(Race Date: October 24, 2010)
I think I can honestly say that the Army 10 Miler (ATM) is my favorite race of all time.  That’s a pretty serious statement, and I thought long and hard before writing it down for the whole world to see, but there’s just no denying it.  I LOVE THE ARMY 10 MILER! And here’s why:

4) Soldiers.  WOW!  I love seeing our Soldiers running the ATM, especially the ones who have been injured.  I mean, if watching a double amputee running 10 miles doesn’t inspire you, than I don’t know what does. 

My crew: BJ and KP

SavageMan is my favorite (and last) triathlon of the year. I love everything about this race:

Area – Deep Creek, MD is gorgeous (and hilly)

Course – Ohhh, it’s “savage”, alright

Volunteers – they are all so nice and wonderful

Racers – they are also, surprisingly, nice

Post-race grub – Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream? Yes, I will!

I’ve already made it perfectly clear, here and here, that I had not been training. So….the goal of this race was to have fun and finish! I can do that.

The water was very cold, even with my full body wetsuit, so it took my body and breathing a good 15 minutes to adjust. Another factor contributing to the breathing problem: I had not been swimming since EagleMan in June. Talk about a 4-month shocker. Overall, felt good (all thing considered) coming out of the water.

Swim: 31:03

For 2010, the course architect changed the bike course. It’s hard to say which course was harder – both have massive hills and challenging climbs. Bumblebee Mountain has an elevation gain of some 450 feet in a very short period of time. It’s not easy stuff. However, the best part about the bike course, and what keeps me going, are the motivating signs. And by motivating, I mean hilarious and sometimes, down-right mean (in a funny way). Here’s a few of my favorites:

“Outta Gears? Outta Luck!”

“Don’t you wish you had a 3rd ring, now?”

“Kyle Yost, Course Architect: 202-248-XXXX”

“You’re not almost there”

And, to make matters even worse (or better?), spectators are dressed in devil costumes. Not. Even. Kidding.

I love this race!!

Bike: 1:22:03

I felt strong coming off the bike – and even for the 1^st 2 miles. But, around mile 2, something funny started happening with my right foot. It fell asleep and did not want to wake-up. (Has this ever happened to anyone??!) I ran/walked the last 4 miles with a prickly foot. It was painful. Overall time, not terrible – I’ll take it, prickly foot and all.

Run: 52:52 (8:30 pace)

Total Time: 2:51:10

Overall, I had a great day and enjoyed the race. It was fun to see BJ and a few friends along the course. I actually PR’ed – I’m using this term very loosely – from last years race (2:51:21) – but with little-to-no-training I’m happy I was even able to do that. 2011 – you’ve got yourself a rematch! Plus, I’m going back for mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Stats:

Swim: 31:03

Bike: 1:22:03

Run: 52:52

Total Time: 2:51:10

Recap:

In 2008 I finished Savageman in 3:06:32; 4^th place for Women 25-29

In 2009 I finished SavageMan in 2:51:21, 4^th place for Women 25-29

In 2010 I finished the race in 2:51:10, 4^th place for Women 25-29

(with no training, and by “no”, I do mean NO)

It looks like like I’m destined to be 4^th. Maybe if I train for SavageMan 2011, I’ll come back better than ever and maybe, just maybe, place 3^rd!

I thought it would be cool to do a half-ironman 3 weeks before my wedding.

Wrong.

Let’s just say I almost died 3 weeks before my wedding.

Every year the race takes place in Cambridge, MD. EagleMan is known as an extremely flat course – but also extremely HOT and windy. There isn’t even an area of shade the size of a small leaf on the entire course. June 13, 2010: 104 degrees, with an even hotter heat index. KMS.

At 6am, the morning temperature was already so hot that wetsuits were completely illegal. Race officials wouldn’t let you in the water if you had one on. (Note: Some races allow you to wear a wetsuit, even if the water temperature is above the “wet suit legal” temperature. However, your time doesn’t count if you win or place. This race wouldn’t even allow that!)

