Miami Beach Halloween Freaky 4 Miler – October 26, 2013

This race distance was new this year for this event, usually it is only the half marathon distance and I was not sure of my ability to run two half marathons so closely. When I found out they had a 4 mile race I thought it would be fun since I had never done a 4 mile race, and since most of my weekday runs are 4 miles I knew it would be easily doable. Plus the aspect of dressing up in a Halloween costume and running was a good combo. Took some time to figure out what I would wear that I could run in. I chose a gladiator costume that was short enough to wear a running skirt underneath and easy to run in (did a very short test run in my backyard to test this).

On a bridge.

Finishing with my sword out!

I was just unsure about the whole carrying a shield and sword throughout the race. I came up with the idea of putting the sword in a loop on my skirt and holding only the shield to run till the end when I would whip the sword out for the finish line photo. I have to say that idea really worked except for the fact that it was a very windy morning which was not ideal for running with a shield that was determined to hold me back. I ran the 4 miler pretty quickly despite my pace being a minute slower than normal. I lost the headband that came with my costume on the first mile, it was that windy! After the race there were buses to transport everyone back to their cars but they said it would be awhile before they left so I took a little walk down to the sand. When I was starting to walk back to the finish line and bus area I got to see the first female half marathoner finish. I love finishing races at the beach because there’s nothing like walking out onto the sand after a race and just seeing the calming ocean to relax you. I couldn’t stay too long after this race because I had to race home and get ready for my friend’s bridal shower.

The beach is the best finish line.

This was also the race that I decided to start dedicating my races to my friends. It really helps me stay focused and keep going despite my mind telling me to stop and walk. This race was dedicated to Gio.

Mini werewolf medal.

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Susan G Komen Race for the Cure – October 19, 2013

I’ve walked this race a couple of years and last year it was my first running race.

Even though it was not technically timed it still counted as my first ever race. This year they added timing chips if you signed up as a runner, not a lot of people signed up as runners. As this a huge event with lots and lots of walkers I knew it would be challenging to dodge walkers and strollers most of the way. My aunt signed up too so I went with her, we got to downtown Miami about 6am. Walked around for 2 hours before lining up to race, that was a mistake I now realize. By then I had walked out all my breakfast calories and would be running on near empty. As I sometimes do I took off way too quickly at the beginning, marking my fastest mile according to my NikePlus app but also the reason I blew up a mile and a half into it. I ended up walking up the bridges and part of the way up another. There is a small somewhat steep bridge on the course and it gets me every time. I finished but was pretty disappointed in my time, I grabbed my water and a banana from the food tent and sat on the hillside to watch for my aunt to finish. I am pretty good at guessing what time my friends and aunt will finish and I was by the finish line chute when she crossed the line. Overall I was disappointed in my performance at this race, I know not every day will be a great race or PR but I just felt really bad about this 5k. But there’s always next year, when I will hopefully take on that bridge without stopping. First race in my new pink Brooks PureConnects.

Starting line.

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Hyundai Hope on Wheels MCH 5k – September 21, 2013

The course for this race was familiar to me, as I had just ran the MS 5k back in April. Right around the golf course in beautiful Coral Gables, starting and finishing by city hall. I was pretty excited as the last time I had ran this course I had placed 3rd in my age group. Earlier that week I had convinced my friend Romney to run this race, this being his first timed 5k race.

With Romney & MJ

Even though the start time was at 7:30am the day was already very humid and hot. The usual Miami weather, but unlike the race the weekend before there was not a cloud in the sky, blazing hot sun. Luckily the beginning of the race was under the large shade trees but heading back towards the finish line the sun was directly in everyone’s eyes. Not the best finish to a race but sprinting to the finish helped me pass quite a few people apparently. Not only did I set a new 5k PR but I also finished the race an entire minute faster than the ZooRun 5k from the previous weekend. Once I finished I grabbed some water and a banana and went back to the finish line to cheer on others while I waited for Romney & MJ to cross. Earning a medal for a 5k is definitely cool and this race proceeds helped out Miami Children’s Hospital. I can remember when my sister was sent to that hospital when she broke her leg and had to be put in a body cast, but that’s a story another time.

