BT50k, Johnnycake Jog, and on to the North Coast 24 hour!

DNS.

My first one. I am feeling great now that didn't run it though. Stupid me should have thought. I have this super intelligent guy helping me, all I had to do was ask. But I waited. Thought I was superwoman or something. Thought that I could come out of a 50 miler running the same speed I ran going into it and also feeling 100%. LOL. SERIOUSLY. It wasn't until Wednesday that I asked Ray if running the BT50k was a good idea, considering NC24 training. He said, strong as can be: "Abosolutely not. I do not think it's a good idea". WHOA! That's all I needed to hear to throw in the towel on this one. Heck BT50k wasn't going to be a serious race for me anyway, just a fun thing so nuff said. I did feel bad I was going to miss running with some great people though! Running task for the rest of the week - was to run randomly. Whatever I felt - "Run with the family" Ray said. My family had some tapering going on so I took a couple days off and ran solo on Saturday while they had an off day. The run was slow - purposely, and it felt great! It was the first time since Mo that I actually noticed things again. Birds, squirrels, the way the sun was rising over an open field. Sounds corny, but it's true! It did a lot for me, mentally speaking. Since Mo I had been struggling and had not had a single enjoyable run. I had even started using my headphones again, something I didn't do at all during Boston or Mo training. I was doing it so I wouldn't have to pay attention to how I was struggling through each run. That is a big no no. I had really come to enjoy not using headphones during runs, being so in tune with everything, the way I was feeling, my surroundings, etc. and now I was trying to forget it all by turning on my music, "Disturbed" full blast. I hated the reason why I was using my music. So, Saturday was a treat. A nice, easy treat. I smiled a lot during the run (FINALLY!) I only looked at my watch a couple of times. 6 miles, 8:15/mile. I then came home and cross trained for one hour. Sunday I logged 14 miles early a.m. on the treadmill and felt good again. I then decided to run alongside my son in the Johnnycake Jog 5 miler, I was worried about him running in the heat. This whole "taking it easy" really seemed to work for me! (And not racing in 2 big races has now given me the racing bug, which I will not satisfy until NC24! I feel like exploding!) I'm so glad this rest has worked out and am completely pumped that week one of NC24 training started today! I went into my run this afternoon completely refreshed, excited, and ready to go! I LOVE IT! Thanks Ray! And hey - speaking of Ray don't forget Impossible2Possible has many exciting things coming up, including their expedition to the Amazon!

Check it out at:

http://impossible2possible.com/i2p

School registration is now open!

And don't forget about the I2P pizza party at my house, August 7th for kids!

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=727743691&v=app_2344061033#!/event.php?eid=134414096586793&index=1

If anyone's interested in speaking at the event please let me know :-)

BT50K

As I mentioned above, I did what I needed to Saturday a.m. and then it was time to turn on the webcast to the BT50k! It was so neat seeing the webcast, finally watching one where there were people that I knew who were running. This kind of made it worse at the same time though! I wanted to BE there. Never mind that I wasn't running, I still wanted to be there to support everyone and cheer them on! I was quite literally pacing back and forth, just wishing I was there. My husband came home from working third shift and told me he was going golfing before he went to sleep for a few hours - and that's all I needed to hear - I WAS OUT! My son and I drove the one hour drive to the CVNP and made it with a little under an hour to spare before the first finishers crossed the line. My plan was to take pictures if no one needed my help, but Vince from Vertical Runner snagged me and gave me the best volunteer job ever! Giving out the medals! My son and Steve's son had fun talking together until it was time to leave, and then he helped a bit with the medals as well, when runners started coming in one after another. The first man to cross the finish line was Kam, in I believe 4 hours and 3 minutes. Shaun Pope came in close at second place, followed by Mark Godale. On the women's side, Beth Woodward amazed me when she came in at 4 hours, 30 some minutes - not looking tired at all! She looked as if she just ran a 5k - not 50! It was amazing, and not an ounce of fat on her. AT ALL. (Mental note, don't sign up for any races Beth will be running!! LOL!!) Second place female was Shanna Ailes, and third went to Star Blackford. After that it got a little hard watching runners come in. Most looked exhausted, it was hot, it was humid, and you could tell. I held off a couple seconds after runners crossed the finish line before I gave them there medal. I didn't want to shove a medal in their face when they felt like collapsing, puking, drinking, or just wanting to lay down. Many of the runners ran straight through the finish line to a shaded area underneath a tree nearby. I'm happy to report though, that many of my girlies did well! Terri Lemke received first for women's masters divison, Rachel Nypaver won first for her age group, on the men's side Ron Ross got first for his age group and Niall Corrigan got 2nd for his age group (and ran the Presque Isle 1/2 marathon the next day!) My buds Joe, Carole, Mark, Bob, and Brian toughed out the nasty heat and humidity and came across the finish line smiling! When Mark came through it was time for my son and I to leave, unfortunately. I wanted to stay the whole time, see everyone finish but my husband was waking up soon, so we made the drive back to Pvlle. HUGE KUDOS to Vertical Runner, Vince, Steve, Joe, Lloyd, and to Chaney Events for putting on a great run. I heard no complaints whatsoever. Way to go guys! (Plug - Vertical Runner is the best running shop EVER!!!!) And Congrats to all the runners who pushed through, battled their own demons and NEVER GAVE UP through some nasty running conditions. You are all so inspiring!

Johnnycake Jog

It was another hot one! My husband and son ran in the jog along with many of my Northeast Running Club friends.