1.2 mile swim without a wetsuit: Yikes! I’d never done that before. (Rookie mistake #1)

9:30am, I am the last wave to start. The water was nice and warm. I felt pretty good for the first 30 minutes, but the last 28 were brutal. I knew right away I hadn’t trained enough. Swim time: 58:44

Out of the water, complete outfit change in transition and I was on my bike. (Right now I should point out that I was 1 of about 10 people who didn’t have a triathlon bike. In real life, a completely flat course is not made for a road bike. Rookie mistake #2). Initially I felt great on the bike. This was the only part of the race that I had kind-of taken seriously. But at mile 40 I completely hit a wall. Couldn’t wait to be off the bike. So hot that I had a massive heat headache. And just plain angry. Bike time: 3:20:30

F-i-n-a-l-l-y made my way into transition, complete outfit change and I was on the run. (Right now I should point out that I had consumed 3 bottles of water and a handful of jolly ranchers on my 3 hour bike ride. Rookie mistake #3). I ran the 1st mile and felt okay. After the 1st mile, the heat headache that I talked about before, came back with a vengeance. I knew I was dehydrated but couldn’t stop. I kept telling myself, “You don’t start a half-ironman and not finish”. I also told myself it was okay to run/walk/run 13.1 miles (a VERY hard thing for a runner to come to grips with). So, that’s what I did. I ran and walked the 12 miles. Then, as I approached the last mile and looked down at my watch, I thought: “if I run the last mile, like I know I can, I can finish in 7 hours”. So, I sprinted my heart out, crossing the finish line in 7:00:32. Run time: 2:32:44

After I finished, I posed for a couple of pictures (Duh, I had a bad-ass medal and I just finished a half-ironman). About 1 minute later, I was throwing up and being rushed to the medical tent.

2 IV bags, an ambulance ride, and 2 more IV bags later, I was good enough to be discharged from the ER. Diagnosis: severe dehydration and nausea. To this day, I still can’t eat an orange.

Stats:

Turns out the swim was 1.6 miles instead of 1.2 (thanks race director) but other than that, I’m out of excuses. I just didn’t train enough…

Swim: 58:44

Bike: 3:20:30

Run: 2:32:44

Total: 7:00:32

Recap: I’m down for another EagleMan – as long as I have a tri bike!

Race 4 of 4, in 4 weekends

Every year since I have lived in the DC area, my mom has come up from Florida for a Girl’s/Army 10 Miler weekend. My favorite part about the weekend (besides running 10 miles) is that I get my mom all to myself! When I go home to Florida, I have to share her with my dad and sisters – Army 10 Miler weekend, it’s 100% uninterrupted Mom/MP time – and I love it! Since my mom is the reason that I am a runner, it seems fitting that our girl’s weekend would include a 10 mile run. No shopping sprees or mani/pedi’s for us – we are all about the Army 10 Miler!

Expo: One statement – I love Expo’s! I love getting 20% off running shorts. I love discounted running shoes. I love One More Mile slogans, like “One Bad Mother Runner” and “Toenails are for Sissies”. I love to people watch.

And this year, I love TRX. Since the website says it better than me, TRX Suspension Training gives athletes, military personnel and fitness pros a complete total-body training tool and the cutting-edge training programs they need to take their performance to the next level (yes, I will) . The main reason I love TRX: I won one – for free – by winning the “low row” contest. My new friend Shawn (see picture below), told me that he would give me one, on the spot, if I could do 30. I made it to 24 and had to call it quits. However, 24 placed me #1 for most female rows. So, I still won (awesome, right?!)! I seriously think that TRX will take my workout routine to a whole new level – and I can not wait to start using it! (Thanks Shawn!)
After we left the expo, with new shorts, a pair of running shoes and 3 running tops, we headed to my favorite pre-race restaurant – Faccia Luna – and ordered a delicious pizza. Since high school, I have eaten pizza before every road race – it’s the one routine superstition that I can not give up. Delish dinner with mom and BJ, wine, dessert – and off to bed. I needed as much “dreaming-of-a-PR” sleep as possible.

