Uptown Girl

Dreams do come true

2009-06-08T12:08:19Z

The past week has been a bit of a blur. Last Monday I was waking up and getting ready to become a BK girl. Now, I'm starting to settle in and getting a feel for what's to come.

Not too much though since I was off to Connecticut for a friend's wedding. It was pretty much a fairy tale wedding held in her backyard. The background was trees and mountains. Oh, her parents grow Christmas trees so there's small trees cascading down a hill (talk about great sledding!). The wedding itself was nice.

Running? Crap. I have to start training in 2 weeks or so for a marathon??? Eek. I got to start getting back in the game and I will. With the new 'hood, new everything it'll feel good to go back to an old trusted friend: running. I've enjoyed running over the bridges especially as the sun rises or sets. I still get goose bumps. I love this city!!!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

lispsugrl @ 2009-06-05T08:11:00

2009-06-05T12:11:06Z

Amazing. Just like that I'm a home owner. What a process - seems like a dream. I closed and moved in Monday after the ordeal described last week with the old management company.

I love everything so far! The space is great and the building staff has been oh so helpful. The subway is practically in my building!!

I woke up the first morning and took a run over the Brooklyn Bridge as the sun rose. Talk about living in a dream world!

I guess for me this is an ending and beginning at the same time. My old apartment of six years marked my arrival to new york and getting my feet wet in the big apple. Now that I own a piece of the big apple I'm very excited to see what the next phase brings.

For one, I'm more than ecstatic to get my life back. Perhaps I can finally start running with consistency again?!

Come on people - I need to rename the blog. Suggestions???
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

So much for smooth and easy.

2009-05-28T10:39:03Z

So I had been planning out the whole move. I'd pack a couple hours each night and make it less painful. Man, I should have known from the previous couple months NOTHING will go as planned. Yesterday afternoon, as I was getting excited about the impending move to the new pad, I got a panicked call from my movers. Enter stress.

Movers: "Your management company said you can't move out Monday at 1pm. You have to be out at 11."
Me: "OK, let me speak with them and see what I can do."
Movers: "Yeah, they tried to go into detail and we're unsympathetic to your situation."
Me: "OK, thanks for letting me know. I'll give them a call."

Management call
Me: "Hi, would it be possible for me to move out at 1. I'm closing at the same time and need that time to be able to coordinate my move."
Management: "No! Absolutely not. We were nice enough to give you the morning to move out. We have someone moving in at 2PM and she's pregnant. I'll allow you to move out by 12:30 but if anything is in there at that time I will back charge you the two months rent"
Me: "Anything at all? Would it be possible to let me move out Sunday and I'll just store my stuff on a move truck.
Management: "No. The super is off and he needs to be present. And he shouldn't be inconvenienced. However, you can call and ask him but I will call and tell him he doesn't have to do it." (thoughts: they will tell him to not do it)
Me: "OK, thanks. Otherwise I have to pay a small fortune to keep it stored over the weekend and would really appreciate it."
Management: "You're not being very nice and supportive of my measures to go out of my way for you." (thoughts: uh oh)
Me: OK, let me see what I can do and I'll get back to you. Bye

I proceeded to call the movers and am now moving out tomorrow morning at 9am. I love the fact that the movers called me and not the management people. Anyone else find that interesting? I get to pay a small fortune to store my stuff over the weekend but at least I'll be done. Big picture. I'm moving to Brooklyn on Monday! YIPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!

Next 24 hours? Going to not be so fun but que sera. Monday afternoon it will all be a bad dream:)

Out with the old

2009-05-16T22:16:59Z

Well, the end of part one in NYC is near. I'm moving on out of the UES in a couple weeks for a whole new world: Brooklyn. It's weird. It doesn't seem true but I'm sure when I get to the closing table and sign my life away, oh, how real it will be! 6 years, 6 very good years here. As much as I say how excited I am to leave the UES, it really has treated me well.

