Racing Strong (Part One)

(Start of the SeaHawks Race)

               Saturday April 12th as I drove to pick up my race number for the SeaHawks 12k* (course description says it is 7.7 miles) I had some doubts about running the race the next day. Not because I didn’t think I could handle it but the logistics of just having moved to a new city and still learning how to do this whole race thing with a baby was a bit stressful. The fact that it was 7.7 miles did make me a little nervous not knowing how to pace myself for the distance. My longest run up to this point had been 11 miles once. I have been consistent with some 10 milers and my longest tempo type run was 4 miles which I did on Wednesday the week of the race and averaged 6:04 per mile. But I wanted the challenge. I actually was looking forward to getting myself out of my comfort zone and into the pain of grinding it out in a long race. I know this may not seem long to some but for me, where I am at in my training right now, it might as well have been a Marathon.
Saturday April 12

                The night before the race Levi and I figured out logistics. The race was sold out, thanks in part to the SeaHawks winning the Super Bowl this year, and it was advertised over 12,000 people would be in attendance. We would be driving from Lakewood, a 40 minute drive and I never count on I5 in that area to be a “fast” commute, not even early on a Sunday morning. Lucky for us it was clear and the drive was easy.

                Lilyana usually sleeps through the night but the past 2-3 weeks she has been waking up 1-3 times to nurse. After some reading online I found this is common at her age when babies become more mobile thus needing more calories, may be going through a growth spurt, and are usually teething. I went to bed far too late, I think I saw the clock say midnight and set my alarm for 6am doubtful I would actually use it. Sure enough at 5:30am Lily was up and ready to eat. I was lucky she decided to skip her 1:30am feeding. I climbed back into bed at 5:50am and laid there waiting for my alarm.

                Once I officially got up I realized I did not allot myself enough time to get everything ready. I was shooting to leave by 6:45am realistically thinking if we got out the door by 7am that would be o.k. I made breakfast, Lily’s breakfast which I packed in a cooler along with feeding supplies, and our lunches for the day. I quickly got myself dressed and ready and then got Lily changed and ready and we were out the door by 7:10am.

(Look Dad a tag!)

                The parking lots were already pretty full so we just drove to a lot about ¼ mile from the start so we didn’t have to deal with the hassle of finding a close lot. We parked and I tried to feed Lilyana but she did not want to cooperate. She was more interested in the fact that we were in the car and her Dad was sitting next to her. It must have been pretty entertaining because I would try to nurse her she would push away, look at Levi and give a huge smile. We tried covering her up but she would pull the cover down and do the same thing. There was definitely milk spraying everywhere. What a little stinker! It was 8am, my race started at 9am and by the time I was finished and would be able to feed her I knew it would probably be after 10:30am. Her last feeding was at 5:30am. I did not bring my breast pump either. I figured she would have no problem eating. Lesson learned. I managed to at least get some food in her and we had oatmeal and applesauce in the cooler if things got dire for Levi.

(Waiting for Mom to race)

(Finishing up my warmup)

                My warm up consisted of a jog to the porta potties, then some more jogging, followed by more porta potties. It was a very random warm up with lots of breaks but since the race was long for me I figured I would have plenty of time to warm up the first few miles. I am always nervous at big races about long lines to the bathrooms so I try to use them as much as possible while there aren’t any lines. This race did things right. With 10 minutes to go before the start I waited all of a couple minutes for a bathroom. Finally a race with enough porta potties!

(The start)

                It was a perfect day for a race, sunny, 45-50 degrees, and not windy. When the gun went off I settled into a relaxed pace. I told myself to stay as comfortable as possible and not go out too hard. I really had no idea what I could maintain for nearly 8 miles and didn’t want to find out the hard way half way through that I was running a pace I could not maintain. The course had rolling hills throughout and to be honest, towards the end these hills felt like mountains. I ran very even throughout the race averaging 6:04 pace and finishing fourth with a time of 46:33. During the entire race I could see the 2^nd and 3^rd place women ahead of me. I kept thinking I would be able to reel them in but the gap stayed the same. I tried really hard and never gave up but I never got any closer. With about .50 to go I was unable to really kick it in and let go of the idea of catching the women in front and focused on getting to the finish line. I was tired. The gap between us stretched a little more but I finished with a great effort for the day and another solid race in the books.

                It’s funny, when I first finished I was disappointed I did not get in the top 3 as I was chasing that spot the entire race. Had I ran a slower time and made it on the podium I would have been pleased with my race, being fooled into thinking a podium finish equals a great race. After seeing my time and what I averaged I had to remind myself I did better than I expected and managed to run the whole race at a pace I have only been able to hold for 4 miles during my training. It’s hard to be satisfied when you are so hungry for more and want to see results overnight. I have to be patient. Not feeling completely satisfied with my race I saw the Marines pull up challenge booth and decided I needed to see what I could do. They told me I needed 8 to win a t-shirt and I ended up doing 9. My muscles were still burning from the race but I wasn’t afraid of failing. Knowing you gave it your all, your body exhausted is a good feeling, win or lose.

(Pull Up Challenge at the Marine Booth)

                I have won races without competition and ran PR’s and not won. I could have chosen to do an “easier” race where I may have finished in the top 3 but what would be the point? In order for me to get to the racing level I want to be at I need to challenge myself, be uncomfortable, and not shy away from competition. That’s what I love about racing. That’s why it’s called a race. According to Google a race is defined as, “Competing with another or others to see who is fastest at covering a set course or achieving an objective.” On Sunday it just so happened my label for the day was 4^th. I challenge you to do the same. Don’t choose a race because you are avoiding competition. I could challenge Lilyana to a race right now, or my 92 year old Grandfather and I would win. But would there really be any joy in that? If I boasted that I beat a bunch of kindergartners in a foot race would you be impressed? Or think it was just sad? Put yourself out there. Be brave. You will never know what greatness lies within if you don’t get out there and rise up to the challenge.