Race Day: We woke up to awesome weather – it was a little chilly but I knew it would warm up, so I wasn’t concerned. The forecast: 72 and partly sunny. I love awesome running weather! Mom, BJ and I got to the race about 1 hour before the 8am start. We got to see the beautiful sunrise, the Golden Knight parachute team and cheer on the Military Veterans and amputees who started at 7:45am. 8am race start – I was ready to rock the ATM!

Since the 2009 Army 10 Miler marked the 25th Anniversary of racing, they opened the race to 30,000 runners! Since there were 30,000 runners, they had specific waves for specific race numbers (all color coordinated by having same-color race numbers and balloon arches indicating the wave). Since I was bib number 2245, I was in the wave (#2) behind the elite runners. However, like any big race, with 30,000 runners, 96 year old, Grandma Betty, with bib number 29,987, thought she could start in wave #2, too. Sorry, grandma – you can’t! My biggest frustration (besides not enough water) is runners who think that they can start whenever they want. There are wave starts, bib numbers and timing chips FOR A REASON! If you’re not in my wave, don’t start running with me!

Miles 1 – 1.5: I spent the entire first mile (and next half mile) running in and out of people that started in the wrong wave. I had to slow down, break my pace and actually walk around people. I had to yell: “on your right”, “or your left” and “in the middle” too many times to remember. Seriously, people, you think that’s acceptable?! Now, please don’t get my wrong, I am not an elite athlete nor do I think that I am “so awesome” that I’m not human, but I just don’t understand why people start in the wrong wave. It is clearly marked, there are a million color-coordinated balloons to help you, should you get confused, AND, for the love of God, you know you are not running that fast!

Surprisingly, I crossed Mile 1 in 7 minutes (it should have been faster but honestly, I’m surprised it was that fast).

By mile 4 I realized that I was consistently running 7 minute miles and wondered if I could keep that pace for 6 more miles. I felt really strong – plus, my mom gave me some awesome advice the night before. Awesome mom advice: it doesn’t hurt any more to run a 7 minute/mile than it does to run a 7:15/mile or a 7:36/mile (my pace from last year). What the hell – I’ll keep running a 7 minute mile – and I’ll be done sooner! I love mom advice, especially because moms are generally right.

I saw BJ around Mile 7 (for me – and Mile 5.5 for him). We always get excited to see each other and I love when he tells me that I look strong, or yells: “Go Melly go!” Since he knew that I was a faster runner than him, even before we started dating, he is the most supportive and awesome boyfriend on race days!

Approaching Mile 8, I still felt really strong, continued to pass people and knew I only had 2 miles left. A little blister started to form (I really need some blister advice – how do I make them stop??) – but with 2 miles left, I knew that I could run through the annoyance and deal with it later. Still on a 7-ish pace, I tried to pick up the pace, even if just a little tiny bit. I hit Mile 9, only 4 laps around a track left, and started to pass runners one by one. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but as a former 400m runner, I still feel really strong at the end – and am usually able to find a little extra kick somewhere deep down!

With (probably) half a mile left, I looked down at my watch and realized that if I kept running hard (and fast), I would:
A) Shatter my time from last year (2008: 1:16:01)
B) Run under 1:10:00 – which means my pace would less than 7 minute/mile.

I sprinted to the finish line – and crossed in 1:09:58!! Even, if just barely, that’s a sub 7 minute/mile pace – and 6 minutes and 2 seconds faster than last year!! (YAY!!)

Overall Time: 1:09:58 (6:59 pace)!!!!
Overall: 1,016/21,289
Sex: 95/9566
Age Group: 32/1966

I am so thankful for:
A) Awesome weather!!!
B) My best ATM ever (this was my 3rd year running) – I ran 10 miles at a 6:59 pace!
C) My mom being able to run the whole race – and not stop (It’s a LONG story but my mom had a terrible horse accident less than one month before the race and she wasn’t even sure she would be able to run)!!!
D) A PR for BJ, too!

