Boston with Team Buddy

Saturday in Boston was a good time, though rainy. We finally got to sleep in, and of course, we went straight back to the expo again for another 4-ish hour stint looking at running gear!

Outside of the Boston Public Library

I also took this opportunity on Saturday to sign the "1 MORE MILE" banner sponsored by JetBlue.

Note my poor choice of wording (and now you get to play Where's Waldo). The "Go Steph!!" at the bottom is just a coincidence I didn't notice until now!

BAA Marathon logo on the JetBlue banner I never noticed during the race. Can you find my scrawling?

Also at the expo, Ben made it his job to casually mention that he manages and owns a running store. Do you know what happens when you do this? People want to give you free stuff! Not Brooks, Asics, Mizuno, New Balance, or the big names, but the smaller companies who are on the verge of making it. Expos and shows are a great way to get the word out about new products, and since we've never gone to Outdoor Retailer (tradeshow), we have very limited opportunities to see stuff like this.

Case in point: Our pal Craig, the self-proclaimed shoe geek (a title appropriate for him and then some), got some sweet new shoes the other day. No one really knows how he got them, but he made sure to show 'em off to the world on Facebook. They certainly had a table at the expo, but to put it in perspective, it was probably a 8' x 8' square area set up for a table, chairs, and all the product they wanted to bring. Because of Craig, we gave them a spin. Ben's timing was perfect. Just as I was getting ready to take the shoes off, the guy who was helping me - who just so happens to be the company designer and owner (?) - asked if I "would please accept these shoes as a trial pair" to determine if I like them and offer my feedback. Heck yes I will!

Apparently at the time I got these shoes, Altra shoes had only been available to purchase for 3.5 weeks. In other words, this company is brand new and Craig was one of the very very very first people to own 'em. I never realized how much of a trendsetter he is until this point!  And we just couldn't resist re-posting a similar photo to Craig's on the Book.

If you're wondering why they look so "ducky," (wide in the forefoot), Altra shoes are zero drop, natural running footwear. It's like wearing the Five Fingers without the blisters! Hallelujah!

As if the day wasn't already awesome from getting a free pair of shoes (Sorry Ben, there was too much demand on the men's side for you to nab a free pair), we then stopped by Zensah. They make all sorts of cool stuff, like calf sleeves, compression socks, tanks, and sports bras. Ben scored some calf sleeves for himself and a sportsbra for me-- which we've both been meaning and wanting to try out anyway. Despite the obvious Photoshop color replacement on the photo, it looks something like:

I might be in the slim minority, but I like the "rubber band" sportsbras. They're so unpopular that they're somewhat hard to come by (good ones, at least)! This one has major potential because you can get it in about 12 different - fun - colors. The sizing's weird, since you can only select 2 sizes: Small-medium and large-XL. The band on the small-medium she gave me is inches larger than my current ones. Once they figure out their sizing, I'll be a fan. Right now, I'm confining mine for yoga, lifting, and cycling. I'll have to stick to the boring grey NB ones for now... See? If it wasn't for this experience at the expo, Ben might've placed an order for 500 yellow sports bras that were too loose!

Fast forward a little bit and lots of walking and train-riding, and we met up with Thom, his girlfriend Alicia, and Shiva and Jenny at a Cambodian restaurant in Cambridge called Elephant Walk. Dinner was great -- My appetizer was some kind of bread that you dip in meat sauce the resembles beef stew. I now am only just starting to understand what it's like now to be a vegetarian... Ben and I were the only meat eaters in the group! Everything there was really good, highly recommend.

Earlier, Ben noticed an ad link at the bottom of the screen on Google Maps when we went to figure out how to catch a train there. It ended being an add for  restaurant.com, a deal site where you can purchase gift certificates/vouchers for half off. Example: We bought a $50 voucher for $25 paid upfront to the website. I've seen and heard of people using it before, and it was pretty cool that the place where we ate was a part of the program. What's better, I know that they discount the voucher cost even further, so with a coupon code we Googled, we got a $50 for TEN BUCKS. The catch: there's a minimum purchase requirement, usually double the voucher amount. In this case, the min purchase was $100. No problem with 6 people. Actually, by the time all was said and done, our meals together cost $70. So... $70 - $50 cert = $20 + $15 tip = $35. and we walked out the door paying $35. Thanks to the rest of the gang for helping us get the bill to a hundo!! I'm pretty sure we got an $85 dinner for 45 bucks - win! Yeah, sometimes saving money makes me giddy. ;)

After we got back to Cambridge, we decided to hit up the Cambridge Brewing Company (very much like Upland) for some drinks while we waited for Ted to get in. It was a good find! And we would end up there again anyway... Ted never showed, so when it got late enough, the six of us headed back to the hotel.

