Fairview Half Marathon 2013

Race Report:

Half Marathon #5 for me. It only seems like they get better as I get older. Or so it seems. Some races I've ran in the past were good, others were great. Then there those that I asked myself "why did I even show up"? Today was a race where I was so rewarded and humbled from start to finish, and I say that unapologetically.

This morning started like any other race. I get up at 430, shower, get dressed, and out the door. Normally, I would also include taking my two dogs out, feeding them, etc, but today I didn't. Long story short, it was just me going to this race and not my wife. Why? Well today was also my sweet mother's birthday, so together wife and mom had a girl's day today, which left her in charge of "doggie duty" before she left..

Got that out of the way, on to another issue. I've had my share of driving long distances to races, and even dealt with the heavy flow of traffic. Those of you who've ran some of Dallas' big races know what I'm talking about. Well, today was just a little different. This morning, I had to take detour after detour just to get on the main highway so I can get out towards North Dallas and head north on Hwy 75 to Fairview. Why the heck did the surrounding cities have to tear up the roads and shut down the highways, huh? LOL.. After that was out of the way, I felt good about time and that I was going to make it to the race early like I had planned. Race started at 730, I got there at 645.. BAM!! As a bonus, I even got "front row parking" for free as well. No gimmicks, no catches. I just happened to pull in per the directions and found a parking spot close to the Fairview city building that housed and hosted the race. Lucky me.

I had received a text from my boy Clay aka "The Nite Train" saying that he was there and was wanting to know where I was and where to park. I told him I had just pulled in and wondering where to head to myself. We just happened to meet up in the city building then looked for our race gear. Once inside the building, I met up with Andrew aka "Twentysix-Two" and he directed me and Clay where to go for our stuff. Since we were both pacers, we didn't wear the tradition race t-shirts that they hand out to everybody, no! We got the sweet hookup on the "Active Joe" tech tees that all the other pacers wore. This shirt was cool looking. As all of the pacers showed up, got our time flags, and group pics, there were in fact some last minute time swaps and accomodations for the pacers and last minutes fill-ins for those that couldn't make. I loved how this group takes very strong initatives and can improvise on a dime. Good work team. At first, I was partnered with Robin to run in the 2:30 time slot, but she had bumped down to the the 2:15 group with Clay. At first, I thought I was going to be alone, but then at the last minute I was partnered with another DRC (Dallas Running Club) member Jeff C. He and I hit it off right away with the jokes, one-liners, and even encouragement as we helped our group get through the race. Jeff was also gentleman enough to pace with his girlfriend, Heather, who was running her first half marathon today. Details will soon unravel throughout this blog about them two.

So, after the pace team got their group picture taken, the National Anthem was sung, the lines were formed, and the race was soon to begin. That in itself was an understatement. Before we knew it, the race was starting and the runners were off. Before I could even set my watch to go, I was thankful Jeff had his Garmin ready. About a split second after I crossed the starting line, I saw the RD announce the pacers were in full force taking off and getting the groups going. The crowd at the starting line was very supportive, cheerful, and even encouraging. For a smaller venue sized race, this one tops some of the big ones I've done in my career. Jeff and I were settling well into the 11:21 pace we needed to keep for the 2:30 group, which for me as I found out later on this course was just the right tempo for me with all the hills and wind I later endured. As we were getting to know one another, Jeff's gf Heather had mentioned this being her first half, and that her training wasn't quite up to par as she had wanted it to be. The most she had ran was a one time 10 miler and then other short distances as well. Not only that, she had some lingering injuries as well, so she felt a little nervous about this race. I told to just stick by us and we will coast her in. Not only that, there were a few other runners that stuck with us for a good portion of the race that were feeding off each other's energy, including mine. It was a great comraderie for Jeff and myself as we were pacing the group.

Miles 1-4

In running half marathons, I myself call the first 4 miles my "warmup phase". Back when I PR'd my 2 half, I used this approach and it paid off in the end. Different story today since I was pacing. Not only that, this course had a a lot of H I L L S. Even though I was still warming up, I was getting a fill for how the course was set out. The first couple of miles were relatively flat until mile 2.5 going into 3 and just shy of 4. One of the things I loved about pacing today, was I felt a little bit like a tour guide. As we passed up some beautifully structured homes and nice looking land features, I personally was taken in by it. So to keep the other runners enthused, I made light of the run and cracked some jokes about these "mansions" belonging to rockstars, Jeff even chimed in and made some jokes as well. After the 5k mark, per Jeff's Garmin, I hollered out the the group, by then was a handful of women and one other dude that we've hit the 3.1 miles and that we got 10 more to go. The one guy in the group was slowly inching his was past us and kindly thanked us for keeping the pace. That and later he would need us as he was tiring down. I told him, that's what we're here for.

Miles 5-8

While the group Jeff and I were pacing was winding down, it was mainly just me, him, and Heather running together, and keeping her occupied with the run. As I mentioned before, this was her first half, so her mechanisms were unsorted at the time. She had asked me prior to the race starting if it was ok to walk part of the run if needed. I told that I've done it before and that there is nothing to be embarrassed about it. She had said that she wasn't going to do that and if she had to, she could shuffle step. I reassurred her that this was common in most long distant races such as this. By mile 6, Heather was beginning to struggle with her foot as she had her toe wrapped up and that it was bothering her foot. After the one and only split mark in the race has occured, Heather had to stop and readjust. Jeff took the initiative to stop and help her out. It didn't seem like it took long for them to reset, but by mile 7.5 going into 8, they were right back in the race just booking along. For the brief stint I was pacing by myself, I had a chance to chat with one lady runner who had said that this was her 35th half marathon she has ran. I humbly told her that she's got me beat by 30, and that I admired her talent for running that many races. This I have to say was the 2nd toughest part of the race. This was where the biggest portion of the hills had occurred. The wind for the most part was going in and out, depending on the direction we were going. Still again, for that part of the race, it had come down to just me, Jeff, and Heather just chit chatting about the race, our lives, family, etc.. Great conversation guys!!

