Next International Stop... Maratón de Valencia

It's official! I just signed up for my 4th marathon, my second one in Spain, the Maratón Divina Pastora Valencia. The race takes place on November 18th which works perfectly for all of us. First, my kids don't have school the week of Thanksgiving (November 19th - 25th). Second, I need to go back to Gran Canaria before next spring. Gotta love bureaucracy :(  Originally, I was thinking of flying directly to the Canary Islands but the runner in me had to check for races in Spain too. Something that would fit our working schedule and our kids' school schedule. The Valencia Marathon is just perfect!

It's going to be our first family mini-vacation together on the Mediterranean Coast. We will fly to Madrid on Wednesday, take the AVE speed train on Friday morning, panic relax until marathon day and then celebrate a little bit before heading back to Madrid and then on to Las Palmas. That's the plan! If we have time to visit the Casa-Museo Blasco Ibañez, walk the Sorolla's Route or go to La Malvarrosa beach, great! Otherwise, we'll be just happy enjoying eating paella and  authentic Valencian helado de turrón ( nougat ice cream). Yummy! Perfect carb-loading. Forget about "pasta party", I want a "paella party"!

About The Race 

The Maratón Divina Pastora Valencia is flat and fast. It starts and finishes at the spectacular modernist area of City of Arts and Sciences, designed by one of my all time favorite architects, Santiago Calatrava.

The races goes through some of the most symbolic sites in Valencia, including the Bioparc, the Cathedral, Jardin del Turia, Lonja, Mercado de Colón, Miguelete, Palau de les Arts, Torres de Quart and Torres Serrano.

Jardin del Turia

Lonja de la seda or Silk Exchange

Mercado de Colón

This will be my first trip to Valencia capital. I've spent a couple of summers in the Costa Blanca. I've been to Alicante, Altea, Calpe and Gandia but I have never been to Valencia city. Looking forward to this getaway! If you have participated in this marathon before, please let me know what you liked and disliked about the race and your overall experience. If you blogged about it, I'd love to read your race recap too. Any suggestions in terms of hotels, restaurants, etc...?
 

A little bit in Spanish for my fellow Spanish speaking bloggers ...

¡Ya es oficial! Acabo de apuntarme a mi cuarta maratón, La Divina Pastora Valencia. La carrera comienza y termina en la impresionante Ciudad de las Artes y Ciencias, diseñada por uno de mis arquitectos preferidos de todos los tiempos, Santiago Calatrava. Valencia es la tercera ciudad más grande de España. Ofrece un rico patrimonio cultural en los ámbitos de la música, el arte, la gastronomía y la arquitectura  con artistas famosos como Sorolla, Calatrava y Blasco Ibáñez. Pero quizás sea mas conocida por ser la cuna de la paella.  Yo añadiría a esta lista gastronómica los helados de turrón y la mistela ¿verdad?. Perfecto para “carbo-cargarse” el día antes de la carrera, ¿no? Aquí toca "paella party". Este será mi primer viaje a Valencia ciudad.  Si has participado en esta maratón, cuéntame tu experiencia o déjame un "link" si tienes un resumen de la carrera . Se aceptan sugerencias sobre hoteles, restaurantes, etc...:-)

2012 RnR San Diego Half Marathon Recap

Saturday, June 2nd - Expo

I arrived at the Health and Fitness Expo around 10:20 o'clock. It was a little crowded but not too bad. I picked up my bib as fast as I could and proceeded to the exit. Ok, I am just kidding! If you follow my blog regularly you know I like to spend my time at the expo to check the latest running gizmos and gadgets, apparel, etc...At this expo there were over 60 exhibitors. One of the largest I've ever visited.
   

 

I made it to Pure Running Heaven! No, I didn't pass out or fell into a deep dream about running ( although I often find myself daydream about running the Boston Marathon). I just stopped by Brook's booth.

In Pure Running Heaven, I met some famous runners. Ha, who knew that Abraham Lincoln, Mona Lisa and Gandhi like to run too? :)

Add caption

They also provided runners with heavenly gait analysis and the chance to check out the new lightweight PureProject shoes. Pretty cool!  The next half hour I walked around, sampled over a dozen of healthy drinks and bars. Maybe not a good idea to do this 20 hours before a race. I was just killing time, waiting for Chrissie Wellington (four-time World Ironman Champion) to make it to the stage. The wait was sooo worth it. I love listening to her story! Imagine running your first full marathon in 3:08?  What about running a full in 2:52:41 after swimming 2.4 miles ( 3.86 km) followed by a 112-mile (180.25) bike ride? Amazing!

