Hard Rock Cafe Hollywood 5k - November 2, 2013

I was really excited about doing this race.  I had done a race earlier this year that followed the same course.  I knew this was a flat fast course. My training had been going well and I was hoping to set a new Personal Best (PB) in this race.

Course Map

The race runs straight down Hollywood Blvd. It's an out and back course.  This was a fairly uneventful race for me.  Everything went as I had hoped.  I had a good strong race.  I was pretty spent at the end. 

Finisher's Medal

I got my PB.  I finished in 34:51.  I took 37 seconds off my previous best time for this year (35:28) and  14 seconds off my previous PB (35:05).  To be fair, my previous PB time was set at the Santa Anita Derby 5k in 2005.  The course for that race isn't a flat fast course.

None the less I was pretty happy with my effort and my final time.

Running down Hollywood Blvd.

Crossing the finish line and a new PB!

 

At home after the race.  Good grief I look tired.

L.A. Cancer Challenge 5k - October 27, 2013

This was my second year doing this race.  It's hard to pass up a Halloween themed race.  I love Halloween.

This race takes place on on Veteran's Administration's grounds in West Los Angeles.  What I remembered from last year's race was that there were a lot of hills.  I think I walked most of it last year.

The Course Map

I've been doing my training runs on the streets of El Segundo.  For those of you who aren't familiar with El Segundo, this town doesn't have a single flat residential street.  You are either going up or down some kind of hill.  Some are bigger than others, but every block has an incline or decline, or both.  With all that training under my belt I figured I was ready to tackle this race again.

I was having a good race.  Well, other than my stupid witches hat that kept blowing off my head.  I ended up carrying it for most of the race.  I was running comfortable and well. I had managed all the hills and was running at a good pace, at least for me it was a good pace.   Then I hit the last hill.  You see that circle on the course map?  That red line above it is a hill.  A pretty steep hill.  It was a nice hill going down, but a bitch coming back up.  Well by the time I reached that hill I was running out of gas.  I  gave up and walked up the hill.  Once you make it up the hill you make a left and from there it's a nice flat run to the finish. Once I crested the hill I put my damn hat back on (for pictures) and ran for the finish.  I was pleasantly surprised by my finish time. 37:11.  Not to shabby considering I walked up the hill at the end.

Finisher's Medal. 

Crossing the Finish Line.

At home after the race.

Long Beach Half Marathon - October 13, 2013

So while I was at the Disneyland Half Expo back in August I signed up for the Beach Cities Challenge.  It's a three race series of half marathons.  Do all three consecutively and you get an awesome bonus medal.  Being that I'm a total 'bling whore' that was more than I could resist.
The three races are the Long Beach Half, Surf City Half and the OC Half.

At the expo.

Beach Cities Challenge Medal

First thing was to attend the race expo on Saturday to pick-up my bib and t-shirt.  It was an okay expo.  I think I'm spoiled by the runDisney expos.  Nothing beats a runDisney expo.  I wandered around a bit checking out the vendors but nothing caught my fancy so I picked up my stuff and headed home.

As luck would have it the race shirt was a perfect match for the Sparkle Skirt I intended to wear.

Flat me before the race.

I got up early on Sunday morning and headed out to Long Beach.  Despite having just driven out there the day before I somehow managed to miss my exit.  Grrr!  I ended up taking some round about way to the race start. My little detour through Long Beach put me behind schedule. 

I parked and walked to the start line.

They had what looked to be a hundred port-a-potties but it seemed that not all of them were open. The lines for them were enormous. By the time I was able to use the restroom it was nearly time for the race to start.

The port-a-potties

The long wait in line at the port-a-potties didn't leave me any time to get properly warmed up.

My plan was to run the first 3 or 4 miles non-stop.  Then I was going to Galloway (run/walk/run intervals) it to mile 7.  After that I would run the first 5 minutes of every mile, then walk to the next mile marker. I was hoping this would allow me to finish in less than 3 hours.

The first few miles of the race were very uncomfortable. Missing my warm-up was working against me. My shins and calves were screaming at me.  By the time I reached mile 4 I was much more comfortable. For the most part I was able to stick to my plan. I readjusted some of the walking/running intervals depending on how my body felt. I was pretty worn out the last three miles but I kept to the task.

