Monday, January 30, 2012

Blog-Diggity Blog-Doubt

That title has NOTHING to do with this post at all. I just have the No Diggity song in my head and that title sort of created itself.

I worked at Pecos Bill Cafe in the FALL of '97!
Today I'm writing about the aftermath of The Fall. Not the season filled with crunchy leaves, beautiful orange trees, Halloween parties and Thanksgiving. I'm talking about The Fall - where my body so rudely met the Earth thanks to gravity and an uneven sidewalk.

Yesterday morning I woke up with a throbbing head ache. Not your traditional form of headache, but like my whole head just hurt. My cat delicately brushed her head up against me. Naturally she hit my chin. I almost cried. I couldn't even touch myself. (Wait, not like that song. Stop it!) I looked in the mirror and I had a deformed chin. And a lovely bruise to show for it, too.  (I tried to get pictures, they wouldn't turn out.) Breakfast was interesting - because I could hardly eat. Throughout the day I was doing chores and feeling stiff. I could hardly get my bra off when it was bed time. Well that was just less than 24 hours after.

Cut to today. 
Ugh. Today.

I could hardly move my arms in swim class, let alone use the heaviest weights we have. I mean I DID do it all with my regular weights - but it was sooooo hard. I was moving pretty slow. And every time my water weights hit my right thigh it stung. It hurt to get dressed today. I'm such a whiner right now. 

I have a line going over my thigh where the edge of the sidewalk hit me. My right shoulder is so stiff I can barely lift my arm. The left hurts, but nothing like the right. But really the reason I'm whining ... I am sooo hungry. Can I eat? Hardly! I tried to have a banana and I can't even open my mouth wide enough to take it in. 

OMG - is it just me or is this the perviest blog I've ever written without even trying?

That's all I have to say about that.  (I'm kind of on a Forrest Gump kick right now since they keep replaying it on TNT.)


Sunday, January 29, 2012

Week 1: I Have a Coach!

It feels so weird to be doing my recap in weekly form!

Okay - so here I go!  Week 1 with a coach went really well!! It was mostly all high points, except for one very low, ground level point.  Last week I was given my schedule for the rest of January. All I had to do was follow it. Sadly I find that to be the easy part. I'd rather be out running miles in the dark, wet and cold than sitting down trying to figure out a good training plan for myself.

This week I ran 25 miles. For me, this is HUGE!! As well as going to my swim class, I have leg strengthening added into the schedule. Welcome to my life, lunges and squats. I actually enjoy the variety of things I'm doing and the new minimum distance I am allowed to go for each run (no more runs less than 5 miles).

Here's the run down:
Monday:       water aerobics, 5 miles
Tuesday:       legs
Wednesday:  water aerobics, 5 miles
Thursday:     5 miles
Friday:          legs
Saturday:     10 miles

My Wednesday and Thursday runs were great!! I never once paused my Garmin. I never stopped moving. Monday I did have a bit of a mental breakdown and had to just stop and get my head back on straight, then I was fine. Wednesday was Steve Prefontaine's birthday - and I was totally thinking of him for the entire 5 miles, which I attribute to making that run so great!

And then there was Saturday. Trotting along enjoying the beautiful weather and paths full of people while listening to Adam Carolla, I was on a roll. 2.5 miles in I found myself on a very busy road getting up on a sidewalk, hoping to not be hit by all of the cars with antsy shoppers in them. Then all of a sudden it happened. I don't even know how - I'm guessing I didn't lift my foot enough, obviously. There I was. Face flat on the ground. My arms and legs were out - like I was making a snow angel, except on my stomach. My chin caught my fall. This was my first running fall, too! Heck, this is the first time I remember falling down since I was a very little girl excited to go to the Space Needle for the first time (let the record show I never made it to the Space Needle because of said fall. Bummer.) ANYWAY, at the time of the fall I was right outside of my store (mine because I am the FourSquare Mayor!) so I was able to go in to the restroom and clean myself up. I sat on the love seat in the ladies for a little bit until I had myself composed. Given that this was my first fall in over 25 years, I was a little shaken up. Did I let it stop me? No. I finished out that 10 miler and felt great about it! My chin? Eh, it's felt better. Even eating right now hurts since my entire jaw is throbbing. Oh well - if I didn't have that fall what the heck would I have written about this week??


