Its not a big deal. I dont feel that Im totally sick. I just have extra bad allergys, or a head cold on top of allergys. But I did feel pretty gross last night and this morning. Noah said "youll have a bad day today if you run and wear yourself out..." So I almost cancelled. But then I thought...Ill DEFINITELY have a bad day if I dont get my saturday run.
I went, and enjoyed it. Im glad I went. Maybe I will pay for it in the long run...who ever knows if running makes your sick recovery process slower? But if I feel miserable all day, I know I enjoyed my run outside this morning.
Anyway, just made me think about how much I look forward, all week, to that longer saturday run.
It was a fun group this morning...Cynthia, Lisa, Karen, Sarah, and Meghan. The Saturday's Warriors!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
There Was This Race Like a Month Ago ...
I can't believe it has taken me so long to write about St. George! You would think my shirt would have arrived in the mail by now ... Did you get yours yet, Lindy?
All month I've been thinking about the race and what I could write about it. It was really, really fun to meet everyone there. It definitely made it more exciting. I can't imagine standing in that line for the toilet without someone to talk to. :)
Friday -- All day I was mostly worried about what to or not to eat. I took Lindy's advice to eat lots of carbs and fiber on Thursday. Friday I was more concerned about drinking enough and eating protein ... and much, much less fiber. (I've been known to have issues with fiber and racing.) So, unlike me, I ate hamburgers and eggs and ice cream and pasta-minus-the-sauce and skipped the Fig Newtons and the oh-so-tasty-looking spinach salad for dinner. And I drank and drank and drank tons of water all day long. As for rest, I think my six hours of sleep were more than any one else was able to get.
Saturday Morning Pre-Race -- I was very, very grateful to Lindy, Cynthia, Lisa, and especially Lisa's husband for picking me up so my husband did not have to wake the kids at 4:30 to take me to the buses. I was also very grateful for the advice to layer clothing, especially with clothing I wasn't afraid to toss. Since we had quite a wait to start, I dared eat a bagel (did I eat two??) and a banana. The ride up chatting with Marcie didn't seem twice as long as the ride up for the Hobble Creek Half. Once we arrived I was surprised by the noise (who expects lots of loud music at 5:00 a.m.?), number of people, and cold. I was very relieved to reach the potty and completely empty my insides before the race started and thankful to Marcie for bringing extra toilet paper. It was nice to have Lisa and Cynthia to wait with for the five (if that many?) minutes after Marcie and Lindy took off. I just thought of how fun it was for them to train for this together and finally be there to run it together.
And we were off -- Right out of the gates, I flipped on my shuffle and accidentally set it to shuffle. As I had a book to listen to, I wasn't excited to have chapters mixed up. As soon as I realized it was mixing things up, I turned it off and then on again to play normally. It was mid-book! I actually stopped running to figure it out. As it is relatively new, I had no idea how to reset things. So, I figured I'd just listen to whatever came up. I had already read New Moon (um ... twice) and knew I wouldn't be lost, just slightly annoyed, if things were mixed up. It turned out that I had skipped a whole lot of the book, but it actually started playing at the most exciting part (when Alice and Bella are on their way to Italy). The rest played in perfect order. Phew! All of that before mile one! No wonder that first mile came up so quickly. And actually, the first three miles were over before I realized it.
I wish I had written sooner. The miles have blurred in my mind. I do remember being totally stoked to have someone playing the Rocky theme song from the back of a pickup truck. That was prior to stopping to apply band-aids on both feet. And that was just before the hill at mile eight. I really liked that hill, the up part. I also liked the polka band and the signs. Even though the signs were not for me, I still found them motivating. My favorite (if I remember it correctly) was, "That's not sweat, it's your fat cells crying."