We hustled from the restaurant to the T, from the T to our hotel. It rained hard and it rained cold, and none of us were smart enough to bring an umbrella. Ted didn't get into Boston until REALLY late, because of all the nasty weather in and around Newark. When he rolled in around midnight, he shared some of his airplane stories with us... the kind that make you really freaked out about flying. Enough on that. 

Now, with Ted, Shiva, Ben, and Thom all in one place, Team Buddy was finally back together!

ps- Andrea pointed out that I didn't tell you which shirt I chose at the expo! I got the purple one with the names of the towns on it. Like??

ps part deux - The Boston Marathon is an Adidas branded event, but New Balance is based in Boston. A NB employee we know says that the company does so much for the city that they get a free pass each year to advertise nearly everywhere (like in the train stations, ON the trains, billboards, the outsides of trains, bus stops, ON the buses, you name it), for any 6 days out of the year. Which days do they choose? The days before, of, and after Boston! If you didn't know any better, you'd have thought NB had a hand in the marathon itself too--- Genius. Pssh, they walk around like they own this place. 

The view while waiting for the New Balance -wrapped train

to pull up and take us to the expo

Family Photo - Spring 2011

I was dead set on writing more about our Boston trip, but this was too good to pass up.

For my mom's birthday my sister and I went halfsies on a really awesome gift (which I will not mention here until after her birthday). Rather than a typical Hallmark card, we decided it'd be more fun to take a family photo and send instead. When we're home in Cleveland for Christmas or to visit, we usually spend our days scrubbing around in sweatpants and sweatshirts, so this should go to prove that we "clean up good"! This was taken right before we left for Easter dinner. Todd was surprisingly very well-behaved! It only took us 5 or 6 shots to get this together. The play-by-play:

1) Are we centered?   ...Good boy, Todd...

2) Then Ben chopped off his head with super-zoom.

3) "Is our house crooked? Our house is crooked!" (It actually is somewhat crooked to Ben's chagrin)

4) "Ok, now I wanna hold him!"

5) Now, I want to hold you! ...Todd, quit squirming!

Here is the final product, with a little Photoshop magic to remove the ceiling fan reflection -- and fix our crooked house!

Everyone throws out the cards people send 'em. Maybe this year our "card" will motivate my mom not to pitch me. ;)

Boston With Ben

The entire theme for Boston Marathon 2011 was "Boston With" -- using Boston as a verb. Example: "Boston With Pride," or "Boston With Love," or "Boston with Chris and Steve." So this series of Boston trip posts will also be Boston With. We've been waiting for a few years to visit and enjoy Boston together, and it finally came!
If we didn't mention it, we timed the Little Fifty on Thursday night, and probably didn't get to sleep until 1am, when all was packed up and final results were sent in. It was already a long week by the time we even got to our vacation!

Friday
We peeled ourselves out of our bed, fresh off of our 3.5-hour "nap," and headed up to the Indy airport for our 6:45am flight. Whew! Despite an hour-long delay in Baltimore, we were in Boston, at our hotel by 1pm. The hotel was pretty awesome -- the front desk employee not only upgraded our room to a 1BR for $20/night, but also got us a slightly better view and a rollaway bed, eliminating the need for two expensive Boston hotel rooms. We did it college style and crammed all 5 of us in a 1-bedroom suite. Shiva, Jenny, and Ted didn't arrive until Saturday, so we had all day Friday to hang out. [About glasses -- I probably scratched my cornea, so it was very uncomfortable to wear contacts! Note to self: don't do that again.]

Tired, but excited to finally be in Boston!

Ben and I met up with Thom near the T station and headed to the marathon expo after getting some lunch. We walked through the Boston Common to get to the Hynes Convention Center for the expo, and everything was in bloom! The temperature was still pretty cool and slightly chilly, making us both wish we'd packed a little warmer. It was still beautiful.

