20 miles and 2 skinned knees

This morning was my much anticipated 20 mile long run, the longest run of my marathon training schedule. Once I realized that my 20 miler was fast approaching, I started to get nervous about it. I was especially nervous about it since my 16 and 18 mile long runs were really tough. After both of those runs I was seriously doubting whether I'd be able to run a marathon. I'm happy to say that this morning was another story. I started out really slow, and was able to pace myself really well  for all 20 miles. I knew going in that the reason my last 2 long runs were tough had to do a lot with the pace I started the runs at and the heat, so those were the things I changed to make this run easier. I started my run at 5 am to avoid the heat as best as I could, and made myself run 2 minutes/ mile slower than my normal pace. It took me just over 4 hours to finish my run, and by the time I got back to my car this is what the temperature was reading according to my car!

I don't think it was quite that hot outside, but it certainly felt like it was in the low-mid 90's by 9 am this morning.

Besides being the first time running 20 miles, this morning also marked the first time I've kissed the pavement since I started running. Considering how clumsy I can be from time to time, I'm surprised I've managed to keep from falling for this long. This morning I completely wiped out not once, but TWICE! Even though it was slightly embarrassing falling the second time since people were around, I felt pretty tough running with bloody knees.

I fell the first time after running about .3 miles. It was still dark, so I didn't see a bump in the sidewalk. Luckily that fall wasn't too bad since I still had 19.7 miles to run at that point. The second time was about 15 miles into my run, and that's where I did most of my damage. I don't really know why I fell the second time, I think I was probably just getting tired and dragging my feet too much. I don't think I did any real damage besides a couple skinned knees and wounds to my hands. Hopefully I don't have a repeat performance on race day...

Overall I'd say this run was a great success. I finally feel like I can complete 26.2 miles on race day. Now I get to rest up and enjoy some shorter runs until race day in 5 more weeks!

Running with Dean Karnazes

This morning I woke up at 6:45 with plans to go run a 10k before racing to the Plaza for a fun run with Dean Karnazes at 10:00. It was cloudy, but no rain yet, so I was hopeful we would be spared from the full day of rain showers that the weather channel was calling for earlier in the week. I got to the race 30 minutes before the start and did a quick warm up run. Still no rain, but the gray clouds were ominous overhead. Finally about 5 minutes before the race was about to start we were advised to go back to our cars because there was lightning in the area. There was rain, lightning, and lots of wind for about an hour, and finally when the storm seemed to be winding down around 9:00 the race was called off. I was bummed that I didn't get to race since I've been doing so many 1/2 marathons lately, I haven't run a shorter race since March. Even though I was disappointed, I had more running plans for the day. I ran home to change out of my wet clothes and got ready for my next run in record time. I got to the plaza about 5 minutes before 10, and there was already a smallish crowd gathered outside of the North Face Store. I'm sure the early morning plaza goers were wondering why all these people were standing around dressed in running gear. If we were runners, why were we standing around instead of running? Right at 10:00 the reason we were all standing around showed up, Mr. Dean Karnazes. It is always weird to me to see people in person that I've seen so many times on TV or in pictures. This proved to be no exception. The race director for the North Face Endurance Challenge explained a few safety rules for the run, and then Dean talked for a couple minutes. He is very personable and humble. I know why the North Face chose him to be their spokesman.

After all the welcoming was out of the way, we headed out on our 5k journey.

I never run with other people outside of races, so this was a different experience for me. I went with the fast group of runners who were supposed to be keeping around a 9 minute mile pace (I may have secretly been very excited that my average pace was considered fast!) although I don't feel like we actually kept that pace.

I want to say that there were around 20-30 other people running this morning, but eventually the larger group broke off into several smaller groups. After 1 1/2 miles there were only about 7-8 people left in the group I was in, including Dean. It was pretty fascinating to hear him talk about his run across America, and all his other running journeys. He said that he would usually be running a 100 mile race on this day, but was here instead. I don't know if he had much of a say into the scheduling of this event, but it was pretty awesome that he was here running a short 5k with us instead of running a 100 mile race. Another run fact, someone asked how many pairs of shoes he burned through on his run across America, and his response was 53 pairs! I'm just now thinking about getting my 3rd pair of running shoes. I can't imagine running so much that I go through 53 pairs in 75 days!
After the run Dean talked again for a couple minutes, then had a meet and greet with the people who came out to see him.

I got this shirt for being registered for the marathon! I think the swag from the race is going to easily outweigh the registration cost.

I was pretty excited to get a chance to meet Dean and talk with him. Since the North Face Endurance Challenge is going to be my first full marathon, it was awesome to get to hear tips from Dean, along with other runners during the morning.

Dean asked if I was nervous for my first marathon, and I told him that I truthfully wasn't too nervous. I've been sticking to my training, and I'm confident I'll cross the finish line. I told him I wasn't sure how long it would take me, but I would get there sometime in the 7 hour time limit. Dean signed my book with "see you at the finish :)" I can't wait!

Fun run with Dean Karnazes!

I'm pretty stoked right now. I posted awhile back about how I signed up to run the North Face Endurance Challenge Marathon in Kansas City this summer as my first marathon. Well today The North Face announced that there will be a fun run in about 2 1/2 weeks with Dean Karnazes in Kansas City! I'm already signed up to run a 10k race that day, but the fun run doesn't start until 10 am, so I think I can swing it. Hopefully the incentive to finish my 10k so I can run with a famous ultra runner will motivate me to run my 10k quicker. After all I'm really hoping to finally break 1 hour in the distance...
Here is the info on the event for anyone in or around KC interested in this fun run!
Dean Karnazes fun run info

The North Face Endurance Challenge

I've never been a patient person. I'm really big into instant gratification, and when I get an idea in my head, I can't wait to accomplish it. That being said, Rock n Roll St. Louis was going to be my first full marathon ever. Notice how I said was, and not is? I was reading Runner's World last night, trying to get sleepy when I saw an advertisement for the North Face Endurance Challenge series. I usually flip past the adds without looking, but I actually stopped and looked at the page, and upon examining it I noticed that one of the cities hosting the race is Kansas City. I was too tired to get on the computer and look at the website last night to find out more details, but today after work I came home and checked everything out. I'm officially running my first full marathon on August 27 now! The training schedule I'm planing to follow is an 18 week plan, and since the race is 24 weeks from tomorrow that means I officially start marathon training in 6 more weeks. I have a few half marathons on my schedule this spring and summer though, so I'm going to have to modify my schedule to fit those races in.

I can't wait to start officially training to run a marathon. It's going to be a long hot summer of running, but I'm determined to get through it. I was even extremely ambitious and said I would finish the race in 4 1/2 hours, which is probably a long shot since I've yet to run a 1/2 marathon at that pace. I'll personally be thrilled to finish under 5 hours, but I didn't want to seem like too much of a rookie during registration...