Women Rock 10k Race Recap

The past couple of weeks have gotten away from me! With school starting this week, and teacher workshop last week, I have felt very out of touch with my social media friends, and with my training!!

Summer came to Minnesota a little late! Last week we suffered with temps in the upper 90's and humidity levels in the upper 70's! It was brutal, and what made it even harder to bear, was the start of teacher workshop week, which meant I would be working at a school building that had no air conditioning! It was my own personal hell!! I was so exhausted from fighting the heat, that I did not run even once!!



Not running was really strange, after coming off of a 30 mile week, just the week before! As much as I wanted to get out there and actually run, the heat and the humidity was just too much for me! I wasn't worried too much because on Saturday I ran the Team Ortho Women Rock 10k, and I was okay with doing some tapering, but the heat scared me, and I could not drink enough water to keep hydrated!

I ended the week feeling really nervous about the race, it was going to be hot and humid, and I was beyond sick of the heat!!

I didn't have to work on Friday, and so Ryan and I took the day to head up to Minneapolis to do some shopping, and go to packet pick up!

The venue where packet pick up was held, was not air conditioned and it was terrible!! I was dripping with sweat from the minute I stepped inside the expo! Yuck!

We quickly picked up my packet, and took a spin around the expo. I probably would have stayed longer, had it not been so hot, but I just couldn't take it, and we left after picking up my bib, timing chip and post-party wristband, without buying anything. :(

We spent the rest of the afternoon just cruising around MSP, and ended with a simple dinner at Outback Steakhouse (not my choice).

It was an early morning wake-up call that had us spend the night at our favorite MSP hotel: the Westin. My sister, who was running her very first race, picked us up before 6am, and we were off to St. Paul for the race!

Parking was a breeze, thanks to our early departure, and we arrived at the racer's village about an hour before gun time.

That was good, because it was CROWDED!!! And we had to figure out how to get Ryan his spectator pass for the post-race party. My sister had purchased it online, with her registration, and had not received the pass when she picked up her packet. We talked to about 5 volunteers, and walked back and forth between different areas of the racer's village before getting a 1/2 assed answer: Pick it up when you enter the party.

I have run a lot of Team Ortho Races, and this was by far the least organized race! It felt to me, like they needed a couple of more hours to get things set up before the runners arrived. Nothing seemed to be ready! When we got to the start line, they were still building the finish line, there was no music or announcer (which they usually have at Team Ortho Races!). It was really weird.

My sister and I jumped into the 9 minute/mile corral and waited for the start. It was a sea of pinks and purples! Women of all shapes and sizes were getting ready to run, what was going to be a very sweaty race! The humidity was already in the 70's and the temp was climbing ... it was only 7am!!

About 3 minutes before the start of the race, the announcer arrived (he was sick?!), and we were all told to move toward the starting line. Anne and I ended up about 10 people from the actual starting line! Closest to the front I have ever been! Most of the women had lined up in the 12-15 minute mile pacing areas, so we were out front!

The gun went off and so did my sister!! She looked back at me and yelled, "Have a great race!!" and she was off!! Um.....?!?!

The first mile proved that this was going to be a hilly race!! We headed uphill pretty much for the entire first mile!! At about .75 miles, my stomach acted up!! Grrr! Luckily there were some potties at mile 1 and I made a pitstop (10 minutes!?!?!). I had been suffering from stomach issues all week, all of those terrible stomach problems that I suffered from two years ago had come back, full force!! Still this week, I am suffering, and barely eating, because I cant keep anything down. So, I knew it may happen during the race, I was just really hoping it wouldn't!! At very least, it was a fresh potty and I was the first person to use it!!

So, there went 10 minutes of my race --- no PR for me!!

Mile 2 was again hills, up and down and up again!! I was getting frustrated, because, I knew I would have to see these hills again after the turn around!!

Close to mile 3, I saw Anne on the other side of the road, she had made it to the turn around and was headed back! My side of the road was climbing another grueling hill (seriously!!! It was a long one!!), and my sister went CRAZY!!!! She started shouting at me, "Make that hill your bitch!! You got this!! Kill that hill!!" People around me were laughing, and looking around at who she was shouting at..... I just put my head down and kept going!!

The heat was really getting to me, I was upset about my stomach and the loss of 10 minutes, I needed water, and was hoping that at the turn around there would be a water stop. No luck!! (I need to think about carrying my own water!).

