Silence is . . .

. . . well, it just is.

And it is what's been going on around here. I haven't had it in me to post -- everything I've thought about writing has been just not quite right. So murky have things become since the marathon bombings. 

Yes, I'm still running. And still focusing on what's wonderful.

And, yeah, I've gone on a few runs for Boston:

http://instagram.com/felicepd

In fact, I've had several good runs and my half marathon recovery has gone well. I'm ready for what's to come -- including marathon training this summer. 

But, writing about running hasn't happened. Like I said, it has all seemed not quite right. So, instead of writing here I've turned to blog silence. 

I'm shaking it off, though. Silence may be golden and all that but it makes for a crummy blog! Crummy, crummy. And who wants a crummy blog? Not me, that's for sure. 

So, I'm off to shake off the crummy! Thanks for stopping by.

PROBAR winner.

With everything that happened this week, I've been distracted and have just gotten around to picking the PROBAR winner. Thanks to everyone who entered. I used random.org to pick the winner and that is . . .




Jeff Gallup



Congratulations, Jeff! Please email me at felicehalf [at] yahoo [dot] com with your mailing address so you can get your bars!

Have a great weekend, everyone. Thanks for stopping by!

Focusing on what's wonderful.

Running is wonderful. Even -- perhaps, especially -- amid the awful.

I'm choosing to focus on the wonderful.

My first marathon.

Pre-race with my 2 year old.

Pregnant running.

Racing with my almost 3 year old.

Jingle Bell run with Jen, Bridget and Janis.

Joyful running.

Winter Series with Amanda, Suzy, Janis and Bridget.

Future running buddy for sure!

High-fives from my little guy in the half marathon.

First half marathon with Janis, Bridget and Amanda.

Mother's Day race.

Boilermaker with Elisa and Bridget.

Refreshment after the Schroon Lake half.

More high-fives from my little guy!

Love the NJ Marathon group!!!

Boilermaker with Bridget, Sheila and Amanda.

Strong Running Mamas at the Mohawk-Hudson half marathon.

Finishing the half!

Enjoying the post-race moment with my boys.

Future marathoner?

Strong Running Mamas in NYC -- happy and ready to run.

Still a happy runner.

Still sad about the Boston Marathon bombings.

But still -- always -- a happy runner.

More/Fitness Half Marathon race report.

So, on Friday, I wrote this about the race:

"Whatever happens, as long as I run a smart race for the day and the situation, I'll be pleased."

I wasn't lying. And, fortunately, I ended up pretty pleased with my race.

But let me backup before I get to the finish.

The More/Fitness Half Marathon is an all-women race that takes place in Central Park in Manhattan. I traveled with my good friends Bridget and Elisa down to NYC  on Saturday morning. We spent the day walking around the city, eating, going to the Expo, eating, people watching, taking in the sights, and eating some more. Really, we did a lot of eating.

Bridget, Elisa and me

After a pretty rotten night's sleep (as is to be expected the night before a race!) we woke up at 6:00 to get ready for the race. 

We walked up to the start and met up with some of our fellow Strong Running Mamas and, of course, snapped a quick pic:

Go, Strong Running Mamas!

Soon enough it was time to start the race. I had a plan, as I'd outlined on Friday. Run a smart race. Pace myself. Shoot for 1:55 or better. 

I tried. I felt so good as the race started and I knew that there were some big hills so I tried my best to keep my pace under control. I think I did a pretty good job:


Mile 1: 8:16
Mile 2: 8:04
Mile 3: 7:43 

I had told myself not to run under 8:00 pace and, actually, I wanted to be closer to 8:30 for those early miles so I didn't quite stick to the plan. But, that happens, right?

Anyway, around mile 3.5 is the biggest hill of the race and, yes, it is big. And long. However, I run hills all the time so it didn't seem nearly as bad as everyone said it would be. It was followed by a nice downhill and then a few additional hills before the course brought us through the start line again for the second loop.

Mile 4: 8:04
Mile 5: 8:42 (grabbed some water to add to my bottle)
Mile 6: 7:49 

At the halfway mark I was still feeling good, although I was getting pretty warm because I'd dressed in a long sleeve top and it was getting sunnier and sunnier. 

My original plan was to run conservatively over the first half of the course so I wouldn't burn out and fall off pace for the second half. I didn't run quite as conservatively as I'd planned, but I did keep things under control so, fortunately, I held my pace fairly well as we made our way through the second loop.

Mile 7: 8:16
Mile 8: 8:22
Mile 9: 7:53
Mile 10: 8:19


After going through the 10-mile mark, I felt like I was guaranteed a sub 1:55 finish (which was my A goal).   All I had to do was run 10-minute miles for the last 3.1 and I'd have it. 

No problem!

Except . . . well, I'd had a stomach cramp for pretty much the whole race. It wasn't that bad and I'd been able to ignore it. Until right around mile 10. That cramp kicked-in big time and I knew I had to figure out a way to ignore it so I wouldn't let myself slow down. I needed to keep going, keep up the pace, finish strong.

Cramp, be damned!

Mile 11: 8:34
Mile 12: 8:05 
Mile 13: 8:17

I was holding on. As we turned toward the finish line at mile 13, I saw that I was running right behind Mika Brzezinski, the Morning Joe co-host, who was co-hosting the race (with Allison Sweeney from The Biggest Loser). Everyone was cheering for her and I let all the cheers carry me through. 

(I ended up finishing 20-seconds in front of Mika and about 10 minutes in front of Allison. How cool!)

Last .32 miles: 7:33 pace
(my Garmin registered 13.32 miles so I did a little extra zigzagging out on the course . . . oh, well!)

More/Fitness Half Marathon, done! And done well. 

I crossed the finish line with a smile on my face, knowing that I'd run well and was feeling great. Sure, I'd pushed myself but I didn't feel spent. All that and I finished less than two minutes slower than my PR -- on a hillier, more crowded course.

I couldn't be happier about the race!

Here are my stats:

Official time: 1:48:46 (8:19 pace)

Overall place: 575 out of 7,550
Age group place: 56 out of 1,096

I met back up with Bridget and Elisa -- both of whom ran strong and enjoyed the race as well -- and we walked back to the hotel. We were slightly ridiculous in our back-patting but we felt pretty proud of ourselves and enjoyed basking in our accomplishment. After cleaning up, and doing a little more patting ourselves on the back, we headed home.

It was a super weekend! Great race, great friends. I'm already thinking about planning a race weekend away for next spring! Why not, right? Right!

Thanks for reading -- and for the good luck wishes before this race!