Tag Archives: Pacers

Volunteering at the Veterans Day 10k

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I’ve run a lot of races over the years reaping the benefits of a lot of helpful volunteers whether it’s someone giving out a helpful hint at packet pick up, a cup of water just when you need it or cheers of encouragement when you’re at your lowest point. Throughout the past year or two, I decided it was my turn to give back a little, and have been trying to volunteer at races whenever I can. Usually, I try to help out at pre-race packet pick-ups so I can still run on race day, but while I’m on a temporary running hiatus I figured now was a good time to actually pitch in on race day.

I signed up to help with last Saturday’s onsite packet pick-up at the Veterans Day 10k in West Potomac Park. It was the same course I ran in early October for the Run for the Parks 10k, so runners could expect fast, flat, a little bit boring and if windy, a potentially brutal course. The weather gods smiled on this event though. It was sunny and the temperature hovered around the 50s – not half bad for early November!

I had to leave my apartment a little after 6 to get to the start of packet pick-up on time, so without a car and the metro closed, my only option was to bike over. It was still a bit dark when I took off, so I was very thankful my Dad helped me install blinking lights on the front and back of my bike when he was in town a couple weeks ago. I also sported a Nathan blinking reflective vest just for good measure. I’m pretty sure anyone could see me from a mile away!

Things started off slow with a few early birds there to grab their race bib and t-shirts right at 6:30, but quickly picked up steam as we got closer to 7. The hour before the race started was a blur. The lines were constant and we were all moving as quickly as we could to make sure all the runners were ready to toe the starting line by the 8 a.m. start time.

A handful of us were stationed at computers looking up runners by their name. I love Pacers’ system of assigning the race number at packet pick-up rather than having to search through a pile of numbers to pull the right one. I would simply find the runners name, grab the next bib in my pile and type that number in to assign it to them. Several others behind us at the computers hustled back and forth as we yelled out t-shirt sizes making sure to retrieve the right one for us.

One of the big things I’ve learned as a result of volunteering over the last year is that I will never, ever again complain to a volunteer about a logistical race issue or wanting a different t-shirt size. They have no control over it! For the most part, people were great.There were lots of smiles and excitement as people picked up their bibs and shirts and got ready to run. There’s always an exception though! A few bad apples were very upset with me for not allowing them to switch t-shirt size. I tried to explain they could just check back after the race to see if other sizes were available and that I wasn’t allowed to give out different shirts until we knew we had enough, but they didn’t want to hear it. Thankfully those folks were few and far between, so I was able to just smile, wish them luck and move on to the next person in line.

I decided to hang around and watch some of the finishers come in and boy were they flying! The top three men all crossed the line in less than 30 minutes. The winner, Chris Kwiatkowski, finished in 29:47 and the women’s winner, Carmen Hussar, came in shortly after at 33:45 for paces of 4:48 and 5:26 per mile respectively. Impressive!

It was one of those days I really wish I’d brought my nice camera along. Riding into D.C. looking at the red sky over the monuments as the sun just started to rise on a foggy morning was absolutely beautiful and my iPhone just couldn’t do it justice. Also, as you can see in the finish line pic, my shutter speed on the iPhone couldn’t quite keep up with the lead runner so all I caught was the finish line banner falling to the ground.

It was a great way to start my day and while I really can’t wait to run again, I also look forward to helping out on the volunteer side of things again soon too.

My Best Forest Gump Impression

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Last Saturday I started running, and kept on running for a lot of my day. It was my last big, long run before my upcoming marathon so I had a 20-miler on tap for the day. I was up bright and early so I could get 6 miles in before meeting up with the DC Road Runners for a 14 miler at 7.

I started out with a loop that took me over the Key Bridge, through Georgetown, down Rock Creek Parkway and back to the Iwo Jima Memorial via Memorial Bridge. The Road Runners route took me on a course I hadn’t run before, and if I’d know how hilly it was ahead of time, I might have just chosen to finish my 20 on my own! The first five miles felt like a seemingly endless uphill battle, but hills are always easier when you’ve got other runners to help push you up them. The run took me up the Custis Trail, through Zach Taylor Park and by Marymount College before a very steep downhill sent me over Chain Bridge onto the C&O path, by the Kennedy Center, back over the Memorial Bridge and up the Mount Vernon trail back through Rosslyn.