It introduced me to NY. It introduced me to Central Park and of course, running. I still remember my first encounter with Central Park. I walked over on a gorgeous, sunny day and wandered around. Quickly the clouds started to gather and I attempted to find my way out to the east side. Needless to say, I learned navigating the interiors of CP was not easy that day. I ended up drenched by the time I found the confines of home. Somehow, it made me smile.

Central Park introduced me to running. I remember meeting my first running partner back in March '04. It was a freezing cold night and we were bundled up. I could hardly recognize her and nor, could she recognize me. We ran the equivalent of the Harlem Hills loop and called it quits. It was hard! Who knew that just a small 6 months later I'd be finishing the NYC Marathon?

After my first running partner got pregnant, I hit a void and fortunately found The Reservoir Dogs. They've been a savior and I can't say enough of how thankful I am to find them. It's been a huge part of my life and will continue to be even when I move across the East River.

NY has given me a run for its money. We've had our fights and I've almost walked out on her a few times. However, we made amends and here I stand today. Just a few short weeks from becoming a true New Yorker (err Brooklynite!). I will no longer refer to myself as a quasi-NYer or be embarrassed about it. I am a New Yorker and if you got a problem with that, well, tough. You're just jealous! ;-)

I guess I'm getting a bit sad about leaving my first stomping grounds but you better believe that there are so many more good times ahead. Brooklyn? You ready for me????

Jumping back in

2009-04-19T12:58:53Z

Holy smokes! I just looked and the last time I wrote here? Over a month ago?! Where the heck does time go? I've been super busy with preparing for the big move. As I mentioned, I am in the process of buying a place over in Brooklyn! That's right - I'm moving to that far off land of Brooklyn:-p I'm super excited and now wait for my board interview then the check writing exercise also known as the closing;) So it looks like sometime in mid/end of May I'll be a homeowner! Woohoo!

Running wise. I signed up for marathon #6. I'm heading back to the scene of my best marathon: Marine Corps Marathon in Washington DC. October 25. I'm finally getting back into the running thing as I've just been swamped at work and dealing with the apartment stuff. I also was burnt out from last fall. But now it's time to go back in and get focused. I don't think a time needs to be mentioned on where I'd like to be as I cross the finish line;-)

I ran a couple of races in the past few weeks: Mudders&Grunters and Cherry Blossom 10 miler. I didn't race either. My time for Cherry Blossom was a respectable 8:19 pace. I never felt like I was hurting and had someone come up to me at the end and say "Great race, thanks for pacing me." See, even when I don't mean to I'm a pacemaster!

I've got the Brooklyn Half coming up on May 30th! Hopefully it'll be a real short commute to Prospect Park;-)

First time home owner?

2009-03-10T02:56:31Z

Well, kids. Faster than a blink of the eye, I am on my way to becoming a first time homeowner!!!!

So, I mentioned I will no longer be an uptown girl. I will need help renaming the blog as I will be relocating to Brooklyn! Send me an email for more specifics:)

Woohooooooooooo!

A new world ahead?

2009-03-08T03:18:17Z

So yes, as mentioned in the comments, I did run a half in January. The half? Personal worst but personal best as far as vacationing in South Beach:) Considering I had exactly one long run before the run and had averaged an awesome 10 miles a week. I'm pretty impressed:-p

Running has definitely taken a back seat with the impending events to come in the next few months. As mentioned in the last post, I'm in the middle of the housing search. Things have heated up to say the least and I'm still in love with the neighborhood I found a couple weeks ago. I'm visiting a few places a second time tomorrow with an agent. Is this real?!

I find myself wondering how it's possible to be where I am but hey, we have one life to live. Go for it.

I'm not ready to reveal to the world the possible new 'hood due to my superstitions about everything. I would hate for something to happen to cause this to not happen. However, let me just say, I will have to change the name of my blog if I choose this destination;-)

Race for the Hardcore - 10 Mile Relay

2009-02-22T22:10:09Z

So I missed a couple months here. It's been a little hectic with the job, life, etc. Don't worry I haven't forgotten and things have occurred.

