Osaka, Japan

We are now at the half-way point of our trip. We've spent a night on the airplane, four nights at the hotel near Tokyo Disney, a night in Nikko, a night in Tokyo and we are about to crash for the night in Osaka.

Each day continues to bring new adventures. Today I figured out how to use a machine without pictures or words in English to order lunch. I had curry chicken udon suki (noodles and meat in a rich broth served in a ceramic stew pot). I think the traditional version should have had buckwheat noodles, but I had one with regular noodles instead. Even our friends were impressed with my ability to order from the machine.

My other accomplishment was buying train tickets using a vending machine. For this there was a button to switch to English (much to the amazement of our friends, it looked like a magic trick), and the friends told me which station we were going to and how much money the machine wanted.

Osaka is the most American-style town we are going to, even though it is still mostly in Japanese. The biggest difference is here when using the escalator or stairs, the crowd stays RIGHT instead of LEFT. It was enough of a change to make me a little more comfortable getting navigating the area.

Since we opted to leave after rush hour rather than get another super early start, we did not arrive in Osaka until 1:30. A little more planning and we should have bought sandwiches in Tokyo to eat on the train. By the time we checked into the room and had lunch, it was after 3:30. 

We took a subway to Osaka Castle. We were having so much fun taking pictures and meandering that we nearly missed going inside the castle. The castle will be celebrating its 400^th anniversary next year (or rather the 400^th anniversary of the death of Toyotomi Hashiba). The castle looks like a 5-tiered wedding cake on the outside. Inside is filled with Hashiba’s rags to riches story that led to the building of the first Osaka Castle. The first one was struck by lightning and burned to the ground in 1665. Thanks to a giant public effort, it was rebuilt in 1931. Two years ago they celebrated their 80^th anniversary of the current building. Osaka Castle reminds me of Disney in that way – always a reason to celebrate.

Throughout the day it rained on and off. The word on the street is that the typhoon is still headed our way. Weather.com says it will rain all night tonight and only have a 10% chance of rain tomorrow. That would be ideal.

We heard the magic “go home” music of Auld Lang Syne, which makes us think of New Year’s Eve. They very efficiently and effectively kicked us all out of the 8 story building.

Given how overcast it is, we decided to postpone our plans to see the Floating Garden in the hope that it will be clearer tomorrow night (it is in a really tall building in Osaka). We took a leisurely stroll all around the castle and bumped into people setting up a water station for a race. This was one of many times I wished I spoke Japanese. The translation was not proceeding the way it could have because our friends do not speak race lingo. The best I could determine, there was a 5K and a 10K race that started at 7 PM as it was

getting dark. I think (understanding races) the 10K started first, the 5K started later? Or else we saw the 10K people finishing around the 40 minute mark. I just don’t know and a quick Google search did not find the race. Before I left the States a friend encouraged me to search for a small local race. I didn’t. I even left my sneakers back in Tokyo. It would have been fun, but it would have tied up most of our time in Osaka. Fortunately I did not see any finishers’ medals, or else I would have really been kicking myself.

For dinner we tried a local specialty: okonimiyaki. Basically it is a pancake cooked with meat and vegetables on the table. Ours also had meat in it. Don wants to start making this instead of crepes for brunch on weekends. 

Unfortunately Ashley was not too fond of it, but I bet she would like it with some Nutella and bananas tossed inside of it. The food was originally created in 1700 as a Buddhist ritual food.

This brought us to 9:30 PM and Ashley’s pumpkin time. She is still waking up super early – anywhere between 3 AM and 6 AM. I guess I have a bit of the opposite problem as I’ve enjoyed staying up close to midnight updating the blog, charging electronics and copying pictures to our mini-laptop. Now if only the wifi will stay connected long enough for me to post this.

More pictures of Osaka

Running Goals

My running goals can be summed up as following:

1) Stay free of injury
2) Have a good time
3) Finish with a smile

Let the training continue through this muggy summer until I cross the finish line in California.

