But last Saturday, it was all about the kilometers. 21.1 kilometers, to be exact.
August 11, 2012, I ran 21.1 kilometers around the gorgeous city of Vancouver, British Columbia.
Let me give you a quick synopsis of how this came about. In January, I was purchasing something at a Lulu Lemon store in Palo Alto, when I saw a sign for their first annual half marathon, taking place in the company's flagship city, Vancouver. I happen to have a dear friend from school who lives in Vancouver and I was due for a visit to the great white north. The end.
Now, back to last Saturday. Let's start at the beginning.
Let me give you a quick synopsis of how this came about. In January, I was purchasing something at a Lulu Lemon store in Palo Alto, when I saw a sign for their first annual half marathon, taking place in the company's flagship city, Vancouver. I happen to have a dear friend from school who lives in Vancouver and I was due for a visit to the great white north. The end.
Now, back to last Saturday. Let's start at the beginning.
5:45 am dawned bright and early, with mine and Andrew's (aforementioned dear friend) alarms going off at the exact same time. As per usual, I pulled the covers over my head and was like, "ugh, really?" It wasn't until Andrew bounced in from the living room and was like, "today's the ddaaayyyyyyyy," that I accepted the fact that I was going to have to get out of bed and run 21.1 kilometers.
Aye yi yi.
After showering, I quickly made our delicious breakfast of greek yogurt, berries and granola while Andrew got ready and we packed our stuff up to head out. I was not in the best of moods (see the previous post re: how I am in the morning) plus I was nervous about the run. On top of that, we were running a little bit late.
Race Breakfast--Yum!
Forty minutes later, we arrived at the Vancouver Convention Center to check our bags. A long line greeted us --which naturally led to more anxiety--but we moved through pretty quickly, stretched out a bit and made our way to the starting line to find our corral.
As we walked to our corral, the energy was incredible. We were surrounded by 7,500 Lulu Lemon fanatics with toe tapping hits like Carly Rae Jepson's "Call Me Maybe" blasting and the residents of downtown Vancouver peeking out of their high-rise apartments in their pajamas to see what all the commotion was.
At approximately 7:57 am we crossed the starting line and began pounding the pavement. The first turn was small hill (of course) but that got the blood flowing as we began to wind through the streets and settle into our run.
By about kilometer 2, I was ready for some water. I've noticed that when I run, the first few miles are always the hardest. I usually am like, "I'M GOING TO DIE," but know that if I just push through I eventually stop feeling so death-like. We soon approached the first water/aid station (around 3.5 km or so) and I downed some water, 1/2 a banana and some disgusting run "gu," which made me gag due to its gritty texture, but did the trick to help me gain some strength.
I wish I could say, "the rest of the race just flew by!" but that would quite possibly cause Andrew to double over from laughter, as he basically dragged me along the whole way. He was an amazing cheerleader and helped me through every kilometer.
Around the 9 km mark, there was this BRUTAL hill (that coming from an SF-ite is saying something!) that I was convinced would finish me off. Luckily, however, at the top, there were TONS of cheerleaders holding signs with the following phrases:
"You've got the eye of the tiger (and the legs of Gisele)"
"Cramps: Ruining your life since your 13th birthday"
"Is someone baking? Because I smell a stud muffin"
...and my personal favorite: "Getting up early to make this sign wasn't easy either."
In all seriousness, the rest of race was amazing. Once we hit the turn around point, we headed down to the sea wall, which was a gorgeous course along the ocean that was breathtaking, and not just because it was kilometers 10-19.
I will say the last 3 km were the hardest. We wound through a beautiful and picturesque park until we found our way to the pavement where we started at the Vancouver Convention Center. We crossed under a giant inflatable watermelon that signaled the finish line with a final time of 2:44.04.
After striding across the line, we were bequeathed with medals boasting the Lulu Lemon mantra, "Sweat Once a Day," and proceeded to the runner's brunch area--where we promptly devoured waffles, fruit and the best mini-quiches I've ever had.
As we walked to our corral, the energy was incredible. We were surrounded by 7,500 Lulu Lemon fanatics with toe tapping hits like Carly Rae Jepson's "Call Me Maybe" blasting and the residents of downtown Vancouver peeking out of their high-rise apartments in their pajamas to see what all the commotion was.
At approximately 7:57 am we crossed the starting line and began pounding the pavement. The first turn was small hill (of course) but that got the blood flowing as we began to wind through the streets and settle into our run.
The course
By about kilometer 2, I was ready for some water. I've noticed that when I run, the first few miles are always the hardest. I usually am like, "I'M GOING TO DIE," but know that if I just push through I eventually stop feeling so death-like. We soon approached the first water/aid station (around 3.5 km or so) and I downed some water, 1/2 a banana and some disgusting run "gu," which made me gag due to its gritty texture, but did the trick to help me gain some strength.
I wish I could say, "the rest of the race just flew by!" but that would quite possibly cause Andrew to double over from laughter, as he basically dragged me along the whole way. He was an amazing cheerleader and helped me through every kilometer.
Around the 9 km mark, there was this BRUTAL hill (that coming from an SF-ite is saying something!) that I was convinced would finish me off. Luckily, however, at the top, there were TONS of cheerleaders holding signs with the following phrases:
"You've got the eye of the tiger (and the legs of Gisele)"
"Cramps: Ruining your life since your 13th birthday"
"Is someone baking? Because I smell a stud muffin"
...and my personal favorite: "Getting up early to make this sign wasn't easy either."
Great example of the amazing people cheering us on. Also: note the hilarious signs
In all seriousness, the rest of race was amazing. Once we hit the turn around point, we headed down to the sea wall, which was a gorgeous course along the ocean that was breathtaking, and not just because it was kilometers 10-19.
I will say the last 3 km were the hardest. We wound through a beautiful and picturesque park until we found our way to the pavement where we started at the Vancouver Convention Center. We crossed under a giant inflatable watermelon that signaled the finish line with a final time of 2:44.04.
After striding across the line, we were bequeathed with medals boasting the Lulu Lemon mantra, "Sweat Once a Day," and proceeded to the runner's brunch area--where we promptly devoured waffles, fruit and the best mini-quiches I've ever had.
WE DID IT!
xoxo
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