Monthly Archives: October 2006
A Cold Chicago Marathon 2006….Completed
| October 25, 2006 | Posted by Angela under Health & Fitness, My Travel Adventures |
With school, work and training, I haven’t had a chance to blog. Well, the marathon training part has been completed. The Chicago marathon was the past weekend, Sunday October 22nd. I had been training for six months and the big day finally came. Is it everything I thought it would be? Yes. Well, except the cold weather part.
I arrived in Chicago on Friday morning. I went to the expo and this is when I started to get fired up. There were so many runners there from all over the world. Some novice marathoners, like myself and other experienced marathoners. You could just feel the excitement around you. There were really great booths, from Gatorade to PowerBar to Cliff Bar to New Balance to Nike and many more. They had some interesting running gear. I got stocked up on stuff.
On Saturday, I went to a broadway show, Wicked, which was amazing. Of course, I had a pasta dinner each night. Being in a different city, it was so hard to really think about running. I had only ran twice that week so in my head, it seemed so long ago. I went to bed on Saturday night very calm.
The weather on Friday and Saturday was great. It was about 60 degrees. Well, come Sunday morning, I figured shorts and a long sleeve shirt would do. I walked outside and went straight back into the hotel. A cold front had come in and it was about 40 degrees. The high was going to be 46 degrees. Luckily I was prepared with the right gear. I put my tights on, my head band, a sweatshirt and gloves. We walked to the race and I got in line and was ready to go. With 47,000 runners all huddled around, it got warm pretty quickly. So I got rid of the head band and sweatshirt.
The race didn’t start until 8am, however, being positioned where I was at, I crossed the starting line at 8:05.51am. That was my official start time. I started off at a good pace. It was so crowded so getting around people was a bit difficult. I had my Ipod and I was feeling great. I did have to use the bathroom though as I drank 2 bottles of water before the race. I took the 2nd porter potty stop and luckily, I found one that had no line and was super clean. This was about mile 6. I wasn’t going to need one again throughout the race.
The race took you all through Chicago, literally. I saw Lincoln Park, Michigan Avenue, Little Italy, Chinatown, United Center, Millenium Park, Grant Park and much more. It was a very scenic route. During a 26 mile race, there is a lot to do. I observed runners and read different t-shirts. I saw many friends running together or families such as father and daughters. I saw many runners running in memory of someone, which was really moving. The most amazing part of the race were the fans. There was a fan every part of the way. It was so awesome to see runners reunite with their fans different parts of the way.
Unfortunately, my fans never found me so I ran all those miles without seeing a familiar face except for the last mile. I saw my cousins in the crowd on the last 400 meters. They were screaming so loud and I turned and saw them. It was so awesome!
I would say the last 9 miles were the most difficult for me. I really felt like my legs couldn’t make it. I really had no choice but to go. I think what made me keep going was looking at everyone else going and I was like, if they can do it, I can do it. My body felt good, my endurance was holding up, it was just my legs that were killing me. My legs felt like jello.
It was 42 degrees and drizzly. I was so cold. I kept my running pants and long sleeve shirt on throughout the race. I barely broke a sweat. The cold wind was brutal. I mean, I am a Texan, what do you expect me to say. It was damn cold. I had trained in hot weather and this was my first real cold run. It was a bit different. I tried to keep up with the 4 hour pacers but kept losing them. Towards the end, I stopped for a banana, twice. I had a Milky Way, which I don’t even like. I had gatorade and water. My tummy was pretty full. I probably shouldn’t have had all that but I felt like I needed something to give me that boost.
When mile 20 came round, I figured 6 more miles should be a cinch. Well, not so. Mile 22 came and it felt like I had done 6 miles already. I kept thinking, when will this be over? I had to stop multiple times to stretch. Then I would jump back in and run really hard. I did this back and forth a few times. The last mile, I really kept a strong pace. The last 400 meters, I sprinted. I still had a lot of strength. I was beat. I was cold and delirious. I didn’t even pick a place to meet my family and friends afterwards so I wandered around 30 minutes looking for a familiar face and it never came.
Finally, I used a cell phone to call and I met up with my family and friends. I was so relieved because I was so cold! I put my sweater shirt back on, doubled my pants, put gloves and a scarf around me. I was still cold after 4 hours of running.
It was a great marathon and I am so glad I chose this one. The fans made the difference. You really feel special in that marathon. Now I can say I completed a marathon. Would I do it again? Heck ya!
The “Smart” San Antonio
| October 4, 2006 | Posted by Angela under Random |
So I read an article in the news yesterday about the “Walk and Roll Challenge.” The Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG) and the San Antonio-Bexar County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) have put together a program that challenges citizens to use another form of transportation rather than driving. The goal, obviously, is to improve the air quality by using less gas and additionally, to promote healthy living.
Apparently, this is the 2nd annual challenge, but this is the first I have heard of it. I am not sure how they are doing their marketing but I would imagine that I would have known about it if it were properly marketed.
So basically, the program challenges you to use “smart miles” such as busing, car pooling, walking, biking for either a means to get from one point to another or for recreation. You submit a pledge on how many miles you anticipate on completing between October 1st-31st. Once you submit a pledge, you can log your miles on their website. The program goal is to complete 500,000 miles which is equivalent to removing over 1,800 pounds of pollutants from our air.
It is a really cool program as it’s a “smart” way to get people involved. Check out their website:
http://www.walkandrollchallenge.com
I am not sure how many I should pledge. I run an average of of 35-40 miles per week. This October I am also running the Chicago marathon. I can carpool on the weekends and to class after work. So hmm, I suppose I can pledge 300 miles?
Participants will be awarded for their efforts with prizes! So log in and start logging. It’s for a good cause, come on. What can you pledge?
Don’t Mess with Texas WON!
| October 1, 2006 | Posted by Angela under Random, The Arts, Film, Music, Fashion |
Yep,that’s right. We beat “Got Milk” and “Just Do It.” I recently blogged about America’s Favorite Advertising Slogan contest and how
“Don’t mess with Texas” was one of the nominees. “Don’t Mess with Texas” will go down in the Madison Advertising Hall of Fame. Way to go Texas!
Cowboys went undistracted
| October 1, 2006 | Posted by Angela under Random |
It’s been a interesting week for the Cowboys. TO seems to grab the media attention, whether it be an injury, suicide or whatever he can up with for the week. There was a lot speculation for this game. Was TO going to play? How are the Cowboys dealing with all this unrelated to football media attention?
Well, it didn’t seem to distract them one bit. Cowboys took on the Titans 45-14. Vince started his first NFL game. Vince is definitely good but he is still a rookie and couldn’t push through. He had 2 interceptions and 1 fumble, allowing Cowboys 21 points. On top of that, Cowboys offense was just absolutely amazing.
To add more to the distraction, after being down and lost his helmet, Andre Gurode was stomped on the head by Albert Haynesworth. It was pretty bad. Haynesworth was ejected and was getting all pissed off at the ref’s. What was he complaining about? I mean seriously, you kicked someone while they were down and had no helmet, how cowardly is that? Apparently, Haynesworth is sympathetic and does realize his mistake. Regardless, this is completely uncalled for and I am curious to see how the NFL will handle this.
Cowboys pushed through though. It was a great game. Eagles next weekend! Go Cowboys!
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