Month: August 2011

Ventura Half Marathon of the Harbors

This was a race that I was looking at several months ago but I didn’t decide to run it until about a week before the race.  I have been training for the Portland Marathon and my training plan called for 15 miles that day.  I figured 13 miles at a pace below my planned marathon pace would be a acceptable switch.  I PRd at my last half marathon (1:46:26) but that was way back in February, so I wasn’t quite sure what I could expect my body to do.  I went into the race hoping to run a 7:45 pace which would put me around 1:41.

The race was in Ventura, Ca and was very flat.  It was an out-and-back along the coast from one harbor to another. Flat and out-and-back are not my favorite ways to run but at least the temperatures would be good. So I got to the race with just enough time to wait for the potty then do a quick warm up without too much standing around time.  It was a pretty relaxed race so we all shouted go together (kind of cute).

Of course I went out a little fast at the start but within a couple miles I settled into a pace that was just around 7:45.  Overall I was feeling great and comfortable until after the turn.   By about mile 8 I started to feel it a little more.  I almost broke my ribs about 4 weeks prior to this race when I fell trail running.  I was starting to feel some pressure in my ribs as the race wore on, but not too bad.  As usual miles 9-11 were pretty tough and I had trouble keeping up with a couple people that passed me, but I was looking on target to make the pace I wanted if I could kick it for the last 2 miles.  When I got to the turn back into Ventura Harbor I got one last boost of inspiration that helped me finish with the fastest mile of the whole race, 7:26.

I ran 1:41:02 by their clock. Good enough for 7/83 in my age group (if they did AGs like triathlons I would have had 3rd!).  Over all I am very pleased with the results.  The next big race on my schedule is the Portland Marathon October 9, 2011.  I am really starting to latch on to the goal of qualifying for Boston since someone pointed out to me that my qualification would be good for the 2013 race as well. (I can’t do 2012 because I am hoping to do my first Ironman and it is too close to the Boston Marathon.)

Click here for the Garmin data. (And yes, I did max my HR at 202; I think I am part hummingbird…)

Setting some goals…

After the Portland Marathon 2010- beat my ultimate goal by over 8 minutes!

One thing that really helps keep me focused on training is having goals for each race.  It used to be just finish, or do better than the last one.  But now that I have been doing this a little bit longer they are getting more specific. I usually have a 2-3 goals for each race.

They are:

What I better do

What I would be excited to do

What would be the ultimate (yet attainable) thing to do

I have felt setting a couple of goals for a race really helps me finish every race satisfied.  I have to be realistic when I set the goals but the last one is always the one I am working towards.

I am going to keep a list of the races I am planning on doing and what my goals are for those races.  Lets see how many I can meet the ultimate goal for!

Life Intervenes

I have been a little quiet lately on all fronts.  There are some big things happening personally that I wont’ get into here but I can speak to what  has been happening with my training.

I did my second 70.3 triathlon back in July and have switched my focus to marathon training for the upcoming Portland Marathon October 9.  That switch has thrown my training off kilter(as well as the personal things).  I had a nice schedule that I used for the triathlon training and now things have changed.

Then about 3 weeks ago my foot started hurting for no apparent reason.  It was hurting in an odd spot, low ankle on the outside of my foot.  And then to top it off, I fell trail running HARD! I fell so hard that I almost broke my ribs (I had a headlamp in my breast pocket of my running/hydration vest and I fell flat on my chest). That took me out for three days and I am still having trouble pushing the pace.

So I am trying to get my grove back.  I have a pretty big goal for my marathon (I would LOVE to run a BQ time, 3:40 or faster).  If I can’t get myself moving well again I am worried I won’t do it.  This has been an amazing year for competing for me! I have beat my expectations in almost every event I have entered since Portland last year.  I am scared that I will fall short in Portland this year.  It shouldn’t be the end-all to my training but I am preparing to maybe not meet my goal.  Something that hasn’t happened for a while.

Thanks for listen to me worry.

