Despite being dangerously under-trained, under-prepared, exhausted and injured, on November 2nd I ran the New York City Marathon. I did my best to suicide the mission by going out way too hard on Halloween night (I blame NY for being so fun), not sleeping more than 3 hours the night before the race and running in shoes that should have been thrown away months ago. Despite all my best efforts to sabotage, I crossed the finish line in 4:38:11, my second fastest marathon to date (by two seconds.)
As it should be in that city, the 4:38 did not come easy. New York makes you work for it. 30 mph winds, 40 degrees and a mini-marathon just to get to the start line. Usually when I cross the finish-line of a marathon, my first thought is: I am never running again and I want to collapse. This one was different. I had a huge smile on my face, I felt energized and I would have run it again the next day if someone had offered.
I am not a talented enough writer to put into eloquent words what it's like to run the New York Marathon. Nor can I explain what makes it so different than every other marathon. All I can say is if you have running a marathon on your bucket list, then New York should be it. It's not only the worlds biggest marathon, 50,000+ runners, the entire city shuts down and comes to cheer you on. It's a runners high I've never experienced. It's truly indescribable and something everyone should witness in one form or another.
I'll spare you every little detail of my trip but here's a few of the highlights leading up to the race:
Wed. night the Giants won the world series, we got covered in champagne and then I had to get on a 7am flight to NY.
I arrived late afternoon on Thursday, went to dinner with some great friends and then promptly fell asleep on their couch after watching Scandal.
Friday morning was a 3 mile shakeout run with Nuun in Central Park followed by coffee and bagels. Then we hit up the expo and the Nuun booth to pick up individualized goodie bags for all the ambassadors. Have I mentioned how much I heart Nuun? Such an awesome company, filled with the coolest of cool employees. In fact this is a good reminder that I need to restock, my stash is getting dangerously low. We checked into our Airbnb which we definitely scored with. Very nice two bedroom apartment blocks from the finish line and way more affordable then a hotel! I'd definitely use Airbnb, or even the same apartment next time I am in New York.
Expo
New York in the fall is hideous
I have no idea what is wrong with me in this picture but I am posting it anyway b/c I love the Nuunies so much!
The evening then kicked into high gear with some Top Gun costumes and getting rowdy in the village. Should I have done this two nights before a marathon? Absolutely not! But you only live once and how often am I going to be in New York with great friends on Halloween on a Friday night? Exactly.
Mav & Charlie
Saturday we brunched at took it easy which actually worked out since it was raining most of the day. We had a great pre-race dinner at OTTO, watched the Duck game and set up for the next morning. There were some last minute outfit changes since I had not come prepared for 40 degree weather with 30 mph winds.
Being the idiot that I am, I had a shot of espresso at dinner because I wanted to stay up for the whole Duck game. Mission accomplished and then some. I think I only slept 2-3 hours on Saturday night. I woke up feeling anxious and exhausted on Sunday morning. The first thing I read on my phone was the wind warning:
Just adding to the anxiety at this point
We had no choice but to put on ALL the layers on and get out there. AT 6:45 AM we navigated our way to Starbucks, on multiple subways (with some help from the locals) and on to the Staten Island Ferry. As soon as we stepped foot onto the island, the wind picked up and you could feel the chill in your bones. One long shuttle ride later, we were at the start line. I thought that we'd be sitting out there forever but the commute to the start line is no joke; all of sudden it was 10:30 AM and time to run.
It was really nice of New York to let these two homeless people run in their marathon.
After some mis-communication about where we were supposed to line up and frantic dash to strip off layers, tritreats and I toed the line ran frantically across the start line. Because I didn't really have a time goal for this race, I purposely ran without a watch so I don't have any splits or data. On top of that the entire race was a blur so I don't have tons to report but I'll breakdown what I do remember.
The two mile Varrazono-Narrows Bridge was brutal. It was so windy I was worried about blowing right off the top deck. Once we survived death by wind, I looked up and we were in Brooklyn! I was so distracted by the crowd, the music and the energy that the next 10 miles flew by. Brooklyn's got marathon cheering locked down! All of a sudden there is a one mile stretch through a Hasidic Jewish neighborhood that is so quiet it's almost eerie. You go from thousands cheering you on, to nobody on the sidewalks. It's only a mile and luckily the crowds come back once you hit Queens.
It was right around this time that I started to realize something was wrong with my left ankle/shin. I had started to feel it as early as mile 5 but I thought my foot was just numb/tight and it would loosen up. Around Mile 11 I discovered that wasn't the case and this was a pain I had never felt before. It felt like a really bad shin split in only the lower half of my shin that was shooting pain down into the top of my ankle and foot. I had taken Advil before the race and it had started to wear off at this point and the pain was getting worse. I was frustrated since the rest of my body was feeling good.
