Indy Santa Hustle Half Marathon

I peer-pressured JV to sign up for this race with me for 3 reasons:
1) we had not ran a half since Sept and I missed it
2) I wanted to do an out-of-state race before the year ended (our first!)
3) I wanted to complete 12 races in 2012 (this made it race #11, half marathon #4)

So we signed up. Registration was $55, not bad for a half marathon. We were not able to pick up our packets (they only offered packet pick-up the day before the race, boo). I viciously stalked twitter, facebook, and dailymile to see if anyone was also running it. We got lucky, and a nice runner from Indy did us the favor of picking it up for us. Hurray for awesome runners like her!

The drive wasn't that bad, when we arrived, we picked up our packets, and checked into our hotel. I made a huge mistake during our little road trip and ate Cheetos and Cheese-nips. For some wierd reason, the combination hurts my stomach real bad. So we took a trip to CVS and I couldn't sleep well the rest of the night.

Race Morning
My stomach wasn't up for any breakfast, so we skipped out on the free breakfast offered by the hotel. We were able to see what Indy looked like in the daylight, and the first thing I noticed on our way to the start area were rolling hills, itty bitty ones, but they were hills (I hardly ever train on anything besides flat streets, oops). Uhm. I was hoping and praying the course was hill-free.

Long Story Short...

If I could go back and redo this race, I would. It was so much fun and challenging. After getting started without my garmin, I knew my overall pace and time was going to be off by a little but I could manage without it. I manually lapped mile 1, and from there on, it was pretty right on with the course markers.

Mile 1-7
Nothing really happened during the first 7 miles, it was just through downtown areas and through streets of Indy. Some streets weren't closed off for the runners, once we steered away from the downtown area and into the woods, the intersections were being controlled by a police officer. 

what the hell is that?!
...that explains my horrible 8th & 9th split

Before I encountered the hill, I was thinking, maybe I could actually run this half at about a sub 8:10 pace.. my splits had been right on.
And then THAT happened. -->
The "monster hill." The brutal, time-sabotaging hill. I noticed it from afar, but didn't think we would actually have to run OVER it.

Mile 7.8 - 10
There was cyclist around this area, and some of them were even avoiding it. I kept thinking over and over, "don't push too hard. You don't want to collapse, cramp up, or let this stupid hill get the best of you".  So.. I slowed down.. ALOT. A guy in front of me stopped, and walked up the hill. Smart. but I just jogged ahead. I could def feel the incline and at that point I felt I had never actually experienced a tough course like this one. The downhill was a breeze, and let me legs fly past the 8th mile mark. then before I knew it, there came ANOTHER FREAKING HILL! Right after my little celebration, I felt like my PR had instantaneously disappeared.. There was no way in hell I was going to do a sub 1:49. Nope. No way. Screw it, let me just finish this race.

Throughout the race I made quick 5 second stops at mile 4 and 6 for water and Gatorade after taking a Shot Blok. After mile 8, I stopped for a little longer, stretched and took 2 Shot Bloks with water before returning to the next 5 miles.

Mile 10, I took it slow, let my legs get in the groove and recover. One reason I love half marys, even if you run a slow mile, or 2, or 3, you can def bounce back. So I took my time to complete mile 10, and I felt alot better when I crossed the mile mark. 10 Done, 3.1 to go.

The last 3.1 
I was so glad I had slowed and recovered because i felt a little refreshed, I was still tired and legs were heavy, but I was able to speed up from here on after. Negative splits!!! I felt so good the last mile, it felt AMAZING! I had never felt this good for the last part of a half. I felt a little heaviness in my legs after hitting mile 12, but nothing compared to before during previous races. The last 2 miles were usually my slowest and the hardest, not today :)

Finishers Medal (left)
Placing Medal (right)

The last mile was all next to the river, and down a beautiful path. I ran harder, not looking at my watch by now, just running by feel. I passed up a few girls who looked like they were done. Out of no whee, an older women, who looked in her 50s PASSED ME! hahaha. So i let her be my lead. I saw the finish line, she kicked and then I. When I saw the time on the clock, it was in the 1:48s! OMG! I COULD ACTUALLY PR! here! In INDIANA! ON THIS BRUTAL COURSE! As I ran across the finish line, McSpeedy was waiting for me, with my medal in hand. I felt so happy to be done. I was so excited to find out if I really PRed.

Finish Time: 1:48.39 (shiny new PR)
3rd Place in 20-24 AG
28th overall female

We walked around and back to the finish line in time to hear we had placed! and took our placing medals.

Overall
This was such a fun race. Although the course caught me off guard and challenged me, it was well organized. I had my doubts after hearing about the Chicago Santa Hustle, but this one turned out very well. The course was pretty and different than what I'm used to. There was cookies and other goodies ON the course, but I skipped out on them.
-Dri-fit T's :)
-Nice looking medals :)
-Goodies at the end :)

The only complaint I have is the packet pick up.. so I would probably rate this a 4.5 out of 5. Besides that, I will def do this next year (if I'm up for the challenge).

