Hocus Pocus?

Or should I say Hokas Pocus? Because I'm pretty sure these things are magical! And to boot (Haha, pun intended) they showed up on Halloween! What could be better?



Let me start with the standard disclaimer:
I bought these with my own money and I have not been urged or paid to say anything good about them. This is my own opinion so do with it what you will!

Now on to the good stuff!

These shoes are Hoka's road version of the Mafate trail shoe. I haven't tried the Mafate and I'm unsure if I will. The Bondi B's are lighter and slightly smaller (run about a 1/2 size small compared to Mafate) but still fit me in my regular size 8.5 with my thick socks.



When I pulled them out of the box the first thing I noticed was the thickness of the sole. I can't believe how tall I am wearing these! It made me a little nervous for stability but it turned out not to be an issue. The second thing I noticed was the awesome slogan "Time to Fly" tattooed on the inside of the sole. I definitely won't mind seeing that every time I lace up!

I found that the upper was flexible and didn't seem to need breaking in. My general rule is that if a shoe feels stiff I'm sending it back so I was glad to find my foot slid in easily and the upper conformed to my foot as I tied the laces. Speaking of the laces, they give you plenty! Not too much but not too little either. I could easily tie a reef knot and then double knot for security and still have about 1.5 - 2" of lace on either side. Pretty much perfect as far as I'm concerned! Lastly the tongue was soft and didn't dig into the bone on the top of my foot that sticks up (I believe it's the middle cuneiform but could be wrong!). Usually I end up lacing my shoes specially to avoid pressure on this bone but it wasn't necessary this time!

The collar of the Bondi B's wrapped my achilles snugly and didn't slide or rub. The heel counter formed easily around my heel and held it in place. I was happy I didn't need to stop to tighten my laces even once as sliding of my heel is usually a problem for me. This also indicated to me that the saddle (side of the midfoot) is consistent in tension and helps keep the foot from sliding which is great for blister prevention.

Overall I am thrilled with the construction and that's before I even made it out the door!

Once on the trail I wanted to go for an easy paced short run since I'm still recovering from overdoing it with weights plus a vicious illness that landed me in the hospital last week. Still not sure what it was so I didn't want to risk missing Savannah this weekend.

I started out behind another woman running on the trail and I focused on the feeling of the Bondi B's as I began to run. I felt like I was bouncing more on the 40mm of cushioning. I leaned forward a little and that bounce became forward propulsion. That was my 'AHA!' moment! I was gaining on the woman and I caught her quickly. Uh oh! I glanced at my Garmin and I was running 9:40 pace. Too fast!

I had to work to slow down and it took me about a mile to get the hang of nice and easy in the Hokas. "Time to Fly" sure is fitting! The rocker profile turns a midfoot landing into forward propulsion through the responsive midfoot foam sole and encouraged a faster turnover. I didn't feel unstable at all even moving faster than I wanted to and my feet stayed snugly nestled inside the recessed midsole.

Once I managed to slow down I could feel the Hoka's claim that they encouraged engaging the glutes and lower back. My tender muscles leftover from last week's issues didn't like this much but I can tell on a 'normal' run it will help me fight the muscle imbalances and fatigue that I've had. Since the glutes are the largest muscles and mine are woefully flat I am more than willing to give them a larger share of the workload!

I did 3 miles total and I wanted to do more but Savannah is looming! Overall I am excited to see what the Bondi B's can do for my running. I'm even thinking of taking them to Savannah. Is that crazy? :)

Visit Hoka's site for more information and a list of vendors.

5k for Learning

I've come to the end of my first 2 classes in my Sport Management degree program. It's been a long road but I'm enjoying it and I'm pleased to say that it looks like I got A's in both courses! I say looks like because a few discussion posts haven't been graded yet but barring a total grading disaster I should have passed with flying colors!



To celebrate my husband and I decided to run the 5k for Learning in North Park on Sunday. Could it be anymore fitting?! He was hoping to PR while I was hoping to just survive. I can't believe I'm saying this but I am still sore from Oil Creek! It's crazy!

While waiting at the starting line he said he doesn't think I push myself hard enough so I vowed to show him! HAHAHAHA! That always ends well doesn't it?



The Pittsburgh Passion women's pro football team sounded the air horn and I took off like, well, a banshee. I was the first woman overall for the first 400 meters or so. I knew one of the women from other races and knew she could whip me so I let her pass. Then another woman passed and I decided I wanted to hold third place for as long as I could. I managed to hang on until just over a mile in and then there was.... *drum roll*



....a hill. No, not actually the one in the picture but it was big enough to slow me down. I KNOW I should do more hill training to get faster and strengthen my legs but I despise hills. And now I despised this hill more than any other yet because I got passed. Two women overtook me on the hill and another shortly after as I gasped for breath on the downhill to the turn around. I was now running in sixth and thought maybe I could get it together enough to reclaim 5th and have my first ever top-5 finish.