My race calendar is as follows:

August 31: 10K at DisneyLand
September 1: Half Marathon at DisneyLand
October 13: 10 miler in Mercer County Park ("The Perfect 10 Miler")
November 2: Beauty and the Beach 5 miler
November 3: Princeton Half Marathon
November 9: Trenton Half Marathon

November 10: putting up my feet and taking a break from running (we'll see how long that lasts)

D3 training

With over two months still to go until the Dumbo Double Dare (D3), I hit my hardest training weekend to date, with at least one more super challenging weekend to survive before the big race.

I chose a training schedule that looked reasonable on paper -- with the exception of these four back to back long runs. Why would one do that to oneself? You see the D3 is like half of a "Goofy" -- a 10K on Saturday (6.2 miles) followed by a half marathon (13.1 miles) on Sunday. Crazy, huh?

This weekend called for 5 miles on Friday and 10 on Saturday. Tropical Storm Andrea is coming through? Too bad, get out there and do it (or not, I'm not overly serious about running if you hadn't noticed from my other posts). 

Well, I did it! I stuck to my neighborhood and did lots and lots of laps. In the end I was thrilled with my time (11:15 mile) and happy I did it. I felt better running in the non-stop gentle rain than I did a week earlier in the sticky, hot and utterly draining yet dry weather. 

Today's turn. Legs felt good for the start. The first mile felt fabulous. From there I kept slowing down. Sure some of my miles were faster than others, but I just wanted this to be over! My pace was nearly two minutes slower than yesterday (13:11 pace), but overall I felt more beat. 

On a good note, I know I can do the D3! Disney requires a 16 minute per mile pace. Even with photo ops, and water stops, I'm good to go. With God's help, and lots of training, I'll only get stronger over the next two and a half months. And as a bonus ... California is not exactly famous for their super humid days, so that should help, too.

I have to remind myself to stay hydrated and fueled. I can do this!

Oh and tomorrow I rest!

Superhero Race

Up until now I've been very lucky weather-wise on race day. My worst weather to date was the 70 degree sticky humid start to the Princess Half Marathon, but at least that was dry (well, as dry as a humid day can be). Sunday's Superhero Race in Morristown, NJ was 58 degrees and raining. Fortunately that was the biggest problem for the day.

As soon as I heard about this race, I knew I wanted to do it. After all dressing up in costume is part of the fun of running a race. One of the reasons I signed up for the Rutgers 8K was that my friends were all planning on wearing their Sparkle Skirts. When I ran the Big Red Race two weeks ago I was the only one wearing a Sparkle Skirt, but I enjoyed the crowds comments about my skirt and the extra cheers I feel that generated. I still enjoy playing dress up.

The only trouble with this race was that I was not ready to run a half marathon. I ran one in February, and I am signed up for three in the fall, but I have not been training with a plan of running a half marathon this summer. This race has the option of running it as a relay. The course is two loops through Morristown, with a relay stop in-between. Perfect! Now who can I talk into running with me?? Hmm.... 


I asked Debbie (the Perfect Princess I met on the plane to Florida). She was already racing with Jen. 

I asked Sharon. She was already running the Bay to Breakers in San Francisco.

I asked Michelle. She was already running Color Me Rad race closer to home.

I asked Lisa. She prefers cycling to running.

I asked people on the PbRC Facebook group. Sarah and Becca said they were already running it.


I asked Don. If he can ride his bike 200 miles in a day, surely he can run / walk 6.4 miles. He agreed, but was in denial up until race day.

Jen took this picture of us at the relay station. Hard to tell, but I attached a purple cape to the back of my Princess Half Marathon shirt. If nothing else, it helped keep the back of my legs warm. Don is wearing the official Superhero shirt, with boxer shorts that have the Beatles Yellow Submarine on them, and blue cycling pants. He was too cold to take off his jacket. I'm glad I wore my running cap.

