Quivering Quads II 2016

I signed up for QQII 3 days before the race. I waned to see what the weather was going to do before I committed. Weather was lovely, maybe a little bit too warm, but DRY. I've never seen dry trails at the Cuivre River State Park.

I didn't realize that this was a different course from last year until the day before the race. I ran this race with my friend Ann, and this was her first trail race. I loved the new course! The majority of the race was running around the lake. It was kind of tough at times... the trail was so narrow and I felt like I could easily trip and end up in the lake.

I am not a speedy trail runner... I take it easy. I don't want to slip or trip. We got passed up by several runners, but that's fine! We finished with a time of 1:51:18. Better than last year, but this course wasn't very hilly (and I liked that!).

Go! Halloween Half Marathon 2016

This is the course I PR'd on...

I'm not sure why. I think it's sort of tough. You start out climbing the Market Street hill. There's also a long hill up Broadway in Soulard. But there are beautiful downhills too. I say that 2016 was the year of Disney... but it was also the year of Go!

I did the April Marathon relay (8 miler), the June KT82 relay (14-ish miler), the June All American 5k, and now.. the October Halloween Half Marathon.

Race Start.

I went into this race knowing I wanted to do better than I have been. I decided to push myself. I actually felt good. I was running in new shoes, which was a bit scary, but my other shoes were killing my feet so I didn't think it would get any worse. I loved my new shoes.

Mile 1: 9:07
Mile 2: 9:10
Mile 3: 8:53

Oh shit, I thought. Why am I going this fast? There's no way I can keep up with this pace. But, I stuck with it.

Mile 4: 9:14
Mile 5: 9:34
Mile 6: 9:18

Mile 7 is the start of a long hill. I wasn't going to allow myself to think it was okay to walk some of it.

Mile 7: 9:57 (I'm proud of this time, I could have walked it, but I wasn't going to give in)
Mile 8: 9:31
Mile 9: 9:58 (starting to feel it)

This is when the metal game started. I knew I wasn't going to come in under 2 hours, but I could maybe PR.

Mile 10: 9:50
Mile 11: 10:11
Mile 12:10:10

Up until this point, I ran everything except the water breaks. I was so pleased with myself. But the last mile was tough. Again, I could feel that I was undertrained and my legs just hurt. I felt like I had nothing left. So I walked a bit in that last mile, but even with some walking, my time didn't suck.

Mile 13: 9:59

Finish Photo.

I finished with a time of 02:05:15. Uggghhhhh. I was so upset with myself at the finish. Why did I walk a bit of that last mile? If I didn't walk, could I have PR'd? Will I ever run a sub-2 hour half? I cried a bit because I was so angry with myself... BUT this was my fastest race of the year.

HM #26 complete!

Mo' Cowbell 2016

I decided to run Mo' Cowbell last Wednesday... four days before the race. I know I ran a half marathon a month ago, but the most that I did in between races were a couple 6 milers. And I can honestly say that I didn't train well for Disneyland Dumbo. But, I did it. I ran to support my friend Ann in her first half.

Pre-Race Photo.

I started out way too fast for my "training." I tried to slow down, and just couldn't. It was pretty humid out (but cloudy)... and then I felt so stupid for running this race, let alone running a pace that I couldn't hold.

1, 9:26
2, 9:23
3, 9:27
4, 9:39
5, 9:47
6, 9:50
7, 10:05
8, 10:12...

Then I crashed and burned. Not surprising. The last 5 miles were tough. Plus I was wearing new shoes and my toe nails were killing me. Again, not surprised. I was dumb.

This was not a Mo' Cowbell personal best... But I'm super happy with my time w/ my lack of training. I finished with a time of 2:17:12. And look, I'm smiling!!

Race Finish.

See, it wasn't so bad. lol.

Half Marathon #25 Complete!

Disneyland Dumbo Double Dare Challenge

After the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend, I knew I had to do another Disney event (mainly to get my Coast to Coast medal). I loved my Dopey experience earlier this year. So I signed up for the Dumbo Challenge (a 10k and a half marathon). Totally doable. I didn't really train well for this, and figured since I did the SeaWheeze a couple weeks ago, I'd be okay.

Expo
I didn't make it to the Expo the day it opened since we arrived in LA at the time it was closing down for the day. We made it first thing the next morning. It was organized really well... if it's one thing that Disney excels at... it's lining people up. The only thing that I really wanted was the Dumbo Double Dare magnet, but it was sold out. Bah. I was able to get the "I did it" magnet, but it wasn't my top choice. We then went to Disneyland and walked all day. Smart!

10k
A 5:30 am race start isn't so bad when it's Pacific time! Our hotel was pretty close to Disneyland, so we were able to catch the ART bus to the Disney Esplanade. It was really convenient, even though it was a pretty good walk to the race start. For some reason I was in corral B. I told myself to run the first 2-ish miles since we'd be out of the park and it would be pretty boring... and then enjoy myself once we got into the park.

