Disneyland Half Marathon 2011

Expo and other Pre-race stuff
I left work a little early on Friday to attend the expo next to the Disneyland hotel. I didn't go right when they opened which was good since I missed the usual early chaos. I first stood in the wrong line thinking that I had to pick up my bib at the regular lines before going to the Coast-to-Coast line. All I had to do was go straight to the Coast-to-Coast line. They put the green wristband on me and off I went to the expo to pick up my shirt and goodie bag. The shirt wasn't bad, but I was hoping that the graphics would have been sublimated by now. I got an Angels cap from the Angels Strike Force booth and bought a ridiculously expensive but nice Coast-to-Coast shirt before leaving.

Disneyland Hotel Sorcerer's Hat


Coast to Coast Challenge accepted!


Stuff from the expo

On Saturday, I returned to the expo after my morning run with the Train4Autism group. I stopped by the RunRacing booth to say hi to my friend, Danica. I also got another Angels cap. Too bad, I'm not an Angels fan! :) I left soon thereafter to avoid buying anymore Disney merchandise. I then went and ate never-ending pasta at the Olive Garden with my friend which always turns out to be a bad idea. Eating too much the day before a race just means more time on the porcelain throne the next day. :)

Chicrunner at the RunRacing booth


Angels Strike Force

Race day
I next day I got to the Disneyland parking structure a little before 4am with the race starting at 6am. The parking this year costs $15. I figured if it costs that much, I'd want to get there early and take a nap in my car. Around 5am, I got ready and went out to the starting area to use the portapotties. I was about to head to the Sorcerer's hat for the Maniac pre-race photo, but realized that I had forgotten my visor. I had to jog back to my car then mosey on over to the photo spot. I ran into Endorphin Dude and showed him the way. We made it just in time.

Pre Race Photo with Half Fanatics/Maniacs

As soon as we were finished with the photos, I took off for my corral since I was going to be starting out of corral A. I walked through the corral to see if I could spot any of my friends but didn't see anyone that I knew. So I went to the back of the corral near the entrance and found a place to sit. I spotted my friend Mitch. As it got closer to the start of the race, we made our way closer to the front of the corral. While we were waiting I spotted runners dressed up as Russell and Kevin the bird. I took a picture with them.

Corral A with Russell and Kevin the bird!

Objective #1: don't rupture any tendons.
Objective #2: finish under 2 hrs but try for 1:55.
Objective #3: keep all miles below 10 min.

The Race
I started off running with Mitch since we have about the same speed. We were near the front and still we had to dodge joggers. My legs have regained some of its zip, but I noticed that the breathing was not quite there. I was also not liking the humidity very much. I hung with Mitch until about mile 3 right before we ran through the castle. I had to slow down because I was overheating. Later in the race, I had to dump water on my head at almost every water station to cool myself down. I was passed by Nadia and the 1:40 pace group shortly. I took my planned walk breaks after every 3 miles (3, 6, 9, and 12). A side stitch really slowed me down around the miles leading up to the Honda Center parking lot. I added a few more walk breaks late in the race because I couldn't breathe correctly. It seemed like every time I took a walk break, one of my friends was passing me. Andee passed me shortly after my first walk break with the 1:45 pace group. Then Meganne passed me right before we left the park. Madison passed me around mile 5. Casey passed me shortly after we left Angels Stadium.

Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side! I almost collided into someone walking through the race course during the final stretch. I don't mind people getting across but at least look and try not to time it so that I would have no choice but to run into you! I had just covered 13 miles and I don't want to be swerving around anyone especially when they're moving perpendicular to me. :)
1: 8:00
2: 7:59
3: 8:22
4: 8:55
5: 8:55
6: 8:47
7: 9:34
8: 9:15
9: 9:07
10: 9:07
11: 9:39
12: 9:51
13: 9:47
13.1: 0:46
Finish: 1:58:03

Post Race
It looks like whoever wrote the query to obtain their list of legacy runners from their database goofed up big time. Some non-legacy runners were given legacy yellow bibs and some legacy runners were given regular blue bibs. They tried to fix the problem by using stickers. They checked at the finish line by printing out another set of legacy bibs to make sure only legacy runners got the legacy lanyard. While I was picking up mine, there were quite a few non-legacy runners trying to pick one up. Shame on those non-legacy runners trying to get a legacy lanyard! Disney magic does not come free! :)

They then cut off my Coast-to-Coast bracelet and gave me a nice medal for running a race on both coasts. After seeing my friends with it last year, I knew that I had to get one for myself this year.