The best laid plans, eh? It wasn't long before I heard footsteps behind me and two college girls who looked like they were hardly working breezed by. I gave it my all to keep up with them as we rounded the bend to the final stretch. My lungs were burning, my muscles were screaming, and my mind was telling me there was no way I was on PR pace and I must be having a bad day. I wanted to quit and walk more than anything but I fought the urge. Every inch in the increasing gap between me and those girls just made me angrier.

I was mad at myself for not being strong enough to stay ahead of them. I was mad at the hill for winning. I was mad at the cold air for burning my throat with every gasp. I heard another set of approaching footsteps and I have never wanted to knock another runner down so much in my life. I hate to admit it but slipping from 8th to 9th was like a kick in the teeth. I was less than .1 mile from the finish line and this woman was passing me and there was nothing I could do about it! AAAAAHHHHHH!

I saw the finish line clock and it read 26:xx. I couldn't believe I had a chance at finishing in under 27 minutes! I dug really deep to push that last hundred yards or so and just eeked it out with a 26:58 finish and a PR! I was 22/96 overall, 9/65 women, and 3/30 in my age group. Crazy that a THIRD of the field was in my age group?! My hubby missed a PR by seconds but he still finished 9th overall and 2nd in his age group.

We collected our medals from the Pittsburgh Passion ladies and shared some reGen with them. I thought that was just so awesome! This sponsorship has just taken me to so many new places! Thanks reGen!



All in all, it was just a great day and now I feel ready to take on the next chapter of my education!

Oil Tycoon in the Making

The Oil Creek course is decidedly tough. It’s rated a 4,4 by UltraRunning Magazine for the ‘substantial rocks, roots, and ruts’ and the total elevation gain of 11,010 feet for the 100k. The course for this race is two loops from the Titusville Middle School onto 1.5 miles of pavement and then onto the trail. The trail was too wet to use the grass trail instead of the paved bike trail so all runners were forced to use the bike trail coming and going into the school, which also served as AS#4.
The first aid station is at the bottom of Wolfkiel Run which the race director kindly marked with a sign stating ‘unforgiving’. This turned out to be extremely true. The steep descent took a toll on many runners this year including my reGen teammate, Tom, who was making a second attempt at 100 miles. He took a nasty fall on Wolfkiel on his second 50k loop and hurt his knee knocking him out of the race. Thankfully I made it down Wolfkiel without incident both times. AS#2 is at Petroleum Center and runners pass the oil derricks which give the race its name. Aid station 2 was my favorite. It had a ‘Funky Town’ theme and volunteers were dressed in leisure suits and bell bottoms and wearing afro wigs. The food was absolutely to die for and the support was incredible! Aid station 3 is on Miller Farm Rd. Runners cross train tracks at the bottom of a hill to reach this aid station before turning around and heading back up the hill to a set of stairs which lead to guess what, more hills! This aid station had a flamingo theme and lots of great signs leading runners in. Some examples I remember are: “Bigfoot hates noisy runners”, “Who needs toenails anyways”, “Because 26.2 miles just isn’t enough”, etc. Each sign made me smile and kept my spirits up.





To start at the beginning I worked a half day Friday. I had just started my new job on Monday so I had been too overwhelmed to pack properly. I threw together what I thought I would need Friday afternoon before dropping my girls off at my mothers and making the 2.5 hour drive to Titusville. I arrived right after 8PM and managed to check in and get my packet before I dropped my gear in the school gymnasium and prepped for bed. My running BFF, her husband, and I all slept on the gymnasium floor along with about 20 other runners. Lights out was at 9:15 PM and it didn’t take long for me to fall asleep even though I was uncomfortable on the hardwood floor.
In the morning I woke up early and wished a few hundred milers good luck as they headed out for their 5 AM start. I got ready in plenty of time for the 100k start and spent some time chatting with other runners in the cafeteria where there were tons of bagels and plenty of coffee. I started to regret not packing a drop bag but I had everything I thought I would need in my Nathan vest so I shook it off.





I couldn’t get a signal on my Garmin from the cafeteria so I stepped outside as runners started to line up. The RD started us exactly at 6 AM and I still didn’t have a signal so I missed the first mile or two of splits. I ran with a woman named Donna up the bike path and she told me it was her birthday and she’d flown in from out of state to run OC. I thought that was pretty awesome! Finally we turned onto the trail and my Garmin found a satellite just in time.





