Monday, December 29, 2014

Whiskey Row Marathon Recap


 In May 2014, I ran the wonderful Whiskey Row Marathon. I know it's been a while since I've run it, so I will try my best to recall memories from the race. I do have photos, so that always helps me remember!

I had planned to run the half with my sister. I bought her a race entry (as well as one for myself) for her 32nd birthday. A few months later, she decided it was too much and decided to drop out. I was pretty bummed, but decided to make the best of it and upgrade to the marathon.

Chance and I arrived at the Hotel St. Michael in Prescott on Friday night after a long drive up from Tucson. There had been an accident just North of Phoenix and it stopped traffic for two hours on the highway. I was planning to card load in Prescott for dinner and now that was out of the question since we ended up arriving around 10pm. I grabbed some food at the grocery store and went straight to bed.

The alarm went off around 5AM but I was in no hurry because the hotel was literally a few steps away from the start line. I didn't know this when I booked the rooms. Chance and I have stayed at this hotel at least 2 times in the past. When we were both in school for archaeology, our field school surveyed in the wilderness surrounding Prescott and we would come into town for supplies once in awhile. They always chose this hotel. And since I already knew about it, I went ahead and booked it. Glad the start line was right next to it! :)

There were 2 start times. If I remember correctly, one was at 6AM and the other was at 7AM. And this is becuase the race promptly cuts off at 1pm. And I mean PROMPTLY. One of my friends finished after 1pm, and they literally left her medal in a pile on the ground where the finishline used to be. I'm not sure why they have to end so abruptly. Maybe the city is cutting them off early, but it sure is annoying. I was nervous about not being able to finish in the alotted time (there is a TON of elevation change in this race) and I was considering the early start time. But, since we got in late the night before, I just decided to sleep an extra hour and start at 7AM.

The 7AM Whiskey Row Marathon start line.

Saturday, November 29, 2014

Pacing at the Javalina Jundred 100 Miler

The Javelina Jundred 100 mile race is staged out of the Pemberton Trailhead at McDowell Mountain Regional Park north of Fountain Hills, Arizona. The 100 Mile distance is comprised of six full loops on the popular Pemberton Trail with an additional half-a-loop on the Pemberton and Tonto Tank Trails. Runners reverse directions each lap of the race and are supported by four on course aid stations per loop (Javelina Jeadquarters, Coyote Camp, Jackass Junction & Rattlesnake Ranch). 

I recently had the opportunity to pace my friend at the Javalina Jundred 100 miler at the beginning of November. I have always had a fascination with this race, but the distance has always scared me away. Thankfully, my friend Kathryn decided she wanted to give it a go, and thus I became a pacer. :)

She created a schedule of all the laps and who would accompany her on each lap. I would accompany her on a nighttime lap, from 8pm-about 11PM. I didn't start driving out to Phoenix until about 5pm, so I was cutting it really close. I finally made it to McDowell Mountain Park and took the shuttle to the start line up the road. I literally made it within minutes!! And we were off!

Kathryn is getting ready to run another
night loop! 
Before our 15 mile
night loop together. 
I tried to keep her entertained and focused. We ran some, and walked some. She got through the aid stations so fast. I mainly drank Coke and munched on salted potatoes (both are my favorites during ultras!) Near the end of the 15 mile loop, we both started to tire, so I tried hard to keep the pace up so we could get to the finish in the time she estimated.


Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Running the Grand Canyon Part 1: Rim to River to Rim

This past April, I finally made the decision to run the Grand Canyon...well, at least some of it. :) 

My amazing running friend Kathryn (and by amazing I mean she is a BEAST on the trail!) was going to run R2R2R (that's South Rim to North Rim to South Rim, for those unsure of our South of the Canyon lingo) again and she asked me to come along. I originally planned to run the entire 40 mile-something out and back, but decided in the end to try my hand first at a trip to the bottom and back. I would see how I fared and try again in the fall, hopefully. 

We planned on meeting at the South Rim on Friday night. I decided to take the day off from work and get there super early (like 2 pm) so I could walk around and be a little touristy. I got there, found our hotel room at the Maswik Lodge, and took off on foot exploring what the Grand Canyon Village had to offer. I did some shopping, got a "bite" to eat (as in, I ate prime rib at one of the nicer restaurants with a view!), explored the museums and watched the film in the visitors center. But I really wanted to see the sunset (I have never seen it here before!), so I stayed out until dark to catch a glimpse of it.  


Sunset on the South Rim.

Sunday, June 1, 2014

The Flood that was The Old Pueblo 50 Miler - Volunteer Report

Let me start things off by saying that a lot has changed since my last post. It's the reason why I haven't been around for a while. It's funny how one of my favorite things to do always gets pushed farther and farther on to the back-burner while other things get made the priority. The things that need more attention, like family and work, always seem to be put first. But it isn't necessarily terrible; it's just how life works out sometimes. 

Most recently, it has been my job that has been getting in the way. In my second year of teaching, I had issues with a coworker for quite sometime (from way back in October) and I really feel as if she should have been fired for the things that she did. She never was, and she continued to create tension and a negative atmosphere within the middle school building. It was horrible. There were many days when I dreaded coming to work because of the way she treated me, my coworkers, and my students.


Monday, February 3, 2014

I am a machine

This is my new mantra.

On my run today, I was repeating this phrase to myself...and it seemed it be working. Also, I was thinking about how I'd like to become a machine. And what I mean by this is that I want to overall be a stronger athlete, not just a stronger runner. 

I realize that this is a lot considering I took 2 months off from everything. And I mean everything
I stopped running, eating well, exercising, everything. I slept in, I ate junk food, I curled up on the couch and read some good books. It was a good winter, but it sure didn't involve the one thing that makes me feel really good, and that's being healthy.


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