Coast to Coast medal!

I love this race. It's darn right expensive, but you get quality from Disney from start to finish. It also helps that I'm a big time Disney fan. Their medal from the first 4 years was the same, very gaudy, and not that great. But for the last 2 years, they've really came through with very nice medals.

I bumped into Mitch at the finish area and we looked for our gear check buddy Casey. We took a bunch of photos and even bumped into Russell and Kevin again! We took more pictures. Disneyland is such a camera friendly place. I even bumped into friends that I've ran The Goofy with at Disney World. I told them that I would joining them again in 2012.

Post Race photo with Casey, Mitch, Russell and Kevin the bird!

And of course, the eating!
After the race, I met up with Andee and Meganne at the Original Pancake House. Two years in a row... it's starting to become a tradition. I love omelettes or just eggs in general! We traded race stories and talked about running some ultras in the near future. :)

The Original Pancake House - white toast


The Original Pancake House - western omelette

America's Finest City Half Marathon 2011

Pre-Race

Early Saturday morning, I headed down to Irvine to run with the newly formed Train4Autism OC Chapter. I planned on running an easy 30 minutes. I ended up running a little over 5 miles in about 49 minutes. I threw in some surges to see if my legs could handle some speed. The legs reacted pretty well. The others in the group were running 6 and 10.5 miles. After I finished my run, I jogged back out to try and get some pictures. A bunch of us then went to eat at IHOP afterwards. I'm pretty sure I didn't run enough miles to be eating that much food! :)

Train4Autism - OC Chapter

IHOP - Strawberry & Banana Waffle and Ultimate Plate

I hopped on the freeway and headed down south to San Diego, my most favorite city in California, for the packet pickup at the Sheraton Hotel. The traffic was pretty heavy. I really really really hate traffic especially on weekends. I usually get off at Sassafras St and turn on Laurel St to get the expo. But I tried going the other way around by getting off at Rosecrans St. The traffic was heavy and it seemed like a bad idea until I got past the Sports Arena area. I parked in the usual dirt parking lot and picked up my packet. The expo has gotten bigger in the last couple of years but it's still fairly small. I stopped by the Rock n' Roll booth and found out that the registration for the SD RnR Marathon will open on 9/1.

San Diego RnR Marathon 2012

One Bad Mother Runner!

I left the expo and stopped by Mitsuwa to pick up some snacks for a late lunch. I then checked into my hotel in Kearny Mesa. There was some sketchy characters in the parking lot as I parked my car. This hotel was pretty old. They still gave out regular keys. It seemed like most of the people there were staying long term.

California Suites

Snacks from Mitsuwa

The bed was very old and lumpy, but I zonked out watching the TV. I got up and drove out to Tajima for some ramen. I think next time I'm down in SD, I will go visit the Dumpling Inn to change things up. After eating, I returned to my room. I had to run the air conditioner a little bit since it was a bit warm. I got my race drink and gear ready before calling it a night.

Tajima #1 - tonkotsu ramen with kakuni

Race Day

The 163 was shutdown for some pipework on race day, so I took the 805 down to the zoo. I got there around 4:30am, parked the car, and took a short nap in my car. I boarded the bus around 5am and got to the starting area at 5:30am. I found a spot to sit down. At around 6:30 I got up and walked to the front of the starting area to see if I can find some familiar faces. Well, as I was about to head for the portapotties, I was recognized by a Runner's World forumite. We shot the breeze for a little bit, wished each other a great race, and I headed for the potties. The lines were pretty crazy this year as they all crisscrossed. When I was done, I headed back to the starting area. It was super crowded.

