We had a very chilly, rainy weekend. That would typically lead one to believe we will have lots of flowers bloom in the next week or two. But a lot of our flowers bloomed in March during a warm snap and then promptly died with the next frost. So I guess we’ll see.

I used this past weekend to recover after an exhausting week at work in Virginia Beach. I was very worn out when I got home on Friday evening and slept for nearly ten hours that night. Saturday was rainy and cold and I spent much of the day unpacking, doing laundry, and relaxing around the house. Barry and I watched the Boston Marathon, which was fun and inspiring (as always)! The men’s and women’s races were both so exciting, but especially the women’s finish. Talk about seeing who has more guts!

I did a short 3 mile run with Sven, the treadmill, on Saturday evening. I made it into a progression run and continually bumped the speed up throughout the run. It felt good to push my legs like that, although my calves were screaming. After that Barry surprised me with a date night to Red Lobster. I got the parmesan crusted tilapia. It was good, but I think mine is better 🙂

Yesterday morning I woke up to more rain and 40 degrees. Luckily I had plans to meet up with Kim, so that I would get my butt out the door. We had a nice 6 mile run and enjoyed catching up. The trail was really pretty, because everything was so green. We weren’t sure if the low water bridge would be underwater or not, due to flooding earlier in the week, but luckily it was fine.

We did see a lot of evidence of flooding along the trail, including sections where gravel had been put back down on the trail and other sections where gravel was all washed into the embankment along the trail. The fresh gravel felt very much like running through sand. We also saw a picnic table in a tree! It’s normally on the other side of the creek in a grassy area at least 100 yards from the bank.

In the afternoon Barry and I headed a few miles down the highway to have lunch with his parents and spend the afternoon visiting with them. We ate at a really yummy Italian place and I got Greek pizza. Yum! After lunch we headed back to their house for a bit.

After a few hours of visiting, it was time to hit the road and head on home. Hopefully work this week will be mild and follow a standard schedule, because I’m still recovering from last week!

Are you starting to see lots of leaves and things blooming?
Who else watched Boston? What did you think?

Every year I have a week long annual meeting for work, typically in Virginia Beach. Last year it was held the week following Conquer the Cove 25K trail race. This year, it was the week after Blue Ridge. They sure do like choosing weeks where my legs are going to be too tired to do any major running while at the beach.

First off, I wanted to say that I was a bit bummed when I found out when our meeting would be this year. It meant I had to miss the Boston Marathon on Monday. I often like to play hooky from work and watch the TV coverage (that’s what leave is for, right?). However, I did record it and am looking forward to watching it this weekend!

It’s been a crazy busy week, and I’ve been going from 7:00 AM to 11PM or so. That, combined with the sounds of freedom flying by overnight, have made for one tired girl. But I managed to drag myself off of the pillow Wednesday morning for an invigorating sunrise run.

Look what I spotted during my run!

The mile 26 marker for the Shamrock Marathon that takes place here in March. I have finished a half marathon on this boardwalk, back in 2007, and I imagined what it would be like to finish a full here. Barry’s face says it all.

I was able to sneak in another run this morning before starting my work day. I like being out on the boardwalk early in the morning and seeing other people out and about while it’s still quiet and peaceful.

I would have liked to get in more running, but it’s probably for the best that I took it a bit easy during the week after Blue Ridge last weekend.

If you travel for work, do you have to adjust your typical workout schedule?
Is anyone else going to be at the beach this year?

I’m joining in on Debbie’s Wednesday Word link up this week, in conjunction with my Blue Ridge race recap. This weeks word is rewarding.

I think running races is very rewarding and it also drives my running. There’s nothing like crossing the finish line after a hard fought day out on the course. It is definitely rewarding and it makes me feel happy and accomplished. Really tough races, like the Blue Ridge Half Marathon, are even more rewarding to finish than other races.

We were up early Saturday morning to make the hour drive up to Roanoke. We were able to park in the same lot at Barry’s parents and meet up with them upon arrival. There was a construction porta potty in the parking lot and we took advantage of the short line. The lines at the race porta potties by the start line were really long this year, which we observed as we made our way up to the start line.

Barry and I lined up and got ready for the start of the race. The race ended up starting about 5 minutes late, because they were having issues getting the chip timing system ready. It was already starting to heat up, and it was really muggy with 98% humidity.

Just after 7:40 AM they fired the starting gun and we were off! As always, it was exciting to cross the start line and begin another 13.1 mile journey – my fourth with Blue Ridge. My legs felt a bit heavy and sluggish as we started out, but I told myself it would be find and they would loosen up. And they did.

