Phoenix Rock and Roll Marathon Race Report

Me just past the finish line. Red faced and sweaty, but happy to be done.

I signed up for this race as a way to force me into running during the winter. I generally get pretty lazy after October and just veg until the New Year.

I was so glad I did this race! First off, I got this whole new training experience. I’ve always wondered why in the world anyone would want to run out in the cold. I also thought people were lying when they said they really weren’t cold while they were running. I tried to run a few times during the winter, and I had some pretty miserable experiences.

Now I realize that with the right gear, it actually is pretty enjoyable. I also got to get settled into our new ‘hood. I was feeling a little lost back in October. We had a mega-ward of over 1000 people and I started feeling pretty lonely. I missed people saying “hi” and chatting in the halls at church or stopping by to talk while the kids played. Miraculously, running also solved that problem. I was invited to train with a couple of amazing women and those early morning runs developed into a friendship that made me actually want to get out of bed at 6:00 am and head out into snow, ice, wind, etc. just to get the chance to talk with these ladies.

Unfortunately, by mid-December I was feeling a little burned out on having to warm up my butt every morning after coming in from the run. If you are a runner, you probably know what I am talking about. Sometimes, an hour long soak in the tub is just not on the agenda. Especially when I tell myself I can run on the treadmill and watch a movie instead.

So I kinda slacked during the holidays. But I’m still pretty happy with the results. And I always love having a destination race, especially one where I get to see one of my sisters. I stayed with Bekah and her cute family for a couple days before the race. The seventy degree weather and Shopping at the Nordstrom’s Last Chance outlet made me want to move to Phoenix. I got to meet up with some good friends for a carb-loading pasta dinner at Maggiano’s. And we had a big group running in the half-marathon and marathon that day, and it is always fun to have lots of people to share in the anticipation and excitement of the race. Here is our marathon group the morning of the race. Me, Lyn, Shelah and Matt (Bekah's husband).

The race itself was exciting and hard at the same time. Camelback mountain is gorgeous. I really like the desert. The stadium situated between two rocky hill/mtns was very cool. The race was very flat and we got perfect weather. I wasn’t sure what time to expect from a flat race because I do a lot of downhill and I think it really helps my speed even though my quads get hammered. The first 14 miles were fine. I was talking with my brother-in-law, Matt. The miles kinda flew by and we just stayed with the 4:00 pace group. At mile 12, I stopped to go to the bathroom and then ran an 8:30 mile and caught up with the pace group within a mile. By mile 14, I wasn't feeling so great. By mile 16, I'd really slowed down a lot. Someone at the side of the road was handing out trail mix, big pretzels and oranges. I grabbed a bunch and just ate and walked for a few minutes. Then I started setting mini-goals. Make it to the next water stop, etc. It was hard to even make it a mile without stopping. By mile 20, I was feeling SO much better and actually had some energy again. My speed picked up. I needed to stop less frequently. I realized that stopping wasn’t really helping anyway. I stretched a couple of times, but kept pace with another girl who was super nice and had cheered me on earlier when I was struggling. We ran in to the finish together. And it was fun to chat with her a bit.

I finished in 4:26:07, so I averaged just over 10 minutes a mile. I was happy with that. Not super happy, I'd really have liked to have been under 4:15, but I think it is pretty good considering. So I guess I'll take it.

I think I've come to the conclusion that I really like the energy and excitement of the race. And I like to train. But I really hate having my whole Saturdays consumed with when I am going to fit in that long run. I'm going to have to figure something out about that. I like listening to my music and heading out. I just hate the scheduling. So we'll see. I don't have anything else planned but the Wasatch Back for this year. And that feels really empty. Id' like to find some more interesting runs to have something to look forward to.

Simone's latest culinary creation

Snow Burritos! Yes, this is what Simone fixed for herself the other day. I don't know if anyone else's children are as obsessed with eating snow as mine. But she went and got a cupful of snow, and made herself a burrito. I thought it was so funny that she was actually eating that soggy little snow filled tortilla, that I had to take a picture.



Later, it was a sprinkles snow cone. Again, real snow was the main ingredient. She looks pretty happy about her creative concoctions. Fortunately, she didn't ask me to eat any.

Winter Running

I've kinda tagged myself as the lazy trainer. I like to run, I just am kinda lazy about it. When life gets busy, the running is the first thing to go. And when the weather turns cold, I stop running. Usually around Thanksgiving.



This year, I signed myself up for a winter marathon in Phoenix.

So when one of my new neighbors invited me to go running with her, I was ecstatic. It was such perfect timing. I'd just been called into nursery, and was excited about teaching the kids, but sad to be cut off from the rest of the women in the new ward.



So anyway, I got thrown this little lifeline, and it has been so great. I get to socialize with two amazing women, get my workout in, and I am done by 7 am.



This winter, I experienced running at 0 degrees. Snowstorms, ice, etc. All those things I never really understood why anyone would want to run in. And amazingly, I've been mostly comfortable. I had one or two runs where my hands got cold. But overall, I've loved the new challenge.



The only downside to running in the cold is my freezing cold bum. I come home and realistically have a few minutes that I could crawl back into bed. But I can't enjoy it because I am so, so cold. So I pretty much have to have a long bath every morning to warm me up.