1700 people signed up for the race. Not sure if many bailed due to the weather. I ran the first (and longer) leg of the relay. The course was packed in the beginning to the extent that when it was time for me to do my first interval I did not feel comfortable slowing down to a walk. Thirty seconds later I could. At the time, I was concerned that by going out too strong I was going to hurt my chances of a good finish later. Those fears were based on past races when I have pushed too strong in the first mile and suffered before long. Fortunately that was not the case here.

I did have a stitch in my side during the second mile. Fortunately the cup of water took care of that problem and I ran /walked my 3:2 interval pace most of the rest of the run. I did walk up the giant hill. Whew! We don't have hills like that in Lawrenceville.


The crowds were the real superheros of the day. As we ran through neighborhoods, kids were sitting outside with their parents cheering us on. You knew that they were inconvenienced by having roads closed, but no one seemed to mind. I did see one man running with his dog against the flow of traffic in the park.

Lots of police, fire and EMT support. Speaking of support, at one of the water stations the volunteers dressed as Mario Brothers. That little bit of extra helped me keep going after the big hill. 

Before I started, I told Don expect me between 1:15 and 1:30. I made it to him at 1:17! I was lapped by 5 half marathoners (God Bless them and their speed!). We took a quick picture at the swap and he was off and running. Meanwhile, I changed into dry clothes and took some pictures of other people in costume.

Unlike the Big Red Race where he beat me by at least a mile a minute, Don kept a similar pace to me and finished with a smile at 2:32. We came in 125th place out of all relay teams. We each earned a finisher's medal.

After the race Debbie said she would do it again. I'd have to agree. It was a nice race. Well organized. In the "room for improvement" side would have been an extra water station and one set of port-o-pots. Since the race was a loop, the one set of bathrooms was at the beginning, middle and end of the half marathon -- or the beginning and end of the relay. Fortunately that was not an issue for us.

I'm especially pleased with how well I did because this weekend called for two long runs in anticipation of the Dumbo Double Dare at the end of the summer. Saturday I ran 5 miles around the Lawrenceville School and the Lawrence Hopewell Trail. Following that with Sunday's Superhero race was a test for me as to how I would feel running the 10K and Half Marathons back to back. I was happy with how I felt mentally and physically. 

I've lately realized how cool the swag is features in my enjoyment. The shirts are awesome -- girl-cut tech in Boston Marathon yellow and blue. The finisher medals were the same for the relay and half marathon people -- I did anticipate ours would be smaller to reflect the smaller effort we did, but was very happy we were not slighted. The vast majority of the runners did the whole half marathon.

I don't know if I could have finished the whole half marathon with a smile, but  my legs had enough in them for another few miles. Ideally our swap would have taken place just before that giant hill at the 3.5 mile spot (which reappeared at the 10.2 mile spot) and let Don do the last few miles. That wasn't an option.

We celebrated our victory with greasy sandwiches from the Minuteman of America restaurant -- a local restaurant that has been open since 1962, and one I remember going to as a child when we'd visit Aunt Debra at Jockey Hollow. I cannot find a website for the place, but it is modernizing -- they now offer WiFi, a service that did not exist when we went there last on Boxing Day 2011 with my parents. Maybe a website is in their future.

An online article about the race with a few pictures: http://photos.nj.com/morris/2013/05/photos_superhero_half-marathon_1.html

Big Red Race

The Big Red Race held on May 5th on the Lawrenceville School campus will always hold a special place in my heart. In 2010 it was my first 5K. I ran the race with Jean at the lightning pace of over 15 minutes a mile (47:07). Four races later and my time is down to an 11:15 mile (34:58). 

The course is very scenic and extremely flat. It is a community event, so we tend to know people running the course. This year we saw Emily and her dad, but not the usual neighbors. This year the Broad Street 10-miler was on the same day, so I suspect some our or friends were there instead.

This year, rather than running with Jean (who has since moved), Don signed up to run the race "with" me. "Don, run?" you say. Isn't he a cyclist. Well, yes. I asked him to do the Superhero race with me on May 19 as a relay team (I'll run the 6.7 mile loop, he'll do the 6.4 mile loop -- stay tuned for that blog post). Within a quarter of a mile he left me in the dust finishing at 31:33 (a 10.09 minute mile) a speed I can't even imagine ever handling. I figure I can either work on speed or endurance, and for now I want to work on endurance. I love the medals that come with the longer races.

