Race Report: Warrior Dash New York, July 26, 2014

Saturday morning we packed up the van and the kids and ventured out to Gilboa, NY, a tiny town in the Catskills, for the Warrior Dash.

 

It was about a 2:30 minute drive from our home, so we made a whole day of it.  Laurel joined us the night before and we went to Tanglewood for a picnic and beautiful music.  

We were signed up for the 12:30 wave, so wanted to be on site about an hour ahead of time (thinking that would give us plenty of time for packet pickup, pictures, and potties).  We had done a Warrior Dash two years ago in Connecticut, so thought we knew what we were getting into. 

We made it out the door by 9am.  Go us!  A quick trip through Dunkin Donuts (because we are good New Englanders like that!) and we were on our way.  The ride was fairly uneventful.  A few potty breaks and opportunities for the kiddos to get out of the car.  Once we were in NY and off the highway, the drive was really beautiful... long windy roads and plenty of green. 

Pre-Race:

We got to the parking area ($10 fee) which was basically a huge field on a goat farm.  Parking was a bit confusing since it was really crowded.  We made our way from the parking to the campground where the race was being held.  The path to the race was already very muddy.  I'm glad we had the Bob double jogging stroller because there is no way a regular stroller would have made it down there.  It was muddy with deep grooves that made walking treacherous, nevermind pushing a stroller.  The walk gave us an opportunity to see some of the race and the obstacles.   The race was well underway when we got there, we saw plenty of wet muddy people walk past us back to the parking lot.  

We got to the main field where the bulk of the event was set up and were a bit overwhelmed by the crowd.  It was full of crazy, manic energy.

Packet Pickup:

When we first got on site it was unclear where we were supposed to go, and it wasn't particularly well marked.  It was so crowded it was hard to tell what was going on.  There was a giant line snaking its way through the field, which we soon realized was the packet pickup line.  Yikes! So we got in line, it was about 11:30am.  Ian and Michelle took the kids to find some shade.  The line was so long.  Luckily, Laurel and I were able to strike up a fun conversation with a group of women in line behind us and it helped make the time go by.  It was also really sunny and completely out in the open so it got quite hot.   It felt like we were in line forever.  Everyone in line around us was worrying that they wouldn't get to their wave in time.  It was somewhere around 12:15 when we got near the front of the line, which was chaotic.  We just kept pushing our way forward until we made it up to the table.  We got our bibs, tshirts, and fuzzy helmets. 

No timing chips!

I was really disappointed that the race was no longer timed.  I wanted to be able to compare my times to other obstacle races and to my age group. I feel like with the comparatively high cost of this race it really should be timed. 

By the time we got our packet we had about 5 minutes before our wave, but since it wasn't timed it didn't actually matter.  I took some time to feed the bean, and use the potty.  Then we headed to the either the 12:45 or 1:00pm wave- I don't know because I didn't see a clock anywhere near the start.

 

The Race:

The energy before the wave started was pretty fun.  We saw our line buddies again.   Pretty soon we were off and running.  We began with a pretty long amount of just running on nice wide trails and into the woods.  It seemed to take quite some time before we hit an obstacle.  I don't remember the exact order of obstacles but I will try my best.   There was a steep downhill in the woods with wooden steps and ropes to go down and then I think there were trenches to crawl through.  Pretty easy.  The beginning of the race was a lot of just running, but it was through a gorgeous campground.  There were also lots of people staying at the campground out cheering people on.  There was another crawl under things type obstacle and a series of walls to climb over.  Nothing too challenging.  I do have a height and leg length advantage.   There was another wall climb with a pretty big drop to the ground on the other side, quite a few people froze on top and quit this one.  Then there was a bit of uphill running in the woods.  It was pretty crowded and we did find ourselves stuck a few times, either on narrow trails behind people who were walking, or waiting in line for an obstacle.  Before we knew it we hit a sign that said two miles!  It didn't seem like we had done much yet, so we figured that the obstacles were going to be pretty stacked towards the end.  There was a long uphill, then we turned the corner and we were at the last series of obstacles.  First there was a wooden dome like structure to climb over.  I didn't find it difficult except for the fact that the woman in front of me was a bit scared of the height and kind of froze at the top- so I again felt stuck.  

