State Street Mile

On June 2^nd 2013 the 14^th annual Platinum Performance State Street Mile took place in downtown Santa Barbara. It is a popular local event that raises money for the Crime Victim Emergency Fund. I had a lot of reservations about signing myself up, but the cause and the excitement won out. I registered to run in my age group race and my favorite event of the day, the dog mile.

At this race there are several events to choose from. They have the family fun mile, the dog mile, 7 age group categories and the open and master’s elite mile. Once you register for one, you can enter a second for free. I don’t currently have a dog, so I did a shout out to facebook to see if anyone’s pooch would like to run with me. My cousin Stephen and his wife Barbie offered their dog Chase, who I adore.

Race morning arrived bright and early with a nice marine layer hanging over the city. I was extremely nervous! I haven’t done any speed work since last year due to my IT-Band problems and I was worried I was just going to embarrass myself. No one ever wants to finish last, but I was excited about finally participating in this event. I’ve wanted to do it the last few years, but due to injuries haven’t been able too.

Family fun mile

Stephen, Barbie and Chase arrived just in time to see me line up for my age group race. Talk about dog delivery service! Daddio was further ahead ready to take pictures. He’d told me to just try to stay with someone near the lead unless they were going way too fast. As soon as the whistle was blown, we shot off like a bat out of hell. Two guys and one girl quickly took the lead (at the time I thought it was only one girl and one guy, somehow I missed the second guy). I tried to latch onto them, but knew pretty quickly that I wouldn’t be able to maintain the pace unless I wanted to be walking it in or end up collapsed on the curb.

Quarter of a mile

The start gave me a great lead on the rest of the group. The other three were ahead and fading, but the rest of the pack was behind by more than a block. Each quarter of a mile, they would call out the time and I would try to listen for the person behind me, but never could hear their time. I kept glancing back, but no one was gaining on me, in fact they were falling further behind. I did get a tiny bit lazy here, with them further and further behind and the lead further and further ahead, I did slow my pace a little. When the finish started to loom in front of me, I didn’t think I had anything left in the tank for a sprint. Heck, I felt like I was sprinting! But the announcer called out that I could pick up speed, so I did!

I finished in 6:40, which has to be a mile record for me. I was hoping for low sevens, so I was stoked with my time. As I made my way through the finisher's shoot, I was handed a second place plaque for being the second woman in my age group to finish! I felt so blessed! I managed to make it through the crowd in time to cheer in the next finisher and the rest of the group.

Second place!!!

I loitered for a few minutes chatting and then made my way back up the street. I enthusiastically told Daddio the news when I met up with him and together we met up with Stephen, Barbie and Chase. The dog mile was more than an hour away, so we hung out, cheering on runners and talking. When it came time for me and Chase to run, he wasn’t so sure he wanted to do it. He stood stiff next to me watching his owners. I tried to give him a pep talk, but all he wanted was Barbie.

When the whistle blew, dogs of all shapes and sizes shot off, while I tried to drag Chase. He fought me for the first quarter of a mile worried about his owners and then suddenly he jumped on my leg, licked my hand and started running. We did a decent pace for his little legs for the next half mile. He wanted to run over and greet all the volunteers and supporters who were calling out and cheering for him, but I kept him focused. I was trying to encourage him to try and pass a couple dogs ahead of us, but he wasn’t interested. He started running out of gas around the last quarter of a mile, but found some more energy when hearing the excitement coming from the finish line. He picked up speed, so I did too and we finished strong! I was proud of the little guy.

 

I think he had fun

On the way back to his owners, he seemed to have more energy than I did. He was going up and greeting other dogs and energetically jumping up on my leg and licking my hand. I think he had a good time!

Overall, it was a great event and a fun morning with friends and family!

 

I wore him out

 

Reebok Spartan Race

Back when I first started running I was very excited about obstacle races and mud races. Since that time, I have changed my focus to road races, but I still have a couple of these races on my wish list. One of these races that I have always wanted to do is the Reebok Spartan race. The Spartan race takes place all over the US, Canada and the UK and range in length from 3 miles to 10+ miles. It looks epic!

 

I was recently contacted by someone who works with the Spartan race and was given a fun opportunity. I have been given a promo code that will allow one of my readers to sign up for one of the Spartan races in the continental US for free! It only works once and for one person! If you would like the opportunity to win this promo code, leave a comment on this post or on my related facebook post. I will randomly select one person who has left a comment to receive the promo code. I will announce the winner next week, so let your friends know and check back!
 

If you aren’t the lucky winner, you can go to this link and get a code for 15% off any Spartan race: http://bit.ly/spartanwarrior
 

Lakes of Love 2013

Yesterday I ran the Lakes of Love 4 miler with my Dad and my Uncle. I ran this race injured last year, so it was nice to hit the course again and even set a PR! This was also my Dad’s first race back from being injured and my Uncle’s second race since he took up running again. My Uncle and I ran Stellar Nites 5k together back in March and had a lot of fun even though it was a challenging course. I missed getting a race report up for it, so I’ll just talk about it a little.

