Thursday Throwback...

Ok, so I'm only throwing back less than 24 hours to yesterday's post, but this popped up in my Facebook newsfeed today and it made me laugh.  Fitting, given yesterday's post.....

Cheaters Never Prosper....or Do They?

Ok, it's time to get something off my chest that has been bugging me for a long time.  I've bit my tongue on this for years, but after having five different people brought to my attention in the last week, I can't be quiet anymore.

I don't know care what they do:  cut courses, falsify finish times, let someone else run using their bib, jump corrals, make up races, [insert offense here] and I don't care why they do it:  to qualify for Boston, to qualify for the Guiness Book of World Records, to avoid being swept, [insert reason here], they are all the same thing:

CHEATERS

Now let me put one disclaimer in here right now.  If anyone reading this blog post uses anything I say as an idea of how to cheat in the future, know there is a special place in hell for you because that is not my intent at all.

Does your cheating affect me?  No, not necessarily and this is the number one reason why I haven't been vocal about this before.  Some of my friends don't care because it doesn't directly affect them and they're right.  Technically it doesn't diminish my accomplishment or all of my hard work.  It does, however, put a black eye on our sport and that affects us all.  Also, in cases where it means someone is in a corral they shouldn't be in, it makes dangerous conditions for those runners that deserve to be there....and that does affect other runners.

Let me be perfectly honest, I am not 100% innocent.  I have bumped myself up in corrals in the past.  I was worried about the dreaded sweepers/balloon ladies.  I made sure I stayed to the side and out of the faster runners' ways, but it still wasn't right and I take full blame for that.  In retrospect, after seeing it from the other side, I know it was wrong and wish I hadn't done it.

If you've made it this far in my rant to hear me name names, you're going to be disappointed.  I'm not going to out anyone here, but I am going to list a few examples and the guilty will probably recognize who they are.  I will take the high road and not name them, however.

Course Cutters
It's ridiculous and I don't know how you can honestly accept a medal or a finisher time knowing you did not go the full distance.  I've seen this in both running events and triathlons.  Do you really think that people are going to believe your pace was twice as fast in the first half of the race than the second?  There is nothing wrong with being in the back of the pack - I've been last in many a race, but at least I can hold my head high knowing that I did the full distance.

Make Up Your Own Course
I'm sorry, but if you missed a cutoff and they wouldn't let you cross the bridge that had to be opened to traffic, you didn't finish.  I don't care if you know the city and can find an alternative route to the finish line.  You did not run the designated race course and should not be celebrated for all of your hard work.  It's great you followed thru and put the miles in, don't get me wrong, but you did not finish the race and do not deserve the same medal or official time that those that made the cutoffs get.

Running Under Someone Else's Bib to Get Them a Faster Time
When you regularly run a 14+ minute mile, do you really think people are going to believe that you suddenly have a 10 minute pace race?  It's possible, but probably unlikely.  When your significant other, who normal runs a 10 minute pace has a 14+ minute pace in the very same race....then things really start to look fishy.

Falsifying Races/Times to Qualify for Guinness/Marathon Maniacs/Half Fanatics
Yes, people do this.  Unfortunately, I know one personally that made up races just to qualify for one of the above distinctions....and there are many others that I don't know personally, but have heard about.  If you don't believe me, google "Kip Litton".  Unfortunately, this notorious cheater also shares my hometown.

Using Virtual Races to Count as Real Races
A few years ago, I was bored and did a google search on either "Half Fanatics Virtual" or "Marathon Maniacs Virtual".  I can't remember which I used, but the point is the same.  It came up with several people that were counting virtual races as their races to qualify for one of the groups.  Virtual races are NOT RACES.  They are training runs that give you a medal.  A race has a designated start and finish and is run with other people.  Yes, that describes some training runs too, but there is a distinct difference.


Do cheaters prosper?  Well, considering there are two cheaters that made it into the Guinness Book of World Records and I've seen some today brag about corral placements in major races, maybe they do.  However, there are also many groups out there lately that have made it their business to out cheaters and it may be that your prosperity from your cheating is short lived....for the rest of us, I hope this is true.

One last thought to leave you with....One of my good friends has twin 15-year-old sons that are runners.  They make fun of cheaters, it has become a common running joke among them.  How can impressionable young runners, individuals that should be looking up to us adult runners as role models, have a better moral compass than some of the adults that they should be looking up to?

New Year, New Goals (a little belated, I know)

More than 1/6 of 2016 is behind us, so it may seem a little late to be setting my running goals for the year, but I think it's the perfect time.

This morning's run was definitely a turning point run for me.  Yesterday, we hit a high in the mid 50's, today we're projected to be nearly 70.  Yesterday, there was still some ice and definitely a lot of wet patches on the road to be careful of.  Today, it was melted and the roads were clear and dry.

I've been running for 412 days straight now, so why would today make such a difference?  I finally feel like I am going to be able to run outside daily again.  No more (at least greatly reduced) treadmill runs.  Last year, I absolutely loved the treadmill and hated the idea of running outside.  On the treadmill, I could throw a DVD in and watch that to occupy my time.  However, over the course of 2015, I really fell in love with running outside.  When I was forced to go back to the treadmill for the brief winter that we had, I hated it.  It's not the treadmill's fault - it was complete user error.  I got lazy.  I did my 4 miles a day, but rarely more than that and rarely at more than a power walk.  Now that I feel like I can finally get outside on a daily basis again, I have a renewed sense of determination and with that comes new goals.  Some of these have been in my head since the first of the year, some are new today, but either way, putting them out here for the world (or the 1-2 people that read this blog) to see, makes me accountable.

Marathon Goal:  Sub-5 marathon
My current marathon PR is 5:14:52 at the Detroit Free Press Marathon last fall, so this is less than a minute per mile improvement to hit my new goal.  Totally doable (I hope).

Target Race:  Bayshore Marathon, May 28 (current course PR:  5:28:46)
Backup Race:  Chicago Marathon, October 9 (current course PR:  5:17:11)

Half Marathon Goal:  Sub-2 half marathon
This will undoubtedly be my hardest challenge this year, but it was also the first goal I set at the beginning of the year.  My current PR is 2:18:24, so I'll need to shave more than a minute per mile off my time, but I'm optimistic.  I don't see myself being a consistent sub-2 half runner, but would like to do it at least once to prove to myself I can.  After a lot of thought into what race I will attempt it at, I think I have it figured out.  I'm not sure of a backup yet and a lot can happen between now and September, but Running Flat is one of my favorite race companies (I need to do a blog post dedicated to them sometime - they are amazing) and their Run for the Heros Half Marathon in Amherstburg, Ontario is top notch.  That race is where I achieved my first ever sub-3 half marathon and I would love to get my first ever sub-2 there as well.

