[51] A Lil Pip in My Step

Pipsqueek's dirty little secret: trails and rails.

With the Royal Wedding in the history books, Pippa Middleton's moved onto greener pastures. Literally. In the wake of recent breakup and where do we find her? Competing and completing duathalons and triathalons! In the last month alone, she participated in the GE Blenheim Triathalon (June 4th; Woodstock, England)  and the Highland Cross 2011 (Jine 18th; Invitational Duathalon; Kintail to Beauly, Scotland).

I'm tired of the talk about Pippa's posterior and the simple suggestions some sites give about swimming and pilates. Take one looks at the girl's arms and you can tell that she's a long time athlete. Training for distance running takes time. Throwing added challenges of cycling and swimming into the mix is by no means a simple task. I have yet to graduate to this stage of endurance racing, so I am blown away by Little Middleton's accomplishments. 

I would be curious to see what training program she follows and if she is a Nike+ User. Looking at some of the pictures of the Duathalon, it appears she is using the same Gray/Pink Nike+ SportBand and Nathan Sensor Pocket that I have. I am certain that if she does use the Nike+ system, I am sure there could be a possible surge in users for those who are obsessed with following the Royals. Surveying her running gear, I do like that she is properly geared up for the events she is participating, including small details like racing gloves. From what I can tell is that New Balance 860s are her running shoe of choice as she is wearing them at both events.

If Runner's World UK could land an interview with her, it might pave the way for a new wave of younger female runners. I would fork out $7.99 (£4.50) for that issue, maybe even extra if they can get her to do a cover. She would be an interesting "I'm A Runner" interview. Honestly, I am curious to see what endurance race she chooses to participate in next or who's worthy to make her play list.

Oh, and her 5K time during the Blenheim Triathalon?

25'30".

[Referenced]

• "PM Completes Grueling 50-Mile Duathalon" (US Weekly UK)
• "Pippa Middleton Charity Race Pictures" (PopSugar)
• "Her Royal Even Hotterness!" (DailyMail UK)

[47] Hoofing It Round Holyrood

Race: Race for Life for Cancer UK  
Distance: 5K (3.11 Mi)

Date/Time: Sunday June 19, 2011 at 12:00 PM

Location: Holyrood Park, Edinburgh, Scotland

Weather: Cool, 50s, overcast (threatening to rain)

Bib#: 16,574

[Times]
Clock Time: 38:30
Nike+ Time/Splits: 037:28 (Pace: 11'32"; 366 Cal)

• Mile 1: 13:34 (13'34")
• Mile 2: 26:10 (12'36")
• Mile 3: 35:22 (9'12") [Remaining 0.11 Mile: 8'26"]

[Event Atmosphere]
Much like the Revlon Run/Walk in NYC, Race for Life (and fighting women's cancers) is one huge girl power, happy lovefest. Mothers, daughters, sisters, survivors, fighters, and friends all running and laughing together. The warm up consisted of a trio of aerobic instructors leading the crowd in a feel good warm up. I was told to dial down my south Floridian soul because most of the ladies couldn't dance like "those Americans." ;)

[Fashion Choice] lululemon athletical sprint tights, New Balance White Skirt, NWM Finisher's top, and Gasparilla Nike Miler long sleeved top.  

[Race]

"It can't be more than two kilo up hill," were the famous last words of Sarah. Sure enough, the incline leading to the breathtaking view of Holyrood Park and most of Edinburgh was 2.15KM in a narrow, winding incline which resulted in a bit of bottle necking and struggling for run space. Try as I may, still fresh of the plane from the states by a few days, a dip in weather, and a hike in altitude all conspired against me. I power dragged myself up the hill, and cleared the apex. The path flattened out and wound its way between two lush, green crags. It may not be the Scottish Highlands, but it was pretty darn high up (for me at least).