Anyway, today was the Cherry Tree Race for the Hardcore - 10 mile relay. This is my FIFTH year running this race. Wow. Seriously has it been that long already? Yep, Team Whippet, Speedy Beagles x 2, Will Run for Eggs and Cheese and finally - The Gossip Girls this year. I teamed up with Mandy and nyflygirl as we looked to have a good time. And that we did!

We met up at 8:30am on the UES to head to Brooklyn. All of us were excited for the race and the chance to leave the confines of Central Park. On the train the order was decided: Mandy, myself, nyflygirl to anchor. The weather held up which made it much more pleasing.

So the race? Oy, HARD. I always forget how long 3.3 miles can feel in Prospect Park. That mile 2 is a killer - not so much the monstrosity of the hills but the way it just continues. I didn't wear a watch so I have no splits but I ran til it hurt. So I suppose that's good?

After the race, I headed with Mandy to a neighborhood in Brooklyn to go to some open houses. Let's just say I loved the neighborhood I went to;) The prospect of becoming a first time home owner? Exciting, yet frightening. TBD.

California Dreamin'

2008-12-27T16:56:28Z

I'm going to Pasadena, California for New Year's!!! For that little game at the Rose Bowl...

Update later but wooooooooooooooohooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!

A week later

2008-12-01T19:04:29Z

Wow, that was quick. I wasted no time enjoying post marathon recovery. Eating was like a past time;) Guess I got to get back to it again! First things first: The Great Cookie Bake of 2008. I'll be heading out shortly to bake holiday cookies with my mom and her friends at her friend's son's bakery. Hope y'all like cookies:-)

Anyway, no running the past week. I did get addicted to Wii Fit though. According to this device, I'm 40 in Wii Fit years! Yikes. Scary. Of course we realized after that the board was turned the opposite direction so...when it said go left, we would have to go right (ie completely reversed!). It makes it quite difficult when you are trying to keep balance and it says go left and you go left...haha! My parents got really into it too - while not a replacement for the great outdoors, there are quite a few core exercises that can be useful.

I also got my mom set up on her new laptop and created a home network for the desktop and laptop. See, I can never get away from my day job!

Finally - good to see they've managed to identify the obvious:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/01/news/economy/recession/?postversion=2008120113

Gee, is that really news? *sigh*

Hope everyone had a good turkey day! Off to bake cookies until the midnight oil burns;)

Kick Asphalt, Philly style - 3:48:48

2008-11-25T03:45:23Z

Another 26.2 in the books. Hard to believe it's #5. How the heck did that happen? So, as I mentioned in my quick post prior, 3:48:48 was the result. And you know, I'm OK with it - for now. Given everything this year, I'm happy to redeem my performance from Chicago. That's not my running style. So onward to the report.

One thing about Philly is it's my hometown. It makes a difference for many reasons. For one, the home bed advantage. Not enough can be said to staying in my parents house/my apartment as opposed to a hotel room, home cooked food and just the atmosphere. I'm much more relaxed than when on a destination run. Saturday I headed down to the expo with my mom to pick up my #: 3336. The slogan: Kick Asphalt. Freakin' awesome. I hope Philly keeps the slogan because it's just so damn cool. Anyway, Saturday was windy and brutally cold. That did not help the nerves settle for Sunday's run! I spent the remainder of the day resting up and watching PSU book their ticket to Pasadena:-) YAY!

Sunday morning - woke up at the dreadful hour of 4:30am. Gross. Even for me! The attire? My brooks "fast as flash" tights, blue long sleeve technical top with a turtleneck, psu singlet, gloves and a hat. I also started with a running jacket and hand warmers to stay warm. No need to waste more energy pre race! The weather was similar to highs on January 22nd, the coldest average in Philly. Oh, it should be mentioned I forgot my watch in NY so I essentially went by internal clock. Since my mom drove me down, I was able to head to the start about a half hour to the start which was nice! The corral was nice since the masses kept me warm:-p Once I arrived at my corral, I turned around and see a paw print on someone's shirt. Turns out one of my TRD teammates was directly next to me! We shivered and waited to head out. I hadn't read all the directions and apparently we were on a wave start which meant a certain amount of people released every 2 minutes. Each time, the song Gonna Fly Now blared over the speakers.