I wasn't too worried about when to refuel or drink. I just drank when I felt thristy. I plodded on through the water stations until I felt my energy slacken and then I grabbed a gatorade. Near the end when my water was running low I did refill one bottle. A friend of mine had given me some Gatorade jelly beans for the race. I loved having them along! They were great to suck on and gave me a slight boost. I also packed some fruit snacks which I munched every few miles. I only needed one Honey Stinger - right about mile 13. With such little intake, there was no need to stop in line at any of the pit stops.
Other than stopping to put on more band-aids around mile 17, nothing very eventful happened until that wretched downhill at mile 20. It was not as painful for me as for others of you, but my knees were screaming as I headed down. Perfectly, the book had ended and my music started up. Yay for upbeat music when it was most needed!!! From that point on, I knew I would finish the race running. Every time I thought about finishing and seeing my family I teared up. I thought how silly that was since I hadn't overcome anything huge to make it. I hadn't fought a battle with cancer. I was not running to raise money for any great cause. But I was touched by thoughts of a supporting husband who did sacrifice during my training. I thought of my kids who would get a better-rested (and therefore less grumpy) mom back. I thought of all the 4:00 and 4:30 a.m. mornings I wouldn't have to run anymore and felt such relief that it had all paid off. In fact, any time during the run when I felt a little bit tired, I just thought, "This is it, Hannah. This is what you have worked MONTHS for. You can do this just this one time." And I knew I could.
It was tempting to speed up, but I didn't dare. I wanted to finish strong and was afraid of hitting a wall if I went too fast. In my huge history of races, I've never been able to see the finish line from a distance and therefore have not been able to "sprint" to the finish. I wasn't even totally sure all the balloons were the finish when I first saw them. I was elated when I figured out they were. I felt like a million dollars as I raced down that stretch. My husband and kids were cheering for me and I was able to cross the finish line grinning. It was perfect, even with the slowest time of our group (5:01:30). Who knows if I'll ever run another marathon. Do I really want to mess with such a fantastic memory? I loved this experience. Thanks so much to you women who motivated me to attempt it and to finish it. You are so strong. I, like you, do indeed love to run.
All month I've been thinking about the race and what I could write about it. It was really, really fun to meet everyone there. It definitely made it more exciting. I can't imagine standing in that line for the toilet without someone to talk to. :)
Friday -- All day I was mostly worried about what to or not to eat. I took Lindy's advice to eat lots of carbs and fiber on Thursday. Friday I was more concerned about drinking enough and eating protein ... and much, much less fiber. (I've been known to have issues with fiber and racing.) So, unlike me, I ate hamburgers and eggs and ice cream and pasta-minus-the-sauce and skipped the Fig Newtons and the oh-so-tasty-looking spinach salad for dinner. And I drank and drank and drank tons of water all day long. As for rest, I think my six hours of sleep were more than any one else was able to get.
Saturday Morning Pre-Race -- I was very, very grateful to Lindy, Cynthia, Lisa, and especially Lisa's husband for picking me up so my husband did not have to wake the kids at 4:30 to take me to the buses. I was also very grateful for the advice to layer clothing, especially with clothing I wasn't afraid to toss. Since we had quite a wait to start, I dared eat a bagel (did I eat two??) and a banana. The ride up chatting with Marcie didn't seem twice as long as the ride up for the Hobble Creek Half. Once we arrived I was surprised by the noise (who expects lots of loud music at 5:00 a.m.?), number of people, and cold. I was very relieved to reach the potty and completely empty my insides before the race started and thankful to Marcie for bringing extra toilet paper. It was nice to have Lisa and Cynthia to wait with for the five (if that many?) minutes after Marcie and Lindy took off. I just thought of how fun it was for them to train for this together and finally be there to run it together.
And we were off -- Right out of the gates, I flipped on my shuffle and accidentally set it to shuffle. As I had a book to listen to, I wasn't excited to have chapters mixed up. As soon as I realized it was mixing things up, I turned it off and then on again to play normally. It was mid-book! I actually stopped running to figure it out. As it is relatively new, I had no idea how to reset things. So, I figured I'd just listen to whatever came up. I had already read New Moon (um ... twice) and knew I wouldn't be lost, just slightly annoyed, if things were mixed up. It turned out that I had skipped a whole lot of the book, but it actually started playing at the most exciting part (when Alice and Bella are on their way to Italy). The rest played in perfect order. Phew! All of that before mile one! No wonder that first mile came up so quickly. And actually, the first three miles were over before I realized it.
