Tomorrow

Tomorrow we will run/walk our last Cowtown 1/2 marathon.  It will be our 5th year and we will complete the medal series.  We started this 6 long years ago and so much has passed since that 1st Cowtown 5K.  That was our first race - the one I thought I couldn't do - but did.  The very next year we signed up for the 1/2 marathon.  It was the beginning of the Texas Star Medal Series.  The medals are so beautiful when put together, so this year we get to pick up our plaque and hopefully finish so we can get that 5th medal to show.  We ran race 1, we ran race 2 even faster and felt even better....then came the injuries.  We didn't do too bad on race three, although Rick was running in a lot of pain with his neck...and I was running in jeans because I forgot to pack my running pants!  The 4th year was the first after my back surgery - so zero training, but we finished it.  This year again very little training...I haven't really gone more than about 4 miles...every time I would start running something else seemed to fall apart - a knee, an ankle, etc.  But here lately it is all flowing back in place and feeling pretty good again.  I have NO speed, not that I ever had much to begin with...but the endurance is showing some improvement.  I'm actually looking forward to this one.  I'm in the process of proving once again I CAN do this.  If this one goes well I'll pick a new 5K and keep training and trying.  Wish me luck!

Race Weekend: Cowtown in Ft. Worth

It was finally here.  The weekend we had been talking about getting ready for since my surgery last June... note the "talking about".  Lots of talking - not so much doing, LOL.  We trained in fits and starts, mostly because I was concerned about the back.  We finally decided we were just going to walk the 1/2 marathon - try to match our 3 hour time (Pepaw's was 3:00, mine was 3:02) but our major goal was simply to finish!  Sometimes you just have to admit things didn't work out exactly as planned and go with the hand you are delt.

We packed up everything on Friday evening - this year I made triple sure I had my running pants packed! (Of course this meant that I totally forgot my TEAM 4:13 shirt and my Garmin!) We set everything by the door so we would be ready to leave bright and early Saturday morning.  The Adult 5K started at 8:15 and both Cotton and Candy were running that one, so we knew we needed to get there early - that meant we needed to be on the road by 5:30 A.M. - and we were!

As we neared our exit from the highway we were surprised at the line of cars just stopped on the off ramp and backed up for miles down the road.  We quickly decided we would go to the next exit and figure out what we needed to do from there.  Just about that time my phone rang, it was Cotton telling us he had been in that line for 20 minutes and still hadn't gotten to the street he needed!  We jumped off one exit further out and Garmin led us right to the parking area with no problem at all.  We parked and walked over to find Cotton. 

We stood along the barricades at the finish line and watched the 10K finishers, then Cotton and Candy took off for the start line. I kept thinking they would change the clock to the 5K time when they took off, but that didn't happen. I found out later it was changed on the side the racers could see, just not on the side for the spectators!  Cotton finished in just over 21 minutes - but I couldn't get my stupid iPhone camera to work quick enough to get a picture of him crossing the finish line. I thought his time was AMAZING, and he was pretty happy with it - he had forgotten just how hilly this course was!  Candy finished in just over 42 minutes - again, the hills are killer!  This was her first Cowtown, and she did a GREAT job too!  I posted the picture of her at the finish on FB - and of course that started a whole conversation about pictures of first borns...Cotton should learn to stop and pose, LOL  (Love you son!)

After everyone joined back up we walked to the cars and took off to find an IHOP for breakfast.  It was great to spend some post-race time together just laughing and visiting.  After breakfast it was back to the collisium to walk through the EXPO.  We were lucky to meet Joe Boyle - a former olympic athlete, now a running coach.  We visited with him and got some excellent training/running tips.  I wished we had more time to visit with him!  Cotton needed to get back so we went back to the cars and then headed to the hotel - hoping for an early check-in. 

We got all checked in and just relaxed for the rest of the afternoon.  About 5:00 or so we walked across the street with the kids to the Ft. Worth water park...that was fun!  We walked all around looking at the fountains and pools, climbed the "mountain" and then wandered back so we could go for an early dinner - then it was time for bed.

I wasn't able to sleep very well...this was one of the NOISIEST hotels I've stayed at in a LONG time!  I listend to noise until after 2:00 AM and then had to get up at 4:30 so we could catch the 5:15 shuttle to the race...NOT a happy camper!''

We were glad we went on the first shuttle though as we were able to get chairs inside the building to wait until close to the 7:00 AM starting gun.  We ambled out to our corral (near the back) and settled in to wait for about 10 minutes.  It was actually one of the smoothest corral starts I've ever been a part of.