Cute medal

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Weston Annual 4th of July 5k – July 4, 2013

**I know, I’m posting all these recaps very very late. I’m also trying not to post them all at the same time so as to not annoy everyone who subscribes to this blog. Soon we will be up to date 🙂 **

This was my first race back after surgery and to say I was nervous was an understatement. I almost puked before it started! My friend German joined me for this race, his 2nd real race. Waking up at 5am was definitely not an easy thing but it is something you get used to when doing early morning races. This race did not start till 7am which was good since the summer heat and humidity just get worse after the sun rises. This race fell almost exactly 3 weeks after I was cleared to start running again, 9 weeks after surgery so I did not have that much time to prepare for it and try to get my pace back.

with my crazy patriotic aunt

My aunt and her friends also did this race, wearing headbands with flags all over them. I got as patriotic as wearing a red tank top. I started at the front because I did not want to waste too much energy weaving around people like usual. And of course someone dropped their phone right as they started and people started tripping and jumping over the lady. My pace was strong and fast at the first mile and then just before getting to the 2nd mile I started falling apart and having to walk. Mentally I was just not ready to start racing again and physically still had a ways to go in getting back to where I left off. At the turnaround part I looked back and spotted German, I thought I was seeing things because no way is he as fast as I am, that’s when I pushed myself to keep going. Plus I was having issues with my IHeartRadio app on my phone, it kept skipping songs & pausing so I was fumbling with my phone the 2nd half of the race. I walked for about 15 seconds a few times and watching runners pass me on the turn was starting to make me feel dizzy. I think it was probably anxiety about this race, making it something bigger than it was and I’ve since realized I can’t do that with any race. In the end I finished about the same time as my first ever race back last October. I was disappointed in myself but quickly started looking for my friends, German & Mariajose and ready to cheer them on at the end. After German made it slightly slower than me, I got my camera out of the car and prepared it for when my aunt and Mariajose would be about to cross the finish line.

More cowbell, German!

I caught them both! Afterwards we walked around and got some stuff from the sponsors and hung out with my aunt, who insisted on taking a pic with me. The Weston Fire Dept had their fire truck splashing water down at the end if you chose to run through it, I preferred to not, but it looked like fun! In the end I know it was too soon to race & the weather was also against me but it was a nice experience and I hope to do the race again next year. Afterwards I went home and napped for a few hours, then went to my first ever comic convention, SuperCon. It was a very long day but very fun 4th of July.

Nice pants, dude.

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Color Mania 5k – April 13, 2013

Another color run – this one was Amelia Earhart Park in Hialeah, I had never been there before so it was kind of cool to see while running through colorful cornstarch. This run I did with my friends Jenny & German, both were new to this color type of run, last race they did was the Zoo 5k back in February. A few days before I made us each tutus made with tulle & German didn’t protest too much about having to wear a tutu and while running girls kept complimenting him. Haha.

All clean & white in our tutus.

We got to the park pretty early but while lining up we noticed that it looked like rain clouds above us. Everyone was hoping for the best, that it would not rain during this color fest we were about to run through. I have done 2 color fun runs before so naturally I compared them and this one was on the low side since it had no sponsors at all. We were in the first wave so we got to be the first ones out, which I’ve noticed from the February race was a good thing since they would hopefully not run out of color to throw at us before we started. That was not the case with this fun run and we got drenched in color. We ran at a moderately slow pace of around 11-12 minute miles but the ground was quite uneven in spots and nearly twisted my ankle a couple of times. Good thing I wore my Adidas trail running shoes, they probably handled the terrain a lot better than most of the runner’s shoes did. Overall it was a fun experience due to the amount of color tossed on us and the company of friends. After the race they had a mini color toss every 15 minutes or so and we gathered a bit more color.

Colorful at the end!

We left there around 10:45am or so and headed to find somewhere to eat since the clouds were getting darker and we didnt want to get caught in a storm. We got to the Miami Lakes Ale House just as the rain started and had to run yet again, but this time to avoid being totally soaked to get into the place. There were a couple other Color Mania runners there as well. While we were eating it was raining so hard the roof sprung a leak and started leaking right by our table, we laughed and moved to another booth.

Pic stitch that Jenny made.

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Race To Stop MS 5k – April 7, 2013

This post is 5 months late, read the previous post to see why. (Now it’s 10 months late. Oops!)

I decided to get to the race an hour early, I’m usually early but not quite that early usually. I arrived in Coral Gables just as they were setting up their booths to hand out the race bibs. So I picked up my race bib and walked around a bit. A guy was walking around trying to get people to take a survey and they would get a neat bag that is good for cycling so I decided to take the survey. It took about 5 minutes and it was about an MS medication, I had just met someone a few months before that actually has MS so I learned a little about the disease that morning. I put all my stuff back in my car and prepared for the 8am start time. A late start in my opinion, I’m used to 7-7:30am start times since the weather here is so hot & humid by 8am. I lined up and was a little bit nervous since I had never run this course, but had biked a part of it a few years before.

