Philly Marathon in brief...more to follow

I have never had so many requests for a blog, EVER!

Please know that this is not the full blog.  That will come when I can upload pics and all and detail the events of the weekend.  Most of you do not also follow me on Twitter, so you have no idea what an amazing Marathon weekend this has truly been.  For the few of you who do follow me on Twitter, well...you can definitely wait!

In a nutshell, the Philly Marathon was a HUGE success (for me)!  I trained and trained and it paid off.  As I went back to my times from all of my previous marathons (7), I looked at my times and reflected on where I had my tough spots.  My best time was still my first marathon at 4:54.  (I thought it was 4:44, but I guess I dreamt that.)

I know that my issues lie somewhere around mile 20 - the point at which I had trained.  Everything after that seemed impossible, year after year.  I would be on target to do well, but always fell apart - often taking nearly 90 mins to complete the last 6+ miles.  Pathetic!  So just know, 26.2 is freakin' hard.  If it was easy, more people would do it, right?!

Today, the stars were aligned and I got past my mental strife and pushed through a great and tough course to complete in 4:20:36 (9:56 overall pace).  If you want all the details, you'll have to wait another day or so.  But know that when I started training for this marathon, I never dreamed that I would not only reach my goal of a 4:30 marathon, I surpassed it.  

I have to thank so many people, but especially Dennis and Lynette who stood at the finish line waiting for me to finish.  Trust me when I tell you the were thousands upon tens of thousand of spectators at the finish.  I could not believe I spotted them both standing mere feet from the end.  It was an amazing moment for me, and Dennis caught it all on video.  I hope I can share that finish with all of you, soon.  

Also, Anne, Loretta, and Matt were following me closely on their phones and were posting texts, FB posts and emails about my amazing times throughout.  It was amazing to read their incredible enthusiasm when I finished.  There was so much to read I could barely keep up and respond.  

4:20 still brings me to tears.  All I can say is, "Finally."

Holy crap, that was hard!

I’m one week from the Philly Marathon and its pretty much all I can think about.  Had a couple of good rides with Matt, this week, and an awesome trail run on Thursday – knocking out 6 solid miles in complete and total darkness the whole time.  Not to worry, my friends, I managed to stay upright for the entirety of the 6 miles – even though my headlamp faded and faded and faded as I made my way back to the trailhead.

The ride was SUPER windy on Friday - I was overheated and took my arm warmers off 1/2 way through!

The trail I always run is the Desert Classic and runs along the base of the south side of South Mountain.  I’ve always been told that the 3 miles out and back that I do each week are the toughest of the 9.25 mile trail, but never having had the opportunity to see more than my usual route – I was always curious about the rest of the trail.

I guess you can tell where this is going.  These last couple of weeks of training are where we taper – less and less and less mileage to prepare our bodies for the 26.2 in front of us.  I thought “well, this week only calls for 10 miles, so I will do the 9.25 mile Desert Classic from stem to stern.”  Fortunately, it ends about a mile and a half from my house.

Kris agreed to pick me up at 6:45am, this morning, and plunk me off at the trailhead on Desert Foothills/Chandler Blvd.  The rest would be up to me.  I made sure to wear my Achilles brace and headed out as the sun rose over the hillside.  It was gorgeous.

By the time I reached my usual turn around spot, I was feeling good, if not a little nervous about what was in front of me.  Matt had told me that the next couple of miles were fairly flat and that I needed to really pay attention to the mile markers to make sure I wouldn’t detour off on to some other trail that intersected with the Desert Classic.  So, the night before I memorized the trail map provided by the city of Phoenix (online).

Sadly, my memorization skills weren’t good enough as I reached a fork in the trail around mile 5.25.  I guessed that it would be to the right and headed down and down and down this lovely trail which situated me right in the midst of a parking lot and Ahwatukee neighborhood.  “CRAP!”  I thought.  I turned around to head back into the hills and quickly came upon two mountain bikers.  Yep, they confirmed that about ½ mile up I had chosen poorly.  It wound up being a 1.2 mile detour – and the route back to the fork was all up, up and up. (sigh)

I was relieved when I hit the spot of my error and back on track to finish the run – but at that point, I knew this 9.25 mile run would be a good mile and some further.  I had to regroup mentally – especially considering what was in front of me.  The next 4-5 miles were up and down and up and down and up and down – the inclines were steep as hell, too.  It became one of the hardest things I have ever done.  Mix those abrupt elevation changes with constant mountain biker traffic and it was an exercise in agility and patience, as well.

See my stupid detour -- sticks out like a sore thumb!

Right around mile 10.5, I hit a HUGE climb and decided it wasn’t worth it – so I walked for a minute to the top.  Then, back on my feet to the parking lot just west of 48th Street and Guadalupe Road.  The lot was packed with cars and people were spilling out everywhere making my navigation through the moving parallel parking cars and mountain bikes difficult.  But then I coasted home.  As I finished the trail my watch beeped 11 miles.  I entertained walking home, but 1.5 miles is a LONG way to walk – and I told Anne I would meet her for breakfast around 9:20am.  I was definitely going to miss that mark – even if I ran, so rather than delaying food any more than I should – I ran home.  The pavement felt strangely good, after 11 miles on the trails.  Total mileage to my house?  12.6 miles.