 

Stellar Nites is a new Trail Series in Santa Barbara that took place every Wednesday night from mid-March to mid-April. When I say it is a challenging course, I’m not joking. The race takes place in Eling’s Park here in Santa Barbara and the park has some very hilly trails. We ran the inaugural race, so no one knew what to expect. While running it we came across a lot of people on the course that were dragging their feet and mumbling about hills and sand… yes there was sand?!? It was quite the experience, especially it being my Uncle’s first 5k. I somehow managed to talk him into running Lakes of Love! I hope to see the Stellar Nites series back next year!

Stellar Nites 5k

 Lakes of Love was a little funky this year. The date was first delayed at the last minute and pushed back a month later. Their site was not updated with the new date, but I found out at the race that they have another site that is identical, just with the new date. I ended up contacting them the day before just to make sure the race was still taking place since none of my local running friends knew what was going on. Thankfully, they responded quickly and I was able to spread the word.

Race morning my Dad and Uncle drove to the park while I jogged over. I wanted to shake out my legs and test out my left foot, which has been giving me a little trouble the last few weeks. Everything was feeling good, but it wasn’t feeling like a PR day. The crowd of runners that showed up was definitely smaller than last year, there was probably around sixty of us. All the miscommunication probably led to the smaller number.

 

Daddio and Uncle Doug

Even with all the miscommunication, race day went off without a hitch. The race started close to on time, the course was marked clearly and volunteers were abundant. I’ve run this course many times, so I could do it in my sleep. There was a water station and the usual well manned finish line. The after race spread was awesome! They had bananas, muffins, ice cream, watermelon and more! I finished the race out of breath, but with a new four mile PR, 34:57 beating my last time by 42 seconds. It’s nice to see some progress!

I hung out about two hundred yards from the finish and cheered other runners in till my Dad and Uncle came, then I ran ahead to try to get some pictures of them at the finish. They seemed to being having a good time. I hope we can talk my Uncle into running some more races with us in the future.

Dad and Uncle Doug finishing

We decided to hang out and hear the age group winner announcements and I was pleasantly surprised to place second in my age group! I received a certificate and a cute little potted flower. So I guess that’s the trick, find really small races and I might even place ;)

 

I'm a winner, the certificate says so!

Overall it was a great day and it was for a great cause.

Running is fun!

Check in later this week, I'll be posting about the Reebok Spartan Race and I'll be giving something away! 

Look what I bought!

Look what I bought! It's a pair of Hoka One One Bondi B! It feels like I have mini trampolines in my shoes! I'll post a full review when I've put some mileage in on them.

Ojai Half Marathon

The Ojai Half Marathon took place this last weekend, making my second half marathon of the year and my first one in almost two months. I have been trying to be true to my 2013 goal of backing off on my racing and focusing on my training. So far, it’s been a struggle, but I’ve seen good progress in my running. I just have to keep resisting the register now button.

Elite Sports California put on this race and the Seaside half which I ran in February. I’ve heard some rumbling complaints about them, but I have had zero problems with them. The race was well organized, the aid stations were well stocked and volunteers were plentiful. Bonus, it was a small enough race that I was able to pick up my packet on race morning. This race as well as with the last one were well priced and I managed to get them both at a discount by keeping an eye on them.

Predictably, the night before the race I could not fall asleep! I don’t know why I get pre-race nerves! I wasn’t even worried about this race, but then I usually don’t worry about any of them. The weather report was predicting heat, but it ended up being a very pleasant day. The marine layer didn’t burn off till a few miles into the race and it didn’t really warm up till I was finishing.

 

My Dad and Mom decided to come along and cheer me on, so we all piled into the car around 5:30am for the hour drive down to Ojai. We got there just as packet pickup opened, so I walked right up without having to wait. The man working the table asked me if I was running the half and got me my stuff. Two girls walked up behind me, both in bright color coordinated outfits and he asked them if they were running the 5k, which they were. I love that people at races now predict I’m there for the half marathon, but what makes one person look like a half marathoner over a 5ker?

 

Beautiful Ojai along the route

The start of the race was a little funny. They did have a wave start, but since it was such a small race, each section for the waves were pretty tiny. They sent each wave two minutes apart, but they really only needed one. I joined the 10+ group since I wasn’t predicting a PR time. When they released the 9 minute group, two volunteers yelled “Ok everyone go”, so we all started going. The man on the microphone started yelling “No, ten minute group stop!” I started laughing. It was too late, most of us had already gone over the mat and I wasn’t about to stop when the clock was now going.



