Wineglass Half Marathon

Of all of my races I signed up for, this was the one I was looking forward to the most. A glass medal is so unique. In addition, you get a free wine glass and mini champagne bottle! Definitely my kind of race. 

Expo/packet pickup
The expo this year was at the Corning Glass Museum. I overheard another person saying how much nicer it is now that it is at the Museum this year. It gave me the impression that it was elsewhere before. 

There was a sign to go downstairs into the shop; however, there weren't any other signs letting us know where to go from there. I found the expo, but not the packet pickup. Eventually I just asked someone and was directed to the far end of the building. 

Behind the escalators there was a table set up for the bibs then a table for the shirt/wine glass. You receive a long sleeve tech shirt (pink for girls, blue for boys, ugh really?), wine glass, and mini bottle of sparkling wine from a local winery. 

You walk down the hall to double check your timing chip then enter into the expo. 

It is in a meeting room which could be a touch bigger. There were local running shops along with local vendors (honey, wine, etc). There was a large store with lots of branded Wineglass Half and Marathon gear. I picked up ear warmers since the temperature just kept dropping. All I had were caps and I just wanted something to cover my ears. 

Early to bed since the race was scheduled to start at 7:45 with the last bus leaving at 7 am. 

Race day:
A balmy 35 degrees at the start which means it was slightly less (I think 33/34) when I was waiting for the bus. All racers had to meet at the finish line in order to catch a bus to their respective starts. My parents were up with me so my dad was able to drop me off close to the finish line around 6:40. It is definitely not a good sign when you have to scrape ice off of the car before you leave so I was freezing waiting in line. It was not obviously clear which line was for the half marathon and which was for the marathon. I went to the first line I saw and hoped I picked the right one. I made friends quickly since it was a decent wait until we finally got on the very warm bus. It was a quick (15 minutes?) ride to the starting line near a school. We got off of the bus and were greeted with a huge line of porta potties (yea!). My advice: look around at the different lines. Some lines were for only a couple of bathrooms while others used 5 or 6. I picked a quick moving one and got to the start with plenty of time. 

walking to the start

The sun was finally coming up so I was starting to warm up. Unfortunately the race started at 8 and not 7:45 am.

view from the starting line

My race:
I felt much better for this race vs the one I did two weeks prior. For one, it was cooler. Cold is always better than hot! My muscles weren't too sore and my knees didn't bother me. The first couple of miles were just me trying to warm up. Once I hit mile 4 I started striping off layers. The next few miles really just flew by. The scenery was gorgeous with rolling hills and fields.

One road was closed off and just for runners, but then you turn onto a semi-busy road and you are stuck on the shoulder. There are cones and policeman, but I still was not a fan of this. At one point there was a guy who really had to go pee and just ran into the cornfield. Between mile 8 and 9 is when you turn off the roads and into the park/school. 

Around mile 9 I noticed I was doing really well and could possibly PR. I tried to start picking up the pace, but this is where it became tricky getting around people. The path narrows considerably in the park. This is also where a water stop was so people were stopping or walking in the path. You couldn't go around them on the outside so you were stuck slowing down or even stopping yourself. I can tell it did slow me down since I was doing negatives split since mile 9 except for the water break mile. The time between mile 11 and 12 seemed to take forever. I was really pushing myself trying to get that PR.

Soooo close. My Garmin clocked in at 2:14:43. My previous PR was 2:14:20. I did this at the Hershey Half Marathon in 2013. It was my first half and not knowing what to expect, I took it easy. Afterwards I felt great and could have keep running. This go around that was not the case. I definitely was beat. The back of my knee finally started to hurt and I physically felt drained. In order to find our your official time, you scan the QR code on your bib. Annoyingly this meant I had to download an app to see what I did it in. I crossed the finish line at 2:17 and change, but I also knew I started around 8:02. The results were a little behind and stopped around 2:10 time, 2:12 gun time. The website then did not publish an update for another hour and a half UGH! I was dying to know my time. When they finally did update it, it only gave the overall gun time, not your net time. At this point I thought I'd never know my real time. Later that *night* they finally updated it properly with the gun and net times. 22 seconds off my PR :(

best part- finally enjoying the sparkling wine!