Target Race:  Run for the Heros Half Marathon, mid to late-September (current course PR:  2:53:53)
Backup Race:  TBD

25k Goal:  Sub-3 25k
This is HUGE!  There is only 1 25k race I run, the Fifth Third River Bank Run.  It has a strict cutoff of 3:30.  I have run it twice and been allowed to finish both times, but I was between 3:30 and 4 hours each time, so I have never received an official time.  I vowed not to go back until I could come in under 3:30 and not only am I shooting for that - I'm shooting for less than 3 hours!

Target Race:  Fifth Third River Bank Run (because I have never gotten an official time, no current course PR (I didn't keep track))
Backup Race:  No back up race - 25k is an unusual distance

10k Goal:  Sub-60 10k
My current 10k PR is 1:03:55, so if I can get back into shape, I see this as a totally achievable goal.  I don't run a lot of 10k's though, so my options for a target race are limited and not ideal conditions to shoot for a PR (crowded course or a night race on the 4th of July), but I'm still going to give it a shot.  I can always add something in the Fall if I need to.

Target Race:  Tinker Bell 10k, May 7 (current course PR:  1:08:38)
Backup Race:  Ryan Shay 10k, July 4 (current course PR:  1:08:29)

5k Goal:  Sub-30 5k
My current 5k PR is 30:55, so I'm right on the cusp of breaking this goal.  I actually have one 5k time that's a few seconds faster, but it was not a timed race, so I don't count it.  Unfortunately, most of my 5k's are untimed, so I have not decided which timed race to do to achieve this goal, but I will definitely be figuring that out soon.

Target Race:  TBD
Backup Race:  TBD

What A Difference A Year Makes

It's been over a year since I've made a blog post.  I've had the best of intentions and had some great ideas during my hiatus, but never took the time to actually write them out.  However, today was a day that I couldn't let slip by without commemorating.

Today marks one full year of running every day...a streak of 365 days!

2015 Brooksie Way Half Marathon - course PR of 2:26:17

Considering my last (and only) streak consisted of 97 days about 2 years ago, I'm in disbelief that I have lasted a full year on this one.  Honestly, the streak didn't even start intentionally.  I just got on the treadmill January 22, 2015 and then decided to get back on it the next day, and the next, and just kept going.  After about a week, I decided I should try to best my previous streak.  What I found this time around, though, was that as the streak got longer, my pace improved....drastically.  So once I hit 100 straight days of running on May 1, 2015, even though I had achieved my goal of beating my previous streak, I had no intention of stopping because I liked what it was doing to my pace.

When I started the streak, I was burnt out from racing and planned on not doing near as many races in 2015 as I had in the past.  However, as my pace got faster, I found my love for running again, and although I didn't do as many races as I had in past years, I still did a fair number.  I feel like I traded in quantity for quality and the higher quality gave me a new appreciation for the sport.

2015 Detroit Women's Half Marathon-my current PR of 2:18:24

This was a new concept for me because, traditionally, I have been a very bad trainer.  Most of my miles in previous years were race miles and I just relied on muscle memory to get me through.  Even today, I'm still awful at doing long training runs.  However, I have really begun to love my shorter daily runs, especially when I can do them outside.

When I started, what I wasn't expecting was that this streak would lead to my best racing year since beginning to run in 2006.  2015 was, without a doubt, my best race year ever.  Going into 2015, I only had 3 (out of 100) half marathons that were under 3 hours.  I now have 21, and haven't seen a half over 2:44 since May 1.  Prior to 2015, no matter how I tried, I was never able to break that illusive 6 hour mark in the marathon, but now I've done it 5 times, 3 of which were even under 5:30!

I think my performance has begun to plateau and I don't expect the same drastic effects in 2016 as I saw in 2015, but I'm still hoping to see some improvement as the streak continues.  I have some aggressive goals that I hope to attain this year and we'll see if I am able to.

How long will I continue the streak?  I don't know.  I've gotten to a point where I'm afraid to break it now, so barring any injury or illness that renders me unable to, I will continue for the foreseeable future.  As of mid-February last year I decided that I needed to do at least 5k (3.1 miles) everyday.  As of January 1, 2016, I decided that one of my New Year's resolutions would be to up that to 4 miles everyday, and so far, I've held to that.  Only time will tell how long this will last though.

NOTE:  In full disclosure, not every day is an outright "run".  Most days are intervals, lately those have been 60:30 (run:walk) or 45:30.  Some days I just run with no walk breaks (usually 1 day per week) and some days I walk, these are my rest days (usually 1-2 days a week).

2015 Chicago Triathlon Triple Challenge-Super Sprint, International, and Sprint completed in a total of 7:33:00 with both Super Sprint (0:59:47) and International (4:03:47) PRs

By the Numbers...

Anyone that knows me knows that I can't do something like this without crunching the numbers every possible way.

First Day:  January 22, 2015
Days So Far:  365
Miles:  1849.44
Average Miles/Day:  5.07
Minimum:  2.44 (Only 9 days were less than a 5k and the last one was 2/17/2015)
Maximum:  26.2

Training Miles:  1322.14
Racing Miles:  527.30

Treadmill Miles:  678.50
Road Miles:  1140.37
Trail Miles:  30.57

As of....

	22-Jan-15	21-Jan-16	Difference
Streak Day #	1	365	364
5k PR	0:37:51	0:30:55	0:06:56
10k PR	1:22:23	1:03:55	0:18:28
10 Mile PR	2:33:37	1:52:56	0:40:41
Half Marathons Completed	100	119	19
Half Marathon PR	2:53:53	2:18:24	0:35:29
# of Sub-3 Half Marathons	3	21	18
Marathons Completed	50	55	5
Marathon PR	6:07:31	5:14:52	0:52:39
# of Sub-6 Marathons	0	5	5

Sponsorship has its Privileges

I apologize for the extreme delay in this post.  The last few months have flown by and updating my blog has gotten pushed to the side in favor of other activities that needed to be done.  Because of the delay, instead of the sponsorship announcement that I planned on doing, this post is going to be more of a sponsorship review.

I was honored to be selected as one of Tri to Finish’s 2014 Sponsored Athletes.  When I originally applied for the spot on Team Tri to Finish, I did it because it meant that the registration fees for the majority of my 2014 triathlons would be paid for.  What I didn’t expect was all the other perks that came with being part of the Tri to Finish family.

Holly Rec Fall Triathlon Swim Start - photo credit:  Tri to Finish

 This year marked my ninth year of racing in running events and I have made many friends over the years at various runs.  Triathlons have been a little different, though.  Part of this is because of the volume of races I do.  Prior to this year, I had done a lot fewer triathlons than runs.  I also have “only” been doing triathlons since 2009, 3 years less than running.  A typical tri “season” for me was the Chicago Triathlon and that was it, and it wasn’t local, so anyone I met was unlikely to be someone I would see again.  So, when it came to my triathlons, I very much felt like a loner.  In fact, my friend Lowell, who is the person who coerced me into my first Chicago triathlon, lives in North Carolina and we haven’t raced together since that first race 5 years ago.  Last year, I did a handful of local races, but not enough to really know anyone else racing around me.