Awesome things about this race:
1) Location – close to home, the race starts and finishes at the Pentagon
2) Supporting our Troops! I’m an Army Brat, so I have a special place in my heart for the men and women that serve our country! I clapped and thanked every amputee I saw on the run (and after) – they deserve it.
3) Washington D.C. – shit happens here. It’s cool to run 10 miles in and around our Nation’s Capitol!
4) Hundreds of AWESOME volunteers – some civilians, some Military personnel.
5) The ATM is beyond organized – probably one of the best organized races in the U.S.
6) Awesome expo – see 3rd paragraph, above.
7) The after party is so much fun! There are tents everywhere, good food and everyone is having a good time.

Not so awesome things about this race:
1) Very, very crowded. Because this race is so well organized, 30,000 runners just barely works – however, I am NOT happy about the “laissez faire-ness” of the bib numbers and wave starts. There are HUNDREDS of [handsome] military guys working this race – you need to enforce it, fellas.
2) 30,000 runners – YOU ALWAYS NEED MORE PORT-A-JOHNS. Yes, trust me, you do! (I almost missed the start of the race but thankfully a very kind man (who was obeying his later wave start/time) allowed me to cut in front of him – I just barely made it in time.)

Verdict: I love this race for a number of reasons, including my mother/daughter weekend, great weather and another reason to support our troops! I’m 3 years strong – and I hope I can run this for (at least) another 25 years. We will be there in 2010 for round #4!

Overall Score: 9

Race 3 of 4, in 4 weekends

I have two statements that I can not wait to share:

1) I got 3rd overall (women)
2) I won prize money
YAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!

Almost 1,500 runners gathered to run the Inaugural Clarendon Day 10k. Since this was my 3rd race, in 3 weekends, I was ready for a no frills, no travel, close to home, easy race. I could not have asked for anything more perfect. The race started at 9am; BJ and I left the place at 8:50am and walked to the start, 2 blocks away. The weather was great: a little overcast with a nice, cool breeze – it was perfect running weather.

BJ and I got to the start (I like to be as close to the start as possible to avoid running around everyone), saw a couple of people we knew and casually chatted to the runners around us. Since this was such a casual race and I had no expectations, I was really able to enjoy myself (sometimes my competitive side gets in the way of me having fun). My only goal: beat my 10k PR time, which was 45:33.

The first mile was flat, fast and downhill. I hit Mile 1 in 6:06. I was running toward the front of the group but felt strong and didn’t want to let up. Since the 5k and 10k races started at the same time and shared the first 2.5 miles, I couldn’t tell which runners were my competition or 5k runners. At the 2.5 mile mark, 5k runners split and 2 women that were in front me went the 5k direction. Okay, cool! At this point, I was not sure where I “stood” among the 10k runners but I knew that I needed to keep running strong and not worry about the runners behind me. Mile 3: 19:00. Mile 3.5 – Turnaround point: I’M IN THIRD!! Now, I definitely felt strong! I did see one girl, who I “know” from the local running community, that might have been able to catch me – and I did not want that to happen. Must.Run.Faster! As I was running back I saw BJ – he was so excited to see me and yelled: “I think you are in third – get it Mel”. I yelled back: “I am…!!!” (now, that’s a good feeling!!!) I hit Mile 5 and for the first time the entire race I thought, I’m tired – but I knew I was so close to the finish that I could push through any pain that I felt. Mile 5.5 – back in the game. Less than 1 mile to go – and still in 3rd – I picked up the pace, and sprinted it in.

Finish Line: 3rd place!!!! (WaHoo!!)

Ok, so I never win anything – I’m always right on the verge – and always 4th. But I got 3rd! Overall! And I CAN NOT believe it!

BJ was so proud of me – and it was just really fun to have my favorite running partner cheering me on when I got my 3rd place prize money!

Overall: 37/884
Women: 3/ I can’t figure out how many women ran the race but I promise it was more than 3!
Time: 41:37 (6:42 pace and new PR!!)

Verdict: This was a great inaugural race – and really well organized. I love Pacers – it’s a family (of runners) owned business and they put on great races (plus, it’s where I met BJ)!! The volunteers were great, the after party was fun and the rain just held off. My only suggestion would be more water – but that’s only because I always think there can be more!