Actually, for the majority of the race I was very happy with the planning.  Plenty of water and electrolite drinks to keep us hydrated and TONS of volunteers. 

I felt so good for the first 1/2 of the race I couldn't believe it!  We completed the first 10K in about 1:28 - so we were ahead of pace...whoo - hoo! I was still running/walking strong and felt GREAT.  Then....the dreaded WALL.  I hit that at about 8 miles...I could FEEL myself draining.  I tried a GU hoping that would get my going again - and it might have, if it hadn't been for the hill at mile 9.  I didn't think we were EVER going to reach the top of that sucker!  By the time we finished that my legs were shot.  I never did get my pace back - although I did continue to try the run/walk pattern I had started at the beginning of the race.  Our 11 mile time was 2:40 ... we knew by then we werent going to make the 3:00 hour mark...but we kept going. 

It was really cool to get to the 13 mile mark and see the family there to cheer us on.  The grand-kids were so excited...running up and down the sidewalk with the signs they had made at the EXPO and cheering us on...made us smile really big.

We turned the corner, saw the finish line and decided to go for it.  We ran across the finish line holding our hands up in the air...Cowtown 1/2 Marathon #4 complete and in the books! 

Now we only have one more - and the plan is to actually get some training time in before we run that one!

I have decided to go back to a C25K type training program and start all over again.  Now that I know my back can handle it - not a single twinge or tweak during the entire race - we are going to sign up for some 5Ks here in the next few months, then add some 10Ks in the fall/winter time frame so we will be MUCH more prepared.  Watch out COWTOWN.  I WILL break the 3 hour mark NEXT year!!!

Cowtown +1

Last weekend we ran the Cowtown 1/2 marathon. It was pretty good. I felt a little fuzzy when we got there - that is what 4 hours of sleep will do to ya! I was really tired Friday night when I went to bed, but it was after midnight before I could actually get to sleep - hate it when that happens! Then we were up at 4:00 am to drive to Ft. Worth for the race. We stopped and picked up Cotton in Plano on our way so he could ride over. He wasn't running - he had just gotten off work and wanted to watch the race!

We got to the parking area and rode the bus to the start of the race. Went over to package pick-up and all they had there were our bibs...hmmmmmm. Walked into the Expo tent (very crowded) and there - at the very back - was a sign that said "T-shirts". We wove our way through the packed aisles and got to the t-shirt table only to find that they were totally out of Medium shirts, and had been since the day before. OK...call me crazy, but if you have people pay good money to sign up for a race months in advance, don't you think you would be able to pack up a bib and t-shirt so they would have what they ordered MONTHS IN ADVANCE! In my humble opinion - it should be the ones that sign up at the EXPO that should be stuck with the shirt in the wrong size.....well, I'll get off my soap box now and on to the race report.

We walked out of the expo tent and found a nice bench where we could stop and put on our bibs and D-tags (the tag they use for the chip timing). It was pretty dark right there (remember this is about 6:00 am!) but we muddled through and got it all set. We then made our way over to the start area. On our way over we happened to think that we hadn't looked at the bib to see what starting corral we were supposed to be in, so I glanced over at Rick's bib to see. To my utter shock he had on MY bib! Which of course meant he also had on my timing chip (D-tag), and I had on his! Well - maybe I would PR this race - HAHAHAHAHA! We decided since we were going to try to stay pretty much together for this one that we would just leave well enough alone and go with the flow.

We made our way to the starting corral and waited patiently for the start. They started the groups off in waves, which was nice, not so many people to dodge in front of us, but we were in one of the slower corrals and got off to a really slow start....not too much of a problem for me!

I was hoping that I would finally break 2:25 for this race - that was my time last year when I was running so well and my back started spasming at mile 11. I had to walk quite a bit of the last 2 miles. This year it wasn't as cold and not nearly as windy so I had high hopes...even though my legs were still really sore from my PR treadmill 5K earlier in the week. I figured they would loosen up as I made my way through the race.

The first two miles passed pretty uneventfully in 10:36 and 10:55. The second was a little slower than I wanted. I wanted to keep the pace between 10:30 and 10:45 as much as possible. Somewhere toward the end of mile 3 I started really feeling my thighs get super tight. Got through that one in a time of 10:44 for a 32:16 time. Pretty much my average during a half.

Off to get to the 10K mark. My legs were really getting worse as I continued to run, and my pace was showing it. Bless his heart, Rick was doing his best to stay with me - even when that meant running ahead and slowing down to wait on me to catch up! (He told me later that he really did this because he didn't want me to beat him in the race - remember, I was getting credit for his time since he was wearing my bib and chip! Too funny!) We finished the next 3 miles in 11:11, 11:18, and 11:03 - for a 6 mile time of 1:05:50. Again, pretty close to average for me. Slow for a 10K, but not for 1/2 way through a half marathon.