I was worried about my son so I ran alongside him, carrying his water, dumping water on his head and eventually carrying his sweaty shirt. Gross! We got there, met my husband's Lincoln Electric running friends and headed over to the NERC tent. I dropped off some homemade energy bars for people to try (recipe courtesy of Wayne Kurtz - www.racetwitch.com) and we hung out for awhile. Guy, Geoff, Kevin, Nick, Kevin, Carl, Carole and others hung around for awhile - then some of us split up to do a quick jog before "The Jog". I was a little bummed I wasn't racing this one, as I have done this one for many years, but knew it was for the best. The race got going and yeah, thanks to construction was very crowded for the first mile. My husband took off at a blistering pace (a family problem) and my son and I ran as mid packers, both passing some and getting passed by others. Then comes the Mentor Ave. stretch. I warned my son this stretch would mess with his mind. We got to Dunkin Donuts/Kohl's and he said "OHMYGOD we are only HERE!" I let him know we were over half way done, and this straight stretch was just messing with his lil' nugget. The shirt came off. He was struggling a bit and cramping up, so he stopped twice to walk for a few seconds. He had hoped to finish in under 50 minutes, and he came in at 48 minutes, 22 seconds! My husband had a great run and finished in 35 minutes, 14 seconds. Running friends of mine to take top spots in their age group were Erin Gaugler (2nd, women 35-39), Cathy Johnson (2nd, women 50-54), Jeannie Rice (1st, women 60-64), and Jean Toth (1st, women 70-74). The overall male and female winners were Ryan Kienzle and Jessica Odorcic (with Jessica winning her 4th Jog title). BIG Congrats to all the runners who battled the heat and toughed it out!

Sunrise Run Race Report, I2P Pizza Party, New Recipes

Alright, before I get into it - just a quick BT50k training update. One word. TAPER. Not too much to talk about here! Saturday is the big day, and I'm pretty excited! I'm running BT50k basically to have a good time, not to race - as NC 24 training will be on as soon as BT is over! Tons of awesome people have signed up to run the 50k, so it should be good times! I can't wait to see everyone!

Impossible 2 Possible Pizza Party and Fun Run!

This event is geared toward children, and everyone is welcome! Please come to our home on August 7th. We will have speakers here that will be talking about everything from ultra running to ultra mountain biking to ultra giving. We will have pizza and s'mores. Weather permitting there will be a bonfire, along with music and an AWESOME 1 mile fun run for the kids. The run will be through the woods - so bring extra clothes. The woods can get pretty muddy after a rain, so hopefully it will rain LOTS that week! Adults are welcome to stay with their kids and run the fun run as well. All I ask is that everyone bring a dish to share! We'll have tons of fun while learning about the non-profit organization Impossible2Possible! Please let me know by August 1st if you are coming, and how many people who are coming with you. Hope to see you then! View the invite at:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=727743691&v=app_2344061033#!/event.php?eid=134414096586793&index=1

Sunrise Run Race Report
Well my goal for the run was to beat my hubby, and I did not. He blew me away! He's getting faster every day! I ran with both my husband and super fast Geoff Weber for awhile, then it was kind of like: "See ya!" My time for this race was almost 1 minute slower than last year :-( I came in first for my age group, 4th woman overall. I'm a bit bummed but still had fun. I haven't got my road legs back 100% yet, but it's coming! Just one more trail race and then it's mainly road training for NC24. The race today was my last lower mileage race until after the Northcoast 24 hour race, as it is just too much trouble to fit in training days and rest days for these races. It was almost miserable this past week trying to pack all the miles in during the week so I could have a couple rest days. There was definitely some overtraining going on as I didn't take a rest day after my 25 miler on Sunday. Booooo! No more of that business! I have my goal and I am completely focused on that and that alone. I will be at Johnnycake on Sunday to cheer on my NERC peeps though! My husband and son are both running it, so I'll see everyone there and be cheering for all of you!

It was great seeing everyone today at the run, and was great meeting new people as well. The NERC seems to be growing, and that's great! There are tons of great people in the club, and it's so much fun standing around talking with everyone before and after the race. The Painesville race is a very low key race, but seeing everyone made it worth it. There were some aggravations today - as the city did not have any t.p. in the port a potty. (Officials were told early on - but that was pretty much ignored.) One port a potty, no t.p. SWELL. No mile markers, no people calling out times during the race. Ah well. Like I said before, at least a lot of NERC people were there and that made up for everything! After I finished I walked the course in reverse until I saw superwoman Jean Toth - an awesome lady! In her 70's and still running marathons - she did great today! 55 mins finishing time, and smiling! When I saw her I turned around and ran with her until she got to the finish line. She's an amazing lady and a great person to talk to. I enjoy hearing all her running stories so much! :D Jean's a superstar!!!!!!!!!!

Recipes

So thanks to the heat my garden is exploding! I had to do something with all my zucchini. These things were ENORMOUS! I found some great recipes online, switched a few things around to make the food healthier, baked everything and separated it all into single size servings and froze it all. Three recipes I tried were zucchini bread, zucchini cookies, and zucchini cake. The bread will make for a good healthy breakfast meal, and the cookies and cake will make for a nice small snack when we are crazing something sweet. Here are the recipes - ENJOY!

Zucchini Bread

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup plus tbsp Splenda sugar blend
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
2 tbsp Splenda brown sugar blend
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups shredded zucchini (about 2 medium zucchini)
1 cup vanilla non-fat yogurt
2 eggs
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 bag dried cranberries
Cooking spray

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine flour, sugar, and next 7 ingredients (through nutmeg) in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk.

Spread zucchini onto several layers of heavy-duty paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Press down firmly to remove excess liquid.

Combine yogurt, egg, oil, and vanilla in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Stir in zucchini.

Add zucchini mixture, pecans, and cranberries to flour mixture, stirring until well combined. Pour batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Zucchini Cookies

Ingredients
1 cup SmartBalance light butter
3/4 cup Splenda sugar blend
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in zucchini. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Add to zucchini mixture. Stir in nuts, chocolate chips, and coconut. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake until lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes, and transfer to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.