Miles 9-13.1 (finish)

As we we're coming up the same hill we had gone down on from mile 4, we were basically looping it back to finishline. At that point, I starting struggling with my gait, and maintaining form. My haunted battle injury from past races came back with a vengence as my IT Band reared it's ugly head. I yelled out to Jeff to take the pace flag and take off so I could stretch out my leg/knee. He told to stretch and hold for 30 seconds and I would be fine. Sound advice well taken. After shrugging it off and climbing that big hill the WIND at my face, I was able to catch up to them at around the 15k (9.3 mile) mark. At that point, what comes down, must come up. Yes, that happened in this case as we climbed some hills heading back to the finishline. Unfortunately, that triggered my IT band to roll or mess up again. Stopped and stretched one more time and then I jogged to catch up with Jeff and Heather as they took off. I was able to catch up with them at mile 11.5ish going into 12. I told Jeff that I had a job to do, and I was not going to sit out on it. That same stretch, thank God was flat, but it wasn't easy to maintain much less gain speed. This race was a definite make you or break you kind of course. If the hills didn't get you, the wind surely did. The thing that motivated me to catch up to Jeff and Heather was the fact that I was indeed a pacer and that I had runners counting on me to help them. I was no use to them if I couldn't do my duty. That alone fueled me to ignore the pain in my leg, which by then had surprisingly subsided and also ignore that crazy head wind that could've easily knocked anybody over.

Once I caught up to Jeff, he had encouraged me greatly by calling me "Timmaay" and getting me to keep pushing. I told him, I was gonna run this time in with him cuz we were the pacers and we finish together. As we reached the cutoff to the finishline, he said that we had less than 2 minutes to hit our pace time and that we needed to gut this out. Talk about motivation, he grabbed a piece of the pace flag, and so did I as we paced step for step into the finishline with an exact 2:30 finish.

After we crossed, I felt a great since of pride in this race not only accomplishing yet another half marathon finish, but the pride I felt in overcoming an obstacle on the course and catching back up. Mostly the pride I felt in being a pacer.

After I got my finishers medal, pics, and snack stuff, I mingled with the other pacers and runners. High 5's all around, and just a great feeling of having a great race today, overall. Despite the hills we climbed, the wind we dealt with, and even a slight injury that slowed me down for a what seemed like a brief moment, I couldn't have asked for a better race to run. I definitely walked away with a greater appreciation for running hills.

I was greatful for the friends I have met along the way that were at this race, it was a blessing of a reunion, and after today, some new friends I was happy to have made. Words can not truly express of how grateful I was for this race. Can't wait to do this again.

 

Me with my pace flag, and medal. Sorry it got cut off

 

 

The pace team. See if you can find me..

 

 

From right to left. Me, Clay, Jeff, Heather, and Rick (another awesome pacer)

 

 

 

Here's a closeup of the bling. Big isn't it?

 

 

 

Back to the routine of this running thing. I think I've found my calling in the sport. I loved pacing today. It was nice to take a step back and remember where I had started from way back when. It was great seeing runners set PRs and running their first halfs today and knowing we as pacers helped them achieve their respective accomplishments. More to come on May 5, when I pace the 2:20 group at the Heels and Hills half marathon.... To be continued

 

Stay awesome frunners.....

 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!

The Cowtown Marathon 2013

Race Report:

Must start at the very beginning of the weekend when Stacie and I attended the marathon expo at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum. Putzed around, got my race packet, bought some stuff, and back home we came. I had wanted to sign up for the challenge that Cowtown offers, but this was the last year of the 5 year challenge that started in 2009. Ooops.. big messup with the communication from the staff, so I wound with a plaque to only place one medal in it. So, I'm now in the process of turning it back in and starting over with the new challenge beginning next year and ending in 2016. I've already seen a preview of what the bling(s) and plaque will look like, and I like it. Can't wait to run this challenge again.

Like I said, we didn't really stay long for the expo, just long enough to get my packet and buy a few things. Gu, bumper stickers, you know, basic stuff..

 

Me driving us to the expo. I figured since this was western style setting kinda of run, I thought I'd break out the old lid and rock it for the day.

 

 

When in Texas.....

 

 

Me standing outside the expo stand. Yes, to my Houston peeps, I'm wearing a Bucee's shirt

 

 

 

Cowboy Up!!

 

Stacie next to the Cowgirl hall of fame statue

 

 

 

 

I may be a city slicker for the most part, but deep down, I am a Texan, and I do have some country/cowboy in me. I've ridden a horse or two in my day, and I've worked a ranch before. Good times

 

 

Me and Stacie out by the water fountain by the museum

 

 

And here we are striking poses!!

 

 

and now...

 

 

 

Race Day!