Starting line.

Starting out it felt like every other 5k I’ve done, I started out really quickly, but this time I didn’t stop to walk at all. Finally I was running like I have been doing in my training runs for awhile now. Passing so many people really gave me a confidence boost, but what was better was the mile timers that showed me I was really going fast! The course led around a golf course and then through a neighborhood. First part of the race was done in the shade of all the lovely Coral Gables trees but the second half was sun glaring in the eyes to the finish line. When I ran through the finish I knew I had PR’ed but what I did not realize was that I had won an age group award! Never did I think that I would win any medals besides finisher medals. But after I walked around a bit, drinking water I decided to go look at the stats they were posting on the wall of the nearby City Hall. I was shocked and overwhelmed when I realized that I had placed 3rd in my age group!!! Best running moment ever. Only thing that sucked was that I couldn’t share the moment with any friends or family. I’m hoping that one day my family shows up to see what joy running truly gives me.

Coral Gables City Hall

My super dorky finish!

Picture of my 3rd place medal.

0 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – 13.1 Allstate Miami Beach – March 9, 2013

Sorry this post is a month late, I’ve been slacking off big time lately on this blog, but no fear, I am back!

Finally the day had arrived for my first half marathon, I had been training pretty seriously for the past 3 months, not even having any alcoholic beverages during training. I figured it was a much needed detox from all the holiday parties I had attended the month before. I tapered the week before and ran a 10k six days before, I was pretty confident I would finish, my goal was to finish in 2:30 or better.

On the morning of the race, I woke up at 4am to get ready & eat something, I left my house around 4:30am and got to Miami Beach around 5am, where the clubs were still hopping and people were stumbling into the street. I found a metered parking lot and when I went to pay, it said the meters didn’t start till 9am. Free parking! I walked over to the start line, used the porta potty before it got really crowded, another good reason to get to a race an hour early.

early morning starting line

The race was supposed to begin at 6:15am but started closer to 6:20am as the directors had to get police clearance for us to start, then all the elites started 2 minutes before. I lined up close to the 2:20 pacer, hoping that would keep me paced correctly and get me to achieve my goal of 2:30 or better. But as soon as the gun went off, I sped out of there quicker than I wanted to, but I was pumped after not running for 2 days before. At about mile 3.5 I encountered the first and most deadliest of bridges, The Julia Tuttle Causeway, it was hell since I’ve had no hill training, since I live in flat Miami and we hardly have any bumps in the ground. I survived it but it slowed me down a lot, to the point that I was even walking along the bike path at some points. After that bridge was conquered, everything seemed a bit easier for awhile. Ran through some streets in Wynwood/Downtown and saw some places I would like to go to, like Bunnie Cakes, an organic & vegan bakery. Around mile 8.5 I ate 2 Honey Stinger chews for energy but was starting to fade. I know around those next few miles I slowed down a lot. I knew I was not going to negative split and I couldn’t calculate my finish time, my mind was starting to go mushy. Around mile 9.5 the 2:00 pacer group from iRun caught up with me & kept urging me to keep running. I was at the point that I just wanted to walk for a few minutes to get my mind back into it. The pacer grabbed my arm and pulled me to run again, so I started running again, and got a bit ahead of them, maybe 100 feet or so. After a couple minutes I started walking again and they caught up with me again, and grabbed me and urged me to keep running with them. I stayed with them for a few minutes and eventually slowed down and watched them ahead of me. I think it helped that the pacer was a cute guy, that definitely was a motivating factor. The last 2 miles were the roughest I think, up until that race, I had only ever run 12 miles in training. There wasn’t too many people out at 8am on a Saturday, which was surprising. I did see a surfer heading to the beach just before I made it to the finish line, not sure how well the waves were though since it wasn’t very windy.

in the zone – almost to the finish line!

