April Race #2- Bubble Run 5K

April 27th, 2013- Bubble Run 5K

Let me preface this post by stating that I really do not like running 5Ks.  My favorite distance is 13.1.  However, when my colleague asked me to run a 5K with her, I immediately said yes.  I had just started a new job and I was excited to make new running friends!  We signed up for the Bubble Run.  It's like the other "color runs" except this was with colored bubbles.  Other than that, I really didn't know what I was getting myself into.  It was a little pricier than I usually like to pay for 5Ks, but it was on Fremont Street here in Las Vegas and I thought it would be an exciting course.  We signed up months in advance and we got a discount because we signed up as a team. 

Red flag #1- Packet pickup.  Apparently there was an email with a website that gave directions.  I didn't get that email so I missed packet pickup the day before the race.  I was freaking out until I learned that they also had packet pickup the day of the race.  On race day, I decided to get there super early and good thing I did because there was a HUGE line for packet pickup.  I talked to a bunch of people in line and no one there had gotten the email either....interesting.  Luckily, they were super organized and the line went really fast.  The swag was pretty cool- a nice white t-shirt (to get dirty/colorful!) and a sweatband.  Race bibs were just given out randomly- they weren't personalized and there were no corrals.  I didn't really think that was a bad thing...until later.

Clean!  Pre-Race Smiles

I met up with my friends and we got a few pre-race pics. We were hoping to be super colorful afterwards!  We headed over to the start line and there was a huge crowd already.  Supposedly there were 6000+ people registered.  Wow!

Red flag #2- The race had a late start time.  By 9am it's pretty hot here in Vegas, but I figured I'd be done no later than 9:40am so I wasn't too worried.  However, it was really hot out that day and I didn't bring any water because there were going to be water stations on the course and it was only a 5K.  Bad idea.  We were at the start line about 20 minutes early and there was no shade whatsoever.  Plus, we were crammed into a little tiny space with 6000 other people.  I quickly realized that 90% of these people were not planning on actually running this race.

I was hoping to be more colorful...

 Red flag #3- Finally it was time for the race to start.  They then announced that they would be letting waves of 100 people go every 10 minutes.  What.  There were 6000+ people there.  Doing the math, at that rate it was only 600 people per hour.  It was hot, people were getting restless, and the time was dragging on.  We waited for an hour before we were able to run.  I had planned to be done and home by that time!!  People were finishing before 90% of the racers had even started!  I think they must have changed that plan pretty quickly, but it must have been done after we had already started.  The first mile was spent dodging groups of people walking side by side.  I'm talking like groups of 4 or more walking together, arms linked, blocking the whole path.  It was annoying.  It seemed like we were the only ones running.

That's the extent of our bubbles...

It's Vegas, baby!

There were 4 bubble stations each with different colors- pink, yellow, blue, and green.  By the time we got to most of the stations, they were running out of bubbles and we hardly got to run through any.  It was disappointing.  At the end, I hardly had any color on me.  My Sparkle Athletic skirt did get a little bit of yellow color on it, but it washed out pretty easily with just water.  The course was through a bunch of neighborhoods.  Nothing much to see for most of it.  Towards the end though we did get to run past a bunch of wedding chapels and the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop (from the show "Pawn Stars").  The finish line was on Fremont Street and that's where we got to see a lot of bubbles (they weren't colored).  They had a bunch of snacks and cold water at the finish line which I greatly appreciated.  Other than that though, I was pretty disappointed with the race.  It was not timed so I have no idea how fast we ran, but I had fun with my friends and I guess that's all that matters.

The Finish Line

Overall verdict: One and done.  Never again.
  

"Good Clean Run"

April Race #1- Summerlin Half Marathon

April 14th, 2013- Summerlin Half Marathon

I was really excited for this race because it's so close to my house and I wouldn't have to drive very far.  The weather was gorgeous!  I was afraid that it was going to be too cold, but it was 59 degrees at the start and was 64 degrees at the finish- perfect race weather!  The race started at the JW Marriott in Summerlin.  They had a DJ and a food truck there.  We were supposed to start in corrals, but I could never find the markings for the corrals so everyone just basically lined up and they let us go in 3 waves.  Unfortunately, I was in the last wave, but it turned out to be ok because I only had to dodge the walkers for the first half mile.  I was very surprised at how many hills there are in Summerlin.  I thought it was supposed to be a flat course with only a few hills, but it seemed like it was all a gradual uphill for the first 8 miles!  Nothing like the Red Rock hills, but there was a definite grade on the course.  I couldn't wait for the uphill portion to end!  We had to go over an overpass around mile 5 and then at mile 10 there was a HUGE hill (more of a mountain in my opinion).  As soon as I turned the corner and saw it, I couldn't believe how steep it was.  Right at that time one of my favorite running songs came on- Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger".  How appropriate.  It gave me the motivation that I needed so I sprinted up the hill.  The volunteer at the top cheered me on and said "you killed that hill!".  It was such a great feeling!  After that, the rest of the course was downhill or flat.  It was very enjoyable from that point on. 

