Monday, October 8, 2012

Long Beach Half Marathon Race Recap

Yesterday was the Long Beach Half Marathon.
This was Half Marathon #11 for me and my second time running Long Beach.

Before talking about me let me start with Saturday.

It was the kids race.  That is the best kids race in Southern California! It is FREE.  They give NICE medals.  They are organized.  With bibs and waves by age group.  They have mascots and a race announcer and this year they even had a London 2012 Olympian as a special guest!

The race is 1 mile.  It was Will's second year running this one and Jonathan's first time.
I thought Will would come in the high 9' and Jonathan over 10:00.  I was off.... 

I was near the finish to take pictures and Bill was taking some pictures on the course...he waved to me and I thought this is the signal to get ready for the first one to come shortly...then he waved again...so I got ready...and I saw Jonathan come in....and I thought he had came in before Will...I stayed in my ready to snap a good shot position when Bill came to me and asked what I was doing...I said I was waiting for Will....and he said he passed already!!!!! WHAT? I missed him! That's what happens when you are a bad mom and you under estimate your kids! Turns out the first signal was for "there he is" not get ready!

Will: 8:24 
Jonathan: 9:06

The start: Will in red shirt, Jonathan behind in orange, can barely see him


Olympian 400 hurdles silver medalist: Lashinda Demus



Long Beach kids race #InstaFrame


Long Beach Kids 1 mile race  Will 8:24 and Jo 9:06

After that Bill took the boys out for pizza and I went to the Expo.
I saw my Hood to Coast Teammate and newly TEAM OISELLE MEMBER Sarah there:

Long Beach Expo thank you @sarahoual husband for the pic! #nuunhtc

We stayed in Long Beach Saturday night.  With everything that is going on with my family it was a little strange for me to stay but we did because we had pre paid the room when I signed up for the race.

This is what Long Beach looked like on Saturday night:

Sunset in long beach #longbeachmarathon

The Race:

I knew I was not ready.  My mileage was not where it should be to do well for that distance.  I lost a lot of fitness-speed-endurance over the summer because of my injury.  I am still injured.  I am exhausted because of what is going on with Bill's job.  I have not slept more than 3 hrs straight since the day we got the news (09-24).  Are those excuses...well you can say yes to that...I think in this case those are reasons or just facts.  It is what it is.  OK so I wanted to finish and not end up in the ER like last year.  And if possible no personal worst.

I got up at 4:30 am.  The hotel had a free shuttle to the start so that was nice.  No need to walk the extra 2 miles...or pay a cab...or get my family up.  I got to start before 6 am.  My wave was 7:15 so I had plenty of time.  I saw the start of the bike race and met Rebekah and her dad (my weekends running buddies). 

My plan was to start slow and not follow anyone who would go faster than my plan.  I also wanted to be good with hydration and taking a few calories and also salt. I was not going to fall apart like last year.  I can say that I was pretty good with that.  The weather was a lot warmer than what I thought it would be and in the end it did cause me some trouble.  

I started feeling the pain in my groin around mile 5.  It was a real bummer because I was doing good with the pace I wanted to keep and with everything else.  I had to walk there.  This was hard on the mental part of the race.  We passed a spot where we could see the Queen Mary and lots of people stopped to take pictures...I tried to take some with my phone and wasted some time there...to end up with no picture to show...huge fail....

At mile 7 I saw Bill and the kids.  Big lift for my spirit!  To see my little guys running towards me.  I can see on the pictures that it made other people smile... that has to be a good thing! (I am in the flower skirt and black top)

One of my favorite race picture for sure
 
My boys running to meet me  during the race #runlb


Long beach half marathon @nuunhydration #runlb

The second part of the race was hard.  Hot and hard.  I was in pain and I walked a lot.
There is not much to add to that.  I did the best I could with the situation.  I went in dry heaves once at mile 11 and that was it for that.  I think because I walked more than usual, I did not have bad GI problems like I always do.

At mile 10 ish a really great surprise!  Heather was there with her friend and they had a  table with NUUN and pretzels and signs for the people they came to support.  How awesome is that?!  Pretty awesome!  It gave me a boost!  I was not in a good place at that point. (photo from her blog: see blue sign on the left...THANK YOU HEATHER!!!!!!!!!!!)


Mile 11, I texted my NUUN HTC teammate and friend Harmony.  Her family is in THE fight.  The fight against cancer.  I texted her that I am running the last 2 for her husband who is at war with cancer right now.  Please send prayers and good thoughts their way.

And so I finished. 
Not a PR. 
Not a PW. 
No ER. 
All in one piece but in a lot of pain.



