Danskin Triathlon Recap

On Mother's Day, exactly one year from my first attempt at a triathlon I was at it again. Right after last year's race they offer all participants a discounted fee to sign up right away for the following year.  That's what I did.  Not knowing at the time, that the race would fall into one of the busiest times for me.


With the financial commitment already made, it was down to the wire as to whether I could make the race or not.  My second daughter was graduating from college the day before the race at the College of Charleston in South Carolina.  I didn't know if I could make it back to Orlando in time or not.  With the help of others, I was able to get my bike racked the day before and all I had to do, was make it home. 


Physically I was kind of ready for the race.  I have been running in preparation for a half marathon in June and my cross training is bicycling.  I even went to the pool once to swim for 30 min so I would be prepared just in case. I was a competitive swimmer up through high school, so that part didn't worry me.  


I made it home the night before the race and headed to Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort in the morning. The weather was perfect - mid 60s. 

Arriving pre-dawn to catch a bus to the race area

I knew I wanted to improve my time from last year, but mentally I wasn't there. I was just going to do my best. From my first race, I had in my head that this was the hardest thing I had ever done.  When I shared this with a friend, she was surprised and reminded me that I had run a marathon since.  Her comment made me rethink the entire race.  She was right this wasn't the hardest thing I had done, compared to the marathon this would all be over in less than 2 hours.  This totally changed my mental state.


I started the half-mile swim in the fourth wave (light blue swim caps)  I tried to stay near the front on the inside of the pack.  My goal was to swim a straight line to the first buoy, cut a sharp left hand turn and head for the next one, turn left and then head for the shore. I wanted to make my route as direct as possible.  

I am on the front right in the green shirt.

If I could get out in front, I would be able to find an open space because the wave in front of us had a four minute lead. Sally Edwards got us pumped up before we took off.  Our mantra was "I am a strong, kick ass swimmer (biker, runner)" 

Sally Edwards getting us all warmed up for the start.

I managed to swim a strong leg and it wasn't has hard as I remembered. I found I nice open space for most of the way.  Upon leaving the water I noticed I was one of the first light blue swim caps to make it to shore. That gave me the motivation to keep pushing myself.

I ran to the transition area and dried off as quickly as I could.  I took care to dry my legs well, because last time I ended up with soggy socks on my run and that was no fun.  I also had to put on bike shoes.  This was my first race wearing clip on shoes.  I was a little nervous about that, because sometimes I forget to unclip and that leads to a fall. 

I just wanted to pedal as hard as I could throughout the 12 mile ride. The ride was mostly flat with just a couple of overpasses to tackle.


My transition between the bike and run took a little longer because I had to change shoes, but the idea was I could do better in the cycling with shoes that allowed me to push and pull through each rotation.

Heading for the finish line

I had no idea how I was doing time wise, but I just kept on putting one foot in front of the other.  I had 3.1 miles to run. The running part was not marked with mile markers and this made it tough.  I did not want to start off too fast and burn out, but I also wanted to speed it up for the last mile.  I made my best guess and kicked it up at the end. 

Cate, my cheerleader and me drinking chocolate milk.

Andy and me

 I ended up beating my time last year and made a new PR.  I finished in 1:35:00 - eight  minutes and thirty-four seconds faster than last year.  Here is the breakdown.

Swim           17:10

Transition 1    3:47

Bike              43:49

Transition 2    2:00

Run              28:12

My friend Cheri, after her first tri!

I like this race because it is all female and every one is so encouraging and supportive.  It is a great race for beginner triathletes and is held each year on Mother's Day.  The only bummer is the t-shirt and the medal are lame.  But I would recommend it to anyone considering triathlons.

The medal

How important are the Tshirt and medal to you when choosing a race?

Food Truck Bazaar

I've read about food trucks and followed some cupcake trucks in other cities on twitter, but have never experienced one before. I watched the show Food Truck Race on the Food Network and was intrigued. Something about them seemed so fun, maybe the freedom of all the places they could go or the idea of all the tasty treats that could be made in a truck!  

