Nineteen Years of Racing

Distance:  5 & 8 K

I completed my very first 5k in my westside Chicago neighborhood in 2003.  It was the Bucktown 5k and I ran it for my 29th birthday.  I still remember running my neighborhood and a police women at an intersection cheering on all the women.  "Let's go ladies!"

I ran my fastest 5k on my 39th birthday at 32.25.  

In total, I have completed about 25 5 & 8 ks.  

Distance:  10 & 12k

~About 10 of these races.  Many of them trail.  See my post about my first 10k here. 

Distance:  Half Marathon and 25K

I have completed ~13 races in this distance.  The first was the Glass City Half in 2009.  Walter filmed me crying at the finish.  Several of them are trail runs and I blogged about the transition from road running to trail running here. 

I believe my fastest half to be 2:30:51 at the Tulsa Rt 66 Half in 2013.  

Distance:  Full Marathon

As of today, I've completed five full marathons starting with Rt 66 in 2009 and most recently, Dan Man in 2021.  Two of them, 2014 Rt 66 and 2015 Oklahoma City, tied for my best times at 5:47.  My goal was to break six hours and I was so happy to do that.  

My very first marathon.

My second marathon.

Distance:  50k 

I ran Lake McMurtry 50k in Stillwater, Oklahoma twice.  Long Day in the Woods.  Those race reports can be found here and here.

Distance:  50 Miles

I attempted a 50 miler in June of 2015.  The story of my one and only DNF here. 

Race Report- The story of my second marathon

My mom came with me to Oklahoma City, I had a nice hotel room and wanted company.  We arrived in the early evening and got settled.  We went out for Italian since I needed to carb up and ended up at Bellini’s…a really nice place within walking distance from our hotel but it was prom night!  We ended up eating outside on a patio even though it was a little cool.  Really good food and I ate a ton but still took about a third of my lasagna home. 

I set alarm for 4:30am and slept surprisingly well.  Getting ready went fast and I was in the lobby waiting for the shuttle to take me to the start by 4:50.  I had a mini bagel with peanut butter even though I still felt full from the night before and my traditional red bull.  Other runners were mulling around having coffee in the lobby.  We waited and waited…shuttle didn’t arrive until 5:25 even though we had been told they would run every 15 minutes.  This was annoying and I missed the 5:45 group picture with FTO (Faster than Oprah-my running group) and the rest of my Runner’s World peeps.  I barely had enough time to get to First Church on the corner of the start to connect with my running friend DeDe.  We met in the bathroom line and high tailed it to the starting corals.  Thousands of people lined up.  It took us a full 15 minutes to cross the starting line! 

It was great start, sun just coming up and lots of crowd support to see us off.  Mile 1-8 seemed to go pretty good.  Got warmed up still enjoying lots of fellow runners (all the half marathoners were along the same route, as well as the relay folks) and lots of crowd support.  I made a mental note when we ran by neat antique/junk stores including one called the French Cowgirl, on Western Ave.  Also  ran by a burger joint that boasted grilled onions and it smelled so good!  Another mental note taken.  

By mile eight I was hungry!  I’d been drinking water and already had a gu or two.  Luckily, Lisa and Jason were spectating at mile 8 and Lisa gave me a bag of sport beans.  Here, the half marathoners split off so the crowd really thinned.    

Mile 8-13 seemed rough.  Probably, it was the hardest for me.  I felt heavy, tired and was a little surprised at all the hills.  Lots of low, drawn out,rolling hills.  I told DeDe I wanted to walk.  But we didn’t walk; we kept going and made it to 13.1 which was big.  I thought about how all I had to do was do what I had just done but it didn't really seem to be a good thought.  So I stopped thinking about that and kept running.  

We made it to Lake Hefner and ran into the wind for less than a mile.  After that we had the wind at our back which was a big boost.   DeDe’s family came out and encouraged us at about 16.5.  