In the crowd cheering us to the finish line were my parents, Ashley and niece, Aimee -- all wearing matching day-glo yellow "Team Pillsbury" shirts. They were quite easy to pick out of the crowd. I was easy to spot, too, in my Sparkle Skirt. I saw one other running skirt, by no other Sparkle Skirts at this race. I know I won't be the only wearing a costume at the Superhero race.

Great job Don! See you at the finish line in Morristown.

Marathon Expo Volunteer

Last weekend I spent a painful 8 hours volunteering at the New Jersey Marathon Expo for the Trenton Half Marathon. My job as an Ambassador was to encourage people to sign up for the November 9th race. My compensation for spending a gorgeous Saturday indoors was free race entry, a windbreaker from last year's race, and a broken promise about lunch. 

As with last year's half marathon the organization made lots of promises they just could not fulfill. The biggest one was that lunch would be provided. As the event ran from 10-6, this was important. There was no food to be found at the Expo (which was held at the Monmouth Racetrack) or within walking distance of the Expo. Elyce, the woman in charge of the event, tried hard, but she knew the day before that this was an issue and still only brought lunch for herself. Even an email saying "hey, ladies, sorry but there is no food at the event, please bring your own lunch" would have solved my crankiness. Even packing a few bottles of water or sports drinks would have helped. She did give me a granola bar.

The expo itself was fine. The usual vendors. The Bondi Band table was packed all day. I hope to see them at another Expo when I have to really study their product without feeling as if I am at a Filene's Basement sale. I was hoping either Sparkle Skirt or Team Sparkle would be there so I could pick up another skirt for my next race, but I guess the race was not girly enough for them.

I did see Brian as he was gearing up for his 50th marathon. Go Brian! Brian and I went to TSC together (before the name change). 

Also spotted was the Barking Mad About Running and Running at Disney bloggers.

The woman also working the table with me was selling the race as if she made a commission on each sign up. Her energy level was impossibly high. This is a woman not much older than I am who has been to all seven continents and has climbed most of the highest mountains. Of course a measly half marathon was no challenge to her, even though she had only taken up running a couple of months before last year's Trenton Half Marathon (which was her first race).

Standing at the table for 8 hours was not hard. It was even fun. They gave me a windbreaker leftover from last year's race. I had a sneak preview into this year's medal. The promises broken was reminiscent of last year's race. They readily admit they were given a pass last year on what went wrong (mostly the parking issues, though I think the 45 minute late start was a bigger issue), we'll see if they learn from their mistakes. At least the swag was great. Hopefully they'll team up with the Princeton Half Marathon people and offer a "New Jersey Marathon" for completing two halves within 7 days.

This November 9th I will run happy in the knowledge that at least I "paid" for the race with time rather than money. Hopefully I will have learned a lesson or two and at least pack my own water and a sense of humor.

Side note: the link to the ambassador program is broken so I can't confirm the long list of promises.

Seriously into Training for D3

My 17-week training schedule says I just finished week 2, however my legs are telling me I finished week 1.

This is my first time training for back-to-back races: The Dumbo Double Dare, a.k.a. D3. On August 31st I will run 6.2 miles. The next morning I return to the start line for a half marathon. Lots of bling is involved -- one for each race, another for doing the two back-to-back, and a fourth one for completing the Coast-to-Coast challenge (begun with the Princess half). There is another one for eating bacon along the course (or the vegetarian option) and a fifth one for being "Mad as a Hatter." The last one is hard to explain.

The first week of training was just like any other week I run -- 30-45 minutes (2.5-4 miles) twice a week, and a long run of 3.1 miles on Sunday. Instead I ran 8K on that Sunday (4.97 miles).

Week two started off just like week 1, then it added a twist for the weekend: back to back runs. Ouch! I ran 3.1 miles on Saturday. Sunday called for 6.2 miles. My overall time was okay (I ran a 12:10 mile overall, even though the first mile was closer to 11:30). My legs were feeling it!

