Worst. Race conditions. Ever.

Well, folks, I must admit that when I got up this morning and saw near blizzard conditions outside, I considered not going to the Shuffle. But in the end, I thought about how hard I'd been working for it, and I went.

Now that it's over, I'm glad I went, but I have to say it was absolutely miserable. The snow was coming down hard, and it was wet and heavy. It all turned to slush when it hit the ground. My feet were sopping wet before I even got to the race site, and they were completely numb as I stood in the start corral. Because I was in the second wave, I had to stand in the corral for almost 30 minutes before I even got to start running.

I thought it would get better when I took off, but I soon realized that thousands of feet striking the ground was going to cause a lot of splashing. Freezing water and ice splashed over my shoes and up my legs. We went over 6 bridges on the route, and several of them were made of a kind of wire mesh, which did not allow for much traction. And the wind was not pretty either.

But, I finished. And I finished in pretty good time! My watch time was 48:20, which is usually accurate within 5 seconds. My goal was 48 minutes, and a piece of me is disappointed I didn't quite get it, but given the conditions, I'm giving myself a break.

A race for the books, folks. Good for me for going. Enjoy the picture -- I thought it would communicate the misery better than words could.

Ready to Shuffle!

I did my last training run for the Shamrock Shuffle this morning. An 8K, with a time of 47:02. Not as fast as Tuesday, but still really good. I think I can safely set a goal of 48 flat for the race, with a "Holy cow, that'd be sweet!" goal of 47.

I ran in 30-degree weather this morning and it was not so bad, so no matter what the race conditions, I'm determined to have a good time. Right now, they're saying it should be about 40 degrees by race time. With some snow on the ground. Ew.

I get to pick up my race packet and racing team uniform today! Yay!

Speed much?

Another good showing at speed training tonight. It was three sets of 3 by 200 m, 3 times up and down the Grant statue hill, and 1 by 200 m, plus the warm up run and speed drills. My friend Kim did the three sets (which totals a distance of over 3 and a half miles) in about 35 minutes, and I was not far behind her. That's speedy, especially considering the hills involved!

Plus, I found out Kim is from Grand Rapids, and planning to run the River Bank Run there in May. My aunt also invited me to run that, so maybe I'll make the trip!

Day off from running tomorrow, woo hoo!

Run between the raindrops? Ha.

I think I may have crossed another threshold into true runner-dom today. It was raining, and I ran my 8K anyway.

It really wasn't as bad as I expected. The wind was worse than the rain.

The good news is I completed my 8K in 45:52! That's under a 9:15 pace and totally unheard of for me. There are several things I think could have contributed to this:
1. I run better in the afternoon than I ever did in the morning. I used to do all my runs in the morning, but now that I run longer than 30 minutes, I've had to train in the afternoon instead.
2. The stopping and starting I have to do at stoplights could be beneficial. I always get annoyed when I have to stop, feeling like it throws me off my rhythm. But perhaps I am actually renewed each time I have to stop and let my heart rate slow for 30 seconds or so. Or maybe I accidentally shave seconds off my time as I start and stop my watch.
3. I ran faster because of the rain. (I doubt this one.)
4. Speed training has already started to work. This seems sketchy because I have only gone twice, but it's possible.

Regardless, I'm happy and feel like I deserve a treat. Sadly (happily?), I have nothing in the apartment and don't want to go out to get anything. I guess the method of not buying anything to keep around really works.

Speed training tomorrow. I hope it doesn't rain!

Off to a Running Start

Hello, readers! (Assuming there are any out there!) My enthusiasm for running has increased lately, and I have more and more thoughts bouncing around in my mind about it. So, I decided to start this blog as a record of my training, progress, and race schedule for this season. It may not be interesting for anyone but me, but I hope that it will become a useful tool.

For this first post, all I really want to say is that I ran eight miles yesterday, which is a personal best for me. And I did it in a little over 1 hour and 17 minutes. That's just under a 9:30 pace. I'm really happy about this and feeling like I am well on my way to reaching my ultimate goal for this year: to complete the Rock N Roll Half Marathon in Chicago on August 2.

I'm officially entered in four races so far:
March 29: Shamrock Shuffle 8K
April 26: Ravenswood Run 5K
May 23: Soldier Field 10 Miler
August 2: Chicago Rock N Roll Half Marathon

I'm sure there will be others. I always welcome support on the course or at the finish line if anyone is interested in coming out!

This week, my focus is on preparing for the Shamrock Shuffle next Sunday. Here's the plan:
Sunday: run 5K (which I have already done, yay!)
Monday: rest from running, do AM weight training
Tuesday: run 8K to get a feel for my expected finish time
Wednesday: speed training with Coach Leach and the FF Racing Team (4 x 200 m, plus hills)
Thursday: rest from running, do AM weight training
Friday: run 8K
Saturday: rest
Sunday: RACE DAY!

Wish me luck!