Monday, October 22, 2007

Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves

Activity: Run - Nike Women's Half Marathon, San Francisco, CA
Date: 10/21/07 07:09 AM
Distance: 13.52 miles
Time: 2:18:45
Speed: 5.8 mph
Pace: 10' 16 min/mile
Calories: 1288

Chip time/Official Time 2:19:53
(I broke even!)

I don't even know where to begin and end because this event was great! I'll just go the highlights and explain more about the run later.

Leslie and I managed to find each other at Union Square on Saturday, where the expo was held. Union Square was busy and noisy with people (mostly women) picking up their race numbers, timing chips, and enjoying the services the expo had to offer. It felt wonderful to see Leslie again.

I met Dori (She Do Run Run) for the first time, in person! Dori had arranged for a few of us (who mostly know each other through blogs) to meet up at Starbucks, just 2 blocks from the expo. At Starbucks, here's the running bloggers : from left to right - Me, Michelle, Dori, and Elizabeth. I did meet another wonderful lady there, Margaret, but she didn't want her picture taken, so she became the photographer.


I had to leave the group for a while and meet back with my husband,brother and sister-in-law for lunch, but met back with the group briefly so I could meet Julie (Juls - Keeping Pace) and her son in front of Macy's.

At Nike Town, they had a wall with all of the participant's names listed. I found me!

Look what I got for finishing! It was given to me by a really cute guy in a black tux, holding a silver tray with several little, blue Tiffany boxes on it. (I did try to take a picture of these guys with my cell phone, but I forgot to save it... DOH!)

I finally met up with Denise, who I know through Yahoo running groups! It was so busy at the start of the race that I didn't know exactly where she was, but thank goodness we hooked up after the run! Look at us modeling our finisher's necklaces!

These guys (and their friends) were hysterical. I don't know who they are but they were NOT shy about having their photos taken! If you double-click on the picture you can get a bigger view, then read their shirts! There was a large group who had different sayings on their shirts, all in support of their friends and significant others who ran in the event.

I'm near the finish line festivities at the beach! Life is good. I'll post the finer details tomorrow. I wished you were all there!

PEACE

PS
RE: California Fires
I live just north and south of some of the fires that are burning in San Diego right now. The college my kids attend has been closed and is being used as a meeting place for law enforcement, rescue teams, and fire fighters. We're OK, but praying for everyone!

12 comments:

Anne said...

I just love love love your reports, Irene. Glad you and Michael and the family are out of harm's way. What a surprise it must have been flying in...maybe because the national news media's been fixated on Malibu.

IronWaddler said...

Great race report and thanks for sharing all the pics-they are awesome.

barbie2be said...

i'm going to go with the original of aretha on this one but there were some others too... eurythmics, spice girls.

sounds like a great time at the race and how fun that you got to meet up with folks!

glad to hear you aren't in the fire's path. i hope they get it contained and out soon.

iJuls said...

Irene, it was awesome meeting you. I love all of the pictures and enjoyed reading those guys shirts. Very funny. It looks like you enjoyed the race.

chantal2bfit said...

Way to go Irene! Another half marathon in the books for you! Woohoo!!!!

Okay, now I'm off to pack. :)

Denise said...

Hey Irene...it was great to meet you at the finish! I enjoyed your posts and the photos. How great you got to meet up with so many women you've met online!! Wasn't the run a blast! I had an awesome weekend. I thought of you when I heard about the fires in San Diego and am glad you and your loved ones are safe. Oh and we are all planning to do Catalina 1/2...would you like to join us?

Pat said...

congrats on a fun race. Glad you got to meet a lot of bloggers.

We're praying for all of you affected by the fires. Funny, this year was a very quiet year in AZ for fires. I'm sure many of our fire fighters are over there helping.

FV Tom said...

very nice work, I. You are awesome.

I was wondering if you were being impacted by the fires. I was pretty sure that you were safe but I wanted to check.

E-Speed said...

awesome photos. So glad you and you family are safe and sound!

NotSoccer Mom said...

sounds like a great time in SF!

sending good thoughts your way that the fires don't jump over to you.

leslie said...

One of the very best things about the race was getting to hang out with you. Felt like we'd known each other for years -- at least to me it did!

Glad you're doing ok with the fires. My mom lives in Newport Coast, and says the air is unbreathable. Better stick to indoor running for the moment. :(

Irene said...

Anne - Thanks. I really did wish you could have been there. I hope you and your family & friends are also OK with the fires. I've been checking your blog for updates as well.

Waddler26.2 - Meeting everyone was the highlight of my trip to SF. I hope we can meet, some day, too!

Barbie2be - Winner! This race was great! It's one that I really think you should consider because there's plenty of support and plenty of walkers. It had such a positive vibe about it. I'm going to do this one next year, provided I get in!

Juls - I was so glad we were able to meet! It was a short meeting but it's always a pleasure to meet the person behind the blog. I hope we can meet again and spend more time getting to know each other.

Chantal - Thanks. ;) Breaking even was good. Now I need to catch up to you!

Denise - I'll check into the Catalina run, see if it's doable. It was fun meeting you and your friends!

Pat - This was a fun 1/2 marathon. Thanks for the prayers. So far, we're OK. I hope the fires diminish soon. It's scary.

Tom - Thanks for checking. We're fine. I hope you are too.

NSM - Thanks! It was fun and one I plan on doing next year. Maybe you and Barbie2be can join me! ;) So far, the fires aren't affecting us, other than all the smoke.

Leslie - For me, it did feel like we knew each other for years! Next time we'll have to plan it so I'm staying in the city and we can spend more time together! We're just getting the smoke from the fires... Definitely not a time to be outdoors! I can wait on running for a while.