Race Report: Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon

We woke up at 4am to start getting ready for race morning. And I woke up to an email from my credit card company that someone had attempted to make an online purchase for $2200 overnight and was this possibly a fraudulent charge? Oy. After taking care of that, I was ready to focus on the race!

We quickly got dressed and headed outside to the buses. It took longer than I expected to board the buses, despite us getting out there at the earliest time they were available. And when we got on the bus, the temperature was no less than 1200 degrees. I quickly had a stream of sweat snake its way down my spine and was worried about how miserable and freezing I was going to be when I got off the bus and went outside in the 40 degree temps. I continued to sweat and freeze for the duration of the drive.



Once we arrived, I told Toni I NEEDED to use the bathroom, so we set out to find one. We only had 30 minutes before the race started, and I had thought we had timed it to have closer to an hour. Where had the time gone?! There were a ton of single porta potties with 20+ people waiting in line for them. Cue the panic. We moved closer to the starting line and finally found a bank of 4 porta potties with giant lines, and I figured that would be better than waiting for a single one, and I jumped in line.



The lines were not moving. Toni could sense my panic, so she offered to run ahead with our bags, utilize the bag drop and check on the one set of porta potties prior to the race start to see if the lines were better or worse. She came back and reported they were roughly the same. At this point, I had 15 minutes prior to the race starting, and had resigned to the fact that I wouldn't be starting on time. This bathroom trip was much more important than getting in my coral on time.

Just before it was my turn for the bathroom, the race started. While I was in there hustling, I heard a volunteer announce to the porta potty masses that there were banks of porta potties inside the corrals actually, her exact quote was "there are HUNDREDS of porta potties in the corrals!" Where was this information 30 minutes ago when this line was 50+ people deep??? I was fuming.

Luckily I was in and out of the bathroom lickety split and Toni and I took that opportunity to take a warm up jog to the start line. Except it wasn't the start line. Once we got closer there was yet another giant slow moving line of people being tunneled into an opening 2 people wide. Volunteers were checking bibs to make sure everyone was supposed to be in the race. Ok. So we waited in another non-moving line for another 5-7 minutes. I opted to take my first GU here based on how angry my stomach was that morning already. Once through we found ourselves in the massive corrals for the race. With, yes, you guessed it, banks of bathrooms, although hundreds is an extreme exaggeration. From what I heard from those in the corrals the lines for the bathrooms were just as long there, so who knows. Toni mentioned that maybe she now needed to use the bathroom, and I figured, hell why not? We're already late, and I ducked in too. I guess I was really well hydrated!

We finally got to the start line as the gun time read 14:30. I shouted to Toni good luck and kick some ass and we were off. Immediately it was very congested with a lot of walkers, which makes sense as I was catching up with the tail end of the race. I bobbed and weaved and kept a very positive and collected mindset. "This is great. Now I don't have to worry about going out too fast!" "Look at all of these people out enjoying a great day. Yay us!"

This was my 36th half marathon, and due to the size of the race, I expected it to be pretty congested for maybe the first 3 miles based on when I started, my pace, and the pace of the folks I was catching up and passing. It was kind of a fun game of frogger or something, and it took my mind off of my watch completely, which was great, as my plan was to not really look at my watch and just run hard, and see how that played out. I caught up to the 2:45 half pacer/12:30 pace around mile 3.

1. 9:35
2. 9:20
3. 9:08

Despite all of the mental maneuvering, the stop and go, and the strategic maneuvering in and out of people, I was shocked at how quickly the miles were ticking off. It seemed like only a few minutes would pass, and I would see one of the mile marker balloons just up the road. I was also thrilled that these low 9 minute miles were feeling effortless. In fact, I think the first 5k was done in my recovery heart rate zone. Granted I wasn't trying to keep it this effortless, but that was truly the fastest I was able to navigate the throngs of people.