Ah, the Goddes of Triathlon

After meeting Chrissie, I was ready to leave when suddenly I spotted one of my all-time favorite runners, Olympic Marathon Bronze Medalist, Deena Kastor.  OMG, I was starstruck! I wanted to tell her how much I love her. I watched her in The Spirit of The Marathon movie over a dozen of times. But words didn't come out of my mouth. I just acted like a 15 year old girl, "omg, you are my hero. Can I take a picture with you?" hahahaha. This just happened to me once before when I met Kara Goucher in Las Vegas. Deena Kastor was so nice and down to earth. She wished me luck at the race. Now, my friends at Brooks were right, this expo was Pure Running Heaven! The rest was not but I'll get to that later.

With Deena Kastor

 Sunday, June 3rd - Race

My husband and I woke up at 3:00 and left home at 3:30 am. Very early! We drove to the San Diego Sports Arena, as suggested by the organizers, and took the bus to the starting line. We arrived at Balboa Park around 5:15 am. We had plenty of time as the race didn't start until 6:15am. We headed to the grassy area between corral 4 and 5 where my running group (WCRR) was meeting.  The coaches were running together holding a 43' WCRR 10-man PF Chang's Dragon.

My coaches

With my husband

Right before the race started, around 6:00am, I met my friend Wendy. She lives in San Diego but we met at the RnR Edinburgh and later at the Rock N Roll Madrid.  Too bad she is not blogging about her races :( She is doing a cool RnR challenge this year! 12 RnR races in 12 months! Quick stop by the porta-loos ( love that word) and time to run.

Race
The race started at 6:15am. My corral crossed the starting line 10 minutes later. I was in corral 9. There were a total of 42 corrals for +/- 30,000 runners. It felt too crowded!

Since I ran this race in 2011, I knew what to expect. The first four miles were nice, good rhythms ( 8:45 , 9:16, 9:23, 9:10) around the Balboa Park area.  From there we headed to highway 163.

Miles 4 - 5.5 were going up ( elevation:136 ft - 283 ft). I slowed down to 10:43 min/mile. This was way too slow but I couldn't run any faster.  I blame it on a "wardrobe malfunction". I was wearing a brand new running skirt with compression pants that were too big for me causing extreme discomfort and a horrible chaffing. Aghghgh, runners 101, never do anything new (food, outfits, whatever) the day of the race!


My thighs were burning me but I managed to speed up a little bit between miles 5.5 and 6.  We looped around some bridges and soon we were at Friar's Road.  From then on, it was all flat and familiar. Miles 10 and 11 were the worst. My neck and shoulders were hurting as if I pulled my trapezoid muscles ( I need to have this checked). On top of that, my chaffing was worsening and the streets were narrowing to a point that I almost accidentally knocked down a runner who stopped right in front of me to walk. I couldn't find a way around him. Oh, nooo!

At mile 12, I saw my friend Edward right in front of me. WTH! Why is he running with the half marathoners?  This was supposed to be his BIG day. His Boston Qualifier.  I sped up to talk to him. "What are you doing here?" I asked him. He looked left and right and realized then that he was in the wrong spot. He had missed a turn, just .5 miles ago. To his defense, the sign indicating "half marathons left, full marathoners right" was miniscule and with such a crowded course it was easy to miss. OMG! I feel bad for him. If this happens to me, I'll be furious! My friend has been running an average of 80 miles a week for the last few months to prepare for this. After our small chat, he sped up while I stayed behind.  I can't run at his ridiculous fast pace!!

Eight minutes later, I arrived at the finishing line. My legs were feeling strong but my thighs were bleeding :-(  My finishing time: 02:12. My worse this year but still, 6 minutes faster than my 2011 RnR San Diego.  My husband arrived few minutes later. 

Post-race

I don't think I've ever seen so much food in my life. Not even at the Portland Marathon last year.
 

And the award to the best running outfit goes to ... the dude with the tutu :)

Running Elvis

After the half marathon, we took a free bus to the San Diego Sports Arena to pick up our car and head home.  Easy in and out.

