The Anti-Race Recap...

This is your not-so-typical race recap for the Nike Women's Marathon held October 16, 2011.  Why??  Well, truth be told, I didn't run it.  As a matter of fact, I didn't even run the HALF Marathon.  And, while I was tempted to not even show up for the event at all, I ended up not only drinking {alcohol, that is} the night before, I also drank during the race.

Partner's in crime, Coleen, Stephi and me at Nike Town.

Finding ME on the wall of over 22,000 entrants.

Let me back track a moment.  My friends and I entered the lottery for the Nike Women's Marathon months prior to the event.  We had been training for Rock n' Roll San Diego for several weeks and were apparently on a semi-permanent runner's high when we entered the lottery.  Training was still in the fun phase (long runs under 16 miles) and, much like loading up your plate at the all you can eat buffet, our dreams were bigger than our running appetites...well, at least mine were.

Many months passed between being selected in the lottery and the actual event.  Summer came and went along with a few races...a half-marathon and a trail 10k followed by Tough Mudder Norcal one month prior to NWM.  I had started doing some cross training (Kettlebells and Insanity) to prepare for Tough Mudder while trying to still squeeze in some trail runs.  My road miles suffered, badly.  Then, to make matters worse, Nike, who not only continues to abuse their workers in sweat shops but then re-signed Michael Vick as their spokesperson.

I am proud to have NEVER owned ny Nike gear.

Now, so far I have tried to stay away from controversial topics in this blog BUT, I make no apologize for being Anti-Vick.  I will save you all of the details but have stated publicly that I will NEVER purchase any item from Nike (or any other Vick sponsorers) because I truly believe he is a horrible role model and Nike has proven to be the epitome of a greedy, heartless corporation.  For those that say Vick's paid his debt to 'society' I disagree, he never served one day for animal abuse even though he killed dogs with his own bare hands.

Yeah, I'm holding a grudge...

So, that being said, I found the marathon approaching fast and my desire to run it dwindling away.  It was the perfect storm...lack of any long runs (my longest since Rock N Roll San Diego in June was 13.1 miles), lack of motivation (call it the let down after completing Tough Mudder), lack of a clear goal (although I want to set a new PR I also want to make sure I do it with proper training so I won't feel the need to run yet another marathon if this one turned out to be less than expected), and a very strong dislike for the massive amounts of Nike being shoved down my throat.

Coleen and I with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

Thankfully, my good friend {and running buddy} Coleen convinced me to just show up.  Due to some health issues, she and some other friends had decided to walk the half-marathon and to make it FUN.  No time expectations, no PR's, no pressure...but we'd still get our Tiffany necklace (handed out by the men of the San Francisco Fire Department no less) and spend some quality time together.  To seal the deal we went out for drinks the night before (something we would NEVER do prior to a race).

Martini flights at the Grandview Bar atop the Hyatt in Union Square {delicious}!!

I ended up having a great nights sleep and woke up race day a bit excited.  It was so strange to be getting dressed in my regular running gear and as we headed the .9 miles to Union Square for the start I actually felt like throwing our plans to wind and running the race.  But a promise is a promise and Coleen held me to it.  Somewhere between mile 2 and 3 she even dragged me by the arm into a bar at The Cannery where we downed a couple of rather large Bloody Marys.

When we stepped out of the bar I thought I saw the sweep vehicle coming up the street so we did actually run for a bit and eventually caught up to the other girls in our group.  I have to admit vodka burns...but Gatorade seems to squelch the burn. =)

Overall, we had a great time, took some fun pictures along the way, and Brightroom was able to capture the best finish picture ever!

1, 2, 3, Jump...wait, jump on "3" or jump on "Jump"??

My future plans still include ONE more full marathon, but I will be much more selective this time round...and I will probably join a running group to help me stay on track.  I have a trail 10k next month and my wedding in December!!  This fall and winter I'll be focusing on short to medium distance running (5-13 mile runs), pilates, kettlebells and Insanity to get my weight and body fat to goal (something I find impossible to do during marathon training).

At least my cat, Avi liked the Swag Bag!! =)

So, there's my confession.  And yes, I do feel a little bad for 'taking' someone else's spot who didn't get selected in the lottery.  But at least I learned a few lessons from this...1-Don't register for any more Nike sponsored events, 2-Join a running group and train prior to my next my marathon, and 3-It IS possible to let go of expectations and just have fun.