The next obstacle was the one I wish I had just skipped.  There was a big wall of mud that dropped off into a mud pit that was about waist deep with another big wall of mud to climb out of on the other side.  It was gross and so churned up by the thousands of people who had already gone through.  The mud was goupy and thick up to your knees- it didn't feel solid anywhere. I was worried for my ankles.  Then there was muddy water up to my chest.   The number of people who had already gone through had worn the sides of the pit so smooth that there was nothing to grab onto or stick your feet on.  I stopped having fun and started panicking about how the f**k I was going to get out.  I also didn't notice a race official or a volunteer near this, which made me feel uneasy.  Finally a nice guy offered to boost me up with his hands and some people who had already gotten out gave me their hands to grab and I was able to pull myself out.   Laurel was still stuck in the pit.  She was awesome, helping to boost people out.  I was there as a hand to grab for many people... men and women.  Eventually Laurel was able to get a boost from below and grab my hands and she broke free from the hellish mud pit. ugh.   

We collected ourselves and headed to the next obstacle, which was an A-frame climb.  There was a line to get on it, which was good because it gave me a chance for my hands to dry and to get some of the mud out of my shoes.  This was the obstacle I couldn't do last time so I was feeling nervous, but I knew I was in much better shape than the last time I tried.  I watched quite a few people struggle as I waited in line. Finally it was my turn.  It was tough, but I made it up without too much trouble.  I sat on the top and waited for Laurel to see if I could help her get over.  She made a great effort, but couldn't quite get it,  Again, this is a place where I have an advantage simply due to my height.   

The next obstacle was a pretty wimpy leap over some fire.  I remember it being a much bigger deal last time... this was just one jump.  I think last time we did it there were three lines of fire in a row.  Meh.  It looks cool but was no big deal. 

The next to last obstacle was a new one that was actually pretty cool.  It was called the Goliath.  It was a cargo net climb,  followed by a balance beam about 10-15 feet above a pit of water, followed by a ladder to a platform with a slide into a deep pit of muddy water.  It wasn't hard, but it looked cool and was really fun.  

 

Once we were out of the muddy water pit (which was fun, but also cold and kinda gross), the final obstacle was the muddy crawl under barbed wire and cargo nets to the finish.  Not hard, just long and kinda gross.  I was actually pretty disappointed with the finish line.  It felt anti-climatic.   The layout of the course wasn't conductive to cheering spectators so I didn't get that super pumped up excited feeling.  When we did it in CT the end felt like a bigger deal.   The medals were pretty cool.  They have a built in bottle opener.

Post Race: 

We met up with Ian who had been taking pictures, and found Michelle and the kids, who were definitely ready to go.   There was not enough stuff to do besides drink beer.  There was music but the festival atmosphere was mostly just drinking, so not the best for kids.  I was disappointed, I felt like there was more to do when we did it in CT.  There was definitely more shade, more places to sit, and more opportunity to watch the actual race at the last Warrior Dash we did.   Laurel and I made our way to the wash-off area, where we were greeted with yet another long line.   Again we were able to strike up a good conversation with the people behind us.   The wash-off station was a couple of tank trucks and a couple guys with hoses.  There were also two guys (who were reasonably clean so I don't think they raced) with their phones out taking pictures and recording people as they got rinsed off.  It felt super sleazy and uncomfortable.  I rinsed off as best as I could under the circumstances. 

We grabbed our IDs and got our free beer.  Shock-Top, which was an improvement over the Miller lite we got last time.  We headed out as we finished our beer.

 

Once back to the car we changed out of our muddy wet clothes and climbed back into the van for the long drive home.  We used Find Me Gluten Free to discover an awesome BBQ place, American Glory, for dinner in Hudson NY.   Everything was delicious. 

