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Posts Tagged ‘SART’

Miles for Meals Virtual Marathon Recap

Posted in Marathon, Race reports, Racing, Running, tagged , , , , , , , on February 11, 2021| 1 Comment »

I learned many lessons from the virtual marathon last Saturday, February 6:

  1. Waking up at 4 a.m. for a virtual marathon felt silly and ridiculous and foolish. I had to keep reminding myself that I had chosen to proceed with a virtual race to raise funds for the food bank when the Death Valley Marathon got canceled.
  2. Fundraising is hard. It’s easy to ask people for money, but it’s a very vulnerable feeling to put yourself out there to say, “This cause is important to me. I hope to raise X amount of funds. Please support me and the cause.”
  3. People are generous and kind. Donations trickled in slowly at first, but as of today, 21 people donated for a total of $1,434.70, enough to provide over 4,300 meals to the hungry. That blows my mind. I’m still waiting for the total to update and I am leaving the fundraiser open until the end of February in case anyone else would like to contribute and/or create their own fundraising teams for the virtual Brea 8K (sign up and run any day in February!), so donate here if you want to push the total over $1,500!
  4. Running a virtual marathon is hard. Any marathon is hard of course, and I knew a virtual one would be difficult, but I didn’t know just how difficult. I had run a virtual half, and that was challenging but manageable. The full 26.2 was torture. I didn’t realize how much I would miss the support of volunteers and spectators. Thank goodness for the random people who saw me struggling and called out “Good job!” or “You got this!” The Santa Ana River Trail follows a gentle, overall downhill grade as the river runs to the Pacific Ocean, but it has several underpasses (which means a lot of mini hills along the way) and some bridges.
  5. My family is the best. My husband Mike woke up at 5 to drive me to the start, and later brought two of my girls to the finish to meet me and go for gelato to celebrate.

Here are some photos with a brief description of how it went.

Blurry photo of my supportive partner, riding next to me at dawn

Mike and I arrived at the start around 5:50, but the gas station we were counting on being open was closed. With no porta potties or gas station bathrooms in sight, we had to drive all the way to another gas station. We ended up starting at 6:30 (technically the trail is not open until 7 a.m. — shh! It was all for a good cause!)

Beautiful morning, intimidating hill coming up

It was chilly at sunrise and Mike was freezing on the bike in spite of his gloves. I warmed up quite quickly running at a 9 minute per mile pace.

Sunrise

Even after the sun came up it remained chilly. Lucky for me, not so much for Mike.

Angel Stadium on the horizon and a preview of the fog I was about to enter

Just before the 9-mile mark, Mike handed off some extra Gatorade to me and he turned back to go to the car. I felt great at this point and continued to feel good until the half marathon point. That’s when it got hard, as it usually does in any marathon. You’ve put in a lot of miles by then and still have that same distance remaining. It got harder to keep up the pace.

Perfect running conditions in the fog

I enjoyed running through the fog as I listened to podcasts. Many cyclists shared the trail with me, and I saw a few other runners and some dog walkers.

One of the bridges crossing the Santa Ana River

I love the artistry of this bridge! The trail is beautiful and there was plenty to entertain me along the way. I spied many birds — pelicans, egrets, herons, and turkey vultures!

I started to struggle around mile 18, and by mile 20 it was a full struggle-fest. While I tried to fuel properly along the way, I suspect the beginner marathon training plan I had chosen (because who wants to train harder than that during a pandemic?) simply did not put enough miles on my legs to sustain me at the pace I had attempted. My legs turned to lead, and I walked for a bit while I tried to get some more calories in.

Full sun again as I approached the beach

I managed to pick the pace back up into the 12-minute mile range when I told myself the faster I ran, the faster I would be done, haha! Plus, my family was on the way to meet me at the end and I didn’t want them to have to wait. I also reminded myself (again) of all the people who had donated to the food bank, and how I had committed to run for the cause.

The palm trees on the horizon mark the finish line!

I felt better at mile 25 than at mile 20, so that was good news! I could see the finish, and knew I was going to make it if I simply kept on trucking.

