We Run For A Reason.. We run for the special 1%

Doug and I have joined TEAM KIDNEY
and are Running for Reason
in the Houston 1/2 Marathon.

You all know our reason.

Maddie.

Maddie's primary diagnoses are IgA Nephropathy, Thin Basement Membrane Disease, Asthma, and severe allergies. However she has a number of other chronic medical issues that greatly impact her life.

She is strong.

She is a fighter.

She is courageous.

She is also an anomaly to the medical field.

As one of her specialists commented at an appointment a few years ago, we can only hope that one day her symptoms and issues will all be brought together and it will have a diagnosis that doesn't bear her name.

So Doug and I RUN FOR A REASON. 

There are so few people that have the combined kidney diseases that Maddie has that very little research is being done on them. It's hard to get any press when only 1% of the population is affected. 

Sad. 

Very sad, but that is the reality when faced with rare diseases.

So we run for Maddie and others like her... 

the nameless other children and teens whose diseases will never get headlines and research dollars cause there just isn't enough of a them to bring attention to their plight.

We invite you to join us in our efforts.

Cause Maddie deserves a cure.

Your tax deductible donation goes to The National Kidney Foundation. 

Click here for the link.

We Run For A Reason.. We run for the special 1%

Doug and I have joined TEAM KIDNEY
and are Running for Reason
in the Houston 1/2 Marathon.

You all know our reason.

Maddie.

Maddie's primary diagnoses are IgA Nephropathy, Thin Basement Membrane Disease, Asthma, and severe allergies. However she has a number of other chronic medical issues that greatly impact her life.

She is strong.

She is a fighter.

She is courageous.

She is also an anomaly to the medical field.

As one of her specialists commented at an appointment a few years ago, we can only hope that one day her symptoms and issues will all be brought together and it will have a diagnosis that doesn't bear her name.

So Doug and I RUN FOR A REASON. 

There are so few people that have the combined kidney diseases that Maddie has that very little research is being done on them. It's hard to get any press when only 1% of the population is affected. 

Sad. 

Very sad, but that is the reality when faced with rare diseases.

So we run for Maddie and others like her... 

the nameless other children and teens whose diseases will never get headlines and research dollars cause there just isn't enough of a them to bring attention to their plight.

We invite you to join us in our efforts.

Cause Maddie deserves a cure.

Your tax deductible donation goes to The National Kidney Foundation. 

Click here for the link.

Cowtown 2015

One of the races Doug and I do together is the Cowtown.  We make a weekend of it and enjoy staying in a hotel for a couple of nights and doing things we want to do without our children.. and we race on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Well... except for this year. We had ice and snow for DAYS! This isn't a big deal if you live in areas that get this junk for entire seasons, but in Texas, we get it for 30 minutes and then it moves on. But this week, it lingered. And then it came back.

Saturday's 5k and 10k races were cancelled. We will complete a virtual race in the next week or so in order to complete our challenge race. But early Saturday afternoon the ice started melting, so we loaded up and fled our house while we had the chance!

We got to Fort Worth and this is what we found outside the expo. DANGEROUS!!!! It was sooo icy! 

picture by Libby

But as you can see, we weren't the only crazy people! These are the lines for packet pickup! This race normally has thirty thousand runners for the weekend of races... with the weather, everyone needed to pick up their race packets in the same 12 hour window. insane.

About 5pm the race directors cancelled the ultra and the full, but decided to keep the 1/2 marathon. Doug and I drove the course.  It was BAD! 

At that point, we decided that there was no way we would be able to run.. It just wouldn't be safe. So we ate a big mexican dinner and chilled. 

BUT.... workers for the city of Fort Worth and the race worked ALL NIGHT and put down 14 tons of sand.. so we decided heck, we are already nuts, lets just race.

from Cowtown's facebook page!

It also helped that my sister Libby and my running friends were going to go ahead and try.  

So at 8am we found ourselves standing out in front of Will Rogers Colosseum in freezing temps and drizzle getting ready to run 13 miles in slush.  And we were excited about it. Normally on Sunday morning, there are about 15 thousand runners.  While it wasn't as packed as normal, there were still a lot of us out there!

Libby and I were in corral 4 and Doug and my BRF's (best running friends) were in corral 5. Cowtown changed up the corral structure and start this year and it was SOOO MUCH BETTER!! In the past it was a free-for-all at the start and you were lucky to not get trampled. This year the start was slower and more methodical and you didn't feel like you were going to get run over before you made it to the start line! It helped that there were fewer people, sure, but it was a significant change for the better.

The course was slushy and at times dangerous.  But there were volunteers or cones at almost all of the super slick areas. I'm calling it an adventure race and Doug has labeled it a Steeplechase as we jumped many a water obstacles!

Prior to the race, Libby and I went in hoping for a time goal.  But Sunday morning, we knew that a PR was not going to happen! Our goal was to finish without falling.. and to have fun. 

The first mile of the course is insanely packed with people. 

from Cowtown Facebook page

And then you turn and go down into the park. oh my! 