Home!  

It should also be known that I woke up to 42 degree temps in Phoenix.  It always pisses me off a little when the temps in Phoenix are colder than my home town in Illinois – and this morning was simply one of those mornings.  I suppose its good practice for Philly, next weekend, eh?

Oh….BIG NEWS!  The bike is here and resting comfortably in my house!  I took it out for a short 30 minutes yesterday to make sure I could get in and out of my clips.  I think I’ve got it – but not without some form of injury in the process.  Tomorrow, Matt and I have a nice long, flat ride planned – I cannot wait to see how she performs!

Isn't she a beaut!

My FIT appt!

sigh...Klutz!

Next blog…post marathon, people!  

Women's Half Marathon Success!

Yep, pretty much on Cloud 9, this morning – which, of course, makes blogging fairly natural.

After my Achilles issue last Saturday, I was (again) incredibly nervous about running on it during the week.  I also went in to see my doctor first thing Monday morning – to make sure he wasn’t going to say, “Stay the heck off it or it will definitively rupture!”  And, allow me to take a moment to tell all of you how much I adore my GP.  Dr. Roso (not only super down to earth) gets me.  He understands that I am an athlete and that he needs to get me well so I can get back on course as quickly as humanly possible.  He prescribed me a heavy duty steroid so that (in his words) “we can see if we can knock this thing out of you.”  His diagnosis – tendonitis.  He applauded me for quitting at mile 19 and not simply pushing out the remaining mile or so – which is what he knows I am much more likely to do.  He claims it may have saved me from a rougher return to running.

I left his office confident that I wouldn’t be out of the game for too long.  But, Tuesday morning, I didn’t do anything – no run, no bike, no swim.  It KILLS ME TO TELL YOU ALL THAT!  But, I rested.

By the middle of the afternoon on Wednesday, Matt realized I was a bit of an emotional wreck.  Tough days at work combined with no running was making for a fairly ugly-Meri.  His suggestion?  A Hike!  So, at 5am on Thursday, we met with our headlamps to do a 3 mile hike up Telegraph Pass, close to the TV Towers on South Mountain.  It was glorious – and crist can Matt move it up those steep, rocky inclines!  I found myself practically running to keep up – all the while moving with trepidation so I wouldn’t go nose first into the side of the rocky mountain.  And, let me tell you – it was precisely what I needed.  It was hard and it was in nature!  When we reached the top, the view of the city on both sides of the mountain was spectacular – sadly, it was WAY too dark for me to have captured any of it on my phone, but we do have the post-hike shot, myspace-style.

See, DARK -- but sporting headlamps!

As usual, we also met for an awesome ride on Friday morning to complete the week.  Interestingly, as soon as we hit Pecos Road, Matt was flying.  He’ll tell you he wasn’t really working that hard, but I was huffing and puffing while keeping up with him for several miles.  It wasn’t until nearly 12 miles into the ride that we started to have some tough elevation changes – taking the backside of Desert Foothills – and at that point Matt was a solid 6-8 bike lengths in front of me.  (Depressing – pretty much!)  However, I was starting to feel good as we started the ascent and I gained ever so slowly on Matt – who was WAY too preoccupied with his lead to care.  About 2/3’s of the way up the incline, Matt thought to look back to see my position.  I was nearly on top of him – and like all good men, he panicked that he might see a repeat of the prior weekend.  He pushed and pushed and so did I.  I am pretty sure I heard him swear at me when I was on top of his rear tire, but that didn’t stop me from saying, “You’re going to win this one, Matt, but I’m going to make you effing work for it, my friend!”  We laughed heartily all the way down the hill and most of the way back to Matt’s house.  I was “THIS” close – but he didn’t allow me to take home the prize that morning.  That’s ok, though – there will be more mornings just like that one – and my new Raleigh Carbon Capri 2.0 will be in on Friday (11/9).  The playing field will begin to level a little more….soon!

I heart my pink arm warmers!!

Friday night at the Women’s Half Marathon Expo, I picked up an Achilles Brace made by CEP.  CEP makes the most common compression devices for runners (most people wear their crazy socks).  It wasn’t cheap, but when I stopped by their booth to discuss my Achilles/Soleus issue, they immediately suggested their RxOrtho Achilles Brace (size III).  I tried it on and paid some astronomical amount for it – with the guarantee that if it sucked I could simply return it.

Its pretty ugly, but I didn't care!

Saturday was merely a 2000 meter swim day.  I was relegated to the outdoor pool (unsure what was up with the indoor one), so there was quite the chill each and every time I lifted my arms out of the water.  I think I stopped noticing around 400 meters, but …brrrr!

I spent the rest of the day cleaning up the yard, eating and hydrating properly – in anticipation of today/Sunday!