From there we just got to 20.  I remember thinking, I feel great!  I can totally do an ultra…just pick one out.  I felt really strong and steady.  DeDe clocked our miles roughly the whole way and by our calculations we were very steady at 13-14 minute miles.  At about mile 25, I changed my mind about the ultra.  Feet were hurting and some muscle cramping as I ran it in.  Finished in 6:10 and am proud that the second half was faster than the first. 

Cried some before and after the finish because it was so emotional.   Names of those who were killed were on banners the whole way.  Lots of runners were running in honor of someone killed and had names on special banners.  I also kept thinking about the survivors and families who lost loved ones.  I also thought about the Veterans I work with.  I thought again, that running a marathon is the least I can do.

After I finished there really wasn’t any good food left (I had been looking forward to a Carl’s Jr Burger ‘cause they were sponsor) so I said goodbye to DeDe and her family and headed for the shuttle to get back to the hotel room.  A volunteer at the gear check said the shuttle pick-up was at 5^th and Harvey. 

I walked through the memorial.  I saw that a lot of folks had placed their finisher medals on the chairs in the memorial that represent each person killed in the bombing.   Mostly 5k, relay and half-marathon medals.  A few full marathon medals.  The most touching sight was a chair, wrapped in a marathon blanket, with a full marathon medal, handing from the back.   On the seat was a Carl’s junior burger, bottle of water and two chocolate chip cookies.  I took a picture of it.

The shuttle never came so I called my mom to come pick me up.  Turns out the volunteer told me wrong pick-up place.  Bad shuttle experience all around.  We got back to hotel and I had the rest of my lasagna.  Iced, napped and hot tubbed.  Then mom and I ate at Red Lobster that night.  The next day we went back to Western Ave and shopped the antique/junk stores and I got a super cute dress at the French Cowgirl that I’m going to wear to my brother’s wedding next month.  It really was a very good weekend. 

My First Marathon

On the morning of November 22nd, 2009 I was anxious, but mostly excited because one way or another I was going complete a goal I never really thought possible. Running 26.2 miles, a dream that began after I got into running for real when living in Chicago. I ran my first 5K for my 30th birthday in 2004, 10k for my birthday in 2008 and then a half marathon in April of 2009. I decided I was ready to tackle a full.

I woke up at about 6am, ate a bagel, two scrambled eggs, drank a red bull. Lubed up with body glide, put Two Tom’s Blister powder in my socks and headed out the door. I met up with my running group after weaving my way through the crowd which was about 7,000 strong. We took pictures and lined up for the start. The marathon began with the singing of the national anthem which never fails to bring tears to my eyes. Then there were fireworks! So perfect. I crossed the start line at about 7:35 or later. It was not fully light and the mass of runners was mostly silent but a tense energy was thick in the air.

For me, it seemed like there were three main parts. 1) The downtown/city part with most of the hills (Miles 1-12.) 2) The out on Riverside Drive (Miles 12-20) and 3) The back on Riverside Drive (Miles 20-26.2.) The early part was pretty okay, I felt entertained, excited and strong. Stopped to put mole skin on my toes at mile 8 because I felt some blisters forming. Also stopped to pee once early on. Eventually, ended up stopping to pee 2x which I thought was odd because I never had to pee on any of my long training runs.

Second part was hardest, I felt like I was dragging, hurting feet, cramping muscles and only at mile 14. Around then I had to stop and take off my shoes. Bad blisters on both big toes and right heal. A few minutes of fresh air and rearranging my socks helped a tiny bit. At mile 15 or so a lady asked if she could run with me. She was running the relay and was headed down river to meet a friend. I said sure, turns out she was super talkative, a trainer from Fleet Feet and while normally I would have found her annoying…she was just what I needed. She got me out of my head , kept me talking and her garmin said I was setting a pace between 12-13 miles per hour which was great by me. She and the other folks I knew who I encountered along the way told me I looked great and seemed strong. I wasn’t sure. Shortly, thereafter I saw the coach of my running team. Lisa was dressed as a cheer leader and had positioned herself at key places along the route. I told her about how I was feeling and she gave me ibuprophen and soy sauce. I took the medicine right away and the packet of soy sauce at the next water stop. They both seemed to really help.

