Team Minion Half Marathon

Last year after my friend Tara ran the Silver Strand Half Marathon, she told me how much she hated the course and how she'd never run it again. Much to my surprise, she signed up this year and asked if I wanted to sign up too. Wait a minute, I thought this was a boring and ugly race? Apparently it was a bit boring but it was also flat, and the perfect scene for a new half-marathon PR. Tara signed up for the race along with a number of my other running friends, and when they were trying to talk me into it I said okay, but with one condition... we had to dress up like minions! (From the movie Despicable Me.) Not sure why those characters came to mind, but I thought they were cute and would make a good group outfit. I was expecting everybody to protest and I would just skip on the race. Nope! Everyone agreed and before I knew it I was registering for the race as well. 

Team Minion Party

No running costume is complete without a Glam Runner tutu, so to outfit Team Minion with a set of blue tutus Barb invited us all over to her house the weekend before the race for a Minion Party. A what? A minion themed party where we made tutus and watched Despicable Me while the guys played poker in the other room and asked themselves how they all fell in love with a bunch of grown women who habitually run around  in public wearing tutus. 

Who Doesn't Love Minions??

Minion Tutu Making

The following weekend on the day before race day David and I went to Road Runner Sports to pick up my race bib and to check out some new running shoes. I have been wearing the Nike Structure Triax for all of my 8 years running marathons, but was finally interested in trying something new out. I had been thinking about giving Newtons a try to see what all the hype was about, but in the end decided against the $175 shoes and bought a pair of Saucony Guide 7s.

Newton Running Shoes

Holy Heel Striker Batman!
(Old Nikes on the left, new Sauconys on the right)

The night before the race I laid all of my gear out and made a last minute decision to race in my new shoes. You know how they say you shouldn't do anything new on race day? Whatever, I wore the shoes anyways. (They ended up being fine aside from one blister.)

Minion Outfit Ready to Go!

Team Minion met near the start line before the race to assemble for our group picture. Seeing all 14 of us together at once made the effect of the costume so much cuter! What great ideas I have! 

Team Minion Pre-Race

Soon we were off and it was time to run the race. I hadn't run a half marathon since July and wasn't sure what to expect for my time since I've been so tired this year training in between rounds of chemo. I was also running with two friends who had never run a half marathon before so I was ready to just let the morning work out any way it would. 

Running Along the Strand

The course was fairly boring and looked the same for the majority of the race which really seemed to make the miles drag, but finally one by one we were ticking them off. I was excited as usual to see David a few times on the course (best race support husband ever!!) and again at the finish line along with the rest of Team Minion.

Running With Kerri's Tutu For a Bit

Team Minion Gang Signs

While I do love flat races I don't particularly like boring ones. Parts of the race were scenic and were along the water, but other parts were just boring as we plodded on down the strand. I'd probably do this race again if someone asked me to, but I doubt I'd sign up on my own. 

Congratulations to Kerri & Kristen
on their First Half Marathon!

Next up are a couple of fun Christmas themed 5Ks and it is also time for me to start training for my next full marathon ... Napa Valley in March!

San Diego Half Cheer Squad

Last year a new half marathon in San Diego was announced - the San Diego Half Marathon! The race was going to be in March and although the full course wasn't revealed, the organizers stated that there would be an "epic stadium finish" at Petco Park. The race was 'only' going to be $60 for the first 500 registrants, and it seemed like every runner I knew immediately signed up. The race was about 9 months out though and I was totally not ready to commit so early. What if that race conflicted with my training for a bigger race? What if I was going to be out of town for work? I held off on registering and the fee went up to $75, then $90, then $99. By the time I was moderately interested in registering there was no way I was going to pay $99 for a race that I could've entered for $60. Oh well, no biggie. Although the course looked cool, I wasn't going to lose sleep over missing out on it.

San Diego Half Marathon Course

Girls on the Run had  a 30 person team of SoleMates running in this race and when I heard this I decided that I would try to organize a cheer station instead. I've only cheered at a race a few other times (I'm usually running myself) and I've been surprised by how fun it is to stand by the sidelines warm and comfortable while watching the runners go by. 

