June 8, 2014 - Stanley Park Seawall Run

As I mentioned earlier - I love running on vacation - here is a summary of one of my favorite runs from our Alaska Cruise - The Vancouver Stanley Park Seawall run.


The morning started at 5:30 am when Alice woke up and came into the bedroom.  Considering the time change I was happy she slept until 5:30 am and my alarm was set for 5:45am to get up for my run so I wasn’t going to complain.  I got dressed to go for my run.  I started with my running skirt, short sleeve shirt and long sleeve shirt figuring it was cooler than it was.  I walked outside and it was already warm so I turned around and went back to the room and left the long sleeve shirt behind.  It was a few minutes after 6am when I got started on my run.  I headed out along the seawall towards Stanley Park.

When I got to the park I could see the 2 cruise ships that were in port today arriving.  There was a HAL and Celebrity Cruise ship today.  I continued along the seawall stopping for a few pictures along the way.  The following are some highlights of Stanley Park.  I could have spent a lot of time exploring Stanley Park but I settled for a great run.

Canada Place and 2 ships coming in.

 I finally figured out the proper way to do an Eddie McCoy Selfie :)

 Stanley Park Totem Poles

The 9 O'Clock Gun

Girl in Wet Suit

 Lion's Gate Bridge

 Lighthouse

 Siwash Rock

 Trailhead Markers

 Laughing Guy Statues.  

Success - 9.25 miles in less than 2 hours - perfect long run training pace, especially when you add in picture taking time.  I even got in a little bit of a hill workout.  What a great way to start off a vacation.

Next up Vancouver Hop on Hop Off and Aquarium

Megan's First 5k

On Saturday May 31, 2015 Megan ran her very first 5k.  Last summer I ran the Run or Dye race with some friends and Megan and Alice came to watch.  Megan really wanted to run the race the next year so when the registration opened up in December I signed us both up.

True confessions - this is not my favorite type or race.  I'd much rather run a race with timed corrals but I did this for her.  I also ran 5 miles in the morning before the race so I was not trying to run this for a personal record of any kind.  

It rained on the way to the race which was a good thing as it cooled it off just a little bit from what it was earlier in the morning.  It felt cooler for the race than it did at 5:30am when I started my 5 mile training run.

This year we made sure we got there early and got in line so we could be in one of the first couple waves.  This made a huge difference to me on the course crowding.  It also helped that we didn't have to wait around as long in the sun.  As you can see we got precolored and then we were off.

The race was basically a big tour of the parking lot of NRG (aka Reliant) Stadium.  As you can see from the screen shot we made a lot of hairpin like turns in the parking lot, which is enough to render the GPS almost useless.  I'm going to assume the course distance really was 3.1 miles and not the 2.8 miles my Garmin picked up.


I gave Megan my GymBoss to hold onto so she would be in control of the intervals.  I wanted to slow her down at the beginning because I knew that 3 miles was a lot for her to handle.  We started the race off with 30 seconds running and 30 seconds walking.\

Color Zone Time

No cups, they handed out full bottles instead of cups.  

Around the midway point I let Megan decide if she wanted to go faster.  She decided to try a 1:30/:30 interval and then stretched it to 1:30/1:00 so she had more time to drink on the walk breaks.

She struggled a little at the end but she finished her first 5k with a smile on her face in 38:12.  I was very proud of her and had much more fun than I thought I would.

As for the race, I don't know if the threat of storms scared people off but it seemed much less crowded this time around which I appreciated greatly.

Looking for our next 5k adventure together.

Destination Running is more fun

Running on Vacation

There is something very enjoyable about getting to go for a run in a new location, especially when you have beautiful sights to take in during that run.  I will admit that packing my running shoes and gear are likely what pushed me into having to check a bag for our most recent vacation but it was definitely worth every dollar of that checked bag fee.

My husband and I got away for a week to celebrate our 12th anniversary at the beginning of April.  I managed to find time for a few good runs along with some walks on the beach and a few miles at Universal Studios.

My first run took me to my happy place.  I was able to Run Disney without having to pay and arm and a leg in race fees ;).  I dropped my hubby off at the Richard Petty Driving experience for his pre-race training and I got to experience a great run from Cape Cod to Hollywood and Paris.  Where else can you manage that in 48 minutes or so.

Every once in a while you do have to take a #Selfie (I hate that song by the way)

I started my run at the Beach Club

 

Ran by the Swan

 Found my way to Hollywood Studios

If I wanted I'd have made Rope Drop :)  Instead I waved at Mickey

 

I ran down the boardwalk a couple of times and past the lighthouse

I ran by the Dolphin as well

And I found my way to the International Gateway Entrance to Epcot (I could have made rope drop there too)

But I just stopped for a picture of the Eifel Tower instead

 

It was a beautiful day.  It was a little hotter and muggier than I was used to as Spring was still teasing us in Houston at the time.  Even with stops to take pictures around the world, I ran 4.1 miles in 47:41 before having to return to Richard Petty to watch my husband take a spin around the track



Is it bad that my first thought at the track is that I can't wait to run it someday because that means I'm running the WDW Marathon.  :)  2016 - It will happen.  Depending on how things go I might even be a little Goofy in 2016.

 

Other than some time in Downtown Disney that was my time at the World on this vacation, but the fun wasn't over yet.  Next stop Freeport, Bahamas.

 

I couldn't possibly spend a few days on the beach without going for a run now could I?  I will admit running in the sand is hard work.  Your legs feel a bit like lead.  It doesn't help that it was definitely hotter and muggier than I am currently used to, but with these views, who is going to complain.

 

 

It was a slow 3.13 miles as I ran it in 40:06 minutes but I was on vacation after all.

 

We finished the week up with 2 days a Universal before flying home.  I might not have run at Universal, but I definitely got a workout in.  According to my FitBit I still managed to walk over 20,000 steps at Universal.  Single Rider is definitely the way to go when you don't have the kids with you at Universal.  We had fun at Universal but we won't be back until my youngest is about 10 is my guess.  There is just too much there that they are either too short or too young to ride/experience. 

 

I have decided my goal is to see how many places in the world I can get a Garmin map pin by taking a run on vacation.  I'm looking forward to adding pins in Wisconsin, Canada, Alaska, Virginia, San Antonio and destinations unknown in the rest of 2014.