7 Links…

When I started running and when I eventually got into triathlon I never expected I would also start blogging.  Honestly I wasn’t into reading other people’s blogs at first.  They seemed like reading someone diary.  But then after reading more and more I realized what a great outlet blogs are to share you experiences with others who might not be immediately connected to.  I was very humbled to be nominated by Jenn to participate in an interesting blogging experiment.

The folks over at Tripbase have been running a blogging experiment as of late. The goal is to unite bloggers from all around cyberspace to share and develop a vault of lost, but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again.

The rules are as follows:

  1.  Blogger is nominated to take part
  2.  Blogger publishes his/her 7 links on his/her blog – 1 link for each category
  3.  Blogger nominates up to 5 more bloggers to take part.
  4.  These bloggers publish their 7 links and nominate another 5 more bloggers
  5.  And so it goes on!

So here are mine…

Most Beautiful– Vineman 70.3 Race Report

I had a hard time picking my most beautiful (just not sure how to interpret that) so I picked the post about the most beautiful race I have done so far.

Most Popular- Celiant Sock Review got the most hits (it was put  on their Facebook Page so that gave it a boost) but my Castaic Lake Race Report came in second

Most Controversial- Happy Mother’s Day ?

I didn’t get a lot of controversial feedback on the post per say but I did feel that what I said may not be felt by all who read it.  I actually got quite a bit of support through the comments (both public and private)

Most Helpful- Some Thoughts on Tapering

Well this one isn’t mine but since I linked it on mine I can use it right? (Thanks Jenn)

Success Surprised Me– Selfish

This post got a lot of feedback about a topic that doesn’t paint endurance athletes in the best light.

Didn’t Get the Attention it Deserved – My Monthly Training Updates

Maybe they don’t really deserve much attention but they are not frequently viewed or commented on. (Can’t really blame you, not that exciting)

Most Proud Of– Trying to Run Quietly

I like this one because I was really trying to be clever (something I hope to do in my writing, otherwise no one will read about my silly life!)

Now on to the the chain letter– I mean nominations (in no particular order)

Michael Runner– He was the first person who got me to write a post and kind of started this for me

Fast Enough– Terri has an amazing way of expressing how joyful running can be.  I hope to run like her some day!

Why Logan Runs- Logan writes some very honest and raw posts that are refreshing to read.  His honesty is admirable.

Cook Train Eat Race– Jason has been a huge supporter of me and I appreciate that immensely.  His blog has a wealth of information and really looks at all aspects of training for endurance sports

July 2011 Training Summary

Starting out the run at Vineman

Training Summary

  • Running – 118 Miles /18:40
  • Swimming – 12 miles/6:31
  • Biking – 277 miles/16:53
  • Total Distance – 409 miles
  • Total Time : 42:50

Races

Big month for racing because I did my second 70.3 triathlon of the year!  It was a huge for success for me since I beat the goal I had set for myself and had a very successful race. I finished the race in 5:32:change.  I was most proud of my run.  After the 1.2 mile swim and 56 mile bike I felt very strong off the bike and had a great run; 1:51:10 for the 13.1 miles!  I also did a better job of managing my nutrition and hydration during the race.   It was very rewarding for everything to come together on race day.  What was even better was I felt great after the race!

Notes on Month

It was still a very stressful month at home while some things are getting sorted out.  That combined with racing meant a week to taper and a couple to recover which took a ding in my mileage.  But it actually wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.  I finally did my first 20 mile run for my marathon plan.  It went really well and I am encouraged to train hard for my upcoming Portland Marathon in October.

Goals for Next Month

  • There are a few things I would like to focus on in August.
  • Increase my running miles so I can be well prepared for the marathon in October and hopefully my first ultra in November.
  • Work harder to make the splits I am supposed to when doing interval or tempo work.  I tend to just try harder during those runs but I don’t really watch my pace too carefully.
  • And as always, spend more time on my bike.  I need to get more comfortable and stronger on the bike so I am ready for some serious Ironman training starting in December (the goal is Ironman St. George in May!)