I hadn’t run all week – and this weighed heavy on my mind.  Kris stopped by at 4:40am to pick me up and was lamenting the same – she hadn’t put a mile on her feet since the prior weekend, either.  And, we’d be meeting the lovely, Miss Anne, at the starting line around 5:30am.  In addition, all I could think about was whether or not my Achilles would be ok.  It, honestly, felt FINE!!  And, not “athlete-fine” – seriously FINE!  I’m not sure whether the steroid beat the inflammation to a pulp or what, but it has felt just fine for a few days, now.

The three of us were thrilled to be at the starting line.  This was the 3rd Women’s Half Marathon in Scottsdale/Tempe and it was to be my THIRD try at it.  Its always nice to repeat events to see how much better you can do year over year – if at all.  Kris did it the year prior with me, and Anne the inaugural year.  We were all ready to try it again.

It seemed super cold to me, this morning.  May have been a combination of nerves and the chillier than normal temps, but I was seriously worried that I might expend a lot of my energy shivering at the starting line.  The three of us did some huddling and eventually made our way to our respective corrals.

Kris, Mer and Anne -- sun was JUST coming up!

When the countdown started, I was focused – and when the gun fired, I felt more ready than ever.  I spent the first several miles navigating in and out of crowds of people who really should not have been in Corral 2.  I am loathe to complain about runners, but nothing pisses me off more than a presumptuous runner who is in the wrong corral – it screws things up for the rest of us; so STOP doing it!  By the second mile, we were on Scottsdale Rd with plenty of room to breathe and it made everything a little better.  My Achilles felt fine, still, and I was convinced I might be able to pick up the pace a little, without doing any damage.

The race route through Scottsdale isn’t the prettiest at all – its south Scottsdale.  So its littered with biker bars, cheap stores and “fantasy” shops.  Then we hit the canal for a couple of miles until we headed up and over a portion of Papago – and the hills.  It seemed like nothing to me, this morning.  I reminded one gal that it was only 4/10s of a mile up, as she struggled to find her motivation to run.  But, my pace was still really quite good – better than it had ever been, in fact.
  
Between miles 7 and 8, we pass the finish line with all of the cheering spectators.  It’s a blessing and a curse.  We love seeing and hearing the crowds, but passing the finish line is a reminder of how much more we have left.  But, again, nothing was bothering me.  I took my Peanut Butter Gu and some water at mile 7 and by mile 9 was content to be hitting the toughest of the hills and almost done.  I glanced at my Garmin shortly after mile 9 and realized I was running sub-9’s – SUB-FREAKIN’-9’s!  Well, hell – if that didn’t motivate me.  The hardest of all of the hills comes shortly after the mile 10 marker – and again, sub-9.  As I flew down the Priest 202 Highway overpass, I could see Anne in the distance flailing her arms at me.  She was just about to hit the mile 9 marker.  I had recently passed the mile 11 marker.  I looked at my watched and yelled – I am pacing for a 2:02, Anne!  Anne yelled back – and I knew she was going to hit her goal of a 2:45, as well.  We were both thrilled to see each other.

Knowing I only had a couple of miles left, and still feeling super strong, I keep my sub-9 pace and pushed myself to the finish line.  Low and behold, a couple of tenths before the end, I saw my amazing, supportive friend, Ron, cheering me on.  Seeing his face as I told him I would be just over 2 hours, was precisely the fuel I needed to complete the run.  I hit the finishers shoot and saw the clock.  All I could do was grin.  Last year I finished in 2:15:54 – and this year – 2:02:10.  This was/is a personal record – and it makes the 2 hour ½ marathon within range.  I just need a little more…something.  I will figure out what that something is over the course of the next year or so of training – I hope!

Garmin Data -- this about says it all, people!

The most amazing thing was that I stopped my watch and it said “2:02:10”, but you never know if it’s the actual “official” time of the race.  However, Loretta texted me mere seconds after I finished (from the Las Vegas airport) and said “Whew!  2:02:10!  Isn’t that a PR for you?!”  I guess there was an online updater that Loretta was following – so my watch and the official timer were in sync!  Thanks, Loretta!

Standing, waiting to see Anne and Kris pass by, Ron took this one!

Additionally, while it wasn’t Kris’s best race – she finished with a decent time and was really happy to be done!  BUT – Anne!  Anne finished in 2:43 – a PR for her, too!  I KNEW she could do it – and she did!  The stars were aligned, as John, Sean, Lyla, Uncle Fred, Ron and I all watched her push out the last couple of tenths to make it happen.  What a truly joyful and exciting day this has been – and its only noon!

All three completed successfully!

Kudos to several other friends of mine out there today: Laura Ballard and Stace Hayworth!  Amazing work, ladies!!  Amazing work!

Philly Marathon in 2 weeks … I’m feeling healthy and ready!  I will DEFINITELY be sporting my new CEP RxOrtho Achilles Brace – it’s a miracle worker!

Downs and Ups!

Matt will tell you – I didn’t want to blog, today.  “But, you have to!” He told me as he got into his car and sped away from South Mountain. 

Yesterday was a moment of defeat, a marathon runner’s worst nightmare.  I got up, got ready and headed into the darkness for my last long run of the training season.  After this weekend – its taper city.  I had 20-21 planned and was eager to see if my times from all of the weeks prior would hold true. 

