About that race...the finish!

Between the lack of bathrooms without huge lines, some (minimal) navigation issues, and the uphill and trail runs that some of us had, the second half of our 77.7 mile run was definitely a little bit more challenging than the first.  But it was no less fun.  And it was amazing how quickly the many hours flew by.

By the time I got to my second leg of the race, the sun had warmed things up enough for me to brave removing a layer or so of running gear.  I felt the pain for runner 4 (who had the hardest leg of the race - a huge and pretty steep uphill climb) as I ran for a little less than a mile downhill and then the remaining almost 4 miles uphill.  I was glad for the many miles I had run around my house, with the rolling hills of the area serving me well for the uphill climb.  But still, my pace slowed and my calves screamed as I made my way up.  And up.

The first (and easiest) part of my second leg...I can definitely learn a few things about my running form from this pic.

Unlike my first leg, when I had passed no one and no one had passed me, there were many more people around for this 4.8 miles.  The hill did many people in; I passed 8 or 9 people but I also got passed by a few people.  I worked hard.  I had to force myself to look around and enjoy the scenery.  I was so happy to see the exchange point and I was so proud of my average pace for the difficult run: 8:16/mile.

The lake was beautiful.  The sky was clear.  The route took us through a state park and past many more wineries and distilleries.  Amanda's leg of the race took her past the winery where she was married.  The evening was upon us.  With an 8 am start, our projected time of finish was 7:03 pm if we were to hold to the 8:30 pace chart.  With some legs we would gain a minute, but with others we would lose a couple.  The uphills were challenging.  The fatigue of getting up at 6 am and running twice already was catching up to us a bit.

My third leg was my shortest leg, and despite my legs having already carried me over nine miles, it was the most fun.  I actually still felt pretty good.  I was really enjoying the day and was definitely excited to see what I could do, having never run three times in the same day before.  As Amanda ran in for the exchange, I lived up to our team name (70's Seven - You Should See Us Dance!) and danced her in.

Then I took off.

I had a great deal of confidence as I left, knowing I had nothing to lose, that I didn't have to save anything, and that we had all done our best.  I knew the worst was behind me and that this was it.  I enjoyed my music.  I enjoyed the fresh air.  I enjoyed the scenery.  As I approached my last hill of the day, I enjoyed the steady pace that I found.  I passed a few people who had slowed to a walk, and got passed by one or two, as well.

One of the people I passed was not happy about it.  She was walking when I passed her going up a hill, but I felt her right behind me as I came to the crest of the hill.  I wasn't sure how far the exchange point was from there, but when I crested the hill, I saw it.  I started to speed up.  So did she.  I sped up more.  She did, too.  By the time we got to the exchange, we were both in a full sprint, with teammates cheering us on.  Unfortunately, we would have to cross paths to get to our teammates.  We got a little tangled, but my teammate took off first.  I finished the leg with a 7:59/mile average...slower than my first leg, but I was thrilled to have broken 8:00 on my third run of the day.

The next stop would be the end of the race, where we would all reunite and cross the finish line together.  There were many start times for the race, with some people starting as early as 7 am and waves leaving every half hour until 9:30 am.  The 9:30 groups were the fastest.  Their goal was to pass everyone along the way and finish before the 7 am groups.  So, as we jubilantly crossed the finish line, we had no idea how we really did in comparison to everyone else.  But, it didn't even matter.  We couldn't have been prouder of ourselves.

Initially, we weren't sure if we would finish by 8 pm.  Then we set our sights much higher.  We ended up crossing the finish line at 7:12 pm...11 hours and 12 minutes after we had begun our race.  Our average pace was 8:38/mile.  When we woke in the morning, we discovered that we had placed 5th (out of 35) in the all-women groups and 87th (out of 209) overall.

Our team finish!

This was definitely a race that I will never forget.  I met some awesome women, laughed my butt off, and ran my heart out.  We exceeded our own expectations and had an amazing day filled with memories and experiences that will last a lifetime.  Thanks, girls, for a great race.  For a great day.