Unfortunately, the congestion didn't ease up at mile 3 like I had hoped. But that was okay! I was going to continue to pick it up where I could, and with how great I was feeling, I can launch in a next gear around mile 5. I was calculating my finish time with 8:30s-8:40s for the final 8 miles, and was stoked to let loose. I took my 2nd GU during mile 4 and grabbed a glass of water at the aid station and quickly realized that the aid stations were going to add a good 15-20 seconds on to my time. It was essentially shoulder to shoulder people with water and sports drink on both sides and people walking and jogging here and there, and I was really nervous that I was going to collide in to someone who would stop abruptly in front of me. PANIC!

4. 9:11
5. 8:56

Around the half way point of the race, I checked in and was pleased to see that I was on pace for a sub 2 finish, with the hopes that I'd be able to find some space to pick up the pace and maybe still snag that 1:55 finish. It was also around this time that I passed the 2:30 pacer/11:30 pace.

6. 9:00
7. 9:01

The course was perfect. Honestly. It felt like there was a good amount of elevation change, but it was such a gentle up and down that it was exactly what the legs needed for a little break. Our first hill was during mile 8 and it felt like I was up it in no time. I discovered pretty quickly that it is extra hard to bob and weave around people on an uphill, especially when they come to a screeching halt without checking to see if someone is trying to power up behind them. uff da. With 4 miles to go, I was ready to rock and fly. I just could not believe how packed in we all still were. Whenever you could see off into the distance because there'd be an incline up ahead, you could see people still just shoved in like sardines from one side of the road to another. At the one moment I felt like I finally had a little extra space, they narrowed us down into half of a roadway. GAH!

8. 9:15 (hill)
9. 8:51



Mile 10 brought the "big" hill. I ran up on a lady who was decked out in purple for Project Purple, the group that raises money and awareness for pancreatic cancer. I thanked her for raising money and told her that my mom passed a couple of years ago from pancan, and she responded that she was running for her, and for me, and I thanked her and then I burst into tears and had to sprint ahead of her so I could collect myself. Uff da. Someday I will run a race with Project Purple, but maybe that time will be when I can get through a race without crying that my mom isn't there cheering me on.






The good news is, I flew up that hill with tears streaming down my face. The bad news is, we were at the point in the race when a lot of people were really tired and walking, so the charge uphill for me was significantly harder with everyone that I was trying to weave around. I was closing in on the 2:15 pacer, so my 9 minute pace was jostling around with the 10:30 ish folks.



10. 9:04
11. 9:00

Finally with a couple of miles to go, I realized that the course was never going to open up to allow me to run as hard as I wanted to, which was such a bummer because I felt phenomenal. Mentally, I was gassed from being so "on" and strategic with weaving in and out of people and being on high alert for crashing into people, but my HR was hanging out in that, "oh hey, Toni and Jeri are going for a nice casual long run together" zone, and just wanted to gun it. We hit mile 12 and I started calculating my finish time, and was a little worried that I might not make it under 2 hours. How the heck had that happened? Most of my miles had been pretty significantly under 9:09, the pace for a 2 hour half, and last I had checked were around 9:04. And then I remembered: BOBBING. WEAVING.  Good god, I was so far over in distance from all of my frogger that I might not come in under two. UGHHHHH.



During the final mile, we were running on the construction/re-routed part of the course. And you could tell. We had so many twists and turns in that final mile. One of the first greeted us with a giant Hoka archway. And my brain immediately thought, oh! the Finish! Except it wasn't. It was just a Hoka cheer zone. In the final half mile. Harumph. So then I picked it again, and then we went round and round several more turns finally to turn onto the finish. Which had 2 or 3 more archways before the finish. I tried to round out a final sprint and a dude kept creeping to the right cutting me off, and I was finally done fighting it and just finished.



12. 8:42
13. 8:36
.23 1:49 (7:55 pace)

I crossed the finish line in 1:59:33, in a pace of 9:02 for 13.23 miles.

I found Toni shortly thereafter and was excited to hear she ran another strong 1:44. And then I immediately felt bad, because surely she could've ran way faster if she had started where she was supposed to and didn't hang out with me making sure I didn't panic while waiting to use the potty. We made our way to the bag pick up and proceeded to freeze our asses off as the wind was coming off the lake and we were soaked to the bone. Plus the smell of the porta potties at the finish were atrocious. After 30 minutes we finally got our stuff and made our way to the buses. I had REALLY wanted to watch our friends finish the full marathon, as well as the elites come through, but I was so grouchy about the race and had blue lips and fingernails and just needed a hot hot shower.