I stopped for a few photographs along the way. After clearing the third kilometer, things got easier as the path started to slope downward. Gravity amped up my momentum, but I was still a bit worried about the winding path ahead. I see participants from another race in Holyrood, but they were actually tackling the hills and grassy paths! There was an accident in that race which resulted in a substantial delay to our race start time, but thankfully, they got the injured person urgent care. Keeping that in mind, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't the next poor soul they carted off Holyrood in an ambulance. Park goers stopped and cheered as we plodded along. 

Turning the final corner and seeing the finish line gave me a bit of a kick, but my legs were not game for cooperating. Though the race started off overcast and cold, the sun popped out and suddenly my long sleeved shirt became a very poor fashion choice. The MC was calling out the clock time, and the barriers were packed with friends, family, and locals all out for the race. Even though it wasn't a chip timed event, a race clock was posted. Looking at the yellow numbers tick by, I remembered running with Susie and our "finish it in under 40'" dash. Sarah and I cranked it up and turned it out. I didn't mind her finishing before me, as I was grateful that I simply tackled my first race in a foreign country.

Running side by side with one of my long time friends from Japan, really meant a tremendous bit to me. Sarah was a solid support for me when I moved across the prefecture to the other side of Tottori, and we spent many nights chatting about many things over bottles of wine. When a mutual acquaintance of our lost her battle to cancer last year, Sarah was the one to tell me. When I told her about my wanting to run the race while visiting Scotland, she asked to join me and we ran together in Nicole's memory. The hardest thing about running the race with Sarah and catching up on four years worth of life and soaking up the local Scottish culture, was knowing that I would have to leave it shortly there after. 

Looks like I may need to come back to Edinburgh very soon!

[Fartlek Drills]
With the heat and humidity back home, I have spent most o my recent training on long, slower runs to rebuild my endurance. With the Queens Half-marathon looming ahead, what little training I have been fitting in has been geared toward that. I realized as I sprinted the last 1/4 mile toward the finish chute, that I need to do more speed drills. More precisely,  while I was hunched over just past the finish line, feeling like my diaphragm was about to eject my lungs through my throat, I realized my power surges need to be better ingrained.

A fartlek (stop snickering right now; it's Swedish), is a speed drill used to help train athletes to control bursts of speed. By doing the drills over time, one should be able to increase their speed techniques. My greatest difficulty is finding a location to practice fartleks without my students (or infinitely more fit colleagues) watching me. The Westchester Road Runners utilize the track near White Plains High School, but that is in the center of town, and I am still not ready to make that debut just yet.

I may just need to suck it up and use the turf field as it had permanent lines and is right in my back yard.

[46] British Invasion

Summer vacation is so close, I can taste it! What does that mean precisely? My trip to the UK & Ireland has finally arrived! Although my racing wish list took a hit or two, I am still really excited about being able to experience racing, not only in a different country, but in a completely different part of the world! Granted, the UK is another English speaking country (the Queen's English to be precise, as opposed to Queens Boro English which is a completely different story ;) ). In the last three months, my destination running plans have chagned a big, but I believe for the better.

[Revised Race Rundown]

• England: Marston Forest 5K: Scrapped from the travel list. I never received a reply from the race director which was disappointing, as I wanted to take a stab at trail racing.
• Scotland: Jog Scotty -> Race for Life Edinburgh (Holyrood Park; June 19th @ Noon): I grew antsy waiting for JS to update their summer schedule, so I sought out another avenue for racing. It worked out for the best because 1) I found a race date within my travel dates, and more importantly 2) I am running it with one of gal pals from when I lived in Japan. One of our colleagues, Nicole, lost her battle to cancer last year, so we are running the race together in her memory. I love that I can share running with another one of my long time friends, especially one who ran before I took it up! I already have my racing number (#16574), so now I just have to pack accordingly.
• Ireland: Strawberry Festival 5 Mile Road Race (Riverside Park Hotel Promenade; June 26th @11AM): This race I am a little nervous about as my Couch Surfing requests have not been answered as of yet. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but worst case scenario, I'll hope some racers will take pity upon the pitiful, lost American girl.
• No headphones: Will need to use Nike+ SportBand & HRM.
• Only 1 water station at 2 mile mark: Hmm... may need to invest in running bottle
• Timed race with running chip
• All Finishers receive: a finisher's medal, technical t-shirt, and free tea and sandwiches at the HQ hotel!
• In conjunction with the Strawberry Festival, so there will be things to do before and after the race!

