3 weeks to go!

YES! We did our last 20 miler this weekend, running 7 miles to Central Park then running Grete's Great Gallop Half Marathon. I was so tired toward the end of the race and Coach Danny reminded me, "You're coming up on mile 19." Right...Disregard the sign that says "Mile 12." I was only a minute off my PR for the half, so I'm feeling pretty good.

The half honored Grete Waitz, who won the New York City Marathon 9 times and has been a pioneer and fierce advocate in the field of women's running. She was there high-fiving the crowd as we ran by, and just being all amazing and inspiring. It was a good day.

Yes, I'm still running...

After a few weeks off, I'm easing back into training mode. It's time to start getting ready for...The Brooklyn Half Marathon. I still have nightmares about last year's race, but the timing's right. It's good base-building before I start training for Marine Corps so I'm sucking it up and trying again. This year, I'm doing a little private training with Coach Danny of Jack Rabbit fame.

Yes, I said Marine Corps! As in the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington DC. Luis and I will be fundraising and running with Team Reeve this year, and I pretty much can't wait! The race isn't until October, so that's a lot of waiting, but the fundraising ball is already rolling! In lieu of wedding gifts, Luis and I have asked friends and family to consider making a donation to The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation! Be sure to indicate that your donation is "In Honor Dawn and Luis Manzo tying the knot" or something on those lines!

And just in case you watch The Hills and are worried about whether a Mexico marriage is legal or not, Luis and I made our union official at my parent's house in Yardley, Pa. None other than the Mayor of Yardley (and my childhood dentist!) performed the ceremony, which was simple, perfect, and most definitely legal!

Nike Women's Marathon and Half Marathon in San Francisco!

I ran the half, and it was fun!!! A perfect day for running - cloudy and cool, and the hills didn't seem quite as bad to me this year (but I'm telling you - those are some serious hills). The girls of Team Awesome were amazing. Gillian ran the half just 3 weeks after finishing the Berlin Marathon. The Wonder Twins, Erin and Jess, kicked some FULL MARATHON butt. It was their first and they ran the whole thing together. It was so cute, my heart almost exploded.

The Tiffany Necklace was everything I'd hoped for, although the tux-ed out firefighter who served me mine left a little to be desired (sorry, but not so cute). I just went looking for pictures of it online because I'm too lazy to take my own, and I was a little perturbed at how many "extra" necklaces have shown up on ebay and craigslist. Not very sportswomanlike. Anyway, here are the pics I found:

P.S. You should definitely read Jess and Gillian's blog posts about the race. They are much more detailed and interesting than this.

NYC Half, at last!

I ran the New York City Half Marathon last, last Sunday (July 27th), and it turned out to be a slow, "moist", but fun day all-in-all.

Things started off on a sour note, when I went to Niketown to pick up my number and shirt, and all they had left were large's. It might not seem like a big deal, but we all payed $75 to get into this race, it's not for charity, the race is sponsored by a huge, loaded company - Nike, we indicated our shirt size when we registered, and I was pretty much disgusted that they couldn't even provide enough shirts in each size. I snatched my tent of a shirt and number and booked out of Niketown so fast I got a free transfer on my metrocard. The whole thing really made me want to shun New York Road Runners. They're lucky they do such a damn good job on race day. I know the shirt doesn't look that big in this picture, but I swear it's useless for running.

I tried to be in a good mood the next morning when the skies opened up right before the start of the race. The weather cleared and so did my outlook. The air was still saturated, really tropical feeling, and I knew it was not going to be a day for me to "race." So I took it very easy for the first half of the race, and mainly focused on breathing - because that was not coming easily in the crowdedness and stifling humidity of Central Park. See? The camera fogged up!

Once we left the park and turned onto 7th Ave, I felt one of the most refreshing breezes I'd ever felt in my life. The whole Times Square section of the race was awesome - like a big ol' party in the middle of the street. The West Side Highway pretty much flew by. I'd run so slow early on that I had tons of energy at the end. A TNT coach saw me bookin' it to the finish and thought I might have PR'd. Not even close. But it made for a good long run.

I stole this pic from Melanie G. This time it's blurry because she was running while photographing.

The End.

San Diego Recap, at last!

I love, love, LOVE marathons! I think cousin Melissa is feeling the love now too! She did SO well last Sunday. She and her running buddies were utterly adorable, taking their time, posing for pictures, but getting the job done - running a freakin' marathon!!

I told you they were cute. That's cousin Melissa, back right. Here they are making a pit stop...at a bar.

Almost 1 hour at mile 4? Who cares?? Let's take another picture!

I jumped in with Melissa at mile 18. And we ran into Coach Steve from Manhattan:

Of course we took a minute to pose for picture!

Finished at last!! Time for hugs!

It was a very exciting, inspiring day!

I also had the honor of running with Amanda for 6 miles! Talk about cute...She and bff Margaret got to finish their race together - chillin' and chatting the last 4 miles away. "Trying" is so overrated.

Congrats to all!

