IMMD - Part II

RACE DAY!

(To read about my trip down to Maryland and the days leading up to the race go here!)

Perfect day for 140.6 miles!

I woke up around 5:15 Saturday morning, transition had already been open for 15 minutes (yes, I am extremely lazy). My sister and mom were both already up getting ready. Since I was just going to get progressively disgusting throughout the day all I had to do was throw on my tri kit and grab my special needs bags. We all hopped in the car and headed to the race start.

Started in the dark, finished in the dark

My mom and sister parked while I ran around getting things ready - nutrition and GPS on bike, dropped off special needs bags, and fortunately they were letting athletes access their gear bags so I was able to put my running bib in my run gear bag and use my TriSlide, which I'd also left in a gear bag. Then I pumped up my tires and I was good to go!

I'm a dork, but I'm cool with it

After prepping everything it was time to find my mom and sister and wiggle into my wetsuit (there was much wiggling)! We chatted and hung out near the 1:21 to 1:30 pace group, which was my target swim time. Before I knew it they were singing the national anthem and sending off the PCs (I am assuming that's professional competitors?). The national anthem was very sweet. They had two girls singing it and one of them must have gotten a little frazzled because she got real quiet and seemed to be struggling a little so the entire crowd of athletes and spectators picked up the song. It was beautiful to hear (I didn't sing, I save my voice for long car rides).

Good morning!

The Swim: 1:27:19

After the gun went off my group had a good 10 minutes to wait before entering the water, they try to get everyone in the water in fifteen minutes but this year it didn't happen. Finally it was my turn and I ran in. My first though was that the water was so wonderfully warm. Seventy-two degrees I believe. Warm but still wetsuit legal, perfect! As I dove in the water my second thought was BLECH, this is salty! Why did I not realize that the Choptank was salty? I didn't get a practice swim in so I had no heads up. Whoops! Oh well, it wasn't overwhelming like Maine 70.3 was so I was OK. My third thought was noooow I understand why people were concerned about jellyfish!

The swim went relatively well! Despite the fact that I swam about 320 extra meters from going too wide I came in right around my target time. The two loop course was an interesting twist, I was pretty nervous about making the turn for the second loop, but I had no trouble at all. While I was out there I only saw one jellyfish and other than getting jostled around a little bit and this one guy pushing me to go quite wide on one stretch, the swim was pretty uneventful. No one kicked me, grabbed me, swam over or under me or anything. I just focused on counting my strokes and sighting every ten.

Pretty sure I didn't stop smiling from this point on

Before I knew it we were heading back in to the swim finish. I was really enjoying myself out there but I was looking forward to the nice flat, fast bike ride ahead of me. Once I was over the timing mats someone directed me off to the side to get my wetsuit off and man, do those guys mean business. I didn't even have time to try to help. Someone unzipped me, passed me off to someone who pulled my suit off my arms and passed me off to someone who instructed me to sit so they could yank it off the rest of the way. They handed my wetsuit back to me and shooed me over to get my bike gear bag. Once I got that I spied my mom and sister cheering me on as I ran into the tent to change.

Nothing really to note about the transition except that I saw another athlete's bajingo. Wasn't expecting that. A volunteer was there to help me with anything that I needed. I know she was just trying to be as helpful as possible but truthfully she just distracted me as she kept asking all these questions about what she could do. With my bike gear on I headed out for a beautiful 112 mile ride through scenic Maryland.

The Bike: 7:14:25

Yup, I did that

On the way out of transition I saw my family once again. They really busted their butts to meet me all over the course. I am so grateful to have such a caring family. Being a spectator is no easy job - especially for an event that can take up to 17 hours! So, ok! I am on the bike and smiling like a fool. I felt good, my legs were happy and I was super optimistic about the ride I had ahead of me.

I mean business!

You have about twelve miles riding through town before you get to the refuge and those went great - I got my average speed almost up to 17 MPH. I stuck to my plan of drinking some Perpetuem and water every fifteen minutes and eating two Shot bloks or a Honey Stinger Waffle every thirty minutes or so. Everything was going well until we got to the park and were riding into the wind. Wow, now I was struggling to stay at 13 MPH and I watched my average drop down to 15.3. That was pretty disheartening. I toughed it out and tried to pay attention to the gorgeous scenery all around me.

Did I mention I didn't stop smiling? See?

After perhaps 30 miles there was a right turn and we were finally out of the wind. One more right turn a little farther down and the wind was helping us. I was flying on that section seeing 19 to 20 MPH on my bike PC. I worked my average back up and was feeling pretty good. Around mile 57, still on the first loop, I saw my mom and sister again. They had figured out how to drive out to the park without crossing the bike course at all. It was a nice little boost and very much needed because I was starting to feel the effects of sitting on a bike for 3.5 hours.

Shortly after seeing M&A I went through the high school where you get your bike special needs bag. I was low on fuel so I happily grabbed everything in the bag and set off again. Unfortunately, at this point I was starting to hurt. Something with my bike fit is off because after so many miles my feet start to hurt... maybe from pressure in the shoes from pedaling or my saddle cutting off circulation. I am not entirely sure. Every time I stood up in the saddle to relieve some pain it only made my feet complain more. I was happy that I think I spent at least 95% of the time in the aero position. When I first started training for IMMD I was so unstable on the bike that I couldn't get down into aero without risking a crash. I've come a long way.

Because screaming feet and a mad butt were not enough, I was headed back into the park for the second loop and the wind had gotten worse. Now with 60 miles behind me (not to mention a 2.4 mile swim) I was barely able to keep it at 12 MPH. I was mad. I swore a lot. I kept telling myself it wasn't that far to the right turn but it really was. At one point I heard a majestic bird call above me and watched three eagles put on a show for me in the marsh. They were probably laughing at us, silly humans, if you could fly then 112 miles would be easy! Around mile 80 I started stopping every 10 miles or so to get feeling back into my feet. I lost a bit of time here but it couldn't be helped.

