One Bad Ass Runner

After Vegas, I started recovering for the Space Coast Marathon.  We have been doing this race every year to get our Big Bang Series, which means you have to run the race for the 5 years to get it.  Year 3 included the Milky Way Challenge Medal, which basically assures you are a candidate for the Big Bang Series and the Five Year Intergalactic Series medal, so long as you complete the next two.  I am doing the five marathons and hubby is doing the HMs.  This was his first HM.  The medals are based on each of the shuttles: The race is in Cocoa Beach, FL, home of the Kennedy Space Center and the Atlantis.  The race has a nice course full of small rollers (Little Blue might say otherwise, but it is not Florida flat by any means  ), but near the beach.  During the prior two years we have run it, the temps have been in the low 60s, cloudy, and not much of a problem.  We always look forward to this race as it has a great part...

After Las Vegas, I didn't want to write an RR because there was not much to say but that it sucked, I couldn't breathe, and I said fuck this shit out loud and stopped.  The pictures tell the tale.  But anyway, let me write it down a bit for consistency purposes.  Short Version: It sucked. After Chicago, I decided to give the RnR Las Vegas Marathon I had on the calendar a chance.  I had already ran Las Vegas in 2012, had an anaphylactic asthma attack at Mile 9 and went on to run/walk to finish (I don't recall ever DNFing a race before then but knowing now what I knew then, I should've done that).  Time was not my worse, but it was something like 5:14-5:32 (I don't recall; that's how miserable it was that I got amnesia).  So, I wanted to run it again since hubby wanted to do the HM and I wanted revenge on the course.  I mean, what could go run in 20mph winds and dust, which I'm lethally allergic to?  Seriously, I thought it would go better afte...

On Sunday, I ran the Chicago Marathon.  I have started this race three times and finished the last two years.  Since the first time I ran it, I had to DNF due to a ruptured ovarian cyst that ended up with my surgery, and the second time, my asthma didn't let me run as well as I wanted it, we can all call this race my nemesis.  I was expecting nothing less from this race. My coach prepared a training plan of 10 weeks that mimicked the Paris Marathon training we did, which was very successful for me (after all, times post surgery have been in the 4:40s and I ran Paris 2 seconds off my 4:34:09 PR with an asthma attack, a migraine and high blood pressure, so the plan looks to be a miracle provider).  Between these two races, I ran the San Diego Marathon as an easy run with my new blood pressure meds (never taken any before) and ran 4:4X and had a great time.  This time, I was on a second blood pressure med that tends to make me overheat.  I trained 95% on ...

I was thinking of not writing a report at all, but I really think I should talk about this "race" to get it out of my system.  Although this was not a goal race and I was not racing, the plan was to test my GMP outside since I have been stuck indoors since April.  So, the plan said 5 easy, 8 @ MP.  I had done this workout before the Paris Marathon at the A1A Ft. Lauderdale HM and it went well that time, finishing in 2:10 something.  This time, I was running faster than then and my GMP was faster, so I was curious to see what I ended up with, maybe a 2:08-2:09?  Something to tell me I was on the right track. As you know, I have been training for the Chicago Marathon and since our weather has been like this since April, with July, August and September looking like this morning, noon, and night, at feels like of 100Fs. There was no way in hell I was going to do MP runs outside, so I stayed on the TM.  Every day.  So, this would be the first time ...

On Sunday, I ran the RnR San Diego Marathon.  This was to be my backup marathon if Paris failed to give me the results I wanted but a lot happened between Paris and this race to made me change my mind.  I ran it for fun but still running a strong race, finishing in 4:46:32 on a hilly course.  Very happy with that. Long version: So, as you know, I ran the Paris Marathon after a great training cycle, hoping for a huge PR.  In the end, I ran it with what ended up being high BP (my readings were at the 158/90 to 165-95 ratio), a migraine from the BP, and an asthma attack.  So, coming in at 2 seconds from my PR was really good.  Yet, I was disappointed.  Once again, the asthma stroke after months of not even being an issue.  But, marathons are like that because, well, MARATHON. Anyway, I used the week post marathon to recover, running low miles and getting back on the horse soon thereafter.  My training for the 5 weeks after Pari...

Short: On Sunday, I ran the Paris Marathon with a time of 4:34:11, two seconds off my PR.  I am not angry at my time, but I am disappointed that once again, my asthma has killed my chances of having a good race.  The time is really not important to me and a minute or so PR would have left me more frustrated, as I know I am much faster than this.  But when you basically run the last half of the race at easy pace and almost PR after an asthma attack, there are some good things to take away from this exercise, right? Long: Two years ago, I registered for the Paris Marathon, only to have my husband switch jobs and canceling our vacation because he was unable to take the time off.  So, this race has been on my sights for a while.  The race is always held on the first weekend of April, unless that week is Easter week, in which case it moves to the second weekend. Unfortunately, I managed to register the year where Easter fell on race day so I ran a week lat...