Starting the year right

It's the New Year and there is nothing more appropriate than starting the year right, right? As for me I started it with Sammy the Seagull's New Year's Day 5k held in Scarborough and organized by Clambake Restaurant. This is one of my favorite races so far... for 2 reasons.

First reason: Hubby was with me. He finally watched me run... well sort of. He just waited for me at the finish line, actually and took a couple of photos. So it's very precious. I have been running for almost 2 years now and this one is the only race he watched or rather went to... to wait for me.

Second reason: There was a seafood buffet right after the race. And that was the "catch" to make Hubby go with me. LOL. So I ran the 5K race and Hubby ran to the buffet table. Just kidding. We both did as well as most of the participants their families. Why not? It's the New Year and we need to celebrate for good luck. And since I ran, I must be burning calories while I stuffed my mouth with fried onions, clam strips, baby shrimps, meatballs, chicken and yes, clam chowdah!

It was a nice sunny day today but cold and windy. The wind was so thick and I had a hard time breathing the entire race. Well, that is one of my alibis for placing 120th out of 135 participants. Or to nicely put... I rank 1st... among the walkers. LOL. However, compared to my last race, I made 2 minutes improvement on my PR which is 37:43 at 12:09 pace. And yes, a 60-year old lady beat me to the finish line again.

And yes, there are 2 things that I found different with today's race. 1. instead of a shirt, which is my main motivation for running... they gave us winter gloves. I don't like it. I need shirt for my collections. And 2. I felt like a celebrity because a cop's car followed me to the finish line suggesting I was indeed the last one to cross the finish line. :(

Well, the race was awesome and even if it didn't go well as I wanted to I was so proud of myself for making a good choice and happy that my Sweetest was with me. I just hope that someday, we will join me in the race even if just walking.

Last Race for 2012

Last November 24th, The 21st Annual Presidential Road Race 5K, concluded my 2012 5K races. Just like last year, this is also my last race for the year. And with that note, I am more determined to run more races in year 2013.

This is my 2nd race for this event and the 13th 5K for this year. The first time I did it was last year with Heather but we were late. However, we did manage to finish the race to my surprise after beating a couple of walkers to the finish line. LOL

This time, I was early. And I ran alone. Heather had to work so I ran all by myself. I finished the race as bad as last year's clocking... 40:12 with 12:57 pace and placing 165th out 177 participants. It was just 7 minutes and 41 seconds less than last year. But doing a little math here, I can say that I was indeed slower compared to last year's race.

Oh well, it is what it is. I would not blame it to my lack of training or my 12 hours job or the weather. I am simply slow and I need to work on that aspect.

Photo Credit: Thanks to Maine Running Photos.

My Reasons for Running

I wasn't in a hurry to get my bu*t moving to get to the venue for today's race. Why should I? It is barely 5 miles away from home. I could even run my way to get there but that is not really an option. It was kinda cold compared to yesterdays foggy day.

There were only few people there when I arrived. I assumed they were mostly family and friends of the organizers. There were quite a few kids too which I hate because I know those little ones will surely beat me to the finish line. They always do. But I had to admit they are cute and I am jealous.

I got there about 10 minutes before the race time. I checked in and got my number but my t-shirt's size ran out. I was not really very happy about it since it was my only motivation for running. LOL. Anyway, I settled to the next size up available just to get the souvenir of this particular race.

So I got there just enough time to do to some quick stretching before we race. This race is the first ever event organized to benefit Standish Recreation Department dubbed as Running for a Reason 5k. It took the Sabago Lake route in Route 35 though we didn't really run along the lake. We were just given a glimpse of the lake in the distant view when we negotiated the steep downhill going to Windham. And yes, I almost crawled my way uphill going to the finish line.

And true enough, the kids beat me to the finish line. They were already on their second servings of pizza when I crossed the finish line. I placed 8th from the bottom list. LOL Yup, 27th out of the 34 runners. I clocked in 38 minutes and 34 seconds making it 12:28 as my pace time. Oh well, what do you expect? That's what you get when your only reason for running is - to get a free t-shirt.! hahaha

Why RUN if you can ride... the waves!

So I didn't get the chance to run in the Philippines the way I planned to due to several storms we had when I was there. I didn't get the chance to even just do my regular 3-mile run as my work out because I was working hard on pigging out on my favorite foods that I have not tasted for 5 long years. And yes, if I was not dining out with friends and family left and right, I was on the road exploring different places and doing different activities.

So, my dear brother Japol brought me up north to visit Vigan City to walk back in time and immerse ourselves to the history of the past.

Then, we went straight to Urbiztondo, San Juan La Union and stayed at San Juan Surfresort for the night and met up with my TSS Sistah and Blogger friend Zen of the Letters in November.

The next morning, despite the natural signs of brewing storm, Japol talked me into doing something I never thought I would do in my whole life - surfing.