Goal 1: finish first 10k in sub 50
Goal 2: finish in sub 2 hrs

The first mile felt good and relaxed. On the 2nd mile, Hikergirl catches me... which happens every year at almost the same exact spot. On the 2nd hill, I could not keep up with her and her friend. By mile 4, most of the downhills were over and my legs were done. I tried to hang on, but it didn't get any better. I got to the 10k mark at 49:44. I started feeling pretty horrible at mile 7. I took a walk break every 3 miles. Took gels at mile 6 and 9. I took a 1 minute walk break at miles 10, 11, and 12. I was so glad when I finished the final 2 mile hike uphill. The best part of this race is the downhill final stretch just shortly after crossing the bridge.
1: 7:34
2: 7:52
3: 7:39
4: 7:45
5: 8:35
6: 8:37
7-8: 18:41 (9:21)
9: 9:36
10: 9:55
11: 10:04
12: 10:59
13.1: 10:53
Finish: 1:58:11

Post-Race

I finished 10 minutes faster than last weekend's half marathon in Chicago. I guess you can make a case that I was sandbagging it in Chicago. That or my not-so-carbo-loading meals were not conducive to faster running in Chicago.

After getting my medal, I walked over to the finisher area and picked up my Triple Crown medal. I took a picture with my medals and went to grab some drinks. Then I managed to find my San Diego friends. After sharing our race stories, I walked with a few of them to the car.

Shirt and medals

The post-race meetup was at Gordon Biersch. Since I had nowhere to go to clean up, I drove over to the restaurant. I had about an hour to kill. So I ended up buying some clothes at the Old Navy and went beer shopping in BevMo. I bought some Oaked Arrogant Bastard because I heard good things about this beer.

Oaked Arrogant Bastard

I loaded the beer into the car and walked over to Gordon Biersch. People started arriving for the post-race gathering. The early birds started with some drinks. I had the Märzen as my first. It was pretty tasty. The next one I had was the Blonde Bock. It was surprisingly good! Once everyone arrived, we started putting in our orders. I got the Seafood Cobb Salad. It was a pretty big bowl of salad. Very filling for a salad. I got a Hefeweizen to round out the meal.

Gordon Biersch Märzen

Gordon Biersch Blonde Bock

Gordon Biersch Hefeweizen

Gordon Biersch Seafood Cobb Salad

It was nice to meet up with runners, people that share a common interest and don't look at you as nuts for running. I got to catch up with a few San Diego friends that I only get to see about twice a year. I also got to meet new people. I guess I'll have to come back again next year even though this course always kicks my butt every year!

Rock n Roll Chicago Half Marathon 2011

Pre-Race
I took an early flight out of LAX to ORD on Saturday morning. After landing in ORD, I hopped on the train and headed for the expo at the McCormick Convention Center. Before I entered the expo, I bumped into a couple of Marathon Maniacs. I didn't buy anything, but I did register for the New Year's Eve half marathon and the Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge.

Race shirt

As I was ready for the hike back to the train station, it was pouring rain. But I had my little umbrella so it wasn't a big deal. I got to my hotel, The Travelodge, in the Loop. I checked in and dropped off my stuff before heading back out for food. There was a funky smell in my room, but it was tolerable. The room was also very old. The trains were very close by, so you hear it about every 5-10 minutes. This is not a place for light-sleepers.

View from the hotel room

I stopped by Al's Beef to pick up an Italian beef sandwich. I took it back to my room to eat it while watching TV. It was pretty good without additional toppings, but next time I will have to add the works. I didn't want to mess with peppers the day before a race.

Al's Beef

For dinner, I went out to eat a "cheezborger" at the Billy Goat Tavern. People rave about In-N-Out and other burger places, but I still prefer the simple burger that Billy Goat serves.

Billy Goat Tavern - double cheezborger

On my way back to my room, I stopped by the Millennium Park. Looks like they have free concerts in the park. There was a lot of people sitting on the grass with their picnic baskets. I would have stayed if I didn't a race the next day. I took an obligatory picture of the bean before heading back. I went to sleep after watching a little TV.

