Today I’m working on trying to build myself up.  After the 5k I was really feeling cruddy, I wasn’t happy with my time.  It’s been ages since I’ve written, I’m so sporadic…I guess so is my running.  Now that I’m in the final "sprint" of college, graduation next month, my running has petered off.  I’m running about twice a week for an average of 10 miles, pretty pathetic.  So I suppose it comes as no surprise that I didn’t set a PR today. 

As the day is wearing on I am realizing that my finish time of 27:37 is really pretty good.  I’ve only run one or two 5k faster than that.  I did keep a fairly even pace of 8:45 for the first two miles, that sure is a positive...Slowed down a lot on the last mile, darn headwind!  I was able to pass about 5 people in the last stretch, one was a woman I had my eye on for the last mile, all the while plotting my attack.  I think today I had the mindset that I would only be happy with my time if it was my fastest yet.  But we can’t be setting PR’s at every race.  But it’s true what they say isn’t it?  “You are your own worst critic.”

The part about races that I enjoy the most is seeing all the friends I’ve made over the years, cheering them on and hearing about their race experience.  I saw a lot of you today.  We are like a family, we may not share blood, but we do share a passion for running.  Congratulations to all you runners out there today, whether you did a race somewhere or did training run at home!

Last nights movie night, Prefontaine, really inspired me to push hard today on my run.  I took Mikko out with me for a 5 mile run which we were able to pound out in 42:37!  It felt so great to dig down to that next gear and give just a little bit more.  I could have maybe even pushed a bit harder but there was a one mile stretch on Kangas Rd that was poor footing. 

I was so sad this afternoon when I opened my Run the Mac envelope expecting to see my 2009 registration form.  Instead I see that this year’s race has been cancelled!  I'm heading to Europe this spring and will be backpacking for 3 weeks.  I am leaving just a few days after what was to be the Mac and coming back 10 days before Grandmas.  Because of jet lag and the fact that I'm unsure if I will be able to do much running while I'm abroad has made me decide to forego Grandmas this year.  I'm thinking I'd like to do a 5-15k while I’m gone.  So does anyone know of any races in Europe around May 20th-June 10th? 

   To all of you out there who care, I am still around and chugging away.  School has been insanely busy and for the past few months.  I have actually been working in the hospital, on my clinical rotation 3 days a week.  I’ve been trying my best to run 4 days a week, I’m not always good about that though.  As a perfectionist in everything that I do, that also makes me extremely hard on myself when I do not meet my own standards.  So for the sake of my own sanity I have been trying to ease up on myself.  I tell myself, “Self, running is supposed to relieve stress, not create it.” It’s a constant battle, something in my life has to suffer right now and unfortunately running seems to be the uncoordinated, nerdy kid that gets chosen last in kickball.

   On a more positive note, I have signed up for Fitgers 5k, my 3^rd year doing it. Upcoming races are always good motivators.  And I have two new running partners!  Dawn, is the wife of my husbands running partner and together we make a great team.  We do our long runs together.  It sure helps to have a running partner to help get you out of the door on those nasty cold days!  Especially since I got frostbite on my earlobes a couple weekends ago.  My other partner is Mikko, a 70+ pound, ball of energy.  Many a day, as I’m sitting at the computer doing school work, I look over at him on the couch.  He has the saddest and most pitiful look on his face and the moment I go to get the skijor belt out, his ears perk up and a glimmer returns to his eyes. 

 I may not be running as much as I like, but I’m trying, and I must take solace in that.  In a perfect world I would be getting high marks in school, cooking gormet meals every night, socializing with friends on the weekends and in full training mode for race season.  But for now I will just keep doing what I do….

   I ran the Pumpkin Run 5k in Cloquet this morning.  It was kind of a last minute decision of sorts.  After such a disappointing showing at Whistlestop I felt I needed to try and redeem myself before the end of race season.  

   Weather was cool and windy…only slightly uncomfortable in shorts and a tank top…it must have been around 42 degrees.  Lots of folks in costumes, hats off to those who can run 3 miles in a mask!  I saw Richard Nixon, Snow White, and the Teapot from Beauty and the Beast.  And I think the best was the three little pigs, each was holding a handful of straw, some sticks or a cardboard brick.  They were even accompanied by a big bad wolf. 

   It was a fun race; I may consider doing it again next year even!  I was telling myself I would be happy if I finished in less than 30:00 minutes.  But in the back of my head I kept thinking would it be great if I finished in "such and such" time!?  I didn’t finish in “such in such” time, but I did break a half hour.  My time was 26:37, which I believe is a PR for me.  I kept an 8:34 pace, I’m quite happy and this will satisfy me until next race season. 

One of the best parts about races I think is the networking.  Today I met two new people to run with, they live nearby and they are my age.  Good job to everyone who ran today!

   Well I won’t mince words.  I simply didn’t make my goal of under 2 hours at Whistlestop. It could have been that I have never done any speed work, or perhaps that school has been so demanding of my physical and mental well being.  Then there it the fact that I had a boat load of gravel in my shoes for the last 5 miles that was giving me an awful blister.  And let’s not forget about the unseasonably warm weather that day, I didn’t hydrate prior and I missed two aid stations.  Lots of things that could have prevented me from accomplishing what I set out to do…who knows the real reason.  I didn’t wear a watch so I was running based on how I felt, I never knew my splits and couldn’t “adjust as needed”.

   I finished in 2:05:01.  It was such a beautiful day though; great weather and the leaves were picture perfect!  I would be ever so happy if I could figure out a way to keep gravel from even finding it way into my shoes and socks.  If I hadn’t had that problem I think the race would have turned out much different.  I was maintaining around a 9 min pace for the first 6 miles.  The aid stations were much to short, only about 2 tables long, and positioned only on the right hand side of the trail.  The last ½ mile was quite interesting.  It was a bunch of twists and turns through parking lots and onto street in downtown Ashland.  My hips and knees did not like the sharp corners.  This year they were giving away really nice orange windbreakers, in place of t-shirts.

   I car pooled down with my friend Arlene and her sister Liz.  Arlene’s husband Steve was so nice to drive us all down and his wonderful father Bud came along too.  It was a really good thing I didn’t drive myself because on the drive home the symptoms of my dehydration progressed.  I went from having an unsettled stomach to having a bad headache.  As luck would have right when we got back on the bridge to head back over to Duluth my stomach took a turn for the worse.  Luckily I had not used my plastic sweat bag, so I grabbed that and threw up a couple times.  After that I started to feel better.  It was nice to be with Arlene though because she is a nurse in the recovery room.  So she is use to seeing people when they aren’t feeling up to par, she helped me to feel better.

  So for my next goal I will not set a date to achieve it by but rather let it happen when my body is willing.  I would like to be able to easily run my long runs at a 9:30 pace.  Right now I have been running long runs at a 9:45-9:55 pace.  So this means incorporating some speed workout, maybe some hill repeats and some general agility drills.