Dancing into December

By | December 9, 2018

why am I dancing? PTO is in sight. I love what I do, but I am in dire need of a vacation and I can almost taste it. By the time this is published, I will be officially off work.

Anyone else have massive issues with the WordPress “upgrade”? I had to enable the classic editor plugin to be able to edit this post when it didn’t work on either Firefox or Chrome. Fail. While trying to figure out how to be able to access this draft, I played with my themes. I don’t love this one, but I like it more than the old one.

Was looking at something on Fitbit today and according to my dashboard I’ve walked 21,095,,17 steps. Nuts! I remember when I switched from Jawbone to Fitbit when the former died after 2m steps. I wish I remembered what year it is.

On to Running…

I had an amusing realization when I picked up my Ted Corbitt shirt: it’s the first race where I can wear last year’s shirt. Even for those I repeated, the shirts didn’t always work:

  • Frozen Penguin was one of the layers, but the 2017 shirt was short-sleeved and way too cold for March (or February like it is in 2019)
  • NYRR Retro – it’s a cotton tee that doesn’t mix well with a July race. However it’s super comfortable for weekend lounging.
  • Women’s Mini, I don’t like running in singlets. Way too much exposed skin to chafe/wear sunscreen. I think I finally tossed both Women’s Minis, the Pride 5M and Queens 10K shirts as I will never wear them.

[bctt tweet=”Do the best races come with the most memorable shirts? #RunTheYear” username=”travellingcari”]

I was curious to see how many others wear last year’s. It’s a vivid blue and one I’ve not seen at other races, so it will pop especially on I thought likely to be a grey, winter day. 2018 shirts are almost fitting in that regard.

2018 Ted Corbitt shirt.

It’s early NES graphics meets ugly sweater and I kind of love it. I don’t own a grey long sleeve, though it seems to be a theme as Brooklyn Half and Bronx 10 were (darker) shades of grey.

For as much as don’t wear the shirt before you earn it is a “rule”, it’s not one heavily followed in NYRR races, or so it seems. I saw a fair number of the 2018 shirts consistent with what I typically see at the weekly races

Race Recap:

Flat Cari: how many people were running from my apartment?

Oh my, so cold. Yes, it’s December in New York, but it was int he 50s last weekend and my blood isn’t ready for this. This is post-race when I peeled off the layers since pre-race Flat Cari was a pile on the step stool as normal and you didn’t quite appreciate all.the.clothes. Pictured:

  • Bottom layers: the amazing Climate Smart CuddlDudds leggings under a random pair of hot pink & black leggings I wear all the time (including last year). First time in a while I’ve gone with leg layers, unclear if they actually helped as my legs were still frozen.
  • On top: last year’s shirt as mentioned over a TekGear whose thumbholes were useful for keeping gloves on and a t-shirt. Not sure why I made that layer short sleeves other than it was what I did last year. That top shirt was a Brooklyn Half casualty when it was lost to a puddle.
  • Other: turtle fur buff I swear by, Lebow hat, random touch screen gloves that I love because they clip together.

Indoors: why do you do this again? Outdoors: running is serious business. No smiles allowed!

I ran to the start in surprisingly good time. Original plan was to leave apartment at 7:30, but I pushed it to 7:45 because I didn’t want that long in the corrals with the wind chill in the teens. Was still there by just after 8 as I didn’t hit any lights and headed into the Park at 86th even though the start was up at 102nd.

um, there is a race today right?

The volunteer said “welcome to Corral K, or whatever your initial is or you’d like it to be, since it’s yours”. I always love the NYRR volunteers but especially on a frigid day. One man joined our chat and a few filled in but we really didn’t have company until the corrals collapsed. The race was sold out, and the recap indicated 4,971 finishers, about the same as last year, but maybe both had more no shows?

No staggered start due to the loop course (still hate doing the short loop first) and we were lapped by the male leaders around mile 3. *Shrug* I knew this wasn’t going to be a PR, my only goal was to finish and enjoy it.  Some first: salted areas in front of the water stations due to freezing splashes and frozen waters (I blame Erika as I read that post last night) from about mile four on. That was good for a laugh – drinking slush? Interesting texture. I guess it not hurting is a sign of a complete root canal?

I was a bit bullheaded about not wanting to walk despite being undertrained. I’d bet if I had done some intervals I might have had a better time vs. the slogging 12+ later miles. Stubborn much? Also, it was just damn cold. My lungs were fine but my quads hurt early. I’m not sure if it was the hills or that they were frozen, but they definitely didn’t feel as if they were propelling me much. One issue? No food. I meant to take a breakfast bar to eat in the corral but realized halfway to the park that I’d forgotten it. No food, no gels, nine+ miles. Yep, that’s a recipe for fading in the final 5K.