Still Standing

See?

http://www.brightroom.com/view_user_photo.asp?EVENTID=32322&ID=49923618&FROM=photos&BIB=6505

I made it to the finish and managed to stay on my feet the entire time. Thanks to Robyn for keeping me from hyper-ventilating and to Luis for keeping me from puking and for making me finish. No PR and a nasty cold made worse, but the photo was worth it.

A Different Kind of PR

Saturday's race did turn out to be a personal record for me: Worst Race EVER. By Far.

I found out that although they say say it's ok to run if you are sick from the neck up, they don't mean it's a good idea to try to race a half-marathon. My body did not have the energy to do what I wanted it to do. I should've tried the matzoh ball soup & Dr. Pepper remedy.

All is not lost, however. I stayed on my feet the entire time. I even mustered a smile and fist-pump for the finish-line photos.

Just get me to the boardwalk!

Finally, the big day is tomorrow! It's really nerve-racking to have an actual time goal. I swear the more times I do this, the more nervous I get. Still, I know it will be a blast no matter what! Good luck to everyone running in BK and Jersey this weekend!!!!



*and note the similarities between the two

Time to Taper

Is it possible to screw up 12 weeks of solid, consistent training in the last week?

Tapering is supposed to be about recovering, staying loose, and letting your "running hunger" build up. You're supposed to run during your taper.

Tapering is not supposed to be about sitting on your butt, eating buckets of pasta, and becoming a sloth.

I haven't ran since Saturday. I did get a fabulous massage today. They say that's like a workout of sorts. Truth is I just didn't feel well this afternoon. I'm fighting it though, and I've made a deal with myself to run tomorrow, since I have an open afternoon. Ok? Ok.

Summer Plans

If you need to reach me anytime between May and November, you'll most likely find me running in the park.

I'm all signed up to mentor for Team in Training for the Nike Women's Half-Marathon in San Francisco, and I just applied to run the New York City Marathon again with Team Reeve. I don't have official confirmation about Team Reeve yet, but I think they'll take me back again this year. I know, I know, I'm a two-timing good cause whore...

Team in Training has a special place in my life, because they are the ones who got me into this long-distance running thing. And because I've met some of the best people in the world through this program. I won't be fundraising this year, but I'll be volunteering as a mentor for new participants.

Team Reeve, however, is my heart. Because it's for my dad. He was in a car accident in '94 that left him C-4 quadriplegic. The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation has been such a ray of hope in our lives, and I'm honored beyond words to run in support of such a wonderful foundation and in honor of my pa. I have a personal goal of raising $10,000 for them!

Looks like the lazy days of summer won't be so lazy this year, but it's all good...

A few goals for the Brooklyn Half

This afternoon, I logged another 4.5 miles for the week, and I started to think about this half-marathon I'm training for and what might be a realistic goal. I looked at some pace calculators and such, and I also thought back to the first time I ran the Brooklyn Half - almost 2 years ago. I realized that I have a goal I want to accomplish this year that is equally, if not more, important than my time and pace. This time around, I would like to remain upright at the finish line. Worthy goal, no?

So yes, my first trip from Coney Island to Prospect Park ended with a rolling motion, not typically seen at finish lines. It certainly made for interesting photos:
picture 1: spreadeagle
picture 2: brush it off, brush it off

I can't post the actual photos because I didn't want to pay the arm and a leg Brightroom charges, but it's worth it to click on the links. The photographer really captured the moment well, including the embarassed "I'm ok, I'm ok!" smile afterwards. I also love the guy swerving to avoid me.

So at this year's Brooklyn Half, I'm aiming for something more like the pic below (minus the soaking wet saggy shirt). You'd never know I had a mediocre race on one of the crappiest race courses ever (sorry Queens). It's all about the pictures.

Another coach with an accent...

First Jack Rabbit workout last night. Pretty straight forward. We'll be taking it easy for the first few sessions. I ran into someone I know from Team in Training, so that was fun. There were about 25 people there. I think I'll be more focuused in a smaller group with less of a social scene.

The funniest part of this program is that the coach is Spanish! Oh right, you probably don't know why that's funny. Well, the head coach for Team in Training NYC, who I've trained with for 3 events, is Ramon Bermo, this crazy Spanish guy who has this larger than life persona. So here I am listening to this guy Danny last night, and it totally could've been Ramon! I thought I was supposed to be trying some different! Maybe it's a running program prerequisite: must have charismatic Spanish coach.

A decision has been made!

I am signing up for a local half-marathon training program. This might seem unnecessary considering I've run 4 halfs and 3 full marathons in the past 2 years. However, in those past 2+ years of training, I have not improved my times in either event at all. So what, who cares I've told myself over and over. It's not about the time, it's about the process, right? True, true...but perhaps a different process will yield a different (lower) time, and I can still be secure in my do-it-for-fun, do-it-for-myself, non-competitive middle-of-the-packness.

The program, run by Jack Rabbit, starts Feb. 7 and runs through Apr. 27 - the day of the Brooklyn Half Marathon. The program seems pretty standard - twice weekly workouts, with speed work on Thursday nights and long runs on the weekend. It's the new coaches and new runners that I expect to help me push my running and increase my fitness level. Updates will be posted, of course.