Lake Minnetonka 1/2 Marathon and a Very Busy Weekend

Last weekend I ran the Lake Minnetonka 1/2 Marathon. The race was on Saunday, May 6th. Typically Sunday races are not my favorite but since I'd taken the Monday after the race off, I wasn't too put out.
Driving down for packet pick up the weather was horrible! Lots of rain and lots of rain in the forecast for race day. But Chris and I aren't "fair weather runners" so we carbo-loaded and hoped for the best. We woke up Sunday morning to thunderstorms. We drove to the Wayzata Middle School to catch the shuttle bus to the race start, which was right by Lake Minnetoka. The rain held off the entire run, which was nice not to get wet.

Here's a picture of me and Chris in about mile 10, the oncomming traffic got to be quite annoying during this race. For much of the race the roads were not closed off to traffic, which is always a little scary.

Here's me "after" with my new bling!

I finished with a time of 1:53.01, which is EXACTLY the same time that I ran the 1/2 Fast 1/2 Marathon in February. Weird. I guess I can run a pretty solid 8:37 mile, which I'm pretty darn proud of, so YAY! another 1/2 marathon complete and a very strong start to my 2nd year of running plan.

Now on to the rest of my busy weekend...

Friday Chris and I took the kids to the Circus, Oliver was so excited, he had been to the circus one other time but couldn't remember going so this was a great experience for him. He loved the tigers especially when one jumped through the fire ring.

 Chloe, Ollie and Me at the Circus



Saturday morning after the Circus Oliver had a soccer game and soccer pictures. He is playing for the YMCA out of Virginia, it's a great way for him to get out some of that energy! They didn't win, but I don't think that the kids really care, they just like to run around and kick the ball.

 Ollie's soccer picture

Whew! After the Circus, Soccer, drive to the cities and a 1/2 marathon I took Monday off and didn't do much of anything. The perfect ending to a super fun/busy weekend!

The Gary Bjorklund 1/2 Marathon is up next on my schedule June 16!



Goldy's Run 10 Mile Race

Goldy’s Run  

 Goldy Gopher

On Saturday April 14^th I ran the Goldy’s Run 10 mile race, which took place on and around the U of MN campus. The race centered around the TCF Bank Stadium, which was very cool. I’ve never been to a Gophers game, but after seeing the stadium, I really want to go! 

  TCF Bank Stadium 

Here's a picture of me and Chris sporting our awesome Minnesota headbands, a perfect touch for a race around campus! The sun was in our eyes, we couldn't find a good angle for the picture!!

We were unsure what the weather would be like so we dressed in layers thinking it would be chilly, but we were sweating pretty bad as the temps started rising a few miles into our run.

The race course was challenging! It started out right in front of the TCF Bank Stadium. There were no less than 13 hills with some pretty high inclines. Normally hills kick my butt, but I’ve been training pretty hard lately to build more muscles in my legs and endurance, I think it’s paid off J We ran through the streets of campus then out and over the Mississippi River with lots of twists and turns. As we came back over the river and within 2 miles of the finish line I realized how good my legs were feeling. It’s a great feeling. The last race, the ½ fast ½ marathon I experienced such horrible knee pain, I thought my days of running were over. This race really lifted my spirits!

We ran back through campus for the last mile.When we finally got back to the stadium we had to run around the outside, then ran on the field to finish on the 50 yard line. It was AWESOME! As we finished we could see ourselves on the jumbo-tron, super cool!

I finished with a time of 1:28:53, which means that I ran about an 8:53 mile. This time is a bit slower than I have been running historically, however with all of the crazy hills, a time that I am very proud of.

Here I am after the race, hanging out in the end zone! That's the jumbo-tron behind me showing the runners as they crossed the finish line.

Another cool touch with this race, they took video of the runners, this morning I got an email with video of me throughout the race, I actually got to see myself cross the finish line! Click on the link below to see me! I'm hard to see except for the end when I cross the finish line.

http://www.goraceday.com/watch/6780/

I mentioned that I was going to run in the Get Lucky ½ marathon last month, I wound up getting super sick the day before the race and had to back out, this was a really tough decision, I’m still a little bit sad about missing that one…

A couple more updates!! I was going to run Grandma’s Marathon but after some set backs with my knees, I’ve opted to run the Gary Bjorkland 1/2 Marathon at Grandma's on June 16th and I am also running in the Lake Minnetonka ½ Marathon on May 6^th. I've heard this is pretty hilly race too, but I'm up for the challenge!

Minimalist running and first blog posted via iPhone

With all of my aches and pains I've been experiencing I've decided to try out a new type of running shoe. The New Balance Minimus, it's very lightweight and super comfy. I'm going to train in these shoes for the Get Lucky race on St. Patrick's day. I'm anxious to have no knee pain when running and I think these shoes are the trick. I have to change my running style and how my foot lands on the ground.

This is also my first attempt to blog via my Blogger app on my iPhone! This is very cool!