I wish I had written sooner. The miles have blurred in my mind. I do remember being totally stoked to have someone playing the Rocky theme song from the back of a pickup truck. That was prior to stopping to apply band-aids on both feet. And that was just before the hill at mile eight. I really liked that hill, the up part. I also liked the polka band and the signs. Even though the signs were not for me, I still found them motivating. My favorite (if I remember it correctly) was, "That's not sweat, it's your fat cells crying."
I wasn't too worried about when to refuel or drink. I just drank when I felt thristy. I plodded on through the water stations until I felt my energy slacken and then I grabbed a gatorade. Near the end when my water was running low I did refill one bottle. A friend of mine had given me some Gatorade jelly beans for the race. I loved having them along! They were great to suck on and gave me a slight boost. I also packed some fruit snacks which I munched every few miles. I only needed one Honey Stinger - right about mile 13. With such little intake, there was no need to stop in line at any of the pit stops.
Other than stopping to put on more band-aids around mile 17, nothing very eventful happened until that wretched downhill at mile 20. It was not as painful for me as for others of you, but my knees were screaming as I headed down. Perfectly, the book had ended and my music started up. Yay for upbeat music when it was most needed!!! From that point on, I knew I would finish the race running. Every time I thought about finishing and seeing my family I teared up. I thought how silly that was since I hadn't overcome anything huge to make it. I hadn't fought a battle with cancer. I was not running to raise money for any great cause. But I was touched by thoughts of a supporting husband who did sacrifice during my training. I thought of my kids who would get a better-rested (and therefore less grumpy) mom back. I thought of all the 4:00 and 4:30 a.m. mornings I wouldn't have to run anymore and felt such relief that it had all paid off. In fact, any time during the run when I felt a little bit tired, I just thought, "This is it, Hannah. This is what you have worked MONTHS for. You can do this just this one time." And I knew I could.
It was tempting to speed up, but I didn't dare. I wanted to finish strong and was afraid of hitting a wall if I went too fast. In my huge history of races, I've never been able to see the finish line from a distance and therefore have not been able to "sprint" to the finish. I wasn't even totally sure all the balloons were the finish when I first saw them. I was elated when I figured out they were. I felt like a million dollars as I raced down that stretch. My husband and kids were cheering for me and I was able to cross the finish line grinning. It was perfect, even with the slowest time of our group (5:01:30). Who knows if I'll ever run another marathon. Do I really want to mess with such a fantastic memory? I loved this experience. Thanks so much to you women who motivated me to attempt it and to finish it. You are so strong. I, like you, do indeed love to run.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Still Time to Join the Ragnar Relay Team!
Hi ladies! Just a reminder that there are still open spots for our Ragnar Del Sol team. We need 3 more girls for the team. It's going to be amazing fun so let us know if you or someone you know would be interested!
From the blog we already have Lindy, Bronwyn, Cynthia, Karen, Karen's friend Bryn and myself on the team - we're hoping for a few more of you or your friends!
February 26-27, 2010 - 202.1 miles from Prescott to Mesa, 12 runners, 3 legs each, around 3 to 8 miles each leg over about 24-30 hours. AMAZING FUN!
Details here: http://www.ragnarrelay.com/delsol/index.php
Registration is $85 which we are hoping for by the end of October (or in payments starting as soon as possible). In February we will have additional fees for vans, gas, etc but we are trying to keep those to a minimum at around $40 depending on the amount of money we raise to offset the cost. We hope to have 12 runners for the team by the end of the month, so please email me at bridge.hokinson@gmail.com or comment on this blog if you or someone you know might be interested.