The course itself was nice.  It was very well marked with lots of volunteers cheering people on and directing runners in the right direction.  There were lots of trees and shade which I appreciate.  They had police officers controlling the traffic which was great because Las Vegas drivers are awful.  Half of the refreshment stations had just water and the other half had both water and Gatorade (Lemon Lime Gatorade- my fave!).  At the finish line, they had a great spread of food including fruit, muffins, ice cold water and Gatorade, and cookies.  The mini blueberry muffins were delicious.

I wore my new turquoise Team Sparkle skirt and got a ton of compliments!  I'll definitely have to rock that color again soon.

The best part of the race in my opinion is when I was sprinting toward the finish line when I realized that I would be getting a new PR by about 9 minutes!  I was ecstatic!!

Overall verdict: I would definitely run this race again.  The weather was perfect, the course was great, and it was very well organized.

March Race #4- Laughlin Half Marathon

March 30th, 2013- Laughlin Half Marathon

My last race for the month of March.  I was glad to have a week off between races because my ankle was still tender from the Hoover Dam half.  I kept it wrapped and it seemed to be back to normal by the time this race was to begin so I wasn't worried.  My husband and I had planned to drive down to Laughlin and spend the weekend there, but alas, his work always gets in the way.  Instead, I made the 2 hour drive by myself.  It was quite lonely.  So lonely that I was "forced" to sing songs from "The Little Mermaid" when my radio stopped working  :)  Once I arrived, I was delighted to see that it was slightly overcast.  I had been worried since the forecast called for temps in the low 90s. 

Colorado River

I went into this race knowing it was a trail run.  I was hoping that it wouldn't be a disaster like my last trail run.  Before the start of the race, I checked out the trail and was happy to see that it was packed dirt rather than loose gravel like in the Hoover Dam race.  My other concern for this race was nutrition.  Being a nurse, I don't always have time to each lunch while at work.  I had hardly eaten anything at all in the days leading up the race and the night before the race, I was too nervous to eat much of anything.  I forced myself to eat an egg and some string cheese, but I knew that wouldn't sustain me for long.   Luckily when I picked up my race bag, there were some awesome Clif Bars and treats!  I scarfed those down quickly.  Since this was such a small race, nearly everyone commented on my purple Team Sparkle skirt.  I really stood out in the crowd which wasn't my intention, but I love dressing up for races!  The race itself was pretty uneventful.  We ran a little over 6 miles then turned around and came back.  About 75% of the race was along the river which was pretty neat in my opinion.  The entire course was completely flat with no hills at all.  There were water stations every few miles stocked with plenty of water and lemon-lime Gatorade.  I always appreciate lemon-lime Gatorade because it's my favorite.  My ankle started throbbing around mile 6 and by mile 8 I was completely out of energy.  I ate 2 granola bars during the course of the race, but they weren't enough to get me through to the end.  I had an incredible runner's high from mile 1-8, but then I hit the dreaded wall and I had to walk a couple of times.  I know this was because I hadn't gotten the proper nutrition before the race.  By the end of the race, I was literally hobbling because my ankle hurt so much.  You can see it in the race pictures- I have a pained look in all my race pics towards the end.  Nonetheless, I finished the race!  The sun was really hot by the end and I wished I had been able to find my sunglasses before I left.  At the end of the race they had plenty of water, fruit, bagels, and cream cheese left for everyone.  Also, they gave each runner a little card at the end that had your stats.  It's the first time I had ever seen something like that and it was really cool to get the results so quickly!

Half #7 Done!

Overall verdict: I would probably do this one again because I liked running along the river and it was a really small race.  No crowds and no running into people!  I had plenty of room.  Also, I appreciated getting the results so quickly.