You can't even tell that it is Texas here!! 

And here is Doug on the course. So glad Alisa took pictures too!

Along the way I made Libby stop and take pictures! 

And looks like I accidently took one at one point trying to put my phone away... see I'm having fun.. I'm smiling even when the camera isn't on me! :)

Here we are getting ready for the dreaded Mile 9 Hill!  

We ran up almost the entire thing. 

And finally, here we are at mile 12. It was still soo cold! 

FINISHED! We ran it in 2:22. Not a PR by any means, but we had fun and didn't fall! We were sooo cooollllddd at this point!

With my running peep at the end.

And celebrating another completed race with Doug.

And I'll leave you with this picture taken by MarathonFoto. I LOVE it.  

I am buying this (and the entire package of my race pictures for that matter..)

I think this picture sums up who I want to be, and be known for.

I love my life.

I'm not afraid to do hard things.

I embrace challenges.

I don't work hard becuase I think I'm going to "win"

I work hard becuase I find joy in the process.

I have already won.

The Cowtown Marathon Weekend 2014

The Cowtown Marathon Weekend is truly a running highlight of our year! There is just something incredible about the Cowtown Marathon (located in Fort Worth, Texas)

I think even if we were not runners, we would still feel this way. 

The energy and excitement is palpable from the time you pull up at the expo on Friday until you cross the finish line on Sunday morning. But given that Doug and I are both runners, and this is a "local" race, we take full advantage of the entire weekend experience!

 

For those of you who do not know about the Cowtown Marathon, it is the oldest and largest multi-race, multi-day event in Texas. Around 30 THOUSAND total runners compete in the races on Saturday and Sunday. The city doesn't come to a complete halt, but almost! The streets are closed and people stand for miles and miles cheering and offering support to the runners. 

It is truly and incredible event! (wow.. nice unpaid commercial..)

Anyway, on Saturday morning my sister Libby, my friend Crystal and I joined about 8 thousand other runners and ran the 10k. It was jam packed, but fun! Don't you love the pictures from marathonfoto! No, I don't mind pasting the proofs in as I will be purchasing all of the photos! 

As the 10k is finishing up, the Adult 5k starts with another 6 thousand runners or so... Here is Doug with some of my friends from the run club I run with. 

 

All of us ran on Saturday so that we could qualify for the Cowtown Challenge: running both days and getting an extra medal! :)

 

Once the morning races are over, we putter around the rest of the day, using our "fueling" needs to excuse our eating habits! We had lunch at In and Out Burgers. Yummy!! We had never had them before, won't be the last time.

 

Doug and I enjoyed walking around a shopping area and just hanging out. Something we rarely get to do!! For dinner, we went to Chuy's and enjoyed mexican food.

 

Sunday morning brought the half marathon, full marathon and the ultra runners. We ALL started at the same time. I don't know how many runners, but I'm thinking at least 15 THOUSAND runners starting at the SAME TIME. It is craziness.

Here we are in the corrals waiting for the start. Way off in the distance you can see the starting line.

Here are Crystal and I on the course. We were sllloooowww, but we had fun!

 

Here I am at the finish line. Yes, I was pumped to be finished!

My time was way off from what I know I can do, but it reflected my training of late. I finished strong and happy, so in the end, I can't be upset with my sad time. I just have to be honest with my self and my expectations. If I want to run faster, I have to train faster and more consistently. I've been in a post marathon slump for a few months, I feel like I have finally come out of it and am ready to train!

Here I am with Doug after the race. He ran a strong 1/2 marathon for his second 1/2 ever. He is already talking about training for his next one!

And here Crystal and I are. We are absolutely 2 peas in a pod. We have the same mindset and are the same level of crazy and motivated. We scare our husbands. :) Good thing they are friends too!

And finally, a close up of the weekend bling! Love the spur finisher medal! Can't wait to get another oen next year!

The not-so Polar Dash

The 14mile Polar Dash. 

 

Race Recap.

 

The race was about an hour and a half away from my house and it didn't start until 9am, so that meant that I actually slept in on a race day! Woohoo!

 

When I started out the morning, it was cold. In fact, about 45 minutes into the drive the thermometer on my car read 25 degrees. By the time the race started it was about 38 or so. It was beautiful race weather. However, it ended up being not-so polar!! I think by the time I finished running it was close to 70 degrees. I was burning up in my winter gear!

 

Here we are before the race.

 

Don't you love my skirt! :) I made skirts for me and Courtney. Then Courtney found us winter tshirts (from the children's section...) and fun socks. Yes, we were "adorable."

 

So how was the race? Well, it was hard. I am learning that for every "easy" race, you have a dozen hard ones! I'm still so new at this that I thought every race would get easier and I'd get faster. Not the case. There are so many intangibles that go into racing.

 

Back to the race...

Here we are about a 1/2 mile into the race. There were a LOT of people running. They started the 10k and 14mile people at the same time. On the divided road it was fine. But by mile 2 we were on a sidewalk on a bridge close to a turnaround, so we were all crammed on the same section of side walk! It was very frustrating.