Woo!

I finally found those right turns and while they did help me pick up speed (and ultimately bring my average up to 15.8 - which I am VERY happy with) I wasn't feeling quite as peppy as I did when I started. I kept dialing it back and reminding myself that my day was far from over and I had a marathon to run after the bike. I didn't want to burn out too early. I got to the left turn to head back into town and what was there to greet me? The wind. Oh, wind... how I loathe you. Twelve more miles of swearing and I could see the bike finish and my mom and sister waiting for me! I had completed the bike with no major issues! No flats, crashes, etc. I did have one close call though - I posed for the picture above and while I may look strong and steady I lost my balance and wobbled all over the place trying to avoid hitting the photographer. Whoops! He caught the whole thing on camera too.

The Run: 6:19:23

I racked my bike and walked to the run gear bags and the tent. All I could feel was an intense pain in my feet and the bruises on my bum. I would walk plenty later on, a little bit now to recover wouldn't make much of a difference. I changed out of my gear and it felt amazing to trade my bike shoes for sneakers. At that point I was starting to feel a bit better and I jogged out of transition to start the marathon.

Holy crap, a marathon. I "ran" a marathon after everything else and I still can't believe it. Saw the family again, gave my mom a high five and shuffled down the road. I have to say while the course may have been pretty with the river in the background and beautiful shore-front houses, corn fields, etc. this run was boring. You do 2.5 loops of the same stretch of road and it was not very fun. After you've seen the same scenery 2.5 times you start to resent it.

So I headed out of town for the first loop, at this point I was still happy and the scenery was new. Unfortunately the sun was relentless and there was very little shade. The course runs north out of town along the shores of the Choptank and then turns south for this strange little turn around. You basically run to a cul-de-sac (which felt like you were running on the surface of the sun), go all the way around it but instead of continuing out and down the road you turn around and go back around the cul-de-sac. I understand they had to get the distance right but that was just pretty odd.

Once you are past the cul-de-sac you head back to transition, run between the tents and the river, and then the course winds through the Great Marsh Park on gravel paths and even over the grass in some spots - once again odd. They had a music station in the park with dancing volunteers. Even at the end of the night when I was pretty tired I always mustered enough energy to dance through that station. After the park you head towards town - and towards the finish. You reach the finish and have to turn away from it and run into town. This part was great because the turn around was right next to the brewery and all of the restaurants so people were out in force cheering every one on. You'd get high fives all the way around. I teared up here more than once. After that it's back past the finish, through the park and out for another loop.

Never actually ate that Huma, just held onto it for hours

My plan was to run as much as I could but walk through the aid stations. This worked out well for the first 18 miles. I started just taking water at each aid station and eating a Shot Blok every mile but after the first pack of them it quickly became apparent that my body was not going to put up with that much longer. I got to the point where I had to spit one out. After that I started just taking a little of whatever real food that they had at the aid stations. Over the entire run I sampled everything to see what worked. The winning combo? Water, three grapes, and a cup of hot broth. Oh my goodness, that chicken broth was just about the best thing I've ever had. Once the sun goes down they bring that out and I was craving it every time I hit an aid station.

Still going!

I was just starting my second loop when the sun went behind the clouds and stayed hidden until it was behind the trees. The shade was quite a relief. I just ran along, executing my plan, and chatting with people I had seen all day - including some people from the local NH tri club NEMS. I got to mile 18, saw my mom and sister one last time before the finish and that's when I just couldn't keep up running. Well, I was running and then realized that I wasn't gaining any ground on the woman in front of me who was walking. Ha! At this point I just wanted to finish. I knew I would make the 17 hour cutoff so I just started walking.

Once the sun had set they turned on forty ridiculously large spot lights and while it was sorta nice I just got to the point where I wanted darkness and peace and quiet. The loud music was no longer picking me up, it was irritating me. One thing that kept me going was as I was on my way back on the second loop I started thinking, oh, I never have to see this spot ever again. I never have to run through that hellishly hot cul-de-sac. I never have to see these stupid jokes written in chalk on the road. I never have to pass this aid station again. Yea, I got a little negative.

I must have been on my way out for the last half loop when something brightened my night. I had been talking to a guy who I'd seen all day when I looked down and saw a little snake trying to cross the path. I said, "Oh! Hold on!" and I quickly picked the little critter up and set it down in the grass away from the path. Yup, I save snakes while running insane endurance events. The guy I was with was like "Oh... you pick up snakes... well, that's cool. I have to continue on my run now" and he took off. Ha, I laughed pretty hard about that, must of freaked him out a bit.

It took absolutely forever to get to that half loop turn around. I kept thinking it would be just around the next corner but I was wrong so many times. My darkest moment was when I needed to stop and stretch for a minute and I actually said "I don't..." out loud before I mentally kicked myself and finished it with "like this" instead of "think I can finish". That was around mile 22 and like hell I was going to give up at that point. I finally found the turn around and was overjoyed to think I was truly on my way back now. I'd never see this turn around again! The entire time I was out there I thanked the volunteers and police officers every time I passed them. Now I was thanking them and telling them this would be the last time I'd see them. I seriously cannot fully express my feelings of gratitude for these people. They are out there all day long, protecting us, aiding us, and making sure we have the best day possible. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

For the last time I passed the finish chute and headed into town. The town was crazy with energy. I was able to pick it back up to a run and kept it up all the way to the finish. On the final stretch they have a coned off path on the right for the finishers and everyone else headed to the left for another loop. I was giddy with excitement when I was able to head to the right. I at least had enough wits about me to fix my hair. I may have been absolutely covered in dried sweat and smelled worse than some of the porto-lets on the course but I'd be damned if I didn't have nice hair!