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Behold! Another Race. .... Shocker? No.

I figured I'd do a weekly check-in on my training progress, but I am popping in early.

Today is Day 3 of the Fruit Fly with a coach. Is it nap time yet? My ass is killing me!! Last night I did lunges and squats, followed by my early morning swim class. By the end of class today my legs were burning. It was freaking awesome!!

Perhaps it is because I haven't raced in ages ... you know ... um ... 17 whole days.... but I felt compelled. I NEEDED a race. I couldn't wait until mid-March for my next one. I checked my e-mail, and behold! (heh, shout out to giraffy on that one) a message about a half marathon in February. "Hmm," I thought to myself, "If I do that one I would have in 12 half marathons in 1 year. I MUST do this!"



Immediately I sent an e-mail to a couple of Portland friends to see if they have done this race or knew much about it. Turns out this is only the second year for the race. My mind was pretty much set, even after reading about the hills - I just had one last obstacle... the Coach. After batting my eyelashes and promising to do this as a training run and not race it, he begrudgingly gave me permission and said he'd work it into my training schedule. Yippee!!

So here's the strange thing I noticed. You register and with the cost is a long-sleeve red cotton t-shirt. Okay - I pretty much opt to NOT do races that give me cotton, but it is a half and there is a medal! I proceed with registration and temporarily click to buy the optional long-sleeve tech shirt for $15. THEN I scroll down - $10 for the medal. Wait, what? So instead of making the race $65 with a shirt and medal, it is $55 with a shirt, and you can pay $10 for the medal. Odd. Naturally I said YES to that and then no to the tech shirt. I really don't run in long-sleeve shirts much anyway - especially unisex fitting shirts.

Registration is complete! I'm very excited about this. Mostly, if I'm going to be honest in my own blog, I'm excited to spend time with the awesome Cilley Girl while I crash on her couch AND carb load. I've only been trying to eat healthy for not even a week and I'm constantly starving wanting all that stuff I shouldn't have. Bring on the pasta! Bring on the garlic cheese bread!!

Huh - I totally just rambled on about the process of registering for a race spontaneously. Well there you go - that's how this happens in my head. I see it, 30 minutes later (if even that long) I'm registered. Seems to be the way it always happens!


Monday, January 23, 2012

Who Am I? and What Have I Done with RR?

Today is my fresh start. I lolly gagged and did nothing but run one of 5 miles since the WDW Marathon Weekend. I WAS feeling terribly guilty about it, but not anymore. I just needed the break - mentally and physically. I was a mess between Vegas Half and WDW, so this has been a nice little vacation for me. And now it is over.

This weekend I turned over a new leaf. I wasn't exactly 100% cooperative, but I didn't fight it too much either.

Remember that girl that loves pizza and French fries?? Get this....

This weekend I had: steamed broccoli, lettuce, sliced carrots, snap peas and part of a sweet potato! And as if that wasn't enough, I bought myself a pizza crust and sauce then prepared a pizza with a light bit of mozzarella, a dash of colby/jack (for a pop of color), spinach, artichoke hearts, black olives and some pineapple. Oh my gosh - it was DELICIOUS!!! 

I went shopping at the store for over an hour, reading tons of labels and opening my mind up to new foods. I went home with broccoli, carrots and cauliflower - in addition to the things listed above. Oh, and sweet potatoes. I'm very excited about the new things I will get to make, with the help of the ever so patient giraffy. Give her a round of applause - I am NOT easy to work with when it comes to food!

And with this healthy eating comes the beginning of my new life with a running coach. I use that term loosely. Dictator might be more appropriate?!? Okay, maybe I'm being a little bit dramatic. My next 2 weeks are already planned out for me with different work outs on the off-days. I'm already tired, okay? I've only done my water aerobics today and I'm ready for a break! Don't worry - I'm not going to be annoying and blog every single run. I mean that would just be too many miles a week to bore you with now. I'll try not to just whine here all the time, too.