It wasn't until mile 4 that I got some water, and some power-ade (something I NEVER drink because it makes my stomach crawl!!), and finally felt like I could finish the race.

The hills hit again, and mile 5 was a crazy uphill climb!! I was fading fast! It was so freaking hot and humid!!

I took a few walk breaks, calmed myself down, and reminded myself that I had run way further than this just a week before and it was great! At this point the 5k course joined the 10k course and it got crowded! Something that it really had not been since the start of the race! This was actually the first (BIG) race that everyone was very considerate on the course and walkers actually stayed to the right!! It was very pleasant!!

I powered to the end, where Ryan and my sister were waiting for me. My sister thought I was injured, because of the pained look on my face! Luckily for me she did not take a picture!! They both were covered in sweat and ready to move from the finish line!

I was so happy to be done! I wasn't however happy with my time : 1 hour 19 minutes!!! Not terrible considering how hot it was, how many hills there were and how sick I felt, but I would have been much happier with 1 hour 9 minutes.....or less?!?

My sister actually finished in 1 hour 6 minutes. So, had it not been for the potty stop, I could have been close to her!!

The finish line was a complete mess!! It was over crowded! First they had runners pick up their necklaces from the shirtless firemen, then get some water. It took me about 8 minutes to get to the water! I thought I was going to die!! Then they had food bags, and Kind Bars, and the lines were awful!!

I finally made it to a clearing and got out of the finish corral, I was dripping wet, and overheated!

We made our way to the after party, to drink some bubbly, and pick up my series medal. It was total madness!! No one had any idea what was going on, where we were supposed to enter, or where to pick up Ryan's spectator pass. After standing in a couple more lines (which are not fun after a run!!), we got in, picked up my medal, got our champagne flutes of ginger ale (the line for champagne was too long!!) we turned around and left!!

On our way out, we noticed that they were selling medals to the non-series finishers, and my sister, who is anti-medal ("I don't need a medal to know I finished!!") went crazy!! She needed a medal!!!! I just laughed and we stood in yet another line to get her medal!

She was so proud!! :)

I think I have created a monster!! -- she wants to run ALL the races now!!!

Overall this was my least favorite Team Ortho Race, as it just seemed unorganized from beginning to start. The heat, humidity and hills did not help me to enjoy this race.

Team Ortho said this race would have cheer squads, fun signage, and music on the course, none of this did I see. It was a disappointment. Not that I need these things for a race, but when promised, why not deliver?!?

I did, as always, love the women only race format, I think it is so great to have a course w/o men, it completely changes the feel of the race!

Next up for me, the Twin K 13k sponsored by Lululemon!!


What is your next race??

Race Schedule

Here are my up-coming races:


August: Team Ortho Women Rock 1/2 Marathon:

October: Mankato 1/2 Marathon (2014)

 October: Team Ortho Monster Dash 1/2 Marathon

October: TC Looney Challenge (5k, 10k & 10 Miler)

November: Disney's Wine & Dine --> Disney World

November: Disney's Avenger's 1/2 Marathon --> Disneyland

April: Big Sur

May: Pixi Dust Challenge

Do you have any races coming up? What is on your calendar? Are you running any of these races?

Race Recap: The Color Run

This weekend was a 2 race weekend for me! And although they were both only 5ks, the whole experience left me feeling pretty badass! :)

On Saturday, I ran the Go Commando Adventure Run. You can check out the race recap here.  On Sunday I ran the Color Run at the Minnesota State Fair grounds in Minneapolis.

My before Picture

It seems like just about everyone is familiar with the different versions of the Color Run. It is essentially a 5k that has 4-5 different areas where volunteers throw a colored powder on you. Runners are encouraged to wear white clothing for a maximum effect!

When I signed up for this run, I was pretty excited. I had heard about many others who have had a blast at this type of run. I signed up right away when registration opened, but could not convince any of my running buddies to join me. No one else really thought having stuff thrown on you while you run sounded fun!

Starting Corral! Packed!

As "race" day approached, I also started feeling like this may not be as fun as I thought. I tried to keep a positive attitude, but just wasn't feeling it. I mean, I had a really cute outfit picked out, and everything, but I just couldn't get into the mood!


The morning of the run came, again my sister and boyfriend came along for support. My wave time was supposed to be 9:15am, but we got there early, and there were thousands of people!! The starting line was over 2 blocks long!! I just jumped in where I could and got started. I don't know what time I actually started running, but it was before 9:15.