I can't stop laughing at this picture

As soon as my foot hit that red carpet any thoughts of discomfort were instantly banished. I did it. I was an IRONMAN. I heard people cheering and I threw my arms up, I don't even remember opening my mouth like I did in the picture above, I wonder if I made any noise? I heard David Downey call out my name and say "WHITNEY DUDZIK, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!" and with that, I was done. This has been one hell of a year. I trained hard all year, hours on the bike trainer last winter, countless laps in the pool, and miles upon miles on my feet in the snow, rain, and hot sun... and it was all worth it for this moment. Although it was a fairly painful day, it was by far one of the best days of my life. I will never, ever forget that feeling.

I'm really not sure how I was still functioning

I can't just end my report at the finish line. I crossed a little before 10:30PM and even though I was exhausted and I just wanted to be clean and dry, I knew I couldn't leave before midnight. My mom and sister were so supportive and didn't hesitate to agree to stay. I somehow was able to eat some pizza and then I had just enough time to get a massage before we headed to the finish.

During an IRONMAN, the best time to be at the finish line isn't when the first runners come through, it's when the last ones do. The energy was amazing. The finish announcer, who was Dave Downey at this point, comes down onto the red carpet to cheer the final finishers on. The music is blaring and volunteers, spectators, and other athletes line the chute. Every time a runner was in sight Dave would call out to them and the crowd would go nuts. We were all banging on the boards that line the chute and it was just insane. I didn't get choked up when I crossed the line but I sure did when I watched these others come through.

Dave was yelling over the speakers - that you could hear throughout the entire run course - to those last athletes that they had sixteen, ten, five, minutes to get to that finish line. It was then that my mom asked what happens if they don't make it and I said that they are recorded as a DNF and do not get a medal or a finishing time. She was really upset by this. I completely agree, those people were out there for 17 hours. They put their all into their race and to have victory that was so close snatched away like that is absolutely heartbreaking. Luckily, with a mere THREE minutes until the cutoff the last two runners came through. Dave called out once more and confirmed that the course was now empty. That all athletes who had stuck it out were over the finish line!

With that, the night was over. We had a ten minute walk back to the car, which I handled pretty well I think, and then it was back to the house to shower, get into PJs and pass out.

Next up, post-race! Somehow I managed to walk all over an island in search of wild horses.

IMMD - Part I

"Whitney Dudzik, you are an IRONMAN!"

I still can't believe it

What an unforgettable day.

After a year of training I accomplished what I set out to do. This past Saturday I finished my first full IRONMAN in Cambridge, Maryland. It was hard, I had to walk quite a bit, and everything hurt - but failure was not an option and I finished in 15:23:21.

In an effort to keep my post short (it's still ridiculously long), I've split up my trip into three posts. Part I - The Days Prior, Part II - RACE DAY, and Part III - Post-Race

I started my journey to MD Wednesday night by driving down to my parents house in CT after work. There I had a wonderful dinner with my family and "won" the argument with my mother that I could fit 3 people, 3 bikes, and all the associated luggage in the VW Alltrack. HA! I should have taken a picture. My sister was a REALLY good sport and sat in the back with everything tucked in around her.

Me and my Wonderful Mom!

We headed out on the road around 7:30 the next morning. I knew I didn't want to follow the GPS completely because it would have me driving over the George Washington Bridge and through the Bronx and that can be a traffic nightmare. We opted to take the Tappan Zee Bridge instead and I think it was worth it. We ended up stopping for lunch in Mount Holly, NJ at a little place called Robin's Nest where I of course got a local beer (Spellbound IPA). Mount Holly was a really cute town and we ended up spending a little too much time exploring because by the time we got back in the car I realized that we were going to get to Cambridge with a mere thirty minutes to spare for mandatory athlete check-in! I freaked out just a little bit.

I'm really here!

Luck was on our side and we made it to the athlete village in Long Wharf Park around 4:30. There I got absolutely overwhelmed with stuff I needed for the race. I've never had to pack gear bags or special needs bags before so I was a little worried I'd screw it up. Then I couldn't help myself and may have spent a little bit of time and money in the merchandise tent... I have been REALLY good this year not buying stuff at other races so I went a little nuts. One cycling jersey, one AWESOME sweater with all the participants names on it, one IRONMAN MD pint glass, and one pink IRONMAN lanyard (which I am proudly wearing at work!).

After getting checked in we headed to the AirBnb. It was a four minute drive from the race finish! Not bad for panicking and finding a place last minute. When we first drove up I was a little skeptical, but as soon as we walked inside we were relieved. The house was very nicely decorated and clean. We each had our own bedroom and there was a brand new patio out back with a privacy fence so we could enjoy the outdoors a bit!

Once we brought our luggage inside and got settled in it was time to find some food. One thing about Cambridge is that it is a fairly small town - and other than the little town center there is nothing but farms and water. We started searching for a place to eat but everything was booked - I guess that's what happens when 1400 (ish) athletes roll into town for a race. We ended up going to a place called Rock Lobstah, which I was not super excited about but I am so glad we did!

The food was great but that's not the story. We were eating dinner when a couple walked into the restaurant. My sister quietly says... "That girl looks an awful lot like the girl in the pictures at the house." Of course when we arrived we had looked at some of the pictures our hosts have around their home. We thought they were going to be out of town though so it didn't occur to us that we might run into them. We noticed the guy was on his phone and all of a sudden I got a message via AirBnb from him asking if we got in alright. I replied and my mom goes "Did you just hear his phone ding?" I did!

At that point he actually got a phone call and we heard him say the girls name, and that's when we were positive those were our hosts. He stepped outside for the call and on his way back in he stopped at the table. They had been trying to figure out if we were the ones staying at their house. We chatted and they are a very nice couple. It was sweet of them to open up their homes to athletes coming in for the race.