I flipped on my flashlight and moved slowly being careful not to trip on the rocks and roots in the dark. There are several wooden bridges with no sides throughout the course and they were slick with morning dew. I let several people pass so I could pick my way carefully around the obstacles. When the sun came up I was ready to run. I caught several people on Wolfkiel and coming into AS#1 and I moved out quickly. (Too quickly I guess because they didn’t get a split for me here.) I started to ascend Switchback Mountain while eating my PB&J. A runner from the Baker 50 mile named Scott recognized me and we started chatting. The next 7 miles flew by quickly and soon we were in AS #2. I couldn’t believe how beautiful the course was with fall leaves and old oil derricks/barrels/buildings all around. There was an old school bus off to one side that I never would have noticed if Scott hadn’t pointed it out.



Right around AS#2 I caught Dannielle, my running buddy, and I could tell she wasn’t in a positive state of mind right away. A couple miles after the aid station we were officially a quarter of the way done. I practically cheered for joy while she began cursing the day she decided to run 100k (it was her first too). We talked jobs, people, and races for awhile but I was itching to push myself while it seemed Dannielle’s mood was getting darker. I felt horrible about it but I finally decided I needed to run my own race and left her behind after AS#3. I caught back up to Scott after the big hills from the aid station and we ran together for a few miles before I decided to take a walk break.



As I approached the middle school I saw runners headed back out for their next loop. Most looked pretty good and we were all encouraging each other. I even had a guy try to hit on me as we passed! About 50 yards from the AS Scott passed going the other way. I told him I would try to catch him again if I could but I doubted I would. He looked really strong! I ran into the gymnasium at the school and grabbed my phone so I could take some pictures and call my husband and kids from the second loop. I also grabbed some pizza and chips before I headed back out. I had been depending mainly on PB&J, gels, and candy until this point. I finished the first 50k in 7:58 which is pretty awesome considering my best 50k time on a ROAD is 7:05.




I ran the pavement portion back to the trail and then walked for awhile as I reentered the trail. I began to plan my paces and decided adding 2 hours to the first 50k loop was a good goal and would give me an overall time of 18 hours or less. On the descent from Wolfkiel I caught another 100k woman and passed her. I left the aid station quickly and decided I was going to put as much distance as I could between her and I. It must have worked because I never saw her again. On the way to AS#2, Petroleum Center, I took pictures and listened to music. I was still upbeat and extremely pleased with my time. I had set a goal of reaching the aid station by the 4 hour mark so I could have 6 hours to do the second half of the loop in the dark. I reached the aid station in just under 4:15 so I was happy with that. I was eating salt and vinegar chips and chasing them with coke when I realized there was another 100k woman in the aid station. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to move up another spot so I hustled out of there at a run hoping to psych her out a little and make her think I was a stronger runner than I really am.



I made it to the top of the hill and called my hubby and girls to let them know I had finished the first loop and was halfway done with the second. Then it was back to jamming to my iPod and trying to make up as much mileage as I could before sunset. About 15 minutes before the sunset I popped my headlamp on and pulled my arm warmers on. I was ready to face the dark, alone. I’ve never run alone at night and I was scared of getting hurt which got me down and slowed my pace a lot. If I do this again I will definitely have a pacer for night. I was passed by 5 men and 1 woman during the night and they all had pacers.



The longest stretch without aid is between AS#2 and #3 and it really wore on me. My stomach was growling and even though I could see the flags that marked the trail ever couple hundred feet I started to think I had missed it somehow. I called my husband extremely upset and talked to him every time I reached the top of a hill (phone service is spotty out there!) until I reached the aid station. Once there I knew I could finish, only 8.4 more miles to go! A 50k runner that is friends with Dannielle told me she had left AS#2 about an hour behind me so I was thrilled to hear she was still going. It had taken me 7:25 to get to AS#3 so I was already going to have a hard time making my goal of 10 hours for the second loop. Of course, that’s where things went downhill. I asked the volunteers to change my headlamp batteries. They got the old ones out but couldn’t get new ones in. They messed with it for half an hour before they finally found me another headlamp and sent me on my way. After not moving for that long I was frozen and stiff. I couldn’t seem to get running again and my mental state had gone from good to pissed off/depressed/etc. I warmed up once I walked a few hills at a fast clip but I was too stiff to get back to truly running. I called my husband again and whined about my predicament for a bit and then put on my big girl panties and forged ahead.