 

 

After all of the training, tapering, and even carb loading, I felt deep down that I was confident in the way I was going to handle this marathon. Surprisingly, I was able to get to bed early enough on Saturday night at around 8:30, thanks to a benadryl and a hot shower to help me relax. I got up at 4am sharp, because I had told Stacie that I wanted to go to the Sunrise service that the Cowtown peeps had organized. I got up, let the dogs out, fed them, the usual with them. After all of our morning routines in the past and after getting ready for races in the past, we were able to get going by 5am. Traffic heading into Fort Worth, Texas was should I say, easy... Compared to all of the times I have driven out to Dallas for races out there, this was a much better, less stressful kind of morning getting to the race. I love Fort Worth!! I was able to get FREE parking at the Farrington Field parking lot, which was across the street from the Will Rogers Plaza where the race was held. Stacie and I felt somewhat spoiled by that. Crossed the street and over to the Round up inn room for the Sunrise service. There, I met up with some dailymile friends, Barbi and Darrell. My other DM friend Gary, was onstage leading worship with the Redeemer Church and Travis Avenue Baptist church as put on one great morning of worship and music....Awesome. Great words of encouragement as I meditated on what got me to this point and how God has shown me how great he is. Mostly, how I have learned throughout my training how I have to sometimes "persevere" and go beyond my own limits, as in my comfort zone when it comes to just my ordinary training. My other favorite word was used during the service, and that was "endurance", same thing as perseverance... which I just happen to have Hebrews 12:1 tattooed on my right calf... Let us RUN with perseverance the race marked for us... I got that tattoo two years ago when I PR'd in my 2nd half marathon by 20 minutes. It has been my go to verse, not just in running, but in life.

 

 

I confess, lately, I have been struggling with my own personal faith, and it has spilled over into my everyday life. Maybe even in my training. I do know one thing, I can be forgiven as I strengthen my relationship with God, and his son Jesus Christ.

 

 

 

 

Sunrise service!! There's Gary up on stage playing the guitar

 

Left pic, me and Barbi, and me and Gary on the right. I didn't get a chance to get a pic with Darrell, Barbi's running buddy, but he's an awesome runner as well and finished the half in 2:40. This run, in fact was Barbi's first half marathon to date, so she was a little nervouse about it. Through encouragement from myself and other DM friends along the way, Barbi made it with a stellar 2:56, and Gary completed the full marathon with a new PR in 4:06. Wtg guys

Once sunrise let out, I was waiting out by the area where the expo was held, trying to get a spot in line for the restroom. My morning concoction of a banana, gatorade, and a hot tea was kicking in. While waiting, my boy Clay aka, "The Nite Train" showed up and we said our hellos and chatted for a bit. He was nervous as he was in full pursuit of that sub 4 hour marathon. He made it in 4:30, and he was a little discouraged. He still did a great job running his 3rd marathon. Someday, Nite Train, you'll hit the streets of Boston.. I have faith in that, my friend.

 

Timmaay and the Nite Train roll again

 

 

 

I didn't want to wait forever for the line to use the restroom indoors, so I settled for the porta potty outside. Before heading out the door, I ran into another DM couple, Mike aka "America Mike" and his wife Kathleen. They are inspiring, as Kathleen herself has made it a mission to run a half marathon every month for the entire year of her current age. She's rocking it 13.1 miles at a time. Once I was done handling business in the porta john, the gun had gone off for the elites and fasties to take off first. I was in corral 4, so it took a while for the group I was with to take off. Not to panic, I had plenty of time to get to my corral and start. One thing I love about Cowtown compared to White Rock, the lines went through a lot easier and not so much of a push and shove. I got to my corral and gave Stacie a smooch and was inching my way to the starting line. Just my luck, I ran into yet another DM couple that I met a couple of years ago at another race I did. I heard my name being called out and it was Chris B. and his wife Anne. Same Chris that I've ran into at just about every race since last year, and the same Chris that is training for Western States. I met this great couple back in Labor Day of 2011. Another inspiring couple as well. I have to say, yesterday's race was a blessing being able to meet a lot of DM friends, some I've grown to know as my second family.

 

 

 

Here I am in the corral as we were moving forward. There's me in the doorag and shades. Chris is standing in front of me while Anne is off to my left in the light blue top.

 

 

My last pose and time I saw Stacie before I took off for the run. Felt good, and was ready to roll

 

 

and now, I'm off

 

 

As my corral finally got up close to start and was going, I felt cool, calm, and relaxed about this race. The fact that I was running a marathon was in the back of my mind, and that I could do this. I kept the strategy simple: Start out slow, and work my way up to a comfortable speed and then slow it back down towards the end, gain my second wind, and finish strong. No matter the distance, that's how I've always trained for every race. Given that it was a marathon, I wanted to stay at a comfortable pace, then gradually hit those negative splits. So, to start, I had chatted with Chris and Anne, then we all wished each other luck and went our own ways. Anne nailed a sub 2 in the half, and Chris nailed a 4:30 something in the 50k. Wtg Barnwell's. As they took off, I was in my own little zone until I came behind yet my other DM brother, Bal aka MoFo. As we always do in races, I gave him a smack on his butt, and he hollered out "wooohh" and then returned the favor. We had a good chat, then I took off as he stopped for his walk session of his run. Bal's training has paid off as he set another PR in 2:41 in the half. Wtg Mofo...

 

 

I was still running comfortably in my warming up phase, I met up with a gentlman named Ken, who was the 4:55 pace leader. My thought was to stay with him for a couple of miles, then take off as I felt the urge to. After a couple of miles and a series of hills, I felt warmed up enough to take off and go a little. My first split was at the 5k mark. I made it there by 34:14 (11:01 pace). To me, I felt like I was warming up, and my legs were adapting to the hills, and even some speed. By then, I was about 5 to 10 minutes ahead of Ken and was feeling comfortable with my pace and time. My goal was a 4:40-45 finish. Given the pace I was at, I was predicted at having a solid 4:50 finish. With that in my favor, I thought it was paying off for me to gradually step my game up and pick up speed. Sure enough, it slowly did as my next split was at the 10k mark where I reached it at 1:06:39 (10:43 pace). I felt good with that pace as I was passing people up and wasn't being passed in return. At mile just as the course was leading into the stockyards, I witnessed the first fall of the day. An older gentleman tripped himself up and hit the pavement face first. He suffered a busted forehead. Me and a couple of other runners helped him up and flagged a police officer down to bring in a medic. He was able to rest in a nearby SUV who's driver had the back gate open and he could sit there while he was putting ice on his head. He assured that he was fine. I was so close to withdrawing my race just to make sure he did do any serious damage. He told me he was fine and that I needed to go, so I did. As I took off, I met up with a lady who witnessed it as well and asked me if he was ok. I told her he was fine and she herself almost tripped over a pot hole in the road. I reached my arm out to grab her, and she regained her balance. We chatted and off we went. She paced with me until she gained her pace back and pretty much flew through the stock yards.

