AllState Fort Lauderdale Half Marathon

Last year this race was my first half marathon ever, and this year it was on of my friends. After bugging her for months she finally agreed to try a half marathon.

There were originally suppose to be a bigger group, but in the end just the two of us stood ready at the start line. 

The one thing about these long runs is the start time. 6:30 am suxs, I don't care who you are. It's not something I've gotten use to over time, I still have to force myself outta bed when the alarm blares at 5 am. 

But this race was exciting, I had one of my best friend & running partner there with me & the new Dan Brown book set in my iTunes. 

The race starts & I know I am not going to set a new PR or anything, but I'm still feeling pretty good, I zone out and fall into fantasy land (my book), until I am jerked back into reality as I hear my name being called from somewhere.

Passing my friends boyfriend...mile 8. It's great to get cheered on, but I honestly think if have gone all 13 miles zoned out if I hadn't been snapped back into reality. 

Now every mile ticked by & when my pgs told me I had hit 13 miles I couldn't seen the finish line! No the finish line was hidden around the distant corner .72 miles away. 

Let me just say that a half marathon is suppose to be 13.1 NOT 13.72 miles & those last .62 miles sux because you know you should be done right now, letting your sweaty sand covered body dry, downing water & shoveling food into your mouth. 

By the time I finally crossed the finish line I could have eaten a small animal. My stomach had turned itself inside out. I need to bring food with me on these long runs! Burning around 1600 calories in under 2 hours...food is a must! 

But it was a good race & you can't pass up on the free beer afterwards :-) 

This year I'm doing 4 of the 5 in the Storm Series...this was #1. Next up, Miami ING.

The only reason I'm not doing all 5 is the one in West Palm Beach doesn't have race day packet pick-up. That's too much gas money to drive back & forth 2 days & staying over night, then I have the hotel & to pay for a dog sitter, I'm already doing that for Sarasota...one is enough! 

SuperHero Scramble

I'm getting I the point with these obstacle races were they just aren't fun anymore. I seem to spend more time in line waiting to do an obstacle then anything & since the event is being timed...it totally throws off my results. Frustration.

Last year, I did the night wave & it was awesome, no waiting in queues to do the obstacle, no waiting in queues to pick up the packet & I flew through the course...even meet a new friend on the way (still in contact & of course see him at other races all the time.)

So this year...they had a living social deal, let's be honest, I'm not gonna pay $85+ to wait in line. The special was for $45 so I decided why the hell not, but once you add in the $15 insurance & $10 parking (also had to sit in a long ass queue just to park!) it was still a $70 investment!

So here is basically how this day of waiting in queues went. 

Queue to get into the park & find a spot

Queue to pick up your bib & timer

Queue to start

Queue at EVERY obstacle

Queue to get water after

Queue to get your picture taken

Queue to get the free beer

Queue to LEAVE the park

Jesus! I spent more time waiting around then I did actually leaping, running & frolicking along the course and being happy.

Let's be honest NOBODY enjoys waiting in queues. 

So they were behind a half hour on the waves, but that didn't matter, we (like I'm sure everyobe else did) jumped into whatever wave was preparing to go once we got out stuff. Honestly, I don't know why they even bother with waves. 

We set off. The course is pretty nice, around a lake, into some bike trails. It's nicely marked & for a change multiple volunteers at every obstacle. 

But about 3 miles into the course we come to the first water station...which is out of water (surprise) and the next one isn't for a good 3 miles. I was fine, but there were people there that looked like they needed water, yet there is none and they are miles from the start/finish line. 

Now I went to the race with my girl & we usually run together, since I knew this was going to be a pretty shitty times race I pretty much stayed with her until I saw a (more than slightly overweight) girl drop like a sack of potatoes up ahead. I ran up to see if she was OK. She was dehydrated & and honestly in no condition to take on a 9+ mile obstacle course. Even between my friend & I, we would not have been strong enough to carry her out of the bike trails. I asked is she was able to walk & we would help her, she said no. Knowing I was closer to the next obstacle, I told her I would go let someone know & headed on leaving my friend as I picked up the pace to get to help sooner. 