Just before hitting mile 1, we began our climb up Mill Mountain. This year I decided to use a 0.1 mile run/walk strategy and it worked great for me. I felt good the whole way up Mill Mountain and I really enjoyed the climb and being out there.

 

I feel like I conserved energy on the way up. This wouldn’t be necessary if they hadn’t added a second mountain to the course last year, but they did, so I adjusted accordingly.

Before I knew it we made it to the top, a little over 3 mile into the race. It’s a great view from the Mill Mountain star, looking down on the valley below. Those tall buildings are where we started the race.

From there we began the two mile descent back into the valley. There’s a house we pass on the way down that has a little cow statue and they are always handing out “moo-mosas.” This year (can’t remember if they’ve had these before) they had Chik-fil-a themed signs advertising their moo-mosas, which I thought were really fun!

The final half mile or so down the mountain becomes very steep. The road looks really neat because it serpentines with tight switchbacks. This part is tough to run, and you have to try and relax and let gravity carry you down and stay right above your feet. I did find this year that my ribcage got really sore on both major descents. I think it’s because I’m still having my ribs worked on to get them right. The good news is I didn’t have any breathing issues during the race!

A little before mile 6 I made it off of the mountain and ran back by the bridge we ran over at the start of the race. My dad, sister, and Barry’s parents were waiting there to cheer me on. It gave me a boost to see them!

After Mill Mountain, we headed for the Greenway and ran along the river for a little bit. My quads were feeling pretty trashed from the two mile descent down Mill Mountain, but I kept plugging away. I did take a few short walk breaks, but walking didn’t really feel any better than running. There were a few rolling hills through mile 6, but nothing serious compared to what was coming.

Around mile 7.5 we began the climb up Peakwood. This was the second climb of the day and I think it is the tougher climb. Mill Mountain is a bigger climb, elevation-wise, but Peakwood packs in more elevation gain in a shorter distance. So I think the grade is steeper. Plus you already have 8 miles on your legs at this point, and one previous mountain.

I had hoped to do the run/walk thing again on the way up Peakwood, but I ended up power hiking a lot of it because it is just so steep. It’s a residential area and I can only imagine what it must be like to grow up on this road. Imagine trying to learn to ride your bike on this thing!

While I was climbing up Peakwood, the leader of the full marathon went by. He was at mile 17 or 18 at that point, and was climbing his third mountain of the day, and he was crushing it. He ended up breaking the course record by about 3 minutes.

I had some issues with my right calf cramping on the way up Peakwood. It was pretty hot at this point and my calf had become sore earlier in the week. We had a bit of a reprieve from the climbing (see elevation chart above) before making the final push to the top. Once again, there was a big party with champagne and all.

From there it was another descent down another mountain. This descent is about a mile long and honestly I kind of felt like this part was worse than the climb up. My quads had little waves going through them and I kept waiting for them to completely cramp up. I just hoped I wouldn’t fall on my face on the steep downhill grade if it happened. Luckily, I didn’t have to find out what would happen.

Back on the valley floor we faced another tough climb just before mile 11. It wouldn’t be such a tough climb, and I remember running up this hill when there was just one mountain in the race in 2013. But now there are two and this little hill feels like a third one at that point.

After that last big hill, it’s mostly flat and downhill for the final two miles. Except for the last two bridges you have to run back over as you make your way into downtown Roanoke. The bridges felt tough and I felt so tired at this point, but I kept plugging along. Around mile 12.5 Barry met up with me to run me in. He always comes back to collect me.

There was one final little hill into downtown and then it was downhill to the finish. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but my goal at this point was to finish sub-3. I squeaked in at 2:59:44 chip time. My little sister captured this picture of me making my way to the finish.

Once I finished my right calf and both quads cramped and uncramped in waves. It was never full-on Charlie horse type cramps, at least. Eventually my muscles chilled out a bit and I met back up with Barry, my dad and sister, and Barry’s parents.

Barry gave me the rundown from his race. He had a great day and ran a strong race, finishing in 1:51:52. He placed in the top 50 overall and 7th in his age group. My dad and sister (not sure who had the camera) got a great shot of him coming off of Mill Mountain, and my sister got another great one of him finishing.

I grabbed some food and we hung out for a bit in the finish are and enjoyed the live music going on in the park. We got to meet up with several friends and hear how their day went, which was fun. It was really hot outside and very sunny, though, and eventually we decided it was time to head home.

