Ragnar Las Vegas in October

Since Cynthia just asked about signing up for a relay together I wanted to let you all know that I'm pretty sure I'm going to register and captain a team for Las Vegas Ragnar. I'm just too pumped up after L.A. that I just can't wait until next February for Del Sol (don't worry Lindy, I'm still down for Del Sol too!). Las Vegas is October 9th and 10th, so I know that is likely way too soon after St. George for those of you doing that if you win in the lottery. But I'm putting it out there...for those of you not signed up for St. George and if it so happens that the team is not selected in the lottery :(.

Not many details on the Ragnar site yet, but it is from from Valley of Fire, NV to Las Vegas, NV. A nice in between meeting point for the Utah girls and the AZ girls to meet up. I was just going to find a team to tag on to, but I really think we can get enough people together ourselves that would want to do it and form our own team.

Let me know if you are interested in being on the team. Just an up front notification - Ragnar gets expensive with van rentals, gas, uniforms, etc. Registration is $85-95 per person plus we will need anywhere from $30-100ish a person additional to cover expenses plus travel costs driving up or flying. That number all depends on our planning and how much fundraising we can do. Do we rent vans in AZ or UT and drive over? Do we individually make flight plans? When/where do we need to get hotel rooms? Etc. Lots of planning yet to do, but we have plenty of time to do fundraising and it is quite possible to raise ALL of the funds we need other than registration.

We can wait to see what is posted May 11th for St. George. Still crossing my fingers for all of you that are signed up for that! And hey, you can always be crazy and do both if you think you could handle it (no pressure during Ragnar if you want to be there for the fun and take it easy on the runs). Hard to say just yet how hard or easy the LV course will be since they don't have the route or elevation posted. Someone is always there to help you out on your legs if you can't make it through or just need a friend with you along the way!

Keep it in mind and comment back if you think it's a possibility for you. :)

Chasin' Cheeks

Ragnar Relay Los Angeles - My first leg (leg 10) coming from the Oxnard area and then down to finish out the 5 1/2 mile leg along Pacific Coast Highway.

This was my first leg and I was ready to go! I was runner number 10 and had been waiting to run since our team start at 8:00am. By now it was around 4:00pm. I took off fast after Brandi slapped the bracelet on me at the exchange. This run actually took me a little bit inland through farmland then back out to the coast. In the first couple of miles I encountered several tractors stopping for me to pass which was kind of funny. I was singing the theme song to Green Acres in my mind (and even a little out loud) for a few minutes during the run. Nice day, perfect weather, but wow...coastal winds can be killer! Something to keep in mind - running against high winds and additional gusts from passing cars on a highway gets to be a little frustrating, so plan your pace accordingly. ;)

At about mile 4 the team stopped to check on me and I let them know I was fine - see ya at the end! Then they pulled ahead after a few minutes and stopped again. I was thinking, why on Earth are they stopping again? Did they think I would walk the rest of the way if they weren't supervising?? LOL Then I see they have the camera out...ok, just taking some pictures of me, cool. Just then I'm passed on my right by another runner and all I see is CHEEKS!!!! I literally gasped! When I realized that the team was there to take the pictures I went running at full speed trying to catch him with my palm open ready for the smack! I knew he was running way to fast for me to catch, but it made for some great pictures! To see what I was chasing click here! Wasn't sure if the backside was quite appropriate to post to the blog, but it's out there if you want to see it! I included the picture of my initial reaction - priceless!!! There are more pics of Cheeks' warm up here. Quite funny, but I will remind you probably not safe to be opening at work. :) My Garmin top speed for that mile was 9.5mph (6:18min/mi) - Cheeks was FAST!

Shortly after that he was long gone and I had just a little over a mile left. I continued running into the wind until my pass off to Pete along the coastline a few miles north of Mugu Rock. I felt great after the run and was excited for the roads ahead! I did this leg in about 58 min - a 10:37 pace against the wind which I was happy with!

More general race pictures can also be seen on Pete's site, Mikey's site, and my site if you want to browse the fun! More to come later, but I must say that this leg was the highlight of the race for me! Too hilarious!

1st "New" PT Session & 10K Race Pace Determined

Today was my first PT session with this new organization called Endurance Rehabilitation, recommended to me by "THEE Running Guy" or the "Beaver".

I was treated by a PT with the name of Katie Dovico.

She did a very thorough examination.

The achilles tendon that has given me so much grief is on my left leg.

She determined that my left hip has hypermobility and that could be part of the problem.

My arches are very high and rigid, not collapsing at all, also could be part of the problem.