 

 

Right after the stock yards was the first big hill, which was a bridge. It was over by the Stock yards, and I can't remember the name of the bridge or street, but it lead into downtown Fort Worth, and over to LaGrave field, home of the Ft Worth Cats. That bridge lead was mile mark 9 going into 10. At that point, my left started to bother me. For once, it wasn't my PF, but the top of my foot. I was happy with my time as I was pacing at around 10:30-11, and climbed yet another hill. For the most part, the Cowtown course was flat. Some hills, but not as hilly as some of the races I've done in Dallas. Just before mile 10,  as we were going into downtown and taking that scenic tour, I witnessed yet another falling in the course. That person was yours truly, as I was trucking along, I didn't see that huge orange cane standing right in front of me. So, we collided and I fell over an slide a couple of feet. I think my hands were the first to catch myself on the ground and thought I had scraped them. Lucky for me, it was on the smoothest part of the pavement that I fell on. I just happened to be next to a DJ stand as he yell out on his mic "man down, man down".. Needless to say, I was a little embarrassed about it. Thank you to the kind runners that helped me back up. Surprisingly, with just the feeling of my hands being on fire, I was able to bounce right back and run at the pace I was going. Around the next corner leading to the Fort Worth Convention center, the Half Marathon runners split off from the Marathon and Ultra runners. On my way to the split, I hollered out to the half marathoners "good luck halfies, this is your race"! One runner high 5ed me and wish the full and ultras good luck as well.

 

Going into mile 11, I was clocked at 1:57, based off my watch, so a 10:30, almost 11 minute pace was just right for me. Mile 12 was a bit of a blur as the runners out on the course was thinning out some. I realized I was running in the back of the pack, which I didn't have a problem with, I was just blessed to be running yet another marathon, and I was feeling confident that I was going to get a PR one way or another. My next split was at the half marathon (mile 13.1) mark at 2:19:38 (10:39 pace). I say in all confidence, not bragging, but the first half of the race felt easy. Not that I'm being over confident, or cocky, but I can run a half marathon given a certain time frame, and without hesitation. Since my next big race is a half marathon, and I will be one of the 2:20 pacers, I wanted to alse get a feel for how I could pace my group in may. To me, it was a success. The next 7 miles, were yet another blur to me. Most of it was flat, and by then the course went from going through downtown Fort Worth and into the suburbs. I do recall at around mile 19, my left leg was feeling uncomfortable. I couldn't tell if it was a cramp, or if my IT band was acting up, I had to stop and stretch for a brief moment. I felt a little discomfort in my left hamstring when I tried to stretch it. I had made it to another area just before mile 20 and asked where the nearest medical tent was to see about my leg. Not only was my leg bothering me, but so was my foot from when I was had that difficulty at mile 9. Stupid me ignored the pain and kept moving. I regretted that decision, because at that point, I was walk, jog, hobble mode. I also couldn't tell if it was the PF or my feet being sore from breaking into my new shoes I got recently. All of that showed in my next split at mile 20, which was the last split before the finishline. I made it there in 3:44:18 with an 11:13 pace. Ok, so a 4:55 finish would still give me a PR. Just my luck, Ken, the 4:55 pacer passed me up, and I felt discouraged from that point on. As much I wanted to run, my left leg was not cooperating.

 

I'm almost convinced that it was the dreaded WALL I had hit, I don't really know. I do know that I had a race to finish, and I was not about to quit. From that mile mark up to mile 25, I did the walk, jog, hobble mix up. I got to 25 and was ever so thankful to find a medical tent and asked on the nurses to wrap my foot up. By then, I was feeling my left foot on fire, moreso than my right. So I got it wrapped to relieve some of the inflammation, and help with my form some. Lucky for me it did. I had 1.2 miles to and was ready to cross the finish line. I didn't want stop for nothing. By then, I was having trouble getting oxygen into my body and my chest felt congested. So I did the marathon shuffle. I knew where I was at as I was along the trinity trails, seeing the back side of the Will Rogers facility and mile mark "26". I got the encouragement from spectators and other runners that had finished cheering me and the other runners on that the finishline is just around the corner, and not to quit. I made that last right turn and saw the finishline in my sights. So, I had it in me like every runner does, and that was to gun it towards the finish. That I did. I heard a runner ahead me get her name called out that she was from Bedford, Tx (same town I live in), and then as I crossed I heard my name.

 

After that, I don't remember much except seeing a medic and collapsing before I could get to her. It was a mixture of being emotionally spent from the race, and also my left knee going out from under me. I got helped up by two other medics as one was saying to just keep my legs moving. I was telling them to get my wife because she was on the left of the finish post waiting for me. They said they would get her. Just before the medics moved me to the medical area, I stopped and got my finishers pic, and medal. Made it to the medical area, gave them my name and information, symptoms, etc. I was trying to spell my last out to them, and low and behold, a church friend of mine, Melanie who is a nurse for UNTHSC, which is the group the Cowtown Marathon does charity for. She was able to assist better because she knew me. They quickly got me to a bed, and I told her to call Stacie and get her to the medic area. As they got my vital signs, they were also getting fluids in me and assessing the damage. I told them I had felt a little lightheaded and my left leg from the knee down was sore. I explained to them that I felt it give out as I crossed the line.

