Portland Marathon - Half Distance Added!

The Portland Marathon's
Inaugural Half is Coming!

Our new Half Marathon will be held in conjunction with our Full Marathon on 10-10-10, and will be LIMITED TO 3,000 RUNNER AND WALKER ENTRIES.

During the next two months we will make special premium guaranteed entry OFFERS in our newsletter and to those on our email list. These OFFERS with various possible discounts may VARY.

Regular registration will then open January 10th IF SPACE STILL EXISTS, and will close when the event fills, or on January 31st -- whichever comes first.

Race day is October 10, 2010

I have registered for it and am really excited! I've always wanted to do the race, but not the full distance.

When I registered I got $25 off the entry fee by following this link.

More information is available on the Portland Marathon website.

Thoughts the night before her first marathon

I used to think people who ran marathons were completely crazy, a bunch of nutsos with something "weird" to prove to the world. I told myself that not only couldn't I do it, I didn't want to do it. Uh-uh. No way. It isn't even healthy to run that much, I would proclaim. That gave me an easy out to not even try. At that time, I also thought triathletes were a whole different class of crazy. Who has the time? Who has the money? Again, very convenient excuses. I think I did protest too much. But if I was honest with myself, the reason I took the time to list all the reasons I COULDN'T do it was because I really secretly WANTED to do it. I wanted to be one of those automotons gliding through the water, spinning through the air, pounding out those miles. In the back of my mind I remembered how good it feels to swim, bike, and run.

So all it takes go from dismissing the crazy people and becoming one of the crazy people is to get a little inspiration and encouragement. Mine came when I met a friend for sushi one bright August day. She had black numbers on her arms and legs from the Danskin triathlon. "You did a triathlon??" I asked. I was so impressed. She said, "Yes, and you can totally do one, too." And that is when the seed was planted. It was all women, the distances seemed doable, training groups are all over the place for practice and I started to actually see myself doing it.

I wouldn't admit that outloud, and I was certainly not going to sign up for a triathlon of all things, and NEVER a marathon. But it did get me to sign up for Bloomsday for the first time in 10 years. Once off my butt and forcing myself to run a whole half a mile in a row on a regular basis, all kinds of good things started happening. It started to actually feel good after about 6 or 8 months of running.

It is a slippery slope from there. If you train for a 12k, you're more than halfway to a half-marathon. If your half-marathon training schedule includes cycling and swimming, why not go ahead and sign up for that all-women sprint tri? Once you can do a sprint triathlon, it isn't that much of a stretch to go for Olympic. Why not do an Olympic anyway? You do all that training, it is better to make the race experience last, right? I said I would NEVER do a marathon, and one day last fall I found myself signing up for, and LOOKING FORWARD to - a marathon.

Tomorrow I'm going to run a marathon. The amazing part won't be when I cross the finish line. It will be when I cross the start line.

Nike Women's Marathon

This weekend is the Nike Woman's Marathon and Half Marathon in San Francisco. This is a really fun race to do, if you have not done it before. They really take care of you! "We’ve taken it upon ourselves to make sure our runners are entertained and comfortable for the entire distance of the race course." (from Nike.com)

The best part of all? Besides the chocolate mile and the race start at Union Square (meaning you have to stay in SF's shopping district!). Tiffany necklace at the finish!!! Handed to you by firefighters in tuxedos!


I've done the half marathon twice and had a blast! But I have never been so sore after a half. The hills are long! Uphill a mile, dowhill a mile, uphill a mile, downhill a mile. The downhill is what made me so sore the next day, I could barely walk! And the views are amazing! That is, if it's not fogged in. The first year I did it it was really foggy, no view. The second year it was clear and beautiful! People stopped running on the course to take pictures!

This is a fun read, Kristen Armstrong blogged about last year's race on Runner's World. "Going to San Francisco for Nike Women's Marathon weekend is like a regular girl's trip on caffeine. Think of 20,000 fit, fabulous, and likeminded women gathered in one spot..." Read the whole article.