The length of my legs are only about 1/2 cm difference, not much really, good to know because I've wondered if that was the problem.

My injury fits the definition of tendonosis, due to the length that the issue has been going on.

I was a candidate for the "scraping" procedure.

There is a more official title but I can't think of it.

What this entails is three very hard plastic objects, one with a flat edge, one with a rounded edge and one with a more sharply pointed edge known as the "isolator."

These were scraped over my calf, around my ankle and on the sole of my foot.

The theory is that there is scar tissue that needs to be broken up so that it can heal properly.  So it is a type of re-injury.

Yes, it was painful.  I did some teeth gritting.  No screaming though.  And it was rather quick.  3 strokes up, 3 strokes down and then on to the next tool.

She said when she does it she can feel if there is scar tissue because the tool has a bumpy ride over the skin instead of a smooth one.  She said she felt a lot on my calf and heel.

I felt immediate increased mobility in my ankle after the procedure.  It has felt for a long time like something is binding it up.  I guess it was scar tissue.

I have another appt tomorrow and am looking forward to it.

I ran my 40 min. training session in the hot afternoon after my appt. in my new shoes.

Katie also mentioned that I might need some more arch support than my shoes have.

The run felt good.  Felt like I could push off on my left heel without something threatening to tear, like it has in the past.

I timed myself for a 5K and my time was 38:56.  I plugged that into the Runner's World tool and came up with the time of 1:21:05 to shoot for for the 10K, which is 13 minute miles.

So now I know my goal, yeah!

Missed a workout

Last Saturday, I skipped my training session.

I guess it was a combination of...

-going to bed too late (2:30am- because my husband was gone to Father's & Son's Outing, I was helping Taylor get ready for his Day Date for Prom and I was winding down from watching my mother-in-law who has Alzheimer's)

-no one to watch Emily while I went (Taylor was on his Day Date and the rest to Father's & Sons)

-an achey achilles tendon and achey shin on the other leg

-mad that the training program didn't keep me from these injuries (I thought if I cautiously followed it and didn't over do it, I would be able to avoid problems) 

-decided missing 2 sessions out of a 13 week program would be OK ( since it wasn't faithful to me, I didn't have to be faithful to it- how silly is that!)

But I did walk a 1/2 mile to and from the church to donate blood!

That's as good as a workout right!  Ha!

Congratulations to Marcie!

Okay, this blog entry is just because I think we all need to be excited about Marcie's new Garmin. I kept waiting for her to bring it up herself, but since she hasnt- we need to all recognize that she has joined the Garmin club. Yay Marcie! May your watch bring you continual knowledge and speed! (o:

I cant not be excited about people's new running shoes, garmins, any other cool running gear!

Ragnar L.A.!

Hi ladies! Just a quick post to let you know I survived and feel surprisingly good! The weather was great, beaches were beautiful and my team was a group of GREAT people! I tried to real time blog while I was out there but for some reason my phone wouldn't support it and I couldn't download an app that would do it. I will be posting a series of blogs this week to describe each of my legs and some other details of the race. I want you guys to take them in chunks because I know you'll want to make some comments...especially on my first one which I've already named Chasin' Cheeks (I know, the anticipation is killing you now!).

We came in 2nd to last which was a surprise to us. We planned on being dead last. If you have read the blog about my team you will understand why. We had many walkers on our team. We only came in before the solo team (yep - one guy that ran the whole thing!). 30:18:07 was our time. We did, however, win Best Team Name! S.W.A.T.T. - Sprinters, Walkers and Trash Talkers. I think I did a little of all three but they officially qualified me as a Sprinter which I have to laugh about when I think the best pace I had was 10:37 for my first leg. Details and stats to come later, but wanted to tell you all that I had a blast and we're already signed up for LA next year!!

Speed Racer

I haven't written about my running in some time as it's not very exciting. I go around and around the nearby park every morning. I rarely see anyone. On Fridays and Saturdays I go later because my husband doesn't have to work those days. Today I started out about 45 minutes to an hour later than usual. I also headed away from the park for a longer run. I didn't see any other runners until I was about 3/4 done with my run. I was seriously into my book, not paying much attention when a man raced past me. My only thought was that he was complete marathon material. I could see every muscle in his legs flex at each step. His quick stride was so natural and effortless. And his speed! I noticed my silly little shuffle in the shop windows and almost giggled at my reflection. No one would think me marathon material if they saw me running. Ah, well, at least my knees are not sore after the hills today!

Can't wait to hear about the L.A. Ragnar!