What's a Little Rain?

Tomorrow morning I will run the 37th Marine Corps Marathon.

Tomorrow morning Hurricane Sandy will begin battering the East Coast with heavy rains.

I could complain, but instead I look forward to the challenge. How many other runners can rightfully claim to have finished a marathon in a hurricane?

See y'all on the other side of 26.2!

Army Ten Miler Race Recap

Sunday morning I left home before the sun came up and headed out in to the cool fall morning toward the start line.  After experiencing knee and IT band pain all week and a killer workout on Thursday I didn't have high expectations for my performance.

What I forgot was that the day's race wasn't about me.  The Army Ten Miler never is.

Sunday was my 6th Army Ten Miler; each year I am both impressed by the turnout and humbled as I am reminded by the sacrifice that our active duty soldiers and military families make every day to protect our freedom.  It's amazing to run the ATM alongside active duty soldiers, wounded warriors, military spouses, and family members of those who have fallen.

I got to the Pentagon right as the paratroopers were jumping.  You can always tell when they jump because one by one all of the runners and spectators milling around the Pentagon stop in their tracks and look up to the sky.

This year the wave start was pretty well organized.  I found my corral easily and before long it was time to line up at the start line.

As I started the sun was out, the temperature was in the low 50s, and there was a cool breeze blowing.  I couldn't have asked for better weather.  The first couple of miles were crowded, but that gave me time to take photos as we crossed the Memorial Bridge, approached the Lincoln Memorial, and passed the Washington Monument.

Around mile 5 the crowd started to thin out and I was able to cruise at my own pace.  As I approached the section of the course that doubled-back I looked for my friends that were also running the race.  I was hoping to spot someone and cheer them on; unfortunately, I didn't see anyone I knew.

Before I knew it I was approaching the 14th street bridge, which my friends and I refer to as "the bridge of death," because it's long, hilly, and completely devoid of spectators.

I'm not looking forward to encountering it again at mile 20 of Marine Corps Marathon next weekend.

After the bridge I was in the home stretch... or so I thought.  Over the past three years the ATM has moved the finish line further and further in to the Pentagon parking lot.  What used to signal the home stretch of the race is now the 9 mile marker.  At that point (this year) I had one more hill and a long, flat stretch to the finish.

The finish line was well-organized and it was easy to get food and water afterward.  What wasn't great was the walk to the metro from the finish line.  We had to hop over two sets of jersey barriers (the concrete barriers you often see on highways) to get between the finish area and the Pentagon.  I didn't see any way around them and it made me wonder how runners on extremely tired legs and participants using hand-crank wheelchairs were able to get out of the finish area.  I hope the race organizers will work on this for next year.

All in all I had a great race.  I didn't PR, but I hadn't been planning on it.  I didn't see my friends during the race, but I was able to meet up with them after.  I didn't go in with high expectations, but I finished in high spirits.  I'll definitely be back next year.

Stick It

I had been meaning to buy The Stick for a while now.

I have a strong love/hate relationship with foam rolling, but don't have the floor space in my condo to dedicate to doing it at home.  While I can (and do) foam roll at the gym, I needed something I could do at home after races and on recovery days.  That's where The Stick came in.

Using The Stick is conceptually similar to foam rolling - you use it to treat sore muscles.  Instead of using gravity and moving your body over a foam roller, you use your upper body strength (or someone else's) to push the stick over your legs/back/wherever.  After regularly using my dad's for a month I knew I needed to get one of my own.

When I saw a booth for The Stick at the Baltimore Running Festival expo, I knew I would be leaving with one.  The woman working the booth was extremely helpful in helping me decide which stick to buy and rolled out my IT bands for me.

I ended up buying the Sprinter Stick.  It's shorter than other sticks, which is perfect for traveling and stowing in the van during relays, but is still one of the firmer sticks.  I didn't want a stick with a lot of "give" to it as I'd have to exert more effort to get the same result.