At mile 9, I glanced at my watch: 1:28:40 – “yep, I’m still holding on,” I thought.  At mile 13: 2:08 – still solidly under a 10 minute mile with all of the lights; and it seemed like I’d hit every single light on this run.  At mile 16 I was in uncharted territory, running on uneven gravel with almost no room for me and the oncoming traffic.  It was discouraging for sure – and I knew it might cost me some time.  By mile 17, I was bored and on the canal running north knowing I only had a wee bit to go.  But, I was just about out of water and started to really stress about it.  The last 3 miles sans water could simply ruin everything.  I searched for a park area, hoping for a fountain as I ran, but nothing.  Finally, I was off the canal and headed back west toward Anne’s house when my watch beeped 18 miles.  For the first time in a long time, I was becoming pretty miserable – my mind was telling me to quit, my heart was no longer into the run and my water was gone.  And then it happened, at 18.9 miles, my Achilles/soleus on my right leg pinged HUGE pain – in a matter of seconds.  And, I panicked.  I stopped running and decided that I was just over a mile from Anne’s and should NOT push it any further.  I simply have to be able to complete the Philly Marathon in 3 weeks and that one mile could have been the difference between being able to – and not. 

Depressed, I texted my mom, Matt and Anne.  I took no post-run-smiling-shot and tearfully walked my way back to Anne’s house where Anne stood waiting for me with Miss Lyla in her arms.  As I approached, Lyla stretched out her arms and we embraced.  It was going to be ok – it had to be. 

As I stood in Anne’s frigid pool, John, Sean, Lyla and Anne chatted with me about “other” things, in an effort to keep my mind off the worry of my right calf/Achilles.  Sean is always fascinated that I will stand in the ice cold water with my clothes on.  My body temperature was so high that I found myself heating up the small section of the pool really quickly – which just meant I needed to move around to get the benefit of the “icing”.  I was depressed…and worried. 

Shortly thereafter, Loretta, Anne and I met for a girls brunch.  Each year, we watch the IronMan World Championships in Kona, together.  There is nothing quite like watching the hardest athletic feat in the world while sipping mimosas with two of my favorite people.  This year’s footage was good, but nowhere near as good and emotional as last year’s.  This year’s was mostly about the elite athletes – with a smattering of non-pro-stories.  We enjoyed it, as always, and cried at the end – its so impressive and so amazing, one cannot help but get choked up seeing all of those athletes line up with hopes of finishing by midnight. 

Drink #1 post-run at BLD for Brunch

Matt and I emailed a few times that morning – mostly in an attempt to help me refocus and stop dwelling on the fear.  In one of our exchanges he said “I will ride (tomorrow) regardless, you can decide up to the last minute whether you will or not.”  “Tomorrow” (which is now today) is Silent Sunday – a day of the month I look forward to more than just about any other.  I wrote back, “I need tomorrow’s ride more than you.”

So at 6am this morning, we met in the darkness – heading out to the summit.  I apologized for my lingering foul mood and explained that I brought my music so we could simply meet at the top, if necessary. 

3 miles into the ride, I passed my friend, Kris, on foot – finishing her 6-7 mile run.  It was definitely impressive to see she had attempted nearly a mile of the summit road.  It was good that she shouted my name, as I was unsure (in the darkness) if it was even her.

Matt remained in front of me for a HUGE chunk of the ride to the Summit.  It’s 7+ miles up and I was seriously worried he would get bored waiting for me when I finally got there.  I read his blog – I know what he is capable of.  However, I also know he almost threw up on our Friday ride as he pushed uber hard on one of the hills in Ahwatukee.  So, I thought I might have a chance of not losing him. 

The road was quiet, save a few runners here and there.  And, Matt remained 1/10^th of a mile in front of me for about 4 miles.  And, then we hit one of the steeper hills, and I gained a little.  Another steep section, and I gained a little more.  The moment I started to smell his deodorant (I know…sounds creepy, but honestly, when you work that hard all of your senses are heightened – so I appreciate that he wears good smelling deodorant – and that he thinks to apply it before we ride), I knew I might be able to ride with him for a bit. 

I pulled up next to him at the next steep section and smiled.  He said, “I am working HARD, Mer.”  Unsure what to say, because I felt really strong/good, I looked at the runner in front of us and said, “So is she!”  It was then that all of the cards were stacked.  I could hear Matt breathing and all I could think was, “will he get mad if I pass him?  Should I stay right here next to him?”  But, in the last mile of the ride to the top, the steepest section can kill anyone’s will to ride/live.  And, I pulled ahead – I wanted it over.  I glanced over my shoulder once and saw him only a few bike lengths back, but I knew I had this one. 

I hit the Summit first.  I hate to have a celebration moment knowing how hard it is to do.  But, moving ahead of Matt on the bike at any point when we ride is FREAKIN’ HARD!  He is such a strong rider.  But, this was my morning.  As we circled at the top, we smiled as we caught our respective breaths.  And, I rubbed salt in the wound by saying, “I can’t believe I was able to do that after running 19 miles, yesterday.”  Matt just laughed and said something like, “Oh, thanks for reminding me of that, as well!”  I was proud and I know Matt was proud, even if beating himself up a little bit at the same time. 