Luz
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Santa Hustly Indy Half Marathon 12/16/2012

Pre-Race

This was our first race that we ever did out of state.  It was about a 3-hour drive from Chicago, but it was well worth it.  Luckily the race started at 9 AM meaning we can recover from our long drive and get some rest. As soon as we arrived to Indianapolis, we noticed that it was somewhat hilly compared to Chicago.  We were hoping the half-marathon route wouldn’t be as hilly, but we were dead wrong.  On race day, we were able to find parking right by the starting line for about $3/hr, which was pretty cheap.  As we were walking to the starting line, we noticed that there were a lot of people wearing Santa hats and holiday colors.  The starting line was full with runners.  We had to squeeze our way through the crowds of people to get to the front.

Race:

When the race began, I had to start running around people.  I saw a guy running with a stroller and a few people who placed themselves in the wrong corral.   My goal for this race was to run at 6:45 even pace for all my 13 miles, which would be a 1:28:30. This was a very comfortable pace for me and I was aiming at beating my 1:30 PR.   After a mile from the starting line, we started running on the streets.  I saw many runners sprint at the start, but I did my best to run my own race.  As the race went on I noticed that there would be times that it would get hilly, but I wouldn’t let that distract me as much.  Miles 1-8 were perfect at even pace.  I passed up most of the runners that started off fast in the beginning. Half way through the race, I felt great and thought it would be a cakewalk back to the finish line.  I was wrong.  By the time I got to mile 8, there was huge hill which forced me to fall off pace.  I was disappointed, but I didn’t let that bring me down.   These hills kept playing mind games and it got more difficult.  It felt like there was hill after hill.  Luckily towards the finish things started to level off and I finished with 3^rd in my age group and time of 1:31.  I knew if it wasn’t for these hills I could of definitely pulled the 1:28 off.  There’s always next time though :) 

Pros

-Well organized

-Santa hats/beards included with bib

-Bananas and Cookies after the race

-Cool finishers medal

-Age group awards

-Candy aid station? Haha :)

-First hilly race, even though it made me slow down :(

-First out of state race !

-Fun road trip :)

Cons

-Times weren’t displayed along the route (luckily I had my Garmin)

-Few aid stations

-They didn’t have a variety of snacks at the finish line

-As the half-marathon runners were getting close to the finish line, we had to weave around the 5k walkers through a very narrow path.

Amazing weather!

Rudolph Ramble 8k

A bit late but here it is.

We expected it to rain and 35 degree weather that morning.. The weather here is apparently bipolar... because not so long ago it was in the 70s.

8k Goal: Run it at a 7:47 pace
We got up that morning to this --> yuck

Instead of checking-in our gear, we waited in the car. Smarty pants (JV) decided to wear shorts and a short sleeve. We were able to warm up a little when we finally left the car and jogged to the start line. People looked cold. And a sponsor was giving out bags (?) in order to stay warm and dry. By the time the race started, the rain had cleared up but left a mess behind. The course was unpaved at the beginning, so it was obviously very muddy.

Race:
Uhm.. I don't know what happened during mile 4, def need to work on keep my pace below an 8min/mile when it comes to short races. Grr? I still don't like anything shorter than a 10k.. Why? I love distance..? Maybe my legs are anti-speed.


Mile 1: Holding back..

Finish Time: 38:36 at 7:45 pace

Mile 2: Ok, not bad. Now keep up. I see the turn around!
Mile 3: I hate those crazy U-turns. My ankle is in pain.
Mile 4: I'm so freaking tired..
Last .9mi: Hallelujah! I see the finish line... I officially hate anything less than 10ks.

(Ended up finishing with a 7:45 pace. Woop Woop! First 8k, success?)

Actually, that is only what I remember... I just wanted to get out of there and into my pjs.
Sorry! Very generic recap. :(

Overall: Would I do it again? Maybe.. The race was on the usual lakeshort path.. and something over $40 isn't really worth my money. Unless of course they offer awesome goodies/t-shirt/medal I would probably rate it at 2 out of 5, just because it was cold/raining and there wasn't any places to wait (besides in your car about a mile away). But it's a holiday race.. so I'll give it an extra point i guess?

T-shirt: Cute, but cotton?
Price: I think I paid $35 or $40 for it. A tad bit pricey.
Organization: pretty much just set up a bunch of tents with sponsors, port-a-potties at the starts, chip-timed and timed mile marker.


Oh and they were giving out antlers and Rudolph red noses (that looked like clown noses if you weren't wearing antlers haha)

Clown.. or Rudolph noses? Hm..

I ended up bumping into Christina, from Chicago Running Bloggers, she's training for her first half marathon in January (go Christina!). We took a picture together and looking at it now, we are akwardly smiling because we were literally freezing our asses. haha :)

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12/09/2012

Rudolph Ramble 8k by JV

Our first 8k race!! To be honest, I’ve only heard of a few 8ks.  Maybe its because it’s a weird distance (4.9 miles).   On race day, the weather was ugly.  It rained a couple hours before the start of the race and it was cold.    We found parking about 2 blocks away from the starting line.  It beats paying $20 at Lincoln Park Zoo.  By the time we got to the starting line, we just wanted the race to begin already because we were freezing! We saw many people wearing antlers and Santa hats.   They were also giving out free antlers and red noses for all the race participants, which I thought it was pretty cool to get everybody in the holiday spirit.