I turned the corner towards the finish line and checked my Garmin watch.  I realized I was going to finish in under 3 hours!  I nearly cried.  I sprinted to the line.  I finished in 2:56:21. Whoo hoo!  Mission accomplished.

Mid race photo.

At home after the race.

My Finisher's Medal. Bling a ding ding!

Aloha run 5k - September 7, 2013

Medal Options. Hula Girl or Tiki

The only reason I did this race was because I wanted the medal.  They were giving you the choice of a hula girl or tiki finisher's medal.  I thought the hula girl was adorable and wanted it.

The race was in San Diego.  This is the third race I've done this year in San Diego.  I got up at 4:00 a.m. to make the 2 hour drive down to Tecolote Shores Park.

I started having an 'ut oh' feeling when I saw the start line.  Humm, this didn't look good. It had a disorganized feel to it.  The start line was on a grassy hill in the middle of the park.   I was starting to flash back to the Wet N Wild 5k.

Oh well. I drove 2 hours to get there so I figured I'd just make the best of it.

They had three waves of runners.  The 7:30 a.m. wave was for the fastest runners.  Runners who could maintain a 10:00 minute mile pace.  LOL That's not me.  The 8:00 a.m. wave was for other runners and the 8:30 a.m. wave was for runner/walkers.  I was in the 8:00 a.m. wave.

Color coded bibs for the wave starts.

The race started on time.  Right away there were problems.  There was a block of people just standing at the start line when the race started (I think they may have been 8:30 runners).  They just stood there blocking the way for the 8:00 a.m. runners.

I cleared the road block and was off and running.  The course took us to the walking path through the park.  Problem being it was way too narrow for the number of runners on it.  Also it was open to everyone.  So not only was it over crowded with runners it was being used by non race participants.  That means folks out walking their dogs, people out taking a morning stroll, etc.  Yee gads, it was a mess.  Then to top it all off the race doubled back on itself so some of the runners from the earlier wave were running the opposite direction towards the finish line.

Course map.

Looking at the course map you wouldn't have known this was going to be a major flustercluck.

To top it all off it was hot and humid. I was sweating buckets and the sweat started to run into my eyes.  OUCH!  That stings.  I had to stop several times to wipe my eyes and face.  (Time to look for a good sweat band).  I ended up walking parts of the race.  I'm not happy about that.

I finished in 40:12.  I finished 836th of 1,263 runners and I was 55th of 86 in my age division.  Not one of my better races.

My cute finisher's medal.

But I got my medal!

Crossing the finish line.

Four hours in the car for a 40 minute race.  I must be crazy!

Ugh. A small set back.

I've suffered a small set back. All last week my legs had been feeling a wee bit dead.  I had some general soreness in them.  Nothing awful just enough to let me know my legs weren't happy.

I had planned to run some hill repeats on Saturday, but after Friday's long run, I decided it wasn't in my best interest to run them.

 While looking at Facebook Saturday morning a report of seven Blue-footed Boobies popped up on  the Los Angeles Country RBA (rare bird alert) group.  Blue-footed Booby would be a life bird for me. The birds were on the breakwater in Playa Del Rey.  I hopped in my car and hustled out there.  I had to walk to the very end of the jetty.  Most of the jetty is a nice walking path.  Towards the end the path becomes rocks.  Rocks that appear to have had cement dumped on them.  It's not level and you really have to watch were you put your feet.  To get to the very end requires a bit more rock climbing.  I've done this before, but after Friday's long run my legs were wobbly when I reached the end point.  I got my lifer.  As you can see the breakwater is some distance from the end of the jetty.  My photos of the birds aren't the best, but the are the best I could do given the circumstances.

Playa Del Rey jetty

Blue-footed Booby

I woke up Sunday and my quads were screaming at me. I hobbled around all day Sunday.  I pulled out my foam roller and rolled my poor aching legs.

Monday is a run day for me, but my legs were still sore so I skipped my run.  I rolled my legs again.  I do love my foam roller. 

Areas of soreness

The soreness is mainly in my lower quads.  It is the most painful when going up or down stairs.  It's DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) and will resolve itself in a few days.  The good news is when it does my legs will be stronger.  The bad news is I'm missing my runs until then. 

My legs are feeling much better today.  I'm going to give them one more day to recover then I'll hit the streets again tomorrow.

This is just a minor set back and shouldn't effect my Tinkerbell training too much.  If I have to have a set back I'd rather it be now than later. 

