Holiday Half Via a 10K

"This is a total sh!t show." is how I described this race before we ever hit the start line. It DID improve, but let's back up!

I had been wanting to do the Holiday Half Marathon in Portland for years. I saw photos of people dressed up in fun festive attire, promises of cookies and carolers on the course, cute medals. This had my name all over it! When Dustin suggested it to Lady Storm Squad I knew this would be my year! Plus Jenn was doing it, and as it turns out even more friends, so clearly 2018 was meant to be ... or was it?

As I talked about in the prior post, I've been having a very difficult, frustrating and painful battle with Meniere's Disease this last week. Up until an hour before the race I didn't even know if I would be running it at all, and if I did, what distance would I do? I was registered for the half. I was physically prepared for 13.1 miles. Clearly I could NOT do that given my vestibular system hating me. 13.1 miles just wouldn't be fun or safe.

So I got to packet pick up to grab my bib and shirt. I talked to the lady in charge of changing distances and explained my situation. It is a $10 charge to change distance, even if you're dropping miles. Uh.. seriously? We half marathon registrants paid more than anybody else! "If I switch to 10K now and then tomorrow I feel like I can only do the 5K, so I have to pay again?" YES! She told me I could find her before the race at her table and make my official distance change then, and save myself some money if I was able to run. Fabulous! What a sense of relief I had!

It was still dark and just under two hours to race time when we left St Helens for Portland and the start line. This SHOULD have been plenty of time. Technically it was, but ...  We got off the freeway and were immediately bumper to bumper not moving. Cars were passing and then cutting in at the last minute, just causing more stress for all involved. I saw the time ticking away and felt panic set in knowing I was still set to run 13.1 miles according to the timing system. With maybe 20 minutes to spare we were finally parking. My baby fell asleep, so I was completely solo for this big jumble of chaos. I grabbed everything I needed for running in case I couldn't get back to the car. Shawn gave me $10 to change my distance so I wouldn't have to grab my card. And off I went, rushing to the building where I encountered a solid mob of people standing around staying warm. I had to worm my way through and found where packet pick up was, and the girl I talked to yesterday. I let her know I did need to drop my distance and she said I could ONLY do it if I had written permission, like an email from the race director. WHAT THE WHAT??!! This was never mentioned before! I have to have permission to NOT run a half marathon now? "What happens if I just turn at the 10K turnaround and head back? I am not racing anyone. I don't want my time to look like I ran a half marathon that fast. It's not fair to everyone else." In the end we decided I wouldn't have an official clock time (fine by me, I have a Garmin) and I could just take the timing chip off of the back of my bib. Phew!!

Now I had 13 minutes until the race started and I had on a fleece jacket. Do I have time to squish through this crowd, get to the card, ditch it, and get back to find Dustin so we could run together? Meanwhile Jenn was still stuck in traffic not yet able to park! It was insanity!!

I DID make it back to the car, grabbed a quick sip of water, ditched the coat and rushed back into the thick of things where I was pretty easily able to find Dustin. Hallelujah!!

As it turns out, neither of our moms wanted us to race, so it worked out perfectly that we started this together. She did do the full 13.1 miles, but I had the lovely pleasure of running my first 3.1 with her. It was really the highlight of this whole experience. Thank you, Dustin!!

Was the race all they hyped it up to be? Eh, if you enjoy industrial views, then you got those. The road was in great condition, so as far as running surface this was top notch! The carolers? I saw half of the course and only at Adidas were there 4 people singing. Some high school kids had cookies in a spot, which was my main motivation for this race! An unexpected treat, which at first freaked me out, was the snow at the start line! It was VERY cold and very windy when we were waiting to start. When I saw a white fleck in the sky I really did think we were getting real snow and it didn't surprise me. But to find out it was fake and we got to start with "snow" and Christmas music, well that was pretty cool! Inside the Daimler building were some vendors and photo ops, with Elf being shown on the walls. That was nice, mostly because it was warm. What I'm saying is I think they over-advertised and slightly under-delivered. The bibs, shirts and medals are totally cute! I liked that Freddi the Yeti was there as the mascot. It was all very nice, I just think they needed a little more traffic control to get everyone in and able to start on time. And a little more life on the course wouldn't have hurt.