We continued on our way, Rick running ahead and looking back, me chugging along the best I could with my muscles feeling like they were tied in pretty bows! The next 3 miles had some pretty good hills in them and my time showed it. 11:45, 11:56, and 11:12. BUT, I was still chugging along - only walking the water stops, nowhere else!

I think here we hit a bit of the flat course, with the nice brickwork - you know the part where you worry that you are going to twist your foot or break an ankle....but it was smooth going for us. I think this was where I felt really good the year before and honestly thought I was going to break 2:20 - again this year I was feeling good, my thighs had finally untied themselves and I was running pretty smoothly again, if not setting the world on fire....I was at least moving better! At least for the first couple miles.... 11:03 and 11:06. Then we came to the hill that took me out the year before.

I don't know if it was me remembering last year, or honest fatigue, but this was a really slow part of the race for me - a mental challenge I think I lost. Mile 12 took me 12:14 to run. My slowest mile in the race. Now it does have a bridge that has a decent grade to it, but nowhere near the grade of Hawkeye's Hill, one of the hills earlier in the race. I think I was just taking it too easy without realizing it....but hindsight is always 20/20, right?

Once we got over that part and Rick knew I was going to be OK he went ahead and took off. I was so proud of him! I kept chuggin' along and finished mile 13 in 11:50 despite another small hill, then did the last .21 in 2:14 for an overall time of 2:29:13. (My official time was 2:32:13...Garmin paused at the potty break we took, lol). Rick's official finish time was 2:29:43. He said that he felt really strong at the end. I think staying with me, at least at the start helps him a little pace himself...and me trying to keep up helps me too! Anyway...despite this being one of my slowest half marathon times, I was really excited because I didn't have to walk this year. Only through the water stops, which is our plan anyway. I'll take that time as something to improve on in the Dallas Rock and Roll March 14!

Now, on to the +1 portion of the post.

Today we ran the Allen ISD Eagle Run. This run is one I really enjoy. I worry about it being squeezed between 2 half marathons - so my goal this year was to beat last year's time of 32:23, and to not walk other than the water stops.

We got there early and got our bibs and D-tags...we went back to the car to put them on and put the bag with our shirts in it away. After we double checked to make sure we got the right bibs on this time (hahaha) we went back to watch the 1 mile Fun Run. One of my students was running in it and I wanted to cheer him on. We also saw Kendran and Lisa, our friends from Weight Watchers, so we stood with them. I cheered for Sean as he went by and chatted with my friends until the race started.

After the Fun Run finished up we made our way to the start line of the 5K - I found my students that participate in "Girls on the Run", gave them a hug and told them I was proud of them and to have a good race. The gun went off and we were on the run!

I knew that if I could stay pretty close to 9:30 per mile at the beginning, I might be able to break that crazy 30 minute mark...I've already been close in one race this year! BUT I also knew that my legs wouldn't be totally recovered from the Cowtown last week, so I was going to be happy if I could just run the whole thing. I told Rick to run his race and not worry about me on this one!

My first mile felt pretty good - other than the fact that I just couldn't catch my breath like I normally can after the first .25 miles...I struggled with this a lot longer this time. Mile one went by in 9:19...a good time for me! I made it to the first water stop and walked my way through - took back off, but as I watched Garmin I was surprised to find myself going much slower than I felt like I was running. I noticed that I wasn't really stretching out as I ran, so I tried really hard to focus on my stride - it helped a little I think, but mile 2 still took me 10:16 to complete.

Mile 3 of this race is really hard because the last .5 miles of it is uphill! As I came up to the water stop I looked up to the bridge ahead, and sure enough, there was Rick - just like last year - but this year he wasn't walking! I knew I could do as well...I got my water, walked through, and took off again. I kept passing places where last year I walked, and I kept telling myself how good I was doing because I wasn't walking this year! We were still going into a headwind by now, but I don't think it was nearly as strong as the year before! I finished up mile 3 in 10:30 and knew I only had .1 mile to go....I was on the straight-a-way toward the finish line and I hadn't walked! This was a good race, even if I was already at 30:06 for the race.....I kept heading for the finish....crossed the line in 31:40. I had done it...I beat last year's time and I didn't walk!