That all changed this year.  As a member of Team Tri to Finish, it was like having an instant family.  I was fortunate enough to compete in 6 Tri to Finish events this year (so far) and each one brought a sea of friendly faces, encouragement on the course, and more fun than I could have imagined.  Even if I wasn’t racing a Tri to Finish event, I was greeted by my Tri to Finish teammates at other local and regional races.  Even if I went to the race by myself, there was always a friendly face there.

Before the Holly Rec Fall Tri with fellow teammates Sara and Kelly - photo credit:  Sara H.

In addition to the camaraderie of my Tri to Finish teammates, I have never been so inspired by a group of people in my life.  They make me want to become a better athlete just by being around them.  Team Tri to Finish includes:

·        New York Marathon qualifiers (for those of you not aware, it is actually harder to qualify for New York than it is to qualify for Boston)

·        Ironmen (2.4 miles swimming, 112 miles biking, 26.2 miles running in less than 17 hours)

·        Athletes training for the Double Anvil next month (a race that covers twice the distance of an Ironman in a mere 36 hours….4.8 miles swimming, 224 miles biking, and 52.4 miles running

·        A paratriathlete that was given 6 months to live 20 years ago, defied the odds, and will most likely be representing the US in Brazil at the ParaOlympics.  I wish I could even come close to finishing a race on my two legs as fast as she can on one!!

·        Athletes who spent their Labor Day weekend biking from Lansing to the Mackinac Bridge (400+ miles) in 4 days over some of Michigan’s hilliest roads….not for a race, just for fun

Those bullet points above make it sound like Team Tri to Finish is a bunch of elites, but it’s not.  There are just as many newbies as there are experienced athletes that make up our team….and no one comes off with the elitist attitude that you would expect from some accomplished athletes.  One of the most inspiring things to me all season was watching two of my teammates walk in a third on Sunday during the run portion of the Holly Rec Triathlon.  The two men are FAST and will be running in the New York Marathon in November, but as soon as they finished, they went back out on the run course to walk in a teammate that was completing her first ever triathlon and was in pain after an extremely tough bike course.  To me, that’s more impressive than the fastest of finish times.

I am honored and humbled to be on a team with all of these fine individuals.

Some of the Team Tri to Finish Athletes - photo credit:  Meaningful Moments

I thank the Tri to Finish organization for selecting me to be on their team and for putting on the highest quality races within the state of Michigan.  In future posts, you’ll see some of their great races highlighted and I hope that everyone reading this considers one of their races in the future.

I'M BACK!!!!

I hope you're having a great summer!!

I apologize for the extended absence.  Sometimes life gets in the way and it definitely has the last few months.  Over the next few days I plan on posting several blog posts updating the world with what's been going on lately.  Please be patient and stay tuned.

In the meantime, I need to get some packing done for an epic running weekend coming up.  Yes, I realize it is technically tri season, but no bikes or goggles for me this weekend.  My current running mileage record for a 48 hour period is 57.7 miles when I did the San Francisco Marathon last year followed by 31.5 miles at Tracy's Fat Ass the next day.  My plan is to beat that record this weekend.  First up is the Christmas In July race where I plan on doing a warm up 5k followed by the 12 hour race (my first ever time based ultra).  Assuming I am still able to walk after 12 hours straight, I'll be following that up with the 10k Saturday night to keep my legs loose since I have the Rock 'n Roll Chicago Half Marathon bright and early Sunday morning.

If you're interested in following me at Christmas in July, they are planning a live video link which will be available at http://christmasinjuly24hour.com/Lisle/LIVE.aspx.  Don't expect to see me running by the screen, this weekend is more about endurance than it is about speed.

Check back soon - I have some exciting news to share as soon as I get this weekend's packing complete!

Friday Funnies

Happy December, everybody!  I hope you all had an enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend.  I used the extended weekend to catch up on some blog posts.  Look for them in the coming days as I finish some editing, add some pictures, etc.

In the meantime, I know many of us hate the treadmill, but in these colder months with little daylight, it often becomes an necessary evil.  Check out this video of a puppy that is truly loving the dreadmill!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Friday Funnies

I know I'm a bit behind on blog posts.  I'm hoping to get caught up this weekend with the rest of the Baltimore/Chicago adventure, a Detroit recap, and some big news!

In the meantime, thought I'd share this - corny, I know, but it made me chuckle.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles…and Races (Part I)

In a previous blog post, I eluded to the fact that I had an epic race weekend coming up.  Well, the weekend has come and gone and it was even more epic than I thought it could be.  Here’s the weekend’s recap.

The Chicago Marathon was one of the hardest marathons to get into this year.  Tens of thousands of runners tried to register as soon as it opened, causing the third party registration system to crash.  Approximately 30,000 runners were able to get in within the first couple hours before the total system meltdown, but the remaining 15,000 spots had to be selected based on the results of a lottery that the race had to put in place after the system crash.

Fortunately for me, I was one of the first 30,000.  I had run Chicago in 2012 and loved it.  Since Chicago is within driving distance for me, I consider it a “local” race and hope to run it as many times as they’ll let me (rumor is that they’re going to go to a lottery system for the entire race next year).  I set a PR at the 2012 race and was anxious to come back and try to do it again.  The bonus with Chicago this year was that several of my friends were also some of the lucky 30,000 to get in, so there would be several of us running 

it. 

The downside is that the Chicago Marathon was the same weekend as the Baltimore Marathon and I also had several friends running that race and urging me to come out for it.  Most of them were running the half marathon distance and told me that the 5k was starting 90 minutes before the half, so you could do both the 5k and half if you wanted….and new this year, the 5k was awarding finisher medals.

Have you noticed that the “BLING” in “RamBLINGs” in the blog title is capitalized?  There’s a reason.  I love my medals! 

Suddenly the idea of a quick trip to Baltimore became more intriguing.  Would it affect my Chicago race?  Yes.  Would it knock another state off my list?  Yes - I’d never run in Maryland before.  I debated for quite some time and finally decided to go for it.

So, on Friday morning, I boarded a train to Chicago, then a shuttle bus to the Chicago Marathon Expo which was held at McCormick Place, a large convention center in the city.  Chicago is one of the 6 world majors, along with London, Berlin, New York, Boston, and Tokyo.  Admittedly, I have never run any of the other majors, so I don’t know if the Chicago Expo is indicative of them or not, but what I can say is that there is no better expo that I’ve been to than the Chicago Expo.

The Chicago Marathon is one of the 6 World Marathon Majors

First of all, you’re snail mailed a participant booklet that includes a barcode.  As you enter the expo, you hand that booklet to an expo volunteer who scans it while they check your license and verify your information.  They then direct you to the appropriate counter to obtain your bib.  By the time you get to the counter, another volunteer has already pulled your bib and has it there waiting for you.  A quick scan of your bib records that you’ve picked it up and then it’s off to get your t-shirt where you bib is scanned one more time to record that you’ve picked up your shirt and then you’re done.  Both times that I’ve gone to the Chicago Marathon expo, it has been a fast, seamless, and stress free experience.