Fleet feet lady peeled off at mile 17 and I was on a roll. I only had three miles to go to get to mile20! At mile 20 I felt a rush of emotions. I cried because I was doing something that until very recently I did not believe I was capable of. I’m not a runner….I’m not an athlete. I am short…maybe even stocky. For me running is tough, I chug. And yet…here I was running a marathon and I’m only 6.2 miles out. This is when it hit me that the experience was changing who I knew myself to be. I kept running.

Since it was the back of an out and back I saw other folks I knew coming in. Some from my running group and one from TV! Sean was a contestant on the biggest loser…he was walking, looked in pain, had an entourage…but he was moving. I yelled for him and gave him a high five. I was tempted to wave and yell at lots of folks, but I forced myself to conserve energy. I kept my head down, arms close to my body, hands loose and kept running.

At about mile 23 I saw my sister Heath and Brother-in-law to be, Noah. They had come out on their bikes and helped bring me in. They took some pics and I kept running. At mile 25 I felt a sharp brief pain in my right baby toe. I realized that a blister had burst. Good, it felt better after that. I ran it in and cried a little crossing the finish line. I got my metal. I met up with Heath, Noah and my dad. I got a free beer and a brief massage. Then we went out for pizza. Then I went home, iced, more ibuprophen and hot bath.

It all sort of sounds anti-climatic, but I think that is because my mental, emotional and physical responses got sort of numb at the finish. In the following days I felt muscle pain, aftermath of blisters and I think I’m going to lose my right big toenail. But more important, an intense, personal sense of satisfaction that only comes from a long term goal realized. There is nothing like achieving something that is relentlessly demanding mentally, emotionally, and physically. It is life affirming.

I Remember

I've committed to running my second marathon.  All signed up for Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon on April 25th, 2010.  Ever since I've heard about this marathon I've wanted to run it.  The bombing happened on April 19th, 1995.  It was the spring and my final semester at Conner's State College in Warner, Oklahoma.  A fellow student came into a developmental psychology class and told us that a building had exploded in Oklahoma City.  I really didn't think much of it, just figured it was a gas leak or something.  But when I got home, we were living in Wainwright, I was glued to the tv.  It was bad.  I remember the news scrolling a 1-800 number for kids to call in case their parents hadn't come home from work that day.  I've been to the memorial and been so moved.  I'm so happy that I am alive and able to run, feel alive, feel pain and joy and all the other messy stuff.  Running 26.2 is the least I can do.

Race Report: Snake Race 2011

Background
Last year I took home one of the coveted snake trophies.  Here is the story of that.  This year I was feeling really comfortable only competing against myself.  I guessed that the really fast good runners would be out in droves and last year would not be repeated.  I was hoping there might be some way I could get in a marathon, but also knew it wasn't likely since my best marathon time is 6:10, and that is on roads.

The Race
There is a six hour and three hour version.  The race course is a 4.1 mile loop on the Snake Trail on Turkey Mountain.  Fairly even course-nothing too technical.  Especially on a beautiful spring day.  The loop is an out and back so there were runners going both ways on the trail.

The Aid
There were two aid stations on the course.  One at the start/finish and the other is situated on the course in such a way that it is hit three times.  As a result, there was an aid station about every mile.  Lots of my runner's world friends worked the aid stations so it was always a boost to see their smiling faces and get encouragement.  One of my main running friends, Mitch, worked the timing at the start/finish.   He brought an air horn which he blew just for me each time I finished a loop.  :-)

Interesting Happenings         

• The Plate boys, Cameron and Brandon, aged 9 and 10, ran over 30 miles in the six hour event.
• A dog, which I recognized from last year was there again.  He gave out on the trail and his owner carried him across his shoulders (still running) to finish out the loop.  (Big dog, at least 75 lbs)
• There was a cotton mouth spotted on the trail.
• I saw one guy run right over caution tape and go off trail.  At first I thought it might be deliberate, you know, nature calling...but I yelled to him just in case.  Sure enough he thanked me...and kept thanking me every time we passed each other.