Zucchini Cake

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup Splenda sugar blend
1/4 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups grated zucchini

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8” cake pan with cooking spray. In medium mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon. In large mixing bowl, beat eggs and stir in oil. Beat dry ingredients into egg mixture alternately with yogurt. Stir in vanilla and zucchini. Pour batter in baking pan and bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Xterra Race Report, Shoe Review, BT50K, Recipes That Work

Ok, be ready for a long one. I've been busy since Mohican trying to catch up on yard work and other things so haven't got a chance to write. Lots to talk about!

XTERRA RACE REPORT-CHAPIN FOREST

I'll try to provide as much info as I can about the Xterra race last week, I imagine I forgot a lot. I have been trying to forget that my husband passed me. It's not working though! I keep seeing him running by me, laughing, booty shaking, - chest pumped up ready to make Tarzan sounds! HMPF. He beat me by 10 seconds. And he won't let me forget it. Speed work on!

My son and I got to the race early to help with registration, and then it was time to line up! My legs were still a bit heavy from Mohican the week before, but I had decent times during my last day of speed work during the week so I decided to run. I kept up for awhile, but started to get slower as the miles increased. I wasn't really worried about placing in this race as it was just a recovery run for me. HOWEVER....I saw my husband coming up behind me after a few miles. I did not want him passing me! I pushed it but he caught up with me, big ol' grin on his face, shaking his booty as he ran by. BLAH! I'm happy he's going faster - but it's on now. SERIOUSLY!!! I have a new goal in my races now!! HA! In the end I got second in my age group and if I'm remembering correctly 5th overall female.

The Painesville 5 miler is this coming Sunday and I am ready to take my husband on again! I've doubled, even tripled my running workouts this week in order to get my BT50k miles in and also be able to get 2 rest days. I want those rest days! My last long run before BT50k will be tomorrow - 15 miles. Rest Friday, Rest Saturday - and by then I'll be more than fired up for Sunday's 5 miler! That behind said - I do have to say this will be my last short race until after North Coast 24. It's just too much of a pain to try and squeeze in all my required mileage and save some rest days before races as well. My main focus is the North coast 24 hour baby! I'll be glad to go back to a regular training schedule once the BT50k is over. And I'll be glad to have strictly one event to focus on.


SHOE REVIEW

I will never quit Adidas. Never again. I knew I shouldn't have done it. I should never have clicked on that little icon on the North Face site. But I did. Deep down I knew it was wrong, and I suffered the consequences. I am glad I am not out of money, since this was part of my prize from the Mohican race. I used some North Face bucks to purchase new trail shoes. I should have bought a coat or something. I can't even say that the problem was I ran 25 miles in them the first time I wore them. I can't say that because I felt the blisters a little over mile 1. I kept on running, but it wasn't a good run because I was pretty ticked at myself for what I did. I KNEW better. I have the perfect shoes in Adidas - both road and trail. I NEVER should have got these North Face shoes. Why fix something that's not broken?

I have to admit the shoes do look pretty.
Northface/W Betasso shoes:



Doesn't matter much when you get blisters like this though:

BT50K TRAINING
Just as soon as it "started" it is almost finished. I had a long run this past Sunday, 25 miles. I mixed it up and gave myself a small taste of NC24 as well. The first half of the run was spent running a mile loop over and over again for 13 miles. I then met up with my husband to do the remainder of the run on the hilly trails. Tomorrow will hold my last long run, only 15 miles. I'm kind of looking forward to tapering!

RECIPES THAT WORK
Ok so I'm a sucker. Especially this time of year. I love Frappucino's, Frappes, chocolate shakes, ice cream - you name it. I needed to do something and I needed to do it fast! I also needed a recovery drink for my early a.m. runs. "But I still need my coffee!" I thought. So I decided to try and make my own Frappe style drink - healthier version. It tastes great and almost just like the McD's version. (The only thing missing is the whipped cream!)

Here's the recipe:

8 oz black coffee
1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
2 tablespoons of fat free, calorie free chocolate syrup (I use Walden Farms)
1 banana
ice to your liking

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until desired consistency. You can put a little ice or a lot, depending on how thick you want your shake. The only calories come from the protein powder (100 - 20 from fat) and the banana. Drink it right after your a.m. workout before you head off to work. ENJOY!

Mohican race report

I can't believe it's over! My first 50 miler was an amazing experience, one I won't soon forget. I'm going to try and recall everything, so bear with me as this may be a long report!

Final Stats: 2nd place female overall, (Top ten male and female combined, I think maybe eighth?)
9 hours, 53 minutes

Thursday

Worried about the weather conditions on race day, I called Ray. He wasn't there and I left a message - he called me back about 10 minutes before he was about to go speak in Vancouver. Even though he was so close to speaking he took the time to talk to me and tell me what to do to help with the heat and humidity we were expecting Saturday. Along with that info, he told me a little something about an amazing campaign he is involved with in Canada. He is assisting a man up there in his efforts to quit smoking. Due to certain life issues (if you ever have tried to quit smoking, you know how one bad event can just cause you to light up again) this man was in danger of lighting up again. Ray jumped on a plane, took this man on a tremendously long hike to show him what he is capable of when he is not smoking! AMAZING! To just hop on a plane like that to help someone - this is the kind of guy Ray is! Incredible!