Well, I had a chance to visit one, in fact, 15 at our local Food Truck Bazaar last night!
The event was being held from 7pm-12am in a parking lot at a local mall. I was excited and hungry so we made sure to get there just after 7pm.  First stop was the Yum Yum Cupcake Truck.  

The arrow points to the gas cap. *Cute*

Cupcake truck

I heard they sell out quickly, because they do not bake cupcakes in the their truck, they only sell them from the truck. Plus who only buys one cupcake?  In fact, I bought six cupcakes - all different flavors!   The vanilla ended up being my favorite. 

Chocolate peanut butter, chocolate, lemon, carrot, red velvet, vanilla

The lines can get long at the trucks, fortunately this one wasn't too bad, but people kept coming and the lines  began to grow. Andy, Cate and I decided to split up and each go to a different truck.
Andy headed to the BBQ truck.
He got a cheese-burger topped with BBQ pork and macaroni and cheese, called The Big Daddy. It was pretty good.

Cate headed for the Travelling Gourmet truck for pork lettuce wraps.  These were a hit!


I spotted this little orange truck from afar and knew I had to get in line. 

I have been wanting chicken and waffles for months. The menu was mouth watering and decided I needed the savory chicken and waffles with country gravy and the berry waffle with fruit and whipped cream.  I found my way to the back of the line.

That's me at the end holding my cupcakes.

I was very far away from the truck, but long lines were expected and I thought nothing of it.  I had time to meet new people in line next me including Nathan, retail manager for Track Shack, my favorite running store!  The line didn't seem to be moving much at all.  It ended up taking two and a half hours to get to the truck to order!  Darkness had settled in, some people in line gave up and the truck's generator died during this time. Luckily it was just out of gas and was easily fixed.

Hanging out in line with Andy and Cate

I was four people away from the window when they announced they had run out of gravy!  WHAT!? Disappointing for sure, but not a deal breaker. 


During the wait, my son Patrick called and when he found out how long I had been waiting in line for chicken and waffles, he didn't seem to share my passion for the food trucks because he told me they sell chicken and waffles at IHOP everyday.   


Definitely NOT the same as waffles from Melissa's Chicken and Waffles Food Truck in a mall parking lot - I am sure!!


Nearing 10pm we got our waffles,  the berry one came out first.  Mmmmm.  They had run out of silverware, but we made do.

Berry Waffle

The chicken one took a little longer, as each one was made to order!  We were so relieved to actually get it that we dug right in and didn't even take a photo.  Imagine the one above with yummy friend chicken pieces on it and that's what it looked like.  

The waffles were great and even though the wait was super long,  I would go to her truck again.  I was told this was her first night so I am sure service will improve.I loved the Food Truck experience and am looking forward to the next event.  I have 11 more trucks to try!!

Have you ever eaten from a Food Truck?  What did you get?

Charleston Krispy Kreme Donut Run Race Recap

Saturday was the Krispy Kreme Donut Run in Charleston, SC.  I drove up to South Carolina Friday afternoon to spend the night with my daughter Caroline, who would be running with me.  We love donuts and running so we were very excited about this event!

Caroline and I in our race outfits

 Costumes were encouraged so we made donut themed T-shirts. There were about 300 runners but I think a third of them were children and dogs.  This was a casual, low key run that really was all about having fun. The challengers lined up at the start first. We casual runners were next and then the walkers.  The course was out and back on a grass trail.

The turnaround point was the Krispy Kreme store.  

Upon entering the parking lot, we ran around the store and ended up in the side parking lot, where there were tables of donuts on trays and then a table with stacks of boxed donuts. The challengers HAD to eat all twelve donuts before they could head back.  Some were having a tough time stuffing them all in, many using water to wash them down.  Others took the approach of stacking the donuts 3 and 4 donuts high and then smooshing them flat to eat all together. 

Each tray held 12 donuts

As a casual runner, we grabbed a box of donuts and could eat as many or as few as we wanted.  I ate 2 and Caroline ate one and a half.  We packed our remaining donuts in ziplock bags, put them in a bag for easy carrying and headed back to the finish line.