A 100 mile runner who was just barely ahead of cut-off caught up to me. We ran together for awhile but he was falling behind pace so he took off after a mile or two. My Garmin had died at the 13:30 mark so I have no idea how far or how long anything really was at this point. I just kept telling myself I would come to the road soon and then it was easy from there. At the last minute I heard voices behind me and it was the only woman who passed me on the second loop and her pacer. I put up a good fight for about a mile but I couldn’t keep up the pace and finally had to stop and let them pass. I popped out onto the road and I could see the woman’s headlamp bobbing through the darkness as she rounded the Drake Well Museum. I chased her as best I could but lost her at the bridge. I looked back and saw only darkness so I knew no one else was going to catch me before the finish line. I checked my phone and I still had 26 minutes to finish under 19 hours and only about 2 miles to go. I knew I wanted to run through the finish line so I decided to walk the next mile or so at the fastest pace I could manage (I’m estimating 16 mm pace). I couldn’t believe there were still volunteers at the corners of the roads cheering people in but they put on big smiles and encouraged me to keep it up.



I round the last bend and the finish line was in sight. I picked it up to a run, which probably more closely resembled a waddle, and saw the clock said 18:59:25. There was no way I was going 19+ so I hustled through the cones and finished with an official time of 18:59:31. The volunteer there asked my number and then I turned around to see Scott! He had managed an incredible 17:48 and was already showered and in comfy clothes but he still gave me a big hug and helped me into the school.
I enthusiastically collected my buckle and finishers sticker from the R.D. before I dropped my gear in the gym next to my sleeping bag and headed for the showers.



I took off my shoes to find a bloody, nasty mess. My smartwool socks are toast as far as I can tell. It was really hard to peel them off and when I finally did I found ground meat instead of feet. I jumped in the shower to wash away the mud and evaluate the damage. I have three bloody holes from blisters that popped and then rubbed down more, at least 6 more blisters on each foot, 4 black toenails, and an array of dead and peeling skin edges. I carefully dressed in as many layers as I could and then headed for the medical area. The EMT’s kindly bandaged up my feet and sent me off to my sleeping bag.



I tried to sleep for about an hour but everything hurt too much and the gym floor wasn’t helping. I finally collected all my gear and headed into the cafeteria where I stuffed my face with soup and brownies. I said my goodbyes to some of the runners I had met along the way and then I went outside again and cheered in a few more people. I finally decided to leave at about 3AM. I drove about an hour before I decided I was too sleepy to continue. I slept in my car at a truck stop for 2 very uncomfortable hours before I finally drove home and practically dove into my own bed armed with Advil, water, and a Trail Runner magazine from my goody bag.

All in all, this was the best organized and best supplied race I’ve ever done. I loved every minute of it for over ¾ of the race and that’s something that I don’t think has ever happened before. I am stiff, sore, and my left knee (the one that caused me to DNF YUTC 50k) is a mess but I’ve never been happier. My first official 100k is in the books and now I feel much more confident about Umstead in the spring!And I think next year there's a chance I might try for that elusive 100M buckle at Oil Creek!

Taking on the World

Somedays I really feel like I'm carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders. I've been having a lot of these days recently but there isn't much I can do about it. Of course, right about when I started to feel hopeless is when I saw the quote, "If you can't change your circumstances, change your outlook." How appropriate!




I've finally been offered a job I am excited to take. It's a management position so I can finally put that Business Administration degree to work! However, there's a downside. A Monday thru Friday schedule with set and guaranteed hours is going to be great for my budget. It's just going to take away a lot of the time I've been using for homework, workouts, and my family. I'm going to have to rebalance my life and that's a scary thought!

On top of the new job, I'm in my first semester of my Sports Management degree. I LOVE my classes. I'm learning a ton and realizing how much misinformation is out there. I've recommitted to getting my body composition where I want to be and training to be the athlete I want to be instead of the slow plodder I currently am. However, there's always a but right? Full time college on top of a full time job is going to be hard, really hard. I have already started carrying a planner and scheduling my assignments in order of due dates so I get them done on time. The problem is that getting them done now means doing them at night after the kids go to bed and my husband leaves for work. While I used to be able to use that time for a quick run or some weights I now have lost another opportunity for my workouts.

Then there's soccer. I volunteered to coach my daughter's soccer team while I was laid off. I figured it was only for 8 weeks and it would keep me busy and active. Now it's hard to be happy with that decsion. My team is great and the kids are always happy and smiling. We always have fun but motivating myself to get out the door every Monday and Wednesday night instead of plopping down on the couch or going for a run is hard. When I was just a soccer mom I had the luxury of missing a practice. Now that I'm 'Coach Sara' I have to set a good example and show up and work hard. It's been a great lesson in dependability and fortitude.

Then there's the issue of my running which didn't happen for five, yes FIVE, days straight. I attempted to run a 50k last weekend and twisted my knee pretty badly. I got to an aid station and told them I was going to DNF. I have never made such a hard decision in my life. They told me I was only 3 miles from the finish line and I could take a 25k finish if I just walked in the first loop. Despite the creaking and popping in my knee I thought a 25k finish would be better than a DNF so I walked it in. And the but.... The race director told me the volunteers were mistaken and I couldn't be listed as a 25k finisher and I would be listed as a DNF anyway. I cried, I freaked, and I worried. My knee is still sensitive to hills and stairs but thankfully 5 days of rest seems to have it well on the way to mending.