My slowest mile: Mile 1- 10:47. My fastest mile: Mile 13- 8:38. Really pleased with my timing. I kept it steady in the mid 10s until mile 9 when I was hitting around 10 minute mile. By mile 12 and 13 I was at 9:14 and 8:38.

The course:
Flat. Technically I think it is considered a downhill course but it really is just a flat course. You definitely cannot tell you are going downhill. There was a minor hill at the beginning of the race and another "hill" to go up to a railroad track. It manages to stay flat while going through the rolling hills of Southern New York. 

The half marathon begins 13 miles from Corning while the full marathon  is 26 miles away. 

It was my first point-to-point race. Parts of the course were very scenic especially the start, but parts were eh. For awhile we ran on a road which was alongside a highway. There were not too many spectators along the course. You go through a couple of small towns which would have a few. Since it was a point-to-point I anticipated fewer fans. The finish line for both the half and full marathon went through the center of the town and had fans lined on both sides of the streets.

Final thoughts:
I would definitely recommend this race. In fact, I hope to come back here someday and do the full marathon. The race would be a touch better if it was a week or two later to coincide with the changing leaves. To me this is the perfect size race- just big enough to get all the goodies and perks of an expo, but not too big that you are overwhelmed and just a number. Best part- the food! Hello pizza mmm. Yes, they were handing out slices of pizza after the race. The rest was fairly typical post-race munchies. Circling this one to do again in the next couple of years. 


Next race: Runner's World 10k

Philadelphia Rock n Roll Half Marathon

Ek the time is here! My first half marathon since my accident- 7 weeks, 2 weeks, and 5 days later. It almost felt like I had been in training since I could start walking. I was nervous, anxious, excited, every emotion you can imagine. 


Expo/packet pickup:
As you would imagine, the expo was huge. It was in the Philadelphia Convention Center. First stop- filling out a waiver.

You pick up your packet based on your bib number (you will receive an email with this information). Unfortunately for me there was one lady working two lines. 

Next line- getting your t-shirt. Right across from the pickup is a place to exchange your shirt for another size. 

Finally into the expo. First thing I see, porta potties as fitting rooms. Funny.

The expo had numerous stores, but I skipped them all. I was overwhelmed by the size and had a husband with a broken foot waiting for me. 

Race day:
With an 8 am start time and my hotel being within walking distance of the start, I woke up at a very nice 6 am. This might be the latest I've ever woken up for a race. It was fabulous. Of course I didn't sleep well the night before so I was still tired. The hotel didn't start serving breakfast until 6:30 so every runner tried to get room service between 6 and 6:30. Needless to say, my breakfast came late (and wasn't what I ordered). My stale English muffin would have to do because I was changed and out the door by 7:20. I followed the crowd and was at the start with plenty of time to spare. I was able to see some of the elite runners including Deena Kastor.

There were roughly 20,000 or so runners plus all of the people out supporting them. I have no idea why I wanted to rush because I was in corral 17 (I think there may have been 24 or so corrals). 

It was a crowded mess to get to my corral. I think there was someone checking the earlier corrals to make sure people were going where they were supposed to be. By my corral they didn't care at all. They had speakers at a couple of different corrals to keep the music going while you waited to start. At 8:00 am they started with elites then every so often would have another corral go. It was 8:35 (!) before I crossed the starting line.

My race:
Immediately my knees hurt. I could tell they were acting up beforehand and they did the entire race. It is the outer part of the knee so I think it might be IT band related. Around mile 5 I felt a shooting pain right up my IT band, but it didn't last and I didn't feel it again the rest of the race. I also experienced horrible blisters on both of my pinky toes. I usually put band-aids on the toes next to it because they are prone to being bothered. I either did not pain attention to the seam of the band-aid or they were rough. I tried hard to block out the pain, but it definitely affected me.

It was crazy crowded trying to run.

My husband posted up right after Logan Square which would be just after mile 1 and mile 4. This was a huge lift especially after mile 4. 

It was easy to feed off of the crowd the first few miles. I had to keep trying to hold myself back. Some of the bands were decent too. About mile 5 is when you start going into the park and away from the crowds. I was so into the crowds and seeing my husband that I forgot to fuel myself at mile 4. My standard is two Shot Bloks- one caffeine and one regular. 