 

After I gained my bearings, Stacie had made it over to my bed, and greeted me with a hug and asked if I was ok. I told her I was fine and that I had gotten a little dizzy and that my leg gave out. I continued to rest some more and get more fluids in me, then a medic noticed that I got the wrong medal. They gave me a half marathon finishers medal before I got my pic taken. Oops. So, they went and got a correct medal. I was offered an IV bag, and I refused it because I felt fine enough to walk and move around, and that I wasn't running anymore. Afterwards, I went through the refreshment area, loaded up on some chocolate milk and a banana. No beer this time because I couldn't find any and to be honest, I didn't really want any. From there, Stacie and I made it to the staging area where the runners reunite with there families. Just my luck, I ran into Chris and Anne again and sat for a bit. I also ran into another DM friend Joshua, another beast of a runner. He nailed a respectable time at the Rocky Raccoon 100 miler a few weeks ago to come to Cowtown and run the 50k. Ultra runners, mad love guys, yall are awesome. Stacie took my bib and went over to the tables and got me my finishers tee, and I love it. I even slept in it last night. LOL

 

 

Me and Chris. And I'm rocking the finishers tee.

 

Me and the "bite" on my bling.. Yes the full marathon finishers bling

 

Me and Stacie....and the bling

 

 

My finish time was 5:20:38 with a 12:12 pace. Given that it was my second marathon, and that I didn't finish in the time I wanted, I am pleased with the fact that knowing if my mechanics hadn't failed on me, I would have finished in a much better time. I know deep down I could have done it. To prove it, I plan on running this race next year, because I really liked this course, the people, and everyone who volunteered and worked tirelessly at setting this up. I said to myself last night as I was having dinner with my wife and mom, that I will probably settle for just doing half marathons and 10ks from now on. Since the warm weather season is coming back, that will be feasible for me, and I don't have a problem with that. I still like to run the longest distances I possibly can, and will not give up on running full marathons. I feel a lot stronger in this race than I did when I ran my first marathon. Amazing what a year off from being injured can do to a runners spirit as they learn from it. My next race is the Heels and Hills half marathon, and I like I said before, I'll be pacing the 2:20 group. Lots of fun to be had that day.

 

 

This is been a great journey yet again. I can't wait to turn the page of yet another chapter.

 

 



 

 

Just a token of what happened when I fell over that cone that came out of nowhere.

 

 

 

 

And last the tat. My go to verse before every big race.







Pre race stuff. Or, something like that

I've been meaning to post a blog since New Year's Eve. It seems that everyone jumped on the bandwagon and blogged about how good or bad 2012 was for them. Sorry for being late on that, but believe it or not, I had intended to do the same until my computer crashed halfway through my post I was writing and I lost everything I wrote. As semi-buzzed as I was, I was in no mood to restart the damn thing.

In short, 2012 sucked, and I'm so glad it's over. It sucked in my personal day to day life, and even so in my running activities. Somewhere in the mix, those two lives crossed paths and I ended up feeling 20 pounds heavier, more depressed, and most of all, a failure. My resolution was to stop making excuses and just do it..so I did!!

So far, 2013 has been a complete opposite, and I say that with all humbled-ness. January was good to me in the since that I ran my latest PR of 160 miles for the month, beating out my old record of 146 in October of 2011. I've worked up a mixture of combined training plans that adapted well for me. I mixed a bit of how Jeff Galloway's training works for marathon runners, along with some of Hal Higdon's plan. I started out with a base line of 7 miles a day M-Th, rest Friday, and a long run (12 miles and up) on Saturdays. Then as an option, a short 3 mile "recovery" run on Sundays. Overall, the schedule was a success. Not so much for the distance, but for my overall fitness, I wasn't as tired as I was before. I even added speed runs, and doubles on Thursdays, and was excited seeing 40 plus miles on a consistent basis each week. As a footnote, 3 days a week, I've spent time in the gym doing strength training. In the past when I trained for previous races, I hardly ever saw the gym. I made that change. I have to say, it's helped.....quite a bit.

February has been a good month as well. I'm excited about the fact that a week from today, I will embark on yet another 26.2 outing. This time, instead of Dallas, it's on the streets of Ft. Worth, TX at the Cowtown Marathon. I did the 10k run back in 2011, and I loved it. I'm very excited to take this challenge on. I'm also happy to say, that I feel 10x healthier about this race than I did when I ran my first marathon in December of 2011. I had mentioned above that I had gained 20 pounds over the past year, well, I've lost 18 of them. So for now, I am satisfied with the way my training, eating, and overall health is going.

 

 

Here's me on Christmas Day chowing on a cinnamon roll as my wonder pooch, Corkie is looking on. Desperately hoping I would drop a crumb or a piece for her. My weight was in the 240's for sure

At my last weigh in, and busting out 18 miles that weekend, I am back down to 222. Not where I want to be, but I am doing the slow and steady approach as my weight is coming off, and staying off.