[19] Destination Running - UK Edition

In June, I am planning a trip to the UK shortly after work lets out. After a little inspiration from lululemon and Running Times, I elected to modify my initial travel goals. Out of curiosity, I ran a search for races in the UK, specifically near London. I have friends from my time in Japan living in various locations throughout the British Isles, so this would be a fantastic way to keep fit while on vacation. When I was home over Christmas, it was a 'Train-cation', but this would be a 'destination race-cation'! Being a subscriber to Runner's World, I opted to sign up for access to the Runner's World UK website as I am certain they are the most accurate and informative running website across the pond.

After school lets out in June, I am anticipating jetting across the Atlantic around the 15th (provide everything falls into place), and returning home on the 30th. Surprisingly, running will be taking a back seat on this trip as I want to spend time with my friends and explore the cities! This is why I'm electing to select shorter distance races for the time being. Extra kilometers (gotta use the metric system in EU) will certainly be logged as I lose myself in the cities and subways. Accommodation is my primary concern, but I am very tempted to try Couch Surfing so as to save money during my travels. If I am lucky, maybe someone will be willing to put me up for the night here and there. 

Tackling 4 races in four countries two weeks? Can I earn my Union Jack?

{England: 'Yank'in' Their Chains}
Yeah, so I've been to EuroLand twice and I've never been to England. I have also never attempted a trail race, so I would like to try the Marston Forest 5K (in Marston Moretaine, Bedford; Cost: £10.00) on Friday, June 17th. An evening race (7:30PM) through the English forest? It's very Robin Hood meets Red Riding Hood. Perhaps, I could run with my own little red hood... Hmm... The event site is about an hour and change from London, so staying over would be helpful as I have yet to research public transport.

{Scotland: Annie Grab Your Kilt} 
As the crux of the races listed on RW:UK are for England (or clashed with travel dates), I contacted Jog Scotty, the mascot for Jog Scotland, asking if Yanks could gate crash their races. I received a positive response, so now I am just waiting for the run schedule to be posted. There aren't any events listed which I can participate at this time, but hopefully one will crop up soon. It was indicated that some 5Ks will be added soon. Ideally, I would like to travel up to Edinburgh between London and Dublin.

{Ireland: Kiss My Blarney}
On Sunday, June 26th, I want to run the 5 Mile Race at the Enniscorthy Strawberry Festival (about an hour south of Dublin, Ireland; Cost: €19.50). There is a 15K Walk and the Half-Marathon on the same day with varied starting times, but if I plan on actually enjoying my time on the Emerald Isle after the race, I don't think either is a particularly good idea. Depending on when the Scotland race falls, I may be able to leave for Wales after the race, or I may have to go back to Dublin for a little more Paddywhacking.

{Wales: Whatta About Us?!}
I am having difficulty finding Welsh races, so I am debating on cutting Wales from the schedule. If I could manage it, I'd like to drop by en route back to London prior to departure. If I cannot find a race, maybe I can just stop by ran run somewhere near Swansea. There is a ferry from Rosslare, Ireland (35 minutes south of Enniscorthy) to Pembroke, Wales (near Swansea; two hours by rail), so that is one option. The train haul back to London would be 5 hours, but I am sure I could sleep during that time.

I was very, very tempted to sign up for the The Midsummer Munro, but I found the branding of it as "Britain's Hardest Half" ridiculously daunting. Reading the thread discussion at Runner's World UK, I find it frightening as "the male equivalent of child birth", so again... not too stoked about this idea. If I plan on enjoying my vacation, I would like my legs to still be attached and functional by the time I get on the plane to fly home. Maybe one I tackle some more trail races, I may have the confidence to attempt something like this.