1:37:13 a.m. Saturday, Tragedy befalls Ragnar

We were able to purchase a pasta dinner for $6 after our van completed our first legs. They had penne pasta with a choice of marinara or meat sauce, with garlic bread and a side of fruit. The warm pasta and sauce tasted so good.

Then we went back to our hotel to catch a couple hours of sleep. It seemed really bizarre to set our alarm clocks for 11 pm. I knew that I was only getting a couple of hours of sleep, here, so I was very tempted to skip the shower. But I also longed for warm water and a clean feeling. It was too tempting- I took the shower. It was worth it! One of my favorite showers ever!

There were 3 double beds, so we all had a spot. I had assumed that I would be sleeping in a bag on the floor, so I was very happy to slide into clean sheets on a comfortable bed! I didn’t feel like I slept at all- maybe I really did. But just laying there resting and pretending to sleep was helpful.

Once our van got started again, it was quickly my turn. Jen seemed to be done in no time at all, and I was on. We were all decked out in glowy apparel that Bridge brought for us. It was a nice way to be able to spot our runners, and helped with safety. We were all required to be wearing reflective vests during the night, even when we were not the runner on shift. My run started at 1:37 a.m.

This was the run that I had been worried about- being in the middle of the night. But it was turning out to be my favorite run. I was really enjoying the night run. It wasn’t a super dark night, and I liked the way the silhouettes of the trees looked in the dark. It seemed like a peaceful night. And I had my music, which I had forgotten to wear for my first run. And I decided to just run whatever pace felt right- not putting any pressure on myself to run as hard as possible. I was fully enjoying myself, and then realized that I was almost down to only a mile left. I got sad realizing it was almost over. I wondered if I should slow down, to prolong my turn. I knew that the last mile of my run would be down hill, so I decided to run hard the last mile and up my final average for the leg. Just as I was about to start my final mile, I saw a big group of runners on the side of the road.

I thought ‘maybe an animal or person was hurt, but there are plenty of people there to help out. Id be best to keep going and not create any more road congestion. So I just went right around the group and kept going. But then a cop yelled me down. I tried to be cooperative “Where would you like me to be?” He yells “Right by all the other runners here, that would be a great place for you!”

So I stand with all the other runners in the road. After a few minutes I ask “Does anyone know what’s going on?” The guy by me says “Someone got hit.” It was cold and I hadn’t dressed appropriately for standing around. So I found myself a bum spot leaning against a cop car. I talked to the guy by me who said he’d been there for at least 20 minutes already. He said that he was one of the first 5 to be stopped. I think we probably stayed there for at least 40 minutes. Then we were told to go back to our van, and then skip to leg 24. We were told to carpool over if we couldn’t find our van. I was thinking that my van might have gotten ahead of the accident, and that I probably wouldn’t find them. I walked back along the highway probably a mile. I was looking for a friendly girl van to get in with. I didn’t want to get in with a van full of guys, which was what I kept seeing. I was getting nervous and wondering how much further Id have to walk. A guy caught up with me and started talking to me. He didn’t think he’d find his van either. I was sooooo happy when Bridge and Justine appeared in front of me. They had my jacket and put their arm around my shoulder, leading me back to the van. They were very concerned about me, and it made me feel good that they were so nurturing. Once our van started driving the other direction, I started worrying about the guy Id been walking by. Then I saw him walking and told our girls to offer him a ride. He glady took the ride and stayed with us until we got to leg 24. We started asking him all kinds of “get to know you” questions, which was a nice distraction from the sadness of the runner who had been hit. I thought Rich was a nice distraction from the situation, but having a guy in the van did stop me from changing out of my cold wet clothes. Luckily I had a cozy blanket with me. But I decided that all girl vans are betterJ

We kept waiting for more instruction, and were finally told that we could pick whether van one or van two would continue the race at leg 24. We were cutting out 4 legs of the race. We let van two proceed with their pre-assigned legs, and it was 4 of our van girls who lost their middle run.

I was very sad for our van one girls. I was visualizing them having just gotten to the hotel, taken a warm shower, and climbed into bed. Then us calling and telling them to get up and drive to leg 24. If we had known sooner what was going to happen, we could’ve run the first few of their legs. But we didn’t know what would happen.