The race soon started and all the runners took off.  The start of the race was muddy and there were many puddles of water.  I saw runners getting splashed.  You had to watch were you were running for the first mile until we reached the lakefront trail.  The route along the trail was a simple and continued for about 1.5-2 miles then a turnaround.   They had an aid station in the middle of the route along the lakefront trail for runners going to the turnaround and for runners going back to the finish line.  As you were approaching the finish line, it got muddy and you had to watch out for puddles of water.  After the race I found out that I got 2^nd in my AG 20-24.  I don’t know how I managed to pull this off.  I wasn’t feeling my best at the start of the race, but I can say that I’m happy with my first 8k

Overall, I liked the race and it was really fun.

Cons:

-no good snacks at the finish

-weather

-mile marker at mile 2 wasn’t working when I passed by it

Pros

-Awesome shirt

-at least some of the mile markers were working.  (not all of them)

-free antlers and red noses haha

-organization was good

Race Recap: Long Grove Turkey Trot 5k

Why am I not out shopping for Black Friday deals?!?! well..
1. I don't want to get trampled on (I'm short, I get hit in the face.. on the bus, going up the stairs.. Going into a store with a million other people sounds dangerous)
2. I don't really need anything... besides normal people clothes. I don't remember the last time I bought a pair of jeans or a blouse.
3. I don't want to go out in the cold to shop, I would rather go out for a run :)

I will wait patiently for Cyber Monday (BTW anyone know of any good deals yet?)
Now that Thanksgiving is over, it officially feels like Christmas season!

Thanksgiving consisted of running my second 5k, eating turkey, watching movies, eating turkey, and watching more movies, and eating cookies.

5k Recap
The 5k was in a cute little town of Long Grove. I was really looking forward to this 5k since I'm a big fan of All Community Events races and their goodies and (placing) medals. Getting there wasn't hard considering they had country roads (i think). Those roads that have a little sign with the street name and looks like your about to go into the woods.. We also used a GPS app, just in case.
Parking was free, always a good thing, and we could see the start line from where we parked. Packet pick-up was a breeze, except the volunteers looked confused at one point. I was a little dissapointed that they ran out of Smalls, and instead got a Medium, but I'll survive. The sweater was still warm and cute for wearing after the race. Gear-check was also a breeze, and it's always a good thing they bring extra bags, just in case your warm up clothes don't end up fitting in your drawstring bag :) There was a lonnng line for the port-a-potties though, which is never a surprise.

After dropping our bags off, we went and lined up about 10 minutes before the race started. We tried staying behind what looked like a high school track team. lol We knew they were going to sprint off, which was a red flag if I wanted to start off calmly.
The course started off in their small paved streets but led us past some woods, and small section of trail. The course was looped, flat and mostly paved. As we passed the first Mile, I did a really good job pacing myself, a little under my goal pace and even clocked my second mile 2 seconds slower. I was feeling good until we passed mile 2. I was starting to feel tired, and knew that my legs were going to be letting me down today. I stuck with a few guys till about mile 2.8 and sped up. At mile 3, I saw the finish line and also one of the guys coming up behind me. I was a little too late to kick my legs a little faster but still finished under my 5k PR. I was a little dissapointed with my finish and the last half mile, but there's always next time.
I ended up placing 2nd in my age group and shedding a few seconds of my 5k time. After getting our goodies we walked around the little town. My favorite part was the hot cider :) It was addicting and I kept going back for more. There was also beer for those over 21, free massages, live band (although I did not see one single turkey. Like a blown up turkey :(

I'm definitely signing up for this race next year, I really liked the course and the food. and the hot cider.


Luz

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After our long drive from Chicago, we just wanted to start racing!! The weather was perfect for running. We were both really excited for the 5k and because it was Thanksgiving.  (who doesn't love eating a lot of turkey  and other goodies )

Pre-Race:
As soon as we got to the race we saw that most of the tents were crowded with runners surrounding them.  We found the packet pick up tent and picked up our bib numbers.  We also got a brown sweater, but it wasn't the size we requested because they ran out.  After picking up our bib numbers we went to gear check which was a truck.  Gear check was smooth without any problems.  I just didn't think that they'll be using a truck for gear check haha. After gear check we went to the starting line.  The starting line wasn't really that organized and it was really narrow.

Race:

And were off!!! All the fast runners sprinted off and I tried to maintain my own pace this time.  I did my best to focus on my form and pace.  I ran the first mile at 6:15 and thought to myself okay not bad next one better be around the same time or couple seconds off.  As mile 2 was creeping up, i  soon started catching up to some of the runners who sprinted off in the start .  I was able to do mile 2 at 6:19  and was feeling okay , but things got a bit hard around the 15 minute mark.
I thought to myself this is were the race really starts.  I fought hard to maintain my pace and form. I just wanted the race to end already!  When i looked at my watch for mile 3, My pace dropped, but i got a boost when i saw the finish line insight.  I sprinted to the end with a total time of 19:51 and came in 3rd place 19-24 age group.   Most of the race was ran on the local streets, many which weren't even closed.  The local police just stopped traffic when runners were coming through.  Overall the course was very fast and flat.