In the starting corral, it first became apparent to me that this was not going to be so much of a run, but more of dodging walkers and strollers type of run. Most of the people I talked to in the corral, had never run a 5k before, or had actually never even run before and were just there to walk.

Strollers...

After quite a wait, we were let through the starting line, and to my surprise, we were actually moving at a pretty good pace! I think it was when I caught up with the wave that went before us that the traffic jam began! It was packed!! White shirts as far as the eye could see! It was a pretty cool sight!

Lots of people carried
their children & ran!!

I tried to keep a good pace, while dodging little kids, strollers and walkers. It was rough. At one point I even looked around to see that I was the only one of about 200 people who was actually running! People were actually looking at me like "what are you running for?"


It was a weird vibe.

About a 1/2 a mile in we hit the first color, blue! I ran through while the volunteers (who were covered head to toe in blue!) sprayed  me with the colored powder. I was disappointed that not much of it actually stuck to me! It wasn't really sticking to my clothes, but more to my arms and face and teeth
(I was smiling!)

Just about every 1/2 a mile there was another color. People were so excited to get this powder thrown on them. It was actually pretty funny! As much as I tried to get a lot of powder sprayed on me, it just wasn't sticking!

By mile 3, I was sick of dodging people, and really happy to see the finish line. I just wanted to be clean again!

My "after" picture! Not a ton of color...

According to my "fans" I finished in just under 38 minutes. Not a PR by any means, but pretty good considering the amount of people and the back and forth path I had to run!

The finish line was a huge back up that lead into the post party. This part was pretty cool, as they have color explosions every 10 minutes. But it was so crowded! They said there were more than 20, 000 people in the post party when I crossed the finish line, and more were coming in!! CRAZY!!

My sister took these pictures, I am in there somewhere!

We didn't stay very long at the party, just long enough for me to get in on one of the color explosions. I was tired of the crowd. The clean up of this type of race wasn't so bad. There is no clean up at the race its self, so I just stripped down to my compression shorts and sports bra, wrapped a beach towel around myself and got in the car. At home it was much harder than I thought to scrub the color off of my skin, it took forever! And even though I bleached my clothes, the color did not come out. :(

While this is not a  race  run I will probably do in the future, I am glad I experienced it once. I always think it is amazing to see so many people getting excited about exercise! Even if they were not running, they were out there! I can see that this type of run is a springboard for some to try other 5ks and get into running.

Color Explosion!

I also think it is cool to see so many people having a great time together. There were no issues, everyone was happy! That is such a great thing to witness!

Here are some tips if you are planning on doing this type of run:

1. Wear a cotton shirt. While is it not comfortable to sweat in, I think it holds more color. I wore a tech top and it did not catch much color.

2. Wear old shoes! I wore some shoes I really didn't care too much about, but at times I was plodding through ankle-high colored powder! So, your shoes really take a beating!

3. Run with a group! I think this race would have been a lot more fun with a group of people, running alone was pretty boring.

4. Don't expect to PR or even run the whole way! These runs are money makers and they are crowded! Do not expect people to respect or even know about race etiquette!! Walkers are everywhere!

5. Make sure anyone coming to watch is wearing clothing that can get dirty! My sister never dresses down and was not happy when she got some color on her "good" shirt!!

Have you ever done a Color Run? What did you think?

Go Commando! My First Mud Run!

Today was my very first mud/obstacle run experience. I ran the Team Ortho Go Commando 5k in Minneapolis.

To say I was a little nervous about this run, would be a huge understatement! I was more nervous about this race than I have been about any other race I have run. I guess the reason being, is in a traditional road race, you know what you are getting into, but a mud run has a bunch of surprises waiting around each corner! And, anyone who knows me, knows that getting dirty and muddy is not really my thing! 

We had a huge storm last night, and this morning when I woke up it was still pouring, which made me even more nervous-- more mud!! By the time we made it to the parking area, the rain had stopped, and it was quite chilly. 

On the bus. Very unsure!

My boyfriend and my sister both accompanied me to this race, and I was really excited to have the support! They both took the pictures you are seeing here, and did a great job cheering me on and making me smile!

Once we parked, we got on a school bus and were bussed to the race area. The bus ride seemed to take forever, and it was making me even more nervous. Once we finally arrived, we got a good view of the course and I was about ready to turn around and just head home. It was pretty intimidating!