Getting ready for the Pacers Mini Relay with Blair and Lindsay

I’ve had some tough, bad-day runs over the last couple weeks, which can be pretty discouraging leading up  to a race, so I really wanted to do well on my last big test before my next marathon. My pace was a bit slower than I’ll need to qualify at 8:29 per mile, but I felt strong throughout and given the terrain we followed, I wasn’t disappointed with the time. I ran some pretty fast late miles too finishing miles 17 and 18 in close to 8 minutes each. I crashed a little at the end and slowed way down for miles 19 and 20, but instead of letting this freak me out, I’m going to hope it just had to do with the extreme ups and downs over the course and will look forward to the mostly flat marathon course I have coming up at the Niagara marathon.

One of my favorite Saturday post-long run treats is waffles, so I had my waffle iron, mixing bowl and ingredients out and ready to make things as easy as possible when I got home from the run. After a quick shower and some delicious waffles, I had a few hours to sit on the couch and ice my legs. I wasn’t done yet though.

I met up with my friend Lindsay and fellow Pacers Ambassador Blair for the Pacers Mini Relay. Pacers teamed up with Ragnar and Saucony to put this race on and it was a lot of fun. It was more of a fun run since it wasn’t a timed event and there were no winners or awards, but it was a blast and ended with a great party at the Clarendon store. The starting point was the Pacers location in Alexandria and the run went from store to store with the last leg ending at Clarendon. Blair started us off running the longest leg from the Old Town Alexandria store to the Pentagon Row location. I took off from there on a 5-mile route to their Logan Circle store, where Lindsay finished things off with the shortest, but by far the steepest leg of the race ending at the party in Clarendon.

I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to move very well, but was surprised how good I felt. After running my first mile in 7:25, I looked at the Garmin shocked and decided to slow it down a little, but still managed to average a 7:40 pace over the 5 miles, which left me feeling pretty good. My only issue was the lack of signage at a few spots along the course. There was no set route as you were allowed to get from point to point taking any route you wanted, but there were suggested routes and at least along my section a turn off of Rock Creek Parkway onto P street was completely unmarked. Not being familiar with that section of the trail, I would have had no idea it was where I was supposed to turn had I not seen another runner sporting an orange snap bracelet out of the corner of my eye. A small sign posted in the ground would have been really helpful, but I guess figuring out your way was also part of the fun of this event.

All participants got a commemorative pint glass at the finish filled with complimentary beer – more races should end this way! To make the day even better, a grilled cheese food truck pulled up outside of the party so Lindsay and I enjoyed delicious Vermont Cheddar Cheese sandwiches on sourdough. The event was a lot of fun and a great way to meet and mingle with other runners in the area. I can’t wait to do it again next year, but maybe next time I’ll plan better and won’t run 20 miles earlier in the day!

Best For Last

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Last Friday was one of those days I just didn’t feel like running. It’d been a busy week, I hadn’t slept much Thursday night and I was leaving early Saturday morning for a work conference. It was the last week for the Pacers Crystal Run 5k Friday series though, plus I’d signed up to volunteer beforehand, so I really didn’t want to miss out.

20120501-105953.jpgIt had been such a fun series so far. I loved the new addition of the Shoe Lab they brought to this series so runners could test out shoes before buying them. The weather has been amazing especially compared to last year. This week was a little cooler than past weeks and a bit windy, but the sun was shining and at least it wasn’t freezing!

It turned out I saved my best performance for last setting a new 5K PR, so I’m definitely glad I didn’t bail. I finished in 21:25 coming in 125 out of 1,426 overall, 13 out of 724 women and 9 out of 354 in my age group – first time cracking the top 10! I ran into some of my former boot campers who were also running – always good to see them. We enjoyed some beer and wings at Buffalo Wild Wings after the race…perfect post-race food!

After seven straight weeks of racing, I’m going to take it easy for a few while I pick my next race. Right now it looks like it’ll be the Pacers Mini Relay in June, which looks like a blast and ends with a party outside of their Clarendon store. I’m still looking for a third teammate, so let me know if you’re interested in joining!

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Crystal Run 5K Friday Take 3

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This Friday marked my sixth weekend in a row of racing and my third Friday heading
over to Crystal City after work for the Pacers 5K Friday series. I got there early again to
help out with bib pick-up before the race and was happy for another night of my favorite
race weather. It was warm and sunny, but not too hot.

Sporting my new Newtons that I bought last week (after just a week of running in them,
I’m already in love!) I didn’t need a test pair from the Shoe Lab this week, but did get a
cool free tee when I stopped by to say hi after the race! Race shirts for series entrants
were also available this week. I’m a fan of this year’s design. Pics below.