I used the stick to roll out my calves, quads, and IT bands before the Baltimore Half and have continued doing so since the race.  It has helped a lot with soreness and I love that I can do it at home while I'm watching TV.

Getting My Stride Back: Baltimore Running Festival Recap

Saturday I woke up in Charm City.  The sun was shining and the air was crisp.  It was perfect running weather.

After months of illness and injuries, it was time for one of my favorite races.  After months of forcing myself to rest, run, and cross-train despite how I was feeling, it was time to get my stride back.

I had only one goal for the Baltimore Half Marathon: to finish uninjured.  With two races coming up in the next two weeks, I had no choice.  There would be no shame in taking it slow and walking if I needed to.  I left my Garmin at home and decided to pace myself based on how my legs felt.

One thing I love (and there are many) about the Baltimore Half is that it starts at 9:45AM.  I usually stay in Baltimore, so I'm able to sleep in and walk to the start line.  Last night I stayed in Fells Point, so I had a decent walk along the harbor to the start line.

I missed the start of the race because I was in the bathroom line.  Typical.  I got through the line and bounded out to the start in time to join the second wave and get going.

I spent the first 7 miles high-fiving spectators and reminding myself to slow down so I wouldn't burn out too quickly.  The course is extremely hilly with a large net uphill for the first 9.5 miles.  I knew if I could make it to and around Lake Montebello (mile 8) still feeling good I would be able to handle the next 1.5 miles uphill and finish strong.  It was a huge relief to reach Lake Montebello without any IT band or shin pain.  I was rewarded with this view for my efforts:

The mile around Lake Montebello was perfect - the sun was shining and there was a cool breeze coming off of the water - but it was soon time to move on.  I knocked out the remaining net uphill and prepared to cruise downhill for the next few miles to finish strong.

Things started getting a little weird around mile 11.  Between the spectators playing "Eye of the Tiger" on a loop while dancing on their car in tiger suits (which they've done all 4 years I've run this race) and the runner who stripped down to his Maryland-flag-printed spandex, I was entertained.  I checked the time at mile 12 and realized that, even though I was slowing myself down and trying to take it easy, I was still making decent time.  When I hit the Hippodrome, I decided to step things up a bit.

I cruised through the last downhill and slowed down to take a few photos as I approached and ran through Camden Yards.

Once I cleared the ball park, it was time to sprint.  I flew across the finish line with a gun time around 2:10:00.  Because I started late, I had no clue what my chip time was.  When I checked in with the results table, I was in for a shock.  I PRed.  Without intending to, I had shaved almost 4 minutes off of my Frederick Half time.

My friend Steph, who had a similar approach to the race, also PRed.  We agreed that there's a lesson to be learned here: listen to your body and don't push yourself too hard too early.  I'm going to try to keep that in mind in the future.

As I said earlier, the Baltimore Half is one of my favorite races.  Here's why:

• The late start at 9:45 allows you to sleep in.
• People in Baltimore come out in droves to support runners.  The spectators are absolutely amazing.
• The loop around Lake Montebello.  Look at that photo again if you're not convinced it's beautiful.
• You get to run through Camden Yards - even if you're not an O's fan, it's a treat to run through this iconic ball park.
• The race shirts are Under Armor tech shirts - I wear mine to on a regular basis.
• The hills provide varied terrain, good views, and speed on the downhill stretches.  I've PRed three times on this course.