Huntington Beach – the finish line

And this was the view at the end! After 4 hours 31 minutes, I was so happy to be standing on a bridge over the river, looking at the ocean as my kids and Mike ran to hug me. They helped me walk to the car, and whisked me away to Fashion Island for gelato.

I felt really great for the rest of the afternoon. As usual it was hard to get walking after any rest (sore quads and hamstrings) but Mike said I looked better than I had after many other races. And I ended up being a lot less sore than usual (which only makes me wish I would have been able to push a little harder on the course).

So, marathon #10 is in the books! I’m glad I did it and I’m glad it’s done. I have a credit that I can apply toward the 2022 (!) Death Valley Marathon, but at this point I am not sure I want to run another marathon. I do need to get on some sort of training plan soon for another adventure — trail race, century ride, hiking trip — because it’s the training I enjoy and that keeps me sane.

One last reminder: donate to Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County here!

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Miles for Meals Marathon Fundraising

Posted in Inspiration, Marathon, Miles Log, Race, Race goals, Running, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2021| 1 Comment »

Miles for Meals virtual marathon route on the Santa Ana River Trail

Just two more days until I run 26.2 miles down the Santa Ana River Trail to raise money for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County! Thank you to all who have donated to the fundraiser so far. Donations are still desperately needed though with less than 1/4 of the goal reached at $602 of $2,620. If you have the means, please consider donating here. Remember, every $1 donated provides at least three meals for those facing food insecurity during the pandemic.

Training has been going very well. It’s been four long months of five workouts per week — a speed workout, a tempo run, a long run, and some combination of biking and rowing on two other days. Here’s a peek at the last month of training leading up to Saturday’s virtual marathon:

Marathon training log from January/February

I had to shift some workouts around — even moving my 20-mile long run to a Friday instead of Saturday — but I managed to get them all done. I feel ready, although I have the usual butterflies in my stomach now that the big day is so close. I definitely am at the “what have I gotten myself into” stage! For today’s taper run, the last run in the training plan, I ran three miles at 6.6 mph pace. It’s a little crazy that on Saturday I will run 26.2 miles (8.73 times longer than today’s workout, to be exact) at that approximate pace. I am reminding myself to trust the training and remember that the magic (okay, fine, science) behind tapering will help carry me through the additional miles in the marathon.

I don’t have a particular time goal in mind, although I do want to stay around a 4-hour marathon time. We’ll just have to see how I feel and how much time it takes me to stop and refill/mix my own Gatorade bottles along the way. My husband Mike will help for the first leg, and meet me with two of my girls at the end (I’ll have to FaceTime my college daughter from the finish!) but I’ll be on my own the rest of the time.

I plan to listen to podcasts and audiobooks to entertain me. But the main thing that is going to power me through is the thought that donors generously gave money to the food bank, and I want to honor their generosity. One last plea to please donate to the Second Harvest virtual food drive here!

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Twenty Mile Run to the Ocean

Posted in Family life, Inspiration, Marathon, Running, Trails, tagged , , , , , on March 3, 2013| 5 Comments »

Yesterday morning I finished off week four of Mountains 2 Beach Marathon training with my first 20 mile run (the plan calls for four 20 mile runs — am I insane to follow such a rigorous plan? Feel free to discuss that in the comments). Anyway, it was an EPIC run. I’d say all 20 mile runs are epic runs, but this was epic with a capital EPIC because I ran all the way from Anaheim in North Orange County to the Pacific Ocean at Huntington Beach.

This map from 1921 shows how the trail follows the Santa Ana River from Anaheim to the ocean. Photo courtesy of Orange County Archives.

This map from 1921 shows how the trail follows the Santa Ana River from Anaheim to the ocean. Photo courtesy of Orange County Archives.

I chose the Santa Ana River Trail because its gentle downhill grade to the ocean mirrors the Mountains 2 Beach course grade from Ojai to the ocean at Ventura.

It's all downhill from here!

It’s all downhill from here! The Santa Ana River Trail looking west from Yorba Regional Park.

