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Orange Bubble
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 Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:12 Post subject: Boring and confuseled race report
I am a week late in posting my race report so I will try to keep it short.  Got up at 5:30 A.M. but had barely slept. I did not feel prepared for the race, and I almost told dh to forget abot it, I was not going through with it. A cup of coffee or so later and I was feeling more confident. Still, I was too nervous to eat. I had this fear I would be in so much pain that I could not even get through 3 measly miles. It was not the well-rested, confident, motivated morning I had envisioned. 
I got to the race later than I had planned, so I spent several frantic minutes finding the bag drop-off, clipping the chip to my shoe, drinking a last bit of water, and standing in line for the porta-potties. There were not enough potties (this seems to be a problem at most races I've done) so I was still standing there when they began counting down for the race to begin. I had a choice: wait in line or get to the starting line and stop off at the first potty I could find, which, I was told, was at mile 1. I chose the former and it was the wrong choice. 
It took me a few minutes to get through the chute and I made it to the first potty at mile 1, along with a few dozen other runners, in less than 10 minutes.  I waited for a few minutes and then continued on, hoping mile 2 potty would happen. Another long, slow line. I made it through my first 5 miles out of a sheer desperation to urinate. I stood in line for almost 5 minutes at mile 5 and by then I was yelling and shouting at for people to hurry up. What is the matter with people??? No stockings, no belts, no buttons, no mirros, no sink...???
Oh yeah, I was feeling pretty comfortable, though my foot was a bit sore, and I did great on the hills (was passing people on the incline, got passed on the decline). But by mile 6/7 all I could think about was peeing. REALLy desperate now, I picked a spot in some bushes and relieved myself. To my horror, when I stood up and turned around I was facing the oncoming runners, who most definitely had a clear view of my tush.  I avoided eye contact as best I could and concentrated on my running. I kept myself paced around 10:20 (yes, I am a slow-poke) and felt really good. I just wanted to enjoy the moment at that point because I knew I was not going to finish in onder 2:30.
Around mile 7 it began to drizzle, then rain, then downpour, which abated to a tolerable rain. Dh had planed to see me pass at mile 8 (the UC Irvine campus), but as I approached I saw him pull out and drive off. Nuts. I figured the rain got the best of Olivia and he would meet me at the finish. A few glances at my Garmin paced me at a 11:30 +/- mm, but I did not care at that point. At mile 10 the lead marathoner passed me at HIS mile 22, and everyone was cheering and applauding. By mile 12 I still felt good, but you could see the finish line up ahead at the bend and it felt like forever to get there. Ugh. I should add that I had realized at mile 4 that I had forgotten to restart my watch at one of my potty stops, so I did not pay much attention to my splits. I just ran.
I crossed the finish line, got my medal, no poncho , and continued to walk on. Oy, it was at that point that my legs siezed up a bit and the cold sank in--it wasn't even 50 degrees out. I met up with some friends who had made a "Go, Lisa, Go!" sign and searched around for bag pick-up. Passed by some soup, bananas, hot cocoa, coffee, etc., which were, of course, FOR SALE. What idiot came up with the idea of locating the food in the chute? Found my bag and by now I was shivering and miserable. My family was parked near the race and it was good fifteen minutes of walking to get there. What a relief to get into a warm car! Honestly, at that point I had no idea what my finishing time was, and I did not even look at my Garmin because I knew it would be off. I thought maybe I finished somewhere around 3 hours. I looked my time up the next day and discovered that I finished officially in 2:43. A quick glance at my Garmin showed 2:31:04 and 12.34 miles. Heh.
I spent the rest of the day relaxing and took a nice 2-hour nap in bed. Ah, pizza for dinner, apple crisp for dessert...it was a day well-spent.
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elkid
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:16 Post subject:
One word: TREES. I feel your pain - at Broad Street there's only about 75 portajohns for 10,000 runners.
Sounds overall once you got past that obstacle things went well. 
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mickeyvw98
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:21 Post subject:
nice job!! Congratulations!!!
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HYPERASHEL
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:22 Post subject:
congrats there Lisa, considering having to run why bladder cramping is a huge issue by itself. then add the rain ?? ultimate WTH am i running factors there to beat through.
I wondered how your race went. Looks good, right where you wanted really considering the potty break. (or the tush viewing dependin on how you look at it)
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Orange Bubble
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:28 Post subject:
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rolling rock
The Pinball
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:30 Post subject:
 on the race organizers for the poor potty planning -- that's the worst cuz that pain is really distracting.
congratulations on your finish! sounds like a positive experience for you.
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Orange Bubble
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 14:33 Post subject:
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genie
Master of Prissface
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 15:20 Post subject:
Way to hang in there, OB. When's the next one?
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spongebob
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 15:46 Post subject:
Congrats, OB! 
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brie k
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 15:47 Post subject:
Congrats!
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akern
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 15:51 Post subject:
That's a great report!! Congrats on "Just Doing It"! 
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Orange Bubble
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 16:09 Post subject:
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Kimba90
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 16:14 Post subject:
Way to go!!!  Despite all those obstacles!! I understand your bathroom issues. I usually have them myself. Believe me, no one is going to be able to identify you in your next race by your tush...unless you do that Bare Buns race somewhere.
It sounds like a pretty sucessful race despite the horrible weather, no food, and not enough bathrooms~!
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Orange Bubble
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Posted: 12/14/04 - 16:18 Post subject:
| Kimba90 wrote: | Way to go!!! Despite all those obstacles!! I understand your bathroom issues. I usually have them myself. Believe me, no one is going to be able to identify you in your next race by your tush...unless you do that Bare Buns race somewhere.
It sounds like a pretty sucessful race despite the horrible weather, no food, and not enough bathrooms~! |
Oh, there were about 2-3 potties at every mile. None at mile 7.
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