Proud moment at the top!

Both of us -- at the Summit

Matt turned his bike around and started to fly down the mountain.  Little-Miss-Safety-Girl simply cannot take the turns at those speeds – and sadly, I may never be able to.  I could see him gaining greater and greater distance on the descent.  I have no idea how long he was waiting at the bottom for me, but as I approached the base of the mountain, without a word, he turned and headed to San Juan Road – another tough 6 mile ride. 

I knew the defeat at the top was something he was considering as I followed him down San Juan.  Just before we hit the turn around, I caught up to him and he admitted that he had been “chicked” by me on the Summit.  So, yes – Matt and I are very similarly competitive and I knew exactly where his brain was at that moment.  (Matt was thinking…NEVER AGAIN and CERTAINLY NOT FOR THE REMAINDER OF THIS RIDE.) 

There was no rest or words at the top/turn around of San Juan – Matt just turned around and went down and I followed.  I struggled to keep up with him for the entirety of the 3+ mile ride back to the Summit/San Juan split.  He took over that ride and I didn’t have any way to catch up with him.  Trust me when I tell you I tried – but no matter how much my legs were giving, his legs were giving just that much more.  I wasn’t far behind, but I was far enough that it was his moment and not mine. 

We sailed to the parking lot together, laughing about how competitive we are.  I took the first leg and he the second.  It was an unbelievable morning. 

As we approached our cars, I was grinning from ear to ear.  “I needed that!” I told Matt.  He just smiled and we put our gear in our respective cars.  Seemed almost like redemption from the failed run/Achilles. 

In the parking lot -- feeling super accomplished (both of us)!

Its really so nice that I have friends like Matt who really really “get” me.  Could be a pretty boring existence without them!

PR, PR...complete with minor injury

Before I pour myself a second glass of wine, I figure I should probably start my weekly blog.  Its amazing how unmotivated I am (occasionally) to do so, but tonight is one of those nights.
  
Strangely, I had another great week of consistent workouts.  I was fortunate to get a smidge of Matt’s time on Monday morning.  So instead of my usual swim, I went out for a short ride with him in my neighborhood.  He had JUST returned from his trip with Mickey Mouse to the Caribbean and immediately left on Monday afternoon for a business trip to Chicago.  He complained of drinking and eating like a PIG so I expected to kick his ass on the ride – but um… whatever, Matt…I was absolutely demoralized on the mere 10 mile ride we took through the less-than-impressive-section of the foothills.

Short but sweet ride on Monday morning!

7.5 mile run on Tuesday – and my times were decent – 9:31 overall pace.  It was after that run that I started to think that maybe I really am getting better and more consistent.

By the light of the house....

I swam on Wednesday and it was absolutely one of THE best days I have ever had in the pool.  When I arrived at the gym there was one guy in the pool – and he had chosen the center lane.  Never wanting a lane with a wall, I opted to swim in the lane directly to the right of him.  I hadn’t been in the pool in over a week because of my trip to St Louis, so I was feeling pretty fresh and ready to duke out 2000 meters.  The guy in the pool needed lessons – that was evident.  I felt rather bad for him.  He had the strength necessary to pull out some nice distance, but his form was embarrassing.  (I know, I know…who the hell am I to judge someone else’s form.)

Anyway, I hopped in and started to swim.  After about 400 meters in, I realized I was going to lap the poor guy.  Strangely, the moment he realized what was about to happen, he sped up – substantially – but it was futile.  I knew he couldn’t maintain that speed and within 25 meters, he was behind me.  Around the 875 meter mark, I realized I was about to lap him again – and once again, he pushed HARD to keep me from hitting the wall before him and moving a full 100 meters ahead.  But, I did and left him behind.  It was only about 300 meters later that it happened AGAIN and the poor guy struggled and pushed, but he was getting much.   I moved past him quietly in an attempt  to move past him with a diligence that would keep his humiliation at a minimum.  But, then I thought “holy crap, this guy is still going at it – and he was in the pool before I ever arrived.  For such lousy form, this dude is working hard – and hasn’t drowned.”  But, like clockwork, I passed him again at the 1750 meter mark and I thought he might quit.  NOPE.  And, now I was more motivated than ever.  How could I quit at 2000 meters when I could lap the guy – again!?  And, at 2050 meters, he pushed to beat me, and lost again.  250 meters ahead of him, I pushed out another 200 meters and got out of the pool with some of my best times to date.  I appreciated the competition – it really pushed me to work harder.  I left and he remained – so, I may have been ahead of him in meters, but he kicked my ass in endurance, for sure!

Thursday was my first trail run since the fall.  It was fine – but the trail was riddled with mountain bikers.  Several were in my way in very narrow passages, so I found myself pulling off the course to allow them by.  About ¼ mile after I’d hit the turn around, I was in one of the steepest, narrowest passages, when I saw the headlamp of a mountain biker and I panicked a bit.  Fortunately, about ¼ of the way up the passage, I realize that the biker saw me and was waiting at the top for me to pass.  As I approached the biker a woman’s voice complimented my distance and asked how my trail-run had been that morning.  I complimented her on knowing the trail well enough to wait at the top of that section – she was more than gracious and I was more than grateful!  I hope I don’t offend anyone by saying –  but female athletes are so warm and kind on the roads and trails.