It hasn't all been gloom and doom though. Blessings still abound in my life. The weekend before the 50k disaster my hubby and I ran a beautiful 5k in Slickville, PA called the Heritage Hustle. We both set new PR's (low-23's for him and 27:14 for me) and had a grand old time doing it! My husband also just celebrated his '29th birthday for the 3rd time' and we used his birthday weekend as an excuse to travel to a fun 5k. I was still worried about my knee so I promised Shane he could go as fast as he liked and I would run with our older daughter for a little bit and then just go as fast as I could handle while pushing the baby in the stroller.

It turned out to be a better day than I could have hoped for. I lost my older daughter in the crowds before mile 1 but she's experienced enough at this point to be okay on her own. I decided to go at an 'I'm working but I'm not dying' pace and see what happened. My knee behaved and I only walked once for a fairly large hill. At the end of mile 1, the volunteer said I had done mile 1 in about 10:45. I did some quick math in my head and thought, "Hey, I can beat my last stroller-pushing time of 35 minutes!" I picked up the pace coming off of the uphill and passed quite a few people. I leap frogged with another mother pushing a baby in a stroller for the rest of the race. My split at mile 2 was something like just under 21 minutes. I pushed to keep up with the other stroller mom who was just in front of me at this point. I was starting to get mad because she was switching the stroller off with her mother who was running with her. It didn't seem fair that she got a break and I didn't! I couldn't let her beat me like that! Coming up to the third mile marker I pushed harder and caught a few more people and started to gain on stroller mom. Then she paused to adjust the baby her stroller! It was my chance! I swerved around her and into the finish shoot for a time of 30:54 and a 4:06 PR over my old stroller time!

It turns out Team Brunazzi had a great day all around. My hubby missed a PR and ran high-23's but took second in his age group. My daughter set a new PR and took second in her age group and I took third in my age group! I never, ever would have thought I could score an age group award while pushing a stroller! What an awesome uplift right when my spirits were low!




Overall, I'm still scared of what's coming with my new job, school, and races. I've got a full schedule with more being added daily. But I'm trying to take it one day, one assignment, one run at a time and just be grateful that I'm able to do all of this at all!

Change Is Never Easy

Recently, I've felt on top of the world. My running seems to be improving and I've set new mileage and pace PR's. I finished my first 50 Mile Race and I'm looking forward to my upcoming 100k.

I've also won several contests from blogs like Run Wifey Run and Run Faster, mommy! Thanks to them and several of their wonderful sponsors I will be running the inaugural Rock N Roll Savannah Marathon and hanging out with the other winners of the Race and Relax weekend! I'm also going to be receiving a beautiful medal hanger from Allied Medal Displays to show off my girls' race bling! I love their medal hangers so much that I have bought two already and hope to purchase more!

On top of all these wonderful things I am finally going to school for what I love, Health and Wellness. Part of my curriculum is measuring my own body composition. I decided to use several methods including bioelectric impedence, girth measurement, and the BodPod. If you're interested in finding a BodPod near you COSMED has a search feature here. According to my bioelectric impedence scale I am around 23% body fat. I've heard horrible things about these scales so I hoped it was pretty far off. My girth measurements only came out slightly better at 22%. I was still hopeful that the BodPod would hold a pleasant surprise. However, my results were not what I'd hoped:

In case you can't read that, it says I am 22.8% fat. That means I'm carrying 30 pounds of fat around. Don't misunderstand me please. This isn't horrible but it's not really 'athletic' either. Everybody needs a certain amount of fat to be healthy and women need more than men. My goal has been 18% for awhile now and I was very surprised to learn that I'm not there yet (by a long shot). I have about 6 pounds of fat to lose to get there. I really thought I'd be closer considering I've lost 7 pounds in the last couple months. What I'm realizing, however, is that diet and strength training are of far more importance than I ever knew. I thought that running 40-50 miles every week was enough to keep my body fat down but when I came home and ate a bowl of ice cream and half a bag of Twizzlers I wasn't giving my body the fuel it needed and it was storing this 'junk' as fat. On top of that, my body is very used to running long distances and for long periods of time. My muscles have reached a plateau now. Without heavy strength training like I was doing at CrossFit I will not continue to see gains in strength and muscle development.