March Race #3- Six Tunnels to Hoover Dam St. Patrick's Day Run

March 16th, 2013- Six Tunnels to Hoover Dam St. Patrick's Day Run

Ok so technically this wasn't ON St. Patrick's Day, but since it was the day before, I still wore green.  I signed up for this race last minute because I was still on a runner's high from the Red Rock half.  Literally I came home from the Red Rock race and signed up for this one while I still had my running shoes on.  My mom's birthday is on St. Patrick's Day so I wanted to run this one for her.  For some reason I thought this was a road race, but it turns out it was half road/half trail AND it was an out and back race times two.  I seriously dislike those kinds of races.  This is what I get for not doing research before registering.  This race started at the Hacienda Hotel and Casino near the Nevada/Arizona state line.  Actually, I missed the turn for the parking lot and ended up in Arizona.  Whoops.  Before the race, several emails had been sent out stating that we would not be allowed to park in the hotel parking lot and that we had to park in the dirt lot across the street.  Being the rule-follower that I am, I did as was told and parked across the highway in the dirt lot.  I think I was only 1 of 10 people who actually did that.  EVERYONE parked in the hotel parking lot.  They also failed to mention that there was no cross walk to get to the start line.  Meaning that I had to cross a 4 lane highway on my own.  Since I was wearing green, I felt like Frogger trying to dodge cars to get across the highway.  I was not impressed.  Next, it was a half mile hike through the desert to the start line.  The view of Lake Mead from the start line was pretty cool.

Lake Mead

Since I hadn't picked up my race packet I had to get there early.  I was afraid that I would have to hike a half mile back to my car to put my race bag there, but luckily there was an unofficial bag check.  Almost everyone there was wearing green and there was even a guy wearing a kilt and playing the bagpipes!  Here's my outfit:

My Festive Costume

Pretty soon it was time to line up for the race.  The first part of the race was a road race.  We ran a little over 3 miles then turned around and ran back to the start line.  There were a few hills, but nothing like the Red Rock race.  I loved the views and the weather was pretty good.  Once we got back to the start line, we ran through it and the race became a trail race.  I should preface this by stating that I am NOT a trail runner.  I don't train on trails and I've never really run on trails.  I wasn't wearing the correct shoes and I was not prepared for this.  Almost immediately, I rolled my ankle.  Oh boy.  Unfortunately, the trail wasn't an even surface.  It was more like loose gravel than packed dirt which is why I kept slipping and couldn't run very fast.  This race was called Six Tunnels to the Hoover Dam because we actually did run through six tunnels.  It was so nice and cool in the tunnels that I didn't want to go back into the sun.  It was getting really hot out there and the sun was just beating down on me.  The views of the lake were cool, but I was too busy concentrating on not rolling my ankle again to really enjoy them.  I finally reached the end of the trail to turn around.  The last few miles were incredibly hilly.  I was tired and my ankle was hurting.  In order to see the view of the Hoover Dam there was a GIANT hill.  It was brutal.  I saw a lot of runners that didn't even go up the hill.  I was so mad.  No one was there to make sure that they ran the entire course.

The Dam View

After that, I just wanted to finish.  I was so tired and hot.  Then I rolled my ankle AGAIN!  It hurt so bad, but I really wanted to just be done so I pushed through the pain and kept running.  I couldn't wait to reach the finish line, but first I wanted water.  I was crushed to see that they had run out of water at the last water station.  Thankfully some UNLV ROTC volunteers were handing out water bottles towards the end.  I finally reached the finish line and got my medal.  It wasn't my fastest half ever, but it wasn't my slowest either.  I quickly high-tailed it to the nearest patch of shade and collapsed to the ground.  The heat was unbearable.  I was sad to see most of the snacks were already gone by the time I finished.  The half mile hike back to the car was awful.  I was hot, thirsty, and my ankle was throbbing.  Overall verdict: I probably wouldn't do this one again.  I'm not a trail runner so I wasn't prepared.  Those runners who are trail runners would probably enjoy this though!

So happy to be home!