 

 

 

One thing I've discovered in the world of fitness, is that we are all creatures of habits and mistakes are easy to make. I, once again would like to thank my awesome wife, Stacie for showing me this as she struggled as well this past year. I would post pics of her recent transformation, but she will not give me any pics to share. Totally respect that. I will say, I am 100% proud of her as she herself has lost 16 lbs since January 4. That day, she met up with my PT coach, and has been trained by him ever since. She has also taken up running as a way of working out. Pretty much like I did. Excited as well for the fact that we as a couple are doing a race together in April. The Color Run 5k on Saturday, April 6. She started with the couch to 5k program, and is now up to running a mile at a time without stopping. I smile everytime she posts on facebook about her recent successes with this great sport. I'm always taken back to when and how I first got started in this great sport.

 

 

I really meant to post this blog about the ultimate highs I have felt so far this year, I almost don't want to spoil it. Other than to say that I am happy with the ways things are going for me. Not just me, but my wife, friends, and family. 2013 is rocking hard so far, and I don't want it to end. For all of my DailyMile friends that are running Cowtown next weekend, I'll cya there. Look for a goofy guy in a cowboy hat. 

Dallas Half Marathon

Race Report:

The Dallas Mayor's 5k

If this past weekend of December 8 and 9 could be summed up in one word, I would say "unorthodoxed". Starting from Saturday morning with the Dallas Mayor's 5k. Going into this weekend with all of the activities, I decided to challenge myself, so I ran the 5k on Saturday followed by the Half Marathon on Sunday. Off to a good start, ended with a bang!

The 5k was utilized as a warm up before Sunday. My whole idea of doing it was to just "jog" the 3.1 mile "fun run". Didn't happen. Before the start of the race, I met up with a fellow Dailymiler and good friend Bal aka "MoFo". Funny how a lot of my DM friends all have nicknames. We've earned them. Bal brought his two youngest kids Diego and Sophia, and also another friend of his Rudy to walk all walk the 5k. Bal has the fortunate privilege to work for Oncor, which is a co-corporate sponsor of the Race, along with Cigna who also sponsored the race as well. I even got the privilege to meet in a small world kind of way, the VP over a department of Oncor, Mark Carpenter. When I say small world, I've known Mark and his family for 15 years. As I was growing up in Irving, I went to his church and school with his kids. Like I said, small world. Very appreciative of what this race is encouraging for today's youth in regards to getting fit and being healthy. I honestly wish I had something like this when I was a youngster. I also had the pleasure of "briefly" meeting the former mayor of Dallas, Laura Miller who started up this organization that has been going on for the last couple of years as part of the Dallas Marathon, formerly the White Rock Marathon.

The Mayor's Race consisted of a 1 mile fun run or walk, and the 5k run/walk. I opted of course to run the 5k. In my experience before in running another 5k, and it being a kid friendly environment, 9 times out of 10, it can be a challenge at times. Don't take this as a complaint, but when I'm in my "zone" and being surrounded by kids that are walking or run/stop/run/walk motion, you almost trip over them at times. This year's race was the first year to utilize the Margaret Hunt Hill bridge, which is a new addition to the Dallas area. It almost replicates the Big Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, but a lot smaller. The race itself kicked off at 9:00 am with the 1 mile fun taking off first. Once completed, the 5k runners and walkers took off. It was like playing the "waiting game" almost with getting the 1 milers to come back and then the 5ker's take off. Standing around for almost 30 minutes (what felt like) was playing hell on my hips and feet. I wanted to run already. Again, I'm not complaining, but there were some things about this race that could've been done better to make this race a lot smoother. Just saying. After the 1 mile runners and walkers came back, it was time for the 5k to start. As the race directors and Laura Miller herself  were making the anouncements over the loud speakers, I think one of them blew because it was hard to hear. LOL!! At that point, I was like screw this, just shoot the gun off and go run.

Gun goes off, and it was like opening the doors at the department stores on Black Friday. Kids, parents, teachers, runners, etc were swarming out like bees. It was a little crazy. It took the first mile to get passed the biggest part of the crowd that started out by walking or going out too fast then stopping. Pace yourself, kids... Pace yourself. I heard the whining about sides hurting, I saw other kids being pushed down, and one favorite, an adult walking up the hill to the Margaret Hunt Hill bridge, then turning around and coming back. Again, these are just occaisional flaws that happen sometimes with 5k races. Not that I'm saying I'm better than those people, because I'm not. In fact, I was "them" 3 years ago, so in a way I have sympathy for them. Like any 5k fashion, you start, you warmup, you peak, then you gun it home. My best non-race 5k has been around 25 minutes, which was on a treadmill, so I didn't have the luxury of kids getting in front of me and slowing me down. Like I said, beautiful scenery from the MHH bridge, and slight little tour of Dallas. On the loop back to the finish line, I saw Bal, and he gave a smack on my ass as a motivator. Hey, football players do it, why can't us runners? hmmm?!?!?!After that, it was back up the hill on the MHH bridge again and back to the finishline. Followed by a nice little party afterwards with some grub and fellowship with Bal, his friends, family....good times.

 

This video was actually taken during the Half I ran, part of the same route.

 

 

View of the bridge from the parking lot of the race.

 

 

 

Me and Bal aka MoFo actin' a fool!! That's how we roll!

 

 

Bal and his two youngest kiddos, Diego and Sophie. They are awesome. His lil homies!!

 

 

 

The Bling!! Actually, it was Rudy's bling. I just did the traditional "bite" after finishing a race.

The Dallas Half Marathon

 

 

Part two of the race! I don't know really where to begin with this other than, I showed up, and I finished it. On a serious note, I went into this race with a huge chip on my shoulder. Ever since last month, the weekend before Thanksgiving, my wife and I lost our baby that we were expecting via miscarriage. It's been hard for me to talk about it, but it's just an everyday thing where we just take it one step at a time. As a sense of pride and humor, we had planned to make a race shirt for me to wear that said "future dad" on the front with a arrow pointing up at me. Aside from this unplanned event, 2012 has seen the worst of me in my running. From ITBS to PF, and lots of missed training runs and races that I really wanted to do. Through recoveries and massage therapy, I managed to get back on my feet and completed some other redemption races. The only complaint I have for those races was the weather, which in fact was a problem yesterday with the half and full marathon runners.