Disneyland Family Fun Run 5k and expo - August 31, 2013

Sparkle Skirt Princesses Photo Meet-up

Every runDisney race has a race expo.  You must attend the expo to pick-up your bib and t-shirt.

I was super excited for the expo.  I knew Sparkle Skirts was going to have a booth and I was looking forward to buying some new Sparkle Skirts. I think I may have been just as excited to go to the expo as I was to do the race.

New Sparkle Tech Skirts bought at the expo.

Earlier I wrote a review on my first Sparkle Skirt.  Well I'm addicted to them now.  They are the best thing ever.  I'm head over heels crazy for them!
     
I met up with my friends Christi and her husband Don at the expo.  This was their first runDisney race.  The expo is huge and chaotic and it can be a bit overwhelming the first time.

Don, Christi and I at the expo.

RACE DAY!!

I got up at 2:30 a.m. to drive out to Disneyland to meet Christi and Don for this race.  The race started at 5:30 a.m.  Th runDisney races start early so that they can open the park to the public on time.

We met up at the start line around 5:00 a.m.  It was warm and humid.  I was sweating just standing around waiting for the run to start.

Disney bills their 5k's as 'fun runs' so they are not timed races. The plan for this race was just to have fun and enjoy the company of my friends.  We did a lot of walking and some running here and there.  Don was our pacer.  He'd take off running and Christi and I would run after him.  LOL
 

The 5k Finish Line

We finished the race in 44:33 minutes.
 
I'm glad I did the Neverland 5k first.  Had this been my first runDisney race I wouldn't have been as excited as I was after the first one.  This race seemed to be lacking in the energy and enthusiasm that was palpable at the Neverland 5k.   Perhaps it was the heat. But the crowd for this race was really blah.

 The theme for the 5k this year was Alice in  Wonderland so I went as the Queen of Hearts.

Having a good time!

Christi and Me after the race.

Me, Christi and Don after the finish with our medals!

Finisher's photo.

Wet N Wild 5k - August 24, 2013

I did this race in 2011.  I recall the course being hot and boring.  Most of the course was out on the sunny (no shade) streets of Irvine and the last part of the course went through the Wild Rivers Waterpark, the highlight of the race was getting to "run" through the lazy river.  The medal (bling) was a cheap Party City-ish medal with a sticker on it.  Yuck.

Crappy little medal from 2011

I signed up for the race last year.  It was to be run at Knott's Soak City.  I was too tired to drag myself out of bed on race day and I didn't go.

This year's race was at SPLASH in La Mirada and the race course was through La Mirada Park.  That sounded a whole lot better than running on some hot boring streets, so I signed up again.

After I signed up I discovered the Wet N Wild 5k was the same day as the Awesome 80's 5k.  The races were to far apart to be able to do them both.  I debated back and forth about blowing off Wet N Wild and doing the Awesome 80's instead.  I knew the bling this year at Awesome 80's was really cool.  In the end I decided to stay with Wet N Wild.

I have mixed feelings about today's race.  There were lots of happy volunteers and the event seemed pretty well organized. They even had two water stations on course.  Most 5k's only have one at about the half way point.

Course map.

I guess my biggest issue was with the course.  I looked at the course map and I knew it wound it's was through La Mirada Park.  I had even read in the course description that this was a grassy course.  I guess I didn't realize just how grassy.  The majority of the course was on the grass at the park.  I really don't like running over grass.  It's uneven, and sometimes it can be deep and soul sucking.  You have to watch where and how you put your feet down because it's very easy to step in a hole or turn an ankle.  Gah, I just don't like it.  There were lots of hills in this race.  At times we were running on the slant of the hill.  Oh and right at the start of the race was a steep incline.  Ugh.  I ended up walking parts of this race.  Even though I know running on the grass is good training (it works different muscles) I was not a happy camper.

Concentrating on running up a hill!

The best part of the race was just before the finish when we got to run through the lazy river.  By then I was all hot and sweaty so the cool water was a welcome relief.

Just out of the lazy river.

All my whining aside I would do this race again next year if it's at a different location. Hopefully it won't be on the same day as the Awesome 80's 5k.

Oh, and they improved the bling since 2011.  They gave out a nice medal this year.

Much improved medal this year.

After the race they have a photo op.  You stand in front of a green screen and they take your picture.  They print it out right there.  It's only $5.00.  It's not the best quality photo, but it's cool.