My race calendar is still pretty bleak. I haven't registered for anything in 2 weeks, and that race isn't until March. I might have to fill a gap Fast!!

Okay, that's all. I'm starving. Apparently a banana didn't cut it ... so I'm going to be healthy girl and have an apple! Yay, go me. AND I lost 4 pounds. Woohoo! Bring on the nachos! ;)

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Walt Disney World Marathon Relay ºoº

Agony of d'Feet
 The Walt Disney World Marathon Relay will forever go down as one of THE best races I've ever participated in. I was able to experience the whole marathon vibe (while only having to run the second half), I got to have my best friend as my relay partner and I gained something that has been lacking in my running .... Confidence!

I woke up in the morning and put on Without Limits as some last minute Prefontaine inspiration. Having never even run 1 mile the day after a half marathon, I was unaware of how I would feeling during this second half marathon in a row. But I was excited. So very excited!! We made it to the bus without any wait, and were again quickly at Epcot's busy parking lot. More shopping and running into friends. I love pre-race friend appearances! Before I knew it Brian and I were wishing each other luck and parting was - with him going to the Marathon start while Abby and I went to the relay buses. That was pretty cool - it was a quiet caravan of charter buses driving to the relay point - the ONLY cars on the road!

The "hand off"
At the relay point my time was pretty short. I was able to use the bathroom 100 times, get a photo with Chip and Dale and put on all of Brian's post-race clothes. Okay, so if I need to entertain myself it isn't always in the most conventional ways - but I had fun and I stayed warm! Before I knew it he was checking in at mile 4. Then, as I was shedding his clothes, giving them to bag check and finishing my last potty run I get THE call. The "I'm here" call. I had no idea where "here" was, but at that moment I took off to the little corrals we had at the relay point. Soon he came running around the corner and I had to dart out there to cheer him on (aka lure him with my non-ample bosom), give him a hug as he finished and then take off on a half mile run to my official starting point. Just that hand off alone made my day. It was so exciting being one of the first to start the relay since I partnered up with a speedy pants!


 
I hit the course with the marathon runners and was immediately in awe, terrified, overwhelmed and stiff. The funny thing of having the fast partner is now I was in the marathon with the A corral. I HAD to keep up my pace or get run over! Those first couple of miles hurt. I thought it was going to be a VERY long race for me. I kept on pushing and around the 5K mark it was like all the pain went away. I was finally in Animal Kingdom, my home, and feeling on top of the world! By mile 5 I was on fire. I couldn't believe these were MY legs that just kept trucking along. For the rest of the race I was doing intervals - but not any specific time. I mean basically I did toss my 4:1 out the window and just kept running until I needed a break. Then I'd walk a hair and pick it right back up. I even passed a guy with an Ironman tattoo going up a hill!! 

Before the run I had no idea if I'd do the photo stop thing or not. I was going to play it by ear. I hit the first one (villains!!) and since I was so stiff I figured I would stop. Another bonus about running with the faster group is that they don't do photo stops! For the entire 13 miles I hit every single character stop. I had a rhythm. See the characters, turn on the camera, make eye contact with the greeter and start sticking my arm out so they'd know I was coming. I'd run up, get my photo, thank all of the characters and photographers, grab my camera and keep going. I had it down to a science! And I do not regret my stops at all. I had such a fan-freaking-tastic time that day! I really did have a smile on my face the whole 13.1 miles.

Running through the Studios was a rush. Oh my! Guests were in the park for the day, so we had extra cheerleaders sending us on our way. I had goose bumps all over my arms and thought my music was loud. Then I realized my music wasn't on - the loud noise was the roar of the crowd. That last 5K was incredible. So many emotions happened and I enjoyed soaking it all up. Hitting World Showcase I realized it was all almost over. I was excited and a little bummed because I had a lot more left in me. I wasn't ready to be done running! When I exited the park and hit the gospel choir I knew what was going to happen. My eyes welled up with tears and I was just overcome with emotion. I got a photo, took one of the 26 mile marker sign and then began my last stretch to the finish line.

