The one time I ran the Bolder Boulder...

Since the whole point of going to Boulder was to run, I thought it deserved it's own post.

Our start time was at 7:21 am so I was up around 6:30 to get ready. Luckily, I used advice from elite runners (and my dad) to set up everything the night before. I had my gel, breakfast, and clothes ready for when I woke up.

I thought it was suppose to be cold so I wore my Nike Capris and a long sleeve shirt. Thankfully I thought to put a tank top on underneath since it saved me later.

Our hotel was right near the start so we were able to walk over and not have to deal with port-a-potties. Each wave starts within two minutes of each other so it was moving pretty fast. My dad was my pacer so we could attempt to make 55 minutes.

Moving on to the front.

We started and we were off. Our first mile was good and I felt like I could keep up the pace. The second mile was a little slower but I felt okay until after mile 3. Last year I hit a road block at the same mile. My fourth mile was the slowest. But I picked it to do a little bit but still not enough to cut 55 minutes. I did feel better then last year and I'm ready to beat 55 minutes next year for my fifth Bolder Boulder! 

After the race my dad and I picked up our lunch bags (my one lunch bag I "buy" a year) and beer. We ate our food and headed to the expo. I was in a rush since I knew that Kara Goucher was going to be at the Nissan Innovation for Endurance booth. She is a former CU Buff and going to London to run the marathon. by the time I got in line I was near the end but still had hope to meet her. When I got near the front, she was going to let Shalane Flanagan sign autographs. Luckily Kara was going to the front people to sign autographs. I decided to be brave and ask her to sign my bib which she nicely did. Then I even asked for a picture which she nicely posed for! My dad was ready to get us out of line but I made him let me say hi to Shalane. She also signed my bib and posed for a picture! 

I didn't think it could better then that, but Adam Goucher and Tim Catalano, authors of Run the Edge and former CU Buffs were at a booth promoting their book. I grabbed my dad and stood in line to meet them. They talked to me for a few minutes and signed my bib! I asked for picture which they gladly pose for and told me to post on their facebook page (which I did!).

Shalane chilling before signing autographs.

Chilling with Kara! I was even able to wish her luck in London!

Me talking to Shalane.

Just posing with the Olympic trail champion :)

Waiting to see Adam and Tim.

Telling them about the race.

Go Buffs! 

Overall a great Bolder Boulder! I'm excited for next year and I cannot wait for all the races I have left this summer!

The one time I went to Boulder...

The Bolder Boulder will be always be a favorite race. It was the first race I ever ran. I credit this race to helping me love running and not seeing running as a punishment, it's actually fun! This year was the fourth time I ran it. It may not have been my best time, but I think it was one of my favorite races.

My dad and I went up on Sunday to stay in Boulder since our wave time was 7:21 am. There was no way  we would drive up in the morning! We left the Springs around 10ish and had a late brunch (well lunch) at Tangerine. My sister recommended it to us and really enjoyed it. The menu was full of organic healthy choices. I had lemonade since it said it was house made and it was delicious! I picked the asparagus and mushroom poached egg.

After lunch we stopped by the 29th Street mall, I picked up sunscreen and two tank tops from Lululemon. Since we had to wait to check into our hotel, we stopped by a coffee shop where I had the Boulder Hippie Smoothie. It had soy instead of regular milk.

After a long wait, we were finally able to check into our hotel! We were given free drink vouchers since our room wasn't ready on time. I was tired and able to take a power nap before dinner. 

Pearl Street is probably one of my favorite parts of Boulder. Pearl Streets has cute shops and delicious restaurants. We picked another place that we never tried before, Pizza Locale. It was featured in Food Network magazine awhile back and we always wanted to try it. 

We had the perfect view of the kitchen and watched our dinner be made!

Our yummy bruschetta we started with.

My pizza, the margherita, a classic.

My dad's eggplant, tomatoes, and zucchini.

Me chilling by the pizza bar.

After dinner I was able to chill with my friend Tyler and enjoy our free drink vouchers. It was great catching up with him! 

I'll post race info in another entry! 

Excuses, Excuses

Yeah my updates have been lacking. Between work, my social time, and playoffs (both NBA and hockey), my blog has been suffering.

My 5k went way better then expected. I'll do separate post about that one so stay tuned!

I tried something new at the gym! My friend Bri and I went to spin at 5:30 am. We did the stair master to warm up and an ab workout. Bri is actually a personal trainer so it's like I'm getting service for free.

Spin was intense! The music was okay but I would have more upbeat music with faster beats. Overall a good work that I will be making a habit of going again.

Next Saturday is my uphill 5k! I'm excited for this race since it's at the zoo. I'm not sure what kind of goal I want to set for this race yet. My training this week will determine how fast I should go. This is more of a training race for the Bolder Boulder.

Welp, better get back to my game! #BeatLA

Month of May

Everyday I'm getting emails about races that are coming up and it's getting me excited! I have picked three races I'm going to run. 

As I posted before, I'm doing the Bolder Boulder. It's like clock work, my dad and I run this one every memorial day. This race sparked mine and my dad's love of racing. Actually, it was the first race I've ever ran! I love it and have so much fun running this race. 