Friday

We got to our hotel early. The people who ran the hotel were very nice, however the hotel itself wasn't the greatest. It was basically a place to sleep, that's it. You sure don't want to spend more time there than you need to. It smelled. Nasty. I'd rather camp! There was no land line phone. On top of that, the whole time we were in Loudonville we had ZERO cell service. No bars. Period. Anywhere. UGH!!! I had to call Ray in the evening, and that didn't happen. I felt so bad about that! Sure enough when I got home Saturday evening, he had sent me an email a couple hours after we were supposed to chat on Friday, asking how I was. Man, as soon as my contract is up we are SO switching to Verizon. Darn TMOBILE!!
*
All cell phone business aside, the rest of the day was pretty awesome! My husband, son, and I hung out at the Mohican Adventure Center, did some putt putt golf and go-carts. We picked up my race packet and then headed to the Library. Micah True (aka Caballo Blanco) spoke about the Tarahumara Indians(Raramuri), The Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon (on my to do list now!), and Born To Run. It was a truly inspiring speech, and I'm glad we went to hear everything! On that note, The organization Norawas De Raramuri (Friends of Running People) is one you should definitely check out. Go to norawas.org or caballoblanco.com for more info!
*
After the speech we headed down to the pasta dinner and pre race meeting. Everyone was there! It was so nice seeing so many familiar faces. Joe, Terri, Kim, Bill, Bob, Sandi, Rachel, Daniel, Tanya, Mike, Lisa, to name a few. I got great last minute advice that I very much appreciate. We filled our bellies and listened to the final race instructions. Afterwards we headed outside, took some pics and headed to the hotel for a few hours of sleep. Sleep came easy to me as I had an enormous headache. I was so worried it would not go away for Saturday!


Sandi and I after dinner - Sandi rocked the 100 miler and took 1st place/females! AMAZING!




Saturday - RACE DAY!


We left the hotel around 4 a.m. - along with many other runners who were there. Everyone looked horrified, nervous, scared, you name it! We got to the start and the first person we saw was Joe Jurzyck and Daniel Bellinger. We picked a table and sat until it was time to start. I was trying my best not to be nervous!


The time had come and we lined up. I took my place mid pack. It was 5 a.m. and we were off! Some runners running the 50 miler like me, and some runners were running the 100 mile. We had quite a way to go! I was wondering what passing cars were thinking when they saw us runners out there in the dark. (Probably think what most everyone else thinks-that we are crazy people!)
*
It took me quite a few miles to get to a point where passing people was possible. (That may have been a good thing-I didn't start out too fast) There were a couple guys who acted a little funny about me passing them though. Kind of p'd me off and made me run faster. HA. As I passed one male runner, he yelled out "There goes a 5k runner". 5k my ass. HA! As I passed another man I said "Good morning and good job" to him. His response: A HUGE fart. Not a "Hello, thanks" but one of the biggest farts I have ever heard in my entire life. Hey lets face it, everyone farts. But when it's your response to someone telling you good job that kind of sucks. I ran ahead and tried so hard to contain my laughter. It actually hurt not laughing! All the other runners were so so nice though. Ultra runners are amazing people! Except fart dude and 5k dude.
*
I'm not sure which mile I saw Daniel Bellinger at, (I think it was the second pass at the covered bridge) but when he told me I was the second female I was completely floored. It was dark when we started and I had no idea! I thought there would be tons of women ahead of me. But there was only one! I didn't have to ask who was ahead of me. I already knew.
*
At mile 18.9, the Rock Point Aid Station I saw her. My running bud Kim Boner! I felt my eyes get so big when I noticed her, I just yelled HI! She was changing her shoes and this was my chance! I was not planning on changing my shoes at all(while I did bring extras). Despite the stream crossings my feet usually can hold up when wet - for at least 30 miles that I knew of anyway! I grabbed my power bar, gu chomps, refilled on water and left. We wound up running together for awhile which was nice because we got to chat (Yes chat in a race!) Along the road portion I started to pull ahead, and it stayed like that until mile 39.67 - the Covered Bridge Aid Station. (More on that later)
*Running back from the turn around point I saw her! Sandi was in first place out of the 100 mile women! That was the most amazing thing I had seen so far, she was looking really well! I just thought about the message I sent her awhile back, jokingly, that she should win the 100 and I the 50. Seriously I was just joking, but there we both were and it gave me a little bit of a boost!I pushed on. Along the road, I saw Micah True, the speaker from the night before (he was also doing the 50). I yelled to him "Great job White Horse!" He gave me the biggest smile I have ever seen in my life, a friendly wave, and that gave me another boost that man has an incredible amount of positive energy! I was good to go until mile 39.
*
All along the run I had been downing power bars and gu chomps. I wasn't physically sick, nauseauted or anything like that, but I was disgusted with them at this point and didn't want to eat anymore. I strayed from my planned routine and did not eat everything I had set out to. Mistake. Kim wound up catching me and we ran into the covered bridge aid station together at mile 39.67. That being said, it was an awesome moment. We were both smiling, cheering, and clasped hands. We both want a pic - so if there's anyone out there, PLEASE!! THANK YOU!! It was discussed that if there were anyone that would be in the top two - it was going to be us! And who cares which one it is, because we both would be so happy for the other! It was so funny that there we both were reliving YUTC!!! Only this time we KNEW each other!











*
I stopped at the aid station, my family and friends were there - it was the NERC aid station WOOT WOOT! I'm not sure if Kim stopped, but this is where I lost her. My NERC bud Mark was there and I remembering looking at him and telling him "I just want to be done." Mentally I was done. I was starting to give up. I had already gone farther than I ever had in my life I was not prepared to battle it out for top spot with a friend! It was pretty emotional for me! I can't even explain it but it was overwhelming. And then came the hardest part. I said my goodbyes to my friends, hubby and son and was off again. Tanya (NERC) was yelling - "Be smart - this part is hilly! And hilly it was. GOOD GOD.