After hamming it up for an on course photographer I heard a huge group of people yell my name. I looked over and there was Brian! That did it. Tears started forming, I got one last spring in my step and savored every last second to the finish line. I've never experienced a finish line like that one. I can't even put it into words! I crossed, got my medal and immediately started crying. I just finished 29.3 miles of racing! I've never done that in a week, let alone a weekend. I bought a bracelet the night before. It says, "Nothing is impossible if you believe." That motto carried me through to the end! Brian ran up and asked how I felt from the other side of the fence. I said, "I'm pretty much the most awesome person in the entire world right now!"

Post-race, Agony of d'Feet (our relay team) stretched together, danced, took photos, had some pizza and just reveled in our overall feeling of badass-ness!

I'm not one for stats too much in my recaps, but here is why I felt so on top of the world. I hit every single photo stop. My finish time was still faster than 5 of my prior half marathons. My actual "moving" time, according to my Garmin, was only 5 minutes off of my half marathon PR. I was on fire!! Running such an awesome race, and doing it with my best friend ---- a fabulous, memorable, dare I say "magical"?? experience! Will Agony of d'Feet reunite again? Oh we'll see each other on race day for sure .... but we may be raising our own bar a little bit and going for more!! ºoº

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

NKOTB, Baked Beans, ME !!!!!

What do those 3 things have in common?

BOSTON!

Who's going to THE Boston Marathon this year? Oh yeah, that would be me.
Who is NOT running THE Boston Marathon this year? Oh yeah, that would still be me.

But who is registering for the 5K at least? Me, again.

I've never been before. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to go.
I've already ordered 2 travel books so I can study and see where the heck I'm going.
At least now I know where it is on the map.
I'm flying in with a layover in New Jersey. I'm going to fist pump the shit out of that place! I might even put my hair in a poof.

And that's all.


YAY!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

I Feel Old Now

I had my follow-up appointment with my doctor today. Turns out, shockingly, my B12 is good! And it also turns out that at my advanced age of 33 years I have joined the rest of my family and have high cholesterol. Holy shit. Excuse my potty mouth, but dammit!!

Now that the WDW race weekend is over I have turned over control of my food to giraffy and running control to the new coach. I wonder how long until I give him a blog name and stop saying that he is new. 

I am seriously so stressed. Nervous, excited, terrified, eager....  I have 3 months to get my number down before the next blood test. It's is that or more medication. I'm good with just my daily Meniere's meds, I don't need more. So Go Team! Let's fix me in 3 months.

Speaking of Meniere's, my new doctor is setting me up with someone that specializes in Meniere's issues. So this could be a good thing! I've been sort of on my own, as I am with everything in life until now. I'm looking forward to what may come of this!

And in the mean time I seriously want to puke. I just handed my list of running goals over to the new coach. Apparently "to not suck" is not the best thing to have on your list?!? Psh, I thought it was a good goal! Just the act of handing over the list sent my tummy in a spin. And now the guilt of  my "last hurrah" grilled cheese is setting in, making the tummy ache even worse. AAARRRRGGG!!

This is a good thing. I am stepping out of my little comfort zone. I'm not going to die. Heck, I might just get healthier as a result!


The final race report will be on its way later tonight! 
If you missed the others, you can find them here:
Disney's Family Fiesta 5K Featuring the 3 Caballeros
Walt Disney World Half Marathon


Monday, January 16, 2012

Walt Disney World Half Marathon


It was an interesting day! Let's say it did not go as planned. I feel terribly guilty about it, too. Given the easiness for my Meniere's symptoms to flare up, I can't really turn my head around too much - especially while running. This made it so hard for me to stay with the group because I never knew if I was far ahead or lagging behind. So to Pineapple Express, I'm so sorry! Next time maybe we should bungee ourselves together!