Post Race:

Post race after party was good.  They had many goodies and many tents offering free stuff.
Even free massages.

Pros:
-Fast/Flat course
-Goodies!! (hot cider, chewy bars, candy , etc.)
-Beer?  Not 21 so i wouldn't know
- Free sweater
- 1500+ runners

Cons
- Didn't  have our sizes for the sweater

Overall , we both liked the race and would definitely consider to do it again next year.  It was fun and they had many goodies at the end and we both PRed for our 5k distance , which is always a plus.


JV

Race Recap: Lincolnwood Turkey Trot 10k

I think 10k's are my new favorite distance after HM's :)
They're fast, but not too fast, and the distance is just in the middle.
I got the 10k itch after completing last weeks Chicago Perfect 10. The morning of the race, there we went, and I registered a few minutes before the race started.

10k Goal: have fun. It was my first turkey trot ever and first consecutive same-distance race within 7 day span. Although, I wasn't going to take anything above 50 minutes. That would be slacking on my part.

Race Day Registration: Smooooooth. 1 person in front of me, and got my t-shirt, bib, 'goodie' bag filled with bunch of fliers and my pins. Done.

2 seconds to pin my bib on. Then lined up at the gear check.

Gear Check: Not too long of a line. Second time using gear check. Usually at bigger races I avoid those lonnnng lines, but this was a smaller race so why not? Kudos to volunteers for keeping the line going :)

Course: ...no comment. It was my fault for not looking up the course map beforehand, but hey it was a spur of the moment kind-of-thing when we decided to run this race. But here is a snapshot. and it's not pretty.
I'm used to running races on the lakefront.. and with straighter courses. Can you imagine what it was like running a race, not knowing there was so many turns, it kind of felt like a corn maze. When you thought it was finally going to stop, BAM! there came another turn. and another. And when you thought the finish line was after the next turn. It wasn't. Damn it. But it was a good experience. Change is good, and atleast it kept my mind busy from my aching shins (oh yeah, wore my new Brooks, which I shouldn't have, I'm such a noob).

I may come off as mean, but why were there kids on the course?! Especially right by the finish line. A few yards from when I was about to finish, a little girl just jumped in front of me (and probably slowed me down by a few seconds), it would've been terrible if I hadn't seen her..
Which reminds me... having a 5k, a walk, and a 10k all on the same course= not such a good idea. During the last mile, I had to weave in and out of 5k people and walkers. I'm glad I wasn't going for a PR.

6th in 20-29 AG
3rd if they had 20-24 :( darn...

The mile marks and clocks were right on though! Which is always a good thing. Too bad my splits sucked.--->

(look at that first split.. what was I thinking, I was kenyan or something? no way I was going to keep that pace up, what a noob..)

I was really tired after mile 3 and regretted not signing up for the 5k instead haha. but as soon as we hit mile 5, I felt I had warmed up enough (or slowed down enough actually) to keep going. Maybe I could come close to last weeks time? & I did woohoo! I was off by 2 seconds (I blame the little girl at the end, and my shin splints... and the crazy course ;) haha.

... this only encourages me to run another 10k. Damnit...

Top left: stacks of boxes of pizza, no line!
Top Right: live band
Bottom left: cozy warm sponsorship tent with food/goodies inside
Bottom right: Free Hot Chocolate & Coffee Trucks :)

 After Party: After today's race, I could say Chicago Perfect 10 sucked. This race had alot more goodies at the end.

-boxes and boxes of pizza
-Hot Chocolate & coffee
-expo under a tent, kept us warm
-live band
-Chewy bars (but they ran out after a while :(

The only thing they could've had was a finishers medal, but hey it was just a turkey trot.





 For Mid-november, the weather has been amazing!



-Luz
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Pre-Race

This was actually our first race outside of Chicago.  Finding parking was a bit difficult, we had to drive around for a while until we found parking lot by a grocery store.  After finding parking, we had to run to registration and pick up our bib numbers and check in our gear.  The whole process went smooth without any waiting .

Race:
And were off! Both the 5k and 10k runners started off together.  I tried to maintain a relaxed pace throughout the start of the race, not trying to use a lot of my energy.  The first mile was done at 6:07 according to my Garmin. I did my best to maintain this pace , but it became more difficult as the race went on.   The course was flat and consisted of many turns!! (at least for the 10k route) The turns were not only confusing , but they only made me want to finish the race already! The route back to the finish line was packed with a lot of runners/ walkers because the 5k/10k route came together as one.  The last mile was the most tiring for me throughout the whole race.  I just wanted to finish already, but i also wanted to beat last weeks time.  I pushed through and finished 42:00 flat.  I beat last weeks time by a few seconds, but off from my 10k PR (40minutes)  Not bad for not being in top notch running shape like in the summer.  Time to work hard >:)

Overall:

Pros
-free pizza!
-free plastic water bottles
-bag with a race shirt
-1000+ runners
-timed mile markers

Cons
-They ran out of snacks. (chewy bars-granola bars, hot chocolate)
-10k had too many turns! It felt like if i was going in circles
-Age groups are not in 4 year increments.

