What's in a name?

NEW BLOG ADDRESS HERE:  runaroundsara.blogspot.com

I've been thinking about the name of my blog and I want to change it. I think. 


More specifically, the address. Right now it's http://sariah8.blogspot.com. Since this is a blog about my mission to a triathlon and what I'm doing to train, I'd like it to be something about that and not "sariah8" which is really a username more than anything. And because I'm also planning on a half marathon after the triathlon, I guess I'm in this for the long haul and don't know if I just want it to be all about the tri. But, I'm indecisive. And I also can't think of a name. So I need your help.


Any ideas? I was thinking of making this a contest/giveaway, but I'm new at this and don't really have anything to give away. Um, a pair of socks? YES. A special fun, funky pair of socks. Who doesn't like socks? And I'll choose the socks based on the winner's personality. So they'll definitely be fun, funky & cool! Really, this is a win-win situation for all of us!


Here's the deal, you can list as many blog names as you like. But put each idea/name in a different comment. And follow me too. Yes, bonus points if you're a follower. Who knows, maybe 2 pairs of socks will be given away! (Probably) Actually, yes. I will choose a winner based on the blog name choice and another winner will be chosen at random for a bonus prize.


Okay, let's get organized. First winner will be chosen based on my biased opinion and what I like for a blog name. The second winner will be chosen at random. The prize: besides the sheer satisfaction of being the winner, SOCKS.


Enter as follows (each entry needs a new comment):

• Suggest a name for my blog (or two, or three, or seven)
• Follow my blog (and then you'll have to re-follow my new blog once the new name is chosen, haha!!)
• Promote this contest/giveaway on your blog, twitter, facebook, run through the streets screaming, make posters, etc.

What I'd like:

• Something clever of course, because you know me. I'm clever.
• Using my name is good (it's Sara in case you're new around here)
• Anything dealing with swimming, biking, running, triathlon, racing, etc
• Catchy is good
• Play on words
• What you think when you think of me (maybe I don't want that)
• Brutal honesty

I'll end the contest on Friday of this week (6/17/11) and announce the winner on Saturday, 6/18/11. A whole week of fun!

I can't wait too see all your ideas!! And GO.

Stow Run for the Woods 2011 Race Report

I've moved!!

NEW BLOG ADDRESS HERE:  runaroundsara.blogspot.com

I had planned this race because my chiropractor told me about it and that they would be at the race doing massages for the runners. I figured, why not? It’s local, not too hilly, they were giving medals to all finishers, and who doesn’t want a free massage after a 5K? If you answered, "I don't", we aren’t going to get along.

The day before, I was in bed all day with a stomach bug. I was so mad because I really wanted to do this race! And I had already paid for it. But as the day went on, I started rationalizing what would really happen if I couldn’t do it. I at least could get myself out of bed in the morning to pick up my free (kinda paid for) t-shirt. Then I figured if I could get out of bed for a t-shirt, I could at least stay and hang out for a bit and cheer on people that I know (and I suppose people I didn’t know). I debated setting my alarm for the morning and was really contemplating just skipping it when I suddenly remembered. Medals to all finishers. Problem solved. I set my alarm.

I woke up feeling much better. No stomach pains, no nausea. I was glad I didn’t have to try and endure a 5K while feeling yucky. I knew I had to eat something since all I had was soup the day before, so I went with a bland bagel with nothing on it and vanilla yogurt. I couldn’t finish the bagel and halfway to the race, I started getting stomach pains again. Excellent. I got my race number and t-shirt and went back to my car to sit and try to relax before the race.

Look at that. The date. Ten cool points.

Eventually I heard someone talking over a megaphone and I figured I should pay attention. I wasn’t even thinking about not doing the race at this point, because I still hadn’t forgotten about the medals to all finishers. Although, I was replaying the race route in my mind thinking, where I could possibly cut off part of the race and only do, like, a mile. Just kidding. Actually, no, I actually thought about it. But I knew I wouldn’t actually do it, so technically, still kidding. Maybe.

By race time I was feeling better, no stomach pains or nausea, so that was good. And of course there was a guy playing his bagpipes there, so that makes most things better. Or worse, depending on how you look at it.

Yes I sure did get right next to him as he was playing.

I did a fairly good walking warm up before the race so I didn’t have to start out walking. I was doing pretty good with my walking/running intervals and was faster per mile than I had ever been during a race, so I was feeling pretty confident that I’d be able to beat my previous time. Pretty awesome feeling, especially since they were giving medals to all finishers. It would be sweet to get a medal on a day I got a PR.