$5.00 post race photo op

At home after the race.

OC Fair 5k - August 4, 2013

The OC Fair 5k is one of my favorite summer races.  It runs in and around the Orange County Fairgrounds.  It's a relatively flat course and they give out awesome bling every year.

OC Fair 5k Finisher's Medal 2013

It was a bit on the humid side this morning but other than that I had a good race.  I seem to recall overheating in this race last year.

My only complaint would be that they need to do a better job at corralling the runners with strollers.  I think it's wonderful that folks with babies get out and run, but lordy I am tired of dodging them on course.  They need to start the strollers five minutes behind the runners and walkers.

My and my Disco Sparkle Skirt after the race.

Today's race marked the racing debut of my "Disco" Sparkle Skirt.  I can't say enough how much I love this skirt.  I saw another lady on course wearing the "Diva Grey" skirt.  One lady stopped me and asked about my skirt.  I'm pretty sure I convinced her to buy one.  She thought it was a great running skirt and she loved the colors.

I'm pretty happy with my effort today.  Despite the humidity I put up a decent time.  This was my third fastest race of the year and I've done sixteen races this year so far.

I finished in 36:46 not bad for an old lady LOL.  I finished 34th in my age division out of 95 runners.

Rockin' the OC Fair in my Disco Sparkle Skirt!

Pulled muscle or bruised/cracked rib?

Painfully slow run today.  It was painful because I was in pain.  

Thursday I bent over a tall trash can to retrieve a plastic bottle (I'm recycling to help fund my Princess Half Marathon trip) and I felt and heard a crunching sound in my ribs/side.  I was a little sore and tender but didn’t give it much thought.  I woke up Friday feeling fine. In fact it never crossed my mind.  While I was running I thought I had a side stitch.  It seemed kind of odd because I haven’t gotten a side stich while running in a long time.  It wasn’t until I was near the end of my run that I put two and two together and realized the discomfort was from Thursday’s trash can grab. Depending on how I moved or sat I was a little uncomfortable Friday.  I did a little research on the internet and figured I had pulled a muscle or maybe bruised a rib.  Since the prognosis and recovery for either of them was the same (rest) I didn’t worry too much about it.  I had kind of hoped that resting it over the weekend would take care of it.  It gave me some discomfort over the weekend.  Again it seemed to depend on how I sat or moved.

Today I was uncomfortable during my warm-up walk.  I was a wee bit concerned.  As soon as I pushed off to start my run I knew I was in trouble.  It was somewhat painful to run.  I wasn’t able to stride out well.  I had to do little baby steps.  I had to run slowly.  I finished my run, 3.11 miles and walked home to cool down.  My side still hurt.  It really hurt when I sat down to take my shoes off.  At this point I figured maybe I should see a doctor. I called Kaiser and then called off work.

I’m not sure what I expected a doctor do to.  I guess I just wanted a doctor to tell me if this was a pulled muscle or a bruised/cracked rib.  I knew from my research on the internet that there was a good chance I wouldn’t get a definitive answer.  Well, I was right.  All the doctor could tell me was that my pain was located at the base of my rib cage.  I either pulled a muscle or cracked a rib (duh).  The treatment for either of them is the same.  Rest, take it easy, and take an anti-inflammatory.  I told him I would have thought if I had cracked a rib I’d be in more pain, but he said that’s not always the case.  His advice was to take it easy for a week and he gave me a prescription for an anti-inflammatory. (Which I didn’t fill).  

I guess only time will tell.  If it’s a pulled muscle it should improve in about a week.  If it’s a cracked rib it will take closer to a month to get better.  Grr!

Sparkle Skirts review and other ramblings.

I used to love the heat.  I always seemed to be cold.  If the temperature dropped much past 75 degrees I was cold.  Than came menopause and hot flashes.  Now I long to be cold.  Anyway, I digress.

Last week I went out for a run.  I was trying to up my weekly mileage so I decided to stretch my run out a little and run 3.1 miles.  Not really a big deal since I frequently run 5k races.  It was a somewhat warm day (but not hot) and it was bright and sunny.

My neck cooler from the fair.

Early on I was struggling with my run.  I pushed on and completed my planned run.  Thankfully my run ended in a local park right under the shade of a tree.  I quickly sat down on a rock and kept telling myself "don't throw up, don't throw up".  I also felt a wee bit woozy.  I had a mild case of heat illness.  Not fun.