Course Highlights - here is a sampling from the Nike site of all the fun stuff on the course to keep you going!

MILE 1
Oakland Interfaith Choir: A 20-member gospel choir in full robes (with Nike sneakers underneath) is the first act to greet the runners. With a dramatic view of the bay right behind them, this starts the event with a great a Sunday-morning-go-to-meeting feel.

MILE 2
Stewart Tartan Bagpipe Band: Always a hit, these bagpipers wear Scottish kilts and tartans – with Nikes, of course. The sound of the Scottish heath brought to the middle of San Francisco.

MILE 4
Safeway Cheer Station: Cheer on your runner at Safeway’s Cheer Station and enjoy music provided by WiLD 94.9 and steak sandwiches provided by Rancher’s Reserve.
Cheer SF (Marina Green): Cheer SF is a San Francisco institution. They execute extreme stunts and powerful dance routines as a means to entertain, inspire and motivate audiences to strive for personal excellence. High-energy and a great motivator!

MILE 5
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.
Rock Force Dance Crew: Break dancers and a live DJ will show the runners some moves as they pass through Crissy Field.

MILE 6
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike Plus banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.
Run Like a Girl: Don’t miss these inspirational and amusing thoughts that celebrates being a girl!

MILE 8
Creole Belles: This California based all-women band is well known in the Cajun music scene for bringing the raw, driving authenticity of southwest Louisiana dancehalls to their shows. A Zydeco sound that’ll keep you moving!

MILE 9
Los Mex Pistols Del Norte: These guys combine traditional Mexican music with spaghetti-western soundtracks and straight-up rock ‘n’ roll – they’re like nothing else!

MILE 10
Dolorata: All-woman straight-ahead kick-butt rock’n’roll. This is a local band that’s going places – you’ll be hearing their name a lot in the future, but we’ve got ‘em before they’re rock stars!

MILE 11
Safeway PowerSurge: As you run throughout Safeway’s PowerSurge, we’ll be using the biggest turnout we’ve ever had from SF Cheer! Eighty cheerleaders will be split into twenty different groups of four and spread out through the park. Every few hundred feet runners will pass another pod of cheerleaders urging them on.
Chocolate Stations for Half Marathon: Volunteers hand out squares of Ghiradelli chocolate to keep that sugar level up!

MILE 12
Sha-Bang: A Caribbean island experience – lots of rhythm delivered by a steel drum troupe.

MILE 12
Safeway PowerSurge: As you run throughout Safeway’s PowerSurge, we’ll be using the biggest turnout we’ve ever had from SF Cheer! Eighty cheerleaders will be split into twenty different groups of four and spread out through the park. Every few hundred feet runners will pass another pod of cheerleaders urging them on.
Fogo Na Roupa: The Samba sounds of Brazil, with colorful costumes and a lot of energy!

MILE 13
DJ Arielle: This Safeway-sponsored DJ will spin in front of Safeway branding at the end of the Safeway PowerSurge

MILE 14
Groovy Judy: Groovy Judy takes the spirit of the late 60s and early 70s and put it into her music, colorful dress, and upbeat personality. Fun outfits, a positive message, and a touch of silliness will mark the full-marathon halfway point.

MILE 15
Sha-Bang: A Caribbean island experience – lots of rhythm delivered by a steel drum troupe.

MILE 16
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.

MILE 17
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.

MILE 18
Notorious: San Francisco’s top party/cover band will keep runners going with all their ‘80s, ‘90s, and contemporary favorites. Lots of energy and fun!

MILE 19
Hip-Hop Drum Line: This combination of a New Orleans Brass Band and a "Drum Line" band incorporates lots of heavy hip-hop drum beats with all styles of music.

MILE 20
Rising Phoenix Brass Band: This brass band uses the cream of the crop from Berkeley High School’s rising jazz musicians.

MILE 21
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.
Chocolate Stations for Full Marathon: Volunteers hand out squares of Ghiradelli chocolate to keep that sugar level up!

MILE 23
Run Like a Girl: Don’t miss these inspirational and amusing thoughts that celebrates being a girl!

