183.4 Miles

I've been thinking about a New Year's resolution that I might actually keep and I decided I want to run 14 Half Marathons in 2014. This equals out to 183.4 miles which is my actual goal. 

I most likely won't be able to complete an actual Half Marathon each month but between training runs, Half's, 10K's, 5K's and virtual runs I know I can do it. 

What type of resolutions did you make?

Diva's Half Marathon SoCal

On Sunday, December 8, 2013 I ran the Diva’s Half Marathon – So Cal in Ontario, CA. 

I signed up for this race a long time ago and only paid $65, which is pretty good for a Half Marathon.

 

Packet pick-up was either the Friday or Saturday before the race.  The Expo or “Health & Fitness Boutique” as they called it was very small.  It was inside a tent behind the Convention Center.  We got there about an hour before it closed and had plenty of time.

Packet pick up was quick and easy.  We received our bib, shirt and an Emergen-C sample in a cute draw-string backpack. 

There was a back drop set up for photos with a few props. 

Our hotel was walking distance to the starting line, and the Half didn’t start until 7:30am, so we hit Ontario Mills Mall (the largest outlet mall west of the Mississippi) for dinner at Dave & Busters and a little shopping before heading back to the hotel.

This is my race outfit.  This was my first Half as a Half Fanatic!  I made the arm sleeves earlier in the week because I couldn’t find any I liked.

We were out the door at 6:45am and arrived at the starting line before 7:00am.  I snapped a few photos of people setting up the medals and champagne glasses at the finish line.  We also took pictures next to the starting line sign.

It was so cold while we waited to start!

At 7:15am I had a group photo with other Half Fanatics.

There were signs to line up by with your average pace but it wasn’t enforced.  I lined up by the 13 minute mile sign which was near the back. 

There were no wave starts so it was a little hard to get going at first but it wasn’t too bad.  If I had known I would have moved up toward the front more.

The course was pretty boring.  There were a few DJ’s and some cheerleaders but no other entertainment.  There were more than enough water and Gatorade stops along the route but no Cliff Shots; luckily I had brought my own.

I liked that the Mile Marker signs were girly.

Right before the finish line we received our hot pink feather boa and tiara.  There were 2 shirtless guys as well as other volunteers handing out the medals.  After receiving my medal I was given a rose and a plastic champagne glass, with a Diva’s Half Marathon sticker on it, of apple cider.  They were also passing out those silver space blankets.

We then continued to the finishers photos, which went pretty quick.  The food at the end was a small bag of dried cranberries, small bag of dried apricots, little pack of cookies, bananas, plain bagels and a bottle of water.  It would have been nice to have plastic bags available to put everything in. 

I didn’t see much of an after dance party going on, as advertised on the website.

Overall I think the race was a good value for the price I paid.  I like the extra little perks and the overall theme.  The medal is awesome too! 

For me, what made this race special was running with my fellow Half Fanatics.  The support I gave and received from people I had never met was great.

I figured this race woul sell out since it's the first time they have come to SoCal and since they said the cap was 6,500 people but less than 2000 participated. 

Did you run this race?  Let me know what you thought in the comments below.

 

KROGER SKILLET MEALS

I was given the opportunity to try Kroger Skillet Meals through Bzz Agent.

<img src="https://img.bzzagent.com/image/krogerSkillet.jpg?Type=activity&Activity=3647044256&Campaign=4400734910&Uid=283880&token=ff9ca69f35a73596114be09686e96af9" alt=""/>

I received coupons for free and discounted food.

I picked Chicken Florentine and a Caesar salad mix along with the garlic bread.

I tossed the skillet meal in a pan, covered it and let it cook for 10 minutes.

While it was cooking I popped the garlic bread in the oven and mixed the contents of the salad mix which included lettuce, cheese, croutons and dressing.

Pasta's done!

Dinner is served!

We all really enjoyed these items.  There was enough for 4 people to have good sized servings and dinner was done in less than 15 minutes!

Total cost would be under $10.00.

I will definitely be buying this items again. 

AV YMCA Turkey Trot

This morning I ran the Antelope Valley YMCA Turkey Trot. This is the 5th year they have been hosting this run and it gets bigger every year. 

I couldn't find a Thanksgiving shirt so I made my own. You can see how here

Packet pick up was last night at the Y. I was able to pick up my shirt and goodie bag but unfortunately they didn't have the bibs yet. 

The goodie bags were ok. 

The shirt is a cotton shirt. 

There are sponsers listed on the back. 

I got to the Y around 7:30 this morning and had to stand in line to get my bib. It took about 10 minutes. Timing was chipped so that was nice. 

They let people register this morning and due to an overwhelming amount of people not everyone got a chipped bib. 

After a few announcements we were off. We got started about 20 minutes late. 

We ran around the park and through a few neighborhoods. It was cold this morning!  I managed to finish in a decent time. 

Here's how my Nike app compared to their chip timing. 

After we finished we received a bottle of water and they had orange slices avaliable. 

Overall this was an enjoyable event that I look forward to each Thanksgiving. It's nice to see more and more people participating each year.

...DIY Thanksgiving Turkey Shirt

Tomorrow morning I’m running the Antelope Valley YMCA’s annual Turkey Trot.  I wanted a Thanksgiving shirt to wear but I couldn’t find one anywhere!  After looking up shirts online, and deciding I didn’t want to pay very much for a shirt I was just going to run a 5K in, I decided to make one my self.

 

This was my inspiration.

 

I purchased a few pieces of felt at Michael’s and got the shirt at Wal-Mart for $5.  

I used household items to cut out the head, and eyes.  The nose was just the corner of the felt square and the waddle I cut out free hand.

I used Aleene’s fabric glue to glue all the pieces together.  

After about an hour I glued the whole thing on to the shirt.

 

I just hope it stays together for the run!