At first I was a little adamant to try it knowing that I am not a good swimmer. But then, with his constant bugging and persistent. I did it. I have no choice since he already made the arrangement for my first surfing lesson.

And so I did. Despite the fear of drowning and getting chewed on by sharks... I tried it. The instructor gave me quick lesson on Surfing 101.

Next thing I knew...I was riding the waves!

So there... I hanged loose!

 

Author's Note: Special thanks to my brother Japol for the photo coverage, the encouragement and the surfing lesson fee. hahaha

Running for the birdies and close encounter with the Walking Lady

This year, my goal is to run 2 races every month. So far, I was able to do it. I started last March when I celebrated my 1st Running Anniversary. The Snowy Egret 5k at Scarborough is my 8th race for 2012 and my 2nd race for the month of May.

This is my first "trail race" for this year [and hoping to do more]. I didn't know it until I ran the race. It was a nice nonthreatening course. Though it was a little humid, the shady trail kept us cool.

The race is a replay of my Maine Mall 5k experience in terms of "running". I ran this race again when I was passed by an elderly lady about sixty-ish years old who was just walking the whole time.

 

Let me tell you about this amazing woman. I saw this woman probably more than 5 times already since I started running. She seems to be all over the place. LOL And each time that we ran, she would just be walking the entire 5k race. She walks with grace like a royalty. She walks in a choreographed rhythm as if she was walking on air. She is fast and unstoppable. She never shows tiredness. She is relaxed and poised.

The race course had a one long straight route where we turn around at a certain point. On my way back I saw her from a distance in her signature graceful brisk walking coming my way. I continued jogging while a woman kept passing me by just like the one at the Mall race. By that time I was already contemplating to do the trick I did before but not really sure if I really want to or not.

 

After about 5 minutes of not-stop steady jogging, I realized that the walking lady caught up with me and she was walking right beside me and started talking to me when an spectator said... "good job" to us. It was then I realized that I was really jogging slow or maybe she was really fast. Well, I wasn't really threatened by her until that Maine-Mall-part-2 woman caught up with me again. Just in time, I saw that I was already almost 500 feet from the finish line. So, I sped up agian... sprinted... and ran as fast as I could passing again a couple of people on my way to the finish line.

I clocked in 36:08 at 11:38 pace and placing 181st out of the 225 participants. At the finish line I finally got the chance to talk to this amazing woman and boy, she is one of the nicest people I ever met. She even gave me advice on race walking and told me that she would gladly coach me to race walk. Her name is Debbie.

I did RUN!

This race is very special to me for 2 reasons. 1. It was at the Maine Mall. [self-explanatory, lol] and 2. I ran! [needs explanation, wink]

Here's the thing. I always brag about my race. What's not to brag? I am so proud of it. As I have mentioned in my "The High-heeled Diva Page" I am not an athlete. I never ran when I was little and was always a loser in "tag-you're-it" games. I am also a self-confessed late bloomer in terms of running. And now that I am enjoying it - I am more than proud!

The Jimmy the Greek Maine Mall 5k for Lyme Disease is one of the most memorable races I had so far. It is the race that made me realized what I am capable of doing. It is the race that I had outdone myself in terms of my assumed physical limitation. And yes, I had to admit that - it is the only race that I actually "RUN"! Really, I ran because I would usually just jog and walk to the finish line.

Let me tell you a funny story. I came unprepared for the race to be honest with you. I just wanted to have some valid reason to be at the Mall. [wink] But kidding aside, I did hope that I would somehow break my PR but didn't have any plan of doing anything stu*id. I just told myself... "okay, let's try to jog the whole race without stopping even for a drink". I thought that would be a good idea... just get it done with and go shopping." So I started with a slow pace as my usual warm-up and then went onwards with my usual steady jogging pace. About half way around the race, a woman passed me and after about 20 yards, she started walking. I was okay with it, at first since I didn't have any plan of passing and outrunning anyone this time. I just wanted to get over it.


But within about a mile stretch that same woman would do the same thing over and over again. And over and over again I passed her too since she would be walking out of exhaustion after exerting all her effort to outrun me. At first I was thinking she maybe just doing an interval run. But then, I also thought, "why would I do an interval run when I am in a race?" Oh well, I just brushed the thought off and continued running. About 300 feet from the finish line I heard her footsteps again. This time, I was already irritated so when she was about a foot away from me, I sped up. I sprinted to the finish line passing 3 people ahead of me. I ran as far as I could without looking back. I crossed the finish line breaking my last PR by almost 3 minutes. I clocked in 34:57 at 11:21 pace. I placed 202th out of the 244 participants and yes... she ate my dust!

Oh boy, the crowd went crazy when they saw me speeding up and passing 3 people. They were cheering and it felt so good.