About that race...part 2

As runner three took off, we all got in the car, with runners five, six, and seven thinking of coffee more than anything.  Fortunately, not far along the drive to the next checkpoint was a little gas station.  I ran in quickly, and it was like a scene from an old movie - the sheriff sat at the counter enjoying his cup of coffee and some small-town conversation with the owner.  I filled three cups, and the owner asked, "Are you involved with this running thing that is going on?"  Yep.  I am running around the lake as part of a team of seven women.

We got to the next checkpoint with about ten minutes to spare, and then off went runner four.  Our short term goal became to find bathrooms that didn't have a long line before quickly heading to the next checkpoint.  Fortunately, there were several port-a-potties at this stop, which was one of many wineries along the way.  Unfortunately, port-a-potties without lines would not to be the norm for the next many hours.

Runners 7, 5, and 6

I began to get a touch nervous as runner five (Amanda) sped off.  There would be another bathroom trip necessary.  I was worried about what I had eaten (and not eaten).  I was definitely not used to running in the late morning. As my turn approached, I was glad that a teammate had packed some energy chews.  I ate a few and downed some water.  My adrenaline started and I anxiously awaited as Amanda flew in to the exchange point.  I grabbed the slap bracelet, slapped it onto my arm, and went.

Heading out for my first leg of the race...

It was cold.  Only in the upper 30's at best, I was not quite sure what to wear.  But once I got moving, I warmed up quickly.  Starting off, my legs felt wobbly and unsure, and I had to mentally move them for a while before I felt them calm down and I was able to find a comfortable stride.  I was excited when my team drove by, honking the horn, ringing the cow bell, and cheering me on.  I would see them again soon.  The rolling hills were much like the roads I run around my house.  I could handle them.  I ran along a relatively isolated road with but one person ahead of me, just out of reach.  I focused on him, and, for a while, thought I might be able to catch him.  I did close a bit of distance, but never did reach him.  I passed no one, but no one passed me, either.  I passed the slap bracelet to the last runner on our team.  My pace on this 4.6 mile leg: 7:42/mile.

Just finished my first leg and made the hand off

I stretched for a minute or two before we took off in the Yukon again.  My next focus was to eat.  Never have an avocado smeared on bread and a hard-boiled egg tasted so good.

We would do the whole thing twice more.  Getting out of the car, cheering one runner in as the next went off, getting back into the car, passing by our teammate, honking and yelling and ringing the cow bell, finding bathrooms (or sides of roads), sneaking in food when and where we could (the pit stop halfway through for pizza was one of the best decisions).  We were pretty close to being on our lofty-goal average pace of 8:30...at least for the first half of the race, which was predominately down hill.  The second half proved to be more of a challenge, as it was just as much uphill to get back to where we started.

Mmmm...pizza!

To be continued...

About that race...part 1

One year ago, I was getting ready to run a half marathon in the city.  I am not running it this year, but the weekend immediately before Cortlan's surgery escapade was another running adventure for me...

That Saturday morning, I headed out for a five hour drive to meet up with two members of a seven member team that I would be running with on Sunday.  It was April 20th, and less than 45 minutes away from my house, I hit the first of many snow squalls of the drive.  Beyond the snow, the drive was uneventful and easy; I enjoyed  listening to the radio stations of my choice.

When I got to my destination, I headed to the salon where my friends were and where I got a great new look with a new haircut.  We headed to lunch, went back home to pack our running gear and get situated for the next day, stopped at the grocery store for a few items, and then we were off to the lake house owned by one of the other members of our seven member team.

The lake house was beautiful and spacious.  The three of us were assigned a bedroom that had three twin beds in it.  We dropped our stuff and headed back downstairs for some introductions and socializing; eventually, we made dinner and ate at around 9 pm.  Many laughs and discussions of when we were going to get up and out of the house later, we made our way to bed a bit before midnight...definitely a late night for me, and far later than I have ever stayed up the night before a race.  But we had a great time, and I didn't drive five hours to just sleep!

The rules said that we were to arrive by 7 am to pick up our race packet.  Our entire team had to be there to sign something; the race started at 8 am.  Not everyone in our group agreed that we should abide by this rule.  In fact, by the time we left the lake house, it was 7 am.  I was quite worried that we would miss the opportunity to pick up our packet or that we would somehow be disqualified.  Those fears intensified when I realized the lake house was almost 40 minutes away from the starting point.