 

Saturday night, I met up with Bal again, and also another good DM buddy of mine Clay, aka "The Nite Train". Again, we all earned our nicknames. This was a chance for DM members to meet up and carb load as we usually do the night before races. It was just the three of us along with Bal's two youngest kids, and also his oldest daughter Eva. Lots of laughs, good pasta, and good times. I think me, Bal, and Clay have been officially dubbed, "Larry, Curly, and Moe"... not all in that order, per Bal. LOL. We all gave each other encouragement and bottom lined it by saying if we don't get the PR's we want, then let's just go out and run our race, and have fun.

 

 

Sal's Pizza and Pasta. Thanks Bal for introducing this restaurant to me. Loved this place. Great food and friendly atmosphere!

 

 

The three of us. (L to R) Me, Clay, and Bal

 

Race Day!

 

 

Got up at 530 and got ready, which included taking my 2 dogs out, feeding them, crating them, and then out the door by 6. I had originally thought of the driving out the American Airlines Center, park there and then catch the DART rail to the Dallas Convention Center where the race started. Didn't happen. Stacie and I decided to play it safe, and just drive out to the DCC and park there. Aside from sitting in the parking lot of traffic, this was the better idea to do. Paid the $12 for parking and not even a 10 minute walk to the starting line. PERFECT!!

 

I missed the meetup Clay had actually put together on DM, so I missed out on meeting anybody else I had planned to meet. I had also coordinated somewhat with my dear friends the Parker's, Bill and Lynn. Lynn was on tap to run the Full marathon as well, and we had worked out a way to see if we could meetup. AND, we actually did later when she crossed the finishline. Great run Lynn!! :) As I've mentioned before in previous blogs, I've known the Parker's for 10 years and counting. Lynn was actually my inspiration to get into running. She's my "honorary" coach so to speak.

 

 

 

Inside the DCC. Where's my DM peeps? LOL

 

 

All by my wonesome!! No DM buddies :( I has a sad. Ok, I'm being a dork!!

 

Staring Line!

 

 

In true fashion, we had the National Anthem sung, then the elites, wheelchair runners, and the first corral runners go, then the next corral, and so forth. As the corrals were moving up, I actually ran into one DM friend. Same friend I met at a race last year, Chris B. Last year, he PR'd in the DWR marathon, and now recently, he got in to run the WS (Western States) 100 miler. It's like the Boston Marathon of Trail Running. WTG, Chris. We said our hellos, best of lucks, and then off we went.

 

 

I was in corral B, so I didn't cross the starting line until about 8 minutes into the time of the race begining. Started out with an easy 10 minute mile warmup for the first couple of miles, and then my plan was to progress my pace after the 5k mark. As luck wouldn't have it, mother nature had a better plan.Temps were in the low 60, but the humidity was at 93%. Not a good mixture when running a race, no matter what the distance. The idea of my initial PR went out the window immediately. Plus, the unfortunately discomfort of running faster than I should have at the 5k the day before didn't help either. I started having some soreness in my quads after mile 4, but at the pace I was at (10:00ish), I felt ok if I could just maintain that. By mile 6, and after crossing over the Margaret Hunt Hill bridge which had a hill at the beginning, then a downward slope, plus a couple of other hills I went up and down on, my legs were on fire. the humidity didn't help much either. So at mile 6, just before the 10k mark, I stopped to stretch, and find the nearest waterstop which was no where in sight. The thing I didn't like the most about this particular race was that it had some turnaround points instead of loops, which I personally prefer. From about mile 5 to 7.5 was a long stretch of that seemed like it took forever before a waterstop or a turn at some point. Such a tease at one point when I saw a sign that said mile 8 when I was just crossing mile 6. UGH!! By then, I was at the point of dehydration, and mental exhaustion, or so it felt like it anyway. I'm not a fan of running in humid weather. So, the walk/jog combo came into effect. In a way, I feel as if KARMA was playing a role after I was complaining about the Mayor's race the day before. I deserved it.

 

Miles 8-10 were a bit of a blur, after I came back from the turnaround which was where the Full marathoners split and went on towards White Rock Lake and on the way to the finish line. I think it was around mile 10.5 or 11, I met up with another DM friend Keisha, aka move4ward...still amazes me of our DM nicknames. Again, much earned. She did an awesome job pacing the 2:30 group for the half runners or as she calls it the "half-assers". We chatted, and she encouraged me just as I needed it. Thanks Keisha. :)

 

Miles 11 - Finish were met with yet some ups and downs. Again, with exhaustion setting in, my memory was fuzzy by then. I do recall at around mile 11 as we were yet going up another dreaded hill, there was a cop directing traffic who let a couple of cars drive by which led some of us to stop for a brief moment. Really occifer...you had to do that? As one runner stated "we worked hard to get here, they didn't" Amen to that! Then, coming to the home stretch, another young lady who was running doubled over and puked a couple of times. Her mother, I assume was helping her move and keeping her focused on finishing. I encouraged her that a good puke is all you need to keep going. AND, she did. Mile 12 and going to the finish met with a tease via another fricking turnaround that seemed like it took forever to finish. Usually at the point where I see the finish line, I get that burst of energy to give it the last bit of gas to cross and finish strong. Didn't happen. Just the fact that I finished at that point was enough for me.