Enjoying donut #1

Eating even a few donuts does not make running easy.  We decided to run/walk the rest of the way back. We caught up with a family with 2 young kids under 6 that had been ahead of us the entire race. They weren't carrying any donuts back, so I wonder if they ate them all.  Either way, those kids just kept on running - they were amazing!   I thought we would never pass them. In the end, fatigue won out and the kids walked. We were able to beat the six year olds, but just barely. We finished with a scorching time of 41:26:06.  

The donuts were freshly baked and delicious - perfect! However, I am so glad I did not sign up to eat all twelve donuts, I would have been miserable. The two I ate were plenty.  Thinking about eating all the donuts you want sounds like a dream come true, but it is not as easy as you think. Too much of a good thing is not good!  I know for sure I will not be starting my own show Girl v Food.

I think the guy who won completed the eating and running in 28 minutes. 

We had a great time, ate some yummy donuts and got in a run all at the same time!

The End

Donut Run Costume

Now that I am on the road to recovery with just a little cough left, I have been preparing for this Saturday's Donut Run in South Carolina.  My daughter Caroline and I have decided to wear matching outfits so we have been designing T-shirts and deciding on outfits.  This is what we came up with...

Front of the shirt

Back view

We will be running a 5K and eating some portion of a dozen glazed donuts in the middle. I am sure I will secure a PR for donut eating/running so I am pumped about that!

 Look for the race recap this weekend for all the sweet details.

Iron Girl Half Marathon Race Recap

Pre-race flexing

On Saturday I traveled to Clearwater with Cate and Andy for the Iron Girl Half Marathon.  Clearwater is on the west coast of Florida and as I came to realize, a very popular Spring Break destination.  The place was packed!

The beach in front of our hotel

I signed up for this race back in January and it was my first out of town, had to stay the night, race. During this trip I realized how lucky I am to have so many great races in my own town!  Disney  and Track Shack, our local race sponsor, whose owner also happens to be race director for RunDisney, has spoiled me and this race just didn't measure up on a few levels.  I was expecting more from the race and myself and was disappointed on both counts.

I started coming down with some bug on Wednesday and instead of getting better, it only got worse.  I don't get sick very often and when I do it's usually a cold that I can run out.  Not this time.  I was lethargic and achy with a serious cough.  BUT I had made plans to go with Cate and had paid for this race and hotel so I was going. I kept hoping each morning I would wake up feeling better. That could happen...

Goody bag contents plus bottle and headband I bought.

We arrived Saturday afternoon for packet pick up.  There were only a handful of vendors but no Bondi Bands. I had my heart set a few new ones.  The highlight was finding a bottle I can attach to my ifitness belt!!  I love that belt and now I can use it to carry drinks for those long runs too. Usually I wear a hydration belt and the ifitness belt, now I only have to wear one! 

Race day started at 6am. Our hotel was just a block from the start of the race so we did not have to get up too early.  I don't sleep well in different beds, so that coupled with all the  medicine I was taking made for a fitfull night's sleep.  Needless to say I did not wake up feeling better, but I figured running wouldn't make it worse, plus I had come this far, I wanted to do the best I could.

It was an all girl field of 1600 runners and there were no corrals.  I saw a few pace group signs and tried to squeeze my way near the 2:30 group.  The start was right near the beach at dawn, a lovely setting.

I knew the race was a loop course over some causeways, but I did not know it included three LARGE bridges and a hilly course!  I started off at a decent pace and after making my way through the initial crowd and past walkers who started near the front (What is that about???) I was able to run up the first hill without any problems.  At mile four I started to feel tired.  I ate some of my Stingers and hoped for a return of some energy.  It was very hot and humid and I was sweating up a storm which made me really thirsty.  The water stations seemed very far apart and I began walking through them.  By the time I got to the second bridge around mile eight (I think) I had to walk up the hill. I began walking more and running less. By the third hill, on mile eleven I was pooped and it was even more steep, so I walked that one too.  I couldn't wait to cross the finish line so I could rest.

