets/72157626637494599/

I loved that the race ended with a downhill but I had no aspirations for a PR so I was pleased with my negative splits:

mile 1 – 10:36
mile 2 – 9:47
mile 3 – 9:34
.50  – 8:27

Garmin time – 33:41

I gave my time to our team captain who wrote it down and then went to collect my t-shirt and bag of goodies.  It was very well organized considering the number of runners.

I walked back to my car and took a photo:

sweaty & tired

It was perfect timing – my friends had gone to see Bridemaids (which I had seen during my vacation) and I met them afterwards for a well-deserved dessert.

Happy Running! Happy to be home & racing!