Race Highlights:

Good

• Visiting the expo early. My husband had to go back in the afternoon to pick up his bib. It was too crowded.
• Meeting Chrissie Wellington
• Meeting Deena Kastor
• Meeting my friends and my running group
• Post-race snacks
• Getting to the starting line and back to the parking

Bad

• Too crowded. I almost knocked down a runner.
• The course is not necessarily breathtaking

Ugly

• Bad case of chaffing

San Diego Half Marathon Coming up ...

I have the Rock N Roll San Diego Half Marathon coming up next weekend, June 3rd, but I am not feeling it.  Don't get me wrong! It's a good race at the perfect location and best time of the year.

What's wrong with me? Nothing really ?! OK let's call it runner's low. After running the RnR Madrid Marathon and then the OC Marathon 3 weeks ago, I don't feel like running this distance. I've already participated in this race last year and honestly I don't think I could PR at this half marathon. I've been running at a slower pace lately. I am not totally unhappy about this though. I've been playing with my brand new minimalistic shoes, the Brooks PureFlow which the company should have called PureJoy!!

Oh, I am in trouble!!  Call me crazy but I'd rather run the RnR San Diego FULL Marathon next weekend. Is this even an option? YES, but I shouldn't! Oh well, I am sure I'll find my mojo before Sunday.

What do you do to keep motivated? New Music? New outfit?

The OC Marathon Weekend - Part II: Race Recap

Date: Sunday, May 6th 2012
Race Starting time: 5:30 am
Expo: Saturday, May 5th (9:00 am - 6:00 pm)
Location: Beautiful OC



Race Course

According to the official OC Marathon website "the full marathon course is net downhill in elevation from start to finish. The first 6.5 miles are extremely fast with only minor inclines. Miles 6.5 to 7.0 is the only significant hill on the course taking the runners from 15 feet to 75 feet. The course is then mostly flat through mile 10.5 with a couple of rolling hills to 11.5. There is another 45' incline at mile 14.5 over the 405 overpass and a 40' incline slightly over 1/4 a mile in length at mile 23 after leaving Fairview Park. These are all relatively small hills",

Race Elevation

Do you want to know how I got here? Do you want to hear a crazy story? Read The OC Marathon Weekend - Part I

 Race Day

I woke up at 3:45 am. OMG, so early! I took a taxi at 4:30 am from the hotel to the starting line which was about 3 miles away. I had read that there was a lot of traffic during marathon day so I decided to leave early, just in case. I arrived at the starting line at 4:40 a.m and waited at corral 5 for an hour. There was a guy sitting next to me wearing a Marathon Maniac shirt. I proudly told him that I will be a member of the club after this race. He proudly told me that this would be his 11 consecutive marathon, all back to back.  Now, that's hardcore!

Corral B with my Team Sparklelicious skirt

The race started at 5:45 am, 15 minutes late. The first few miles were beautiful. We ran along Corona Del Mar and Ocean Blvd. We passed the Newport Harbor Yacht Clubs and continued through residential coastal areas.

 It was mostly flat with some rolling hills until mile 6. then came a nice incline at mile 7. Nothing too serious compared to Edinburgh or Madrid.  From mile 7-10, I ran close to the 4:15 hr pacers but I completely lost them around mile 11. There I saw the Team Sparkle girls. They shouted "Go Sparkle!" as I was wearing one of their 'Sparklelicious' skirts. I looked back and thanked them. They shouted "It's Ciry. Go Ciry!" They know me by name. Nice! We've met a couple of times at the Disneyland races.

'Mua', Mrs. Incredible, with Team Sparkle girls at the 2011 Disneyland Half

At mile 12, the half marathoners and full marathons split. We were close to the John Wayne OC airport. There was a big hill on the horizon. Most of the runners walked it but I sped up. I was feeling good.The next 6 miles were a little bit boring, to be honest. There is nothing too glamorous in this part of town,  Irvine or Santa Ana. My mind was focused on getting to mile 18 ( km. 30) where I'd be taking a tiny break to celebrate a brand new day, just like I did 14 days ago with my friend Lynne in Madrid. Unfortunately, the 18 miler sign was no where to be found so I ran to mile 19 with a smile on my face. I stopped, grabbed some Gatoride and my latest favorite sport treat, Powerbar Gel Blast Cola. Ohhhh, it tastes so good. I paused for 30 seconds and blasted out loud "today is a brand new day and I am only running 8 miles! Let's go!" A runner next to me gave me a look. hahaha Madrid dejavu!