The park portion of the race had some great running trails. It was really nice running through this part. I tried to not focus on my toes and knees and just enjoy it. 

There was a minor hill but it did not bother me. I started noticing more and more medical stops. I also started noticing more and more people requiring medical stops. Somewhere in the 6 to 8 mile range there were a couple of random people with boom boxes. I thoroughly enjoyed having this extra music along the quiet path. One of the guys was doing a dance show for us runners. I also saw two runners in squirrel customers. Straight up head to toe squirrel customers. Love it. I popped a couple of caffeine Shot Bloks at mile 8 and it really gave me a boost. This was also about the time where you go over Falls Bridge and turn around back towards the Finish Line. Or as I like to think of it 'the home stretch.' 

It was really motivating thinking I'm in the home stretch! I just kept repeating this phrase over and over. By mile 11 I was starting to get emotional thinking about my journey. I knew if I didn't hold it together I wouldn't be able to breathe. 

so true

I don't remember seeing a mile marker 13, but I am sure there was one. I just knew we started going up a hill and the crowds started getting deeper. To get to the finish I went just under a bridge then down a straight away.

7 weeks, 2 weeks, and 5 days after my fractured pelvis, half marathon is complete!

Sparkly medal

I expect for my Garmin/Nike Plus app to be off of the 13.1 mile mark. You don't follow the exact middle of the road and you end up weaving in and out of people, but they were off after the first mile. The 1 mile marker was .2 of a mile after both my Garmin and app said they should be. This was a downer the whole race. Every time I thought I finished a mile I'd be like just kidding, you still have a bit to go. Eventually it increased to .3 and by the end my Garmin and Nike Plus both read 13.5 miles.

The course:
I have viewed a few different Philly race courses and they all seem fairly standard. This was a fairly flat course with a couple of very minor hills. 

The start looped around Eakins Oval then up . Around mile 5 you go up through Fairmount Park where the bulk of the race is. The first three miles I think there were 4 bands, but then nothing again until mile 6. There may have been one more on the way back down the park. It was surprising to me they would not spread out the bands a bit more or put more at the end. I need more motivation at the end, not the beginning! The crowds were larger for the first 5 miles then very few the rest of the way. The only real gathering of supporters in the park was by the turnaround bridge. The positive was the park was beautiful and such a great running area.

I vaguely remember looking at the elevation chart and thinking between 4 and 6 there looks like a minor hill. It was very minor. Even the biggest looking hill (at mile 13!) wasn't so bad. Of course it didn't help that it was at the very end. It also was a little tricky because sort of close behind me I could hear a siren. There were a couple of times an ambulance of sorts would try to work its way through the crowd. This seemed really tough right at the end when the course became narrower and people were working hard to finish. I would think they should have an emergency exit for the ambulances and not use the finish line.

Final thoughts:
I am torn. I liked the course, but not necessarily the Rock n Roll series. I think the size was too big for my preference (20k or so runners). This made it feel like you were being shuffled around like cattle. This also meant I didn't cross the start until 8:35... a whopping 35 minutes after the elites started! Considering the cost I wish they provided a bit more at the end of the race. I have been to races where it feels like a feast. I think they had water, chocolate milk, thin pretzels, granola bar, and a banana. I didn't notice any bagels or other fruit. I definitely will go back for another half marathon in Philly. It was flat and included city and park parts


Next race: Wineglass Half Marathon

Maryland Women's Sprint Duathlon recap

The Maryland Women's Sprint Duathlon was my first duathlon, bike race, and women's specific race. I was not excited for this race at all. I felt extremely ill prepared since I had not ridden my bike in a couple of weeks. Not knowing how to change a flat nor having the equipment to do so made the bike portion nerve racking. 

The expo and packet pickup:
The packet pickup was the day before or the morning of. I decided to go early on the day before. There was a tent next to the transition area. You first need to find your number on a piece of paper then provide the volunteers your number. Side note: since the t-shirts were lady sizes they were small. Even the ladies size small seemed smaller than normal. At the end of the race I think you could exchange your shirt, but I had already used mine to dry myself off so I felt too guilty trading it in. The expo happened after the race. Honestly, the stands might have been setup beforehand, but I did not notice. After the finish line and next to the transition area, there was a section with food (yea!) and water plus various vendors. There was a store vendor, an energy drink I've never heard of, and HP printers. Yes, HP printers. They were promoting their camera printing printers. You were allowed to wirelessly connect to their printers and print out 'any pictures you took during the race.' Since I could not listen to music, I did not bother taking my phone with me so I had nothing to print. I did ask him to snap a quick picture of me with my medal. This is what I was able to print:

not my best picture

It was a super small expo which is what you expect considering it was not a large race. There were only a couple hundred participants from what I gathered.


