Yea...I hadn't thought I'd do this

I got an email today from Island Photography saying they need to make room for this year's Philadelphia Marathon pics. Philly was not my crowing glory. I ended this race in pain. My stomach wasn't happy with me and I had back pain at about mile 11. I didn't come out of it in the best frame of mind and when I got the initial email about photos I didn't do more than look at them. I didn't even think about buying them.

But, today I caved. I bought them. It's like they know you're going to buy them. They know you want to have them. They know no matter how awful you think you look, you still want evidence you ran. Argh...

Here are a couple. I might as well get some use out of them...

 Along Kelly Drive, between miles 11-12

Finally crossing the finish line. It couldn't come fast enough.

 

Obligatory post-race medal photo. I felt so sick here. I really thought I would pass out.

 

 What about you? Have you bought race pics after swearing you wouldn't?

 

2011 Races in Review

Well, I guess it's that time to look back at how things went this year.  After studious calculations (thanks DailyMile!), I can say I ran at least 307 miles this year.  :-)  Not bad.  Not great, but not bad.  My best month was January 2011 when training for Disney's Princess Half Marathon really kicked into gear (57 miles).  My worst months were March and April (5 miles each).  LOL!  At least I did something those months!

The big accomplishment was running my first and second half marathons!  I never thought I could do it!  I didn't think I could run a 5k, let alone a half marathon.  Who knew I was capable of it?  Besides my friends?  ;-)

I finished in 3:21:11.  Honestly, my goal was to finish.  I had no aspirations of a fast time or anything.  I just wanted to finish.  And I did!  Though I will tell you, anything after mile 10 was torture!  All I could think of was "isn't this OVER yet???"  But, I ran the whole thing and I crossed the finish line!  There isn't much better than that!

March found us in Baltimore for the Kelly St. Patrick's Day 5k.  I love this race!  Maybe because I start at the back and the two coolest things happen at the very beginning of the race: the race actually kicks off the St. Patrick's Day parade so there are TONS of people there cheering you on as you start.  It's a fabulous feeling! The second is the race starts on the top of a hill and as you descend the hill you see all the people in front of you...all wearing green.  It is truly an amazing sight!  I did well on this one this year.  A sub-40 minute 5k!!!  I was very pleased with a 39:36 time.  Woohoo!

Afterwards, we went to the James Joyce Tavern with our friend Ada who also ran and her friends from the Baltimore Dragon Boat Club.  They are such great people!  We all had a fabulous afternoon and tons of people from the race were there, so it was almost like a post-race party!

May saw us try a new race, the Preakness 5k in Maryland.  It looked like such a great idea - run around the track the horses run.  It was a great idea until you actually ran on the sand.  Then it was one of the dumbest things I've ever done.  LOL!  But, I will say, they did a fabulous job of keeping the theme.  Each runner received a bib with a racing horse name:

We started the race running through the gates the horses like up in and start.  I thought that was cool.  It was a bit congested, but it was cool.

We ran the course, which they said they made easier to run on.  Bah!  It was like running at the beach in the sand before the wet sand.  Not fun at all!

But, overall, one of those races that you say that was a neat experience.  I'm not sure I would do it again.  The sand really messed with me.  It was a flat course, I will give it that.  And the shirts were spiffy, plus you had the option of a shirt or a fleece blanket.  We went shirts each, but decided to buy a blanket because they were pretty cool.  :-)

June found me trying a duathlon and failing miserably.  I tried, but I just wasn't prepared for it.  I am slightly disappointed and may try another to redeem myself, but I'm not sure.  It was an interesting experience, but one that has left some scars.

The second half of June found me back in Baltimore for my third Baltimore Women's Classic.  This was my very first 5k ever and I like coming back to this race.  They have a nice shirt, a great goody bag, and is the 2nd largest women's only race in the country.  If you are in the area, I highly recommend this race to any women of any athletic ability.  It's just an all-around great race.

July found us up in Harrisburg for the Harrisburg Mile.  It's a one mile run down Front Street that we've done several times and enjoyed.  This year I was not happy.  I hadn't run since the Women's Classic and didn't have the best run, but they had switched the clock over before I finished for the next heat and I had no idea how long it took me.  This is the first time in all the year's I've run it that that's happened.  I was not happy at all.  Actually, I was pretty ticked.  I'm not sure if I will do it again unless I can come in under 10 minutes and the chances of that happening....

Hubby, myself, and our friend Jim

And then there is a race drought until November.  LOL!  I was so concerned with getting my long runs in that I didn't want to run any short runs and mess that up.  So, from July to November was a barren waste land of races.