I'm super bummed to have not been able to run as well as I think I'm currently in shape for. Perfect weather, amazing course, felt strong. But I refuse to dwell on the negative of this race. So I'm thankful that during this run, my heart rate zone stayed in my long run zone. That bodes amazingly well for my fall marathon with a BIG goal of a PR and maybe possibly a #sub4 time. Eeps. A few more months of training, and that might seem like a less scary goal.

I'm also really proud of my mental state during the race. I feel like normal/regular Jeri would've PANICKED that she a) didn't start the race on time and b) that she was incapable of maintaining a regular stride without running people over. I think it would've been really easy to mentally give up on this race, knowing my goal wasn't happening, but I really just kept telling myself that eventually I'd be able to pick it up. Now knowing that wasn't a possibility, I'm glad that I didn't let the sub 2 finish pass me by. I could've easily run a 2:05 if my head hadn't been in the game, so I'm thankful for that!

Twin Cities 10 Training Week 12

Week of September 25-October 1

Monday Planned: Race pace + speed 7 miles 4x100, 2 miles @ 10k pace
Monday Actual: Unplanned rest day. We were celebrating our anniversary in the evening, and I could not make myself get out of bed to do the run. My stomach was super upset all night. Oops. oh well. 

Tuesday Planned: Recovery 3 miles 
Tuesday Actual: Another rest day. I had every intention of doing Monday's run Tuesday morning, and it just didn't happen. Oh well.

Wednesday Planned: General Aerobic 4 miles  
Wednesday Actual: General Aerobic 3.5 miles with the group run aka with Toni. Chris joined us toward the end. I didn't look at the pace at all but it ended up SPEEDY.

Thursday Planned: POWER + Recovery 5 miles  
Thursday Actual: POWER + General Aerobic 5 miles. For some reason my legs were super tired after POWER, so my glutes (lol my MacBook autocorrected to gluten) weren't firing at all, causing some over striding and IT band discomfort. Barf, not ideal for race week. I finally stopped around mile 4 and did some glute activation leg lifts which helped a lot. Followed by some foam rolling when I got home.


Friday Planned: Rest
Friday Actual: Recovery 3 miles with the coffee run. We kept it super easy and it was awesome to run on a nice chilly morning. The coffee after is always a plus.

Saturday Planned: Recovery 3 Miles 4x100
Saturday Actual: Recovery 3 Miles along the 10k/5k course. All the hills.

Sunday Planned: Twin Cities 10 Mile Race
Sunday Actual: Twin Cities 10 Mile Race, except I suck at tangents so I hit 10.11 miles. Race report to come soon!!

Total Mileage Planned: 32 miles
Total Mileage Actual: 26.4 miles,  which is suspiciously close to a marathon. But like... over 5 days instead of 4-5 hours.

Race Report: Brookings Half Marathon

The entire week (3 weeks, if we're being honest) leading up to the Brookings half, I was obsessively stalking the weather. It went from 40 at the start, to 42, to 45, to 50, finally landing on 59 degrees on race morning. Where is my crisp perfect spring morning? Why did summer come so abruptly?! Rude. I had a million race goal plans running through my head, but I was throwing any plans out the window. Including my warm up mile if my legs felt good. Why hold, back?! Let em fly. Spoiler alert: they didn't want to fly.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. I woke up at 3:30am because I can never sleep before races. I made myself close my eyes until 3:50 and then toodled around the interwebz until my alarm went off at 4:20. Ollie was very confused as to why she was being woken up so early, but then her early wake up time included BREAKFAST so she was pumped. And then sleepy. I met up with Toni at 4:50 and we were on our way north. We were in Brookings in no time, I swear the trip felt like it lasted 10 minutes. We made our way to packet pick up quickly, pinned on our bibs, did our glute activation drills (fun fact: my computer always wants to right flute activation which makes me giggle. I'm way better at the flute than my glutes, sadly), and then jumped in the bathroom line before we lined up for our SFWR race photo.