Thoughts:
1) I'm so glad I found a training program that includes a few back to back training runs (5 out of the 17 weeks).
2) I'm really glad today is a rest day!
3) I reminded myself during the run it will be easier at Disney because during the race I'll be resting often to take pictures. If I can run it in Mercer County alone, I'll have no troubles in California with all those people.

This weekend many ladies I know ran in the Nike Women Half Marathon in DC. The prize for finishing was a Tiffany necklace, complete with the light blue box. This was the first year for this race. Registration was by lottery. I want to enter in the lottery next year.

I came to the conclusion this weekend that the swag is turning into a factor for choosing one race over another. A race that has women-cut tech shirts as an option wins out over one with cotton tees or unisex cut tech shirts. Medals or necklaces for finishing are also a must. Exceptions for local races that do not involve travel or insane schedules.

This week kicks it back a notch -- two 20-45 minute runs and a long run of 5 miles on Sunday. I can do it!

Rutgers Unite Half Marathon and 8K

As I wrote earlier in the week, I had absolutely no intention of running the Rutgers Unite Half Marathon or the 8K. It starts at 8 AM on Sunday morning. I've just resumed training for the Dumbo Double Dare coming up at the end of the summer. It wasn't on my radar.

Then the bombing took place at the Boston Marathon. I suddenly wanted to connect with the running community by doing a race.

Meanwhile on FaceBook. I read about other friends running the Rutgers race. Most were doing the half marathon, but my training buddy Sharon was doing the 8K. I did the math. 8K=4.97 miles. THAT I could do, and do well.

Sharon graciously saved me a drive to Rutgers on Saturday and picked up my race packet. I returned the favor and drove her to and from the race today. I picked her up in West Windsor at 6:30 AM. We parked in the familiar parking lot on College Avenue -- the same one we used for our SCILS classes when we were earning our MLIS degrees. 

We miraculously caught the shuttle bus to the starting area, thus sparing ourselves a 20 minute walk to the start. I saw the Bronc for the first time and had Sharon snap my picture with him. The half marathon started at 8. Us 8K runners started 15 minutes later. My goal was to finish before the first half marathoner crossed the line (same finish line). My second goal was to finish in under an hour. I made the latter goal, but not the former one. Darn super fast runners!

The race took place over the Rutgers New Brunswick campuses. As a grad student, all but one of my on-line classes was in SCILS (School of Communication Information and Literary Services), with one held in a different building, and the rest online. I never made it to the other campuses. This race was a nice tour of the area.

Unlike most of my races lately, I only took this one mid-course, and that was within the first mile. We started at the Rutgers Stadium on Busch Campus. Ran past Johnson Park. Over the Raritan River to Buccleaugh Park (a couple of hills here). Up another hill and we were at the College Avenue building. Before I knew it, we were passing SCILS and the finish line was within sight.

For the most part I kept with my training and ran 3 minutes and walked 2. A couple of hills made me walk an extra 40 seconds. Not bad at all. 

I heard my name announced as I was crossing the finish line! What a great feeling. I finished with a smile and easily bumped into Sharon who finished nearly 4 minutes before I did.

I finished at 57:09.6 -- a PR for the 8K distance since it was my first 8K, and nearly 3 minutes faster than my only 5 miler. By mile 4.5 I was lapped by the first half marathoner. Right after I crossed the finish line i heard the their half  marathoner was about to cross. I feel great about it!

The post-race food was the best I've seen -- or maybe that is since the half marathoners hadn't finished yet, I was ahead of the crowd instead of behind them and there was lots of well-organized food left. We had pasta salad, cookies, fruit, water, Coke, and a delicious yogurt parfait. The snacks got me through the car ride from Sharon's house to mine. 

Before the race, Gabrielle, Sharon and I decided to wear our Sparkle Skirts. Sharon's friend Stacey also wore her skirt. Unlike Disney races, the Sparkle Skirt made us stand out. I had lots of comments from the crowd about my skirt. It was fun! Since I registered so late, I did not have my name on the bib, but I was still cheered on because of the skirt and pony tail holder.

