Fun Night Out!

We were able to take a break between our running to enjoy a fun night out that involved no physical activity other than lifting an arm for painting and taking a sip of wine.  I wonder if our painting styles are also reflective of the way we run- free flowing, stiff and blotchy, scattered and haphazard, or very symmetrical?  Whatever our painting or running styles are, in the end it all comes together.  I am so thankful for summer and nights out like these to recharge me for the rest of the school year.

Filtered Water!!

As it has already started to heat up, Michelle and I have been trying to convince our friends to carry water on the runs (not that I haven't been trying for years).  Perhaps the new filtered water fountain at Central Park for water BOTTLES will help convince  them.  Undeterred, Bonnie decided to drink straight from the spout.  She promised that she did not touch the spout.   It even has a separate fountain at the bottom ( not shown) for our 4 legged friends.  The fountain to the left of Bonnie is for people without water bottles and it is unfiltered. Check out the groundskeeper checking her out!

Santa Barbara Wine Country Half Marathon

 I'm so glad that more of our friends joined us for this fun wine country race.  We're even getting better at the post race celebrations and figured out it is much better to bring food to the wine tasting. Three of us ran relays, while our newest runner ran the whole thing.  Awesome job Michelle!

Santa Clarita Marathon

It's been a while since our last post, but we're still out there running.  Our little group of Moms Out Running is also growing into a larger group of friends.  Today, we all ran the Santa Clarita Marathon in various races, some the 5k, the half marathon, or the marathon.

Okay, we've done a lot of half marathons, but I have to say this was pretty tough.  I knew it would be hilly, but I didn't think that hill at mile 3 would last that long.  I did actually take the time to take in the scenery on this race, probably because I was running so slow.  It was a beautiful course and the weather could not have been more perfect! I really appreciate the fact that my friends are always game when it comes to trying a new race.  I just wish my friends and I could have stayed together longer.  It was sort of lonely running 12 miles by myself.  Even a couple of our husbands ran the 10K. Now that we've worked so hard, it's time to celebrate Bonnie's birthday!

 

I just love this picture of us.  This was our last running "event" where we were all present.  Life has been pretty hectic with kids going off to college, some of us going back to work full-time,some of us adding more to our families, but through it all we have managed to keep on running.  Its not as often as we'd like, but it does happen once in a while. I think I treasure this picture so much because it was such an awesome day for a run, we were all there, and we look like we are ready to tackle the world.

Los Angeles Marathon Mamas

We finally did it!  It's been months of training, endless miles, several meltdowns, countless Power Gels, too many Advils to count, a couple of different pairs of shoes, couple of post recovery In-N-Out Burger meals,  too many pasta meals, several disagreements, more than several swear words, and endless amounts of stories, but we started this journey together as friends and finished as friends.
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This was my second marathon and I honestly can't remember the first one being as painful as this last one, but maybe it's like childbirth, one forgets the pain and only remembers the joy.  Ya right!  Thank goodness for the shots, courtesy of Patty, which quickly helped numb the pain.  We will each take something different away from our experience, but I couldn't help think how organized and helpful the Angelenos were along the entire course. 
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One thing I noticed when I had past the 20 mile mark was that there were a lot of young men in the prime of their life running around me and also stopped along the way cramping up.  I'm thinking "wow, I must doing okay for an old girl".  Then I see a much heavier and older lady in front of me, which helped keep my ego in check.  I had to laugh though when I overheard two Students Run LA boys talking about their friend and how slow he was running and that he was running a "moms pace".  I wanted to look over at them and say "hey, this mom is going to beat you to the finish!"
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I am so proud of my friends for completing this journey.  Congratulations to Bonnie and Marisol for running in their first marathon.  We missed Caryn, but she was a real trooper and supported us on many of our long training runs even when she didn't need to.  I don't think I will ever run another marathon again, but if I ever change my mind, I know my friends will be there with me.

Nike Women's Marathon & Half

We came, we ran, we conquered the Nike Women's Half-Marathon.  By we, I mean Patty,Marisol, Megan, Caryn and myself.  I think I would be safe in saying that we all had a fantastic time.  Most of us had never been in a race of this size and the energy from all the participants, not to mention the amount of estrogen, was really something to witness.  Our fears about the hills were never realized and in fact, it seemed our training prepared us well.  I guess that's one of the benefits of training in a hilly valley.  The only thing we were unprepared for was the number of people, particularly the number of walkers.  Dodging the walkers was the hardest part, other than that, it was one of the easiest races we've ever done.  Maybe it was because we didn't run it particularly fast, running for the experience and to remember the sights along the way.  But for whatever reason, I remember coming down toward the last half mile as I looked over at Patty and remarked how this was probably the best I've ever felt in a half-marathon.  She admitted feeling the same but didn't want to jinx it by saying so.

The weather also was perfect.  Although typically San Francisco wet and foggy, it also kept the weather really cool, a welcome relief from running all summer in the heat of the Santa Clarita Valley.  And of course, there's the Tiffany Necklace.  We were all so worried that we wouldn't like it, but it really is perfect.  I think we're all hoping that we'll be lucky again next year and will get picked in the lottery again.  Hopefully it wasn't just beginner's luck.

Are We There Yet?

Today's run was our last "long" run before the race. We are tapering down and attempted to do somewhere around seven miles. Depending on which GPS device we decide to go by we either exceeded our goal or fell just short. Personally I think we fell just short because the Garmin is usually pretty accurate whereas the Nike+ app on my iPhone has been very spotty. The last two times I used it, it shorted me a mile for every three I ran. Today it gave me an extra 3/4 mile. Maybe it's trying to make up for the last couple of miles it shorted me? Today, it read that we ran 7.44 miles while the Garmin read 6.61. Marisol's Garmin was about the same as mine so I think we only ran 6.6 miles. We were debating on whether to go back around the train bridge to get the additional miles, but at this point in our training, it was probably wiser to go shorter than run too far and tire out the legs close to the race. Either way, we were really moving today with an average pace of 9.3/mi.

That being said, I am getting super excited about our trip. It's weird to think that we won't see Bonnie for almost 3 weeks between our different trips. Also weird to think the next time we see Marisol will be in San Francisco at the Nike Women's Marathon.

Almost There!

We finished up our second to longest training run before our race this past Sunday and the feelings were mixed. Two of us felt great, the other two weren't feeling it. Unfortunately, Bonnie's mishap with the dog and sidewalk might have had something to do with it. All in all though, aside from the brief setback from my injury, I don't ever remember my friends and I having such an easy transition into training for a half. In fact, it's been so pleasant, I think some of us will be signing up for another one soon after. Poor Caryn missed all this fun and still doesn't know that we're signing up for another race! Marisol's GPS registered 11.7 miles and under 10 minute pace, while mine is below. Interesting how different products measure differently. We all agreed that we liked Marisol's better.