Apparently cold weather running is my jam. I hydrated at every aid station like I normally would but since it was freezing, I wasn't sweating nearly as much. The entire race, I never felt dehydrated or had any stomach issues, even post race. For me that's a huge win and very uncommon. However, this ankle thing wasn't going to allow for an easy race. I kept thinking I should tell Leslie but realized that wasn't going to help anything. I knew that once I started talking about it, then it would be on my mind, I'd wallow in my misery and start to get defeated. So I ignored it as much as I could and just kept running through the pain. Not the healthiest approach but it worked for me. Don't tell my PT.
The crowds
Around Mile 16 you go over the Queensboro Bridge and into Manhattan for the first time and the crowds are electric! We saw our cheering squad, who nailed it with the signs and high-fives. I concentrated on that and getting to mile 20. Even with the pain, I just kept thinking, this is the most amazing race I've ever experienced.
Happy faces despite the pain.
The energy boost I needed at this point
At mile 20, a lone man stood on the bridge with a boombox blasting Jay-Z over his head, Say Anything style. We had made it to the Bronx. I asked Leslie how we were on time? My plan had been that if we were not on pace for her to PR, I'd let her know I was hurting and start walking. If we were on pace, I didn't want anything to bring that down. When she said 3:33, I knew I just needed to suck it up for 6 more miles. I had taken more Advil at 18 which helped. Turns out this was a blessing in disguise because post-race I realized it hurt way more to walk then to keep running.
Miles 21-26 are a total blur. The crowds were unbelievable, Central Park was beautiful and I felt a surge of energy knowing I was going to finish the NYM in a time that I could be proud of given my current conditions. I felt like we sprinted (we didn't) the last few miles as we were dodging around a bunch of walkers. I tried to soak in the entire experience. We passed our cheering section one last time and all of sudden we crossed the finish line (5 min PR for Leslie). I had a huge smile on my face and despite immediately limping, I felt like I had run a good solid race and had the experience of a lifetime. We waddled our way through the finishers chute and got our ponchos, snacks and medals before heading back to the apartment where our support crew was waiting with a six pack of IPA and a giant bag of cookies. Told you they were the best. After showering, we went immediately to Shake Shack which tasted like heaven in burger form.
Worlds best cheer crew, including MFR taking the photo and not including the dude in the green hood, he might be great I just don't know him
I flew home Monday and by the time we landed, I could barely put weight on my left foot. I've since self diagnosed myself with Extensor Tendonitis, which you get from overuse or poorly fitting shoes....ding, ding, ding. I've taken almost two weeks off from running and instead I am focusing on spin, barre and yoga classes. I think it's getting better but for now every night is spent like this:
Someone needs a pedicure
It was totally worth it to experience the wonder that is the New York Marathon! I can only hope that I get to do it again some day.
Best signs and my new favorite medal.
And if I still don't have you convinced, just watch this.....
What in the world is up blogisphere? I've officially fallen off the face of the blogging earth. I think about it every now and then in a fond memory sort of way.
Remember when I had a running blog? That was fun. It really did keep me motivated and accountable to my workout schedule. Maybe I should start writing again. Or maybe I should put down this beer and go for a run and then write about that run. Oh look someone just posted a video of dog riding around on a Roomba. <30 secs later> What was I going to do? Oh right, go for a run and blog. Well there is a game on in 90 min so I really don't have the time, but for sure I'll do it tomorrow.
You get the idea. As I said before, my motivation went from 60 to zero after Hood To Coast. In an effort to figure out why, I looked back at my races over the years. Turns out that ALL of my PR's and successful races have been in the Feb-June time frame. I am not sure exactly what that means but I think it has something to do with my brain thinking fall = football + travel (see two weeks in Europe) and not long distance training. It's not that I don't want to workout at all, I just don't want to train. I've actually been dying to do anything but run long distances. I think fall races are just not my jam. Pour some out for my bucket list fall races: Santa Barbara, CIM, Chicago etc... Going forward I think I'll plan on spring/early summer for any sort of goal or distance races, maybe a few fun ones over the summer and end my season with a group relay in the August/Sept time frame.
Nike Half SF Last Weekend
Regardless of my lack of motivation and being incredibly under-trained, I am running the New York Marathon this weekend. So that's happening. I am not nearly in the shape I was for Napa and my longest training run was 18 miles (13 of which were Nike Womens Half). I am not worried about a DNF. I know I'll finish, it's just a matter of when. I am just trying to focus on the positive. Regardless of the time, on Sunday I am going to run the New York Marathon. Even knowing it's not going to be a PR for me (currently 4:12:05), I am still really excited to experience this race. I have no idea what to plan for a goal so instead here's three goals:
Good Goal: Cross the finish-line healthy and injury free regardless of time.