The expo was AWESOME as usual! The bib and packet pick-up process was organized down to a science, and this is where we found that our official race shirt (the free one you get for registering) is yellow. Like an obnoxious yellow! On the other hand, Adidas makes their own Boston gear each year with different colors. This year, the 2011 Boston Marathon colors were black and green. On Friday we spent about $185 in Boston gear. I got my jacket and a cool New Balance shirt, while Ben got a nice pint glass with the marathon logo on it. Most of the big companies -- Brooks, Asics, Adidas, Nike, New Balance, Saucony, North Face, Mizuno, etc. etc. design and print their own graphic tees and gear for the event. I must've labored over the decision between these two t-shirts (below) for at least a 20 minutes, while Ben waited patiently. The Brooks fitting rooms were actually pretty creative - when you try on apparel, their expo fitting room is a gutted port-a-potty!

The expo itself is too large for words. Picture the marathon expo in Chicago or in Indy and multiply it by ten. Things you can get at the expo: Free Pom juice (full size!) & coupons; Larabars; Bolthouse farms and Naked juice samples; organic cookies; Minute Rice samples; unlimited and various sample flavors of Clif Shot Bloks, Powerbars, Gatorade; Kinesiotape (and they would tape you); a New Balance video analysis of your gait (including tips for natural running); Boston posters (hung one up at the store); and all sorts of pain relievers and wraps. It was amazing. I didn't eat lunch some days because I knew I could fill up at the expo.

Photos from the expo... As easy as you'd think it would be to take a picture in front of a fixture, it was NOT! Friday wasn't AS bad, but during the rest of the weekend there were so many people it was nearly impossible to walk in some areas, let alone wait for the walkway to clear and nab a photo. We were extremely glad we went to scope out the expo on Friday, when it was mostly locals. Unlike Saturday/Sunday, we never felt rushed or like we were caught in a crowd the entire 5 hours we were there.



Here's another: "Boston with Tradition."

Even after 5 hours, we didn't feel like we'd seen everything we wanted at the expo! Hence the Saturday madness.

During the evening, Ben and I had dinner with Nick Shah and Rick Fineman, two of the managers I work with. The company's home office is in Boston, and when I ran into Rick in Chicago a few weeks ago, we thought it'd be nice to grab dinner at a nice local joint he could show us. We had Thai at a restaurant called House of Siam, in the South End. What a cute area! If it wasn't so cold (32 degrees), it would've been fun to take our time and wander around to see all of the boutique shops, eateries, and restaurants in this high-end neighborhood. Thai food was good - we had some soup that was very lime-flavored, and it was great (wish I could remember the name)! Even picky-eater Ben went home feeling full. It was cool to get to know Nick and Rick outside of work, because it's easy to forget we're not all working stiffs! They had some good stories.  :)

That was the end of Friday.
Happy and fed, we nestled snug in our hotel bed, as visions of Boston and running gear danced through our heads...

People Know Me (Part 1)

"...I'm kind of a big deal."  -Ron Burgundy, Anchorman

Before I post the Boston trip recap, check out one of the publications that came out right before our little vacation. It's an article in the Running Times, a magazine by Rodale (publisher of Runner's World), which focuses more on the athletes, elites, real training, and apparently more serious-runner stuff. Not for the faint of heart or super beginner, says Ben. It's not always an easy read - definitely aimed at the running geek junkie audience that RW just can't satisfy.

A few months ago, I gave a few interviews to Laura Allen, a journalism student at Ball State. She was able to pitch a piece for RT about NIRCA and collegiate club competition! She asked me how NIRCA started, what competition used to be like, what challenges we face, etc. Right before our Boston trip, I started getting facebook messages and emails about how they saw the NIRCA article. While I'm completely embarrassed at the only quote I have in there (I gave her a lot of background/non-quote info. Whew), how great is it that a) NIRCA and I made it into the mag and b) NIRCA gets some big-time press?? I've already seen some emails roll in after people read the article... they're college runners who want to start a club now, or ones who want to know more about how they can get involved. This is huge!

I still remember being on the small OSU team we could scrounge up for the roadtrip, enjoying the warm day at the Muncie course after the race [How'd I do? I led for 2 miles and then finished 5th after I took a few people the wrong way on the course. Go me]. I remember Bryan Beightol standing on the back of his old truck giving out awards at the first-ever intercollegiate meet, before NIRCA even existed. Look how far we've come! Good thing she didn't mention all of the other acronyms NIRCA could've been... NCCCA? NCRCA? Yep, that almost happened!