 

 

After I crossed the line, my lovely wife was standing at the spot she said she would be at. She hollered got my attention and got a little video of me with a smile of a victory cuz I finished my race. I had to take that dreaded walk all the way around and up a flight of stairs and to the recovery area where I toasted with a cold MGD 64, a banana, and even some chocolate milk. At that point, I just wanted to hurry back to the other side of the DCC was where my wife was at. I quickly texted her and told her sit tight and I would be right there. Got my finishers tee, and went back around and thankfully down an escilator to where Stacie was and got that sweet hug and smooch I had been waiting for.

 



 

Here's me at the finishline.

 

 

Me and Stacie reunited. And I gots some bling

 

 

 

Timmaay was hongree. That sammich was good!! Nom Nom Nom

 

 



 

 

One tired Timmaay!! I has a sad from not getting a PR, but I'm happy I finished and didn't DNF.

 

 

 

 

Silly pose with the bling again

 

 

 

 

And our buddy Lynn and her bling. She finished in 3:56. Wtg Lynn! :)

 

 

I could real easily make a long list of excuses of why I ran lousy yesterday. Then I realized it wouldn't do me any good. I could blame the weather, but I've trained and ran in worse conditions for longer distances. I could blame poor nutrition, but I've ran faster and better on a much poorer diet than what I've had this week to prepare for this race. Again, won't do me any good. I just realized going into this race with that chip on my shoulder, and not feeling the excitement I had when I ran my first race, even last year when I did my first marathon. Yesterday was just a mere "off" day for me, and for some of my other friends that ran yesterday. I'm taking this with me as I prepare for the next race. 2 months from now when I toe the line at the Cowtown marathon, this will be a faded memory. Here's to a better recovery and a new lease on my prespective. Time to get the love back that I have lost.

 

Official Chip times

 

Mayor's race 5k 29:15

Dallas Half Marathon 2:43

 

 

I'm not finished yet!! Next race please

 



30 Days!`

November 1-30. Thirty days where people have made an often fun and rewarding challenge of saying one thing everyday for the month of November of what they are thankful for, and post it via Facebook. Better known as the "30 Days of Thankfulness". I myself participated in this last year, and then decided not to do it this year. Unfortunately with this challenge, I heard complaints from family because I never mentioned certain family members of why I was thankful. Some people just complain because they complain. Oh well, deal with it!! So. I decided this year I wasn't going to justify myself and let others win, so I participated. To make everyone "happy", I showed my grattitude to certain individuals first just so they can get their spotlight and be done with. Didn't happen. Still heard the complaints. As I pondered about it, I realized I am thankful for those complaints as well. I say that because it made me appreciate the negativity in my life and how much I needed to get rid of it. So I did!!

This month, started out very exciting as I was thankful for changes of the season, friends, family, the basics at first. As the challenge continued, I was trying so hard not to repeat myself, and luckily I didn't. As many of my close friends know, my wife and found out back in mid October that we were expecting our first baby. Knowing that I was a proud father to be, I was beyond excited. The first couple of weeks after us finding out about our pregnancy, we were met with some complications early on, and weren't for sure what was happening. Started with us not knowing exactly how far along Stacie was, and blood levels not "jiving" with how far we thought she was, etc. etc.. So thankfully, one week in early November, we met with the OBGYN and we determined we were roughly 4 weeks. Ultrasound even indicated the baby was doing great and I was very thankful for that. Thankful that my future baby was healthy and mommy to be was doing good too. As the 30 day challenge was going on, I indicated how extremely thankful I was for that.

That little dot was mine and Stacie's precious angel growing. Sorry for sounding like a broken record, but I was grinning from ear to ear that day. As the weeks passed by, mommy to be was having difficulties. From spotting and bleeding almost everyday. Started out little then slowly got heavy by the following week after this U-Sound pic was taken. We made the decision to visit the ER to see what was going. Sparing the details, I'll make it short, we had an unfortunate miscarriage. That night was one the most difficult nights of my life to ever experience. To make a positive notion out of this, we decided to not let this get us down, and that there will be another chance for us to try for another baby when the time is right.

As unfortunate as this was, that particular day, I notated on FB that I was indeed thankful for my loving wife, Stacie. For 7 years roughly, including the time when we were just friends, to when dated, got engaged, and now married for the past 4 of those 7 years. She is my soulmate, and as emotionally painful as it was for us to go through what we went through, this brought us closer together. We spent a good time in grief, which slowly led to anger, and how now ended with a sense of peace and yet closure as well. We believe wholeheartedly, there will be another chance, and I'm sure by then, this memory of our first pregnancy being a loss, will be a distant memory.

As the month of November continued, I soon felt like there was no point to continue this challenge. I stated up above that we felt some peace, but there is still pain there. As other friends were thankful for the lives they had, I suddenly felt like I saw nothing else to be thankful for. Who wouldn't? We had our moments of tears and sorrow, just giving it time as all have said to do. So we are.

In other news, I'm a week away from running my 4th half marathon at the Dallas Marathon, formerly known as Dallas "White Rock" Marathon. I'm not going to mention my goal, as I've done in my passed blogs, and I wind up choking on my words. So, with that, I'm just going to show up Sunday, as I do for every race and just RUN. If I set a PR, it's set. If I finish in under 2 hours, then I do. Throughout the course of my training, this race is actually a training run in itself. In February, I plan to attempt my 2nd full marathon in Fort Worth at the Cowtown Marathon. This half I'm rolling out next Sunday will be a mere jump start for me to get a baseline going and get more distance runs in as part of my training. I'm confident this will all pay off in the end.

Now that December is upon us and the season is Tising to be Jolly, I am looking forward to a wonderful Christmas. More to come next weekend when Sunday the 9th becomes an EPIC day in itself.