 JV 

NEXT UP! Long Grove Turkey Trot 5k!

Any suggestions/advice on how NOT to sprint off at the beginning... it's getting to be a bit of a problem.

Anyone know of any upcoming 10ks? tehe.

Happy Turkey Trotting :)

Race Recap: Chicago Perfect 10

My morning: started out at 5am... with a cramp on my left calf that had woken me up. It seriously felt like 5 whole minutes had gone by and I was still clutching to my leg in bed :( Worst. pain. ever. My race mornings never fail to surprise me.

Anywho.

My goal for the race was to keep my time under 50 minutes and if my legs felt like going fast today, maybe even PR. (Chicago 10k finished at 49:44)

The 10k was paid for by UIC, and funded 15 of our runners in the running club. Pretty neat, so even if I didn't like the race, I wasn't going to really mind. Free race = happy Luz, regardless.

The race was pushed back by half hour.. which was good and bad. But more of a good thing, I think. We had just parked a few blocks away from Navy Pier when we heard from fellow bloggers that the race had been moved back. We were barely going to make it on time, so it gave us a few minutes to check-in our gear.

The course:
-was a bit, odd. First thing I noticed was before hitting the lake front trail, we had to run on the road, next to incoming cars. The only thing separating us from them, was a few cones spread out. Uh?
-The hills. Oh my jebus.. Was not mentally prepared for those. Or physically actually. I guess I've been running on super flat courses for the past few weeks.
-no Gatorade for the 10mile runners?

Post race:
-Bananas, bagels and Powerade. I'm not a big fan of Powerade, but after I was done, I took a bottle (not knowing what it was) and it tasted okay.
-Not enough goodies in my opinion.
-We went back to indoor warm place and pick up our gear, which was convenient.
-Gear check-in went smooth, and pick-up as well, with no lines.
-Got to meet up with two Chicago Running bloggers (Christina & Maggie) while hanging out near the gear check :)

Javier, me and Christina

Maggie, me and Javi

Overall:
-had fun, but would hesitate to register with my own money next year.
-Shirt, a tad bit small.
-Nice bling
-Ended up finishing at 48:43 (7:51 pace), which means a new PR :) and even got 3rd in my AG

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Chicago Perfect 10 Recap -  by JV

 Pre-Race:

After doing the Chicago 10k back in August and liking the distance,  Luz and I definitely wanted to do another 10k race. We were very excited for the 10k and were hoping in hitting a new PR.  We got to Navy Pier around 7:15 only to find out that the race had been pushed back to start around 8 am.  We didn't mind because it allowed us time to park the car and go to gear check.  Once we got to Navy Pier, the whole event seemed a bit disorganized .  There were people everywhere and very little room for all the runners.  We decided to kill some time inside because it was a bit chilly outside until we heard that the race was about to begin.  We ran to the start line and placed ourselves in our corrals.  As soon as we got to our corrals, the race started.


Race:

As soon as I crossed the starting line, my Garmin wasn't working properly. I had to mess around with it until i finally got it working again.  After that i tried my best to get into race mode.  I found it a bit difficult getting into "race mode" because the start was crowded and the route was a bit narrow.  I accidentally stepped on a runner in the process.  I tried to put all that aside and focus on my running form and pace.  As we left Navy Pier and hit the lakefront trail , everything seemed okay until it started to get more and more crowded.  10 Miler runners and 10k runners were running with one another.  Adding to that were the bikers along the route.  There was also confusion with the clocks along the route.  The times that were being displayed along the mile markers were different for the 10 milers and the 10k , but there was no clear indication on which one was the correct time for the 10k people and the 10 miler people. At the turn around, i just wanted the race to be over already.  I was happy that i was halfway done, but i knew that i wasn't going to PR or anything.   I tried my best to focus , but i just couldn't get into my zone.  I pushed through those last miles until i finished!!

Post-Race:
The race overall for me was okay.  I liked that there was:
-finishers medal
-enough people so it can be competitive
-parking close to navy pier
-cool looking shirt, but i heard that it runs small along the arms
-weather?
-Timed

Cons
-Route was packed with people at the start and along the race
-Clocks caused confusion among runners
-not enough goodies at the end
-Aid stations were dead only few volunteers giving out water without any cheering

Other than that I'm looking forward  to our next race which will happen on Thanksgiving Day (the Long Grove Turkey Trot).

We're both hoping to PR for the 5k distance!!