I hadn't been able to get my hands on a copy of the May issue until we got to Boston. It was actually pretty cool to be at the Boston Marathon expo, flipping through a magazine at one of the booths to find an article about us! (or, to find my name in their magazine!)

So if you can't get to a RT, check out the scanned article here. (sorry for the poor photo quality). Click on the photos for a larger/zoomed/downloadable view.

Enjoy!

ps: You might've noticed that this is Part 1 (technically 2 if you count the earlier HT feature of Boston Marathoners).... 'cause there is more Steph Bartley in the news!

Holy Heartbreak!

You guys, it's almost time for Boston!

Besides accidentally cancelling our hotel rooms, it's all been been smooth sailing. All of the Boston Qualifiers were featured in the Herald Times last week! If you didn't see it, here's the spread:

Yay Mag 7! Thanks!!


And as more of a sidenote, below is my "vintage" post-battle photo from Boston 2008. My dad took this obligatory photo at the hotel right after I'd finished and gotten cleaned up (for some reason now I'm thankful he did). That year was pretty warm and sunny, and I got sunburned on the right side of my body during the race, 'cause it's a point-to-point route! To this day, also, I still have no idea where Heartbreak Hill is. (And if you run with me in Btown, I don't care to see or know any more about it!)

Boston 2008 was my second marathon, the second one in a single season. For several reasons, finishing the marathon was the end of a really awful week - the type that is so draining and horrible that your brain just blocks the whole thing out. [Eek, I still get a knot in my stomach just thinking about it.] Don't I look.... exhausted?! But here I am, relieved to see my parents, and proudly wearing my finisher's medal & new Boston Marathon shirt, which eventually became my new favorite t-shirt.

I'm really looking forward to spending Boston time with Ben, Ted, Shiva, Jenny, and Thom... It's already going to be loads better than the first!

ps: You can track us on race day. Ben is bib #558 and I'm #6880. And go here to sign up for the Athlete Alert so you can get texts as we cross each checkpoint.

ps again: Just dug this one up too! 

2011 IU Mini Race Report

IU Mini Race Recap

The IU Mini was a crazy week all around. Ben and I were event managers as well as NIRCA Event Directors, and we also ran. Ben did the 5k and I ran the mini. Talk about triple duty!!

The IU Mini was mostly a last-minute thing. In fact, Ben signed me up (without my knowing) on Thursday evening, with the intention that I'd run more to get in a long pace run for Boston. It kinda worked, but we had  NIRCA stuff to take care of too. I was bib 998, and fortunately, Ben made sure I got my even number.

On race morning, Shiva, Rick, Chris, and I ran a short half mile warmup, and then stepped up to the line. It didn't take long to cross the start line, and the first two miles were a battle - as always! I loved the way the NIRCA start line and crowd got slowly absorbed into the general public race... it was awesome!! You could see the line of NIRCA college club runners slowly making their way toward our path. I ran with three club runners, two Loyola and a Central Michigan, up until the 5k mark. After that I slowed down somewhat, but kept pace with another pack nearby, who ended up being the Ohio State club. (I knew I'd recognized them from somewhere... Ben and I ran with them on the OSU campus in January.) After a while, I let them go around the Winslow hell-hill and eased it back in to the finish. I might've been able to run faster if I was racing racing, but I think I remember talking and holding conversations with people around me the entire race. 

These are Emily G's photos below. She is hilarious! Here's attempt #1 at getting a shot of me:

Left to Right: Michelle, other Loyola runner, (me), and Scott

And finally attempt #2:

And speaking of, I know a lot of people hated the hills on the course, but it was kind of cool knowing that Ben designed the course and that over 1,000 people were running on this path that he'd created. It's the same thing for NIRCA XC -- it's so weird that 1,000 people traveled to Btown this past Fall because of an event that I planned. Awesome feeling! In my case though, unlike Ben, I don't have several training group people shaking their fists while ascending the hill, angrily yelling, "Bartley!!!" as they realize who is ultimately responsible for their pain. :)