I had a dream a few weeks ago that we did a rainbow color coordinated race photo, so I threw the idea out on Facebook sometime this week, and it stuck. And everyone just lined up in perfect rainbow order. And my dreams came true. Literally. These girls are amazing. Seriously. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to have such an awesome running family and these are just a SMALL portion of the group. Insane.

I got in one more quick trip to the bathroom and it was time to start! I found my friend Sarah who had a similar time goal to me, and we were off. And we immediately lost each other. Because I always run way over in this race, I wanted to use my knowledge to the best of my ability and knew the first 3 turns were all to the left, so I found an opening and just went. Apparently I lost my buddy. And then she caught up and blew by me. Bye Buddy. :(

Right out of the gate, my legs felt like garbage. Super heavy and sluggish. I didn't get my shake out run in on Friday in favor of extra sleep because I knew Saturday morning would be an early one. I was maybe regretting that decision. My legs continued to feel really heavy with zero pep through mile 3. Uff. I kept telling myself that these heavy legs were still running a way faster pace than any half I've done recently, so if I was going to have a ho-hum day, we were still going to make the best of it! I took my first GU at mile 2 because my stomach kind of hated me (per usual) and I thought I could use some extra fuel sooner than normal.

Mile 1 9:47

Mile 2 9:37

Mile 3 9:44

During mile 3 there was a slow incline (that felt super hard, again super heavy legs) but when we were coming down the other side, my legs felt like brand new. WTH?! I'm not sure if they needed a warm up, or if the incline did something for my glutes but I was back in business. I had a lot of fun picking up my pace, and I ran by Kyle's mom so many times during this stretch! She seriously gets a gold star for spectating this race!

I carried my handheld because I knew the temps were going to be roasty, and I thought I could save myself some time (and tangent overage) by carrying a bottle and skipping the water stops. This was really nice, and I'm glad I did. I took a salt tab around 45 minutes. Somewhere around mile 5 or 6 I started getting a weird pain in my neck on the left side, and I suspected that the handheld was to blame. I took my second GU at mile 6. I found my mother in law shortly after this and tossed the water bottle to her. Correction: I know her son's abilities to catch (abysmal) so I shouted that I was going to toss it in the grass next to her, I didn't want to injure her as her Mother's Day gift. :P

Mile 4 9:16

Mile 5 9:17

Mile 6 9:24

Right around the halfway point I glanced at my watch and I was around 1:01:47 which was pretty spot on for my 2:02. Wahoo! I knew that I could run faster than my first 3 miles so I had it in the bag! Lolz. I started to feel really tired during mile 8. The sun was beating down on me, and I knew we were running a slow long uphill, but it just felt super duper hard. I usually like to start my "kick" with five miles to go, so it was a little disheartening to post a slower mile. The next mile was a slight downhill so I enjoyed that one and my legs felt back to life. There was also a beautiful beautiful breeze. Ahhhh.

Mile 7 9:21

Mile 8 9:40

Mile 9 9:32

The "big" hill (read: only hill) of the race is during mile 10. As I was turning into the park with the hill, Miley Cyrus came on my playlist: Party in the USA. Backstory: in my yoga classes, we do navasana/boat pose in every class. Well like 97% of them. I like to crank up an obnoxious song and we hold boat post for 5 long slow breaths, and for 5 sets. Lately I've been sharing my mantra that has stemmed from something one of my teachers shared in a class which is that we are meant to do hard shit. Our bodies are BUILT to do hard things. So instead of being scared of that, or avoid hard things, DO them, knowing that that's what we're meant to do. So back to Miley. I am a shameless Miley fan, and one of her songs often ends up as our navasana song in class. So it was kismet that she came on at this part of the race. I'm not joking when I say the strength of my yogis launched me up that hill, but it truly felt like nbd. I was up and over before I knew it, and had to resist the urge to "throw my hands up, they're playing my song" as that portion of the song came on just as I crested the hill. Whoooo.