Finally when I started seeing more people ahead, I knew the finish line was close by, I tried to push it for the last little bit, not sure how fast I was going though. I was probably starting to get dehydrated because I don’t like to drink water during a run, and for sure my glycogen was burned. I crossed the line while Rancid’s “Ruby Soho” was playing & almost could not believe the numbers on the clock. I finished my first half marathon at 2:03:34!! At that point I think the runner’s high hit me, because as I was walking to the food I noticed the 2:00 pacer and I went up to him and thanked him for helping keep me motivated out there. I grabbed a banana, water and headed out of the crowded food area. I went right to the Naked Juice truck and got a juice sample, collected some free Neutrogena sunscreen. Then I made a big mistake, I found an empty Boucher Bros cabana and sat down on the lounge chair, my legs were just so tired by that point, running 13.1 miles and then walking around for around 10 minutes. I figured I would be okay since I had slowed down slowly and walked a bit after I finished the race.

showing off my new medal

the resting my legs right after: mistake!

After watching the elites awards ceremony, being shocked at their finishing times I got up to walk back to the car. Suddenly the soreness came over over me as I walked back to the car, my ankle started aching and I started walking like an old lady. Haha. Also walking back to the car I was almost hit by a big truck and a car, nice, I survive 13 miles but then get killed by a car, I can see that headline now. So I left Miami Beach before I got a parking ticket, I wanted to go to Coldstone’s but apparently they don’t open till noon. Sad. Went home, ate something and took a nice long nap and prepared for a night out with the girls. Little did I know we would stay out till 6am on Sunday, ha!

Overall I was very happy with the organization of the race, and I may try to start learning to drink water on my training runs. I’ve already signed up for the 2014 13.1 Miami Beach, and might sign up for the 13.1 Ft. Lauderdale that’s happening in November, I want to collect some of the Florida Storm Series medals. I can’t wait!

close up

my favorite picture from the race – on the 2nd bridge

8 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – iRun 5k/10k – March 3, 2013

When I noticed there was another 10k race in Miami, I knew I had to sign up since the Carnaval 10k was shortened and not a true 10k, I wanted to race a real 10k before my first half marathon. Although most people probably would not have done a race 6 days before their first half, what can I say, I’m a risk taker. Anyways another reason I wanted to do this race was because Adidas was one of the sponsors and I love Love LOVE all my Adidas gear. I signed up for this race about a month before, wondering how the course would be since the course map showed a neighborhood, not used to that at all. I picked up my race packet a few days before the race, it included an iRun temporary tattoo & a bag of coffee beans.

I love this iRun tattoo 🙂

The morning of the race it was chilly, I was prepared to wear 3 layers again but took off the compression core layer in the car before getting out. It was around 55 or so when the race began at 7am, so the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon. I have to say it was a very good race to run before my half, super well organized and everyone was very sweet, and no need to dodge and weave walkers at the beginning! 3 water stops as it was a double loop for the 10k runners, one loop for the 5k. We ran by some restaurants I had ate at before, including Andiamo’s, best pizza in Miami & through neighborhoods. I liked that some people were outside of their houses, staring bewildered at us all running & later on the second loop, they had brought out chairs to watch everyone. I liked the way the volunteers would urge you to go faster just before the finish line and all the people cheering when you crossed it. Very very awesome. After the race I kept moving and got a Smoothie King sample & banana and walked back to the finish line to watch everyone. Another great thing is that the porta potties had toilet paper AFTER the race too! And all finishers got medals! Fun time and great race, I will definitely be doing another iRun event, I wish I lived closer & could do their weekly runs too.

a new medal!

later in Starbucks, mirror pic.

2 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – Carnaval Miami 5k/10k – February 17, 2013

This was a very last minute idea, I think I probably signed up 2 weeks before this race. According to my half marathon training plan it says I should run at least one 10k. Crazily I’ve signed up for another 10k just before my half, but that’s a whole other story.

Race gear ready, minus one compression long sleeve that I later added.

I knew this would be a nice race because it ended on Virginia Key beach, and that’s always a sweet ending to a race. What I did not know was how the weather would get, I expected a 60-70 degrees as usual for an early morning. It was 40-50 degrees and in Miami that is considered practically snowing weather. I got to the race early so I could pick up my race shirt since I had only collected my race bib when I went to Footworks a few weeks earlier. Luckily I found parking closeby and once I got the shirt I threw it in my car and walked around a bit more. Everyone was trying to stay warm and the wind gusts did not help at all. It was so cold!

Gorgeous Sunrise

even the dj was freezing!