I have a lot of work to do.
Endurance.
Speed work.
Continue the PT program at home to get that darn groin better.

The medals:

upload

26 comments:

Elle said...

hi Caroline... I dropped in today to wish you a Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Glad that you got through the LB half without visiting ER even if in some pain. Good to have #11 under your belt. Happy for you!

I love the pic of you and your boys in front of that arena. Went to a hockey game there many years ago and seeing the bldg brings back happy memories.

Hope you are feeling better today.

Neon Blonde Runner said...

LOVE how you pushed through it and finished, despite not being totally adequately ready for it. Those types of races are SO SO much more difficult than races that you've trained for. So proud of you for making it through it!

And you look so adorable in your photos :)

giraffy said...

You did a great job with tough conditions - congratulations!!

Darlene said...

With that is going on you did it. You should be proud.

Terzah said...

Great job, Caroline (and your boys on that mile run, too)! I know what you mean about getting down to work on the injury front--get yourself better so the next race doesn't have the "pain" part.

Vanessa @ Gourmet Runner said...

Congrats Caroline! I'm glad the groin pain did not stop you - even if it was a problem. How were you at the finish - sick? Your boys are so fast, you should be proud of them!!!1

Unknown said...

You make that Kendall skirt look awesome! I'm wearing mine this Saturday in Delaware and hope to make it look half that good. The black socks work with it...I am surprised. Now I'm torn between black and white socks for me:)

No PW + no ER = a good day in my book.

Boston Bound Brunette said...

You have such heart! I am not even in that much pain and I sat it out. I didn't want to deal with the pain the next day! Your sons are speedy and super cute! Great job hanging in there and finishing in spite of the heat and uncomfortable conditions!

Michelle @ www.movinitwithmichelle.com said...

Happy Thanksgiving, and you should be soooo proud! I am stoked for you! xoxo

Tricia said...

Very good job on pushing through. You've had a lot hit you and you still thought of someone else at mile 11. I hope you are feeling better soon.

(and congrats to your boys -- zooming little things they are!)

Pam @ herbieontherun.com said...

Congrats on finishing #11!

I love that skirt that you're wearing!

I'm so proud of Will and Jonathan!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Gracie said...

That kid's race sounds like they really had it together - and your boys did so amazingly well! Good race for you, too - sounds like your stomach is doing better, right?

Unknown said...

Great job Caroline!

I had a tough day too and I don't have any excuses - I was trained and uninjured. I guess it's just how it goes.

The kids race looks great and you much be proud of your little speedsters!!

PS: love your running outfit!

Linda W. said...

Finishing a race is always a huge accomplishment! Great job for gutting it out. Savor your victory.

bobbi said...

You inspire me...congratulations on making it through a toughie. And your kids did SO well! :)

Unknown said...

thanks

kristen said...

That really is a great picture of your kids running to see you. I love it.

I hope you can heal up so that you can start enjoying running and the races more.

Unknown said...

Your boys are amazing... and fast little buggers too! :)

And look at you momma... love the skirt! Great job getting it done. You've had a lot on your plate lately... sending you a big hug!

Shannon said...

You did a great job!

So did your boys!

Shannon
http://www.irunreadteach.wordpress.com

Anonymous said...

You ran a very smart race and did the best you could that day. Not every day is perfect and you made the best out of it. Good job!!!

Corey said...

Way to fight through a tough race. I teared up reading about your text to Harmony. You are so kind and thoughtful to think of someone else's fight when you are fighting your own in the race and also in life. Thinking of you...

Elizabeth said...

I love that your boys are so active and enjoy the running too :) super cute pics of them. and proud of you for pushing through on a tough race. you are so thoughtful about harmony-i love running my races for others. it’s something small-but means so much. congrats on another 1/2!

Teamarcia said...

Congrats to all of you! You have the cutest boys ever! So sorry the groin is still bothering you. It seems to be the year of injuries that won't die. I'm still struggling w/my hip as well. Way to push thru on a tough day!

RunToTheFinish said...

love, love love the kids race. i think it's so fantastic when they have ways to get kids excited about fitness...cause it's fun!!

congrats and I love how you finished, how awesome.

Jocelyn said...

Congratulations!! And I love your skirt! So cute!

Nelly said...

Congrats on #11!

Nice job to Jonathan and Will on the mile race! I'm not sure how old they are, but I believe that I ran my first 7 min mile in 7th grade, so they are well on their way to being track stars =)

That is cool that you met Leshinda Demus, I was hoping she would win gold in London, she got close!

That orange picture at night looks awesome!

As for the race, bummer about your groin. I hope you are able to run pain free sometime, groin injuries can stick around for a while.