I was meant to find this car while running in my Griswold shirt!

So the running part .... Dustin and I did great! We just steadily moved along and got into a good zone of talking while running. Emily came upon us near the cookies, so that keeps our tradition going of finding each other without even trying!

At my half way point I bid Dustin adieu and started working my way back to the finish line. It wasn't long after that I saw Jenn.  Poor thing started 15 minutes late because of traffic! I also got to see Emily again, as well as Donna and Julie. Seeing all my running friends was the highlight of this race for me.

Also at the half way point I started getting my new daily migraine. I focused on my *NSync Christmas album play list and tried to pretend I wasn't hurting. My legs felt great, so that helped me get home faster! When I was at 4.5 miles the half marathon winning male came smoking by me.... in his booty shorts and tank top. IT WAS SO COLD!! Oh my gosh, that reminds me! Dustin and I saw a barefoot runner by us at the start, and then later I saw someone running in sandals.  TOO COLD! I had on gloves, two hats, pants, knee socks, shoes, THREE skirts and TWO shirts!

Did I need this ambulance? NO!! 

The last mile was essentially downhill, so I loved it and went as fast as my Meniere's would allow. Vertigo didn't kick in until a couple minutes after I had finished. Phew! I got so lucky!!

At the end they tried to give me a half marathon medal because of my bib. I didn't take it. I wanted the 10K, its what I ran. Besides, that would have made me the first place half marathon woman! At a water stop race people came through on bicycles saying the half marathon lead was coming and to clear a path. Given I had a half marathon bib on I took that opportunity to joke that I was in fact the lead runner!

Once I was done I grabbed water, went inside to check things out, got some photos and then went to the car to see my snoring baby still all comfy and warm while I was out testing myself. Lucky girl! But then things hit harder and I had to lay back in my seat and just head home without getting to see my friends finish their races. Turns out the rain hit after I was done - and everyone got soaked. Dang.

Will I do this one again? I really don't know. I guess I will decide that next year when it gets closer. I enjoyed it, but there were hiccups and chaos that just felt like I didn't need to repeat it right away. We'll see!

Dilemma: Running With The Invisible Illness

This is the current status of my life:

Ever since I started running I have wanted to do the Holiday Half Marathon in Portland. It just never worked into my schedule. This year a fellow member of Lady Storm Squad suggested the race. I couldn't pass it up! That race is on Sunday. It is Friday evening now.

Back up to last Sunday. 10 miles on my training plan. I woke up with enough vertigo that I didn't feel safe running 10 miles away from home. We went to my mom's house to load up her treadmill so I could borrow it and try to get in my miles. I ran 3.

Monday I felt pretty alright, but time got away from me and I never ran.

Then Tuesday happened.

Life since Tuesday is all a blur. I feel like I've lost days.

Extreme vertigo. Daily migraines. Terrible nausea. Rushing to the bathroom at work so I don't throw up at my desk (I got lucky, never did lose my breakfast!). Sunglasses at work because I don't even want my eyes open. Brain fog. Intense, full ears that make me want to cry. Difficulty speaking. Unable to walk without my cane. The slowest walking EVER just because it is all I can manage. (It took me ten minutes to get from my desk to my car. This is probably 8 minutes or more slower than normal.) The floor moving all around like the psychedelic Circus Circus scenes in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. 

If I am lying down it doesn't hurt AS bad, but it is all still there. I can sit up for maybe 20 minutes if I'm lucky, and then I have to lay down again. I haven't been able to even fix my own food or food for my baby. Heck, even eating is hard. Forget about driving. I had to get picked up from work twice this week. Two days I couldn't even last my whopping 4 hours at work before having to go home.

But yeah, remember what is happening? The race.