The tragedy made it feel like all the rules were kind of out the window, and I wondered if it was even appropriate to finish the race. Some teams did leave- or at least their van one’s went home. After this I felt very concerned for the hurt runner, and also more paranoid about my own safety for my last run.

Next entry:
1:49:58 p.m. Saturday- The conclusion

1:49:58 friday, 1st leg

Van 1: Cynthia, Bryn, Karen, Sharon, Sarah, Lisa
Van 2: Jen, Me, Justine, Sarah, Bridge, Beth

Our van supported Karen along much of her first run. She was runner 3. She was killing some really big hills. It was fun to see her fly up those hills. She was unstoppable. I ran over and tried to see if she needed a gu or anything- all she needed was to give me her "bling" ring to carry. I tried to run with her for a few minutes, but she was going toooooo fast, and blew me off- good girl Karen! We drove slowly at one point so we could see her pass "Rainbow Bright".

I was runner 8. The second in my van. My first leg was 5.5 miles. It was rolling hills. I felt pressure to start things fast. I had estimated my time to be 8 minute miles, and didnt want to disappoint the team by putting us behind estimated schedule. I considered this a "short run" and knew I wouldnt have time to up my average late in the run. So I started out fast and just kept charging the hills. There were about 5 big hills. About half way through it I felt warmed up enough to start enjoying it. At the end I felt like my face was totally flush. I felt really hot for a long time afterwards. Bridge said that I wasnt all red, but I think she was just being nice.

We quickly realized that some of the other teams were checking us out- considering us competition. We walked past the "gingerbread girls" while they were talking about us "they have those sparkles on the back of their shirts, and those sparkly ribbons in their hair- watch out for them and dont let them pass you!" Bridge called them out- she turned around "hey, are you guys talking about US???" They looked a little awkward about getting caught.

We kept seeing "the Brides" and Beth's friend's team "Los Dos Chicos", I think was their name.

We saw one guy sitting with his naked bum over the curb, bum facing the road, pants around his ankles, reading a paper- for a long time! And it was really cold outside! His team was called something like "Dont take no crap"....something like that.

Everyone was pretty nice- other teams would drive past and give you a cheer. But there was a little spirit of competition in the air too.

Our van stopped at this quaint little old-fashioned convenience store (think Little House on the Prairie General Store) to change into running clothes. Jen was the first runner from our van.

I just realized Im kind of typing this all out of order. Ill be more coherent with my next entry:)

Stay tuned for my 2nd leg entitled "1:37:13 a.m. Saturday, and tragedy befalls Ragnar"...

Edge of My Seat

You guys are holding out on me! I want to hear some Ragnar stories and see some pictures. How was it? I've read some accounts of the race from other runners but none from our blog. Do tell. Please. I'm on the edge of my seat.

Highlights of Ragnarly Training

Ive been meaning to blog some of the fun running experiences Ive had lately, but been so tired by the end of the day...Im tired right now and this might not come out in an orderly fashion, but Im just going to give some information on recent training...

*February 11th was a thursday, but we chose this night to carry out our long run for the week. I had signed up for an all-day resistance workshop, on the following saturday, to get my cec's. And Cynthia got volunteered to do a Ragnar fund-raising garage sale on the saturday.

Sharon needed 13 miles on her training plan. Karen and I only needed 12, on our plan, but wanted to go the distance with Sharon. We wanted to make sure that she ran 13.1, because this was her first time doing the half marathon distance. We had to pass by our vehicles to get less than a half mile more. It was fun to experience this break-through moment with her. I love running friends because they give you the chance to live through these experiences over and over again. I love marathon training with first time marathoners, because I remember how exciting it was when every run was the longest one ever. I remember wondering if Id be able to accomplish that next longer distance.

There were several things noteworthy for me regarding the 11th.
-Sharon's first half marathon distance run.
-Possibly my first double run in a day. I dont really remember doing a double day before.
-My first long run at night.
-A fun turn-out! Me, Karen, Sharon, Cynthia, Sarah, and Lisa. Our gas station potty break took a long time (single stall), but it was worth having so many fun running friends show up.