At mile 20, I decided to turn my music on. There were a lot of rolling hills which somehow are not reflected in the official race graph. I needed extra energy.  At mile 21 or so, I experienced an incredible runner's high while listening to U2 and Mary J Blige signing "The One".



I ran with my eyes closed for a couple of seconds and almost started to cry, of happiness of course! I thought of my road until this point and how I got injured last year and I couldn't run for a couple of months after my 3rd half marathon in Surf City. But here I was. 14 half marys and 3 full marathons later ( yes, I ran a lot last year!). I was feeling incredibly blessed. I dedicated this mile to my husband for all his support and love. I also thought of my kids, my family, friends in Spain and my recent races in Edi and Madrid.

At mile 22, I was back on this planet :-) Soon we crossed the  Costa Mesa Golf Course at mile 25. My husband and kids were waiting for me at mile 26.  I blew them kisses. Yahoooooo! Only .2 to go. I sped up and finished strong. My finishing time was 4:32:18. 4 min 28 sec faster than RnR Madrid 14 days ago! Oh, YESSSSS! Thanks JT!

 For the first time EVER, I don't have a picture of myself with the medal.  I was too tired to wait for an official one. 

Post-race
After running the full marathon, I went to the hotel, took a shower and headed to Disneyland for 6 hours of soreness and fun at the parks :-) Afterall, a promise is a promise and I had already told my kids the day before that we would be spending the day at the "happiest place on earth" :)

The OC Marathon Weekend - Part I

The May 6, 2012 OC Marathon was the last chance to start the Beach Cities Challenge. 

What is the Beach Cities Challenge? Basically, you complete, in consecutive order, any combo of full or half marathons at the Surf City Marathon, OC Marathon and the Long Beach International City Bank Marathon and you get the fabulous medal posted above.

I saw this medal at the Tinkerbell Half Marathon Expo last January. It was big, heavy and very appealing to my eyes :) Oh, love at first sight. Yeahhh, it's all about the bling bling!! Unfortunately, the OC Half Marathon was taking place on May 6th, just two weeks after my RnR Madrid (Full) Marathon (April 22nd) so I decided to give up on this challenge. I can't run a full and then 2 weeks later a half. It's too much!  That's what I thought.

Then came Cinco De Mayo-Supermoon Saturday, 3 days ago.

My family and I were invited to a big party in San Diego but all I could think about was OC. "I'd rather be running tomorrow", I thought. I posted about it in Facebook and a friend replied back with "come with us! I am driving up in 2 hours". I read this message to my hubby. He said "Do it! It's your mother's day present". I quickly checked online but registration was no longer available. However, they mentioned on their site that you could buy a bib at the Expo. "OK, I am going. Crossing my fingers".

Next, I called the Marriott Newport Beach Hotel & Spa. It was sold out. I called the Hilton OC Costa Mesa. It was sold out. My husband proposed we all go together with the kids and stay at a different Marriott, instead of the official one. The plan was to run the OC Half early Sun and party with the gang at Disneyland afterwards. Everyone was excited!

We left San Diego around 2:30 p.m, I think. We arrived at the expo at 4:00 p.m. There was a lot of traffic. My husband dropped me off at the expo.

I ran to the registration table. It was still open. Yahoooo!

Me: I want to sign up for the half marathon
Staff: It is CLOSED!
Me: Noooo, it can't be!
Staff: We sold out at 10:00 this morning.
Me: But in the website ...
Staff: Sorry ...

My thoughts "OM F#$%^& goodness, I can't believe this is happening to me!!!"

I almost cried. I called my hubby:

Me: It's too late. The half is sold out.
Hubby: Do the full then!
Me: Whaaaat?
Hubby: Do it! You can!
Me: That's crazy!
H: It's your last chance! If you don't run OC, you can't complete the challenge!
Me: 2 marathons within 14 days!!
H: yes! you will be a member of the marathon maniac after this one!
Me: *big smile on my face* ... or maybe it was a grin. I don't know I was so nervous!!!