Okay, so back to the beginning. I was up at 2am feeling pretty refreshed. By 3:15am we were on our way to the food court and the buses. We didn't have to wait at all, and traffic getting to Epcot was a breeze - of course as a passenger it should be, and there is a reason I had us all up so freaking early! Arriving at the Epcot parking lot, the party was already going on! It didn't take long and I ran into a friend of my from my Kali River Rapid days! Fred, Abby and I did some shopping, hit the potties and made our way to the starting corrals. I thought the time went by pretty fast before we were ready to run. Of course Fred and I were checking out all the boys, so that probably helped kill some time!


The plan for Pineapple Express (our team name, which seems to fit since we worked together about as well as a bunch of high pot heads would!) was to run 3, walk 1. I needed a code word to know what to do -- so Pineapple meant walk, Pineapple Express meant run. Yes, these are the brilliant things I come up with when it is still dark in the morning and I am running. I'm not going to write about the actually running part because for me this was all about fun and getting pictures, checking out other runner costumes, enjoying myself. I was pretty laid back and not stressed at all ... hallelujah! First time for everything! Let's have some photos!

I think we hit every single photo stop except for right in front of the Castle. Go team!! I kind of ended up running from one stop to another. Fred was our gopher and would run ahead to get in line for us since some of them were pretty long - and he is a much faster runner than the matchy matchy girls are.  The Jack Sparrow line? Seriously - 15 minutes maybe? Definitely our slowest mile of the race. But was it worth it to be all up in Jack's business? Hell yeah! He made the mistake of mentioning rum ... and that stayed on my mind for a few more miles. I mean any time is a good time for rum. (Pretty sure I actually was a pirate or a pirate's wench in a past life.)

Naturally since this is a Disney half I had to do a little shout out to my Team Jam girls. I did it via cartwheels! I did two. I kind of wanted to do more, but there was a race going on and I wasn't making forward progress by doing gymnastics in the grass now, was I?!?

I loved the "chilly" weather Florida was having. I honestly never broke a sweat until the last 5K of the race. Last year during the Princess I was whining and melting the whole time. This was refreshing!  I have oodles of photos. They are all on facebook if you are just desperate to see them. But I DO want to share this one. I love it!  (Sorry Fred...)


And since it was a 15 minute wait ... here is Pineapple Express with my two favorite pirates!

At mile 11 I pulled over for a photo. During the Princess Half I got a photo in that same spot, so I asked Fred to run ahead with me so I could get the photo again. What Fred and I didn't see was Abby signal that she was going on and for us to catch up. When the picture was over I couldn't find my twin anywhere. We stopped running and looked ahead and behind. She was nowhere to be found. We didn't know what to do. Fred and I lingered so long that we got passed by THE balloons. The balloons you need to stay in front of to know you're on pace and not in danger of being swept! When we learned of the passing we started to jog. I was so worried about Abby. Was she hurt? Did she stop at the med tent? I can't go on without her! At that moment Fred pointed out a shirt in front of us. It was Lilo & Stitch themed, saying "Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind ... unless you can't keep pace." We read that shirt and immediately pulled over, determined to find Abby wherever she was. I finally convinced Fred she HAD to be way ahead of us and that we had to haul ass to find her. Haul ass we did. Oh my gosh - at nearly a steady 9 minute mile pace we finally caught her at the 12 mile marker. I have never been so happy to see "solar red" capris in my life!

We were reunited and stayed together through the end. Dysfunctional, but dammit we freaking did it! I completed my tenth half marathon and had a total blast doing it! Plus we achieved our goal of keeping it easy because all 3 of us would be running in the marathon the next day. Very memorable race indeed!
Half marathon number 10 ... Done!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Disney's Family Fiesta 5K

...Featuring the 3 Caballeros!

And with a title like that how do you not dress up for the theme??

What a fun, silly way to kick off the most exciting race weekend thus far! Abby and I were up bright and early to put our "costumes" on and catch the Epcot bus. We were hardly there and the dance party was beginning. I am convinced this whole group dance craze is a southern thing. Abby was there joining in - and it wasn't until they played Ice Ice Baby that I got my groove thang shakin'. And when the Conga song came on? I was all over that one. Ole!