Alright, after that hill we had a little over 3.75 miles to go. I kept calculating my finishing pace based on a 9 minute mile, and hitting a 2:02. Perfect. But somehow that 9 minute pace failed to reach my legs. I reviewed my race reports from previous years of this race, and knew that miles 10 and 12 were slow uphills, and miles 11 and 13 were slow downhills. And none of the 4 miles were shaded. And the sun was beating down on us. As each remaining mile ticked down, I told myself that *this* would be the mile I would drop to a 9 pace, and it never happened. While this might come across as a failure, I don't think it is. Because a Jeri of a year and a half ago or even last year, would've started taking walk breaks knowing that the goal was slipping away. Why make it harder, right? Nope. We're meant to do hard shit, and it certainly felt hard, so I kept going. I took another salt tab around 90 minutes and my last GU at mile 10.

Mile 10 9:49

Mile 11 9:36

Mile 12 was the worst of the day, both in how it felt and my pace. I felt like we were running on the surface of the sun, I was so thirsty (whyyyyyy did I get rid of my handheld?!?! where are the water stops?!?). I knew we'd turn at some point and then the race would literally be "all down hill from here". I swear to god, I saw mirages of people turning left, and I would get up to that corner AND THE TURN WOULDN'T BE THERE. Gahhhh! There were so many people walking at this point but I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. I finally found a water stop by the volunteers seemed confused by my request for water, unclear if they only had Powerade, and my stomach was already on the verge of being unhappy so I figured I wouldn't risk it with a mile to go. So thirsty!

The last mile. Ahhh finally my downhill. I tried to pick it up the best I could. I kept trying to find that magical extra gear. The sun was still beating down on us, but it was at our backs, so it was doable. I set my sights on people in front of me, trying to will my feet to go faster to reel them in. At the 26 mile sign I looked down and saw I was close to running under 2:06 so I kicked it in to high gear. Or whatever high gear was left. Which according to my pace, was actually something. So yay.

Mile 12 9:55

Mile 13 9:18

.18 1:24 (7:51 pace, 6:57 max pace)

I finished 13.18 miles in 2:05:44 for a pace of 9:33.

My 30th half marathon, fastest half in 3 years and my 12th fastest overall!

So very thankful for my running buddy Toni, who I did 98% of my training with and has been a HUGE reason why running has been fun for me again. Seriously. I forgot that training for a race is the FUN PART. It's been awhile, since I've been able to say that. Years, probably.

And my other training partner Jordanne, who rocked her first EVER half despite not being sure if she could run it because her leg was being a jerk the week leading up to the race. Miles flyyyyy by with these ladies. Running therapy. Love them.

Fall Race Plans

Well we're in the midst of spring (!!!!) and it's truly the most wonderful time of year. I live in South Dakota for the spring and fall seasons (however fleeting and quick they are). But that also means that while I'm in the depths of training for my spring goal race, I have fall races on the mind!

I just pulled the trigger on my fall goal race!

I'll be heading to Massachusetts to visit one of my besties from college and to explore Boston with her and her kiddos. And while I'm there, I'll be running the OceanView Half Marathon on November 5th!

And because I was having the worst running fomo of my life a few months ago, with every running friend I know (slight exaggeration) signing up to run the Twin Cities Marathon, I talked myself off of the ledge (NO MARATHONS IN 2017 JERBEAR!) by planning to jump in the lottery for the TC 10 miler Oct. 1! It'll be perfect (assuming I get in). I get to have the same race weekend experience, I get to enjoy the last ~10ish miles of the marathon, getting me amped to do it in 2018 (hopefully), and I'll be able to cheer on all of my running friends who are doing the full! PERFECT. Now I just have to get in... tick tock tick tock.

For the lucky 13th year, I'll also be lining up for the Sioux Falls Half Marathon on September 10th. This race is hard to shoot for a PR on, imo. The weather is typically warmer and humid, and there are some intense hills. I do think I could shoot for a course PR while training for the above mentioned races, so I'll use it as a training run to keep my streak going!

