{race report} Back…for MORE and Broad Street

It’s good to be back after a much needed blog-hiatus.  Running a business, a family and well, just running…for our lives…is exhausting.  Getting off the merry-go-round occasionally brings perspective and vision back into alignment.

I decided to christen myself back into the racing world with two old favorites and ended up with what I call “extreme racing”.  Fluke-like conditions on both accounts made for crazy adventures and incredible fun.  Harsh weather conditions require us to dig deep, and although we were not rewarded with our best times, it did not diminish the sweetness of overcoming the elements.  However absurd it all was, we could not help but laugh at the idea that a group of thirty, forty, or fifty-something women could be so crazy as to even take these on!  And I know we are not alone on this.  There are so many groups of running women out there that do the same.  I saw and met many of them in New York and in Philly these past few weeks. You ladies rock!

running More

Back for MORE (Half Marathon):

A 4:15am wake up call for a 5am meeting time at the nearby grocery store.  Three of us decide to make the trek that day from Philly to NYC because we have other commitments that prevent us from a night’s stay.  We meet LDF’s Jamie and Jen at the Starbucks near the start in Central Park with our numbers in tow.  It’s pouring outside and the temperature is about 40 degrees–so not fun.  I have never had to race in the rain before, so I was clueless as to how to adjust.  I am shocked that so many of the 10,000 registered actually show (about 6400 will finish).  We sit in our corral as rain pellets us, listening to the beautiful Kristin Davis (of Sex and the City) say a few words of encouragement (in her nice, dry tent, warm rain coat and fabulous Burberry rain boots I might add!).  It was cold, rainy and hilly, but my foot felt good and all that girl power is just good for the running soul (sole:).  After the race, LDF Helene managed to convince a couple of NYRR volunteers that we needed their rain ponchos much more than they did.  Soon they are ours to sport as we make our way across the park and to our car in clothes so drenched that I can only compare them to a wet diaper.  Only after a pit stop on the Turnpike and a double tall soy latte do we finally feel human again.  Dig deep moment: second time around the loop coming into the long hill knowing how much it will hurt. Sweetest moments:  the belly laugh we had over the wait in the line at the parking garage for the crappy bathroom, and sweet moment #2:  coming in at #47 overall and winning a pair of fabulous Crislu earings as one of the first 100 finishers (just got them in the mail it–turns out they are diamond cut CZ’s set in platinum:(

On to Broad Street:

I know it’s not a good idea to run races back-to-back.  These two just happen to fall that way this year, so we decided we could race them or not…we would totally go on how we felt.  We had to run long anyway (is that an excuse?).   But who knew that we would encounter the complete opposite in conditions.  And to add fuel to the fire, a bat mitzvah the night before (for one running friend’s daughter) had some of us on the starting line with very little sleep wondering if that second glass of wine and choosing the salmon was a regrettable miscalculation (especially after the third bathroom visit).  But we can not always plan our life around races or races around our lives.  I was dealing.  The wave of nausea that came over me in the start corral as the warm bodies gathered tightly did have me worried.  It was hot, but as soon as the race started I was in and determined to finish.  I saw LDF Helene on mile 9 and her yell gave me a jolt.  The water spraying the crowd bothered me at first, but after accidentally running right through one, I was hooked.  It felt good and I could tell it was cooling me off.  I drank every other mile, something I would normally not do for 10 but I was trying to stay hydrated.  Dig deep moment:  mile 7…feeling pretty badly…thinking about the salmon again Sweetest moment: finish line and making it back to my house in time to shower and take my youngest son to his soccer game because my husband is out of town. It wasn’t my fastest run, but managed to squeeze out a 1:13:32.

We get by with a little help from our [long distance] friends:

By far the most enjoyable part about being back racing is the company of LDF’s.  I had to add this photo from the bat mitzvah the night before Broad Street (some of us have been running together for 9-10 years).  Gathering to celebrate the milestone of one of our children reminds me that this is a different kind of bond (and that I never see them in make-up, and that knowing way too much about their husbands, children, and non-running friends can make for interesting social encounters:).

These are bold, strong women who take on races like their lives: head-on, no complaining, no excuses, even in the most extreme conditions.

LDF’s Helene, Krista, Jane, Cynthia, Heidi, Lisa, Dora, Monica

Tagged as: Broad Street Run, LDF