It was my slowest race of the series, but still almost a full minute faster than I was
running 5Ks last year, so I was feeling pretty good after the race. My 21:51 finish was
good for 136th of 1,381 overall, 20th of 724 females and 14th out 336 in my age group.

Last week I did a good job of keeping a steady pace, but after getting caught weaving in
and out a little bit at the start, I started pushing the pace thinking I had to make up time
and ended up hitting the first mile mark in 6:40. I wasn’t able to maintain that however,
running my second mile in 7:03 and the third in 7-flat. With just one week left, I’m hoping
for another good outing next weekend.

I followed Friday’s race up with a long run Saturday morning with the DC Road Runners
who I ran with for the first time last week. Getting up by 7:30 on a Saturday might be
normal for a lot of people, but is no small task for me, so I was pumped I was able to get
myself up again and out the door in time to run with the group.

As I mentioned in last week’s post, running with a group really helps me pick up the
pace and push myself to run faster. One of the other cool things is learning new routes
I had never ventured on before. The downside I learned this week is that there are a
whole bunch of people around to see when you take a spill along a trail. Yea… that
happened. On the plus side, I wasn’t hurt at all – except for maybe a bruised ego!

Run-Centric Weekend

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For anyone who knows me, it comes as no surprise that I spend a lot of my time running, talking about running or doing other running-related activities, but this weekend was a particularly run-centric weekend.

Friday night I headed out of work for week 2 of Pacer’s Crystal City 5k Friday series. I got there early to help out with packet pick-up before the race. My first stop was the shoe lab, however. After having a lot of success last week with a pair of racing flats from Newton, I planned to try out their Gravity performance trainer this week. As soon as  I laced them up I could tell these shoes felt great. They were super light, gripped my foot, but roomy around my toes, and had some great bounce to them.

The race actually started a few minutes late to accommodate the huge turn out of runners on a really beautiful Friday night. My pace was all over the map last week so I wanted to really focus on running a consistent pace and did a great job of it. I hit mile 1 in 6:54, crossed mile 2 at 13:53 and mile 3 at 20:47. My finish time of 21:29 took another 11 seconds off my PR! I finished 133 out of 1,426 overall, 23 out of 773 females and 16 out of 344 in my age group. I also walked away with my own pair of Newton Gravity’s thanks to a 10 percent onsite discount! (It doesn’t take much to talk me into buying new running gear.) I’m really excited to start logging some more miles in them.

Saturday morning I linked up with the DC Road Runners club for their weekly Saturday long run. This group meets right across the street from my apartment and I’ve been saying I was going to get myself up and run with them for years. This was the first time I actually went! I’ve been trying to make much more of an effort to run with groups since it makes training a little more fun and helps me push myself to run faster.

We ran a route that took us over Memorial Bridge, down the Mall, by Union Station and back down the other side of the Mall before running along the river and returning via 14th Street Bridge and the Mount Vernon Trail. Runs like this remind me why I love this city so much. No where else can you go for an early morning run past so many cool monuments, memorials and historical sites. I was also entertained by the set up and prep for the Cherry Blossom parade going on later that morning.

Sunday I volunteered to help with the early packet pick-up for the GW Parkway Classic 10 Miler and 5K. I’ve heard great things about this race and definitely plan to do it sometime. I helped out at the Clarendon store, and let me tell you – it took no small amount of will power to spend 5 hours in a Pacers and not spend any money. I did leave with several things on my wish list for my next visit there though!

New Kicks and a New PR to Kick Off the Friday 5Ks

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I love the Crystal City 5k Fridays race series. It’s such a fun race; is a nice, relatively flat course; and Pacers does an awesome job with it. I was able to run 3 of the Friday 5ks last year, and set my PR for the distance with a 22:50 finish.

I know I’m a cold-weather wimp, but I don’t think I’d be the only one to say the weather for most of last year’s races was not too fun. Last Friday was perfect, however. Sunny and close to 60 – I was in my element. My boyfriend was in town for the weekend too, so I was very excited he was going to get to see my race, cheer me on and take some pictures!

Pacers is doing a cool thing at the series this year called Shoe Lab where Mizuno, Newton and Brooks have test shoes you can try out for the race. After turning over my Nike’s and my ID as collateral, I had a pair of Newton’s racing flats on my feet. I’ve never worn racing flats so I couldn’t believe how light they felt.