Millennium Park Concert

Millennium Park - Cloud Gate

Race Day
I got ready and it was only a short walk over to the starting village. I walked over to the Gear Check area next to the Buckingham Fountain. They were still setting up so I waited a while before dropping off my gear bag. I then jogged over to the portapotties to take care of business before heading over to the Cloud Gate to take the Fanatics/Maniacs pre-race photo. After we were done, I jogged over to my corral. I lined up at the back, but it didn't matter. Seems like there was miscommunication between the corral leaders. They ended up releasing 2 corrals at the time, so the corral behind me was released as well.

Pre-race Maniacs/Fanatics photo

The first mile felt good. I haven't felt this good in a long time. I took it a tad too fast as I ended up running in front of the 1:45 pace group. They didn't pass me until mile 3 when I finally slowed down. Most of the race I felt like I was overheating. The weather wasn't too warm, but I could feel the humidity. In the later miles, it started to rain a little so it cooled me down a bit. But my legs were tired and just didn't want to move. It was as if my shoes were filled with lead. I took a lot of walking breaks. My arms were also cramping up on the final stretch.
1-2: 16:28 (8:14 pace)
3: 8:58
4: 9:37
5: 8:49
6: 9:31
7: 10:17
8: 9:59
9: 10:16
10: 10:55
11: 10:49
12: 11:34
13: 10:44
13.1: 0:59
Finish: 2:08:57

Race jersey and medal

Post-Race
I really liked this course. It showcased a lot of the good parts of the Loop. I took it pretty easy in this race. The tendinitis is still acting up every now and then so I didn't want to push my luck. I also ran this race to qualify for the Rock Idol medal. This is seriously my last year with the maniacal racing schedule. :)

I picked up my gear bag and the rain started coming down pretty good. So I walked back to my hotel and got cleaned up. Then I went back out to pick up some food at Luke's. Much to the disbelief of the guy taking my order, I got two sandwiches. I got an Italian beef and an Italian sausage. I took them back to my room and inhaled both of them. :)

Luke's Italian Beef

Luke's Italian Sausage

Now for the bad part of my trip. The people staying next door started having a very loud argument in the evening which lasted a few hours. I didn't report them or anything as they sounded very uncouth. It gets worse the next few days.

Anyways, now for the best part of the trip... the next day I went for a good steak at Chicago Cut Steakhouse. I wore a nice polo shirt, but I felt kind of bad wearing my cargo shorts with my running shoes. I felt like I was Charlie Harper. :) At least it was only for lunch. I ordered a salad, 2 beers, and a nice bone-in ribeye steak. The salad didn't look too fresh, but was okay. The Harpoon IPAs were pretty nice, refreshing, and hit the spot. The waiter was suggesting a red wine, but I stuck with the beer. I've had a lot of steaks in my day and this was one of the better steaks that I've eaten in a long time.

Harpoon IPA

Mixed Field Greens Salad

Chicago Cut Steakhouse - bone-in ribeye

Marina City Towers

Chicago Theater

On my way back to my room, I took a few pictures... The Marina City Towers, the Chicago Theater. Back in my room, I watched Ghost of Girlfriends Past. It had bad reviews, but I thought it was an okay movie. I then went out for a little walk to the Buckingham Fountain to loosen up the legs. I guess I was out a little late as I was harassed a little by some ignorant people making racist Asian sounds. oh... if they only knew just how "white" I am. :) Usually I just pretend that I'm deaf and just mind my own business. I took a picture of the fountain and went back to my room to call it a night.

Buckingham Fountain

And the neighbors got worse. Without going into too much detail... they made up at 3:40am. They were very loud. I had two pillows to cover each ear, but it didn't help. Eventually it was over. Next thing to buy... earplugs. :)

Checkout time was 11am. I was planning to stay until then. But the neighbors were getting it on again around 10am, so I packed it up and checked out. I swear they were shooting a porn film in there. I headed out to the Navy Pier. Along the way I took a picture of the Marilyn Monroe statue just outside the Chicago Tribune building.

Marilyn Monroe in front of the Chicago Tribune

When I reached the pier, I walked all the way to the end and around the other side. I was able to take some cool photos. I checked out the restaurants at the pier and eventually I decided on eating at Bubba Gump. They have vastly improved their menu since the last time that I've eaten here. I guess the company that acquired the restaurant when they went into bankruptcy have been making improvements. The Mama's Homestyle Tilapia was pretty dang good!

