Race Review: Running from an Angel Half Marathon

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I was nervous about this one, it wasn't until we arrived just outside of Boulder city at the Hacienda Hotel that I had my first glimpse of what I was in for the following morning. It was then that I had a hunch that I may have misunderstood the course description. The fiasco of realizing I didn't bring my running pants and racing to Target when I should have been sleeping only added to my pre race nerves. I went to bed shortly after we returned from Target ready for what I thought would be just another half marathon.

I awoke as planned at 7:00am, we planned to leave the hotel at 7:30am as we weren't exactly sure where we were going and how to enter Lake Mead National Park. Off we went (check out the beautiful wallpaper/carpet combo in our hotel, eww!):

We arrived pretty early and chose to sit in the car until the last possible second as it was freezing out, actually below zero in the desert... Then it was time. As I approached the starting line I got my first good look at Lake Mead, though freezing and windy, it sure was beautiful out:

Before I knew it we were off and running! No matter how big or small the race (this one being less than 500 people) I always find the starting line very exciting and the adrenaline usually pushes me through the first few kilometers with a smile on my face. However as we started off I gradually noticed the "rolling hills" mentioned in the course description, but after the first mile marker, there was no rolling... it was just up...

up...

and more up...

Every time I rounded a corner thinking we must be almost done with this hill, it kept going. The further I got into it, I wasn't sure how my time was going to be, I decided I better abandon all hopes for a PR and focus on finishing. I quit doing 10 and 1's which normally improves my time (10mins run/1min walk) and knew that I had to run when I could and walk when I needed. It felt like we went straight uphill for 11km. Having now looked at the elevation chart I know there were some dips, which then became hills after the turnaround. When we reached the top of the incline, we were at 1539ft: 

At this point there was a short bit of downhill and another very steep incline up to the turnaround, which of course I had to repeat backwards once I turned around. The rest of the race definitely went smoother. I knew the majority was on a downhill and there was a chance I could still finish with a decent time. At about the 10th mile marker I reached a point at the top of a hill where I could actually see the finish area, very far off in the distance, but I could see it. It looked like an oasis in the desert, sparkling water and palm trees... I got a short lived burst of energy and made it to kilometer 19, from then on we were in the "rolling hills" from the beginning, but after all that uphill/downhill my knee was done. I pushed and I pushed, I felt like I wasn't getting anywhere, but I did:

I crossed that finish line and left every last ounce of energy behind me. I was so happy to see Cody and get out of there. This was by far the MOST difficult course mentally and physically for me. I generally always find hills challenging, but usually in hill training its only a kilometer at a time or so and then you get a short break, this was so constant, it really got to me. On the other hand this was also one of the most beautiful courses I've ever run, the combination of the stark desert against that crystal blue lake water was breathtaking and I know I will never forget it. So the first race of my 13 in 2013 is now complete! 

Chip Time: 02:26:33

After a quick shower and checking out of our hotel we were on our way to LAS VEGAS, it was a great reward having just completed that challenge! The first stop: In n' Out

Las Vegas was a great way to relax and let off some steam after the race, but it was only a short trip. Today we drove back to Palm Springs, 4.5 hours through the desert, a lot of which I spent reflecting on this past race and the ones coming up. I also couldn't wait to get back and see my little boy, this was our longest time apart since he was born. Here are some pictures from our drive:

Now its time to prepare for the Tinkerbell Half Marathon on Sunday. I'm excited about this race, as it will be my first with my mother-in-law, Cindy, it will also be her very first half marathon! My son Griffin will be taking part in his very own 100m race on Saturday. So now it's back to eating properly and getting those last training runs in. Training and running while traveling is a completely different experience then being at home, exhausting but fun! Except for perhaps the ton of laundry and repacking I have left to do before our departure to Disneyland...

Desert Driving & Target Emergencies

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What a day! This morning we left sunny Palm Springs and headed out driving through the desert leaving our little boy with his grandparents :'( Thankfully my sadness was brief as I was very interested in checking out all the neat things along the drive. I miss Griffin every second and I bet we talked about him for 95% of the drive but I know he's safe with Grandma & Grandpa.