I’ve been running hard lately and running a lot, so I hoped to set a new PR at this race with a goal of breaking 22 minutes by the end of the series. Well, I was pleasantly surprised with my performance and now have to readjust my goals to make them a little tougher as I blew away my old PR by 1:10 finishing in 21:40! Maybe it was the shoes?!

For some reason the first mile of this course always seems to take forever in my mind so I thought I’d gone out slow, but saw my watch read 6:46 at the one-mile mark. I slowed down a bit for mile two passing the marker in 14 minutes even, and picked it back up to a 7 minute pace for the third mile. The 6:59 pace is my first-ever sub-7 minute race pace!

The 21:40 finish was good enough to put me in 137th overall out of 1,253 finishers, 19th out of 652 females, and 12th out of 268 in my age group!

I’ve wanted to try out some Newtons since I went to a seminar they put on at Pacers in Clarendon last October. While I loved the speedy Newton flats, I’m going to give their regular performance trainers a test run this week since those would probably be a more practical purchase for the distances I’ll be running in training for the 2012 Marine Corps Marathon.

I’m already looking forward to this Friday’s race – such an awesome way to kick off the weekend. I’ll be volunteering at packet pick-up before the race so stop by and say hi if you’re there!

(Lots of pictures: courtesy of Ian Gallagher – check out his food blog for an entry on our post-race dinner date!)

Natural Running

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Last weekend I went to a running seminar and clinic put on by Newton Running at Pacers in Arlington. The Arlington store is my favorite one – mostly because it’s within walking distance of my place! It started out with a presentation on natural running, going over proper running form to make you as fast and efficient a runner as possible.They talked about balance and relaxation as the keys to running.

They also hammered home the importance of landing under your center of mass. While they noted that the most efficient running form of running has you landing on your midfoot/forefoot before your heel settles, I liked that they showed this might not be best for you if you’re still reaching your leg out in front of you. I’m usually a heel striker and have been working on converting, but if I reach my leg out then landing on my forefoot puts me another half a foot away from the center of my body than if I kept landing on my heel. It’s one more thing to try and think about while running of course, but I feel like I have a much better understanding of how I should be trying to make adjustments. I hope I can get to the point of landing on my midfoot first, but for now my main focus is going to be landing under the center of my body.

Check out Newton’s 10 Laws of Natural Running.

 

Naturally, they were there to promote their shoes as well, but that was the fun part. We got to try on their different shoes and take them out for a test drive. We were paired off with different Newton running coaches and went through a series of drills to the amusement of onlookers walking by the Clarendon Metro as we worked on our running form. It was pretty cool and I have to admit I really liked the shoes. I might have to try them out when I go for my next pair – which will be soon as I plan on retiring one of my current pairs of sneaks after the Marine Corps Marathon this Sunday.

Listening to An Olympian

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I saw Magda Boulet, an Olympic marathoner, speak at Pacers in Alexandria last night and loved it! My only brush with Olympic glory came when I won a raffle in the sixth grade to carry the Olympic Torch as it passed through our elementary school grounds on its way to Atlanta, so getting to meet a real Olympian was pretty cool. Her story is really inspiring. She actually became a U.S. citizen on September 11, 2001. Magda shared details about her experiences starting with a disastrous race at the Twin Cities Marathon that left her thinking about giving up on professional running altogether to the race of her life in Boston where she qualified for the Olympics. She talked about the devastation of dropping out of the race in Beijing due to a fluke injury and her hopes for London 2012.

Magda provides training tips and stories from her own experiences.

Robert Gillanders, a local physical therapist (PT) and marathon runner, also spoke at the event. To say that I’m not really one to go to a doctor for injuries is a bit of an understatement, but I actually really liked what he had to stay. He talked about how common running injuries are, but noted that physically being in pain doesn’t have to be a necessary part of running. He views himself like a mechanic that can assess where you are weak and how you can get stronger in those areas so you can be more efficient, take on higher training loads and see performance gains. Magda talked about using a PT for “pre-hab” rather than rehab. She said she needed someone to look at all the pieces and see what was missing so she could get better.

Going to events like this always gets me all motivated to get out and run, but they also get me excited about new gear. Despite my background in communications and marketing, I’m a total sucker for these kinds of things. My favorite from last night – the 008 hydration vest from Nathan designed with input from Magda. Like me, she hates running with anything around her waist, in her hands or in her pockets, so this backpack is perfect. It’s super light and has pockets in front for easy access. We’ll see how long I can hold off before making this my next purchase!

Check out video of the event at MoveForwardPT.com.