*
My new friend George was trying to keep me going. We had been running together for awhile, and he could tell I was falling apart. He asked me if I wanted him to pace me, but I didn't want to hold him back, and said no thanks. My mood was LOUSY. I was tired. I kept thinking "My god - Sandi has to do this ALL OVER AGAIN." I was worried for her, worried about catching Kim, worried on how close another female was behind me, etc, etc,. I don't worry on races usually, I just have fun! I had to shake this. Problem is I didn't know how. I wanted to grab my music but didn't want to take the time to get my player out of my Camelbak. So on I went. George and I arrived at the last aid station, and I had problems with my Camelbak. The bladder came out of my pack, I was tired, I couldn't get it back in. All I needed was water. Upset I put it down and went to the bathroom, came back and tried again. After what seemed like forever I finally got it. That was SO FRUSTRATING. I filled my pack with water and looked at the coke sitting there. I hate pop and have never tried it during a race before, but I thought - what the heck. There's not that many miles left and I grabbed some. I wasted far too much time at that aid station. Off I ran. Soon I felt this surge of energy - AMAZING is all I could think of. I told George about it and he was so surprised. "You mean you haven't had any all this time?" he said. NO! But now I feel like I really can do this thing! Amazing how my mood just perked up. So incredible. Now George seemed a little tired, and I tried to be more upbeat. Each new mile marker brought less mileage. "Only 4 more" I'd say, "3", "2" It was great seeing those mile markers, realizing the end was almost near. I saw two male 50 milers running. They kept looking back at me - turns out they were trying to stay ahead of me! (They did a very good job at staying ahead by the way!) They didn't want to lose their spot. Soon I saw George's wife waiting for him, and she ran alongside him and I ran ahead. I was almost there! I saw Kim waiting for me, she had finished and came to the trail entrance by the parking lot after she finished!


Kim's first place finish!

YAY!! We screamed, and I ran on. In the parking lot I turned around just to make sure there were no other females behind me so I could take my time. I saw a flash of white running towards me and nearly died. Thinking I have NOT come this far and worked so hard to now be third!!! I pushed myself as hard as I possibly could. Cars were honking at me in the parking lot and the people inside were screaming my name (one of which was awesome running bud Mike Keller! THANKS!) I could barely lift my arm to wave as I was now trying to stop myself from vomiting. Seriously. I still kept running, trying to get away from this girlish white figure running towards the finish line. Finally, I turned the corner smiling as I saw the finish and it was all over!


Instead of celebrating I nearly puked on my husband's shoes. Thank god I didn't, It would've been a long car ride home! Relieved it was over, I came to my senses. HA - that white figure I saw was George's wife. DOH!!! My god.
*
Afterwards we all piled into the conference center (the thankfully air conditioned conference center) and chatted (the best I could still feeling nasty!)

Buds!!

I had to explain to the RD why I wouldn't be standing on the podium Sunday morning, I had to drop my son off for a week at Musicial Theatre camp - the camp was in Berea and we had to be there by 11, the awards were held at 10:30. Seeing my son off was definitely way more important! So I would have to wait for my awards, but that was fine by me. I came expecting not to leave with anything anyway! I would have definitely liked to see Sandi come across that finish line though - that would've been an amazing sight!
*
In closing, I have to say what an amazing experience this was. That being said I couldn't do any of this stuff without my husband and son by my side. I'm so grateful for all their support, and for seeing them cheer me on race after race. I'm grateful to my friends, friends who were there for support, friends who were there volunteering and cheering everyone one. I'm also grateful for my training - Ray Zahab is the greatest! Please remember, Impossible2Possible has a new expedition that they are planning, and really could use your donations! It's not easy providing a free learning program to hundreds, thousands of students worldwide!

Please donate to I2P at:
http://impossible2possible.com/education

THANK YOU!!!

Lake Health 1/2 Marathon Report , Mo Training week in Review: Week 17, and Impossible2Possible updates!

What a busy running weekend it was! The weekend started off Friday evening at the "Lake Health Goodie Bag Party". Basically, a bunch of running friends putting all the 1/2 marathon goodie bags together. There were tons of boxes but soon Jeannie Rice took charge! The goodie bags were done in no time, and there was a lot of tasty food to eat. It was pretty neat seeing some behind the scenes race activity.

Training was kicked into high gear this week - and after the previous weekend's 30 miles Saturday and 1/2 distance Sunday my legs were heavy from the start. I simply dealt with it Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday and was pretty miserable. My legs weren't hurting at all, just felt like bricks. Feeling frustrated, on Friday I finally asked Ray for advice. He told me "Seriously, potatoes. Eat potatoes." Seriously?! I thought. Can that be it? That's all it takes? So I ate. And ate. And ate. Potatoes. I was hoping that it would work before my running weekend which would consist of 24 miles Saturday, 11 miles Sunday before the Concord 1/2 Marathon, and then running the 13.1 miles of the Lake Health 1/2 marathon. Friday when I came home the first thing I did was eat potatoes. It worked!!! How awesome is that! I had a good trail run Saturday - 24 miles at 4 hours and 4 minutes. I was completely pumped about potatoes (tee hee!) I was really hoping that my legs would still be ok for my 24 miles the following day, and most importantly for the last half Lake Health Distance Classic 1/2 marathon, put on by one of my Saturday running buds and fellow NERC board member Geoff Weber. Needless to say, I LOVE potatoes now - they are my best friend :) wink wink!!


LakeHealth 1/2 Marathon Distance Classic Race Report

3 a.m.

I woke up to get my first 11 miles of 24 for the day in before the 1/2 marathon started. Thunder boomed and lightning flashed, and I settled for doing the 11 miles on the treadmill, completely bummed about that. The plan was for my son and I (hubby was at work) to go to the start of the 1/2 so I could do my 11 miles and he could bike alongside me until it was time to drop him off for his volunteer duties at the race. I thought my son would be pleased that he could sleep a couple hours longer, but he was actually bummed about that! He woke up and saw me on the treadmill, said "HEY! What the heck!" I didn't need to tell him to look outside obviously, but he did say he was looking forward to the bike ride. Surprised the heck out of me! A 13 yr old looking forward to a 5:30 a.m. Sunday bike ride? Strange! Nothing much I could do about the weather though.