Our first big stop was in Arizona where we stopped to look at "the London Bridge" in Lake Havasu (the actual London Bridge relocated from London brick by brick) and then we were on our way again further into the desert. I began to occupy my time looking for some good cacti where we could pull over to take a picture. We ventured off the highway onto a service road and a few miles down we found a lone cactus in the middle of nowhere, perfect for a picture. It wasn't until I was standing in front of the cactus that Cody decided to mention the hole at the base of the cactus might be home to some snakes, and with that I raced back to the safety of the car and off we went in search of the Arizona/Nevada border and the Hoover Dam. This part of the drive was really cool, I'm not sure if it was the landscape or the time of day but it felt like we were on another planet. In no time at all (with the speed limits here) we arrived at the Hoover Dam. By now it was sunset, we decided to pull off to go to the bridge lookout above the Dam, oh my were we high up, precisely 900 ft off the ground! It was quite the sight. Afterwards we drove down to the dam part and I took some pictures up towards the bridge.

Our hotel is maybe only a mile from the Dam. So we decided to check in and have a look at some dinner options. We weren't planning on leaving the hotel so our options were limited. There is a "steak house", but not the kind you might think as its attached to a truck stop cafe and all the food is cooked in the same kitchen so we opted not to pay $20+ a plate for less than mediocre food. I'm sad to say it was probably my worst pre race dinner quality wise, I didn't eat a lot but good news is I'm not too hungry and I brought my breakfast with me so I don't have to worry about eating more food here.

We headed back up to our room so I could set out all my gear for the morning with only a brief stop at the roulette table! As I was searching through the suitcase it suddenly donned on me that my running pants might be back in the closet in Palm Springs where I hung them after washing them the previous night. My searching through the suitcase became more frantic even though I knew at that point what I was looking for was over 280 miles away...

I had a choice: I could wear a thin pair of sweat pants that are pretty ratty and I normally wear them as pajamas or we could drive to Henderson and search for something open at 9:00pm. I opted for the drive as I think this run is going to be tougher than I thought and I don't need anymore issues. So 30 minutes later we were at Target and I searched through the racks and found a decent pair of Champion brand running tights.

So crisis averted and here we are back at the hotel. I have to be honest when I signed up for this race I didn't read much about the route or anything, for some reason I assumed it was flat. Well let me tell you, it's NOT going to be flat, I'm sure have more to say about that tomorrow. It is also very cold here, below zero cold in the desert? Also not something I totally wrapped my mind around leading up to this. Another thing to consider is that this will be the highest elevation I've ever run a race at, I'm not sure that it will have any affect on the race and if it did I'm not even sure I would recognize it.

Anyways after 300 miles of driving, crossing two time zones, and a last minute trip to target, off to bed I go, unsure but excited to attempt a PR hills and all!

Buffet anyone?

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Okay first of all, I have not slept in almost 40 hours, so this may not be the most coherent post:
We started our journey at 4:00am this morning and like any "seasoned traveller" I stayed up all night worrying about what I forgot to pack. I even got out of bed a few times to go see if i put this or that in the suitcases. The airport was a relatively painless experience, I was very thankful for this as you may know travelling with a toddler off his regular routine is like walking through a minefield, I was sort of expecting for something to go terribly wrong the entire time. I pictured him having a Chernobyl style meltdown in the middle of boarding or takeoff and being those parents that everyone were staring at. Normally this wouldn't bother me but I did have to endure a 2.5hr flight with these people... There were some close calls where I actually cringed and closed my eyes for a moment waiting... When a toy was lost or when the sippy cup exploded over all of us from the pressurization on the plane, but the meltdown never came, my boy was a happy camper the whole time! He fared better than even myself as I was having a panic attack watching every single bag roll off the plane after we landed (we were seated in the very last row, so we had some time before exiting...). "Where is the bag with the orange ribbon Cody? My running shoes are in there, what am I going to do?" It wasn't until we reached the baggage claim and I realized they must have loaded/unloaded bags into both sides of the plane... That did seem like a lot less luggage for the amount of people on the plane!

