We flew into Phoenix for our cool-down race, just a mere 3 days after returning from Orlando. By the time we got home, we didn’t bother unpacking at all – in fact, while packing up in Orlando, we decided to pack for Phoenix since we were doing laundry anyways. What has become of my life?
I’ve finally hit elite status for Frontier Airlines, which means that I’m flying like a normal human being, except I’m paying Frontier Airlines prices. It’s awesome. I’ve grown accustomed to packing light anyways, but with all of the race and work traveling I’ll be doing, it’s nice to be able to have a small gym bag with me.
The nice thing about racing in Phoenix was the flat course, and of course, In-N-Out. The last time I had it was in Dallas (only a few months ago), but I decided to load up on it since it would be a long while until I was able to have it again.
We didn’t plan on buying much at the expo, but alas, it turned out that we needed more than anticipated. I was going to the Women’s March the following week and would need some supplies, and Erik needed something for his knee. We picked up a few items and high-tailed it out of there before we could do too much damage to our wallets. I had ordered a Timex watch on Amazon to arrive via locker nearby so that I could run via Galloway intervals, just to see if I could keep up my momentum from the Disney World Marathon.
The race itself went smoothly, and the intervals worked quite well. Training at elevation has really worked to my advantage, and those intervals are really a secret weapon, aren’t they?
I definitely performed better than expected. Being in Phoenix again reminded me a lot of my last race there. The last time I traveled there, I had learned of my friend’s passing and I PR’d because I was so upset at what had happened. I had also come off of a month of HIIT training. I guess it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what changed. Nonetheless, here is my change between my last formal (aka timed) half marathon:
10 minutes and 27 seconds. I’ll take it. It’s too bad that I can’t just double it for my marathon time, huh? Mile 13-26 is nothing like mile 0-13.
Nonetheless, it was a scenic route and I was really happy about my performance. I thought a lot about the races I had ahead of me and was excited about the upcoming year. I was fairly optimistic at what the year would bring. The last few weeks have definitely been difficult, and it’s taken a bit of effort for me to come around to even writing this recap entry. It almost seems silly, since this seems so unimportant compared to all of the other things that are going on. I do recognize that there must be some things that must remain constant in my life, though.
15 races around the US (and with one abroad) is no joke I suppose, so that is something worth looking forward to. It’s a privilege really, something that not everyone is in a position to afford or complete. I remember hearing about this challenge just a few years ago when I first moved to Seattle and thinking that it was crazy and so far out of reach…and now, here I am, doing it alongside Erik.
Despite our recent hardships with our families, we still have it pretty good. It’s been difficult getting myself out of the house to do the smallest tasks, but I know there’s a lot of people who depend on me, so nevertheless I do what every other woman before me has done…I get up and I do the things I’m supposed to do to the best of my ability, even if I don’t necessarily feel like it that day. And then I go to sleep hoping that the next day things are a little better.
Amara in Training 