15 seconds later, I had signed up for the OC (Full) Marathon. How crazy! I was not feeling 100%. My legs were fine but I had laryngitis and bronchitis about a week ago and I was just recovering from a bad cold.  I called my hubby back. I did it! OMG, I am freaking out! I received lots of text messages within the next half hour. Did you get in? Did you get in? Did you get in? I couldn't reply to any of the messages right away. I was freaking out! This is probably the craziest thing I've ever done in my life. To my hubby, thanks for encouraging me!

I can't recall what I did at the expo after I signed up for the full. I was eager to get to the hotel to study the race course. I didn't know absolutely anything about it, except that it was coastal. OMG!!!    

Race Recap Coming Up ...

Bilingual - RnR Madrid Marathon Race Recap

Fair warning! This is going to be a looooooooong post! So sit back, relax and grab some coffee. ¡El que avisa no es traidor! Esta entrada es muy larrrrrga. Siéntense, relájense y disfruten :-)

  
Race Date: Sunday, April 22nd
Starting Time: 9:00 am
Starting Location: Colón
Finishing Location: El Retiro




Race Course Map

Elevation Chart

Pre-race

 Friday, April 20th Expo
 I met my good friend Lynne from Beginners Run Marathons Too for breakfast. We walked from her hotel near Plaza de Espana to Lago where the expo was being held. There I met my blogger friend Yolanda from La Pinguina Veloz and later on my mom. This was a nice indoor carpeted expo. Because we arrived relatively early on Friday, people were still at work, we didn't have to wait in line to pick our running packages. How nice! As part of our goodie bags, we received a nice red & black backpack, a sports armband holder for our mp3 player and a technical shirt. Not bad at all! I ended up exchanging my shirt for a men's one.  The women's cut didn't fit me very well . We took a bunch of pictures together and left the expo after a quick look around. 

  

Quedo con mi amiga Lynne ( Beginners Run Marathons Too) para desayunar . Caminamos desde su hotel, cerca de la Plaza de España, hasta Lago donde se celebra la feria del corredor. Allí me encuentro a Yolanda. la Pingüina Veloz, y mas tarde a mi madre. La feria tiene lugar en un recinto cerrado y enmoquetado, no esta mal. No tenemos que esperar colas, quizás porque llegamos temprano o porque la gente trabaja los viernes. Como regalo recibimos una mochila roja y negra, un porta mp3 y una camiseta técnica. Cambio la camiseta por una de hombre ya que el corte femenino no me sienta bien. Nos sacamos un montón de fotos juntas y damos un pequeño vistazo a la feria antes de irnos.

Saturday, April 21st Pasta Party


Next day, Lynne and I met at the expo again for the pasta party which was next door. Thank goodness we didn't pick our running packages that day. It was very crowded. I met Yolanda in the pasta party line. I was surprised that this was free. In the states, they charge at least $35 per person.

  

Al día siguiente, Lynne y yo quedamos para la "pasta party" la cual se celebra en el edificio anexo a la feria del corredor. Menos mal que recogimos nuestros dorsales el día anterior. Hay muchísima gente. En la cola de la "pasta party" me encuentro nuevamente con Yolanda. Me sorprende que la comida sea gratis. En los "estates" te cobran por lo menos $35 por cabeza, aqui hasta te regalan la del acompañante.

Race Day
Sunday, April 22nd

I woke up at 3:00am, 4:00am, 5:00am, 6:00am and finally 7:00am. At 7:15, I received a good luck phone call from my awesome husband. How sweet! I left home at 7:30am and met Lynne at 7:40am at the Gregorio Maranon metro.

Me despierto a las 3:00, a las 4:00, a las 5:00, a las 6:00 y finalmente a las 7:00. A las 7:15 recibo una llamada de los estados unidos, es mi marido deseándome buena suerte. Salgo de casa a las 7:30am y me encuentro con Lynne a las 7:40am en el metro Gregorio Marañón.  

We went to Alonso Martinez and walked to Cibeles to meet my Spanish blogger friends. OMG! There were so many people at the Ayuntamiento. How am I going to find them? Very easy! They were the funniest and the loudest.

Nos bajamos en la parada de Alonso Martínez y caminamos a Cibeles en donde se celebra la quedada blogera.  ¡Madre de la madre! ¡Que cantidad de gente! ¿Cómo les voy a encontrar? ¡Muy fácil! Son los mas divertidos y los mas escandalosos.

After taking a couple of pictures, we went back to our corral #5, around 8:30. There we meet, Greg and Wendy who also ran RnR Edinburgh the previous weekend.