And finally we were off!

Miles 1-7:
Very similar start to the PDR. Headed down the Ben Franklin Parkway towards City Hall and by the Constitution Center and Liberty Bell. Instead of heading back to do the loop of the Kelly Drive we took a brief tour of South Street and Chinatown as well. Before heading away towards University City I saw my parents, brother, and mom's friend on Chesnut Street. I threw my jacket at them and sped away. I still felt a bit rusty as I generally do at the beginning. It was also a bit disheartening to hear someone shout "you're almost there" at mile 4. Sheesh, wait til I've past 6.2 so there's less than a 20 mile run left;) There wasn't a huge crowd until we hit Chesnut Street (heading back towards the start area). It was definitely odd. Not a bad thing but weird.

Miles 7-14:
This part has the only true inclines/hills of the course. I knew about them so it wasn't as scary as it was for anyone that thought "oh there's no hills in Philly!" We ran by 30th Street Station and I waved to a couple NY Flyers guys cheering on the sidelines. I think one of them snapped my photo. University City was fun as there was one frat house that had guys banging pots and pans. Not sure I'd want that in my ear after a rough Saturday night;) Then it was off to Memorial Park which is the only true hill of the course. Fortunately, marathoners and half marathoners were all together for this so it helped to have the company. I was ready for this since my mom had run the course and she told me "there's a couple inclines then the HILL. Don't be deceived." After getting up the hill, I started to hit that zone. It gave me a sense of relief to know that I had made it 11miles and the stomach was holding up. Good news. I also saw people dressed up as cows cheering on the sidelines - umm, interesting. We headed back towards the Art Museum and here the half marathoners went to the left and the full kept right on going. Fortunately, we could not see the finish line for the half! But, you could still see people doing the half getting excited to be done. I yelled "see you in another 13.1." Hey, you gotta be positive! I saw my parents again and yelled "see you at the finish line." As I headed down the Kelly Drive evidently shoreturtle saw me too! YAY! Thanks for being out there!

Miles 14-20:
The Drive brought isolation. The half marathoners were done and we were on our own. I saw Mozzer pass on the other side as I was heading towards Manayunk. He looked strong:) As we headed to Manayunk the aches started. There were more inclines and the mental games started. Ya know, the ones where you tell yourself "come on we're in single digits to go." :) Manayunk was a splash of relief as there were people EVERYWHERE. There was the obligatory beer station. At about mile 20 we hit the turnaround to head back towards the finish. That was definitely a big relief! At this point, I saw my TRD friend again just seconds ahead.

Miles 20-26
After the turnaround I knew the game I had to play. First, get to the Falls Bridge. That's your territory. I had just done my 18 miler a few weeks ago: 2 8.4 loops of the drive plus an extra run up the incline at mile 26. At this point, since I was off of no true watch and the wave start ruined any ability to have a clue what I was running, I knew I was ahead of the 3:50 pace group. That was very exciting for me. I also had my TRD teammate to help pull me along. We traded spaces back and forth. At a couple water stands, I walked to get the water and then picked up the pace to sub 9 again. I think that was really key to keeping me from a bonk. It also was essential as the water stands were an ice skating rink! (My dad one up'd that when he told me one of the Philly marathons it was 14 degrees and the water actually froze!) As we headed back, once we hit Boathouse Row I knew we were soooo close. This was my town. It gave me an extra boost of energy for the final 2.2. I actually finished with one of my fastest splits of the race: 8:31 pace.