Welcoming runners to the Chicago Marathon Expo

I would have liked to walk around the expo and check out some of the venders, but I didn’t have time because my next stop was O’Hare airport to fly to Baltimore.  Stay tuned for to find out about my adventures in Baltimore in my next post…

Less than 3 months until I'm officially Dopey!

See that counter to the right of the blog?  It's counting down the days until the Inaugural "Official" Dopey Challenge at Walt Disney World and we're now under 90 days!  If you're registered, are you ready to run nearly 50 miles thru Walt Disney World in January?

For those of you that don't know what I'm talking about, for years, many people have done what has become known as the "Unofficial" Dopey Challenge during Marathon Weekend at Walt Disney World.  This involved running the 5k Family Fun Run on Friday followed by the Goofy Race and a Half Challenge (Half Marathon on Saturday and Full Marathon on Sunday).

However, after this year's unprecedented nearly instantaneous sell out of the Disneyland 10k and Dumbo Double Dare (10k on Saturday and Half Marathon on Sunday), Disney decided to capitalize on the 10k craze and add a 10k to their January WDW Marathon Weekend for 2014.  With the added race, a new challenge was also born....the "Official" Dopey Challenge:

• 5k on Thursday
• 10k on Friday
• Half Marathon on Saturday
• Full Marathon on Sunday

The Inaugural Dopey Challenge:  4 Races, 4 Days, 48.6 Miles, 6 Medals

Do you have dreams of going Dopey?

Throwback Thursday - What Did I Do On My Summer Vacation?

I'm noticing that the current trend on Facebook among many of my friends is to do "Throwback Thursday" where they post something from their past.  I thought I'd do the same on the blog this week, but I'm not going quite that far back.  I'm going to do a mini throwback and briefly recap the epic running vacation I took this summer.

It all started a year ago when I ran the 2012 San Francisco Marathon.  I missed a turn on the course and ended up having to back track to make up the mileage I accidentally skipped.  I vowed that I would come back in 2013 so that I could run the correct course with no mistakes.  A bonus was that my friend Tony was going to be completing his 100th marathon at San Francisco, so I'd be there for that as well.

Another race that had been on my radar for a couple years was the Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon.  The Seattle Marathon (different than Rock 'n' Roll Seattle) was my first ever marathon, so the city has some sentimental value to me.  Seattle is also home to some very dear college friends that I had been hoping to visit in the not so distance future.  When I found out that my running friends Jenny and Carrie were making plans to run Rock 'n' Roll Seattle this year, I knew that 2013 was the year to finally run it.

One problem though...traditionally, the San Francisco Marathon is in July.  However due to conflicts with the America's Cup, it was moved to June for 2013 only....one week before Rock 'n' Roll Seattle.  This created a bit of a dilemma because being a Midwesterner, trips to the west coast are not easy and making two on two consecutive weekends would be prohibitive...unless I made it one big running trip!

...and that's exactly what I did.

Once it was decided to spend an entire week on the west coast, other races soon got added to the schedule...3 additional races to be exact.  The first being Brazen Racing's Trailquake trail race on Saturday.  If you ever have an opportunity to do a Brazen Race, I highly recommend it.  This is the second Brazen race I'd done and both times, they were great experiences.  They're a top notch race company, providing medals for all distances and an all-you-can-eat buffet at the finish.  Trailquake had 5k, 10k, and half marathon options and I'm thankful that Tony, our friend Jennifer, and I decided to register for "just" the 5k.  This 5k was no joke, it was a mile and a half up the San Andreas Trail, gaining approximately 775 feet in elevation before turning around and going back down the trail to the finish.  It was definitely a workout, more of a hike than a run, but a good warm up for the San Francisco Marathon the next day.

Jennifer, myself, and Tony before Brazen's Trailquake 5k (photo courtesy of Allen Lucas)

On Sunday, we had the San Francisco Marathon where I got redemption for my course snafu the year before and Tony completed his 100th marathon followed by a post race celebration in honor of his milestone race.  However, the party ended early because several of us in attendance had another race the next day.  Yes, you read that right, that meant 3 straight days of races.

Tony with his bobblehead commemorating his 100th marathon 

On Monday morning was Tracy's Fat Ass.  "Fat Ass" is a term used in running to describe small, low key races.  The small, family atmosphere was a nice change after the large race the day before.  My intention was to do the marathon distance that morning.  This would be my second double (2 marathons in 2 days), so I was optimistic that it shouldn't be too bad.  Tracy's course consisted of 4 large loops around Lake Merced in San Francisco followed by 2 smaller loops to equal 26.2 miles.  Tony had decided to just do one loop around the lake and then volunteer for the rest of the day counting loops as runners came through.  When I had finished my third loop and was heading out on my fourth, Tony joked that he had switched me from the marathon to the 50k division.  At first I scoffed at the idea, but by the time I had finished the fourth loop, I had decided that I was indeed going to go for 50k.

Following Tracy's Fat Ass...and 60.8 miles in 3 days

Why would I decide to tack on another ~5 miles on my 3rd day of running?  There were three reasons that I used to convince myself during that fourth loop:

1. I had a 50 mile race on the schedule later in the summer and the additional mileage would be good training
2. With the current plan for this vacation, I was going to be doing 94.8 miles.  Upping to the 50k would bring me that much closer to a 100 mile vacation.
3. I was currently on target for a 7+ hour marathon, but I never wanted to see another 7 hour marathon.  A 9 hour 50k, on the other hand, was more acceptable to me at that point.

Yes, I realize that the only truly valid reason was #1, but at that point, #3 was the most important in my mind.  So, when I finished my 4th loop and Tony told me I had two more to go, I surprised him by saying "I've done the math.  I actually have 3 to go.  I'm going for 50k!"  I ended up finishing just over 50k with 31.5 miles, and a new 50k PR!

After three days of running, it was nice that Tuesday was a rest day.  We spent a quiet day doing some errands around San Francisco that needed to be done before we left on Wednesday to drive to Seattle.  There were three of us on this epic road trip....Tony, our friend Christine, and myself.  The drive was mostly uneventful, but when we stopped at the Oregon's Visitors Center for a bio break, we stumbled upon a unexpected find.  A mini shrine to Prefontaine, the former Olympic runner from Oregon.  After some pictures, we were back on our way to Seattle.