The third car in a three car caravan, we nervously watched as the lead drivers spoke out of their windows to race officials and police officers.  They were given instructions and information.  A couple of people got out of the car.  One shrugged her shoulders at us.  I was sure our race was over before it even started.

We finally were able to find a parking space and reconnect with our group.  I was amazed and relieved when I was asked to sign a paper and our team leader was told where to pick up our packet.  We quickly got our bibs pinned on and headed back outside.  We attempted to get a group picture, but the race was minutes away from starting.  The first runner made it to the starting line with no time to spare; the second runner ran after the shuttle that would take her to the first checkpoint as it drove past us.  The remaining five of us got in the Yukon and drove to the second checkpoint.  The adventure had begun.

The race was around a long, skinny lake - Seneca Lake in New York - and was 77.7 miles long.  There were seven of us that would cover that distance as a team, each with three legs of a total of 21 legs.  I was runner six.  Being that I had no coffee or breakfast to speak of, I was quite happy to have a bit of time before I had to run and was hopeful that somewhere along the route I could get a cup.

After we waited in line for quite a while for the bathroom at the second checkpoint, we saw a shuttle arrive and our first runner get off.  Now a group of six, we anxiously awaited our runner #2 and cheered her in as runner #3 took off.  We had a couple of loose goals:  first, to finish the race; second, to not get kicked off the course or picked up by the sweeper van because we didn't finish by the 7:58 pm race cut off.  Our third and most lofty goal was to keep up with the time estimator in the back of our map book.  It told us when to arrive at each check point if we were to average an 8:30 pace.  Our group was composed of women with a wide variety of experience and training - one was training for a marathon and had missed qualifying for Boston last year by 35 seconds, one had gone to college on a cross country scholarship, one had just run her first race in March and it was a five-miler.  Our paces ranged from the mid-7's to the mid 10's.

To be continued...

Everly's reaction

And what was Everly's reaction to Cortlan's surgery?  Well, she was very happy to spend some time at Grandma and Poppy's house on Tuesday.  She tells me that she rode on the swings, that she and Poppy put a bunch of stuff on Cadi (my parent's dog), and that Poppy held her by her feet so that she could reach stuff from behind the couch.  I will have to confirm, but I feel as though this is probably pretty accurate.

She also told my parents that she would do Cortlan a huge favor by eating a Popsicle with him because it is way more fun if you don't have to do it by yourself.  So kind that she is willing to make such a sacrifice for her brother.

When I picked her up from school yesterday, she hadn't seen him since early morning the day before.  She said she missed him.  She also said, "I can't wait to see Cortlan!  Does he look the same?"

Cortlan's surgery update

What a whirlwind the past week has been!  From getting observed by my principal on Friday to prepping for a sub to cover my classes for six periods; from trying to figure out what to pack for a weekend away that included a 77.7 mile relay race in who-knows-what weather to driving to the race, running the race, and driving home; from stocking the house with popsicles and applesauce to waiting for hours to be called back to surgery...I have been busy.  And a little stressed.  But here I sit, at 10pm, in room 718B while Cortlan sleeps peacefully.

I hear a baby crying not far outside our room.  I have been told that we may still get a roommate tonight.  I expect that the nurse will be arriving around midnight to bring Cortlan his next dose of Tylenol.  I don't expect to have a restful night's sleep.  But I am thankful.

Upon arriving at the hospital this morning at around 11am, we checked in and sat down to wait to be called to our next destination.  Shortly after, a woman and her son came in and sat nearby.  Her son looked to be about nine months old; he had on glasses; he had Down's syndrome.  I said, "Look at those awesome glasses!  What a cutie pie!"  And he truly, truly was absolutely adorable.

I talked to John a bit about whether Everly was going to be able to come to visit.  The woman told me that they are great with siblings here; she and her other two sons have spent quite a lot of time here.  In fact, her husband and she had tried to total up the number of hours and came to at least six solid months worth of hours.  The conversation led to the fact that this baby is her second special-needs child.  That one of his older brothers was born normal but at about 15 months old developed some problems and that they came to discover that he has a rare and incurable disease; he is four now.  That this little guy is actually 15 months old, not the 9 months as he looks, and that he is about to have his second open heart surgery.

