Tag Archives: race report

Route 66 Half Marathon Race Report, Part 1

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It’s gotten quite chilly outside the past few days, so let’s travel back in time to another cold couple of days…the weekend B, K, and I drove to Tulsa so that I could run the Route 66 Half Marathon.

We made the quick 2 hour trek from Norman to Tulsa and drove straight to the race expo. It was much smaller than the OKC expo, but it got the job done with much less waiting-in-line time. We perused the things for sale (and I promised K a 0.0 sticker for her Kia- still want one, bby?), made some inspirational race signs, then skedaddled to our hotel.

That night I crammed in a nervous Mexican dinner with B, K, and our friend Beth who lives in Tulsa. Seems like I always eat Mexican food before races?! Maybe they help me run faster. Who knows? We got home and I laid out all of my clothes for the next morning, pinned my bib to my pants, and strapped on my timing chip. I was as ready as I could be…but super nervous. I tried to go to bed at 10 pm, but I was so nervous that it took me forever to fall asleep and I woke up many times throughout the evening. At one point, I remember just praying that the morning would go ahead and come so I could stop pretending to get any semblance of rest.

Race day was COOOOOLD. Something like 12 degrees. We all layered up, B ran and got a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts (more on that later), we posed for cute pictures, and then, all too soon, it was time to hit the road.

Parking was a hairy situation, but we managed to park about 4 blocks from the start. And that little walk was INTENSE. The cold was mind-numbing. I sincerely started to doubt if I could run 13.1 miles in that weather. We waited (probably illegally) in the lobby of the Mayo Hotel until about half an hour before the race started— that’s when B and K ditched me to go post up with their signs near the 2.5/5 mile marker at Woodward Park.

Waiting in that corral alone yet surrounded by thousands of people was incredibly difficult. I couldn’t feel my fingers or my toes. My scarf wouldn’t hang right on my neck. This race was starting to seem like a dumb idea. Then the gun went off, and I started running.

And 5 minutes into the race, I was actively thinking “Where can I meet B and K in order for me to drop out of this race?”

I’m evil, so that’s where I leave you until the next chapter!

Oklahoma Run to Defeat Diabetes 2013 Race Report

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I got a free entry to this race through my sorority, so I really just ran it for fun (as you can see from my time). Also, I had B’s birthday party the night before and was up late, so I wasn’t really in a state to run fast!

The race was pretty uneventful, except for a couple interesting moments. I almost started running in a different 5k by accident because the courses crossed! I also got scared that I accidentally ended up on the 10k course because I felt like I had been running way longer and had missed the split. Both of these problems were due to a lack of signage or volunteers, so if the race people can get this fixed, next year’s race should go off without a hitch!

The one incident that I will remember from this race happened at the end. I was making my way to the finish, and saw a guy running in front of me. I hadn’t really pushed myself too hard throughout the race, so I decided I would try and pass him. And pass him I did! By a pretty wide margin. My legs and chest were burning, but it felt good to have a small victory. Until B told me that the race announcer quipped “Isn’t it nice that that guy is letting her pass him? Chivalry isn’t dead!”

Excuse me?

No one “let” me do anything. I didn’t slip in at the end just ahead of him. I passed him by a lot! And it wasn’t because he wasn’t giving his all. I passed him because I was giving my all. I didn’t need chivalry for that. I know I was near the middle of the pack during the race, but that small victory was mine.

So there!

29:59

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Well, I did it!

After nearly a year of running, I finally ran a sub-30 minute 5K.

It was not easy.

Luckily, I had a bunch of my sorority sisters there to help pump me up!

(FTK= For the Kids, because our race benefited Soonerthon, our dance marathon event for Children’s Miracle Network!)

The race was at night, so it was a little chilly. A neon theme forced me to break out some of my favorite workout gear: blue and purple gradient leggings, purple shorts, and a lime green shirt. Also, huge blue and purple tulle bow that got lost in the frenzy. Oops!

I started out on the far left as always, directing B and K to stand on that side in my vain attempt to mug for a picture as I passed.

This never happened because I was running too fast. Small victory or disappointment? Not really sure.

I headed out at an 8 minute/mile pace (STUPID STUPID STUPID), eventually cruising into a comfy 9:15-9:30 pace for my first mile. I took a walk break as planned (I follow the Galloway method, you should try it, it saves me from shredding my calves and I love it) and then set off again.

Since I knew I was painfully close to sub-30-ing, I spent most of the race in a mental battle. I know that I recover better taking multiple walking breaks then picking up the pace rather than running until I eventually slow to a snail’s pace (and guess what? my shins are beastly by then also). But I didn’t want to walk at all, I wanted to beast mode this 5k and power across the finish in less than 30 minutes.

Luckily, I kept yo-yoing past Tonya, one of my sorority sisters. She runs way more than I do because of her epic extracurricular activities, and I was impressed that I was keeping up with her! I would slow to a walk and she would run past, yelling something encouraging, and then when she slowed to a walk, I would run past and yell something to her. It was a pretty nice setup. Chasing after Tonya really helped me stay in the game because I had the smaller goal of “keep up with Tonya” rather than thinking “WHAT IS YOUR PACE ARE YOU UNDER 30 CHECK YOUR SPLITS FREAK OUT FREAK OUT YEAH” the entire time.

This lasted until the end of the race, at which time Tonya turned up the heat and sprinted to the finish way faster than me. But I followed close behind, legs burning with pain. I could see the race clock was already a few seconds past 30 minutes, but I knew that my official chip time had to be less. I powered through, knowing that every agonizing step I took forward would pay off when I saw a sub-30 time on those race results.

And… it did.

SPLITS:

Mile 1: 9:11

Mile 2: 10:29

Mile 3: 9:50