So how do I make it right and reach my goals? Well the first thing I did was substitute a weight routine for yesterday's run. I didn't have time to do both so I made the conscious choice to use my time to pursue the activity that would help me achieve my goals. As a grown up sometimes I have to hike up my big girl britches and do things that aren't particularly enjoyable in the pursuit of long-term satisfaction. I enjoy weight training but not as much as I enjoy running so to balance both I'm going to have to sacrifice something. Given that school, family, and work aren't flexible I decided to sacrifice my much beloved sleep. I got out of bed at 6AM instead of 7 today and got the ball rolling on our morning an hour earlier. Instead of dressing in 'normal' clothes I put on my running clothes. After everyone was ready for the day I walked my older daughter to the bus stop as usual, except instead of carrying the baby I was pushing her in the jogging stroller. As soon as Gem was on the bus I turned for the trail instead of heading home. Four miles later I was feeling productive and the baby was sleepy. At home I put her down for a nap and took advantage of the down time to do a 30 minute kettlebell routine. That still left me enough time to shower and dress before she woke up.

I'm amazed already at how much more energy I have and how much more productive I feel then when I would wait until afternoon to try to cram in a workout. I'm hoping that if I can make this a routine I will be able to continue to increase my mileage without sacrificing strength training and nutrition ever again. I've been so worried about what's going to happen when I find another job and how it will affect my athletic endeavors but maybe, just maybe I've been worrying over nothing. In the end it's all about change and using our energy to find solutions instead of worrying about the problem. I know it's not going to be easy and I still have a long way to go but I'm so grateful for the community of athletes and experts that I've found and the support of my family and friends.

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.
Leo Tolstoy

It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad.
C. S. Lewis

The Banshee vs. the Baker

I ran my first 50 mile ultra yesterday and it was amazing! The Baker website doesn't do this race justice at all. It is a run in three sections over the course of three years. Each 50 mile section holds its own charms and obstacles (and medals)! This year I faced the North section which is almost entirely trail. There is about 6 miles of road and 8 miles of rails-to-trails. I couldn't wait to earn the first piece of the three piece medal! I think it is just the neatest idea ever!



I am thanking my lucky stars that my running buddies and I did some training runs on the trail. You may remember my previous post about the training run where we got lost three or four different times, running out of water along the way. Because of those practice runs and tough lessons I was much more cautious about following the blazes and I never strayed off course, even correcting a few runners before they got too far away. Nothing like good trail karma!





I spent the night before with Danielle, her husband, Eric, and another girlfriend, Kathie. The ladies were taking part in the relay and my friend's husband and I were competing in the full ultra. We topped off our race day reserves with brats, baked beans, tortilla chips with salsa, and marshmellows toasted in the fire (chased down with cosmos, of course). It was a great way to relax and keep the pre-race jitters at bay!





The next morning we took a bus from the Brookville YMCA (finish line) to the starting line in Cook's Forest just in time for the 6:30AM start. It was a bumpy, uncomfortable ride but we made the best of it!



At the starting line I was pleasantly surprised to see my Team reGen teammate, Tom, as well as another old running buddy of mine, also named Tom! I was introduced to many other running friends and the crisp morning air had everyone in fine spirits.



We ran about a quarter mile up the road and made a right turn into the woods. Dannielle was running the first and last legs of the relay so I was glad to have her company for the first 12 miles! We set out at a good clip and I tried to just hang on while I got warmed up. The first 10 miles or so are fairly good running with only a few rocks and roots so I may have gone a little too fast on these miles while enjoying my trail time with my BFF. My splits for the first twelve miles were 14:01 (bottleneck at the trailhead), 11:58, 11:31, 12:11, 14:22, 14:45, 14:18, 13:00, 14:23, 11:37, 12:34, and 14:29. The 14 minute miles were uphill! ;)

At the second aid station (mile 11.8) I bid fairwell to Dannielle and struck out on my own. It was the first really steep climb of the course. It's been groomed to be gigantic dirt stairs and the scenery is really gorgeous. A cyclonic storm knocked down a lot of the huge trees so there's giant skeleton trunks everywhere amid the new growth. It was only 3 miles to the next aid station at the fire tower and I slowed down to enjoy it (17:49, 17:41, 16:08). Coming out of the fire tower there is a steep downhill with lots of rocks and roots as well as more than enough switchbacks to last me a month! It slowed me down quite a bit as I tried not to blow my quads this early in the game. From there it was another 3 mile jaunt to the next aid station and I was feeling pretty good (16:08, 17:49, 20:48). That last split tells me I lingered a bit too long at the aid station!



It was 4.4 miles and a REALLY steep climb to the next aid station where I also had my drop bag stashed. I started out with a SPIbelt and an Ultimate Direction handheld and thought I would pick up my Nathan hydration vest at this aid station. I felt so good I decided to stick with the handheld and all I picked up was my iPod (15:43, 17:00, 17:06, 19:00) as I congratulated myself on being almost to the halfway point only 3 miles away. It gave me a much needed mental boost and my next splits showed it (11:45, 14:07, 14:18).