So after my highly irrational panic attack, I had worked up quite an appetite, so where's my first stop in CA to eat, why In-N-Out of course. Now I know what you're thinking, fast food, but its not just any fast food, I can't even describe how good it is, you really just have to experience it. I mean there's only about 5 things on their menu, and everything is REALLY that good, and the kicker is it's all fresh, they cut the French fries right in front of you! I had planned this great blog post with pictures of In-N-Out and everything but honestly there was no time, I was just too hungry and too exhausted.

So off we went to finally put a very sleepy boy down for a nap. Then it was off to super Target to stock up on baby food, diapers, powerade, you know the essentials! Then we went to a casino buffet for dinner and now I'm sitting here thinking what the hell is wrong with Me? I ate SO much food, and I'm going to run a half marathon on Saturday.

Krista, you're an idiot.
(BUT I ate a lot of salad at the buffet, does that count? NO it doesn't not when it's smothered in cheese, salad dressing and bacon bits.

I've eaten a lot worse even on the night before a 20+k run and I am stillI 2 days away. So I went a little overboard today, time to reign it in tomorrow, get myself sorted out before the run. At least it's warm here and I don't have to get all bundled up for my last training run before the Running from an Angel Half in Boulder City, NV.

Half Fanatics Membership & Packing Procrastination

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Aha! I've finally gotten something for all these races I've done, I've been accepted into the Half Fanatics! Okay it's actually not that big of a deal and I'm only at the "Neptune" level which I achieved for running 3 half marathons in 22 days back in November. Anyways, I've put a widget right here on my blog so click on the Half Fanatics logo or here and check it out!

One week from now I'll be having my pre race dinner in Boulder City getting ready to run around Lake Mead. And two weeks from now we will be checking into our Disneyland hotel, exciting stuff ahead! 

I'm looking forward to the trip but I'm starting to get nervous about packing and my last week of training. Basically I'll be packing for 3 separate climates (Palm Springs, Las Vegas/Boulder City, Anaheim). How is one supposed to accomplish that and fit all your running gear, husbands clothing, toddler clothes, and other child related gear into two suitcases?! This may be more of a challenge than the actual marathon...

Here's what I've accomplished so far arrrghh:

Two runs are planned for this weekend, both are 10kms, I'm so looking forward to tapering, the last few weeks have all been pretty much half marathon distances. Now is the time to "sit back and relax"? Wait that doesn't sound right... Okay but I'm only doing two 10km runs, that's not so bad. 

Well here's hoping running at 7:30am tomorrow isn't as chilly as last week:

Stay tuned for a book review on "She's Come Undone" by Wally Lamb hopefully tomorrow. I'd also like to get a baking post in before I leave but I'm not making any promises!

Resolution? The beginning? What shall I call this?

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I'm hesitant to call it a New Year's resolution because I sort of despise the idea of a New Year's resolutions but anyway this year I've decided to revive my blog with a new name:
Read. Bake. Run. Repeat.

Welcome!

Even though I've been back at running since April of 2012, I'm declaring today a new beginning! I need some new inspiration to run, thus the blog. I'm going to hold myself accountable to run those extra km's. I think 21.1km isn't as challenging as it was say 6 months ago or even two and a half years ago when I ran my very first half marathon so the luster of running is beginning to fade. I'm vowing to record my running results here on this blog. I'm also going to write about the books I'm reading and the things I'm baking because since becoming a Mom my memory is horrible and I think it would be a great place to record all my successes and failures, maybe if I write them down I won't fail again... maybe...
Maybe someone else will read my blog and learn from my mistakes. I've also been reading a lot of Blogs lately so why shouldn't I have my own?

(Hear are a few of my favorite blogs that I try to keep track of such as "Slow is the New Fast"written by my very inspirational and motivated friend Nikki, I also enjoy "Baby Rabies" and "How to be a Dad". There are others but those are definitely my favorite.)

So, coming up are two really BIG races for me. January 12th I will be in Boulder City Nevada to take on the "Running from an Angel Half Marathon"! And then on January 20th the "Tinkerbell Half Marathon" in Disneyland! So stay tuned for pictures and reviews of those races and quite possibly some posts regarding packing and pre race jitters...