I saw my buddy Jeff Galloway again, plus ran into Jenn before meeting up with my friend Sarah for our 3rd Disney 5K together. It was non-stop fun. They said it was the biggest Disney 5K ever, with 8000 runners! We lined up in the 3rd corral, and I took this opportunity to literally toe the line and be at the lead of our wave. Oh yeah, I've got impressive walking skills!


Abby, Sarah and I were our own version of the 3 Caballeros, filling this 5K with constant laughter, silliness and photos. I just love these girls!!

I'm sure fellow runners were thoroughly annoyed with me. I just couldn't stop shaking my maracas! (That's what she said??)

 

One of my favorite moments, okay, THE favorite moment, was in China. Abby was excited to see Mulan. We then realized that we HAD to get a photo - and that she and I don't fit in at all. In the end, Abby and I were the lost Mexican photo bombers of Sarah's "normal" vacation photo! And to top it off, while getting this done I heard my name being yelled ... it was Megan! You just never know when you'll bump into someone you know in Disney World!


All fun races must come to an end, and we finished it in style! We didn't dare miss the opportunity to get our photo with the original Three Caballeros!


Abby I couldn't leave without a little .... well ....



Race Spectating: FAIL

I drove north on a beautiful Saturday afternoon with plans of watching the Olympic Trials and then being the greatest race spectator on Sunday morning.

Yeah, those were the plans.

Reality was different.  I did successfully make the drive. I met a couple of adorable dogs that I just couldn't get enough of. Give me a dog with a huge nose and floppy ears and I'm in heaven!  Because I saw it 22,000 times on facebook, I already knew who won the Olympic trials, but that didn't stop me from watching!  Watching the trials with your new running coach means a lot of pausing to talk running, share stories, discuss future plans ... and say "mine's bigger than yours is" with your medals. I'm just gonna say it - I might not have the Ironman medal, but my new Disney medals are freaking awesome!

And then it was time for dinner. As you'll recall, I love pizza and French fries. Here's what I had for dinner:


I can't even tell you how long it took me to pick through this. I DID try at least one bit of every new vegetable. And when I say "new" I mean everything in this was new to be me except for the lettuce. I survived. I didn't die. I didn't eat much.

Bed time happened and then I was up just before 6am to get dressed and get my spectating gear in order. Turns out it snowed while the house was sleeping. Leaving the ranch, the road was packed with snow. Hmm. Getting into town and filling the tank, we learned the road just north was a white out. Weighing the pros and cons, the race lost out. It just didn't seem worth the risk to drive in the snowy conditions to a little $35 race. Instead we had breakfast. This was my first time having breakfast in a diner before the sun has even risen!

I was exciting and took a 2 hour nap. It was freaking Glorious!! I seriously just passed out and didn't notice anything going on around me ... clearly.

I woke up, saw more snow and wanted to play in it and visit the goats. I bought boots specifically for goat time! Happily I trotted along down the hill to see them. Once I caught a glimpse there was a little "hello goats!" squeal. We went through the barn and oh no. I want to erase it from my memory. A poor, handsome goat ... down for the count, minutes from death. Another goat was missing. I looked toward one of their little hangouts -- I saw one laying down. I am a freaking curse. Here I was, so excited to befriend some goats and now two of them are dead. Yeah, I got teary. The dogs were nice and distracted me with kisses to cheer me up. 

I've decided that I was NOT cut out for tending to farm animals. Too dang sad. Besides, do ranchers ranch (??) in running clothes, kitty cats and rainbow colored boots??

Friday, January 13, 2012

WDW Expo Madness ºoº

Expo Madness!! That's what it was. OMG insanity -- and not fun Rock'n'Roll expo insanity. I mean I didn't get anything free. Psh. What's up with that?!?