Some road



Lot's of bike path



Not even a half mile into the race, I realized I really needed to pee! That never happens to me! Even during my marathon, I didn’t have to stop even once. Well my bladder felt like it was going to explode, so at the very first aid station, I hit the port-a-potty. I was in total panic mode. I could feel the seconds ticking by. I absolutely hate having to loose time!

 

 

For about the first three or four miles we were running on a bike path, with runners going one direction on the right and runners going back on the left. I can understand why they did this since they had a 5k and a 10k running with the half marathon, but it made things very tight! When the 10k quickies started catching my pace group it made things a little hard. I ended up running up the side on some dirt and tweaking my ankle on a curb under the weeds. Thankfully it didn’t fully roll, so it didn’t bug me till that evening.

 

 

As soon as the 10kers peeled off things spread out and became much more comfortable. We continued mostly on bike path, but sometimes on the street. At one point we ran past a Wendy’s and I got a ginormous craving for a chocolate shake! Around mile six we came up along Lake Casitas and wow, what a view. The marine layer was hanging out just above the water and the sun was shining!

 

Lake Casitas from the route

 

Around mile seven we hit the one major hill of the race and it seemed to go on forever! Up, up, up! I then understood the jokes about mile seven I had been hearing at the starting line! I thought, “just around the next bend it will end… no, just around the next one.” I ended up chatting with a lot of runners in this section of the race. I started the conversations usually asking if they knew how long the hill was and then it usually ended with us joking about the evil of hills for a while. I was power walking and easy jogging my way up, my original plan had been to walk it, but that was before I had known how long it was. One guy told me that since we kept passing each other, he felt like he was going backwards.

 

My hill buddies powering up

Up to the killer hill, things had mostly been softly rolling, after the killer hill, things were seriously rolling. At four miles out, I was feeling so good that I wanted to run it in, then I’d come around another bend and then there would be another hill. My intervals got a little sporadic at that point. I’d walk the hills if they were short and run however far was in-between. I was making great time, in fact, till the evil hill I’d been making PR time, but I was never able to make up the time I lost to that sucker.

 

Almost done!

A mile out, I started leaving my friendly pace group behind and started catching people I hadn’t seen before. I started picking people off till I realized that I was just around the corner from the finish! I caught a girl just in front of the school where the finish was and then dug deep and sprinted, catching one more girl just feet from the finish line. I finished with a chip time of 2:13:52, making it my third best half marathon time. If I hadn’t taken that pit stop at the beginning, it probably would have easily been my second best time! I can’t wait to get on a flat course and blow my PR away! Must resist the shiny register now button!

 

Cool bling and my favorite color!

My awesome parents were several places along the course taking pictures of me and my mom bought me a chocolate shake on the way home. I maybe an adult, but I still feel spoiled to have such wonderful parents!

 

Daddio wondering what's taking me so long

Pictures from Seaside Half Marathon

I'll get a race report up soon, but I wanted to post some pictures from this weekend's Half marathon!

Yeah, it was a gorgeous day!

Super Bowl 4 Miler 2013

Last year on Super Bowl Sunday, I ran my first four mile race. I set a PR that held for the rest of 2012. This year, I decided to run the same race again and I set a new PR! The Super Bowl 4-miler is one of my favorite local races. For one, it’s on Super Bowl and the second, it’s a great atmosphere. This year they even had medals for all finishers!

I went into the race not expecting to PR. Due to my IT band injury in December, my training took a big step backward. I hadn’t even run four miles nonstop before the race since my injury occurred. But man, I was hungry for a PR. On Thanksgiving, I ran the Santa Barbara 4 mile Turkey run and would have PRed if the race hadn’t been a quarter of a mile short. I felt robbed and was eager to improve my time.

I rocked a pink Tebow jersey!

I started the race easy and relaxed. I was running solo, so I was chatting with runners around me. During the first mile and a half, I got passed by a lot of other runners. I just kept my pace consistent and focused on enjoying the run. Around mile two and a half, I stopped getting passed and I started passing those who had shot ahead. Around mile three, I was starting to loose steam, but was determined to keep my pace. At that point, I could tell a PR was well within my reach. I chatted with a nice kid in a Bronco’s jersey who was eager to tell me all about his favorite player and team. I encouraged him to keep the pace up, but unfortunately had to drop him.

Action Pro Picture of race

Daddio came out to cheer me on

Down the home stretch, I was just about out of energy, but saw I’d easily PR. I had a woman right ahead of me and instead of my usual sprint to the finish, I let her beat me and finished at a relaxed pace. Thankfully she wasn’t in my age group! Haha! Should have thought of that before being so casual about it.

Running with my new Bronco buddy

I finished with a time of 35:38, beating my old PR by over a minute! I was all smiles! First race of the year and I start out with a PR! Ironically, I’d just announced that I wasn’t going to focus on PRs this year! It’s a week later and my legs are still fatigued, but my IT band is still pain free! I hope everyone had a wonderful Super Bowl Sunday and are enjoying a new year of running!

Surprise bling!