Last .2 miles
The incline? What incline? There were so many people mobbing the finish area within the last .5 miles that it made you feel like you were in the Tour de France. There were no boundaries so it dropped down to one lane for the final .2! As we turned the corner by the Art Museum I pumped my arms in the air knowing marathon #2 of the season was in the books! I also knew I had kicked Chicago to the curb. While I didn't achieve my ultimate dream, it was a huge boost from the debacle of Chicago. I crossed the finish line and it was such an awesome feeling. It brought back that feeling of why I run. If anything, this is up there with MCM. I just went out there and had fun. No true expectations. Oh, and Philly wouldn't be Philly without a soft pretzel at the end! They had a whole food tent! YAY! NYCM, you listening? FOOD!

My thoughts: The race was great! I would consider doing this one again! The weather? Non-factor. If you dress right, it's actually quite perfect. Loved the slogan: Kick Asphalt. The shirts are 100x better than Chicago's sponsor crappy one. They should have been better prepared at the water stops with salt but it's easy to play the game after the race. The half/full turnoff should have been better manned as one of my friends running the half ran an extra portion of the marathon before figuring out she was in the wrong race! She had a monster PR until that. She still PR'd by 2 minutes but it would have been closer to a 7 minute PR! Philly definitely has it's own style and I like that. It doesn't try to be NY or Boston, it's just Philly and that's how it roles.

So, that's Philly '08. I think this was a redemption race and a rebirth of sorts for me. I'm excited to run again and I think that's a great sign for '09. The no watch thing? GREAT! I think it helped me just run my race! I managed to pull my second fastest marathon 6 weeks after a dreadful 26.2 march. I'm planning to take a week or two off from running. It's been a long time since I've given my body a rest, not to mention my mind. I'm pretty beat up. There's time to figure out what to do in '09, for now it's time to party it up for the month!

Oh yeah, not too much rest! I just booked my flight to Florida in January - the ING Miami Half Marathon. Don't worry this will be more of a tune up then a race;) Plus, I'm looking forward to warmth and sun! Don't worry, I"m not marathoning so it won't be raining or some other weird weather phenomena.

3:48:48

2008-11-24T02:44:20Z

Just figured I'd post since some of you may wonder how today went. I'm satisfied with the effort today but don't worry, I'm not done knocking on that 3:40:00 door. Just for now - I'll be back in 2009.

Oh and I've decided, if you're not into extreme weather running, give me a shout out before signing up for a race. I have a feeling now that I've covered extreme heat and cold that rain may be in the forecast next time...

Taper: Take 2

2008-11-17T01:34:22Z

So here I am - one week from giving 26.2 another shot.

I've had an 18 miler and 15 miler, finishing with a wind blown 8 miler today. Thrown in a couple quicker runs mid week. Watched the Phillies win the World Series then had my balloon sizzle as Penn State pulled a stinker in Iowa. Participated in an election that thankfully lacked hanging chads. Ya know, the usual.

So now what? I guess it'll just have to be what it'll be. I'm going to go out there and give it a shot - and hope for the best this time. At least the weather is much more favorable than ~~Florida~~ Chicago heat. Now that we're under a week to go it's time to bring on the weather report!

Nov 23

Partly Cloudy

48°
34°

Motown Philly back again...:) I'm ready, are you?

2008 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-30T03:19:10Z

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES 2008 WORLD SERIES CHAMPS!!!!!!!!!!!! It's sunny in Philadelphia right now:)

Lidge=Mr Perfect! Wooohooooooooo!

This is mile 5 of the Broad Street Run - Philadelphia was starving for this:)

The new flag for Citizen's Bank Park!

The Flying Hawaiian!

Big night for Pennsylvania

2008-10-25T22:49:08Z

No, not that silly election stuff:-p

I'm talking this...

and

Let's go FIGHTIN' PHILS AND NITTANY LIONS:-)

Chicago Marathon (aka the heat marathon)

2008-10-18T03:02:42Z

4:06:14. Enough said. The one saving grace? I did not get a PW, personal worst. Chicago has not been kind to marathon runners the past two years. I can say whatever but it just didn't happen last Sunday. That's all.