I swear I'll get to the race details and not just tell you all about the beer I drank!

After dinner we hopped across the street to rar, the local brewery. (Hopped, get it?) I had their Nanticoke Nectar IPA and one other that I can't recall and my mom had the dessert stout. That stout was definitely the winner of the evening. It was delicious! To continue the story above who follows us over to the brewery? Our hosts! We talked some more and they ended up buying us a round of beers! My mom got a little tipsy, which is always fun to see. After that we called it a night and headed back to get some rest.

Still hadn't sunk in that I was about to do an IRONMAN

The next day we took it easy in the morning (which we shouldn't have) and I got ready to go to the mandatory athlete briefing in the athlete's village. I was worried that if I missed the briefing I wouldn't be allowed to race but that was a crazy thought. I am very glad I didn't miss it though, it had a ton of good information - like that I was allowed to have my phone on the bike. I had no idea that it previously wasn't allowed!

Bike 423 racked and ready to go!

After the briefing I dropped my bike and gear bags off in transition. As I said before, I'd never had to prepare gear bags for a race so I had no idea what I was doing. I didn't know if I would have access to them at all before the race and so I didn't know if I should put fuel in there or not. I ended up asking a couple of athletes who passed me and got enough information to feel confident that I did it right (spoiler alert: I was wrong).

So sky. Much flat.

Once all the necessary stuff was taken care of it was time to pick up my mom and sister and drive the bike course. Most of the ride was through the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge south of Cambridge. It was gorgeous. We saw egrets, blue herons, a million vultures, and a few eagles. The biggest thing I took away from our preview was that this course was incredibly flat. They hopefully jokingly labeled the only hill on the course which was a small gentle slope to go over a bridge. I felt pretty positive about the bike because of all the hills I have to train on at home. Now my only worry was the wind.

Back at the house I was looking through my bags and realized that I didn't pack my running bib in my running gear bag. I immediately started panicking that I wouldn't be able to get to that gear and that I wouldn't be running with a bib! I was trying to figure out how I could carry it through the swim and the bike. At this point it was too late to head back to transition so I figured I would beg a volunteer the next morning to help me out.

We decided for pre-race dinner we would cook my mom's spaghetti and sausage at the house. It was a wonderful idea. My sister's friend Mara was staying close by and came over for dinner. She brought a salad and some really good mint chocolate chip ice cream. Oh, so if you ever thought you had a bad fruit fly infestation... go to Maryland. When we arrived at the house despite the kitchen being very clean and absolutely no food left out there were quite a few flies buzzing around. We set out traps and had them mostly taken care of by Friday. We decided to open up some of the windows Friday and when we got back to the house there were hundreds. I am not exaggerating. We spent the next few days frantically trying to capture them all. We barely made a dent in their renewed population.

After a wonderful meal and catching up with Mara I headed to bed and passed out around 9PM. I mostly slept OK, woke up a few times worried that I missed my alarm and I had all sorts of bad dreams about the race - missing a loop on the course, taking a thirty minute break, having the run be five million loops around a pool... you know, the usual.

Next up? Race day!

Akron Marathon 2016

I've finished my 6th marathon in my 5th state IN UNDER FIVE HOURS! Ohio is done!

Pre-Race:

Mist trying to hide from the morning sun

A few weeks ago I flew out to Cleveland, Ohio to visit family and run the Akron Marathon. I left the east coast at 8AM and landed in the Buckeye state around 10AM. It was a super quick flight, it felt like when we just reached altitude we were ready to start our descent!

The Beast

I rented a car through Avis and when I got there the very nice lady behind the counter asked if this beast would be OK. I always rent the cheapest, smallest, most economical thing I can get so I wasn't really sure how to respond. I think I just kind of stared at her for awkwardly for a few minutes because she then said... "It will cost the same." and that snapped me  right out of it and I happily agreed. I actually really enjoyed driving The Beast. I drove all around Ohio and only used a quarter of a tank of gas and it was great for driving the family around.

I'm not too steady on mah feet, hence choppy panoramic

The first item on my must-do list was to see Lake Erie. It was a quick 15 minute drive from the airport and I felt like I couldn't possibly skip it seeing how close I was. So The Beast and I drove straight north and found Lakewood Park. It was an incredibly beautiful little spot with a nice paved walkway along the shore of the lake. I have now seen TWO of the Great Lakes in the last year! Michigan, Ontario, and Huron, I'm coming for you!

:)

 After that I headed straight to my grandpa's house. I haven't seen him since my wedding in 2010. I am ashamed of myself. For the first day we mostly just hung out at the house and in the evening some more of the family came over for a little cookout. I haven't seen any of these guys since 2010! It was wonderful to just relax and catch up.

I like my butt in this picture

The next morning I headed to the expo fairly early to grab my bib and hopefully find something to replace my FlipBelt, which I had accidentally left at home. This was a problem because I wanted to carry my cellphone during the race in case my mom needed to contact me (which she did, numerous times).

When I arrived at the John S. Knight Center I got turned around and managed to walk through the entire expo backwards to reach bib pick up... and then I had to go all the way through again to get the shirt, race bag, etc. I ended up finding a great FlipBelt alternative made by Nathan. I feel like it is more secure and it was way more comfortable to wear! I may have also picked up a small (really small!) 26.2 magnet. It's pink and it's awesome.

Ready, set, GO!

Next, I walked a few streets over to see the race start. They had painted the actual starting line on the road, which was pretty cool. They also had a Blue Line painted on almost the entire course so there was little chance of getting lost! The Blue Line is a theme throughout the race (one that I don't exactly understand) and they had it through the entire expo as well - which is amusing because I DID get lost in the expo!