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McSpeedy & I :) ♡

UIC Running Club

Freedom Isn't Free 5k



Well that kinda sucked...
I learned my lesson never to go out with friends the night before a race. Bad idea.
I ate a good filling breakfast after a 4 hour nap.. and tried shaking off the hangover. I was feeling better by 10am. Thank goodness the start time was at 11 :)



mmm... Hot Chocolate and an egg McMuffin

The course was flat and easy, go out west, loop around a small park and back. Simple. Ha... As soon as the runners when out, I knew my body was not prepared to sprint off the start line, but I did and clocked my first mile at 7:10ish. eek. Not good, too fast for what I had in mind. My stomach felt it. Other runners always say, don't go out too fast on the first mile, it's going to bite you in the ass later. And it did. Second and third mile was def slower.

A 5k is way different than a half marathon, which is what I've been doing all summer. I registered a few days before the race, and had not been thinking "short=super kenyan fast". I guess the short distance messed with my head and so did the speed. The first half, I felt my form was all over the place, dunno if it was just me.
I didn't even have it in me to sprint when I saw the finish line. I saw the clock at mile 3, showing 22:30something... I kissed my sub 23 goodbye. I was not about to puke. lol so I just kept running at my pace.

Finish Time 23:51
1st Place F 20-24
9th/242 Female

Pros: -11am start
-burgers and hot dogs afterwards
-very well organized race (~400 runners)
-great cause (all proceeds went to the Cpl. Conner Lowry Memorial Scholarship Fund at Brother Rice High School)
Cons: none :)

Good race, not gonna complain. I am now anxious to run another one. Soon.
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5k Recap - JV

Pre-Race

Our first “official” 5k race. We both have ran 10ks, 15ks, half marathons, 20 milers, and even a marathon, but we never found the time to squeeze in a 5k race. We were both really excited until race day finally came. We were sleep deprived, nervous, cold, and had terrible headaches. Nevertheless, we somehow managed to arrive at Brother Rice High School with hopes of meeting our expected finishing time (my goal 18:45+something, Luz’s goal 23 something). We picked up our packets at the race and ran back to the car. From there we can see the Marines putting on a show for everyone. People were gathering around the tents and booths that they had set up. We can also see the people that were lining up at the start line. We chose to wait inside the car until it was time for us to go to the starting line. As we saw more and more runners arriving, we started to get more nervous and excited at the same time. We just wanted to get it over with already!

Race:

10 second count down! Luz and I wished each other good luck and we were off!

All the runners rushed passed one another in hope of being the first one to cross the finish line. With all the excitement of the race starting, I didn’t notice that I was going a bit too fast than what I was supposed to go. First mile was done at 5:58. I tried to keep that pace for the next two miles, but I found it harder to keep as the race went on. By now, there were only two runners ahead of me so I felt pressured to keep close to them, but they slowly got further and further from me. Second mile was done by 12:30ish. By the second mile a few runners passed me up. I didn’t let it discourage me because I still thought I could meet my goal time. By the time mile 3 came long I just wanted to finish already. I looked up at the clock and it said 19:20ish. I missed my goal, but I still wanted to finish strong. With the finish line getting closer and closer, I finished with a sprint and a time of 20:04. Not bad for being sleep deprived and not preparing mentally .

Post-Race:

At the end of the race, we just wanted to eat so we went to the cafeteria and got free burgers and hot dogs for all the runners. That is when we found out Luz got first place in 20/24 female group!! She also got this cool medal that was engraved. I'm so proud of her !! Wohooo!!

We both liked the race a lot. Definitely doing it again next year. We liked that the race took place on the streets. Each mile marker had a clock displaying the time. There were some supporters along the route. There were some volunteers along the route giving water/Gatorade. It was timed using B-tag chip and who doesn’t love free food!? The whole race was a great experience for both of us. Even though I didn’t meet my goal, I now know where I stand and know what I need to do for my next 5k race. Hopefully I meet my goal next time with what I learned from this race.


McSpeedy & I

JV @ the start line

Race Recap: Chicago Women's Half Marathon

Ok, so this might be a little late but I couldn't help write a race recap for my very first half marathon.

I think that, overall, I picked the perfect half to start off with. It was an inaugural all-women's race. I had registered 20 days earlier and I hadn't really been following a plan or training for a half but I had already been running distance all winter and had placed in a 10k in April. I thought, why not? So I registered... with 20 days to prepare.

The race was mostly lake shore trail but still enjoyable. I lined up at my corral with colorful pink, purple, orange gear everywhere, I could definitely tell this was an all women's race. I lined up at the 8:30 pace corral. The announcer began with a speech, commemorating all the women runners. I thought that it gave the race a special touch, the theme was "Why Do You Run?". And at the end of the race, for the last maybe 2-3ish miles, there was signs on the side of the trail that really made you tear up lol. (Before the race, I wrote "For Myself" on my hand just to keep me going to the end, it worked). I seen girls with stuff written on their shirts like, "For My Mom" or "For my sister" hand written on their backs. Awww..

The water stops were about 1.5 to 2 miles apart, which was convenient. The trail isn't really hilly except at the end, and somewhere near the beginning. There was also a GU station, which I still haven't bothered to try it.