From the blog we already have Lindy, Bronwyn, Cynthia, Karen, Karen's friend Bryn and myself on the team - we're hoping for a few more of you or your friends!
February 26-27, 2010 - 202.1 miles from Prescott to Mesa, 12 runners, 3 legs each, around 3 to 8 miles each leg over about 24-30 hours. AMAZING FUN!
Details here: http://www.ragnarrelay.com/delsol/index.php
Registration is $85 which we are hoping for by the end of October (or in payments starting as soon as possible). In February we will have additional fees for vans, gas, etc but we are trying to keep those to a minimum at around $40 depending on the amount of money we raise to offset the cost. We hope to have 12 runners for the team by the end of the month, so please email me at bridge.hokinson@gmail.com or comment on this blog if you or someone you know might be interested.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Ragnar Del Sol Team Name Ideas?
Hi ladies! Ragnar Las Vegas was a great time! I will have stories posted soon. But first…we need a team name for Ragnar Del Sol so I can register us this week. Best team name in Vegas was Scrambled Legs and Achin’. :) Looking for some creative ideas by this Thursday – hoping that we will keep this as an all girls team so that might play into the name. If we don’t decide on a name we can just put To Be Decided and update it later. Here are a bunch of examples of last year AZ teams, but let’s be original:
2009 Team Names
Even if you can’t join the team with us please make some suggestions if you think of something! Thanks, girls!
2009 Team Names
Even if you can’t join the team with us please make some suggestions if you think of something! Thanks, girls!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Go Bridge!
Hey Bridge,
Goodluck with your Ragnar this weekend! I hope it is super fun with lots of good stories to tell afterwards! Ill be thinking of you friday and saturday! It'll be great!
Goodluck with your Ragnar this weekend! I hope it is super fun with lots of good stories to tell afterwards! Ill be thinking of you friday and saturday! It'll be great!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
We Did It!
I have to agree with the others, it was a great race. I was pretty far off my finishing goal, but I didn't care at all. I had a great time with friends, I felt like I ran strong and steady, and I never hit "the wall", and the best part was finishing with Lisa to the sound of our families cheering us on.
I was VERY nervous the night before. I was fine through dinner, I enjoyed meeting Marcie and Hannah and their families. I got several texts and messages from friends and family wishing me luck, I was touched that they were thinking of me. After the dinner clean up we all called it a night before 10pm. I think I laid in bed till nearly 2:00am before finally dozing off with the alarm waking me just two hours later.
At the start Lisa and I enjoyed a cup of hot cocoa, I thought that was a perfect pre-race treat. We tossed our bags in the truck as the race started and then we headed back to the fires for a final warming before starting the race about six minutes after the clock started. I felt good for the first little while but I was worried about going too quick at the beginning. I know my body likes to hold steady, where Lisa likes to change her pace a lot more. So we would get separated as she flew down the hills, then I would catch her on the flats. We were mostly together for the first 13 miles.
Around mile 9 I knew I needed to stop at a porto-potty. I kept seeing them and they would have long lines so I would go to the next one. At mile 13 I finally stopped and sent Lisa on her way. I stood in line and stretched while 7 MINUTES ticked away on my watch. I was frustrated, but once I stopped I knew it would be stupid to start back up as there would probably be another line at the next one so I just enjoyed visiting with the others in line. Once I started again I was running strong and decided I didn't care that I was clearly not going to make my time. My new goal was just to catch Lisa.
It was a HUGE BOOST to see my family at mile 16. Brianna and Madelyn were at the front of the crowd and saw me and ran back to tell the others I was on my way. They were all cheering for me when I got up to them and Lyndsee had her signs she had made for me. I took a swig of the cold chocolate milk they had for me, found out that Lisa was probably still 5 -7 minutes in front of me and ran on. It was awesome to see them and I felt really strong for the next few miles.