Once I did get to the next obstacle, I explained the situation to one of the volunteers & he called it in. Knowing there was nothing more I could do for her, I went ahead. 

I have no idea if or how they got that girl out, but in all honesty she should not have been out there, especially without active water stations. It was extreamly dangerous & she could have hurt much worse. Some people don't realize how long & challenging a 9 mile race can be & although I LOVE seeing people getting active & healthy, they need to be aware of their personal fitness & health level to avoid situations like this. 

Although it was fun to go with my friends, I regretted not signing up for the 18 mile challenge. I don't plan on doing many more obstacle races (for the reasons above) unless it's in a elite or competitive wave - and those are outta my budget even though I'd love to experience the real challenge these races can offer. 

Next (and maybe last) OCR is the Spartan in April. 

OCRs are just becoming over priced, over saturated & just not challenging (having to wait in line at every stop) 

Davie Road Run 5K

For some reason I feel like they are doing more & more races on Sundays...which sucks because my girl works Sundays. 

So this race I signed up for alone. No big, I've learnt that if I wait around for others...I'll never do all the races I want. 

I had seen the Davie Road Run promoted last year, but for some reason I didn't sign up. Prob a conflicting date or I was set to do a race the day before. Whatever the reason I knew I wanted to do it this year. The race is literally 6 mikes from my house, how could I not. 

I was expecting a ton of people & honestly I was not expecting to do very well, considering Jake (my lovable mutt) & I had both been up the majority of the night w/ upset tummies...but I persevered. And dragged my butt up at the crack of dawn to run. 

I couldn't help but remember the awesome 9:30 stay in the UK...compared to the 7 am start here. But our Florida weather doesn't like that. 

I wasn't sure what to expect, so when I pulled into the local Rodeo grounds (yes, I live in the country) it was different.  Not a lot of people & everything was set up in the booth. They had already run out of small shirts (why have ppl request sizes if you are just gonna give them whatever) so I ended up with a medium, better than nothing. 

Well the race started: 2 of them. A 5K & a 10K. I had no idea there was a 10K & I had no idea the 10K offered prize $$! Or I woulda been right there! LOL. 

But I was doing the 5K. I started off strong, but my body was just tired. I had that sleep deprived headache set in before the 2nd mile was out. It's all good, I still managed to drag myself into a dirty 2nd place overall female. 

I look back and kick myself...shoulda pushed harder, but it's always easier to say that after the fact. But then again, I didn't feel like throwing up afterwards....so...coulda pushed harder. Lol. 

Weston Half Marathon - AKA The Run of Death

I should have known better that after coming back from the blinding cold of England to the warm perfection on South Florida I would get sick...but with my normal voracity, I though I was invincible, until I fell victim to the full, just in time for my Half Marathon...AKA...The Run of Death!

Now doing a 5K feeling a little stuffy, but doing a Half Marathon (13.1 grueling miles) with a full blown flu with nauseous, fever, dizziness the works is beyond a lot worse.

From the time I got home Friday night until the time I woke up for the race Sunday morning, I left my bed for food and bathroom...nothing more. Saturday night I felt so horrible that I spent have the night curled up on the bathroom flood debating if I was going to even live to see the morning.

When my alarm finally went off Sunday I wanted to die, but I dragged my sorry ass outta bed and to the race. I down a few more then the suggested daily intake of some Tylenol cold and flu (the good stuff from behind the counter, not that cheap imitation stuff they try to pawn off on you from shelf), told myself it was only 2 hours....then I could go back to bed and die. Plus, I didn't die last night so I was good right...WRONG!

I meet up with my friend at the race & I know I will go faster then her (if only by a little), so if all else fails she will see me dead on the road and be able to alert my loved ones.

