Red Dress Run

I found out there was a Red Dress Run happening in Pittsburgh through Facebook. I've been meaning to get to a hash run for years and I'd even looked at a Red Dress Run in Washington, D.C. but hadn't been able to make it. Every couple months I look up the local Hash House Harriers club and try to figure out ways that I could actually make it to one of their runs. So when it came up that this one was on a Saturday afternoon I couldn't resist checking it out.

I went to the mall on Friday and looked for leftover prom dresses on the clearance racks. I found this beauty (disaster) for a whopping $6.99!

On Saturday morning I finally managed to convince Shane to join me. I ran out to Walmart and bought him a red beach coverup dress to run in. I barely made it back to the house in time to get us ready and out the door but we made it to Bella Notte in the Strip District right on time.

We were immediately introduced to Rotten and Squirrelio and a few others. I was instructed to introduce myself as 'Just Sara' so the regulars would know I was a 'new boot'. Shane went to make the donations for us and change. The run was benefitting a member recovering from a traumatic arm injury. The cost was only $20 and a little pride.

I ordered a beer and started chatting with some of the regulars. They were very friendly and welcoming. Once I started to look around I noticed the looks on the faces of people walking by and I couldn't help furtively snapping pics of their expressions. The best part was that Pittsburgh Pride, an Adam Lambert concert, and the Arts Festival were all going on at the same time so for us to be the most shocking thing these people had seen all day was awesome.

About an hour after the specified 'start' time everyone had finally arrived and was inebriated enough to begin. We had a 'circle' to start off where the 'new boots' were made to stand apart and introduce themselves while the members yelled things at us. The course markings were also explained.

 Back checks, false path, arrows, and Beer nears!

 

circle

 

As soon as everyone had some understanding of what we were up to it was time to run. We headed right down the middle of the road, stopped traffic and crossed into a parking lot where I followed my first false trail. I got to jump some concrete jersey barriers and run across a field to catch up to my husband with the lead group.

 

 

We were up and down steps, around fountains, and in and out of alleys before we finally ended up at the first beer stop, a tiny bar that didn't even have a sign right next to the stage where Adam Lambert was doing his sound check for the finale of the Pride Parade!

 

 

I grabbed a drink and hung out watching the sound check and talking to some of the members. I met many runners with crazy names such as Sock Puppet, Spermit, Betty Crockashit, Dinosoreass, and Donkey Ho Te. I've never met such crazy adults in my life! I totally fit right in!

 

Beer Stop #1

 

After about a half hour we headed out again. Through tunnels, over fences, and through fields. People were clapping and cheering as the herd of 60-ish runners in red dresses ran through. I kept waiting for the police milling around to start grabbing us and writing citations but they seemed more amused than anything. And no one ever did answer my question about who carries the bail money...

 

 

The second beer stop was the Tilted Kilt and we spent quite a long time there eating fries and mozzarella sticks and drinking. We overtook most of the patio and the back room and I guess we scared off a birthday party because they left their signs behind. 'Look Who's Old', 'Happy Birthday', and '65' were all conveniently already stapled to sticks. So instead of pace signs we now had birthday signs as we headed out for beer stop 3.

 

 

 

The third beer stop ended up being someone's apartment. We congregated outside and a folding table and a keg were brought out. There were also chips, cookies, and water. Unfortunately it was getting rather late and we needed to pick up our kids soon. So Shane and I missed out on the rest of the hash and headed back to our car.

 

Wonder (Woman) Unders?

 

Overall, I would say this was an awesome experience. Next time I get the opportunity I will know to leave Shane at home with the kids (he wasn't really into running around downtown in a dress and bar hopping) so I can stay for the whole time. I will also know better than to stick with the lead group. I ended up with 6.75 miles during what was supposed to be a 4-5 mile run thanks to following every false trail and check. (Not that I minded!) Finally, I will know to carry cash and my ID. I only had one beer and spent the rest of the time drinking pop and water. The one waitress even tried to card me for a Pepsi!

 

So, if you've ever thought about going to a hash or if drinking and running sound like the perfect day to you then I highly recommend looking up your local chapter and going all in! Just don't wear new shoes for your first hash... take my word on it.

 

Only The Strong Survive

"I will not be forgotten.

This is my time to shine.

I've got the scars to prove it,

Only the strong survive.

 

I'm not afraid of dying;

Everyone has their time.

Life never favored weakness.

Welcome to the pride."

~Five Finger Death Punch

 

 

You may not be a fan of heavy rock or alternative or whatever you want to classify 5FDP as. However, this song went on my playlist because the lyrics SPEAK to me. I vowed to myself that I wouldn't be weak this training cycle. I swore that I wouldn't make excuses to quit or lessen the burden of training. I promised that I would find out exactly how deep I can dig and just how strong I am. I wanted to be one of those runners. You know, the ones who run in the pouring rain at 4am because it's the only time they could run? One of those runners who never gives up because life throws them a curve ball. I think they could justifiably be called a 'pride'.

So when I got called into work unexpectedly Wednesday night I had to make some quick adjustments on the fly. A planned 10 mile run got swapped with cross training. I banged out 40 minutes worth of strength training before I raced off to work the 4 to midnight shift. I promised myself that I would run my 10 miles as soon as I got home even though I had been up since 6am already. I moved 10 foot long pipes back and forth through our shop all night. I dealt with a major crisis with a radioactive source that could have proved dangerous but thankfully didn't. I wondered every minute how I could survive a run after this but reminded myself that I will feel worse at Burning River and probably have more than 10 miles to go at that point. I needed to be strong!

Then my boss put another wrench in my plans. Two of our guys are down sick so I needed to come back in at 8am and put in another shift. That meant getting home at 1am, sleeping for 5 hours, and then going back to work. No way to put 10 miles in unless I wanted to be in a coma by lunch time. I dragged myself back into the shop and loaded all of those 10 foot pipes on a truck for our customer BY HAND because we're not allowed to touch them with a fork truck or crane. I loaded heavy castings for another customer and then started working on some different castings we had in the lab. I was exhausted. I was starving. And all I could think about was running.

I begged my brain not to give my legs excuses. I bargained with myself. "Just get on the treadmill and see what you can do." Finally, my relief arrived and I was able to head home. I stopped and picked up some fish food on the way. I puttered around the kitchen sorting mail and drinking water when I got home. I fed the fish some new food. I basically did anything to avoid putting on my running shoes. Then Shane woke up and I knew it was now or never.

I asked him to get Gem off the bus and pick up Ash so I could run and he agreed. (I'm a lucky wife, huh?) I changed and headed down to the basement like a prisoner headed for the electric chair. I popped in a movie and started out slowly. My legs protested at first but then it started to feel better. The knot of worry and stress in my chest released and I felt like I could breathe again. My stride started to loosen up and I was able to get close to the pace I was supposed to hit.

I didn't push myself to hit the recommended paces. I know that being awake for close to 40 hours with only a nap in the middle wasn't the preferred state for training. I went with the flow and even paused to grab some cookies for a quick sugar hit when I started to fade. The next thing I knew:

BAM! Ten miles done!

 

And now I know.... I am one of the strong. I will survive whatever life throws at me: job, personal, or anything else. I survived crazy work hours, a long way to run on the treadmill, and my fourth ACSM CPT class. And I'll survive working again tomorrow and whatever it may bring. Welcome to the pride!