The Epic Road Trip begins!  Tony, Christine, and I heading to Seattle

We were pleasantly surprised to see a Prefontaine display at the Oregon Visitors Center

Once in Seattle, we had a couple days to do touristy stuff and meet up with both running and non-running friends.  It was great spending time with my old college friend Tom and his wife, Cherie, and their daughter, Katie.  Friday afternoon, the four of us decided to take a walk near the staging area for Saturday's race.  I snapped a quick picture of Katie running, but it wasn't until after I had taken it that I noticed the backdrop that she was running past at the time.  I think it would make a great publicity shot for the Rock 'n' Roll series, if I do say so myself:

Competitor (owners of the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon series) should really pay me for this photo! :)

Before I knew it, it was Saturday morning....race day.  Christine, Jennifer, Jennifer's husband Mitchell, Jenny, and Carrie all ran the half while Tony and I ran the full.  It was a warm day and my body was getting tired, so it wasn't my best race ever, but I got it done and met some great folks along the way.

Fellow Double Agent (Half Fanatic & Marathon Maniac) Tyler, myself, and Tony after our Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon finish 

It would have been great to hang out in Seattle for another night with our friends, but we weren't done running yet.  As soon as the race was over, Christine, Tony, and I were on the road again.  We headed to Eugene, Oregon for our last race of this epic road trip, the Grapes of Half half marathon.  This was a new race that started and ended at wineries outside of Eugene.  It was a fun race with only about 100 runners.  The first half of the race went very well and, surprisingly, I was keeping a good pace, even thinking that a PR may be possible.  However, those hopes went away during the second half which was considerably more hilly and by then, the 90+ miles on feet and legs were definitely starting to catch up with me.  My pace slowed down considerably.  Following the race, I was able to get a post race massage and we enjoyed some complimentary wine from the finish line winery before starting to return to Seattle.

The bling from 5 races over 9 days.

When it was all said and done, in 9 days, I completed 100.1 miles in 5 races:

• Brazen Trailquake 5k 1:14:52
• San Francisco Marathon 6:53:56
• Tracy's Racing Tracy's Fat Ass 50k (31.5 miles) 9:11:05
• Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon 6:55:21
• Pink Buffalo Racing's Grapes of Half - 3:34:03

I wasn't sure how my body would react to so many miles in such a short amount of time, but I'm happy to say I felt great when it was over.  There was only one casualty from the trip.  After Tony dropped me off at the airport, he was driving to return the rental car when one of the tires blew out.  Thank goodness, it didn't happen while we were on the highway!

The only casualty of  the epic road trip - blown tire a few blocks from the rental return

Have you ever taken a running vacation?  You know what they say "A vacation without a race is just poor planning!"

Neither Rain, Nor Sleet, Nor Government Shutdown will Keep Runners from Their Appointed Route

Today was the Sleeping Bear Marathon and Half Marathon in Empire, Michigan.  Endurance Evolution did a great job putting on this race.  The course was a simple out and back along the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  It ran thru the quaint little towns of Empire and Glen Arbor, over rivers that were teeming with huge salmon, and thru northern Michigan's beautiful Fall colors.  The temperature was in the mid-50's, so the course and the temps had all the makings for a near perfect race.  Unfortunately, Mother Nature had something else in mind.

As I have learned over the last several years, northern lower Michigan races in October can be very beautiful, but can also be very damp.  The hourly weather forecast predicted 70% chance of rain for most of the race before diminishing for the afternoon.  As I got to the race, the rain had stopped and I hoped that that meant it had ended earlier than the forecast predicted.  Unfortunately, I was wrong.  By Mile 5, it was pouring again and it rained on and off for the first 3/4 of the race.  (On the bright side, there was no sleet - apparently they had that for last year's race).

I started out with 30:30 intervals, but in the first few miles, my legs felt pretty heavy.  Since the first 3-4 miles were hilly, I decided to walk with the intention of resuming my intervals once the initial hills were behind me and my legs had warmed up.  Once I resumed intervals, they were short lived because it was not long before the rain (and the subsequent unavoidable puddles) came back.  That resulted quickly in blisters and chafing which forced me to slow to a power walk instead of the intervals.  I was still maintaining a good pace walking (~14:30/mile) until Mile 18 when my Garmin completely died.  When I don't know my pace, I tend to slow down - I really need to learn not to rely on that for my pace as much as I do.

I ended up coming in just over 7 hours, almost an hour longer than I had planned.  The good thing is that my legs felt great when I finished, it was just the blisters that hurt....so I should be ready for my epic race weekend next week.  Stay tuned for info on that!

The medal for the Sleeping Bear Marathon at Sleeping Bear Dunes

With the government shutdown, all entrances to the Sleeping Bear Dunes and associated areas were closed.  Fortunately the race was always scheduled to stay on state highways and local roads, so the shutdown didn't affect the course at all.  We could see the dunes from the course and when we passed them, I knew I needed to get a picture of the medal with the landmark the marathon was named for, so after the race, I ignored the barricades blocking the driveway and went in to take a picture.  I felt like such a rebel!  (You'll notice that by this point, the sky had cleared and it stopped raining as well!)

Sleeping Bear Marathon is one of the races that are part of the Great Lakes Marathon series.  This series is comprised of 25 marathons that have views of the Great Lakes at some point during their course (Sleeping Bear is along Lake Michigan).  As a resident of the Great Lakes state, I'm hoping to eventually complete this series, but it will be a long term goal.

The 100-50 Plan: If I announce it on my blog, I have to do it, right?

Anyone who knows me knows that I like to race......a lot.  When I did my first race ever, the 2006 Detroit Free Press Half Marathon, I never dreamed how many races and miles were in my future.  After that one race in 2006 and its sequel in 2007, the race bug bit and wouldn't let go.

Team Rumphshaker after the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon in 2006

In March 2012, I ran the North Carolina Half Marathon.  It was my 50th half marathon and although it was a great race and I had run it with a small group of friends, it was not a race that I had planned to be my 50th.  It just sort of happened.  For my 100th half, I wanted it to be a designated race - a race that I planned on doing to commemorate the milestone and a race that I could celebrate with lots of friends.

Running the 2012 North Carolina Half Marathon with Dana - my 50th half.

As I debated what would be my milestone race so that I could plan accordingly, I started thinking about the races that were the most fun for me.  Although there are numerous races that I would love to do as my 100th, I knew that doing it at a Disney race would insure that I'd have more of my racing buddies around than I would at a non-Disney race.  I then realized that at my current pace, I would be hitting my 100th half marathon fairly close to my 50th full marathon.  Anyone who is familiar with Disney races can probably predict where my mind went next (especially if you paid attention to the title of this post :) ).

So, here's my official announcement.....my 100th half marathon will be at the 2015 Walt Disney World Half Marathon (est. January 10, 2015) followed the next day by my 50th full marathon at the 2015 Walt Disney World Marathon (est. January 11, 2015).  I plan to be competing in the Dopey Challenge (5k Thursday, 10k Friday, Half Saturday, Full Sunday), culminating in achieving my 2 major race milestones.

In order to achieve this, I will have to taper in 2014, which is a good thing.  I want to focus more on my triathlons and speed in 2014 and tapering will allow me to do this.  This also leaves me wiggle room if I am unable to complete some of my currently scheduled 2014 races.