This got me to thinking of what I can do to stay cooler while I run.  I already use a neck cooler I got at the L.A. County Fair years ago,  but clearly I needed to do more.

Finishing the L.A. Marathon in my CW-X pants.

 I started to wonder if my trusty CW-X Stabilyx compression pants might be working against me.  I've had them since 2005.  I wore them on my long runs while training for the Los Angeles Marathon.  I wore them in the marathon.  They've been my go-to running pants for a long time. I know they're made with coolmax that is supposed to help you stay cool, but I was beginning to wonder if they were actually holding heat in.

Perhaps I'd be cooler if I ran, gasp, bare legged.  Let me just say, I hate my legs.  I was born from German peasant stock and I have sturdy, tree trunk, like legs.  It doesn't matter how much or how little I weigh my legs are ALWAYS disproportionally large and I ALWAYS have had the dreaded runners 'chub rub' at the top of my thighs.  So I have (almost) always run in some kind of running tights/pants. I'm just not comfortable exposing my legs to the world.  I hate they way they look.

"Disco" Sparkle Skirt (from their Website)

In an effort to not over heat again this summer I decided to give Sparkle Skirts a try.  I've been looking at them off and on for a while. (Ever since I saw them at the Tinkerbell Half Marathon expo in January).  They are a bit expensive, so I always decided against buying one.  Well, my mild episode of heat illness has changed my mind.  I need something I can run in that will allow heat to dissipate off more of my body while I run. I looked at a lot of other options but in the end I went with Sparkle Skirt.  They are really cute and they have great pockets on them.  Plus they have built in running shorts that are guaranteed not to ride up that will (hopefully) prevent 'chub rub.'  I bought the "Disco" skirt.  I figured it will go with any of my running shirts.

The skirt arrived and I have now had two runs in my new skirt.  I love, love, love it.  It is cool, comfortable and cute.  The shorts are fabulous, and as promised they don't ride up.  They protect my tender inner thighs from 'chub rub'  The pockets in them are great.  I was concerned that my inhaler and keys would jiggle or feel bulky when I ran.  Not a problem at all.  In fact I forgot I had them with me.  The front pocket is just the right size to hold my iPhone 5.  If I could afford to own one in every color I would.   Ladies do yourself a favor, indulge a little and treat yourself to s Sparkle Tech Skirt!

It's here!  My first Sparkle Tech Skirt.

Fun Run in the Park Griffith Park 5k - July 13, 2013

At first I was quite pissy about this race.  I plugged the address given on the website into my GPS.  My GPS took me to that address.  Lo and behold no sign of a race. Hummm.  I saw lots of runners so I followed a few of them hoping I'd find the race.  No such luck.  As I was walking back to my car and woman asked me if I was there for the race.  I said I was.  She was lost and confused as well.  She called a friend and found out the race site was further down the road.  I got in my car and kept driving until I found the correct spot.  Signage people! 

I looked up my bib number and proceeded to get my bib and t-shirt.  As I was getting my shirt I heard the volunteers tell someone they were out of small and medium shirts.  How do you not have enough shirts?!  I'm pretty sure I was asked my shirt size when I registered.  I didn't get to work up over this since I wanted a large shirt.  But really?  As a race organizer how do you not have enough shirts?!

This was a small race with about 500 runners.  The course was on part of the equestrian path around Griffith Park.  It was a lovely dirt/sand path with lots of shade.  The path was relatively level with a slight incline at the beginning, a lot of the course felt as if we were going slightly downhill (not a bad thing).

About half way through the race I ended up running along side another woman.  We ran side by side for most of the race, but she out kicked me at the finish.  After the race she thanked me for pacing her.

At home after the race.

As I was walking to my car two girls stopped me and asked if they could take a picture with me.  LOL. I was the only runner in a tutu and they loved my tutu.   I guess I put the "fun" in the Fun Run.

All in all this was a nice little race.  I really enjoyed it and I would do it again.

My time was 36:21 with a pace of 11:41.  I finished in 300th place (oddly enough my bib # was 300) out of 488 runners, and I was 15th of 23 in my age division.This is my second fastest 5k time for the year and my 3rd fastest overall 5k time.  I'm pretty happy with it.

Finisher's Medal