I saw the clock at mile 8 and officially knew the PR was gone, and wondered if I could push it. Nope, not on these frozen legs. Lebow is going to be *fun* if it’s this cold. I lucked out with both of these last time.

unofficial

I used Becca’s trick of wearing the Garmin over the base layer, which had the added benefit of keeping base layer in place. When I looked at my heart rate in Strava post-race I was momentarily confused until I realized why it was so low. I don’t run by HR so it’s a non issue. It was just amusing. One of the best things about this Garmin? Even in cold, even for ~11 miles including warmup, only down to 84%

Official: 1:50:53 ahead of about 400. It’s about two minutes slower than last year, but unlike the Bronx, this really doesn’t bother me. I knew it early, and didn’t have high expectations going in due to November’s struggles. Do I wish I’d PRed? Of course, who doesn’t. Do I realize I’m past beginner gains and went into it undertrained again? Yep. While I can’t say I completely had fun due to the cold, I enjoyed the race and didn’t hate life.

Friends!

Post-race I met up with my friend and former colleague who I’d missed at recent races. She completed her 9+1 so we caught up while waiting for her to ring the bell before heading back to the subway.

Over for another year, I’d still do this race again. It’s a fun winter race.

Weekly Wrap with Wendy and Holly:

so bad. So good

Good habits!

Sweaty SkirtSports stork

  • Monday: when I walked out the door, I immediately wished I’d woken early and gone for a run as it was absolutely beautiful. Beautiful for December? Sure. But straight up beautiful for fall at nearly 60 and ever so slightly humid. Luckily my evening plans fell through and I have a habit of carrying my gym bag with me, so I was prepared to hit the gym. I needed it because of the above. Fried pickles (we split), boneless wings and Anchor chips. Tracked and moved on. I really didn’t have a plan for my workout, so I went to my standard intervals: 5.5/6.0 for .25 miles with .02 walk breaks after the 6.0 intervals. That’s a huge improvement from .05 miles when I started these, and they’re really just because I still can’t run and drink. I LOVE running in my first SkirtSport but this outfit was so a missed opportunity to wear my sneakers with the pink #SweatPink laces. My soundtrack for this run was Morning Shakeout with Des Linden-listening to it with the benefit of hindsight is even more fascinating. She really is a great subject and this is one of my favorite podcasts. They’re the perfect length for gym workouts. This was the first Monday I’d managed a workout in the last couple and it felt so good to set the tone.
  • Tuesday: I’ve come to an important conclusion: gym bag is a bit like Santa Claus. Make a list, check it twice. I got to the gym after work and realized that while I had leggings, sneakers, sports bra and socks I didn’t have a t-shirt. Oops. Not like I don’t have backups of all but sneakers in my desk, but I was already at the gym two subway stops/half mile from the office. Oops. I knew if I left the gym I wouldn’t go back. So it was a short cross train row and a long stretch in my work shirt, which was luckily light. Better than nothing.
  • Wednesday: all gear accounted for. I struggled running so after half a mile of intervals with a line for treadmills, I went to the LateralX for a mile. I decided to finish the running as a cooldown. Weird workout, but it felt good. I really like the LateralX.
  • Thursday: after-hours work event knocked out office run group and the event didn’t end until 8. I did some errands and went home. Break needed at times, don’t regret it.
  • Friday: no formal exercise, but Mom and I did our annual museums & holiday lights hop to the tune of 19K steps.
  • Saturday: race day.

matching? What’s that?

  • Sunday: oh my sore quads. I went for a short bike ride and a long stretch on my poor legs. Oh and of course any reason to not match with my cross training shoes. Beyond that, just some errands before settling in for a quiet day.

2019 Spring Half Marathon training mileage: 21.88. I’m OK with a slow build back up, I don’t want to be injured.

 

30 thoughts on “Dancing into December

  1. Wendy

    Sounds like a fun race, in spite of the cold. I always feel like it’s bad luck to wear the race shirt before the race, but at my last half, I’d say a good 60% of runners were wearing the race shirt! So weird. Anyways, I like the shirt you got. Congrats on a good race!

    Fried pickles. Yum. I’d never had them before, but Holly turned me onto them a few summers ago.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Funny, I think the first place I had them was Chicago. Not that a tourist trap on Navy Pier is authentic Chicago, but imagined it was a regional thing. They’ve become slowly more common here, but weird to see them as spears
      It was fun, I’d absolutely do it again. I’ll wear the shirt if it’s 5K or so and I don’t have an option, but otherwise I won’t risk a jinx. I think I’ve only done it once that I can recall

      Reply
  2. kookyrunner

    I hope that you enjoy your time off! I totally know what you mean about really needing a vacation. I was off work this past week and it was great!

    Congrats on the 15K! That’s one race that I would love to do.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Thanks! So looking forward to it. I love what I do, but has been a long last six weeks or so
      You absolutely should. The 8:30 start probably isn’t ideal coming in, but it’s a fun one and avoid Harlem Hill

      Reply
  3. Deborah Brooks

    Those fried pickles do look amazing! Had them last year for the first time. Hey they count as veggies right? Looks like a fun race despite the cold

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Yes, absolutely! Used to use this app called Pact and it would be amusing if people would accept fried pickles as veggies.
      It was a lot of fun — great day to be outside

      Reply
  4. HoHo Runs

    The only time I really see runners wearing the current shirt is when the weather is colder than planned and thus it comes in very handy. I rarely wear a race shirt as they are rarely a good fit and I mostly run in tanks — which you usually don’t get as a race shirt. I get the root canal remark! Drinking cold liquids again is an accomplishment! Congrats on enjoyable, yet cold, race. Thanks for linking!