Rick was there cheering for me as I crossed. I walked over to him and congratulated him on a good race. I was so proud when he told me he had finished in about 28:14. We got some water and bananas and I walked over to check out the official results. His official time was 28:07!!! As I looked at the overall results (they didn't post age groups) It appeared that we had both placed. We decided to stay for the awards and sure enough I took 3rd and he took 2nd! We brought home 2 trophies from this one!!! Not only that, one of the 2nd grade teachers from my school took 3rd in his age group and his brother took 1st overall, and one of my girls took 3rd in her age group! It was a good day for Boyd Elementary runners!!!

Cowtown 1/2

Well, its over and we did it! I wasn't sure how this one was going to go but it was MUCH better than expected.

We got up at about 3:30 and got ready to go. It was COLD outside and while I was making the bed I could hear the wind howling. I told Rick - this isn't going to be pretty! We finished getting dressed, double checked all our gear, and headed to the car. We were on the road by 4:04 AM. We got to Chris and Candy's about 4:45 (a little early, which is on time for us, lol) and went in while Candy got the kids up. The girls elected to sleep in their clothes so that they could get a few more minutes of precious sleep in the morning! We gave them the hats and gloves we had bought for them and headed for the car. By the way, Peyton looked so cute in his new "Superman" attire! After stopping for the traditional coffee (and juice and donuts for the kids) we were on the road to Ft. Worth.

Getting there was MUCH easier this year. In fact Rick was quite surprised when we first pulled up to the parking garage. There really wasn't any traffic to speak of. We all pulled on the coats and hats and bundled Peyton in the stroller with extra blankets and went to find the registration table. Got our bibs and headed to the shirt table to get the shirts, then of course Memaw had to check out the porta potties...did I mention we stopped for coffee in Lewisville, LOL. As soon as everyone was ready we went back to the parking garage to put on our bibs and D-tags. (The D-tags are the newest form of timing chips. They are disposible so there is no big back-up at the finish line waiting for someone to cut off the chip, and directors don't have to pay for those that are lost because someone walked off with it still on their shoe.) We went back to the garage to do this because it was about 40 degrees outside with a windchill in the 20's! It was COLD!

We waited in the garage until about 15 minutes to start time. Chris was running the 10K so his starting area was different from ours for the 1/2 marathon. We were also looking for Granny (Chris's mom) who was going to walk with the girls in the 5K. After another quick stop we tried making our way to the start. Can I say crowded. We got to a certain point - we could hear the speaker telling us there were only minutes to go, but we couldn't move at all. Rick could at least see and tell me what was going on, but I couldn't see anything but people's backs.

The gun went off and.......we waited. It seemed like forever. Then there was movement ahead of us, a parting of the crowd and I could see the people walking to the start in front of us...they were on another street! I was soooo confused. How close were we? Were we past the official start pad that we had to cross? Were we going to have to back-track? I was trying to ask Rick, but he already had his headphones in and couldn't hear me. We finally started moving and I saw that we had been stopped behind a barricade that had been pushed aside. Once we actually got onto the street we were almost at the start line and off we went! It was actually a pretty smooth start for the number of people running. There were over 3700 in the 1/2 marathon.

We took off at a fairly slow pace. I was glad Rick was staying with me at the beginning. We usually get separated pretty quickly. He runs much quicker than I do. I wanted to keep about an 11:00/M pace for this race. I knew if I did that then I would beat my time from the DRC 1/2 in November. Even though we didn't officially set any specific goals for this race this year since our training had been "off", you still ALWAYS want to beat your best time, LOL.

I remember looking down at the Garmin at the 0.6 mile mark and yelling over to Rick, "Only 12.5 miles to go!" There was another runner just to the right of us that groaned, "Don't say that, is that really true?". We were laughing and joking about how we were almost to the finish with only that little distance to go...runners are a fun bunch! He sped up and went around us, but we kept to our pace.

Then next "big" memory for me is just past that point, as we came to the top of that small hill, and crossing of a major intersection. As we topped the hill the wind came blowing right at us. It was hard (gusts of about 30mph) and cold. You could hear the crowd ahead of us gasp as it hit them...we gasped too....it literally took your breath away! We pushed on.

At mile 3 I took my first gu pack. I know I need to take them at about every 3 miles for the majority of the race to keep my muscles from locking up. This is where the Garmin really helps me. (Well, that and keeping my pace fairly steady.) At mile 4 there were people to call out the time...Rick couldn't believe we were only at mile 4! I was finally warming up a little and elected to take off my sweat jacket and tie it around my waist. At mile 6 I reached for my next gu and knew I was in trouble...ALL MY GU WAS GONE! I guess the bouncing around of the jacket tied around my waist knocked it right out of my pockets. Every single packet was gone. I yelled at Rick and told him what had happened (after he pulled his headphones out of his ear) and he offered me his supply of gu.