My Race

Started out bright eyed and bushy tailed (See first pic of me above)  Hustled through my first two loops and then began to struggle.  At about mile 14 I started to feel a bit dizzy and light headed.  Sandra sat me down in chair and I drank two gatorades.  Later she told me I had looked pale.  But I was still trying to hustle so I got back up and kept moving-but started walking a bit more.  Before I went out on my last loop I sat for what seemed like quite a while, ate a bit more and drank 1/2 of a beer.  (people were downing full beers at the end of every loop)  Then I walked back out and walked a mile. Felt better so kicked it up to a run and finished out 20 miles.  Ran the 1/2 mile loop three times (There was a special 1/2 mile loop for runners for when time grew short and they couldn't get a full 4 mile loop in again before the gun went off).  Ken, the race director, ran with me and we chatted about how the day had gone.

Falls

I fell twice.  The first time was in the first 50 yards or so.  A gu packet in my belt burst. Yuck!  The second time was during the loop I was struggling.  I think I looked up at a runner headed my way and I went down.  skinned up my right shin pretty good.  It was bleeding and is pretty bruised.  It hurt a little but I felt sort of proud of it.  I'll be wearing pants to work for quite a while.

Aftermath

Finished my race with a total of 22 miles.  I didn't feel good the rest of the day.  Still queezy and had a bad headache.  Now I'm blaming it on the two 5 hour energies I drank.  They were handing them out free and I've never run with them before.

I got a massage which helped.  Took ibuprofen and ate some left-over pasta and felt much better.

The top female was a runner who crashed our little Tulsa race from California.  She was visiting her grandmother.  She ran 32 miles in the six hours.  Awesome job! I don't remember how many miles the top guy got in...results aren't up at the time I am writing this.

Ken told me something interesting.  This year I finished ahead the #1 and #2 female runners from last year.  Just another small thing that helps me build my confidence as a runner.

Gotta give Ms Laurie Whitesell kudo's for most of these photos!  Thanks Laurie!

Race Report: Tulsa Urban Adventure Race: My Very First DNF

Four months ago Walter and I were walking to dinner in the Brady District when a small, tight group of runners from Runner's World Tulsa happened by, running of course.  We stopped to chat briefly and I got invited to The Tulsa Urban Adventure Run.

I signed up for the 50.  I got help with a training schedule from Kathy Hoover at Runners World.  I ended up running my fourth marathon and my second 50k as training runs.  :)

But after these long runs- life happened and truth be told, I didn't keep up with my training as much as I should have.

The night before the race I made a list and gathered everything together, crossing the items off as I went.

I also made some dumb decisions including only five and half hours of sleep, wearing brand new shoes and trying new feet stuff/blister protection on race day.

The morning of the race I was nervous!   I was concerned and thinking....I am under-trained.

Center of the Universe- at about mile 5 (I saw this again at mile 30.)

But it was a beautiful morning, tons of my friends were there and things started out great.

Here we are at The Golden Driller- about mile 12

Things heated up quickly.  No one really had the chance to acclimate yet since it just got hot.  Also there was hardly any shade on the course.  I was very concerned about getting a blistering burn even with the spf 30 I had slathered on.  (Note to self- next time wear a long sleeve white shirt in addition to spf) Our meteorologist/running friend, Mark Plate, even reported that out of all the major reporting stations, only Tallahassee, Florida was hotter than Tulsa.  (We were even hotter than Phoenix!)