San Diego Half Marathon Expo

Girls on the Run Table at the Expo

My friend Christina was going to be in town for this weekend for a conference and when she asked me where she should do her 13 mile long run while she was here I suggested this race instead. Luckily she was able to buy a friend's race bib for only $50 and before you know it Christina - aka Giselle - was ready to run too! I picked up Christina the day before the race and we headed straight to the race expo where she picked up her bib, we checked out the vendors, and we said hi to my Girl on the Run friends. After leaving the expo we went down to the harbor and had drinks and appetizers at Edgewater Grill.

Enjoying the San Diego Harbor at the Edgewater Grill

There are so many restaurants in San Diego that I want to try and I was so excited to have a dinner date in town. We left Edgewater Grill and headed to South Park to try out Alchemy for dinner. I've had so many people rave about Alchemy to me and it didn't disappoint! After dinner and some wine at Alchemy we headed home .. but stopped at the Turf Supper Club near my house for a nightcap and to chat before going to bed. Geez, good thing I wasn't running in the morning!

Quinoa Salad at Alchemy

Small Plates at Alchemy

The next morning I realized that I hadn't made my signs for the cheer station. D'oh! Thanks to years of making signs in high school, I was able to quickly whip up a number of signs to support our Girls on the Run team. I grabbed the signs, my cowbells, and then we headed downtown where I dropped Christina off at the start. I then went straight to mile 11 where I was meeting the rest of meeting the rest of my cheer squad. The plan was to cheer on the runners at mile 2, 8, and 12. 

You Can Take the Girl out of High School Cheerleading ....

But You Can't Take the High School Cheerleader Out of a Girl!

We were running a bit late (my fault) and there wasn't anywhere to park at mile 2, so we ended up setting up shop around mile 4 1/2. We made it in time to see the elite runners go by, and stuck around for another 40 minutes until everyone we knew had passed. Its amazing to see how few smiles you see in the early crowd. This people are focused and serious! Girls wearing tutus, holding signs, and ringing cowbells didn't even deserve a side glance  much less a smile. Tough crowd! It was exciting to see each of our running friends and I was surprised to see even more people I knew passing by. I had a sign that said "Smile! You Look Great!" and was amused by how many people smiled at me or smiled while pointing to their face to emphasize that they were smiling. 

Smile! You Look Great!

Love These Race Signs!

As the crowd thinned out we moved to our next spot at mile 12 which was 2/3 of the way down a big hill. We got there in time to see the first runners go by (again without smiles), and spent another 40 minutes cheering on all of the runners. By then I was becoming a bit of  an obnoxious cheerleader. Oh, you're going to run by, glance at me, and then look away? I'm going to scream and cheer louder for you until you smile! In many cases this worked, probably because the person was thinking 'who is this crazy nutjob??"  Whatever, I work for smiles.

Smiles and Glam Runner Tutus at the Finish Line

After we had seen our friends run by this second spot, we headed down to the finish line at Petco Park. The runners were routed in through a side entrance where they were finishing the course on the field. Very cool! I've done the Pat Tillman Run in Tempe, AZ a few times and it is really cool to finish on the field and to see yourself on the big screen. After finding Christina and Tara at the expo we decided to go to the Offshore Tavern & Grill for a post-race brunch. Too bad I ate a big brunch like the rest as if I had just run 13 miles. Jumping up and down and cheering burns calories too right?

Tater Tots! Brunch at Offshore Tavern

If you're a runner and you've never cheered at a race I recommend you try it. Its a lot of fun and really interesting to see all of the runners go by. I was also surprised by how many people actually said 'thank you!' or 'thanks for cheering!' as they ran by. Its nice to feel appreciated and I'm hoping that our silly cheer station put a smile on a lot of runners' faces. 

Santa Barbara Half Marathon

Last weekend I ran the Santa Barbara Half Marathon for the first time. I had heard about the race the year before from some of my Rock Runner friends, and although I was interested I wasn't ready to commit. Earlier this year though I received a coupon for $15 off registration, and after running the race past a few of my racing friends, I signed up! 