So where am I currently in the 100-50 plan?  As of today, October 3, I have completed 80 half marathons and 32 marathons, leaving me 19 halfs and 17 fulls to complete before January 2014.

Do you have plans for Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend in 2015?  Come join me!

Who Gets Coast to Coast in January? This Girl Does!

Just posting some pics now, write up will follow soon.

I’m just plain Goofy...er make that Dopey!

I’ve done it once, I’ve done it twice, and now I can say I’ve done it three times. I am officially a 3 time finisher of the unofficial Dopey Challenge which pairs up the official Goofy Race and a Half Challenge (half marathon on Saturday and full marathon on Sunday) with the Friday 5k Fun Run at Walt Disney World. That’s a total of 42.4 miles in about 56 hours.

This year’s challenge wasn’t my best (my marathon PR is still my first Goofy in 2010 despite the frigid conditions), but it definitely could have been worse. Although I had no intention of pushing hard on Friday or Saturday so that I could make it thru Sunday’s 26.2 miles, I did have some times in my head that I wanted to beat.

I was shooting for a sub-50 minute 5k. I know that doesn’t sound too difficult, but that’s just over a 16 minute mile and the pace that I’d been struggling to maintain lately. I was very pleased with myself that I made it…with just a hair less than 5 seconds to spare. What was even better about the 5k was that my Mom was volunteering at the finish line, passing out the finisher medallions, so not only had I made the time I was shooting for, my biggest cheerleader handed me my medallion!

For the half marathon, I was shooting for 3:30 – again, that would put me at about a 16 min/mile and was the official cutoff for the race. Well, actually 3:30 from the time the last person crosses the starting line is the official cutoff and since I estimated that I was approximately 8 minutes ahead of the last person to cross, I knew I had some wiggle room. However, I really wanted to break the 3:30 barrier. Although I used to be able to be sub-3:30 routinely, that time has eluded me for months.

Race morning came and the weather was perfect. Not too cold (at least for a Michigander) and not too hot. Highs for the day were predicted to be warm (high 70’s), but since the race starts at 5:30 and it was “just” a half, we’d all be done before the temps were too bad. The race started out ok. I was planning on running the first 2 minutes and then do a 1:9 interval (run a minute, walk 9 minutes) plus run whenever it felt good to run. I love running hills, intersections, and thru the parks, so I knew my 1:9 rhythm wouldn’t stick, but at least it would force me to run during spots that I generally wouldn’t.

Things were going great until Mile 2 – way too early for things to go wrong! My right leg cramped up. I won’t go into the specifics, but it started at the top of my calf and wrapped along the side of my leg to my ankle….just like it did for the Lansing Capital City half in September (you can see that blog post for the agony of that race and details of the cramping issue). I hadn’t had a cramping problem since Lansing, so I wrote it off as a one time anomaly and forgot about it….until the morning of the WDW half marathon when it resurrected itself. In Lansing, the cramping went on for about 4 miles and the last thing I needed for this race was the cramping to last that long because I had slowed down to a 17-18 min/mile pace and I knew the sweepers would not be lenient. Fortunately, by the time I hit the 2^nd mile marker, the cramping was almost completely gone (Thank God!) and I was able to resume a better pace.

My absolute favorite and absolute least favorite part of any half or full marathon course at WDW (except for Wine & Dine) is outside of the Contemporary hotel. Anyone that has done a race at Disney that’s gone by the Contemporary already knows exactly why it’s my least favorite….that @#$! Inverted hill!....and if you haven’t done a race that passes the Contemporary, the next time you take a shuttle bus to the Magic Kingdom, pay particular attention as you approach the park. In my opinion, that hill rivals the dreaded Bradley hills in the Crim 10 miler.

What may not be so obvious is why that’s also my favorite part of any course that includes it. There are a couple reasons: #1: I know that when it’s over, the worst part of the course is over. Yes, there are some dull spots leaving Magic Kingdom, but those are more of a mental challenge and usually by that point in a race, I’ve found someone to talk to so that it goes by faster. That brings me to reason #2: frequently it’s just before this hill that I find a person to talk to and keep pace with for the most of the rest of the race. If not someone to keep pace with, I find a bunch of rookies that I can obnoxiously encourage thru the hill with the promise that that’s the worst of it. The first year I did Goofy, I met a TNT woman during the full from Michigan who actually knew my cousin Chrissy who used to work from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The second year, during one of the races, I met a struggling asthmatic woman who played leap frog with me for the next few miles as we encourage each other. This year, during the half, as the course narrowed on the approach to the Contemporary, I did my typical obnoxious shout (to no one in particular) of “The worst of the course is just ahead of us, but don’t worry. As soon as you get thru this down and up, the worse will be over!” This time, Cindy, a second time half marathoner, first time WDW participant from Texas responded to my shout and we started chatting for the next several miles of the course. Turns out she was from the Dallas area – the same area where I had participated in the New Years Double the week before. Not only was she from the area, but her daughter, Cassie, had participated and helped work packet pick-up of the New Years Double races….and was doing her first ever marathon the next day. Cindy was eager for me to meet Cassie so that we could possibly keep pace with each other during the full like Cindy and I were doing during the half.

Cindy and I also started chatting for several miles with a lady from marathon (who’s name I never got) who was also doing Goofy. She was on a mission because she’d been swept in the marathon the year previous. Cindy was on a mission to PR and I was on a mission to break 3:30, so we continued to encourage each other until about Mile 9. At that point, Cindy peeled off to get some Tylenol from the med station. A little later, I slowed up and the lady from Maryland continued on. We didn’t finish together, but the 3 of us got each other thru the dull part of the course which was a huge help.

This year, they had DJs at the big turn before you cross the last overpass to get into EPCOT. They were letting the runners yell out their hometowns into the microphone as they passed. As we approached, it really made me chuckle because hearing all the cities and states announced, reminded me of the beginning of a Miss America pageant when the contestants quickly introduce themselves and it typical obnoxious form, I announced that to those around me my observation. Without missing a beat, a girl right in front of me glanced back and said “…and all I want is world peace.” Everyone around laughed which helped to ease the struggling for a split second. Despite how silly the cities and states sounded to me, I proudly announced “Kalamazoo” into the microphone as I passed as well.

As we exited EPCOT for the final quarter mile or so of the race, my all time favorite cheer section of any WDW race was right there waiting for us…the gospel choir and as I always do, I clapped as I ran past them, yelling “I’ve been looking forward to you guys for 13 miles!” After the choir, it’s nothing but pure adrenaline for the last stretch. I didn’t make my goal, I finished with a 3:32, but it was a great race. Even though I didn’t make my time, it was one of the better times I’d had recently and drastically better than I had done in either of my halfs the weekend before. Although I wasn’t convinced I’d finish the full the next day, finishing that close to the cutoff gave me a boost of confidence that I could finish do it.