I’ll be there next year, I have to try to defend my title. ha!

Score: 9.5

Race 1 of 4, in 4 weekends The 2008 Nation’s Triathlon was my very first triathlon ever. One year later, I’m hooked and actually say “yes” when someone asks me if I am a triathlete.

I’ve trained harder, faster and stronger in 2009 than I ever did in 2008.

So, you better believe that 2009 wanted to kick 2008’s @$$!

Rematch: The Nation’s Triathlon 2009.

Since said training, I was really hoping for my best race of the year – namely a PR and a couple of margaritas. Unfortunately the race didn’t go quite as well as I would have liked…

2009
Overall Place: 1153/4500
Division Place: 37/353
Sex Place: 143/1459
Swim: 33:29
T1: 2:18
Bike: 1:18
T2: 1:47
Run: 49:00
Total: 2:44

2008
Overall Place: 949/2200
Division Place: 47/233
Sex Place: 181/956
Swim: 35:45
T1: 3:46
Bike: 1:20
T2: 2:28
Run: 54:39
Total: 2:57

Congrats – 2009 is declared the winner of The Nation’s Triathlon rematch!

Verdict: This is a great race because it’s close to home, flat and fast. But honestly, I’m not sure if I will do this race in 2010 – and I haven’t said that about any race this season. I hate to keep saying it, but 6,000 athletes is just TOO many (ask someone who did Chicago this year, too – they will say the same thing). I have 75 days before the 2010 sign-up: I’ve got to do some serious thinking!

P.S. I’d be lying if I didn’t disclose that my falling short of a PR didn’t influence this verdict, just a little. I’m bummed about my chain and upset that I couldn’t crank out a PR when I was more ready than I’ve ever been!

Score: 7.75

Four words: I ROCKED THE TRI! I had my best race ever and finished 18 minutes before my best time last year! Yay – a new PR (and a margarita)! Now, on to the race review:

The New Jersey State Triathlon was awesome. Mercer County Park is no-joke-legit – and a great place to have a race. I live in an urban jungle and while I see trees and grass and the sun, I have not seen a park like MCP in a very long time. There’s grass. Like, lots of it. And an awesome lake, an awesome playground for kids, tennis courts, a skating rink, a dog park, running and biking trails. I could go on but you get the point: MCP is nice.

Awesome thing #1 about the race: the location.

We arrived on Saturday, just in time to catch Uberman – “The world’s fasted triathlon”. 20 elite men and women race the fastest course ever – 200 yard swim, 4 mile bike and a 1 mile run. It’s over in, like, 17 minutes! It was cool to watch these athletes just totally grind it out. We stayed for the race briefing (not mandatory), checked out the swim course (I asked the race director if it was an Ironman-distance swim because it looked about 10 miles long!) and figured out where our bikes would go. I remember a time when I was annoyed that we had to rack our bikes the night before but now I really look forward to it (it makes race day so much easier). Unfortunately, we couldn’t rack our bike the night before. And while there were signs indicating the area where our bikes would rack, it was a free-for-all from there. Approximately 45 bikes per row of numbers had to find a way to fit while still trying to be in an ideal location. Fortunately for me and my crew, we showed up early and I got a great spot – but then there was the girl who showed up about 2 minutes before transition closed and asked people to move their bikes so she could fit on the first rack and not have to go to the end. It’s a good thing she didn’t ask me because I would have laughed in her face – too bad the girl next to me was a sucker!

5 am wake-up call on race day. We woke up to the sound of rain. We were all a little bummed because every race we have done this season has been in rain. Mentally, I think we were drained and couldn’t fathom another race in dagger conditions. But (thank you, God!) the rain stopped about 5 minutes before we left our sweet penthouse suite. The sky looked promising so our spirits improved.

We got to transition around 6 am and set up our gear. My transition looked great and I was ready to rock some awesome T times! Transition closed at 7:20am – and we had awhile before our start times, so we ate an awesome peanut-butter-on-wheat-bread-with-bananas breakfast and did some yoga.