Approaching the finish line, finally.

I finally crossed the finish line with a time of 2:19:48.  I was so relieved! I got my medal, some water and a chocolate muscle milk. I sat down to check out my toe which had been bothering me during the race to find I had a big blister on the bottom of my big toe!  What the heck!! I was not in my best shape for this race and it was getting worse.

Cate and I 

After the race, we got cleaned up, checked out and headed back home.  After a stop for some much needed carbs (bagels) I took a nap in the car.  Once home, I headed to the bed to lie down and rest.  I spent the rest of the day sleeping off a bad headache and woke up starving. Andy made a fabulous dinner of chicken parmigiana, salad and chocolate raspberry cake while I snoozed.  It was just what I needed after an exhausting day!

The day ended on a great note and I finally did wake up feeling better on Monday.  I guess I eventually did run that bug out of me, it just stayed too long!  

I  don't think I will run the Iron Girl again, it just wasn't worth all the travel, time and money, plus Clearwater Beach was just too touristy for me.  I wanted it to be better: more music, less hills, more water stations, better vendor participation.  My expectations were just too high, but now I know.

It wasn't all bad, I enjoyed my family and the quiet of the beach at dusk.

We did experience this a beautiful sunset Saturday.

Have you ever run a race when you weren't quite up for it?

Here's the breakdown of the race:

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	02:19:47	13.12	10:39
1	00:09:57	1.00	09:57
2	00:09:33	1.00	09:33
3	00:09:13	1.00	09:13
4	00:09:21	1.00	09:21
5	00:09:27	1.00	09:27
6	00:10:11	1.00	10:11
7	00:11:03	1.00	11:03
8	00:12:56	1.00	12:56
9	00:10:18	1.00	10:18
10	00:10:59	1.00	10:59
11	00:11:45	1.00	11:45
12	00:12:43	1.00	12:43
13	00:11:09	1.00	11:09
14	00:01:07	0.12	09:00

Five Miles and Two Doughnuts

Medal for half marathon

Five miles and two doughnuts were part of my training this weekend for two upcoming races.  My long run Saturday was five miles as part of my taper for this Sunday's Iron Girl Half Marathon in Clearwater, FL. I have been following Runner's World Smart Coach program for this race and it is very demanding.  Much more serious than the Marathoning for Mortals I used for my marathon.  Smart Coach wanted me to run thirteen miles for the two long runs prior to the event.  That seemed extreme to me so I tweaked it and decided to run eight and five miles the weeks before. This is all an experiment for me, so we will see how this translates to race day performance. I will be running this race with child #1, Cate.  This will be our last race together before she moves to Chicago in May. I will miss my fitness buddy.

The two doughnuts were eaten as part of my training for the Charleston Krispy Kreme Donut Run on April 16, in Charleston, SC. Being a fan of doughnuts and running, this is a great combo race. Basically it's a 5K with a dozen doughnuts thrown into the middle. You run half of the race, eat twelve donuts and then finish the race.  


I have read about this race in North Carolina, home of Krispy Kreme and always thought it sounded fun.  Caroline, child #2, lives in Charleston and we will be doing this one together.  As much as I like doughnuts, I was a little worried about having to eat twelve doughnuts at one time AND having to run 1.5 miles after eating them.  


Fortunately, this race offers runners a choice: you can either compete as a challenger meaning you HAVE to eat all 12 doughnuts and keep them down before you can start your run to the finish, or you can enter in the casual division, where you can eat as many or as few doughnuts as you want.
Of course, if you go casual, you can't claim victory for this race.


Not really being a contender for winning, and my lack of interest in throwing up after stuffing down a dozen doughnuts, I am perhaps wimping out, but I have entered in the casual division.  I like that I have a choice, we'll see what happens race day.  I may get caught up in the doughnut frenzy!! 


Would you choose to run as a challenger or a contender?  Do you spell this circle of dough fried in fat as donut or doughnut?  Just curious...I go back and forth between the two.