I met up with Mom at the Finish Line, got my food, water, etc. and then we headed towards the bus. I was telling Mom about Cindy and her daughter doing the full the next day when I looked up and said “…and there she is!” Cindy had finished a couple minutes behind me, so she missed her PR, but the important thing is that we both finished. We were so happy that we gave each other a big hug and then she introduced me to Cassie and we made plans for meeting up the next morning in the corrals.

For the full marathon, I was shooting for 7:00. I knew it was going to be a struggle, but that was my goal. Again, just like the half, 7:00 is equivalent to a 16 min/mile pace. In order to attain that, I was basically going to have to PR since my current PR was 6:59:15. After the cramping issue the day before, I was a little more nervous, but since it happened in Lansing and not again until WDW, I was hoping that I would luck out and skip it for the full.

The morning was similar to the day before and the weather was the same. The only difference was, with the longer race, I knew the end was going to be hot. Like always, I planted myself at the gate to the corrals and as soon as they opened the gate, I headed to my corral to get to the front. Cassie found me there shortly after I got there. I warned her that I was going to be slow and that I had the cramping issue the day before. I told her that since it was her first marathon, the most important thing was that she finished, so if I was slowing her down, she shouldn’t feel bad about going on ahead. She didn’t seem worried about me being slow and assured me that she’d get me thru the first 20 if I’d get her thru the last 6.2.

The race started out great, but unfortunately, luck was not on my side. The cramping came back right around the same spot as it had the day before. Even though we had a relatively good time on Mile 1, we slowed way down on Mile 2 because of it. I told Cassie to go on ahead of me, but she reminded me that she was going to get me thru the first 20 and I’d get her thru the last 6.2. Fortunately, the cramping was short lived, like the day before, so we were able to speed up again for the next miles.

We ran into a TNT coach around Mile 6. He looked at Cassie and me and then, looking at me, he said “You’re doing great and you’re almost half way, but your friend there still has a while before she can say she’s almost halfway.” I was a bit confused by the comment and took a few seconds before it clicked. Cassie and I had different bibs – hers for the marathon and mine for the Goofy Challenge and the coach saw that. I was almost at half of the total 39.3 for the Goofy while Cassie was still only about a quarter of the way to the halfway point of the marathon. As soon as I realized that I was nearly halfway, was just the mental boost I needed.

Even with the motivation boost, the bicycle folks who shut down each mile marker for the sweepers were within sight early on in the race. At Mile 8, they warned us that we were 7 minutes ahead of the sweepers. I assured Cassie that if we could keep a 16 min pace, but if she needed to go ahead, she shouldn’t worry about me. Again she reminded me that she’d get me thru the first 20 and I’d get her thru the last 6.2, but agreed that we’d evaluate how we were doing at the halfway point and she’d decide then if she wanted to go ahead.

Previously, when we were running thru EPCOT at the beginning of the race, Cassie and I also joked that we should hide out in the bathrooms for a few hours and rejoin the race as the leaders ran back thru EPCOT for the finish. Even though we were never serious, it passed the time and distracted us from any pain as we plotted how we’d explain why we were missing some of our mat times. The discussion resurrected itself as we got closer to Magic Kingdom, around Mile 9 and we could see the runners that were already exiting Magic Kingdom. We joked around with the people around us that we should just skip over the median and save ourselves some miles. That brought up discussion of Rosie Perez for a while. Several of the people around us were doing the Goofy, so I shared the motivation I had received a few miles earlier from the TNT coach about being over halfway done and the others had the same reaction that I did – it was a real motivation boost.

It was also about that time that we based 3 or 4 highway patrol on their motorcycles that were monitoring the course. One of the runners shouted over to them “$20 for a ride to the finish!” Another runner yelled “I’ll give you $40!” Seeing that a bidding war was starting, a third runner contributed with “I’ll show you a boob!” You never know what you’ll hear on a race course. (btw-the patrolmen, didn’t bite on any of the offers)

The last mile marker that you pass before entering the Magic Kingdom is Mile 10. It was right before that point that the cramping came back. Ugh! I’ve never had it happen twice in the same race, why did it have to start now? As I passed the mile marker, my phone rang and I was able to answer it easily. It was Mom who was volunteering in EPCOT. She was calling to let me know that she was cheering runners on in Japan. I told her I was at Mile 10, estimated when I’d be in EPCOT, and told her things were going good except for the cramp. Dang it! I shouldn’t have told her that, now she’s going to worry about me (fortunately, he knew that I wouldn’t push things too far, so she wasn’t as worried about the cramp as I was afraid she would be).

The weirdest thing in the race happened just after the 10 Mile Marker. I’ve done enough races thru Magic Kingdom that I could go probably get into the park, run Main Street, and turn into Tomorrowland with my eyes closed. It’s another one of my favorite parts of the race. I always make sure that I run Main Street, slapping the hands of as many spectators as possible. It’s a part of the course that I know will pump me up, even if I’m struggling. Unfortunately, as we came into the backlot and thru the tunnel, instead of making the familiar left hand turn that brings us into the park, they directed us straight. At first I thought that I was remembering the course wrong, but when we arrived in Tomorrowland, I realized that we had missed Main Street. Not only had they diverted us, but no one was aware what was going on. Volunteers looked at us with questioning looks and I heard one say “Where are they coming from?” It was at that point that I realized that the detour had just started and there were still runners coming in off of Main Street as well as those of us that were sent around it. I was upset we missed Main Street, but I was more upset for Cassie because everyone should be able to run it. She asked me why I thought it happened and the only thing I could think of was that maybe a runner had gone down or something else had happened that made them want to clear the area. We were still well ahead of the sweepers and I have been slow in many a Disney race and had never seen this happen. As we were still trying to figure out what happen, I heard someone talking to me. It was the woman from Maryland from the day before. We chatted back and forth and she told us that she had just come in off of Main Street and there was no runner down or anything else to prevent the rest of us from running it. We found out later that (Cassie’s mom, Cindy asked a cast member) that they wanted to open the park to the public and wanted to clear off Main Street so that the public wasn’t confused by what was going on. Seems weird to me since there was only a few minutes worth of people left to run and there were already spectators in the park. My estimate is that the detour cut about a quarter of a mile of my course. I guess it just gives me motivation to make sure I’m faster next time.

The rest of the course went by with relatively few incidents. Cassie finally started going ahead around the halfway point and I’m glad she did. I feel bad for holding her back, even though she continues to tell me that making her go slow early is what helped her finish the entire race. I saw her again during the out and back portion around Mile 22. She was probably about a half mile ahead of me at that point and must have continued to gain because she finished about a half hour ahead of me.