By the time we got to the 1/2's starting location the rain had stopped, and all was well! Well...almost. Poor Geoff had to deal with delaying the race, due to the fact that there was standing water in some low lying areas, and drainage systems just needed some time to catch up to make for a clear course (Colburn Rd was completely under water). I'm sure everyone understood - like I said earlier there's not really much you can do about the weather! And better for the runners to wait just a few minutes so they aren't miserable for the entire race! Good call Geoff! Not too soon after my son and I arrived we saw Jeanette and her boys and hung with them for a good while - 2 of her boys and my son were volunteering - her other son, Mr. speed demon himself was running the 5k! I saw many people here and there and was also trying to keep an eye out for my hubby, who was coming straight from 3rd shift to run the half! YIKES! I was also trying to keep an eye out for Geoff so I could hand over my son! We saw many people before the start: Jean, Guy, Jeannie, Nick, Diane, Ernie, Charlie, Niall, Mark (ultra guru who ran 30 miles the day before the race), Rick, and Eric - to name a few. I wish I would've had more time to chat with everyone as I haven't been on a a Saturday group run in awhile. I swear after Mohican I will be a regular again! I will have to be on roads alot for Northcoast 24 hr. training so it will be perfect!

Anyway, back to the race...

We all lined up at the start and we were off! As I was running I noticed something different. Hey my hubby was RIGHT THERE next to me for a long time! I tried to shake him but couldn't! WOW he started out fast! As we ran through the neighborhood we passed the 5k runners - and I really liked that. I was calling out to people I know, cheering them on and gave Nick a big ol' high five when I saw him. Seeing the 5k people run by was one of my favorite things about the whole race.

Hubby still there....

Whoa! My hubby lasted a long time at a good speed! I thought he might even pass me! ACK! Unfortunately he had a harder time with the hills, due to his knees. He still really hung in there though, and only finished ONE MINUTE behind me! WHOA!! I have to start to do some serious speed work!

Camelbak....

I ran with my camelbak fully loaded. This is something I would not usually do for a 1/2, but I did it so I could get used to it for Mo. I got many questions about it while I was running. How does it feel? Does the water slosh around? Do you like it? Does it bother you? Etc., etc. That being said it was nice just blowing through the waterstops, and having water whenever I wanted it. (Once again I had Smartwater in my pack) I may have to consider running marathons and 1/2's with my pack!

The spectators...

There were a few spectators along the race course, which I was pretty surprised about. Once family even set up their own water stop. How awesome is that! My favorite spectators were 2 little kids watching the race from their living room window. I waved to them and they waved to me, and it was the cutest thing ever!

Puke....

Once we hit the hills I spent the rest of the time running close to a group of 4 cross country runners. One of which was puking along the race and had a pacer of sorts. I didn't see her get water at any point, but I may have not been paying attention 100% as I was really trying to maintain a consistent pace. In the end, the runner finished about 7 seconds ahead of me and left on a stretcher. After we crossed the finish line I had not realized how ill she really felt. I shook her hand, congratulated her and told her how amazing she did, then walked away. I didn't hear that she left on a stretcher until yesterday's NERC board meeting. I feel so bad I didn't realize how she felt at the end of the race.

The other 3 girls maintained a pretty steady pace the whole race and seemed to feel fine. Once we hit the 11 mile mark I let them know that we had only 2 miles and it was all flat, hinting to them that they could pick up their pace a bit. We all seemed to kick it up a notch. After those hills, this stretch was a piece of cake!

The Finish...

The finish line was back at the plaza where there was ice cream and other goodies waiting for everyone. There were free massages as well! I stood in line for what would be only my 2nd massage of my life. When I got to the table the woman working recognized me! We had volunteered at Green Jewel together! Small world! I got settled and she started to try to get the knots out. Unfortunately she said she couldn't get them. She told me she was so sorry that she had to stop, and that she could work on just my one leg/hamstring for 20 minutes and still not get it. Of course I understood though - there was a pretty big line forming! It was good chatting with her for a bit though.

Awards....
The awards ceremony was held at Panini's which was really nice. They had food available for the runners to eat while the awards were being called out. We were all chatting away when my age group was called. I half paid attention as I didn't expect to win any kind of award. I was shocked (to put it mildly) when they called my name for 1st place!!!! WOO HOO! I soooo did not see that one coming! I was 8th female overall, and pretty pumped about it after all those weekend miles! This was a great Mo' confidence builder. Shortly after I got my award a downpour hit, and many people hit the road at that point.

In closing....

The LakeHealth Distance Classic was a great event and one I'm sure we'll attend every year. Geoff handled the enormous growth of the race very well, and handled the weather situation as best as anyone could. I don't see much about this race that people can complain about! Everything was top notch! This race is a keeper!


Impossible2Possible

Earlier this week Ray had an interview with CNNI's Backstory in Atlanta. The interview was where he announced his newest expedition, which will include 4 youth ambassadors application process to start IMMEDIATELY!)

The newest expedition will be held in October, and it will be in the Amazon! The education topic/resource for this expedition will be biodiversity, and the extraordinary act will be the construction of a school in the Amazon!

Stay tuned for more announcements, the youth team will most likely be announced in one month's time! As always, logisitics and funding are the hardest, so please take the time to donate to I2P at:

http://www.impossible2possible.com/?v=support

There will also be new I2P gear coming very soon, which will be similar to the shirts the youth ambassadors wore in Tunisia!

