Fells Point, Baltimore, MD

I traveled to Baltimore, MD earlier this week for a 3-day Marketing Conference. 

Turns out a lot of the topics covered were very similar to what I went to a couple of years ago, but was still nice to see people that I e-mail with constantly but either have never met in person, or rarely get to see. 

I even got to chat with the Publisher of one of our Argentina Affiliates and also the Publisher of International Living, based in Ireland. Pretty cool, right? Oh, and can't leave out the other guy from another domestic affiliate who told us our product is terrible. Ohhhhhh, I let him know my thoughts on that. ("Why are we making more sales than you guys then?" :)

My hotel was right on the water and I had a gorgeous view of the harbor.

Panoramic pic of the view right outside my window.

I brought 2 pairs of workout clothes, with some wishful thinking. The hotel had a gym but it was locked and I wasn't entirely sure how to get the passcode. (yes, I'm sure I could've asked the front desk.) And the book in the hotel room stated that the gym wasn't even in the hotel, but down the block. So I'm not sure. 

So, instead I decided to venture outside! I had dinner with my cousin on Tuesday evening and she gave me some pointers as to what area was safe. There were so many running paths, sidewalks, along the water, down the old streets, it was so inviting. 

I checked the temp when I woke up Wednesday morning and it was a beautiful 50 degrees. :) Glad I had brought capris and not just running shorts. 

Could this sunrise be any more gorgeous?

I started off running to the right as soon as I exited the hotel... The boardwalk soon turned into a brick sidewalk and wound around the wharf. I was able to see the Under Armour headquarters.. Domino building... so many boats. 

The paths were bustling with runners which made me more motivated, plus it was a Wednesday morning! I can only imagine what it'd be like on a weekend morning. 

I could take in this view during a run any day of the week!

After the number of runners started to dwindle and my nice waterside sidewalk ended, I turned around, headed back towards the hotel but passed it and ran the other way for a little bit. 

I was a little tight for time because I needed to get some work done before the next round of presentations started and I was out of luck for the day... So I could only get in about 1.7 miles. 

But I gotta say... those miles felt GREAT. 50 degrees with very little humidity was exactly what I needed. I wish that I could've gone farther (while also knowing WHERE I was going!)

But still proud of myself for getting out there at all. 

And of course we had to finish up the trip with the Crab Pretzel at BWI. :) 

Cheesy, Crabby, Pretzel-y goodness!

Jeff Annas Firefighter Memorial 5K - Sept 14, 2013

My last few runs on the weekends have been pretty miserable. I blamed the heat (rightfully so.) Then I twinged my back. Then at Slash this past week my ankle bothered me. I still went to Jiu Jitsu Friday afternoon, worrying that I would mess up my back again.

All this, knowing I had a 5K I signed up for.  I thought maybe it'd help me push through the bad runs. And it was for a cause that I love. I love supporting local Firefighters/Rescue Teams. I think if I could, I'd love to work in a fire station. Maybe not AS a first responder firefighter, but the whole thing just intrigues me. I even listen to Fire Rescue radio on scanner radio. :)

Anyway, Dan and I went to a Food Truck Invasion last night in Jupiter, FL. There were about 30 food trucks there, and it was amazing. At this point I had already given up on any hopes of  PR in the Firefighter 5k. "It's too hot anyway."  I told myself. Knowing that I can't perform my best.

I continued to consume a beer and eat a Crabby Cheese Melt. Not exactly the best pre-race dinner, eh?

We arrived at the race site around 6:45 for the 7:30 start time, even though I had already picked up my race packet. I just get really anxious about figuring out parking, starting line, etc. They had a bunch of fire trucks on display... Some firefighters were getting into their gear to RUN the 5K in their full firefighter get-up. (and let me tell you... I was passed by many of them on the course!)

firefighters in full gear ready for the race.

This race had over 1100 runners and I THINK that may be the largest race I've been a part of.

pic of a part of the crowd at the starting line

Getting excited to kick it off

I'm off!

The race was a fast & flat out and back course. The entire way out was in the shade and had some really nice big trees. At the first part of the turnaround, you were running right into the sun but then the road curved a bit and you were protected again by the trees.

I decided to turn off the mile notifications on my Nike Plus app so I wouldn't have any idea what kind of pace I was doing. I did this during my best-ever 5k and figured maybe there's something to it.

I crossed the finish line with the clock saying 30:11. I completely forgot to account for the time it took me to get to the starting line so I didn't realize for a while that my time was actually quicker than that.

Turns out I finished in 30:00.997.

I think if I had realized I was that close to breaking 30 again, I would've sprinted even harder. But I gotta say, for 'mentally giving up' on this race before I even started... I'm pretty proud of this time.

Results:
30:00.997
9:40/mile pace
Overall placement: 519 / 1128
Gender placement: 234 / 680
Age group placement: 29 / 88

Sitting in the "cool chairs" after the race (arms in some ice bags.)