No falling this week!

Thinking about my long run on Saturday, I opted to take Friday morning off in preparation for my 14 miler.

The weather in Phoenix is PERFECT, right now.  I didn’t need to wake up at 4:15am, which was especially nice since I had an unexpected friend show up at my door with a bottle of wine at 8pm, the night before.  But, after a decent night’s sleep, I was up at 5:30am and out the door by 6!  Running is always a nice excuse to make visitors flee at reasonable hours!
I told Anne to expect me around 8:20am; it was only 14 miles, after all.  Even though, I had breakfast plans with another co-worker, Anne was gracious enough to agree to still drive me home after my run – this way I didn’t have to do loops to my house and instead I could hit the flat roads all the way to Chandler.

Honestly, the run was pretty uneventful.  Somewhere around mile 8, my calf started to feel a little wonky, but I thought it might work itself out after another mile or so.  At mile 9 I was still pretty aware of this lower calf twinge, so I looked at my watch to see my pace.  9 miles…1:25.  At that moment I realized my pace was better than ever and that I just needed to maintain it.  Attempting to NOT think about the weirdness going on in my lower right calf, I glanced at my watch every mile only to see that I was still maintaining a better pace than I ever thought possible.  At the ½ marathon point, I was at 2:06:10 – a new Personal Record.  And I worked to maintain it – 14 miles in 2:15!  My best time, ever!  I am still pacing to hit my marathon goal.  I was on cloud 9 for most of the morning…

One proud gal!

See!!!  The 9:46 was the last mile - overall pace was 9:39/mile!

…until I realize the lower calf pain was not actually subsiding.  I continue to ice it and take ibuprophen, but will probably refrain from my running this week in order to help it heal.  I’ve had this before – its an overuse of the tendon and muscle area and only takes a couple of days to heal – provided I DO NOT run on it in the meantime.  And, after sitting in a movie theatre that afternoon with my friend, David, it was tighter than ever.  (sad face)

Ice pack, baby -- my new Best Friend!

Matt sent me an email Saturday evening detailing his hopeful bike workouts for the week.  I was worried a little about my lower calf, but I also knew that the muscle groups required for cycling are complimentary to running, but almost never the same groups.  So, when I met Matt at 3pm today for a 20+ mile ride, I warned him of the injury and my fears.  The ride was completely fine on the calf – but the winds annihilated me.  Once again, Matt showed me how much of a better rider he is than I.  I was feeling pretty defeated at the ½ way mark, but Matt looked strong so I decided to suck it up and push through as much as I could.  Matt remained in front of me several bike lengths for the majority of the 20 miles.  I think he does it to remind me that I HAVE to get a new bike – I have to at least level the playing field.  That’s ok; I know he’s right.  Soon!

As we pulled into Matt’s driveway the entire Ashcraft clan was out in the front yard.  Cole was on some very cool looking better-than-big-wheel thingy and (in typical 10 year old girl form) Brooke was complaining about something.  Baby Alex, the fabulous kid they foster, was on a blanket in the drive way until he saw Matt approach on the bike and he crawled like he had a motorized diaper to Matt, who was getting off his bike.

We tried to include Alex in our post-ride pic, but it simply was not going to happen.  However, Alex was impressed with the reverse camera feature for a 1/10th of a second and I captured this moment.  Good enough for me!

Cutie patootie finally saw himself in the camera!

More on the calf injury, soon – next weekend holds my last really long run, so I am going to nurse this potential injury to ensure I can pull it out in a timely fashion!

I believe...

This week hasn’t been without its challenges – but I promise to get to that in a few paragraphs.  This week was also a bit like the past several: a 2000 meter swim on Monday, and a great 7.5 mile training run on Tuesday (with a 9:28 pace, too).

Its was still pretty dark, so I positioned myself close to the lamp on my house!

By Wednesday morning, it had been a full week since Matt and I did our last bike ride – so I was excited to hop on my bike for a tough, hilly ride through Ahwatukee.  Without Matt on the ride, however, I knew the light on the front of my bike would do very little to illuminate the path in front of me.  His light is FAR better, so I opted to use my headlamp in addition to my front light to see if it made much difference.  It did – and 18.5 hilly miles later, I was pleased with an AVS of 17.4 mph.

Good thing I had no idea just how goofy I looked while riding!