MILE 24
Yeh De De: An all-woman world music fusion ensemble whose Afro-Latin percussion nurtures their listeners’ global consciousness and instills in them an overwhelming urge to put their body to the dance. Inspiration to get through the last two miles!
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.

MILE 25
Nike+ PowerSong DJ: Underneath a Nike+ banner, a DJ will be spinning a mix of Nike+ PowerSongs, hand-chosen from over 2,500 songs that runners have picked as their personal favorites.
George Washington High School Cheerleaders: These high-school cheerleaders squad provides enthusiasm and routines to inspire the runners and keep them going.

Union Square - this is where you have to stay!
All the action is here. Shopping, expo, Niketown, and great food!

I highly recommend this race. Except now it's hard to get into because it's so popular. Now you have to enter by lottery. It's been a few years since I've done the race, so I think I'm going to try to get in next year!

Full Race Info

The Best Race Report

My friend just did her second marathon (Portland). I love her race report. She has the right attitude and motivation, and she is a true goddess of the sport. I'm posting bits of her report here for your enjoyment!
...............
This is a very long report! If you want the quick version of what happened, here is my race report in Haiku:

On Sunday I ran
Time: 4:53:50
26.2
..............
[Here is my favorite part! - L]
As I approached the start line I almost cried. Crossing the starting line is more emotional for me than crossing the finish line. It just brings to mind all the work I put in to just get there. Even the fact that I decided to do this at all is amazing to me. I will let you in on my secret thoughts at this moment. Come close. A little closer. “I don’t look like a runner, but I am a runner anyway. I’m a runner not because I’m fast, but because I love doing it. I can and I WILL run. And I’m running a MARATHON. Me. Eeeek!” I satisfied myself with a strangled gasp, blinked back the ridiculous tears and started running. It felt so good after all this waiting and anticipation to actually be running this race.
...............
I started appreciating having my name on my bib about this time, and all the people who yelled, “Hey Janet! Lookin’ good!” It is corny and silly, but it helped give me a boost. People who can cheer like a maniac for strangers at an event like this are a special class of people. They win the good karma contest in life. I hope that positive energy goes back to them tenfold.
...............
I was coming up on mile 20, which is when most people hit the proverbial wall, and I still hadn’t hit it yet. It was so weird, and I certainly didn’t plan it this way on my playlist, but on one beat, I could hear my Garmin beep at me that it was 20 miles, and the next moment “Another Brick in the Wall” came on my iPod. Coincidence? There are no coincidences! It was a good distraction because that was about the time I went by the official 20 mile mark that I saw the 4:45 [pace] lizard dance out of sight, never to be seen again. I decided to just get a grip, stop focusing on a specific time, or a specific pace group with a specific overly-perky pace leader (who I would have enjoyed had I been able to keep up with her) and enjoy the rest of this race. I’m not going to run for three weeks, so I needed to experience every moment of this in a positive way. After that, it was fun again.
...............
I was certainly taking longer walk breaks at this point, but when I was running, I was keeping a 10:30-ish pace. I ran all the way to mile 26, and came to the finishing chute. I stopped right after the first turn into the chute without even thinking, but started right back up. Maybe that was my wall!! I turned again, still couldn’t see the finish line, and then I heard my husband yelling. I saw him waving and taking pictures. I stopped dead in my tracks and was suddenly overcome. It was the second and last time that day I almost cried. I ran over to him and said with a whimper, “I need a kiss!!!” He obliged, and that kiss helped a lot.
...............
The worst parts: Hearing that 4:45 pace group right on my heels on the bridge, and not being able to stave them off. Letting that almost ruin my mood between miles 16.5 and 20. Immediately thinking afterwards as I took baby steps through the finishers area, “Oh, I can do so much better next time.” Yes, I am signing up for next year. 10-10-10.

The best parts: Finishing, and finishing strong. Enjoying the race even after it was clear I would need to time travel or get a quad transplant to make my stretch goal. The girl who opened the Quik for me. Enjoying a margarita in my jammies.