Better Goal: Finish between 4:30 - 4:45
Best Goal: Finish under 4:30, I think it would take a minor miracle to get in under 4:30 but I am putting it out there
New York will be my 5th marathon overall and 3rd marathon this year. I've been trying to get into this race since 2010 and I've heard nothing but amazing things. This may be my only opportunity to run it and I want to soak it all in. Also I'll be cheering something hard for this girl to win! I adore her and am inspired daily by her choices and determination. Add to that some Nuun ambassador events, lots of good friends, Duck football and a night on the town for Halloween and I am sure it will be an epic weekend. See you on the other side.
September Workout Stats*: Running - 40 Miles Tennis - 75 min Weights - 45min
*And that is why running New York in under 4:30 will take an actual miracle
I am going to try to keep this short since I am a few races behind.
On Sunday 7/20 I ran the Napa To Sonoma Half Marathon. If you like wine, beautiful scenery and running then this race should be on your bucket list. If you hate wine and feeling like you're in a postcard then this race would be your nightmare and also we shouldn't ever hang out. I didn't have a stellar performance myself but I still can't get over what an awesome course and race this was. First off, the organization on race day exceeded my expectations. We parked down by the finish line, loaded onto a shuttle and were dropped off at Domaine Carneros.
On the Napa-Sonoma Line. Very similar to the Florida-Georgia Line.
The scenery was unbelievable. You literally start in the middle of a vineyard, where I watched the Oiselle ladies and Lauren Fleshman warm up around the lake while Meb did laps on the Elliptigo. It was one of those is-this-real-life-? race moments.
Just chillin in a vineyard waiting to run 13.1
This race was made even better by the fact that I somehow convinced MFR to join me very last minute - thanks to a bib transfer. Besides doing Hood To Coast every year, MFR is not a big distance runner. He prefers training for Oly tri's, basketball, tennis, golf...just about anything other than running past that 6.2 mile mark. So the fact that he ran N2S the weekend before doing another half in Eugene is nothing short of a miracle. The alternative of having breakfast with my 96 year old Grandma while I ran might have also swayed his decision.
To save you the mile by mile replay, I'll just say the race went okay. I was really full again, as in this must be what it feels like to run pregnant feeling. I just ate way too much the night before and the morning of. I was running on tired legs and had to walk some in the last 3 miles. I also stopped at the lone beer stand for a shot of Guinness at mile 11. Why not?
I pushed through the last few miles and ended with a 2:04, a few seconds off my Zooma time. As long as I live in the Bay Area, this race will be an annual tradition. Honestly I don't think it gets much better as far as courses and scenery go. I think it sells out day of as well so if you're interested, stay on it!
Wine medal #2
Next up was Eugene this past Sunday (7/26). It was a weekend filled with friends, family and reminiscing in my "hometown." The race itself was great, I've always loved Eugene marathon. It's a good course, good size and finishing on Hayward Field is surreal. I was having too much fun to be bothered with photos but here are the two horrible pics I took all weekend:
This was my 3rd time running Eugene (2008,2009) and my fastest to date. For the 3rd week in a row I ended up within a 30 second window with a time of 2:05, a few seconds off N2S. The not so funny part was I thought I had Sub 2'ed. I ran Garmin-less with two friends and although we chatted the entire time, I thought we were going at a pretty good clip. I should have known better since I normally can't hold a conversation and run at the same time.
When I found out it was 2:05 I was shocked but not that disappointed. It was a great weekend and fun race and that's what I expected on my tired legs. At least I am consistent. Afterwards I ate ALL the pancakes, showered up and met up with these two for ReNUUNion beers!
After 3 half marathons in 4 weeks, I am ready to concentrate on Hood To Coast and New York. I am starting with a good base and now it's time to focus on the marathon. I'll worry about that Sub-2, PR'ing the half etc... after November 2nd.
I am coming for you NY - Actually looking at this photo makes me think I should reconsider this PR goal.
On Saturday I ran the Zooma Napa Valley Half Marathon. It was a great race and a blast running with my fellow ambassadors. Over the past weeks, a few of us did runner profiles of other Zooma participants and last week we were asked to post our own. It's a little late but here goes:
Name:Kara, Bird Legs or Bird to my friends
Age:32 Current City:San Francisco, CA
Race (10K or half marathon): Half Marathon
Why are you running ZOOMA Napa Valley? I was lucky enough to be chosen as an ambassador for this race but I would have run it regardless. It's local, it's my favorite distance, it's in wine country and I've heard great things about the Zooma race series. When they announced the new location in Napa, it was a no brainer.