When trying to decide to what I should wear to this race, I decided to just go with what I am comfortable with, and I rocked my favorite Team Sparkle skirt and Blood, Sweat and Sparkle tank. I was unsure of what type of shoes to wear, and ended up going with my Five Fingers, which I was really happy with during the entire race! I was feeling pretty badass about my outfit, and it gave me some courage to get in the start corral! 

The beginning of the race was pretty easy, just nice rolling hills, until I hit the first obstacle. This was by far the scariest of them all! It was an up-and-over cargo net. The whole thing was pretty shaky and the hight of it was pretty scary too. It took me longer to get across this obstacle than I thought, and then I was off running to a very similar obstacle. sans cargo net. This one was much easier and I was able to climb over it pretty quickly!

Up the this point I was still clean and dry! Just a few more feet and I was running through thigh-high water and mud!! It was actually more fun than I thought it was going to be, and after crossing the first water, I felt much more comfortable with the whole race. 

Log crossing! 

A few more hills, and I came to the 2nd water crossing, it was a long series of logs that runners were expected to run across. With my Five Fingers on, I felt really stable on the log, but there were a lot of people on the log and one woman started spinning the log (yup, it was like a fricking Lumberjack competition!), and everyone fell off (including me!) into the chest-high water!!! 

Just a short run and I came across another obstacle in which I had to shimmy across some skinny boards, it was pretty harmless and allowed me to get back to running pretty quickly! Then came another water crossing, where I pretty much had to just run through some ankle/shin high water. 

Next came a longer run, and another obstacle where runners had to jump over some large hurdles. Up another hill and I came to an obstacle called "Over & Under". This one was hard for me, as I had to climb a wall, and then go under a second wall, there were 3 sets of these, and I was very tired afterwards! 

We finally hit mile 1!! I think that was the longest mile I have ever run!! 

Back to more water crossing, running across hay bales and a very steep and muddy hill! By this point I was really getting into the whole idea of a mud run, and having fun with it. This is the point I also met a couple who run mud runs just about every weekend! I had a great time chatting with them as we climb some more hills. 

I don't really remember the order of the next few obstacles, but there was a series of pretty easy obstacles, and a snow machine spraying us with water. This part of the race went really fast, thanks to the people I met on the course!

We ran down a really large hill and were back to the start, only to run up the HUGE hill that I was eying when I arrived at the race. This hill was a killer!

I'm 1/2 way there!!

At the top of the hill we came across a dumpster full of foam rubber, which we had to dive into and cross. The foam was very dirty and it was the only obstacle that felt really gross! 

After climbing out of the dumpster, we ran pretty much through a corn field, it was super muddy and slippery. I took it very easy, not wanting to twist my ankle! Half way around the field was a traditional tire run, and then the dreaded monkey bars! I really sucked it up on the monkey bars, but was happy that the course volunteers make each runner try the obstacle! I got 1/2 way across the monkey bars before falling.

We were now at mile 2.5! We ran down another hill, went through sniper alley (where snipers spray you with red water out of water guns!), and then down the water slide!! The water slide was so much fun! It dropped you back to the starting area, and dumped you into a pit of cold and muddy water! 

Ouch!

Bottom of the water slide

After getting out of the water, I ran up a sand hill, did a tire toss (think crossfit), crawled under a bunch of wooden objects, jumped over fire and made one more water crossing before coming to the finish line and the mud pit. The mud pit was deep, and sticky. Runners were supposed to crawl through the mud to the finish line. I was a little hesitant, but dove in and crawled towards my finisher's medal. This was the most painful part of the race as the mud was mixed with gravel, and just tore up my knees!!

Out of the mud pit, I was awarded with my finisher's medal, and headed over to the fire hoses and bubble pit to clean off!

It was really hard to get all of the mud off, so I did my best and then changed into some clean, dry clothes! 

Overall, it was a really good experience, and I was surprised at how tough I actually was able to be! I did not hesitate getting muddy and dirty, and had a lot of fun! 

While this is not a type of race that I will do a lot of, I will probably do this same race next year. I think my boyfriend and sister want to run it too! 

I really enjoyed the set up of the race (Team Ortho races are so well done!), and the venue of the race was really nice! It was fun not to worry about my time, and to just have fun with the run! 

If you are in Minnesota, and want to try a mud run, I highly recommend this one to you! If you are thinking about trying a mud run and are nervous about it, my advice is to find a 5k, and just go for it!! 

Tomorrow I am running my 2nd race of the weekend: the Color Run! Re-Cap to come!! :)

Have you done a mud run before or do you want to do one? What did you think of it?