It's been awhile.

Remember that cool, overcast day in Duluth? Since then, the heat index in Minneapolis has skyrocketed to over 110 at least twice (postponing Torchlight until August 25th). Luckily, MRRR teammates have been running in other far-off places. Europe. Taos and Chicago. San Francisco. One teammate is now married. One roommate has moved to California, with a very important detour to Iceland.

We were 3rd place at Grandma's! The USATF team results for Grandma's Marathon are posted here. 

Grandma's Marathon 2011

The Scene

Fog City the day before the race.
We stayed on the lake, less than 2 miles from the start line.

The Not-So-Secret Secret Weapon

They promised PRs for everyone if we got the rhubarb raspberry with whipped creme. Thanks, New Scenic Cafe. You do not disappoint.

The Results

Keren Gudeman: 3:18.51 chip; 3:19.28 gun.
Jessica Deutsch: 3:17.24 chip; 3:18.01 gun.
Kelsey Barale: 3:17.38 chip; 3:18.16 gun.
Amy Elson (the awesome sign for Amy): 4:01.23; 4:05.15 gun.

USATF Team results to come.

Half-Marathon
Shauna Overgaard: 1:38.45; 1:42.07

Team Circuit Results (3 races)

USATF MN has posted the current team standings and results for the TC 1 Mile. All of our results are posted as "gun" times instead of "chip" times. They have also adjusted the Get in Gear results to reflect errors and gun times.

The team is currently in sixth place overall on the women's circuit. Keep in mind that we didn't race at the Human Race, so our points only reflect 2 races worth of scoring.

1 Run N Fun - 18 points
2 Foley & Mansfield Racing Team - 17 points
3 TC Running Company - 16 points
4 Northwoods - MN/WI - 9 points
5 Collegeville - 7 points
6 Mississippi River Road Runners - 5 points
7 St. Cloud River Runners/Endurance Shop - 3 points
8 MDRA - 2 points
8 Team Unattached - 2 points

To review how USATF tallies points, read the rules here.

TC 1 Mile: May 12, 2011*

Photo above (front row, l-r): Brenna Anderson, Jessica Deutsch; (back row, l-r): Kristin's dog Finn, Kristin Fiumefreddo, Jenilee Roen, Shauna Overgaard, Keren Gudeman, Kelsey Barale, Regan Blomme. Not pictured: Cicely Miltich. Photo credit: Seth.

A couple notes regarding the TC 1 Mile:

• Welcome to the team, Jenilee!
• Happy 27th, Kelsey
• Congratulations to Cicely who handed in her last final for law school and graduated over the weekend; to Kristin who just started a new job; and to Brenna who just finished her first year at the U for public health.
• Nice race, Keren. I hear that your chip time is a new PR, besting a race you ran in 10th grade.
  
• We established a team cheer at the starting line. It sounds like a roar, and might be a shorter, better way of saying our team name.
• And while the team results have yet to roll in, I know, given the times and the number of team members racing, that this is the best TC 1 Mile the team has ever raced. Wowza! Way to go, MRRR!

TC 1 Mile results

Kelsey Barale, 5:29.6 (chip), 5:33.2 (gun)

187/2152 overall; 9/1055 overall female; 3/277 age group

Keren Gudeman, 5:33.0 (chip), 5:35.5 (gun)

205/2152 overall, 11/1055 female, 3/170 age group

Jessica Deutsch, 5:45.4 (chip), 5:48.7

272/2152 overall, 20/1055 female, 7/277 age group

Brenna Anderson, 6:00.1 (chip), 6:05.1 (gun)