When & why did you start running?
I started running in 2006 when I signed up to do an Olympic triathlon with Team in Training. For a few years I only did it as part of tri training. I've only really been serious about running on it's own since 2012. I run because I love the community and experiences running presents. I also love the way I feel when I am done with a run.
How many races have you done & which was your favorite?
I've done over 50 races (60 if you include triathlons). It's hard to pick but the Napa Valley Marathon which I ran in March was definitely one of my favorites. The course was so beautiful, it was the perfect sized field and I ran a great race. I'd recommend it to anyone considering doing a marathon. If you could pick one celebrity to run with, who would it be & why?
Jennifer Aniston because she is my life idol. I am pretty sure we'd be besties if we started running together and she could fill me in on her anti-aging secrets. I know that's ridiculous but I don't apologize for my lifetime celebrity girl crush.
A sandwich in my neighborhood called the SanFranPyscho - honey turkey, gouda, garlic spread etc... and an ice cold 10 Barrel Apoclypse IPA.
Who is your running inspiration? All my friends who run, both in real life and in blogger-world. I take pieces of inspiration from each of them. Everyone has different training plans, goals and attitudes towards running. No two runners are the same so I look to different people to inspire me in different areas (training, speed, nutrition, recovery, mental toughness, strategy, fueling, races, attitude etc...). That's what's so great about the running community. Even after years of running, I still learn something new and am inspired daily.
What is the most important lesson you have learned from running?
Monday 5/19: Lunch Spin Class - only got in 13.2 miles but better than nothing Tuesday 5/20: Morning run - 5 miles easy (felt harder then it should have) Wednesday 5/21: November Project - 2 miles of running and 30 min of Death Monopoly Thursday 5/22: Lunch Yoga - 60 min power vinyasa Friday 5/23: November Project hills - 4.5 miles total (2 miles of hills/stairs) Saturday 5/24 - REST Sunday 5/25 - Unplanned rest due to oversleeping and wine tasting winning out:) Total: 24 miles + yoga + 30 min strength I didn't have any daily doubles but I felt good getting in something every day during the week. I am trying to take it kind of easy this week since I woke up with a half cold. You know the drill, half cold = sore throat, stuffed up and weak but not bad enough to actually "be sick." I ran yesterday but begrudgingly took today off since this morning I felt worse. Hoping to feel up for a short run and some yoga tomorrow. Hydrating On the good news front, all the things I love in the world are coming together. I was so excited when I heard about Kara Goucher and Oiselle were teaming up, what could possibly be better? Then this happened:
Kara + Nuun. I could not be more ecstatic about this partnership. My favorite runner partnering with one of the coolest companies and kick ass products around. It's too good to be true. Plus now we are totes teammates. That's how that works right? To share in the excitement and spread the #nuunlove, you can use this discount code: MAY14NUUN for 20% orders through June 6th. This can not be used with any other discount.
Carb Loading
And just when I thought my little world of endurance had peaked, I received this e-mail:
CONGRATS! You made the cut!
So, WELCOME! We're stoked to have you on the team and look forward to an awesome first season of Team10Barrel!
We'll be following up about kits and you'll be receiving your Team10Barrel box in the mail within 6 weeks. Expect to hear lots from us in the coming weeks but for now, go crush a beer!
My favorite brewery,10 Barrel in Bend OR decided to put together and sponsor a team of mountain bikers, road bikers, triathletes etc... to represent them and I made the team. You may recognize 10 Barrel since I've posted about them just a few times: like here, here and all up and down Instagram. I have a minor love affair with their Apocalypse IPA and OG and Project Failed and....all their beers. If you've ever had the pleasure of sipping their sweet sweet microbrews, you get it. I know I haven't posted my bucket list on the blog yet but if I had you would see:
#51. Get sponsored by a brewery - preferably 10 Barrel
Consider that item checked. They are still working out all the specifics but the short of it is I'll be racing in their kit and preaching my love for their beer (which I was already doing). In turn we get some pretty sweet perks and to be part of an awesome group of athletes. I am so thankful to be part of this community of 10 Barrel athletes who already have shown they are legit competitors and pretty rad individuals that you'd want to spend some time with. To say I am excited to be rep'ing a company where I already LOVE their beer product and their culture would be the understatement of the century. I am f'ing stoked! Plus this means incentive to go to Bend even more than I already do. Also for you Portlanders, their Portland Pub is said to open by the end summer.
As the e-mail states - To celebrate, go crush a beer! You know that's what I'll be doing. It's only a half cold.
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