The challenge of the week began on Thursday morning – yep, the trail run.  I had been out the night before at a concert and didn’t get home until shortly after 11pm.  This meant that my sleep would be cut short, which may have contributed to the challenging morning.  I set my alarm for nearly an hour later than usual, since instead of heading into the office, I was heading to the airport for a conference in St Louis around 9:30am.  As I made my way to the usual trailhead (the Desert Classic), there was rain on my windshield.  Certain I was mistaken, I carried on.  I parked, donned my headlamp and began my usual 6 mile trek up and down the Desert Classic trail.  You all know how well I know this trail, now.  Even in the dark, it doesn’t pose a problem anymore.  But – the rain was light and consistent for the first mile of the trail.  Mile two is where the elevation really becomes a bitch and I have to watch my footing with every step.  I guess I failed myself as I made my way up – without much notice, I went face-first on a very rocky area.  My hands were torn up and my right knee a bloodied mess.

Not sure what to do and not sure how injured I really was, I started to walk back down the trail thinking it was over and I would need to walk back to the trailhead (approx. 1.7 miles away).  However, as I moved, I realized that I twisted nothing and that the knee and hands were merely bruised and torn.  So, like the badass I always try to be, I turned around, changed my attitude about my injuries and continued right back up the trail, completing all 6 miles with my best time in months.  (I blame the decent times on the amount of adrenaline expunged as a result of the flesh I left on the side of South Mountain.)   I, honestly, forgot about the injury for 3-4 miles until I came face to face with 3 hikers who gasped at the mess covering my right knee and shin.  I looked down and realized that gravity had not been on my side and I looked FAR worse than I felt.

And...there she is!

Naturally, I took Friday off due in part to the injury and in part to the 20 miler I knew I would be punching out on Saturday morning.  However, when I awakened on Friday morning, my knee was stiff, disgusting to view and black-n-blue like you cannot even imagine.  Even my left knee was black and blue.  I was more of a mess than I realized on Thursday.  And, I began to stress about the 20 mile run ahead of me.

Mom picked me up from the Conference Hotel on Friday evening and took me to dinner with my brother, Michael, and beautiful Grandmother.  I had sent her the map for my run that morning to get her take on it and she asked if (after dinner) I would like to drive the route to make sure I knew where I was headed – 20 miles is 20 miles, even if its in my childhood neighborhood.  A lot had changed since I lived, played and drove the area – new roads, new neighborhoods…new everything.  What I learned from the drive is that my home town isn’t called Fairview Heights because of its even elevation – and I began to worry about the difficult rolling hills and ridiculous climbs along the route I had planned.  By the time we had completed our journey around Fairview, Belleville and Caseyville, I was miserable – and made the decision to simply complete two 10 mile loops in the Fairview-Belleville area.

I went to bed in my mom’s house on Friday night seriously worried about my knee.  It felt like surface bruising, but the stiffness from the scabrous areas made for a challenging mental state.  I turned on the TV to watch Game 5 of the Cards-Nationals pennant race, but fell asleep when the Nationals were up 4-0 over my beloved Cards.  This was not a game worth watching!

By the time I had awakened, the Cards had come back to win the game 9-7!  I had a new outlook on the morning.  If they could come back from a deficit, so could I – and I prepared myself for 20 miles of hills and humidity (55 degrees, 100% humidity).

It is SO very different to run routes you are unfamiliar with, but it’s a wonderful way to get used to what it will probably feel like on marathon morning.  New smells, new elevations, new scenery, new temperature variations.  The really cool thing about this particular run was that I was able to get an up-close view of a town I used to call home.

As I passed mile 9, I remembered the first time I had made my way around town in my new-to-me-Honda-Civic-stickshift.  I had arrived at the very stopsign that gave me trouble 22 years ago – as I cried in the driver’s seat, unable to figure out how to get the car in gear at a stopsign, heading uphill.  A nice man, behind me in a truck, got out of his truck (realizing my newness at a standard transmission) and told me just to roll into his bumper and he would give me a push until I could negotiate the clutch and first gear.  I chuckled thinking about that moment.  I also passed what used to be “Dew’s Frozen Fantacy” – my first job, and I laughed thinking about how dumb the owner was for thinking Fantasy was spelled with a “c” and not an “s”.  A witty customer once told us to tell the smarter-cliental that it was intentional – that the “cy” was for “custard and yogurt”.  I am sure David Dew used that until he sold the business to some savvier custard and yogurt shop owner ten years later.  (It’s an ice-cream shop, now.)

I wasn’t interested in my times – until I hit mile 18 and realized I was exactly where I had been the week prior.  My times remained as consistent as ever – even with the hills, even with the humidity and even with the knee.  And, just before mile 19, I glanced to my left and saw my mom in her car, excited that had made it so far successfully.  I put one finger in the air and screamed, “Only One More, Ma!  Only One More!!”  She drove off smiling, agreeing to meet me back at the house.

As I turned onto my childhood street, I grinned all the way to my mom’s house.  And, like kismet, my watch beeped “20 miles” mere feet from her driveway.  My watch read “3:21:16” – but as I plugged my watch into my laptop moments ago, my real time (without stoplights) was 3:20:05 – a solid 10 minute mile!  I am beside myself – pleased!  I am starting to believe in myself, again…  

In front of Mom's house - please as can be!

Gram treated me to breakfast at Eckerts Farm after my run; I love this place so much!

Inspiration is everywhere...

After last week’s whirlwind of hard and over-done workouts, I decided to take things a smidge easier, this week – given I knew I had an 18 mile run at the end of the weekend.

