I'm Back! ...Finally!

So fortunately, I've been running fairly consistently since I last posted. I had an interesting time training solo for the first time for the Pgh Marathon. I was having a great week followed by a down week, pretty much the entire time...and I only got in three speed workouts (and rarely replaced them with another run). Somehow, on basically two runs a week and some cross-training I ran a sub-4 marathon. I don't think I'll be selling that plan to anyone.... But here's a photo from my long run on super bowl sunday (17 miles starting at the corner and running through the strip, past heinz field, south side, oakland...my shirt was quite popular in every neighborhood!)

So back to the heat and humidity of the summer....Things I've 'learned' this summer:

* I assumed training for a 5k would leave me unmotivated to get out the door for short/easy runs. It actually is much easier and enjoyable since I'm no longer intimidated by the long runs!

* When the humidity rises, always use Body Glide, no matter how short the run

* When the goal is a lazy Saturday morning, it is better to get up twenty minutes early to go run a quick 5k than to lounge around and end up doing 8 miles

* 5ks can be delightful at a run/walk pace - but ONLY with friends to enjoy the LONG time it takes to get to the finish

* My best runs happen after my worst work days (that one always amazes me)

* After June 20, the days get shorter. Going out for a run at 9 pm through Frick Park is still dark. Even though it seems ridiculous, I should consider bringing my head lamp.

*Even 1/2 marathon have long training programs. I should consider this well in advance before I'm more than a month late starting it!

That's it for now! Hopefully I'll be back soon!

A Run at Eaton Reservoir

We did a muggy loop around Eaton Reservoir this morning in North East.

Northville has Sidewalks!

Attempted to run at Maybury State Park where there is an old asylum
but the gates were closed when I got there. But Northville is full of
subdivisions with luxury estate homes and they are all connected by
convenient walkways - genius! Here is a photo of a model home that I
snapped. While there are some gorgeous new homes, most of the
subdivisions have lots of vacant lots.

The Great Allegheny Passage

Last weekend we embarked on a new endeavor - an overnight bike trip on the Great Allegheny Passage! Ian scoped out the landscape and did a lot of the logistics prep work (including biking an additional 22 miles, along with Grant, before the rest of us even started on Saturday). OK, we weren't quite hard-core enough (or quite light-weight packers) to do a true overnight biking trip, since we had a car waiting for us at the campsite loaded up with a cooler, air mattress, tents, etc., but we were all sore the next day and it was an accomplishment!

Pittsburgh Half Marathon

What a fantastic race in our hometown! We were very gracious for the Mylar blankets at the finish line. At this point it was rainy and breezy, so they helped keep our body heat in a lot!
We're almost at the finish line when we spot our fans Mom Troxell and Maggie.

Marathon Sleepover!

Want to…

Cheer on the Marathon Runners Sunday morning?
Encourage SPC’s Youth Director Tres Adams as he vies to qualify for the Boston Marathon?
Serve as part of the SPC team distributing orange slices to the runners who pass by Amberson Avenue on Fifth Avenue?

Wondering how you will get here with all of the traffic?

Join us for a Sleepover Retreat Saturday night at the church!

Bring sleeping bags, pillows, flashlights, snacks, and be ready to slice oranges.

Who: Church members and guests of all ages.
What: A festive time to gather and get the best parking spaces for the race!
When: Saturday May 2, 7:30PM until the roads open again so you can go home (probably around noon Sunday).
Where: Shadyside Presbyterian Church.
Why: Because we’re a fun-loving group of people and want to support the Marathon runners.
How: Email Ellen Allston indicating you’d like to participate and then show-up at the church Saturday evening.

We will be locked-in. The guys will sleep in the Richards Room and the girls will sleep in the Babcock Room. We’ll be able to watch movies, heat-up snacks in the kitchen, play flashlight tag in Parish Hall, have a flashlight tour of the church, and just have fun.

Sunday morning, we’ll join many other SPC volunteers (about 30!) to slice oranges and then set-up our distribution station on Fifth Avenue at Amberson.

All participants will receive a special SPC t-shirt. We will cheer the runners along Fifth Avenue and will give orange slices to those who need them.

We should be finished by 11:30 AM with the surrounding roads scheduled to open at 12 Noon.

“Run the straight race through God’s good grace. Lift up thine eyes and seek his face. Life with its way before us lies. Christ is the path and Christ the prize.”

I am so bummed that I a) can't do the Sleepover Retreat and b) won't even be running past the Church...next year either calls for not running at all and going all out on the spectating OR doing the full!

Pittsburgh Marathon Features

It's race week! I'll try to post the most interesting articles that I find on the marathon. Pop City Media always has well written articles and covers the 'burgh happenings so well, so they are first on my list:

• Run Wild: 10,000 + athletes expected to land in town as Pittsburgh welcomes back the marathon
• On your mark, get set...RAWR! Guess who's running?