With each mile marker, the bicycle people were announcing shorter and shorter times that we were ahead of the sweepers. At Mile 22, I was only 30 seconds ahead of them. Mile 22 has special meaning for me because the year before, that mile marker gave me a new nickname “Bad Information Janice”. The year before, I saw someone struggling around Mile 20 and her friend was zig zagging back and forth as she was trying to encourage her. I didn’t know their names until months later, but they’re now my friends Jennifer and Elizabeth. As a way to further encourage Jennifer, I assured them that if they could get to Mile 22, the last mile marker before Hollywood Studios, they couldn’t be picked up. From that point on, that’s what they focused on. Once they got into Hollywood Studios, Elizabeth took breaks to get pictures with characters and Jennifer slowed down her pace. They had been told by me that they were safe. Unfortunately, I was wrong. As each of them exited Hollywood Studios, they saw the sweeper busses sitting in the parking lot waiting to pick people up. Fortunately, they had not lost enough time to be in danger of being picked up, but from that point on, they remembered me as the person who gave them the bad information and many months later when we ran into each other again and learned each others’ names, the nickname “Bad Information Janice” was born.

I went off on the above tangent for a reason. As we passed Mile 22 this year, the TNT coaches announced to us that we were all safe. I ran up to one and questioned her about it and told her how that’s what I thought last year, but that there were sweeper busses waiting in the parking lot of Hollywood Studios as you exited and before you hit the sidewalk leading to the Boardwalk. She assured me that the TNT coaches get a list of the hard pick ups and that Mile 22 was the last one, but she sent another TNT coach up to the bicycle people to find out for sure. The report that came back was a cryptic answer of “you must keep pace”. No affirmation or denial of the existence of busses in the parking lot, but the TNT coaches assured us that the sweepers would not pick up anyone that was in front of the coaches. So, we plugged along.

Hollywood Studios was the last time that I ran into the lady from Maryland before she pulled ahead of me. I was excited for her that she was finally able to complete the Goofy – I was especially excited for her because she told me that when they picked her up the previous year, they gave her a marathon medal on the bus even though she didn’t finish. As she exited the bus, she found the first garbage can she could find and threw it out because she didn’t earn it. The fact she did that made me respect her and made it even greater that she was finally able to earn that bling at the finish line!

As we exited Hollywood Studios, I saw the busses in the parking lot, but I’m still not sure if they were truly sweepers or if they were there to pick up people that just give up. All I knew was they weren’t picking me up and in about a minute when I hit that sidewalk along the river, I was safe! Even though I was tired and the heat of the day was really beginning to take its toll on me, I shouted my typical obnoxious “All right guys – see that sidewalk? As soon as we’re there, they can’t get us! We’ve got this one! Let’s do it!” A woman quickly responded “Did you do the Wine & Dine race?” When I told her that I did, she laughed and said “I remember you! You said the same thing then and you’re what got me thru the end of that race!” Her friend chimed in, saying “She told me about you – we’ve been waiting for this spot!” Despite the fact that I am proudly obnoxious on these courses with my encouragement, I was embarrassed that I’ve got some notoriety – I prefer my anonymity, but if my obnoxious cheering actually did give someone that last push to finish, I guess I’ll take the notoriety.

It was on the sidewalk along the river that the balloon people (the last people before the sweepers start sweeping) passed me, but I didn’t care. I was safe and despite the fact that a few miles earlier I actually thought I might be able to pull a PR out with a little pushing, I started to slow down. At Mile 24, the bicycle people announced that I was 30 seconds behind the balloon people. Who cares? You can’t touch me anymore ran thru my mind.

Soon I had reached the Boardwalk and tried to run as much as I could, but I was hot and my feet were killing me. I ran the bridge in Boardwalk and the hill in EPCOT’s France, but not with the gusto that I should have. As I passed Mile 25, the bicycle people were waiting there and my thought “Really? What’s the point?” As I got within earshot of them, I was surprised. Instead of hearing numbers, they were shouting encouragement. “Come on! You look great! Just a mile to go! You’ve got this!” As I got closer to them, I shouted back “You mean you’re not going to shout out numbers at me anymore?” The one laughed and just responded with “You’ve got this – you’re doing great! One more mile!”

I had two more important “landmarks” before the finish line. The first came in Japan. My eyes were peeled and there she was…my Mom. In my best imitation of my Dad’s typical calling of my Mom’s name I shouted “Gerrrr!” She looked up and came running and gave me a hug. I apologized for the fact that I was soaked (both from sweat and dumping water over my head at the last several water stops), told her that I’d see her back at the hotel, and continued on my way.

As we approached our exit to the backlot and then parking lot, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around and it was a South African guy that had been keeping pace with me for the last few miles. “We’ve got this!” he said. “Yes we do!” I responded and I started to run. I thought that he was going to run with me, but that was the last time I saw him. Funny how you get the boosts of motivation on a race course exactly when you need them. As I ran, I could hear a ton of cheering behind me. I wasn’t sure what people were cheering for, but in my head, I tried to tell myself it was my own personal cheer section.

The second “landmark” came in the exact same spot it was the day before, but it was a different gospel choir this time. As I passed them, I again clapped and shouted “I’ve been looking forward to you guys for 26 miles!” and then took off toward the 26 Mile Marker. As I exited the backlot and saw the die hard spectators that had waited around for us slow pokes, I again heard a huge rise in the cheering, again not sure why, but it pushed me across the finish line – especially since I knew Mom wasn’t there to cheer me on.

As I finished, I turned to hopefully see my South African friend, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead, there were at least 30 TNT coaches coming in behind – I then realized they were the cause of the cheering. I stuck around for a few minutes, hoping I’d see the South African behind them, but I didn’t and I was in desperate need to sit down somewhere, so I gave up waiting and headed toward the food and the busses (I did check the results and found him there, so I know that he did finish, I’m just sorry I didn’t congratulate him and thank him for that last push of encouragement he gave me).

The first year I did Goofy, I was over 3:30 on the half, but under 7:00 on the full. The second year, I was under 3:30 on the half, but over 7:00 on the full. My goal was to be under the time for both this year and if I did that, I was going to contemplate retiring from Goofy, however I was over on both races this year, so that only means one thing….I’m definitely in it for Goofy 2013. If I make my goal in 2013, I may retire, but it’s so much fun to do that I don’t know if I’ll be able to pull myself away from it.

RACE RATING - WDW Marathon Weekend (Walt Disney World)

Course: 7 – relatively flat with some big hills/overpasses and some minor inclines in the parks (especially Animal Kingdom), a bit dull at times when in between the parks, but great course entertainment. The marathon course is one of the best I’ve done because of the fact that the second half is better than the first half – in many marathons, the second half gets neglected because if there is an associated half marathon, the first half gets most of the entertainment and scenery. Not the case with WDW.

Bling: 10 – special 15^th anniversary Donald medal for the half, Mickey medal for the full, and Goofy for the combo

Race Organizers: 9 – Disney’s got it pretty much down to a science, but the fact that they are giving medals out to people they sweep is annoying.

Recommendation: For people who like a challenge, it’s a must do.