Heading out of the halfway aid station I was enjoying myself and thinking that at the 30 mark I would be 60% done! I could barely believe it! It was a steep downhill for the most part again and I walked more than I should have to the next aid station (18:39, 19:15, 13:54). It was at this aid station that I hit the 30 mile mark and really started to feel the strain I was placing on my body. Right at the 50k mark was another short but very steep climb and I think I overtaxed myself passing a couple people who paused halfway up. My splits to the 35 mile aid station were 14:07, 17:29, 15:49, 21:10, 20:04, 21:38, and 16:48. Those 20 minute miles were nothing but walking and they really gave me a mental kick in the gut. I told myself I just needed to get to the next aid station at 41 miles and pull myself together. I tried to stick the guys in front of my as best I could but I eventually lost them (20:46, 18:39, 18:48, 18:39, 18:09, and 21:05).

At the 41 mile aid station I picked up some new company, a man named Donnie who was doing his second year of the Baker. He was also having a rough time and we decided to stick it out together. We started out by trying to run a half mile at a time before walking. It really helped us both as we approached the 44 mile aid station (15:32, 15:52, 18:19). We spent a couple minutes using the Port-a-potty (YAY!) and getting rehydrated for the next push to the 47 mile aid station. My Garmin died during this section so my last split for mile 45 was 20:32. After that we relied on Donnie's Garmin and resorted to running a quarter mile at a time. We used the facilities at the last aid station and I ate a Reese's peanutbutter cup. I think that was just the magic I needed!

I started to feel good. We could walk 20 minute miles and still finish under the cutoff. My hopes and my spirits rose and we started to pick people off with our running spurts. We started to run more and walk less and every step was like a weight off my shoulders. A mile from the finish we were walking up a short hill and a race volunteer started yelling at us to 'step it up' and 'you're not going to make it'! Donnie and I freaked out. We hauled ass to the bottom of the short uphill that leads to the finish line. We recognized the courthouse that is less than a block away from the YMCA where we would finish. I asked Donnie what his watch said and he told me we had almost 40 minutes to make it about a quarter mile. I laughed about it but that volunteer scaring us like that left a bitter taste in my mouth. It was the only bad experience of my entire race.



We walked up the hill, made a right turn down an alley, then a left up a hill, and a quick right to the finish line! I had made it! The race director, Steve, scanned my tag for the final time and handed me a medal! Dannielle snuck up from behind me and about tackled me! It was better than getting any other award so far. Official time was 13:31:14 and 60/66 finishers. There were 7 DNF's.



Dannielle and Eric treated me like royalty. They had been done for hours but hung around just to see me finish. They put together food and brought me soda and water (and reGen!). Eric even took my drop bags to my car and brought me back my finish line bag so I could shower and change at the Y's facilities. I've never been so grateful to my friend's in my life. They really made this race experience amazing!




To top it off I called my husband to let him know that I was alive and would be headed home shortly. It turned out that he'd decided to race a 5k that morning and had taken first place in his age group and 30th overall! He got a picture with one of our congressmen and a really nice trophy. I was so proud of him! What a great team we make!



I was very pleased to learn that my fellow reGen runner, Tom, had finished 30th overall with a time of 11:48. Dannielle's husband, Eric, finished around 11:30 and my good friend, Tom, finished 10th overall with a time of 10:24! Dannielle and Kathie's relay team came in 4th out of 7 with a time of 10:20! I'm surrounded by awesomesauce!

Switching Teams

No this post isn't about anything to do with my personal life!

Now that I've got that out of the way I can get on with my report of the Run for Hunger 4 Mile Trail Race. My Team reGen teammate, Tom, is the director for this race and he sure knows how to put on a great event. My husband decided to participate in his first trail race which made the day even better.

We barely made it to the start on time (2PM). My husband underestimated the drive time but thankfully I'm a lead-foot. We pulled into Birdsfoot Golf Club and parked on a steep hillside (thank you Jeep!). Shane ran over to the tent to register while I gathered our gear and donations. I made it to the table to sign my waiver right as Tom was leading the group of runners to the starting line. We did a quick introduction and left it at that for now.

At the starting line I missed the instructions in my rush to use the Port-o-john. Shane filled me in right as Tom blew the airhorn and we were off! We started up a golf cart road that was curving and first up then down. About a quarter mile in the grade increased sharply and I decided to slow down a bit. A young girl and a woman passed me so I was now third overall woman and it didn't seem like there was anyone close behind as we made a turn into the woods. The trail was very technical single track and I was concentrating hard on not twisting my ankle when I heard heavy breathing behind me. I looked back and it was a woman who appeared to be in her 30's. I almost let her pass because she wasn't in my age group but since I was in third place overall I decided to try to outpace her. Less than a mile into a race that probably wasn't the best idea.