I hadnt planned on it being a double-day. I had been looking forward to sleeping in thursday morning. But Karen said "We are still going to run in the morning, arent we?"

*February 18th I did my usual run in the early a.m. with Karen, and then realized that there wasnt anything I really HAD to do during Kelly's preschool. Id been wondering about one of the cut-through roads we hadnt tried at Las Sendas. Cynthia and Lisa were quick to agree to a spontaneous mid-week field-trip with me to Las Sendas. Missy came with us to ride in the running stroller. She was a pleasant addition to our running group- happily enjoying the outdoors and the great weather. Cynthia and Lisa kept joking about throwing rocks in my stroller to make it harder on me. They didnt really put rocks in- just full bottles of water they didnt drink the whole run:) Im totally okay with toting water for friends who are willing to drop everything and run with me!!! On the way back home to get our kids from pre-school, we stopped at the Quicktrip for a 32 oz. icy cold diet coke. I must say that in a perfect world everyday would start out with 2 runs and a Quicktrip!

*February 20th, Saturday, we planned to hit Las Sendas again. We cant get enough *heel work right now! Bridge sent out the message to all the girls, and we planned for anyone on the Ragnar team to show up for the last 6 miles- anyone who could make it. Karen and I left home at 5 am, planning to get 19 miles. Cynthia and Sharon left at 5:40, because Sharon needed 15 and Cynthia was willing to do 15 for the fun of it. And Lisa left at 6:20. For the last 6 miles we met up with Bridge, Justine, and Beth. This was our first time meeting Beth, who is part of our Ragnar team.
I get a little thrill from the preparation and anticipation of a run such as this. Having to think about where we will be at certain points so that people can meet up for their various desired distances. Cynthia came up with a better 6 mile route than mine for the finish, so we used hers. But I had fun all week thinking about the route and how it might play out. Everything went well. We were a couple of minutes behind schedule in meeting people- this was because of a few minutes late leaving home and a few minutes spent buckling on waist-packs, etc, at the car. But my pre-planning was for us to do 10:38 avg- which would include bathroom and water stops. The final avg. on my watch was 10:40, so I was happy with the way it played out.

*heel=hill. Cynthia just told me tonight that for some time now her and Lisa have been trying to get me to say hill as much as possible because apparently I pronounce it like heel. Lol. I can handle that being the joke on me. There could be worse things!

Arizona has been great weather lately for running. the kind of days where you can wear a light jacket in the early morning, and may even end up tying it around your waist. The kind of days where you can wear shorts for late morning runs. I love this time of year!

Ragnarly training, coupled with marathon training, has produced higher weekly numbers on my calendar than what Ive ever logged before. And it feels great!!!

Speedwork

Since the St. George Marathon I haven't had much to say on this blog. I was sort of training for a half marathon - but backed out of it. So now I've been sort of training for the Ragnar relay but just realized the other day that it's only a month away! I've also realized that I have a couple of hard legs so I better get moving and do something besides my two easy runs during the week and a long run on Saturday.

Lisa and I went to the Islands track and did speedwork today. We did 6 X 800's at goal 5k pace with a two minute jog between. It's funny how the third interval was the hardest. I'm pretty sure I'll be sore tomorrow but it was really nice to change things up. Do you all do speedwork? How often and what?

Have a great week!

Chang's Half Marathon 2010

I AM fast!!!

So my race mantra came from the expo Friday. I walked in with 2 key members of Islands running group, there to support me. We went over to get my bib, and were directed to corral 2- out of 20 something corrals for the half marathon. I panicked for a moment ‘should I be here?”

My girlfriends encouraged me “You ARE fast, Lindy!!!” Don’t worry….you ARE fast…just keep saying it! So I did!!! I told myself that several times during the race, and it certainly helped my pace.

It was such a beautiful day! I couldn’t stop smiling. I seriously had a huge grin on my face for the entire race. I just kept thinking nice thoughts…about how many nice fun people are in my life. Stuff like that…

It was fun to find out that Deena Castor and Ryan Hall were running the very same race! I didn’t see them, but they were in close proximity to me! Until the gun went off…and then although I was fast, Deena was much faster! (Under 1:10!) There were also other big name runners in Phoenix today- ultra runners Dean Karnazes, and Josh Cox. Go PF Chang’s!