Can you tell I've just discovered panoramic mode?

After the expo it was back to my Grandpa's house! We decided to take a little drive through Cuyahoga Valley National Park. We drove around and enjoyed some of the sights and then headed out for ice cream. Not bad pre-race fuel! We headed back to the house, feasted on some delicious lasagna courtesy of my wonderful friend, Robin who came with my mom on this trip... and I was asleep by 9PM.

RACE DAY!

I was up bright and early Saturday morning. My mom actually kept bugging me so I wouldn't fall asleep again. I was able to get ready pretty quickly because I had laid everything out the night before AND slept in most of my running clothes. I managed to choke down about half a bagel and I headed down to the city!

Shiny

I parked in some random little lot in Akron and booked it to the race start (this becomes important later on). It was still dark out and they had the starting line spectacularly lit up. I had just enough time to take my pre-race Huma, hit the port-o-potties, and find my spot in line. They were being pretty strict with making sure you were in the correct starting corral which for me meant I was NOT in the corral with the 4:40 pacer. I tried to get them to let me in but had no luck.

I stood back moping until the first corral took off and then they just let the two remaining mesh together so I quickly scooted up to my pacer. A few minutes later and we were running through the starting line of the Akron Marathon!

Miles 1-6:

The course starts out on a bit of a down hill. This was great except unbeknownst to me (because I didn't study the route at all), we'd have to climb back up this hill later... and I didn't like it as much that time around.

Hey! A Picture!

You start out right in the heart of Akron and run northeast for a six mile loop. We were passing by pretty impressive historic buildings, like the court house, mixed with contemporary museums. Just after a mile of running we crossed Little Cuyahoga River via the All America Bridge. This bridge is actually a viaduct and we were 134ft up at it's highest point.

My mom and Robin met me around mile three. I spotted them at a corner and ran up to my mom for a high five but she was too busy snapping pictures of me. I yelled out "Stop taking pictures and give me a high five!!" The small group of spectators near my mom got a little chuckle out of that. She did put the camera down just in time to give me a quick high five and then I was back on my way!

Oh yea, I wanted to mention the pacer. I started out right behind Mr. 4:40 pacer because that was my exact goal. We should have been running 10:40 miles. While I attempted to stick with him every time I checked my watch we were quite a bit below 10:40. For those first six miles I probably averaged a 10:25. At first I figured he was trying to bank a little time, we had some decent downhills and I knew the course was a little hilly so I went with it... After six miles I had enough of that, he was keeping up the pace and it was going to hurt me so I let him go. Everyone around me agreed that he was going out WAY too fast. I'd b shocked if he actually got anyone from the start to the finish successfully.

Miles 7-12:

Once you loop back to the starting area (you are one block over), you then head south for another six mile loop. The scenery is much of the same, apparently we ran back over the viaduct (which I have no recollection of) and then through Akron University. This section of the course consisted of many small rolling hills which were slowly but surely taking their toll on me.

During the first half of this race I was full of energy and was waving and thanking every volunteer and police officer out there. I swear over the entire course I probably thanked at least 50 officers. They were out in force at EVERY intersection. It was wonderful to see them and I really did appreciate their presence. There was more than one occasion where people were trying to drive on or cross a closed street and the officers were out there keeping us safe.

I loved the entertainment during this race. There were good bands spread out evenly and the aid stations were full of awesome people... but the best part of this race was the Hero Stations. This is actually the Akron Children's Hospital Marathon and you can opt to be a Children's Champion and raise money for the hospital, which I did! Thanks to my wonderful family and friends I raised over $600. Anyway, along the course they had these stations set up and patients from the hospital were out there cheering on the runners. Talk about a pick-me-up! It was wonderful and sad at the same time to see these kids. I high-fived everyone I could. It gave me the biggest boost of energy every time.

Miles 13-18:

Right at the start of this section there was another rather long climb to get out of the way as you head northwest out of the heart of Akron. This was where I started to regret trying to keep up with that damn pacer. I was still thanking officers and volunteers and high-fiving everyone but I was getting tired. Not a great sign when you are just half way through a race and you know there are hard hills yet to come.

Around mile 16 the course takes a fun little detour through the grounds of the Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens. It was built by the founder of Goodyear Tire and apparently it is one of the largest homes in the US. As we ran by almost every runner made some sort of joke that that was their home.

A little after mile 17 I got a call from my mom. Really?! She was letting me know they were waiting around mile 15 for me... I explained that I was a bit past mile 15 and she said that they would try to find another spot a little farther down. Due to the out and back and loops on the course they were able to quickly hop over to mile 23 and wait for me there.

Miles 19-26:

These last handful of miles were definitely the most beautiful. You are running through old neighborhoods with mansions. Spectators were out in force at this time. People had all sorts of homemade stations set up. You could basically get whatever you wanted, including beer. I have yet to grab a beer from anyone during a race.

I saw my family at mile 23. Unfortunately they were across the road but I waved and shouted out to my grandpa. Robin dashed out across the road to me to give me a high-five, which was pretty epic. It made me really happy to see everyone and you guessed it... it gave me a nice little boost to bring it home.

On the way back into Akron there was this hill. It was incredibly evil. It just kept going up and up and up and it was so very hot. That's really all I remember. Hot. Up hill. Lasted forever. Where is the water stop? I was pretty spent at the top so the rest of the race was a blur. I do know we got some decent downhills but at that point I was taking walk breaks. *Sigh* Someday I'll get through a marathon without walking.

The Last .2:

Usually something memorable happens in the last .2 mile of a marathon for me. Oftentimes I meet someone right at the end and we push each other to the finish like Franconia girl in the Big Sur Marathon. This time it was that I was running right behind a girl who became the world record holder for running a marathon in a chef's outfit carrying a 6.5 lbs stock pot. Not gonna lie, I spent most of that last .2 laughing at her but she's pretty kick ass really. I would never EVER want to run in some uncomfortable getup and I would definitely never run carrying a frigging stock pot! I actually let her go ahead of me to so she could have her time in the spotlight at the finish (and so that I wouldn't be completely overshadowed by her when I went through).