March Race #2- Red Rock Canyon Half Marathon

March 9th, 2013- Red Rock Canyon Half Marathon
This was my most difficult race ever.  The first 5 miles were all uphill and I literally thought I was going to die.  It was my first half marathon since January and I was incredibly nervous.  It didn't help that I had watched a YouTube video of the course a few days before the race.  If I had seen it before I signed up, I probably wouldn't have signed up for this race...BUT in the end I'm sooo glad I did it!  Calico Racing (http://www.calicoracing.com) puts on a fantastic race and I'm excited to sign up for more of their races.  They had 2 free shuttles for runners to use since there wasn't enough parking in Red Rock Canyon to accommodate all of the runners.  I got on the shuttle in Summerlin.  I met a wonderful lady on the bus who has done a ton of half marathons and then we both met another girl when we got off the bus at the start line.  I chatted with them for about 2 hours while we waited for the race to start.  I love meeting fellow runners and hearing their stories!  The weather was gorgeous and slightly overcast although it was kind of cold.  I was upset that I had left my gloves because I was freezing, but in the end, I'm glad I didn't have them since it warmed up later.  About 1 mile in, one of my Team #runDisney teammates caught up with me!  I was so excited to see her!  I had met Marci before the Tinkerbell Half Marathon and we kept in touch via Facebook and Twitter.  We both had on our Team Sparkle skirts too!  It was awesome!  After the first 2 miles of uphill, I was hurting.  My muscles were burning and I was just basically walking.  I was so mad at myself.  Then I devised a plan.  They had cones set up every few yards.  I decided to run from 1 cone to another and then walk to the next cone then run to the next one.  I used that method for the next 3 miles and it worked!  My legs stopped burning and I was able to run a bit.  Finally, I reached the top around mile 5.  After that it was all downhill.  I was literally flying down the hills.  I wished that my GPS had a signal in the canyon so I could have seen how fast I was running.  I swear I was doing 7 minute miles.  The views were absolutely breathtaking.  The volunteers at the water stations were so nice.  Each station had water and some kind of fitness tea.  The tea was good- not too sweet.  I actually couldn't believe how fast I made it to mile 11.  At mile 12.5 I started to pick up speed.  I ran right through the last water station.  I was ready to be done.  I was so excited to catch up to Marci right at mile 13.  I finished about 10 seconds behind her.  As I approached the finish line I was shocked to see that I was going to get a PR!  I was overjoyed!  I couldn't believe it.  I got my medal and ran over to talk to Marci.  We were starving so we headed straight for the refreshment table.  I must say that Calico Racing had the BEST spread of food I've ever seen.  Even better than Disney...I can't believe I just said that.  They had cookies, cheese, crackers, pretzels, brownies, bagels, etc.  I was starving so I basically ate everything.  Marci and I chatted for a while until it was time to get back on the buses.  We took a picture together to post on our Team #runDisney Facebook page.

Overall verdict: My hardest race ever, but I got a PR.  I'll definitely be doing this one again next year.  The views were absolutely gorgeous and the weather was awesome!  There were more than enough water stations and the bling was great too.  No complaints here!  Thank you to Pro Compression and Team Sparkle for the awesome attire during my PR :)

Check out the race here...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlsAWTw2LIw

Team #runDisney!

Race Bling

March Race #1- Awesome 80's 10K

March was my best month ever for races!  I've never done so many races in one month.  My husband thinks I've lost my mind.  Maybe I have...

March 2nd, 2013- Awesome 80's 10K
I was super excited for this race because I hoped there would be interesting costumes.  However, I was definitely not prepared for the "totally rad" costumes that people came up with.  I ran along side the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man, Michael Jackson, ET, Mario & Luigi, Ghostbusters, Marty McFly, Madonna, etc.  The Delorean even made an appearance!  It was like I was back in 1982.  I totally wish that I had been more cognitive in the 80's, but I was just a toddler when that decade ended.  The race was supposed to be on Fremont St., but at the last minute it was moved to a local park.  I admit, at first I was upset because I had plans to run the race in a costume down Fremont St. and then have an ice cold drink at one of the many bars there (I'm a night shift worker.  Drinking at 9am is normal for me).  Anyways, the park turned out to be great.  It was clean and beautiful.  Before the race started, all the racers made a Harlem Shake video...it was pretty cool although you can only see me for a brief second in the corner at the beginning.  Check it out here....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gkwsQRSM64

The race had a 10K portion and a 5K portion.  Everyone started at once, but the 10K runners did 2 laps while the 5K runners only had to do one.  Most people only did the 5K so it was pretty lonely during the 10K.  The weather was beautiful although towards the end it did get a little hot and I wished I had worn a hat to keep the sun away.  The course was mostly flat and was just on pavement.  I thought my costume was "rad", but it didn't even compare to the creativity of the other runners.  I'll definitely be improving on that next time. My only complaint is that there was only one water station.  I wish there had been one more!

Before the Race

After the race with my bling!

Overall verdict- the medal was awesome and I loved the music and atmosphere.  I would definitely do it again next year.  It was my fastest 10K ever!