I met up with MariaJose, I had been friends with her on Twitter for a couple of weeks but we hadn’t met yet, so we lined up at the start together while chatting. And we were off, of course I started out way too quickly but slowed down and got into a good 8:30 rhythm. Before I knew it I was at the finish line, although because of some construction on one of the Key Biscayne bridges the distance wasn’t a full 10k, so it became a 6 mile race instead. I walked around after and gathered a banana and some snacks & waited for the results to be posted. I came in 4th place in my age group!! I was so happy, and went quickly to the finish line to wait for MariaJose. She arrived just as the kid’s race was about to begin, so she got to dodge all the kids lining up. It was a nice race, and with some interesting sights on the path. As soon as I left there I went to Jamba Juice, it had been awhile and I was thirsty for some fruits. The cashier was like “oh you are a runner!” all excitedly when she noticed my race bib still pinned on my shirt, that was probably the moment where I felt very very proud to be a runner.

Another silly finish line photo for me.

Jamba Juice post race goodness!

6 Comments Leave a comment

Race Recap – RunWild 5k – February 9, 2013

This was a race that my aunt had recommended to me soon after I told her that I was starting to run. She told me that they had great sponsors and it was for a good cause. Plus a day at the zoo afterwards sounded like a pretty good incentive also. I hadn’t been to the zoo in a couple years so I said, why not. I even got a couple of my friends to sign up, new runners! Maybe I talk about running a lot on social media and got them excited about it but I’m really glad they came along. The charity this race benefited was the Chapman Partnership, check them out to see how you can help the homeless.

So the morning of the race started out very eerie, the city of Miami was covered in a dense fog. Some people actually described it as Silent Hill-like. After arriving at ZooMiami the fog had mostly lifted and my friends set off to pick up their race packets. The line for race packet pick was extremely long and hardly moving. The race actually started 20 minutes late so that everyone would get the chance to start at the same time, otherwise half the participants would have still been waiting to pick up their race bibs. Running on Miami time, I suppose.

I bid my friends and aunt farewell and raced on. I know, I really should’ve ran alongside of them but I really wanted to PR on this 5k, unfortunately it didn’t happen. Probably due to the fact that I did my longest distance run on Friday morning, 12 miles, training for my half marathon. Now I’m positive I will be able to make it 13.1 miles in March. I was okay with my finishing time but I did realize that I started out waaaaaay too quick, beating my fastest mile PR at least. Dodging walkers and children at the beginning slowed me down a bit but after the 1st mile, there was no human obstacles. My finish time was 26.39, I was 168th overall and 6th in my age group. Everyone got a RunWild medal at the finish line, there was also a lot of good sponsors too. As soon as you finished, there were many volunteers handing out plenty of hydration such as water, Vitamin water and Coco Vita. I had some Alpina blueberry greek yogurt with granola on top, grabbed a banana, a KIND almond & coconut bar and headed back to the finish line to wait for my friends. Almost right after I arrived at the finish line one of my friends was crossing, then a few minutes later the other one crossed. It was perfect timing so we all walked around together so they could gather some nutrition from the sponsors. I got a Miami Heat cheerleaders poster for a friend of mine from the actual cheerleader & our group had our pic taken by someone who got our names. Stupidly none of us asked where the picture was going to posted, so we will be forever googling our names to find ourselves. Haha.

After the awards ceremony was over we took a nice walk through the zoo, getting lost and staying at the zoo much longer than we expected to. But hey, at least we got some time to take pics of the animals that we passed earlier, and some silly pictures as well. Still wearing our race bibs and RunWild medals we decided to get sushi for our post race meal and our waiter thought we had ran a marathon. We told him a 5k at the zoo and he ended up giving us a bowl of free cotton candy? Overall it was a really fun race that I will for sure do again next year.

Veggie sushi

My favorite race photo YET!

What is the most memorable place you have ran/walked a race at?

1 Comment Leave a comment

Organic girl's Blog

race recap

Miami Beach Halloween Freaky 4 Miler – October 26, 2013

Race Recap – Susan G Komen Race for the Cure – October 19, 2013

Race Recap – Hyundai Hope on Wheels MCH 5k – September 21, 2013

Race Recap – Weston Annual 4th of July 5k – July 4, 2013

Race Recap – Color Mania 5k – April 13, 2013

Race Recap – Race To Stop MS 5k – April 7, 2013

Race Recap – 13.1 Allstate Miami Beach – March 9, 2013

Race Recap – iRun 5k/10k – March 3, 2013

Race Recap – Carnaval Miami 5k/10k – February 17, 2013

Race Recap – RunWild 5k – February 9, 2013