Blue Ridge is a really tough race, and it is definitely the toughest road race I have ever run. Which makes sense, since it is “America’s Toughest Road Half Marathon” (along with America’s Toughest Road Marathon). This was my fourth year in a row running Blue Ridge and what keeps me coming back year after year is the scenic course, great organization, and the mix of local and world class talent. Not to mention the challenge presented by Blue Ridge. It’s a really neat event to be part of. Added bonus: the local news station does live coverage of the race each year. This year I was on live TV, as Barry ran alongside me towards the finish, for a full 10 seconds. Just us all alone 🙂 How neat!

It was a hot one this year, and that definitely made things tougher. But I know there will be plenty of Blue Ridge races in my future. Hopefully I’ll keep the streak alive next year!

Have you ever been on live TV?
Who else raced this past weekend? How did it go!?

I’m in Virginia Beach for the week for work. It’s going to be a busy week, but hopefully I can get some rest because I’m beat from this past weekend!

Things got started early on Friday afternoon when I headed up to Roanoke. I met up with my dad and little sister, who came down to visit for the weekend. First, we grabbed a late lunch at a local restaurant called Corned Beef & Co. It has kind of become a Blue Ridge tradition. My dad and I ate there the day before the race last year, and Barry and I ate there after the race the year before that.

Once we were fed and watered we headed over to the race expo for Saturday’s Blue Ridge Half Marathon to pick up Barry’s and my bibs and shirts. I also scored this awesome poster!

Before leaving Roanoke we walked over to the finish line since it was nearby. I think it’s neat to see the setup and imagine all of the people that will be there and run through there the next day.

From there we all headed back to my house. Hank and Scout were thrilled to see my dad and sister. We had our typical pre-race pasta dinner and then headed to bed fairly early.

We had an early wake up call Saturday morning and were on the road to Roanoke for the race by 5:45 AM. Barry’s parents also came up to cheer us on at the race and we easily met up with each other once we arrived. It was a hot one this year for Blue Ridge – I’d guess the hottest year they’ve had yet. Barry ran a great race and I felt like I did well considering my training and the weather. All the dirty details on Wednesday!

After the race Barry’s parents headed back home and the rest of us headed back to our house. We recovered a bit before heading out to explore the transportation museum in town that was recently finished. It was really neat! They had this huge replica of town with model trains along with some other neat stuff.

I think they did a pretty good job on the main street through town. On the left is the model and on the right is a picture I took on Saturday.

There was another large room that also had a lot of pictures and old relics having to do with the history of our town and county.

Saturday evening we took advantage of the nice weather and grilled out (pork chops!). I’m glad we went out to the museum and spent time outside on Saturday after the race, because it was cold and rainy yesterday morning. My dad and sister hit the road a little before Noon, Barry was at work, and I spent the afternoon doing laundry and getting packed for my work trip this week (I’m in Virginia Beach today through Friday!). The dogs were quick to take advantage of the vacant guest room. They’re usually not allowed in there…

Overall a fun, but exhausting, weekend that flew by too fast!

What did you do this weekend?
Do you travel for work? If so, do you typically have to drive or fly to get there?

Tomorrow morning Barry and I will be running the Blue Ridge Half Marathon. This is our fourth year in a row running the race, and it’s a tough one. Last year they added a second mountain to the half marathon course, making it ‘America’s Toughest Road Half Marathon.’ But there’s just something about this race that keeps us coming back year after year.

I feel like I’ve been singing this tune all year thus far, but my training is still not where I had expected it to be. I didn’t get in the base building or training I had hoped, but at least I had a great long trail run (which involved a mountain) the weekend before last. They always say you’re better undertrained than overtrained, although I don’t think they meant this undertrained. Despite that, I’m really excited for the race!

Blue Ridge has always been a great experience these past three years. The race is very challenging, and I think that gives you an extra sense of accomplishment when you make it to the finish.

My dad and my littler sister are coming down for the race and to visit this weekend. I will be heading up to Roanoke later this afternoon to meet up with them, grab some food, and then hit the race expo to pickup our packets for tomorrow. This is what we will be facing in the morning:

In light of my less-than-ideal training, I have a new strategy this year. I will be invoking a 0.1 run/0.1 walk pattern on the way up Mill Mountain (the first major climb). I also hope to use this on the second climb up Peakwood (miles 8-10), although that one gets really steep for the final half mile. I used this strategy while climbing Brush Mountain two weekends ago and it worked really well for me. Hopefully it will help me conserve energy tomorrow.

Overall, I plan to go fast enough to get there but slow enough to enjoy the views (I saw that quote on Instagram, but I can’t find it now!). That will be my story anyway.

Who else is racing this weekend? We’re expecting warm and muggy temp’s tomorrow morning.