Miss Blues Half Marathon - Half Marathon #45

 

The Blues...... first time back since 2018! This race was never one of my favorites and since I've done so many in Mississippi, I had just been skipping this race.   My half marathon count by state:

Alabama - 4, Florida - 7, Georgia - 1, Louisiana - 5, Mississippi - 23, Nevada - 1, Tennessee - 3, Montana - 1 for a total of 45 half marathons!   I wish I had known about this 50 state thing when I started running half marathons... I could have tried to spread these out to more states and I'd be so close to having 50.. Oh well....   Guess I could start now and maybe by the time I get to 100 halfs ... I'll have 50 states covered. 😂😃

So my PPRF (Peer Pressure Running Friends) talked me into this back in 2021.  Then the race was postponed in February, 2021 to November, 2021... on my daughter's wedding day!  So I deferred to 2022 thinking that I could at least talk a few of my friends in going with me.... well that did NOT happen.  😏  They ran it in November and said NEVER again. 😑 So I was the lone ranger.  

I did have a long run anyways building to my marathon coming up on March 5 so I decided why not plus we could see the grands in Jackson for the weekend.  Well, it turned out the grands already had plans so I ended up just staying in a hotel and running alone.  The weather was perfect.  Cool, but sunny.  The race starts and ends by the state Capital.  

I had purchased a $4 jacket at the thrift store to throw away after we got to running, however I ended up just wrapping it around my waist and keeping it.  I asked a lady with the Miss Coffee runners to grab my picture before the start.

Very small group of Miss Coffee runners!  Usually they are like 30-40 of us.  I hate to say it but since the race was taken over by a new race organization many people have stopped doing the race.  It's not near as well organized as it use to be!  

We started the race with a guy playing the guitar for the National Anthem. 

Ran into my friend Jennifer at mile 10!  She's a hoot and always running somewhere all over the world!  She's probably close to getting her 50 states, but today she was cheering us on.  💓

I had forgotten how many HILLS the race has along the course!  Which I needed them to get ready for the March and April marathons I'm signed up to do.  But man did my body want to shout at me... what the heck ... 😂   Plus there was a sharp grade on several of the roads and my hip was killing me.  

I was so glad when it was over. LOL

I was mistaken when I typed 42! it's my 45... 😀

However, to my surprise when I looked up the results later that night when I got home... they had me in the 10K and that's not even my finish time!  So I emailed them.... and guess what??  If they had put me in the right place, I would have placed 3rd in my age group!  I don't think I've ever placed in a half or full marathon.  Heck I never hang around for awards.  On average I'm usually in the top 10 of my age group, but I  never make the podium.... This time I did and they don't have the results right.  So aggravating!  However, I'm not alone... many people had their results wrong also... something about a timing mat not working properly.... Again.. this new organization needs to work on a couple of things to draw back the Mississippi crowd of runners they have lost. 

After I had emailed them about timing results they asked me to email them my watch times to show that I did run the half.   In doing so I took a look at what the bathroom stops cost me.   See highlights.  I will say that my two stops were not a full blown blow out like the past so maybe this new medicine is working and my stomach didn't seem to literally bother me all day after running... so their is hope... Or at least I'm praying their is for me.   I felt pretty good about my times considering the HILLS.  😀

Monday.... 2 days after... well I'm TIRED... I biked 30 miles yesterday and my legs felt like they had 20 lb weights on them!  Today I'm just plain TIRED and so glad it's REST DAY!

Happy Running! 

UPDATE:  The timing company for the Blues has now got me in their system in the correct place and I am 3rd in my age group.   Which in honesty the race only had like 309 people in the half marathon.  It wasn't a big race at all and many local fast people did not attend.  So I know my time is not really a "placing" time, but heck.... it is what it is for those of us that did show up and race that day as my friends say. 😍 

The Lighthouse Dash - Petal Children's Task Force 5K - 2/12/2022

 

I love doing this 5K.   It's for an awesome cause... the CHILDREN!  You don't realize how many children locally are going without food, etc.    The Petal Children's Task Force is there to help!  I think they said they raised like $26,000 with the event.  They have some pretty nice sponsors.   I love being able to run the race and contribute a small portion of that $26,000.   I met up with my PPRF friends.  Not all of us were there this year... we missed Felicia, Penny, Be, Ann, ... Hope I didn't leave anyone else out. 😄   Waffle house always serves breakfast after the race which is a nice treat!  

Candy's grandson coming in.  He was running / walking with Candy and her daughter and we encouraged him to run on in to the finish line to his teacher.. Michelle.  💓

I actually got 2nd in my age group.  I haven't ran many 5Ks at all in a long time so speed work to place in a 5K ... well is kind of hard for this long distance runner. 😂  I'm just thankful at 55 that God still allows me to run with my friends.   It was a great morning in fellowship with them. 

Happy Running Peeps!

Marathon #1 of 2022 --- Big Beach Marathon (marathon #23) 1-30-2022

My PPRF friends talked me into another one! 😀  It will be fun they say.... We'll have a girls weekend at the beach and enjoy the beach..... come on... we all doing it....   