I was hoping that I was catching up with Lisa, I was running under our goal pace and all was going well till around mile 18. I started having foot cramps, not too bad at first but getting more frequent. It felt like my toes just wanted to curl into my heel so when I put it flat on the ground it hurt. I stopped and stretched a bit and walked through every aid station. I was getting more and more worried that I might not catch Lisa.
Finally during mile 22 I thought I saw her. Again I had a mental boost and I was able to really kick it (which at that point was a 10:30 mile) I caught her just past the mile 23 marker where she was stretching her calves. I was so glad she had dawdled and waited for me!
We ran together the last three miles, my foot pain was back and becoming more frequent. During the last mile it would cramp up what felt like about every 10 steps, I would moan a little and sort of limp it off but I was going to stay with Lisa! Just before the finish line we saw our families again and then we crossed the finsish line hand in hand. As we looked at each other we were both tearing up, and it wasn't from the pain!
What a fabulous experience. It was such a good feeling to have this huge goal out there, to have a plan to work towards it, and to finally accomplish the goal. I was proud of my finish time, even though it was not what I originally wanted. I learned a lot and think I will definitely do this again!
Thanks to all of you who trained with me, supported me and cheered me on to the bitter end.
Monday, October 5, 2009
The Nitty-Gritty Details
It was a lot of fun to train for this marathon with four other people via the blog and it was especially fun to finally meet Lisa and Cynthia on Friday at the marathon expo and then share a delicious meal together with all five of us the night before the race. It was fun to share this whole experience.
When the gun went off to start the marathon, the five of us were in line to drop our drop-bags. When I heard the gun, I quickly threw my bag towards the truck and tried to make my way to the road and finally to the start line. Lindy was with me and we ran together for 7 miles until Veyo Hill. We were keeping a fast pace and I felt good but knew I needed to save a little for the end. I told Lindy that I was feeling good but I was going to slow down a little. We’d probably lose each other on the hill and I’d try to catch her on a downhill. We did lose each other and I never did catch her. I took those first down hills like a madwoman. I flew down them with no regard to how my legs would react. My legs didn’t like that at all and around mile 18 I could feel my right quad muscle tightening. At mile 20, I looked at my garmin and it showed 3:00. I had six miles to go. If I could run a steady pace for the last six miles, I could finish in under four but that was not what my legs had planned. My right calf started to cramp. I have never, ever experienced leg cramps while training or running a race so this was a first for me. And it was painful. I walked until the cramp stopped, then I’d start to run again, then my calf would cramp, walk, run, cramp and that was the cycle until I crossed the finish line. A difficult last six miles. I stopped at the aid stations between 20 and 26 and the volunteers would rub icy hot and ben gay on my calves and right quad. That would relieve the pain for a minute or two and then the cramps would return. But, at last, I reached the finish.
One cute thing that happened while I was on the straightway to the finish. There were so many people lining the road and shouting encouragement. I was walking off a leg cramp and one man noticed me and yelled, “Come on Nike Soccer (that was what my shirt read) you can do it!” I replied to him in a painful voice, “I have leg cramps.” He jumped off the curb and put his arm around me and ran with me for a few seconds. How cute is that?
But my story doesn’t end there. This is where the nitty-gritty starts. As soon as I crossed the finish, I told the volunteer that I have leg cramps and they helped me to the medic station. I laid down and they took my vitals. She said my vitals looked good and did I want to go get a massage? I walked over to the massage area and didn’t want to wait in line so I walked to the runner finish area, grabbed a popsicle and sat down. Then I became extremely nauseous. I stood up and found a garbage can. I was not feeling good at all. I realized that not only did I need a garbage can but I needed a toilet as well. I headed to the porta potties and got in line. The wait in the line about killed me. Finally, when a porta potty became available I sat on the toilet and began to throw-up in the urinal. The thought crossed my mind that I just may spend my last moments in this porta potty - I felt that bad. About 45 minutes later, I managed to get the strength to stand up and make my way out of the porta potty. I made my way over to the medic station and told them I wasn’t feeling good at all. They let me lay down on a cot and there I stayed for a good half hour. I think I fell asleep for a minute. Then one volunteer came over and told me I needed to get up and walk around. I felt good enough to get up and made my way out of the finisher area and found Wayne. We walked to the place we were staying and I returned to the toilet and threw-up a few more times as well.