The picture isn't that great but the shoes are very cute!

 

I took a better picture of my shoes, the one above didn't show nearly how cute they are!

Half Fast 1/2 Marathon

Yesterday I participated in the Half Fast 1/2 Marathon, which was put on by Tri Fitness out of White Bear Lake. Chris and I headed south Friday night, we carbo loaded on pasta at Applebee's and stayed at Emily's house in Coon Rapids.We didn't get down until 10:00 Friday night, the next morning we were up and out the door by 7:00 am.

We arrived in Vadnais Heights ready to run! It was a chilly morning, here's a 'before' picture.

I chose to run in this race for 2 reasons, one reason was that I wanted to try a 1/2 marathon in February and this one was the only race that worked with my schedule and the other reason was it was only $40, which was right in my budget! The course was not the greatest, considering that we had to wait at a very busy intersection for the police to stop traffic for us! This is the first time that I've ever had to actually stop mid-race and wait for cars! None of the roads were blocked off for this race either, so there was a lot of dodging cars that made me a little nervous! Thank goodness I wasn't trying to set my PR!

Ever since the Twin Cities Marathon I've been getting pains in the sides of me knees, which feel like knives jabbing into them, when I run long distances! This happened around mile 7, UGH! From the online research I've been able to narrow this injury down to Runners Knee, or Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome. This is very painful but didn't slow me down too much. I finished with a time of 1:53:01, not too bad considering the knee pain. Chris and I started out betting who would win, but we both started feeling some pain, so we decided to tie, and we did. Somehow he placed 73rd and I placed 74th, but we finished with the same time. I guess he lucked out on this one!!

Here's a pictures of us racing for the finish! There is a guy behind us that was trying to pass us, we kicked it down and he never caught up to us!!! Woo Hoo!

Here's some more 'after' the race pictures. We were both pretty happy to be done running!

One of the race sponsors was Saks Sports Bar, they held an awards ceremony after the race. Chris and I   went there for some junk food. We did just burn 1300 calories. We went with the chicken nachos! YYYYUUUUMMMM!

Up next the Get Lucky half Marathon on St. Patricks day! AND Grandma's Marathon training starts Tuesday!!

A BIG thank you to Lauren for kid/dog/cat sitting for me in Hibbing and Emily and Dave for letting us stay at your house!

Numb your Bum

On January 28th I ran in the "Numb your Bum" 5k race in Coleraine, MN. This is an annual race held in Coleraine and after the race there is an ice fishing contest. It was a pretty cold morning, the temperature was around 10, it was windy and snowing, sounds like the perfect weather for a 5k, right??

I've only driven through Coleraine before, never been in the town so I didn't know what to expect the course to be like. Boy was I surprised to see all of the hills!  The race started at the bottom of a small hill, as we go to the top of that hill we ran down another small hill then up a giant hill with a 60 foot incline, then to top it off the last 1/4 mile was actually on the lake!!

I finished with a time of 25:51, I placed 18th out of 90 people, not bad considering the elements, running on the lake and all of the hills! Holy buckets it was slippery! I was trying to run so fast but I kept slipping and couldn't get traction!

It was a tough course, I know where I'm going to do my hill training now!!

Here's the shirt that I got for entering.

I have big race plans coming up I just signed up TODAY for my next race. I entered the 1/2 Fast 1/2 Marathon in White Bear Lake, this is a new race for me. This race is held on February 18th.

AND THEN....

The Get Lucky 1/2 Marathon that takes place on St.Patricks Day in St. Paul, this will be my 2nd time running the Get Lucky. I set my PR at this race last year, I'm hoping for a new PR!!

The Polar Dash 2012

I can't think of any better way to start off the new year than with a 10k! I ran in Team Ortho's Polar Dash. This is my 2nd time running this race. This year was unseasonably warm with temps in the 20s.

Here's a picture before the race with me and Chris.

I finished with a time of 52:37, not my best time, but I'm not complaining either!

After the race Chris and I rushed off to the Vikings game. It was a great way to kick off 2012!


Up next: Numb your Bum 5k...

The Snowflake Shuffle

   I ended the year with a 5k ,  the Snowflake Shuffle in St. Joseph, MN. This was a very quick fun race around the college of St. Benedict. I've only run two 5k races and they are so much different than the 1/2  marathons. When I'm running a 5k, it seems like the race is over before it starts!

I was lucky number 263!.

It was a cool morning, but we didn't have any snow so that was nice. Here's a picture of me and Chris, before the race. 

I finished with a time of 25:42.2. I placed 97th out of 338 overall. I placed 3rd out of 56 women in my age group, and 34th overall out of 231 women!

Here's a photo of me and Chris and some guy, (we named him Pierre, he kind of looks like a Pierre) Pierre looks like he's running with us :)

With the finish of this race, I've completed 12 races in 2011, I'm very proud to say that I've accomplished my goal. I plan to continue my running into the future. I've signed up for the Polar Dash coming up New Years morning.  A great way to start 2012!