Today I am in Chicago.
Okay, more about the SB race. I got to Solvang around 6:20am and saw crowds of people lining the sidewalk. It turned out these were all people waiting to be transported to the start line! The last bus was supposed to leave at 6:30 and there was NO WAY all of these people were getting on that bus. We waited, and waited, and finally at about 7:10 the last buses left to take us to the start line in Santa Ynez (never mind that the race started 10 minutes ago...). We got to the start line at 7:20 and with very little fanfare I started off on the course. It was definitely a weird way to start, weaving in through the walkers and spectators. The lengthy wait for transport left me brimming with energy, and I was mindful not to go out too fast - it was hard to read pace, though, because a) I was passing a lot of people who I would have been in front of had I started on time and b) there were no mile markers. I reached the second water stop and heard we were at 3.7 miles- I looked at my watch and I was around 40 minutes....this didn't seem right but I figured it was better to be too slow at this point anyway.
The first few miles were rolling hills that wound through residential Santa Ynez. I kept thinking that you really have to make a choice when you live in an area like that - convenience or beautiful surroundings - because although it was very pretty, there was NOTHING around for miles except for a biker bar and a general store. Around Mile 6 we started up what was billed as "the short hill climb." This was a hill to rival the mountain stages of the Tour de France (and, as I learned the following day, Solvang was a Tour training site for Lance Armstrong and team for several years). I chugged my way up - it was a real struggle but I kept telling myself I wasn't going to walk and to just keep putting one foot in front of the other. I finally made it to the top and fortunately there was a water stop so I could catch my breath before heading to the glorious downhill.
Here is a link to some photos:
http://www.fotojack.com/photo/index.htm?race=1020&val=1654
Will write more in next post.....
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Saturday, May 10
Today I am in Santa Barbara. I ran the Santa Barbara Wine Country Half Marathon earlier today and finished in 2:14:01!!! That's over EIGHT MINUTES better than my previous PR. I'm still in a state of disbelief that I finished so far ahead of my time in Cabo. Was it the fact I ran Valpo 3 weeks ago? The mostly downhill 2nd half of the course? The result of a good night's sleep? I really can't explain why or how I improved so much from Valpo (10 minutes improvement....) but I do recall being at the halfway point and knowing I was going to PR. There is a stunning contrast between feeling like crap almost from the start of Valpo, and this race where I felt great the whole way. And...about halfway through the course today I ran BY FAR the biggest hill of my life (a BFH, as we say in the biz).
The course was really beautiful - I would definitely do this race again. It wasn't well-organized (we waited in Solvang for about 45 minutes for the buses to pick us up so I didn't even cross the start line until more than 20 minutes after the official start) and there weren't any mile markers, but that wound up being a good thing because it was nice not to know how far I had to go (especially when I heard someone at the final water stop say were we at Mile 11 but it was really much closer to Mile 12.
Wow - what a day - I can't even express how proud I am. I really surprised myself today. Another great day to be alive, to be a runner, to mark yet another milestone in this amazing journey I've had in becoming an athlete. I am so thankful for this day to discover another dimension of my strength, my determination, my ability to achieve what I set out to do. I am over the moon!
Tomorrow it's off to Santa Ynez wine country, the home of Sideways!
The course was really beautiful - I would definitely do this race again. It wasn't well-organized (we waited in Solvang for about 45 minutes for the buses to pick us up so I didn't even cross the start line until more than 20 minutes after the official start) and there weren't any mile markers, but that wound up being a good thing because it was nice not to know how far I had to go (especially when I heard someone at the final water stop say were we at Mile 11 but it was really much closer to Mile 12.
Wow - what a day - I can't even express how proud I am. I really surprised myself today. Another great day to be alive, to be a runner, to mark yet another milestone in this amazing journey I've had in becoming an athlete. I am so thankful for this day to discover another dimension of my strength, my determination, my ability to achieve what I set out to do. I am over the moon!
Tomorrow it's off to Santa Ynez wine country, the home of Sideways!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Saturday, May 3
Today I am in Chicago. I wasn't intending to watch the Kentucky Derby today but I happened to turn on the television just as the horses were being led to the starting line. The race was exciting, but afterwards the runner-up fell to the track and it was soon learned that she broke both front ankles and was euthanized within minutes. This made me very sad.
I don't know why I've always felt a connection to horses - maybe it's my memories of being on the McKeever's farm, as it was just up the road from our house in Michigan. Maybe it's their big, brown eyes. But I remember very clearly what happened to Barbaro and how I, like countless others, marveled at his will to live and was so saddened when he finally succumbed to his injuries. Maybe my connection to horses is borne of the relationship that my family has always had with animals, whether it's treating our dogs like relatives or having so much respect for my sister's work at the Humane Society of the United States. Whatever that love is, and wherever it comes from, I felt so sad today watching that gorgeous girl and her tough race for second, only to be laid to rest on the very same track.
I don't know why I've always felt a connection to horses - maybe it's my memories of being on the McKeever's farm, as it was just up the road from our house in Michigan. Maybe it's their big, brown eyes. But I remember very clearly what happened to Barbaro and how I, like countless others, marveled at his will to live and was so saddened when he finally succumbed to his injuries. Maybe my connection to horses is borne of the relationship that my family has always had with animals, whether it's treating our dogs like relatives or having so much respect for my sister's work at the Humane Society of the United States. Whatever that love is, and wherever it comes from, I felt so sad today watching that gorgeous girl and her tough race for second, only to be laid to rest on the very same track.
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