No Frills, Just Hills Fat Ass Report and Mo training weeks 15 & 16

There are now 19 days until my first 50 miler and I'm starting to get pretty excited! The last two weeks were complete opposites (physically and mentally speaking). Week 15 just plain sucked and had me completely in the dumps, and week 16 was amazing and a great confidence builder! This coming week will be my hardest yet since Ray has been helping me. I talked with him last night for the first time in a couple weeks, since he has been busy being so extraordinary and trying to save the world! The weekday mileage isn't so bad, 9.4 miles Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday - but the weekend mileage = YIKES!! I have to run 24 miles on Saturday and 24 miles on Sunday. And somehow I have to fit the Lake Health Distance Classic into my training! I'm not sure how I'll do that, but I'm leaning towards starting my run early Sunday before the Lake Health 1/2 marathon starts and running about 11 miles until the start of the race. I will then finish my big mileage weekend with the race. Which, well - obviously will not be a race for me. I'm a little bummed because I wanted to be competitive for this one, but not this time. I thought this week might start my taper, but no!!! ACK!! I'll just run this one and be everyone's cheerleader along the way. My husband is running this one as well, and my son will be volunteering. Friday we'll be going to the race director's house to put the goodie bags together. I was hoping to help with packet pick up on Saturday but I don't think I'll be able to fit that in now. On one hand I'm excited to finally have a high mileage week, but on the other hand it's not a good week to have it! There's not much I can do about this though as my ultimate goal is to finish Mo' and it is coming up so fast! I'll just have to wait until next year to rock it out at the Lake 1/2. That's ultra life I guess! Anyway I'm excited that I'll be able to see my NERC besties and celebrate with them at the awards ceremony which will be held at Panini's. P-A-R-T-Y!!!

Mo' Training Week In Review: Week 15

What a downer of a week this one was! Turns out what I was running with the weekend before was bronchitis! This called for bare bones running - 30 mins a day ez during the week. I did do back to back longer runs on the weekend and ended with a 16 miler on Sunday with my husband. I truly thought I would die! At only 16 miles! UGH!!! I was bummed and completely freaked out. Mo confidence was at an all time low. I felt like crap!

Mo' Training Week In Review: Week 16

After having Monday off from running I was starting to feel better. I decided it was time to redeem myself from my garbage week 15.

Tuesday = 3 runs. a.m. Treadmill 5k EZ - After work: fast 5k trail- p.m. hill work with family

Wednesday = 2 runs. a.m. 5k ez treadmill - p.m. 3 miles of speed work

Thursday = a.m. treadmill 6 miles

Friday = off

Saturday = No Frills, Just Hills F/A = 30+ miles Official laps = 14, and I ran 1 extra for a total of 15.

Sunday = 1/2 marathon (Lake Health course) with way cool runner chick Jeanette and hubby
*I'm so glad we decided to run the 1/2 course before the race! It is definitely a race you need to have some sort of strategy for. This course is no joke. Hills, hills, hills. 'Nuff said. That being said I'm so glad my husband and Jeanette ran with me. They were awesome company and we all suffered together!! LOL!!

No Frills, Just Hills Fat Ass Report
(pics taken by Dan, Beth, and Julie)

This even was put on by Brian Musick of the NEO trail club. The goal of this F/A (Fat Ass) run was to see how many loops you can run in 6 hrs. This was a 2 mile loop on trails: around and around and around (you get the point) for 6 hours. I'm not sure how I got to the point where I would call something like that FUN, but it was just that! I saw old friends and made new ones along the way. (We certainly had the time!) I can't wait until next year's No Frills!

The run started at 8 a.m. but Beth Tresaca, Brian Perusek, and myself all started at 7 a.m. so we could finish early.


We spent most of the time trying to figure out where to go as none of us knew the course. We started a bit past 7 and by 8 we only logged 3.85 miles, but it was so fun! Starting out first thing we saw a deer. Well, no - first thing we saw was the biggest hill EVER and THEN we saw the deer!










Next up, squish, squish, squish! our shoes and socks were so wet from running through the wet grass. Hey they dried out eventually! No biggie! Then we had fun getting a little lost. (I told you we would, Beth! My speciality!) Luckily we made it back to the start of the run a little before 8 and saw tons of familiar faces. There was Brian Musick, Dan DeRosha, Mark Anson, Mike Keller, Terri Lemke, Kimberly Boner, Jim Christ - should I go on? Just lots of people OK!

Soon we were all off on our mini adventure. Our socks dried out and the heat set in. I have never drank so much water in my entire life!




I drank at least 6 liters of water during the run, more water after, and still lost 6 lbs. Sections of the run were spent in the hot sun. Running in the woods was nice and refreshing, but as soon as we hit the open areas: BAM! It was like a brick wall! You could just feel the sun drain your energy. However, as soon as I would hit the trees that feeling disappeared just as quickly as it came. The shade felt so good and really renewed the energy levels.

Many times there were unusual noises in the woods (I know that was you Brian!) At times I answered back :) We were also entertained to some interesting dancing courtesy of Brian and Mike at the end. This is what makes ultras fun! The people! I absolutely love it and had a blast! While doing loop after loop after loop we would start to see the same hikers. After passing them 2, 3, 4 times they would start to ask questions. Everything from "What are you doing?", "What's going on here, some kind of race?", to "What mile are you on now?" One guy who asked me what mile I was on just stared at me when I gave him my answer. Mile 28! Almost done! Seriously just stared and didn't say another word!

Another amazing thing about this run is that once it was all said and done I was not sore. Not one bit! I was tired of course, but I had absolutely no aches and pains. It was amazing! I can't believe it! I ran the 1/2 distance the next day, and then went kayaking the day after and still have no sore muscles! I did switch my beverage for No Frills, and am wondering if that had something to do with it? The whole time I used SmartWater (which tastes amazing, by the way). I'll definitely be using this drink again. It's the only thing I changed, so it's got to be why! Right? I hope!