At mile 7.6 we hit another hill. The bad part of this one was that not only did we hit another hill, but this hill was going straight into the wind! Uphill and into the wind....NOT a good combination! The next vivid memory for me is on up the course about a mile or so when we hit "Hawkeye's Hill". Hawkeye is a local radio disc jockey who was running in the race. At the bottom of the hill there was a sign telling us we were at his hill. At the turn there was another sign...Hawkeye has already been by, but he wishes you the best of luck in the race. Then a final sign, Good luck from the Big 96.3.

I was really feeling pretty good, even as we entered mile 10. The legs felt good, my breathing was good, our pace was good. I was beginning to believe we were going to REALLY beat my best time! Then we came to mile 11.

Mile 11 was just around a turn in the course. Uphill. Into the wind. By now, as you can imagine, with only two miles to go, we were pretty tired anyway. As I bent forward to lean into the wind my back just locked up and started having spasms. It hurt sooooo bad. I looked at Rick and was about to cry because I knew I was going to have to walk up the hill. I wouldn't have been so crushed if we hadn't been having such a great race up to that point. If we had been having problems because our training for this one had been less than for the DRC I think I would have been OK with it. But I felt good! I felt like if it had JUST been the wind, or if it had JUST been a hill I would have been OK.....but the combination of the two, that close to the end of the race was just too much for my poor old back. We walked up the hill and once at the top took off running again. There was only one more hill and I had to walk just a little of it and then it was on to the finish line.

This is always an amazing part of the race for me. There were crowds of people waiting for their friends and family to come by and they were cheering every runner on. As we neared the last turn there was a group yelling out, "You are almost there...this turn and then the straightaway to the finish line. You can DO it!" Then we turned the corner and you could SEE the finish. I was really focused on the fact that we only had .17 miles to go when I heard, "GO CJ, GO RICK, YOU CAN DO IT!" I glanced over to the side of the road and there was Candy and Peyton. She told us she would meet us at the food tents.

Rick and I crossed the finish line together. Yes, he stayed with me the entire race - even though I know at the end it was all he could do not to keep going. I do appreciate that. I know it helps him when he stays with me at the beginning, because I can help him slow down his pace at the start....but he could also pick up the pace for the last couple of miles, and this race I just couldn't do that with him.

We finished with a time of 2:25:39. Close to a minute faster than the DRC. The medals are awsome! The feeling of finishing - even better!!

Twas The Night Before Cowtown

Twas the night before Cowtown and all through the house
Not a creature was ready - not even our mouse.
The stockings were laid out on the dresser with care
In hopes we could find them the next morning to wear.
I wished I were snuggled all warm in my bed,
where visions of medals could dance in my head.
Pepaw in his sweats, and I in my gown
were stilll laying out Nike attire all around!
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
We went running in to see what was the matter.
There was no moon, or new fallen snow
to give a luster to objects below,
But what to our wondering eyes did appear,
But Winston the BIG dog shedding more hair!
It lay on the lawn all fluffy and white,
we looked at each other and said, "That's not right!
Come quickly I said to a tired Pepaw,
We still have to load songs on both the Ipods!
So I loaded my purple and he loaded his black,
and we put them together on top of the stack.
I double checked Garmin to make sure it was charged
then let Winston in from out in the yard.
We were nearly ready with each item in place,
So we tell you now....."Hope it is a GREAT RACE!"

One week to go

We have only one more week to ready ourselves for the Cowtown 1/2 marathon. I don't feel ready this time. We haven't run as far as we did for the DRC 1/2 last November. We have been doing a lot of hill running this time, so I feel a little more prepared if there are hills...I also feel a little faster on the shorter runs. THAT will remain to be seen.

I am excited about the run next Saturday - it will once again be a family affair with Chris, Candy, the grandkids, Cotton, Rick and I all going to the race. Cotton, Chris, Rick and I will all be running and Candy and the kids will hold our gear and enjoy the festivities until after the run. Tradition says we then go out to lunch together.

My goal for this race is to simply finish. As I said above, I don't feel real ready - I know I probably won't be as fast - but I also know I can go the distance!

You'll notice that I added another run after this one. The Allen Eagle 5K. This is to support the Allen Foundation of schools which benefits students and teachers of the school district I teach in. They give scholarships to both students and teachers, as well as grants to teachers to help with the expenses of teaching... A wonderful organization and one that I continue to support! Rick will be running with me too, and my goal in this one is (of course) a sub 30 minute time. It is chip timed this time, so a good possibility for me to be successful and show it!

That's all for now - I'll post again after the race!