At one of the loops (the only loop) there was a volunteer cheering everyone on. She had a positive comment for every single person who passed by her and she was funny. I asked her what her name was because I knew that the second I got back to the finish line, I had to tell someone to give Maureen a raise, because she’s an amazing person. So nice, so encouraging, funny, and just amazing. But then I remembered that the race was sponsored by the Stow Conservation Trust, which is a committee, and most likely unpaid. AND, she was a volunteer. Duh. This is what running does to me. I get dumber. But she was awesome!

So, besides by blond moment, everything was great. Until I hit 1.4 miles. Sharp pains in stomach. Waves of nausea. Turning of the head, bending over the bushes. Almost puked. Almost. False alarm. Sucked down some more water to keep it all down. And kept moving.

And then I was fine. Until 2.5 miles. Same sharp pains in stomach. Same waves of nausea. Different bushes. Almost puked again. Almost. Same false alarm. OUT OF WATER. Kept moving anyway.  Then it was downhill for a while. Literally. On the downhill, there was a water station and some great volunteers hooking me up with that sweet, sweet (and much needed) H2O.

After that, I was okay until the end of the race and after, when I tried to eat an orange. Best diet ever, right? Put food in, get sick, and don’t want to eat. Besides the pain, I like it!

I finally heard the bagpipes again, so I knew I was getting close to the end of the race. I saw my friends near the finish line and then I saw the clock showing a time of 48:xx. I actually got excited, because I haven’t don’t a 5K under 50...ever.

The race results have me down for a time of 49:28, but with no chip timing and me crossing the start line after the actual start, my Garmin says I finished with a time of 49:03. As I was crossing the finish line, I was yelling to my friends “Look! Under 50! Under 50!” and I almost stopped. They had to remind me to keep going and actually cross the finish line instead of looking at my time. I’m smart. Right as I finished, there were volunteers handing out the medals. Yes, even with a time of 49:03, I got a medal!

Obviously I'm so proud of myself here.
And wicked excited about the medal!

And I was NOT LAST. I was second to last. But NOT LAST!

I beat my previous 5K time by 2:25. That’s pretty damn good right? 

After all that drama throughout the race, I looked around for my free massage. Yeah, they weren't there. Liars.

Margaritas 5K Race Report

I've moved!!

NEW BLOG ADDRESS HERE:  runaroundsara.blogspot.com

My 2nd 5K of 2011

So we all know by now that I’m not in this 5K business for the running. I'm in it for the T-shirts and the free stuff. Aren't most people? No? Okay, maybe it’s just me. It's no secret that I'm not a fan of running. I think I've mentioned it a few times before. However, I'm determined to complete my triathlon in September and running a 5K is part of it. My goal by September is to be able to run the entire 5K. I don't care how slow I go (that's a lie, I don't want to be last!), I just want to finish.

Anyway, about the Margaritas 5K race. Great concept. Not impressed. The Stonyfield Earth Day 5K was so well organized and filled with sponsors and volunteers who were on their game and it spoiled me. The Margaritas 5K had great volunteers, but it lacked everywhere else. Besides the free Mexican food and free margaritas after the race (no thanks, I'd rather not drink alcohol after sweating out my toxins) there wasn't really much to it. The T-shirts were bright orange with Margaritas 5K sprawled across the front. No date or other information to determine the time and place. I'm betting they'll use the same ones next year. I would rather it show something to distinguish it from year to year. But, obviously not my decision.

I’m not gonna lie. I check out race details every time I sign up for one and if it says, "T-shirt to the first 500 registrants", I'll act as if I'm registering and if it doesn't give me a space to select my T-shirt size, I know they've surpassed 500 and I don't bother. Maybe that makes me a race snob, but it's one of my things. I want mementos to remember my races.

Back to the race. I didn't do so well. Well, I didn't do badly either. I did my thing, but I didn't feel so good doing it. I had played softball the day before and I was the pitcher. Every pitch is like a lunge, so my left ass cheek was a little sore in the muscle department (along with my right arm/pec/boob area, but that's a different story!). Before the race, I actually warmed up this time. Kinda. And was ready to go when they said go. Yes, they actually said "On your mark, get set, GO, go, go, go, go". Really? Okay. So we went. But there was no start line. They gave us bibs to record our chip time, but no start line. So when they said go, they set the clock off and when you cross the finish line, they get your time with a chip sensor. They set up two traffic barricades to act as the start line, but NO START LINE. I know I'm not exactly a race connoisseur, but uh, there's supposed to be a start line, right? 

