Making Strides

While I'm making my own personal strides as I train, we as a team are making HUGE strides in fundraising for blood cancer research and patient services to support patients right here in the bay area. Our team has raised nearly $225K SO FAR! We have several honorees running along side us - several in remission and one is currently in treatment. While we cheer for the amounts raised, the innovative treaments we fund at Stanford, and families we help support financially - not all stories have happy ending. A 2006 team mate is losing her battle as cancer takes over her body - she's 26 and has a young child. An honoree from the peninsula run team who was in remission for 8 years, lost his fight a week ago. Many team mates are here running in honor of loved ones lost or fighting the fight. Kinda puts it all into perspective. Time to kick cancer's butt and not the other way around.

Speed Racer...sort of

So I signed up for the Nike Women's Marathon in SF as my "main" event. Yep, the full marathon. Now I'm going to do the 10K Nike Human Race this Sunday, and I'm signing up for the San Jose Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon on October 5. Gotta practice how to put a bib on and how to avoid elbowing crowds in the corrals. I'd like to get one more race in and make it an even 4 races before my 40th bday. Not bad considering I only started training 13 weeks ago! Oh, and by the way...I'm running 18 miles next weekend. Yes indeedy.

August 23 - SWEET SIXTEEN!

After nursing that shoe-trying-on-injury, today I was back in the game and completed 16 miles on the Nike Marathon course in SF. Ran with Jen the whole time - but were close to Robin and Beth much of the time, too.

Up at 4:15 am to eat an early breakfast, foam rolled the quads, IT band, and calves then stretched. While I didn't mention it to anybody - I was really nervous about running today. No cross training during the week OR the week before - only did track on Tuesday. I was nervous about the knee and ankle. I was nervous about the miles. I feared potential debilitating pain. Jeez people, 16 miles is a long distance!

We started at Lake Merced at 7:15am, ran along the zoo and up Highway 1 to the Windmills. Through Golden Gate Park and saw the Bison - up to the DeYoung Museum and beyond. Back tracked a bit then ran along Martin Luther King back up to Highway 1. And despite my fears, I felt pretty darn good up to this point. Really good until just before Sloat Ave, about 6 miles (?) left, then it all became a head game and a "get these legs moving" game. Breathing was easy, the legs were jell-o. Jen and I weren't talking as much - she was pushing me with words of encouragement and I convinced myself all would be good once I saw the Lake. I need to find a new head game. I regret that I wasn't thinking of a tragedy surrounding my friend's life -THAT would have carried me through. I feel guilty they didn't come to mind.

We made it - made to order breakfast burritos with BACON waiting to be served, GREAT stretching, relaxing with the team before heading home to an ice-bath and a nap. Tired. Tired. Really, really tired.

I did it. We did it. We ran 16 miles today.

Week of August 11

Skipped Tuesday track training to get fitted for new runners - while trying them out I RE-injured my knee.  It ended up hurting MORE than it did last Saturday.  So I've been foam rollin' my way to a slow recovery.  It's a killer, but it IS working.  No running for the week, not even cross training.  I hope to take a long walk on Sunday, then ease into the routine again.  Gotta be fit for the 16 MILE RUN in SF next weekend.

August 9: 11 Years and 14 MILES

Scene: 7 am Portola Valley, 2 miles south of where my dad lived in the late 50's and the start of today's 14 mile run.

Conditions: blue skies, smooshy knee.

Pre-Run Coach's Consult: Smooshy knee appears not to be anything serious. Reverse run walk interval to take it easy on knee, so I did 3min walk/2 min. run while listening to that knee throughout.

Run: Running partner Jen and I enjoyed gorgeous scenery through Portola Valley trails (narrow at times), 3 tough hills, switch backs, deer running across trail, quiet, peaceful. Jen would periodically ask, "How's the knee." No, it wasn't annoying, I did appreciate the concern. We gotta look out for each other!

Post-Run Coach's Consult over Coffee: examined knee to determine damage which was NOT serious. HUGE sigh of relief! It's just aggrevated - ice, ice (baby), elevation, foam roller. It's likely I will skip track training this week. Coach said the most important thing was completing those 14 miles and the rest of this week can be spent in recovery mode - easy cross training and STRETCHING.

So what's this about 11 years? August 9th was also an important date as it's my 11 year wedding anniversay :) 14 miles and 11 years.

August 2nd: 5 Chicks go 6 miles

Los Gatos Creek Trail: 6 miles.
I ran 5 miles here on Thursday. Today, I took the advice of multiple mentors to run HALF the distance of our longest run with my FAB-U-LOUS running buddies. Longest run was 12 miles, so today we went 6. Overall, it was a good run. In fact, I surprised even myself when I stated, "What, we're back already?" Here's the lowdown on the trail. Weekdays at 6am - we see cats and geese, and the occasional runner or walker. Saturday 8am - runners, strollers, bikes, packed parking lot.

$263.85

I got a very generous anonymous donation today for my Team in Training efforts in the amount of $263.85 --THANK YOU!!! Hmm, why $263.85 you may ask? The distance of today's marathon is 26 miles and 385 yards...duh! The length of a marathon was at first arbitrary and all that mattered was that all athletes competed on the same course. The first modern Olympics in 1896 had a marathon distance of 40 km. The starting point for the 1908 Olympic marathon in London was modified so that the Royal Family could have a good view and the length happened to be 42.195 km (26 miles 385 yards). That's John J. Hayes with the #26 bib, he was the winner. Pietri (top pic) was ahead of Hayes, but was so confused once he got into the stadium, that he turned around and ran the wrong way! He then stood up and stumbled to the ground several times (severe depletion of glycogen!). Officials assisted him, which caused the poor guy to be disqualified. Irish-American Hayes, really won by luck. By the way, I've now raised $1513.85. Here's my challenge to you: who will step to the plate and donate the metric conversation of a marathon- $421.95?