Senator McCain talked to us before the gun went off. He was on a big ladder above us, and then he waved us on our way.

I had my latest cycle mix to listen to. I was rocking out to the likes of Miley Cyrus and Jonas Brothers. Not my usual genre/decade. But it was great! Made me feel young and strong! When Miley said “so hard with my girls not around me” I thought about my little girls back home (with Lisa) and also my running girlfriends who weren’t with me today. I missed (you all) and want to drag you to this one with me next year!

Im out of chronological order here- but I have to mention that I got to the race in plenty of time, like over an hour, and I was greatful for it. Potty line takes so long! I like not feeling too rushed right before the gun goes off.

Im including a picture of my girls here in the blog, so you can see how beautiful they look when Lisa gets them ready for church. Thankyou Lisa!

The race is a gradual up hill. Noticeably so at mile 8.5 to the end. But after recently running St George, these hills are like eating pie! As Noah would put itJ

After I was half way done, I felt like Id be able to keep my groove and get my goal. When I had only 3 miles left, I increased my speed some. The closer I got to the finish line after that, the faster I ran. The very last stretch was a full sprint.

After I finished I texted Noah to find out where he was. He said darn he just barely missed me by about 3 minutes. But it was fun to have him there. PF Chang’s let him in the tent with me. They handed out bracelets at the expo to grant free access to a special tent. In the tent they gave us free lettuce wraps and chocolate cake and diet coke. I felt like a VIP. PF Chang’s are very cool sponsers for this race.

I wore my “Boston 2 Big Sur” training shirt to run today. At one point during the race a gentleman started talking to me- I pulled out my earphones and he said that this race was lacking in scenery, but that we’d get all the great scenery at Big Sur. He is also planning to run Big Sur. I talked to him for a few minutes and then we parted ways.

Despite the lack of beautiful scenery, I really love the PF Chang’s Rock n Roll Marathon/Half Marathon. Great weather, blue skys, fast roads, and superb organization. The crowds are kind and cheerful. There is a festive spirit in the air. Lots of cute cheer squads cheering you along the way. Fun local bands. Lots of great volunteers. Plenty of buses to take drop bags- there were 3 different ones just for last name’s starting with M. And it took them 2 seconds to find my bag when I came to retrieve it! I just think the whole race staff outdid themselves this year- even more so than last year. The finish line was fast to get through- before you knew it they had taken your picture and given you 2 armfuls of snacks…what else can I say? Even admission to a concert – Everclear- a little later. I didn’t stick around for the concert- but hear it was great. It is a fairly expensive race to register for, so register early for next year to get the best deal! The final price for the half was $145 at the expo. But the sooner you register, the cheaper it is.

As Noah and I were walking back to the car, we got a text from PF Chang’s giving us the split that Bridge had passed mile 20. Her time was great and I was very happy to hear that she was doing so well. I told Noah, though, oh poor Bridge, she just got to the hard part! And I sent a small prayer her way…Ill leave Bridge’s details though for her to blog about!

Such a great day. The adrenaline of the race has not left me yet. Thankyou for kind emails, texts, and calls from friends today! They mean allot!

PF Chang's this weekend!

Just wanted to mention that Bridge is running her first marathon this weekend- Go Bridge!!! So we all need to think about her and pray for her sunday morning, and while you are at it, say a little prayer for me too!

I will be running the PF Chang's half marathon. Im really hoping for a PR this time around- my fastest 1/2 was my split at PF Chang's whole marathon last year. 1:47. And I really want to get 1:45 this time. Its a stretch for me, so lets hope the stars are aligned!

I wanted to state my goal, for the record, because I was so impressed with Kara Goucher for boldly stating that she wanted to "Win Boston!" last april. She didnt, but I was very impressed with her for having a lofty goal, working hard, and almost accomplishing it.

Ill let you know what happens!

And Bridge, Im going to be on pins and needles until I hear from you Sunday! Im SOOO excited for you! If I were to give you any advice or anything- just know that there is a little up hill toward the end. It isnt steep, but it is close to the end when you are tired. So just plan for it:)

Until next week...