Tras sacarnos un par de fotos, nos dirigimos a nuestro corral #5, a eso de las 8:30. Allí nos encontramos con Greg  y Wendy, ambos participaron en la RnR de Edimburgo el fin de semana anterior. 

The gun went off at 9:00am, our corral left 10-15 minutes later. The first 5 km were uphill but I didn't notice it all, perhaps because of the excitement. There were a couple of rolling hills but nothing too scary 'til you get to Raimundo Fernandez Villaverde. "Oh wait! We are running over the bridge. That's not bad at all!". For some reason, I thought we were going to run it at the street level which seems more steep.
 

A las 9 dan el pistolazo de salida, nuestro corral sale 10-15 minutos más tarde. Los primero 5 kilómetros son cuesta arriba pero apenas se notan, tal vez por la emoción. Hay un par de colinas tobogán pero nada escalofriante hasta que llegamos a Raimundo Fernández Villaverde. Ahí me doy cuenta que vamos a correr por encima del puente y no a nivel de la calle. ¡Bieeeen!

From here we went to Glorieta de Cuatro Caminos and down to Guzman el Bueno. I lived on this street while attending university and I was happy to run by my old building. I laughed when I heard the Chariots of Fire soundtrack from a loud speaker. I wonder if this is always there. Then came Alberto Aguilera and Bilbao where I used to go out to party 100 years ago :-) From Bilbao to Fuencarral, Gran Via and Preciados where I used to go shopping. I thought of my grandma as we ran pass La Mallorquina in Sol.

Llegamos a la Glorieta de Cuatro Caminos y bajamos por Guzmán el Bueno. En esa calle vivía yo cuando iba a la universidad. Me hace mucha ilusión ver mi antiguo edificio. Risotadas al oír la banda sonora de la película Carros de Fuegos según bajábamos. Me pregunto si es una tradición. De ahí a Alberto Aguilera y Bilbao en donde salía de marcha hace 100 años :-) De Bilbao a Fuencarral, Gran Vía y Preciados donde solía salir de compras. Pienso en mi abuela mientras pasamos por la pastelería la Mallorquina en Sol.

Big crowds and lots of "tu si que puedes superwoman" and "eres la mejor, superman" and "vuela supergirl" hahaha. My friend Lynne who had been running by my side until this point suddenly disappears to chat with a policeman. OMG! She is so energetic! She talks to everyone while running ( people in uniform, little kids, old woman ... You name it!).  I don't usually talk when I run. I think I told her. Hopefully, it didn't come across the wrong way. I can't shout as the weakest part of my body is my throat :(  If that goes bad everything goes bad ( laryngitis, headaches and migraines). Forgive me, beautiful! Lynne  catches me up a few minutes later. I looked at my Garmin for the first time since km 3. OMG, we are almost half way!

Mucha gente y muchos comentarios en plan  "tu si que puedes superwoman" y "eres la mejor, superman" y "vuela supergirl" jajaja, soy superwoman, superman y supergirl ... en definitiva una super. Mi amiga Lynne que llevaba corriendo junto a mi todo este tiempo desaparece para hablar con un policía. ¡Madre mia! ¡Que energía tiene! Habla con todo el mundo (policías, niños, ancianos …) A mi, en general, no me gusta hablar cuando corro. Creo que se lo dije y espero que no se lo haya tomado a mal. La verdad es que no me gusta gritar, la garganta es mi punto débil. ¡Lo siento, rubiales! Lynne me alcanza a los pocos minutos. Miro mi Garmín por primera vez desde el kilómetro 3. No me lo puedo creer, dentro de poco pasamos la media.

After we passed the Palacio de Oriente, I get happy. We were heading towards Parque Del Oeste where I used to go running when I studied at the Complutense. I can go fast on the downhills. My body loves it! We ran Avenida Valladolid leaving Casa Mingo to the left. I thought of my husband as we passed by. This is one of his favorite restaurants. How I wish he was running with me at that moment. He would have stopped to ask for some "chorizos a la sidra". I am sure!

  

Al llegar al Palacio de Oriente, me entra mucha alegría. Vamos en dirección Parque Del Oeste en donde solía correr cuando estudiaba en la Complutense. A partir de ahí es todo bajada y mi cuerpo se siente bien. Corremos la Avenida Valladolid dejando Casa Mingo a la izquierda. Pienso en mi marido ya que Casa Mingo es uno de sus restaurantes favoritos. Como me gustaría que estuviese conmigo. Seguro que se hubiera parado a pedir una sidra. 