The only downside to a race on the trail, is that it gets really congested in the beginning for about a mile or 2. For me, that was kind of perfect. It kept me from speeding off and starting off too fast. I settled into a comfortable pace the whole time. I remember seeing the first 3 girls already on their way back and feeling relieved. Almost half way there :-) The miles flew by, until I hit mile 9. After that, they started slowing down, by a lot. My legs starting giving out and throughout the entire race, I always stopped at the water stops. I knew that the last water stop was about 0.75 miles or more like a mile from the finish line. So I took my time, and drank water and continued to what was the hardest mile in my life. There was a hill about .2mi from the finish line, stupid hill. A lady collapse nearby me, it looked like she had cramped up going up the hill. Ah. I freaked out a little so I tried going up slower and calmly. After the hill, I saw the finish line and started sprinting. I passed up a few women who looked like the uphill had taken the last of them.

Finishing was the best feeling I had ever felt. I knew all along I could finish but my goal was to finish under 2 hours and I did, with 3 minutes to spare. I will definitely do this race again next year and I definitely recommend any girl to do it too. I will never forget this race. Because the finish line was only the beginning :-)

After
At the end, the were giving out ice cold towels, bananas, bagels, frozen kefir (?), water and gatorade. The shirt was simple and girly, except I'm not really a fan of sleeveless shirts with a v-neck and more like a tank kinda girl, so when I wore the shirt, it made me look man-ly-ish. It was also in black (the race was in 85-90degree weather, seriously?) I wish it had been neon pink, or atleast white but hopefully they change it next year. The medal was pretty, with the Chicago Women's logo as the design. The only thing that was missing on it, was the date.

June 24, 2012 Chicago Women's Half Marathon (1:57:17) ✓

T-Shirt

Race Recap: Rock N' Roll Half Marathon

Before The Race
The night before the race, I felt my eyes were starting to droop a little around 9ish. I thought 'YAY! I'm going to get some sleep tonight'. Wrong! I went home, started syncing music to my iPhone, next thing I know it's freakin' 1:30am. Shit.
(Rookie Mistake #1: you get too nervous/overwhelmed/excited, you forget to sleep.)

I'm screwed. Things like this always happen to me of course.. so I played it cool. finished putting together my stuff and went to bed. Woke up right before my alarm at 4:55. Put everything in my bag. The only thing that was missing was my race clothes. So I went to check on them (I had left them drying in the dryer the night before). They were still wet. A big WTF. So I reset my dryer and went back to check and double check my stuff to bring to the race.
 (Rookie Mistake #2, have ALL your stuff ready, including your race clothes laid out the NIGHT before the race.)
By the time I was heading out the door, I took a banana. Another WTF. I forgot to eat something small to have some fuel. (RM #3, eat something small hours prior to start time.) I still had an hour to digest this banana. Picked up McSpeedy (the bf) and drove downtown. We got super lucky trying to find parking. We passed only 1 parking lot that was closed and the next one we scored! Woohoo. It was about 6'oclock. Half an hour till race time. We were both nervous. (Nervous was an understatement..of course)

So we got ready in the car, paid for parking, check last min things and we were off.
I looked at the time. It was around 6:22... No lie.
We tried running towards Grant Park. We had no clue were exactly the race started. Haa.. (RM #4, KNOW and carry a map of the course, especially w/ the start line on it) Ha..
We asked one of those traffic people if the knew, thank jebus they had a flyer of where it was located.
We literally ran to start line. On our way there, my water belt was a little uncomfortable. It was the first time I had it on since I purchased it. (RM #5, never use new gear on race day). So I fumbled with it as I was running, and BAM!. Next thing I know, there's water all over my leg and shorts, and none left in my little water container. Great...

We get to the corrals and I see we were wayyyy behind, in like corral 15'ish.
McSpeedy was in corral 1, and I was in 3, how the hell were we going to make it in time.
I hear the announcer start off the race. Shit.

So I jump over the gates and run down the sidewalk until finally eying corral 4. I thought, this is better than nothing. So we both started off there. Had 2 seconds to rest and we were off...

During
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I had no water. I was already worn out. My mind was everywhere. I felt horrible for not preparing properly. But this wasn't going to stop me from running this race. I started up my Nike+ app, and just focused on how the hell I was going to do this.
I honestly can't remember most of this race. I was too caught up in my thoughts. I ran my first mile at 7:53. Woah. Way too fast for what I had in mind. I think my legs were still thinking about reaching the start line. After that I tried keeping a steady pace not slowing down too much, and not going out too fast. I remember eying the 1:45 pacer. My Goal time one day. Sadly, I only stayed with him for about half a mile-ish.. I don't know how long after that, I see a herd of people and there he is, Mr. 1:50.