The race starts and the meds have kicked in by this time so I am actually off to a good start. 8:39 min miles...not to shabby I tell myself, I am not dying after all...I can do this right...but 8:39 min miles turns into 9:36 min miles and by mile 8 I have convinced myself that gods themselves are going to come down off Olympus and mock me as I fall dehydrated and dry-heaving to the ground to be trampled under the feet of real runners and walkers who are now passing me as I jog pathetically along at 10:36 min miles.

How much worse can it get I tell myself. The sun is beating down on my deprecated body and I struggle with each breath as the dry heat sucks the air from me. Sure death is standing just up ahead ready to cut my down with his scythe, I struggle on.

**After the race, I find out that the conditions were some of the worse for a race and the humidity etc had taken many races down**

Convinced I have passed the point of no return into delirium I begin to notice others around me. We pass a Firehouse and a very fit couple turn off the course and run up to the station flagging down one of the firefighters. I see more than normal police on bikes riding by and many times with people on the back of them. Convinced I am hallucinating I lean again a pole trying to get the world to stop spinning. I know my body just wants to rest, but having just passed mile 11, how can I give up now.

A police officer scares me half to death and awakes me from what I believe may have been me falling into death asks me if I am OK. Sucking it up, I tell him I was just catching my breath and I push myself back up right...as I seemed to have slid down the pole slightly and set off again...at what I have decided we will call a fast walk....2 more miles until I can collapse.

Just 2 more miles...and dear god where they the longest 2 miles of my running life!

Mile 12 - 11:43 min and Mile 13 - 12:13 min

If it hadn't been for this guy running along next to me, I may have just crawled to the finish line. But he ran up next to me and ran with me for the last 1.5 miles...well more like speed walked, but at this point in time, I am not going to pick and choose what I call it. In my mind at that moment I was just pleased to be moving.

Crossing that finish line was the biggest accomplishment ever. I think I had sweat out every last bit of flu. I drank 4 bottles of water and pretty sure I pushed a little kid out of the way to get more.

That was truly The Run of Death! But I overcome it and defeated it! :) Take that B!Tche$!!!

The 10th Annual Firefighter's 5K

This weekend, my girl and I did our 2nd race of the season, the Firefighters 5K.  After last weeks hill run and an insane week of training...I am sore...like SORE. I think my trainer is trying to kill me, but that is another blog for another time.

Usually when I go to races, I look like I just rolled out of bed...because I have. I roll out of bed, into cloths and off I go. However, my friend (who has her own make-up line) was practicing on me the day before and guys...I don't know if I can explain it to you, but she made me look so beautiful...I couldn't wash it all off. I left it on. LOL :) So I rolled up to the race looking like one sexy chick and then I proceed to CRUSH the race! LOL.

The run went along Hollywood beach, up into the neighborhoods and back around. I have run it a few times before (doing the whole boardwalk and neighborhoods not just part just on Sunday lazy days. ) and it really is a great run. But this time there was something different.

As we turn off the main boardwalk and head back into the neighborhoods, the trees start to in close in around us and suddenly you hear cats howling and fighting in the distance. The road shadows over and the sun disappears. "Ahhh, it will be nice and cool for a while" I  think to myself, but something strange is in the trees.  Everyone in front of me is looking up, so being the sheep when I run that I am look up as well and I feel the blood drain from my face and fall like lead into my feet. I start screaming at myself in my head...."Dear Mother of F'en God Run...Just RUN!!! As Fast as You Bloody Can".

Hundreds of what I now know are Banana Spiders had set up shop at the tops of the trees, stretching their webs from one side of the road to the other creating a canopy of GIANT SPIDERS!

no I hate spiders, like ice on my soul, death comes to quickly as they plot to weave me into a giant cocoon and feed me to their zillions of children...and above me was Satan's hell for me on earth.

My mind is screaming "GO FASTER You Dumb Bitch! FASTER, before they lasso you up to the canopy with their steel webs!"
My body is screaming "I CAN'T any Faster!? I think Her heart stopped...pretty sure she is in Shock! And the Dumb Bitches Feet kidnapped all the blood and they ain't giving it back!"
My feet are responding to the rest of my body with "You bitch now, but when one of those demon spiders spots us and tries to take us up into its web of death, you will be happy we have become lead weights!"

And then there is me...slowly turning around as I run forwards to where I am actually running backwards (going the right direction still, but my entire body is facing the other way and I am starring up into the sky screaming like a mad woman inside my head....coming up with ever different outcome of my death by giant spider.

Finally I circle back and start heading back out towards the boardwalk, I remain vigilant, waiting for the spiders to start attacking my fellow runners. I think to myself...must conserve my energy, because if they start warfear on us by dropping down on our heads. I must be ready. Looking around I spot 2 weaker looking woman a few feet behind me. I slow down so they can catch up, make no mistake folks, I will toss both them chicks to the spiders as a distracting while I try to get away.

However, no such sacrifice is needed as I hit the boardwalk. I realize that I have been holding my breath for most likely the entire time (locally really considering I didn't want to draw the evil spiders attention to me). I breath deep and start to sprint again....leaving the ally of pure venom behind me.

Now I focus back on the race...Shit...did I slow down to much and screw up my time. I hope now. I barrel towards the finish line. Both of the sacrificial lambs are still on my tail...time to lose them. I pick it up and give it that extra burst of energy I was saving in case a quick escape was needed from the Giant Spider attack and I finish strong. Breathing heavy for a change :)

Not only did I survive the Spider Apocalypse, but I managed to place and for the first time ever, I got a trophy! Not just a medal. I came in 2nd with a time of 23:17. Not my best time ever, but better than last week and not a bad time either way. And lets not forget...I was looking SEXY!

This was my 17 race of the year and one closer to my goal of 24!

The next race we are doing is the Miami Children's Hospital 5K. It will be one of our last races in Miami (basically anything farther than Amelia Park), getting up and driving the 35-45 min down there for a 23 min race isn't worth it. We have enough closer to home. So after a little discussing...if we haven't already signed up for it, we won't be doing it. Miami is just to far.  I know I have the ING and the Miami Beach, but beyond that...I think this will be the last 5K.

King of the Hill 5K - 2013

Running Season is finally back.

I don't know about many other places, but running from June through Aug is S. FL is horrible, just horrible. Even if you get up at 7 am and hit the road, sweat is running down your ass crack before you even hit the end of the block. You are looking up at the sky thinking to yourself, dear god do I really love running this much to endure the sun beating down on me for another hour slowly dehydrating my body and turning me in to a walking mummy that will most likely disintegrate and crumble into dust around mile 8, the answer...no. So even though there are still some races...there are not a lot.

Running season here is basically Sept 1 - May 31.

This year, we started the season off again with the King of the Hill 5K...again!

Now Florida is flat...since we are at sea level and don't run many hills around here, starting the season off with a hill run (even if it is an old land fill that they turned into a park) is a rough.


My goal was to finish this bitch without collapsing halfway up the hill sobbing uncontrollably as I curled up in the fetal position and begged for my mummy. Hell, besides my casual jogs with Jake, I hadn't RUN myself in about 2 months more than just 2-3 miles at a time....this was going to be brutal.

A group of about 4 of us signed up for the torture, amazing how badly humans seek out pain and suffering upon themselves.

The race started on time, which was a blessing because as I am standing at the start line, I can feel the sun and heat coming up and peeking over the tree line. The race starts and I feel good, knockout the first hill like a boss and proceed to pass people. Some slow bitch was jog/walking and I ran into her almost knocking her over...

**Side Note - DEAR GOD PEOPLE! If you are at a race, be it 5k or full marathon, and you plan on walking and chatting with your girlfriends while you pose for pictures...GET THE FUCK TO THE BACK OF THE LINE! For F sake, what do you think...you are going to walk a 6 min mile! NO BITCH! and you may not be competative, these races are competitive so GTF out of the way and take your walking ass to the back of the line so you don't get knocked over and then run over by a crap tone of competitive runners who are trying to get a new PR...just saying**

So anywho...after almost taking down a walker, I finally find my pace again and go...I am doing pretty well and start to think to myself...hey, not to shabby, I have already KO'ed 2 of the 4 hills, I can do this and maybe even get a pretty damn good time....until we circle around and I see the beginning of the 3rd hill. Its so nice of them to set it up that you run past the hill, have a half mile to think about it before circling back around to face it head on. So I spent the next 4 min thinking to myself...ugh, that hill, I remember that hill! Last year that hill almost killed me. (I was having so many issues with my heart rate going way to high and causing my chest to hurt that I almost didn't make it...problem solved with that by the way....no more unhealthy heart issues.)

When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked up and surveyed my next challenge...this year. I was not going to let this hill kick my ass. I watched as runner after runner slowed down to a near walk as they scrabbled up the hill. Screw this I told myself and I started up. I will not slow down I told myself....High Knees High Knees. Breath Breath, get to the top of this thing....AGHHHHHH!
BAM...crushed it...kinda :)

However at the top, everyone was heading up over the top of the hill, through some grass and gravel and down the side of it...for some reason we were getting off the road. Different then last year, but heck...I guess I am a sheep. And apparently so is everyone else....we all go off track...but not like we are going to turn around now. We plowed through and to the finish line.

Although I didn't get a great PR and although I lost 2 min off my time over the summer....it was a hill run and I managed to slid into 2nd place. Actually it was a tie. We both came in 24:00, however my gun time was 24:07...she crossed the start line :07 before me. But whatever, I finished and I didn't die, I didn't give up and I didn't stop! WHOOHOO!!!

My next race is the Firefighters 5K next Sunday along Hollywood Beach, I am looking forward to it. hope I can get my time back down...I don't expect it to be where it was yet...but closer would be nice.

This was race number 16 of 2013 I will get to my goal of 24 for 2012 yet! :)

BiG Cardio 5K

A little back story first:

The first…well I guess second 5K that I ever ran and the first one in S. Florida was the 4Kids of South Florida BiG Cardio 5K. My first officially 5K was back in 2007 when and I did it with my college.

 

When I moved the Florida, I ended up have to take a really crap job that paid well below standard in my field and hardly even meet living standards in general, so I for sure didn’t have the money to pay for a gym membership or anything…so I started running as a way for me to stay in shape. Well running and not being able to afford food kept me pretty small. LOL.

I would ran with Jake (my dbf – dog best friend) about a mile or two every night after work and then I would do a few weights in the house, but nothing major and I went from being in pretty good shape to being in…eh shape.

About 3 months after I left the crap job and stared working at Banyan in 2010 I heard about a 5K race that Banyan sponsored a team for, and for some reason I thought how hard can it be right…I run with Jake every night a mile or so…a 5K is only 3.15 miles. I can do this.

Boy was I mistaken. Yes, I ran the whole thing, but boy was I crap. My time back in 2010 was a pathetic 36 min. I could have basically walked the entire thing and done better.

Anyway. That was in 2010…lets fast forward.

2011 my time was 32:17

2012 my time was 27:12

Now it was 2013 and I was ready to do this. I signed up again…after some debate and the Puerto Rico Half Marathon talk falling though. I would have rather done the Half Marathon in Puerto Rico, but not enough people wanted to go and to do it alone would have made me a very broke girl!

I did it with two on my close girlfriends and although neither of them worked for Banyan, I signed them both up under the Banyan Wings of Hope Team. Funny Things is that out of the 6 people that did participate in the 4Kids, 2 of them were my friends.

So this year, I was really ready to push myself. Not only have I been doing well lately and setting pretty good times, I was feeling good. I had talked my friend into running her first 5K ever…and honestly, I was pretty sure she was going to not only kick my butt, but everyone else’s…girl can run!

We all managed to drag our butts out of bed. We all meet up at the park. We walked around for a bit and decided we would try to pace around 7 min (this is my new goal, since I want to get under 22). And I managed to keep that pace for the most part…I failed a bit towards the end, but all 3 of us still KICKED BUTT!

We each came in first in our age groups!

I came in this year at a time of 22:50. Not the best time I have had recently, but it was good enough to take the gold. After freaking 4 years of doing this race, damn it has become like a tradition for me….and for my friend, who did her 3 year this year. Even though it is not our favorite race, we always seem to run it, and I think we may also do it again next year.

This year the swag was much better and it was much more organized. Last year when we finished the race, they didn’t even have cold water out at the finish line yet or any of the tents set up. But this year, they had their shiznit a little more together.

 

Besides all the religious crap that people kept trying to hand me, it wasn’t too bad, and afterwards I went and put flyers for JWKFA in the cars. Trying to promote my awesome ass kickboxing place as always!

Either way it was a good time and I finally got some good swag at the run!
 

My next race is the Color Run and I am doing it with some friends from JWKFA. I didn’t actually sign up for it because I thought that it was on the same day as the 4Kids, but it wasn’t and someone else bailed and they had an extra entry, so why not.

M.A.D.D. Dash 5K

I wasn’t planning on signing up for any more races in April. One was enough since I am busy licking the wounds of turning 30 and seeing my life going nowhere fast, but my girl really wanted to do it, so I finally caved and signed up! I am on a mission to do 24 races this year right…and if my life is going to turn to shit and fall into shambles at least I have that accomplishment right! LOL

We did the M.A.D.D. Dash last year and it was a nice run, but it is the same course as almost every other race we do in Ft. Lauderdale…I would like something different for a change I think, but whatever.  They did give us “Dry-Fit” shirts this year, but they are unisex and TOTALLY sux! OMG, I can’t even wear mine to bed because it is just uncomfortable.  IDK, I will just toss it in a pile with my ever growing stash of running shirts and move on.

You know what I would like…for them to start giving away Dry-fit Tank Tops or running shorts or something like that! I have so many shirts, I could start a shirt shop!!!

Anyway…back to the race, this was now my first race in the 30 – 34 age group. OMG that just sounds horrible! I don’t even want to write that.  They say age is just a number, well however they are is stupid and needs to come over here so I can hit them!

We got there nice and early and this time, my mum got to come with me! That is right, she has only been to one other race with me and that was the Jingle Bell Jog last December where I am pretty sure I left what was left of my tits after they froze off!  I was really happy to have her at one of my races, and it kinda encouraged me to push myself just that much harder. I wanted to make her proud of me, since I remember when she told me “Don’t worry Chloé, if you don’t do that well”

Well, even though I am now…over the hill…so to speak, I still managed to do ok. I set a new PR at 22:18 & placed 1st in my age group (Now 30 - 34). Maybe getting older isn’t all that bad! JK. It is horrible. Who ever said that should also be hit!

So regardless of what I say, I am pretty proud of myself, and the fact that I totally impressed my mum! She was all, Wow Chloé you are getting pretty good at this running thing!

That I am Mother, That I Am!

Even though I did do very well, I am disappointed in my overall results.  I came in 4th Overall Female & missed 3rd overall female by 1 (that right 1) bloody second. Her time was 22:17. Ugh!!!   SO CLOSE! I am just too damn competitive sometimes!

I really want to pick it up and have decided to add a new goal to 2013. I want to drop my time below 22! I would like to get to 21something, even if it is 21:59 by the end of the year. I don’t know if I will be able to do it, because dropping just a few seconds off my time is going to be hard as hell, but I want to try. It actually looks like it might be possible!

Beach Beast Race

Well this month I turn 30, it is officially. I don’t know whether to scream, cry, or what. I think I am going to have a nervous breakdown. I feel like I have officially hit a point in my life where I have stopped progressing, growing, and developing. I have no relationship (being single does really sux sometimes) and I have a job, that I feel like I am stagnant in…basically, I need a change. Soon…the only thing I have going for me is my running right now so I am embracing it. Because, well running can’t leave me. :)

So this month, since I am having a big “Damn you’re getting old party” I only signed up for this race. I feel kinda bad, because I wanted to do the Doggy Run with Jake since he loved it so much last year, but it is the day after my party and I have a feeling I won’t be getting up at 7 am to run a 5K.

I signed up for the Beach Beast when I saw a Living Social Deal, I didn’t have any races yet for April and if I am going to hit 24 in 12 months, I can’t really take a month off, especially when Summer here is so hot that I don’t plan on doing many races from (June through Aug).  None of my friends wanted to sign up for it with me, so it looked like another race I was going to be doing alone. Last minute I did find out that my friend Amy had signed up with some people from her gym, but that is different. I figured I would just see her there, say HI and go about my run.

 

I meet up with her at the parking lot and we walked over together and hung out for a bit, but she was in the WAVE before mine, so as she took off, I went and chilled on the wall waiting for my wave to start. This guy came over and started talking to me…kinda, he was cute and I had seen him at a few other races, but I was pretty sure the girl staring at me was his girlfriend, so I just played nice. And what are the chances of me meeting a nice guy?? We all know how my track record is, and considering I am having a nervous breakdown about being single at 30…it might not be the best time to start talking to a cute guy!  But he told me I should run in their wave and do it with him, so I figured why the heck not!

The beach race was awesome…hard, but awesome. I had never really run on the sand before and holy cow is it harder than grass, trail and street! I felt like I couldn’t get speed up. But DAMN did cute boy take off and kick some butt, he totally smoked my ass (kinda cute) but I totally passed his friend

 

**not the girls – come to find out later, they are just all a group of friends – but I will get to that**

Running along the beach was like having your feet stuck in some type of goo. I just didn’t feel like I could get my momentum up or anything, but I totally kicked ass on the obstacles. On one of the first ones we did I watched the guy in front of me fall right over it, I had to laugh…after making sure he was OK of course.  They had “Over-Under”, walls, burpees, crap crawls, tires, rocks and more! It was a blast!

I didn’t think I did that well, but I ended up doing much better than I thought! I came in FIRST Female in my wave, and 3 Female ages 23-32

*I don't think Chris #5 & Stephan #3 are woman so let’s not count them in the Female placing. LOL)!!!

I managed to place 66th OVERALL!!! I am proud of that one, considering that is male and female.

Time: 28:52 (considering it is my first obstacle race on the beach - and running on sand suxs - I am pretty proud of that!)  Not to Shabby at all :)

I did run into the guy again after the race, he came in shortly before me, which I found kinda hot! LOL. He was...is single and we started chatting and found out that we had done some of the same races…I had seen him around before. I nicely asked about the girls with him...just "friends" - but I have heard that before. However his friend came up and totally did the cock-block thing. I wanted to give my number to the cute boy – John I think his name was – but then I would have had to give my number to his friend, which not so much. I thought it was funny, John was also an Aries…DAMN, and I am still kicking myself for not exchanging numbers with him.  Well if it was meant to be (which hello this is me…I* will never see him again) it will be, and I will run into him at another race. He told me he was doing the Single Mingle 5K, but of course that is the same day as my bday party, so I am not doing it! But nice smooth way of him asking if I was single and telling me he was! Shoot, I shoulda given him my number!  Oh well…can’t regret things that can’t be changed, just need to move forward in my nervous breakdown mid-life crisis.

Next race I am doing, I will be 30! EEEK! Please tell me, am I the only girl that has ever freaked out about turning 30? Dude, I don’t want kids, but if I did…I only have like 5 years left! Life is freaking short!

Well, I have nothing really planned until May…then I think I have to do that race with my work…not like I really want to, but it is “team” spirit or whatever and I like to run! LOL