Crew Start Times:
8:50am – BJ
9:10am – MP
9:20am – JJ

Swim: Wave 20: Women 25-29. First time in years that the race was a wetsuit legal race (thanks rain!). I rocked my wetsuit because I love the little extra buoyancy that it provides. The swim course was really well marked with buoys everywhere and plenty of kayakers. I felt pretty good in the water – but not my fastest swim. (I really need to join a Master’s swim team) Time: 33:08

T1: Thanks to a new little trick I’ve been testing with my wetsuit – it was easier than ever to get off. I also wore my race top under my wetsuit so I didn’t have to put on a shirt. I quickly dried my feet, socks on, bike shoes on, sunglasses on, helmet on. After my last race, when I had to fix my hair in transition because my helmet wouldn’t fit, I tested out a new hairstyle, too. It worked like a charm. Time: 2:06

Bike: I love my bike but it has been giving me some issues lately – it made a funny noise the whole time – and I just prayed that nothing bad would happen (like at The Columbia Triathlon). At one point, my chain did come off (ughhh) – but after TCT, BJ told me to back pedal if it ever happened again – and that’s exactly what I did. I back pedaled and the chain went back on. I didn’t have to get off the bike (thankfully) but it was still a 30-45 second ordeal. Fortunately, the bike course was flat and fast. I told myself that I needed to average 19-20 mph to “get a good time” – so I really powered through on the bike. I felt strong and the conditions were close to ideal – some strong wind at times but nothing detrimental. It was my fastest bike ever (at first BJ didn’t believe that my average mph was that fast!) Time: 1:11.29

T2: Let’s just say: I love my bungee laces! I took my bike shoes off and slipped on my running shoes. It was that simple! It took me a minute to get my visor on but once it was tight, I was off. Race belt in hand, I ran out of T2, feeling good! Time: 1:09 (62 second improvement)

Run: By the time I started running, it was a little before 11am and it was hot! Thankfully, the run was sometimes shaded because running on the black asphalt was painful. The course had 8 water stations (awesome!!) and cooling rags at 2 stations (even more awesome!!)! The course was nice and flat – 3.1 miles out and back, run by transition and another 3.1 miles out and back (picture a figure 8). I felt strong on the run. I mean, don’t get me wrong, my legs were tired but I was feeling good and passing people. Until mile 3… The run by transition runs by a water station with Heed (the worst drink in America) – and a volunteer accidently marketed Heed as water! It’s easy to confuse the two because Heed is clear like water BUT it does not taste like water. It tastes like the worst drink in America. I took a “water” and after one big gulp realized that I had just made a huge mistake! I have a very sensitive stomach. I can not take any type of gel or electrolyte drink or eat anything, I mean a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g, within 1.5-2 hours of running. I kept running, wishing, hoping and praying that I would be fine. Unfortunately, I wasn’t. I had to run and walk the last 2 miles due to a bad case of throwing up. It was not fun – and I was mad! My run was still a run PR – but I know that it could have been better. Moral of the story: NO Heed for me (angry post to come). Time: 51:50

Swim: 33:08
T1: 2:06
Bike: 1:11.29 (improvement)
T2: 1:09 (improvement)
Run: 51:50 (improvement)
Total: 2:39.39

Age Group: 10/46
Female: 56/295
Overall: 255/743

Awesome things about the race:
1) Location – MCP was awesome
2) Race Support – volunteers everywhere!
3) PLENTY of water stations (!!!) and cooling rags
4) Post-Race Event (food, including pasta and soft pretzels and drinks, including water, coke, beer)

Not-so-awesome things about the race:
1) HEED (worst thing in America – and I’m not the only athlete that hates it)
2) Transition area/bike racking free-for-all

Verdict: This was an awesome race and I can not wait to do it again next year. The volunteers were great and really helpful! I had an awesome race – my only wish is that the Heed episode would have been a bad dream instead of a reality.

Overall Score: 9

10k Stats
Time: 45:33 (7:19 pace)
Overall: 54/689
Age Group: 5/78

(Enhanced) Sprint Triathlon Stats
Time: 1:28:23
Overall (women): 8/53
Age Group: 2/53 (I got a medal!!)