I wore blue and yellow in honor of Boston. Sharon was wearing Rutgers Colors. Someone from the Trenton Half Marathon saw me in my Trenton Half shirt and took our picture for their FaceBook page.

Sharon gave me a lovely pom pom pony tail holder so I was sporting some Rutgers scarlet.

I'm glad I did it. There was awesome crowd support along the route. I saw at least 4 bands in our 5 miles (not sure if there were more for the half marathon crowd). Several water stops, even though it was cool enough we didn't need it. 

Starting temp: 40 and breezy. Ending temp: 48 and breezy.

It was sunny. :) 

Princeton Running Company's Run for Boston

Last week the world was rocked by the news of bombings taking place at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. This has hit the running community particularly hard.

No matter how slow we are, the Boston Marathon is the penultimate race to run. With most races, you just need a fast finger, and a willing credit card, to register for a race. With Boston, you need a super fast marathon qualifying time (a BQ) to be invited to then have the super fast finger and willing credit card to complete the registration process. 

This week the running community has united to show the terrorists and the world that we will not stop running just because of the bombing. Races will continue to happen. If anything, this event has made us even stronger as a group. Pretty amazing when you consider most training runs happen alone, or with a friend or two, not en masse as happens in a race.

Wednesday night (April 17), Don, Ashley and I joined 70 other runners for a "Run for Boston" hosted by the Princeton Running Company. Prior to the run store employees spoke about Boston. Each of the three staff members had run Boston -- one that year. She finished an hour before the explosions. Meghan, another staff member, was working the Boston Marathon Expo. We had a moment of silence, and then we were off for a one-mile route.

\\We ran down Nassau Street to Olden to Prospect to Washington and back up to Nassau Street. Ashley was not feeling well that day, so we walked behind the group. This was Don's first run with his five-finger sneakers bought for next month's SuperHero Race.


I'll admit I was the only one wearing a Sparkle Skirt. Don was the only one in denim shorts for that matter!

It was a good showing of solidarity. I heard there was a candlelight run in Cherry Hill that night, and a huge run in Philadelphia.

Tomorrow I'll be wearing my Sparkle Skirt again as I run the Rutgers 8K. This time I know I won't be the only one as my friends Sharon and Gabrielle are also wearing their Sparkle Skirts. 

More on that race tomorrow.

Boston Marathon

Crazy.

Insane.

Wrong.

Unimaginable.

Impossible to understand.
Overwhelming.

These are but a few of the many emotions running through my head today as I read about the bombing at the Boston Marathon.

I can't imagine qualifying for Boston and having something like this happen to ruin the experience. I can't imagine watching someone run the dream of their lives only to have it end in horror.

Crossing the finish line and having your legs blown off and your life forever changed?

Cheering on a friend or family member and dying watching? Or being critically injured?

Being further back in the pack and not getting a chance to cross -- understanding why not, but still a loss to a dream?

Crossing the finish line earlier and wondering "what if?"

When you talk about running Boston it will always be "the year the bombs went off" and not "the year I finally qualified."

Knowing someone involved and wondering where they were when the bombs exploded. Are they safe?

Is this the end, or will they find more bombs tonight?

Why do the crazies have to ruin life for the rest of us?

In honor of the runners, I decided today to sign up for this Sunday's Rutgers 8K run. Even though I have friends running it, and it is at my alma mater, I was not even on the fence about it. I was not planning on doing it at all. Now I want to be part of the running community so we can stand together and show we are stronger than the bad guys.

Someone suggested on the PBRC board that tomorrow (Tuesday) we all wear shirts from past races (or from Boston) to show the world just how many runners exist. I will probably never qualify for Boston, but tonight I am proud to call myself a runner. 

Update from April 16: wearing my Disneyland Half Marathon shirt and Sparkle Skirt as I ran 4 miles in the area. Will change into a clean and dry running shirt to wear the rest of the day. Good is always stronger than evil. 