The day began early with a 5am wakeup. It started well with all of us pumped up and full of smiles. Why not? It's a huge marathon and the culmination of all that running. As a sign in Niketown said "Sunday is really a victory lap." As we walked to Grant Park, other runners joined us and I began to get my feelings for the race together. I sported my PSU singlet and race ready shorts with the yellow hat. No need for a sweatshirt as it was 67 degrees as we headed over.

7:30am came and I headed over to my corral. The gun went off and within 2:30 mins I was crossing the start line and descending on the city of Chicago. I knew EV was out there cheering as well as one of my clients. I tried to envision breaking the race down into small chunks to get to my cheering support.

What do I remember from the race? I remember seeing EV 3x including by the finish line! I remember Boystown and the guy cheerleaders! I remember the Mexican section of town. The cowbells! Chinatown. The people that had bags of ice at about mile 22 (lifesavers as temps rose to the mid 80s!).

Well there is a second thing. I'll take the opportunity to state that I have signed up for the Philadelphia Marathon on November 23. Whether or not this is a smart decision, we'll see. I will say I'm not as beat up as I was after Steamtown last year. I knew at about mile 10 it wasn't my day so it became a standard 26.2 training run through Chicago. When I realized 3:40 wasn't happening, I slowed because would I rather miss by 6 minutes or 26 with the chance to try again?

That's all I've got on this one. There's not a great story to tell and I don't want to talk about a "training" run any further. See you in Philly!

pre-game

2008-10-11T10:20:20Z

As I write this I'm on my way to chicago. Game time, go time, whatever you want to call it is less than 48 hours away! The weather? Less than ideal - the latest had potentially record high on sunday (84 for those wondering). I thought the chances of a second hot marathon was nil considering last year! At least I've run a marathon in heat and humidity AND trained in it.

No matter what I'm looking to enjoy every minute. Isn't that, in the end, what we all run for?

My trip to the airport was exciting. The GCP was a parking lot so my cabbie took a super alternate route. This had me on the brink of complete sickness! Upon arrival I had the joy of being reminded we pay for checked luggage now. This was followed by waiting in the longest security line around. Yeah airports are more like trying to not have a stress attack before flying out!

As I got on the L, AH informed me the women for obama convention was taking place at our hotel this weekend!! Obama, joe biden and oprah are all scheduled to speak. Neat! Then, while walking around, ben folds was giving a free live concert at the apple store. Pretty cool if you ask me.

Today it is off to the expo and time to stay off the feet!

So I will see you at the finish line!

Not again!

2008-10-08T03:14:30Z

Oct 12

Partly Cloudy

76°
61°

20%

Post marathon blues?

2008-10-01T11:34:52Z

I think not.

CONGRATULATIONS!

You are confirmed as a registrant for the 2009 ING Miami Marathon or Half-Marathon!

Nothing wrong with a trip to Miami at the end of January:)

Chicago Weather:

Sunday, Oct 12

High: 56 °F RealFeel®: 49 °F

Mostly cloudy and colder

Sunday Night, Oct 12

Low: 44 °F RealFeel®: 37 °F

Mainly clo

This would be a beautiful thing!

PDR 2008 and coming to the end of training

2008-09-28T16:35:35Z

Wow I've been a bad blogger. Things have been pretty busy around here but here we go. Last weekend I ran the Philadelphia Distance Run strictly as a marathon tune up. Unlike 2 years ago, there would be no attempt at shattering the PR today. One cool aspect of this race is my dad's friend has run the race every year since it's beginnings (31st year in a row!). As such, he gets VIP treatment for himself and friends. We were able to hang out in the area with the elites before the race and have our own personal baggage check! Sweet! I ran into nyflygirl at the corrals and AH was there too. I told nyflygirl that she should finish way ahead of me today;-) I was looking to run 1:45-1:47. The national anthem started and all of a sudden it was like "wait, those aren't the words." Whoops! Finally we were off.