To everyone that sees me I don't look sick. I don't have a cold. I don't have the flu. There isn't anything about me that would tell you I have an annoying invisible illness. I just get to suffer with Meniere's Disease, and apparently this week is going to be the absolute worst I have had in the 15 years I've been dealing with it.

And now I have to figure out what to do. The runner in me wants to run so darn bad. 

The current plan -- go to Portland tomorrow. Get my bib and shirt. And then I will decide do I run 13.1? Do I downgrade to 10k? Do I downgrade all the way to 5k? Do I skip it all together and instead show up to cheer on my friends and give them their bibs so they can have fun running and then just plan on next year instead?

I DON'T KNOW!!

This sucks.

Whining done. For now.

Run to Stay Warm - 10K

In 2010 I did the 5K, 2012 was the half, so in 2018 I went for the 10K! Just like the Monster Mash 5K last month, this was on my calendar solely because the half marathon training plan I'm totally not following anymore said to do a 10K on this date. When I registered I had planned on having Katura do the kid races before my race ... I hadn't planned on the freezing cold weather. Take that weather and add it to the fact that for the last few days we had been in warm sunny California ... yeah, no way was I making my adorable little girl get up to come freeze and do a kid race with me! In the end this was a solo trip for me!

It wasn't until right before I went to bed the night before the race that I had mostly decided what I would wear. Before my Disneyland vacation Oregon had been warm. It was 31 degrees when I started the race, so yeah, I just didn't know how to prepare for this one! Fortunately it was a dry forecast, just very cold. I never even thought of bringing gloves with me, so that's how out of cold weather practice I am! Around 6:15am I left my house, leaving everyone else home and warm in their beds. In no time at all I was in Eugene with a great parking spot at EWEB, heading to get my bib and shirt. 

OH MY GOSH. IT WAS SO COLD!!! Even with a sweatshirt on over my clothes I was shivering. Would I even survive this race?? I got my things and went straight back to my car. Aside from a potty visit before the lines appeared, I stayed in my car up until about 7 minutes before the race started. This was good and bad. 

Good: I stayed warm and got to listen to some fun podcasts and not think about race nerve.

Bad: I didn't prepare my body to run AT ALL.

The race start was very narrow, so I tried to slide my way into an opening out of the shade. I half ass tried to stretch out my legs as much as I could in the confined area, and a minute early we were off and racing! It was pointless to try to run at the beginning. It was so congested that I could walk fast and keep up with the pack. After a couple tenths of a mile it was finally open enough to run, although still very congested for probably the first half mile.

Once I was able to run the pain started. My legs were frozen! I was so darn cold and my muscles just froze. I was running with a limp, each step hurting more than the last. I think around the mile and a half mark I finally had to pull over at a pole and use it to help really stretch my calves. That hurts like a son of a gun, but afterward it feels so much better. I had to do this twice during the first two miles - from there I was golden!

The race got extra nice when the 5K runners took their big turn to head toward the finish. The course became very quiet and empty, with just us 10K runners and a few fast half marathon runners coming through. Around our half way point, eh, maybe father along, the 10K course crossed the river so we could start our trek to the finish line. This part of the course was so pretty! I really got in the zone. Just as I would feel good about myself, slowly picking off people one at a time, I'd get passed and set back in reality. But who was passing me?? The half marathon course winner, followed by the next 3 fastest guys. Dang, they are so impressive! I mean they seem like they are just floating along barely touching the ground!

I had a couple final people I was sure to pass before I crossed the finish, so I just stared straight ahead, focused on my breathing, and let my legs do their thing. Fortunately I can usually pull out a strong finish in races since I almost always practicing pushing hard at the end of my training runs. It works for me anyway. The finish line was in my sights and I just went for it. I felt awesome! And I was very happy and surprised when I saw my finish. I mean I ran with a limp for two miles and had to stop twice to fix my legs, and I was still shocked at my time?!? Not bad!

