Indianapolis Mini Marathon Race Recap

"Do you smell something?  It smells like dog poo."- Lisa Frey

13th Consecutive Indy Mini Marathon

I would have never thought I would run a race 13 consecutive times.  The Indianapolis Mini Marathon was my very first half marathon.  It is also the largest 1/2 marathon in the country.  When I ran it for the first time in 2001, I was blown away.  All of the people running, the bands playing on every corner, the cloggers clogging at mile 4 and the finish- I just fell in love with this race.  Oh, and my sister lives in Indianapolis, so I also had a place to stay.

Speaking of my sister, she ran the Indy Mini for the very 1st time this year.  I was so excited that she was able to run with me and share the awesomeness of this race.  My cousins Edie and Ellen also participated in the Mini for the first time as well.  My tri training buddy Rebecca and her husband Mike ran the race too.  I am proud to say that we all finished the race with smiles on our faces.  

My awesome sister at the finish!  

Packet Pickup:

The Indy Mini Expo is by far one of the best expos I have attended.  This is the expo that I purchase my year's worth of running stuff.  This year was no different.  My sister and I picked up socks (always needed), headbands and of course necessary magnets for my car.  It was raining when we arrived at the expo.  We parked at Circle Center and was able to walk on the covered walkways to the convention center, so we didn't get wet.

Race Day:

We had an inauspicious start to the day.  We woke up early and I took Bakon out for his morning walk.   Bakon did his business.  It was 5AM and it was pitch black.  I couldn't find Bakon's present- I walked around, sniffed- still couldn't find the poo.  I made a mental note to go back after the race to pick up the poo since it was too dark.

We were on our way to the race when I asked my sister if she smelled poo in the car.  She said yes and then asked if I had stepped in any.  I looked at the bottoms of my shoe and didn't find the offensive odor.  Unfortunately, it was on the back of my heel and while inspecting the bottom of my shoe, I had smeared it all over my running capris.  To make matters worse, I then stuck my finger in it to try to scrape it off of my capris.  

We grossed ourselves out and had to roll the windows down so we wouldn't gag.  

Yes, I ran 13.1 miles with poo on my pants.

The Start:

My sister works for Eli Lilly.  They have a WONDERFUL fitness facility at their place of employment- complete with a soccer field, track and state of the art equipment.  Oh, and a smoothie bar.  The fitness facility was a party zone on race day with raffles, water, Gatorade, music, clean pottys and a SHUTTLE to the start.  No walking one mile to the starting line for me this year!  Unfortunately, there was an accident and the shuttle was not able to pick us up, so we still had to walk to the start line. That was a bummer, BUT the shuttle did pick us up at the end to take us back to Eli Lilly.  Lilly had chocolate milk for us when we returned to the fitness center.  It tasted so good.

The Race:

What can I say- Indy puts on one helluva race.  The course is nice and flat.  The only complaint about the course is going over all of the railroad tracks, but that can't be avoided.  It is a blast to go around Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  The bands were great.  The water stations were well-manned and the volunteers enthusiastic.

I especially like the finish of the race.  Over the loudspeakers, they blast the exciting finishes of the Indianapolis 500.  It puts more kick in your pace and makes you feel like a rock star (even if you do have poo on your pants).  

Thoughts:

Over the years, I have raced the Indy Mini in blazing heat, in rain and one year in a 40 mph steady north wind.  I have seen people conquer their fears and celebrate the lives of others.  I am so honored to be a part of a celebration of the first time someone has completed a half marathon- like the 20-year old girl who I was talking to in the porta-potty line in the family reunion area.  It is just an amazing community of 45,000 people moving through Indianapolis and Speedway, Indiana on the first Saturday of May.  I am so glad that I am able to be a part of the experience.

Will I run the Mini in 2014?  You betcha!  Gotta keep the streak alive!

Bike Riding Anxiety

"My knickers are in a twist."- Lisa Frey

Me and my ride, Blue

A quick post today to let you into my neurotic world.  

Today is Training for Tri day.  We are supposed to do a 20-mile ride today at 6PM.  My bike is in the shop getting a tune-up and some adjustments.  It should be ready by 5PM.  

I have been looking forward to this bike ride all week.  The weather is perfect, my bike will be perfect and I even have my outfit laid out so all I have to do is come home, change my clothes put the bike rack on the truck, get my bike and RIDE!

Herein lies the rub...I have a 3:30 meeting today.  It is an important meeting.  Already some of the members of this committee have stated that they may be arriving late to the meeting.  I MUST leave work by 4:30 in order for me to get home.  

You know where this is going.  The meeting won't start until 3:45 and will drag on until 5PM.  I am not going to make the ride.  I know this.  I am anxious and starting to get upset about it.  

Why do I do this to myself?  Instead of letting life flow, I have already resigned myself to being anxious, watching the clock and getting my knickers in a twist.  I am not in the moment.  I am already trying to come up with plans to ride by myself.  This also makes me anxious as I do not like to ride on the street by myself for fear of getting hit by a car, especially during rush hour.

If I am late, I could ride with the later group who is doing less mileage.  This upsets me too as I am supposed to do 20 miles, not 15 miles or 10 miles.  This is an 'all or nothing' proposition.  'All or nothing' is another dangerous problem I wrestle with.

This is how I get 'stuck'.  I can feel myself getting 'stuck'.  Why can't I enjoy this beautiful day?  Why can't I be grateful for the volunteers that are coming to the 3:30 meeting?  They are taking time out of their beautiful day to meet with me.  If it so happens that I can make the ride, then so be it.  It is what it is.  

But I don't think like that.  Instead, at 9:30 AM I am already worried about what is (or isn't going to happen) at 6PM.  I am going to lose this day to this worry.  I don't want to do that.