Once home, my shower felt so good. 

Overall Impression: Meh. 

I did have a good time, but I will have to think hard before doing another Warrior Dash.  I had such a blast at the first one and I think they have gone downhill rather than improving.  The whole event felt really cash-grabby.  The reg fee was high for an event of this type and then once you got onsite you still had to pay for everything but your one free beer.   No post race snacks that I could find- just overpriced fake turkey legs.  

There was not enough for spectators to do, and especially not enough for kids to do.

The lines were way too long and chaotic. It should not take an hour to go through packet-pickup. 

The obstacles were not spread out well.  The first two miles had barely any obstacles, everything was backloaded, which meant lines at the obstacles. 

No timing chips was a major disappointment.  I thought about maybe signing up for the "competitive wave" if I did another, but a quick google search told me even that wave didn't have timing chips.   If I'm spending $60 a race, I expect it to be timed.  I think the lack of timing also meant that people didn't care about how fast they were going.  I want to race- to challenge myself and got a little frustrated with how often I was stuck behind people walking really slowly or got stuck waiting to get on an obstacle.

I didn't see many race officials or volunteers on the course.   I'm sure they were around, but I would have liked to see a bigger presence at some of the obstacles- especially that stupid mudpit.  Just in case.  

However, the other participants were friendly, supportive, and everyone seemed to be having fun.  Most people were more than willing to help you out.  The community feel is great. 

All in all though, I think the Merrill Down and Dirty race we did last month was a much better example of an obstacle course race, and I will probably choose that over the Warrior Dash in the future. 

But it is hard to resist the fuzzy helmet ;)

`

Race Report: Run the Rent, Rentschler Airfield 5k, July 24, 2014

Last night was the Hartford Marathon Foundation: Rentschler Airfield 5k.  It is advertised as flat and fast.  It certainly was for me because I got another PR! 28:37!  I also placed 3rd in the Athena Division.  I have never won a division award before, so I was super excited.  I received a jar of salsa.

I did the race with Laurel, who also had a PR.  Nice course and good weather make for a great race.

Pre-Race:
My legs were a bit sore from a hard 8k run the night before.  So I knew I was really going to have to stretch and warm up before this race.  I used the foam roller a bit in the morning to work out some of the tightness in my hamstrings and calves.   We showed up at the race with about a half hour to spare.  Check in was a breeze.  HMF events are always really well organized.  They are probably my favorite races to do because everyone is friendly and everything always runs so smoothly!
We collected our bibs and t-shirts and used the restroom before heading towards the start line.  I jogged around a bit and stretched around the 15 min to go mark.   The race was on an old airfield, so wide long roads.  This let everyone (about 300) start very close to the line, it was that wide.   At a 5k a few weeks ago, I made the mistake of seeding myself to far back and got stuck behind people with no way to get around them.  This race had plenty of room.

Run:
The national anthem and then we were off! I went out pretty fast.  The race started with a very long straightaway (I'm guessing it was a half mile.  The nice wide course meant I could get into a good groove right away.  There was a turn and then another long straight away until a turnaround point at a mile in.  The clock at a mile said 8:20! Yikes! I really don't run that fast and knew I couldn't sustain it for another two miles so I backed off a little and settled into a much more comfortable pace.  We ran back past the start line and then onto a smaller path.  It stayed pretty flat for most of the race.  I think I may actually prefer a few rolling hills.  No ups mean no downs, so no real chance to get a break. At two miles I had slowed down to a more realistic pace and hit that mile marker around 18:30.  I knew I could get a PR if I just kept up the pace.  When I hit 3 miles I could see the finish line and the clock.  I then sprinted the last .1 and it felt awesome!  I grabbed a bottle of water from the wonderful volunteers and met up with Ian who was there as our moral support and personal photographer!  Laurel came in a little over 33 minutes, which was also a PR for her! Go us!