Alright Luz! You have to stay with him. Too bad it was only about a mile or 2 before I lost sight of his little flag. (Having no contacts on didn't help one bit. RM#6: wear your glasses to be able to see where you are going)

Oh no... The last thing I wanted was for Mr. or Mrs. 2:00 to pass me up.That was my greatest fear throughout the whole time.
I started taking my Shot Bloks at around mile 6, right after I remembered...that I had forgotten to take off my compression shin sleeves. Ha.. Nice one Luz. So I rolled them down to my ankles. These kinda bother me when I wear them for too long, today was not the day for that.
At Mile 8, I took another Shot Blok and I started choking on it. Haha.. I was laughing at myself. I need to chew and stop day dreaming and get on with this race. I had no idea where the mile marks were, maybe because I had no contacts, or maybe because I wasn't really paying any attention to my surroundings, but I had missed almost all of them. Except of course the 5k, 10k and some other ones.
Mile 9 rolled around and it hit me, I only had 4 miles to go. ( I had to lie to myself at this point and rounded it down and told myself only 3.9 miles to go, just to make me feel better)

I kept trying to pace myself with other runners around me and also stopped a couple times for water/Gatorade. No GU for me. I can hardly remember stopping at the water stops...
The wet sponges helped with the stickyness from all the Gatorade I spilled on myself. :)
I believe those were after mile 10ish.. maybe 11.

I remember seeing the 11th mile mark. I had around 20 minutes to finish, if I was going to beat the 2 hour mark. I was starting to freak out. 2 miles to go. ONLY 2 miles to go. Where did the miles go?! (my legs thought differently) I kicked my pace up a little. I was really tired. But I kept thinking 'pain is temporary...pain is temporary...pain is weakness...' I didn't want to have a feeling of regret, like last time. I didn't want to think I didn't push myself hard enough. I crossed mile mark #12, one mile to go, and I looked at the big ol' clock. Shit. I remember it being in the 1:50s already. Damnit, I'm not going to make it. I was dying. I was starting to lose my cool.. I felt like I had failed.. I wanted to break 1:57 so bad. At that point I wanted to cry and give up. But something inside of me just kind of took over. Whatever it was, it helped me focus on finishing. I gave it my all. I would speed up and slow a little down, and speed up again. I knew in my heart, no matter how tired I was at mile 13, I was going to sprint to the end.

I tried keeping a fast-ish pace (or so it felt at the moment). Then I saw the big 13 mile mark. I read in big numbers 1:58. I didn't care. All I knew was that I wanted to finish this strong. I might have not been prepared in the beginning. I might have screwed up. But I had a choice to really dig deep. And with the help of a running dude up ahead of me in a dark blue shirt, I made it my goal to try to beat him. I ran as fast as I could, I felt like my body had gone numb at this point.

never underestimate a girl ;)

I guess it was all the adrenaline? I just wanted to cross that freakin' finish line already. With every last bit of energy I had inside of me, I crossed that line. The one that scares you, yet makes you feel so proud. The one that can either defeat or define you...

I stopped my timer. 1:56. I didn't know whether to trust it or not. So I made a side note to check the results later. I didn't want to celebrate just yet, I had stopped it twice during the race due to bad GPS reception. Don't celebrate just yet Luz..

After
McSpeedy was waiting for me at the finish line and seeing him snapped me back to reality. It was over. So of course my body suddenly got all funky and I had no intentions of eating anything because I knew for a fact my stomach wasn't going to put up with it. I drank water, a little warm gatorade (yuck..).
Got some Jamba Juice (should've taken more;) and my medal and went to sit down with McSpeedy.

mmmm.. Jamba Juice... *drools*
my white flower stayed on!
I couldn't help buy a flower from Fellow Flowers the day of the expo. Such inspiring women.

our recovery snacks. chocolate milk is amazing.

My legs felt horrible, my body ached everywhere. We took lots and lots of pictures and just walked around, trying to loosen up. Drove back home and after a nice shower, we looked through all the pictures and just laid around the entire day. Had a home-made "taco" salad (which was just lettuce, tomato, onion, hot sauce with some taco meat -from his tacos lol- on top of all the lettuce.. :-P ) in the afternoon and laid around some more. I was really curious about my official time... So we both checked online to see if they were up. And there they were.

Gulp.

Moment of truth.
I wasn't going to beat myself up for not PR-ing this race. The weather was just off. Too hot and humid. My mind was off. I had been day dreaming 90% of the time lol
So I checked my time. Click. and there it was.

1:56:32. ONE FIFTY SIX!!!!!

AHHH!!! I couln't believe it!!! I really couldn't. I didn't hit 1:55 by 32 seconds like I wanted to.. But that 1:56 felt so good. Just thinking if I hadn't really pushed it at the end, I wouldn't have been able to feel the way I feel now.

After a race, you might think back at things you would've changed, 'if I hadn't stopped at that last water station for so long..' blah blah blah.
But at this point, I didn't regret anything. My soreness today says it all. I really dug deep inside of me, and gave it all I could. And that's what matters :-)

Overall the race was fun and not so enjoyable because of the heat. The course was a little hilly, although I don't remembering struggling that much. and it was a nice view coming down lake shore towards McCormick. I hated the stupid tunnel at the end. With my sunglasses on, I felt completely blind. Other than that, the goodies at the end were perfect. Ice pops, Jamba Juice, chocolate milk, bagels.. and so on.

We'll meet again 13.1...
See you in September.

July 22, 2012 Rock N' Roll Chicago Half Marathon (1:56:32) ✓

Running has taught me that I can do anything

 just as long as I keep putting one foot in front of the other.