See my big smile after I sped up to the finish line, passing 3 people ahead of me and outrunning that woman who ate my dust? LOL

Yes, I ran, this time. And maybe, I would be running too [since I realized that I can really run] in all the future races I will be joining in. After all it is a running race, isn't it? How cool is that?

My 6th 5K

The dogs beat me to the finish line. Yes, you read it right.

 The Bayside Trail 5K Run is actually a dog race. Well, sort of. The 2nd Annual Bayside Trail 5K race is an event that will benefit the Bayside Trail in Portland. It was open to everyone who loves to run and their dogs [on leash]. In my case, I run alone since I don't have a dog and don't have any intention of borrowing or buying one just for the event. But on hindsight, I should have done one or the other because I would have ran faster with a dog or rather... my PR would be better if I was dragged by a dog to the finish line. LOL

Well, I clocked in 39 minutes and 54 seconds. I blamed that for my lack of preparation. First, I didn't know where to go. I am not familiar to the place and my GPS can't find the location. How, stu*id it was huh? The only good thing is that it's a Sunday. Portland is not crowded on Sundays and parking is free.

Second, I bought a new pair of running shoes for the event. I got it from Maine Running Company where my feet were assessed and evaluated for pronation [whatever that means] and got fitted for the right kind of shoes to address my needs. I forgot to wear them when I ran. How silly was that?

Third, I didn't have breakfast. I would normal have cereals and bananas before the race and since I was in a hurry to get there, I just grabbed a fruit cup that I planned to eat in the car. That didn't happen. To think that I had it next to the new pair of shoes on the passenger seat. That really is stu*id!

But then, it was indeed a fun run. I had fun even without a dog. I was able to hold myself together to the finish line even without a new pair of runners. And I was able to enjoy a lot of food samplers at the Craft Fair where I went to after the run.

My [official] 4th 5K

Okay, so my supposedly 4th 5K didn't happen and I didn't get the chance to sign up for another race for August and September. But I was able to sign up for another race this October. The only problem is... I didn't realized that I signed up for 2 races this month. Urgggg!

Here's the thing. About 3 months ago I signed up for the very First Fit at 5K sponsored by WCSH6. It's scheduled today, 8th of October, 2011. Last month out of desperation to join another race, I signed up for the YMCA 2011 5K Trail Run. So the bottom line is... I will run 2 races two Saturdays in a row. Worse thing is I didn't have the time to train. Oh well, I decided to train on the race day itself. hahaha

The Fit at 5K was awesome. I clocked in 37 minutes and 47 seconds. Very impressive compared to my previous race and definitely something to brag about considering that I have not ran for 3 weeks. But more than that, this particular race is special because this is the very first race launched by WCSH Channel 6 spearheaded by no other than Kelly LaBrecque. I got the change to see her in person because she was there the whole time. It would have been awesome if she joined up. But then, the race is not about her. It is about those people who made a crucial decision to take charge of their lives and chose to be fit and health. Majority of the runners are first-timers and it felt so good because it gave me a little confidence and edge. wink**** Kidding aside.

It really felt good when I crossed the finish line with Kelly handing me my medal.It was such a fun race. It was such a memorable run. It was such a successful event. And I got my very first race medal. Yay!

Everybody's a Winner

It was huge. It was spectacular. It was epic. That is how I describe the 14th TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race held at Cape Elizabeth, Maine.

I car pooled with another volunteer I met during the Volunteer Appreciation Party last Tuesday. We left Standish early to avoid traffic. We reached Fort William around 6:30am and the parking lots were already piling up with cars. Well, we don't expect to see a lot of people there because the race will start 10 kilometers away from the Portland Head Light. This is where the Finish Line is. So the huge crown was somewhere in Cape Elizabeth near Crescent Beach State Park on Route 77 where the race starts.

I volunteered for the Water Finish. It may seem an easy job but boy, the task did give my "biceps" a hardcore work out. We laid out 6000+ water bottles. Transferring boxes after boxes of those water bottles from the delivery truck to the tables was like doing hundreds of repetitions of biceps curl with 30-pound dumbbells.

Volunteering has it's perks and benefits. We have free t-shirts. Yey.

 Excellent spot to greet and meet the runners.

 Easy access to the porta-potties. hahaha

 And yes, a great vista of the famous landmark - the Portland Head Light.

Needless to say, the event is a 'runner's dream race', if you live in Maine. It is an important race if runners from 49 states participated in.I believe it is a very significant event when there are 6000 plus runners who signed up.

 [Photo Credit: TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race]

And it is indeed a highly-recognized event  if there are 11 countries represented in the event.

At the end of the race, we did recognize and acknowledge the winners - the oldest at 86...

the "wheel-chair bound" athletes,

the Elite runners,
the resident runners,

the just-for-fun runners,

the families,

 the supporters,

 the spectators...

 and of course, the volunteers.

At the end of the race - everybody's tired...

and yes, - everybody's a winner too!