After the race I didn't really linger at all. I grabbed a bite of a grilled cheese sandwich, took a bagel and cream cheese for the road and went straight to my car. I never did warm up on that entire hour+ drive home. But that shower once I did make it home? Ahhhh-mazing!

So that's that. Nothing fancy to report. Next up, half marathon number 32!

Monster Mash 5K - An Unexpected Victory!

It was nearly a decade ago the last time I participated in the Monster Mash 5K. My mom got an epic finish line photo that I will probably never be able to top, so I'm not even gonna try! I think I got a PR that day. Well this time, doing my first 5K without a stroller since becoming a mom, had a strange victory of its own!

I don't typically do 5K races, but the half marathon training plan I'm sort of following said to do a 5K race on this day, and this was the one I chose. It was super fun last time, so I knew this would be a good choice. I was right!

My mom, daughter and I made a day of it, and on the way I recall saying to my mom "I'm not racing this, so don't expect to see me finishing really fast. It is just a good way to force me to do a training run and I can't say no to racing in a costume!" We got to Alton Baker Park while the kids were lining up for their race. I rushed over to grab my shirt and bib and hurried back to the car so I could finish up my costume and braid my hair. We had enough spare time to see the kids finishing their race while I did very minor stretching. Crazy enough during all of this I was given a gift card just for having a fun costume! Yay!

All of us racers and spectators walked over to our start area together, which was fun because it gave us time to check out the costumes on the people and dogs! That's right - this race caters to dogs and it is so adorable! I did my quick stretches while holding an adorable toddler I created, and that helped me not have any pre-race nerves. Nice, I must remember this!

We were all lined up and in a matter of a couple minutes the race began and I was off for an absolutely beautiful, run training race. I had to force myself to slow down when I looked and realized I was going faster than what my race pace would have been. No way would I maintain that! I'd crash and burn. So I slowed up a bit and kept on my way. Some people passed, but by probably a half of a mile in I was pretty much in my spot and there was minimal passing and being passed. I did pass a dog once ... thanks to it taking a potty break!


I had a fun moment near the end of the race. A guy was running just for fun and before we diverted in different directions he asked me what race we were doing. I answered and asked if that was a Hood to Coast shirt he had on. Sure was! So we had a mini chat about how awesome HTC is before he wished me well and we parted ways. That was pretty cool!

The course couldn't have been any flatter. The only minor inclines were just to get you up and over the river. Nothing at all to complain about. All of the green grass was glistening with left over rain (of which we had none!) and the path was completely covered with orange, yellow and red leaves. It was perfection! I was very thankful for all of the volunteers. The end had so many little twists and turns, I certainly would have either missed some or veered completely off path and in the wrong direction. But before I knew it those turns were done and in the near distance I spotted a familiar stroller, mother and daughter.  I was near the end! My cheer squad was waiting for me!

As per usual I finished with a strong kick... and never even bothered to look at the clock. I just hit stop on my Garmin and called it good. I never care about finish times and don't discuss them, so why look? I was just happy to get a quick finish line photo and head to the covered area for some water. How fun was it that they not only had water, but full sized donuts!!?? I passed on those, crazy enough, but I did have a couple donut holes. THAT I can't resist! Katura enjoyed those as well, and a Halloween pumpkin cookie. Before we started to leave I made her a little bag of prizes from all of the pumpkins they had out. I felt that was a pretty good reward for a race I was really happy with.

We were walking near the finish line again and I heard them say you could pick up a slip with your results from the van at the finish. Okay, cool! So I grabbed mine. And then I stared at it, feeling very confused. My mom thought something was wrong. I practically whispered to her, still in shock, that it said I was third in my division! WHAT??!!! "Well let's go back and get your award!" my mom excitedly said. I have never been so shocked and happy to get a little orange ribbon. This was my final race in this division, so I was the old lady getting a ribbon! From now on I'll be the young one having my ass handed to me by even older women. But this one time I was the one winning something! I didn't even finish anywhere near my PR, heck I wasn't even trying! I was just running. Funny - I got 1st in my age group once. That time I WAS trying and told the race organizers of my goal... and that still wasn't my PR either. So really who needs to run their fastest?!? Maybe the key is to not care and just have fun!

