Sunshine on my Shoulders

Last week was great – I hit all my workouts, including swimming, and capped the week off by running the Race for the Roses half marathon with Jen on a beautiful Portland day.

Saturday was a weather preview for Sunday and we took full advantage of it. Jen and I got up and had a quick cup of coffee before heading over to the race expo to pick up our packets. There weren’t too many people there when we arrived so we grabbed our stuff then headed back to the west side to grab a bagel at Kettleman’s. After breakfast we strolled down to the river and met Emily who was walking back downtown from the expo. We walked along the waterfront and ended up grabbing some lunch at this little café in the south waterfront called Bean & Tree. There were a lot of people and dogs out enjoying the day so we watched everyone walk by for a while then headed back up towards our neighborhood. After a quick stop at Whole Foods we got home and kicked back and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Sunday morning I set my alarm for 5:05 so I would have time to get up and have some breakfast and coffee before heading out. I opted for a long sleeve shirt and shorts since I knew that even though it was going to be a nice day it would start out crisp and would likely only be in the 50’s by the time we finished the race. We walked across the river to the start and got there with about 20 minutes to spare. After a quick port-o-stop we checked our bag and I went for a quick warm up jog. Since I was running this race as a training run I planned on running the entire thing with Jen. It was a solid run for me with an AP of 8:01 (I spent quite a bit of time thinking about how “fun” it is going to be running approx :45 faster per mile in Eugene).

After the race we met up with Emily and our friends Deana and Dana and we waited around to see if Emily placed in her AG in the 5k. After the awards (Emily came in fourth) Deana, Dana, Jen, and I walked over to Starbucks and sat out in the sun enjoying a nice cup of coffee. It was such a nice day that we opted for walking home instead of hoping on MAX or taking the bus. We got home, changed clothes, and headed out to meet up with the Portland crew for brunch and cocktails at Mother’s Bistro. After brunch Emily, Jen, and I walked down to the waterfront and did some people-watching for a while before we headed home for a nap. Later that evening we were back outside heading over to a local Mexican joint for some dinner. By the time we got home (8:30ish) I was ready for bed.

Overall it was a great weekend – for a full recap and pics of the race and post-race activities check out Jen’s blog.

Here’s a recap of last week’s activities – I totally slacked on the push ups but two days of swimming in a row threw a Monkey Wrench in my plans:

Monday: 4.5 miles in pm with Jen and Emily – 8:38 AP; Push Ups: 160
Tuesday: Rode 60 minutes on the trainer before work
Wednesday: Ran five miles before work – 7:21 AP; Swam 2,200y at pm masters
Thursday: Rode 60 minutes on the trainer before work; Swam 2,000y at pm masters
Friday: NADA
Saturday: NADA (aka pre-race rest)
Sunday: Race for the Roses Half Marathon – 1:45:12 – 8:01 AP

Two weeks till the Bridge to Brews 10k, Four weeks till the Eugene HM.