My first mile was a 9:04 pace... which is way too fast for my training (and with no back-to-back training runs). Second mile was a 9:24. We got to California Adventures and this was my first time here. The park was so awesome, especially in the dark. I was a bit surprised that there were no lines at the character stops. This was so not like my experience at WDW 10k. I didn't stop at any of the characters, but I did take my time around the park to take in the sights. We then entered Disneyland, and although it's basically a smaller version of Magical Kingdom, I still loved it.

Sleeping Beauty's Castle.

I finished with an official time of 1:03:28. I placed 1316 out of 9007. Obviously not a PR, but these races are meant to be fun and not speedy.

Half Marathon
I talked Josh into running this race with me, so I was pretty excited to have the company. My legs were pretty sore from the 10k (and from visiting the park and riding bikes...). The game plan was to walk through every water stop, and then after Angel Stadium (10ish-miles) do what we need to do to finish.

Running Main Street.

The first four miles are so much fun! You almost forget that you're running. Then you exit the park and it gets so tough. The streets of Anaheim are, well, kind of boring. But I kept looking forward to Angel Stadium and that Dumbo medal, so that kept me going. There wasn't the same level of entertainment on those boring stretches like there is at WDW. I loved running Angel Stadium though!! They should really do that here in St. Louis. Why don't we do that???

Angel Stadium. 

After Angel Stadium, the overcast started to clear, so it got warmer and harder. But, I only had three miles left so that made me happy. It turned into a walk/run. We finished with an official time of 2:26:06. Why is my half marathon getting so slow? It's so depressing. We did take a potty break, so that probably added a good minute or two, but still...  I just feel like I suck at running.

Half Marathon Finish!

Anyways, I'm still chasing that sub 2-hour half marathon... ugh. I'm not signed up for any races at the moment, but I'm hoping to do one out in Moab, Grand Tetons, or Yellowstone... those are the ones on my bucket list. I'd also love to do one in Las Vegas or New Orleans. 

I loved running Disney, but it's too costly to do every year. If I were to do another Disney race, I'd definitely go back to Orlando before I went back to Anaheim. I hear the Wine and Dine one is pretty awesome... Okay, I might have to do that one at some point. 

I Love Forest Park 5k

Hot, humid, shitty run. 30:10. Loved the race route though...managed to be pretty flat for Forest Park, with the exception of the Art Museum climb. Next week, it's another half marathon.

SeaWheeze 2016

I hesitated signing up for my 5th SeaWheeze since it's kinda pricey with all the travel involved. But I had major FOMO and was able to get a spot. It is my favorite race and no other races compare.

Expo
People were lined up at 10 am the previous day... ridiculous. A few people were getting spots in line to sell them to SeaWheezers. I hope they didn't sell any. Anyways, woke up at 3 am and got in line at 3:30 am this year. Again, ridiculous. I went in there not really having an idea of what I wanted... but pretty happy with my purchase. I got into the store at 7:30 am, and there were a few items 'sold out' (aka stashed in people's massive piles) already, like the backpack. I really wanted it, but pretty happy with my duffel bag.

Legacy runners received a clear bracelet while everyone else received blue ones. I'm going to be honest, I thought this was a pretty big let down because all weekend I thought it meant an extra surprise somewhere. But there was nothing. I just wonder why they gave the legacy runners a different colored bracelet? What was the purpose? They did have a pretty sweet dedication with the names of all of the legacy runners. I'm estimating around 300 people.

Race
This time felt so much more congested than previous years... I go into this race knowing it's busy and not speedy, but it was just tough this year.

Obligatory Race Photo.

The weather was also on the warm side and it killed me. I got to mile 11 before my body just crapped out. I walked a bit to bring down my heart rate. I think my body was tired from all the walking we've been doing... I never really rested before the race. Plus, my body is living on little sleep because I think it's wise to wake up early the day before to wait in a line for four hours. I was so happy to get to the finish. BUT, it was so so SO congested. We had to wait in this line to get out of the finish area. My body was so hot, I felt super nauseous, but there was nowhere to go! I was afraid I was going to puke on someone. They need to get this better situated next year. Like previous years, we received a finisher's hat. This is my favorite one so far!

Josh and I finished together. I really wish they provided finish photos... that would make the race so much better. We both finished with a time of 2:24:18.

I think my favorite thing about SeaWheeze this year were the secret agents. They were hilarious!!! I wonder if they work for lulu, or if they're entertainers.

Not too sure if I'll sign up for the 6th year... I mean, I've gotta stop the streak at some point. But... I just love it so much.

2015: here
2014: here
2013: here
2012: here

All American 5k

I did this race back in 2013 and I remember it being hard, but I don't remember it being shitty. They call this the 'fastest 5k', and you think that's because it's downhill. Guess what? It's not all downhill. Why didn't I remember this from last time? I'm sure I mentioned it in my blog post. There are two long uphills that just kind of suck. The downhill portions are beautiful. My first mile was an 8:16 pace. Of course I couldn't hold on to it. I walked 4 different times to catch my breath. I finished in 27:59 with a 9:01 pace. My goal for this race was to come in under 28 minutes. Mission accomplished by 1 second! Woot! But...I'm getting slower. Ugh, need to work on speed a bit more.

Awesome finish photo.