Even with all the post-race mess, I am anxious to run the St. George marathon again. I know those hills can work in my favor instead of against me. I need to work on taking in more substantial liquids during the race and not dehydrating myself. (I don't want to spend that much time in a porta potty ever again!) It’s definitely not good to throw-up that much. The St. George marathon bug is in me. I would love to give it another try and see if I can get those last six miles to be my friend.
When the gun went off to start the marathon, the five of us were in line to drop our drop-bags. When I heard the gun, I quickly threw my bag towards the truck and tried to make my way to the road and finally to the start line. Lindy was with me and we ran together for 7 miles until Veyo Hill. We were keeping a fast pace and I felt good but knew I needed to save a little for the end. I told Lindy that I was feeling good but I was going to slow down a little. We’d probably lose each other on the hill and I’d try to catch her on a downhill. We did lose each other and I never did catch her. I took those first down hills like a madwoman. I flew down them with no regard to how my legs would react. My legs didn’t like that at all and around mile 18 I could feel my right quad muscle tightening. At mile 20, I looked at my garmin and it showed 3:00. I had six miles to go. If I could run a steady pace for the last six miles, I could finish in under four but that was not what my legs had planned. My right calf started to cramp. I have never, ever experienced leg cramps while training or running a race so this was a first for me. And it was painful. I walked until the cramp stopped, then I’d start to run again, then my calf would cramp, walk, run, cramp and that was the cycle until I crossed the finish line. A difficult last six miles. I stopped at the aid stations between 20 and 26 and the volunteers would rub icy hot and ben gay on my calves and right quad. That would relieve the pain for a minute or two and then the cramps would return. But, at last, I reached the finish.
One cute thing that happened while I was on the straightway to the finish. There were so many people lining the road and shouting encouragement. I was walking off a leg cramp and one man noticed me and yelled, “Come on Nike Soccer (that was what my shirt read) you can do it!” I replied to him in a painful voice, “I have leg cramps.” He jumped off the curb and put his arm around me and ran with me for a few seconds. How cute is that?
But my story doesn’t end there. This is where the nitty-gritty starts. As soon as I crossed the finish, I told the volunteer that I have leg cramps and they helped me to the medic station. I laid down and they took my vitals. She said my vitals looked good and did I want to go get a massage? I walked over to the massage area and didn’t want to wait in line so I walked to the runner finish area, grabbed a popsicle and sat down. Then I became extremely nauseous. I stood up and found a garbage can. I was not feeling good at all. I realized that not only did I need a garbage can but I needed a toilet as well. I headed to the porta potties and got in line. The wait in the line about killed me. Finally, when a porta potty became available I sat on the toilet and began to throw-up in the urinal. The thought crossed my mind that I just may spend my last moments in this porta potty - I felt that bad. About 45 minutes later, I managed to get the strength to stand up and make my way out of the porta potty. I made my way over to the medic station and told them I wasn’t feeling good at all. They let me lay down on a cot and there I stayed for a good half hour. I think I fell asleep for a minute. Then one volunteer came over and told me I needed to get up and walk around. I felt good enough to get up and made my way out of the finisher area and found Wayne. We walked to the place we were staying and I returned to the toilet and threw-up a few more times as well.
Even with all the post-race mess, I am anxious to run the St. George marathon again. I know those hills can work in my favor instead of against me. I need to work on taking in more substantial liquids during the race and not dehydrating myself. (I don't want to spend that much time in a porta potty ever again!) It’s definitely not good to throw-up that much. The St. George marathon bug is in me. I would love to give it another try and see if I can get those last six miles to be my friend.
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