 

Post-Race:
Once Laurel crossed the finish line we headed over to the results tent.  HMF has instant results by computer.  You type in your bib number and get your result.  It is great, much better than waiting around for the printout to come.  I put in my number and saw my official time: 28:37 and that I had come in 3rd in the Athenas! Huzzah!  We had to stick around for the awards.

Post race refreshments were donuts from Faddy's donuts and ice cream, Elk burgers from Cabela's, and Beer from Olde Burnside Brewing.  Wonderful post-race grub.

We stood around enjoying the post-race excitement until the awards were announced.  The division awards were jars of salsa from Fox Meadow Farm in Vermont.  Both the mens and the womens overall winner set course records- crazy fast speeds, the male winner was like 16 minutes and the female was 17.  She was done before I even made it to mile 2!

It was a great race and I am really looking forward to the next race I do with them- the Niantic Bay Triathlon next weekend!  But first laurel and I tackle the Warrior Dash tomorrow!

Race Report: IronGirl Webster MA July 20, 2014

I did it!!!

My first triathlon was a huge success! I did better than I imagined, but still have room for improvement.  I was pretty nervous but I had an amazing time.  Everyone there was friendly and supportive, and the race was so remarkably organized.

Packet Pickup:
Packets had to be picked up before the race.  There was no race-day pickup.  I found this a little annoying because I live an hour away from Webster, but not unheard of (The Hartford Marathon does the same thing- but that is a much shorter drive and larger expo).  Saturday pick-up was at the Expo and it was in the gym of the local high school.  Michy and I took the bean, while the guys stayed home.  Pickup itself was really smooth and not too crowded.  You went to the first table to show your id and get your number, then headed to the back of the room where you got your packet and tshirt.  The Expo itself was pretty small, we did a little browsing then headed out.  I picked up a spibelt since I had been looking at them online.  After leaving the expo we drove the bike course.  I wanted to see it again, so I wasn't surprised by anything. 

We got home and I went for an easy bike ride to calm my nerves.  It helped a lot.  Then we went out for a yummy dinner.  Once home, I packed my bag, checking and double checking that I had everything.  I over-packed- I didn't actually need any of the larabars.  The coconut water was plenty.  Once the bag was packed I got everything into the van so we could just wake up and leave.  I headed to bed early, but had a very hard time falling asleep.

 

Transition opened at 5:00AM so my alarm rang at 3:30. So early! I ate a banana, a larabar, and made a green smoothie to sip in the car. We waited until the last possible moment to get the kids into the car.  The bean stayed asleep, but the munchkin woke and was very confused.  "But its still nighttime and I don't have on shoes!"  He fell back asleep once we got going.  Dunkin Donuts for coffee and off to Webster!

We got to the Lake around 5:30.  I went through body marking and found the rack for my bib number.  It wasn't very crowded yet, so I had plenty of space to setup.  Setting up my spot didn't take very long so I had plenty of time to wander around and be nervous.  I must have used the porta-potty 5 times before my wave took off!

It was pretty chilly, but the water temp was 78.  The water was warmer than the air.  I only dipped my feet in.   I didn't want to have to stand around wet and cold before my wave started.  I jogged around a bit and did some stretching.   I was happy to have the kiddos there to cheer me on!

 

Soon enough they were playing the national anthem and the first wave was taking off!  My wave wasn't until 7:30, so I had a little time to wait. 

Swim: 11:46 

I stood sort of near the back of the swim wave, not really knowing what to expect and not having a good idea of how I would compare to the other swimmers.  When the horn blasted I held back a moment and walked a bit before taking off.  I felt trapped in bodies and had a hard time figuring out where I could swim.  I did some breaststroke so I could see where I was going but couldn't really kick because I didn't want to kick anyone.  I felt pretty trapped until the first turn, going back and forth between freestyle and breaststroke so I could see who was around me. After the first turn I started to get into a better groove.  I caught up to some of the previous wave and by the final turn it was crowded again.  I accidentally kicked someone in the chest and felt pretty bad about it.   Next time I'll start closer to the front.   I never really felt like I got in a good groove. 