So Abby landed in the morning. I "slept in" and got some breakfast, finishing up right when she arrived. Quickly we ditched her stuff in our room at caught the bus to the ESPN Wide World of Sports. I was pretty freaking giddy, let me tell ya! Our plan of attack ... get OUR bibs first, then Fred's, then SHOPPING!! Bib pick up was a breeze. We giggled when we realized that we got some butt cushions at the relay check-in area. I totally didn't use it, but I kept it! At the half check-in we got buttons in honor of the 15 year anniversary! Tested B-tags and they worked. Upstairs we went. First we picked up the 5K bibs and lovely cotton t-shirts. Have I mentioned how much I hate cotton t-shirts? Then for a few minutes we looked like Goofy runners while picking up Fred's things. Even in that line I felt intimidated! (But cool.)
 

Downstairs we hit the first shopping area but decided it was too crowded and joined the masses in the REAL expo area. Holy canoli! I took my jacket off immediately. So freaking hot in there! The only thing we really had on our list was the official merchandise area, the runDisney booth and finding some arm sleeves for Abby, Clif shots for R0nda. Done, done, done and done. So much merchandise! I mean they really had everything. I'm already thinking about what I might buy next year. $141 later I was out of there with some pins, a key chain, a magnet, a v-neck and a long sleeve shirt. I'm so good at shopping!


At the runDisney area I stood by my buddy Jeff Galloway and overheard him tell someone he does do his interval running that he always talks about --- :30/:30. I swear I heard him say he does 30 seconds running, 30 seconds walking. You heard it here first, folks! Also, I was busy looking everywhere but in front of me and just barely missed bumping into some tan, shiny, muscular guy with a lot of hair gel. He had that famous "look" to him and I saw people lingering to talk. I didn't think anything of it --- turns out I almost bumped into Tony Horton! Clearly I don't do P90X!

My relay partner showed up in the middle of it all and ... what did he do anyway? I think he was just hanging out! And of course he gave in when I said we HAD to get photos. I mean can you be my partner and not cooperate? Of course not! Post-expo, Brian got Abby and I into the parks and then ditched us at our hotel. From there it was food and Epcot! We kept it short because the craziness of early mornings and non-stop running was just about to begin. OMG it was so exciting! For real. Don't you just love expo day and seeing everybody start appearing and feeling that energetic vibe everywhere??


Alright, so I've procrastinated enough ... time for race reports ... up first, the Fiesta Family 5K!

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Disney - the Non-Running Post ºoº

What a whirlwind that was! Aside from 3 races, I hit an expo, did some shopping, popped into the parks just a bit and did A LOT of eating! Let me back up a hair, then we'll slide into some bullet points perhaps!

My trip began with a drive up to Portland and my first blogger meet up of the trip! I inhaled a grilled cheese and fries while talking with a local Running Potato about ... running. Shocker! I tried to sleep, but was up very early and heading to the airport. By 4:30pm I was in Orlando with my best friend talking his ear off about the relay and how we are going to rock the hell out of it. (Psst... we did!) That night we had a team dinner at Wolfgang Puck - uh, yeah, we both had the kid's meals - and I did some shopping. Knee socks, arm sleeves, a new hat ... I was loving it! In my room I refused to change channels. I watched Stacey non-stop. "Teamboat Springs? You can throw the whole family in that one!" No, really, I have the whole freaking thing memorized. She's like crack. In the morning is when the real fun began! Abby arrived!! This girl, I just adore her! It was like being reunited with an old friend and after this weekend I'm on the campaign to move her to the PacNW. I need more Abby time!!

Okay, so now we'll switch to some bullets.