 

 

 

 

The route was a 6 mile loop that covered a number of small ups and downs, a couple of bridges and lots of winding trail.

 

No spectators.

 

I didn't realize how much Cowtown ruined me for other races! I need crowd energy! There were NO spectators on this course. For 14 miles the only cheers you got were the people at the water stations.

 

The volunteers were nice and we got some great comments about our skirts. But running the same section of the route three times was hard. Passing mile marker 4 and seeing the 10 and 13 markers was demoralizing. It was a tough section (at least for me) and knowing that I had to do it two more times, then one more time was hard mentally.

 

I am also learning that I need to plan better for the road conditions. Wearing my older running shoes was probably not the best choice. I was great till mile 5. Then my foot started hurting a little. By mile 7 my hip was hurting. I wore my older shoes because my newer shoes had hurt my foot the week before on a long run.  I think I'm going to have to upgrade to some Hoka's for long concrete races!

 

In the end, I did the 14 miles in 2:31 (that includes a 3 minute stop at mile 8 for pottying and a gel). I had hoped for a better time, but I am reminding myself that I am still learning. I took gels and chews and then only at one gel at mile 8 and bummed a chew off of Courtney at mile 11. That's not enough food. And I totally skipped the water stop at mile 6. One of these days I am going to learn. My best races I eat a jelly bean or a chew at every mile marker. It gives me something to do, and that little calorie jolt is important.  I forget this. Then later when I process the race and wonder why I went from feeling strong and great at mile 9 to hurting and tired at mile 11 I remember the lack of food and water and that at that point I had been running for two hours!

 

But I made it to the end. Here I am coming in to the park.

 

 

 

 

And here we are with our medals!

 

 

 

And because running 14 miles wasn't enough....

 

Yes, this was AFTER the race.
(and it took multiple jumps to get a picture!)

 

And what will I take with me from this race? The knowledge that I am not good at a looped course and that I need spectators.

 

hmm.... this might change up some of my race plans for this year....





The Cowtown Challenge.. oh yes it was!

It's done. 2 days and 2 races.

 

They don't call it a challenge for nothing.

Whew.

Here is the Cowtown play by play!

Saturday morning dawned COLD!! But beautiful.

Doug's race started at 7am, so by 6:30 we were standing in the freezing dawn. Doug raced in the 10k and did FANTASTIC!! He had been dealing with a nagging injury, so he didn't get to train like he wanted, and he still did better than he had hoped to do originally! Go Doug!!

Here he is getting started. He's the blur in orange.

 

Then, at 8:30am I did the 5k with Crystal, my challenge partner. Our third member got hurt and couldn't come. Super bummer :( .  So yes, I stood in the cold for 2 hours before my race. I'm learning that that's just what nutso runners do!  When the race started, Cyrstal and I didn't even realize it and so we ended up behind what felt like every walker on the course! There were over 4000 participants in this 5k and it was CRAZY!!  We didn't even start jogging until probably a mile into the race. And even then we were jumping curbs, running on sidewalks and through people's yards dodging walkers and other runners. We didn't break a sweat until 2.5 miles into the race. It's funny my run tracker on my phone even shows our weaving and curb running.

In the end, we had an awesome time, felt comfortable and jogged into the finish. I placed 38th in my age group out of 387. I couldn't believe it! If we had known, we could have RUN!  But really it was probably best, as we had the 1/2 marathon slated for the next day.

Here are Doug and me after our races.

 

Sunday morning dawned cold again, but not as cold as Saturday. By 6:30am I was jumping out of the car and walking to the start as the traffic was insane. It was unbelievable. There were more people here today than the day before.  The potty line was 50 people deep easy for every porta-potty and they had a lot!

 

Here is our team (Stephenville Women's Running Club) before the race.

 

The blur of our start. 6870 doing the half, 1500 doing the full and 420 doing the ultra. All of us started at the same time. 



 

When we got started, we were once again jumping curbs, running on sidewalks and running through people's yards! There were runners of all sizes, shapes and ages.

 

One of the coolest things about the race is that there were spectators everywhere and they were cheering us all on!  Truly, the only place along the 13 miles where there weren't many spectators was on a long, horrendous bridge that climbed and climbed and climbed. When we finished that, the crowds were large and soo incredibly supportive. That was mile 9.5.

 

Overall, I had a great run. I didn't keep to my training plan as I had hoped, but the volume of runners, the crowd and the adrenaline just kept me moving. My running app gave my time at 2 hours and 13 minutes. I paused it when I waited in line to go potty at mile 5!  My chip time was 2 hours 16 minutes and 54 seconds. I was the 270th out of 593 runners in my age group and 3664 out of 6870 half marathon runners. Given that I had never done this before, I am really proud of myself.

 

Here I am at the end with my medals!

With Crystal, my challenge partner!

 

And with the group that I train with each week.  

This has been one of those defining life moments and I'm already looking forward to doing the Cowtown Challenge next year!