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Race Weekend!

This weekend was a busy weekend in terms of races for me.  I don't normally do back-to-back races (I'm either too cheap, want adequate recovery time, or both) but this weekend was a dog-friendly 5k on Saturday followed by my long-awaited marathon on Sunday.

In 2012 and 2013, my dog Kano and I did the Petco 5k9WalkRunWag and loved it.  This was actually my very first 5k ever when I started running - I figured if it didn't go well, Kano could always drag me to the finish line.  For some reason the race seems to have gone MIA in 2014, which would have been at the end of February or the beginning of March based on past years' schedules.  I promised Kano we would do a race together this year, and I found out about the Goin' to the Dogs 5k sponsored by Arizona Adopt A Greyhound, Inc.  Just due to chance it happened to fall on the Saturday before my marathon, so we decided to compete on a costume basis instead of for speed.  We won the prize for best coordinated running outfits!  I'm pretty sure the sweatbands clenched it for us.  And man, have I got some ideas for next year! 
 
This was the first 5k put on by Adopt a Greyhound and I think overall they did a really great job.  For you serious runners, this is more of a run just for fun, i.e. it wasn't timed, and I'm pretty sure it was a 4k and not a 5k based on what my Nike+ GPS says.  It didn't start on time because they were still putting out signage for the course, and they waited for almost everyone to come back before they did awards.  Just be prepared for a laid back morning! 
 
The next morning was the IMS Arizona Marathon.  I got conned into this one primarily on the price point ($35 if you signed up early) and a ton of people from my running club were doing it.  At the time I signed up, I was only about a month out of my very first marathon ever, and I was curious if I could do better with more training.  I figured I wouldn't have too many opportunities to find out at the price of $35, so why not?
 
My 32-week training plan started in July, which was miserable weather where I live, but thankfully I only had to do 3- and 4-mile runs back then.  I gradually built up my long weekend runs and did four long runs of 20+ miles in the weeks before the marathon.  I felt good about the time and effort I had put into training and I was convinced I could take minutes off my time. 
 
About 2 weeks before my marathon, I came down with the flu.  I was able to recover in about 5 days, but the cough lasted a week and a half, so I had about 4-5 cough free days prior to the race.  It also happened to be the warmest week of the year so far, the high that day being 85 degrees.  This meant an approximate start time temperature of 57 F (not bad) and a finish time temp of 76 (OMG).  I tried not to psych myself out about these things...  If anyone is conditioned to the hot weather, it should be me, right?
 
Well...  My official time was 5:04:24.  That's almost 15 minutes slower than my first marathon time.
 
Needless to say I was pretty discouraged.  I still am, a little, but I also think I probably wasn't the only one who had a hard time out there.  Marathons (for me) aren't easy even when the weather is perfect and I am the picture of health.  I am just happy I finished.  And if I get up the nerve to try again, hopefully I'll just be that much wiser and know what to really expect.
 
That being said, I had a ton of fun in other ways.  I had a bunch of family and friends at the finish line, plus my running club peeps, cheering me on!  Since my bib had my name on it, people would cheer me on by name.  "Yay Stacey!  You're doing a great job!"
 
Best t-shirt saying:  "Training in case I get deported"
 
Best impromptu aid station:  The guy with oranges and pretzels.  Somehow I managed to see him twice!
 
Best sign:  "Press here for POWER!"  (and they made a little red button out of a piece of dodgeball - I pressed this twice too, every time I saw it on the course)
 
What's next?
Duathlon training starts today!
Ragnar on Friday!
 



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