At the 1 mile mark we came into a field and at this point the woman overtook me. We made a left turn back into the woods and I tried to stick to her but the voices in my head were telling me I was asking for an injury that would prevent me from running the Baker 50 mile next weekend. I started to let her pull away and hoped she would slow more than I would in the next 3 miles.



The trail met an access road and the race course turned to follow it. The access road then met a dirt road and we turned onto that. This was the one and only water stop and I was glad that I had chosen to carry a handheld on such a hot day. I thanked the volunteers and then turned left to follow the blazes into the woods again. The trail became even more technical and we were travelling uphill once again. It was at this point that I lost the woman who had passed me, just before the two mile mark. I was by myself now and was cautiously trying to follow the switchbacks up the hill without slowing too much.



At the top of the ridgeline we made a turn down the other side. Instead of switchbacks the downhill was a straight-on attack and it was covered with loose rocks and larger, immobile rocks and roots. I started to really worry about getting hurt here but I pushed on. I could hear people on the switchbacks behind me and it wasn't long before two men and a woman overtook me.

There were 4 stream crossings at the bottom of the hill. We criss-crossed Buffalo Creek and at first I tried to stay dry. While I was tiptoeing through the first crossing another woman caught me. I realized I would have to throw caution to the wind if I was going to maintain my position. I splashed through the next 3 crossings and kept a slight lead on the other woman. Somewhere in this patch my Garmin beeped out the 3 mile mark.



After the water crossings we started up the biggest climb of the race. I walked most of it and started chatting up the woman behind me, partially to entertain us both and partially to keep her from passing me. I learned it was her first trail race and she was wearing Vibram Fivefingers. Can you say ouch?! I could feel the rocks and roots through the rock plate in my trail shoes! Thankfully it leveled out at the top and I got back up to a jog and kept my lead. There were many, many downed trees and logs in this area and they slowed me down quite a bit. I scraped my thigh up quite a bit trying to cross over one of the ones that didn't have the bark removed. It slowed me enough that I heard footsteps again and I looked back to see two women moving swiftly up. I tried to stay ahead of them but I knew it was futile. Just as my watch beeped 4 miles I heard, "excuse me" from behind and stepped aside. I couldn't believe how well they were moving and it wasn't until after I finished that I realized they were half marathoners from the 1PM start and this was their finishing push. Then I didn't feel so bad about them passing me anymore.



I started to wonder if I had missed a turn as my Garmin read 4.1 then 4.2 and then 4.3. Finally I came out of the woods at the top of the golf cart road. I was about to run down it when I realized there were more pink flags leading runners back into the woods. I sighed deeply and then pushed on. Another quarter mile of switchbacks brought us back out of the woods and onto the golf course. I gave it all I had down the hill and then it began to rise again. I could see the finish line at the top and the clock read 59:50. I didn't think I could make it in under an hour but I gave my all and managed to get an official time of 59:57 and a Garmin distance of 4.8 miles.

I located my husband and enjoyed just sitting in the perfectly manicured grass for awhile. We chatted with some others and cheered in the next few runners. Tom came over and asked what we thought of his race and we agreed that it was much more technical than we had expected but enjoyable nonetheless. He told us food, a raffle, and awards would be happening in half an hour back at the tent so we headed down to get some fluids while we waited.

The event was catered by Fivestar Catering and the spaghetti and salad were excellent! Each runner was given 5 tickets to put in the bags for the chinese auction which included CEP arm coolers, technical socks, gift certificates to the local running store, handheld water bottles, a Brooks hat, and vegetable baskets from a local farm. Shane and I didn't win anything but it was still fun to hope!

When the results print out went up I couldn't find my name and I started to worry that I'd gotten missed. However, it turned out I was looking too far down! I'm used to being in the bottom 50% and this time I was 18th overall! I was beyond thrilled when I realized I'd taken 1st place in my age group. I was 6th woman overall. My husband finished in 52:28, 7th overall, and 2nd in his age group. It was a very good day for Team Brunazzi!





After all was said and done we thanked Tom for his hospitality and I slipped into my reGen shirt to snap some pics with him. (This is where the switching teams comes into play!) His daughter ran the 4 mile race as well and got 3rd in the 1-14 age group. She's going to give my daughter some stiff competition when we finally get them into a race together! We promised to catch eachother at another race soon and then my husband and I headed home.



Overall, I am very pleased with this race, our performances, and meeting a fellow teammate. I hope that next year we'll be able to do it again and hopefully place even better!