Isn't that what your friends tell you????? 😂  I'm a sucker for punishment so I signed up.  I do love the beach and looked forward to a weekend get away with the girls.  We had planned on arriving early Saturday so we could enjoy the beach and relax before the race on Sunday.   WELL.... Mother nature decided she had different plans for us!!  Saturday turned out to only be a high of like 48 with terrible winds!  We tried to walk on the beach... check out our picture... and my ear hurt afterwards thanks to the dang wind! 

We were glad the expo was inside when we went to get our bibs.  They also had some cool zoo animals there.  I took a picture of the one eye owl.  She was hit by a car and lost her eye and the zoo rescued her. 💗

Saturday  night we celebrated January & December birthdays since we had not done that yet... thanks to a couple of the girls having COVID during that time! 

Seven women in a condo.... interesting.. let's just say there were a couple of air mattress blown up. 😂  I was a tad concerned about the bathroom situation..but it all worked out fine.  💓  It was a tad warm in the condo... some like it HOT... So I didn't sleep real well.  I'm use to 66 degrees at home when we go to bed and only up to 68 during the day.  They had it on 72! 👎  However, I don't usually sleep well the night before a race anyway.   

We were all up early and ready to rock and roll on Sunday.  The forecast called for about 10 degrees warmer on Sunday.  I was happy about that.  It really wasn't bad starting.  I had been feeling really good  lately and decided I would join Joe & Richard who were pacing the 4:40 group.  I had ran a 4:39 in Memphis for St. Jude and figured since Big Beach was basically flat (or so I thought).. that maybe I could hang with Joe and Richard and then push it faster the 2nd half of the race and maybe get back to my 4:30 average.  

Joe, Richard and me at the start line.. Felicia is right behind me... the sun was in the wrong direction for the pic.. or we should have turned around.. 😂

We were all smiles to start.  The rest of the girls had gotten further behind us.  They planned to have more of a "social" run.  I do love to hang with them sometimes because they are a lot of fun.  Michelle had her pockets loaded down with fire balls! 😁  Today, however, I wanted to focus on time and I had encouraged Feleica to try to stay with us.  I'm bad about putting in my ear buds and getting in my own little zone so soon Felicia and I were separated.  I felt bad she ended up running the whole race basically by herself.  

I ran with Joe & Richard for almost half the race.  I felt really good.  I wasn't out of breath or anything.  Felt like I was running a comfortable pace............ Then the dreaded stomach issues reared up! 😢  I honestly don't know what to do about this issue! I've been taking Imodium on my long runs and races, which help some.  I went to the GI doctor last week and basically she said it was age most likely... (I'm not happy about this!! I see many older than me still running and they don't have to stop multi times during a race!), however she started me on some new medicine she wanted me to try on race day instead of my Imodium.  Well, let's just say IT DID NOT WORK!  The first time I had to stop at the bathroom, Joe told me not to push hard catching back up because I'd wear myself out.  So I didn't and it took me a mile before I caught back up.  I thought things would be ok .... until the next 3 miles and it hit me again!! and then it hit again... and then again!!!!!!!!! After 4 stops at the bathroom... I didn't have the energy to catch back up to them.  The wind had started to pick up and my whole body just felt bad by then.  I was so aggravated and SAD.  I honestly don't know what I could run if I didn't have to stop for the bathroom.. and I ain't pooping in my pants!! especially 4X!!  I only have this issue when running and it only started like 1-2 years ago and keeps getting worse! 😕 I have follow up in 6 weeks with the GI doc..  can't wait to see what we try next 😞

I figured Feleica would catch up to me after all my stops and we would finish together, but that never happen.  I have really enjoyed getting to know her better.  We traveled together to the beach.  She's a super sweet lady! and she also LOVES Peloton 💓  The wind was so bad coming in the last couple of miles that everyone was walking.  It was a massive headwind that was brutally cold!  I asked myself over and over... why did I sign up for this... 😞

Once I crossed that finish line, I almost forgot all that wind and cold and stomach issues..... I did have that high of finishing yet another marathon... maybe that's why I keep doing these....😏😀  

I waited on the others to finish and we took some quick pictures before heading back to take turns to shower.  I do LOVE these girls.  Michelle had her fireballs and she was as happy as a kid.  We laughed at all her crazy pictures at the finish banner. 

Virginia and Susan were our cheerleaders so they are not in this picture.  

We were so tired and over the cold weather that we didn't even get dressed and go out to eat Sunday night... we brought in Pizza and just chilled in the condo.  It actually felt good to not have to get dressed and do anything.  

My take on this marathon.... be prepared for any kind of weather!  the previous year Penny & Michelle were in tanks and shorts!  It's not totally flat.  The trails have some incline.  There is not much crowd support at all because the marathon is 90% on the trails.   Would I do it again??  Probably not unless these crazy girls talked me into it again! 😉  To me St. Jude was much harder due to hills and I had a much better time there.... however, I didn't have the stomach issues so bad at St. Jude either.   

As I told Feleica, she said she wasn't doing another marathon after that Big Beach.... You really can't judge one bad one... every race is different.   It's all a combination of weather, course, and how you feel on race day.   So many factors go into a race.  That's one reason I try not to look at past race results or judge friends results... you never know what they faced that day.   You really just have to make the decision that whatever you face on race day... you will not quit! Just continue on one step at a time and FINISH the dang thing. 😎  It's called GRIT

AND most important... a STRONG FAITH

Until next time.. Happy Running

Marathon #2 of 2022 for me coming up on 3-5-22