Base Building Week 1

Week of December 26-January 1

Monday Planned: General Aerobic 4 miles
Monday Actual: 5 miles of ice skating
It's my birthday so I'll ice skate if I want to!! And then drink beer during the daytime with friends.

Tuesday Planned: 1 Hour Sanford POWER
Tuesday Actual:  1 Hour Sanford POWER
I'm obsessed with the weekly POWER classes, I'm so stoked that they're going to continue this winter, AND that they'll fit my work schedule. I credit this class significantly for keeping me injury free the past couple of months.

Wednesday Planned: General Aerobic 3 Miles
Wednesday Actual: General Aerobic 3 Miles
Group run at 605 Running Co. with a couple of gals. It was really icy in spots so there was a bit of walking and some walk breaks for my running friend. 

Thursday Planned: General Aerobic 4 Miles
Thursday Actual: Rest
 I had planned to go to the gym and hit the treadmill after work, but my stomach was super upset, so I went home instead.

Friday Planned: Rest
Friday Actual: Rest
After skipping my Thursday run, I had actually planned to do it Friday after work, but see notes from Thursday, stomach was still super angry at me. More rest.

Saturday Planned: Endurance 8 Miles
Saturday Actual: General Aerobic 3.27 Miles
I was going to meet up with a bunch of my running friends for a MASSIVE group run at 605 Running Co. but I woke up and didn't want to do anything. So I ate fresh baked cookies in bed with the pug, and then ate ice cream for lunch. After the Alabama game (ROLL TIDE!), I laced up my shoes and headed out for an easy loop around town. I kept the pace easy and my HR in the GA zone. Before the run I did my clam shell exercises with my new resistance bands!

Sunday Planned: Rest
Sunday Actual: Endurance 8 Miles
I recruited some lovely runner chicks to join me for the first run of 2017! It was a chilly morning for the first half into the wind, but I got really warm really fast once it was at our back. The miles just flyyyyy by when you have company and are chatting it up. I need to remember this when I want to bag a group run. 

Total Mileage Planned: 19 miles
Total Mileage Actual: 19.3 miles

My Next Goal Race

I have been itching to get on a plane going anywhere. A couple of months ago, I had the crazy idea that I should go down to Dallas for the Dallas Marathon, take my dad along with me so he could see the family, and I could have a race weekend, see my fam and spend some much needed time with Dom! I'd priced out flights and was all ready to go, until I realized that the Dallas half registration fee was $130 this late in the game. Uh... what?! That's almost $10 per mile. Pass.

I put the idea out of my mind until I thought of the Cowtown Marathon, knowing that was one that Dominique had done previously, and it fell on the weekend before my nephew's birthday! But then I realized that race was ALSO over $100 for registration. WTF Texas. I guess everything really is bigger in texas, including race fees. Give me my $35 South Dakota half marathons any day I guess!

I accepted defeat on my southern race plans until I was bored one day and started looking through more halfs in the Dallas area. And that's when I found the Too Cold to Hold half the end of January. The flight was really reasonable, and when I approached my dad with the idea, he didn't completely turn me down. Wahoo! And the coolest part is that a good portion of the race is on White Rock Lake which is walking distance from my brother and family. Instant spectators!

Having a race in the middle of winter really helps my running motivation in the cold. Bonus points for a weekend getaway, and time with friends and family!

My fastest half in Dallas (09).

My slowest half in Dallas (12).

Spring "Goal" Race

As I mentioned previously this week, I found a race to train for! With yoga teacher training every other weekend, and working Saturdays of my "off" yoga weekends, it has been impossible to find a race to train for, sooner than mid-June. Well I've learned something about myself, and that's if I don't have a race to train for, I end up not running.

I was putzing around on some race calendars a couple of weeks ago, and happened to find a 6:30am race on a Friday morning that I happened to have off from work. Wahoo! Goal race! It's only a 5k, but it'll be nice to have a shorter race to focus on as I build up my running again. And it's hard to tell myself I don't have time to go for 2-5 mile runs, since the last training program I followed included 20 milers.

So I have seven weeks to see what kind of 5k shape I'm in! I'm hoping to get in 3 runs a week: speed, long, and easy. Let's see how this goes. :)