Then we come to November!  Time for my second half marathon - the Philadelphia Half Marathon.  I was rocking this race from miles 1 through 9.  The time was flying by and each mile marker was a shock at how fast they were coming.  Then I hit mile 9 and the awful, awful hill that existed between mile 9 and 10.  I got myself back at it for miles 10 and 11, but I hit the wall HARD at mile 12.  I just wanted it to be over.  And of course it wasn't.  Bah!  But, I got through it and finished the entire race!  And I PRed, which isn't half bad - 3:16:43.  :-) 

And my last run of 2011 happened last weekend at the Celtic Solstice 5 Miler in Baltimore.  It was a rough course, a good portion of it uphill, but it made for a feeling of accomplishment at the end.  Hubby told me it was part of the Dreaded Druid Hills course and when he said that I decided I didn't need to do that race.  LOL!  I PRed on this race, which made me very happy - 1:05:45.  They had a great post-race party with mulled wassail wine and amazing cookies!  What a way to wrap up a race.  :-)  

So, not a bad 2011 on the racing front - ran my first two half marathons and set a 5 mile PR.  I enjoyed the new races we threw in there this year and going back to some races because they are just darn good!  I'm working on what to focus on in 2012.  There's so much I could throw out there as goals, but I want to make sure they are reasonable and attainable.  Nothing like setting yourself up for failure.  ;-)

I won't be able to do any New Year's races this year (though I would love to!), so if you are doing one, let me know how it goes! 

Reflections on the Philly Half Marathon

Pro

1. It was my second half marathon!  Woohoo!  Very exciting to know I trained and completed two half marathons in one year!!

 2. This half marathon was in one of my favorite cities, Philadelphia.  I was so looking forward to running the streets and seeing all the cool sites. Philly has such a rich history and it was fabulous to see it while running.

3.  The first 9 miles flew by.  It was amazing.  I couldn't believe how quickly they went and how little effort it seemed to take.  I was shocked.  I was happy, but shocked.  Even the hills between miles 7 and 9 were fine.  I'm not a huge hill person, but they didn't seem impossible.

4. I PRed.  I ran basically the race time-wise I expected to run and PRed by 5 minutes.  I will say slight disappointment that my 10k estimated my finished to be 16 minutes faster than I actually ran, but eh.  It is what it is and I have a new PR.

5. The crowd support.  I'm not one for being excited about people cheering me on.  I run by myself in my training runs and crowds yelling for me usually turn me off, but the crowds in Philly were different.  They called my name, they cheered loudly, they had fun signs.  I even joked with some people and high-fived others.

Cons

1. The hill between miles 9 and 10.  Seriously.  The worst hill I've ever dealt with.  Worse than the hill between Mount Wolf and Manchester.  Without that hill this race would have been 100 times better!  And I would have had a better finish time!

2. The lack of directions at the start for the corrals.  It was chaotic and hard to find where I was supposed to line up.  Good thing I'm slow and I knew to just walk to the back.  The signs for the corrals were not as well marked as they could have been.

3. Lack of port-a-potties on the course itself.  The start and finish areas were packed with them, but once out on the course, it was hard to find.  I stopped about mile 5 to use one because I didn't know when the next one would be available.  Not good when you have 25,000 people running at the same time.

4. Post-finish line had several issues:

1. By the time I finished I was given a Marathon medal.  While sweet, I ran the half.  There should have been separate finish lines for the full and half so each race received the right medal.  And when I finished there were only three half medals left.  There were some pretty darn upset people I'm sure after me because there were more than 3 people on the course when I finished.
2. It was crowded with too many volunteers at the same spot - handing out water, handing out medals, directing traffic.  The water people should have been further along.  The congestion was incredible and I've never seen the like.  It was impossible to understand/see/know where to go.
3. With all the people handing out water, there were only two people handing out the blankets.  The ratio was a bit skewed.  It was almost impossible to get a blanket.
4. Food. Big fail.  I got in line, waited close to 5 minutes without getting close to the food, then got out of line because I felt sick.  The set up was completely wrong.  I just ran 13.1 miles (others ran 26.2) and we have to wait 10 or more minutes for a granola bar or banana?  Come on!  More areas where food is located, more space, and quicker lines.  
5. The photo station should be before the water, blankets, etc.  I got my photo taken and had to dump everything I had to get it shot.  
6. Overall, it seemed like once you crossed the finish line everything was just one big cluster you-know-what.  Too crowded, no organization, and too many people.

 Overall Impression

Overall, I really enjoyed the race.  I loved the first 9 miles and I think miles 11 through 13.1 would have been more enjoyable had there not been a 90 degree angle hill I had to go up from miles 9 to 10.  I felt as I ran through Old City, along Delaware Avenue, and up Chestnut Street that this really was an amazing race.  One I would recommend to anyone.  Now, I would recommend it, with the caveat that you have to do hill training.  They say this course is flat and for the most part it is, but miles 7 through 10 have elevation and that mile between 9 and 10 is just killer.

But, if you want to see the best of Philadelphia, go for it!  It's a wonderful way to see the city, get your run on, and have a fun Sunday morning.  

And as much as I am complaining about mile 9 to 10, I'm still happy I PRed.  I'm still happy I ran it.  I'm still happy I felt practically normal come Monday.  I obviously trained better this time around than last.  
 So thank you to everyone who organized and volunteered.  Thank you to the police, fire fighters, and EMTs at the race.  Thank you to all the friends and family who cheered not only their loved ones, but everyone who ran by them.  Thank you to all those who hung signs on the side of the road and those who carried them as they cheered.  And thank you to all my friends and family who believed I could run a half marathon even when I didn't!