Seriously such an enjoyable race! I don't know why it took me so long to come back. I'm already planning next year ... this time running with my brother - a handsome blond lab named Buddy! He and I are brainstorming costume ideas. You can't prepare too soon!

Have A Sweet Tooth? I Have A Cure!

Where I'll be cooking??

We all like desserts. Don't tell me you don't. Come on, you know you like going to a holiday party and grabbing a cookie or nibble of cake. Things are about to be getting really busy for all of us ... making Halloween costumes, carving pumpkins, preparing for a big Thanksgiving feast, Blake Friday shopping, office parties, football games .... there is A LOT going on. And maybe you don't have time to make desserts. Maybe you want ME to do it for you!

Since you twisted my arm, fine, I'm ready! And I'm keeping it SIMPLE!!

It's my very own virtual bake sale!

We (I mean you and I, since I feel like you are all a part of this mission with me!) are brand new to bake sales and will just wing it as we go along, sound good to you? Great!

The menu is pretty darn simple and to the point. If you'd like to order just let me know in the comments, on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, text, work, email, in person ... you know all the channels. These will be made to order, so you know what you get will be as fresh as possible! (Sorry to my pals not living in the US, I'm gonna have to refer you to the grocery store and give you recipes since sending that far away overwhelms me.)

For $5.00 a dozen you can have: 

• Peanut Butter Sugary cookies. Trust me, delicious. I will have taste testers on hand just to make sure!
• Rice Krispy bars with character! º0º 
• You can order these the standard way OR
• You can order them with a splash of chocolate!
• Reese's Pieces Rice Krispy bars ... a special for Fall!

Payment:  If you are local and I deliver, you can hand me cold hard cash $$$ OR, for local and non-local friends simply place your order and you can pay me by donating the correct amount to my fundraising website. Once that payment is made I will start cooking! For example, if you want to buy 1 dozen regular rice krispy bars and 1 dozen with chocolate, once you donate $10 to my fundraising site I will start your order!  And of course, all of this is going straight to Providence Cancer Institute and not myself! **Non-local friends, don't forget I'll need your address, otherwise I might eat your desserts myself!

So, what'll it be?? I'm ready to put on my apron and get busy filling your tummys!

Status Report: Starting to Raise Funds

It has been a week since I announced the goal of Lady Storm Squad to raise money for Providence Cancer Center, so I thought I'd give an update on how things are going!

First off, thank goodness there are 12 of us working together. Some of these ladies know what they are doing and have a lot of fundraising experience. Hallelujah!! My experience is basically doing car washes in high school when the marching band was going to Disneyland. I always hope my daughter doesn't want to be a Girl Scout because the thought of trying to sell cookies terrifies me. Needless to say, voluntarily joining in on a quest to hit my individual goal of $1,000 is way beyond my comfort zone, but I am determined! We loved running Hood to Coast this year, and everyone seemed excited about the thought of doing it again.... but doing it for a great cause versus just running. The motivation is there, I just need to figure out the execution!

Jessica was awesome and got the ball rolling with a donation right away for me. She gets a special award at the end of all of this! Thank you, Jessica!!

I am fully aware that not all of us want to just give money away and have nothing in return for it. If you do want to donate, it will benefit you come tax time at least! But I have been trying to think of ways that we can all have something to show for it.

The rest of the team lives in the same town, so they are busy planning a Bunco tournament in their city. My hope is that as events happen I will be able to make it to some of them so I can be a team player and spend time with everyone. But on my own I need to come up with ideas, so I sought the help of friends on Facebook!

First up, if you live in my area I will be more than happy to come to your house (or wherever you deem appropriate if you won't want me stalking you through your bedroom windows at night) and collect bottles and cans to take to the donation place. I will not be pocketing any of that money. It will go straight to my fundraising website for Lady Storm Squad/Providence/Hood to Coast. So hit me up anyway you want and I will visit you and save you the work of recycling your cans. Nobody likes those stinky return machines, so I will be more than happy to take one for the team and do your recycling!