Every Quick Trip stop I put ice in my bandanna and water bladder.  I drank Gatorade with ice almost exclusively and took salt tabs.  That helped, I don't think I ever overheated.

The first loop took me 9 hours.  It was very difficult to think about going back out.  But, after resting, eating, changing, using a foam roller, I decided too. I got in 8 more miles for a total of 33 before throwing in the towel.  Walter came and picked me up.

Somethings I learned:

*Do What You Know Works For You- It wasn't smart of me to try the new shoes and blister stuff on race day.  My feet stayed way too wet.  Next time I want to try using Secret and 2Toms powder to help keep my feet dry.

*Have a plan - Every time we got to a QT I kind of wandered around in a daze not sure what I wanted to eat or drink.  Looking back I would have made a plan and been prepared to get and go.

After the race:

I wish I had hung in for at least 2 more miles for a nice round 35.  Heat rash covered my calves, thighs and was spotty on my torso.  It made an ice bath too painful so I have been hobbling around the past two days.  My feet continue to hurt.

Heartfelt Thank You!  to the folks that supported us, volunteered and helped out during the race.

Williams Rt 66 Half Marathon: Race Report

Up to this point in time, my fastest half marathon was the first one I ever ran.  The Glass City Half Marthon in 2009 at 2:49.  A 2010 go 'round with the Rt 66 half was disappointing.  Story of that here.   All of the others...have qualifiers....two were on trails so they can't compare...and the other road half I completed was when I doubled at Post Oak in 2011, running 25k on trails one day and 13.1 on roads the next.   Everything looked good for a personal best this year.

I took the training runs pretty seriously- even the 'fluff' weekday runs. I ran three miles, three days a week and long runs with my training group on Saturday mornings. In the past 10 months I also worked hard to loose some weight. Taking off 12 pounds really helped me speed up and I consistently ran 11-12 minute miles. (Which is fast for me!)

Race day weather forecast was discouraging. The forecast was flirting with a chance of precipitation and a high of freezing. When race day arrived, it was very cold but no snow or sleet. I dressed with two layers, gloves and fleece headband. Walter dropped me off downtown and I made my way into the crowd to find my starting corral. I ran into friends and we chatted as we endured the coldest part of the day- waiting to run! It took about 20 minutes for us to cross the start line.

I ran hard most of the race. I passed friends and the signs along the route really kept me entertained. My favorite said: Getting out of bed to cheer for you wasn't easy either!

The bandit aid stations cracked me up! There was one guy playing his bongo drums and singing his heart out, several with bottles of booze and a friend was very organized with beer and jello shots. (Yay Smackalonian!)

I kept running hard. Rt 66 is a very hilly course. I didn't see Walter or anyone else I knew as a I crossed the finish line. The hot spaghetti and meat sauce was really good and I found Walter looking for me right outside the food tent.

When my official time came through at 2:30:51, I was super happy. It was a good day and a great race.  I ate a second spaghetti and meatball meal that afternoon, soaked in a hot tub and iced my knees much later than I should have.  Good times. 

Jay Centennial Sprint Dualthelon

Well- here is the race report from the Jay Centennial Sprint Duathelon.  This event consisted of a 5K run, followed by 14 mile bike and then a 1 mile run.

I really wanted to do this race.  But I haven't done much all summer.  I am out of shape!  Even training for this event was lack luster. My sister Heath signed up, but we didn't really stick to a good training schedule.  I think we did one run/bike.

But 10/1/11 arrived and at 4:30 am I woke up and headed to Heath's.  Noah checked my tires, helped us load up and we were on our way.  After about 1 hour 20 minutes on the road we were in Jay, Oklahoma.

We were early and encountered a group of Runner's World Turtles!  They were nice and friendly so we took our picture with them.  We got all set up with our bikes, shoes, helmets, etc in the "transition area" and headed to the 5K start.  It went great.  Uneventful.  I finished in 34:13.  Heath hung with me, but was always a bit ahead...she finished in 34:11.