T1: 3:59

There was a little run up the beach to the transition area.  It was a bit rocky, so I had stashed some flipflops near the swim exit.  I almost forgot them and had to double back a bit.  I think next year I'll skip it and take my chances with the rocks.  I had a water bottle and a small towel to wash the sand off my feet.  I decided to skip socks and just coat my feet in bodyglide and slide them into my cycling shoes.  I put on a headband, sunglasses, helmet, grabbed the bike and then I was off! I just need more practice to shave off some time.

Bike: 49:23

Biking is the sport I have the least experience with.  I have always liked to swim and I've been running for years.  Until this summer I had only really biked for fun, not for exercise.  I still have alot of learning to do, especially technique for when to shift gears.  I found a few times I was spinning along at 13 or 14 mph and would shift and pop up to 17 or 18 mpg instantly.  This course had a couple really tough hills.  I didn't have to get off the bike (which was good because I was scared of getting clipped out without falling over) but I did have to really work at it and stand up out of the saddle.  But big hills up meant big hills down... which was really fun.  I felt like I was flying.  I got passed a lot on the bike, but passed some people as well. I think for the bike I just need more practice.  I also need to do a better job of putting on my helmet.  In a lot of pictures it looks like it is just perched on my head.  Oops.

T2: 2:11

I felt really awkward getting off the bike.  I need to make my dismount smoother.  It is also really awkward to run in cycling shoes.  I may try keeping the shoes clipped to the bike and slipping my feet out, but I don't know if I am that coordinated.  I run in vibram five fingers (love my Seeyas!) so it took my a moment to wiggle my wet feet into all the toes evenly.  I grabbed a quick drink of water and was off.


Run: 28:42

I took off on the run course which ran across some grass, back out to the main road, looped around a cute little neighborhood, headed back on the main road, and finished back at the lake.  I wasn't wearing a watch or anything to give me a sense of time or pace.  I walked the water stops because I'm not coordinated enough to drink and run at the same time.  Other than that I just tried to keep moving. I really thought I was doing a slow jog, maybe 11 or 12 minute miles.  I was shocked to find out I did a 28:42! That is a 9:34 pace.  I never run that fast.  I still felt like I had some energy in the tank so I probably can push it even more. 

Coming into the finish line was awesome.  The announcer was calling out names as people crossed the finish line.  I waved as I heard my name.  I got my medal and met back up with the guys and the kids.  They told me it was only about 9 o'clock so I knew I had done better than I thought!  I made my way to the breakfast tent, but with doing Whole 30 there wasn't much I could eat (it was mostly Luna bars yogurts and bread stuff) The munchkin was able to charm his way into a few treats though.  We waited near the results area and enjoyed the festivities until they opened transition back up.  I grabbed my stuff and we headed home.  What an awesome morning!

Total: 1:36:01

Summer!

It is starting to feel hot hot hot.   Took the kiddos to pick strawberries this afternoon and I was dripping in sweat.  I'm getting excited about summer plans.  Race day is fast approaching and I already have two other tris in my mind for the summer.

Last weekend I wanted to practice transitions and open water swimming, so I headed to a nearby lake.  I think I did pretty well.  I got in a 20 minute swim without getting too freaked out by the lack of lines and walls.  Then I rode 7 miles and ran for about 10 minutes.  I just wanted to get a feel for doing all three things at once. 

 

Tuesday I did a nice brick workout where I took a spinning class and then immediately went for a three mile run. My legs felt like lead for the first 5 minutes of the run, but then I got into a nice groove.    I did a spinning class this morning and I'm looking forward to Aqua Zumba tonight.  It is hot, I want to get in that pool.

Two weekends ago I did a delightfully fun muddy obstacle course race, the Merrill Down and Dirty Obstacle Race with my friend laurel.  We had a blast, and unlike the Warrior Dash we did together a couple year ago, we were able to complete all the obstacles, no problem!  I can't wait for our Warrior Dash in July. 

I made the skirts, cause I'm crafty like that!

mud! lots and lots of mud.