Immediately, within the first mile, my stomach started to give me issues.  I just thought it was nerves or something and just needed to run it out. By mile 4 I was still feeling pretty uncomfortable but continued to ignnore it. As we got to the Park Drive I started to look for a pit stop as I knew there was no way I could finish this half without stopping. It was that BAD. Finally just passed the 10K point I made my pit stop for 2.5 minutes or so. I felt a bit better and knew I'd be able to finish the race. Given the stopping, etc I made my new goal sub 1:50.

I started back up and ran a very controlled 8:10-8:15 pace. Final time: 1:49:21 with the pit stop. Not too shabby.    The photo is from the Ben Franklin Parkway - just another walk in the park home;) I've started to utilize the hat again as a repellent from sweat in the eyes. I'm thinking that will happen for the marathon too. Yellow cap anyone? ;-p

Since the last time I've also finished up two more 20 milers and a 55 mile week. One twenty miler is shown on the left. We ran from Columbus Circle, around the tip of Manhattan, over the Brooklyn Bridge to Prospect Park, a lap of Prospect Park before heading back and ending on the LES. As usual, a training season would not be complete with me wiping out somewhere. I managed to wipe out on a sidewalk in Brooklyn and now sport a lovely wound on my left knee (good job by the photographer not to get that knee in the photo!).   It was nasty humid with essentially 100% humidity as when we got to the tip of Manhattan you could not see Brooklyn! It was eerie as a cruise ship was coming in it looked like it was coming from nowhere out of the fog. Surreal. Finished that run in a shade under 3 hours.

Yesterday, for my final long run I joined a group for the bridges run. The first four miles I realized it was definitely going faster than I needed to be at. I was running closer to MP then LSD pace! I dropped back a group and feel great today. Ran another solid 7 today.

Two weeks to go. Unbelievable. So far the weather is good but we all know what happened last year in Scranton and Chicago (both turned into Steamtown Marathons literally!).

Sunday, Oct 12

High: 53 °F RealFeel®: 49 °F

Mostly sunny

Sunday Night, Oct 12

Low: 42 °F RealFeel®: 34 °F

Clear to partly cloudy

Tempo me Wednesday

2008-08-28T11:39:51Z

With the big day coming sooner than later, I've fallen into a bit of a lull the past couple weeks. More from outside factors than me but it's kept me from some of my runs. It may be a blessing in disguise as I feel fresh and ready to dive back into training for the last month and a half. I look at last night as day 1 as official back into training mode. Just take a look...

This is the time I kept my watch on. My route: I ran from Midtown down to the 14th street area to meet a friend. Once he joined me we ended up doing 7.29 miles of tempo at 7:56 pace! I felt pretty good and it was just what the Dr. ordered to get me back into the swing of things. Overall I put in a little over 12 and that's after 15 on Sunday which felt like poo. It's amazing how you can feel a zillion times better depending on the day!

Pacing buddy

2008-08-18T01:56:08Z

Yesterday was the Team Championships once again. My last race as a 27 year old - which also happened to be my first one last year:-p Anyway, I had been plagued by a stomach virus the past few days and barely ate anything before the race to make sure I didn't have any issues during the 5 miles:-p So after the men did their tour of the park I headed over to the corrals and saw nyflygirl there. As we chatted, all of a sudden the horn went off and we were off!

I knew this was not going to be a great race by any stretch for me - no where near my 36 minute range the past couple years. However, I ran with EV and we kept a pretty stable pace the whole time. EV has a tendency to take a race out 30-40 seconds too fast in the first mile and completely collapse by the end. She stuck like glue to me and ended up running close to her 5k time in a 5 miler (I asked her if she knew what that meant;-)).

Anyway the times:
Mile 1: 7:29
Mile 2: 7:24
Mile 3: 7:40
Mile 4: 8:04 - Cat Hill and nearly choked on the water. Oops!
Mile 5: 7:30

As you can see from the times, I never did go into the afterburners. With the exception of that sad mile 4, I had a fairly consistant race. Not spectacular, but a solid run to put in the books. With just 8 weeks til Chicago, it's time to get those last few weeks of hard core training in.

So today, it was a 14.5 miler to PB&Co! Mmm...