My grandparents were waiting for me at the end of the avenue. I stopped, gave them a hug and kisses, grabbed a couple of bananas and continued on. My Garmin just died but at least I have fruit with me. In prior races this would have destroyed me mentally, but not today. I didn't even give it a thought. Besides, I have my iPhone with the Nike+ app. We entered in Casa De Campo where my friend Susana was waiting for me. I gave her a hug, a kiss and grabbed another banana for later. All my GU gels had fallen from my belt. Calamity!  Well, bananas will do it.

Mis abuelos me están esperando al final de la avenida. Me paro para repartir besos y abrazos, recojo un par de plátanos y continuamos. Mi Garmín se acaba de morir :-0 En otras carreras esto me hubiese destrozado mentalmente pero no hoy. Ni si quiera le di mucha importancia  en el momento. Total, tenia mi iPhone con la aplicación Nike+. Entramos en la Casa De Campo en donde me espera mi amiga Susana. Mas besos,  mas abrazos y mas fruta.  En ese momento me doy cuenta que todos mis geles GU se me han caído del cinturón. ¡Calamidad! Menos mal que tengo bananas. 

Running in Casa De Campo was my least favorite part. It's beautiful but sandy which really slowed me down. I thought of what Jan told me before the race. There is a crazy hill leaving the park. I must save energy for that! Lynne and I had agreed to meet at km 30 and give each other a hug and celebrate a brand new day with a jellybean and energy drink. An old man was looking at us with a funny look "Pero que haceis? Que lo dificil vine a hora! Seguid". He didn't know this was part of our plan.  Only 12 km left but we are counting down 10,9,8 ... because the last 2, well don't count, right? hahaha.

La zona de la Casa De Campo no es de mis favoritas. Es preciosa pero el terreno me impide correr rápido. Pienso en el blogero Jan y en lo que me dijo antes de la carrera. Hay una colina  bastante empinada tras salir de la Casa De Campo. Tengo que guardar energía para esa cuesta. Lynne y yo hemos acordado encontrarnos en el kilómetro 30 y celebrar un nuevo día con gominolas y bebidas energéticas. Un señor se nos queda mirando,  frunce el seño y me dice: Pero ¿que hacéis? ¡Que lo difícil viene ahora! ¡Seguid!. Por supuesto que este señor no sabe que esto era parte de nuestro plan, nuestro juego mental. Es un nuevo dia y hoy nos toca correr tan solo 12 Km., empieza la cuenta atrás 10,9,8 ... porque los últimos 2 Km. ni se cuentan, ¿verdad? Jajaja  

After Casa De Campo starts the real marathon. Holly cow! It was all uphill. Coincidentally, I met Jan around Puente de Segovia. He tells me that his quads are hurting him but he ran a little bit with me. How nice! My iPhone suddenly died. This means no GPS and no music for the hardest part of the marathon. No problem! I can do it!

Después de la Casa De Campo empieza el verdadero maratón. ¡Madre de la madre! Es todo cuesta arriba. Casualmente, me encuentro con Jan alrededor del Puente de Segovia. Me dice que sus cuadriceps le duelen pero aun así corre un poquito conmigo. ¡Que majo! Mi iPhone se muere de repente. Esto significa que no tengo GPS, ni música para la parte mas difícil del maratón :-0

Lynne caught up with me at km 35, she had taken a short break to visit the porta-loos. The hills were getting tougher and I was not familiar with the streets but it didn't matter. I was getting a lot of cheers from other runners who were walking and some spectators "quiero volar contigo nena" and a 5 year old boy "ala papa si es superman" hahaha it was a lot of fun.



Lynne me alcanza en el Km. 35 tras una parada en los baños. Las colinas son cada vez mas duras y esa zona realmente la desconozco pero no importa ya que recibo mucho apoyo de los otros corredores y espectadores. Un chico me grita "quiero volar contigo nena!" y un niño de 5 años le dice a su padre "ala papa si es superman" jajaja.