The only thing that was a minor bummer about Saturday was my own personal issues with my Garmin. For one, the elevation and pace are correct - but when you look at my map it is not a map of the course but a map of my house to Hudson!! WHAT! For 2, it shut off a couple times. I had the thing locked, but apparently it can still stop while locked? News to me! UGH! So at mile 30 I just turned the thing off. I know I did a little more than that, but I'm not sure how much more. Another thing I can't quite figure out is why it shows me doing 30 miles in 5 hrs. and 54 minutes. I thought I took longer than that. I'm not even going to try and figure that one out! Sometimes I think I'd be better off without that thing driving me crazy! I have a love-hate relationship with my Garmin, but I did not let it ruin my AWESOME day!

I highly recommend this F/A to everyone. It's so much fun and the people are amazing. Mark it on your calendars as SOON as the date is set for next year people! And the best thing is, F/A's are free!!! So much fun for nothing, what could be better!

Mo' training week in review: Week 14 and the Cleveland 1/2 Marathon

One more month until my first 50 miler! I can't believe it's coming so fast. I started worrying a bit during the week, but calmed down by the time the weekend arrived. I got a hard long run to do this weekend, and it was amazing! Unfortunately due to my busy schedule this week I had to do it on the treadmill, but it did get done. Put the treadmill on the "hills" setting and just did it. 5k x 6 in the a.m. (5k hard/5k easy alternating) and 5k x 6 in the p.m. I can't believe I did it! My longest mileage in a single day yet! It calmed my nerves quite a bit. When Ray told me what to do I had to send an email back to him just to make sure I heard right. What's funny is I think I had a minor breakthrough. I didn't even think about the distance I needed to run for the day, I just simply ran it. Nuff said. There were a few moments in between my runs that I just shook my head in disbelief though. I LOVE IT! I can't wait to see what this weekend brings :) This week also meant a run with Guy Gadomski. He's always fun to run with! We ran @ Girdled Road which was perfect!

The Cleveland Marathon/Half Marathon

The festivities started on Friday! Stan Hembrough came all the way from B.C. to run the Cleveland 1/2 with me and my family. My husband had off on Friday, I took off, and we all headed downtown on Friday morning to get our race packets/bib, etc, etc. We visited the Rock Hall and showed Stan the West Side Market. We ate at the Galleria, but if I would've been thinking we would've just ate at the West Side Market. Oh well, next time!

Saturday

We spent the day sightseeing a bit, taking Stan to some parks and also dealing with my fidgety son! He had so much energy from his taper, and was acting pretty wired. Seriously -I almost told him to just go run! He was excited about the upcoming 1/2 marathon and was driving me nuts. Dinner was spent with some NERC friends and was organized by Jeannie Rice who was running her 70th marathon at Cleveland. I was so tired during dinner as my running and my nasty cold started taking its toll. Of all the weekends to get sick! Seriously it's not like it's my busiest weekend ever or anything! SHEESH!!!!

Sunday - 1/2 Marathon day!

We woke up early and left the house around 5 a.m. Good thing we did though, because once again the battle for the port a potty was on! The first person we saw was Mark Anson who I'm happy to report had a good run in the marathon! I was nervous for Mark as he is just coming back from an injury, but so glad to hear he made it through pain free! We then saw both Charlie and Edie while standing in the infamous port a potty line. I'm glad I got to see some NERC peeps before the race! Even if it was screaming across lines of people! We made it out of the port a potty with 2 minutes to spare. Again. Same as last year. Hell, we'll probably have to leave at 4 a.m. next year just to make sure we have time to use the bathroom in an acceptable amount of time. UGH! Panicked and in line (way to close to the front, I might add) the race began!

My husband and Stan took off never to be seen again, and my son and I trotted along at a very steady pace. We were so busy talking and laughing at things that we didn't even realize we had already run three miles! My son was shocked and happy. When we passed bands or speakers blaring music, we ran by dancing and/or playing air drums. Along the way we saw Carole and Beth who both looked strong and did well! Congrats to them both!

Throughout the run I was constantly trying to yell and scream and get the crowd pumped up for the other runners, but due to my cold my shouts were coming out quiet and sounding funky. Going through Edgewater my son started to panic a bit as his foot started hurting. The road was slanted and there was no way of getting around running on that slant. After it flattened out his foot was fine, and we had only 2 miles to go! He was still feeling good and pumped that he ran his furthest distance ever! He said quite a few times that he can't believe he was doing what he was doing, that he never ever thought that it would be possible. He was extremely proud of himself and I was extremely proud of him! I wondered where how my husband was doing, hoping his knee was holding up. Then, we saw him! It was around mile 12 1/2 and he was standing on the side of the road waiting for us. He ran with us, and we turned the final corner. My son the sprinted all the way to the end! I could barely keep up with him! He grabbed his medal proudly and all three of us gave each other giant hugs (awwwwwwww!) We chilled on the grass for awhile, then ran to see some NERC peeps finishing. Celebration
We celebrated at the Hard Rock Cafe afterwards with some friends. I'm thankful to those who made it out after being tired and sweaty! We all displayed our medals proudly :) While we ate a young boy came in with his father. He had just ran the marathon in 3:05! Holy Geez! I said, "So you qualified for Boston, huh? Congrats!" He told me he had no idea, that this was his first marathon. I told him many times to double check that qualifying time. He was pretty excited about the thought of that. When I came home, I double checked and sure enough, HE QUALIFIED! I sure hope he checked! My son, who I thought would be just exhausted after his run didn't even go inside. He jumped on his bike to go play with his friends. I couldn't believe it! He wore his medal all day while he played, still so proud and accomplished.

Again I'm so proud of my guys. I wish I could've been there to see my husband cross the finish line. With his knee issues he had a tough battle during training and triumphed. Anything is possible when you put your mind to it and work hard to accomplish your goals. My guys are living proof out that! Congratulations to everyone who ran Cleveland this past weekend. You have achieved something so amazing and should be so proud!