Last Long Run

Nathan and I did our last long run (a ten miler) at North Park on Saturday morning. Nathan's dad (who plans to run as a bandit in the half marathon) and his sister Katie also ran with us. Katie was only planning on running five, but her dad guilted her into running another five. It was gorgeous out, though a little on the hot side. I think we are just about guaranteed that race day won't actually be that hot.

Orange slices - Rinded or Rindless?

I got a question from the person organizing the Shadyside Presbyterian Church's marathon support group about whether they should peel the oranges or not. Good question...glad he is thinking it through. I responded with a resounding - leave the peel on! As in the attached photo:

Central Park

A misty 7 mile run with Katie and Nathan in Central Park.

Tired Dog

Fresca after our 6 mile run this morning.

Playing Hooky

OK, so I headed out the door at lunchtime today into 56 degree air and sunshine overhead. The plan was to work half a day at the client's office and then half a day at home since I have to take Fresca to the kennel this afternoon. The gorgeous weather was just way too much to resist, though, and I had to come home and go for a run. Glorious!

Tube Socks

I have to admit that I did not run in the great out of doors during the streak of subzero temps earlier this winter, so when yesterday registered a "feels like" -1 degree, I could not drag myself out of bed. (The iPhone has a good/bad weather channel app that gives me the temperature while I am still lying in bed. Good in that I know how to dress...bad in that I can potentially justify staying in bed. Before the iPhone, all I had was our indoor/outdoor thermometer, which required me to actually get out of bed and even then, it wouldn't factor in windchill, so I was sufficiently dupped into thinking it was warmer than it actually was.)

Anyhow, I wanted to pass along one of the keys (I say "one of" because there are obviously many.) to running in temps below about 20 degrees. Tube Socks! The glorious tube sock eliminates any potential draft flowing in around the ankle area. This concept can also be applied to other running attire - you must have a shirt that can be tucked in to eliminate waist drafts and if it is really cold, you need a scarf to eliminate neck draft. (The picture I found of tube socks is cute, however, since my post is about eliminating drafts, you obviously can't wear your cute running skirt.)

To the extreme I rock the mic like a vandal

Ice, ice, baby! What else would else would you listen to while running on a sheet of ice? Fresh Prince's classic "Summertime" just wasn't cutting it, so I spent some quality time with Vanilla. When everything thawed around home, I went Up North to get one last round of cross country skiing in. The skiing was great...but for running I should have maybe checked out the race in Antarctica! After completing a shorty without slipping too much, and avoiding any injuries, I decided to save the longer run until I got home Sunday afternoon where I would only have to deal with wind and stray dogs!

Head Licking

This is the typical scene after our runs with Fresca. She LOVES to lick Nathan's salty head! Today we did 5 miles (the highest of our long runs so far). I'm about ready for it to warm up, but other than that, it was a good run. It was my first run w/ the iPhone since I just got an armband for it this week. Theoretically I can use the Map My Run app w/ the GPS function to track my runs, however, I wasn't getting a strong enough signal. It worked out well that I had my phone on me today, though, because we found a stray dog - Topaz - on our run. We called the owner, but she actually rolled up in her mini-van right as I was calling. Apparently her dog always goes to the bus stop (?) when it escapes, so she knows right where to look for it. After our run we had toasted Loafer's cinnamon bread - what else can you ask for on a Sunday morning!

The Amazing Women Behind the Pittsburgh Marathon

Link to article in Pop City Media

Our Own Paula Radcliffe

This morning on a chilly 3 mile run, Fresca decides to do her business right in the middle of the street - we're talkin' directly on the double yellow lines in the center of the road! (She must have really had to go, because normally she is picky about where she decides to do #2.) Nathan now calls her Paula Radcliffe...hahaha!

The Forgotten Shoes

Nathan happens to be in Key West right now (lucky dog!) and the plan was for him to take running gear and get in a 3 mile run and a 4 mile run. Unfortunately, he forgot to take his shoes! He was very distraught about it, so I'm pretty sure that he didn't actually do it on purpose. We discussed the option of overnighting them to him, but figured that we can both do the 4 mile run together when he gets home Sunday night.

In the meantime, Fres and I just did a 3 mile run in the frigid temps of lovely Pittsburgh, PA.

Media Coverage of Kat

Our co-coach for Girls on the Run last year is running a marathon in Antarctica! Check out the coverage she is getting:

• Post Gazette
• Pitt News
• You can also check out her blog at: Kat Runs Antarctica

Is That Fisk?

Since we do an out and back route for our 3 mile run, Fisk Street is both our 1 mile marker and our 2 mile marker. Since we run in the dark, it is sometimes hard to tell when you are coming up on Fisk Street, especially when you are coming back down California and every street seems like it is Fisk.

We had a succession of four streets that Nathan thought were Fisk this morning. "Is that Fisk?"...run, run, run..."Is that Fisk?"...run, run, run..."Is that Fisk?"...run, run, run..."Is that Fisk?"

"Yes, THIS is IT!"

We have since noted that there is also a large tree stump at Fisk. Possibly this will reduce the "Is that Fisk" inquiries in the future.