Moving on, I finally caught up with Alex around the YMCA, and we ran together for a while in his manic-paced running! He'd go fast then slow then fast then slow, and finally I couldn't take it anymore and dropped back, ha. At that point, I caught up with the CMU runner I had let go at the 5k mark, Scott, and tried to pull him along to the finish as we ran out of Wylie Farms. It worked for probably 1.5 miles, but when we crossed Indiana and Kirkwood he told me to keep going as he stopped to stretch. This was his first half marathon ever!!! [Hopefully Ben's course didn't ruin him of this distance for life.] As I crossed 10th Street, there was literally an old man in an electric chair, riding down the middle of the road, just as if he'd been "running" in this race all along. And the sad part was, I was having trouble catching him! Anyway, I muttered something to the cop at 10th about "How is this chair going so fast??" and got a little chuckle. Fast forward a few more blocks and a little more climb, and I finally got to the last turn back onto 17th. How cruel was it that the finish line was only right after yet another uphill? All of my race photos from Brightroom feature me with a completed pained and strained look on my face, the one that has been compared to more of a constipated expression. Observe below...

I was glad to have finished in 1:36ish without an excessive amount of leg pain, given all of the hills, but then was a little disappointed with my time (hey, I'm only just being honest) when I realized that the difference between a flat and this course was probably only 5 minutes. So once again, I didn't break 1:30, even though I know I've got it in me. Ben yelled at me a little for being disappointed because I wasn't even focused. And talked. So maybe that's true, which is why I love him. He totally keeps me in check!

The first-ever NIRCA Half Marathon National Championship race went extremely well, and we gave out some awesome-looking awards. A total of ~120 NIRCA runners competed. Then, we enjoyed some Chipotle burritos, sweet tea, and Jimmy John's sandwiches during the race clean-up. All in all, a great day!!

The Apocalypse

Today we ran 16 on the Rail Trail with Ted, Magnus, Ben, and Chris, with the intention of going 18. The extra 2 didn't quite happen because it rained SO hard we all felt like we had peed our pants. Actually, we discussed that we probably could have peed our pants and no one would have noticed.  :) In all seriousness though, we ran through a thunderstorm with lightning bolts all around us - it was kind of scary/cool! We probably should've been listening for tornado sirens or something, because it got scary dark. When the guys said that they imagined the apocalypse to be like what we experienced this morning, all I could think about for the next 2 miles was the SNL Aflockalypse Apocafish skit:

But I digress. This run was our last-ditch effort to try to feel ready for Boston. Boston. Goal: finish. Today's run gets me completely frustrated. How have I never completed a marathon - of 7 so far - without being injured? After all of the doctor's visits I've had in the past few months, they've come full circle; the injuries I went in for initially are now back (with some other bonus injuries) and nothing's really improved. Ugh!!! I'm pretty much at wit's end.

On the other hand, I was able to get a good number of miles in this week (not without pain). Since I was traveling, the hotel treadmill seems to be pretty friendly on the leg, possibly because it forced me to run a certain way. I haven't noticed much difference on a soft vs. hard surface. And, in all of these runs, despite all of the junk, beer, and Chipotle I've consumed this week, every run felt good! Sure, my legs were tired, but even on workout days, I somehow managed to pull it out. For that, I'm proud of myself! And point number 2: because of the time difference in Chicago, it was easier to trick myself into waking up early, like at 5am, to hit the gym. However, you'll never find me willingly waking up even at 6am in Eastern time. It just doesn't work!

April so far:



The other good thing about this week was that I got to run with one of the managers at the Midwest Region meeting on Tuesday morning.  Let's see... he would be my manager's manager, except for he presides over a different operating group---- i.e., no reason to brown-nose, even if I was that type, ha!! Besides that, he might be my hero because he has finished 4 Ironmans and he travels pretty much all the time. If you think I travel a lot, he lives in New Jersey and his office is technically in Chicago. We talked about how he had time to train and stay in shape, especially with hotel constraints, workout equipment, and just being on the road. Remember? That was my huge dilemma with this job - and he's got the same one times a million! He shared a book with me, called "Be Iron Fit" (author: Don Fink) that emphasizes time-efficient training for busy people, which includes lots of training plans, depending on your distance and goal. Rich is also awesome because his wife does Ironmans too! Apparently she's a 3:10 marathoner and trains with some pro triathlete women... not bad for a couple from the Jersey Shore. Here's the book:

So, it's good to be back home after a solid work week away, and the next time I travel, it's going to be to battle at Beantown.