Over the course of 20 miles from Yorba Regional Park to the Pacific Ocean, the Santa Ana River Trail loses 280 feet in elevation. It doesn’t feel downhill though, and with several road underpasses and bridges over the river, it manages to squeeze in 72 feet of elevation.

The first several miles of the run I felt great yet intimidated by the sheer length of the workout before me. At mile 2 I couldn’t keep myself from doing the math: “You’re a tenth of the way done.” Mile 4: “You’re a fifth of the way done.” What had I gotten myself into?!

The weather cooperated with temps starting in the low 60s and rising to the high 70s three hours later. I carried one 20-ounce water bottle in my hand and another 24-ounce bottle in my fuel belt. There are several drinking fountains along the way but not nearly enough to rely on alone. With the dry SoCal air, I ended up needing approximately one gallon of Fluid sports drink and water!

Passing mile 10 and the halfway point gave me a boost in spirits but my energy started to wane a bit. I still hit my desired 9:35 pace but my effort to get there increased. I planned to take a green apple PowerGel with caffeine at mile 13. Before that though, I got just the injection of energy I needed. A cyclist riding up the trail saw me toughing it out and called out, “Keep it goin’ girl!” I called back a grateful “Thanks” and rode the wave of his kindness for the next mile. It amazes me how a few simple words of encouragement from a stranger can make all the difference! I have to laugh though and wonder what it is that makes strangers know I need that encouragement. Remember the man who lifted my spirits when I bonked on my first ever 20 mile run? Yesterday I did not bonk on the run, thank goodness, but somehow people still knew I needed the boost. Had the cyclist passed me on his way down the trail an hour ago and recognized me on the way back? Did he see my Garmin and know I was in for a long haul? Did I have a grimace on my face or the hunched back I cannot seem to avoid when I get tired, no matter how hard I pay attention to form? Was I flinging sweat left and right? Or did I give that cyclist a jealous look that said, “I want to hop on your bike like it’s Brad Pitt!” Whatever it was, he recognized a need in me and I am so thankful he made the effort to say some kind words.

At about mile 16 the breeze picked up as I approached the ocean and it became harder to hit the 9:35 pace. I used my struggle to practice what it would be like at the marathon. I pulled out all my mantras, this time throwing in what the stranger had said: “Keep it goin’ girl!” I thought about what it would be like to hit that 20 mile mark, having met my pace goal for the day. By mile 18 I was having to dig deep and fight it out. And then it happened again! A female cyclist passed me from behind and called back, “You are hauling! Go girl!” I nearly burst into tears! Instead, I managed to say, “Thank you! I needed to hear that!” More words of encouragement that helped me pick up the pace and knock out 20 miles at an average of 9:34, with the last mile at 9:06.

When I hit 20 miles I threw my arms up in the air and yelled like I just didn’t care: “Twenty miles!” There was no finish line photo, no arch of balloons over the line, but I celebrated anyway. And when another kind couple saw me walking rather stiffly on my cooldown walk and asked if I was alright, I assured them: “Yes! I did 20 miles!”

I’d done the 20 miles in 3:11, and I walked for another 40 minutes. In retrospect I should have had Mike pick me up after I’d walked for about 10 minutes. That last 1.6 mile walk to the beach might have been the hardest part of the workout! I desperately needed more water, and I texted my husband to make sure he and the rest of my support crew (three cute little girls in beachwear!) would be waiting at the parking lot at the end of the trail. I’ve never been so thrilled to see the ocean and to see my family waiting there for me! We walked (well, I hobbled) down to the shore and I kept on walking, right into the ocean for an “ice bath.” I could barely stand the cold on my feet but it felt glorious on my calves and thighs.

Today I feel surprisingly good. My neck and shoulders are sore, which tells me I’ve got to work more on correcting that hunchback form! My knees are a little sore, which tells me it’s a good thing I am training on the downhills to prepare for Mountains 2 Beach. Mentally, I am relieved to have met my pace goal for my first 20 miler of this training series. Spiritually, my faith in humankind has been boosted by the good-hearted strangers who made it possible.

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