  • There was a lost sombrero crisis. Coming soon to a theater near you:  Sombreros on a Plane. We resolved the issue by hitting Mexico. Ole!
  • I ate A LOT of Disney pizza. And I loved every bite!
  • I became the mayor of a couple places on Foursquare. That's important.
  • There was an expo. I'll have a short post on that next.
  • I did only 5 rides: Mexico (I still call it El Rio del Tiempo) (we did it in our sombreros!), Figment, People Movers, Haunted Mansion and Pirates.
  • I only had ONE drink. Sultan's Colada in Morocco. Try it. You'll love me for suggesting it to you.
  • Brazil. It invaded. I thought there were tons of runners because I saw so much spandex. Then I realized I was wrong. It was just Brazil. Everywhere.
  • I heard Michael Jackson every time I walked outside at Pop Century. It was rad!!
  • There was a lot of sleeping, eating and showering.
  • Our room clearly was a room of runners -- Runner's World, race waivers, Prefontaine movies, shoes everywhere, sweaty clothes. Loved it!
  • The lights on Cinderella's Castle were glorious!
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  • Fred came and joined us on Friday afternoon. Poor Abby - she must have almost got her eyes stuck in the top of her head from rolling them at us so much!
  • So many changes at Downtown Disney. I mean Rock'n'Roll Beach Club - the building? Gone! The stage by it? Gone. BUT, there were more guests in the whole are than I've seen in years, so perhaps these changes will be for the best. 
  • I spent some time alone at World Showcase on our final night while my roomies napped. It was the perfect ending to a memorable weekend!
  • And mostly the best thing from this weekend is that I feel like I have two new great friends. You never really know what you're going to get when you invite people to stay in your room after only meeting them briefly at a finish line concert ... but this was so much fun! Nobody annoyed me. Fred let me boss him around - with regard to getting to our buses. Abby let me watch Stacey non-stop. We all like eating. We were a great fit and I wouldn't change a thing!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Blame it on Post-Race Delirium

You see, the thing is, right now I fully believe I am the greatest runner on the planet. The new coach is already rolling his eyes at how many times he's heard me say "awesome" and "bad ass" in reference to myself. I can't help it .... I am freaking awesome and a total running bad ass!!  But all that is soon to come to the blog whenever I get off of my bad ass and write some reports.

And mostly, I'm just really sick. The plane ride home did me in. I slept all the way from Central Florida to Northern Oregon, and woke up feeling like death. I haven't even analyzed all 5,550 of my photos. That number is a slight exaggeration.

But now in this post-race glow that continues on I realize I am ready to fill my 2012 race calendar. I said I was going to back off. I might. I'm still deciding. But what I do fully blame on my racing success this weekend is the fact that I am signing up for that dreaded Shamrock 15K Challenge AGAIN! WTF is wrong with me? If you weren't a reader yet, or don't remember ... that is the race that I had my first mid-race Meniere's attack, ran smack dab into two girls and called my mom in tears half way through that f**king hill.  Perhaps I just like to give myself difficult goals. Perhaps I have a score to settle. I WILL PR in that one. I will not let myself run slower than I did last year. I will have a blast. And I WILL complain about those damn hills. 

And I'm working on other goals and crazy plans that have wormed their way into my head.

Soon I'll start a slew of Disney posts. I mean we have three races to cover here! And each one was awesome and unique in its own way. There are maracas, sweepers, lost runners, cartwheels, grave diggers, characters and NO puking!!!  All soon to come! Until then, here's a little shot of my weekend! Ole!


Monday, January 9, 2012

Now Its Time to Say Goodbye....

Bye bye Mickey! I will miss you, but will coming "running" back in the Fall!

And now if you'll excuse me, I am on the plane ready to pass out!


Thursday, January 5, 2012

Hello From Pop Century!

I am in my bed watching Stacey... The girl that is always on when you turn on the tv. I just love her. She is all I've watched since I got here yesterday!

My relay partner and I have already pow wowed about race day non stop, and finally I am calm. What a relief!

So far I've only been to Downtown Disney for dinner #1 (I may have had 2!) and shopping. I scored in the Little Miss-matched store!

Speaking of scoring.... Totally got hit on by a hot guy that is just my type... At the airport of all places! I mean we talked forever. That was certainly a first. I didn't even know how to react. I guess now I know if I want a date I should just keep wearing running shirts to start conversations!

I think I'll go shower and get breakfast. Abby is in a plane on her way right now. And you know what we're doing first??? RACE EXPO, baby! Woooo!!!