Navy Pier - the view south

Ferris Wheel

Navy Pier

Navy Pier - the view north

Bubba Gump - secret mango sparkler

Bubba Gump - Mama's Homestyle Tilapia

After lunch, I went to the AMC River East 21 to watch a movie since my flight back home was a night flight. I finally watched the last Harry Potter movie in 3D. It was my favorite out of all of them. Even so, the books are still better. Nothing beats good 'ol imagination.

I hopped on the train and headed towards ORD. As I was waiting for my flight, I got a Chicago style hot dog with fries from O'Brien's. Pretty good stuff. I could've eaten at least 3 more of those dogs. And thus ends my food trip to Chicago!

O'Brien's - Chicago style hot dog

YMCA Run in the Parks July 4th 2011 10k

Originally I was going to run my familiar 3.5 mile route for my July 4th morning run. But I looked around on Facebook to see what my friends were running. So Sunday night I decided on the YMCA Run in the Parks 10k in Laguna Niguel. Supposedly the weather would be cooler in Laguna Niguel since there would be some overcast.

I got there around 6am in the morning to register. I think I was the 2nd person there. After paying $40 for the race and picking up my race packet, I went to my car to relax. They had a RFID band stuck on the back of the bib. It looks like more and more races are headed in this direction with race timing. The t-shirt was made of cotton and pretty nice looking. I prefer cotton shirts so I can wear them when I'm not exercising.

I got back out to watch the start of the 5k race at 7:30am. I noticed that it had gotten a lot warmer. I milled around until it got closer to 8:30am, the start of the 10k race. The race started late because we had to wait for all of the 5k participants to finish.

Race t-shirt


Starting line

Goal A: sub 50, 8 min pace.
Goal B: 55 min.
I wanted to use this race to tested out my current fitness level and how my recovering leg would respond to a little speed.

The course was pretty narrow, so I positioned myself close to the front. There wasn't too much passing going on at the start which was a good thing. I went out at what I felt was a decent effort. When I got to the mile 1 marker, I was surprised to see how fast I was running by my standards. I thought I was running at a 8 min pace but my watch said 7:09. So I eased off on the gas. I got to mile 2 feeling okay, but the legs were getting rubbery. On the turn around where we started heading to mile 3, I slowed way down to try and recover. On the way to mile 4, I had to pull over after an aid station and walk. I was definitely overheating and a blister had developed on my right foot which was rather annoying. But at least I got to see the legendary ultrarunner, Michelle Barton, heading back to the finish line. I didn't know she enters such short races. On the way up to mile 5, I had to walk up a short steep hill. During most of the race I was pouring water on my head and the back of my neck. I tried to rally and finish strong, but still had to stop a few times to walk since I kept getting dizzy.
1: 7:09
2: 8:07
3: 8:56
4-5: 20:38 (10:19)
6: 9:58
6.2: 1:34
Finish: 56:23

When I crossed the finish line, I felt clobbered by the weather and was pretty dang disappointed with my time. I'm really not cut out for warm weather racing. Missed both of my goals. But then I realized how hot and humid it was and how well I did to prevent myself from throwing up or passing out. The leg responded relatively okay but there's still some tendinitis. I drank a few cups of water before walking back to the finish line to cheer for my friend.

BBQ

After shooting the breeze with my friend, I walked back to my car to change and go eat lunch. On my way back I walked by the BBQ. I love the smell of BBQ and meat grilling. I drove up to Irvine and ate at Ajisen. It was too dang hot to eat ramen, but maybe I should have since they're a ramen shop. Instead I ordered the ika geso karaage (fried squid tentacles) and chicken katsu curry. The squid was good, but the katsu curry was horrible. I dislike the katsu at Curry House but this was worse. But it was still good enough for me to eat the whole thing. The next time I come here, I'm ordering a bowl of ramen even if it's a million degrees outside. :)

Ajisen - ika geso karaage


Ajisen - chicken katsu curry