Me at the 2009 Bolder Boulder. 

The next race I'm running is Take 5 in the Garden. I did the five mile last year and will be doing the 5k this year. If my Dad was running this race, I would be doing the 5 mile but since it went awful last year, I wimped out and stuck to the 5k. This race is in Garden of the God's so the views will be amazing of course! 

My dad and I before the five mile race last year! Flashback, this race was right after student teaching ended and I was sick that whole week. I thought I would have a DNR beside my name. 

The other race I'll be running is Run to the Shrine. It's all up hill for the first part! I'll be running to the Will Rogers Shrine. I've seen it lighted up at night but never actually gone. The only time foot traffic is allowed is during this race. The best part? I get to run through the zoo! I'll be sure to take pictures lol. 

Overall, I'm happy to be kicking off racing season!

Whole Paycheck

I love food. Needless to say, I could spend hours in Whole Foods looking around getting new things to try. Also, since it's from Whole Foods it is healthy...well not all the time.

Today after my social hour at the gym (ran into my friends from school), I went to salad bar to treat my self. To get to the salad bar, you have to walk past the frozen section. Since my lunch break is only a hour, I like having TV dinners or something quick so I can veg out and have some downtime from work. I saw a few TV dinners that I had to try. I bought 5 (none were on sale). This way I could try out a bunch and see which ones I liked the best. One of the Amy's I'm trying has meatless meatballs...

Then of course came the chip aisle. I have the biggest salt tooth ever! Not going to lie, I would eat a bag of chips over a piece of chocolate cake. There was a sale on my baked kettle chips and these chips that have a whole serving veggies in 20 ounces! I'll post about those once I try them.

Since I'm a big kid making my own money I paid for it myself and realized I like it better when I'm not paying for it. I'm going to have to learn how to shop the sales there. I wish extreme couponing would teach me how make it for Whole Foods. 

I miss the 90s

As I was going through my Google reader, one of the bloggers posted this article about why boy bands were better in the 90s. I totally agree with it since One Direction will never be BSB or *NSYNC or 98 Degrees. However, I was total Spice Girl's fan lol. Here are some flashbacks to my favorites.

"Let it go 

If you want me girl, let me know

                                                                 I am down, on my knees

I can't take it anymore"

- Tearin' up my heart

"I can't let you see what you mean to me
When my hands are tied and my heart's not free
We're not meant to be"

- Hardest Thing

"Tell me why
Ain't nothin' but a heartache
Tell me why
Ain't nothin' but a mistake
Tell me why
I never wanna hear you say
I want it that way"

- I want it that way

"Mmmbop, ba duba dop
Ba du bop, ba duba dop
Ba du bop, ba duba dop
Ba du
Yeah
Mmmbop, ba duba dop
Ba du bop, Ba du dop
Ba du bop, Ba du dop
Ba du
Yeah"

-Mmmbop

"The right stuff
The right stuff
First time was a great time
Second time was a blast
Third time I fell in love
Now I hope it lasts"

-You Got It (The Right Stuff)

I have to say, my childhood was pretty awesome. Reminds me of my friends and I making up dances, celebrity crushes, and MTV actually playing music videos (or in my case Much Music). 

This was a little before boy bands but I look pretty awesome in my star cap.

 

The roof is one fire...

I've realized life had been non-stop since I came home from vacation back in January. There is always something at work, stuff going on with my friends, and being sick on and off. But, everything was put in perspective last Monday/Tuesday night.

At 3:00 am my house received a phone call and a loud knock on the door. I thought we were being robbed so in my half awake fashion, I started pressing buttons trying to unlock my iPhone (there is an emergency button for a reason). However, I heard my mom yell get Char (why would my mom let the robbers know I was in the house). My dad ran downstairs and told me the house was on fire. I grabbed my laptop and my jacket and a coat (my dad reminded me I needed shoes). Then wnet upstairs to where a policeman told me the neighbor's house was on fire and we being evacuated as a safety precaution. I regain my sanity and grabbed my purse and car keys. My dad was taking forever grabbing his laptop and getting his work stuff together. 

We went out through the garage. There were embers flying all over the place. The wind was so strong that the water from the hoses felt like rain. My family and I were led to an ambulance where our neighbor was safely waiting. We stayed there for 15 minutes before being placed in a lobby of a retirement home. There we watched TV and the red cross came to help my neighbor. Awhile laster fireman came and told my family that we could go back home. We made the walk back home since our street closed off.

It was still freezing but our house was safe. My mom made breakfast since we knew there was no way we were going back to bed. The fire made the news and my mom was interviewed.

This event just reminded me of the question game you play. I've been ask before if I had to choose three things to take out of my burning house what would I grab. I've always said my laptop since most of my pictures are on there. I have some jewelry that has is valuable because of who it came from. I would be devastated if my teachers license or college diploma was misplaced. All my stuff ran through my mind and I realized how much of it is replaceable. All that mattered was my parents and I were safe and we made it out with no scrapes or scratches.

The aftermath...