Race day:
Woke up at 3:50 the morning of the race. I've gotten used to 5:00 am enough that I can semi-handle it when I wake up then to run. However, before 4:00 am is rough. I have a routine of drinking my particular energy drink and eating a banana and 100% whole wheat toast with jelly. Usually I do this an hour when I run at home and two hours before a race. This race morning it was three hours beforehand. This meant the possibility of any energy I was getting would be gone before I even started.

It had an extremely low chance of rain for the time of the race so I brought my non-water proof Nike Pegasus 30s. As predicted, the rain stopped on my drive there. However only a few minutes away, the rain picked up again. I kept thinking on incredible ill prepared I was for the rain. I only brought a water resistant running jacket, but I had nothing to cover my seat and my shoes would be soaked. I didn't bring any extra clothing either. You'd think this was my first race! Once I got to the parking lot (which was right next to the start and finish line, score!), I left my TOMS on and saved my Nikes in hopes the rain would stop before the race. Unfortunately the transition area was in a grass field and not a parking lot so I knew I was going to get wet either way. Luckily the rain stopped right before I had to make my way to the starting line. I picked up my packet and got my pink wristband.

This pink band is needed in order to get into the transition area. I suppose this helps keep it to strictly racers. Each rack was labeled with numbers. I was in the 11 to 35 rack (I think). I found a spot near a post to put my bike. I had a lot of last minute changes the morning of the race. First, I switched up my pink shirt for my green one. Next, I decided I did not need a towel for the transition area because lastly, I decided to wear my gloves and go with my armband for my iphone.

did not need a towel since I only had my helmet and bike in transition

The parking is right by the start, finish, and transition area (kudos to the organizers for that decision!). It was nice being able to stay in my car (and avoid the rain) right up until 15 minutes before the start.

branded and ready to go

My race:
The race had three heats- 1st for elite (only 3 women), 2nd for those 40 and older, and 3rd for those 39 and younger. I hung around the side and towards the back of the 3rd heat. I knew I would be slower and did not want to get in anyone's way. It seemed to be about a minute between the first and second heat then another couple of minutes between the second and third heat. A lot of runners sprinted out of the gate fast. I had a game plan as to how I wanted to attack the first run- go slowly and conserve energy. At one point I glanced back and only saw maybe 10 runners behind me. I legitimacy was worried about coming in last. This changed quickly since a number of people started walking the course and a few that went out too fast and seemed to then struggle with the hills. The course took us through a park then out to a road. I sped up and took advantage of the downhill to the turnaround point. One thing I noticed is that some runners would keep the same pace even if they were up or down a hill. I am very much a runner who slows down going up a hill and speeds up going down a hill. The turnaround point was a little cramped. Up another hill into the transition area. 

transition area- imagine this full of racers

From the start of the roped off path to the transition area to my bike which was on the first rack, I had enough time to stop and save my run on my Garmin and which activity profiles. This process worked out really well. Another bonus of my awesome Garmin 620! I was in and out of the transition really quickly. I wore my gloves when running so all I needed to do was snap on my helmet and go. A lot of people were leisurely walking with their bike out of the transition area, but I was jogging. I even started to wonder if I was not allowed to jog with my bike since no one else was. After I crossed the timing pad and hopped on the road, I mounted my bike and sped off. Somehow my Garmin started and stopped so I missed the  first bit of my bike ride. The hills were a killer. I tried to find the right balance of pushing myself but not completely draining myself. Around mile 3 there were two rough back-to-back hills. A number of cyclists hopped off of their bikes and walked them up the hill. Finally a little after mile 5 it become a bunch of smaller hills. Since it rained right up until the start of the race, the roads were wet with a few puddles. I am not an experienced cyclist so I was extra cautious going around corners. Another major hill came at the end of the bike ride. I was very slowly passing another cyclist and said 'I am so over these hills!' She let me know that this was the last big one before the end and she was correct. One thing I noticed about the bike portion was I did decent going up hills and was able to pass some point, however, those same people would then pass me on the straightaways or downhills. I was not racing anyone per say, but I used this to gage what I need to work on in the future. The bike route went on the same road as the running route. We climbed uphill passed the runners around the turnaround point. This was exciting since I knew I had to be close. 13 miles is not far on a bike, but I was so ready to get back to running. A very enthusiastic volunteer pointed us into the park. Between the entrance of the park and the dismount area, I was able to take off my gloves and unhook my helmet. I hopped off of my bike before the pink line (important!) and ran my bike to my rack. 