Update from April 17: http://runningatdisney.com/2013/04/16/running-for-boston/ is a great source for reading about the feelings of the running community as we each process what happened in Boston. It is a compilation of different blogs, including The Pillsbury Press. It includes pictures of people running for Boston.

Trenton Half Marathon

As I was running in the inaugural Trenton Half Marathon I'll admit I did not have a kind word for the race. A day later as I look at my pretty medal, my harsh words are softening.

Only 20 days ago I ran in the Columbus Half Marathon. Since then I dealt with taking down a willow tree thanks to Hurricane Sandy, and had a surprise early November snowstorm the Weather Channel decided to name Athena. One of my favorite races, the 5-mile Beauty and the Beach run in Long Beach, NJ was canceled as Sandy destroyed the shore town, and our route. On one of my few training runs, 5 miles through Mercer Meadows, I had to climb over 3 trees twice.

In a nutshell, training stank.

Saturday's race was calling for beautiful weather -- low 38, high 50. 
The drive to Waterfront Park and parking was a mess. The line for race day packet pick ups were long (thankfully, Sharon and I went on Thursday). The race started 45 minutes late. Yes, FORTY-FIVE minutes late as the announcer kept insisting it would be a few more minutes and appreciating our patience. 

My biggest complaint with the start was that I could not figure out how to line up by anticipated finish time, nor could I find a pacer. There were about 2700 runners. I have a tendency to jackrabbit at the start, and was hoping to be able to pace myself right in the start. This is what really helped me with Columbus.

The route:

Started off going under the new tunnel on 29. Then up and over the highway and back through the tunnel. Overall my GPS route showed it was .33 miles shorter than 13.1, which people attributed to losing satellite in the tunnel and under the overpasses. 

Much of the route was along not-so scenic Route 29. I would have preferred more time on State Street or through neighborhoods as 29 does not encourage places to stop and view the race. There was a definite lack of spectators along the route.
Don chased after me on his bike and took lots of pictures of me along the way.

Later on I found out Gary, someone I know through community theater, handed me water at one of the watering stops. I was surprised day of by how few people I knew. Surprised later in the day when I read in FB about how many people I did know at the race. Should have coordinated better.

 
 
As billed, one of the highlights was running across the Trenton Makes Bridge. I hadn't paid attention to the surface of the bridge before. The whole time I was afraid I would catch my toe in the steel grates. Made out fine, and didn't see anyone fall, but it was a definite obstacle that I will be prepared for next time.

The race then went into Morrisville, PA for a couple of miles. Bigger crowds in Pennsylvania -- possibly because less roads were closed and we went through residential neighborhoods.

Crossed the Calhoun Street Bridge back into New Jersey. By now most of the runners clued into running on the boardwalk on the side, rather than the closed steel grate bridge.

There was a 10K option, but I pressed on. This was one of the clearest signs along the route. One of my pet peeves with the race, was the lack of clear signage overall. I saw my first mile marker at mile 4! At a water station there was a hand written sign saying Gatorade to the left and water to the right. It was hard to read.

There is Don in his yellow jacket taking pictures at the top of the overpass.

I never realized before how hilly Cadwalader Park really is! Had the storms not hit, I had been planning on driving the course to see what to expect. Oh well, another race.

The highlight -- running on the field at Waterfront Park! 

Another highlight -- the great personal support. My parents chased me around town with Ashley, while Don chased me on his bike. My time (only 2 minutes slower than Columbus, even with taking pictures, walking, and chatting with fellow runners who were struggling through the course) was much better than I would have imagined. 

Would I do another race in Trenton? Time will tell. It was like childbirth -- the further away from it you are, the less you remember the pain.Will I sign up for another half marathon? You bet! Leaning towards signing up for the Disney Coast-to-Coast Challenge!