Finish Time: 04:54:28
Pace: 11:04

Post Race:

Play Ball! NOT.

The finish was in a baseball stadium near the start of the race. It was VERY fun to run through. They had everything set up right on the field - the food and beer tents, medical, entertainment, etc. They had live video of everyone running through the finish up on the big screens.

Marathon Socks!

Once I made it through the finish line the first thing I thought was WHERE ARE THE MEDALS? I asked for one and they said I had to keep moving to actually get a medal. I don't think you guys understand... I just ran 26.2 (plus a little extra according to my Garmin). I GET MY MEDAL RIGHT AT THE FINISH. I grudgingly moved on and found another group of people...but they didn't have medals, they had socks. The socks are actually pretty kick ass but at that point I was still focused on my medal. What good would a pair of socks do me??

My mom, Robin, my Uncle Eric, and his kids were supposedly waiting for me outside of the stadium. I was relaxing on the grass waiting for them when I get a text from my mom: "Oops! Wrong stadium!" that's right, they went to the wrong ball park! Apparently there was a game going on there so people were tailgating and they thought that was it. Luckily it didn't take them long to locate the correct park.

I finally got another text from my mom that they were waiting outside the park, so I started searching for an exit. This required climbing up through the stands and out of the back of the stadium. I hobbled out there and texted my mom that I was there only to have her tell me she was actually inside now...so I told her to meet me by the medical tent and I hobbled my way BACK down. I waited a rather long time and I was just starting to become concerned when I got another text from my mom saying that they were not allowed down there and I'd have to meet them outside. After some major grumbling I hobbled back out yet again and finally met up with my family. (Despite all the grumbling, I was incredibly happy my family and friends were there at the finish!)

Now, remember how I mentioned that I quickly parked and booked it to the race start? Well now it was time to figure out where I parked and my marathon-addled brain hadn't the slightest clue where that was. I dragged my poor family slowly up and down the streets of Akron trying to find my car. Finally I was able to get my phone to recall where I had parked (a wonderful Google feature) and we headed straight there.

Picture taken back in the comfy hotel bed

Back at the hotel after a very painful shower (I chafed really badly on one inner thigh which caused much squealing in the shower) and about an hour of laying in bed I headed back out to my Grandpa's. That evening we headed over to my cousin Lindsey's house for another cookout. They made a delicious meal of steak and chicken skewers and then we played some CaH, which was hilarious (and a little awkward)! It was a great way to relax after the race.

Sunday was spent hanging out with my Grandpa we took him to lunch and then just relaxed and enjoyed the nice day. I had to head to bed early because my flight back home was scheduled to depart at 6:30AM the next morning.

This was definitely not my typical trip for a marathon but I wouldn't change a thing. I had a wonderful time and it meant so much to see my Grandpa. It was really hard to leave. While I won't be heading back to Ohio to run the Akron Marathon again any time soon, I will be going back to visit my family. I won't be waiting another six years.

Big Sur International Marathon 2016

RACE DAY!

YAY!

Sunday morning I woke up at 3AM to get ready for the Big Sur International Marathon. The nice thing about living on the east coast is that this really didn't feel all that early. It's around the same time I am supposed to be getting up for work... which doesn't necessarily mean it's when I actually get up... but anyway... I had everything laid out that I needed so I quickly got dressed, gathered up all my stuff, and headed downstairs for a bite to eat (french press coffee and some toast with peanut butter).

The night before I had agreed to carpool with Martin, another runner who was staying at the AirBnb. Martin had pretty interesting story. He grew up in South Africa, met his wife in England, and together they decided to move to the USA. It turns out that they fell in love with and relocated to Montclair, New Jersey which is the same town that my Uncle has lived in for years. They didn't know each other but it was still a pretty neat coincidence!

Spooky

Once we found parking we took a twenty minute shuttle to the race start deep in the woods at Big Sur Station. There we were surrounded by these huge towering trees with spotlights casting eerie shadows everywhere. I found a somewhat quiet spot and sat down to wait for the race to start.

Make this sh*tter great again?

I eventually got bored of just sitting in a parking lot so I wandered around a little bit. All of the port-o-potties had funny signs taped to them and I found the one above particularly amusing. Even more so now. I ended up waiting in line for coffee and a bagel just for something to do and to keep warm. It was quite chilly and I didn't bring any throw-away clothes. After a while we were called to the road to line up for the start. I was in the last corral and we were so far back we couldn't see the start.

Miles 1-4:

I don't have any photos from the start of the race but the first four miles were mostly downhill through the woods. I focused on running my own race and not getting caught up in the excitement and going too fast. For this race I told myself I wasn't going to run with anyone else. My performance seems to suffer when I run with others. Not their fault but I end up running their pace and talking. Since I generally train by myself I am not used to talking while running and this takes more energy.

This is not one of the actual trees, it's just a tribute

It was cool and dark in the woods with those majestic trees towering over us. Very comfortable for running. It made me feel a little too optimistic and although I tried very hard to keep myself from going faster than my target pace, I may have slipped up a few times.

Breathtaking

Miles 5-9:

Somewhere after mile four you burst, yes BURST, out of the woods and are greeted with a jaw dropping view. You are running down the road bordered by endless grassy fields on your right and cliffs dropping off to the beautiful Pacific Ocean on your left. When we reached the open fields I started to worry that the famous California sunshine would cause some problems but luckily it always managed to be just cloudy enough that the sun stayed hidden for most of the race. It even misted a tiny bit, which was refreshing.