Anyway, I had my Garmin on so I recorded my time myself. I started off running (HA…jogging…slowly) and didn't go very far, but probably farther (and longer) than I have before, only because there were crazy people running behind me and I didn't want to stop short in front of them. I'm considerate like that. I didn't glance at my Garmin to check the time, although I should have. I immediately felt pain and tightness in my shins. Excellent. As I was walking I felt like I was barely moving and the person I was with kept holding up her stride for me. I felt bad so I told her to go on with out me. But before she did, another one of our group members was off to the side waiting for us. I told her to leave me as well. I felt bad that I was holding up someone else's race time because I'm a slow walker, but she was having pains in her hip so she decided to walk with me and attempt some run intervals here and there. I was grateful to have her there and she definitely helped me keep a faster pace than I normally would have. (Thank you again, a million times, Jenn!!!!)

As we trudged on, my left knee started hurting as well. I was literally falling apart. My left side was not agreeing with the race, apparently. Every time we saw a mile marker sign - yes, all 3 of them - we ran (again, laughter, jogged slowly) to it then walked again. Towards the end of the second mile, I saw that someone had lost their jacket. I grabbed it to bring back to the volunteer stand and hopefully find its owner. About 30 seconds later, I found a set of headphones and grabbed those as well. Same pretenses. Each time I bent over to get them off the street, I fell apart some more. My hip started hurting, then my lower back – both on the left side. My hypochondriac self thought briefly, “Ohmigod, I'm having a stroke”. But I kept moving. I'm probably okay.

I saw a volunteer along the side of the road waving us on with a flag. I told him, "Hey, I like your flag!" because I like to make conversation with random people when I'm in pain and still have to run more in the near future. He responded "Oh come on, the jacket is much better", while gesturing to his police like glow-in-the-dark vest. I replied, "Actually the hat is the best! Wish I had one". He then took it off his head and GAVE IT TO ME. I said, "Seriously?" and he said, "Yeah, sure, why not?". So at this point, I had a jacket, headphones and a hat in my possession, while still doing this race. And here, I thought the point was to not carry anything while racing.

I crossed the finish line at 52:27. Twenty seconds slower than my PR (personal record) at Stonyfield. At first I was bummed, since the whole point of this 5K business is to improve, but then I realized that I walked a LOT more than I had at Stonyfield and I was limping for part of this race. Therefore, if I had run as much as I had at Stonyfield, I'd have beat my time. That made me feel a little bit better. I also know I'm not always going to do better than the last time, even though I want to see constant improvement. This will not happen overnight, though I wish it would so I could stop training! I also need to stop being so negative. Eventually I will embrace running, but first I have to overcome my mental hurdles about it. I'm working on it.

After the race, they had chicken burritos and margaritas for everyone who had participated. The margarita line was 5 times as long as the burrito line. I get that people like their drinks (as do I from time to time) but after a 5K? I just couldn't. I also don't like tequila, so there's that. Instead I had myself a Kiwi-Strawberry Propel, which was amazing. I must buy myself some of those. It was yum.

We all hung around and chatted about the race, upcoming races, and discussed why we weren’t already friends on Facebook. And of course we took tons of pictures.

Before the race. See how happy we look?

After the race. Post race meal and drinks. See how tired we look?

NOT LAST!!

I was about halfway home when I realized that I threw my stuff in the car after the race and forgot to turn in the jacket and headphones I found. Plus side? Jacket is my size.

I also now have a shirt to wear to work on Cinco de Mayo!

**UPDATE** I received an e-mail from a representative at Loco Sports regarding this blog about the Margaritas 5K. I don't think they were too happy with my comments!! Check out her e-mail and my response to it here. :)

Stonyfield Earth Day 5K 2011 Race Report

I've moved!!

NEW BLOG ADDRESS HERE:  runaroundsara.blogspot.com

It was a dark and stormy night. Wait, this isn't a murder mystery. It's a 5K.

It was a raining, snowing, sleeting, 36-degree morning in Londonderry, NH. Perfect. That sounds much more like a 5K-race set up. Eye roll. Good thing I found my long lost waterproof jacket last night. I definitely needed it today.

