Monday, February 9, 2015

Mermaid Half Marathon, 20+ Miler and #SDMomMarathonTraining

I am excited to link up with Running and Reading for the first time ever!  Go check out her page and some really cool blogs catching you up on their busy weekends!


Way back when I decided I was going to embark on Marathon training, I saw that my long 20 miler was going to fall on February 7.  Same day as the Mermaid Half Marathon.  So why not get 13.1 miles in with some course support and some bling on top of the 7 miles?

Pictured: Lorna Jane tank, Headsweats visor, Louva gear sleeves, Pro Compression socks, Hoka One One Bondi 3s and of course, a Spandits skirt!

So I set my alarm at 3:30 and agreed to meet my Phoenix Marathon crew at 5:00 a.m. for 7 pre Half Marathon miles.


I was not happy with this picture so I tried again as a selfie.  Still...


How these women are so purrrrty at 5:00 a.m. and I look like a run over bear is beyond me!  You know these ladies...Jamye, Jenn, Thia and Julie.  All running Phoenix with me.

After the 7, we headed to the Porta Pottys before the 13.1 and I saw the super awesome Carlee!


Who coincidentally is also doing Phoenix!  #ItsGoingDownAtPhoenix for sure!  Then we saw this awesome truck and had to take a picture next to it.


We headed off to do our 13.1 feeling strong and well hydrated.  Jackets and arm sleeves off and just us and the turquoise tanks.  Haha!  We love matching.  Okay fine, I love matching!


We were a little slow getting to the start line because of all the pictures.  But then we were off...


I have to say my LEAST favorite thing about this race is the fact that they have a 5K, a 10K and a Half going at the same time.  That means there are mile signs everywhere that don't make sense.  And have I ever told you I hate tight turnarounds?  This one BLEW!


That's it.  No fan fare nothing!  Just this sign and a chalk curved arrow.  *SIGH*  Overall the course is pretty.  It loops around Fiesta Island which you either love or hate.  I happen to be in the LOVE camp.  What is not to like?  Sand, water and blue sky!  The rest is flat and along the water.  I kinda find flat boring.  I much prefer the rolling hills of the 101 but it was a nice change.


And just like that, we were done.  And we all came back together and added Launa to the bunch.  She is also staying with us in Phoenix.  It will be like a clown car hotel room style.


And of course, my awesome sole sisters from Team Mamaste.  These women kicked major arse running 20.1 miles this day.  And yes, I told every volunteer I saw how many miles we ran after thanking them of course.  Was it worth the bling?


It was cute.  S certainly thought so!  She snagged it from me as soon as I got home.  But overall, I am glad I did it.  It was a good way to get some course support while doing a long marathon training run.  TIP:  Do your extra miles before a Race ALWAYS.  There is no way you are gong to be up for 7 AFTER a Half!

Have you ever done a race as part of a longer run?  What was your plan?

As always, I wish you Happy Feet,
SD Mom

14 comments:

  1. Looks like a fun time. Always cool when you can work a race into training schedule. A nice two for one deal.

    I'm not a big fan of turnarounds in general, but cant stand when they're too tight and you get a bunch up centipede effect. No fun at all.

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    1. I am starting to appreciate the point to point race a lot more.

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  2. Good tip about doing a run before the race. Once I cross that finish line, I'm done. Great bling too!

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    1. Right? I think I like it better than a medal. shh don't tell anyone!

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  3. Smitha! I'm so thankful that you linked up with the blog this week; you've made my day, as have these fun pictures. Y'all look amazing!! You know, I think I've only added miles at the end of a race to make a longer run; I'm going to follow your advice next time and do it before! I'm so glad y'all were able to run this race together and have a great weekend; looks like so much fun. You all are going to knock 'em dead in Phoenix - woo hoo!! Hope you have a great day!

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    1. YAY! I have been wanting to forever! Yes, add miles before the race. No matter what race distance, I am always spent!

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  4. I've have definitely done this several times before. It breaks up the long run and makes the time go by much faster! I'll be doing it in a few weeks as a matter of fact!! You are almost there!

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  5. Yup, always do those extra miles as a 'warm up'. Sounds like you are all ready for PHX, good luck!

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  6. I'll admit I have never added miles onto a race. Maybe a kilometre or two to get warmed up - but I like the idea! Good job!

    I have to agree with you about the tight turnarounds. The race I ran a couple of weeks ago had a 5k, 10k, 15k AND half marathon (see Chilly Chase Half Marathon - http://bitly.com/1yiOKMB), so there were a whole bunch of those. Probably the worst, though, was the extremely fun Rock 'n' Roll Vancouver Half Marathon (http://bit.ly/1IGJ8XM) - a whole bunch of tight turnarounds and some serious bottlenecks!

    Good job, you!!

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  7. Yay for linking up. The bling was super cute! I wish I could be in SD right now :)

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  8. Oh man, the one time I did extra miles after a half, it was a complete nightmare. I learned my lesson for sure! Looks like you guys had a beautiful day! Congrats!

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  9. I attempted to use races as training runs but I'm not very successful at it. I have race mode and I don't really know how to turn it off. So, I doubt I will try to do this again in the future because I almost never get those extra miles in after... I'm glad it works for you though! That necklace is really cute too.

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  10. Ha, I love the tip at the end of this post to always do your extra miles first. This is so true. Last year I tried to run extra miles after doing the Chicago Rock n Roll Half Marathon and thought I was going to fall over. Super slow, super sluggish and just not enjoyable. Lesson learned!

    Love the medal from this race. It's different from most so it stands out!

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