These miles continued downhill for a little bit and then we had some rolling hills to deal with. They really were not all that bad but I knew they were child's play compared to the beast we had to run up later.

It was somewhere around mile five I met an awesome girl named Blaire and we ended up running together until mile 19. As I said before I wasn't really looking for someone to run with and at first I was annoyed that I couldn't seem to shake her and she kept talking to me but she was incredibly nice and our paces matched almost perfectly.

Blaire had music playing on her phone and she would occasionally play a little recorded clip from one of her friends. Before she left on her marathon she asked friends and family to record something that she could play while running and draw strength from. It was really wonderful to hear all of the support she had out there and it was sweet that she shared it with me.

Up to Hurricane Point

Miles 10-15:

Shortly after mile ten we reached the part of the race I'd been nervous about. Hurricane Point. Hurricane Point is a two mile long climb up to a ledge with winds that will steal the air from your lungs. Thankfully at the bottom of the hill they have one of the best forms of motivation I've ever experienced. Taiko Drums. They were amazing. They played a beat that made the adrenaline rush through your body and gave you strength to make it to the top.

 Blaire and I had made an agreement that we would NOT walk up that hill (I think it was a mountain). It didn't matter how much we'd slow down or how much we hurt. We'd keep running. We stopped talking and just kept trudging up... and up... and up. There were many false turns that tricked you into thinking you'd made it then you'd get around the corner and see that you had another half mile to go. We kept putting one foot after the other until we reached the top. We ran all the way up Hurricane Point. I have never been more proud of myself.

When we finally reached the top we really understood why it's called Hurricane Point. The wind was fierce. You had to hold on to your hat, bib, anything that wasn't firmly attached or else the wind would rip it away. It was actually hard to breathe up there. I had wanted to take a picture but once we were actually there I just wanted to get away as quickly as possible so we kept running.

Hurricane Point to Bixby Bridge

Once you round the corner and the wind isn't howling the first think you notice is the piano music. In the picture above there is a grand piano set up on the far end of that bridge and you can hear it from miles away. The descent to Bixby Bridge is a wonderful three miles. Three miles! That is enough distance to forget all about the pain and suffering one endured to get up to Hurricane Point. That is enough distance to start feeling good again and regaining your will to go on. Hands down, this was the best part of any marathon I've ever run.

Bixby Bridge to Hurricane Point

Blaire and I chatted and laughed all the way down to the Bridge. Once again, I said I wanted to take a picture of the bridge and the grand piano but once there I really just wanted to keep moving. At this point we were well ahead of the five hour pacer and I wanted to keep that lead (which I obviously didn't).

Miles 16-22:

Once down from Hurricane Point and over the hill you are faced with another smaller hill and some false flats that do eventually level out and then down a little bit. At this point I was hurting. Running up Hurricane Point (and down it really) took a lot out of me. The road here had a terrible cant that was really painful at this point in the race.

Somewhere around mile 19 I unfortunately lost Blaire. She wasn't feeling too great and needed to take a quick break so I continued on alone. For some reason I don't quite remember this part of the race. All I know is that I was tired and hurting and just wanted to be done. I unfortunately started taking walk breaks.

Miles 23-26:

Once again, my memories are a bit fuzzy during these miles. We started getting closer to Carmel and the road moved away from the coast and into more residential areas. It was around mile 23 that I started really considering quitting. I was unhappy and the 5 hour pace group passed me. I was SO mad that I slowed down that much.

Right around mile 23 I started talking to a girl who is from Franconia, NH. I latched onto her and didn't let go until the finish.

The Last .2:

I was still with Franconia when we passed the 26 mile marker. I looked at her and barely croaked out that we had to make New Hampshire proud and we sprinted to the finish. I am very grateful that I met Franconia lady, otherwise I very well might have just sat down and been done with only .2 miles to go. I did not quit though and I completed my 5th marathon in my 4th state with a 5 minute PR!

Once I crossed over that finish line my body decided it was time to stop. Everything. I hobbled through and got a medal, and got a little ways away from the finish and collapsed on a table. I told myself I was waiting for Blaire but I was really incapable of moving.

Blaire came through the finish maybe five minutes after me and we hugged and congratulated each other. I finally convinced my body that I should move and I went through the food tent grabbing everything, even though all I wanted was chocolate milk and sleep. I found a spot on the ground and laid there in a daze for a good few minutes.

Eventually I roused and sat up and chatted with a nice gentleman who took the below picture of me. One thing that I really do not like about race finishes is that it's so loud. They always have a band playing and I get that it's a celebration and a bit of a party but after I have run 26.2 (or more) miles all I want is quiet. The noise completely overwhelms me and I end up leaving the celebrations as soon as possible.

How do I have no chin?

Finish Time: 05:02:20
Pace: 11:32

Post Race Thoughts:

I absolutely loved this race. I once again missed the goal I set for myself but I still PR'ed by about five minutes and I'll take that. This was a very challenging course, by far the hardest marathon I've run and I still managed to get faster and have a great time.

The things that really helped me through the more painful parts of the race were Blaire and her infectious optimism and the view. Every time I let myself think about how much I hurt or how much I wanted to stop I would think - hey, you are running a marathon in friggin' California. Every view was spectacularly gorgeous. It was definitely enough to distract you from all the miles you had left.

I've told everyone that I do not intend to run any marathon twice but I have a feeling I will see Big Sur again. Perhaps once I have a few more marathons under my belt and I've cut my PR down a bit more I'll head back out there and challenge Hurricane Point once more.

Big Sur International Marathon Part I (The Days Prior)

Last week April I ran the Big Sur International Marathon in California! It is my fifth marathon in my fourth state!

Hello California!