374/2152 overall, 45/1055 female, 17/277 age group

Shauna Overgaard,6:00.2 (chip), 6:05.7

376/2152 overall, 46/1055 female, 18/277 age group

Regan Blomme, 6:03.4, 6:10.2

407/2152 overall, 50/1055 female, 20/277 age group

Cicely Miltich, 6:15.1, 6:21.7

481/2152 overall, 64/1055 female, 24/277 age group

Jenilee Roen, 7:31.4, 7:37.6

946/2152 overall, 228/1055 female, 77/277 age group

Team Results: Forthcoming

Following the race, we cooled down through Loring Park and the Walker Sculpture Garden. We were able to secure a fantastic spot for watching the finish of Women and Men's Championship Mile on the south side of Nicollet. It felt as if they were running at us as they finished. I'm always grateful when I have a chance to see races in the front row, within spitting distance, in my hometown. Way to go, Minneapolis and Medtronic TC 1 Mile for putting together such a great race.

What I didn't see, though, was how the race unfolded. So I was really glad to find these videos on Down the Backstretch.

Women's Championship 1 Mile (video)

Men's Championship 1 Mile (video)

*I didn't notice this until I read a comment about it on Twitter:

Get in Gear: Race Recap

Results - 10K

Jessica Deutsch, 42:03 (6:47 pace)
171/3131 overall; 25/1707 Females; 7/331 F25-29 Age Group

Kelsey Barale, 42:50 (6:54 pace)
199/3131 overall; 36/1707 Females; 9/331 F25-29 Age Group

Brenna Anderson, 43:48 (7:03 pace)
246/3134 overall; 52/1714 Females; 15/331 F25-29 Age Group

Cicely Miltich, 44:40 (7:12 pace)
275/3131 overall; 59/1707 Females; 18/331 F25-29 Age Group

Emily Therneau, 46:54 (7:33 pace)
370/3131 overall; 87/1707 Females; 24/331 Females F25-29 Age Group

The Unofficial Team Results*

1. TC Running Company, 3:16:05
2. Foley & Mansfield Racing Team, 3:17:01
3. Run N Fun, 3:24:00
4. Mississippi River Road Runners, 3:27:22*
5. Northwoods - MN/WI, 3:36:05
6 Collegeville, 3:47:26
7. St. Cloud River Runners/Endurance Shop, 3:52:55
8. MDRA, 4:07:21

*If you've taken the time to add up each of our times, you'll notice there is a discrepancy between what USATF MN says is our time and what we think our total time is. I think we were actually fifth, with a total time of 3:40:15.

Results - Half Marathon

Regan Blomme, 1:37:22 (7:26 pace)
87/1021 overall; 8/531 Females; 2/209 F20-29 Age Group

Kristin Fiumefreddo, 1:41:16 (7:44 pace)
129/1021 overall; 19 out of 531 Females; 10/201 F30-39 Age Group

Shauna Overgaard, 1:42:11 (7:49 pace)
141/1021 overall; 20/531 Females; 6/209 F20-29 Age Group


The Unofficial Race Recap

The team started the racing season with Get in Gear -- self-proclaimed to be "Minnesota's annual rite of spring."

This might engender visions of racers striding past tulip beds and blooming dogwood and magnolia trees and birds singing. Don't be fooled. Just so we're all straight here: What non-Minnesotans might not know and what some Minnesotans forget is that "rite of spring" is a hazing in which Mother Nature whips us back into humble Minnesotan shape with hail, sleet, rain, and snow. Don't take the warm and the sun for granted, she says. This is the end of April, this is Minnesota, and I do as I please.

No, this is not a long rambling complaint about the weather in Minnesota. I only mean to say again what Cicely said as we headed to the line: this race is very aptly named. We're really getting our butts moving for the first time in a long time. And if we're running in the sleet or snow for this particular race, it only serves as a reminder for how tough Minnesotan runners can be. (Coming soon: a post on Lia ("Beast") Middlebrook and her badass Boston training through one of the snowiest winters on record.)

With five women in the 10K and three in the half marathon, the Mississippi River Road Runners had a strong season debut. This included three new team members: Emily Therneau in the 10K and Regan Blomme and Kristin Fiumefreddo in the half marathon, all of whom ran PRs!