I tried to hold it together as best as I could as we continued to talk.  She was a beautiful woman and smiled through our entire conversation.  She was calm and matter of fact and hopeful as she explained to me some details.  I had to turn away to wipe a tear at one point.  I was amazed and inspired by this mom, whose name I will never know.

As we waited for several hours more than anticipated before being called for surgery, I was astonished that Cortlan never once mentioned that he was hungry or thirsty.  It had been at least five hours since his last drink of water and his last food was almost 20 hours prior.  I was starving and had to sneak down to the cafeteria.  He calmly found things to do in the activity room - he watched TV for a bit, we played a game, he made a bracelet, and more.  The time didn't bother him in the least.

I kept wondering what had happened that got them so far behind schedule.  I prayed that everything was alright, knowing that somewhere in the hospital, a beautiful little boy with the cutest Baby Gap outfit was having open heart surgery.

We finally got called back.  Cortlan was given the option of walking or riding the bed back to the surgery room; he preferred to walk.  I immediately got changed into my snazzy white coveralls, cap and booties, and walked back with him.  He climbed up on the table and the anesthesiologist gave him some choices of where he wanted to go on his imaginary trip today.  He chose to go to space, and the anesthesiologist proceeded to  put on Cortlan's "astronaut mask" and tell him a great story about flying to space and about the planets.  I held his hand while he slowly drifted off to sleep.

In no time at all, we were told that the surgery had ended and that it had gone very well.  Soon enough, the doctor was with us, showing us pictures that were taken during the scopes and explaining how things had gone.

His trachea was narrow enough to warrant a smaller-than-typical breathing tube for the intubation, but not quite as narrow as in December.  His adenoids, which have always been expected to be large but have never actually been scoped, were blocking 80% of the nasal passage.  They are now gone.  His tonsils, which were visibly huge, were ranked on a scale of 0-4+ as a 3+ at the time of surgery.  They are now gone, too.  We anticipate the sleep apnea will be eliminated by the surgery and that his breathing and drainage and speech will all be markedly improved.

It is morning now, and we are waiting to hear when we can be discharged.  Cortlan ate a nice meal of mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, jello, and applesauce last night, and we watched Hotel Transylvania.  At midnight, he got some medicine to help with pain.  At 3am, we got a roommate who seems to have appendicitis.  At 4:30am, he got more pain medication.  At 6am, a doctor spoke to me, and at 7am, Cortlan woke for the day.

He is having some pain, but is tolerating it well.  We went to visit the playroom, where he made a sun catcher and fed the fish.

We are thankful to be under such great care in such an amazing facility.  We are thankful that it was only tonsils and adenoids that brought us in.  We have the adorable baby boy with the glasses on, and everyone else we have encountered here, in our thoughts and prayers.  We are headed home shortly.

Some thoughts on a sad day

As a mother and a teacher, the events in Sandy Hook in December rocked me to the core.  I was devastated to the point of no words.  There came a point when I avoided Facebook and stopped reading about it; I couldn't look at another picture or read about another child or parent without being reduced to tears.

As a runner whose family has met me at many finish lines, the events in Boston have also rocked me.  The fact that the race was in honor of Sandy Hook and that families of those poor children were at the finish line and had to witness what happened adds even more tragedy.  The entire event is incomprehensible to me.

I consider myself a lover, not a fighter.  I prefer to get along with people and reduce or eliminate drama in my life when I can.  I respect that people can have differences in opinion than me; when someone attempts to force their opinion on me, I usually bow out of the conversation gracefully.  I hate debate and controversy.  I do not hate people.

I have a very hard time understanding why people wish to terrorize and bring destruction on others.  I wish that there wasn't so much hate.  I wish that people could live in peace and just leave each other alone.

A little more Everly...

When she is not making me scream, Everly is quite the character.  Honestly, I could probably write post after post about how she has made me laugh recently.  Her favorite joke these days?

Everly What does a sheep have for lunch?
Me I don't know.  What?
Everly A baaaaa-loney sandwich!

I think a lot of the humor is in her delivery.  Maybe I will video tape this one and include it sometime.

She also has some prop humor going for her.  Like, on Saturday, when she came out of the house wearing this:

Or on Tuesday, when she decided to wear a mustache to school:

Yes, she did.  She walked right into school with that thing on her face.

My hope is that she uses her powers for good...and keeps us laughing.