I carpooled the hour and some change ride to the Stonyfield Earth Day 5K in Londonderry, NH with two people from our group and we got there around 8am. Race time was 10am. It was 36-degrees. We got our race numbers, grabbed a free yogurt and ran back to sit in the car and keep warm. Since we had gotten there so early, we were parked right next to the registration tent and all of the vendor tents. We watched the vendors set up their giveaways and chatted about the best types of sneakers to wear, how people run barefoot (and how strange it is) and sneakers that have toes on them to mimic barefoot running. Interesting stuff.

I had my eye on the pretzel lady because she parked next to us and looked to be unloading some fancy stuff out of her car. I took a break from staring her down and conversed with my comrades. All of a sudden, I see people milling around her tent, holding BAGS. I’m not exactly sure what happened next, but there was yelling, rushing, and clambering out of the car. I don’t mess around when it comes to free stuff. We each got a bag and then walked around to the other tents to check out what they had. We filled up our new pretzel bags with lots of other cool free stuff.

Look-it!

Then it was back to the car again to keep warm. Because it was still 36-degrees. By this time, we realized there was snow mixed in with the sleet. Awesome.

About 15 minutes before race time, we used the stylish port-o-potties and headed over to the start line. I spotted a guy warming up near the start line and he was barefoot. Weird, we had just been discussing that. Also, he was crazy. It was 36-god-damn-degrees. My feet were cold and I had wool socks on. I tried to pay attention to the announcer, but I was a little to far away from the line to really hear him well. This was my view:

As we kind of stretched, kind of danced around to keep warm, a woman came up next to me and asked me if I was running or walking. I responded, "I don't know yet. I guess we'll find out". We then compared Garmin watches. She had on the 205 and I had the 305.

Let’s backtrack. About a week ago, I was looking for a GPS/heart-rate monitor watch to help me keep track of my running activities. I figure I need to see how I’m doing in order to keep getting better. I discovered the Garmin Forerunner 305. It was way too expensive for my paycheck, but after looking around for cheaper models, I found the 305 on amazon for $128. Almost $275 cheaper than what it retails for on the Garmin site. Sold.

As I'm chatting with this woman about our watches, I glance down and see her shoes. They have toes. I'm floored that not only was this the second thing for us to see that we had been talking about, but that she was actually wearing them! They look like slippers. Weird, toe slippers. But I'm not gonna lie. I'm curious

In the distance I hear, "GO". Everyone lurches forward, then stops. Then we all lurch forward again, but this time it's for real. I’m in the middle of a big crowd and I have no choice but to start off running, which I’m not used to. I usually do a warm up walk of about 5 minutes before I start running, but not today! Today, I pretended to be a runner. For at least 500 feet!

I knew I had to keep myself entertained throughout the race so I played a game of leapfrog with some people around me. I’d run past them, take a break to walk, wait for them to run past me, wait for them to take a break to walk, then run again. It worked out pretty well until I got distracted by the front-runners of the race. They were coming back from the first loop and passed all of us going the other way. Everyone was cheering them on, but all I noticed were three or four of them really giving it their all trying to pass each other. I thought to myself, "Jeez, calm down. It's not a race". Oh wait.

I saw a few people from our group while on the race. We waved at each other and cheered each other on, but for the most part, I was by myself. I expected to be because I'm a slower runner than the people I went with.

At one point, I passed a girl and her mother who were jogging along and I thought to myself, "Hey, at least I'm faster than somebody!" until I realized that they had stopped for the girl to tie her shoe. Whatever.

Towards the end of the race, right near the last loop, I started a conversation with a woman (Hi Marguerite!!) who I had been playing leapfrog with almost the whole race. We talked for the last half-mile and it absolutely flew by. Next time I'm definitely sticking with someone for conversation!

Of course, me being me, I had to run the last bit to the finish line. Someone said that they were announcing names as people crossed the finish line, but I didn't hear them say my name. Probably because I was pumping my fists up in the air like a fool, trying not to trip over the mats on the finish line. I’m classy like that.

And finishing right before me is the girl and her mother who I passed. They must have cut the last mile loop short, because I KNOW they didn't pass me again. I would have recognized her shoes.

My finish time was 52:07 making my average page 16:31 minutes per mile. An even better time that the other night’s dreadmill run. Things are looking up. I didn't even mind that I came in last among the group I went with, or that I was 840/882. That’s a lie. It’s a little depressing. But, at least I wasn't last! And then Amanda sent me this picture/quote, which really put things into perspective and made it a little bit better.

It was still freezing cold so we headed back to the car to go home almost immediately. Thankfully I brought along a change of clothes in case I got wet because all four layers of my clothes were soaked.

My waterproof jacket? Not waterproof.