So, rather than a HUGE swim on Monday morning, I opted to simply take it easy for 1500 meters and get out of the pool right after.  I didn’t do my usual P90X Ab Ripper following the pool – since my abs were already pretty wrecked from the Trapezing on Friday night.

And, like clockwork, I pushed out a really awesome 6 mile run on Tuesday morning – with a sub 9:30 pace.  I really wanted to go for 7-8 miles, but reminded myself at mile 2 that I can go faster-shorter so that I improve my times – and it appeared to work.

See -- still dark and moonlit even at the end of the run, these days.

Matt and I took it somewhat easy on Wednesday morning.  I say that, as I was humiliated on the hills, this week.  After blogging about only being one bike length behind him on most of the hills – Matt must have decided that Wednesday was his opportunity to kick things into high gear and smoke the crap out of me.  Had it not been for his flashing tail-light in the darkness, its entirely possible I might not have been able to see him a couple of times on the ride.  So, with that in mind, I hope he’s getting fat and lazy on his cruise to the Caribbean, this week (or wherever it is that his Disney boat takes him).

It was also still dark here, so Matt told me to turn the phone around to make sure we had the flash -- so this was taken old-school My-Space-style.

I had a better than usual trail run on Thursday – and since its my favorite workout every week, I was really pleased.  It seems to be getting much darker for much more of the morning, so my headlamp stayed on for nearly 4 of the 6 miles.  I know the route so well now, however, that I could probably get by without it were it not for all the rocks and steep elevation moments.  Regardless – I cut 90 seconds off my time from the week before, so I am hopeful my glutes are getting stronger and better capable of hitting the hard climbs.  I was telling my running buddy, Ron, this week, in fact – that I can’t wait to finish marathon training so that I can run all 9.25 miles of the Desert Classic Trail – rather than a mere 3 miles out and 3 miles back.

Post-trail-run!

Friday I was planning to ride, but considering how much I had overdone it the week prior, I opted to hit the pool for 1700 meters, instead.  I am glad I did because my calves were feeling super heavy and thick.  In fact, I awakened twice in the night on Friday night of Charlie horses.  No fun at all!

So, after wisely taking Saturday as a rest day, I awakened to my alarm at 4:15am refreshed and somewhat excited for the 18 miles in front of me.  My goal – 3 hours.  Once again, I told Anne I didn’t need her assistance, save making sure I got a hot meal and coffee after the run.
 
As I headed out into Ahwatukee, I thought about the inspiring conversation I had with my good friend, Pat, before closing my eyes for the night.  I was lamenting about the fact that I am so focused on hitting my times.  He was encouraging and rational.  “Mer, you sound like me, tonight.  And, what would you say to me if I complained about my times?”  I told him, “I would tell you – you’re running 18 miles, so Shut It.”  His response?  “OK, so Shut It, Mer!”  And, there I was hitting the pavement thinking only about finishing rather than the 3 hour marker I’d hoped I’d hit.

The first hour went by without much notice and right around mile 7, the song “See the Sun” by Dido came on my iPod.  All I could think about was my good friend, Lisa.  She’s had a tough couple of days and I am including it in my blog, so she knows I love her and have had her in my thoughts non-stop since Friday.  This is for you, love.



Around mile 9, I checked my Garmin to see how I was doing on time.  The sun was beginning to rise and I knew I’d be pulling down my shades within a mile or so.  My watch read “1:28:40” – I was doing well, sub 10 min miles for nearly an hour and a half.  I continued to be pleased and remained focused on the second half of the run.

By mile 14 I could feel my legs and motivation waning.  I kept thinking, “Come on, Mer, only 4 miles left.”  I had recently taken some Gu and it was beginning to do its thing, but nothing helps you overcome that desire for it to simply be over.  As I turned the corner at mile 16, knowing I only had 2 miles left, I passed a guy on his roadbike.  As he approached, he smiled at me and gave me an extended-arm-thumbs-up.  Strangely, its like he knew I needed it.  I glanced at my watch and realized I’d need to really step up the pace if I was going to be close to the 3 hour mark – and I did.  I pushed and pushed and pushed and when I stopped my watch shortly before arriving at Anne’s house, it read 3:01:12 – for 18 miles.  I’ll take it!  As much as I’d like to complain about missing the mark by 13 lousy seconds, it took everything in me to push out a 9:30 in the last mile to make up a little time.  I can taste the 4:30 marathon – I just need to be able to maintain for 8 more miles (biting nails).

Anne's neighborhood is so pretty!  Post-18!

As usual, I was treated to dining with the beautiful-Miss-Lyla at breakfast.  She’s such a doll – too bad her parents dress her in Chicago Bears crap.  Although, this one’s pretty cute!!

Outside waiting for our table -- she is sooo dang cute!

Oh, and I also wanted to do a shout-out to my amazing friend, Sarah!  She’s getting healthy and enjoying her workouts.  Shortly after completing my run, she sent me a text about her difficult Total Body Conditioning class – she’s excited to be on the right side of the fitness-lifestyle.  I am just so proud of her!