2012 Columbus Half Marathon

In 2011, Aunt Joanie and I had a blast running the Disneyland Half Marathon. We took our time, posed for pictures with characters, walked on the warning track at the Anaheim Stadium, and mostly laughed our way through all 13.1 miles. As Joanie and I emailed back and forth about the 2012 Columbus Half Marathon, I had a similar vision for this race. We'd take our time, and soak up the entertainment. 

Let me backtrack a minute. I'm often asked "why Columbus?" I have family and friends who live in Columbus, OH. I knew at least one of them (Cousin Allie) would be running in the race. Allie's Dad, Uncle Tom's, band, The Danger Brothers, always play at the start of the race. Cousin Laura and Aunt Debra spend the day chasing Allie around town. The route was also very appealing to me as it wound through the parts of Columbus I know -- downtown, past Aunt Debra and Uncle Toms's old neighborhood (Franklin Park) where we went to AmeriFlora in 1992, through Bexley where they live now, back to Franklin Park, over to German Village (where Heidi lives) and back downtown again. It is also a very, very flat course. Even I could not complain about the hills.

Back when I started to train, Joanie was planning on flying out from California to run with me. Back when we made this decision, we were going to pull Ashley out from school for a couple of days. 

Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans...

Aunt Joanie's vacation time was not approved until the last minute, by which time the race was sold out. Ashley had some troubles in school and we couldn't pull her out even for a day (in the long run, that was the right decision). Oddly Aunt Debra was in New Jersey at her high school reunion while we were racing.

It was time for a mindset change. I was in it to beat our old time of 3:24 (16 minute mile). If I had a good time, too, that would be nice.

After months of training, the race day was finally here.

With Allie before the race

The race started at 7:27, just as the sun was thinking about rising.

I was blessed to have a lot of sag support. At the starting line, in the spot reserved for band groupies, were Don, Cousin Laura, Aunt Joanie and Joanie's friend Valerie cheering me on as I started the long race. There was even a shout out from Uncle Tom, the drummer, telling the crowd how proud he was of his daughter and niece.

Here I ditched the gloves.

I saw my parents and Ashley hanging out at miles 2 and 7 (they stayed still while I ran for an hour). The first time they caught my white sweatshirt. The second time they were handed my long-sleeved tee. I wish I had hung onto that tee for a few more miles, but alls well that ends well.

Don took his bike to Columbus in order to keep up with me. After seeing him at the start, he caught up with my parents at mile 7. He found me in German Village (by this point, Heidi went inside to get warm) and took my camera from me. He looked for me at the last watering hole, but gave up in time to find me at the finish line.

I stayed true to my training and did not jackrabbit out, as I am prone to do when I run by myself. My first mile was 11:35, and my last was 12:40. My worst mile was 14:00, when I had a 2 minute port-o-potty break. I have wider range in every training run. 

All along I trained to run 4 minutes, walk for one. I was doing great at this pace until about mile 8.5. At this point I realized I had lots of strength to power walk, but I would lose it if I insisted on running 4/5ths of the time. I still picked up my pace to smile for the paparazzi (mostly Don at this point) and to finish with a big grin.

Prior to the race I debated about joining a pace group. I started out ahead of the 2:30 pace group. They passed me at the halfway point. They were going with the running a mile, walking a minute, and walking through water stations mentality. I lost them at the port-o-potty break, not long after I found them. 

I have no complaints about the run. As I completed my second half marathon I began to finally think of myself as a runner. All along I've been "Goldilocks" grumbling about my training runs -- too hot, too cold, too hilly, too boring. When it came down to race day, I really enjoyed it.

Two days after the half marathon I put on a new pair of sneakers and started training for the Trenton Half Marathon (November 10). The next day, I even went out for a 5K run with Sharon, my running buddy.

Family picture at the finish area. Cousin Laura, Uncle Tom, Cousin Allie (with her blue medal for finishing the whole marathon), me (orange medals for half marathon finishers), Don, and Aunt Joanie. 

Final note: Allie and I both earned PRs. Mine was 2:43:46 (41 minutes faster -- 12:30 minute mile). Allie finished the full marathon in 3:46:10 (13 minutes faster, and 11 minutes away from qualifying for Boston)!