The original idea was that Erin & Jojo would be driving down from San Francisco with Cooper the dog, and I would be driving up from San Diego with my two dogs, with all of us meeting in Santa Barbara in a swanky vacation rental. Well, finding an affordable place that accepts three dogs is no small task. In the end we all booked rooms at the Oasis Inn & Suites in Santa Barbara, a pet-friendly "resort". I left San Diego around 7:30pm on Friday night, picked David up at the Burbank Airport around 9:30pm, and then we headed up to Santa Barbara arriving at 11:30pm. Not the ideal arrival and bed time for the night before a race, but oh well, that's how it worked out. 

My Favorite Furry Travel Partners 

We had all been watching  the weather reports in the week leading up to the race and were getting nervous about the predicted rain. I HATE running in the rain! It was POURING Friday night on our drive up and I was losing hope for a dry Saturday morning. Miraculously though, it ended up being dry and beautiful! A bit chilly, but but who cares. DRY is all that matters. 

Big Bird Running in a Tutu? 

David played race shuttle driver Saturday morning and we dropped Jojo & Erin off at the marathon start, and then he dropped me and their friend Anthony off at the half start. We were about an hour early for the race (unheard of for me) and we stood around for what seemed like hours waiting for the race to begin. While we were waiting I met up with Tara and Ben, briefly chatted with Stacy from my Rock Running group, and managed to find Erica who would be my running partner with a common goal of a 8:30 pace. 

I was so excited when the race finally began. I felt like I hadn't really raced for time and pushed myself in a while, and I wanted to see how my body responded. The race started out in Goleta and followed the bike path for several miles. Although I hadn't been in Santa Barbara for years, and I won't even mention how many years its been since I went to school there, I was amazed by how well I remembered the path which I had biked and rollerbladed on many times during my years at UCSB. 

Santa Barbara Half & Full Marathon Course Map 
(click on the image for a larger view)

The course had a few rolling hills which I mentally prepared for, and they really didn't bother me until I hit the hill at mile 10. I was keeping on pace up until this point around a 8:30 mile, but mid-way up the hill at mile 10 I felt like the hill would never end, and sadly I succumbed to walking. As the hill turned the corner though I realized I gave up too soon! The hill was about to end. I picked the pace back up and ran the rest of the course.  

Soon after beating that last hill and knowing that it was all downhill from that point to the finish, the course turned onto a street bordering the ocean. Around this same time the *marathon* leaders were escorted through by the police. Wow, the marathon started only 45 minutes before the half. So these guys were about to finish a full marathon in only 45 minutes more than it took me to run half the course. I love seeing the elite runners go by and the combination of the ocean view, the elite runners, and an American flag flapping in the wind choked me up for a brief moment. I'm such a sap! I love running and racing and at that moment I couldn't imagine anything else I would've rather been doing.

Approaching the Finish Line 

Soon miles 12 and 13 approached, and finally I was entering City College, running across the field, and running across the finish line. I had set a goal of a 1:50-1:55 finish, and was extremely pleased to see that I finished at 1:52!

Official Finish Time: 1:52:13

Mile Splits for my Running Nerd Friends

Post Race with Tara - Go Glam Runners! 

After finishing the race I met up with David, found Anthony, we went back to the hotel and showered and grabbed the dogs, and then it was time to play marathon cheerleaders for Jojo and Erin! Jojo has an amazing ability to text while running, and was keeping us up to date on their progress in the final few miles.

Cooper Anxiously Awaiting His Mother 

Jojo & Erin Looking Strong! 

 (Powered by Glam Runner Tutus)

We waited on the side of the road for about 20 minutes before we finally saw them. Jojo grabbed Cooper as she passed by, and the two of them plus an extremely excited dog headed towards the finish line.

Off to the Finish! 

We hung out for a bit on the field while the newly accomplished Marathon Maniacs rested, before whisking them off to Baja Fresh for some lunch. Yep, I dragged them to Mexican food without letting them shower. I can be cruel when I'm hungry ...

David, Dog Whisperer

After lunch David and I headed back down to San Diego and I bid farewell to my favorite little college town. This race was my 7th half marathon this year with one more to go. I'm doing a 10K turkey trot on Thanksgiving Day, followed by a  half marathon turkey trot the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The following weekend I'm running my 4th and final marathon for the year, and then I'm done racing for 2011! Race number 19 of 21, here I come!

Santa  Barbara Marathon Race Shirt & Finisher's Medal