After the 5k we entered the 'transition' area and it took me all of 3 minutes to change shoes, get my camel back on and head out on the bike route.  Heath took off pretty quick and I was on my own.  Right off the bat I got off route, blowing by a police cruiser with out any direction.  I quickly realized the error, turned around and was back on track.  The first downhill was steep.  It was thrilling and stressful.  The route was all on roads and the traffic was not blocked.  The intersections were blocked with police and volunteers tho.  I did not make it up the first or second hill.  They were too crazy steep.  Later Heath told me she thought they were harder than Turkey Mountain hills.    I was upset and wanted to turn around.  It was too hard.  But then I rounded a bend and saw at least 4 other folks walking their bikes.  One older black lady called out to me..."Come on baby girl..."  repeatedly.  It helped.  I got back on the bike at about mile 5 and cruised to the turn around at mile 7.

On the way back I approached things differently.  I had learned that even riding your bike reeeeallly slow is preferable to walking a bike up hill.  So on the way back I only walked once for a tiny bit.  I focused on gaining speed prior to hills, kept one foot clipped out, and used my lowest (I guess it is called lowest) gear as the last resort.  My time on the bike was 1:14:55.  I was 8th out of 10 in my age group on the bike.  Heath finished in 52:47 and was 3rd in her age group!

Finally, the last mile run.  Another 2-3 minutes for changing shoes, camel back, etc.  Heath was done already and cheered me on as I headed out.  I ran the whole way.  My legs felt weird.  Really heavy and tired.  Almost like mile 16-17 of a marathon but not really, it was different muscles hurting.  I finally just decided it was different.

I crossed the finish at 2:05:42.  Heath met me with water, she had completed in 1:39:37.   We packed it in and headed home.

A great day, really, really great day!

Awful and Wonderful

So this is a bit delayed but I can't not write about it.  Snake Run 2010.  Leading up to the run I was feeling very angry about the weather.  It had been lovely...days in the 60's.  But the Saturday of the run it was predicted to begin snowing which is exactly what happened.  Race morning found it 32 degrees with sleet that turned to snow and wind.  It began miserably.

As I trudged the 4 mile loop I gave into the climate.  Somewhere during the second loop I noticed how many runners had dropped off.  I began to think I had a chance...

I mentioned this to my running friend DeDe who stuck with me the whole way.

Still, I wanted to quit at mile 12, but DeDe and TZ (Trail Zombie) were going for one more loop.  I did not want to go.  But I had no good reason to quit.  So, because I couldn't find a good reason to stop, I decided not to deliberate and just do it.  That got me to mile 16.

Then something took over.  I can't explain it.  I guess it was adrenaline when I got back after the 16 miles and TZ asked me if I wanted to do some half mile loops I was like...Sure!  I ended up running three which got me to 17.5 miles at which time there was only 6 minutes left in the 6 hours.  So that was it.  I went to tent.  Got more food and hydration.

I'd be remiss if I did not mention a legend who was running the trail race...

Larry Macon was there.  In 2008, Larry did at least two marathons every weekend for a grand total of 105 races of marathon distance or more within the calendar year. He's been profiled in Runner's World is pretty amazing.

End of story is that De De and I tied for third place and we are getting an awesome Snake Run Trophy!  I am so excited.  This experience was awful and wonderful.  Terrible and awesome.  It helped me relate to the Veterans I work with every day.  They describe their experiences in combat in a similar way.  Awful...unspeakable even.  And yet, they have never felt more alive.  And some of them want to go back.

Jackie Kennedy may have summed it up.


“I have been through a lot and I have suffered a great deal. But I have had lots of happy moments, as well. Every moment one lives is different from the other. The good, the bad, hardship, the joy, the tragedy, love, and happiness are all interwoven into one single, indescribable whole that is called life. You cannot separate the good from the bad. And perhaps there is no need to do so, either.”