if you look by the volunteer, you can see the pink line

My second transition I think was even faster since I just threw down my gloves and helmet, racked my bike, and sprinted out of there. As expected my legs were not huge fans of the second run. The second run is reverse of the first so it was downhill to the turnaround point then uphill most of the way to the finish. They needed the downhill to recover before the climb. 

During the course the water stations also offered this new energy drink. After the bike ride as we were starting our second run, I broke the cardinal rule of trying something new on race day. I tried the BodyAde (I think that was the name of the energy drink) instead of water. I assumed my orange looking drink would be like orange PowerAde, but not so. I couldn't quite place the taste, but it wasn't what I wanted when running. Luckily they placed the water station near the transition point so I could get water again not too long after.

I was completely engrossed in the second run climb when I noticed my Garmin read 1.9 miles. Unfortunately this did not leave me much time to try to sprint to the finish. 

finish line

I did not have a time goal, but I thought I would finish around 1 hour, 47 minutes. When I got to the chute, the clock read 1:46 and change. I managed to cross seconds before the 1:47 mark so I knew I went faster than I anticipated. There was a table near the food tent with the official results. My official time: 1:40:55. My splits: first run- 18:12.7 (9:06 minute average!), bike- 59:16.1 (13.2 mph average), second run- 21:09.8 (10:35 average).

not a bad medal

Course:
Hilly. Very similar terrain to Pennsylvania with the rolling hills, but the course was hillier than I anticipated.

from the race's website

I was worried that I did not really study either the running or bike course beforehand. Yet I never felt I would get lost. The turns were marked and there was a volunteer or policeman at each one. Eventually the participants spread out, but I always had a biker or runner in sight.

The first leg you run in the park past some fields. The first half of the run was mostly downhill. You then go out to a road where you go down a hill to the turnaround point then up the hill to the transition area.

There were volunteers to make sure you were going in and out of the appropriate places. You climb on your bike outside of the transition area once you are back on a road.

 There were some large hills on the bike portion, but then equally large downhill. After a couple of big hills just after mile 3, I came to appreciate the small hills as pieces of cake. Like I previously mentioned there was a volunteer or policeman at each turn and also a policeman at each intersection to make sure no cars interfered with the bikers. The bike route is open to traffic! There were one or two cars along the way and every so often a motorcycle which I assumed were race organizers making sure no one needed help. Coming back to the transition area you pass runners going by their turnaround point. You then enter into the park and look for the jump off point. There are volunteers there along with a bright pink tape. Hop off the bike before this tape. The split timing pad is right there as well. 

The second run was same route just in reverse. This seemed to cause some confusion with people around the turnaround point and the hill leading to it. The finish line is close to the transition area.


Final thoughts:
Overall I enjoyed this race a lot more than I thought I would. There were negative factors outside of the race's control (weather, wake up time) but I won't hold that against them. I appreciated having someone at each turn letting you know where to go. The course was almost completely void of supporters so it was nice seeing these volunteers. I really enjoyed the post-race snacks. They had good fruit, watermelon and bananas, plus bagels with a choice of peanut butter and jelly (unfortunately I am allergic to peanuts so I avoided even the jelly in case of cross contamination). There were a couple of choices of chips as well as Fruit Snacks (a personal obsession of mine). They also had water and BodyAde. I am not sure if it was because this was a women's only race but the racers were very supportive and friendly. I had a number of quick chats with fellow runners/bikers during the course. You also heard a lot of people cheering on others. This might sway me into finding more women's specific races.