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      funny, at least three (Women’s Mini, Pride, Queens 10K) of the NYC summer races are singlets. I’m personally glad that Achilles isn’t, but it’s kind of strange as it’s the same weekend as Pride. Manhattan 7 was a tee in its first year but I fear it will go the singlet route.
      I feel you on fit though — men’s small are too big and even a women’s large are too big.
      Yay for non sensitive teeth

      Reply
  5. Chocolaterunsjudy

    Running a race in the cold is no joke. I actually rarely do it, there aren’t a lot of races in the colder months here. And yeah, that lack of fuel probably played a part! Still a good job & not hating life is not bad. 🙂

    Next year you ought to come up here & join us for Last Run! It’s so much fun! But not so much for racing.

    I actually do have a couple of gray race shirts, and I think they’re both from Last Run, as a matter of fact.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      I think fall / spring are perfect running weather vs. either extreme. We have a decent cross section through winter – a Half in CP today after the 15K, a 10K and Half in January and I think another half in Feb to go with random shorter weekly ones.
      Funny, at one point over Thanksgiving we were talking about me coming back up around now to make cookies, but it didn’t work. Next year!
      I like grey vs. white since white never seems to come clean

      Reply
      1. Chocolaterunsjudy

        I hate white race tees! Thankfully I only have a few but wouldn’t you know the 1812 Challenge one was white? It’s a nice shirt, and I’m probably never gonna run 18 miles again, but darn, I get everything white dirty.

        Reply
        1. cari Post author

          I have a habit of tie dying white shirts to keep them less groddy

          Reply
  6. Kimberly Hatting

    Yay for PTO!!!!! Enjoy! Recently, I have been seeing A LOT of racers wearing the event shirt to the race. I was guilty a year ago in Las Vegas for the RnR 13.1, but I modified it into a tank top (so it didn’t look like the event shirt LOL). I think grey is a trend right now…I have gotten a few 1/4 zips (from different events) in various shades of grey.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Funny, NYRR had an issue with the Italy Run shirts’ neck holes so I saw a lot of DIY tanks and 80s necklines. Would have been perfect for the retro
      I’ll take this trend — less fussy than white

      Reply
  7. Laurie

    Sounds like a great race. 15k is one of my favorite distances. I sometimes wear last year’s shirt to a race, but I would NEVER race in this year’s shirt. Fried pickles are very appealing! 🙂

    Reply
  8. Coco

    I love those pink tights! Congrats on your race, PR or not. I don’t think I’ve ever run with 2 layers on my legs — I get too hot when I run. I have not updated wordpress, and I don’t plan to until next weekend. Even then I may resort to the plug-in to avoid the change.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Danskin maybe? I’m pretty sure they were a TJ Maxx find. One of my favorites for sure. Life’s too short for boring pants.
      I’ve done a wind layer once or twice, but this is the first time I double layered my legs. My head and upper body felt slightly warm, but legs never warmed up.
      The upgrade was definitely broken. I thought it was Firefox or Adblock. Nope.

      Reply
  9. therightfits

    Jealous of your upcoming time off! Sounds lovely.

    Congrats on the 15k, looks like a fun race!

    Reply
  10. Debbie @ Deb Runs

    I’m with you on the new WordPress upgrade. I hate it and immediately installed the classic editor plugin.

    “I enjoyed the race and didn’t hate life.” What a great way to sum up a race! 😉

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      From the chatter I’ve seen on twitter and the number of downloads that plugin has, we’re the majority
      My only goal for that race was to have fun

      Reply
  11. Liz Dexter

    I love your flat lay and layers!A great week’s work. I havent’ got the new WordPress upgrade yet though they’ve moved from telling me about it to pushing me to click on it. Nooooo!

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      The upgrade is possibly the worst of all time for WordPress. How do you not know you’ve rendered your core function useless? Fail.
      I did not miss the layers this week

      Reply
  12. Lisa

    Great job in your race! I hate getting to races too early when its really cold, but I also dont like getting there late and feeling rushed! I hope you enjoy some time off of work and get some rest!

    Reply
  13. Lesley

    Enjoy the rest of your year! My PTO starts in 11 days, and while there’s a lot to get done at work with fun thrown in, I am looking forward to my vacation.

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      I’m sure the 11 days will fly-they all seem to at this time of year. Travel safe!

      Reply
  14. runswithpugs

    Great job, but brrrrrrr!

    PTO is awesome! I’m so glad you’re looking forward to it! Enjoy all of it so much! It’s such a great time of year for it!

    Reply
  15. Pingback: Celebrating two years of running with a book giveaway |

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *