Celebrity Sightings

Wow!   What a week it was in DC!  My husband and I attended the Inauguration on Tuesday and the concert on Sunday night.  They were both memorable and inspiring, but I think my favorite experience of the week was our run to the mall on Monday morning.   

My husband had the idea to get up early and run down to the mall.   We knew lots of the cable news networks and national network morning shows would be set up down there and embarrassingly enough, we are "those people" who enjoy watching TMZ and Access Hollywood. So, camera in hand and clothed in as many warm layers as we could find, we headed through Rosslyn and onto the Mt. Vernon Trail.    We ran across the frozen Potomac via the Roosevelt Bridge, down a little path by the Kennedy Center and onto the mall from the Lincoln Memorial. It was fun running by the Lincoln Memorial and marveling at just how long the line we had stood in the afternoon before really was.   

As soon as we passed the Washington Monument we saw the promised land of celebrity ogling. Our first stop was the set of CBS's "The Early Show."   They were preparing to interview Simon Cowel's opera singing sensation "Il Divo."   The group and their entourage were waiting in several dark Suburban's.   We snapped a couple of photos,  watched a few minutes of a cooking segment, and then decided to continue on and scope out our next sight.  Our top priority was a picture with Al Roker, so we were keeping our eyes especially peeled for a black weatherman or an NBC's "Today Show" logo. 

Our next dose of excitement came a few yards later when we spotted the CNN set.   Soledad O'Brian was there, as was the governor of New York.   (His body guards were huge!)    Once again, we observed for a few minutes, snapped some photos and continued.   Hanging around in one spot was not an option because it was freezing (literally) and it had started to snow.    

Our next stop was in front of the MSNBC set.   Their set-up was definitely the most impressive, but we saw no sign of any reporters, only a few technical people.   We inquired if Al was in one of the trailers and the response was a rather unfriendly "no."   We ran practically all the way to the capital without sighting our favorite weather man.  So, while our hopes of an Al spotting were dashed, we turned around and headed home feeling relatively satisfied with our run.    After all, we had spotted a couple of famous CNN anchors, a governor, and a famous musical group.....not bad for a morning jog.    

The best part was yet to come, however.   As we ran back by the CBS set, we spotted......drum-roll please.....STEVIE WONDER!!!   He was being interviewed about the concert and he was literally 5 feet from us.   I was amazed at the small number of spectators.   (Although considering the 20 degree temps, wind, and snow, I suppose my amazement was a little silly.)   We stood and listened to the interview and, of course, snapped a couple of photos.   We probably should have stayed until the end of the segment because the crowd was so small, an autograph would have been a definite option.  But our toes were freezing and our clothes were starting to feel wet from the snow so we headed for home.  

The entire run back to our apartment, my husband and I talked about just how cool our morning run had been.   One of the coolest parts was that, with only a few exceptions, the only people on the mall that morning were runners.   They, like us, had their cameras and would pause to snap a couple of photos when they ran by a set or a reporter.   I guess some people would respond by saying that only runners are crazy enough to be outside in the bitter, early morning weather.   But I, of course, disagree.   I think that our experience Monday morning is just another reason to add to the long list of reasons why running is so freakin' awesome.   There really is no better way to see a new city or experience a new event, than to run there.  If we weren't "crazy runners" we would have missed such a rich experience......not just the celebrity sightings; but the celebrity sightings on a quiet, peaceful, snowy morning on the National Mall.   The same National Mall that would be covered in 2 million people 24 hours later.  I mean, seriously, how cool?   

Okay, enough sentiment for now.....I'm sure the warm fuzzy feeling will flee quickly when I attempt my 7 mile tempo run on Wednesday.   I'll keep you posted.  

A Husband's Support

    My first 20 miler of this training program was this Saturday.   Surprisingly, considering the polar temperatures, it turned out to be a fabulous run.   My husband had agreed to ride his bike along side me as I ran, but this promise was made prior to the nation-wide cold spell.   Luckily for me, he was faithful, and didn't bail.   He did call me crazy a couple of times;  specifically when his toes froze and he had to run the bike alongside me to take a break from the wind gusts.

     We waited until noon to head out, figuring this departure time would provide us the best window for the warmest temperatures.    I think that plan was successful.   However, I should note that the warmest temperature of the day was 24 degrees.   

      Our plan was to leave Rosslyn, cross the Key Bridge, and run on the Capital Crescent trail to Bethesda.    I was worried that this route would quickly become laborious due to the unchanging scenery on the trail.    Luckily, I was completely wrong.    First of all, despite the Potomac being frozen solid, the trail was actually warmer than the streets in Rosslyn because the trees blocked the wind.    And the frozen river created the most peaceful of settings.   It reminded me of a recent Runner's World "Run of the Month" in Livingston, Montana.   I remember remarking how peaceful and quiet the run looked because of the frozen trees and snow on the ground in the picture.   Our experience Saturday was similar.    There were very few other people on the trail.   Without the sound of the river, silence surrounded us for miles at a time.    It was awesome!  

      We did spot several red birds and a couple of squirrels.    The only other interesting sighting was a group of lunatics playing hockey on the frozen Potomac.   It may be presumptuous for a Floridian like myself to judge any winter activities, but this one really screamed "DANGEROUS" to me.   They seemed to be having a grand time, however, and were still at it an hour later when we ran by on our way out.      

       We stopped every 70 minutes or so to drink water and eat a couple of shot blocks.     This was an interesting activity because the water in our water bottles was freezing quickly.   My husband finally resorted to keeping the bottles in his back-pack in the spot closest to his body to prevent them from freezing.  In addition, removing mittens to tear the shot block packages was truly painful.   We were in good spirits though, when we arrived in Bethesda.  We took a quick tour of some of the lovely homes in Chevy Chase before turning around and heading home.   

       The Capital Crescent Trail is actually a great trail for a long run because it is slightly uphill almost the entire way to Bethesda.    While this may sound daunting, the fun starts when you make the turn-around.   I ran the second 10 miles of the run 5 minutes faster than the first, a rarity for me on such a long run, because my back usually starts screaming around mile 14, requiring me to slow down.   But the slight down-hill grade kept my spirits up and gave me an added energy boost.   

      Probably due in part to my wind burnt cheeks, nose, and chin, my usual back and IT band issues were absent.....or maybe  I wasn't noticing them because my brain only had room to process the biting cold.   Despite the cause, though, I was a happy camper because I felt so strong through the last mile of my run.   It was  a great feeling.    I was able to maintain a 9:50 pace including our water breaks and traffic pauses in Rosslyn and Bethseda.   This is encouraging for me because my goal for the marathon is the slippery, yet attainable goal of 4 hours.    After this first 20 miler, I feel optimistic that my goal is within my grasp.    Thanks in part to my wonderful husband for facing the cold to be my water boy, timer, and cheer-leader.    

       Next week is an easy 6 miler.   (Yippee!!)  Then I will begin building back up to next month, when I will pace the five hour group in the Breast Cancer Marathon in Jacksonville, FL.   Then 3 weeks before the National Marathon, I plan to run another 20 miler.    For this one though, I plan to run the first 10 miles easy (like this weekend), and then pick it up to my goal pace of 9:00 for the last 10 miles.   I figure if I complete the last 10 miles on pace, I should feel confident going into the National Marathon in March.    We'll see.   I'll keep you posted.  

Music Makes All the Difference

This week, my speed work-out was a 6 mile tempo run---one mile warm-up, 4 at a 8:30 pace, and a one mile cool-down.   Fortunately, this one went much, much better than last week's work out.  I braved the tread-mill again because it seemed to be a better option than the polar temps that are currently plaguing the country.  It was a great work-out:  I was motivated, energized, and barely breathing hard.   Even during the cool-down, I kicked it back up to 7 miles per hour because I felt that good.   

What, you may ask, caused this drastic change in attitude and performance?   The answer is music.  Instead of bringing headphones and watching one of the five TV's, I brought my trusty mp3 player.   This thing has been with me in three marathons, two half-marathons, and three 15-ks.   It is full of close to 4 hours of the most wonderful mix of songs.....I have 80's rock, old-school country, old-school rock, some slow ballads, even some christian praise songs from my church.   All the songs mean something to me and they are all inspirational in there own way.   I haven't changed the play-list in over 3 years, which may sound crazy to some of you.    But I rarely run with it so the songs are yet to lose their appeal.  I enjoy listening to the sounds of the neighborhood when I am running outside and, of course, as a women running alone in DC, I need my ears to listen for the attacker that is sure to be around the next corner.   Therefore, my beloved play-list was a wonderful boost.   

I felt so good that I actually ran the four fast miles at an 8 minute pace instead of an 8:30.   I left the gym feeling really proud and pumped for my 20 miler that is scheduled for Saturday morning.   Yes, I am referring to the saturday morning that is predicted to be the coldest morning of the season.    I am going to run on a trail, so hopefully the trees will block the wind.  And my husband is going to bike beside me, adding encouragement and inspiration.   Hopefully I won't be too sore to walk to the concert Sunday night.   I'll keep you posted.   Happy Inauguration!   

18 miles of biting cold and inaugural excitement

     Well, thankfully, Sunday's long run went much, much better than the speed work-out described in the last post.  I was scheduled for 18, which is miserable to do by oneself, so my husband was kind enough to accompany me for my last 12 miles.   The route turned out to be quite pleasant.   I live in Arlington between Rosslyn and Courthouse, so I did the first 6 miles as an out-and-back on the Custis bike trail.    It is a great paved path with lots of rolling hills.    Not especially scenic, but it gets the job done.   

      After the 6, I grabbed some water, shot-blocks, and my husband, and I was back on the run.   The rest of the route was excellent.   We started on the Mt. Vernon trail that begins at the base of the Key Bridge.   Then we ran along the river, past Roosevelt Island, and onto the Memorial Bridge.   Getting up onto the bridge can be a little challenging because it requires crossing 4 lanes of traffic and climbing up a pretty steep grassy hill, but it is definitely manageable.  From the bridge, we ran past the Lincoln Memorial and through the mall.   I'm sure those of you who have lived in DC all your life may no longer notice, but for a runner from Jacksonville, the mall is truly a magnificent place to run.   There are so many beautiful buildings and diverse people everywhere.  It is impossible to notice the cold wind or your screaming quads.   If it hasn't already been featured in Runner's World run of the month section, it should!!   

     I traveled to DC several times as a child and teenager, but I never truly appreciated the beauty of this city until I had the opportunity to run in it.   At the risk of sounding sappy, I would even go as far as to say that running past all the monuments fills me with a sense of pride.   I will definitely miss it when we move.   I will say, however, that the beauty of our nation's capital is slightly depleted by the massive collection of porto-potties that are currently everywhere, awaiting the record breaking inaugural crowds!   It was a good thing that I was distracted by my patriotism (and the porto-potties),  however, because boy was it cold on Sunday.    The wind was brutal, especially on top of capital hill.    Which brings me back to the description of the route.   

    After running past Washington Memorial we continued to the right side of the capital and ran behind it by the new visitor's center and the Supreme Court.    Then we ran back down the other side of the mall to 15th street, stopping once to buy some water from a vendor.   (Unfortunately, the majority of the water fountains don't seem to work during the winter.)   We took a shot block, drank some water, and were on our way fast because running is warmer than standing.   Then, we ran up 15th to Pennsylvania and then down Pennsylvania.   This was the coolest part because we saw Obama's viewing platform for the parade.   Then we ran up to the Hay-Adams Hotel with hopes of catching a glimpse of the new first family.   No such luck, but it was worth a shot.   

     After this we headed down Pennsylvania towards Georgetown.   We ran through Georgetown on M St. which is great in the mornings because it is peaceful and the store-fronts are fun to admire.   However, this was mid-afternoon, so we were constantly having to stop for red-lights and strollers and shoppers.   This was no fun for me because after 16 miles, my quads were not very excited to stop and restart every 60 seconds.   But we made it though Georgetown,  over the key bridge, and back to our apartment without any major mishaps.   All in all, it is a wonderful run that really high-lights so many of the coolest land-marks of the city.I highly recommend it!      

This week-end is my first 20 miler and I think I'm going to avoid all the inaugural craziness, running the capital crescent trail to Bethesda instead.   My husband has agreed to accompany me again, this time on his bike.    I'll keep you posted.   Happy Running!  

The evils of speed work

Speed-work is most definitely my least favorite part of training for any race, but especially for a marathon, because the speed work is not only hard, but also long.   Today I attempted my most difficult speed work-out yet, and it was truly miserable.   (I'm not breaking some rule by starting my very first post with negativity, am I?)   

I was supposed to do a total of 7 miles with 4 of them being mile repeats at an 8 minute pace. This may sound like a piece of cake for some (most) runners, but I am a middle of the packer at best, so this is a significant work-out for me.   Anyway, the gym resembled a sauna due to all the extra bodies that were packed in there attempting to fulfill their New Year's Resolutions.   My first sign that this would not be a stellar work-out was when I started sweating during the first two minutes of my warm-up.    Unfortunately, it was all down-hill from there!   

The first two repeats were okay.   Most likely because I was watching some ridiculous reality show about the life-guards in San Diego.   It high-lights all sorts of interesting action, including drunken beach parties, encounters with sting-rays and jelly-fish, and rip-tides.   It is reality television at its best, and it kept me engaged during the first 25 minutes of so of the work-out.   Then the show went off, and I was forced to choose between Wolf Blitzer or the History Channel.   These options were not nearly as promising.   

I started on my third repeat (I'm now 3.5 miles into the work-out and slinging sweat on everyone within 5 feet.)  Around 3/4 of the way through the mile, the fatigue really set in and I tripped.   Luckily, I caught myself and recovered without smashing my face or breaking my leg.   I'm certain that at least a couple of people saw me and enjoyed a silent laugh at my expense, but nobody was bold enough to laugh aloud.    I was still humiliated enough to allow myself an early break though, so I stopped before finishing the mile for a little water and a short recovery walk.  

My last mile was the worst; I had to stop and walk two more times.   After my near crash, I lost what little focus and motivation that I had.   I didn't even do the mile cool-down because I was so disgusted with myself.   The entire drive home from the gym, my poor husband had to listen to me moan about how "maybe I shouldn't even do the stupid race," and "why couldn't I just finish the freakin' work-out?"  

By the time we were home though, I had convinced myself that running inside on the treadmill was definitely to blame.   Maybe the speedometer was off and I was really running faster, or maybe the temperature in the gym was the culprit, or maybe I just needed some fresh air and the feel of the wind in my face (yeah right, everyone knows that the wind in our face is a runner's nightmare).  But fresh air is always desirable.    

So, in conclusion, I have decided that my assignment for this week is to find a track. Then I won't have to subject myself to the evils of the treadmill for anymore speed work-outs.  Next week, you can probably expect a post titled "The evils of the track."   

Saturday is an 18 miler so expect a post.   If speed-work is my least favorite part of training, then long runs are probably my favorite, so I promise that the next post will be much more positive!