My biggest lesson learned is that I need to work on my second run. Maybe I could have saved some energy on the first run which would have helped in the second run, but I doubt it. This is just something that I need to practice or research how to get my muscles used to the bike to run transition.


Next race: Rock n Roll Half Marathon

Six months post accident

Today marks six months since I was hit by a car while running. While I found information on pelvic fractures in the elderly, I could not find much for younger people and nothing for runners. If someone has a pelvic fracture and has questions (or needs to vent), I am always available.

Flashback:
Super Bowl Sunday (February 2nd) I was scheduled to go for my 10 mile run during my Glass Slipper Challenge training. I successfully complete a HOT 5 mile run the day before so in order to beat the heat, I ran at 6 am. My plan was to run up the hotel zone in Cancun. I figured this would be the easiest and safest route since I did not have to cross any roads. A little over half way through my run, I heard a loud noise and turned to the side. I had a split second to process a car was sliding towards me. The pain was excruciating. I was on all fours screaming (I am not too proud to admit this). Later, I figured this was because I was putting pressure on my broken pelvis. 

Despite the corruption of the tourist police of Cancun, I was eventually able to find out that the guy who hit me was drunk. He went over the median, two lanes of traffic, and the curb to hit me. This was at 7:10 in the morning. The ring in my pelvis was stable so I was able to fly home and did not need surgery. My American doctor diagnosed me to have three fractures in my pelvis which required 6 weeks of non weight bearing on my right leg. I could not move. It took all my strength to get out of the wheelchair to go to the bathroom. By week 2, I noticed significant muscle loss in my right leg and butt. I started physical therapy later that week and continued physical therapy for 16 weeks. This was a huge turning point for me because it helped wake up my muscles so by my 6 week checkup I could start walking with crutches. A week later, no crutches (yes, I still got sore if I tried to push myself too hard the first or two after I started walking). I missed almost all of my winter and spring races, but salvaged the NJ Half by signing up for the relay and walking my portion of the race.

Shortly after that I was cleared to run. It was 12 weeks and 3 days after the accident. Four weeks after I started running I was able to complete my first race- Hibiscus 5 miler. 

blurry action shot

Today:
I am mostly symptom free there are still a couple of issues. My achilles feels like there is a knot or something movable on it. It was bothering me since I started walking, but with a recent week off of running it has been pain free. 

Recently while walking I felt a pain in my pelvis (roughly 5 1/2 months post accident). I am not sure if I just twisted my leg slightly while walking or what, but every once in awhile I felt a pain. It did not seem to bother me running until a week or so later. After the Electric Run I took a week off from running, cycling, everything except strength training. The next run I had was in Mexico City and it went well. I do not feel pain, but it feels like my pelvis/hip area is always popping in and out of place. Example: like cracking your elbow or another joint. Oh yes I did survive running in Mexico this time. I ran along a major road but then into a park. No cars here.

There are smaller issues that I am not sure will clear up. My hip flexors are always tight if I am not always stretching them (like at my desk during the day type stuff). I seem to have worse circulation in my right leg. Whenever I crouch down where my leg and knee are bent then stand up, my leg then feel like the it was asleep and painfully waking up. This is only after a few seconds. Other than those issues, all of my other pains and symptoms have cleared up. I am still a lot weaker and slow than before, but am working on it. My longest run post accident has been 7 miles and I plan on duplicating that next weekend.

Moving Forward:
I have an aggressive plan for the fall. The Philly Rock n Roll Half Marathon in September, the Wineglass Half Marathon in October, and the Philly Marathon in November. I am seriously considering downgrading the marathon to the half marathon. While for the most part I am meeting my mileage marks, I am so much weaker than where I feel I should be for training for a marathon. The deadline I give myself is the end of August. I will see how my body responds to adding more miles while I really get into half marathon training. Even if I have to downgrade, being able to compete and complete these races will be a huge accomplishment. It is not about winning a race, but about being able to run. I feel fortune and blessed to be at the point I am. I just want to get out there and run.



Don't forget to vote for me for the Runner's World cover contest 

or if please consider donating towards the Wounded Warrior Project. Every dollar helps! I am running my first half marathon post injury and hoping to raise $500.