Next, and this one I am still working out the logistics and menu so I'll roll out more details soon... thanks to a friend's tip I'm going to host a bake sale! A what?? Yep, a virtual bake sale. And I won't just bake virtual desserts and send you images of them, although that would be kind of fun. I've got a couple of ideas of what will be available, so soon I will be offering up my services to cook you and your family fun things to snack on or have at your holiday gatherings, or desserts to hide in your desk at work for when you need a little pick me up!

With all of these, I will never be keeping any money for myself. I'll track everything on my spreadsheets because that's what I do and I freaking love spreadsheets! And I will update the status of these exciting ventures on the blog and share the progress we are all making together. On my individual fundraising site you'll also see that number grow with me. That will be fun!

Overall Lady Storm Squad has a lot of ideas! We have less than a year to hit our goal, but with the 12 of us brainstorming together, and YOUR help, I know we can do it!

If you'd like to make a tax deductible donation just click here! 

Will You Help Me Run Hood to Coast Again?

My uncle Danny and aunt Ginny

Raise your hand if you or someone in your life has been affected by cancer.

You should ALL be raising your hands right now! Sad, but true.

I started making a list of all of the family members that have dealt with cancer and it was rather scary when I started to see just how many people battled it. While some did lose that battle, happily some are still here with us, thanks in part to scientific research and medical advancements that have helped many people over the years. To put some names and faces to the reality of cancer in my family's life, here's a list that I have come up with so far:

• Danny - my uncle that I never met. My mom never even met her own brother. He passed away before he was 3 years old.
• Grandpa - you all know him! He dealt with skin cancer for many years, as did

Uncle Kenny and my Grandpa,
Kenny lost his battle with cancer the day I got married.

• My step-dad. He's got a pretty cool scar to show for it, but he won that battle!

• 

  Inez, my great grandma

  I also have a scar, but fortunately mine was from a surgery (Shawn teases me that it was just a procedure) to remove some pre-cancerous cells on my shoulder. You might notice you very rarely see me running in a tank top - and this is why. Gotta keep my skin covered!!
• My lovely aunt Ginny. Now this is one tough lady. Cancer tried to get her, and she did not let it win!!
• Two great-uncles and a great-aunt have passed away from cancer.
• My daughter never met her middle-name namesake, her great-great grandma. I never met her either. Thanks, cancer.
• Our little girl, sadly, also never got to meet her paternal grandma because of a hard fought battle that she lost a few years ago.
• My paternal grandma had such a short battle with cancer that by the time I learned she had it I never got a chance to talk to or see her again. 
• My step-dad has had two uncles lose a battle with cancer, while his mom was lucky and won hers.
• Even my first best friend from kindergarten passed away years ago from melanoma. We aren't old enough for that, dang it!
• Our family dog, Serena, even died from cancer.
  

  

Point is, Cancer IS everywhere.  

So.... Lady Storm Squad decided we really want to run Hood to Coast again in 2019, and we also figured why not do it by being a fundraising team and help raise money for cancer research. It certainly is a good cause when you see how many people deal with it in various forms. What do we runners get out of it? We get to run in the Mother of All Relays again, and we get to raise at least $12,000 (although I'm hoping for $20,000 - go big or go home!) for Providence Cancer Institute and hopefully help in the fight against cancer.

To get to our goal we need YOUR help! What do YOU get in return? Satisfaction of helping cancer research and treatment. You get the joy of helping us all run again so we can flood your social media timelines with photos, videos and stories. A HUGE thanks from me. And a tax deduction! (Plus the faster we reach our goal the faster I will shut up about it.)

If you'd like to help me start on my individual goal of $1,000 you can click the link below and it will take you to my personal fundraising site. I can't express how appreciative I would be of any amount. It all goes to a great cause!

Help Us Fight Cancer While Running!   <-- click here!