Photo published in the newspaper as.com. 
Foto publicada en el periodo as.com 
http://www.as.com/mas-deporte/fotogaleria/imagenes-maraton-madrid/20120422dasdasmas_1/Zes/pf_8/

 Lynne put on her music, she is not talking anymore, she is singing. What? Yep, she is singing to Will Smith beats. She cracks me up! She speeds up a little bit. I am just behind. I have agreed to meet my grandparents at the Ronda de Valencia. I saw them all the way from Ronda de Atocha waving 2 flags. I stopped to give hugs and kisses and continue. Alfonso XII was brutal. Everyone was walking but I was running. I was not going to stop for unscheduled walks during this marathon.

Lynne se pone los auriculares, ya no habla como antes, noooo ahora canta. ¿Que? Si, esta cantando en voz alta al son de Will Smith. ¡Me parto! Lynne empieza a coger carrerilla y yo me quedo un poquito atrás. Próxima parada, Ronda de Valencia. Desde la Ronda de Atocha veo a mis abuelos con dos grandes banderas.  Paro, reparto besos, abrazos y sigo hacia Alfonso XII. Esa cuesta es brutal. Todo el mundo la camina pero yo la corro. 

 As soon as I saw Parque Del Retiro I got excited. We were almost done! Not really. Calle de Alcala was the toughest for me cause I didn't expect it. I have read many race recaps and for some reason I had erased this part from my head. When I entered in El Retiro I could see the Arch. All right, it's the finish line! But it wasn't. I ran at full speed to the second arch and the third arch and the fourth arch. OMG! Where the hell is the finish line? I don't think I've ever ran a faster mile in my life. Too bad I don't have my stats. Soon, came the last arch, the official finish line. YESSSS!

Tan pronto como veo el Parque Del Retiro me emociono. ¡Ya estamos cerquita! La calle de Alcalá es de las mas duras para mi ya que no me la esperaba. He leído muchos resúmenes de la carrera y por alguna razón se me cruzan los cables. La verdad es que creía que entrábamos en el Retiro por otra parte.  Una vez en el parque veo el arco. ¡Bieeeeeen, es la línea de meta!  Empiezo a meter mecha y me dio cuenta que hay un segundo arco y un tercer arco y un cuarto arco y un ...  Por favor! ¿Pero donde esta la línea de meta? Creo que nunca he corrido un kilómetro mas rápido en mi vida. Que pena que no llevaba GPS.  Un par de segundos mas tarde llego al que sería el ultimo arco. Siiiiiiiii!

Few meters from the finish line was my friend Lynne. She had arrived a minutes before me. I had to ask her since I didn't have a watch with me. I had finished in 4:36:46. My new PR, 49 minutes faster than the NYM and I didn't hit the wall. I was happy! Especially a minute later when I saw my mom giving out the medals!!!! So excited that she volunteered for this event! I know she gave Yoli and Juan their medals too.

A pocos metros de la meta veo a mi amiga Lynne. Ella había llegado exactamente un minuto antes que yo. Tuve que preguntarle ya que no tenia reloj. Acabe en 4:36:46. Mi nueva marca personal, 49 minutos mas rápido que el maratón de Nueva York y encima haciendo paradas para repartir abrazos. Lo mejor de todo es que no me tope con el muro. ¡Que feliz soy! Un minuto mas tarde veo a mi madre la cual esta repartiendo medallas. ¡Que orgullo recibir la medalla de manos de mi madre!  Casi me pongo a llorar.

También le ha dado la medalla a Yoli y a Juán.

I grabbed some water, oranges, nuts, Powerade and got sprayed on my legs with some magical icy liquid that took away all my soreness. How is it possible to run a marathon and not to be sore at all next day? Seriously!  Right after the race, I met my family, Leti and my best friend, Susana, who had come to congratulate me with a beautiful bouquet of red and yellow flowers.

Recojo botella de agua, naranjas, nueces y Powerade. Me echan un "spray" en las piernas que me las congela pero me quita todo dolor. Me parece un milagro, ¿como es posible que corra una maratón y no tenga agujetas al día siguiente? No me lo explico. Después de la carrera me encuentro con mi familia y mi amiga Susana la cual me felicita con un precioso ramo de flores rojas y amarillas.

Posing with my grandparents

Posing with my friend Susana

 And this concludes my RnR Madrid chronicle :-)  Are you still reading?

Asi concluye mi crónica de la maratón de Madrid :-) ¿Sigues leyendo?