Anyway, time for sleep - gotta get up at 5:30am to head to VA for work. Lovely way to start the week and spend your birthday, no:-)

4x100 Men's Freestyle Finals - Smash this

2008-08-11T04:30:52Z

Most. Amazing. Swimming. Race. Ever
Oh and just another lesson in don't talk smack unless you can back it up:)

I don't think I'll be sleeping much the next couple of weeks:) Beijing 2008! And this is just swimming...I'm so screwed once the Track&Field starts!

Pace skills for sale!

2008-08-03T02:13:23Z

Today marked my first 20 miler of the season. With the urging of flygirl, I signed up as a pacer for the Long Training Run in the park. As it had been all week, the humidity was 70-80% and temps near 80. Gross. However, Mr. Sun stayed in his clouds!

I volunteered to lead the 9 min/mile group and was placed in the third tier of them. It actually worked out for the best as later I found out how the earlier groups became rabbits. How good am I? Try 8:59 pace for 20. Not bad, right? I felt really good and I'll be curious to check out my official stats on my computer (I'm in Philly right now). I wore my heart rate monitor and I have a feeling it never rose too high as I was able to maintain conversations the entire time.

Why are my pace skills for sale? I was asked by at least 5 people if I would be at the LTR in September as well! Who knew? I had promised that I would be able to get them to the finish line safely and those that did 20, we would be as fast as our slowest person. I'm really glad I had a good run as it erases last week's 13.1 crappy run.

With tomorrow's run I'll have put in 54 miles this week - crazy.

Oh, I think I can announce the true reason I was exhausted for the half. I was actually up in Providence, RI taking a certification exam for my job. I'm happy to announce that I've passed the exam and now have fun letters after my name (RCDD®:)

NYC Half 2008

2008-07-29T08:41:11Z

After a hellish week at work which included an end of the week trip to Rhode Island, I was not in the mindset to PR. Add to it a super sticky Sunday and yes, this has turned into a long training run. Expensive training run but still fun. According to NYRR, the starting temp was 70 with 90% humidity. Awesome:)

So the run. I got to the race around 5:45 since corrals shut down at 6:30am supposedly. As I left, thunder clapped, lightning lit up the sky and rain fell. Just what you want to enjoy at an absurd hour on a Sunday. Hmm... As I arrived, police were directing people away from trees since there was serious lightning in the area. Little did I know these storms had killed several people in the tristate area! Once the storms left the area, I headed to my corral and ran into RK and JS. We stated our goals and for me, I intended to run well within comfort zone. I also got to briefly meet Quinto Sol! Comfort zone to me is 1:48-1:50 on a normal day but today humidity was going to have fun with us:-p

Central Park meant rolling hills for the first 7 miles. It doesn't matter how well you know the park those hills still play havoc with you. The most exciting part was exiting the park and POOF Times Square just was there! So cool. I saw flygirl on my first loop of the park and the TRD folks were manning a water station on 57th and 7th. I stopped to grab some gatorade and get a quick chat in. As we turned on 42nd street I had to stop to allow a stretcher to go through with a guy hooked up to an IV:( That would be the first of several people I would witness being taken away or attended to due to the heat/humidity.

The west side highway meant zone out time. I definitely didn't feel great but crossed the finish line feeling OK. However, my stomach was killing me today for some reason:( Sadly I wasn't able to enjoy the free jamba juice:( I ended up running a 1:54:09 (8:42 pace). My garmin did say I ran 13.32 miles which I attribute to running the outside lanes in Central Park, instead of the usual inside portions. My legs must have been OK as tonight I went out and did 6 at a sub 9 pace. This mileage plan must be working! I'm looking towards the Philly half to hopefully race! I did end up with a battle wound: the bottom of my left foot sports a lovely blood blister.

After the run I headed uptown and to my new office to unpack. Definitely weird to go to a new work place after 5 years of doing the same routine. Who knew I'd move office locations before moving my Manhattan apartment??? Amazing!

Up next? 54 this week! Whew!