What an amazing trip. I had so much fun I *almost* didn't want to come home. I flew out to San Jose Thursday night before the race, rented a car, and drove to my AirBnb in Seaside. This was my first experience with AirBnb and I loved it! I stayed in the Finch Room at the Historic Landmark House in Seaside with hosts Annemarie and Jesse.

My petite guest room

Every morning I was there the hosts would come down and make breakfast and hang out with the guests, getting to know everyone as well as giving us tips for what sights we should see, good restaurants in the area, etc. There were some very interesting people staying at the house. I loved coming down and having some french press coffee and chatting with everyone.

All the pictures inside the aquarium came out bad so this is what you get.

The first full day I was there my first stop was the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Annemarie and Jesse suggested going early and even got me a discounted pass. Truthfully, aquariums are not my thing. Everything is so beautiful and I appreciate that but I feel so bad for everything that lives in those tiny tanks, swimming in circles. I know it's educational but these creatures should be free. So I wandered around for a little bit and then just decided to get out as quickly as possible.

After the aquarium I walked around that downtown area a little bit but decided it was too touristy for my tastes and I headed to the marathon expo. For some reason I thought it was a brilliant idea to WALK to the expo. In my not-so-comfortable sandals. It was as if nature agreed with me and about half way through my 1.25 mile walk it absolutely poured. So now I was soaking wet, because I had no rain gear, and my feet were developing blisters from rubbing against my wet sandals. Brilliant idea Whitney. Brilliant.

Poof! That's what my hair is doing.

Anyway, I got to the expo, got my race packet and decided to peruse the merchandise for once. I ended up walking out with a very nice visor (in the picture below) that I use on every run. It is a wonderful hat and I love it!

Love this visor!

Next on my to-do list was to find a local brewery/brew pub. Luckily for me (because I was still on foot) the Alvarado Street Brewery was a pretty short walk from the expo. Most people must have still been at the expo at the time because I had no trouble getting a spot at the bar. Once I had my food it started pouring again and more runners found  their way to the brewery making it quite crowded. It was fun because just about everyone sitting at the bar was there for the race, so I had a nice time chatting with everyone. I like hearing how far people come for a race. I think I traveled the farthest out of everyone I met though.

Nom Nom Nom

For food I got delicious grilled artichokes followed by fish tacos. It was a VERY messy meal, I felt like I needed to take a shower after. For beers I believe I had Eddie would Gose and Citraveza, a Mexican lager. Don't hold me to that though, it was 5 months ago!

This Might be the hardest hole on the course? IDK

After lunch I walked the 1.25 miles back to my car and decided to take a little drive. Everyone told me to skip the 17-mile drive through Pebble Beach but eh, I had time and truthfully I loved it. The houses were obscenely gorgeous, the road was fun and I got to see some of the famous golf courses. Not like that really mattered to me, but it did make some of my coworkers jealous.

After that I drove down into Big Sur a bit to see what the course was like. I am going to share those pictures during the actual race report because I didn't stop to take any pictures while running. I am SO glad that I did this sightseeing on Friday versus Saturday. When I drove around on Saturday all of the landmarks on the marathon course were packed with cars and people. When I went there was no one out there.

On the way back I amused (and terrified) myself by basically taking note of all the up and downhill portions of the course. I did this by repeatedly saying "Up-up-up-uuuuuuuupppppp" all the way up a hill and "Dooooown-down-down-down" on the way back down. I maybe said "Flat-flat" twice during that drive. THERE WERE NO FLATS. Thinking back, doing this to myself was a bad idea.

Formerly Clint Eastwood's Inn

After driving some of the course (I didn't make it all the way) I headed back in search of dinner. I heard good things about the town of Carmel so I headed that way. First, I stopped in at the Hog's Breath Inn for a beer. At the time I was completely unaware of the rather famous history of this place. It was owned by Clint Eastwood until 1999. It is a very funky little place with an outdoor patio with fire pits and a little bar in a completely separate building out back. That is where I ended up sitting. Right next to a raging fire and a few mounted hog heads.

For dinner I actually went to Casanova, a little European restaurant down the street. I don't seem to have any pictures of this place (which is probably a good thing because this post is already quite long) but I loved it here. I ended up sitting in a covered patio type area and talking to a very nice couple who suggested I look at the wine cellar. I asked if I could go see it and was given a little tour of the dusty rows of shelves that hold nearly 16,000 wines.

And THAT wraps up my first day in California! 

So sweet!

Day two started out with the wonderful breakfast provided by my AirBnb hosts and I decided to get out early and walk around Point Lobos, a small state natural reserve. This was by far my favorite part of the trip. The views were spectacular. I felt like I was on a tropical island. The waters were a beautiful clear blue and every view was more breathtaking than the last.

This is my favorite view

The park is home to lots of wildlife, the highlights being mother seals with their pups and otters. I spent 10 minutes just peering down at a beach watching the seals bask in the sun. There were also adorable partridges running around in the woods but I only got terrible pictures of them. One even posed for me on a log!

View from the highest point

I ended up walking about 5 miles around the entire park, which is not exactly the best idea the day before a marathon, but it was so worth it.

So what was up next? More driving and walking around of course! I drove BACK down through Big Sur to McWay Falls. This spot is famous for the little waterfall you can see below. The rest of the park that heads away from the coast is not very nice. I  tried to explore and I did find a little waterfall but the paths were hard to follow, some leading to dead ends or treacherous stream crossings. I decided to head out before I broke an ankle.

It was during this little excursion that I found that all of the beautiful sights along Big Sur were absolutely overrun with runners who had just gotten in for the weekend. Actually at McWay Falls you can't tell but I was squished between many, many tourists.

I headed back to Seaside and instead of going back to the Hog's Breath like I had planned I opted for a small Italian restaurant that was much closer. I had ravioli and tons of water and got to bed around 8PM.

Next up... the race report!