Why I'll Never Dump My Garmin

During the summer of 2008, I was training for my first half-marathon and starting to get really in to running.  Today, there are a handful of very good training apps for smartphones - in 2008, there was nothing available for my BlackBerry.  In order to guess my pace, I divided the number of miles I ran by the total time it took to complete my run.  While I was running I had no idea what my pace was, so trying to pace myself during a race or training run was hopeless.   I used the google maps pedometer to plan training routes - I took a piece of paper with me with permutations of my route on it so I would have options if I wanted to cover extra distance or needed to cut my run short.  Similarly to how I had no idea what my pace was, I had no sense of the distance I'd covered.  Those would come with experience.
My father gave me a Garmin Forerunner 305 as a birthday gift that year.  It was the perfect gift.  I was able to see my pace as I ran and adjust my speed and effort accordingly.  Runs began to feel better and I began to get faster.  Knowing how it felt to go a certain speed was extremely useful.  Knowing the distance I'd covered gave me a new level of freedom - as I knew the distance of certain "extra loops" or out-and-backs, I could add on to my run ad-hoc.  I no longer needed to carry around a sweaty piece of paper.

Photo courtesy of Garmin

I've had my Garmin for four years now and not only does it still work, Garmin still sells it.  Given all of the changes in technology over the past four years, that's really impressive.  What's not-so-impressive is that I still only use the bare-bones capabilities on it.  Embarrassing but true: I have yet to do anything on my phone other than time my run and lap splits.  One day I'll use the heart-rate monitor and upload results to my computer...  Until then, I'm perfectly happy using it for my (simple) purposes.

I know there are fancy touch-screen GPS watches now, but I much prefer having buttons to press while I'm running and sweaty.  I now have an iPhone app that serves a similar purpose, but I like to have my Garmin on long runs; my Garmin is more accurate, and the app runs down my iPhone battery.  My Garmin also has quite a bit of sentimental value - it's been with me since the beginning - I can't imagine replacing it.  I'll keep using it until it dies.  Given the abuse I've inflicted on it over the years, that may never happen.

PSA - Take a CPR Course

I've taken many CPR courses over the years, first as a babysitter, a few times as a volunteer for different organizations, and lately at work as a member of the emergency response team.  It's easy to forget the importance of CPR - if you can perform it, you can literally make a difference between life and death for someone.

I read a great Runner's World article today about a doctor who stopped during the Twin Cities 10-miler to revive a fallen runner.  The fallen runner is reported to be doing ok and the doctor went on to finish the race, so all is well that ends well.  What is truly heartbreaking is the lone comment (when I read it) on the article, written by someone who had to watch a man die because no one knew CPR.  I can't imagine how hard that must have been - and how much his wife, who was there, must have suffered.

My point?  Learn CPR, pay attention to your surroundings, and if someone looks like they need help, please stop and help them.  You'll always have another race you could PR in - someone having a heart attack may not.

Autumn Hike

Saturday was my father's 70th birthday party.  As it was a surprise party, my sister and I were tasked with keeping him out of the house while the caterers set up.  We decided to take him to lunch at Family Meal (the fried chicken is well worth the trip to Frederick) then go for a hike at Sugarloaf Mountain.

After nervously eyeing the weather forecast all week we were pleasantly surprised by a cloudy day in the mid-70s.  The weather was perfect for hiking.  As we only had an hour and a half, we decided to take the white trail, a 2.5 mile loop around the summit.

My dad is notorious in my family for taking a while to stretch and get going.  My sister and I decided to take that time to stretch and take some photos.

Once he was ready, we set off.  The sun came out, but the trees kept us shaded and cool.  The trail was pretty rocky and hilly, but I liked the varying terrain.  We didn't pass too many other hikers, which made our hike quiet and peaceful.  Everyone we passed seemed as happy to be on the trail as we were.

One of my favorite things about hiking Sugarloaf is the view.  We took a few photos at different vistas throughout the hike.

It was a wonderful afternoon with my family, and a great chance to relax before the madness that occurred Saturday night.

On the way to the party, our car was hit by a drunk driver.  Everyone is ok, but a bit shaken up.  The woman who hit us didn't "seem" drunk (my father and I didn't suspect she was driving under the influence), but her BAC was twice the legal limit.  Please let this serve as a reminder to put away your keys if you've had a couple of drinks.  Taking a cab home and coming to get your car the next day may seem inconvenient, but it's a lot more convenient than spending the night in jail.