Jessica's recap

Overall, I'm pleased with how my race went. I had hoped to run 6:45 pace, and my mile splits were averaged around 6:47: 6:58 (sloooow navigating the crowds at the start), 6:39, 6:49 (Kelsey and I were running together for the first couple of miles), 6:49, 6:41 (found a random guy to run with from here to the finish; thank you, whoever you are!), 6:46. Those 10K pace workouts we did at the track gave me some confidence going into this race, and it felt good to execute a race as planned -- and with teammates for company! I was so proud of our team as we all went to the starting line together . . .

Hey, how was your race? What were your expectations? Any race day diet experiments? Things you will do differently at your next race? Leave your own race recap in the comments.

You Know They Call Them Killer Whales . . .

I've been biking on snow-less roads, running in shorts, and cracking the windows open at night--all signs of the spring upon us.

And now I'm adding long runs and workouts and maybe even a couple push-ups, with the hope that come the first weeks of summer, my limbs will be able to bear a 3+ hour bout of pounding the pavement.

I don't want to be surprised when I have to run 26.2 miles this June.

I'm looking forward to training with my teammates, but it never hurts to have some reminders of how beautiful those miles will be along the North Shore.

Here is a photo of the North Shore, in all its summer glory. I took this photo last July, somewhere near Croftville Road outside of Grand Marais.

Coming soon: photos and introductions to our 2011 team members.

Grandma's Marathon

June 18th is Grandma's Marathon--and my 30th birthday. If all goes well, I'll put 26.2 miles behind me before sitting down by Lake Superior and eating a slice (or two) of triple berry pie from New Scenic Cafe.

2011 Team Circuit

It's finally beginning to thaw in Minnesota. The snow banks outside my apartment are just two feet high now.

These first signs of spring have me looking forward to CSA boxes, Sea Salt, outdoor concerts, Open Field at the Walker, Pizza Farm, Tour de Farm, biking to work, and, oh yes, the 2011 Team Circuit. Here's the line-up. Very predictable, USATF.

March 20 - The Human Race 8 km - USATF Minnesota Championship

April 30 - Get In Gear 10 km - USATF Minnesota Championship

May 12 - TC 1 Mile - USATF Minnesota Championship

May 30 - Brian Kraft Memorial 5 km

June 18 - Grandma's Marathon - USATF Minnesota Championship

July 20 - Life Time Fitness Torchlight 5 km - USATF Minnesota Championship

August 14 - MDRA 15 km - USATF Minnesota Championship

September 11 - City of Lakes 25 km - USATF Minnesota Championship

October 2 - TC 10 Mile - USATF Minnesota Championship

And yet: predictability has been a good thing this winter. Kelsey Barale and I have been running all winter 3-4 days during the week at 6:15 AM, with a few weekend long runs. During the week, I leave my house around 6:10 and at the crest of the Franklin Bridge, Kelsey and I meet and decide which city we're going to tromp through first.

This does not mean I'm entering the 2011 season particularly fit or fast. The cold and dark of this particularly severe winter has truly required that I undertake a fierce regimen of beer drinking and TV watching. I've discovered a lot of beer that I really like. November - December: Trippel (New Belgium). January: Knot Stock (Furthermore) February: Hopslam (Bell's). March: Furious (Surly) and Margaritas in Mexico. All of this while watching Mad Men ("The Suitcase" episode in Season 4; so good!), Breaking Bad (whatever lack of adrenaline I had in my life without racing, Walt made sure I had something rattling my nerves), and Seinfeld (Tim Whatley, so harmless compared to Walt). But, runners, the fumes of my college fitness have been gone for years, and as I approach my 30th year, this sedentary life/beer habit of mine is not making running any easier.

So, I've made some circuit resolutions: strength training (any amount will do!), long runs on Saturday, one workout per week, yoga on Sundays. I will need someone to push me out of my winter shuffle. And to pick up what is left of me after this first race on Sunday.